BXBX NOVEL Chapter 27: Lights Of The South
She looked over Artemis's shoulder and saw a dozen massive red blobs of mana heading in their direction, which made her stiffen. But that's when the brown-haired girl glowed and started to transform.
Amethyst witnessed Mana morphing Artemis and giving her a fishtail like the Sirens of legend. After transforming, she spoke in a concerned tone, ''Hold on, birdy.''
After speaking, she took off and zoomed through the water while the Kraken destroyed the rest of the ship before vanishing into the darkness below. Amethyst then spotted the Blood Shark dashing toward us, and she warned in a panic, ''They're coming! Hurry up and swim!''
''Shut up, bird! I'm trying my best; I haven't done this in months,'' Artemis barked before speeding up.
She knew the Blood Sharks were chasing them; even though they were big, the monsters were fast. That's when an epic chase began, as the twelve creatures closed in on them, but she evaded all the attacks thanks to Artemis's speed.
A shark appeared whenever she tried to swim toward the shore or surface, forcing them to continue running; this happened for a while, causing Amethyst to get fed up, as being underwater annoyed her.
She pointed her hand at the closest monster and cast Cosmic Blast. A purple blast of mana shot out and struck the Blood Shark. The spell burned a hole straight through the monster's hide.
Amethyst continued casting spells while Artemis was fleeing the remaining creatures. Soon enough, they were surprised as a monster burst out of the shadows below. Artemis managed to dodge it but had to flee toward a nearby cave.
When the two entered it, there was an air pocket inside. Artemis burst out of the water and transformed into her human form before landing with a thud. That's when a Blood Shark burst out of the water, but she took out a sling and fired a mana bullet into its skull.
The monster flopped dead, allowing Artemis to grab it and pull it into the cave. When Amethyst saw the sight, it was horrifying. The shark was ten feet long, deep red, and had menacing-looking eyes.
'Just like they're name, their blood red in color,' the phoenix girl thought.
Rows upon rows of razor-sharp teeth lined its mouth. Amethyst shivered at the sight, but she asked, ''Why are we not throwing it back into the water?''
Artemis didn't look at her while cutting a knife into the shark. She explained, ''Blood Sharks are Rank D sea monsters. Their meat is soaked in mana and will give us the energy to make it through that cave once it's cooked.''
She pointed to a nearby hole in their hideout. Amethyst looked into the hole, and thanks to her Cosmic Sight, she could see the mana floating in the air, but no monsters were hiding in the dark.
While watching the hole, the water below turned bright red, causing Amethyst to yelp, but Artemis explained, ''The Blood Sharks went on a rampage and ate the smaller ones of their kind. It's a common behavior when prey evades them.''
Amethyst nodded and decided to check her status as she killed a few of them on the way here.
[Level Up: 30→31]
[Experience: 170/1000]
[Experience Gained: 900]
[Health: 274→276]
[Mana: 1230→1236]
[Strength: 292→296]
[Stamina: 566→568]
[Charisma: 310→312]
[Intelligence: 212→214]
[Core Points: 1900→4700]
[Core Points Gained: 2800]
Happy with her gains, Amethyst turned to Artemis as she cut away chunks of juicy-looking meat while taking out a large green Monster Core and sighing, ''This would be worth at least 2 gold coins, but alas, we cannot carry it.''
Artemis absorbed the core until it turned into dust, allowing her to return to cutting off the best chunks of meat. She questioned while approaching the brown-haired woman, ''How will we cook it? There's no wood in here?''
''Don't worry, Little Bird. I will show you and your boyfriend how to survive,'' Artemis said as her brown eyes shone.
She felt jealousy well up and knew she had to cement her place in Atlas's life, ''You do know he will have a harem?''
''Yes, the Aetlos is prophesized to tame thirteen stars; some scholars believe it represents the thirteen watchers of the Light of the South Constellation,'' the brown-haired woman explained while glancing around.
Artemis then spotted some nearby Dry Cave Moss, which she used instead of wood. She used her knife to cut enough to last for a while and approached Amethyst, who looked confused. "What's wrong?" she questioned.
''What is the Light of the South? I only know of the Azhar'Zul Constellation; it covers the southern portion of the world while the Nakurmiik Lights watch the north,'' she explained.
When Artemis heard this, she smiled, ''Yes, that's the name your people call it, but us who live outside that death trap call it the Lights of the South. The Graecorians and Nubians have also named it that, but the Achaemenidians call it the Vega Lights.''
She nodded as Artemus started a fire using the moss she collected. The grey smoke floated toward the cave entrance and was sucked into it. Following that, the brown-haired woman started cooking the shark meet.
