Atlantis's Restoration

"Hey idiot, yeah you, fuck you!!" = Conversations

'Idiot?! Me?! I hate this guy...!' = Thoughts

"Begone Thot!" = Spells, Attacks, Rage moments, demonic forms, yada yada yada. You get the point.

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Enma's POV

"Enma-boyo?! Can you do something about our speed?!" Marine's shout shook me out of my stupor.

I looked at her and gave her a nod. I turned my back to her as I examined our surroundings.

We were in a direct collision against Atlantis's walls, something that we would desperately need for the battle.

As I observed and planned our stop, Aqua stepped up beside me.

"Master, I have a plan." Aqua surprised me with that.

The usually shy and introverted girl that I rescued back then was nowhere to be found. I stared down at Aqua's face and saw it brimming with determination.

"When my little maid is making an expression like that, how can I say no?" I patted Aqua's head and let her elaborate on her plan.

"Doing a full stop now will be impossible Master. Now only it would risk damaging Sea Bulwark, the chance of it stopping fully is also not high. Since I have mastered Water Magicka by now, I can try to manipulate the water around us to direct us around Atlantis and circle around to bleed off enough momentum to slow us down and allow us to land safely. Plus! With you here, I'm sure we'll be able to do it!"

Aqua looked up at me and told me her plan. I smiled and turned my head towards Atlantis.

"You heard that Marine? My little trust maid here has a plan, and I'm sure it is to your liking, isn't it?"

Marine laughed out loud while Aqua blushed beside me.

"Well? Let's get to it Aqua!" I gave Aqua a push and positioned myself behind her to give her timely support if she needs it.

A deep blue magicka circle appeared beneath Aqua's feet the moment she closed her eyes signifying the start of her plan.

Dense magicka essence gathered around her and sang in joy as if they were going back to their mother's embrace.

It was a magnificent sight, especially for me who was very sensitive and could clearly see the magicka essence.

My grimoire hummed in response, as it silently appeared beside me.

"She has gone a long way."

Sea Bulwark groaned as a deep blue hue surrounded its hull and magicka lines spread from Aqua's magicka circle and wrapped around the ship.

Slowly but surely, the water that surrounded Sea Bulwark guided it away from Atlantis's walls.

"Uhm Enma peko... I don't think it's enough peko."

"I got it Pekora, don't worry."

With that said, I sprinted out from behind Aqua.

"Let's have some fun buddy." I whispered to my Grimoire as it glowed brightly and transformed into a seven-colored dot and entered my forehead.

I stopped in my tracks and stood at the front of the ship. My feet dragged and spread themselves apart as both of my hands waved in the air.

A bunch of incorrigible words was uttered from my mouth as I looked forward with a serious face.

Once the last word fell, I clapped both of my hands softly and then spread them apart as if I was pulling a sword from its scabbard.

I heard the others confused noises behind me but I paid them no heed.

The ship was slowly but surely deviating from its collision course with Atlantis thanks to Aqua's magicka but it wasn't enough.

And so, I summoned what I think will help us greatly to deal with the current situation.

A distant roar echoed right beneath the ship as the immediate watery surrounding trembled.

From behind, I could hear Marine gulping loudly. A grin spread on my lips as I know that Marine knew what was coming.

A dark shadow appeared towards our right and followed closely beside the ship. Glancing backward, I saw Marine looking at it fearfully and at the same time, in awe.

Amelia was right beside Pekora and stared at the shadow curiously, seemingly trying to figure out what exactly was that shadow.

It didn't take long for them ro find out what it was.

A big round eye with a vertical slit opened itself to the world and stared at me. It was about the size of a door and was exuding a vibe that everyone was familiar with.

"Dragonkin?!"

Amelia shouted in shock as the eye glanced at her before it turned back to me. I waved at it and signaled some actions before I pointed at Sea Bulwark beneath our feet and then pointed at the fast-approaching Atlantis.

The eye blinked once before a roar of a dragon resounded throughout the ocean.

Aqua was sweating bullets and didn't have the time to bother about the appearance of a dragonkin and guided the ship as much as she can.

Then the ship trembled, I could feel something beneath the ship and the water bubble that was also guiding the ship away from colliding into Atlantis.

I heaved a sigh of relief and turned back to everyone, only to find out that everyone was looking at me in disbelief.

"T-that... That was a dragonkin right?!"

Amelia asked me immediately and I shrugged my shoulders.

"What other creature on this planet has the same aura?"

"It's that thing again. I thought you killed it Enma-boyo!"

Marine's accusation confused Pekora and Amelia. On the other hand, Aqua let out a breather as she found out that it was much easier to guide the ship away from colliding with Atlantis now.

"I did kill it, Marine."

Then Marine pointed out at the dark shadow underneath the ship.

"Then what is that?!"

"Although I killed it, no one said about keeping its soul and turning it into a Water Dragon Spirit no?"

Marine was left flabbergasted along with Amelia, while Pekora kept a neutral face after hearing my explanation.

"You can do that? I thought only Divine Mages and Gods can do that."

I scratched my head on that as it was very difficult to explain such things but I tried to simplify certain things.

"Well, not everything is based on the level of a mage. For example, even though one mage is only a level one mage, he or she can still learn spells that are from higher levels. The only downside is that they will have to compensate twice or thrice the amount of magicka essence needed to make the spell work."

"Another reason why I can perform spells that are on Divine level is that I already have one foot beyond the door. I'm just waiting for an opportunity to push through and become a full-fledged Divine Mage."

The ship trembled slightly as it finally deviated away from its initial collision course with Atlantis.

