“Do I need to repeat myself, Cole?” Vanessa snapped as she stared coldly into my eyes. “What the fuck happened? Did you find whatever we were looking for?”
“We were attacked,” I snipped back. “Samara clearly had one of her beasts guarding the clue--”
“But did you find it?” the professor asked in an eager and impatient voice. “Please, Satan, tell me you did.”
“We did,” I replied with a firm nod before I stuck my hand inside my pocket and retrieved the cold, wet compass. “Here.”
I passed the clue to Vanessa, and her lips parted open as she stared down in awe at the relic. She caressed it like it was made of fragile glass or the rarest gold, and when she opened it, her hands were trembling as if the slightest touch would destroy it.
“This is an Orbis,” she whispered just loudly enough for everyone to hear. “Satan, I can’t believe you found one.”
“Unholy shit,” Morgana said from behind me, and when she approached the two of us, her blue eyes widened with both awe and surprise. “Cole… do you know what this is?”
“The clue.” I shrugged. “One that will lead us to the final artifact.”
“But do you realize there are only three in the entire realms?” the brunette gasped. “They were crafted during the First Dawn by the very first women of the High Council and spread all across the worlds. They are meant to guide you when you’ve reached the most perilous corners of the realms, and now, we have one. I can’t believe it.”
“We need to be careful with it,” Vanessa said in a stern tone before she handed it to me. “I trust you enough to hold onto it, Cole. You were the one who went down there, after all.”
“Thank you, Professor,” I said before I carefully placed the compass around my neck. “I promise to guard it with my life.”
“I know you will,” she said before she took in a deep breath and looked down at the compass. “Besides, only the one who retrieves it can know where it truly points to… so, where do we go next, Cole?”
I looked down at the fragile compass around my neck before carefully lifting the scratched, worn-out wooden lid. The needle was still madly spinning until it finally stopped and pointed north. I looked up and only saw miles of red sand, but perhaps there was something beyond that.
“There,” I said as I pointed ahead. “We need to walk down the beach until the compass tells us otherwise.”
“Alright.” Vanessa firmly nodded before her eyes glanced back at Marina. “How is she doing?”
“She’s waking up,” Akira called back in a sure voice. “Her wounds have nearly healed.”
“Excellent,” the professor said with a smile before she glimpsed down at the compass. “Now, let’s head north and see where this clue finally takes us, shall we?”
Chapter 3
We trekked down the red-sanded beach, and no one said a word until the perky Circe turned to look back at Marina and then smiled.
“How are you feeling, Marina?” she asked the former siren in a gentle tone. “Any better?”
“Yes, thank you,” Marina replied as she rubbed at her former wounds. “It only hurt for a moment, but I’m feeling much better now.”
“Thank Cole and Satan for the power of the pact,” Akira snorted, and I heard Vanessa quietly sigh under her breath, but the black-haired witch paid no attention. “Otherwise, you would have been fucked, Marina.”
“I am eternally grateful for the might and power of our master,” the former siren said, and she cast me a sweet smile.
“Happy to help.” I smirked. “But honestly, I’m just glad you’re okay, Marina.”
“Is there any change, Cole?” Vanessa huffed in impatience as we walked across the endless red beach.
“No, not yet,” I replied as I studied the compass needle, which continued to steadily point north.
“Do we have any idea what kind of creatures or people lurk in this realm … what was it?” Penelope asked, and she turned to look at the ever-knowledgeable Morgana. “Clouds and oceans?”
“Hmm, well,” Morgana said as she tucked a strand of deep brown hair behind her ear. “I can’t say for certain, but like all holy realms, I do believe there are elder creatures of all forms and sizes, and most of them are of sea-like origin.”
“Such as?” I asked with a raised eyebrow.
“Many of these elder creatures walk on land, but they can possess a range of aquatic characteristics, such as scaled-skin, both gills and lungs, and water-based elder powers,” the bookish brunette explained. “Some of them can even thrive on both land and sea. Oh, by the way, what was the creature you encountered underwater, master?”
“It was a giant squid-like being,” I explained as we walked onward. “Its tentacles were covered in teeth, and the ends were as sharp as blades.”
“Oh, Satan,” Morgana breathed as she chewed on her bottom lip. “It must have been some form of Kraken.”
“Most likely,” Vanessa responded before I had a chance to open my mouth. “It doesn’t matter now. All we have to worry about now is keeping a sharp eye out for anything else. Let your familiars focus and don’t speak unless you have to. Your voices are giving me a headache.”
“Yes, Professor,” we answered in unison.
We wandered down the crimson beach, and I clutched tightly onto the compass and stared closely at the cracked glass and steady needle until, suddenly, the entire tool violently vibrated in my hand, and the needle started to move in a purposeful way.
“Wait,” I commanded, and everyone came to a sudden halt. “It’s saying we have to turn slightly east.”
I turned to look in the direction the compass was now guiding us, but all I could see was a tower of black rocks, and
