Before they departed, they all stood before the weapon racks, choosing what suited their journey. None of them hesitated; their hands reached at the same moment toward the spears, for they were lighter and more suitable for a long journey. They snatched them from the slaves who were carrying them, then walked out into the wide courtyard, each of them filled with a strange mixture of excitement and anxiety.
They stood for a moment exchanging glances, thinking about the coming few years…
How would their adventure begin?
Where would the roads lead them?
And what fate awaited them?
But for one of them… there was no hesitation.
Poseidon knew his destination well. He needed no discussion or planning. He simply turned and took the same path he had come from at the beginning, without saying a single word.
He heard the roar of the water from afar, and the ocean welcomed him like an ancient call.
He continued walking with steady steps until he reached the edge of the sea, then advanced further… and further…
And when the waves touched his feet, he did not stop.
He walked into the water as if returning home, then fully submerged himself in the ocean, swimming with confidence as though the sea itself recognized him.
Months passed, and Poseidon repeated his exhausting attempts. Each time he returned to the ocean, and each time he felt he was getting a small step closer to his goal… to the true sensation of the ocean and awakening the latent power deep within his body.
As time passed, the feeling grew—
a faint pulse in his chest,
a warm wave flowing through his soul,
a hidden whisper from the sea as if calling to him.
That night, he stood on the shore beneath a sky heavy with clouds and closed his eyes.
He said to himself with firm resolve:
"This time… I must succeed."
He took a deep breath, then walked toward the water like every time… but this time with a different determination.
He plunged into the waves of the ocean, his body moving with confidence, as if the sea were waiting to reveal its final secret to him.
As he let his body flow with the water, he felt his soul harmonize with the ocean completely for the first time; as though the boundaries between him and the ocean were beginning to disappear. Each wave that touched him whispered a secret, and every current passing by him invited him to take the next step.
And when he felt the right moment had come, he did not hesitate.
He opened his heart and soul to the ocean and began pulling its energy toward him with force.
The ocean's immense power surged toward him like a water storm, and his soul devoured it fiercely… but he realized immediately that it wasn't as easy as he imagined.
For the ocean was not a calm energy.
It was a raging force… deep… impossible to control easily.
And as soon as the first wave of that energy entered his body, he felt a weight pressing on his chest and a heat shaking his bones.
At that moment, Poseidon felt that it would take some time… maybe longer than he expected.
And while he was immersed in the depths of the ocean for an unknown period, he suddenly opened his eyes.
What he saw around him wasn't ordinary water…
The entire ocean had begun to gather around him in a massive vortex, swirling from all directions and rushing straight toward his body, as if the sea itself were pouring its strength into him without end.
His body and soul continued to devour the ocean's energy mercilessly, swallowing wave after wave… until he reached the limit that satisfied him.
And when he felt his energy had reached its maximum, he suddenly stopped the consumption, and the vortex also ceased.
Poseidon focused his awareness on himself, on his body and soul after merging with the new energy.
And in that deep moment… he felt as if he had become part of the ocean itself.
He no longer needed to surface to breathe… nor to eat or sleep.
He realized that if he wished to sleep here, in the heart of the depths, he would sleep safely.
The ocean was no longer a frightening or mysterious place for him;
it had become the safest place… like a hug created specifically to protect him.
With this powerful sensation flowing within him, Poseidon felt capable of anything—
to fight, to travel through the depths, to control the water itself if he wished.
And as this feeling overwhelmed him…
something else happened.
Poseidon felt something…
He focused well, gathering all his sense of the ocean, all its currents, every pulse of energy flowing through his body.
And while trying to understand what he was feeling, he realized it was not as easy as his father had said…
He would need more years to learn full control over his power, to adapt to the magnitude of energy he possessed.
Then the realization gradually increased, little by little…
until he finally understood what he was sensing: a massive, raging shark attacking a small octopus, struggling with the ambition to devour it in a single moment.
At that moment, he felt this was the right time…
and the right thing to test his new power.
He did not hesitate.
He launched from the water with astonishing speed, heading toward the shark, ready to show how much control he had over his power, and to prove he could face any threat, no matter how immense.
As he moved through the ocean, Poseidon felt as if he were flying without limits.
He no longer needed to exert any effort with his body to swim… all he had to do was think about moving, and the energy he absorbed from the ocean would flow, and the water around him would move as if obeying his commands with precision and speed, carrying him wherever he wanted.
