Sun walked across the crowded deck. The salty air tickled his nose. The seas were rough making the ship rock back and forth and back and forth. A red glow rose from the horizon. Its warm light betrayed by the cold winds. Sun leaned over the side and spat into the sea.

"Sea sick?" asked an operative.

"A bit. No worse than when I stowed away on a cruise liner," said Sun, "But the food was better."

"Well to bad for you," he looked out to the red horizon, "Red sky in the morning."

"What?"

"An old sailor's expression. Better get below decks. We're in for rougher seas," he said withdrawing to the hold.

Sun looked into the dark waves. The ocean groaned and bubbled. A long dark form slithered toward the surface. The cargo ship wailed its alarms. White Fang stormed the deck with guns and spears. A steely fin surfaced and quickly slipped under the waves. The sea groaned again. A heavy force rocked the ship. Sparks flew from the surface of the water. White Fang fired into the water with small arms while others rigged several small crates with ropes and tethers.

"Hey! Give us a hand with this!"

An operative pulled Sun toward the ropes. A team of burly gorilla men braced against the deck and held firm against the rocking.

"AHHH!"

"Man overboard!"

"No shit!"

The beast crashed against the hull and again and again. With each successive hit the boat threatened to burst. Men grabbed on to the rails for dear life. The unlucky or clumsy were thrown over the side. Coprions snatched up the meal and tore it limb from limb until a red stain was all that was left.

"Quit gawking!" ordered a gorilla, "Everyone! Heave!"

"Ho! Heave! Ho!"

The White Fang dragged the crate from the hold. They threw the container open. Inside was a large device. It had the appearance of a typical sea mine, an orb with spines like an urchin along the surface. Between the spines, in small trenches, porous wires made a maze of multicolored cord.

"Turn it on!"

A crewman opened a hidden panel and put in a code. The mine began to scream and wail. Horrible background noise mixed with the screeching making an unbearable cacophony. Sun staggered back covering his ears.

The White Fang powered through the pain and pushed the screaming orb into the water. The sound drowned beneath the surface. The beast struck the ship.

BAM! BAM! BAM!

The ship rocked. Several crewmen fell into the sea. The sharp white fin of the long monster sliced a hole into the hull. The sea let out a final deep groaning cry.

Everything went still and silent.

"All clear!"

"Hey! What the heck was that? I thought the giant squid thing was killed!"

"Right… new guy… hey there's more than one of those things in the oceans. Unlucky for us, the temperamental one is still kicking," he pointed to the horizon.

A massive sea snake rose out of the sea and let out a deafening roar. Its sleek black body glistened with droplets of salty water. Armoured plates made a diamond patters down its boneless body. Fins were like wings coming out of the back of its neck. Along its back rows of hard scales gave it a royal mane with the teeth of a cruel saw. Every edge, be it fin or mane, was razor sharp and harder than steel. Its glossy red eyes glared at the ship. It screamed with the same song as their mine then slipped into the abyss.

"Ozpin, we have a situation," said Ironwood over a secure video communication.

Ozpin smugly answered the call, "And what would that be, general?"

"You were right," Ironwood conceded, "There was a second. I'm sending you the information we have now. It's a new monster. We've called it Leviathan after the ancient myth. This one is far more aggressive then the last."

"I will have RWBY and JNPR prepared to deploy as soon and possible," said Ozpin, "Prepare team SLVR. I trust you will provide better resources to tackle this monster."

"Our last sighting puts it in Mistral territorial waters. The Elector has been contacted. He will have a team and equipment ready."

"Four teams and a flotilla," Ozpin shook his head, "Were it not for the gravity of the situation I would accuse you of overly exertive military bravado."

"This needs to end quickly, Ozpin. We cannot continue operations if our supply lines are cut."

"Your operations concern me just as much as this beast. When do we launch?"

"One week."

In seven days RWBY and JNPR found themselves aboard another aircraft headed for a distant land. Their travel arrangements were more comfortable this time around. Rather than being thrown into a cargo hold they were seated comfortably in the seats of a small military aircraft.

Jaune twiddled his thumbs, "So… Mistral…"

"Not exactly the place I wanted to go," said Ren, "Hopefully we'll avoid some old acquaintances."

"You and me both," said Pyrrha, "I hope this mission is quick."

"So what exactly is the problem with Mistral?" asked Yang, "From what I hear it's a really nice place with hot springs and orchards and waterfalls and…"

"A sparkling surface hides a black deep," said Ren.

