Book 2: Chapter 13: Thrill


    Cool air tickled my skin as I soared through the air, and I smiled at the water rushing up to meet me before I sshed into the ocean.


    Its icy temperature sent a thrill coursing through my body, and I arched my back, curving up through the water to breach the surface.


    I gasped instinctively, taking shallow breaths as I shivered, limatizing to the ocean''s frosty touch.


    Corporal ws'' head popped up next to me. Her cheeks were puffed out.


    "ws? Why do you look like tha—<em>"</em>


    She pressed a forepaw to either cheek and squeezed—a torrent of seawater mmed into my face.


    "You little rascal!" I pped my hand against the water, intending to ssh her back—instead, my hand made an ear-splitting <em>p</em> as it struck, and water flew in every direction, including into my open mouth.


    I coughed and wiped my eyes, bobbing up and down on a now-roiling patch of ocean. Corporal ws floated on her back, chittering withughter and pointing at me with one paw.


    Two extended ws poked above the ocean, and I turned to greet Sergeant Snips. The words died in my throat as I saw it was Rocky, blowing <em>very</em> pissed-off bubbles. One w pointed at me, the other at the still-giggling otter, and he mmed them closed.Twin explosion rang out, and another wash of water assaulted me, but I''d had time to turn my face away.


    Despite theck of yfulness in his cking, I turned back to smile at Rocky—just in time to see him lifted from the water.


    Sergeant Snips, spewing bubbles and seething with fury, flung him upward. He soared five meters into the air, and as he fell back down, blue water billowed from Snips''s body. She darted up to meet him, swung a w up, then mmed it into Rocky''s undercarriage.


    Like a slingshot, sheunched Rocky parallel to the ocean''s surface. He didn''t lose height for a long moment, but then he dipped rapidly. He skipped across the water like a t stone, getting smaller and smaller as he bounced out toward the horizon.


    "Damn. Nice shot, Snips."


    She blew a single bubble filled with anger, then held a w to my shoulder, apologizing for her subordinate''s actions.


    "No need to say sorry, Snips—it was actually kinda funny."


    ws nodded her agreement, letting out a shrill chirp and revealing her pointed teeth. Somethingrge and surprisingly buoyant bobbed the surface, and I reached a fist out toward it.


    "How ya going, Pistachio? Good to see ya, mate!"


    He reached a w out ponderously and fist-bumped me, blowing a small stream of greeting bubbles.


    "Alright, here''s the n, gang..." I paused, realizing one of the construction crew had just been yeeted out toward international waters. "Would you ry the n to Rocky when he gets back, Snips?"


    She nodded curtly, clearly unhappy to be reminded of the crab''s existence.


    I lifted my face toward the sun as I treaded water, delighting in its warmth.


    "It''s such a beautiful day. Anyway, the n is to check out the ocean floor from here to about fifty meters that way." I pointed out to sea. "We''re just making sure it''s all clear to put some rocks down. If it is, we''re going to find some boulders and move them here. We''re going to need <em>a lot</em> of rock, so we may have to create a quarry somewhere."


    All three of the creatures bubbled or chirped as one, voicing the same question.


    I grinned.


    "You''ll just have to wait and see what it''s for, but I promise you''ll all love it."


    Sergeant Snips and Corporal ws'' eyes shone, and even Private Pistachio''s face became filled with intrigue.


    I took a deep breath and started swimming down. The frosty water hitting my face spiked my adrenaline, but it wasn''t unenjoyable; I smiled as I approached the ocean floor, my powerful body easily gliding through the water.


    realized my eyes had improved since I''d first be a cultivator—I could now see underwater as if wearing goggles. Each time I''d gone underwater in recent memory, I''d closed my eyes, not wanting them to sting under the saltwater''s assault.


    <em>How long have I been able to do this, but didn''t know? </em>I wondered.


    It was a startling but wee discovery, and a sense of awe flooded through me as I gazed around. Small fish darted away at my approach, and I stretched my fingers out toward them, delighting at the water flowing past me.


    Corporal ws,pletely misunderstanding my intent, sped past me at unbelievable speed. She caught a fish in her paws, swam over to me, and held it out, grinning wide. I scratched the top of her head and extended cupped hands. She released the fish, and relief flooded me as I saw it was uninjured. It swam around my palms, flitting to and fro with small kicks of its tail.


    When I opened my hands, it dashed away, swimming off to find its friends. ws glided over to me, upside down and still grinning; the angle,bined with her toothy smile, made her look ridiculous, and Iughed noiselessly underwater.


    She collided with me, and I scooped her up in one hand, using the other to scritch her belly as I kicked my legs and propelled us along the ocean floor. My body seemed to slip through the streams of water; I didn''t feel the drag I expected to hit my body. Rather than disorienting, it was thrilling, calming, and everything in between. I stopped kicking my legs and swam like a dolphin through the sea, enjoying the experience more than I could put into words. I scooped up Snips as I soared over her, and she wiggled happily, wrapping her legs around my abdomen.


