Barry stared at the mountains of garbage scattered across the coastline in disbelief.
Plastic waste covered entire streets while broken containers, damaged fishing nets, rusted metal, abandoned submarine parts, oil drums, and endless piles of trash were spread across Coast City like the ocean itself had vomited humanity's pollution back onto land.
"Where the hell did all this trash even come from?" The Flash asked while looking around the destroyed coastline. "Did that giant wave seriously bring all of this?"
"Hmm… trash," Daniel muttered quietly while looking at the plastic trays and ruined waste scattered everywhere.
Then he remembered something familiar.
In events connected to Aquaman and the underwater kingdoms, the oceans eventually reached a breaking point. Humans kept dumping garbage, chemicals, oil, and waste into the sea for decades while acting like the ocean existed solely to clean up humanity's mistakes.
Eventually the underwater kingdoms grew tired of it.
So they retaliated.
They sent everything back.
The trash humans dumped into the oceans. Submarines. Ships. Waste buried beneath the sea for years. Entire mountains of pollution were thrown back onto land as a warning to the surface world.
Barry looked around uneasily afterward while emergency crews struggled to process what had just happened.
"This feels way bigger than a normal disaster," he admitted.
Daniel kept staring toward the distant ocean while the waves slowly calmed again.
"Yep," he said quietly. "The next few days are probably going to become difficult."
Because this situation was dangerous in ways ordinary people wouldn't understand immediately.
If handled incorrectly, this would stop being an environmental issue and turn into something far worse. Governments would react aggressively.
The oceans would retaliate harder. Fear and anger would spread on both sides until eventually it became a full conflict between land and sea.
And once civilizations started preparing for war, stopping it became extremely difficult.
Which was exactly why Daniel had no intention of recklessly interfering further.
Absolutely not.
When two sides already stood ready to escalate, the worst thing possible was inserting yourself carelessly into the middle of the conflict without fully understanding either side. That usually didn't make you a hero or mediator.
It made you the enemy of both sides.
Daniel sighed softly afterward before turning away from the coastline.
"Nope," he muttered. "Might as well let Aquaman handle his own family problems."
"And Barry…" Daniel said while looking toward The Flash. "See you again later. I need to go confirm something important."
Barry barely had time to ask what he meant before darkness twisted around Daniel and he disappeared from the ruined coastline instantly.
A moment later, Daniel reappeared near Amnesty Bay in Maine.
The small coastal town looked far calmer compared to Central City, though the effects of the ocean incident were still visible everywhere. Plastic waste and debris washed onto the shore while storm clouds still lingered above the sea.
Daniel stood near the old lighthouse overlooking the coast while staring toward the nearby house connected to the dock below.
"Hmm…" he muttered thoughtfully. "I really should stop relying entirely on memory. My brain keeps mixing details from different worlds together."
Still, he was fairly certain this was the right place.
The home of Arthur Curry.
Future Aquaman and eventual member of the Justice League.
A strong ocean wind suddenly blew across the coast and a plastic wrapper flew directly into Daniel's face.
He slowly pulled it off with visible disappointment.
"Yep," he sighed while looking at the trash in his hand, "humanity seriously needs better plastic recycling technology."
Honestly, after seeing the state of the oceans, Daniel was beginning to understand why the underwater kingdoms eventually became furious enough to retaliate.
The sound of footsteps eventually approached from behind across the wooden dock nearby.
"If you're here about money," a rough voice said lazily, "then you picked the wrong house."
Daniel turned slightly afterward.
A tall blond man walked toward him carrying a half-empty beer bottle in one hand while another rested loosely inside the pocket of his jacket. His movements were relaxed but slightly unsteady from alcohol.
Aquaman—or more specifically Arthur Curry before fully becoming Aquaman—looked at Daniel suspiciously.
"Seriously," Arthur continued while narrowing his eyes slightly, "the only people who come looking for me or my father these days are loan sharks."
Daniel calmly looked Arthur up and down afterward.
Half Atlantean physiology.
Ridiculous physical strength.
Future king of Atlantis.
Arthur stared at Daniel for several long seconds after hearing that ridiculous introduction while the cold ocean wind moved through the docks around the lighthouse.
"Hmm. I came here for an important job," Daniel said calmly. "Saving the world."
Arthur immediately looked to his left.
Then behind himself.
Then back at Daniel again.
There was nobody else nearby.
Which somehow made the situation feel even stranger.
Arthur rubbed his forehead slowly while still holding the beer bottle loosely in one hand.
"Am I drunk," he asked tiredly, "or are you drunk?"
His eyes narrowed suspiciously afterward.
"Save the world? Me?"
Arthur let out a short laugh before shaking his head.
"Yeah, no. You definitely got the wrong guy."
Daniel didn't smile this time.
"This concerns your mother," he said quietly while looking toward the dark ocean in the distance. "The future of Atlantis. And potentially the fate of the entire world."
The amusement disappeared from Arthur's face almost instantly.
The waves crashing beneath the lighthouse suddenly sounded much louder in the silence that followed.
*****
A/N: If you'd like to read ahead of the Webnovel release schedule, you can join my Patreon!
The Patreon version is 30 chapters ahead.
👉 patreon.com/Universal_Peace