[center][img]https://fontmeme.com/permalink/190821/a81e055e4e790c51b8f7e02018220f48.png[/img][/center] [INDENT][INDENT][sub][hr][/sub][COLOR=teal][indent][sub][B]Location:[/B] [COLOR=#BFD7D7][I]Poseidonis, The Kingdom of Atlantis -- Several Weeks Ago[/I][/COLOR][/sub][/indent][/color][sub][hr][/sub] [INDENT][color=gray]The Observatory of Science was quiet. [color=BA905F]“Gods. They’ve found it.”[/color] The King of Atlantis was the first one to break the silence, his eyes looking over the footage. It only confirmed his first and principal fear; the fear that the surface world finding something they should not have. His brows narrowed as he looked back at Vulko, his blue eyes pale as a white anemone. When he arrived in Atlantis several decades ago, he had been met with distrust and hatred. It didn’t surprise him, considering he was a castaway—a mistake. But in the shadow of it all, Vulko taught him what it meant to be a child of Atlantis. One of those important things he learned from the old man was what dangers lurked within the ocean floor. And in the shadow of his rule in the present humankind had somehow found one of the “sleeping titans” that Vulko had spoken of. If the stories were to be believed, it was the single most powerful titan that had survived the ascension of the Olympians. A creature that up to this point in time had been [i]sleeping[/i] since the middle ages. With something that dangerous lying around, Arthur wasn’t exactly a man who wanted to have that change. Especially not if everything Vulko had told him over the last forty-or-so years was true. [color=white]“And now you see the threat.”[/color] Vulko spoke as he moved next to Arthur, looking at the radar with him. [color=BA905F]“Yeah. Well, between everyone upstairs trying to kill the planet and V’lana’s uprising, I’ve had my hands full.”[/color] [color=white]“Well, while you have had your hands full.”[/color] Vulko gestured to another monitor in the observatory. [color=white]“I have been hoping to ensure the world does not become consumed by pandora.”[/color] Pandora. In Vulko-speak this meant “the end of the world”. It wasn’t a literal concern of the mythological figure, as Arthur had realized after decades of working alongside Vulko, but more of a figurative turn of phrase. It was also Vulko being melodramatic, or well, as melodramatic as someone who was concerned about the world could be. [color=BA905F]“Have you sent anyone to check it out?”[/color] [color=white]“By Zeus, do you think after all this time I would have sat on my thumbs, waiting for you to ask me to investigate?”[/color] Arthur placed a hand on Vulko's shoulder. [color=BA905F]“Vulko, calm down. What did they say?”[/color] [color=white]“That’s just the thing, my king. They [i]didn’t.[/i]”[/color] The screen shifted in front of the two. [color=white]“No report. Dead air, as the surface-dwellers would call it.”[/color] [color=BA905F]“I guess I should go see what’s going on, then. God knows what trouble is brewing there, but you know, I'm [b][i]Aquaman[/i][/b]. It's my job to go deal with trouble.”[/color] [color=white]“My king, if that creature is awakened—”[/color] [color=BA905F]“—Vulko, I know. I’ve been doing this for a while now. This isn’t my first rodeo. If something bad happens, you need to deal with what comes next. Make sure Mareena’s ready.”[/color] [/color] [/INDENT] [/INDENT][/INDENT] [INDENT][INDENT][sub][hr][/sub][COLOR=teal][indent][sub][B]Location:[/B] [COLOR=#BFD7D7][I]Poseidonis, The Kingdom of Atlantis -- Present Day[/I][/COLOR][/sub][/indent][/color][sub][hr][/sub] [INDENT][color=gray] [color=teal]“Get me [i]ready?[/i] Ready for what?”[/color] [color=white]“To rule. To become. To be as what is needed to be.”[/color] [color=teal]“What does that even [i]mean[/i], Vulko? I mean, obviously I know what rule means, but... my mother isn't ready for that. The aristocracy isn't ready for that. [i]I'm[/i] not ready for that.”[/color] The thought tied her stomach in knots. Her father had been gone for barely a few long tides and here Vulko was telling her that she was to become the new ruler of Atlantis before her father’s death could even be confirmed. There had been so many cases throughout her childhood where she had to grieve for her father, but every single time he came back. The aristocracy always went crazy when it happened, but Vulko and her mother had always been there to step up and keep things together until he eventually returned. Why couldn’t Vulko do that again? What did her father go off to fight where she had to be considered for succession? Mareena bit her lip, her brows narrowed at the thought that popped into her mind. This wasn’t a situation Vulko would treat lightly and it was most likely ordered by her father before his untimely voyage. She knew it deep in her heart, but she refused it. Immediately she swung out her arms and raised her voice, the tone sharp and full of anxiety. [color=teal]“My father is [b][i]not[/i][/b] dead.”[/color] [color=white]“Doesn’t matter if he is or isn’t.”[/color] Vulko moved to the control panel in the observatory, pulling up a world map on the largest monitor. Mareena’s mouth remained open, offended by the fact Vulko had just told her that it didn’t [i]matter[/i] yet also recognizing what kind of map Vulko was showing her. Several pings of red and green were marked all over the ocean, some on coastlines of islands that floated on the surface. Her father's symbol that he bore on his waist caught her eye firstmost as it sat upon a part of the ocean she knew that was designated as dangerous, untravelable and unclaimed depths. Was that his last location? [color=white]“Worrying about the throne isn’t important right now. Your father had other, secret, responsibilities. Responsibilities that cannot go unchecked.”[/color] [color=teal]“And while my father is missing...”[/color] Mareena mused. [color=white]“...we need to continue in his stead, yes.”[/color] Mareena crossed her arms, her eyes moving back to Vulko from the monitor. [color=teal]“Vulko, I’m not sure what that means. What did my father do? Where did he go? What was he fighting? I have so many questions.”[/color] [color=white]“There will be time for to answer those questions, but first, I must show you something. Follow me.”[/color] [/color] [/INDENT] [/INDENT][/INDENT]