The trip to Refojuner was long and strenuous. Kaldur had given Camille directions to the prison and she programmed the ship to set a coarse to those co-ordinates, but there were times in which a large rock would block their path. She had to use the lights on either side of the ship and avoid crashing into these obstacles.

This ship was the most complicated she had ever seen, but it still possessed similarities to vehicles she knew how to operate. That made the entire process much easier. She hadn't left her seat for a handful of hours by the time she heard the door to the room slide open. The heavy footsteps gave the identity of this person away without even needing to see their face.

"Come to sulk some more?" Camille snapped a little harshly. Arthur had done nothing but insist that she leave since she returned. It was starting to become extremely irritating.

Arthur slumped into a nearby seat, and though Camille still hadn't turned to look at him, she could tell that he had the usual frown on his face. It felt as if that expression was permanently painted onto his face at this stage. Absolutely nothing could elevate it from his exterior.

"Why do you keep coming back?" Arthur asked in a low, annoyed tone. He was staring out of the viewer screen, watching a large manner of creatures pass by.

"Because I want to help." Camille replied simply, as if she needed no other reason to assist them; nothing to gain, nothing to learn, just the innocent desire to be there. "Why do you keep trying to make me leave?"

"You don't belong here." Arthur answered without needing a single second to think about it. "You'll get yourself killed."

The woman smirked. "Oh, so you're worried about me?"

Arthur's frown morphed into a scowl. "Don't put words into my mouth."

"I'm not." Camille finally granted the man a brief look. Her eyes were so dark, but had such a brightness to them whenever light shimmered against them. They stared right into Arthur's soul without hesitation. "You were a part of the Justice League once... You were Aquaman. That man cared about everyone; land dweller, alien and Atlantean alike. I don't know what happened to make you so ashamed of that, but I know you're still the same person. You just try a lot harder to hide it."

Silence suddenly filled the room. Arthur averted his gaze from hers, not willing to confirm nor deny her assumption. He knew that she was right, of course, but he didn't want to confirm that to her. He had been through a lot over the past few months and thought it was best to simply remove himself from the world. Atlantis no longer needed him, and neither did the land.

Camille's back straightened and forced her to the edge of her seat just as they came across a shipwreck slumbering in the vast, empty abyss. She took a few moments to analyse the discovery, muttering a quiet 'wow', before settling back into her chair. She had seen many things since taking control of the ship, enough to not be surprised by the sight of this ancient vessel. It was still incredible regardless.

As the ship cautiously manoeuvred over the outside of the shipwreck, it became clear that coral had overtaken the whole outside layer. It had been halved into two gigantic pieces. Debris had claimed the very structure itself, rusting away the ancient technology which was so advanced for its time. It was incredible how dangerous the ocean could be.

Though Camille was staring at this wreckage in wonder, Arthur didn't react at all. He saw this so often that it didn't bother him anymore. So many land-dwellers thought they could tame the chaotic ocean, but they quickly learned that they were out of their depth. Not even the Atlanteans could completely predict the sea's fury.

"You can stay for now." Arthur finally spoke, knowing very well that you didn't need his permission. He said it anyway though, just to feel like he had some control over the events to come. "But after we get my people out of Refojuner, that's it. I won't let this charade go on for any longer than it has to."

Camille was finally able to tear her eyes away from the ruined ship, that honestly filled her with too much anxiety for her to be upset about the distraction. "You don't just mean for me though, do you? You mean you're going to convince the resistance to stand down..."

Arthur seemed a little surprised that she had understood him so quickly, and without any need for elaboration. Usually people struggled to understand him, and needed a decent amount of explanation to even attempt to. "This isn't their problem. It's mine. If I decide to take the throne back then I'll do it myself."

"If you decide?" Camille focused only on that one part of his sentence and crossed her arms. "There's something more to this isn't there?... Do you even want to take the throne back?"

Arthur didn't respond. He simply narrowed his eyes at the woman. After years of people never picking up his intentions, he didn't know how to respond to someone who could read him this easily. Thankfully, he didn't have much time to debate this because in the distance Refojuner started coming into view.

Arthur immediately stood from his seat. He gave Camille a glance before leaving but it was so quick that she barely noticed it at all. She didn't need to anyway. He was a mystery to many people, but not to her. She knew that he'd do the right thing when it counted. The fact that she was still there steering Black Manta's ship was proof of that.

The structure ahead looked as if it was made entirely from solid rock...but much sturdier. She barely recognised it as a prison at all. The only thing that gave it away were the guards swimming around the entrance. They were wearing layers of armour that looked similar to fish scales, each flexible enough to move freely and covering them from top to bottom.

