Attuma slumped to his knees as the Dark Eldritch Energy departed from his body.

On some subconscious level, Attuma found himself wishing to keep the feeling of power that came along with the energy, but he immediately rejected that idea due to his philosophy.

‘Everything worth keeping has to be earned through hard work!’

“I am grateful to you, human! The name is Attuma…” Attuma shouts with a heavy voice that shakes the Ocean’s floor.

He was quick to rise to his feet and bend his back a little since he didn’t want to tower over Tyrone too much.

Tyrone was by no means short, his height was a healthy 6’2”, but Attuma was just a giant even by Atlantean standards.  

Namora coughed a couple mouthfuls of blood, and Tyrone was quick to catch her body as soon as he noticed she was unsteady on her feet.

“Take it easy…” he whispers into her ear, holding her body close while struggling to not complain about her weight.

Namora was definitely not as light as her figure led him to believe.

Tyrone didn’t want to hold Namora in such an intimate manner, but that was the only way he could manage to carry her weight.

Allowing Namora to fall right now would just leave a negative impression, and that could inadvertently lessen his chances of survival, not that there was much to begin with.

Namora cringed at the sensation of a human touching her skin, but there was little to be done when she was this injured.

While the injury was not life-threatening, it still hurt like hell…

Atlanteans were known for their tough vitality, so she was sure that a couple days of recuperating would heal her without even a remnant scar. 

Namora still made sure to glance at Namor, who remained unconscious on the ground a couple of feet away.

She was sure that he would awaken soon, since the water from the puddles was gathering around his body, healing him back to pristine condition.

Atlanteans healed faster in water, and Namor had the ability to heal even faster than most Atlanteans.

“We have more problems to worry about…” Namora said through rough breaths, and then turned to Attuma “Patch me up…”

“Are you certain?” Attuma asked hesitantly but threw all hesitation out the window when Namora nodded in response.

Attuma’s muscles bulged as the water on the ground began to boil, and with a quick, flawless movement, Attuma used his heated palm to cauterize the wound on Namora’s stomach.

Attuma was literally using the explosive force of his internal muscles to generate enough heat to cauterize Namora’s skin.

Usually, he wouldn’t be able to perform this technique, but since they were in an air pocket, Attuma had an easier time maintaining the heat.

One also had to note that Atlantean skin was as tough as a Rhino’s, with Namora’s and other special individuals having skin even more rigid than that.  

“Fuck!” Tyrone yelled, pulling himself free of Namora since his body could not withstand such heat.

His arms already carried blisters from when Namora swam with him in tow, and now, his thighs also carried blisters from the heat of Attuma’s palm.

“I apologize human…” Attuma quickly said while bowing a bit “I forgot to account for the fact that your people are fragile…”

“What the heck are you guys?” Tyrone questioned, the heaviness of the situation finally weighing on his shoulders.

Everything until now was so surreal so he was swept away with the tide of the battle…

However, he now had the opportunity to ask all the questions in the world.

Of course, Tyrone assumed they were mutants but from what he had witnessed so far, 'mutant' was not the answer to everything unknown he encountered.

Sadly, the opportunity to ask questions was bound to be fleeting since the air packet was about to collapse at any moment.

“Can’t you do something about this?” Tyrone asked, gesturing to the unstable air packet.

Attuma frowned and gestured to his drying skin, demonstrating his helplessness “I can’t stay out of the water for long either… so I know how you must feel…”

“Even more important…” Namora interrupted, the nasty scar on her stomach visible for all to see “We need you to absorb the Unforgotten Stone, anyone else will be mutated by it…”

Tyrone glanced at the Unforgotten Stone from the corner of his eyes and shook his head in defeat.

It was clear to him that the Unforgotten Stone had not even demonstrated 2% of its strength as yet…

Should someone like Namor touch the stone, there would be nothing anyone could do about it…

Tyrone frowned and extended his arms to show Namora and Attuma his darkened veins “Every time I absorb a bit of that energy, my body breaks down further… if I absorb the entire stone, I will die immediately…”

Tyrone could literally feel his body breaking apart from the inside…

Even his vision had begun to decline…

“A warrior’s death brings no shame…” Attuma protested, the resolution in his eyes telling Tyrone that he truly meant what he said.

Most sapient creatures would run from death, but Attuma seemed ready to embrace it…

Of course, it was mostly Attuma’s guilt speaking because he recalled killing Sycorax earlier.

Namora frowned, not willing to ask Tyrone to make the ultimate sacrifice “Perhaps, you can absorb enough to weaken the Stone and we handle the rest… there is bound to be some treasures in the kingdom that can heal your condition…”

Tyrone sighed “I am in over my head here… so maybe we ca-”

Attuma, Tyrone, and Namora had made a fatal mistake in the midst of their discussion – never get distracted during a battle.