"Whatever," dismissed Blake, "We'll be able to make contact with Sun and find out what's going on."

"Will we have time? This sounded pretty urgent," said Nora.

"We'll make time."

They arrived in Mistral at midday. The aircraft gently touched down on a small landing pad near the ports and docks. RWBY and JNPR walked out of the aircraft in their battledress. A small flotilla of five ships, four destroyers and an escort carrier, waited a few miles away from the shores. Two other aircraft landed nearby and their teams disembarked.

"Weiss?"

"Siri? Atlas sent you on this again?"

"We are the only teams with experience dealing with this thing," said Vincent walking behind Siri.

"Nice to see you lot again," said Linda, "We'll make this quick. Just like last time."

"Like last time?" said Ruby, "If I remember right that was far more work than we signed up for."

"Isn't all hunter work like that?" said Siri, "We seized an opportunity and went above and beyond the call of duty. General Ironwood rewarded SLVR suitably. I trust RWBY and JNPR received a similar reward."

"Not exactly," admitted Jaune.

"That's a shame," said Siri.

"Right face!" barked Vincent, "The Mistral team is walking this way."

A pair of men and a pair of women marched toward the group. A large man stood out from the group.

"Great…" said Pyrrha and Ren, "The last people I wanted to see."

He was seven feet tall with the build of an ox. A shining steel brazen helmet with a large red plume kept his iron eyes hidden beneath a veil of shadow. The hard muscles of his body were protected by overlapping steel hoops around his torso. Each section was connected to the others by a series of hard leather straps. The halves were fastened to each other by bronze hooks. The large pauldrons on his shoulders followed the same style. He carried a large tower shield emblazoned with eagle wings. A short sword flashed and twirled around him and shifted from its melee form to a double barrelled shotgun. The stock and hilt were ornate, encrusted with jewels and golden engravings. A long crimson cloak blew behind him, clasped in place by an iron lambda.

The second man was of average height. His build, be it broad or slender, was hidden beneath the black cuirass and scale armour. His helmet was made of riveted leather and metal. A half-moon stood proudly at the front of his helm as a personal crest. The blue silk vest over his armour bore the same sigil. Greaves and vambraces were black riveted hardened leather embossed with currents of dust. Two swords, long and short, hung from his hip. A demonic mask hid the bottom of his face leaving only his metallic eyes open.

A maiden with long, shining black twin tailed hair walked close behind the crested warrior. She wore loose fitting clothing. A white traditional garb for her top and a long red pleated flowing skirt. Clutched in her hand were small pieces of parchment with characters drawn in dust. She wielded a red and black bow roughly two meters long with the upper half longer than the lower. The structure glistened with untapped power and the string seemed to be made of pure light. The quiver was filled with arrows of varying heads and materials. She painted her face in white makeup, emphasising her eyes with black eye liner and shadow and her lips with bright red lipstick.

The other woman had short curly dirty blonde hair and deep green eyes. Her face was hard and cold as stone, complementing her male companions. Makeup was minimal, highlighting only a few features. She wore a peach chiton with the skirt ending just below the thigh. Greaves ran from the top of her foot and ended above the knee. She too wore a crimson cloak with the same iron crest. Vambraces extended just above the elbow. Black wolves snarled on her bronze armour. She mimicked Pyrrha in her choice of weapons though they were smaller in scale. The shield was roughly half the size resembling more of a buckler. The sword was a short curved vicious scimitar. The woman flipped her sword and it transformed into a short lever action rifle. When her eyes met Pyrrha a small grin appeared. When she met the eyes of the helmeted man the smile fled.

The helmed warrior spotted Pyrrha, "Pyrrha Nikos, you coward!"

Jaune stepped forward, "How dare –"

Pyrrha grabbed his shoulder, "Don't worry about it. His bark is worse than his bite."

"Calm thyself, Heraclius," said the curly haired woman, "Today she is our ally. Treat her as such."

Heraclius removed his helmet. His cropped brown hair was drenched in sweat. Scars covered his face. Scrawled on his left cheek in black ink were the letters: SPQR.

"Very well, Lysandra," he grumbled, "But when this is done, Nikos, our quarrel will be settled."

Ren nodded at the crested warrior.

""Lai Ren of Zhuge Liang," the warrior bowed, "I welcome you to your homeland."

"I accept your welcome," Ren bowed, "Together let us conquer our enemy."

The warrior rose, "When all is done. Will you return to your proper place?"

