Chapter 154: Renewed Waves

Toni's hand slipped behind her waist, she pulled the Kikido'rra dagger out of instinct. One of them, as always, hung freely behind while the other gleamed under the sun—or what's left of the shining sun. The wave came roaring toward them, blanketing the sea with darkness.

"Xi," Toni said. Like an electric shocking her legs, she spun and ran to the middle part of the ship and leaned at the wooden railings, extending her head to look for Xi. Behind her, crews and passengers ran amok. Handlers remained beside Captain Bajo. While Antito ran wild and hid inside the warehouse, his neck wobbled with fat. The beads that adorned his robe swayed.

"Xi!" Toni said. Hand gripping on the railings. There, Toni saw four of the Adjaos, the twin of Dragonshore, and Xi paddled the small wooden boat against the raging waves.

Xi became aware of his flaws after seeing the events back at O'rriadt. He looked up to Ned: how he fought, how he was determined, how he survived countless foes, how they became friends.

Weeks and weeks of training, both bow, and magic has led Xi to learn a skill by himself. Raising his hand, while the iron bow ( Ned gave to him) slung behind his back, followed by a simple gesture. A spell was then conjured. Amidst the roaring waves, Toni heard Xi cried with pride as he conjured a spell. "Wind Blast!"

Spell of white and light spun, making his palm the center of rotation. Xi stood at the end of the small boat while the rest paddled with effort going back to Antita merchant ship. With a flick of his wrist, the spell popped an air. Making the small boat leaped forward a short distance.

"It wasn't enough," Toni said, eyes going round with worry that Xi and the team wouldn't make it back to the ship.

And as if luck was on their side, the wind blew from North, forcing pressure against the sails going to the right. Pushing the ship away from the Lev'rath's path.

With the sudden push, the ship went into chaos. Passengers tumbled, empty barrels rolled aimlessly along with random stuff the passengers and the crew carried. The deck went discord. Toni secured herself at the edge of the ship, constantly sweeping her eyes with objects flying towards her. One barrel made its way as the ship was tilted to the starboard side. Toni spun and lean her back against the wooden railing. Her weight going left and right against the sudden motions of the ship.

With the dagger held on her right, she slashed the barrel accordingly with the strength she had. Toni clenched her teeth, her strength wasn't enough. The greyish Kikido'rra dagger went deep in the barrel. Unable to withstand the weight of the barrel while gripping the dagger, Toni was thrown off the ship.

"Toni!" A voice rang above the ship. Sasani climbed down through the ropes and stopped. Hanging midair gripping through the ropes.

"Toni!" And another one beneath the ship. It was Xi, the crew paddling with gritted teeth.

Rotating countless of time, Toni plunged underwater. Head first along with splintered woods, iron forks, a tin bowl, and the barrel with Kikido'rra dagger stuck.

Otto... Mama... Papa. With different scenes of her brother, her mama, and papa transitioning inside her thoughts. The youngest of her memory, the day they were separated, the event when Charles left them. It was old of her memory but never forgotten.

Her head spinning underwater, chill sipping through her skin. White dress fluttering against the clear water like a bird's wings.

Spots of light shone under her closed eyes. Dark hair wavering in slow motion, air bubbled seeping out her thin lips. She twitched after the second light entered her eyes.

She couldn't move, and she couldn't breathe. Toni forced her limbs to climb an imaginary ladder. Water moved against her will as the sea forced her at the bottom rather than up. Light shone once more but vanished quickly. Toni frowned, why would there be a light underwater?

Then a soft thud touched her boot, black boots dimming under the water. Toni looked down, seeing almost nothing against the dark abyss. It was an endless hole. Toni squinted her eyes, salt started to sink in. Making her eyes turning red.

It was the barrel, descending the dark abyss. At the side, was her dagger. Toni bent, she wanted it fast but against the water moving an inch was all she could do. A strong current slapped her, throwing her even further to her right. She won't give up, she swam back to the falling barrel. She bent gripping the dagger with two, feet forcing the barrel to let go of the dagger. Toni held stronger, it has been three minutes underwater. She knew without mana she won't hold more than four or five minutes.

