He emptied the Tideguard for his mistress, and the court fell Episode 1

Episode 1 · Maren Ashforth, Nereus Thorne, Seraphine Voss

Episode 1 recap

In a past life, King Nereus casts a pregnant Queen Maren into the Black Tide after Seraphine dies during an abyssal raid. Maren suddenly wakes up in her chambers, reborn on the day of the attack. She refuses to chase her husband. Instead, she rings the tide alarm bell at the watchtower. She finds the evacuation shell gone. In the plaza, Maren alerts the court, and Lady Maura denounces Nereus before a tremor hits.

Episodes

1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9

Episode 1 scene by scene

00:00: Betrayal in the Black Tide
Abyssal raiders invade as King Nereus leaves with Seraphine. A pregnant Maren retrieves the Tideguard, but Seraphine drowns in the Black Tide. Blaming her, Nereus hurls his pregnant wife into the dark waters to die beside their unborn child.
01:13: Rebirth in the Queen's Chambers
Maren wakes up gasping in her bedroom, alive again on the day the raiders arrive. Remembering her past demise, she decides she will not pursue King Nereus this time. She chooses to stay and face the day differently.
01:40: Sounding the Tide Alarm
Maren hurries to the coral watchtower and strikes the tide alarm bell to warn everyone. She turns to prepare the reef entrance for civilian evacuation, but the civilian sanctuary shell is completely gone from its station.
02:08: The King's Desertion Exposed
Panicked citizens and Brielle surround Maren in the plaza. Maren announces that Nereus stripped the court of its Tideguard and sanctuary shell for Seraphine. Lady Maura openly condemns her son's actions just as an impact shakes the barrier.

Key lines from episode 1

“You abandoned your post and let her die. Since you wanted to fight her for my love, you can share her fate.”
Nereus Thorne · Nereus blames Maren for Seraphine's death before throwing her into the Black Tide.

“Maren, the raiders are inside the reef! Where are the Tideguard? Where is the sanctuary shell?”
Brielle · Brielle frantically asks Maren for help as raiders break past the outer reef.

“Nereus took every Tideguard. The sanctuary shell was requisitioned to escort Seraphine to the Moon-Tide waters for her Pearl Rite.”
Maren Ashforth · Maren explains to the terrified crowd why their military and shelter are gone.

“Has he lost his mind? The Abyssal Gate could fall at any moment, and he emptied our defenses for one woman? He left his wife and unborn child behind?”
Lady Maura · Lady Maura expresses shock upon learning her son abandoned the court during an attack.

How episode 1 ends

Lady Maura expresses fierce outrage after hearing that Nereus abandoned his pregnant wife and people for Seraphine. The gathered merfolk panic as a violent shockwave crashes into the outer reef barrier. With the Tideguard absent and the sanctuary shell missing, how will Maren and the defenseless citizens survive the raiders' impending breach?