Chapter 31 - The Farm in Irttat
Chapter 31: Lament of the Deep Sea 07
Stepping into the hexagram circle, the fragrance of essential oils and sea salt immediately intensified. Mist churned forth, in an instant completely isolating her within the ritual formation.
Amid the haze, Lucita felt a wave of dizziness.
A merfolk's phantom rose from the pocket watch in the center. Soft, pale colors swayed slightly with the water waves, making her features blurred and indistinct.
The merfolk's red algae-like long hair floated in the water. That red looked more vivid than any of the current merfolk, like a flame burning to its last. Her fish tail looked strong and agile. Brilliant blue scales flickered with faint starlight, as if reflecting the Milky Way on a summer night.
Lucita looked up, murmuring: "Acquanetta?"
Acquanetta narrowed her long, slender eyes and looked at her own hands: "I came out?"
She was startled, touched her own head, then shook her tail. Finally, as if confirming, she swung her tail in a backflip and laughed freely.
"Ah—being stuffed in that pocket watch was really suffocating. I never thought I’d still get to taste freedom before dying."
Lucita moved her lips, not knowing what to say.
Mist surrounded them on all sides. She couldn't see the reaction of the merfolk outside. Before her was only Acquanetta.
According to the current steps, she should begin chanting the incantation to communicate with the divine, sacrificing Acquanetta's true spirit……
But this vivid face that could speak and smile seemed to remind her, this wasn't that singing pocket watch, but a living life!
She couldn't bring herself to recite the incantation no matter what.
Lucita felt like an executioner at an execution ground. The ritual incantation was the guillotine in her hand, ready to harvest Acquanetta's life at any moment, even though Acquanetta was already a dead person.
"You have many secrets, Lucita." Acquanetta suddenly floated to her side, circled around her, leaned on her shoulder and stared probingly into her eyes, asserting with interest.
Lucita was startled. Meeting Acquanetta's eyes, she then followed her gaze downward.
At some point, she herself had also become a spiritual body.
The difference was that while her body was transparent, it was clear and stable. Acquanetta's body, however, constantly dissipated outward, barely maintaining form through her own effort.
Was this the difference between a soul and true spirit?
Acquanetta looked at her with a half-smile.
Lucita steadied herself, looked up to defend: "Acquanetta, you may not believe it, but I'm really not human."
"Don't be afraid. I believe you, of course I believe you." Acquanetta smiled: "I'm all too familiar with humans. If you were human, I'd recognize you even if you turned to ash."
She changed tack: "But even if you were human, I wouldn't do anything to you. This ritual still needs you to complete. So you needn't be afraid."
Lucita sighed: "Of course I'm afraid, Acquanetta. I'm afraid of losing you as a friend."
"Friend?" Acquanetta was stunned, then did another flip, hovering before her to look up and down, sighing: "Then I'm afraid we can only be friends for one minute. I'm about to die."
"Then let's be friends for one minute." Lucita extended her hand.
Acquanetta was slightly dazed, as if discovering something interesting. After circling her once, she reached out to clasp her hand: "Tsk, making a friend before death, not a bad deal."
Their hands clasped, the two spiritual bodies passed through each other emptily.
After waiting another moment, Lucita still didn't recite the incantation or start the ritual.
Acquanetta grew impatient: "Lucita, what are you hesitating about?"
"I..." Lucita took a deep breath, looking at Acquanetta: "It's not too late for you to regret. I'll ask you one last time."
Acquanetta smiled. She looked up at the sky surrounded by thick fog: "Even without sacrifice, with only this bit of true spirit, I won't survive much longer anyway."
"I understand."
Lucita lowered her eyelids and stepped forward.
"Goodbye, my friend."
"Eternal Creator Gaia, God who governs all things, Mother who illuminates the world, I pray for your favor.
With Acquanetta's true spirit, I beseech you, I pray that you withdraw the mental curse that occurred five hundred seventy-six years ago at Mirror Palace Square in the capital of the Galan Empire.
I pray that you return the authority of the mind to the merfolk, just as you hold authority over all things.
I pray that severed waters flow again, storms cease, the merfolk's era reopens, and songs of peace and joy fill every inch of the seas.
I pray that you open your eyes to look down and respond to my call..."
Lucita finished reciting according to the steps. Opening her eyes, Acquanetta's form shook more violently in the water, shattered by ripples into countless fragments, as if it could shatter at any moment.
She faintly saw Acquanetta smile with relief and heard a blurred reply.
"Goodbye, my friend."
That shadow suddenly shattered, scattering with the sea waves.
Lucita's pupils widened slightly. She instinctively stepped forward, reached out her hand, then stopped dejectedly.
The seawater seemed somewhat cold.
She trembled uncontrollably and closed her eyes deeply.
At this moment, a faint sigh seemed to come through her consciousness: "You've finally come, my child."
