“Look who’s back!” Shan pointed at Ichaival.
“You know I had something to do that day,” Ichaival responded with a sigh.
“Welcome to Tachibana’s Fishing Emporium where you’ll find all your fishing and water needs!” Lyra wore a fisherman’s vest and white cap.
“Whoa! I’m always impressed by how much she changes up the place,” Jacque commented, looking around in awe.
Different models of fishing poles hung on the left wall, a hand-written price tag tied to each one. In the back, there was a display case full of hooks, bait, and other fishing accessories. The right side of the room consisted of jackets, boots, and other waterproof clothing. There was a full-fledged counter with a register and pamphlets. Most depicted boats, advertising water vessels optimal for fishing.
“Oh, a trip to Lake Rahu, huh?” Ichaival questioned.
“A very good eye, my dear customer,” Lyra replied.
Lyra handed us a travel permit and a key. She pointed at a poster depicting a large hook, one designed for retrieving undersea treasure. Really? I didn’t expect one of the parts to be down there.
“Is everyone ready for some recreational treasure hunting?” Lyra inquired.
“You serious?” Jacque stared at the prophet.
“There must be a catch, Miss Tachibana. It’s not as simple as just fishing it out,” Ksi remarked.
“A great pun, Natalia! You are correct though. The part of Lake Rahu you’re heading to is full of other hunters. Ones willing to do anything!” Lyra confirmed.
“Hold on, you guys know how to drive a boat?” I stared at Shan and Ichaival.
“Of course! Isn’t that right, buddy?” Shan grabbed Ichaival by the shoulder with a huge grin.
“Sort of. Usually someone else drove when were out there. We’re trained to do it though. Don’t worry, Yuki, we’ll make sure everything’s safe,” Ichaival revealed.
What did I expect? Lyra informed us our suits from last time would also work out in the water. She teleported us to the dock and pointed at our boat. It contained a deckhouse and a wind-up hook in the back. The prophet gave us a small tour, pointing out the control panel and underwater diving gear. She assured us everything was well-stocked and there was an emergency module to return us to her residence if necessary.
“Good luck, guys! Come back safe!” Lyra encouraged us before departing.
“I’m driving,” Ksi demanded, sitting down in the captain’s seat.
“You know how to do it?” I questioned, watching her flick switches and tap the control screen.
“I’ve driven something similar before. Besides, I asked Miss Tachibana for the manual in case we ended up doing anything like this. You’ll be safe, I promise,” Ksi stated with confidence.
Lake Rahu: Entry Way
The engine roared and we were on our way to the treasure. Ichaival and Shan observed the situation from the deck. A screen with a radar blinked which Ksi checked occasionally. Jacque sat in the corner, drawing in his sketchbook.
I peered out the window and noticed marked boats with sirens. Ksi slowed down the boat as several of them surrounded us. I met up with Shan and Ichaival as armed officers boarded our vessel.
“Do you have authorized paperwork to be in these waters?” an officer questioned.
Shan handed him the documentation. Returning it to the gravity manipulator after a quick glance, they pulled out a notepad. Wait, were we being ticketed even with all the correct papers?
“We’re citing you for not having the proper equipment. Turn back and get it,” they directed, ripping out a ticket from their notepad.
“Oh, what’s the penal code for that?” Shan stared them down.
The officers reached for their handguns. Ichaival dashed forward, holding blades in both hands. He exchanged their firearms for his knives and smacked their faces. Shan tripped one of the men and caught the gun Ichaival hurled at him. He fired off two shots at the man’s stomach before booting him into the water. I appeared behind the other one, pushing him into Ichaival, who knocked him into the water with his Kali stick.
More men, wielding assault rifles, leaped onto our boat. Ichaival switched places with one of them, firing off their weapon. He kept swapping, causing our enemies to fire at each other. Shan pointed at their boats. I protected him as he hijacked our adversary’s boats. Shan rammed their boats into each other, clearing a path for Ksi. I teleported him back onto our boat and pounded the deckhouse door. Our boat lurched forward and sped past our foes.
I formed multiple icebergs behind us, hindering our pursuers. Ichaival launched the final enemy off our boat with a brutal swing.
“Damn, did we get mugged by pirates?” Jacque questioned.
“Something like that,” I answered, checking the radar.
“Definitely pirates. They’ve stolen the real police’s badges and equipment, pretending to be them,” Shan explained.
“It’s so f***** out here,” Jacque commented.
“Those were amateurs. Actual pirates would ram us and take everything before lighting our boat on fire,” Shan revealed.
“Seriously?” Jacque asked.
“Yeah, pretty brutal out here,” Ichaival responded.
Ksi pointed at the radar. Ichaival and Shan headed back out while I remained inside. There was a small sailboat ahead, an older model with no engine, and a missing mast. Ksi moved closer for a better view. There was a metallic briefcase and a watch onboard the suspicious vessel.
“You guys going on it?” I questioned.
“You said there’s a watch, right? I’m interested to see what information we can get from it,” Shan answered.
I monitored our main camera as Shan retrieved the briefcase and watch. Ichaival teleported him back. Ksi reversed and we continued. Shan handed me the briefcase. He hooked the watch up to an onboard computer. I cracked the case open, discovering money and a ghoul mask inside.
“Tess will want to take a look at this,” Shan said, picking up the mask and flipping it over.
“You think a transaction gone wrong?” I surmised.
“This watch is a homebrew. Can’t access anything from it. Lyra can crack it,” Shan revealed, unplugging the device.
“There’s something underneath us,” Ksi informed us, pointing at our radar.
