Legends of Aquaman #2

[Spider-Man Beyond]

Legends of Aquaman #2
The Seed

Written by Scott D. L. Kruger
Edited by Daniel Dyer

The 19 year old Arthur stood on the banks of the lonely island saying a final good-bye to the life he had on the surface world. The ruins of the lighthouse all that was left of his adopted childhood. Porm, the leader of the Dolphin pod he had lived with for the better part of 2 years had been teaching him how to survive in the ocean. Now it was time for him to meet his destiny head on. A final farewell to the surface world... for now.

Arthur's memories had been returning slowly, and with the help of Porm, he was able to piece together some of what happened. He had been cast out of a place called Poseidonis, left to die on a rock called Mercy Reef by his brother Orm. Poseidonis is the name given to Atlantis, by it's people over 9000 years ago before "the sinking". Somehow Orin managed to break free of the chains that attached him to the reef, and wound up on the rocks he now stood upon.

**Orin, it is time.** Porm's thoughts entered Arthur's mind.

“Give me just one moment longer," Arthur replied over his shoulder. The blue & black wetsuit he now wore would help him move unseen through the oceans depths. His long blonde hair pulled back into a tail would be the only tell tale sign that he was on the move. Though he had been taught how to move through the oceans currents with a minimal effort, he still clung to the webbed fingers of his swimmers gloves.

Arthur turned from the lighthouse ruins & dove into the ocean.

~

[Spider-Man Beyond]

Into the unknown depths of the Atlantic they swam. For days they traveled... or at least what felt like days to Arthur since most of the journey took place far underwater. The dolphin pod would care for him in shifts, four would stay with him as four went for air. This made the journey seem endless.

Day after day, night after night they traveled through strange landscapes, alien to Arthur. Some areas were just too deep for Arthur to go, or at least, deeper than he wished to venture at this time. Arthur paused above one such trench in the Atlantic floor, peering downward into the murky depths.

“What is down there?” inquires Arthur.

**You will find out soon enough, young one. First you must see what you will fight for.**

“Fight?”

As the group approached the perimeter of Poseidonis, Porm and her pod slowed. Before them a rocky outcropping & beyond that, the valley of Atlantis.

**This is as far as you can safely go, little one, we dare not go farther without drawing the Ocean Master out. On the other side of the ridge lies your home, go, look, and return to me. I will then take you before Vulko.**

“Vulko?”

**Stop wasting time, yellow hair...**

Arthur, staying low to the ocean floor, crept towards the rock formation overlooking his future. Perching himself on his elbows, he gazed down into the Atlantean valley. At first Arthur was dazzled by the magnificent sight of the great underwater city. It's transparent dome, glowing from within, yielded the sight of others like him and great underwater vehicles. Deciding to go in for a closer look, Arthur hugs the rock cliff and begins to pull himself downward.

**Orin! Stop!!!**

>>I KNOW WHAT I'M DOING, GET OFF MY BACK!<< Arthur spun to face the Pod, and using his telepathy for the first time. The force of his mental blast physically pushes Porm & the pod back. He turns back to the task at hand & begins to descend. Finding a small, unoccupied hole in the cliff side, Arthur backs himself in & perches himself on his elbows.

~

[Spider-Man Beyond]

In all her years Porm never felt anything as powerful as the mental blast that the boy-king had just unleashed on her pod. The other dolphins swam erratically, frightened by his power. He has telepathy. No other Atlantean, to their knowledge, had this power. Not since the ancient times, when Kordax lead Tritonis in their attempted coup on King Orin the first. Porm began to wonder what other surprises the boy may hide.

~

[Spider-Man Beyond]

Before Arthur, the great city of Poseidonis loomed. Half the size of New York City in diameter, and about a third it's height. At the base of & encircling the domed city was a ring of what looked like tarnished brass, with several doorways located at least ¼ mile apart from each other. Each ancient doorframe was an ornately designed "A". Armed guards were stationed on either side of each of the doors, brandishing odd weapons. Out of the corner of his eye, Arthur noticed a line of people marching along one side of the cliff. Prisoners in a chain gang, entering a cavern in the cliff face, also flanked by armed guards. Leaving his sanctuary, Arthur takes himself lower to get a better look. Finding a boulder to hide behind, Arthur is shocked when he sees the prisoners are elderly men, women & children. Were these criminals? Most were either too old or too young to be any danger to anyone.

