Rory's Notes

July 7

My hands are still shaking. Not from fear. ...Okay, maybe a little. Let me start from the beginning. We were on our last round of sample collecting. A startled little fish darted past and nearly made me drop an intact jar. Jiyoon caught it and shot me a glare. I didn't have time to shoot one back—because that's when the earthquake hit.

The OBS didn't pick up anything unusual. But that little fish knew before any of our gear did. The current nearly ripped Jiyoon and me apart. Jelani rushed in with a safety rope, and Naga held the other end steady. Thank goodness for those two. Back inside, Oliver's hands were shaking so badly. He looked like some master artist mid‑stroke. I don't remember much of what happened in between—just that going up wasn't an option. But Naga said something I still remember word for word: "Based on calculations, the current at relay point X72‑C31 will generate water pressure that the Explorer's thrusters can't handle."

Pretty impressive, huh? I got it all down, word for word. The takeaway? The thrusters weren't gonna cut it. So I took the helm. License? We'll deal with that later. Couldn't go up, so we went down. Why? Because of that fish. Right before the quake, I remember it diving straight into a crack in the seabed. Jiyoon called me insane at the time, but later she changed her tune and called me adventurous. Well, she's a smart one.

We pushed into the crack, past the rocks, and through the dark. For a good five seconds, I thought, "Well, this is it." Then a beam of light from the lighthouse bent down from above. Out of nowhere. But hey, thank you, lighthouse. Helped us steer clear of a massive reef.

Then we found a place that felt safe—a canyon exposed by the quake. And then we saw it... Deep inside the canyon, a whalefall. Massive. Silent. Like the whole seabed was there just to guard it.

We called it Whalefall Canyon.

But it's not pristine. Pollution and corrosive energy fields have been eating away at this place for years—slowly, quietly. Even the beautiful traces left by time itself are almost gone. There's no way just a handful of us can take care of it. So if you're reading this page, you're probably already helping out. If not, consider this your invitation to pitch in.

Thanks, or thanks in advance. And don't flip to the next page. Those sketches are mine.

July 9

(Sketch: The massive whalefall Rory saw when she discovered Whalefall Canyon.)