Tempest Bound: The Fisherman's Lure

Chapter 18:Secrets Beneath Scales

The sea was silent around them, as though the depths held their breath waiting. Knowing of the many life and secrets the water has devastedated throughout years, Seraphine felt the weight of the water rushing in. Their almost reverent calm enveloped them as they drifted across the twilight-blue currents; the only sound the soft hammering of her heart against her own ears could supply.

Rowan slowed down and fixed his gaze far out at the darkness all around. She felt a thrill of expectation mixed with a strange melancholy as his silence now had a depth she hadn't quite understood before. Whatever past he had buried under his silence was closely linked to the route they now drove and the secrets of the ocean.

His voice was quiet and somewhat hesitant when he did speak at last. "Seraphine..." I have spent a very long time keeping my past close. And for justified purposes as well. His eyes met hers, searching as though he were juggling their trust. Whether or not we intend it, everyone around us can be affected by the weight of our pasts.

Amara drifted close, watching with a mix of wariness and pity. Her silence was unusual, watched as though she too carried tightly bound memories in her heart. Looking between them, Seraphine felt questions and concern aching in her heart. She yearned to sort the quiet past tethering them both to these depths.

"What happened, Rowan?" asked She asked softly, sensing his hesitancy. "Where from the life you knew led you here, away?

Rowan took a long inhale, his eyes staring into the black horizon and a dreadful sadness enveloped them. "I was born to the will of the sea," he murmured with a subdued sourness. " From my first breath, I knew I would be among its defenders. It was a duty, handed down from generations of entities like me, those taught that our lives belong to the river; it was not a decision.

Stopped, his face hardening as if he were remembering something hurting him. Long ago, I used to believe in it. I felt the water's will was legitimate and that its secrets should be kept under guard. I pondered in its demands and directions until I understood the cost it exacted from others.

Seraphine listened in wonder at his weight of words. Though she had always sensed a melancholy in Rowan's past, hearing it now she become more empathetic and realized the sacrifices he had made.

And you left? Her voice was gentle.

Rowan nodded while his jaw clenched. "I began to see the will of the water for what it truly was—a power absorbed without regret, that needed dedication and sacrifice even if it left nothing in return. Driven by its secrets, seekers delved into its depths only to be buried in the very seas they loved. And I started wondering if I could keep producing something so... relentless.

Amara, who had not spoken until now, said quickly, her voice a muted but arresting contrast to Rowans'. "Not everyone saw things the way you did, Rowan," she said, her voice laced with both admiration and bitterness. "Some of us understood the demands of the sea and that its force came with a cost not everyone could afford. For you, though, the price seemed unduly high.

Rowan turned back, regret flickering in his eyes. "you're right, Amara." I turned aside. The weight of the expectations of the ocean insufferable to me. But you stayed; you carried that weight alone while I was supposed to be there.

Between them, Seraphine stared with a depth beyond ordinary loyalty. Though she knew Amara and Rowan had a past, she had never really understood the weight of the choices they had made. Their shared sacrifice was great.

Amara's eyes darkened with a slowness implying gloom. Her voice full of a bitterness that spoke to Seraphine's own sense of loss, "When Rowan left, I was forced to take on his duties as well as my own," she said. "I began safeguarding the most hidden secrets of the ocean, its forbidden knowledge. And for my loyalty, for my service—I received an exile sentence.

A huge stillness fell upon them, their shared past floating on the sea like a shadow. Looking between them, Seraphine recognized now the price of their choices and the sacrifices they had given, and she experienced a rush of loss.

"Why were you kicked, Amara??" Sensing more to the story, Seraphine asked gently.

Amara's gaze narrowed and her words carried defiance. I broke the sea's will, hence I was banished. Thinking of a seeker worthy of the knowledge they desired, I let them venture into forbidden waters. But the sea is not forgiving easily. I was pushed out, denied my place, driven to wander these depths without direction or belonging in protest.

Rowan's face softened as regret etched itself clearly on his features. With a low and quiet voice, he replied, "I'm sorry, Amara." "Should I have stayed, possibly things would have turned out differently."

Years of loss had dimmed her eyes, yet Amara's glance stayed on him, a faint smile graced her lips. Rowan, everyone of us makes decisions. We all carry the weight of such choices regardless of our enjoyment of them.

Seraphine connected with them both, a shared awareness of the challenges and sacrifices their paths included. That moment she realized the will of the water was not a basic idea, not a simple mandate or obligation. It was a load and obligation needing strength and commitment, challenging one's heart as much as their mind.

Rowan fixed Seraphine with gentle but suppressed will in his eyes. " Seraphine I am here for this reason. I left my realm as I could not be the sea's guardian it needed. But right now I am by your side because I think of your vacation. I believe you are strong enough to handle this load and find the answers everyone else looks for.

Her heart grew with thanks, a connection that went beyond language. She understood then that her road was about recognizing the will of the ocean, about honoring the sacrifices of individuals who had come before her, not merely about finding the Coral Crown.

"Thank you, Rowan," she murmured, her voice ringing with an authenticity across the globe. "For current here. Considering me.

Rowan nodded, a rare smile softening his approach. "You now hold the confidence of Seraphine. And I will be at your side whatever is ahead.

As they crossed the darker sea, a new strain began to stir. Amara swam ahead, her gaze far-off and a flutter of something unspoken still obvious on her face. Seraphine felt a little uncomfortable, which implied their road revealed more than she knew.

Amara's voice burst out from the silence, her tone somewhat cautious. "Be cautious, Seraphine." Rowan might be there now at your side, but the Coral Crown appeals greatly. It can touch even the strongest loyalties.

Amara's words connected with her, and Seraphine's heart quickened and a seed of uncertainty rooted itself. She stared at Rowan, who was swimming next to her in silence; his face was invisible. She felt unsure.

As if they were approaching the edge of the planet itself, the water darkened and thickened front of them. Arriving at the Abyssal Divide—a gulf so deep it looked to plunge straight down into the ocean's core—their actual trip would begin here, just on the brink of the division.