Emma walked through a white corridor along with a few heavily-clad, armed guards. At the end of the hallway stood a large blast-door. The manager pulled the ID card hanging by a lanyard on her neck, scanning it on the console next to the entrance. With a light "beep," the door slid open. Inside was a control room with many scientists tending to various machines. Emma recognized the head researcher standing behind thick glass that sectioned the room. The manager approached her, staring at what floated in the middle of the room beyond the glass.
The mask she brought with her to Innsmouth levitated within a cylindrical barrier. A red aura radiated from it.
"Ah, Ms. Emma, I didn't expect you to by this early," the researcher greeted.
"The boss wanted me to come by and see how things were going."
Emma knew the woman noticed the bags under her eyes from her expression. "You look tired, would you like some coffee?"
The manager adjusted her glasses. "I'd love one, the strongest you've got."
"Very well. Dr. Klein, bring her a shot of espresso."
Emma received her drink and was shot awake from the first sip. She got five hours of sleep the night before, longer than usual. She knew being the branch manager of a company this large would have its troubles and expected these types of things to happen, but her responsibilities kept her from clocking out completely.
"So how's progress going?"
"Slow but steady. We're still figuring out the composition of the mask and its abilities."
"What've you discovered?"
"The mask is mostly organic, no rubber or plastic has been found in it."
"You're saying it's made of skin and flesh?"
"Experiments have shown the mask can bleed when small incisions are made, but we might need more time for experimentation to prove it."
"Interesting. Any findings on its origin?"
"We don't have a lot of information to go off of, other than your report."
"The deity I spoke to, he mentioned something called the Crawling Chaos."
"We've begun to research about this entity. It might take a while, but I'm certain we'll eventually find something that'll lead us to where this mask comes from."
Emma nodded. "Let's hope."
"I'd like to ask you something I read about in your report, if that's alright with you."
"No problem, go ahead."
"This Amelia Watson you worked with on your operation, you said she was after someone called the High Priestess of Midnight. Could you explain more about that?"
"Apparently, this girl destroyed the world in the future. Watson went back in time to stop it from happening. When I met Watson she wanted to find more info on where to find her."
"This priestess, do you think she has something to do with this mask business?"
Emma shrugged. "Can't say for sure, but it's a possibility. I hope it isn't, though."
'I wonder how those two are doing,' she thought.
-
Amelia reconvened with the others in the crew's quarters. A few injured men lied in their beds, resting. The Deep One placed down a few boxes nearby. Gura tended to one of the women, giving her water from a pouch. The detective caught sight of Marine consulting one of her pirates.
"Senchou, Mori gave us a heads-up. Said she'll be expecting us in another thirty."
"Well that's just great," Marine sighed. "I need a drink. I've already got my hands full with the crew. If only one of my gen-mates were available."
"We've gotta figure out how to get to the island, unless you want us leave and come back later."
"Normally, it'd be the wise choice to retreat, but that isn't how I roll. We're getting on that island. That girl's going to regret messing with my crew," Marine smirked.
"Senchou," a pirate announced. "The cannons are ready for use again."
The captain nodded. "Good, at least if that thing comes back we'll be ready."
"Detective, Captain," the Deep One approached the two.
"Where've you been?" Amelia asked.
"I was helping the crew load the cannons down here. That creature you saw on the deck, what was it?"
"If I remember right, Mori said it was something called a shoggoth."
The Deep One gasped, tensing up. "This is bad."
Before the detective could ask why, Marine suggested that they continue their talk in her quarters. Calling over Gura, the four climbed up to deck. A few pirates stood atop the rock, watching the reaper. Amelia peered over the railing at the calm sea, finding nothing around. She stroked her chin in contemplation, but was interrupted by Gura asking if she was coming. The captain's quarters were surprisingly spacious with many things lying about. A few cutlasses laid in a case, a flag was draped at the wall opposite to the entrance and a chest filled with unsorted clothes sat next to Marine's bed with maroon red covers. The captain took a seat at her desk with a sigh. Amelia's foot tapped something on the floor and when she looked down she found a picture frame with a thin crack down the middle.
