For a few moments, they watched silently the waves breaking onto the stone platform. Then the master stepped towards the edge, picked up the rope left there by the thugs, and pulled it lightly. It didn't budge, as expected. He wrapped the cord around his right forearm and got into a low stance with his feet wide apart and knees flexed. Then he closed his eyes for a few minutes, breathing deeply, gathering energy.
With an explosive move, his right hand threw a punch in the air away from the edge, jerking the line. The rope moved up by a few centimeters. The blond man held the line with the left hand, preventing it from falling back in the water. His muscles tensed under the heavy load. He took another deep breath, then punched the air once more. Again, the motion seemed to pull up the line by another centimeter. The master stopped and released the cord. The rope slowly sank back into the water, into its initial position.
“It won’t work,” he sighed. “I can barely budge it. It will take hundreds of punches without any break to get it out of the water. No one has so much energy.”
“Then, what are you going to do?” Solis asked.
“I’ll think about other ways.”
The master sat down on the ground, flexed his legs into a lotus stance, and began to meditate.
“Maybe we should go to the beach, get our clothes, and head home,” Lila said.
“You’re right, let’s go,” Kolin agreed.
They turned to leave and almost bumped into a middle-aged man dressed in a dark-blue uniform. He had come as noiselessly as the Two Waves Master.
The newcomer smiled. He was of average height and rather slim, with tanned skin and short, dark-brown hair. His black pupils measured them in silence. The badge of a black bird with yellow beak and eyes was shining on the left side of his chest, surrounded by a red circle. A supreme master of Aquatika! The teenagers froze.
“Hey, don’t get scared by me!” the man laughed. “I came to help!”
The supreme master stepped in, getting closer to the meditating man. The blond man, who had already heard his footsteps, lifted his gaze and stood up. As soon as he saw the badge on the other man’s chest, the eyes of the Two Waves master widened in surprise, and he bowed, full of respect.
“My name is Anh, and I came to help,” said the Aquatika supreme master.
“I’m Rongo,” the younger man replied, smiling. “It seems lots of people are interested in it already, not all with the best intentions. How do you know about this artifact?”
“How do YOU know about it?” the older man countered.
“Well, the sensors from our headquarters detected a few days ago a perturbation in the local magnetic field. I couldn’t pinpoint it from the beginning, so I went first to look for it west of Akonit. However, I concluded this morning that Iron Rock was its most probable location. Not sure about what to expect, I just came to take a good look at it and found these kids next to the artifact. What about you?”
“I’ve detected the perturbation in the early afternoon and decided to check it out. You never know what could happen if these artifacts fell into the wrong hands. Like the five guys who’ve just left this place a few minutes ago.”
Both men smiled, then Rongo continued:
“It’s worrying to see this kind of people coming to retrieve it. More of them might show up before it gets dark. If you can pull it out of the water by yourself, it would best to do it as soon as possible.”
“You’re right,” Anh agreed. “Let’s do it!”
The Supreme Master stepped close to the edge of the platform and took a peek down. The Sun was setting, and a pale halo of light was visible now underwater, marking the artifact’s location.
“Come here, kids,” Anh said, waving towards the teenagers. “I’m going to show you something interesting. But before I do that, perhaps we should introduce ourselves. I’m Anh, and this is Rongo. What are your names?”
The teenagers voiced their names.
“Now, that we are all acquainted, let’s get ready to take this object out of the water.”
Anh stepped near the rope, turned towards Rongo, and said:
“This method would have never worked. Not even a master can pull out such an object by force, even with a sturdy and expensive carbon-fiber line like this. Before doing anything else, I think it’s not a bad idea to disentangle the hook from it.”
The Aquatika fighter grabbed the end of the rope with his right hand and positioned himself into a low stance, with his feet wide apart. He closed his eyes and took a few deep, even breaths. The skin of his hands turned immediately red as if the blood circulation through them had become more vigorous. Anh lifted the rope and jerked it downwards with lightning speed. The whip-like motion got carried downwards almost instantly until it reached the underwater hook. A short, deep rumble erupted from the water, and the hook came out. Anh pulled the cord up and let it drop in a coil on the ground, in the admiring looks of the others.
After a short pause, the supreme master leaned onto his right knee and bent down his torso over the edge. With a loud shout, he hit the platform with his right palm, just above the location of the artifact. The ground shook as if jolted by an earthquake. A moment later, a column of water, like a geyser, exploded upwards, with a shiny rectangular box of a light-blue color on top.
“Catch it!” Anh said.