In this way, he surged at incredible speed toward the shark, the water around him flowing smoothly as part of his body itself, as if the entire ocean had become an extension of his will.
Every current, every wave, every movement of the water responded to him, accelerating his progress and increasing his strength… until the shark before him became a potential target that could not be missed.
And he knew, in his heart, that this was the moment to test his new power in reality.
When the shark was about to devour the octopus, he felt something unexpected.
He looked to his right… and suddenly, a powerful punch struck him, accompanied by the fury of the ocean itself.
The punch hit his jaw, almost breaking it.
The shark's rage exploded like never before… who dared attack it in the place it controlled?
The shark lunged, in a state of frenzy, at the thing or person who challenged it, releasing all its strength in an attempt to take revenge.
But suddenly, the shark felt unable to move from its place, and was extremely puzzled by what was happening.
It tried repeatedly to attack, to retreat, to turn… but it could not.
It had used much of its strength, but all its attempts failed.
And when Poseidon saw that, he smiled quietly and then laughed.
With his hands, he directed the ocean currents to hold the shark in place. Poseidon's control over the water around him prevented the shark from attacking and forced it to remain under his will, while he planned for the right moment to show his true power.
Then Poseidon began moving his hands left and right, and the shark moved with him as if it were a puppet without will.
He watched it as he played, testing his power, until he grew bored of the experiment.
Then he decided to test the upper limit of his strength.
Poseidon gripped his hands tightly and let the ocean's energy flow around the shark mercilessly.
The water pressed on its body, surrounding it from all sides… turning it into a lifeless corpse under his control, with no chance to escape or resist.
The shark, which had been furious and angry moments before, was now just a puppet under Poseidon's will and the ocean's power.
When the octopus saw what was happening, it was greatly astonished.
It watched the being in front of it save it, fighting the shark that had attacked without mercy…
It had admired Poseidon from the first moment and felt safe near him.
And when Poseidon completely crushed the shark, the octopus felt immense joy.
Then Poseidon calmly turned his face:
And suddenly, the octopus wrapped around him quickly, its arms curling around his shoulders and waist as if hugging him with extreme joy and gratitude.
The octopus stayed clinging to him for a while, almost reaching his face.
Then Poseidon smiled seeing it hold onto him like that, and said in a calm, playful voice:
"You've got… strong legs, boy."
He said it while pointing at the octopus's arms that were holding him tightly.
The octopus paused for a moment, as if it understood what Poseidon said… then waved its arms excitedly, as if laughing underwater.
Poseidon felt that the octopus was trying to communicate with him.
There was a strange sensation touching his soul, as if a silent call was passing through the water.
Poseidon said, looking into the creature's strange eyes:
"Do… you want to come with me?"
Suddenly, the octopus's arms moved excitedly, bending and spreading in a clear motion that expressed complete agreement, as if it had been waiting for the question from the beginning.
Poseidon froze for a few seconds.
How did the octopus understand him?
How did he understand the octopus's feeling?
Then he slowly realized the truth:
He was not hearing words, nor speaking aloud.
They were communicating… through the soul.
His soul touched the soul of the creature before him, and both exchanged meanings without any language.
He whispered to himself in astonishment:
"It's… my soul's voice. I can speak to creatures through my soul."
He looked at the octopus again, this time with different eyes—
the eyes of someone who had discovered a new ability he had never known before.
And while Poseidon looked at the octopus in amazement, he suddenly remembered Odin's raven…
that strange companion who accompanied its master everywhere.
He smiled and said:
"Alright… I'll take you with me, octopus."
As soon as the octopus sensed its acceptance, it moved quickly, as if wanting to cling to Poseidon's face again out of sheer excitement.
But Poseidon's hand was quicker; he placed his palm in front of its face and gently stopped it.
He said in a calm, warning tone:
"All right… first rule: don't stick to my face if you want to come with me."
The octopus stopped immediately, then moved its arms slowly as if trying to apologize, before pulling slightly away from his face and standing in the water, waiting for his instructions.
The scene was strange… a little funny… completely new to Poseidon.
But when Poseidon saw that the octopus understood him perfectly, he smiled confidently.
He reached out and gently picked up the octopus, then placed it on his shoulder like a small, loyal companion.
He said with a smile and a hint of excitement:
"Come on, my octopus… we need to find other creatures for me to train with.
