[Edric's POV]
Given the position of the battle, I directed the fleet to the right flank. The idea was to break through their line and push to the other side, wrapping around the Volantene fleet and lessening their current advantage. It was a risky strategy, to be sure, but I didn't have the luxury to be cautious…
I wanted to take care of the dragon first, but it was keeping its distance, and I didn't want to kill it by accident... which would've been difficult. Instead, I took out my dragonbone longbow and started firing off at the largest ships on the right flank with Electro-Anemo charged arrows. Each arrow packed quite the punch, penetrating inside and exploding within rather than going the whole way.
I was very cautious of my energy use, so the arrows were not extremely powerful. Instead of sinking them immediately, I aimed to damage every ship to the point that they would be beyond repair and sink in due time. This way, I'd be able to be consistently effective throughout the entire battle rather than use up all of my strength to deal one mighty blow and play recovery most of the time after.
Within minutes, the front of their right flank was sinking, and the morale of the Royal Fleet steadily rose back up. We were pushing to the right, gaining position and wrapping around. Further to the left, ships had already closed in on each other. It seemed that Volantis was pulling something similar on the other side, though the winds were against them and there were several little islands blocking the way.
Then... something felt strange.
The water moved violently, swaying uncontrollably across the sea. There was a moment of silence where the world was still. A thunderous horn blew, and chaos brewed. A monstrously colossal tentacle rose from the sea and crashed against a galley - effectively cleaving it in half. The ship collapsed, and all of its crew members were forced into the relentless sea, where all of them struggled to stay afloat.
I saw it from a distance... and even I felt the disbelief and terror that spread across the sea.
What in Seven Hells was that.. thing?
More tentacles rose, and more of the same occurred... ship, after ship, no matter the size... they all sank. The heart of the Royal Armada was collapsing, overtaken by the eldrith horror that had emerged. The worst of all was that it was my fleet that suffered all the casualties... and the fury of the sea creature didn't dim at all. It seemed dead set on destruction.
The Volantene fleet seemed to retreat, leaving us to deal with it.
Or... well, to be destroyed while they watch from afar.
"What are we going to do about... that?" Ser Arthur questioned with a look of fear. "If this continues, the sea will claim us all."
"..." I began to remove my armour, piece by piece. "There's only one thing I can do."
"It's suicide..." Arthur muttered. "Surely, there's something else. We could mayhaps try sailing around it. That way, we face the Volantis fleet while using the beast to block Lys' fleet."
"And what guarantee have we that it won't move?" I questioned, taking a deep breath. "It's too dangerous to leave to chance."
"And what if you can't defeat it?"
"Come on now, I'll at least hurt it enough so that it'll never dare rise to the surface again." I smiled with confidence, even though my heart was uncertain. Could I do it?
"And even if you could... will you have the strength to keep yourself afloat?"
"If I don't, I'll leave my life in your hands."
I patted his shoulder.
"... Of course." He sighed. "No pressure at all."
"Pressure makes diamonds, Ser. This is our hour."
"This has to be the most foolish idea that has ever come to your mind," Arya said. "You should've never gotten yourself involved with the Free Cities so that we wouldn't be in this position in the first place."
"In hindsight, sure... but thinking of the past isn't going to take care of the tentacle monster, is it?"
By now, I had stripped every bit of armour and left myself with only my casual clothes underneath. Then, I grabbed my bow and kept a few arrows. Its tentacles were still out in plain view, so I might as well hit it while I still can.
This time, I didn't hold back on the voltage at all and let my arrows fly at full strength.
BOOM.
The first arrow struck, blasting a tentacle and heavily damaging the tip. Still, imagining the size of the thing, it was probably no different than a toenail getting clipped off. I let off two more arrows, leading to similar results. The creature began to hide its tentacles, likely going deeper...
I could feel its malicious intent in my heart.
It was coming for me, there was no doubt.
Good.
"Brienne, if I end up almost drowning... there's a technique to get the water out." I scratched my hair. "Essentially, what you do is press your hands against my chest continuously. After a couple dozen of those, pinch my nose and breathe through my mouth with yours twice. Continue until I wake... and you could spice it up with a bit of Electro too. My body should handle it."
"... Yes, Your Grace." Brienne nodded dutifully.
I was no expert at CPR, but I did remember a few things.