To be fair, they were all inexperienced…

PUCHI

A spear jutted through Attuma’s abdomen…

If it wasn’t for Attuma’s keen instincts that caused him to shift at the last possible second, the spear would have no doubt penetrated his heart instead.

Atlantean or Human, none could survive having their hearts pierced through…

Unlike what anyone would expect, Tyrone was the first to respond, extending his palm and placing it on the Shark's lower half of the Dark Kharsa.

Even if it came at the cost of his life, Tyrone didn’t hesitate to extract the Dark Eldritch Energy from Kharsa.

Instantaneously, Kharsa and her King Shark mount were separated and the darkness they once held was absorbed by Tyrone, hastening his own end.

To Tyrone, there wasn’t much of a choice since either Kharsa would kill him or the absorption of the Dark Eldritch Energy would.

From what he had witnessed so far, Namora wasn’t much of a warrior compared to everyone else in the group.

It was a bit regretful that Kharsa’s King Shark mount was not able to handle the separation and died.

------------------------

“Awwghhh…”

Namor groaned as he shakily stood to his feet…

It was a bit of a hassle extricating himself from the mini-crater that perfectly fit his contours.

This demonstrated just how much strength Dark Attuma had used to slam him into the ground.

Namor hastily spat the mud from his mouth and glanced around warily in search of Dark Attuma, but instead, he was greeted by the sight of a normal Attuma.

A sigh of relief exited Namor’s mouth seeing that Attuma had returned to normal…

Actually, Namor never used killing techniques when challenging Dark Attuma, and he was sure that Attuma refrained from killing him on some subconscious level as well.

After all, a prince killing another prince was a declaration of war regardless of the circumstances…

Namor walked with a brisk pace over to Namora and the others, noting the scar that resembled a C-section on her abdomen.

He felt a bit guilty at the fact that he wasn’t there to protect Namora when she needed him the most, but obviously, everything had worked out well enough.

Kharsa was okay, leaning on Namora’s back…

Attuma had a new scar on his abdomen but it was nothing that a warrior like him could not handle…

‘All is well that ends well…’ Namor thought, relieved.

Still, he frowned a bit as soon as he reached the group and saw Tyrone standing there…

Truly, he had nothing against humans, it was just that the dirty beings would often pollute the Ocean waters to oblivion.

Anytime an Atlantean neared the surface, they would complain about the strong medicinal taste of the water near the surface.

Some Researchers even investigated the Ocean surface and found that the medical concoction that laced the water’s surface was mainly human birth control medication.

Namor, like many other Atlanteans, thought that humans were abandoning their reproductive capabilities, which was good news in a sense since fewer humans meant less polluted waters.

“Human…” Namor greeted Tyrone, eyeing Namora to see if she approved of the human’s presence.

Tyrone sighed, tired of being called human as if that was his official name “The name is Tyrone…”

“What a boring name for a valiant warrior…” Attuma snorted disdainfully and offered an alternative name “Tyr-one… ‘One’… then you shall be called ‘The One’… the greatest human warrior known below the Oceans…”

“Cough… cough… if this is their greatest warrior, Humanity is bound to extinction within a couple of years…” Kharsa interjected as she leaned on Namora’s shoulder for added stability.

After the Dark Eldritch Energy was extracted, Kharsa was left severely weakened so she required a bit of help to stay on her feet, but her strength was rapidly recovering…

And it was not a moment too soon as several Dark Creatures entered the air pocket, but instead of attacking Tyrone and the others, the Dark Creatures simply gathered around the Unforgotten Stone.

Given that the main goal of their mission was the Unforgotten Stone, Namor and Namora frowned in agitation, clearly reluctant to battle any more Dark Creatures.

It also didn’t help that the longer they waited, the more Dark Creatures entered the air pocket to guard the Unforgotten Stone.

Namora was sure the Unforgotten Stone didn’t create an infinite supply of Dark Creatures only because Tyrone, its bane, was standing amongst their group.

With all the dark creatures gathered in front of the stone, anyone would have thought it was suitable protection, but the Unforgotten Stone seemed to think otherwise.

The Dark Creatures began to break apart and merge with other Dark Creatures, growing tentacles, fins, gills, spikes, and anything else that could be used in battle…

All the Dark Creatures were becoming one huge Dark Abomination.

“I do not wish to ask you this question as a man…” Namor whispered, staring directly into Tyrone’s eyes with the utmost seriousness “But I must ask you as a future king… are you willing to sacrifice your life for the safety of Atlantis and all the kingdoms beneath the Oceans?”

“Namor!” Namora yelled but was quickly silenced by Namor’s fierce glare and Kharsa’s hand on her shoulder.

