The Immortals of Notoriouslandia
Chapter Seven: The Lock and the Trident
The Door of Never loomed, ancient and cracked.
It stood like a forgotten god at the core of Old Notoriouslandia—chained in celestial iron, sealed in runes of dead stars, humming with the echoes of a thousand buried screams. The world had forgotten what it held.
But Sapphire hadn't.
She knelt beneath the archway of runes, surrounded by glowing crystal tablets and dimensional maps. Her armor was dim, focused inward, her thoughts spiraling through endless configurations of power, time, and resistance.
Then she saw it.
One of the two locks was broken.
Not shattered—peeled open. As if someone had delicately unpicked the spellwork that once bound it.
From the fractured gap spilled a thin ribbon of darkness—not shadow, not smoke, but a sentient aura. It slithered across the floor like a whisper looking for ears.
Sapphire narrowed her eyes.
"The second lock still holds," she muttered, "but not for long…"
She activated a containment field and kept recording.
"They're stalling. This is psychological warfare. Bleed fear into the cracks, then let it rot."
The Door pulsed.
Far below, something knocked once… and laughed.
Meanwhile...
Descentedrain and Kukranchunlikryting flew over the ruins of Sector Floodgate, tracing Joab's psychic residue through the wreckage he left after the betrayal.
They spoke little.
The betrayal still ached. Especially for Descentedrain.
But the trail was strong.
And it led them to the ruins of an ancient dam, now flooded and glowing with blue energy.
There, standing atop the water like it was solid steel, was a man.
Mr. Shonk — Wielder of Bontaine
He was enormous. Muscles like carved planets. A blue aura shimmered around him like a second skin. In one hand, he held a green trident, humming with pulsing power. Every time he tossed it into the distance, it circled through the sky and returned to his grip.
He was laughing as he trained—surrounded by waves shaped into humanoid forms, all sparring with him in midair. His trident glowed with every impact.
Descentedrain watched from above.
"Who the hell is that?"
Kukranchunlikryting tilted his head.
"Looks like Aquaman on steroids."
The man turned and shouted up to them.
"YOU GUYS PART OF THE UNBOUND TEAM? I'VE BEEN WAITIN' TO BE NOTICED!"
He rocketed into the air, streaking with blue light—a comet of aquatic energy.
"Name's Mr. Shonk! Big fan of Monday, Hulk, and Aquaman!""I throw things, I break things, and I drink ocean storms like slushies!""And if you're fightin' Joab, count me in! That two-faced sketch nerd erased half my old coastline!"
New Team, New Fire
After a test spar (which left a crater in the sea), Descentedrain nodded.
"He's insane."
Kukranchunlikryting grinned.
"I like him."
Mr. Shonk just laughed.
"Let's go stomp that pencil thief into paste."
Back at Unbound HQ
Sapphire stood as they returned—her face lit by new equations and horrors on display.
The second lock had twitched while they were gone.
She didn't look up as they entered.
"We don't have time for greetings. That seal is bleeding."
She turned to Mr. Shonk.
"You—new guy. Welcome. Hope you can swim through hell."
Mr. Shonk grinned and spun his trident once, then stabbed it into the ground. Blue light surged around him.
"Just point me at the screaming."
Descentedrain looked at his team.
Broken, betrayed, but stronger.
And the Door pulsed again.
Behind it, Septiceye watched.