Amelia Watson's vision was blurry. She could feel pain throughout her body as she laid under the rubble of her own home. A thunderous storm covered the sky, rain showering her weak body. She attempted to get up, but the debris kept her down leaving her pinned in a helpless position. Looking up through a large gap in the stones that obscured her vision, she could see the intimidating purple eyes of another person looking down at her with a cold stare. The person was levitating in the air, wrapped in thousands of squirming tentacles. Lightning flashed, the light illuminating the figure of a young woman. She looked down at the pocket watch she held in her hand, its golden fob wrapped around it, and gripped it harshly. Her thumb pressed down on the crown, pushing it down with all her strength. Amelia's vision faded to white.

She was floating in darkness. She could see distant images passing by her. A little girl sat on a tree swing in her backyard. Amelia recognized the girl as herself, with her golden blonde hair and blue eyes. She saw her brother and both her parents approaching her. She could not help but reach out to them, but the more she thought she was getting closer, the image faded away faster and faster. A tear streamed down her cheek, as she was greeted by the unforgiving darkness once more. Even if she was wearing her detective clothes, she shivered in the chill of the void. She rolled into a ball, tucking her face away into her knees and closing her eyes.

"Hm?" a deep voice said, coming from all directions at once.

Amelia opened her eyes. She was lying on a floating rock, still in the same position. She sat up, looking around her. In the sky were nebulas with vibrant colors, also accompanied with millions of stars that dotted the sky in a dazzling light show and a great white sun shimmering above. It reminded her of one of the picture books her mother used to read to her as a child. Standing up, she felt the weightlessness of outer space. Despite being in space, she felt no different than she was on Earth, she her heart beat at a normal pace and she never felt short of breath. She started to walk, watching the floating rocks resembling massive stalactites sway up and down in the distance. Amelia watched as the path in front of her transform into a grand staircase. Walking up these stairs, she felt the uncomfortable feeling of being watched. Reaching the top of the stairs, she found herself at a circular platform. A giant sphere hung above, gray and colorless.

The white sun concealed itself behind the ball in the sky. The sphere split across the middle and a yellow eye with a red pupil appeared as its eyelids raised. Amelia stood in place, something keeping her still. Eight long, green tendrils rose from behind the eye, stretching across the vast expanse of the area around them. Her heart beat quickened as the eye stared her down. The sheer size of the being intimidated her down to her soul. Along with the winding tentacles, more eyes appeared, looking in all directions.

"Amelia Watson." the being started, in a man, woman, child, and elder's voice combined into one. " How intriguing, I never expected a visitor to arrive in my realm. "

"Y-you know my name?" Amelia stuttered.

"I know all."

"Who are you?"

"My true name cannot be comprehended through your primitive languages. However, I have been called many names by you humans. I am the Lurker at the Threshold. I am the Opener of the Way. I am Yog-Sothoth. The ordinary mortal would go mad from my presence, however you have not. Perhaps you are one of the gifted?"

"What do you want from me?"

"I would ask the same to you. Why have you come to my doorstep?"

"I didn't want to go here. I'm a time traveler, I just made the jump to go somewhere else."

Its pupil narrowed.

"I already know who you are, detective. This still does not explain why you are here," it growled, growing impatient.

"Look I have no idea! Shouldn't you know?"

"Do not raise your voice with me, child."

"Listen, I just wanted to leave that damn place. I pressed the button and left, I had no idea where to go!"

A moment of silence passed, Yog-Sothoth staring Amelia down. "And so you found yourself here. Fascinating, a woman who has leaped out of the bounds of time and space. Perhaps you are here for a reason I do not know."

"I told you, I have no idea-"

Five of the deity's eyes surrounded Amelia.

"Yet. Though you and I do not know the true reason you are here, I can see it in your eyes. There is an unmistakeable determination yet there is also something else. Desperation, perhaps?"

Amelia looked away, her eyes drifting towards the ground. She clenched her hands into fists.

"I want to save them."

"I see. Your memories appeared in dreams during my slumber. Your ordeal troubles me profoundly in a way that I've had yet to experience. However, your destiny is on a remarkable course unlike no other. It is unprecedented, even for a being such as myself, for me to see darkness in your future. Such mystery is unknown to me, it is almost exciting. While it is in my usual routine to ask for a fee, I will refrain from doing so only because my survival is at stake."

"So you'll help me save them?"

"I will point you towards the path to your fate. While I cannot glimpse into all of this new future, your memories have given me some insight. I can guide you to destiny, but whether you live or die is unknown to me, lost in the void."

"I'll do it, no matter what. I want to save everybody before the end happens."

