Failure tainted the air, so thick that it was almost suffocating. Lori had managed to bring Mera back to consciousness, who immediately started trying to heal Kaldur. He was in worse shape than anyone else, his vitals were unstable and the puncture wounds in his back bled freely onto the floor. Even his stomach was starting to bruise from all the gore leaking underneath his skin. Keeping him alive was the priority, and the one time she had managed to leave his side Mera had repaired the fracture left in Garth's skull.
This meant that Arthur was still sitting against the wall, holding his injured leg with his one unbroken arm. He didn't look like he was in much pain, but that was likely because he was hiding it. He was a ruler, after all. He wanted to ensure that everyone else was stable before he even considered being fixed.
Camille, who had managed to get them all to a relatively safe area, had spent the remainder of her time worrying about Kaldur. He had always been so welcoming of her and the only one that ever seemed to actually want her to be there. He had become a good friend. The only one she could truly say that she had that far into the ocean.
When his breathing had finally steadied, thanks in no small part to Mera's relentless efforts, she was able to relax. Giving the redhead room to work, Camille sauntered towards the bleeding King and slid down next to him. She heard a low groan escape Arthur's threat - the only evidence that he could actually feel his injuries.
"That looks painful." Camille said in a small attempt to make conversation. She had only wanted to take his mind off his injuries, but hadn't realised how dumb she sounded until the words had already left her lips.
"Yeah." Arthur replied bluntly with an odd look in her direction. "That's 'cause it is."
"R-Right...yeah. Stupid thing to say. Sorry." Camille muttered. She really should have thought that one through before blurting it out... "I was just trying to distract you."
"Well you're not all that good at it." Arthur grunted, increasing the pressure on his leg. The prongs that he had broken off prevented the wound from bleeding too profusely, and from it tearing anything, but that didn't mean that it wasn't hurting like a bitch.
"No, I suppose not." Camille had become accustomed to Arthur's general lack of interest in conversation, especially with her, but she wasn't the type to let that fact stop her. "Believe it or not, I've never had to try and talk to a stubborn Merman that went from a King to a drunk in one week."
Unlike Lori, this comment didn't seem to offend Arthur. In fact, he found his lips twitching into a smirk at Camille's teasing tone. "It was four days, actually."
"Somehow that doesn't surprise me." Camille chuckled and immediately the tension between them had faded.
There was a moment, however brief, in which their eyes connected. In him, Camille saw things that mere mortals could only dream of. The potential to make a difference in the most unbelievable of ways. Someone as untouchable as the stars, often in view but never achievable. In her, he saw everything he had once strived to be. Everything that he wished that he was. Someone completely normal in every way, with no special abilities or powers, but with a strength of will that made her extraordinary.
Arthur quickly averted his gaze, focusing instead on the other wall of the submarine. It was stark white and duller than anything he'd ever had the displeasure of staring at. It took his attention off the human woman though, and that was enough to warrant his continued attention. He didn't need to make attachments right now. He refused to. There was too much at stake...too many possible outcomes.
Several very long minutes later, Mera had managed to bring Kaldur back to consciousness. The wound in his back was significantly smaller, now looking like a few needle pinches instead of gaping holes. Now, Mera had turned her focus to Arthur who didn't take nearly as long to recover as everyone else. In fact, mere moments after she had realigned his Ulna bone and removed the prongs from his leg Arthur was already back on his feet.
Kaldur sat upright, head spinning and insides still queasy from his near-death experience. The room looked emptier than usual and an undeniable feeling of loss circled through each person he looked at. "Where is everyone else?"
There was an exchange of sorrowful glances, but none looked as guilty as Lori. She had been placed on a chair, the only way she could remain upright outside of the water, with her long tail clumsily thumping against the ground. "There wasn't much time...I could only save a few people."
"You did what you could." Mera reassured her. Returning without the entire team was hard to accept, but no one would be there at all if it weren't for Lori. "We're all grateful. It must've been a difficult decision to make."
Kaldur visibly appeared uneasy at this news. He tried to hide it from Lori's view but it was an impossible task. She had an unfortunate skill for perception. She noticed almost everything around her, even the smallest of changes in someone's expression. The only person in that room that didn't look upset was Arthur...he just seemed angry.
Without a word, the man had stormed towards the only remaining Trident in the center of the room. It was even less sturdy than the one he had used in the fight, but it was better than nothing. Once you had held the Trident of Poseidon in your hands, nothing would ever compare; only more evidence that Orm wouldn't give it up willingly.
"Where do you think you're going?" Mera huffed, apparently the first to notice that he was preparing to leave the submarine. Why else would he hold a weapon so tightly in his grasp?
Arthur took a moment to observe the water outside of the vessel, searching for any signs of Orm's men. "I'm going to finish this."
"Are you insane?!" Garth reacted almost immediately.
"Yeah...I don't know if you noticed, but we got our asses handed to us just a few hours ago." Camille added. "Going back for more isn't going to help the people we had to leave behind."
