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Ooh! A giant sea clam! Petrichor crabs! And look at the igneous rocks along the sea floor!
Tenatively, you've set a date and gave an explanation to your parents. You're “going to a friends house” for today. You don't know how far out you'll have to go, so better just make sure you'll be covered for an overnight stay. Leaving the relative safety of the shallows and reef for the first time for the open ocean was a bit stressful, but quickly you've found yourself enjoying the sightseeing. As a Scout, you learn about a lot of natural wildlife and the marine enviorment, even though you rarely get to see them yourself. The number of fish rapidly dwindle, and the few you do see get bigger and more ugly in color; more adapted to lonely life out here in the quiet depths.
Almost no Swall societies existed out in open ocean for any period of time. You can see why; it's so open and exposed, with no real natural resources other then the oppertunistic movements of large animals. Plus, more importantly, no land access. That means no fire, no wood or other useful crafting materials, no ability to dry out fish skins for basic leather... As much as the Swall feel themselves as being uniquely aquatic, you are as dependent on dry land as any terrestial creature. Probably why no Swall nations in history were ever “waterlocked”, else they simply couldn't develop.
You bounce yourself along the sea floor with your fathom pole; letting you conserve energy while swimming, and more importantly keep a good distance away from the fire corals dotting the sea floor. You'd rather not touch those; some fish use them as cover, but Swall certainly are not immune. They'll melt your scales right off and cause them to grow back all crooked and messed up forever; and that's only after you feel the immense pain from a simple touch. You've followed the trail of the crustaceans, and you think you may have found a place where several tracks and activity peaks. There is a small formation of rocks, with a natural grotto within.