Kikido'rra dagger's notch preventing Toni from pulling the dagger off the barrel. No time, she thought. Then a golden streak of her hair crawled from the base of her scalp. Mana enveloped the tips of her finger. Threads of spider-like webs trekked the water, forming snowflakes around her wrists. The barrel was then turned to a block of ice. Injecting another mana, Toni grunted. The old barrel cracked then split into a rubble of tiny frozen woods. The dagger held free against the barrel.

Toni swam upward. Hands threading the water. Three minutes and she froze. The third light brightened the abyss. Thousands and thousands of jagged teeth circled the massive beast's mouth. The Lev'rath's jaw was a circle of countless teeth. By the Maker! Toni stormed the sea. She needs to leave, she needs to breathe, she needs to... She needs to survive.

The fourth light came through. Lev'rath atop its reptilian snout was an enormous horn of sparkling crystals scattering beams of multicolored light. Below that was a gaping maw full of crystalline teeth. The hulking monstrosity's black fur shifts unnaturally, and shimmering haze shrouds its colossal form. Its six legs end in jagged claws of crystals. The light came from its horn, teeth, and claws.

Its mouth opened, trying to swallow the merchant ship in one gulp.

The towering wave swallowed the ship. Leaving a colossal form of disaster: passengers fell, the mast snapped to half, sail torn apart. With the light from the Lev'rath, Toni saw a rope strangling one of the crews by its neck. Although from the distance it was blurry, Toni couldn't recognize who in the crew was being strangled. But she knew the person was one of the crew by its white vest with no sleeves and a tattered shorts.

The limb-thick rope lambasted the crew back and forth against the invisible force of the current.

Toni gawked, covering her mouth in shock. The crew's neck snapped. Throwing his head away from his warm body in a matter of seconds. Toni lost air from the gasped. She reached for her neck. Sheathing back the dagger, she swam upward holding to the thought of the dead crew.

Planks broke in half, barrels hit the surface of the sea, clothes floated underwater. Toni scraped them off her path.

Be safe, Mama. She raised her hand to shield against the falling iron. Toni knew the only iron the ship have was the one that clipped the woods together of the entire ship. One of them fell, by that she knew the extent of the damage caused by the wave—unrepairable.

Be safe, Granny. Gliding to her left, evading a massive trunk. This trunk was one of the masts. There were two masts and Toni wished it wasn't Sasani's mast where she stood to survey the sea.

No, Toni thought. Be safe Xi... Sasani... No... The light shone once more. For some reason, the Lev'rath didn't turn toward the ship, it went straight its path. Uncaring of the ship, it just opened its mouth. The ship was a small dot against the massive maw of the Lev'rath. The ship swam underwater without turning upside-down. The Lev'rath grazed them. Its massive body passed by in front of Toni, shifting black fur wavered. Crystals shone bright with contented light. It growled passing Toni, deep and long. Echoing in the vast and dark sea.

Toni reached the top. She breathes in the air with relief. Toni sweeps her eyes. The small warehouse was destroyed, rook's nest gone, no sails left, no ropes, no captain cabin's. Still, Antita floats.

"Dear!" A voice echoed far from the ship. It was Lady Zoreena together with Xi's small boat. One of the twins weeps, it was Okkir. His brother, Okkil, nowhere to be found. Xi held Okkir's back, patting from time to time. None of the crew remained the small boat. The crew? Toni asked. Remembering one of them tied in a rope, snapping his head.

A cold touch brushed Toni under her arm successfully forgetting the dead crew. "Sedas," Toni said, lips quivered not with cold, but with the person, Sedas was holding. It was Sasani, blood ran down her cheeks, mixing with clear water—she was unconscious. Coco swum beside Sasani, sparks flew around the cat's head. He meowed worrying.

Toni and the rest swam back the destroyed ship. There, Toni ran toward the warehouse—or what's left of it. Granny Lola lying down, unconscious. Around her were the kids from orphanage without bruises or wounds. Not even wet, twelve of the kids remained dry.

Toni knelt beside Granny, Sedas then placed Sasani together with the old lady. Coco crawled and hugged Sasani by her arms. Xi ran behind Toni, hesitating to comfort her or leave. He wasn't well versed with ladies.

Tears dropped. Toni wept to hold Granny by hand.

Lev'rath growled from the distance, echo diminishing. The sea went calm, the air went fresh, the sun shone with life, and Granny coughed. She gripped the leather bag with Ned's book and looked at Toni. "Young lady," she said wheezing. "My pipe?"