Some time passed... minutes... ten minutes. Nothing had happened. Even the Volantis fleet seemed to be preparing another assault. Meanwhile, in the back, the rear of the Royal Armada was still locked in combat with the Lyseni fleet.
There was hope, celebration even.
"You fought it off, Your Grace!" The captain cheered. "What a legendary display of marksmanship and a testament to your divine might."
"..." I didn't let my guard down even for a moment. "It's not over."
It was still there... lurking in the deep sea.
Waiting.
"You worry too much, hah. I doubt it ever wants to show itself again after being hit by such blows."
The fucker jinxed it.
Suddenly, I felt a force dragging the ship deeper... into the sea. A horrifying sound came with it, resounding across the water and the hearts of the men.
"We're all going to die!"
"Steel yourselves." I took a deep breath. "I'm going to take care of it."
Leaving my bow and arrows, I dived right into the sea and swam deeper. It took a whole lot of willpower not to take a mouthful of seawater when I saw clearly what roamed beneath me. This was perhaps the worst time to have eyesight as good as mine...
It was a kraken... with a dozen or more tentacles, each perhaps half a dozen war galleys long and almost a galley thick. The core body was even more terrifying. Its red eyes glowed under water, staring into my very soul. And its opened mouth... it was a black hole that was large enough to swallow a whole fleet.
In the middle of the sea, this eldritch horror struck more terror than the Night King ever could.
I was no more than an ant in its wake.
This is absolutely crazy...
I began to sink deeper, lacking even the strength to swim against the force sucking me in.
"You cannot hope to win if you're already questioning yourself," Raiden advised. "Gather all of your strength, Edric. You must deal a decisive blow before it is too late. I will support you as much as I can... but the end result is all up to you."
I felt a wave of power rush into me. This feeling, I remembered it. It was the feeling of being entirely unstoppable.
What is a kraken to a Storm God?
I fell deeper in and stretched out both arms in the direction of the kraken's mouth. Large gusts of wind emerged, pushing forward and against the kraken's endless mouth. Lightning followed, lighting the sea with its purple lustre and spreading like a wild flame surrounded by fuel.
Any restraints that I would've had were shattered...
It was life and death, and my soul screamed life.
Despite the massive chain of lightning, the kraken moved a tentacle in my direction. I didn't have the energy to swim away... so I braced myself.
The tentacle slammed into me, my arms taking the brunt of the force as I was sent even closer to the mouth of the kraken.
It hurt more than any blow I had ever taken in my life. It took every bit of willpower I had to not open my mouth. Still, I could only hold my breath for so long, and my strength was fading... and I was rapidly nearing the kraken.
Live... Eternity.
A second wind hit me harder than the kraken's tentacles ever could. Even more power.
THIS... IS MY RESOLVE!
Electro rushed through every fibre of my being as I spread my body and just unleashed lightning everywhere around me. The more lightning struck me, the more powerful I became... and the sea was a brilliant conductor. This energy field grew and grew, eventually melting into parts of the kraken.
Again... again... AGAIN!
It grew and grew... but I could only hold it for so long...
EVERYTHING!!!!
At its height, I set it all on the kraken.
The sea was lit purple, along with the kraken itself. It moved violently, its insides probably burning... before stopping altogether. I couldn't celebrate, though.
Every ounce of my strength was gone, my body was heavily wounded... and I was sinking with the kraken.
There was only one person who could save me now...
Only one person I could place my faith in.
Despite my will, I couldn't keep myself... falling into the darkness.
~
[Arthur's POV]
One could see the purple hue even above the water. Further ahead, there were even traces on the surface water that were constantly lighting up. The battle between that sea creature and Edric was not one he could even fathom...
It was like the clash of two gods as the rest of the world watched in awe and terror.
And yet, soon it ended... and the seas calmed.
Arthur, already without his armour, did not hesitate and dived in. He wasn't too brilliant of a swimmer, but he would rather try than do nothing and hope. And, under the pressure, he found himself with even more strength than he could have imagined.
Deeper in, he felt it... Edric's aura, slowly fading and sinking.
He swam, quicker and quicker still. His body burned with resolve that pushed him forward. He could not see far, let alone clearly, so he could only place his trust in the feeling that guided him. As he continued further down, he saw the figure that once eluded him.