"No."

"Then this shall be done the hard way," the warrior grabbed his sword, "I will not let you flee once more."

"Akio," said the maiden, "Do not dishonour this alliance before it has even begun. As the men of the Elector will tolerate their offender. Then so must we."

"Very well, Sakura. Ren, know this, I will return you to your place."

"I will not."

"Somebody want to fill us in?" said Nora.

"Old grudges," said Ren, "It's not your problem."

"They insulted my friends," said Jaune, "I'm making it my problem."

Heraclius glared at Jaune, "Pyrrha Nikos, you hide behind this scrawny man?"

"I stand beside him."

"HLAS (Hellas)!" shouted Siri, "You're petty issues are wasting our time! SLVR, get to the boats!"

"Got it, boss lady."

Pyrrha pulled Jaune back, "Let's go."

Jaune glared at Heraclius, "You mess with my team and you're messing with me."

"Hrmph."

Four teams embarked on the old ships. Crewmen nervously attended their stations as the ships left the safety of the port. The small carrier was nestled safely in the centre of the formation. Two aircraft soared ahead of the fleet dropping buoys into the depths. The hunter novices walked on the deck impatiently waiting for the inevitable attack. The first day passed quietly. The dawn would decide their fate.

"Red sky in the morning," said Siri walking across the deck, "It always attacks when the sky is red in the morning."

Weiss walked beside her, "If I recall correctly a red sky in the morning means bad weather is approaching."

"A good tactic. If we're caught in a storm after the attack we won't be able to retreat safely."

"Siri, will you be alright?" asked Weiss, "That suit of yours really takes a number out of you."

"I know the limitations and risks of this suit better than anyone. I don't need you to remind me," said Siri, "I'm sorry, that sounded rude. But we can't afford to worry about something that cannot be controlled."

"It can be controlled, Siri," Linda walked toward them, "Don't push yourself, Siri. The rest of the team is here for you too. I'll always be beside you."

"I don't need a reminder, Linda. But thank you."

"Oh, and make sure Vincent gets a crack at it this time. He wasn't pleased he had to sit out the last one."

"I wouldn't worry about that," said Weiss.

The stars began to break out of the black curtain. Their little lights growing in intensity every passing minute. A cold sea wind blew around them carrying sparkling specks of dust. Each dot of dust tickled their skin and danced in the wind. A bright light streaked into the heavens. The ascending star burst releasing streams of light into the sea. Those streams sank into the ocean and flashed brilliantly. A second star ascended from the bow of the ship and fell into the sea.

"What is that?"

"Sakura," said Ren walking toward the bow, "Don't mind it too much. There's no harm being done."

Runes surrounded Sakura as she danced at the prow. The four elements swirled around her being drawn into one of her arrows. She stepped back and drew from her quiver. The arrow floated into the bow and gently pushed against the taught string. She loosed the arrow into the air. The enchanted weapon sprouted wings and took the shape of a bird as it ascended. Sakura's eyes turned white as snow. When the arrow burst four blue fish dove into the sea. The waves glowed as the ethereal creatures swam.

"What do you see?" asked Ren.

The runes disappeared and the colour returned to her eyes. She put the bow behind her and bowed.

"I only see the loneliness of the sea. Not even a school of curious fish has approached the flotilla," she sighed, "If I could go deeper I would be able to see more."

Ren lightly pressed his hand on Sakura's back. He closed eyes and let out a long slow breath. A warm glow surrounded Ren and flowed down his arm into Sakura. She inhaled the sea air and drew her bow. A new energy filled her. She loosed her arrow into the sea. Thousands of little fish swam into the depth, deeper than they had ever gone. Sakura let out her breath her body warm from Ren. Ren removed his hand and bent over to catch his breath.

"It's been a long time, Ren."

"And little has changed."

"Much has changed," said Sakura, "I cannot say if it has been for the better. Our master is not pleased with your decision."

"I don't care if he is pleased or not. That is not my life."

"That was not for you to decide. Our allegiance is to our lord not to ourselves. You understood that yet you chose yourself over your duty."

"My duty is to myself."

"That is Vale speaking," Sakura sighed.

A golden rune appeared beside her. From is magical light a small fox appeared and climbed up Sakura's legs. It perched around her shoulders and yawned.

"Do you remember this?" she asked, "This was to guide you to your destiny."

"It's just a trick," Ren dismissed, "Man makes their own destiny."

The fox shrivelled behind Sakura.

