The morning light filtered softly through the old shutters of Rowan’s bedroom, casting faint golden bars across the wooden floor. The air was still, touched by the lingering coolness of the sea breeze.

  Rowan stirred beneath his bnket, groaning faintly as he blinked his eyes open. The memory of the previous day lingered in his thoughts—the medallion, the symbol of the ship, and that strange, comforting tingling sensation that had run through his body when he first put it on.

  For a few moments, he y still, staring up at the ceiling, his mind heavy with questions.

  What was the medallion?

  Why had it been buried in a pce he’d searched countless times?

  And why had it felt like it had chosen him?

  He pushed the thoughts aside and sat up slowly, swinging his legs over the edge of the bed. The cold floor touched his bare feet and made him shiver.

  He rubbed his face, still half-asleep, and made his way over to the mirror that hung unevenly on the wall beside his desk. It was cracked near the corner, but it still did its job.

  He gnced at his reflection—messy hair, pale skin from spending too much time indoors, eyes that always looked a little more tired than a boy his age should look.

  And then his gaze dropped to his chest.

  His breath caught.

  The medallion hung from his neck, resting just above his sternum. The silver chain gleamed faintly in the light. But it wasn’t the chain that made Rowan’s heart skip a beat.

  It was the glow.

  A soft, almost imperceptible light pulsed from the golden surface of the medallion—faint enough that it could’ve been missed entirely if he hadn’t been looking at it directly.

  But it was definitely glowing.

  Rowan leaned in closer to the mirror, squinting.

  The ship on the medallion still looked the same, perfectly carved, identical to the toy ship on his desk. But now, the etchings around it—the tiny ridges and symbols bordering the image—seemed to pulse with a soft, amber hue.

  It wasn’t hot to the touch.

  In fact, when he reached up and held it, the metal felt cool, smooth, perfectly natural—except for the sensation that seemed to thrum faintly beneath the surface.

  Rowan frowned. "What are you?"

  The medallion didn’t answer, of course. But staring at it in the mirror, Rowan knew one thing for certain:

  This wasn’t just a family keepsake.

  It wasn’t just some heirloom his father had dropped and forgotten.

  This was something powerful.

  Something ancient.

  Something hidden.

  And now that it was around his neck, it had begun to awaken.

  For as long as Rowan could remember, his mornings had always started the same way—boots on sand, metal detector in hand, eyes scanning the beach for something he couldn't name but always believed was there.

  And now…

  He had found it.

  The golden medallion, pulsing softly beneath his shirt, y hidden against his chest. It hadn’t stopped glowing since the moment he put it on, though only in subtle pulses—like it was breathing with him.

  But with it in his possession, a strange emptiness filled the space it left behind.

  For the first time since his father disappeared, Rowan had no idea what to do with himself.

  No more scanning the shore.

  No more digging in the wet sand.

  No more pretending he might find something that would make sense of it all.

  He had found it.

  And now he felt… lost.

  Staying inside wasn’t an option.

  Marcus was already home, grumbling about bills, compining about noise, shouting about the breakfast being too cold—anything and everything that gave him an excuse to make someone else feel small.

  Rowan knew the moment Marcus saw him, he’d start asking questions, pushing for reasons, picking at his silence.

  So Rowan slipped out of the house quickly, the medallion tucked beneath his shirt, and headed toward the only pce he knew—the beach.

  But this time, he didn’t carry the metal detector.

  The reactions were immediate.

  The regurs on the docks—men mending nets, women sorting through crates of fish—looked up in surprise when they saw Rowan walking without his usual gear.

  Some of them stared.

  Some of them whispered.

  He passed by the market stalls, where old Mrs. Dree narrowed her eyes at him suspiciously. Even the stray dog that followed him sometimes seemed confused.

  By the time he reached the shoreline, the rumors had already begun to ripple.

  Rosey was already there, her fishing rod in hand, sitting in the same pce she always did. When she saw Rowan, she blinked in surprise and stood up.

