Greywater Cove still trembled from the distant rumble when another shockwave rippled through the cliffs—this one sharper, angrier, powerful enough to rattle the bones of every pirate nearby.
Eli's hand flew to his sword.
"What the hell was that?!"
Galen closed his eyes for half a second, feeling the vibration through the ground.
"That wasn't the Navy."
Elara's voice dropped.
"That... was power."
The three captains exchanged a look—a look that meant the world had just shifted, again.
Before any of them could speak, one of Galen's scouts sprinted down the cliff steps, breathless and pale.
"CAPTAINS—YOU NEED TO SEE THIS!"
They rushed to the lookout ledge.
The scout raised a spyglass toward the far horizon—eastward, where the Navy's capital lay.
A column of violet flame spiraled into the sky like a wound tearing open the heavens.
Eli swallowed hard.
"...That's Crown Capital."
Elara's eyes widened. "That's Code Purple enforcement power. They're pushing it to the limit."
Galen hissed, "No. That's something ELSE. Something worse."
Another explosion lit the horizon—
then another—
then another.
Greywater Cove shook.
The scout whispered:
"...the Navy's under attack."
Galen's jaw clenched. "By who?"
The scout licked his lips.
"Hundreds... maybe thousands... of pirates. Unknown flags. Unknown captains. And they're screaming the same chant."
Eli whispered it back:
"To hell with Code Purple... we're taking back what's ours."
The War for the Seas had begun.
And none of them had fired the first shot.
SKY ISLAND ZEPHYRION
The sky barrier flickered violently above the floating landmass.
Mordeclai stood at the edge of the crystal overlook, cape snapping against the violent wind. His eyes remained locked on the storm forming below the clouds.
Selene approached, breath uneven.
"The shadows are multiplying. The barrier is holding... but I don't know for how long."
Mordeclai didn't move.
"More are coming," he murmured. "They smell the Heart."
Selene's voice trembled. "Then the world below—"
"—is collapsing into war," Mordeclai finished.
Behind him, Alex gasped softly in her sleep.
Her fingers curled.
Her chest rose sharply.
A pulse of blue light shimmered under her skin...
...then dimmed again.
Mordeclai turned to the dais, expression shifting from cold commander to something far more dangerous—protective.
"Her mind is hearing everything," he whispered. "The Navy. The pirates. The shadows."
Another rumble shook the island.
YOU ARE READING
The Legacy of the Uncharted
FantasyIn the late 18th century, Alexandria finds an old journal hidden in a secret part of her large house by the sea. The journal is written in an ancient language she doesn't fully understand, filled with strange maps and mysterious hints about the ocea...
