Hidden Magic (6 page)

More than one hundred years earlier, the Halfses' elders had suffered a great loss. A furious battle with Nicor had resulted in the sinking of a grand ship that had been used by the Halfses to explore Serenity Ocean. During this battle, many of the Halfses that had been on board the vessel lost their lives. This grand old ship had found its resting place on a ledge around twenty metres below the reef. The ship lay on its side, partially embedded in a layer of sand. Its huge masts, which had once towered proudly above the ocean waves, were now broken, tangled in seaweed and lying horizontally across the sandy floor of the ledge, their tips jutting out into the blackness of the unknown, deeper darker ocean that extended beyond the reef. The ship's hull remained virtually intact except for a hole on one of its sides. As Lettitia and Mateo reached the shipwreck, a group of playful sharks that had been hiding inside the ship's hull rushed out of this hole and then, just as quickly as they had appeared, they disappeared, swimming off into the ocean's blackness.

Lettitia had decided to look for Pelagia inside the ship's hull and, using the same hole that the sharks had swum out of, she swam in. The starfish that she had tied to her bikini bottoms provided enough light to partially light up the inside of the wooden vessel, but many of the ship's corners still remained hidden in the darkness. Lettitia had never seen Pelagia. Very little was known about him; he was probably the most mysterious Berthold in all of Liberty. She was a little apprehensive about what he may be like when, or indeed if, she did find him. As she pondered this and navigated her way through an eerily dark and narrow corridor, she felt a sudden rush in the water and a large, dark, shadowy figure suddenly appeared in the corridor in front of her. It rushed past at speed, knocking into her, its force pushing her violently against the side of the corridor, tangling her long blonde hair around a piece of the ship's broken wooden structure. Startled by this encounter and completely unaware of what this dark, shadowy figure was, Lettitia's natural instinct was to gasp and as she did so, she involuntarily inhaled some of the ocean's water.

Mateo was searching for Pelagia outside of the ship when he saw the large, dark creature swim out of the hole in the ship's hull. It was a shark that had been left behind by the earlier group. Mateo thought nothing of this. Sharks were gentle creatures and this one had not intentionally startled Lettitia, it was simply shy and had accidentally collided with her in a rush to be reunited with its friends. The shark was completely oblivious to the danger that it had placed Lettitia in and it swam out into the ocean's darkness to find its friends. Mateo was also unaware of Lettitia's predicament and he carried on with his search for Pelagia outside the ship.

Meanwhile, Lettitia was frantically struggling to free her hair from the ship's structure and for the first time in her life, the ocean in which she usually found peace and happiness, had now become a treacherous and life-threatening place to be. Failing to untangle her hair and having already inhaled some water, Lettitia suddenly realised that not only might she not return to the others with Pelagia, she might not return to them at all! Having held her breath now for over fifteen minutes, the urge to breathe was overwhelming. As she battled with her urge to breathe, the pressure within her body was building and becoming unbearable. She felt as if her head was going to explode. The urge to take in a breath, to fill her lungs with air and replenish her body's need for oxygen to nourish its tissues, was becoming impossible to resist. However, she knew that if she gave in, if she succumbed to this urge to take in a breath, she would not fill her lungs with the air that she desired, the air that she craved to support her life, but she would instead fill them with water, sealing her fate and that would be that! She closed her eyes and prepared herself for her death; surrendering herself to the ocean that she loved and respected so much.

A tug! And another!
What's that tugging at my hair?
she thought. She opened her eyes and as she looked around, she saw nothing there, but somehow the tugging continued, until eventually her hair was freed. Then, still with no one anywhere to be seen, but feeling just as if someone had picked her up, her body was cradled and she was lifted through the water and out of the ship. Then, with incredible speed, her cradled body surged upwards, rushing through the ocean's waters to the surface. Once this surface was broken and she was out of the ocean, she gasped, filling her lungs with the nourishing night air and for the very first time she was able to see her saviour. The unseen entity that had been cradling her was now visible. His body was formed from the ocean's water, his white hair and full beard were formed from the ocean's spray. Then, just as a wave would surge towards the shore, Pelagia surged forward, carrying Lettitia back to the fishing boat, where the others were anxiously awaiting her return.

Pelagia was godlike, he was a part of the ocean. With immense strength and fluidity, he was able to change his size, shape and form at will. Berthold of Serenity Ocean and Beach, commander of the ocean's Water Warriors, a truly magical and mystical being!

Onboard the fishing boat, Zavier, Aaron and April's attentions were instantly drawn to the wave that was surging towards them on the otherwise still ocean. As they looked closer, they could see Lettitia being carried to them and realised that this wasn't a wave at all and that she had indeed done what she had set out to do, she had found the ocean's Berthold, the elusive Pelagia. As Pelagia reached the boat's bow, he gently lapped at its side and then placed Lettitia on the deck.