Tyrone glanced at Kharsa and noticed her tightened grip around her spear, clearly showing that she was prepared to force him should he disagree.

Attuma didn’t even glance at Tyrone since, in his mind, Tyrone was a fine warrior, and a fine warrior would not run from a battle.

“Shouldn’t we attack it now while it is not prepared?” Tyrone inquired, wondering if this talk was so important.

Namora shook her head “Attacking it now will cause the Stone to lash out in unpredictable ways… we should wait until the Dark Abomination is completed, and the stone has peace of mind to let down its guard…”

“The answer to my question will dictate how the battle unfolds from now on…” Namor whispered, gesturing to Tyrone for an answer.

Namora appeared saddened but not overly bothered by Namor’s request…

“Honestly… I wouldn’t care about Atlantis or whatever kingdoms you guys have here…” Tyrone stated nonchalantly, but gestured to his blackened veins once more “But as you can probably see… I am on a timer, and regardless of my actions, I won’t last very long… just promise me a statue and you have a deal!”

Namor sighed in relief, though a bit sad “I promise you statues, songs of your glory, and the gratitude of a future king…”

Tyrone smiled in relief, feeling imaginary shackles release from his ankles and arms… Did he make Jessica and Xandra proud of his actions? Would they smile at him when he met them in the afterlife?

“Don’t make promises too early… we have no way to get past those beasts…” Kharsa interrupted, showing the obvious kink in Namor’s plans like the pragmatist she is.

“Easily resolved…” Namor murmured, removing an amulet from around his neck and passing it to Tyrone “The Amulet of Atlantis, grants the wearer the minimum capabilities to be considered Atlantean…”

“My liege-” Kharsa tried to object but a quick glance from Namor took all the winds from her sails.

Namor waved his hands dismissively “He requires at least that much in order to survive what comes next…”

Tyrone played around with the Amulet confused, until Namora grabbed it from his hands, and clipped it around his neck…

Neither of them expected the black necklace around Tyrone’s neck to completely consume the Atlantean Amulet…

Suddenly, gills opened behind Tyrone’s neck, his brown skin became tougher and scaly, and black ink secreted from his body, creating a shadowy hood that shrouded his features…

“Hahahahha…” Attuma was the first to burst out laughing followed by Namora.

“Why are you guys laughing?” Tyrone questioned since he looked pretty cool in his Atlantean form.

“Just wait for it…” Kharsa whispered, barely hiding a smile beneath her serious façade.

“Wha-”

Tyrone couldn’t finish his question as he dropped to the seafloor and began to wiggle like a fish out of water, struggling to breathe while everyone laughed even louder.

“You’re a weak Atlantean while in that form, so you have to breathe water…” Namor chided, waving his hands to collapse the air pocket, bringing forth the Ocean’s water once more.

After the water came rushing back in, Tyrone could finally breathe easy; though, the embarrassing moment of wiggling like a fish on the ground will remain with him for the rest of his life.

“Cough… cough…”

Two quick coughs from Tyrone told Namor and the others that they could delay no longer, it was either now or never to conquer the Unforgotten Stone.

Namor glanced at Namora, Kharsa, and Attuma…

The trio immediately gathered around Tyrone, Kharsa, and Namora on his left and right flanks, while Attuma stood directly in front of him.

“How do you plan to remove that Dark Creature and get me to the Stone?”

“Whirlpool…” Namor replied matter-of-factly.

“What?”

“We are bringing you to the stone while also bringing the stone to you… a whirlpool has one point where everything meets…” Attuma explained, but Tyrone still had trouble guessing their intentions…

Namor’s eyes began to glow aqua-blue, radiating power he had not shown previously.

“SSSSPPPPIIIIIINNNNNN!”

Namor’s bellow reverberated throughout the water, and then the water slowly started to spin…

It spun very slightly at first but soon, everything became a blur as the area became a giant whirlpool.

Of course, Tyrone felt like he was inside a blender…

-------------------

Nazi Ship Investigating Oceanic Disturbances

An unnamed Nazi vessel was dispatched to investigate the Oceanic disturbances that suddenly started to occur an hour ago.

This was a routine mission for those with little power who refused to participate in the war but were still forced to serve Hitler.

“So… anything?” A Fat Older Gentleman asked his crew.

“Nothing…” The Crew responded.

However, the vessel started to sway a little, until the sway turned into an intense spin.

Before anyone realized what was happening, the vessel along with its crew was pulled underwater.

All that was left on the surface of the Ocean was an enormous whirlpool, splashes of blood-red, and separated metallic chunks of the former vessel.

-------------------------

CHIT

CHIT

CHIT

Tyrone found himself weirdly accustomed to the spinning motion of the Ocean, but his skin had several deep cuts from the sharpness of the water…

He was literally in a human blender…

Attuma tanked most of the sharp whips from the currents without as much as a mark, but any that managed to bypass his defenses scarred Tyrone immediately.