    By the time I''d swam the length of the wall, I had forgotten all about it. We swam together beneath the waves, traveling further and further out to sea. I followed the path of the ocean floor, and the surroundings got darker as the bay got deeper. Bommies of rock and coral began sprouting up, resembling the tops of bouquets, and I slowed, gazing at them intently.


    Coral and anemone of an unbelievable variety swayed in the underwater currents. There were patches of orange, purple, green, blue, and even pink of different shades, sizes, and shapes. Uncountable species of fish used the bommies as shelter.


    Small fish you''d see in aquariums back on earth swam around the coral. Clown fish hid in the anemone, not at all bothered by our appearance. Fish bigger than my hand poked their heads from holes in the rock, and upon noticing us, disappeared back into their holes. Larger fish, of which I only caught glimpses of, swam away at blistering speeds, finding another ce to use as shelter now that we, who they undoubtedly viewed as predators, hade to visit their waters.


    I reached out and touched some coral; it was soft and squishy, and I smiled at the pleasant texture. My lungs started toin for oxygen, so I swam up, careful not to disturb the water too much with my excessively powerful body. When I breached the surface, I took a deep breath, squinting my eyes against the oppressive daylight.


    "Huh..." I said when I looked back toward the shore.


    I had lost track of time while swimming, and I hadn''t realized just how long I''d been holding my breath. The rock of my heand was the size of a marble in the distance. I could just make out a wee sight on the shore; Maria stood with who I had to assume was Cinnamon in one arm, the other held high in the air, waving at me.


    I held my animal pals tight and dipped back below the water, heading for shore.


    ***


    I kicked off the ocean floor, still holding Snips and ws to my chest as I shot from the bay. A gout of water followed me as Inded on the rocks, and I bent my knees to soften the impact.


    "Good morning! I see Cinnamon found you."


    "She certainly did..." Maria replied, raising an eyebrow and looking down at my stomach.


    "Uh... something wrong?"


    "Just admiring the muscles. Have you gotten stronger…?"


    I nced down and shrugged.


    "I think I''ve been pretty muscr since awakening—it''s nothing new."


    "Yeah, that''s a straight up lie. I saw your stomach when we were on that camping trip, and it was lean, sure... but this?" She stepped forward and pped my stomach lightly. "That''s just ridiculous."


    "Must be the lighting. Anyway, my washboard abs and impressive physique aren''t important right now—I need your help with something."


    "Oh? What''s that?"


    I grinned.


    "I just found something beautiful, and you <em>have </em>toe see it."


    ***


    I held a hand up to Maria, intending to help her into the water.


    She bent down, then gave me an odd smirk. I didn''t like the look in her eyes.


    Sheunched from the shore, tucking her legs up and holding them to her chest. She cannonball''d into the waves beside me, holding strong eye contact and that same expression the entire time. I closed my eyes, epting my fate and letting the wave of water m into me.


    I wiped my eyes and gave her a t stare, which only increased the vigor of her giggling.


    "Do you feel good about yourself?" I asked.


    "I feel amazing." She gave me a full-faced smile. "Thanks for asking. How are you?"


    "Feeling father refreshed, thank you."


    She swam over and ran her hand over my head, smoothing my hair.


    "d to hear it. So, what did you have to show me?"


    "Follow me."


    I took a deep breath and sank down. Maria followed, and a smile quirked my lips as I saw her eyes firmly squeezed shut. My right hand darted toward her, and I spread one of her delicate eyelids open.


    Her immediate reaction was to try bat my hand away, but she froze, opening both eyes and blinking. Her head spun and mouth dropped open as she looked around, awe clear on her features. I pointed at her and gave her a thumbs up, cocking my head in question. She nodded vigorously, and her head began darting around, taking in our surroundings.


    I held a hand out, and her fingers intertwined with mine. Starting out slowly, I swam like a dolphin through the water, and she mimicked my movement. We picked up the pace as I led her out to sea.


    The path was just as pleasant as before, and I could tell Maria felt the same; a peaceful smile covered her face, mingled with a calm serenity. I picked up Snips again from the ocean floor in passing, and ws swam circles around us, simrly delighting in the sensation of swimming.


    Halfway to our destination, Maria went to the surface to get a breath. She quickly rejoined me, and we continued our passage. When we arrived at the colorful bommie, she let out a muffled noise of surprise.


    Rather than look at the swaying coral and anemone, I watched her. The look of wonder on her face was everything I had hoped for, and my heart fluttered in response. When I nced at the bommie, my eyebrows furrowed in confusion, and I swam to the surface.


    "What is it?" Maria asked when she joined me. "You look concerned..."


    "All the fish are gone..."


    "What do you mean?"


    "There were hundreds of fish before, and now there are what? Like ten?"


    Maria opened her mouth to respond, but the head of a belligerent otter popped up and let out a trill noise I’d not heard from her before.


    "ws...?" I reached out to touch her, but she moved her head away, her eyes going wide. "What''s wrong?"


    She pointed down with one paw, chirping incoherently. Maria and I shot a worried look at each other, then both put our faces beneath the water''s surface and peered down.


    Despite my enhanced body, a spike of fear stabbed into my core at what was lurking below us.