Lushaka, the Sunken Seas

Among the multitude of planets with a dearth of liquid water, the pure blue of Lushaka shines prominently among the Przesmir star system. Her seawater resembles the cradle of the mother of oceans. The water nurtures and sustains all life... yet also entraps them, controls them, and ensnares them until there is no more escape. At the break of dawn, the first mate of the "stateship" gently knocks on the Captain's quarters door, and pushes it open. The island ecologies of the Old Era's thirty-seven domains are stuck on the walls all over the cabin. That is how people miss land — meteors from beyond the skies are in the process of covering the entirety of Lushaka with water as if following some single-minded wish. Unending tides bury all ancestral lands in abyssal waters, leaving only an expanse of blue... The first mate rouses the sleeping Captain, for the sea is already glinting specks of gold — the "stateship" has begun another day's voyage. The scouting ship arrives at the center of the plaza. It fires its anchor arrow towards a massive underwater structure that was once a shopping mall. The anchor firmly lodges itself on a window frame — before the diving bell comes, countless startled schools of fish surge forth from the shopping mall's shelves. After midday, the scholars leave from the diving bell. They swim past the bookstore, not stopping even for a second — after all, the ink would have long been blurred beyond recognition. Their goal has always been those mediums of shellac or plastic, from which information of past days can be easily obtained after easy cleanup. Deepsea archaeology like this is always arduous. The cleaners stand their ground and watch the vicinity alertly, steel halberds swinging, ensuring that toothy predators are kept at bay. The humans will occasionally collide with deepwater aqua sprites, but both parties are too engrossed in their respective scavenging to pay each other any heed. Instead of shriveled cans, the cleaners are more invested in finding seeds, spices, or liquor. The intensive underwater investigation is nearing its end as the oxygen reserves decline. Looking back underwater, the giant mackerels have already reached the city. The anxious aqua sprites immediately hold their breath, hug the wall, or hide in secret chambers. They have grown used to utilizing the underwater steel forest. The drizzle lets up as the sun starts to sink, and the various stateships sound their horns to scatter the plundering seabirds around them. They place the day's harvest on the deck for the stateship's citizens to take what they need. Currents surge at night as the light tower shines crystalline bright. The Luvians dance around the flaming mast, forgetting the tomorrow that will inevitably come, recounting the glories of today with sea shanties, and sighing softly to the halcyon past with medleys. The Captain takes out his compass, gazing toward the direction it points — he knows in that direction lies their home that is growing ever more unfamiliar, where there are still people longing for the return of their kin. At midnight, the colossal ship extinguishes all its lights, silently adrift upon the sea. Have they truly found peace? Or are their smiles masking the tears that have long dissolved into the sea? After tonight, this deep blue will remain unchanged, as it always has.

To the aqua sprites, the world above the water was originally unfamiliar and perilous, but that is now no more than a distant memory. After all, things that were once above the water have long been submerged in this deep blue. The land-dwellers of Lushaka have an intimate yet unfamiliar relationship with the aqua sprites. In deepsea investigations, the land-dwellers view encounters with the aqua sprites as lucky omens, describing the spirits as beautiful and mysterious creatures. Aqua sprites possess navy blue wing membranes and onyx eyes, as well as unique vocal cords capable of producing ethereal sounds. According to stories passed down by mouth among the deepsea investigators, these creatures often accompany sea dragons and reside in a silvery city deep underwater — they exist between reality and legend, embodying serenity and liveliness. However, the language used to describe them in the ocean-drowned past was — Edars, monsters of the deep sea. Long ago, the Edars and the land-dwellers fiercely vied for survival. No one could ignore the vivid red the oceans were dyed into. Initially, juvenile Edars were regarded as mere fishing catches. Then, the land-dwellers were lured into the ocean to drown by the songs of the Edars. Both races were hunters and prey for the other in the vast waters. Then came clashes between blades and anchors, as well as battles between sea beasts and cannons. The relentless war, both above and below the water's surface, persisted until the reefs shattered under scorching magma. It was only after a long time that stateship scholars understood that the Cancer of All Worlds has long promised Lushaka's future — only that the promises came from an aqua sprite who lost her home, who cursed the culprit in the nightmare with a silent scream. The long-forgotten past lies entombed within the steel and concrete coral reefs of the deep sea, as ephemeral as smoke and clouds, known to none. Since then, cities and lands have been swallowed by the sea, disputes and blood have been consumed by the ocean, and history and civilization engulfed by the waves. To escape rising deep-water pressure, the aqua sprites constantly migrate upward, compelled to dwell in cities once home to land-dwellers, prying into memories filled with smiles and tears... They know that few sounds remain on the surface, and the azure now belongs to them alone. Yet, the silence is too overwhelming. When the stateship's songsters glimpse azurean silken wings along their nautical course, they will start to sing that beautiful medley... "They journey along the course, in pursuit of the light tower and storm, seeking only to reclaim that pure blue."