The Grand Council Chamber of Portspond Atoll was a marvel of coral architecture, its domed ceiling shimmering with bioluminescent patterns that danced like ocean waves beneath moonlight. The circular chamber rose in tiered seating around a central platform, a solitary podium standing like a spire amidst the tempest. The air vibrated with an uneasy silence, thick enough to drown in.
The council members sat waiting, civilian dignitaries adorned in ceremonial silks, military commanders rigid in polished armor, and scholarly advisors holding journals bound in salt-cured leather. But among them, the center of gravity was Prince Thalhazel, one of the three seafolk princes of the Glaucus Kingdom.
Regal in bearing, Thalhazel's azure skin shimmered subtly beneath the chamber's shifting lights. His opalescent eyes moved slowly, weighing everything and revealing nothing, his kelp-silk robes and pearl-threaded armor ornaments setting him apart in majesty.