A few short minutes later all three of the Atlanteans entered the room Camille resided in, staring at the prison ahead anxiously. Mera's hand gripped the back of Camille's seat, the fabric tearing beneath her long, perfectly shaped nails. Kaldur gulped, nerves and eagerness mixing into an odd concoction in the pit of his stomach. Arthur just stood there, as always, never losing his composure.

"How do we get in?" Camille asked cluelessly.

"Just set the ship down at the back and we'll handle getting in from there." Mera replied tensely.

Camille complied but the ship was far too big to sneak around without being noticed. Within seconds of her stopping the giant vessel, four guards had come swimming in their direction. Likely to see if they had the proper authorisation to be there. These particular guards had weapons grasped tightly in their hands; appearing similar to spears but with streaks of technology woven through it.

"We have the advantage." Mera spoke once more. "They'll have to wait until we've exited the ship to determine who we are, and whether they should attack. In that short window of time we can take them out before they call for help."

"Just attempt not to injure them too severely. They are not bad people, they are just in the way." Kaldur reminded everyone. Camille couldn't tell if this was more aimed at Arthur or Mera.

"I might stay back here." Camille sighed seconds before the three Atlanteans were going to exit the room. "I found a few files in the ships database, all made by Black Manta. If I can figure out how to open them then there might be some useful information inside."

"Are you certain?" Kaldur asked with a furrowed brow. "That pressure suit you are wearing should protect you from the depth of the ocean, as well as the cold temperature. I believe the helmet even has an oxygen compartment, and the back has a booster. Black Manta has had years to perfect the suit, you will be fine if you choose to join us."

Camille took one quick glance at the viewer and into the freezing ocean. She shivered at the sight and felt her ankle ache as if the wound itself was reminding her of the dangers. After her recent experience she was completely paranoid...but she had never been a big fan of the sea regardless. She knew that the only reason she had almost drowned was because her pressure suit was damaged, and that this one wasn't, but she still wasn't willing to take that chance.

"Yeah, I'm sure. I'll just slow you guys down anyway." She answered quietly.

"Perhaps it is for the best then." Mera nodded her understanding and stepped towards the door. "This place channels out any radio signal or communications besides their own, so once we're in there you won't be able to contact us."

"Do not worry if you cannot reach us." Kaldur added with a smile. "We will not be long."

With that, they both left her with only one other person - Arthur. He said nothing but this came as no surprise anymore. He was a man of very few words, at least these days he was, but his expression spoke louder than his voice ever could. He looked slightly relieved that Camille was staying back, but his jaw never stopped tensing and his posture never slouched. He looked strong, and it reassured Camille that they would succeed in their goal. Perhaps he had done this on purpose, or perhaps she was just overthinking it, but the way his eyes flickered in her direction before he left told her that it was his intention to rid her of any doubts she may have been holding onto.

Camille watched as the three people she had been travelling with appeared on the viewer, all attacking the guards and knocking them out cold before continuing forward. She sighed and moved her attention to the touch screen located in the centre of the control panel. A handful of folders were present, but were obscured by a large lock that insinuated that she couldn't look at them without a passcode of some sort. It was lucky that hacking was a required field of study in the academy.

It hadn't always been necessary for officers to know how to hack into devices, but since the uproar of super villains it had been approved for study. It was essential that cops could decipher any code, especially with villains like 'The Riddler' out there who practically spoke in riddles. Every single thing that man said was a code ready to be solved.

It didn't take very long at all for Camille to hack into the database. Then each folder was forced into availability, she had full access to Black Manta's personal information. Camille flipped through each page, only stopping on the more interesting topics. He had one whole folder dedicated to his son, Kaldur'ahm, and another on Arthur who he obviously had a personal grudge against.

The most interesting material was in a group labelled 'recent intel'. This was practically full of very specific details about Atlantis, and structures connected to it, that he had received from an inside source. The heading 'The Trench' appeared on the screen and Camille's eyes glistened with curiosity as she read the contents.

Apparently, when Atlan destroyed Atlantis, it plunged the seven kingdoms of Atlantis into the ocean. The survivors initially believed four of the kingdoms were destroyed, and the other three survived and adapted to their new conditions with 90% of the Atlanteans dying from the event. The Trench were one of the three surviving kingdoms along with the Xebelians and Atlantians.

The Trench adapted to living in a trench near the Mid-Atlantic Ridge and developed an alternate language. They have a King and Queen who differ physically in form from the worker class of Trench. Though they have many of the same abilities as Atlanteans, they lack the same intelligence. Over the years they'd become more like animals than people, making it almost impossible to reason with them.

