I did not sleep after the Rite.The palace tried to return to normal. Music drifted faintly through distant halls, servants resumed their duties, and the glow of Oceania shimmered as beautifully as ever.
To anyone watching from afar, the empire looked peaceful.
But I could feel it…the ocean was awake
and totally aware.
Every current brushing against the palace felt deliberate, like invisible hands testing the shape of something newly restored.
The water carried whispers without sound, attention without form.
And somehow… that attention was centered on me.
I stood at the edge of my chamber balcony, watching the capital stretch endlessly below. Coral towers rose like living sculptures, glowing pathways winding between them as citizens slowly returned home after witnessing the Rite of Recognition.
They celebrated and cheered.
The ocean accepted its Sovereign.
Yet beneath that joy, something else moved quietly beneath the surface.
