Editing Kanimaeli - Spirit of Air (section)

==The Endless Ocean==

I channeled my will, attempting to move the air, and to my surprise, it responded. However, after the focused gust faded, a small ripple formed in the water's surface, a ripple that continued to spread as far as we could see. I repeated the form with the compass that Xlotl produced from somewhere, and it indicated, with unwavering insistence, that we needed to descend steeply into the water.

Pi, ever eager, plunged downwards, quickly disappearing from our sight. Xlotl, meanwhile, mused aloud about a potential method to create breathable air, but he seemed to be waiting for Pi's return before committing to it. I noticed a faint disturbance in the distance, a subtle ripple that preceded Pi's reappearance. Xlotl, with a flick of his wrist, froze a section of the water's surface, creating a makeshift platform for Antinniera, granting him the freedom to move unencumbered.

Antinniera, equipped with boots designed for icy terrain, seemed comfortable enough on her precarious perch. Pi swam back up to me, and I stooped low to see his report. I cautiously tasted the water, finding it gritty and tasting of ash. Unpleasant, to say the least. Pi was bobbing with increasing urgency, swimming down and back, always in the same direction. He clearly wanted us to follow, but I was wary of the approaching wakes, now numbering more than half a dozen.

I instinctively drew my fans, channeling Calm to protect myself from any unseen evil. Pi, ever the scout, ventured forward to investigate the approaching disturbances. He soon caught sight of a group of humanoid, green-scaled creatures, each wielding a spear, swimming rapidly towards us. Xlotl, invisible, flanked around them as Pi advanced.

The creatures attacked Pi without hesitation, their spears aimed to skewer him. There were over a dozen of them! Pi, with a snap, bit one of them, a gloopy, green liquid oozing from the wound, and then bolted away at incredible speed. Two spears, however, found their mark before he could escape, the barbs preventing him from fleeing.

I surged forward to assist, arriving just in time to see Pi transform into a massive turtle, freeing himself from the spears' grasp. He swam away, the creatures stabbing at his shell. I attempted to hurl wind bolts at them, but the water's surface deflected my efforts, rendering them useless. Xlotl, thinking himself safe, took to the air some distance above the water.

Xlotl heated a section of the water, effectively boiling two of the creatures, leaving them lifelessly bobbing on the surface. This act, however, revealed his position above the majority of the remaining foes. Three of them had kept pace with Pi, and one now advanced on me. Antinniera, meanwhile, noticed a long, deep, dark shadow moving beneath the water near her, causing the ice to rock precariously.

Something struck the ice beneath Antinniera, and she plunged into the water. She managed to desperately stab the ice with her halberd, using it as a makeshift anchor to keep her head above the surface. I slashed at my attackers, slicing into one, but the fans felt sluggish and reluctant to enter the water, making my movements clumsy and ineffective. Antinniera hauled herself to the edge of the ice, but couldn't quite manage to climb back onto it.

Pi was under constant attack, but his shell provided some protection. A spear ripped into my thigh, but thankfully didn't get a solid enough purchase to drag me down. Xlotl, with his heat-based attacks, managed to boil another three of the creatures, at least achieving some success. Pi dove straight down into the water, disappearing from view just before a large creature wrapped a tail around Antinniera and dragged her down into the depths.

Xlotl, reacting swiftly, plunged into the water, catching a glimpse of the twelve-foot-long creature that was dragging her down... but also another one, and a couple of nasty, large eel-like things. I managed to kill one of my foes, but another remained, still attacking me. Antinniera, desperate, pulled out a dagger and began stabbing wildly, drawing blood.

Xlotl continued to dive, creating a bubble of air that allowed Antinniera a precious moment to breathe before she was dragged below it. The eel-like creatures were closing in on Xlotl, and one of them bit him. Then, from the depths, Pi rose having transformed into a shark, and took a huge chunk out of one of Xlotl's attackers.

I cut down another of my attackers, after deflecting a thrust, and wounded another. Xlotl attempted to use his mind to attack one of the larger creatures, but without effect. He was bitten again, distracted by the attempt. I managed to kill another of my foes, but I knew more were coming for me. I was now the only one remaining on the surface, which was worryingly still.

Xlotl bit the creature holding Antinniera, causing it to loosen its grip. Antinniera desperately swam up towards the surface, knowing she could not hold her breath much longer. Xlotl was bitten by one of the large creatures, but was not out of the fight. Pi swam to help, biting the creature that was already hurt, leaving a wound that looked particularly gruesome.

One of the humanoid things poked its head above the water and screamed at me, but not in any language I understood. I shouted back that I did not come here to fight, but if that was a challenge, then I accepted! He shouted "fuck you" back, confirming his hostile intent. I struck him, but it was only a glancing blow. I did manage to avoid his first thrust, though.

Pi took another chunk out of the injured creature below, killing it this time. Xlotl bit the other large creature, which lost consciousness, floating limply as Xlotl wrapped his tail around it. I struck my opponent again, but he had ducked into the water, so it was hard to tell how badly damaged he was. Antinniera finally emerged from the water with a gasp, reaching for her halberd that was still embedded in the ice.

Then a massive dragon rose from beneath Pi and Xlotl, seemingly made of the water itself, yet distinct from the surrounding sea. It ascended incredibly fast towards the surface. My opponent fled - coward! But then the dragon breached the surface, and I understood his fear. Yes, she was quite imposing indeed!

I took a knee and bowed my head. The dragon boomed: "greetings Airling". I replied: "greetings, Great One, forgive me, I do not know you". She said simply: "you did not summon me", and I said: "if someone spoke to you it was likely Xlotl; he is in the water somewhere". She simply replied: "Oh." Then, she spoke loudly in a watery tongue that only Xlotl could understand.

Apparently, she was "The Mother of All Waves, She Who Endures", the guardian of this place. She knew of Vannetherren, the Lord we had rescued, though. She was glad to answer the call for Clotl, knowing of his family. Pnouyeema was the Lord of Water. The sanctuary was not as it should be; the realms were in chaos, and many old ways had closed. Death was everywhere.

She suggested that the marbles Antinniera held would lead back to her sister's realm (Queen of Storms). Xlotl somehow knew at once how to activate them, a power that Mother of All Waves considered trivial. We had a way back!

The revelations from the water dragon were staggering. The being imprisoned within the column of fire, the one we had thought to be the antithesis of Artemis, was Artemis herself. Two and one, the same yet fundamentally different. If they ever came together, all we knew, all of existence, would unravel. Our worlds were merely a side effect of their separation, the very reason they were kept apart.

Artemis's energy, formless at first, then took elemental shape, leading to the complexity of life, and finally, death. Askentis had split Artemis when they observed her, and in that cataclysmic release of creative power, the Maker and the Unmaker were given form. They sought to mold the newly unleashed energies – one to focus, the other to spread.