"Very well. When you awaken, it is impertinent that you find the High Priestess of the Ancient Ones."

The image of the girl with a thousand, swarming tentacles flashed into Amelia's mind, her body tensing up at the thought of her boogeyman.

"What? You don't mean..."

"You must. She is the key to this. If he finds her and uses her to awaken the Great Void, all is forever lost."

"Once I find her, what should I do?"

"Rewrite history."

"But how?!"

Yog-Sothoth was silent. The ground began to rumble and crack beneath her. She could move her entire body once more. She started to fall into the abyss as the fragments of the rocks floated away in different directions. Darkness overtook her once more, and Yog-Sothoth dissappeared into the distance.

Amelia opened her eyes, gasping for breath. Her entire body felt sore and weak, but the pain was not bad as the day before and she managed to sit up in the bed she found herself laying in. Wrapped in a long blanket, the warmth eased her breathing. She found herself only in a gray t-shirt and pajamas, which she knew both were too short for her size. She rubbed her eyes turning towards the circular window that sat next to the bed. The water outside was bright blue, a school of fish swimming by. She looked around, seeing blue metallic walls on all sides in a small bedroom of sorts. She found her golden pocket watch on a bedside table and picked it up. Her fingers glided across the scratches that dotted the back of the watch. A large crack ran down the middle of the glass protecting the parts inside and there were small dents around it. The hands refused to move, despite repeated attempts to do so with the dial on the crown.

"Out of commission, huh..." she muttered.

She stood up from the bed. Concluding that she was at sea stopped in shallow water, she left to find whoever took her here. A large metal door with a valve led out of the room. Opening it, she peered out the room on both sides. Outside was a small living area, much to Amelia's confusion. A small kitchen was at one side of the room, complete with a stove, grill, microwave, cabinets, and a medium-sized fridge. There was a table with two chairs tucked under it. A TV was stationed at one of the top corners of the room, supported to stay still. There were three other doors, which she did not know where they led. She stepped out of the room and was surprised to find that the floor was entirely carpeted in baby blue. A framed picture of a crude shark drawing hung beside the entrance to the room she was staying in. Calm but still cautious, Amelia crept out into the living area. In the living room, she heard the sound of crashing waves from an open hatch leading outside. After checking around and finding nobody, she decided to climb the ladder outside.

She stuck her head out and was hit by the scent of ocean saltwater. The yellow sun was rising in the distance, reflecting across the gentle waves. The dark blue sky illuminated by a warm orange that spread across as dawn broke. The squawking of seagulls overhead stirred her from her lingering drowsiness. She could hear the pleasant tune of an instrument and a girl singing. The girl's voice was soft yet she could hear it over the waves and gulls flying overhead. She stepped up onto the top of the submarine, looking off at the unending sea stretching out for miles. A tranquil breeze accompanied the warm weather, her blonde hair flowing in the wind. Sitting on a blue beach chair was a short girl holding a ukulele.

"Ah, you're awake," the girl said, noticing Amelia from the corner of her eye.

The girl was wearing a unique hoodie, with a design resembling a shark complete with teeth and fins. She gave the detective a sharp-toothed grin. Amelia looked at the small girl's blue eyes with curiosity. She took a sip from a box in her cup holder. Amelia looked at the vacant chair next to the girl's.

"Take a seat," she said, giving Amelia a gentle smile, "c'mon, don't be shy."

Still cautious, Amelia took a seat.

"Um...where am I?"

"On the S.S. Hammerhead. Bet you're wondering why you're here. I found you floating underwater."

Amelia's eyes widened. "Underwater?"

The girl laid back in her seat, looking off into the distance. "Yup, I took you inside as soon as I saw a life signal on my radar. You were in pretty bad shape when I took you in, had to use a lot of magic to get all the water out of you, but I was glad when you started breathing again."

"Thank you so much."

Even though she was still baffled at how she got into that predicament, Amelia felt nothing but sincere gratitude to this stranger who saved her life. Years of working as a detective made her hesitant about trusting others, but something was different about this girl.

"Don't mention it. D'you want some milk?"

"Sure."

"Alrighty, one fresh box comin' right up!"

Retrieving a cold box of milk from an icebox besides her, the girl offered it to Amelia.

"By the way, the name's Gura, your friendly neighborhood shark girl, nice to meetcha."

She gave Gura a smile.

"Thanks. I'm Amelia, Amelia Watson. Nice to meet you."

Amelia took the box, reading the label. "Salmon Milk," Amelia read to herself, chuckling. Gura leaned forward towards her with interest.

"So Amelia, what's someone like you doing in these parts? You mind giving me the scoop?"

"Oh, um..."

