The nightly chill trickles past several layers of clothing to bite at her skin, undaunted in its efforts to syphon away her heat. Captain Skyler Dross doesn't seem to react to it, however, even as clouds of fogged air push past her lips. Her silver eyes are focused on a small shard gripped in her hand, a strange thrum travelling past its surface to the fingers wrapped around it - she doesn't imagine the shudder in her breath when she next exhales.

She should simply throw it away. Bury it in the depths of the ocean until it wouldn't see the light of day again. But the captain also knows, perhaps better than most, that buried things don't always stay buried.

In fact, most of the times they're more easily found.

Given what had happened the last time she'd seen the orb to which this small fragment belonged, Skyler isn't quite sure simply chucking it into the ocean is the best idea. The thought of it having traveled as far as Meteor Falls from Lilycove - only to find its way to her is... Uncanny. Bizarre. Something Skyler should really stop thinking about.

Perhaps she should've divulged her strange discovery to the rest of her companions at the time. Information might've been more forthcoming, since - at least Remiel - would have had the resources to launch a whole investigation on its origins. Then-

-why hadn't she?

A soft croon pierces through the haze of jumbled thoughts, its beckoning call pulling silver eyes to fall upon Sirena. The Lapras bobs lazily in the water, head turned to watch the human sitting on her shell with intelligent, worried eyes. Murzim floats gently by, the Minior's swirling indigo energy highlighting the fragment in Skyler's hands. A faint smile curls the captain's lips. "I'm okay, Sirena. Don't worry."

Lapping waves weave a gentle lullaby, one that the captain knows well. Skyler's hand slowly reaches out, knuckles bleeding white as she dangles the blue fragment over gentle ocean waves. She can see the way the moonlight hits it, the way it shifts with the undulating tides that roam deep beneath the surface.

Then her arm pulls back, cradling the fragment against her chest and letting out a small shivery breath that escapes into the night.

Right. Time to go back to the ship.