A picture attached to the folder made Camille wince. It was of one of them biting into Arthur's side with its sharp teeth. It looked similar to the Anglerfish she had seen not long ago; its mouth took up most of its face, its eyes were large globes that acted like a night-vision filter, and its teeth were long and jagged; so sharp and large that they didn't fit in its mouth. Though Arthur's skin was tough and near impenetrable, as Camille noticed the first time she met him when a bullet left nothing but a small drop of blood, The Trench's teeth sunk deep into his body and looked as if it might rip him apart.

He was lucky to have survived from Camille's perspective. After this brief description of who The Trench were, there was a small note about the current whereabouts of about a dozen of them. It made a cold chill run down her spine and her entire body freeze up. "Oh no..."

Instinctively, she reached for the communicator and pressed the button. "H-Hey, guys, we've got a problem!" she said in a panic but nothing answered her but static. It took another moment or two before she remembered Mera's words.

She slammed her hand against the panel in frustration, a low groan sounding from her throat as she jumped out of her seat grabbed her helmet, and rushed towards the launch bay. She programmed the lift to lower and secured the helmet to her head before standing on the panel. She checked that it was secure on her head about a dozen times, and did the same to her pressure suit to ensure there were no damages. Still, she couldn't quite shake off the fear that engulfed her as she was lowered.

After the decompression had finished another hatch opened and she was thrown into the ocean. Though her suit prevented her from being crushed, she still felt a heavy weight ontop of her - forcing her down into the abyss. Then she kicked her legs with more strength than she ever had. She was propelled forward with such force that she knew it wasn't completely her own doing. It must've been the suit, the feet of which were webbed with a fabric she'd never seen before.

She cut her way through the water, passing unconscious guards on the way. The prison was a decent size, Camille found herself getting lost more than once, but she eventually found what she was looking for. Arthur, Mera and Kaldur were all in the same room freeing the prisoners inside. The man that she assumed was 'Garth' had been giving Kaldur a grateful hug when she arrived.

"U-Uh...Arthur?" Camille called fearfully. They all turned to look at her, the rebels obviously a little jarred by the suit she was wearing. She looked like one of Black Manta's troops, after all, they had every reason to be a little cautious.

Garth, without any thought, raced towards her at such a speed that she barely comprehended it. Kaldur had called out for him to stop but it was already too late, he had tackled Camille's floating body and forced her to the ground. Even in the water there was a certain heaviness to him...as if he wasn't as effected by the ocean's weightlessness as she was.

"W-Wait! What are you doing?!" Camille gasped but Garth's grip on her shoulders tightened until she felt they might break beneath his strength.

He was halfway through restraining her when Kaldur spoke again. "Garth, she's with us!"

Something lifted Garth from on top of her, and it took barely a second to see that it was Arthur. He had grabbed him by his hair and pulled him back with a stern expression. Garth looked from Camille, to Kaldur, then to Arthur and huffed. "Come on... We've fought people wearing that exact same get up. You can't just expect me to know that she's on our side."

"I expect you to follow my lead." Arthur hissed. "If I don't attack, then neither do you."

Garth huffed. "...Yes, your majesty."

Arthur let go of his hair and turned his attention to Camille. He offered her his hand and, though she was a little dazed by the sudden tackle, she accepted it. The water made getting back upright much easier than usual, especially with Arthur's powerful tug to assist her.

"What did you want?" Arthur asked.

"Nothing, I came to warn you..." Camille replied, a hitch appearing in her breathing the moment he reminded her of it. "There's these things locked up in a seperate cell...The Trench. It's rigged to let them out if any guard reports an intruder."

Most of the new faces in the crowd didn't seem to understand what she was saying, likely due to some language barrier. Everyone else had their expressions drop completely, but none quite as much as Arthur. His teeth bared in a silent growl and his eyes blazed with fury. Mera's hand covered her mouth in shock, a sickening feeling whirling in her chest. "Orm must have known we'd come here. It's why the kraken isn't guarding this place anymore, he knew you could just persuade it to let us pass."

"Your brother really is an ass..." Garth sighed as if this news should have been expected.

Arthur turned to the group, looking much more serious than a few moments ago...which almost seemed impossible. He opened his mouth, and words left it, but Camille didn't understand a single one. She had never heard anyone speaking Atlantean. It was so foreign to her that she could barely register it as a language at all.

The rest of the party apparently understood the situation completely after this because they all wore a similar expression to Mera now. Arthur directed for them to follow him, and they did so without question. Their loyalty to Arthur was unwavering, and Camille couldn't blame them. He was strong and certain in his words, even without understanding him, Camille suddenly felt an urge to follow him into the end of the earth...she just hoped that he wouldn't ask any of them to.

