Chapter 299: Visiting the Aftermath (1/2)
”HOLD ON!” Someone yelled.
As the Asan crashed into the surface of the ocean, the resulting shock of displaced water spread outwards in a series of massive waves, the largest of which must have been hundreds of meters in height. Any one of them would have crushed their ship to pieces, so Mike needed to act fast to avoid a tragedy.
Since splitting the wave around the ship would require a massive amount of mana, given the sheer volume of water bearing down on them from above, he settled on moving the Huntsman instead.
Of course, this left him with two real options. He could use a burst of Water Magic to propel the vessel over the top of the wave, and then repeat that process until they were of a manageable size. It would be difficult, and might lead to a fair amount of damage if he couldn't get the timing just right, but he was fairly certain it would work so long as he focused. Alternatively, he could make use of the old swimmer's trick, and simply go underneath.
[Well, this will either be incredibly awesome or end in a shipwreck.] He thought before finally deciding on the later of his two options.
With a quick chant, he summoned an air shield around the ship, using it more as a delineating point for the next part than for its protective properties. He then sent his will into the seawater below them, pulling it around the ship to form a second barrier. Using that mass as a medium for his efforts. he pushed the resulting air bubble underwater.
With the panicked cries of the sailors ringing in his ears, the ship submerged, entering a strangely quiet underwater world. Once it became clear that they weren't about to die, the crew fell silent, staring in wonder at their surroundings.
Above them, the destructive waves ravaged the surface, but the violence was strangely distant and muted. The only effect they seemed to have on the ship's protective bubble was to cause a bit of gentle rocking.
Mike was a little disappointed that there wasn't any sea life to look at while he concentrated on maintaining his spells. He'd been hoping on letting his friends see something fascinating, but he contented himself with novelty of the submarine voyage.
As if sensing his thoughts, the Sea Serpent, which he refused to think of as Shipwrecker, swam into view, coiling up and around the ship's port side before diving past it's starboard. Seeing the draconic creature at its full length was awe-inspiring. It must have stretched for close to thirty meters from snout to tail, and its long, sinuous body featured a delicate looking frill that extended all the way down its back. Moving with a confident and easy grace that belonged to aquatic alpha predators, it slipped out of view once more.
[Well, that was pretty cool]
After a few minutes spent in that odd silence, he noted that the surface had calmed. Judging that it was probably safe to ascend, he flexed his will again, allowing the air bubble to slowly rise to the surface.
Their reemergence was quiet by comparison to their descent, and they gently slipped back into the open air with nothing more than a bit of displaced water to show that anything had happened.
By this point, the titanic waves had passed, leaving only some minor turbulence to overcome. There was a brief moment of silence as the crew looked around again, but it was swiftly shattered by relieved cheering.
”That…that was something.” William commented a bit breathlessly, having emerged onto deck at some point during their time underwater. ”I knew you were a powerful mage, but that…that was a feat straight out legends.”
”Eh, that's nothing.” Sera broke in dismissively. ”Stick around long enough and you'll see some really impressive things.”
Mike listened absently to the exchange, but otherwise kept his attention focused towards the ship's prow. Beyond it, he could see the jagged expanse of the Asan, which was apparently still floating on the surface of the ocean.
[Unless it has some large air pockets built in, I'm guessing whatever effect that allowed it to fly is still partially active. If we assume that the crystal spike was the source of that, then the island is probably on the verge of sinking.]
”What do you think?” Morris asked neutrally, as if he was trying hard to avoid betraying his thoughts.
Mike spared him a glance for a few seconds before answering. ”I'm not sure, but the Asani probably don't have long before their island is submerged.”
Staring out over the water, the bard murmured, ”There doesn't seem to be any effort to evacuate, but then again it did fall pretty far before hitting the ocean. Who can say what sort of state the Asani are in, or even if any are still alive? Unless they were prepared for this kind of disaster, it's entirely possible that we are witnessing the end of their race.”
”What do?” Tal asked with her usual emotionlessness.
He thought about his options, but he knew his conscience wouldn't let him just do nothing. Besides, he had a feeling this whole situation was in part caused by his luck. If that was the case, ignoring the disaster might have consequences he might have to deal with at some point.
That being said, he didn't have any idea how dangerous it might be.
Glancing back at his party members for a moment, he made up his mind. ”We don't know enough about what's going on to really decide if we should get involved or not. So, I'm going to go take a look, and get idea of what the situation might be.”
”Wait, what about the rest of us? What are we supposed to do?” Sera asked, obviously upset.
”Stay here.” Mike replied over the sound of the wind as he lifted himself into the air. ”I'll be back once I know more.”
Before any of his party members had a chance to argue, he launched himself in the direction of the Asan. As much as he hated leaving them out once again, he couldn't bring himself to put them at risk just to satisfy his conscience. Resolving to apologize to them once he was back, he focused on the task at hand.
From his new elevation, he was able to see that the Asan was clearly not a naturally occurring structure. The mountains that made up the majority of the island's surface were laid out in a spiral pattern. Most of these were craggy peaks that would not have looked out of place in a common mountain range, if not for the unnatural way they were laid out. However, at the axis of the pattern was another of the crystalline spikes, this time pointing into the sky and looming over its surroundings.
Dotting the slopes and valleys of the island were pockets of buildings, which were in turn surrounded by sprawling farmlands. He flew over a few of the larger settlements on his way towards the center of the island, slowing down to get a better look.