Yay! New chapter! We get to find out what the mystery object is! Enjoy!

It was a long staff. It was bright gold, glimmering in the dim stormy light. Around it, wrapping from the top to the bottom, were two separate coils of silver, wrapping around in criss-cross designs over it, winding like snakes. "Woah…" reaching out, Raz wrapped her hands around the staff and picked it up, brushing the sand off.

"What is it?"

"I- I…" Raz was too stunned to speak. Opal could tell; she knew what this thing was. Had she seen it before? What was it? "It's… it's…" her eyes were wide, and she looked terrified. Opal could feel her shaking. She felt cold as she crouched on her shoulder. her wide eyes were glue to the hug sapphire topping the staff, diamond in shape, caged in a four-rung gold case, on each point of it's carved gloriousness. The gem was huge, easily bigger than Opal, probably weighing eight or nine pounds. It sparkled silver in the light. "This- This's impossible!"

"What's impossible?!" Opal asked. "What is this? Do you know?"

For a moment more, Raz trembled, wanting more than anything to throw the staff away and bury it, forget she ever saw it. But her paws were numb. "Iss'…" she swallowed thickly, and when she spoke, it was low and whispery, and full of cold, hard fear. "Iss' th' Sapphire Sea Scepter."

Opal blinked. "That story you told me? That's just fiction… isn't it?" the rabbit hoped she was kidding, hoping she'd smile and grin, maybe laugh at her for believing it.

But Raz wasn't laughing. Her expression dead serious, her eyes dancing with fear. her brothers had told it to her thousands of times, sure, but never had she for a moment thought it fake. She knew good and well almost every legend on the sea was true- the golden serpent? Seen that with her own eyes. The Roiling Red clouds that sucked it's victims dry of everything under their skin? True. The guardian to the Ocean's Key? Yep, also real. But… the Scepter… it was feared by all, in one sense or another. It originated back to the beginning of time, when it was unheard of that a woman could be a pirate. Only a woman could wield it. It was a dangerous weapon, said to be cursed… and- and it controlled… it controlled…

That was when she saw the words. She squinted and brought the scepter closer to her face, finding that, indeed, there was script engraved in one of the coils. They were tiny, fancy letters, but she could just barely make them out

"On the Eve of summer…" she began slowly. "The deity will rise…" what could that mean? The woman destined to hold the staff? Something about a goddess wielding this, she remembered… "From the depths of the earth, She will arrive…"

"Raz…" why was she speaking like that? So emotionless? So cold? So… not Raz?

"And unleash the fire from Devil Trench."

"Raz."

"The sea will boil. A mighty blood bath."

"Raz!" Opal was scared. Raz didn't respond, making the mistake of reading the last line. She didn't want to- it was as if she'd lost control. She wanted to bite her tongue, smack herself, even drop a knife in her foot- anything but read the last line.

She did it anyway. "And the Gryphon Queen will rise again!"

Lightning crackled and thunder boomed, the whole island suddenly shaking. Raz collapsed, landing on her stomach on the hard ground, the scepter somehow remaining in her hands. She tried to fling it away, but her hands wouldn't uncurl to let her do the deed! "No…" she moaned. "No no no…"

The island rumbled, and a cracking sound made her turn weakly to look at the sea. It was angry, she could tell, the waves crashing on the beach, water rolling over the sand to soak her, nearing fifty feet high every time. Within second she was soaked.

Below the furious sea, at the bottom of the ocean, a crack appeared. It spread like wildfire and soon was thousands of feet across. Then it split apart. The whole world shook. And, at the very bottom of the miles-deep pit, a pair of glowing red eyes snapped open for the first time in five thousand years.

Above, Opal scurried to Raz, who lay there on the ground, dazed, her eyes glazed with fear as she stared at the ocean, all the while moaning to herself. "No… oh no…"

"Raz- Raz, c'mon, get up!" Opal urged. "We have to get out here! That storm will kill us!"

"My fault… my fault…"

"What are you talking about! Come on!" Zalim could kill her for being disrespectful, but right now, her life was in danger! "Get up!"

"My faul'…" her words were haunting and hollow. "Mah fault… were all gonna die…"

"Raz-"

"Do ya hear me?!" she suddenly screamed. "Were all gonna die! Iss' my fault!"

"Raz-!"

"My fault!" she sobbed. "My faul'-"

"RAZ!" it was the loudest Opal had ever spoken, and for a split second, the kangaroo's eyes focused on her. Opal's ears were low and flattened to her head, staring at something high above them. She was shaking, her brown eyes wider than should have ever been possible. "L-L… LOOK!" she thrust a finger into the sky.

When Raz managed to turn over, she was sure she'd be sick. Something was slowly rising out of the water. It was impossibly large, taller than any tree and wider than the biggest wave. It was black and dripping dark green ocean sludge, and it reeked of rotting fish. All she could make out were its distinct, broad wings. When it finally reached stopped rising, it was hundreds of yards tall- taller than any mountain she'd ever seen! Two glowing red orbs as big as she was suddenly appeared at the top of the mass.

Raz couldn't move. Not because she was afraid, but she literally couldn't move. Her limbs wouldn't move, her lungs didn't work, she couldn't even blink. She was paralyzed. And helpless.

The hideous creature bared over her with a threatening growl, it's teeth inches from her face. Then it spoke. Only two words, but it still rattled her bones and would haunt her for the rest of her life. A voice of pure evil, whispery and mysterious and full of darkness. The living embodiment of fear. "Precious One."

Then it raised it talons and slashed across her front. It catapulted into the air with impossible speak, wings beating and sending sea sludge everywhere.

Seeing her own blood, flowing from three deep wounds that went nearly from her shoulders to her stomach made Raz dizzy. She could distantly hear Opal screaming.

Then she fainted.

There! Next chapter is done! Anyone else freaked out? I am… and I'm the author! XD Please review!