She picked it up, examining it. In the photo were five girls, Marine one of them. The girls stood, side-by-side, the captain standing in the middle of the picture. The first person on the left wore an ear-to-ear, mischievous grin. Bunny ears sprouted from her blue pigtails, which reached halfway down her puffy, white dress. The second girl was the shortest out of the bunch, with turquoise hair and a blue dress adorned with butterfly designs. Despite her cuteness, her red eyes gave Amelia a sense of dread. The fourth girl had silver hair and her imposing stance reminded the detective of Mori. The fifth girl was close at her side, her blonde hair running down her back. She locked arms with the fourth girl, who Amelia noticed was glancing at her with a fond smile. The detective handed the frame over to Marine.
"It was on the floor," Amelia explained.
"Oh, thanks. I'd hate to lose this," Marine placed the picture back on the desk.
"Who are they?"
"My friends. We took this picture back when we first joined the Hololive Operatives two years ago."
"Y'know, I've never heard about this Cover Corporation until I met Emma."
"It's a big organization, but I'm not surprised you haven't known about them. We keep ourselves under the radar."
"What's the purpose of Hololive?"
"We handle things that are out of the ordinary, to say the least."
"Not surprising, considering the fact you're here to find a city in the middle of nowhere," Amelia chuckled.
"Not to interrupt your little conversation, but we need to talk about the plan," the Deep One interjected.
"Right, do we have any ideas?" Marine asked.
"Let's just go over what we know as of now," Amelia started, "Mori is watching the ship from the top of the tower on the island. She can speak into our minds and do some crazy laser beam with her scythe."
Gura raised her hand. "Question, can she read our minds?"
"Not likely, she could have prepared beforehand or tell us to stop when we attacked her earlier."
"But what if she's faking it?"
"I know our enemy is unpredictable, but we have to go off by assuming she can't hear us."
"That's not our only problem though," Marine chimed in.
Gura nodded. "There's also the monster hiding underwater..."
"Didn't you say something about it, Deep One?" Amelia asked.
"Yes, it's bad news for all of us. Taking down that woman is one thing, taking down a shoggoth is another."
"What's a shoggoth?" Marine asked.
"The Elder Things sent a number of them to attack my home. They're formidable opponents to fight, ferocious, only having one goal, to eliminate. One was enough to kill twenty soldiers. No normal weapon is strong enough to destroy it."
"But didn't our cannons hurt it?"
The Deep One shook his head. "Wouldn't say it got hurt by them, more like it was knocked back. When my people tried to fight back, our weapons were useless. It either changed its form to avoid our spears or it regenerated any damage we inflicted on it."
"So what you're saying is that it's impossible to kill it?"
"Not necessarily, there is a way. Shoggoths have an aversion to fire. My people were at a disadvantage because we lived deep underwater and they made quick work of us because of that."
"Its only weakness is fire..." the captain was deep in thought.
"I've got another question, if the monster can to take us all out, then how are we all still alive right now?" Gura asked.
"I was going to ask the same thing. This shoggoth is not normal, it's bigger than usual and it's not attacking us."
Gura nodded. "Right, it didn't attack the ship when we were passing through the barrier. Maybe Mori is controlling it?"
Amelia shook her head. "I don't think so, Mori gave us a chance to surrender. She seems like she wants to end this as peaceful as she can, she wouldn't just go back on her word and try to kill us all with the shoggoth. Also, when she spoke to me it didn't sound like she expected it to attack."
"That leaves the question why it doesn't just strike at us now that we're in a vulnerable position..." Marine said.
Amelia crossed her arms, trying to jostle her brain and figure out a reasonable answer. Now that Gura mentioned it, she remembered the crew's first encounter with the shoggoth when they made their way through the water barrier. Its vast presence and strange cries glued her to the deck as it passed the side of the ship. The detective recalled its long, winding tentacles that wrapped around the boat, destroying sections of it. She missed something and desperately attempted to get ahold of it. Her eyes widened.
"It's blind," she uttered.
"Excuse me?" Marine looked at the detective from her seat.
"The shoggoth's blind."
"How do you know that?"
"Gura, Marine, remember when we were at the deck and we saw that thing for the first time? Its eyes, don't you remember them?"
Gura gasped. "I remember, it's eyes looked kinda white!"
"Exactly."
Marine nodded. "Then the reason it attacked the ship earlier was because-"
"It heard the cannons when we fired at Mori."
"This does give us a potential advantage over the enemy, but the most important thing we need to figure out is how we kill it."
Amelia smirked. "I think I have an idea."
-
"That's crazy!" Gura shouted.
"Insane is one way to describe it. You're betting on a lot of things to go your way, detective."
"What other plan do we have, it's either this or following Mori's orders."
