Throne of Gods

"And how can we help you, Mr. Victor?" Raymond asked, his expression was polite.

"I was thinking of creating a device that produces sound," Leo said.

"Sound?" Rohesia echoed, one eyebrow arching. "Why?"

"Well…you're planning to bring the beast—" Leo stopped.

"Something wrong?" Rohesia tilted her head, her dark eyes steady.

"Well…" He hesitated. "We keep calling it the beast. And usually, referring to a creature this powerful by it's real name can be dangerous. But maybe we should give it a name, so we aren't fumbling for words when we discuss it."

"What should we call it? Many Legs?" Raymond suggested brightly, as if naming it could make it less terrifying.

Leo almost laughed. "What about…the Kraken?"

"Kraken…" Rohesia repeated, rolling the syllables around on her tongue. She nodded once. "That's as good a name as any. It fits."

A thin smile pulled at Leo's mouth. "Good. So—as I was saying—you plan to bring the Kraken out by boiling the water, right?"

Raymond nodded again, folding his arms.

"What if the Kraken is ten thousand meters below the surface? Or twenty thousand? Can you say with any certainty that your heat can reach that depth?"

The twins exchanged a look—something flickering in their identical features.

"Twenty thousand?" Raymond said slowly. "I…never really thought the ocean could be that deep."

"It can," Leo said.

"And you have a solution for that?" asked Rohesia.

"Yes. Sound."

"Sound…" Rohesia repeated, skepticism pinching her brow. "And why would sound be any different?"

"With the right device, the vibrations can travel all the way down," Leo said, wishing he sounded more confident.

"Why? How?" Rohesia pressed, tapping her knuckle against her lip as if she could knock sense out of his claim.

Leo exhaled slowly. He realized he'd have to explain waves and frequency—things he'd only half understood from a documentary in his old life. But he had illusions, and sometimes showing was easier than telling.

"Well…let me show you."

He raised one hand, channeling mana into an illusion circle that shimmered in the air
.
Raymond stepped back, blinking. "What are you doing?"

"Relax. Just watch my hand."

Leo stepped over to the wooden table and tapped it lightly.

"Normally, when someone does this, you just hear the noise."

The twins nodded in unison.

He tapped again, this time weaving a faint illusion. Pale rippling lines radiated out from the point of impact, rolling toward them in even circles.

"Sound is like this. A wave. When that wave reaches your ears, you perceive it as noise."

"That's…fascinating," Rohesia murmured.

Leo took a breath and continued, warming to the explanation. "If we can control it—make it uniform and strong—this wave can travel very far underwater and eventually reach the Kraken."

"But why does it travel so far?" Rohesia asked, genuinely curious now. "Usually, you can't hear things kilometers away."

Leo moved his finger, and the illusion shifted, showing a jagged, high-frequency wave.

"This is what a normal sound wave looks like," he said, though it was only a rough approximation.

"What?" the twins said together, squinting at the image.

"Just trust me," Leo sighed. "When this kind of wave travels, it loses energy quickly—especially if there are obstacles like rocks or currents. But—"

He flicked his hand again. The image smoothed, slowing into a rolling, low-frequency wave with broad peaks and troughs.

"If we make it like this, steady, and backed by a strong mana source—it won't weaken as fast. It can keep going. It can reach the depths, even if the Kraken is hiding under kilometers of water."

The twins stared at the floating image. The illusion flickered a little as Leo's focus wavered.

Finally, Raymond broke the silence. He scratched his cheek and looked up. "I don't follow every detail…but you believe you can design such a device?"

"Almost," Leo admitted, rubbing the side of his neck. "I have the…concept. The practical part—well—we'll have to figure that out together."

Rohesia's lips twitched into something halfway between a frown and a smile. "So…we're experimenting?"

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"Exactly," Leo said. "Let's just start building and see what happens."

He didn't have the faintest idea how to create the device. But for once, that didn't bother him. At least it was better than sitting around and doing nothing.

"So, what exactly do we need?" Rohesia asked, leaning forward.

Leo rubbed his chin, thinking carefully. "We'll need something to power it. Since we're already dealing with heat, we can turn that into steam — and use the steam to drive pistons. Basically, we're building a steam engine."

He looked around, relieved that steam engines were already in use here. Trying to explain the details, he hesitated but went on.

"The outside of the machine should be made from strong materials — steel for strength so it won't break under pressure, and brass because it resists rust. The main part is a reinforced chamber that holds the steam engine itself."

He paused, searching for the right words. "At the back, the engine spins a crankshaft, and that crankshaft drives the pistons. The pistons go back and forth, and gears make sure everything moves smoothly and with enough force."

Raymond was jotting down notes, listing the parts Leo mentioned.

"When the engine built, the next challenge is making sound waves that can travel underwater," Leo continued. "That happens through vibration — the engine has to shake or vibrate something that sends sound out into the water."

"How do we do that exactly?" Raymond asked.

Leo frowned, trying to picture it. "Okay, the steam engine powers those big pistons. The pistons push against metal plates — kind of like drum heads — that vibrate when hit. These plates need to be made to vibrate a lot, to send out strong sound waves. The pistons move in timed bursts, making controlled vibrations. We can change the steam pressure to make the vibrations stronger or weaker, and adjust how fast they happen."

Leo suddenly looked exhausted and ran a hand over his face.

