After bidding farewell to Coral, Asahi and Brooke climbed the stairs from the sunken ruins, returning to where they came. The blue light filtered the sunlight, reaching ever closer to the depths.
As they were swimming, they passed sunken buildings and rose to the surface of Coral City, seeing all types of merfolk gliding around. The sunlight just barely skimmed, casting its shadow onto the sand and the ribbons of water.
Yet not one person, other than Brooke, got more attention than the two-legged man, Asahi, who had swam all this way to find Primrose. And to each his own, he decided to enter the plaza, where all merfolk stared at him in awe.
"A human? In these depths? Very uncommon." One said.
"Very unusual. That white-haired boy has no fins." Another called out.
Their colorful eyes stared at his legs, envying them despite having an underwater city to call their own.
Asahi tried his best to move to the currents. But continuously, more and more merfolk blocked his way, in awe and envy of the legs they didn't have.
"A human?!"
"Why is a human here?"
Brooke immediately grabbed him and swam down the stairs leading to a slope.
"Keep your hands off!"
On the giant tablet, Brooke pressed a button, and soon four hatches opened, revealing a mighty wind. Four strands pushed out from the hatches, pointing in one direction, stretching and expanding the further they went. Although many of the merfolk backed off from Asahi, a tall merman with a muscular build, clutched hold of the trident, treating it as a lever.
"These are the Wise Currents, powerful forces of nature that universally connect the ocean in Gincad. When used once, you may never return. A risky situation, if any. And even if you were to return, that current will be severed so that no sea creatures follow you and invade Coral City."
He slammed the trident down, rippling with waves.
"Alright, Asahi, where do we begin?"
Throughout all this time, Asahi kept a record of the directions he could go.
The first current came from the left hatch, pushing upward near the watery surface. This wind would lead to the coral-infested forest, Swallower's Reef.
From there, the second current emerged, pointing northward, with several windy vortexes of water appearing within the stream. This choice couldn't have been more evident to Asahi. This current leads to Vortex Valley.
And lastly, the stream leading down into the deepest depths, shrouded in a frosty mist. It seemed way too deep, even to realize, covered in submerged trees and brutal cliffs, then a lake.
"Puddler's Pond," Brooke said, scratching her back in uncertainty. "You want to go there first? Are you sure?"
Asahi shook his head, keeping in consideration how long his water-breathing potion lasts. Right now, an hour had passed for him, leading him to choose swiftly between three directions.
"Swallowers Reef, Vortex Valley, and Puddler's Pond..."
After considering, he decided to move leftward, solidifying his choice.
"Phantoms." The man said as he moved the trident to the left. "Be careful of phantoms. They can mess with your minds and may force you to stay there until the end of your days. It's better just NOT to get caught. Or else something more horrific will emerge. We will sever this connection once you return."
Asahi then pointed to the center. The man continued.
"Mechanized whales from Wraileza reside within those depths. Toxic gas may fly from their mouths and—
"Nope," Asahi said with his mouth sealed. He turned to the right.
"Then you may face frost demons—
"Even worse!" Asahi exclaimed as he slowly stepped toward the left.
"Then it is decided." The man shoved the trident to the left, keeping a focused gaze on Asahi. He must realize what he was working for. Not fame, nor glory, but for Primrose, the angel that saved him when he was at his worst. "You shall enter Swallowers Reef. Good luck. And if you two do return, we will give you access to the two other currents. For whatever reason that remains unknown, we wish you luck."
Afterward, Asahi and Brooke entered the left current, and before they could wave goodbye, they were immediately thrust into the stream, taking them straight to Swallower's Reef.
. . .
Coral scraped the watery ceiling. Fish of all colors swam back and forth, following the giant crabs crawling all over the place. The current rushed through submerged trees before reaching a cluster of coral. The shallow currents and the distinct motions made it apparent to Asahi. This... was swallowers reef.
"Take me back to the cursed shores." A voice muttered as a formless entity emerged from the wooden houses sunken into the depths. "Where none will see me no more."
The closer they were, the greater the sight was. Pirate Ships and carrier ships rested at the deepest trench in Swallowers Reef, swallowing any above-water objects, which made the name of the place clear.
These structures stood on a gigantic sandbar, with giant coral reefs covering the underwater valley. And finally, formless spirits resided in the sand, wandering without any remote purpose.
"Oh, original rulers of the world, make your fated return and part the false sea."
"Return to the lands of promises and wishes!"
"How long must we wait?"