"Why don't we pretend to follow her orders and then double-cross her?" Gura suggested.
Amelia shook her head. "We don't know what Mori's capable of. If we try to fight her, we could all die."
"This gamble of yours might end up killing all of us as well."
"But if we pull it off, we can prevent Mori and the shoggoth from stopping us from talking to the old timer."
Gura turned to Marine. "Senchou, what do you think?"
The captain weighed her options. "Amelia, your plan is borderline insane, I'm not too keen on putting the lives of my crew in danger. But what choice do we have? I'm definitely not going to surrender to Mori, that's for sure."
Marine grinned. "And besides, life isn't worth living if you don't take a few risks."
"It is a viable way to take down the shoggoth, I think it would be strong enough to kill it."
Gura sighed. "I can't believe we're doing this, but I'm still behind you all the way Ame."
-
Mori yawned, sitting down as she watched the time on her silver pocket watch pass thirty minutes. She stood up, carrying her binoculars and zooming in on the ship, still behind cover. As she prepared to make an announcement to the crew the boat began to move once more, leaving its position behind the rock formation. It made a beeline towards the island at a modest pace. Mori was relieved, glad that the pirates decided to listen to reason. She scanned the deck, checking to see who was up top. She caught a glimpse of Amelia's short, white-haired companion. The captain oversaw things from the highest point on the deck, commanding a few pirates to carry a few crates from below. Despite her curiosity and cautiousness, Mori elected not to inquire about it, instead keeping watch as they were only a mile away from arrival.
The ship came to a sudden turn to the left, revealing the cannons that poked out of the side. Mori sighed, wondering why they would try the same attack twice. Without warning, a volley of cannonballs were shot out, smoke trailing from behind them as they soared towards where Mori stood. The reaper sliced through them once more with ease. To her surprise, when she looked back down at the ship once more, she found more cannonballs coming towards her. She swung again, avoiding getting hit. Some of the projectiles embedded themselves into the tower, cracks making their mark on stone. When a third round of cannonballs shot towards her, she had enough of the little nuisances annoying her. Her scythe glowed a bright purple, the blade directed towards the row of cannons. She hoped that the beam would not be enough to bring down the entire ship.
The ship was closing into the shore. As the beam charged up, Mori caught the captain holding a flintlock pistol to the sky. A group of men and women were around her as well, aiming rifles to the sky. With the command to fire, Mori heard a resounding thunder of gunshots in her ear. Despite her confusion, she swept it to the side, finding that the beam finished charging up, ready to fire.
"Sorry about this..." she muttered.
As the beam started to fire, a great roar shook the seas. The shoggoth came out from hiding once more with its tentacles rising, prepared to ensnare the ship in its clutches. It rose above, covering the ship in front of it. Before Mori could realize what was happening, the laser shot forward at breakneck speed, the purple ray striking the monster in the back. An explosion followed, along with an agonized cry from the beast. The force of the blow almost knocked Mori back, but she stood firm in spite of this. As the smoke cleared and the ship came back into view, the first thing Mori saw was Amelia Watson emerging, standing atop the crow's nest, staring down the barrel of a rifle aimed straight at the reaper's head.
-
"The captain sends her regards," Amelia called out.
She pulled the trigger. The reaper did not have time to process the situation before the bullet drove straight through her head. Amelia watched as Mori flew back, falling off the tower. As a few wisps of smoke wafted our out the barrel he detective did not believe her eyes. Amelia could not suppress the grin forming on her face.
Looking to the side of the ship, the shoggoth's remains slid off the ship and into the water, a few charred chucks floating on the surface. Gura waved her arms, jumping giddily. She climbed down, meeting the others at the bottom. Marine let out a hearty laugh, placing her hand on Amelia's shoulder.
"Well I'll be damned, your plan actually worked. That was one hell of a shot. To be honest, I haven't been this excited in a while."
"Oh please, if you guys didn't lure the shoggoth out we all would've been dead. I was getting nervous once you fired the third round. How did you know when to fire the guns?"
"Gura here saw it coming, she told us to fire."
Amelia turned to the smiling shark girl. "It never saw it coming."
"Where's the Deep One?"
"Still at the cannons-"
The door leading into the inside of the ship slammed open and the Deep One and the rest of the crew came up to rejoin them. For the first time, Amelia saw a smile on its face.
"Your gamble worked, detective. The shoggoth has fallen. My people would be proud."
"Thanks. You did great too, helping the crew down there."
