The shockwave from Kazi's golden light registered like a seismic event across every Aquilan's Wall.
Emperor Istrian stood at the center the war room, his webbed fingers splayed over a glowing projection of the eastern seabed. The disturbance had originated near the Blackfang Cliffs—a region too close to their borders for comfort. Around him, his advisors and scientists clamored with reports, their gills flaring in agitation.
Aquil Vey, Aquilanor's chief energy analyst, swam forward, her bioluminescent tattoos flaring as she adjusted her datapad. "Your Majesty, the energy signature matches the surge from two weeks ago—the one that enhanced our crops and warriors. But this was ten times more concentrated." She zoomed in on the hologram, where a golden ripple distorted the water currents. "It's destabilizing the thermocline layers. If this continues, it could trigger underwater quakes."
General Orvex, commander of the elite Depthstriders, bared his sharp teeth. "The epicenter is near Blackfang Cliffs. Shall I dispatch scouts?"
Istrian's eyes narrowed. Something about the location tugged at his memory. Blackfang Cliffs—where the Lycaros' betrothed heir was last seen. "Send the Silent Tide Unit. I want no trace of their presence."
A younger scientist, Kael, hesitated. "The Veyrathian drones are still patrolling our borders. If they detect our movements—"
"Let them try," Istrian interrupted, his voice echoing through the chamber. "If Orion's machines interfere, sink them."
Outside the command center, the aquatic city of Suyar's Embrace buzzed with panic. News of the shockwave had spread through the bioluminescent news networks, their jellyfish-like reporters projecting bulletins into the water:
"UNPRECEDENTED ENERGY SURGE! IS AQUILANOR UNDER ATTACK?"
A crowd had gathered around the imperial plaza, their voices a chorus of clicks and sonar pulses. Reporter Delvia, her frilled fins fluttering with excitement, thrust a recording crystal toward Istrian as he emerged. "Your Majesty! Citizens demand answers! Is this related to Veyrath's aggression?"
Istrian's smile was razor-thin. "Our borders are secure. This was an external event—one we are investigating." He paused, letting the implied threat hang. "But let me be clear: Aquilanor does not fear shadows in the deep."
The emergency alert shattered the quiet hum of Veyrath's Forge. Orion Valmar looked up from his holographic schematics as crimson lights pulsed across the control room. Before he could demand an explanation, his son Cedric burst through the sliding doors, tactical visor flickering with incoming data streams.
"Father," Cedric said, his usually calm voice tight with urgency. "We've got multiple anomalies along the eastern seaboard."
Orion waved a hand, summoning the reports to the central display. The hologram bloomed to life, showing four distinct event markers pulsing along the coastline.
First Report: Seismic Anomaly
The underwater sensors told the story first—a massive energy discharge near Blackfang Cliffs. The waveform scrolled across the screen in jagged golden spikes.
"That's no earthquake," Orion murmured, fingers tracing the erratic patterns. The signature matched the strange light from weeks earlier, but this time it was concentrated—violent. The sea itself had trembled.
Dr. Elara Voss adjusted her glasses as bio-scans overlaid the data. "The water displacement suggests an explosive force, but there's no residue of conventional explosives. It's... clean."
Second Report: Aquilanor Mobilizes
Thermal imaging showed sleek, bioluminescent shapes cutting through the depths at impossible speeds. Emperor Istrian's elite warriors, moving with purpose toward the disturbance.
"They're converging on the epicenter," Cedric observed, then frowned. "Wait—they're stopping. No... they're retreating?"
The Aquilanor forces had reached the shockwave's origin point, only to turn back moments later. Orion's brow furrowed. Whatever they'd found—or hadn't—was significant enough to send Aquilanor's best warriors home empty-handed.
Third Report: Village in Flames
The aerial drones told a grimmer tale. Blackfang Village—burned. Not the orderly destruction of military engagement, but the chaotic aftermath of a massacre.
Cedric zoomed in on the thermal signatures. "Two distinct forces clashed here. The attackers wore no insignia, but their formation is textbook Ruzanite spec ops." He highlighted a fallen soldier's blade. "And that's palace-forged steel."
Fourth Report: Lycaros Retaliation
The final images showed the aftermath. Lycaros warriors—their fur cloaks singed, their weapons bloody—moving through the ruins. They'd arrived too late to save the village, but in time to slaughter Ruzan's disguised assassins.
Orion leaned back, steepling his fingers. The pieces were there, but the picture made no sense. Why would Ruzan risk open war by attacking a village? What had drawn Aquilanor's forces so urgently? And what connected it all to that shockwave?
"Send in the Storm Ravens," Orion decided. "I want that village scoured. Every scrap of evidence, every survivor interviewed."
Cedric nodded. "And if we encounter Lycaros forces?"
"Observe and evade," Orion said. "This isn't their doing. They're as much victims here as anyone."
---
The Storm Ravens found Blackfang still smoldering. Captain Malcolm stepped over a charred Lycaros war horn, his boots crunching on broken arrows. His squad fanned out, scanners pinging as they catalogued the destruction.
"Over here!" called Lieutenant Aiden.
Malcolm found her kneeling beside the village's last survivor—an old hunter pinned under collapsed beams. His breath came in wet, ragged gasps.
Aiden pressed a med-gel to the man's chest. "Who did this?" she asked.
The hunter's lips moved soundlessly. Malcolm leaned closer.
"...the boy..." the man whispered. Then his chest stilled.
Malcolm straightened, exchanging a look with Aiden. "What does he mean by 'the boy'?"
The report landed on Orion's desk with damning clarity. Ruzan's assassins. A Lycaros massacre. A mysterious "boy" at the center of it all. And now, Aquilanor's sudden interest in the same stretch of coast.
Orion stared at the hologram, where the energy waveforms still pulsed faintly, his mind racing with questions.