**Orin, quickly, we must go,** came the mental plea from Porm, somewhere beyond the ridge above him.

Stealthily, he begins his retreat back up the cliff side... although, not completely unnoticed. An elderly man sees Arthur and realizes that soon, salvation will come.

**That was incredibly irresponsible of you, you could have been hurt, or killed.**

>>I knew what I was doing, and no one saw me.<<

**Can you be sure young one? You are far too important to lose in such a stupid stunt.**

>>If I am the King, as you say, then I have every right to see what goes on down there.<<

**You are the kingdom's only hope... we cannot lose you. You must come with us to see Vulko.** No longer wishing to argue with the headstrong young man, Porm turns, heading back in the direction they originally came from.

~

[Spider-Man Beyond]

Deep in the heart of the Atlantean Royal palace, the Ocean Master sits on his throne, bored. There has been no excitement in the city for quite sometime. No incursions or insurrections... no attempts on his life... not even a new concubine to satiate his needs. No, everything had grown quite stagnant. Boring. Just like when his father ruled. It couldn't be that the populace of the city were content, they made that obvious with their insufferable whining about their lack of food, and other supplies. No, the hated & hateful masses seem to have grown complacent. Again... Boring.

"Your majesty?" came the voice of an Imperial guard.

"What is it, can't you see I'm busy brooding?"

Not knowing what to say the guard stayed kneeling at his rulers feet.

"Go ahead, what is it?"

"Your majesty, there is a worker in the mines refusing to do his job..." the guard spoke quickly, not wanting to waste his master’s time.

"So, kill him, I'll send down one of my slave girls to replace him... I'm bored with them anyway," Orm said with a sigh. To the left of the throne, his always attentive, slave girls gasp in shock.

"We would have, your Majesty, but you may wish to hear what he has to say..."

"Fine bring him before me then..." he said with a dismissive wave "... oh, and guard?"

"Yes, my lord?"

Orm looking back at his slave girls randomly points his finger at one of them, "Take that one, and if she resists, take her to the nests."

"Yes, my lord," the Guard accepted with a low bow & a smile.

~

[Spider-Man Beyond]

Standing before the deep trench on the ocean floor, a short, plump balding man. His arms folded, he began impatiently pacing in anticipation of the king’s arrival. Vulko did not know what to expect from his king... he had not seen the child since the day Orin's parents were deposed & his father, King Trevis, was executed... When he had been unable to protect the king & his family.

Vulko had spent 3 years in the mines... 3 years organizing. Queen Atlanna had disappeared & the boy-king's body was never recovered from MercyRreef... Somehow, Vulko knew Orin would return to lead them to freedom. He always had faith.

By his side stood Mera, his second-in-command. Standing a foot taller than Vulko, the young, beautiful Atlantean was not what she seemed. Her father had been Captain of the royal guard before the Revolution. He had taught her how to fight at an early age... something that helped her survive in the mines after watching her father die on the end of the Ocean Masters spear. She had known Orin when he was a small boy & she had loved him then... even if he was a spoiled little brat. There was something different about him, something that made him stand out among other Atlanteans. She never allowed herself to look at another after Orin's "death". Her long red hair, flowing in the current, reflected the fire inside of her. She would finally have Orin back & then they would, together, exact revenge on Orm.

"What do you think he's like?" Mera asked, her bright green eyes looking downward to Vulko.

"Gods know child. When last I saw him, he had his mother’s hair & eyes. His father’s eyes," came Vulko's reply.

"That's not what I meant Vulko," she gazed down towards her feet, embarrassed, "I remember what he looked like..."

"I know, child," Vulko said tenderly as he took her hand, " Though, it's all I have for you now."

