Thalassa
A smooth sea never made a skilled sailor.
Thal cautiously slid into the inky black water. It was surprisingly warm. The directions repeated clearly in her mind. "When the water becomes black as night, dive deep into the water. Swim until breath runs out, then surface in the cavernous shrine. Stumble in darkness for the rubies and offer blood as a sacrifice." Dive. Surface. Rubies. Blood. Sounds simple enough. When she felt the ground beneath her feet disappear, she paused and glanced around. There only stood a stone cliff in front of her, nothing to indicate the entrance to the shrine. But the source had been reliable, and she had no doubts that Dygra would not make it easy to access her.
Taking a deep breath, she dove down and forward. Despite her "faith," Thal expected to crush her hand into solid rock. She was pleasantly surprised when the water seemed to open up around her in a vast expanse of nothingness.
Thal had never been scared of the water - she couldn't call herself a pirate captain if she was - but the lack of sight within this specific water seemed to press in around her. Each stroke of her hands felt like liquid flowing through her fingers, however, without any visual indicators, her mind dismissed the sensation. It strangely calmed her body.
Although she couldn't remember much of her family, she felt as if she was being gently cuddled in a warm embrace. Almost as if the sun was caressing her face. And the silence felt more like a peaceful presence than an absence of something. Time didn't exist here. She almost wanted to just relax and -
Her breath was running out. The deceptive waters around her had lulled her into such a daze that she had almost forgotten to hold her breath.
Kicking forcefully, she moved up. Or what she hoped was up.
The last lingering breath in her lungs started to burn as she felt her fingers break from beneath the water. Thal waited a second more for her head to clear the surface before gulping in air.
Ignoring the pounding of her heart and the concerning thoughts that still lingered in her head, Thal took in her surroundings. The darkness made it difficult to see much. A salt and copper smell lingered. No sounds of life other than her treading could be heard. Only the lapping sound of water on rock guided her to the shore of the cavernous black lake.
Thal crawled out of the water and noticed the nearly imperceptible glow of red gemstones in the wall nearby. With so little light to reflect their brilliance, the glow appeared as a menacing defiance to the darkness.
She wasted no time placing her left hand over the sharp rubies, allowing them to pierce the skin of her fingers. Rather than wipe the blood, she kept her hand in place and let it drip down the gems. In the darkness, the drops obscured the red glow, giving her blood the appearance of black oil.
"Dygra. I beseech thee to hear my prayer." She paused, feeling silly speaking aloud. A deep echo of her voice reverberated off the walls, suggesting a larger space than she originally imagined. "I wish to make a name for myself in the waters of Caido. I pray that I may vanquish beasts and sow chaos in your name so that my name may never be spoken without acknowledging the dominance of your power." As the echo around her faded, she gained back her confidence. "In order to do so, I need a symbol of your power. A weapon in my hands so that I may be your weapon. Please grant me this."
Thal bowed her head in silence and awaited judgement.
