The Thousand Sunny cut through calm waters, the last traces of the Sky Prison storm far behind them. But the crew's eyes were fixed upward — on the new constellation burning faintly in the night sky.
Aboard the Sunny
Nami traced the pattern against her map.
"This one is low in the southern horizon… almost at sea level."
Robin leaned in.
"Not sea level. Below it."
Orren's expression hardened.
"A submerged city."
Lyra's voice took on a strange reverence.
"If it's the one I think it is, then we're heading to Nerathis — the City Beneath the Veil."
Approaching the Veil
Three days later, a shimmering curtain appeared on the ocean ahead. It was a vertical wall of water, faintly glowing, stretching from the waves into the clouds. Beyond it, the sea vanished into a deep, unnatural blue.
Franky adjusted his goggles.
"That's not just water — it's a phase barrier. Once we pass it, we'll be in… somewhere else."
Chopper shivered.
"Somewhere else doesn't sound good."
Crossing the Barrier
As the Sunny passed through, the world shifted.Light bent in strange ways, colors deepened, and the surface above seemed impossibly far away. The ship floated not on the sea, but within it — suspended in an ocean without a surface.
Massive shapes moved in the distance. Some swam. Others simply drifted, their eyes glowing like lanterns.
First Signs of Nerathis
Robin pointed to faint structures below.
"There. Towers of coral and pearl. That must be the outer rim."
Lyra nodded.
"The Flameborne here… they say she holds dominion over currents and memory. Her name is Thalyra."
The Hunter Arrives
Before they could descend further, the water darkened. A shadow larger than the Sunny passed beneath them, circling slowly.
Orren's voice was low.
"That's no ordinary sea creature."
From the depths, a colossal figure emerged — half woman, half serpent, her hair flowing like kelp, eyes glowing with predatory hunger.
Her voice carried through the water without sound.
"Turn back. The Veil is closed."
Arkan stepped forward to the ship's edge.
"We're here for Thalyra."
The creature smiled — rows of needle teeth glinting.
"Then you'll have to pass the Tide Trials."
Final Scene
The current suddenly seized the Sunny, dragging it toward a spiraling vortex of glowing runes. The crew clung to the rails as water roared around them.
Beneath the vortex, the gates of Nerathis began to open.