In the distance the dolphin pod come into focus. Swimming in a defensive circle, they surrounded Arthur, protecting him from would-be attackers, though none dared challenge them. As the pod quickly approached the trench, the circle loosened.

**I deliver you to Vulko & Lady Mera, may the mother Ocean guide your hand, young one.**

>>Thank you Porm.<<

And with that, Porm & her pod swam back towards the surface for a, much needed, breath of air, leaving Arthur face to face with his destiny.

~

[Spider-Man Beyond]

The old miner, once King Trevis's majordomo, stood defiantly before the Ocean Master, refusing to kneel. Orm, sat at full attention on the throne, amused that someone had FINALLY decided to spar with him once more. It had been a long time. Orm's thin lips curled into a smile.

"Well... if it isn't old Arysio... I hear you are refusing to do your duty. You do know that it is an offense punishable by death, do you not?"

"Your rule... is at an end 'Ocean Master,'" the old Arysio declared.

Everyone in the throne room, that was not a royal guard, shifted uncomfortably, afraid of what might befall the old man. They were all unaware of just how badly their Emperor needed this distraction from tedium.

"Really... do tell." Orm said, his grin widening into a toothy smile. "I was just telling members of my court that I was in need of a new court jester, you may be just what we..."

"I do not jest, Orm."

Orm's smile began to turn. "You dare interrupt me..."

"I do... pretender. Your reign of terror is over. I have more right to the throne as majordomo than you do as the King’s bastard child."

Orm reflexively leapt from the throne and smacked the old man across the face, sending him reeling. The old man, lifted himself off the floor and stood, unflinchingly, face to face with the Ocean Master once again. The fury on Orm's face began to melt into a forced smile. Every fiber in Orm's being screamed out in anger, but he held it in.

"I will so enjoy watching your disembowelment, old man."

"Do what you will to me, I do not fear death & I do not fear you."

"You will fear me..."

"No one will fear you... now that he has returned."

"He? He who?" interest sparking in Orm's eye.

"Your half brother, Orin. The rightful king."

The room fell completely silent. The Ocean Master's servants looked to one another, shielding the glimmer of hope in their eyes, from the guards & their Emperor. Orm glared into the old man's eyes, but he did not flinch. He did not waiver. He was not lying. This old man truly believed that Orm's long dead, brat of a brother, had returned from beyond the grave.

"Really?" Orm turned and gracefully swam back to his throne. Sitting down he took the Royal Trident in his hand, reassuring himself that the throne belonged to him. "How did you come to this knowledge?"

"I saw him, of course."

"Where?"

"Why, so you can hunt him down? I may be an old man, but I am no fool."

Orm leapt once again at the old man, Trident in hand, slashing wildly. Instantly the water in the throne room began to mix with blood as the old man's insides began to pour from the gaping wound in his belly. Orm stood proudly before the old man, allowing the blood to wash over him, a horrifying sight to all gathered. The slave girls covered their eyes and mouths. The guards, stood stoic, some horrified, others fascinated. The old man, on his knees, trying to hold in the contents of his body.

"There, now you're on your knees where you should be..." Orm said as he stood proudly over the dying man.

"I... die here," the man gasped for breath, blood flowing from his open mouth, "but you... will... soon follow. The King... will retu..."

Before he could finish his declaration, the old man was beheaded by a clean sweep from Orm's Trident. The slave girls began to weep and swim away from the spreading blood.

"QUIET!!!" shouted Orm. He looked about the throne room, until he found who he was looking for, "Captain..."

"Your Majesty?" the Captain of the guard stood at attention ignoring the blood now covering his broad shoulders.

"I want you to double the guard's, and increase all sentries around the dome."

"You believe him, sire?" the Captain dropped his attentive stance and stared at Orm.

"OF COURSE NOT YOU FOOL!" Orm shouted at his Captain. "JUST DO IT!!!" the Captain snapped back to attention and with a salute, swam off.

The Ocean Master sat alone on his throne, covered in another man's blood. Of course he did not believe him... his brother was dead. He had personally seen to that... he tried to convince himself. A seed of doubt had been planted. And throughout the city a seed of hope as word spread... the king was alive.

To be continued