Chapter 14: The Coral Forest
Coop had been mesmerized by the Coral Forest. He hopped from ledge to ledge, just taking it all in.
It was beautiful and surreal, unlike anything he had ever seen but also sometimes familiar. He spotted a purple brain coral the size of a house and blue-green sea fans swaying in the open air that were large enough to fit into any old growth forest. When Coop realized that all the corals were living despite not being submerged he was even more awed.
The coral polyps appeared to still be their normal tiny size, it was the calcium carbonate exoskeletons that experienced such incredible growth. It seemed like an entire ecosystem had sprung up around the concentrated mana, allowing these tiny creatures to build incredible structures.
Gradually, Coop started to realize he had made a mistake. The unfamiliar Coral Forest, lack of a horizon, and constantly changing elevation depending on which ledge he was on had turned him around. He wasn’t sure which way was home.
Coop truly realized he was in trouble when he spotted his first monster. He noticed it before he dropped onto the ledge that it was occupying. It seemed like it stared back at him, daring him to continue.
It was a hermit crab-like creature, with six pointed legs underneath a round, bulbous, blue-metallic body that hung all the way to the floor. Two scissor-like claws were held out in a challenge that Coop wouldn’t accept. Where the Ancient Defenders and Primal Kites were smaller than Coop, this thing was the size of a van.
[One That Waits (Elite Level ??)]
Identify only confirmed Coop’s hesitance. He had never seen question marks before, but felt it was safe to assume they meant a dangerous level difference. Coop would have retreated from a regular monster that presented with question marks, and this was an elite, so he turned around and came to terms with his being lost.
Coop decided that he would find his way as long as he went up. He climbed from ledge to ledge, finally understanding that going up would be a lot harder than going down. He confirmed that his ethereal teleport had no line of sight requirements and made liberal use of his spear throws to gain further elevation.
It was going well enough until he saw the ceiling. It was solid coral rock that gave no indication of direction or exits, only adding the occasional stream of seawater that percolated through the stone and joined the other rivers. At least the nearby bioluminescence was a pleasant blue-green with the occasional purple highlights. His downfall would have nice aesthetics.
Coop tried testing the wind and tasting the air, he observed the orientation of different corals and the direction water was flowing, but nothing provided any hints for navigation. He felt like he had no choice but to pick a direction and commit.
Panic set in. He was pretty sure he was going in a straight line, but was beginning to doubt even his ability to not go in circles. He started coming up with backup plans where he would have to live in the Coral Forest forever.