The security lock on the storage door clicked.
Dave stood silently in the dim room, the stolen device hidden beneath his jacket. Outside, several guards moved along the corridor, their boots echoing against the steel walkway of the platform.
Jack's voice whispered through the communicator.
"Dave… situation update?"
Dave kept his eyes on the door.
"…they noticed the data breach."
Ava answered quietly.
"How many?"
Dave listened carefully.
"…three. Maybe four."
David's voice remained calm.
"Can you escape without exposing your identity?"
Dave exhaled slowly.
"…I'm about to try."
The door handle turned.
At that exact moment—
The Reader's Viewpoint activated.
Threads appeared.
Possible outcomes.
Possible movements.
Possible failures.
Dave selected the simplest one.
He stepped to the side of the door just as it opened.
The guards rushed inside—
But Dave was already moving.
He slipped behind them silently and walked straight into the corridor before they even realized the room was empty.
One guard blinked.
"…wait—"
Dave was already gone.
Within seconds he disappeared into the maze of industrial walkways that stretched across the research platform.
Jack whistled through the communicator.
"…I love it when the main character cheats reality."
Dave didn't respond.
Because something else had appeared in his vision.
A constellation message.
Constellation "Queen of the Underworld – Persephone" has begun guiding your narrative.
Dave slowed slightly.
"…Persephone?"
Simon whispered.
"…an ancient constellation."
"…one associated with descent and rebirth."
Jack laughed softly.
"…great."
"…now even mythology is getting involved."
The constellation message changed.
Persephone:
You search for the truth beneath the ocean.
Good.
Then follow the survivor.
Dave frowned.
"…survivor?"
Another message appeared.
Persephone:
Submarine Operation Survivor – Petra Valen.
Location: Iron Lung Vessel.
Dave stopped walking.
"Iron… Lung?"
Simon's voice grew quiet.
"…the red ocean submarine."
Jack spoke again.
"…wait, the one that explored the blood sea in the old archives?"
Dave nodded slightly.
"…that one."
Ava asked carefully.
"…and this Petra?"
Dave checked the constellation message again.
"…apparently she survived a submarine mission no one else did."
David spoke slowly.
"…then she may know what's beneath the ocean."
Dave turned toward the far side of the platform where a large dock stretched into the Iron Ocean.
"…which means I need to meet her."
Hours later.
The research docks were quiet.
A massive vessel rested beside the platform.
Unlike the industrial ships nearby, this one looked… wrong.
Heavy steel hull.
Minimal windows.
Reinforced pressure doors.
A faded name painted across its side.
IRON LUNG
Dave stared at it.
"…so this is the ship."
Jack whistled.
"…that thing looks like it eats submarines for breakfast."
The loading ramp lowered slowly.
Footsteps echoed.
Someone stepped out.
A woman in a heavy naval jacket, dark hair tied back roughly. Her posture was rigid, but her eyes carried something deeper.
Experience.
Fear.
And survival.
She looked directly at Dave.
"…you're the one the stars told me about."
Dave blinked.
"…the stars?"
She pointed upward.
"…the constellations."
Jack muttered in Dave's ear.
"…okay that's creepy."
The woman stepped forward.
"Name's Petra Valen."
She crossed her arms.
"I was the only survivor of the last submarine expedition."
Dave studied her carefully.
"…what happened down there?"
Petra's expression hardened.
"…something that should never have been discovered."
She glanced toward the Iron Ocean.
The dark molten surface shimmered quietly beneath the night sky.
"…we thought we were exploring deep ocean pressure zones."
"…but we found something alive."
Simon whispered quietly.
"…the buried narrative."
Petra continued.
"…it wasn't just a creature."
"…it was watching us."
Jack whispered.
"…I officially hate this mission."
Dave spoke calmly.
"…the submarine logs mention an entity."
Petra nodded.
"…yeah."
"…we called it The Leviathan Fish."
Dave's eyes narrowed.
"…fish?"
Petra shook her head.
"…that's just what the scanners labeled it."
She looked directly at him.
"…it's bigger than the submarine."
"…and smarter than anything we've ever seen."
David asked quietly.
"…what does it want?"
Petra's answer was simple.
"…the surface."
A cold silence followed.
Dave frowned.
"…you mean the ocean surface?"
Petra shook her head slowly.
"…no."
"…I mean the entire world."
Simon whispered urgently.
"…a world-ending narrative."
At that moment—
The sky flashed.
Another constellation message appeared.
Constellation "Persephone" speaks:
The Leviathan beneath the ocean is an ending.
It believes the world above is a mistake.
It intends to erase it.
Jack sighed heavily.
"…so we're stopping an apocalypse fish now."
Dave looked at Petra.
"…can the Iron Lung reach it?"
Petra nodded slowly.
"…yeah."
"…but the last crew tried that."
"…they didn't come back."
Dave crossed his arms.
"…then we'll do it differently."
Petra raised an eyebrow.
"…you have a plan?"
Dave looked toward the red ocean.
The Reader's Viewpoint revealed something terrifying beneath the surface.
A massive shadow moving slowly.
Waiting.
"…yeah."
"…we kill it."
Petra laughed once.
Not because it was funny.
Because it sounded impossible.
"…that thing could swallow cities."
Dave shrugged slightly.
"…then we'll prove it wrong."
The constellation message appeared again.
Persephone:
You stand before the gate of the underworld.
Enter the ocean.
Show me that the world deserves to survive.
Petra looked at the ship behind her.
"…if we're doing this…"
"…we're doing it properly."
She gestured toward the loading ramp.
"…welcome aboard the Iron Lung."
Jack's voice whispered in Dave's ear.
"…this is definitely the start of a horror chapter."
Dave stepped onto the ramp.
"…good."
He looked at the dark ocean below.
"…because horror stories still have endings."
Far beneath the Iron Ocean—
Something enormous opened a single eye.
The Leviathan Fish had felt the ship above.
And it was waiting.
To be continued…