CHAPTER FORTY FIVE: THE DEPTHS WITHIN

"The storm may rage, but every tempest passes — and what remains is the strength of those who endured." — Khaimah Peter

~~~~~~~~~

Gravill's legs trembled as he stood, saltwater dripping from his clothes in sluggish rivulets. The chamber felt colder now, the air heavier, pressing against his skin like an unyielding current. Every breath burned, his throat raw from the phantom drowning, and yet he couldn't shake the feeling that he'd brought some part of the ocean back with him — a lingering, unseen weight that clung to his bones.

The old man watched him, expression carved from stone. "You drowned," he said simply, as though it were an obvious failure.

Gravill wiped the back of his hand across his mouth, tasting blood and salt. "I survived," he rasped.

The man's lips curled slightly, almost a smirk. "Surviving is the bare minimum for a god's son. The sea does not test you to see if you can live — it tests you to see if you are worthy of living."

Gravill's chest heaved, but he squared his shoulders. "Then I'll face it again," he said, voice cracking but steady.

The old man nodded, stepping aside to reveal the platform once more. The water in the pools settled, smooth as glass, reflecting Gravill's haggard face like a ghostly mirror. "Step forward," the man commanded, voice like a distant wave.

Gravill moved, his soaked boots squelching against the stone. The symbols flared to life beneath him, their glow casting shadows that writhed like living things. The water began to stir, slow at first — a ripple, then a gentle swirl.

And then it rose.

It surged up in towering columns, twisting and writhing like serpents, circling him with a predatory grace. Gravill's pulse thundered in his ears as the water arched above him, poised to strike.

"You must go deeper," the old man said, voice echoing unnaturally. "The storm was only the beginning."

The columns collapsed, crashing down over Gravill's head.

He didn't fight.

He let the water take him.

---

He fell.

Not like before, not through chaos and waves. This descent was quieter, more insidious — an endless sink into pitch-black nothingness. It wasn't water that swallowed him, but something thicker, heavier, like the sea had turned to oil.

Gravill couldn't tell how long he fell. Time stretched and twisted, unraveling like a broken thread. His lungs burned, but he didn't need air. His body ached, but he couldn't move. It was just darkness. Endless, suffocating darkness.

Until he heard it.

A heartbeat.

Deep. Slow. Thunderous.

It reverberated through the void, rattling his bones, growing louder with each pulse until it wasn't just a sound — it was a presence.

He turned, and something opened its eyes.

Massive, unblinking eyes that glowed dimly in the dark. They stared at him with the weight of eternity, reflecting oceans and storms and countless drowned souls.

"Who are you?" the voice rumbled, a tremor that made the void shudder.

Gravill's chest tightened. "I... I don't know," he whispered, voice breaking.

The eyes blinked slowly, and the heartbeat quickened.

"You carry my blood," the voice said, and it wasn't just a voice — it was the sea itself, ancient and unknowable. "But you fear me."

Gravill's hands shook. "I don't fear you," he said, but even as he spoke, he knew it was a lie.

The darkness swirled, and shapes began to form — silhouettes of ships splintering against rocks, sailors screaming as they were dragged beneath the waves, entire islands swallowed by the wrath of the ocean. The sea's cruelty played out in jagged fragments around him, each scene heavier than the last.

"You fear what you cannot control," the voice said, louder now, vibrating through Gravill's ribs. "You fear becoming like me."

Gravill flinched as the visions sharpened. He saw himself standing on a wrecked ship, lightning illuminating his face — but it wasn't his face. It was twisted, feral, eyes glowing like the storm itself. Bodies floated in the water around him, lifeless and pale, their mouths open in silent pleas for mercy.

Gravill staggered back, shaking his head. "That's not me," he whispered.

The voice boomed like a tidal wave. "It is what you will become if you do not learn the cost of power."

The visions dissolved, and Gravill found himself standing on a vast ocean floor, the sand stretching infinitely in every direction. The heartbeat thundered louder, and he turned —

To see his reflection standing across from him.

But it wasn't a reflection.

It grinned at him, sharp and wild, eyes flickering with untamed light. Its fingers curled like claws, and the water around it trembled.

It lunged.

Gravill barely dodged, the doppelgänger's strike carving through the water like a blade. He hit the ground hard, choking on salt, but scrambled to his feet as the figure attacked again.

They fought, the ocean itself surging with every clash. Gravill struck with everything he had, but his reflection matched him blow for blow, relentless and brutal.

Until it didn't.

Until it dropped its guard — just for a moment.

Gravill seized the opening. He drove his fist into the reflection's chest, and it shattered like glass, exploding into countless shards that dissolved into the current.

The ocean fell silent.

And a voice, quieter now, resonated through the void.

"Do not mistake restraint for weakness," it whispered. "The storm that destroys... can also protect."

Gravill closed his eyes, the weight of the words sinking into him like an anchor.

And then he was back.

---

He collapsed on the platform, body trembling violently. The old man knelt beside him, placing a hand on his shoulder.

"You saw it, didn't you?" he asked, voice softer than before.

Gravill swallowed, his throat aching. "I saw what I could become," he whispered.

The man nodded. "Good," he said. "Now you can choose what you will become instead."

Gravill dragged himself upright, muscles screaming in protest. His body was broken, his mind shattered — but his heart beat steady.

He met the old man's gaze, eyes burning with newfound determination.

"I choose the storm," he said.

And the water surged to meet him again.