[CENTER][sup][h1][center][img]https://img.roleplayerguild.com/prod/users/019a0237-931f-71d6-be6b-7657191b9802.webp[/img][/center][b][center][color=black] A Q U A L A D[/color]
[color=gold]A Q U A L A D[/color][/center]
[/b][/h1][/sup]
[sup][color=limegreen][b]INFERNO EVENT[/b] (part I)[/color]
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[@Half Pint] [@Cyrania] [@Master Bruce] [@Taka] [@mattmanganon] [@King Kindred][/sup][/CENTER]

[color=goldenrod][b]ATLANTIS[/b][/color]
[color=limegreen][sup][b]THE RUINS OF SHAYERIS[/b][/sup][/color]

[INDENT][COLOR=SILVER]The Hidden Valley lay in ruin.

A massacre. A city without walls, without an army, was no city at all. Still, so easy a victory did not sit well with him. There had been no challenge in it.

Merely one step in a larger plan.

Turning away from the window, the grizzled warrior-king floated over toward where scribes sorted through the artifacts contained within the true secret of Shayeris’ founding that the Idyllists’ had been charged with protecting.

The Atlantean Sanctum.

[i]You promised me answers, wizard,[/i] Orm Marius’ voice boomed, echoing through the heads of everyone nearby. [i]Where is the Trident of Atlan?[/i]

The twisted, sniveling form of the necromancer clung to shadows as he began, [i]My lord–[/i]

[i]The next words from your mouth had better please me, Slizzath,[/i] Orm warned, silencing the necromancer’s attempt to appease him with flattery.

Slizzath’s head dipped in acknowledgement. [i]Arcana rarely makes itself easily kno–[/i]

The back of Orm’s hand connected with the side of the necromancer’s head in a swift motion. Rising higher in the water, the king lorded over the sorcerer a moment, before he said, [i]If you wish to keep your head, have more than words for me by the time that I return.[/i]

With that, the king took his leave. Soldiers followed in the distance, an ever increasing one as fear of the king had started to spread through Poseidonis. 

That was good.

A king should be feared. 

The trap to seize the Resistance had failed to achieve Marius’ immediate goal, exposing instead a much longer game. The elusive rumors of Atlanna’s bastard. It seemed as though the rumors might be true. 

Or, at least, people were whispering of such. The execution of many of the returning soldiers had been motivation enough to silence those voices. While the remaining parts of the XIVth Legion had been spread out among more loyalist divisions. 

Order must be maintained. A bastard was a threat to that order. One that seemed content to linger on the surface, where Orm was at a disadvantage. 

But sometimes conflict was waged through proxies. As the man descended toward the ocean floor, the heat of an undersea mount radiated through the sea.

[i]KARAKU! Lord of Fire, I have come to bargain.[/i]

The crater of the submarine volcano itself seemed to shift, as a massive golem of magma seemed to detach from its resting bed – the very mountain itself. [color=orange][b][i]Son of Man who swims as fish, why do you disturb my slumber? Our bargain was struck many of your lifetimes ago. Pray, begone before we forget words spoken in the past.[/i][/b][/color]

Moving closer toward the white-hot face of the fearsome creature, Orm pressed on, [i]Yes, Great Karaku. Since the time of Atlan, Atlantis and Fire Troll have each stayed out of the affairs of the other. ]But a new threat on the surface threatens to upend the peace and thrust Atlantis into a war not seen in ages.[/i]

Not entirely true. Not entirely false. The beauty of all of this was that, if this worked, Marius would be able to guage the strength of the surface threat by the response that they mustered – if any at all.

The massive golem narrowed its eyes at the miniscule figure. [color=orange][b][i]Of what threat do you speak?[/i][/b][/color]

[i]Of the surface, Lord Karaku,[/i] Orm supplied. [i]We have a new enemy, you and I.[/i]

[color=orange][b][i]Speak the name of this enemy.[/i][/b][/color]

The edge’s of the man’s mouth tugged ever so slightly into a smile.

[i]Arthur.[/i][/COLOR][/INDENT]
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[color=goldenrod][b]BROOKLYN[/b][/color]
[color=limegreen][sup][b]NEW YORK CITY[/b][/sup][/color]

[INDENT][COLOR=SILVER]The story was that Garth was Arthur’s cousin. If anyone asked, they’d just say that Garth was a mutant. 

When Garth asked what a mutant was, Tom had answered cryptically, [i]don’t get political with it.[/i] Whatever that meant.

