The Oceanic Song wavered, the notes staggering beneath the onslaught. Yet Minjun's voice did not cease. His chant deepened, drawn lower, resonating from his very core. Each word struck heavier, denser, as if he poured more than breath into them. His entire frame vibrated with effort, his chest rising and falling as though every exhale cost him a piece of his spirit.
The clash of sea and storm became unbearable. The coliseum shook with it. The audience covered their ears though it was useless, voices raised in cries swallowed instantly by the sound and weight pressing over them. The air itself seemed torn between drowning and breaking, pulled taut by two forces that would not yield.
The arena became an endless horizon where thunder tried to silence the song and the song sought to swallow the thunder.