Arthur tested the weight of his new Trident, thoroughly displeased with the feeling of it. This thing wouldn't last longer than a few seconds in a full-blown fight. With his focus solely on revenge, he barely heard anyone else's dispute. He had completely blocked them out, whether intentionally or not. It was impossible to prevent him from leaving, and so those remaining of the resistance decided to go with him. Hopefully, this sudden attack after his victory would take the false King by surprise...
Unfortunately, he wasn't distracted enough to not flash Camille an intimidating look when she went towards the smaller submarines in the hopes of helping. It was a stare that demanded her to stay where she was. One that told her that Arthur was in no mood to deal with the added stress of having her trapped within the battle.
Camille froze, if only until they left, and then continued towards her destination. She had listened to Arthur before, and though she doubted that she could've prevented their loss, she surely would have tried. That was better than watching everyone fall and not being able to do anything about it. She was finished with resorting to non-action just because some stubborn asshole thought she was useless.
Camille jumped into the smaller machine, finding one with the most fire-power before securing the doors and releasing the submarine from its larger counterpart. For a very long time she just sat there staring at the wide expanse of blue that surrounded her. She often tried to forget that she was this far into the ocean. It wasn't a pleasant thought, especially for someone that had a vendetta against water to begin with.
"Alright...calm down." She muttered to herself, trying to steady her frantic breathing. "I'm sure there are worse things than drowning. I just can't think of anything right now..."
A few heavy exhales later and Camille had finally prepared herself for the danger lurking ahead. She was still terrified, but ever since that bank robbery all those years ago she had refused to let fear stop her from doing the right thing. She pushed the lever forward and was propelled in the direction the resistance had recently disappeared in.
The lights on the front of the vessel flashed on, illuminating nothing but the emptiness of the sea. Once she'd turned a corner, made up of large rocks and coral, something completely different came into view. A city with statues at the gates that towered so high that no creature would dare enter without permission. They were of two Atlantean soldiers, and looked recently sculpted - it must have been made within the last decade at most.
That may have been the first thing Camille noticed, but the second was the scale of the city. It was bigger than she had expected, blending old tradition and new technology seamlessly. She passed through the barrier separating the sanctity of Atlantis from the wild and untameable ocean, finally seeing the handful of Atlantean soldiers floating unconscious in the streets. The resistance must have taken them by surprise.
As she forced the submarine even further through the City Camille noticed that the place was almost completely empty. Everyone had either scrambled into their homes or followed the fight to the castle. The only sign of life that she could see was a family, the son hiding near a wall, and his parents swimming straight towards her...gripping foreign-looking weapons tightly in their hands.
They screamed something at her, and if it weren't for the microphone conveniently built into the outer hull she wouldn't have heard it at all. Their voices were strangely clear, there was no sign of gurgling or bubbling like Surface-Dwellers when they were underwater. Every word was completely understandable...well, it would have been if it was in English.
Camille's brow furrowed at them. She had initially guessed that they were trying to protect their King. Then she heard them yell again, this time hearing one odd section that sounded like 'Black Manta'. Shit. She was using Manta's technology, it was only logical that people would mistake her for that terrorist. Camille had no way of even attempting to communicate her innocence in that matter, and with the fight raging on ahead she felt rushed.
With a sincere apology that they were unlikely to have heard, Camille pressed the button closest to her with 'stun' written over the top of it. A small sphere was released from the bottom compartment, and though Camille had no idea what it was, it seemed to render the two civilian Atlanteans completely motionless. It must have had something to do with their eyes and how they perceived light...still, she doubted the soldiers were going to be that easy to get rid of.
With a regretful look at the remaining Atlantean child, who was shivering in fear against the wall, Camille continued forward. The further she ventured, the more bodies she saw. Most were simply unconscious, but a rare few had been killed...likely self-inflicted to try and stop anyone from reaching the castle; like grenades, for instance, but like none Camille had ever seen.
The castle was bigger than any other building within Atlantis; the main structure looked ancient but it had been expanded on. Newer rooms had been attached to the building, like pieces of two separate jigsaw puzzles coming together. Behind the castle, signifying its vast importance, was a giant statue of Poseidon. He stared over the vast city of Atlantis, his trident pointing at it to represent that this place was under his protection. The trident was familiar, she had seen it in Aquaman's possession years ago.
As her submarine floated forward, the statue of Poseidon became intimidatingly big. It watched her through disapproving eyes as she finally made it to the palace doors. They had already been blown off their hinges, and inside was complete chaos. Lasers flew through the water, tridents clung against one another, and everywhere the sounds of struggle echoed throughout the room. Garth and Mera were manipulating the ocean around them, thickening the density until their foes passed out. Kaldur was still using his waterbearers, and this time each swing managed to hit someone across the temple. Despite this, Camille could see him wincing - injuries still plaguing him with pain. In other areas Camille could make out the figures of other Atlantean soldiers fighting against their own kind. It was likely that their loyalty still remained with Arthur, and that they had joined him the moment he arrived for battle.
