Three Spheres

Chapter 81 - Akkorokamui

The high-pitched sound of the siren resounds throughout the fort. Red lights flash in each room. Joi grunts loudly and covers its skull, irritated. Yomi pulls Amadeo, and they leave the place, locking the door behind. The ice stalactites in the tunnels shake non-stop.

On the way, Yomi explains:

_ This siren means that Weimin saw something coming, so we need to prepare for a real fight. _ She makes a bubble gum _ Your specialty is elemental magic, right? _ Amadeo confirms; Yomi rolls her eyes _ What a shame. Those are totally useless here: You die before you can light a spark outside; the earth is too far below the snow to be used; water/ice and wind can't hurt the things we have to kill.

Amadeo feels the weight of that criticism. It is difficult to leave his comfort zone, especially in front of a veteran like Yomi. She continues:

_ I saw that you used Fortescue's "quantum leap" in the Ágora. It was pretty impressive. Atomic manipulation is absurd; even I can't do that. So I kept thinking that you escalated way too quickly. You know the principles of how matter and energy work, so why don't you use magnetism, gravity, these kinda thing?

_ I can use it, no prob... These days, I even used Vector manipulation... I can't remember where it was though... _ He sighs _ But it all take sooo long! They take a time to prepare and to activate. So, if I'm gonna waste time, I prefer to use a high level sumonation at once...

_ But why are you in such a hurry? _ Yomi interrupts _ There's an entire team here to help you. Not to mention that bulky brute that will surely hold down the enemy for you. Isn't it better to save energy and improve your spellcasting than to bet everything on something that can go wrong? _ She pinches his cheek _ It's cute when you're dumb like this.

Amadeo reflects on that phrase. He knows that Yomi is saying that from experience, not as "protocol". In addition, he thinks about the moments when he was creative and "daring", like in the Midnight City and even during the Ágora.

_ En! _ Weimin exclaims, running alongside Pema _ The enemy is quickly approaching! Impact in approximately 6 minutes. The radar suggests it is an Akkorokamui* and it seems to be quite unhappy.

_ The twins took the harpoons outside and Sayuri went to assess the situation. _ Pema complements _ Marjolin went to check what happened to the security nets... They didn't fire, again! I told you not to buy those cheap cables, didn't I?! _ She snorts.

_ Excellent. _ Yomi answers _ We'll sort this soon.

Without delay, the four leave the fort, wearing heavy clothes. The wind is stronger than ever and the sky is bright red. Leaving the waters, immense tentacles can be seen, surrounded by ice and thorns. They shake and collide with the coast, causing most of the glaciers to collapse.

_ 6 minutes to impact, right? _ Yomi replies, facing Weimin angrily.

The creature crawls towards the ground, showing the colossal body, comparable to a warship. Amadeo takes a few steps forward and... "Why are Emília and Johan without their coats?!?!", he thinks.

Yomi whistles and everyone gathers around her. While the visitors dress decently, she gives peculiar instructions:

_ To make it clear, the Akkorokamui is immortal; theoretically speaking. So, our goal is to get it back into the depths, without devouring our buildings or our boats.

_ The people too, Yomi! He can't devour the people! _ Sayuri exclaims.

_ Yeah, right. Anyway, this creature doesn't think and will always take to the mouth what it catches with its tentacles. It's also worth remembering that the thorns cause frostbite. _ She throws a new gum in her mouth _ My team can deal with it in 15 minutes. So, to get us some thrill, the three of you can try to manage it first. What you think? _ She stares at Emília _ Since it eats whales, if you do the favor of being devoured, it would help everyone.