“She almost drowned and has gone into shock, you must keep her warm,” Pelagia said, in his authoritative, deep, booming and powerful voice.

April grabbed a couple of blankets from the boat's wheelhouse, she placed them around Lettitia and sat with her, wrapping her arms tightly around Lettitia's shivering body to help keep her warm. Mateo had swum to the boat and was circling around it, leaping in and out of the water, searching the minds of those onboard, trying to find out what had happened to Lettitia and checking to make sure that she was okay.

Pelagia boarded the boat like a wave breaking against it and then fluidly changed his shape and size to that of a regular man.

“Thank you for returning Lettitia to us,” Zavier said gratefully. “Did she explain the reason for our visit to you?”

“Her hair had become entangled within the old wreck and she was very close to drowning. She was in no fit state to explain anything, she is lucky to be alive!” replied Pelagia.

“Well, we are extremely grateful to you for her safe return. I think that we should take her back ashore where we can care for her properly. But Pelagia, it is of great urgency that I speak with you tonight regarding the Nomeds. Are you able to join us ashore?”

“Certainly,” answered Pelagia. “I will gather the rest of the Water Warriors and we'll meet you there.”

The fishing boat headed back to the beach house, guided ashore by the brightness of the beach fire. The fire was a beautiful, glowing mixture of reds, oranges and yellows. The Fire Fairies danced around euphorically within its flames and they sporadically shot out into the night sky, fizzing and sparkling, providing a dazzling firework display.

Back on the beach, the others had gathered around the magnificent fire that Tobias had built and were sat on logs, eating Jazmine's delicious mana-eesh pizza. Ezekiel was now feeling much better, just a little sore following his earlier encounter with Fala, but his appetite remained unaffected and he proceeded to devour his fourth piece of mana-eesh. Jazmine and Hazel had been growing concerned about the length of time that the others had been out on the ocean. Their relief could clearly be seen in the expressions on their faces as they spotted the starfish-lit fishing boat heading back ashore. Once the fishing boat was safely moored to the pier, Aaron and April began to offload the starfish lanterns. Zavier carried Lettitia up to the beach house so that she could change into some warm clothes and rest a little before joining the others around the fire. Jazmine ran as fast as she could down the length of the pier and leapt onto Aaron, who was unable to embrace her as he was carrying a starfish lantern in each hand. She wrapped her arms around his neck and her legs around his waist, then began showering him with kisses. “What took you so long?” she asked.

“Well, we nearly lost Lettitia to the ocean, she almost drowned!” Aaron replied.

“What? Where is she, is she okay?” Jazmine asked.

“Yeah, she's fine, just a little shocked. Zavier has taken her up to the house to get warmed up and recover before dinner.”

“Did you find Pelagia?” Jazmine asked, as Aaron began walking toward the beach with her still tightly wrapped around him.

“Pelagia found us,” he replied. “He rescued Lettitia and returned her to us. Now, he is gathering the rest of the Water Warriors and then they are coming ashore to speak with Zavier. What about Zek and Francis, have they returned yet?” asked Aaron.

“Yep, but that's a whole other story. I'll tell you about it later, but first let's get you sat by the fire and fed,” she said, before showering him with more kisses.

“Sounds good to me,” Aaron said, as they neared the others that were sat round the fire. “Hey, Zek, you'd better have saved me some of that mana-eesh!” he called out to Ezekiel, but Ezekiel was unable to answer as he ploughed into another mouthful of the delicious pizza, so instead he just grunted and gave a cheeky grin.

The group were reunited around the fire and despite the perils that they had already encountered up to this point of the journey, they were all in remarkably good spirits. With their bellies full and their souls comforted by the warmth of the fire, the group were enjoying each other's company, laughing and joking. Chester was rolling around on the floor almost crying with laughter, his little wings clutching his wobbling red tummy as he laughed so much that it was really beginning to hurt.

“What are white, circular and laugh lots?” Tobias asked.

Chester tried to say, “What?” but he could barely get the words out for laughing.

“Tickled onions,” said Tobias. “A group of frogs walked into a bar… the next one ducked!”

“Stop it, stop it, you're killing me,” cried Chester but Tobias continued with the lame jokes.

“Why did the car cross the road…? Because the chicken was driving it!”

Tears of laughter rolled down the little robin's face, but his laughter was soon interrupted by a loud roaring sound that was coming from the ocean. As the roar grew louder and louder, its source soon became evident. A huge wave was surging towards the shore and as it broke against the sandy beach, it dispersed into the most amazing sight, a band of running water people. These people were formed from the ocean, they were the Water Warriors and they were led by their commander, Pelagia.