  "Where’s your metal detector?" she asked, brows furrowed.

  "Didn’t bring it," Rowan said simply.

  Rosey squinted at him. "Are you okay? You look like you’ve either gone mad or found something really important."

  Rowan shrugged. "Maybe both."

  She tilted her head. "Did you… find something?"

  Rowan didn’t answer right away. His eyes scanned the horizon, the sea mist curling in the wind like soft smoke.

  Then, finally, he spoke:

  "I found what my father lost."

  The words stunned her. Rosey stepped forward, curiosity bright in her eyes.

  "You’re serious?" she whispered. "You really found it?"

  Rowan nodded.

  "What was it?"

  He smiled faintly. "Can’t say."

  Her mouth fell open in a mix of surprise and frustration. "You’re not going to show anyone?"

  "No."

  Rosey crossed her arms. "Not even me?"

  "Not even you."

  A beat passed.

  And then, unexpectedly, she smiled. "Alright then. Just don’t go losing it."

  Rowan touched the medallion beneath his shirt instinctively.

  "I won’t," he said quietly.

  Because for the first time in his life…

  he felt like it was the other way around.

  It wasn’t that he had found the medallion.

  It was that the medallion had been waiting to be found by him.

  Rowan sat beside Rosey on the warm stone ledge that overlooked the coast, both of them staring out toward the open water. The sea was calmer than usual today—gentle waves pped the shore like a lulby whispered between tides. Rosey was focused on her fishing line, occasionally flicking gnces at Rowan, likely still wondering what he meant about finding his father's lost treasure.

  But Rowan wasn’t thinking about the medallion. Not now.

  He was staring straight ahead, eyes narrowing as he leaned forward.

  Out in the distance, beyond the safe shallows and rocky outcrops—something impossible was standing in the sea.

  A castle.

  Massive towers of bck stone pierced the sky, jutting from a jagged rock formation that had, for as long as Rowan could remember, only ever been a barren reef isnd, surrounded by deadly currents and sharp stone spires. A pce no one in town ever approached. A pce known for wrecking boats and swallowing daring swimmers whole.

  But now, there it was.

  A full, dark castle, rising from the waves, ancient and ominous.

  His heart began to race.

  He blinked several times, rubbed his eyes, even leaned forward with a disbelieving squint.

  But the castle didn’t vanish.

  It stood there—looming, real, and completely out of pce.

  “Hey… Rosey,” Rowan said, slowly. “Do you see… anything out there? On the rocks?”

  Rosey tilted her head, confused. “You mean the reef?”

  “Yeah. There. In the middle,” Rowan said carefully, pointing.

  She followed his gesture with a bored gnce and shrugged. “Just the usual. Jagged rocks, maybe a few sea birds. Nothing special. What are you seeing?”

  Rowan's lips parted, but no sound came out.

  He turned back toward the sea, staring at the castle again. It was still there—dark, weather-worn walls, towers with pointed peaks, the whole thing covered in mist that never quite moved.

  But Rosey… couldn’t see it.

  He didn’t know what would happen if he told her what he was seeing. She’d think he’d finally cracked, gone mad like the town whispered his father had.

  He clenched his jaw, eyes flicking down to the pce against his chest where the medallion pulsed softly.

  Could it be?

  Could the medallion be showing him this?

  He had to be sure.

  Carefully, without a word, Rowan slipped the chain from around his neck and pced it gently on the ground beside him.

  Then he looked up.

  The castle was gone.

  Completely vanished, like it had never existed.

  Only the jagged reef remained, angry waves breaking around its edges.

  His breath caught in his throat. His hand trembled as he reached back for the medallion and pced it once again around his neck.

  The moment the gold pendant touched his skin—

  The castle returned.

  Towering. Silent. Watching.

  Rowan sat back slowly, mind spinning.

  The medallion was magical.

  And not just magical—powerful.

  It was a key. A lens. A veil-lifter.

  There was a hidden castle in the middle of the sea, and only he could see it.