Wroo~
Being able to stretch its wings, Maga was happy as it circled in the air despite the cold water droplets falling in its body. The fog didn't bother Maga either since it had always practiced under much heavier 'haze' together with the boy on its back now.
As the two flew farther, Ling had to lean down to speak at the dragon's ear to be heard in the rush of the wind during the flight. "We shouldn't go farther than this. The others might not let us out again or if there's an incident, we might lose the ship."
Hearing this, Maga just nodded, then circled back only to dive fast to the water below. Before its snout could reach the water, a meter-long fish suddenly jumped out.
Maga was not surprised. It had seen the movement of this fish under the water so it immediately snatched it up with its mouth, then the dragon flew up again. Afterwards, Maga hovered above the ship and dropped the still struggling prey in its mouth.
This scene repeated a few more times during the past hour, making the children as well as the crew happy. Eventually, Maga had had enough. However, it still didn't plan to return to the ship and just hovered above it.
Even if just flying around in what the dragon considered a small area, it was still better than getting stuck inside a room with only the one boy for company. Not that it didn't like the boy's company but the two could only do little stuff alone in their room.
They didn't know that it would actually take more than a week just to reach the border of the Limaw sea. That meant that they were stuck inside for all those days since the captain wouldn't let them out.
Thereupon, the crew encountered a series of storms which let the two out to help the crew. However, they soon had to return to their room like the children they were after playing outside. It was a disappointing adventure to Ling and Maga so far.
That was until they encountered that huge octopus and strange fish though. But the adventure was still short and not satisfying enough.
Therefore, Maga, with Ling's agreement decided to just hover around. Besides, the two had been hearing a series of roars since earlier and they were determining where it was coming from. Maybe they were near an island where dragons live, even if it was not the main island yet.
The fog was thick, hence the whole crew still couldn't see much before them. Earlier, the rock formations in the surroundings tend to be situated together so Ling and Maga stayed slightly closer to the ship.
Without warning, a gust of wind suddenly blew. Maga, flying ahead of the ship, was buffeted by it. Its vision suddenly changed from seeing the rocks in front to seeing its feet as its body turned upsidedown.
They would have hit the ship's sail, but fortunately, Maga managed to veer sideways to avoid it, even while being tumbled by the strong wind. After a few more turns, the dragon finally got its beatings again. Ling was also unharmed, though his eyes were still rolling in his head even when they were already steady.
The wind didn't stop though. Soon, everybody saw the gray fog gathering in the eye of the storm heading towards their ship. The crew was surprised since their navigator didn't detect it coming. Now, it will reach their ship in under half an hour. Shouts then resounded aboard the ship. But that and the running footsteps on wood didn't drown out the rumbling of the thunder.
"Let's go down to help." Ling said with a shaky voice while leaning close to Maga's ear again. The dragon nodded and dived down.
However, the dragon tumbled again. It looked like it bumped on a wall. Maga shook its head to clear its mind. The hit didn't hurt but being toppled again was still annoying.
Afterwards, Maga tried again. But again, they were hindered by a wall. They could see and hear the happenings on the ther side but it was like there was a wall separating them from the other side.
Soon, they could see a thin 'mist' forming a circle around the ship. Was the crew starting to form a barrier to shield them from the storm? But they should know that Ling and Maga were still outside!
Ling told Maga to circle around the ship to look for a way in. But it was futile. The storm was coming from their front and they didn't know where to hide. This calamity was not an illusion this time.
Then, a crewmate noticed the dragon flying around. "Get back here, you two!" He shouted amidst the loud thunder.
That was when he saw the thin barrier surrounding the ship. "Kana, sir! Ling and Maga couldn't get near the ship because of that 'mist'!"
Kana kept shouting. His father still wouldn't wake up even after he had sent a few men to rouse him. Now, one of the crew was getting his attention. Couldn't they see he was already busy?!
But he soon saw the problem. Another problem aside from the fast coming storm of course. Where did this wall came from? He knew that the crew couldn't raise something such as this that could encompass a meter or two larger than the ship.
Where was their captain?!
Before he could voice out that question, the storm was suddenly in front of the dragon and the wall. It moved faster than they expected.
Of course Ling and Maga were caught by surprise. Rocks hurtling inside the storm immediately pelted down. Suddenly, a big one hit the two from high up, leading them again on another tumble down into the water this time.
The splash woke the crew up. Their shouts got louder, as if it would help them stop the storm. Although, at least it might wake up their captain.
Then, they noticed that the rocks pelting down were not hitting their ship. It was being stopped by the thin 'mist' surrounding their ship. The splashing sounds of the rocks hitting the water were then accompanied ny obscure roars, followed by wings flapping getting louder and louder.
Soon, the crew saw the winged creatures of various colors flying behind the storm. Obviously, these were not a group of migrating birds. They were a lot bigger than birds but still smaller than the storm. Noticably though, the storm slowed down in the face of these beasts.
"WHAT ARE YOU ALL DOING NOW?! ROW!!!"
The sudden shout made the crew shut their open mouths. They turned and saw their captain finally up. Immediately, movements around the ship resumed again. It was not as frantic as before with Kana leading them. Albeit a little scary, their captain was still dependable as he stood at the helm.
One brave crew then spoke to his captain. "S-sir, the children fell in the water."
"SO WHAT?! YOU WANNA GO DOWN AND SAVE THEM?! THEN, GO!"
"N-no, no, sir!" The crew kept shaking his head even as he ran back to his position. Well, at least he tried was his thought.