Very little was known about the Water Warriors. These magical beings were elusive, to say the least, and the ocean in which they resided was vast. They rarely came ashore, there was no need, for the Nomeds seldom ventured anywhere near to the beach or ocean. In fact, the last time that the Nomeds had been seen there was probably over one hundred years ago, when the grand ship was sunk. It is said that the Nomeds risked damaging their slug-like skins in the salty and corrosive ocean air, in search of the legendary Heart of Gold that is said to hold immeasurable power for the one that it is meant to belong to. Who this is, isn't known, but it is thought to be one of the Berthold. The Nomeds were keen to find the Heart of Gold and destroy it, thus preventing it from falling into the hands of the one that it was truly meant for. For, if the Heart were to find its rightful owner, the power of good that would be unleashed would probably mean the defeat and demise of the Nomeds for good!

The Heart of Gold was taken to the ocean many years ago aboard the grand old ship by one of the Halfses' elders and bestowed upon the Water Warriors for safe-keeping. The Great Prophet had told of a time when the Heart of Gold would find its way to its rightful and deserving owner and that this time would be when the Heart's powers were most needed. Nahla, a young female Water Warrior, was given the Heart of Gold and asked to protect it and hide it somewhere safe until such a time.

Neither Nahla nor the legendary Heart of Gold had been seen since!

It is said that there are a total of eight Water Warriors, each of them formed from the ocean itself but each still individually distinguishable. Immortal beings that spend most of their time in the darkest depths of the ocean; they are able to dwell on land but the longer that they are away from the ocean, the weaker their powers become and so they remain submerged in the darkness of the vast ocean, retaining their powers until such a time that they are needed to fight on land. All of the Water Warriors have the immense power and strength of the ocean and the ability to change their size, shape and form at will. Pelagia, their Berthold, has the additional ability to produce power orbs. When these magical glowing orbs of water collide with their intended target, they increase that target's power and strength greatly and are therefore used to enhance the powers of others, rather than acting as a weapon themselves.

Pelagia is the commander of the Warriors. He is an older male with long, flowing hair and a thick beard and moustache composed of sea spray and foam. His huge and powerful body is an assortment of turbulent currents, torrents, sprays and waves. He is strong and forceful, with a loud, powerful, booming voice that commands respect.

Nahla is the protector of the Heart of Gold, a young female Warrior who has not been seen for many years. She is very lean and sleek with long, smooth, flowing hair and a smooth body of water.

Una, the eldest of the female Warriors, is a large, portly woman, with a voluptuous body of water and wild, white, wavy hair comprised of ocean spray and foam.

Thoosa is a young and curvy female Warrior. She has a sinuous body of swift currents and a light spray of flowing hair.

Galene, the last of the female Warriors, is a youngster with a smooth and still body of calm water. She is easily distinguished from the other females as she has no hair.

Then there are the male Warriors, all of which are composed of turbulent and changeable bodies of water.

Aphros, as his name depicts, is distinguished by his thick afro hair of sea foam.

Jaladhi has huge muscular swells and finally there is Dorien, a young male identified by his beautifully smooth, defined and toned physique. Dorien's turbulence remains hidden within and his true strength only becomes apparent in times of conflict.

Although the Water Warriors are elusive, they are very well respected throughout the whole of Liberty and those that are fortunate enough to meet them are very honoured indeed.

* * *

At the beach, Zavier informed Pelagia and his Warriors of the quest to collect Liberty's Berthold and then take them to the Great Prophet. Pelagia was already aware of the Nomeds' growing strength, but Zavier filled him in on the recent attacks and the possibility that some of the Nomeds may have escaped into the Human world.

The Water Warriors were a united force and they did not like to be separated from one another, so it was therefore decided that they would all accompany Zavier and the rest of the group on the remainder of the journey. All except for Nahla, that is; her loyalty remained with the Heart of Gold and in order to keep it safe, she remained hidden.

“My group are exhausted,” exclaimed Zavier. “We will rest at the beach house for the night and continue with our journey in the morning. Pelagia, you and your Warriors should return to the ocean for the night, maintain your power and meet us back here on the beach at dawn. We shall leave for the next stage of the journey at first light.”

And with that, Pelagia and his Warriors rolled back down the beach and into the ocean waves, disappearing for the night.

The Fire Fairies had returned to their beach poppies and all that remained of their earlier dazzling spectacle were the smouldering embers of the fire as it gradually fizzled out. The group of Halfses, Francis and Chester retired to the beach house and soon the only sounds to be heard were those of the waves breaking gently on the shore and the loud rumbling of Aaron snoring.