We all heaved a sigh of relief before Amelia turned to me and asked more questions.

"Why are you asking me all of these questions? Shouldn't have Fruen or Yagoo taught you about them?"

I raised my eyebrows at Amelia as most of her questions pertained to basic knowledge that most mages should know about.

"Err, no, not really. Last I checked, all your answers weren't in any book I've read in the library."

That made me frown as realization set in. I nearly forgot that most of the knowledge I have came from my experiences in venturing into the world back then. Some came from recluse and remote areas of the world while some were from major kingdoms and cities.

As such, it was normal for Fruen, a relatively remote place in the Eldefein Kingdom, to be more outdated in their teachings.

'I should drop by later at Yagoo and give him some books I've collected about magicka.'

While Amelia was asking more sets of questions, Sea Bulwark suddenly slowed down drastically and nearly threw me off the side of the ship.

Startled, I stood up and glared at the front only to realize what made us slow down in the first place.

Ten level 7 mages stood in front of the ship, chanting soft spells that I recognized as Shackling Speed. Leading them was a person I knew well.

"Artemis..."

"So you've come Enma." Artemis nodded at me before a shadow lunged at her and tackled her to the seafloor.

I chuckled silently since it was none other than Gura who tackled Artemis. The ten-level 7 mages behind Artemis were startled for a bit before they recognized Gura's aura and mine.

They bowed in my direction in haste, to which I waved them off.

"Get the ship situated inside, as well as accommodate my friends. I'll be with Artemis and Gura for a bit."

With that said, I jumped off the ship and outside of the bubble. I casted Water Armor immediately just before I got out and landed beside Artemis and Gura.

My eyes grew soft and pity overwhelmed my heart as Gura hugged Artemis tightly, her shoulders clearly trembling while Artemis was choking up sobs.

I kneeled down beside them and patted both of their heads in an attempt to give them comfort. Never would I have expected for the two of them to cling to me suddenly.

A sigh escaped my lips as I knew that although both of them were strong, it was clear that they were both hiding the pain and emotion deep inside.

It only gushed out now once both of them were together and knew that the other one was safe.

We stayed like that for a couple of minutes, them hugging me and me acting their backs.

"I'm glad you're safe Gura. And you! Why did you only come back now?!"

My fists gripped my hands tight as I let Artemis vent her heart out.

"If... If you were there, none of this would've happened. Atlantis wouldn't have been in this state. My people wouldn't be dead. Mom, Dad, and Sera wouldn't have died! Why did you have to leave? Why?!"

I stood there as Artemis continued to pound on my chest, tears streamed down her face as anguish etched itself on her face. Regret and guilt ate me from the inside as her pleas and cries continued to echo inside my ears.

It's as if I could hear the voices of despair of thousands of families dying one after another, the images of soldiers bravely fighting against abominations, and lastly, Sera's screams along with the King and Queen's shouts.

Artemis knew it was futile to blame me, as she knew that it wasn't my fault. But I didn't stop her nor did I try to avoid the blame.

"Please... I don't know what to do... The monster might come back again anytime soon... I'm... I'm not powerful enough to stop it, if it comes back again, I fear that Atlantis may really fall as the prophecy has foretold."

Gura watched at the side as Artemis gripped my shirt through the protective film of the Water Armor. Her body was weak and soft at the moment. She laid on my arms tiredly, and so I did what I could and hugged her.

"Don't worry, I'm here now. If that thing ever comes back. I'm not gonna let it go this time."

I nodded at Gura as she led the way inside the ruins of the supposedly majestic Atlantis. Artemis clung to me like a koala, which would be comical if it weren't for the dire straits that Atlantis was facing right now.

My feet stopped when I was about to pass by a ruined section which I recalled was the residential district. Gura turned towards me in confusion before realization set in on her face as she stood beside me.

We both gazed at the ruins of the residential building in horror and anger.

"The orphanage..."

No words were left said as I settled down Artemis. Gura accompanied her as I stepped forward.

My grimoire appeared beside me automatically and flipped its pages as if it knew what spell I want.

The pages stopped flipping and a brown glow shone up from the page itself. Beneath my feet, a brown magicka circle appeared before it expanded.

First, it spread towards the residential district. I frowned and pushed the spell to its limits.

With a huge pulse of magicka essence, the magicka circle explode and covered the whole Atlantis.

Gura and Artemis gasped behind me which I just ignored.

My grimoire once more flipped its pages before settling down and a green glow appeared.

Above Atlantis, a sudden appearance of a green magicka circle that resembles a ticking mechanic clock drew everyone's attention.

My voice was heard throughout Atlantis as I chanted the spell carefully.

"Combination Magicka, Temporal Earth Magicka: Earth's Passing."

When the words fell, Atlantis suddenly rumbled. Everyone panicked as they thought it was the end of their home but it wasn't.

Beneath my feet, the cracks that were left in the pavement suddenly began moving. As if playing a magicka screen backward, the cracks themselves rewound back to their complete self.

Not only the cracks but every building and every infrastructure inside Atlantis slowly but surely rewound back to their prime.

The transformation took five minutes before dying down and the ruins of Atlantis were no more. But I wasn't happy in the slightest.

I may have repaired the damage done to the buildings themselves. But I'm powerless to bring back the lives of those who were lost during the tragedy.

Maybe if I was a Divine Mage I could've done something but sadly, I was not.

Both magicka circles disappeared as soon the transformation finished and my grimoire flew back into my personal space.

I turned back towards Artemis and Gura and nodded at them. My expression grew cold as my feet dragged me towards the restored palace.

"Let's go, we need to plan how we are going to kill a God."