Somewhere to my right, I saw that part of the ocean was frozen in the distance. We could sense clashes of energy coming from that direction as well.
"Looks like a fight's going on," Za'Fia stated just as a large water spout shot skyward from the part of the ocean where the fight took place.
I enhanced my vision and saw that the commotion was between some Dragon Crest members and some Marine Crest members. I was about to adjust our course to help, but Viraa insisted that I not interfere.
Remember, you lack the power or political influence here to be taken seriously, and you would only be putting a larger target on your and the others' backs by stepping into others' affairs. Let the Crest Head's chain of command deal with their problems.
"Yeah...yeah, okay..." I said, reluctantly looking forward and pushing onward.
We eventually began to see the same lights deep beneath the surface that we had seen during our tour with Rabae. He'd told us that it was the city of Mystus down there. Once we were near the densely populated area beneath the sea's surface, we entered our restricted states so we didn't need to breathe, then submerged into the water.
The city was governed by the Marine Crest – a large crest with 1,300 pneumarians and 403 klevonians. Its primary element was water, of course, and it had an unbelievable crest worth of 1.1 trillion spendil.
The city had erratic governance, with the rules changing depending on the Crest Head's mood. It earned its high income mostly from its reputation for producing the best food in the nation. Apparently, many people would travel all the way to the Mystus, even from other worlds, to eat food personally prepared by the Crest Head. It also made a large sum of money from its water park on an island somewhere on the ocean's surface. The city's overall population was only 12,700,000, though. For some reason, most prefer to visit Mystus rather than live there.
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The city itself was beautiful and lively with marine life and various alien lifeforms swimming or traversing about. Parts of the city itself were built within underwater pockets of air for visitors who couldn't survive in the deep sea. The whole place felt surreal. Like a place you'd read about but never expect to see in person, like the city of Atlantis.
Za'Fia had been excited to go for a swim. While underwater, her flames around her manifested arm had been extinguished, but it retained its shape through her energy's red aura. She admittedly looked enchanting as she swam freely. Her red aura around her arm generated enough heat to form bubbles around it, creating a white trail everywhere she swam. When she swam, with a natural elegance and a gentle spin, it looked like a beautiful ribbon dance that caught others' eyes.
Other crest members and aquatic species had gradually drifted over to watch the show she was unintentionally putting on for us. Some even left a nearby beautiful mermaid in her own right with gorgeous hair. Her power wasn't as high, but she was transformed. She was likely a klevonian who was partially transformed for convenience, allowing her even to breathe and speak underwater.
"What's the meaning of this?" she demanded as she pushed past others to see Za'Fia's water dance. She clenched her fists and ground her teeth in a jealous fit before swimming up to interrupt Za'Fia.
****
Za'Fia was in heaven. Feeling the cold, deep-sea pressure hugging her, sensing the lives of so many creatures she shared the sea with. She loved it, being in the depths of the ocean. She couldn't help but bask as she gleefully swam about.
"Hey!" she heard a beautiful but harsh voice suddenly call out. When Za'Fia opened her eyes, she saw a mermaid floating before her with a judgmental expression as she crossed her arms. Below them, she noticed that others had started to gather for some reason.
Since she couldn't breathe underwater, she couldn't speak to the girl, and now that she understood that energy sharing wasn't something to do arbitrarily, she decided to use a different method to communicate. She used her wristband to project the words she wanted out for the klevonian to hear.
[Um, hi? Can I help you?]
"I know who you are. You're one of the new Chimera Crest members, right? Most of you sounded boring, but then I heard others saying there was an especially beautiful klevonian with fire abilities among you. Initially, I couldn't care less. After all, your beauty is nothing compared to mine, but then you come here, to my city? You're here to steal the title of Most Beautiful from me, aren't you?"
[What are you talking about? I've never heard of you.] Za'Fia was genuinely confused. Was this seriously happening? Za'Fia could see the girl getting flustered at Za'Fia's response. The girl was obviously one of the narcissistic variety, and Za'Fia had no interest in dealing with it.
