The Cove
The Cove is - was - your home. A synthetic coastline city built into one of the border islands. It was created as a testing site for TideLock Corp, but underneath? It's a haven only very few know about.
The sand isn't real. Engineered to look like sand, but it's too soft, too perfect. Your footprints never leave dust behind, only a digital shimmer. The waves are only as real as you are. The more emotionally charged your ride is, the brighter your trail. Coded from bioluminescent algae.
There's a small shack on the beach, half-café, half board repair station. The locals call it The Boardroom.
But that's only what's on the surface.
What most don't know is that the Cove goes a lot deeper than it looks. 200 meters down. No one's ever made it that far before, not even the Corp's drones. The water is colder, darker. Your implants buzz when you go near. Your board stutters. The algae won't follow you here.
It's said to be a memory grid, where memories from the past linger. Sometimes, when surfers wipe out near here, they swear they remember things that aren't their own.
The Undertow isn't just a current. It's something much more. Something alive. A low hum echoes in your neural link whenever you surf too close. Wren used to call it "The Cove's second pulse."