__________ POV Ashton__________
"So what's the plan now? We just go and hope to outrun it? Well, out swim it, but you get the point." Zeno asked while staring at the shadow of the sea monster that was slowly getting larger.
Honestly, it's a bit of a dumb question on his part. I wouldn't have done a draining move like that if I wasn't sure that the Ark can protect me or outrun this sea creature.
"Well, first off... Barriers UP!" My voice swept the entire ship, the people closest to me all covered their ears.
It's a bit loud, sure, but it's the way this activates. Noah's Ark is not a simple relic.
It may act as a boat, but much like the legend that I named it after, it was created to protect the beings held inside it from peril.
At my shout, a large and extremely thick barrier was erected around the ship. It was completely see-through, but Nen users should be able to observe it.
After which, the ship started moving, cutting through the wind as the barrier made sure that the people present didn't get thrown off the ship.
I could notice the surprise in the faces of the Zoldyck elders, I guess they weren't expecting this big a ship to move so quickly.
"This... I guess this can work.." Silva also made his way towards the three of us as he looked down at the shadow of the sea beast that was slowly being left behind the ship.
"Obviously! This ship is the fastest thing that will ever touch the surface of this Lake! There shouldn't be anything in these waters even aiming towards this ship. It's basically a deterrent for all of the monsters in this small lake." I said haughtily as I patted myself on the chest.
"... I get that this ship is great. But calling Lake Mobius a small lake might be a bit much..." Maha said while coughing in his own palms.
"Well, this world is ridiculously large. To the point where this could actually be called a lake in the grand scheme of things. Most human expeditions on the rest of the world only walk a mere hundred kilometres into the land. So most of it is unexplored."
Unexplored to the rest of humanity mostly. I do know quite a few nice spots further inland in the 'Dark Continent'.
"Still, this is a large expanse of water to us. Calling it an ocean is a lot more appropriate." That's also true. Human civilization within Lake Mobius only knows of Lake Mobius. So they'd have no idea of how boundless the world actually is.
There are places that literally no one in existence has ever been to. Places that my teacher spoke of with wonder. Well, I always thought they were just bedtime stories or something, but it's unlikely that he had lied to me.
"Yeah, I guess that also rig-" A large rumble of lightning and thunder interrupted my words.
Looking at the water behind the Ark, I could see large waves forming as the water moved and flowed to reveal the massive figure that it had held hidden in its depths.
It looked like any Blue Whale out there, at least in the rough shape of it. Its body was an everchanging rainbow of colours.
That creature... I never thought I'd see in my life. A large brooding figure of sizes comparable to my old teacher. Specifically, its length matches my teacher's height to some extent.
Its presence brings unease and its movements cause storms that can ruin entire continents. Its eyes were larger than cities, its mouth large enough to swallow just about everything...
"The ancestral whale..." Said to be the very progenitor of the majority of mammal sea life. This is an extremely rare species. At least that's what the Compendium of the wild hunt told me...
But... What is a whale doing in a lake? The last time I checked the entry was quite a few years back, but it said that this species only lived in the darkest depths of the 'Unexplored Ocean'.
That's on a part of the 'Dark Continent' that I've never been to.
"You're saying that this thing attacked you before...?" I asked the Zoldycks without breaking my gaze from the Ancestral Whale.
"I-It wasn't this one..." Obviously, they would've died before I reached them if this thing rose from the depths earlier.
Still, I never thought I'd hear Maha stutter, I guess some sights can still shock and shake this old assassin.
"Yeah... If this thing follows us to the New Continent then we're all screwed." I could hear a few gulps from the senior Zoldycks beside me.
Now that I'm paying more attention to my surroundings, I can also hear the panicked screams of everybody on the Ark. I've kinda been tuning them out for a while since I don't want my brain to haemorrhage.
Really, if civilians are useful for something, then it has to be the large scale sound attacks that they use when they feel threatened.
I think I'll start tuning them out again since I need to concentrate for a bit. The first issue...
"I don't know if the Ark can outrun this..." The three Zoldycks beside me all looked at me with surprise. I could also see a bit of fear creeping in.
"What happened to the whole: 'This ship is the fastest thing that will ever touch the surface of this Lake!'?!" Maha shouted with some irritation. Damn, I guess I now know where Zigg got his sass capabilities from.
"Don't diss me, old man. This thing shouldn't have been here... I don't know what the fuck is happening. But it doesn't bode well for humanity, I can tell you that much." All I received was a tired sigh from Maha.
Silva and Zeno were still taking in the sight of the Ancestral Whale. Right now, it was already starting to swim towards us.
Under normal circumstances, I'd be able to kill this. At least theoretically. Its strength should be similar to my teacher, but it lacks any type of fast regeneration. Overall, it's doable.
But, not only am I in a somewhat of a weakened state, but I also have all of these civilians and even the Zoldycks to think about.
I guess I'll have to end its pursuit in different ways...
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