I exited to the exterior with Ichaival and Shan. They operated the hook and it splashed into the water. Ichaival loosened the reel until his friend raised his hand in the air. The red light on it turned green as the gravity manipulator adjusted the positioning. He pointed at the false archer, who turned the reel, hauling in their catch. After a minute, I saw a metallic box emerge from the water.
“Did we actually find it?” I peered over the man’s shoulder.
Shan pried off the rusted lock. Inside, there was a cog, along with several shiny springs. The man stared at the contents and furrowed his forehead. He pressed his watch, bringing up a photo, looking back and forth between the interior of the box and his reference.
“Not what we’re looking for?” I questioned.
“This isn’t it. We can use this to open a door. A research facility was built beneath Lake Rahu. We’ll need a submarine to reach it,” Shan explained.
“Just great! Are we heading back then?” I said.
Before Shan could answer, our boat tilted sideways and capsized. I hung onto the railing, staring up at the sky. A plane zoomed past us, circling back, and dropped explosives onto our boat. I put up a barrier, protecting us from the blasts.
“What the f***?” I shouted.
“I have no idea,” Shan responded, shaking his head.
Ksi, along with Jacque, exited the deckhouse. She peered up at the sky with a frown. I didn’t think the hate for Shan and Ichaival ran this deep.
“The engine is broken and everything’s damaged too. I don’t have the expertise to fix it unless someone’s a mechanic,” Ksi informed us.
“No, we’ll activate the emergency return switch. Can’t do anything else,” Shan decided.
Lyra’s Residence
“There’s a bounty out for you two,” the prophet revealed, placing down two flyers.
“When did this happen?” I inspected the wanted posters.
“Couple of hours ago. I didn’t know until the SIU contacted me,” she replied.
“Any idea who’s responsible?” Ksi inquired.
“Could be anyone. Shan and Ichaival aren’t the most beloved people. However, I suspect interference from another dimension,” the prophet speculated.
“What do you mean?” I asked for more details.
“I’ve monitored several masked individuals. They’re meeting with splinter groups who want to rebuild the magical cannons. I suspect they are responsible for the bounties,” Lyra disclosed, tapping a folder on her desk.
Shan showed her the ghoul mask. She grabbed it and headed towards the back. These masked people weren’t connected to Mirei either. Just what was their goal in stopping us? Even Ace didn’t care about us retrieving our weapons.
“You think Tess knows about all of this?” I predicted.
“She is the Gatekeeper,” Ichaival answered.
“Probably didn’t say anything since she wants to gather evidence first,” Shan said.
Lyra returned with another folder, containing a large classified seal on the front. She pulled a photo out. It was a masked woman with orange hair.
“This is the woman the SIU believes to be the leader behind everything,” Lyra said.
“Her mask has a butterfly wing. Similar to Mirei’s mask when we fought her the first time. You think that’s a coincidence?” I asked.
“Definitely not. We’ve heard stories about her already,” Shan hypothesized. “Oh, I have something for you, Lyra.”
Lyra inspected the watch and pulled out a toolbox. She took apart the watch and investigated the interior with a portable light. She separated the parts between three separate boxes and stared at the gutted watch.
“I’ll have to research more in my lab. Like you suspected, Shigetzu, it’s not made here. Why don’t you enjoy some sweets and tea while you wait?” Lyra offered, pointing at a nearby table.
Ichaival refused to eat any of the food. Ksi stared at the food with suspicion. Jacque bit into a cookie. Shan ate one too. Both appeared fine after eating them so it wasn’t poisoned. I poured myself a cup of tea, well-brewed as always.
“You know Jacque, I wonder if you can change Shan and Ichaival’s appearance with your power,” I brought up.
“That sounds cool but I don’t know if I’m at that level yet,” the artist answered.
“It would really help us in evading all the people after them,” Ksi said.
“I don’t want to f*** up Shigetzu’s face or anything,” Jacque joked.
“Not my beautiful face!” Shan yelled out in mock horror.
I heard a buzzing near the windows. Ksi summoned Muramasa. A man with a ponytail leaped into the room after shattering the glass. He wore a turtleneck and bright, white dress pants. The man had a lapel pin with “C5” on the folded collar of his shirt.
“I apologize for the rude intrusion. However, the Tachibana residence is in possession of a certain mask. We ask you return it to us,” he said, giving a courteous bow.
“Where’s your proof?” I demanded.
“You found said mask out in Lake Rahu, correct? It belongs to a client,” he explained.
“You really think that’s enough for me to just hand it over to you? I refuse!” I answered.
“Let us negotiate. I know you are all capable fighters so perhaps a battle can resolve the issue. You select a representative to face me. If I win, you return the mask. However, if I lose, you retain ownership. I trust that’s a fair deal,” he offered.
“Give us a few minutes to talk it over,” I requested.
“As you wish,” he agreed, sitting down in a chair.
After some discussion, everyone agreed to his proposition. If we won, he could provide details about the masked group. Time to decide who would face off against him. I was about to suggest Ksi but everyone else looked at me instead.
“You’re the best choice. The most versatile to deal with anything he might have,” Shan said.
“Agreed. Tomo, you have the necessary tools to counter him, carrying all the powers of everyone,” Ksi nominated me.
Fine, they had a point. We headed outside and the man set up a special battlefield for us. He pointed at Ksi, appointing her as the referee. Good choice, I would have done the same.
“Hold on, one more condition. If I win, you tell us what’s going on with those masked people,” I added.
“I can only reveal so much. However, I will provide you a basic idea of what’s occurring should you emerge victorious,” he agreed.
“Fine by me. What’s your name?” I asked.
“You can refer to me as Mr. Go,” he replied with a smile.
