Chapter 304
The Grand Council chamber sits deep in the belly of Atlas, carved into a column of solid stone with currents redirected around it so that the water here feels still—weighted, almost ceremonial. A ring of dark seats rises from the floor in a spiral, each occupied by a figure who looks like they could command a fleet with a glance.
Wake’s father, now simply the King, sits at the center, rigid and silent, more a figurehead than a voice of power now. Still, he remains stoic, arms crossed, eyes unreadable. The army’s generals flank him, hands on the hilts of their weapons, even amongs friends.
And then there are the councilors, four in total, one from each district of Atlas. Their expressions range from skeptical to openly hostile.
It’s not the warmest crowd.
Wake floats beside me at the center of the hall. He looks calm, but I know better. His pulse is steady, but his jaw’s locked tight. He knows this will be a fight.
And I’m here to fight beside him.
Wake raises his voice. “Thank you for coming.”
Silence.
He doesn’t let it rattle him.
“I know this chamber isn’t often used anymore. And I know some of you have grown comfortable believing that the affairs of the rest of the ocean don’t concern the Abyss.”
A ripple of annoyance moves through the councilors. Wake continues.
“But that ends now.”
He gestures toward me.
“This is Phoebe of the Eastern Twilight. My mate. And as of last season, the rightful ruler of her people.”
Several of them shift in their seats. One of the generals, a thick-necked man with gill scars crisscrossing his collar, mutters, “Convenient timing, this alliance.”
“I’m not here to threaten your traditions,” I say, keeping my voice steady despite the weight of a thousand tons of judgment pressing down on me. “But I am here to warn you. We’re facing a threat unlike anything this city has ever seen. And we can’t face it alone.”
The words hang in the cavernous room.
“She speaks the truth. Even now, my brother, Shoal, seeks to win favor with the other Clans, to build alliances that he will use to see each and every one of his enemies cowed and subjugated. We’re not here to beg your understanding. We’re here because the Clans are splintering. Because our way of life on its last days. Because Leviathan is waking.”
That gets them.
A general scoffs. “You call us here for bedtime stories? Lies meant to scare the young into behaving!”
“No,” I say. “A being that even the gods feared. One that they failed to control and were forced to betray, to seal away. He is ancient. He is angry. And he is real.”
One of the councilwomen leans forward, her dark locs trailing around her like hypnotic tendrils. “You want us to believe this… beast is real. Tell me, have you seen it?”
“I’ve seen what it’s capable of,” I reply. “I’ve fought its children. And I’ve seen what lengths people are willing to go to for just the promise of that type of power. Whether you believe that the Dark One is real or not, Shoal is building an army and he is going to use it.”
“And you propose what?” asks another councilor. “That we raise swords against our own prince? Or that we run and hide like cowards? That is not the way of the Deep!”
“You shame us!” Another shouts.
Wake doesn’t flinch.
“We propose a Conclave,” he says. “We go to Estellis. We call the Heirs. The Clan leaders. We bring our people together and face this as one.”
The King’s lip curls. “You plan to rest the fate of this fight on those fools, son? How many Clans even have Heirs at this very moment? How many of those Heirs have been tested by time much less battle? Putting them in the same room is just as likely to spark this impending war of yours as it is to prevent it.”
“Then so be it,” Wake says. “But they deserve to face the truth as warriors. As Enkians. If we survive, it will be because we stand together.”
The debate breaks open like a reef under storm. Voices clash. Words like cowardice and folly fly through the room. The generals are split. The council is worse. One of them outright laughs in Wake’s face and calls the whole plan a fool’s errand.
Wake’s hands curl into fists, but he doesn’t explode—not yet. He waits.
“You say you’ve been chosen,” the councilman sneers. “That the gods picked you, over centuries of tradition, over the Rite, over—”
“You want proof?” Wake interrupts, voice low but volcanic. “You want to see what that means?”
He lifts one hand.
And the chamber shakes.
Not violently—but enough to stir the very stone. Dust slips from ancient crests. Light from the algae torches flickers. The water goes still as if holding its breath.
And when Wake speaks again, there’s no room left to doubt who’s in charge.
“I tried diplomacy. I gave you transparency. I humbled myself in the face of your doubts. But the truth of it is that it doesn’t matter if you believe us or not, it doesn’t matter if you would rather fight than negotiate—the fact is, that your way of life has kept Dagon’s people isolated and ignorant of the climate surrounding our kind, and if you continue to do so, it will spell the end of our people for good.”
His black eyes blaze silver.
“I am Dagon’s Heir. The power in my veins is not borrowed, or stolen, or given lightly. As long as I hold that title, I will not allow this city to destroy itself. So I will take my army and at dawn we will make for the Eastern Twilight.”
Silence.
“Now.” He looks around at each face. Doesn’t flinch. Doesn’t blink. “Will you defy Dagon’s will and continue to resist for the sake of insolence… or will you make the Call?”
The silence that follows is taut as a drawn harpoon.
Then the King rises.
His expression is unreadable. His movements slow.
He looks around the room. At the gathered leaders. Then at Wake.
“I call for a Conclave,” he says.
The words hit the chamber like thunder.
One by one, the others follow.
Axel rises. “I call for a Conclave.”
The first general nods, then the second. “Send the Call.”
The councilors, reluctant but now outnumbered, murmur agreement.
“I call for a Conclave.”
“I call for a Conclave.”
“I call for a Conclave.”
Wake nods once, and it feels like the trench itself exhales around him.
“The Conclave is called.”
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