Kharsa was in a similar situation to Tyrone, though she was a bit more resistant so her scars did not bleed as much as Tyrone’s.

Namora was by far the most focused since she manipulated the currents away from Tyrone.

After all, Attuma’s sturdy physique could only block so many whips before even his skin started to break under the constant barrage.

Despite the rapidly spinning motion of the Ocean’s waters, Namora always made sure to glance at Namor, who stood at the center of the whirlpool exerting all his might.

BBBBBOOOOOOOOOMMMMM

Kharsa was the first to depart from the group, striking outwards with her spear when a massive tentacle tried to sneak attack Tyrone from a blind spot.

BBBBBOOOOOOOOMMMMMM

Attuma was the second to depart, but not because he was attacked…

Attuma cut through the whirlpool currents using his body, and cranked back his massive fist, sending his explosive power forward in a punch that temporarily dispersed a section of the whirlpool.

With Attuma’s battle strength, the largest threat that guarded the Unforgotten Stone was tied up in an intense battle…

“There!” Namora shouted, her eyes narrowing as she peered at the Unforgotten Stone swirling about the whirlpool’s currents.

Still, as much as she could cut through the currents to retrieve the Unforgotten Stone, Tyrone’s weak Atlantean Physique could not withstand such sharp currents as yet.

Namora instantly plotted the course of the Unforgotten Stone and selected the best current to follow for interception.

WHOOOOOOSSSHHHHHH

A particularly sharp current forced Namora to abruptly veer off course, barely managing to hold onto Tyrone’s hands so he wouldn’t be carried away.

But how could the Unforgotten Stone not exploit that vulnerability?

A dark shockwave erupted from the stone, agitating the nearby waters and shifting the currents just enough for Tyrone’s hands to slip from Namora’s fingers.

Tyrone spiraled out of control for a moment, seemingly about to be dissected by the sharp currents, but Namora would not just sit back and let that happen.

Namora isolated a strand of current the moment Tyrone slipped through her fingers, and she added a bit of air to the current, making it a cushion of sorts.

With a quick shove, the current reached Tyrone’s back, pushing him towards the Unforgotten Stone in the blink of an eye.

Tyrone extended his hands, mere inches away from claiming the Unforgotten Stone but alas, it was not meant to be…

At the last possible second, the Unforgotten Stone performed a complex maneuver that put it just out of Tyrone’s reach…

Seeing this, Namor dispelled the whirlpool immediately and used all his remaining power to direct the water toward the Ocean’s floor.

Namor was out of options, and he thought that bringing everything to the Ocean floor would give Tyrone some sort of advantage, given he was already used to being on his feet anyway.

Tyrone felt his body shift, shooting downwards as if gravity had somehow become a variable in the Ocean.

‘If only I could reach the stone…’ he thought sadly, knowing that colliding with the Ocean floor at this speed would be the end of him.

No sooner did the thought-form, had Tyrone’s shroud of inky darkness wrapped around his body completely, blanketing him from all light…

When the shroud disappeared, Tyrone found himself directly in front of the Unforgotten Stone, which had no time to dodge his fast hands from wrapping around it.

----CHCHCHCHTT----

“AAAAARGHHHHH…. UUUUHHHAGHHHHHHHH!”

Tyrone’s painful screams caused a stillness in the Ocean…

Black veins squirmed under his skin but Tyrone refused to release the Unforgotten Stone no matter how much it struggled.

Namora was about to swim to Tyrone’s side, but Attuma, Kharsa, and Namor flashed in front of her, stopping her dead in her tracks.

“What are you doing?!” She yelled agitatedly “We can still save him once the stone is weakened enough…”

Namora frowned and turned his eyes away from Tyrone’s pained face “At best, we could seal the stone again, with the human, we can get rid of the Unforgotten Stone forever…”

“But-”

“I have tasted the power of the Unforgotten Stone… I have a will of steel but even then, I faltered… this should belong to no kingdom…” Attuma added, silencing Namora for good.

Maybe, she could manage to get past Namor, but never would she be able to get past both Namor and Attuma.

“AAAAARGHHHHH…. UUUUHHHAGHHHHHHHH!”

“AAAAARGHHHHH…. UUUUHHHAGHHHHHHHH!”

“AAAAARGHHHHH…. UUUUHHHAGHHHHHHHH!”

Tyrone screams of pain only grew fiercer, making even Attuma, a hardened warrior, hesitate whether or not this was their best option.

Darkness spilled from the Unforgotten Stone and entered Tyrone’s body like an opened dam…

Each second that passed saw the Unforgotten Stone turning dimmer and dimmer, no longer the inky black it once was.