Who truly knows what lurks in the canal’s depths…

For as long as man could dream, tales have been told of monsters beneath the waves. Discover the truths behind these hideous tales in this latest story by Carnevale writer, Dave LaPorta.

Down to the Depths

The ship ploughed through the waves of the Adriatic, sea foam plastering the hull and spraying crew members desperately trying to furl the sail. In the captain’s quarters, Dr Rossi went over the co-ordinates on the map once again. A merchant Opsedale vessel carrying important minerals for the Doctors of San Servolo had disappeared completely, predicted to be somewhere in the Adriatic. Dr Rossi had plotted the suggested course the ship would have taken and meticulously followed it down the coast. Each ship of the Opsedale was powered by harnessed madness rent energy and given a distinct signature which the doctors could detect. Using this, Dr Rossi believed that they were getting close to the missing ships signature. Shaking his head in disbelief, the Doctor called an assistant over to him, “We’re at the spot, drop the anchor. I’ll need help to don my suit. Oh, and whilst we’re at it, ask Serena to drop down and find my ship. Once she finds it, tell her to head towards the blue lights. We’ll hold position until she returns. ”

The ship became awash with action, the huge iron anchor was dropped as the ship came to a halt. Dr Rossi was dressed in his huge exo diving suit, its impressive weight made easier by the energy power cells protruding from the back of the frame, humming softly. His assistant donned his own smaller diving suit. Trident in hand, Dr Rossi hauled himself to the side of the ship and once his divers line was securely attached, dropped down into the choppy sea. The weight of the suit forced the Doctor of the Tides to sink down into the depths quickly. As the darkness overwhelmed his vision, Dr Rossi pressed his wrist mounted light on and waited for his assistant to join him. Once the pair were together, they dropped further down in search of the missing galleon.

As the pair descended further the visibility became so poor that the assistant had to switch on his two beam torches on his helmet. During underwater missions, Dr Rossi preferred not to illuminate their position too much in case it attracted unwanted Rashaar. This was an exception; the cargo of the ship was too precious to be unaccounted for and so certain risks had to be taken. Serena returned swiftly, gesturing downwards with a webbed hand: her sea green skin glistening like scales against Dr Rossi’s torch. Nodding, Rossi sank lower still with his assistant in tow. Serena easily kept pace: a human/Rashaar hybrid, her implanted gills allowed Serena to breathe as easily underwater as above ground.

Slowly a shadow came into view beneath them. Noting that they were on top of the energy signature of the missing ship, Rossi continued to drop until the galleon came into a clearer view. Moving the lights to see the ship in its entirety, Rossi gasped. It WAS the missing merchant galleon. He had always been a little sceptical that it had sunk, such a well-armed and armoured vessel. Besides who could sink such a wonder of technology? Looking closer, he realised that the ship had been cut in half, the central mast had also been torn off. “Who, no, what could do such a thing?!” Rossi gasped. “It would have to be the biggest creature I’ve ever seen.” Pointing downwards, Rossi headed to where the ship lay, broken in half. Swimming into the wreck, the doctor could see broken planks of wood, splintered and cracked timbers amongst storage boxes strewn across the floor. Using his trident to open one up, Rossi sighed a breath of relief as the familiar gleam of silver ore flashed in front of him. At least they could save most of the minerals he thought.

Hearing the familiar soft screech of Serena’s voice through the current, Rossi headed back out to where she was calling him. Moving out the other side of the wreck to Serena, she turned him and pointed back at the ship. It appeared to be lying at the top of a trench, peering down into the void, Rossi was amazed that he could see down into it. Lit up in eerie green, the trench appeared ghostly to the group. Curious, he issued orders for the group to venture down into the trench as far as the oxygen cable would allow. The energy reader was going ballistic, and the pressure here seemed overwhelming, his diving suit began to compress, denting the smooth brazen surface. Risking further damage to his suit, Rossi pushed on until its integrity was at its absolute limit. Worse than that, his head was spinning. Serena’s eyes were bulging, blood running from her nose. Searching for the cause of this overwhelming sense of pressure, Dr Rossi’s eyes widened in amazement.

The view was breath-taking. The eerie glow had transformed into eldritch green, pure energy crackled across the trench like green lightning. Blue, yellow and brilliantly bright purple lights shone in the dark, creating a tear at the bottom of the sea. The only thing Rossi could compare this sight to was the Rent in the Sky. Thoughts rushed through his mind: was this another Rent? How long had it been there? Could the Opsedale somehow harness this all for themselves? Rossi couldn’t bear looking at it any longer, the power was overwhelming. Swimming back upwards towards the shipwreck, his mind stopped throbbing, and he could collate his thoughts a little clearer. That had to be another Rent. It all made sense now, where the monstrous Rashaar originated from and perhaps even where the power that created the waves that sunk the Mediterranean emanated from. This would require far more analysis and testing, Rossi thought to himself as he pushed his suit faster.

From behind him, a primal roar shook the very sea itself, stunning Rossi with terror. The group span around quickly, weapons raised in defence. Amidst the gloom, a huge shadow loomed into view, inexorably getting closer and closer. Titanic tentacles with jaws at their tips spread either side of the shadow, filling their view completely, enveloping the group. As the centre of the body came into view, Rossi realised that this behemoth appeared like a giant squid, though monstrous in size. The front of it had rows of teeth as big as a man in lines going into its maw which extended and retracted as if flexing. Dozens of wicked looking yellow eyes pierced the murky sea as it neared closer to the group of doctors. Its sea green chitinous shell looked impenetrable and was decorated with a single line of horns protruding down its back. Rossi looked on utter disbelief as the Abyssal Kraken took Serena in one of its tentacle maws. This had to be the creature that had destroyed the Opsedale merchant vessel, he thought to himself as his assistant was next to be devoured, Rossi looking on paralysed in dread. Finally, the Doctor of the Tides himself was swallowed as casually as a man might eat a grape, a final desperate trident thrust bounced off the behemoth’s chitinous armour, proving wholly ineffective.

The Abyssal Kraken floated back down towards the Rent in the Sea. On the other side of the Rent, Mother Hydra observed her pet and smiled. This world was ripe for the taking, Venice would be hers. Her forces readied themselves for the journey across to the other side of the Rent, whilst her Kraken defended the entranceway. Dagon may have gotten there first but La Serenissima would be hers in the end…