In the depths of the maze, Nereus suddenly stopped. The faint pulse of sea essence he had been following had grown stronger, more defined.
"We're close," he said, his voice filled with a renewed sense of purpose. "I can feel it."
Jonny and Triton exchanged weary, but determined glances. They had been pushed to their limits, but the thought of being so close to their goal rekindled the fire within them.
They swam forward, the passage narrowing as they went. The oppressive weight of time bore down on them, but the thought of reaching the serpent's lair and completing their quest spurred them on.
As they passed beneath a curtain of hanging seaweed tendrils—unusually dense, heavy with latent energy—the water suddenly shifted. A force surged through the tunnel, not a beast nor a presence, but a field—a disruption.
Nereus raised a hand, motioning for the others to halt. "Wait. Something's wrong."
Jonny instinctively moved to cover Triton as the currents around them reversed. Water pressure slammed inward, forming a conical vortex that locked the passage ahead. From the walls, sea essence runes ignited in sequence—red, then blue, then violet—forming an angular spiral like a whirlpool made of light.
"It's a ward," Nereus said, voice clipped with realization. "A sophisticated one. Old. Definitely pre-dynastic."
"Trap?" Jonny asked, already shifting into a fighting stance.
"Not exactly." Nereus squinted at the runes. "It's... a test. It reads cultivator essence levels—disrupts your control over your own sea essence. Lose focus for a moment, and it'll either shatter your meridians or compress your body into chum."
Triton whistled. "That's poetic."
Jonny cracked his neck. "So how do we beat it?"
Nereus took a deep breath. "We don't overpower it. We dance with it. We have to ride the currents it creates while keeping our essence flows synchronized with the shifting frequency of the ward. Let your essence spike too fast or drop too low, and you'll trigger a backlash."
"Lovely," Triton muttered. "So it's like trying to do calligraphy on the back of a seahorse during a whirlpool"
"Exactly."
The runes began to rotate.
Time was up.
Nereus led the way, his body slipping into the vortex's swirl, essence pulsing in time with the rotating runes.
He felt the pull against his core, the push against his limbs, the demand that he balance—not dominate. It was ancient Sea Serpent wisdom, buried in design.
Control over chaos.
Harmony over violence.
Behind him, Jonny gritted his teeth, his muscular bulk slightly less suited for such finesse. But he adapted quickly, curling his long serpentine tail to redirect momentum and folded his tail fins to minimize resistance.
His scales flickered with shallow pulses of sea essence—crude but effective mimicry.
Triton, on the other hand, was gasping.
"Little help?" he called out, spinning sideways in the vortex, barely catching the correct flow before a backlash grazed his right side, causing his aura to momentarily stutter.
"Match the third rune's pulse! Not the first!" Nereus barked, his voice cutting through the shifting hum of the ward.
"Right—right—I got it!"
Triton grit his teeth, slowed his breathing, and tuned in.
He let go of the instinct to fight the current and let himself feel it instead. His essence dipped, flexed, then synchronized. He flowed—not just with water—but with intention.
Slowly, with measured patience and some bruised egos, they passed through the heart of the spiral.
Soon enough the runes dimmed behind them and afterwards the vortex dispersed, replaced by silence and a stillness that felt like exhalation.
Nereus turned, watching as the last of the lights faded into the stone.
"That ward wasn't just a test of strength," he murmured. "You can't force your way through ancient places like this. You earn your way in."
Jonny grunted, rotating his shoulder. "Still say my way would've worked. Eventually."
Triton flopped sideways in the water, panting. "Gonna need a week of sleep after this."
Nereus chuckled. "Hold that thought. Something tells me we're not quite done."
As they approached the chamber, the walls seemed to pulse with energy, the bioluminescent light growing brighter. The water around them hummed with power, and they could feel the presence of the sea serpent looming ahead.
They finally reached a massive, ornate door covered in intricate carvings depicting sea serpents and ancient battles. The door pulsed with a powerful sea essence, and Nereus knew they were close.
"This must be the entrance," Jonny said, his voice filled with anticipation.
Nereus nodded. "We've come this far. Let's finish this."
He placed his hand on the door, feeling the ancient energy flow through him. The carvings seemed to come to life under his touch, the sea essence flowing through him and into the door.
With a deep, resonating groan, the door slowly began to open, revealing the dark, foreboding chamber beyond.
The trio steeled themselves, ready to face whatever lay within the sea serpent's lair. As the door fully opened, they swam forward, the darkness swallowing them as they entered the chamber.
The water was thick with anticipation, and the fate of their journey hung in the balance.
Nereus led the way, his senses on high alert.
The chamber ahead was vast, the water filled with an oppressive energy that made it hard to breathe.
"Stay close," Nereus whispered, his voice steady. "We're almost there."
They moved forward, their eyes scanning the dark waters for any sign of the sea serpent. The chamber seemed to stretch on forever, the darkness hiding untold dangers.
As they swam, after some time Nereus's senses picked up on a faint glow ahead. "There it is," he said, pointing to a faint light in the distance.