Gura, seeing Amelia's smile faltering, decided not to press further for any answers. The shark girl spotted the troubled look in the detective's sky blue eyes.

"Don't worry, you don't need to tell me, a secret's a secret."

"Thanks. So where's this sub headed?"

"Atlantis!"

"Atlantis? But-"

"Yup, the great jewel of the seven seas. I've been gone from home for so long, I'm sure my parents miss me. I can't wait to get home and see them again!"

"But..." Amelia hesitated, seeing the sparkle of enthusiasm in the shark girl's innocent eyes. Gura's jovial demeanor kept her lips sealed. She nodded, "Yeah, they probably do."

"Hey, d'you wanna tag along with me to Atlantis? I'm sure my parents would love to meet someone from outside."

"Me? I'm sorry, but I've got to take care of some business back on land."

"Business on land?" Gura asked.

"I know it's strange why I was underwater but well..." she hesitated, "it's complicated, ok? I'd love to go to Atlantis with you, but we just met and I have something urgent to do. If you can just point me in the right direction, I can go on my way and you can go home without any trouble."

"Oh right, we did just meet," she chuckled, "I understand, I'll take you to wherever you need to go."

"Really?"

Gura waved her hand passively.

"It's no big deal, I like helping people out. Besides, you don't even have a boat to go out, dum-dum," she giggled.

"Oh, right," Amelia said, forgetting her pocket watch was broken. "I have no idea how I can repay you for this and saving my life."

"Like I said, I like helping people out."

Dawn passed in relaxation. Amelia still sat in her chair even after Gura went back down in quiet contemplation. Her mind drifted from her loved ones to her determination to save them all. She gripped her broken watch and made a promise to them. A calendar in Gura's kitchen told Amelia the date was January 4th, 2020. Walking into the cockpit of the submarine, Gura took a seat and started the engine. The S. S. Hammerhead set off, full speed ahead. Amelia leaned down, resting her elbow on the corner of Gura's chair.

"Where ya headed, partner?"

"Hm, what part of the world are we right now?"

"Just off the east coast of the US."

"You've got a map here, right?"

Gura produced a smartphone from her pocket and handed it over to Amelia. She opened Captain Marine's Navigation app, her fingers gliding over the keyboard. She remembered the one instruction of Yog-Sothoth and she needed to find this priestess as fast as she could. She closed her eyes, unsure of where to first find clues. She then remembered her research into cults when she was involved a number of murder investigations in America. She recalled that these cults she looked into worshipped deities similar to the likes of the one she spoke with. Knowing the existence of Yog-Sothoth, Amelia felt like getting into contact with another one could lead her closer to finding the High Priestess. The various books and newspaper articles she spent afternoons reading led her to Miskatonic County located in Massachusetts. Nodding to herself, she typed in her destination.

"Arkham?" Gura asked after Amelia gave her phone back.

"I need to take a visit there."

She shrugged, "Okie dokie. The ride is gonna take a few hours." Gura pressed the autopilot button on a control panel. "We'll get there by one. You should probably change into your old clothes."

"Oh yeah, thanks for loaning me some clothes too even though they don't fit me all that well," Amelia giggled.

"No problem. I washed your clothes, they should be in the dryer."

Retrieving her clothes, Amelia buttoned up her dress shirt, wore her skirt, pulled up her stockings, threw on her shoes, knotted her red tie, fixed her cloak, and adjusted her hat. She found a batch of her special concoction in syringes, a magnifying glass and stethoscope in good condition to Amelia's surprise, and her revolver still in its holster. Pushing out the cylinder, she found six rusty bullets laying inside. She looked down at them, ready to eject them from their slots but decided against it. Her broken pocket watch swayed side to side, its fob hanging around her waist as she walked back into the living room.

"Looking great," Gura commented as she cracked open a can of soda.

"Whaaat? That's all you," Amelia giggled, "Haven't told you your hoodie looks super adorable yet?"

Gura flashed a grin towards the detective. "Gee, thanks."

Looking at the time from a clock hanging above one of the doors in the room, she realized she had time to spend. Amelia browsed around the room and caught a glimpse of a game console sitting at a coffee table.

"Woah, this is a PS4 right?"

"Yeah, I bought it when I stopped by Tokyo Bay a few years back. I don't use it that much though."

Amelia leaned down to see the small amount of games Gura owned. Her eyes widened and she reached for a copy of a first person shooter she remembered playing as a teen. It was an older game from the franchise and she smiled, fondly remembering the days playing online and having some less than friendly but humorous interactions with others over voice chat.

"Wanna play?" Amelia asked, a hint of excitement in her tone.

"Sure, I might have another controller lying around somewhere."

