Raiden
The Thunderborn strained against the roaring chaos, its timbers groaning as if in protest against the monstrous whirlpool that loomed ahead. Waves crashed over the deck, drenching the crew and turning every step into a battle to stay upright. The storm raged above, lightning tearing through the blackened sky, momentarily illuminating the raw panic etched on the faces of those aboard.
Raiden Veyne stood at the helm, his dark hair plastered to his rain-soaked face, his storm-gray eyes sharp and unyielding despite the chaos around him. The sphere at his side pulsed violently, its obsidian surface glowing in sync with the storm's jagged flashes of light. Every beat of its light sent a surge of power coursing through him, but at a cost—his body felt heavier, his breath ragged as the artifact continued to sap his strength.
He scanned the water ahead, his jaw tightening as he spotted it: a break in the whirlpool's relentless current, a fleeting chance to escape. It was a slim opening, but it was enough. "There!" he shouted, his voice cutting through the storm's roar. "Hold the lines and ready the sails! We take that path, or we are going to die!"
The crew sprang into action.
Eliza, her keen eyes sharp despite the rain whipping across her face, was already at the rail, securing loose ropes that threatened to whip free. Lennox, the burly deckhand, threw himself into tightening the mainsail's rigging. By sheer strength, he kept the canvas steady against the wind's fury.
Nearby, Finn, ever the gambler, smirked through the storm, shouting, "Well, Captain, if this is our last play, let's make it one hell of a bet!"
The Thunderborn lurched as Raiden leaned into the wheel, steering the ship toward the break in the current. His knuckles turned white against the polished wood, his muscles screaming with effort as he fought the whirlpool's pull. The sphere pulsed brighter, feeding him the energy he needed to push forward, but the cost was immediate—his vision blurred, his legs trembled, and a searing pain shot through his chest.
"Eliza!" he barked. "Keep the crew together—no one falls behind!"
"We're with you, Captain!" she shouted back, her tone unwavering. "But this storm doesn't care about loyalty!"
The Thunderborn surged toward the break, its prow cutting through the churning waves. For a fleeting moment, it seemed they might make it. The whirlpool's pull lessened, its spiraling walls trembling as though the ocean itself hesitated.
And then the sea struck back.
The vortex roared to life with renewed fury, its spiraling walls slamming into the ship like a fist. The current shifted violently, pulling the Thunderborn sideways, its timbers groaning as the force threatened to rip it apart. Raiden's confident grin faltered as the reality of their fate hit him. They weren't escaping. The ocean had claimed them.
"Captain!" Lennox shouted, his voice tinged with panic as the mast cracked above him. "She won't hold together!"
Raiden didn't respond. His focus snapped to the sphere, still pulsing with relentless energy at his side. The artifact—his power, his curse—was tethered to him, and he couldn't lose it now. With a sharp inhale, he ripped it from its mount, clutching it tightly in his hands as the ship gave one final, tortured groan.
The Thunderborn shattered.
The hull split with a deafening crack, pieces of the ship splintering as the vortex tore it apart. Crew members were thrown into the air; their screams lost in the storm's roar as they hit the icy water below. Raiden felt the wheel torn from his hands as he was flung backward, the force of the wreck driving the breath from his lungs.
He hit the water hard, the cold shock stealing what little strength he had left. The sphere was still in his grasp, its glow dimming slightly as though the ocean itself sought to snuff it out. Raiden's vision blurred as the churning currents dragged him under, the crushing weight of the water pressing down on him from all sides.
His instincts screamed at him to let go of the sphere, to use both hands to fight his way to the surface, but he couldn't—not now, not after everything it had cost him. He clung to it with a desperate grip, his muscles burning as he kicked against the pull of the whirlpool. The water churned violently around him, a chaotic blur of dark shadows and streaks of distant light.
Raiden's chest burned, his lungs screaming for air as the currents pulled him deeper. He clawed against the water, his movements slowing as exhaustion from the artifact's drain on his strength took a toll. For the first time, the weight of defeat began to settle over him.
The sphere pulsed faintly in his grasp, a reminder of the power that had led him here. Raiden fought to hold on, his body trembling.
The ocean's fury was unwavering; as Raiden struggled against the currents, his fate hung in the balance.