Saint Seiya: The Legend of Seiya

80 - Yesterday's Hope

"Captain's log, twelfth day of voyage. We left the coasts of the Antarctic continent to head to the Sea of Japan, in search of the third Relic of the Sea. However, we found ourselves in a complex scenario, but not at all unexpected. As we reached the Japanese seas, just before the day shift change, the crow's nest sailor sounded the alarm, waking everyone up to the imminence of a storm on the high seas. With no time to wait for it to pass or swerve, Seiya suggested we fly through it, but Geist rightly objected to the idea due to the many variables to control in midair. I decided to break through the storm with as much head speed as we can accumulate so we can blast through the storm with all our might. We can only hope it works. Maybe Poseidon has finally realized what we're trying to do."

Athena's Galleon shook violently within the storm of lightning and terrible winds; the waves broke inside the boat, wetting everyone. There was no one in the crow's nest and the sails were all carefully handled by Meko Kaire, who was at the bow, controlling the foresail's sail with his enormous strength, to prevent it from misaligning and taking the boat off her course out of that storm.

"Maintain the course!" he shouted as hard as he could.

Geist was at the helm, keeping the boat on its Captain's course, also with enormous force; Seiya and Lunara were on deck with spyglasses looking for clear spaces so they could guide the Captain or warn them for the upcoming waves that could rock the boat. It was an oceanic dance in which everyone played their part so that they could get through that terrible storm.

Seiya saw no clearing on his side, but what he saw scared him; he glanced at the spyglass three times to be sure, when at last his bell rang loudly, screaming at the top of his lungs.

"Whirlpool! "and then repeated: "Whirlpool on the sea!"

Lunara ran beside him to confirm what Seiya saw and her young eyes clearly saw the crest of a gigantic whirlpool that was beginning to form in the waves that the boat was sailing; the dark center began to spin faster and faster as it sank into an abyss.

"A maelstrom." she commented, remembering the maritime studies that Meko had forced everyone to read that week of preparation. "A maelstrom!"

The captain climbed into the forecastle and, leaning on the jib, saw with horror that, in fact, they were facing an enormous whirlpool that would swallow them forever in the North Pacific seas. He knew he would have to drop the sails for the strong winds to toss the boat so violently that they could break free from the powerful centrifugal force of that whirlpool.

The captain was giving orders at the top of his lungs, running around the deck adjusting the sails and asking Geist to throw everything to windward on his command, so that she would turn everything to leeward and, with luck, turn the boat in such a way in favor of the wind that would throw them away from that abyss that opened into the ocean.

Geist was waiting for her Captain's order when her eyes saw something unbelievable on the horizon: another boat struggling to free itself from that whirlpool that would surely engulf them both.

Kaire finally gave the order and she threw the entire rudder to the side downwind so that the boat turned violently to the side, throwing the unsuspecting sailors against the deck rail but finally breaking free of the huge waves. destined to swallow them all into the whirlpool. Thunder rumbled, until the winds finally threw the Athena's Galleon into an impossible lull.

Geist looked at her back and saw how the storm still roared, mighty but still, as they were out of it and away from that terrible whirlpool. Her Captain stood up on deck and congratulated her on her excellent work. She again looked around for the boat she had seen briefly trying to save itself from the same whirlpool, hoping that it had been saved as well. She locked the rudder and went down to the deck.