Lucita was startled.
This wasn't Acquanetta's voice!
But there was nothing around, only a pocket watch floating before her.
Wait, the pocket watch?
Lucita stared at the hollowed silver-cased pocket watch floating before her face. Hadn't it been lying on the ground just now?
What was happening?
Lucita waited cautiously for a moment. Discovering no movement, she tentatively reached out to take the pocket watch in her hand.
The pocket watch flashed and instantly disappeared in her palm.
She frowned with suspicion and looked around, only to see the thick fog gradually dispersing.
Soon she had no time to think about the watch.
An overwhelming golden light came cleaving through the waves on the sea surface. The seawater was divided in half. The boundless deep sea seemed to become a glass box with walls on one side, separating the fish schools on the opposite side from this shore. The golden light traveled between the two sides of seawater, as if heading to the world's end.
The merfolk panicked. Amala's voice directing and comforting was drowned in the rising cries. Even a little merfolk in her confusion crashed directly into Lucita's arms.
"S-Sorry! Sorry, sister—"
The little merfolk looked up, bowed hurriedly several times, and was about to swim away when Lucita caught her arm and pulled her close.
"Be careful." Lucita touched her dark red hair and looked up to gaze in the direction of the golden light.
After that golden light divided the seawater, it gradually permeated into the sea.
The little merfolk accidentally contacted the golden light points and was greatly alarmed. Just as she was about to pull Lucita and cry for help, she suddenly heard the sound of chains breaking.
She rubbed her head, thinking it was auditory hallucination. But soon she made an amazing discovery—her mental sea suddenly churned violently, unconsciously extending outward in all directions.
Heaven knew, since birth, her mental sea had been like a dead sea without half a ripple!
Countless changing, chaotic, and disordered thoughts surged from all directions. Fresh, free feelings made her almost lightheaded.
She gathered her scattered consciousness, released Lucita's arm, and spun around happily several times.
The surrounding merfolk had the same reaction. Joyful emotions spread through this dilapidated palace in the deep sea.
Sunlight descended into this dark deep sea. The brilliant blue light waves were even somewhat dazzling. Countless bubbles rose. Coral stretched. Water plants swayed. A joyful whale song came from the distance.
The invisible chain binding the deep sea broke inch by inch.
Amala took a deep breath and looked tearfully toward the golden light-shrouded sea surface: "Gaia above—"
No one knew who began it, but soon the once-silent deep sea filled with song.
Merfolk were natural singers. The song was delicate and far-reaching, carried far by wave after wave. Clownfish stopped under the coral to listen carefully. Kraken sea dancers stretched their red slender feet to dance with the waves.
Amala came to Lucita's side and watched this scene with her. Her rough, hoarse voice was full of emotion: "I can hardly believe it... The Kraken Sea has never been this lively."
The golden light gradually dispersed. The seawater merged. The melodious music lingered long.
Amala gave Lucita a deep embrace: "Thank you. You brought us hope. You are our friend forever, forever."
Facing Amala's sudden warmth, Lucita was somewhat at a loss. After Amala released her, she coughed lightly: "You're too kind... Also, my friends who came with me..."
"Follow me." Amala collected her emotions and led Lucita into the crystal palace. In a corner room were two clam beds with Sylvette and Lily lying in them respectively.
For a mature merfolk who had recovered mental talents, performing mental healing was very easy. She placed her palm on each person's forehead in turn, closed her eyes and hummed for a moment, and Sylvette and Lily showed reactions.
After the two woke, hearing about the merfolk race's story, they exclaimed repeatedly and were very frightened for themselves.
Sylvette's focus was keen: "Mixed-bloods can also perform ritual magic? That shouldn't be right. I've tried it too, there was no reaction."
Lucita played dumb to patch things up: "Maybe it's luck. Perhaps it's because my human bloodline has suppressive dominance that I could perform the ritual. You know, my other half bloodline provider is pureblooded human."
Lucita's bloodline was clear. Her mother was a mixed-blood born and raised in town. The other half of her bloodline came from a pureblooded human who lived with her mother in town for over ten years before Lucita was born.
Therefore, Sylvette and Lily wouldn't suspect anything else and even thought this "speculation" made sense, nodding one after another.
Having resolved the matters at the sea bottom, Lucita's gaze passed through the layers of coral and fish schools before her and fell on the sea surface far beyond.
Several people understood. They came to the sea surface together and stopped at the site of Sylvette's sunken ship.
The ship's wreckage had been scattered by the wave dragon's assault. Scattered wooden pieces and shattered sails drifted aimlessly on the sea surface.
Sylvette looked around and frowned: "Where are they? Those fallen ones."
"Perhaps... over there."
Lucita pointed behind the reef. Amala came over, glanced once, and fell into a long silence.
There, a patch of churning foam floated on the sea surface.
Comments
Post a Comment