I feel that mastering my energy will take a long time."
As soon as the octopus heard these words, it moved happily, wrapping one of its arms around Poseidon's shoulder as if hugging him.
It felt a strange excitement overwhelm it…
Its life, which had been merely swimming in the depths, suddenly changed.
Now it was Poseidon's personal companion.
Together, they surged through the water,
Poseidon with his shining eyes,
and the octopus fluttering behind him with uncontainable joy,
as if they were about to begin an adventure that would change their fate together.
And after a few years…
In the dark depths of the ocean, where light barely reached as a faint thread, stood a tall young man, taller than any human by several heads, his body pulsating with a power like the tide when the sea rages.
This was Poseidon… now a fully grown, powerful, majestic young man, whose calmness was more terrifying than any sea monster.
Before him was a giant octopus, enormous in size, its arms stretching like masts of broken ships, its body equal to the size of an entire vessel.
Its wide eyes glimmered with clear fear, for it realized who stood before it.
The giant octopus lunged with its arms at Poseidon, one arm falling from above like a collapsing tree…
But Poseidon merely raised his hand—a simple motion—
and the water around the massive arm froze, stopping the octopus in its tracks for a moment.
Poseidon smiled slightly, a smile of one who knows his own power well.
He took a step forward, the water around him moving as if obeying him:
"Come on… let me see how much your power has grown."
When the octopus heard this, it lunged at him again, but Poseidon blocked every strike from the giant octopus with astonishing ease, as if playing with a small child who had no ability to resist.
Every move of the octopus seemed futile, every attempt to take control of the battle dissipated before the young man's strength and control over the ocean.
And as he observed, the young man felt that the octopus had nothing left to offer… no resistance, no attack, no energy.
He swung his arms slightly…
A massive whirlpool of water launched, spinning around the octopus at incredible speed, pulling it mercilessly and pushing it forcefully to the ocean floor.
The giant octopus collided violently with the bottom, shaking the depths, air bubbles scattering in every direction, while the young man stood confidently, watching the massive sea creature collapse before him.
Then the young man approached and smiled, saying:
"Well done! I didn't expect you to grow this much, my little octopus."
As soon as the octopus heard its name mentioned this way, it felt a surge of anger from within.
It sent the words through their souls:
"I am not a little octopus, Poseidon!
I have become… a giant octopus!"
The water around it trembled slightly, and its arms stretched proudly, as if saying that this creature was no longer small as it once was… but had become strong and majestic like its companion.
Poseidon looked at the octopus, and suddenly the latter began making funny movements with its eyes and arms, despite its enormous and imposing size.
Poseidon laughed in a deep voice and said:
"All right… nice! You're a big octopus now, but have you… settled? Stop that pose that makes me laugh to death!"
The giant octopus stopped abruptly, then looked at him with shining eyes and said in a tone between seriousness and jest:
"Was I really funny, Poseidon?"
Poseidon smiled, realizing that their relationship had transformed from mere companionship to constant playfulness and deep understanding, even in the depths of the ocean.
As Poseidon was about to respond to the octopus's question, he suddenly paused.
He heard a hesitation coming from deep within his soul… a voice urging him to go to the center of the island immediately.
Poseidon paid no attention to the octopus's answer, nor to its concern.
He surged toward the land, ignoring any warning or objection.
He rose to the water's surface, heading toward the island, but he did not leave the octopus without a single sentence:
"Stay where you are… something important has happened."
The octopus paused for a moment, suspicious, its eyes widening with curiosity and concern, as it watched Poseidon swiftly move toward the land, as if something very important awaited him there.
Poseidon emerged from the water and walked on the shore.
When his feet touched the ground, he felt an intense strangeness…
He had not walked on land for a long time, and the sensation of weight and hardness beneath his feet was new to him.
Every step evoked a strange feeling between comfort and wonder, as if the earth itself was trying to tell him something he had never experienced before.
But Poseidon quickly got used to the feeling of the ground beneath his feet and regained his balance.
He moved toward the center of the island, heading directly to the place that had remained in his memory for years, where many events had once occurred.
As he approached the desired location, his eyes caught sight of the spear near the shore that he had abandoned long ago…
He paused for a moment, realizing he no longer needed it.
Poseidon smiled slightly, then left it in its place, continuing his path through the island, ready to meet his siblings and father after years of training and preparation.