. Waves crashed against the jagged stones, sending up plumes of spray that soaked Jake's clothes. The pendant-th

ility across the treacherous terrain, his weathered hands finding secure holds in the rock face

iate signs of pursuit, but the unnatural cry they'd heard in th

red grimly, her eyes sca

th unnatural speed, heading directly toward the shore. Their silhouettes were vaguely human but

r hunters," Makoa said, his voi

determination driving him forward. The pendant grew hotter against his skin, almost painfully so, and for an instant, another vis

isible in the gloom. Water lapped at its base, but the opening itself

anating from within, like countless voices murmuring just below the threshold of comprehension. Th

rd. The whispering was louder here, seeming to come from the very walls themselves. Phosphores

a instructed, shrugging o

oss the opening, murmuring words in a language Jake didn't recognize. As the last syllable left her lips, the p

d, turning back to them. "We must prepar

pment fashioned from natural materials. The suits appeared to be made from some kind of treat

Jake one of the suits. "And apply the amber su

cling in his mind. "How will these protect us? We're going

already pulling her own suit on over her clothes. "They will allow you to brea

ntific mind rebelled against the idea, even as the weight of the pendant re

le until they are not. You hold the Heart of the Deep-di

e finished donning the strange diving suit and uncorked the vial of amber oil, applying the viscous substance to his face and hands as i

a spiral. Inside was a clear liquid that shimmered with an inner light. "This you must drink

ell hesitantly.

erious. "It allows your lungs to extract oxygen from water, as

lent impact against the cave entrance. The blue barrier flick

id grimly. "We have no m

d rained down from the ceiling. The barrier

descended beneath the water's surface. "Stay close, and whatever you

in the other. As they reached the water's edge, a final, powerful blow struck the entrance. The barr

s own shell to his lips and drinki

ng spirits. Almost immediately, his throat began to constrict, and a sensation of suffocatio

voice strained as she underwent the

gure with glistening blue-gray skin stretched too tight over an elongated skull. Its eyes were huge and black

ned as if filled with fire, and darkness edged his vision. In that moment of panic, he thought of Samantha-her smile, her laugh, the way she'd looked at hi

and felt it sustain him, a bizarre but not unpleasant sensation. Opening his eyes, he found he could see with remarkable clarity despite the d

th the Breath of the Deep. Jake followed, finding that the suit enhanced his natural swi

ted away from their lights, their pale bodies adapted to the perpetual darkness. Formations of roc

air. Suspended in the center of the chamber was what could only be described as a temple-a structure of black stone carved with the same symbols that adorned

eatures, their features frozen in expressions of eternal vigilance. Between them yawned a doorway,

erged pursuing them through the passage, their transformed bodies far more adept in the water than his tem

. As they approached the massive doors, Jake felt the pendant grow almost painfully hot against his chest, even throu

c rings. Jake felt a pull, an instinctive understanding of what needed to be done. He swam forward and pressed the

rd through the water, the massive stone door began to slide sideways, revealing a pass

eved when it came away easily, and followed his companions through the opening. Behind them, the S

same symbol that had accepted the pendant. The door began to close once more, agonizingly slowly.

one as the door finally sealed with a deep, resonant boom that pulsed through the water. Symbols along

The weight of the pendant against his chest reminded him of his purpose-finding Samantha

he water level allowed them to surface. Jake's head broke through into air-stale and ancient, but breathable. The transformation of the Breath

cticed control. Once they had all regained normal breathing, Makoa activate

ey could see of the structure, their surfaces covered in relief carvings depicting scenes of worship and sacrifice. A raised platform at th

ce hushed with a mixture of awe and dread. "F

a?" Jake asked, trying to keep

um lies that way, through the Hall of Reflections. It is where the barrier be

ake said firmly, checking that the

o confuse and mislead, to test if one is worthy to approach the inner sanct

d at him. "How much time do we have?

ent when the moon is directly overhead the temple,"

Jake calculated. "L

pped somewhere in the darkness, a rhythmic counterpoint to their breathing. As they approached the entrance t

. "Remember-what you see may not be what is

ed to a mirror finish with an unknown material that reflected their light in strange, distorted ways. As they progressed, Jake began to notice

spered from behind him. "Keep your eyes

, more divergent from reality. In one, he saw himself turning back, fleeing the temple in terror. In anothe

e pendant raised above his head as worshippers bowed before him-Samantha among them, her eyes hollow and her e

d, his voice strained. "The guardians of

ections. Jake's sense of direction began to falter, and doubt crept into his mind. Were they making progress, or m

eflection that stopped him cold-Samantha, but not as he had last seen her

nowhere. "All I wanted was a vacation, some time together. But you couldn't leave well en

ed urgently. "It's an illusion,

t, so real in every detail-from the tiny scar on her eyebrow from a

continued, her image flickering slightly. "An

htly. "You're not real," he said firmly. "The

ished. In its place was a simple archway leading into

his voice. "Many are lost here, caught in endles

om the organic curves of the previous spaces to sharp, almost crystalline angles. The walls were covered in intricate mosaics depicting

ld something significant. Channels radiated outward from it like spokes in a wheel, carved in

awe in her voice. "This is where they w

g for another exit. "Where's

surface etched with a complex pattern of interlocking circles. "T

assage they had just traversed. Hushed voices and the soft p

door," Kaia said, her expression g

on the pendant, but arranged in a complex, maze-like configuration. As he studied it, the pendant warmed against his chest, and a

owing the path revealed in his vision. As he completed each section, it illuminate

a soft hiss, revealing

lready stepping through.

shadows appeared in the Alignment Chamber-the pursuing Submerged,

and more humid as they descended. The walls here were bare stone, unadorned but smo