Chronicles From the End of an Age

Ocean Depths - 1Yr BTA

Ruban crawled forward, wings open, and claws dug into the soft stone. He carefully inhaled the salty water, letting it flood into his lungs, where his connection to the element transferred it into liveable oxygen. The wastewater was then exhaled, letting a small current pass through his mouth and into the open. Each breath felt heavy, like there was a huge weight on his back, and with each moment it grew heavier and heavier. Inky blackness surrounded him, trapping him in an endless void that went for seemingly an eternity.

The water drake was getting tired. He didn't know how long it had been since he last went to sleep. But he didn't trust his surroundings. He could feel subtle movements in the water around him, swift changes in current, ominous forms of giganteas sizes. He felt like an ant compared to them, easily stepped on, and easy prey. The thought kept him in a constant state of adrenaline field paranoia, keeping his body going despite its need to rest.

Every part of him wanted to go back. Despite the war on the surface, it seemed like a far safer place to be than in the ocean depths. At least he could see what was about to kill him then. Hear, with the inky blackness pressing down on him with the weight of a mountain and strange creatures surely eying him from the darkness, he felt strangely claustrophobic. An unfamiliar feeling, considering how much he loved the ocean.

So he continued to crawl down the cliff face he had found, hoping it was the right one. An unexplored part of the ocean that none had ever returned from before. Many had called him stupid for attempting it, and he agreed, but he also had faith. This was where he had been called to go after all. The deepest parts of the ocean. But never had he imagined it to be so dark, or so steep, or heavy. Part of him felt as though he were slowly being crushed. Sure, in theory, he knew how to alleviate the pressure, but it didn't make him any more comfortable.

'She wouldn't have called you here if she didn't think you could make it,' thought the water dragon as he continued to pull himself downward.

That was what he had chosen to believe, but part of him wondered why the being he was meeting didn't just meet him at the surface. Surely that would have been no less effort for her. But he chose to ignore the illogical request. He owed this being his very life after all.

A soft glow ahead of him caught his attention, making his heart leap in excitement. He paused for a moment, closing his eyes and allowing his awareness to flood through the ocean around him. The pressure felt normal enough, at least for how deep he was. The occasional gurgle and release of air occasionally messed with his sense, but he had grown used to that. Deciding to take a little bit of a risk to increase the speed of his journey, and sensing nothing of immediate danger, he let go of the cliff face and flicking his tail.

The pressure of the ocean continued to grow as he descended a far faster speed. He still kept his movements at a minimum as he approached the dull blue glow ahead. He felt himself wincing as he grew close, slowly growing used to being able to see again. It still took him several hours of falling to finally reach the blue glow, and throughout that entire time he kept his heightened awareness of his surroundings, ready to react at the first moment of danger.

It didn't take him long to realise that the light was coming from solid ground littered with cyan crystals. The drake landed amongst them with a hefty thump, sending up several clouds of dust. He took another deep breath, looking around and allowing himself to relax. The pressure of the ocean still weighed on his back, but it wasn't unbearable, and as he looked up it felt as though he were looking at a night sky.

Curious, the drake looked around his new surroundings. He was in what looked like some sort of ravine. He estimated it to be around a dozen dragon lengths wide. He had arrived in some sort of bowl, though he could tell from the flow of the water that the ravine continued for an astonishing distance on either side of him. The walls around him however were incredibly strange. They were smooth, unnaturally so, and were completely white.