Rongo reached out, grabbed the box tightly, and set it with care on the ground.
(to be continued…)With an explosive move, his right hand threw a punch in the air away from the edge, jerking the line. The rope moved up by a few centimeters. The blond man held the line with the left hand, preventing it from falling back in the water. His muscles tensed under the heavy load. He took another deep breath, then punched the air once more. Again, the motion seemed to pull up the line by another centimeter. The master stopped and released the cord. The rope slowly sank back into the water, into its initial position.
“It won’t work,” he sighed. “I can barely budge it. It will take hundreds of punches without any break to get it out of the water. No one has so much energy.”
“Then, what are you going to do?” Solis asked.
“I’ll think about other ways.”
The master sat down on the ground, flexed his legs into a lotus stance, and began to meditate.
“Maybe we should go to the beach, get our clothes, and head home,” Lila said.
“You’re right, let’s go,” Kolin agreed.
They turned to leave and almost bumped into a middle-aged man dressed in a dark-blue uniform. He had come as noiselessly as the Two Waves Master.
The newcomer smiled. He was of average height and rather slim, with tanned skin and short, dark-brown hair. His black pupils measured them in silence. The badge of a black bird with yellow beak and eyes was shining on the left side of his chest, surrounded by a red circle. A supreme master of Aquatika! The teenagers froze.
“Hey, don’t get scared by me!” the man laughed. “I came to help!”
The supreme master stepped in, getting closer to the meditating man. The blond man, who had already heard his footsteps, lifted his gaze and stood up. As soon as he saw the badge on the other man’s chest, the eyes of the Two Waves master widened in surprise, and he bowed, full of respect.
“My name is Anh, and I came to help,” said the Aquatika supreme master.
“I’m Rongo,” the younger man replied, smiling. “It seems lots of people are interested in it already, not all with the best intentions. How do you know about this artifact?”
“How do YOU know about it?” the older man countered.
“Well, the sensors from our headquarters detected a few days ago a perturbation in the local magnetic field. I couldn’t pinpoint it from the beginning, so I went first to look for it west of Akonit. However, I concluded this morning that Iron Rock was its most probable location. Not sure about what to expect, I just came to take a good look at it and found these kids next to the artifact. What about you?”
“I’ve detected the perturbation in the early afternoon and decided to check it out. You never know what could happen if these artifacts fell into the wrong hands. Like the five guys who’ve just left this place a few minutes ago.”
Both men smiled, then Rongo continued:
“It’s worrying to see this kind of people coming to retrieve it. More of them might show up before it gets dark. If you can pull it out of the water by yourself, it would best to do it as soon as possible.”
“You’re right,” Anh agreed. “Let’s do it!”
The Supreme Master stepped close to the edge of the platform and took a peek down. The Sun was setting, and a pale halo of light was visible now underwater, marking the artifact’s location.
“Come here, kids,” Anh said, waving towards the teenagers. “I’m going to show you something interesting. But before I do that, perhaps we should introduce ourselves. I’m Anh, and this is Rongo. What are your names?”
The teenagers voiced their names.
“Now, that we are all acquainted, let’s get ready to take this object out of the water.”
Anh stepped near the rope, turned towards Rongo, and said:
“This method would have never worked. Not even a master can pull out such an object by force, even with a sturdy and expensive carbon-fiber line like this. Before doing anything else, I think it’s not a bad idea to disentangle the hook from it.”
The Aquatika fighter grabbed the end of the rope with his right hand and positioned himself into a low stance, with his feet wide apart. He closed his eyes and took a few deep, even breaths. The skin of his hands turned immediately red as if the blood circulation through them had become more vigorous. Anh lifted the rope and jerked it downwards with lightning speed. The whip-like motion got carried downwards almost instantly until it reached the underwater hook. A short, deep rumble erupted from the water, and the hook came out. Anh pulled the cord up and let it drop in a coil on the ground, in the admiring looks of the others.
After a short pause, the supreme master leaned onto his right knee and bent down his torso over the edge. With a loud shout, he hit the platform with his right palm, just above the location of the artifact. The ground shook as if jolted by an earthquake. A moment later, a column of water, like a geyser, exploded upwards, with a shiny rectangular box of a light-blue color on top.
“Catch it!” Anh said.
Rongo reached out, grabbed the box tightly, and set it with care on the ground.
Books by Marian C. Ghilea:
BUTTERFLY’S DREAM: https://bit.ly/2PM63uU
TIDES OF AMBER: https://bit.ly/2HfcHVB
Image source: Marian C. Ghilea
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