Coda

Nature has always been close to you, and your thirst for exploring the world was inherited from your mother, whose eyes lit up at the sight of travel diaries and photos of distant trails. She was particularly captivated by Atlantis, but fate had other plans. Your twentieth birthday marked the point of no return: you decided to become your mother's eyes and set out in search of the sunken civilization.

The journey was long: from the plane to a taxi in Cadiz, then on a ship out to the Atlantic. The ship hovered over the abyss, confirming that beneath the keel, a few kilometers from Cadiz, rested a legend. You hovered over the abyss, feeling the line between reality and myth thinning. Your heart pounded in anticipation of meeting the legend. Deciding to go it alone, you stepped into the abyss.

The Atlantic Ocean embraced you. Myriad planktonic organisms shimmered, creating the illusion of a starry sky. Silence reigned all around, broken only by the sound of breathing. You navigated, guided by your instruments.

Suddenly, something grabbed your leg from behind and pulled you deeper at breakneck speed. Panic gripped you. You slammed against a sharp rock outcrop. Your oxygen began to drain, and consciousness began to fade.

You awoke, holding your breath. A palace towered before you, glowing softly from within. The ornamental details told the story of a superior civilization. A vast, invisible dome extended around it, protecting this place from the depths of the ocean.

Suddenly, you were drawn to someone nearby: at least three meters tall, with pale skin, long sea-green hair, and two horns protruding from his temples. Golden patterns curled across his body. He looked at you with disdain.

"What is this place?" you blurted out.

He crossed his arms. "I ask the questions, you answer. What do you want?" he said.