"Can someone bring me a chair? Please."

The twins exchanged a glance and helped him into the tent where more people were working on various projects.

Raymond called out to the others as he grabbed a chair for Leo. "Hey, everyone! Come here! We're building something new and we need all the help we can get."

Slowly, the crowd gathered around Leo, who sank into the chair, ready to share more ideas.

"Okay, so inside the machine, metal plates will vibrate when the pistons push against them," Leo explained slowly. "These plates need to be tuned to vibrate at low frequencies—that means slow, deep waves. Low-frequency sounds travel much farther underwater than high-pitched ones."

Rohesia frowned, curious. "How do you tune a plate to vibrate at low frequencies?"

Leo thought for a moment, tapping his chin. "Well... materials that are heavier or denser usually vibrate slower, so they make lower frequencies. Also, the size and shape of the plates matter a lot. Bigger plates vibrate slower because they have more mass and surface area for the vibrations to move through. So, if we want low frequencies, we use bigger, heavier plates."

"Do we just try different materials and sizes until we find the right one?" someone from the group asked.

Leo shrugged. "Yeah, pretty much. I don't really know a better way."

Before anyone could respond, Rohesia spoke up. "We could test it by putting another plate some distance away. Then, if the first plate sends vibrations through the water, the second one should start vibrating too. If it does, it means the device works."

"That's actually a good idea," Leo agreed.

Raymond glanced at his notes and asked, "So, what do we need next?"

Leo leaned forward. "Once we have the vibrations, we need to amplify them. We can do this with resonance chambers—metal boxes or tubes designed to capture the vibrations and make them stronger before releasing the sound."

"How do these chambers actually capture the vibrations?" someone else asked.

Leo rubbed his forehead, trying to explain clearly. "Think of it like this, the vibrations bounce around inside the chamber, hitting the walls and making the waves louder. The walls should be made from strong, dense metals, which carry vibrations well. The shape matters too — a big hollow cylinder or dome can reflect the waves so they overlap and get stronger. Bigger chambers work better for low-frequency sounds because they can amplify the waves without messing them up."

He paused, then added, "With these chambers making the vibrations stronger, we still need a way to send the sound out into the ocean clearly."

"That's where the funnels come in," Leo said, continuing with the topic. "We'll use polished metal funnels—copper or brass—kind of like organ pipes. They'll direct the vibrations into a focused beam so the sound travels straight through the water instead of spreading out everywhere."

"Attached to these funnels, we'll add tuned pipes," Leo explained, "to fine-tune the vibrations and make sure the sound has the right frequency and tone. The length of each pipe controls the pitch—longer pipes produce deeper sounds, shorter ones higher tones. The ends of the pipes need to be wide enough to direct the sound waves straight into the water, creating those deep pulses that can travel far beneath the ocean surface."

He paused, then added, "But even with all that mechanical work, water is tough to send sound through. That's where magic comes in."

"At the center of the machine, magical resonance crystals will be embedded into the frame or connected to the pipes. As the sound waves move through the pipes, these crystals activate enchantment circles that boost the sound's power."

"Also," Leo continued, "when the vibrations reach the resonating chambers, sound enchantments can be woven into the metal and crystals. These spells change how the sound interacts with the water, letting it travel long distances without fading away."

Rohesia frowned. "So, not only do we need a new device, we need a new spell too?"

"I'll create the spell," Leo said. "The plan is to connect the device to a chain and lower it underwater. Then, using crystals, we'll create a shield around it that keeps water out but still lets the sound pass through. We'll also need a way to control the crystals from the ship, so we can activate the system whenever we want."

"That sounds like it's going to take a lot of time," someone muttered.

Rohesia cut in, "We don't have time. So, let's get moving."

Leo yawned and settled down. "I'll take a nap here while you gather the materials."

Before anyone could respond, his eyes closed and he was asleep.

…

When Leo opened his eyes again, the camp had transformed into a hive of frantic activity. Men and women dashed back and forth, hauling sheets of metal that gleamed in the dim light, while others carried coils of copper wire or bundles of tools. The sharp clang of hammer against metal echoed through the air, mixing with the murmur of hurried voices.

By one of the tents, Rohesia was bent over a large, roughly drawn schematic pinned to a wooden board. Her pencil moved quickly, sketching out adjustments as she barked orders. "We need several versions of this device, each made from different materials. We don't know which will work best, so speed is critical."

Leo's head throbbed slightly as Raymond approached and placed a steady hand on his shoulder. "Finally awake, huh?" he said with a friendly smile. "What do you make of the progress?"

Leo's eyes scanned the growing piles of components and the busy craftsmen. "You guys are fast," he said, still a little dazed.

Raymond chuckled. "It helps that it's not a massive contraption, and with magic, we can shape metal faster than usual. The structure's going up quicker than I expected."

Leo exhaled and ran a hand through his hair, trying to recall what he'd read in Alexia's library. "I need a book — something with all the power words. And an enchanting tome that includes spells for amplification. I think there was one for boosting elemental attacks. Do you know if we have something like that here?"

"I'll check around and see what I can find," Raymond said, already moving toward a group of enchanters nearby.

Left alone, Leo's eyes roamed over the chaos — the glowing forge fires, the rhythmic pounding of tools, the swirl of dust and sparks in the air. Time was slipping away fast. There was no room for mistakes now.