Lori had been captured, both wrists being held by soldiers and another three attempting to contain her tail. Camille took a deep breath and thrusted the small vessel into the fight. She focused her attention on the small screen in front of her, used as a reference for aiming her weapons. Once she had targetted the five men holding Lori, to the best of her ability, Camille initiated a firing sequence. It was a miracle that none of the stray lasers scraped Lori, but somehow they managed to hit all of the targets perfectly...Black Manta may have been an asshole, but his tech was ingenious.
Lori gave Camille a look of gratitude before dashing back into the fight, tail whacking whoever dared cross her path. In the distance, Arthur was fighting against at least five soldiers, some even hesitating at the idea of opposing him. He didn't look to be struggling at all, but behind him another group of Atlanteans were on their way. They were charging through a long corridor as if they had been waiting for a signal of some sort. The resistance was putting up a good fight, but they were quickly losing stamina. It was unlikely they would get through another wave of soldiers without casualties.
Scanning the vicinity for a quick solution, Camille aimed a minimal impact missile at the top arch of the corridor. The weapon blasted through the old structure as if it were made out of cardboard, and it came tumbling down in the form of large rocks. It blocked their path. No one was getting out of there, at least not any time soon. Arthur had only now found the opportunity to notice Camille, and though he was enraged at her disobedience, he was also relieved they didn't have to fight even more Atlanteans. Camille may have joined the fight late, but she had turned the tides of battle. She had prevented it from extending any longer than it needed to.
A remaining soldier punched Arthur back into focus. His jaw clicked out and then back into place. In the same expanse of time, an Atlantean had jumped into Camille's submarine as if he were trying to tame a Shark. The man readied his fist, Camille's attempts to steer him off having little to no effect, then punched into the outer hull of the vessel.
The Atlantean's blow left a crater in the metal, significant enough to create a small leak. The inside of the submarine started flashing red lights at Camille in warning, and a robotic woman's voice spoke "Outer shell damaged. Crack detected. Defence measures advised." A hidden button was revealed from beneath the control board, big enough for Camille to know it was important. With the soldier preparing to strike again, she had no choice but to act or risk the small crack turning into a gaping hole. She slammed her palm down on the button, triggering a forcefield around the submarine. It electrocuted the soldier, and he was sent tumbling through the water in shock.
Water was still dripping into the vehicle, but she could at least breathe a sigh of relief that it wasn't going to get any worse...at least not yet. It would take approximately two hours for the submarine to achieve a dangerous water level, and Camille was unsure how long this battle was going to last. Thankfully, that question was answered for her when the very few soldiers remaining took a step back, bowing deeply as another man entered. He was clean-shaven, with long hair that had been clipped back tightly. His cold blue eyes scanned the resistance, growing even crueller when they spotted Camille. In his hand was the symbol of a King - Poseidon's trident. Aquaman's trident.
Silence broke like dawn on the surface. No one could speak a word. No one wanted to. The tension was too high to even consider it. Ocean Master stepped in front of his destroyed throne eyes stuck on Arthur who returned the stern gaze. Arthur then broke the flimsy trident over his knee, tossing the large piece away and being left with a short yet sharp piece of metal. He ran that weapon over the palm of his own hand, so deep that blood began to seep out. It mixed with the water around him in crimson streams before he closed it into a fist. He held this fist out towards Ocean Master, who still refused to utter a single word. Everyone in the room dropped their weapons, but Camille simply gawked at them in innocent confusion.
With no thought to what was happening, Camille readied one of the guns on her submarine. There was a buzzing sound as it heated up, but before she could aim it at Orm, Kaldur had darted into her view screen with waved arms and a shaking head. "Do not shoot. This is between them."
Camille's expression contorted into bewilderment. Was that not why they were here? To put an end to Ocean Master's atrocities? She had almost found the will to speak before Kaldur motioned for her to let him in. The submarine was small, and very compact, without much room for someone to enter without tracking water in as well. She had to seal off the whole back section to ensure he entered without flooding the entire vessel.
Once he was inside, Kaldur squeezed beside Camille with more patience than his comrades for her general lack of knowledge of their world. "Arthur challenged him to wh'abaqui. Whoever wins, by Atlantean law, acquires the throne. No one can interfere now."
Camille exhaled heavily, eyes wandering back to the two brothers. "And Arthur lost last time? That's why Orm has the throne?"
"No, last time they engaged in Hart'nao. Hand to hand combat between two rightful heirs to the throne. Whoever is rendered unconcious or incapacitated first is not worthy of their royal blood." Kaldur explained as if some of these laws seemed difficult for even him to agree with.
The scene continued to play out before their eyes; Arthur waiting for something, though Camille was unsure what, and then Orm finally lifting up his helmet and placing it on his head as if it were a bejewelled crown. Evidence of his might and power. It had four prongs on either side of it, interlinked by the same webbing that made a fish's fins. The eyes though...they reminded her of the ones on Manta's helmet. They were dark red, so drenched in the colour that it stuck out against anything else in the vicinity.
"What's the difference?" Camille forced the words out, fighting against the fear those crimson lenses bestilled in her.
Kaldur visibly tensed at the question, following her eyes to the fight that was about to take place. "This one is to the death."