The crew started to cheer, celebrating their triumph over their adversaries, however Marine, Amelia, and Gura understood that their journey was not over yet. The ship reached the island, lowering the plank onto the shore. Marine instructed the crew to stay aboard to protect the ship in case anything happened while the four entered the tower. Walking up the thousands of steps, the group found themselves at the entrance, the door wide open to the darkness within. Amelia pulled out her utility magnifying glass and turned it on, the light illuminating the hallway ahead. Nodding to the other three, Amelia made her way inside the old tower with the others following. She shined her light in all directions, taking in the arcane architecture around her. Dust fell from the ceiling and Amelia thought the air inside had not been fresh for at least a century. Reaching the end of the hallway, a set of stairs descended into the abyss. Amelia aimed her magnifying glass down, finding her light could not reach the bottom.
"These stairs must lead to the Great Dreamer's throne room."
Gura sighed. "More stairs? Yo, Ame, mind giving me a piggyback ride?"
"You wish," Amelia chuckled.
"Aw c'mon, I swear I'm not that heavy."
"But I'm tired too. Hey Senchou, could you carry us both down?"
Marine laughed. "Yeah, no. If you want the fastest way to the bottom, I'll roll you both down the stairs."
The four continued heading deeper with Amelia at the front. They were already a few minutes into their descent and the steps seemed to stretch forever. The detective's vision began to warp, barely noticeable at first but becoming apparent by the minute. Looking up at the others, Amelia concluded that they were experiencing the same thing.
"What the heck is going on?" Gura asked.
"My parents once told me the Great Dreamer's domain has unknown abilities that grow stronger the closer we get to him. We shouldn't be afraid, everyone who met him also saw this."
"Let's keep going."
Soon the walls drifted away, breaking apart into smaller and smaller pieces, revealing the landscape beyond. A red sun shined on them in the middle of a murky, green sky. Amelia's heart raced, trying not to look down as much as possible. She placed her magnifying glass back, seeing the sun was already doing the job for her. They approached a floating island in the sky, reminding Amelia of Yog-Sothoth's refuge. A sharp formations of ancient stone surrounded the island. They stopped in front of tall gates and, on further examination, Amelia discovered they were made of interlocking tendrils that twitched and made a sound that made the detective remember playing with squishy slime as a child. The tentacles receded, opening the path forward.
Amelia's stomach dropped. Sitting leisurely on a throne was the Great Dreamer. His enormous size made the detective hesitate for a moment, but she found the strength to get closer to it. The Deep One followed behind, his face in awe of the presence before him. The four stood, face-to-face with the deity. Amelia thought she would have gotten used to seeing these entities, but each time she met another one taught her more and more that she would never get used to it.
The Deep One got to his knees. "Lord Cthulhu, it's an honor to finally be graced by your presence."
"You. I thought I had seen one of my subjects' kind with you pirates in my dreams."
"You knew we were coming?" Marine asked.
"Of course. Short glimpses into the future come to me in my slumber. They were only confirmed by the young woman who came here before you."
"You mean Mori, right?" Amelia asked.
"The reaper, she warned me of your arrival."
-
Mori stepped forward. "Then let's make a deal, shall we?"
"A deal, you say?"
"You intend to kill them as soon as they get here, am I wrong?"
"Of course. The prospect of these pirates threatens the wellbeing of my subjects."
"I'll take care of the pirates myself and bring them all to you."
"What do you wish in return?"
"I want you to spare the life of Amelia Watson. She's to be kept alive and given to me after you take care of the others."
Cthulhu contemplated for a moment. "Very well. I accept your deal."
-
"So how did that deal go for you?" Gura asked, her arms at her hips.
"Considering the fact you stand before me, I know I misplaced my trust in that reaper."
"Do you still want to kill us?" Amelia asked.
"Normally I would have obliterated you where you stood, but since you have entertained me with that decisive plan I have decided to spare you pirates. I will give you a chance to leave peacefully."
"Hold up a minute, we didn't come here for sightseeing. We have questions," Amelia explained.
"Well then, indulge me with your inquiries."
"Do you know the High Priestess of Midnight?"
"Now that is a title I have not heard in millennia. The strongest and wisest of the Ancient Ones."
"The Ancient Ones?"
