Everything I Need - Orm Marius/Ocean Master

Chapter Three - Another Way

"Poseidon? Like the Greek God of the Sea?"

Atlanna nodded.

"Damn.  Like in the Percy Jackson books? I love those books!" First Jurassic Park, now Percy Jackson - this was getting kind of cool.

Atlanna nodded but her expression had grown serious.  "But it is guarded-"

"Oh, of course it is."

"By the Karathen."

"You mean that freaky bedtime story Atlanteans tell their kids?"

"It is the creature from our legends, it is real. It lies beyond the water fall." Atlanna nodded to a seemingly peaceful fall at the mouth of a nearby cavern. Aurelia got a bad feeling that the serenity of that waterfall did not continue and carry on through that cavern.

"Great." 

"It's too powerful. I've tried to fight it many times over the years. The creature will only allow the one true ruler of Atlantis to pass."

Aurelia looked down at the still-unconscious and barley-alive Orm.  

Atlanna seemed to know what she was thinking.  "You  must try, Aurelia."

"I'm no Queen, let alone 'one true ruler'. I wish Orm wasn't hurt, then he could go, or at least we could go together."

"You have just as good a chance as him," Atlanna tried to reassure her.

"But Orm's been preparing to be king for his whole life. He's way ahead of me.  I wouldn't even know where to start - I don't know where to start. At all."

"And why do you think I sent Vulko and Aria to watch over you, to train you, to help you become more confident in your Atlantean abilities?"

"I don't believe in prophecies-"

"You don't have to. You just need to believe in yourself. Like I do, like your father does, like Vulko and Aria.  And like Orm."

Again, his words repeated themselves in her head:  "I believe in you. You think you're unworthy to lead because you are of two different worlds, but that is exactly why you are worthy, Aurelia. You are the bridge between land and sea, between those two worlds, I can see that now. Now, the question that remains is, can you? See it?"

Had it really only been a matter of hours ago that he had said those words to her? That seemed impossible. Despite all that had transpired between then and now, those words were still clear, ringing in her ears.

"I believe in you... Can you see it?" 

She still  wasn't sure if she could, not yet.  "What do I have to do?"

"You must journey beyond the waterfall. There you will face three different challenges, the final one being to face the Karathen."

Provided that I survive and pass the other two. Great, sounded awesome.  "Three challenges? Sounds like a fairy tale." Well, on the topic of prophecies, kings and queens, princes and princesses, true love, and an underwater kingdom... It all sounded a lot like a fairy tale.

"Three challenges - best get cracking then." She got to her feet.

"You're afraid," Atlanna observed.

Hell yeah I am.  "Yes."

"Good. Then you're ready."

She hadn't thought about it in that way before, but it sure didn't feel like she was ready. "Yeah, I guess so." Even if she wasn't, what other choice did she have? She needed to do this, for the future and safety of both Atlantis and the Surface World. And if she didn't want to be stuck here forever - although this island paradise was making her wonder if that would be so bad after all.

Atlanna took her hands and squeezed them.  "Atlantis has always had a king. Now it needs something more."

"What do you mean?"

"Now it needs a hero."

"Well, I'm no hero."

"A ruler fights only for their nation, but you, you fight for everyone."

"You can't come with me, can you?"

"I'm afraid not. You must do this yourself." 

Aurelia nodded. "Yeah, thought as much.  Makes sense. Besides, someone needs to look after Orm."

"I will take care of him."

"Thank you. Keep each other safe until I get back."

"We will."

Here goes, then.  And with that, she was gone.  

(So, like with my Avengers: Endgame story, I thought, 'what if we raised the stakes even higher'? Hence why I changed things up a little and have Orvax gain the trident. 

Thank you so much for reading and I hope you enjoyed! :))