A Chapter 16 Separation (1)

  16th Blue, 2043. 12:23PM

  Eastern sandy coast of Kisol continent.

  Luthor Dugavu(POV)

  My pupils dilated as a gust of wind sent me off course, preventing my chute from making landfall. Fear almost took hold when the raging waves enlarged in my gaze. A curse left my lips as I plunged into the depths. I hadn't been the only one to be beset by such misfortune though. About two others had also met the same fate!

  I held my breath even as I fumbled my fingers around my waist, searching for my knife, a hard task when the straps of the parachute were flipping me around within the depths, because the waves were messing with the chute floating on the surface of the ocean. The depths were blurry, yet I still caught figures prowling in the shadows, the monsters of the ocean!

  An inward sigh of relief left my lips as I finally managed to grip the hilt and unsheath the knife to hurriedly sever the strings before kicking upwards, towards the brightness above. Fear was still close to my chest though, as the shadows were getting increasingly closer with curiosity. Though, for now, they were wary of the massive crimson translucent fabric floating on the surface. My heart pounded against the ribcage even as I thanked the parachute for its unintentional assistance. Desperation and terror drove me to surpass my limits, to kick with increased vigor, to push against the water with powerful strokes, all in a bid to escape the monstrous depths.

  The moment I broke the surface, my mouth opened wide as I greedily inhaled the air around me, with my ears straining to pick up any sounds around me. Reorienting myself, the white sand in the distance bobbed in my eyes. There was screaming in the water, and the voice was male, certainly not familiar. The sound of gunfire radiated from the shore, muted sizzling sounds echoing somewhere away from me as the bullets sunk into the water.

  My face warped as I recognized another screamer's voice, this time a feminine one. With a resolute face, I made poweful strokes towards the person, inwardly thanking my uncle for having taught me swimming. Someone was flailing in the water a few meters away, thankfully having managed to cut the straps of their parachute in time, yet they were taking mouthfuls of water, with their limbs flailing in both panic and terror.

  "Ril! Stay calm!" I shouted when I reached close, though not before taking an elbow to the cheek. I hurriedly locked her arms in place, taking in the pale color of her face, the golden strands plastered upon it, and the soaked curves of her sinful form. My eyes strayed from her a second later to take in the surroundings, trying to peer deep into the water's surface, yet all I could see were some indistinguishable shadows.

  "-Something's in the water!" she shouted even as she struggled to keep her head above water, a commendable feat of strength considering the fact that the many items in her pockets were weighing her down, plus the fact that she lacked any swimming training. Though, she was right. There truly were things in the water. I couldn't see what they were, or even sense any disturbance at the moment, but my gut was telling me that they were there, watching, circling and contemplating when to strike.

  I hooked my arm underneath her armpit, and started swimming towards the shore while praying that none of the projectiles being shot from the sandy coast mistakenly hit us. It seemed that those on the shore could see what we, who were in the water, couldn't.

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  My eyes widened and my heart almost stopped when something crested above the water, exposing a tall blade-like fin a few meters beside me, only for a projectile to accurately dig itself into its back, spreading crimson into the waters, while it thrashed in pain, stirring waves. Barely a moment later, something with sharp white teeth, sheared off over half of the bleeding monster into its mouth, shocking me, and spreading even more crimson. My heart and mind were frozen in terror at that moment, yet my body never failed me, continuing to mechanically kick at the water, while making strokes towards the shore.

  I grit my teeth and kicked at the water with powerful vigor upon absolving myself of the terror, dragging the frozen Ril along with me. It was a good thing that the waves heading for the shore helped to push us along, yet as the shore got closer and I was about to breath a sigh of relief, I felt something brushing my foot. I didn't pause, instead doubling down on my efforts even as a chill course down my spine.

  "S-Something ju-just brushed up on me!" trembled out Ril, her free hand, the one I wasn't holding onto, having it's fingers enclosed around a dark pistol, her knuckles whitened. Any tiny fluctuation caused her hand to instantly bring the muzzle to the origin, yet, so far, nothing was visible.

  Something dark and big broke out of the water at our sides before crushing towards us with a powerful momentum. The suction cups upon it had already given away its broader identity, yet the terror that gripped me in that moment was something I could have never anticipated. I froze, feeling the whiff of death on my nose. Was this how I was going to end?

  Before I could react though, something white flashed, and the tentacle's flesh separated, blood gushing onto us and the surrounding ocean. A roar vibrated the water even as I doubled on my efforts to get us out of the water. The moment I felt my feet on the sand beneath, I hurriedly pushed myself onto the shore, with a multitude of arms coming to my help for the final stretch. They held me, pulled me, and separated Ril from me.

  I was dragged along the warm sand for a considerable distance before I was laid down. My chest was heaving, my body in pain due to the stress I had put it in, yet I had never felt so thankful for being alive! I had survived by the skin of my teeth! Before even reaching Kisol, I had almost faced death! Had I really been right to expedite this trip?

  I coughed a little before pushing myself into a seating position. I spotted Dan closer to the shore, his back to me. The waves were battering the shore, and no beast was visible. Even the owner of tentacle seemed to have vanished. Yet, in each of his hands, a long silver tube was held, not even half a meter long, his posture vigilant.

  "Nvubu was devoured."

  I shivered at that sorrow-laden statement from Regal, his aid. Muffled sobs radiated from my side, and upon turning my head, I caught sight of Ravena kneeling in the white sand, hugging her daughter, trying to comfort her with a pale expression and reddened eyes. A look filled with gratitude was sent my way, while I sent a nod back. Someone had died! It was as unreal as it was real. Someone had been devoured by the monsters in the ocean. Ril and I had survived by sheer dumb luck, nothing more.

  Was this what they meant when they said plans couldn't keep up with reality? We hadn't taken into account the fact that we might fall into the water. I had been arrogant. This was my fault. I gazed down at my palms in guilt.

  I knew that no one could have predicted that gust of wind, yet that didn't detract from the fact that I hadn't taken the possibility of falling into the water into account!

  "No one could have predicted this." Maxwell's hand squeezed into my shoulder. I took a deep breath and stood up shakily. The terror it seems, had gotten to my body. The sand was clinging to my wet form, yet the discomfort was the farthest thing on my mind right now.

  "Sir! Are you okay?" asked Aila, the person with the most combat skill among the three of us from Dugavu. Her lips were parsed, and her gaze dripped concern.

  "I-I will be okay." I lied. But now wasn't the time for me to sink into my mind, grieve and beat myself up. We had made landfall, and thankfully, I could see the crates peacefully resting upon the shore. If they had been lost within the ocean, then we would have had to request replacements, which would have slowed us down as we would have had to wait for the arrival of another shipment.

  "Let's arm ourselves with haste. We have no idea about what might jump out of that tree line." I said while moving towards the crates.

  "We won't be entering the jungle in this condition." a voice stopped me in my tracks, from a person I had least expected to mount opposition.

  "Don't look at me like that! We have plenty of experience in hunting the beasts. This sandy coast is the safest place right now. It will be better if we spend the night here and set off tomorrow." explained David.

  "I had thought you would be in a hurry to slaughter the beasts." I said, my voice dripping with skeptical curiosity.

  "Most of you here aren't in prime mental states. Your senses will either be dull, or more prone to impulsive behavior. What I mean is, you will only be dragging us down!"

  The explanation made a heat rush up my cheeks.