"The great mediators between man and god. Long ago, thousands of races warred against each other for territory, including humans. The Ancient Ones came to this galaxy from eons away to settle disputes and create peace within this world. The High Priestess of Midnight was their greatest ambassador, negotiating millions of peace deals to end wars and bring order to the world. The High Priestess wielded the power of the Necronomicon, a book that granted its user power beyond their wildest dreams. The Ancient Ones entrusted the book to whoever had the title of High Priestess and it was passed down from generation to generation, to the next in line to inherit the title."
'The High Priestess brought peace to the world?' Amelia thought, envisioning the girl that night, vividly remembering her terrifying presence surrounded by fire.
"The Ancient Ones succeeded in their mission to end all wars. However, they could not hold the floodgates of tension between the different alien races for long. Eventually, they formed a secret alliance to eliminate the Ancient Ones, tired of peace. They assassinated the High Priestess at the time, a member of the ancient Ninomae family bloodline, starting the War of the Ancient Ones. Outnumbered, war drove most of them to hiding. Without a new High Priestess to keep the Necronomicon, it was sealed away deep in the Dreamlands in order to keep it from individuals seeking its power."
"Are the Ancient Ones still alive today?"
"Yes. Despite staying in hiding for millennia, they've assimilated into human society."
"So they're still alive...Is there a chance that any descendants of the last High Priestess live today?"
"There have been rumors. A surviving member of the Ninomae family has been said to reside on an island you humans know as Japan."
"Japan?" Gura chimed in, "We should be close by, then."
"You intend to find this woman?" Cthulhu asked.
Marine sighed. "I don't really get what's going on here with all this crazy Ancient Ones stuff, what's your deal with her?"
"Disaster's gonna strike in the future and that girl's at the center. Me and Gura need to find her."
"What kind of disaster?"
Amelia crossed her arms. "The High Priestess destroys the world in the future."
"What? How do you even know that?"
"I'm a time traveler. I came back from the future to stop it from happening. Sounds crazy, huh?"
"Trust me, it's not the craziest thing I've heard about. But the old timer here just said these Ancient Ones brought peace, why would one of their kind end the world?"
"The pirate is correct, the Ancient Ones came to this world with no ill will towards its inhabitants. If you truly do come from the future, this is greatly troubling."
"She destroyed my hometown and my family. There's no way I can forget that. She had that book with her. I have no doubts in my mind, she was the High Priestess of the Ancient Ones."
"But how can an Ancient One be driven to do such a thing? Unless...perhaps she was forced against her own will to do so."
"Forced?" Gura asked.
"The only beings capable of doing that are the Outer Gods, but they usually tend to themselves in the cosmos. The Outer Gods seldom involve themselves in the affairs of all of us down here. But there is one that could possibly be at fault here."
"Who is it?" Amelia asked.
Cthulhu hesitated to answer. "...No, it cannot be. You must find the Ancient One and find out why this will happen. If this future you tell us about is real, then reaching her quickly is of the utmost importance."
Amelia nodded. "We were already planning on doing that, thanks for answering our questions. We're ready to head out, Senchou."
"I came here for a reason too, remember?"
"Oh right, the treasure!" Gura remarked.
"Old timer, we came here for some treasure. We didn't fight a monster and go through a storm for nothing."
Cthulhu laughed. "Under any other circumstance your attitude would have led you and your crew to be annihilated now. However, you kept me entertained, even if it was for a short period of time. Very well, a reward is due. When you leave, you will find a chest of gold coins in your ship's hold."
"Wait, seriously? You better not be lying."
"I keep my promises," Cthulhu turned to the Deep One, "Young one, you wish to reside in R'lyeh?"
The Deep One nodded. "It would mean the world to me."
"Your devotion is apparent. Very well, I shall transport you to the city."
Cthulhu's eyes flashed red. The Deep One turned to the other three as he started to become transparent.
"Thank you for bringing me here, captain. I'm in your debt. Detective, Atlantian, good luck on your journey."
"Don't mention it," Marine replied, "you were one hell of a crew member."
The Deep One faded away.
"We'll be leaving then."
"The door leading out will be from where you came in."
The gate that protected the island was now a massive door and the three went towards it. Halfway there, it slowly began to open. Light poured through and in the whiteness came a dark silhouette. Amelia's eyes narrowed, adjusting to the brightness. She heard steps clapping against the stone floor as the door closed behind the shadowy figure. As the door shut, the true form of the person became clear. Amelia felt her stomach drop, her eyes widening.
Mori Calliope stood a short distance away, wielding her scythe.
"Hold it right there."