"What a shame. There was once a time where you believes that the world and all within had a spirituality to it. That it was guiding you. Then something you didn't want was shown to you and you ran. But you will be forced to face it whether you wish to or not."

"Nothing can make me."

"I can."

Akio stood behind gripping his sword.

"Don't even think about it, bub!"

Nora wrung her hands around her hammer. Her cheerful smile was gone, replaced by an angry scowl. Ren stood between the two. Sakura touched Akio's shoulder. Akio released his grip and stepped away. Sakura bowed her head and escorted him far away.

"Ren, what was that about?" Nora asked with genuine concern.

"Nothing you need to concern yourself with."

Heraclius stomped across the deck toward the side of the ship. Lysandra was following a good distance behind continually scanning around him. Pyrrha and Jaune climbed out of the cargo hold and aimlessly wandered the deck.

"What's with that guy?" Jaune asked Pyrrha, "Do you know him at all?"

"I did, a very long time ago when I was still living in Mistral," said Pyrrha, "It's a long story, Jaune, and I'd rather not get into it."

"That's fair. You didn't pry into my life… much. So I'll keep my distance," Jaune leaned against the rails, "But just remember, I'm here if you need me."

"She does not need a weakling to defend her," Heraclius marched toward them, "She only needs to stand and fight. No more running."

"Heraclius, not now," Pyrrha whined, "We can resolve this later."

Heraclius stomped his spear on the deck, "I am tired of waiting. I challenge you for the right to represent Lacedaemon in the election."

"Go ahead. I concede the position to you."

"That is not our law. Face me in combat as it has been decreed. This boy can be your witness, Lysandra shall be mine."

"Hey, hey, hey," Jaune stepped between them, "Don't you remember? You guys were going to settle this after we dealt with the monster. Right?"

"Stay out of my way, boy!" Heraclius shoved him aside, "This is between me and Nikos!"

Jaune lost his footing and stumbled onto the deck. Heraclius grabbed his sword. Pyrrha stood firm against him.

"Heraclius!" yelled Lysandra, "Doth thou renege on thine word? Thou said it shall be settled when the task is done. And the beast still lurks beneath. And also heed this, if either you or Pyrrha Nikos were to be wounded severely because of your duel the capacity of our other allies will be diminished. And if what we have learned is true then our hope for return will be severely hampered."

"I despise your words, Lysandra," Heraclius grumbled, "But very well. Heraclius does not break his word as Nikos does. So be it."

"What a jackass," said Jaune under his breath.

"Pyrrha Nikos," said Lysandra softly, "I must let thou know how I feel on this matter. Whilst I support your decision and respect your actions, this cannot be put off much longer. A representative is needed. And our law cannot be unchanged. If you do not wish to be then, please, let Heraclius defeat you."

Pyrrha clenched her fist, "Absolutely not."

"All stand to gain if you simply allow him to win. Hath pride blinded you? What use are titles if one will not take advantage of them. I have said my piece. Good night, Pyrrha Nikos."

Ren and Pyrrha remained adamantly silent for the remainder of the night. An aura of loathing and fuming anger was in their wake. HLAS dutifully kept their distance while Nora and Jaune kept a watchful eye on their comrades. The Mistral expatriates stayed below deck until dawn.

"Clear skies," said the captain, "Thank God."

"No attack today, eh?" Yang stretched out her arms, "Another day of nothing then."

"Stay vigilant," said Heraclius, "A clear sky is no omen."

"But there's never been an attack that wasn't preceded by a red sky," said Ruby.

"Heraclius is right," said Siri, "We can't just assume that it only attacks at that time. Our last assumption allowed this spectre to arise again."

"Keep an eye on the sonar, captain," said Linda, "We'll be on deck."

"Aye, aye."

Four teams left the bridge and spread across the ship. A few decided to lend a hand with run of the mill ship activities more often than not just getting in the way. Pyrrha and Ren were still tight lipped and avoiding the members of HLAS. Jaune and Weiss happened to find each other as they wandered the deck. With the calm winds and sea they could do nothing else but walk together.

"We've got some tension on this ship, eh?" said Jaune to break the ice, "I could cut it with my sword."

"Only between your team and HLAS," said Weiss, "Everyone else seems to be getting along. I'm more worried about how we'll deal with this new sea snake. We only got the last one because it attacked a submarine. SONAR can't even see it. And what good are swords and guns against something that huge?"

"These ships have some pretty big guns."

"A lot of good that did the other fleets."

