During sunset each day, Elias, the old man, stepped forward to illuminate the pier lamp. The ceaseless ocean created a deafening roar which would switch between low murmurs and loud storms bound to the rocks underneath. According to the villagers, Elias could hear marine tales that no one else was meant to hear when the sea spoke to him. 

 

Elias had made a certain commitment to the ocean many decades earlier, but he had forgotten exactly what he had promised. He had returned to his hometown as an elderly man bearing a simple wooden lantern and a silver seashell-shaped locket after having spent numerous years pursuing storms and unknown territories. 

 

Over the years, Elias transformed into the light keeper without having any actual lighthouse. He spent his evenings by the flickering flame that guided back those who had become lost at sea, whether they were fishermen caught in fog, children wandering astray from the shore or ships that lost their path. 

 

That night, the sea looked unusual. The water surface was illuminated with an unnatural green colour while forgotten scents filled the air. As Elias typically did, he produced his lantern, but this night he witnessed through misted light a vessel with a figure standing inside, who had emerged from the water and moonlight. 

 

The figure spoke these words, which both terrified and comforted him. “The light has never failed.” 

 

Elias fought back tears, although he remained unclear about the source of his emotion. A silvery locket resting around his neck began to heat up. He rose without fear, holding the lantern in his hand before entering the boat. The sea surface glided peacefully to embrace him as if they had met many times before. 

 

People from the village spent their time exploring the pier after sunrise. The searching parties discovered the lantern bright and burning, but Elias had disappeared from the scene. People believe he attained his dreams of reaching an underwater realm that traditional seamen discovered before sinking into ocean slumber. 

 

During foggy, dark evenings, distant from shore, people notice a weak glimmer, suggesting that Elias's lantern continues to direct those who got lost since his vanishing.