It was slowly floating up, which gave rise to hope.
He grabbed his friend and propelled him upwards. Under water, he was not nearly so heavy. Even still, it took a great deal of effort to reach the surface... but he managed - taking the deepest breath of fresh air he had ever taken.
After recovering, he kept Edric's head up from the water.
"Get us a rope!"
In seconds, a rope was thrown to their side, and Arthur grabbed the end of it. It already had a huge loop, so he tossed the rope over Edric's head and secured it tightly over the middle of his stomach.
"Now, pull!"
Arthur commanded.
"GET TO IT, LADS! DON'T LET THE KING DROWN!"
The captain added.
"PULL! PULL! PULL!"
It required a great deal of muscle to drag out a submerged Edric... but ten of the strongest men more than sufficed, lifting him from the bottom to the top. Arthur himself climbed a boarding ladder and joined the upperdeck, taking several quick breaths.
"How do we get the water out, Ser?" The captain asked.
"How His Grace suggested..."
"That method sounds... eh, I've never heard of anything like it. Mouth to mouth - is a kiss going to bring him back to life?" The captain looked doubtful.
Before Arthur could ask her to, Brienne was doing it. Initially, her thrusts were gentle, but they grew in strength and eventually carried her magic with them. After the first thrust of lightning, Edric was already coughing up a mouthful of water. It was working!
How did he come up with that much of an effective technique off the blue?
Arthur watched in disbelief.
Then Brienne hesitated... before pressing her lips against his, holding his nose and breathing through him. The instructions were to do so twice, and she followed them faithfully before continuing the chest pushes.
Although it looked like she enjoyed the mouth-to-mouth part more than the rest... Arthur wasn't going to judge.
Eventually, his eyes did open, if only for a moment.
"My... angels."
He spoke, looking at Brienne before falling unconscious again. Arthur saw Brienne's face redden ever slightly. He smiled, shaking his head.
That was far too close!
That mad bastard...
"Get the King to his cabin and have the maester aid with his recovery," Arthur commanded, having observed Edric's wounds. The fact that he couldn't manage to stay awake said it all. "I shall take command from here."
Making him lead the royal forces before at Pentos... it seemed all too intentional for a time like this. However, this battle was endlessly more perilous. The Royal Armada was split in half, with the rear facing the Lyseni fleet, a good part of the middle was kraken food, and the vanguard was facing the Volantene fleet, which would begin closing on them.
Not to mention, the dragon...
The battle was seemingly unwinnable, with the greatest card at play in their favour negated by the kraken.
Still, Arthur donned his armour.
The goal of the opposing force was all too clear; to annihilate Edric Storm... and so, surrender was not an option.
"We are faced with certain doom, some of you might think. All of you may think this, mayhaps. It is fair to think so! But, remember the reason why you stand here in this very moment..." Arthur drew Nightfall, its black blade stealing the light. "When faced with certain death, what did your King do? Did he run, turn his back, give in? No... he fought for every one of you! He, without fail, avenged all of the men who had fallen and drowned because of the kraken."
The men aboard the Robert's Hammer seemed to regain their morale and become inspired.
"Now he rests, wounded and incapable of fighting. The enemy thinks of us as weak, vulnerable, easy prey... but that is not true! You are not prey, you are not sailors, you are not even soldiers - you are the King's men, you are his greatest warriors, you are the THUNDER behind the Storm, the wind that carries Robert's Hammer, you are the DEMONS OF WAR.. AND YOU WILL SMASH THEIR PUNY FLEET TO PIECES!"
Cheers followed.
"YOU DO NOT FEAR, YOU DO NOT HESITATE - YOU KILL!"
"LET'S TAKE THIS VICTORY FROM THE JAWS OF THE ENEMY AND MAKE THEM REGRET EVER SAILING AGAINST US!"
"OOOORAAAAAAAAAAAAH!"
The Stormguard led with a thunderous cry, raising their weapons to the sky - and the rest followed by their example.
"OOOORAAAAAAAAAAAAH!"
"ON THIS DAY, HEROES ARE BORN!"
Ragnor, one of Edric's squires, shouted at the top of his lungs.
That one has spirit.
Arthur nodded, all the while piecing together all the bits of advice Edric had ever given him.
I'll give you this victory... no matter what it costs.