"Sylph and the other companies have provided some new weapons," said Siri joining the conversation, "A new type of depth charge that may be more effective."

"As for detection that will be left to me" said Sakura.

"Does it have anything to do with those fireworks we saw last night?" asked Jaune.

Sakura nodded, "Though they are not fireworks. Ethereal beings would be more apt."

"Right…"

"Hey, boss lady!" called Vincent, "How do we arm these things?"

Vincent and Rayner stood beside a launcher with rows upon rows of depth charges. A red light blinked on the tip. The body was long and slender like and arrow with four fins and rudders. The weapons had a star shaped head composed of five different warheads. Each warhead contained a blend of dust and several smaller black objects that were difficult to see clearly in the cloud.

"Rayner, don't tell me you had difficulty with something so simple," teased Siri.

"Not at all boss lady," Rayner grinned, "But you know Vincent, only good with the small bombs."

"Hrmph. Then you can arm the rest on your own."

"Don't mind if I do."

Siri spied Jaune tilting his head here and there trying to figure out how exactly the new charge worked.

"The dust inside will create a much larger explosion then a standard depth charge," explained Siri, "That should crack open the armour. The flechettes inside will then tear up flesh and bone. It's crude, but it should work."

Jaune crossed his arms, "I knew that."

"Of course you did," Weiss examined the warhead, "Sylph technology?"

"Of course."

"Pretty," Weiss smirked, "Not as good as Schnee though."

"Oh yes. Schnee was very successful in the first engagements," Siri taunted.

"Ladies, ladies," said Linda, "Let's not turn into HLAS, okay?"

"It's just some teasing, Linda. Don't think too much into it."

"Yeah, it's nothing. Speaking of HLAS, where have they gotten to? And where's Ren and Pyrrha?"

Two novices sat in their shared loneliness in far in the bowels of the ship. The room was utilitarian with nothing more than what was needed. Stainless steel chairs were arranged squarely down the sides of two long metal tables. The serving stations were empty and the only light was from the white fluorescents above them.

Ren sat across Pyrrha at the table with a small wooden board with pieces between them. The board was divided into a nine by nine grid. Each piece was identical in shape and size with only an Eastern Mistral character to distinguish between them.

"I hate this game," said Pyrrha watching Ren move a piece across the board.

"There's a chess set if you'd prefer that."

"I'm terrible at chess too," Pyrrha leaned back, "It's kind of funny isn't it. Of all the teams Mistral sent it was the one that had both of our nemeses. Looks like we can't run away from it forever."

"Perhaps not," Ren took one of Pyrrha's pieces, "But we don't have to comply either."

Pyrrha absentmindedly took her turn, "How long will that last? I wonder if it would be easier just to –"

Blake stormed into the room. She clenched her fists and fumed over an unknown slight. Ruby timidly followed her and nervously smiled at Ren and Pyrrha. The two continued with their one sided game while keeping an eye on their irritated friend. Blake pounded the wall.

"Bad day, Blake?" asked Pyrrha, "Join the club."

Blake paced around the room.

"Cat got your tongue?" asked Ren in his deadpan voice.

Pyrrha punched Ren's shoulder while trying to suppress her smile and stifle her laughter.

"She'll cool off in a few minutes," said Ruby taking a seat, "I'm just making sure she doesn't break anything until then."

BAM!

Blake drove her fist into the wall. The metal buckled and left a rather large dent. Ruby cringed at the damaged wall.

"I have failed," Ruby mumbled.

"We were supposed to meet with Sun," Blake grumbled, "We were one step closer to finding out what the White Fang were doing on the submarine and in the Banshee Mountains."

"Nothing we could have done," Ren took another piece, "They wanted us to move out right away."

"Would one day have made a difference?"

"Of course it would have," said Pyrrha pulling her forced back, "Merchant fleets still have to sail. If we stayed at port they would be helpless. At least this way we can try to respond to any distress calls."

"And every day that we're ignorant means they're one day closer to achieving their goals."

"And if we kill this sea beast we'll derail their plans pretty substantially," Ren took one of the captured pieces and placed it on the board opposing Pyrrha, "I believe that's the game."

"I think he cheated," said Ruby, "You can't take one of Pyrrha's pieces and use it against her."

"That would be true for chess, but in shogi you can turn your enemy's pieces against them," said Ren.

"This is ludicrous," fumed Blake, "There has to be a way to contact him."