The trio had made the trip from Maine to New York, settling into the hotel where the kids and their chaperones were all staying for the regionals, which wasn’t far from where the competition was taking place. Just a short ride on an elevated train, which promised to be an experience for both of the boys in itself.

[color=limegreen]“Is it okay for me to swim?”[/color] the tawny-haired kid uttered, as he bumbled about getting his bag together to take to the swim meet.

Getting coats for the three, Tom paused to look down and ask, [color=snow]“Why wouldn’t it be?”[/color]

[color=limegreen]“I didn’t know I was part-mermaid before,”[/color] the boy blurted aloud.

[color=violet]“[i]Atlantean,[/i]”[/color] Garth interjected sharply.

Arthur’s head bobbed from side to side, his hands making a juggling motion as if to say, [i]what’s the difference?[/i] The question had been weighing on him since the talk with Garth and Vulko a few days before. [color=limegreen]“I mean, like. Isn’t that cheating?”[/color] 

Laying a hand on the boy’s head, Tom Curry answered, simply, [color=snow]“Arthur, you don’t have to win to have fun.”[/color]

The tow-headed youth didn’t say anything, accepting the coat from the man as the three readied themselves to go out.

Just as he started to reach for the door, Tom thought to ask, [color=snow]“Arthur, don’t forget your suit.”[/color]

Arthur’s mouth opened to say that he had it, but the words never left his throat as he actually stopped to think about it. Then, spinning around, dashed back to where he’d unpacked his clothes.

[color=violet]“Suit?”[/color] Garth asked, obviously confused.

[color=limegreen]“Yeah, it’s a speedo. Or, ‘competition swim wear.’ Super cringe,”[/color] Arthur explained, holding up said cringe before stuffing it into his bag.

As Tom ushered them out, Garth still seemed perplexed. [color=violet]“I thought you said it was a gymnasium,”[/color] the Atlantean boy remarked.

[color=limegreen]“It is.”[/color]

Standing there a moment, Garth’s confusion only deepened. [color=violet]“I feel like one of us is confused on what the word ‘gymnasium’ means,”[/color] he uttered, before moving to catch up with the other two.

Herding two pre-teens through New York was not dissimilar to herding cats, but Tom eventually arrived at the platform. The question was, which platform? [color=snow]“All right, we need to find the six train,”[/color] the man mused aloud, looking up at the board of arriving and departing trains.

[color=limegreen]“The what train?”[/color] Arthur asked, suppressing a giggle that should have been Tom’s warning.

Instead, the man answered, [color=snow]“Six.”[/color]

[color=limegreen][b][i]“SEVEN!”[/i][/b][/color] Arthur blurt out, voice echoing across the train station and directing all the attention that Tom had been hoping to avoid directly at them.

Burying his face in his palm, a small tug drew his gaze down to the black-haired Atlantean, who just pointed to the giggling, currently flossing, Arthur and asked, quite seriously, [color=violet]“Is this... normal?”[/color]

[color=snow]“Nothing about Arthur is what I’d consider normal,”[/color] Tom deadpanned flatly.

As a train came up to the platform, the man was glad to see the number 6 emblazoned on the side. Ushering the two boy’s onto the train and praying for both quiet and good luck, it seemed Tom Curry had achieved at least one-half of the impossible.

Hope of arriving on time seemed to be within their grasp.

Twisting around so that he was standing in the seat on his knees, Arthur and Garth were both peering out of the train’s windows as the buildings blurred on past where the water could be seen.

[color=limegreen]“What’s that glowing out there?”[/color] Arthur asked innocently, prompting Tom Curry to look.

There was, indeed, an orange glow that was visible in the water.

Then several orange glows.

And then it was like Godzilla or King Kong of fire suddenly exploded in a burst of steam.

[color=snow][b]“Oh...[/b]”[/color] Tom began, his voice trailing off.

[color=limegreen]“[b]...SHIT[/b],”[/color] Arthur supplied, finishing that thought for him.

With the train moving and buildings flying into view, they only had glimpses of what the creatures were. But there seemed to be several or a lot of them. Fires were starting to spread as the creatures came out of the water into the city.

Then the train’s lights flickered as its brakes engaged.

From out of the window, the trio could see a large, thick hand of what seemed like molten rock resting on the track of the elevated train.

[color=violet]“Wait, that’s... Those are Fire Trolls,”[/color] Garth blurted aloud.

It didn’t mean much to Tom. But he knew this much.

The war for Atlantis had just come to New York.[/COLOR][/INDENT]
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