The small harbour in the south was not what I expected.
I had thought it would be a place with big boats and lots of people running around. It was just an old pier with broken planks and a few small fishing boats tied to it. There was a man sitting at the end of the pier, fishing.
The sun had just come up. The sea looked golden. It was moving very slowly, like it was lazy. The wind was cold and smelt like salt and fish.
The five of us stood at the edge of the pier. Raka had a bag of supplies. Kirana had maps and notebooks. Maya was holding her silver bracelet like she always does. Lina was standing next to me holding my hand.
Then Aldo came from behind us. He was walking slowly like he always does. His black robe was blowing a little in the wind.
"He's there," he said, pointing to the man at the end of the pier.
The old man did not turn around. He just kept fishing. His old hand was holding the rod, and his eyes were fixed on the sea. His hair was white. Reached his shoulders, all tangled and messy. His skin was brown from being in the sun much. When the wind blew, I saw his eyes.
They were blue-green, like the sea. Not like the calm sea. His eyes were like the sea, and I felt like there was something hidden beneath the surface that I could not see.
"Ombak", Aldo said.
The old man turned around. He smiled, like a grandfather welcoming his kids home. His eyes did not smile with him.
"Aldo", he said. His voice was rough, like he had not talked in a time. "You're still wearing that robe?"
Aldo did not answer. He just patted my shoulder. "This is him," he said.
Ombak put down his fishing rod. Stood up. He was not tall. He still looked strong. His eyes looked at each of us one by one. Then stopped on me.
"Kael Ember," he said. "I have heard a lot about you."
I felt the mark on my hand, the Ouroboros scar. It was pulsing a little under my sleeve.
Don't trust Ombak, I thought.
"Do you know where Aegis is?" I asked him directly.
Ombak smiled again. It was a smile, but his eyes flickered for a moment like he was hiding something.
"I know," he said. "It will not be easy."
He walked to the pier. Took out an old map from behind a stack of wood. It was. Brown like it had been in the sea for too long.
He spread it out on a barrel, and we all gathered around.
"The Mariana Trench," he said, pointing to a spot on the map. "That's where you need to go… You can't find it with a regular map."
"We know," Kirana said. "The door only opens during the equinox, when the stars are in the right position."
Ombak looked at her. His eyes flickered again. "You're smart," he said.
Kirana did not say anything.
Ombak pointed to the spot on the map. "At the bottom of the sea there's a temple. It's not made by humans; it's much older. Inside the temple there are twelve statues."
"Twelve", Maya repeated. Her voice was flat. "Like the artefacts."
Ombak nodded. "Twelve statues, but only one is correct. If you choose the one, you will not come back."
Raka stepped forward. ". You're coming with us?"
Ombak shook his head. "I'm old; I'm not strong like I used to be. I'll take you to the temple. Then you're on your own."
"Why are you helping us?" Raka asked. His eyes were narrow. "What do you get out of it?"
Ombak looked at him for a time. His green eyes looked old and heavy, like he was carrying a big burden.
"Because I owe your grandfather, Kael," he said. "Twenty years ago he saved my life. We were at the bottom of the sea. Something attacked us. I couldn't move; I had given up. But he pulled me out; he sacrificed himself."
"What do you mean?" I asked.
Ombak did not answer. He just folded the map. Put it in a small bag at his waist.
"Later on the way I'll tell you everything," he said. "About the expedition, about what your grandfather found, about why my eyes are not like human eyes anymore."
I looked at his eyes, blue-green like the sea. There was something something I could not explain like a thin layer separating him from the rest of the world.
"We're leaving," I said.
Ombak nodded. He walked to a wooden boat tied at the end of the pier. It had an outboard motor covered in rust.
"Get in," he said.
We climbed into the boat one by one. It swayed a little. Lina held my hand tight. Maya sat in front, her eyes fixed on Ombak. Raka and Kirana sat at the back, silent and watchful.
Ombak pulled the rope, and the old motor started with a noise. It sputtered for a moment. Then steadied. The boat began to move slowly, leaving the pier and the land behind.
I looked back. Saw Aldo still standing on the pier, his black robe blowing in the wind. He got smaller and smaller until he disappeared into the coastline.
In front of me, Ombak sat at the helm, his green eyes fixed on the open sea.
"Your grandfather", he said without turning. "He never came back as a human… Not because he turned into a monster."
"Why?" I asked.
Ombak. Looked at me. For the first time I saw something in his eyes, something old and deep, something that had seen too much.
"Because he saw the truth, Kael," he said. "The truth is something that humans cannot live with."