"Blake, there's nothing we can do," said Ruby, "Just let it go. We'll catch up with him later."

"That could be too late."

"Better late than never," said Ren.

The ship rocked hard. Wooden pieces scattered across the room. Ren and Pyrrha fell out of their seats. Ruby hit her head on a chair and tumbled to the floor. Blake stumbled and kept her footing by pressing against the wall as hard as she could.

"All hands on deck! All hands on deck!"

Crewmen rushed from their stations and rooms and scrambled up the stairs. Vincent burst through the door with rifle in hands.

"Grab your gear! It's showtime!" he barked.

"In the afternoon? Why didn't we get an alarm?" demanded Pyrrha.

"Ask the captain when this is all over!" hollered Vincent as he ran down the hall.

The deck was chaos. Men fired aimlessly over the side spraying bullets and grenades wherever they pleased. Their small carrier scrambled helicopters and VTOLs. The sea was tossing and turning violently. Large waves crashed over the deck and shook the ship. Hulls gonged and rattled as the monster tried to slice through the steel. Coprions and grimm devilfish and barracuda leaped out of the water to snap up the unwitting. Sawblade jaws threatened to lop of limbs. Deadly jaws were dangerously close to dragging men over the side and into the depths.

Sakura launched her arrows high into the air, bursting into the ethereal fish. As she searched the sea the rest of her team formed a solid wall around her. SLVR took positions at each corner of the front of the deck. Linda shot lightning into the sea while Siri unleashed a hail of ice and fire. Rayner pumped his shotgun and barked orders at the crew as they loaded the charges. RWBY and JNPR were scattered about without plan or purpose choosing to haphazardly attack whatever they pleased.

"What happened?" shouted Ruby.

"They came out of nowhere!" shouted Rayner, "SONAR was normal, sky was clear, and nothing was wrong! Where the hell did they come from?"

The hull of one of the escorts ripped open. Water gushed into the hull carrying coprions and barracuda inside. All ships fired their cannons as close to their comrade as possible. The air filled with smoke and smell of cordite. Towers of water burst into the air. Ruby's ship rocked as the beast smacked into the side. A second ship suffered a crippling blow as the razor fins sliced the bottom in half. Fuel leaked into the sea. The beast whipped its tail against the metal. A rain of sparks and the ship was set ablaze.

"Fire the depth charges!" ordered Vincent.

"But we don't know where it is!"

"I don't care! Fire!"

A depth charge leaped over the side and splashed into the sea. As the moments passed the ship's hull gonged and shook as the beast continued its attack.

BOOM!

A massive dome of water erupted in a cascade of colours. Rain and pieces of grimm fell on the deck, drenching everyone and everything. Small aircraft dropped a pair of bombs into the sea. Smaller explosions followed. Another charge, and another then another. Dead grimm floated to the surface, but the prize was still free.

Minutes passed. Two ships were crippled, one burning the other broken. Helicopters undertook slow rescues as the crews were terrified to touch the water's surface. The rest of the fleet continued to sail without harassment.

"It's been quiet," said Vincent.

"Nobody jinx it!" said Ruby.

"Sakura!" shouted Ren, "Do you see anything?"

Sakura fired an arrow into the water. Five small ghostly fish swam around the fleet. She focused on what her spirits were seeing. The blue sea was empty. She turned her gaze down into the abyss. Shadows mixed with shadows. There were faint shapes. The water was oddly warm and a strange sound rumbled in the water.

"I cannot see the beast," said Sakura, "But there is something… I do not know what."

"So, did we get it?" asked Rayner.

BOOM!

An explosion wreaked havoc on the escort carrier. The hull bulged and cracked. Shrapnel flew out of the side. Fire engulfed the breach as the ship took on water. Before the fleet could react another explosion ripped the back of the carrier. The ship was sinking rapidly. Crewmen clambered onto the aircraft which were frantically trying to flee the sinking ship. Coprions and barracudas tore apart the unfortunate.

"Depth charges! Now! Now! Now!"

RRRROOOOOOOAAAAAAAAAAAWWWWWWWWWWRRRRRRRRR!

The giant sea snake rose out of the sea. Its large armoured plates were cracked and dented and slightly singed. Flechettes and shrapnel protruded from the plates like the spines of an urchin. The beast bellowed a terrible roar, deep with a heavy beat. Its four fangs were long and sharp at the head of hundreds of rows of teeth. It fixed its crimson eyes on the ship of novices.

Ruby glared at Rayner, "I hate you so much right now."