They had barely made it out of the room when a guard nearby regained consciousness. He was seated at a control station, hitting a large golden button before they could do anything to stop him. Sirens sounded, loud as any on the surface, and the entire structure was plunged into dark red lights.

"That can't be good..." Garth gulped, somehow managing to swim a little faster at the sound.

Camille was right at the tail end of the group, but somehow still kept up. It was all thanks to the pressure suit, she would have been left behind if she hadn't been wearing it. That was just how fast Atlanteans were underwater. They were like rockets, blasting through the water with little need for rest.

Camille, on the other hand, had become immensely exhausted. Every stroke through the blue liquid required all of her effort. Thankfully, the ship wasn't far away. She had just turned the last corner and was able to see it its glimmering metal hull before she heard Mera shout "They're here!"

The officer turned, only to see the gnawing jaws of The Trench speeding towards her. She gasped and swam so fast that she could feel her entire body beginning to cramp up...it did no good though. She simply wasn't fast enough. That's when Arthur turned back, and as everyone else started boarding the ship, he pushed Camille behind him.

"Get to the ship!" He yelled, charging ahead and punching one of the creatures right in the temple. "Now!"

Camille trembled at the sight. There were about five of them, and he was fending off every single one of them. He couldn't keep this up forever though, especially without his trident. Every right hook only drew him closer to their pointed teeth...

Camille jolted herself out of her own terror for long enough to make it back into the ship. Once inside she jumped over the railing, not granting anyone a second glance, before rushing to Black Manta's weaponry. There was a large array of guns hanging from each wall, but Camille didn't have time to asses them. She just grabbed the biggest one she could find. It sat awkwardly on her shoulder, so large that she couldn't simply secure it in her arms. Camille adjusted it with a quiet grunt of strain then sprinted back to the launching bay.

"Lower me back down!" She called just as she reached the platform again.

"But Arthur commanded us not to engage The Trench without orders, didn't you hear him?..." Garth replied, trailing off before shaking his head in realisation. "Of course you didn't. You're a surface-dweller. You don't speak Atlantean."

"He will surely inform us if he is in need of assistance." Kaldur added. "He does not appreciate when others jump into his fights without permission."

"I don't care what he appreciates!" Camille snapped, but it was like staring at an angry little sea otter to them - not intimidating in the least. "He's not my king, he doesn't control me."

When they still did nothing the woman rolled her eyes and lowered the platform herself. They watched her go down, either not caring enough to stop the process or not knowing how to. Once that opening closed up she could no longer see their confused faces, and was once again released into the cold ocean.

The first sight she was met with was Arthur trapped in the jaws of The Trench. One had hold of his leg, another of his abdomen, two more but into his hips, and the last had just started inching towards his skull.

"H-Hey!" Camille barked, the sound instantly grabbing their attention. Arthur didn't react though, and when The Trench unhinged their jaws she could see why... Streaks of blood mixed into the water, so much that he was likely going into shock.

The Trench screeched deafeningly. Then they charged. Camille sucked in a large inhale, waited for them to be a fair distance away from Arthur, aimed the gun, then shot. A missile sped through the water and hit one directly in the chest. It created a contained explosion that wiped them all out in one go and sent Camille spiralling backward. She hit her head against the ships outer layer with a resounding 'crack'.

The water still bubbled in the place the missile had once been. Camille pushed through it and over to Arthur's unmoving body. She lifted his arm around her shoulders but his weight only made them sink. No matter how fast she kicked her legs she couldn't advance any closer to the ship.

Arthur's hand patted her back, and at first she thought it was just a result of her own movement. Then he did it again and she knew he was trying to tell her something. Camille glanced onto her shoulder to see a grey strap, reminding her of the booster attached to the suit. Not wasting another second, she pressed the area he had been patting. A strong wave of energy blasted from the waist of her suit and lunged them forward, right towards the ship.

Camille screamed. She screamed at the top of her lungs, especially when the vessel came closer and it looked like they were going to slam against it. By some miracle the entrance opened just as they reached the ship - that miracle being called Kaldur'ahm. He had worked out how to open the hatch and catch them before they were rendered to little more than insects on the window.

Camille, once they were safe, noticed that she hadn't been breathing during the entire ordeal. When she tried to gather intakes of air again she started hyperventilating. She was light headed and every part of her body ached, but none of that had any relevance over Arthur who was laying in a pool of his own blood. He was alive, but stared unblinkingly at the ceiling. Each exhale rattled in his lungs, and without the water obscuring her view of his injuries, she could see just how bad they were. The wounds were so deep that bits of muscle tissue were visible, and teeth marks scattered his body like tiny punctures from dozen of needles.