A week had passed since the Argonaut and her crew emerged from the abyss, yet the Oceanic Research Institute’s main conference room felt anything but safe. It was a stark, brightly lit space, where white walls reflected fluorescent lights that cast a sterile, almost clinical glow over the tense gathering of people. The hum of overhead lights was constant, a soft buzz underscoring the silent anticipation hanging thick in the air. Elena Carter stood at the head of the long, oval-shaped table, her posture straight, though the exhaustion in her eyes was evident.Her green eyes swept over her team, the people she had trusted with her life in the depths of the Atlantic. Marcus, their steadfast marine biologist, sat to her right, his arms crossed, his brow furrowed with barely concealed anxiety. His tan skin, still marked with the remnants of their time at sea, seemed paler under the harsh lights. Samir, their brilliant yet nervous data analyst, hunched over his laptop, his glasses slipping