Embedded Files
Part II
Scene 1 – The Compass That Wouldn’t Rest
The storm didn’t let up. If anything, it grew worse—waves hammering the Maine coast, wind screaming through the cracks in the wooden walls.
But Ethan barely noticed the chaos outside. His eyes were locked on the compass in his palm.
The needle was trembling. Not like a normal compass—north wasn’t even on its radar. Instead, it jerked, quivered, then locked in one unnatural direction: straight out toward the Atlantic Ocean.
Ethan’s stomach twisted. “Dad,” he whispered, “this isn’t… possible.”
Michael stayed silent. His hands were clasped tightly, his shoulders hunched forward. He looked smaller somehow—like the storm had taken the fight out of him.
“You knew about this?” Ethan pressed. His voice was sharp now, accusing. “All these years, you knew this compass wasn’t normal?”
Michael’s eyes lifted, tired but burning with something Ethan couldn’t name. “It’s not a compass,” he said finally. His voice cracked. “It’s a key.”
Scene 2 – The Key to What?
Scene 2 – The Key to What?
Ethan blinked. “A key to what? Some map? Some treasure?”
Michael leaned back, exhaling a heavy sigh. His hands rubbed together, the sound rough like sandpaper. “Not treasure,” he muttered. “Not in the way you’re thinking. What Daniel left behind wasn’t gold, Ethan. It was… the truth. A truth I was too weak to face.”
Ethan slammed the compass on the table. The needle spun wildly, then stopped, once again pointing to the sea. The metal glowed faintly, catching the flash of lightning.
“Enough with the cryptic crap,” Ethan snapped. “What truth?”
Michael’s gaze dropped. His silence was suffocating again, but this time Ethan refused to let it win.
“You lied to me my entire life,” Ethan pushed. “You let me believe I was alone. And now you hand me some cursed compass and expect me to what? Just follow it like some fairy tale?”
Michael finally looked him dead in the eye. His voice was almost a whisper.
“If you follow it… you’ll find him.”
Ethan froze. “Find who?”
Michael’s throat tightened. “Your brother.”
Scene 3 – The Brother’s Shadow
Scene 3 – The Brother’s Shadow
The storm raged louder, almost as if it were answering the revelation. Ethan’s pulse thundered in his ears.
Daniel.
The name sat like a stone in his chest.
“How is that possible?” Ethan demanded. “You said he never came home. You said—”
“I said nothing,” Michael interrupted sharply, his voice trembling. “I kept silent because silence was easier than hope. But Daniel… Daniel might still be out there. And this compass is the only thing that can lead you to him.”
Ethan staggered back, his chair scraping hard against the wooden floor. He stared at his father like he was looking at a stranger.
“You’re insane,” Ethan muttered. “You’ve finally lost it.”
But deep down, a fire had already been lit inside him. The compass pulsed in his hand, faintly warm now, like it could hear his denial and was daring him to follow.
Scene 4 – The Pull of the Atlantic
Minutes later, Ethan stood at the window, staring out at the blackened Atlantic. The storm waves crashed violently against the rocky coastline, and the compass needle strained toward it like a hound pulling its leash.
Michael came up behind him. His voice was low, resigned. “It always points east. Always toward the sea. I tried to **follow once… but I couldn’t. I wasn’t strong enough. My silence has been my curse.”
Ethan turned sharply. His jaw clenched. “Then maybe it’s my turn to break it.”
Michael’s eyes softened with both pride and terror. “If you do this… you don’t come back the same. The compass doesn’t just guide you—it changes you.”
Ethan smirked bitterly. “Good. Maybe change is what this family needs.”
Scene 5 – Into the Storm
Scene 5 – Into the Storm
Ethan grabbed his jacket, shoved the compass into his pocket, and pushed through the heavy wooden door. The storm hit him like a wall—rain stinging his skin, wind clawing at his clothes.
The compass pulsed against his chest. He pulled it out. Sure enough, the needle wasn’t pointing north. It was pulling him down the slick stone steps toward the rocky shore.
Behind him, Michael called out—his voice half-lost in the storm.
“Ethan! Don’t let the compass own you. It’s not just a guide—it’s a test!”
Ethan didn’t look back. His sneakers splashed through puddles, his hoodie soaked instantly. The roar of the Atlantic grew louder, almost deafening.
He reached the cliffs. The compass needle vibrated wildly now, glowing faintly in the rain. Ethan’s heart pounded.
“What are you trying to show me?” he whispered.
Lightning split the sky.
And in that flash, Ethan saw it.
A dark outline against the stormy horizon—half-buried in the waves. A shape that didn’t belong. The remains of a shipwreck.
Scene 6 – The Cliffhanger
Scene 6 – The Cliffhanger
Ethan’s breath caught. The compass needle locked on the wreck like a predator.
Behind him, his father’s voice broke through the storm:
“That’s where Daniel disappeared.”
Ethan’s chest tightened. He looked back at his father standing in the doorway of the house, soaked, trembling, a man haunted by ghosts.
Ethan looked forward again. The storm raged, the wreck waited, and the compass burned hot in his hand.
He knew then—there was no turning back.
The silence had broken.
And the sea was calling.
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