A second ripple followed the first, this one wider, rolling outward in a perfect circle from the lake's center. The silver surface shimmered unnaturally as if protesting from what stirred beneath it.
Then, the water exploded.
A towering figure surged upward, erupting from the lake like a nightmare made flesh. Vale leapt back, arm shielding his eyes from the spray. When he looked again, his breath hitched.
The creature stood nearly three stories tall, its form grotesque and ancient. Slick, eel-like skin clung to a spiny frame, its surface glistening with rot and algae. Webbed limbs twisted at unnatural angles, ending in hooked talons that shimmered with a greenish hue, coated in something that looked toxic.
Its elongated torso pulsed as if hundreds of veins ran just beneath the surface, glowing faintly with threads of bioluminescence that danced beneath the pale flesh.