Following these voices, phantoms appeared, reeling ever closer to Asahi. Reaching their arms and their heart, these were, without doubt, the phantoms the merman spoke of before.
"Wow," Asahi said, eyes sparkling with fascination and awe. "Is this real? Can they remember me?"
"Don't!" Suddenly, a monster clenched its maw, swallowing the phantoms that invaded it.
"It's a trap!" Brooke said, grabbing Asahi's wrist and swimming away from the approaching phantoms.
"Why? They're my people!"
"Yes, people in the past. You can't save them."
Asahi clenched his fists, turning away from Brooke and approaching the phantoms. They had very slim bodies, with dropping arms and curved edges covered in a light teal. Bubbles surrounded them, giving Asahi more seconds left to breathe underwater. But other than that, that was all the phantom could do. That and just talk to him.
"My people, you're here!"
Illusions.
All of these were illusions.
And Asahi knew them well. He yearned to reminisce with his fellow people. And though his wish did come true, it was all a trap, to keep him there... forever. Without any thought, Brooke clutched hold of Asahi and swam from the phantoms, dodging coral walls and rocky spikes. A purple glow emerged from the corridor of coral, with lasers tracing on dead corpses long passed. Asahi and Brooke caught their breath and hid behind, hearing voices call out.
"Hear ye, the harmony of the sunken sea."
This journey underwater never felt as expansive to Asahi as it should have been. He would just have to save Primrose and escape. But fate had other plans. Without any question, the beautiful mermaid, Brooke, conjured up a sunken spell, covering Asahi and her in a piercing gold-teal luminance. Her hands were covered in markings, climbing down her thighs. This power... doesn't seem like the power Asahi grew familiar with. When he neared Brooke, he felt the ocean's heartbeat. What was this power? Asahi asked as he saw the scuba diver move.
"Quick, they find us! Let the phantoms do their job."
And then, Asahi and Brooke darted into the submerged house, hiding behind a wall torn by the mercy of the ocean. A chest containing valuable items, such as amulets and books, was discovered in Asahi's hands. Food, instruments, all the stuff one wanted in life.;
But nothing matched the treasure chest they were seeking.
If anything, they had to seek deeper.
Once the purple laser passed through, the dark scuba diver left, into the floating abyss of the ethereal sunken ruins. Then, Asahi and Brooke made their maneuver, swimming down into the ravine, seeing several ships sunk and crashed into the bottomless watery abyss below. Though much coral seemed to be seen, not one sight of treasure came by.
At first, they tried to ask phantoms. But the result...
"I am sorry, I don't know any treasure around here." A phantom, with long silky hair and pale blue eyes, said as Asahi walked on the ground as if he were on the moon.
"My deepest apologies, I can not contact beings outside my time."
"Are you serious?" Asahi mumbled.
"Whatever the case, I've heard my ship has petty valuables!"
Asahi started to get annoyed by the 'help' of the phantoms. These phantoms belonged to the several sunken ships, metaphorically speaking, the water swallowing them up. Hence the name, Swallower's Reef. As they begin to discover all the sunken treasures one could ask for, Asahi left all but one book behind, The Legend of the Gargantuan Mermaid.
"We're almost there, I can feel it."
Golden glitter shimmered with several treasure chests sunk and blocked by a brown wall.
A silence fell in between, and black mist enveloped the shipwrecks. A voice then arose from before the smoke.
"Master says no human belongs to the sea."
This hadn't matched the ethereal aura of the phantoms, but rather, a voice more daring and sinister.
"But only himself."
Suddenly, a purple laser shot forth, pushing Brooke off the shallow sand bar. Asahi's eyes widened, and he turned to his right, seeing a scuba diver with black and purple lights gathering with several phantoms.
"With the might of the phantoms, The Collector and I shall rewrite the history of this ocean and bring forth a calamity that needs no fruition."
Everything got sucked into the canister of the being. He had two golden stars perched on his collar, and as he clapped his hands, several more devices appeared on his shoulder, shooting all sea creatures and everything that moved.
"Those monsters master says come from a time where none belong." He crushed the glittering pearl and slammed all the treasure into the sunken blue. "All deceased from the Second Incarnation of the world all falling into one location."
"BROOKE!"
With one clap, the ocean itself felt disturbed. Tremors fell in their wake. This was not how this adventure was supposed to go. Brooke now lost to the waves of the deep, Asahi overtaken by phantoms, and this 'follower' of the more prominent figure, The Collector, unleashed chaos, unfolding on every center, close to his own power, robbing the treasure away.
This underwater misadventure... was far from the end.