The two booted up the console and loaded up the game, going online.

"So, you've played this game before?" Gura asked.

"Yup, a long time ago when I was young."

Gura raised an eyebrow. "But this game just came out a week ago."

Amelia gave an awkward laugh. "Oh right, must've thought about another game."

The detective watched the loading screen with eager eyes. Gura noticed this sudden change in attitude, but she did not feel bothered by it. It was a welcome change from her reserved demeanor from earlier.

"Just warning you now, I'm horrible at FPS games," Gura chuckled.

"No worries, leave it to Amelia Watson to carry you to victory," Amelia proclaimed, flashing a confident grin towards her partner.

"Alrighty then, I'm counting on you!"

The two played together for a few hours, laughing and talking about trivial things. Gura broke out her stash of snacks from the cockpit and played some music.

"Whoa, that's a ton of snacks," Amelia remarked, marveling at the sheer number of the plastic bags and boxes of chips, candy, and other goodies, "You sure none of them are expired?"

"Not with the Atlantian tech on my sub, these babies are as fresh as the day I bought 'em," Gura explained, pulling a chip bag from the pile.

Amelia took a box of crunchy chocolates and sat back with the shark girl at her side.

"Why don't you tell me about life in Atlantis."

"Life in Atlantis, huh?" Gura mused, "Well it's nice. You get to go outside and see all sorts of fish swimming around you. There's a lot of kids around to play with and friendly people to talk to. You could go down to the market to buy sweets like coral bites and seaweed cake. And every year there was an parade when you could watch sea animals migrate from ocean to ocean. My family always watched it from one of the balconies of our house."

Amelia smiled. "That sounds fun."

Gura nodded. "Yeah, but I never got to experience much of all that."

"Why's that?"

"My parents didn't let me go out that much and always wanted me to stay home. I used to watch other kids go play together at the coral reefs from my room."

"Your parents were that overprotective, huh?"

"I wouldn't say they were too overprotective but I never felt like I could do anything other than study and daydream. My parents were really important people in the city and we didn't really have much time to spend with each other. The city was always in reach, but I could never grab it."

"Were you alone?"

"Not always. I had this little shark buddy I played with when I wasn't doing work. You haven't met him yet but he's sleeping in my room. His name's Bloop. He's been with me ever since I left and we've been though thin and thick together. When I showed him to my parents, they didn't really like him. They said I had to focus more on studies cause I would become someone important one day."

"I understand, my parents were kinda strict on me too."

"Really?"

"Yup, It's kinda hard being part of a well-known family around the world. I always had to be studying to become a great detective."

"That must've been a lot of pressure on you."

"Not really. I never liked studying," she chuckled, "I used to tell my parents that playing FPS games would improve my aim."

"How did you get through it, being a famous detective?"

"I got used to it. I was born into a famous family and I had to live with that fact. I learned sometimes accepting my responsibility and how important I was in others' lives could help me move forward with a reason to get better everyday and greet every challenge with confidence."

"But doesn't it get tiring knowing that something could happen everyday and not being able to catch your breath?"

"It does. Being a detective isn't always fun, I couldn't save everyone. But seeing how happy it made people to get closure or see their loved ones safe gave me purpose. It made me feel like all those years of studying and staying strong paid off. Knowing I had an important job to help and save others motivated me to keep moving even if I couldn't catch my breath. But hey, that's just me."

"Huh," Gura stared at the TV screen.

"Sorry I got all deep there," Amelia chuckled.

"Don't be. I think I needed to get all that off my chest. I'm glad I could finally talk to someone about it."

"No problem," Amelia smiled.

The submarine slowed to a halt.

"I think we're here."

Amelia and Gura climbed out of the S. S. Hammerhead, seeing that they were parked at a dock leading into town. The detective hopped off on top of the creaky, decrepit planks of wood and looked back to Gura, who looked down at her with a slight frown.

"Well, I guess this is where we say goodbye..." Gura said.

Amelia gave her a soft smile. "Thanks for the ride Gura, it was really fun. Hope you find home soon!"

"Thanks Ame. See you around."

The detective began to walk away after giving a farewell wave. Gura's lip quivered.

"Wait!"

Amelia looked back, curious.

"D-do you think we'll meet again?"

The detective turned away for a moment, Gura watching her with awaiting eyes.

"Yeah. I think so," Amelia answered.

Gura nodded. "You better keep that promise!"

Amelia laughed. "I will!"

The shark girl climbed back down into the submarine and Amelia watched as it pulled out of the dock and descended underwater, driving off into the distance. The sound of townsfolk watching the scene around the dock reminded her she had something to do. She held onto her pocket watch, knowing she had a promise.