The salt-heavy air shimmered with heat as the sun blazed high over the endless, azure sea. The water, glass-like and tranquil, stretched infinitely into the horizon until it kissed the sky. At its very heart, a thin, lone figure clung desperately to the edge of a splintered raft. Her chestnut hair, damp and wild, draped around her face, and her dazzling blue eyes darted about with the sharp focus of a predator. She was searching, waiting—for the inevitable.
The waves shifted beneath her like restless serpents, a soundless warning. From beneath the ocean’s depths, a ripple formed. It slithered toward her, slow at first, then racing with intent. She tensed, the thin fabric of her outfit clinging to her olive-toned body. Her topside tunic was cropped and fashioned from a shimmering fabric—a hybrid of seaweed and woven coral, dyed a rich indigo, contrasting perfectly with the scale-gray skirt that clung to her slim waist. Atop her forehead sat a crown made of gold, intricately wrought to resemble reef branches. It glimmered faintly as though alive. The symbols etched along its arches hummed faintly against her skin, their magic thrumming in time with her tense heartbeat.
The water exploded. A serpentine shadow broke through the surface—a beast with scales blacker than midnight and eyes as red as molten lava. Its three heads snapped at the air, releasing guttural roars, and its tails, longer than foremast sails, lashed wildly, spraying water in all directions. The woman’s jaw clenched. She had been running for weeks, but now, there was nowhere left to flee. It had come for her.
Her calloused fingers gripped the haft of her harpoon, its point an amalgam of starlight-metal and shark bone. “All right then,” she muttered to herself, her voice carrying the measured cadence of someone too tired for fear. “Let’s end this, shall we?”
The Hearth Palace of Atlantis had been alive with music that night, a celebration of peace between the Seven Sovereigns of the Sea. Meandering strings of blue bioluminescent algae wove through the hall, casting shimmering patterns across the limestone walls. She, Princess Kallista, had been center stage, her bold outfit—indigo crop tunic matched with silvery ceremonial wraps—causing both scandal and fascination among the more traditional nobility. But it was her crown, crafted from enchanted gold mined from the Rift Abyss, that left whispers in her wake. There had been rumors, of course: of the Hemocyon Crown granting its wearer dominion over more than just their subjects—over the beasts that dwelled deep below, beasts no man or mer could ever hope to tame.
She remembered the way her father, the High King, had looked at her when he placed it on her brow earlier that evening. Gilded pride. And yet—a flicker of unease.
The truce banquet hadn’t lasted long.
The first scream had ripped through the chamber as the floor beneath them quaked. The Leviathans of the Depths had risen, striking down the guards and crashing through walls of coral and stone. Kezath, the Three-Tongued Marauder, had been among them. His kind hadn’t breached their borders in decades—centuries, possibly. Yet they had come now. For what? It was too late before everyone understood.
Not what. Who.
Kallista spun around, snapping back to the present. Kezath lunged at her once more, and she dove off the raft, disappearing beneath the water’s surface in a whirl of bubbles. Just as the beast’s jagged maw clamped down on the wood, obliterating it, she swam below him, swift as an eel. Her blade gleamed in the sunlight pouring through the liquid expanse above.
She somersaulted, using her momentum to thrust the harpoon upward. It pierced the creature’s chest—a vulnerable patch between three overlapping scales. The beast howled—a vibration that shook the entire ocean around her. It thrashed wildly, knocking her backward, but she twisted in the water, using her body like kelp bending to the current.
That’s when she saw it—the faint glow against the beast’s neck. The telltale shimmer of runes. The shimmer of the Binding Curse.
It hadn’t been mindless. The Leviathan was controlled, its rage merely a leash held tight by some unseen hand. Her blood boiled hotter than the sun-cooked surf as realization dawned. This was no mere errant predator seeking vengeance for the dredging of the abyssal fields. No—this was treachery, a deliberate attack designed to strip Atlantis of its one great defender: her.
Kallista turned sharply, breaking the water’s surface with a gasp. Her crown pulsed as if sensing her fury. “So it’s true,” she hissed bitterly, glaring up at the distant cliffs of the Underwave Isles where figures stood watching. “You never wanted peace.”
She reached up, pressing her palm to the crown. Whispers filled her mind—the voices of a hundred ancestors, murmuring, urging. She had sworn before that she would never use the full weight of its power. The last one who had—her great-great-grandfather—had built the city of Atlantis but drowned all its rivals in the process. Still, hiding was no longer an option.
“Fine then,” she growled, her hand tightening over its glowing spines. Her voice echoed through the waves. “Let’s remind you what happens when gods walk the ocean.”
The water around her brightened, a vortex forming at her feet. The Leviathan froze mid-lunge, its muscles slackening. A keening cry echoed from the distant cliffs as those who had controlled the beast finally understood their mistake. For the first time since the fall of the Old World, the Crown-Borne Queen of Atlantis unleashed the wrath of the depths.
The sea answered her cry. And the tide rose.
It is said that when Atlantis reclaims its glory, so shall the world know its greatest reckoning. That day, for those who tugged at the strings of fate, reckoning had come early.
The Source…check out the great article that inspired this amazing short story: Denim Crop Top and Light Grey High-Waisted Bikini Bottoms with a Gold Crown for a Modern Boho Chic Look
Disclaimer: This article may contain affiliate links. If you click on these links and make a purchase, we may receive a commission at no additional cost to you. Our recommendations and reviews are always independent and objective, aiming to provide you with the best information and resources.
Get Exclusive Stories, Photos, Art & Offers - Subscribe Today!
2 comments