Amethyst sat there drying off her clothes and blindfold, causing Artemis to gasp. She turned to the woman with raised eyebrows, ''What?''
''Your eyes are just like Aetlos's! They are just purple and more draconic looking,'' Artemis commented. ''Are you sure you're not a dragon?''
''Shut up, Fish! I am a mighty Cosmic Phoenix! The strongest of my race,'' Amethyst declares, but the cave they were in glowed in a beautiful purple color.
Artemis's eyes widened in shock. "So the legends are true. The first wife of the old Aetlos was a Cosmic Phoenix who remained by his side until his death. According to the stories, her grief was so profound that she couldn't bear to live without him. In her sorrow, she soared into the sky and detonated her Mana Core, creating what we now know as the Lights of the South."
She was enthralled with the story, but Artemis concluded, ''There are many stories to remember; maybe you and my future boyfriend can find a library,'' she said with a grin.
''Shut up, you Fish! You're older than us; why would you want someone so young,'' the phoenix girl retorted.
Artemis giggled, ''I'm only seventeen, Little Bird, not much older than you two.''
''Can I see your status?''
The brown-haired young woman laughed again, ''Only because we're friends.''
''Stop calling me that!'' Amethyst snapped, causing Artemis to laugh while flipping the shark meat before showing her status.
Name: Artemis Olympaea
Age: 17
Race: Siren
Class: Argonaut
Level: 123
Rank: Adept
Experience: 1240/5000
Affinity: Earth - Thunder - Water
___
Attributes:
Health: 1330
Mana: 2100
Strength: 2400
Stamina: 2100
Charisma: 500
Intelligence: 1050
___
Mana Core:
Core Rank: High Novice
Core Points: 9750/30000
Body Tempering Level: Bronze Body
___
Spells:
Attack: Lv-1: Lightning Bullet (7) Lv-1: Water Arrow (7) Lv-2: Thunder Punch (5) Lv-2: Aqua Bomb (3) Lv-2: Earth Spike (2) Lvl-2: Lighting Slash (5) Lv-3: Arc Lightning (1)
Defence: Lv-3: Gaia's Embrace (2) Lv-3: Shockwave (1)
Support: Lv-1: Gaia's Glide (8) Lv-2: Enhancement (4)
Utility:
___
Skills: Swordsmanship (7) Survivlist (4) Hand-to-Hand Combat (9) Foraging (6) Stealth (5) Eaglevison (2) Lockpicking (0) Appraisal (2) Treasure Sense (2) Sling Expertise (8) Siren Form (3) Leviathan's Call (0)
''Happy Little Bird?'' Artemis commented with a grin.
She huffed before showing her own so she was even with the brown-haired Siren.
Name: Amethyst
Age: 14
Race: Cosmic Phoenix
Class: Cosmic Mage
Level: 31
Rank: Novice
Experience: 170/1000
Affinity: Space
___
Attributes:
Health: 276
Mana: 1236
Strength: 296
Stamina: 568
Charisma: 312
Intelligence: 214
___
Mana Core:
Core Rank: Low Novice
Core Points: 4700/10000
Body Tempering Level:
___
Spells:
Attack: Lv-1: Cosmic Bullet (2) Lv-1: Stellar Arrow (3) Lv-2: Cosmic Blast (4)
Defence: Lv-1: Cosmic Barrier (4)
Support:
Utility:
___
Skills: Phoenix Form (Locked) Cosmic Wings (2) Cosmic Sight (1)
Artemis was impressed and thought, 'She's just like Zenithra from the stories, why is the story becoming reality?'
She quickly spoke, making the phoenix girl smile, ''You're powerful for your age. You can potentially become one of the greats, Little Bird.''
Amethyst beamed, ''Thank you, Arty,'' she said happily.
Artemis heard the nickname and giggled before returning to the meat. She took some spices on her belt and sprinkled them on the delicious-smelling dinner, ''Come here, Little Bird,'' she said. ''You can have the first bite.''
The Phoenix girl nodded in agreement and settled down. Artemis passed her the makeshift knife, and Amethyst eagerly sliced off a piece. She savored the first bite, finding the meat delightfully tender and flavorful.
''We need to rest for tonight as the two moons are on watch already. Once the sun comes up, we can head for the meeting place. Hopefully, Aetlos is nearly there,'' Artemis commented before she started eating.
The two of them continued to eat while getting to know each other better. When they were finished, Artemis stood up and gathered so Dry Cave Moss could make two small beds and lay down while speaking while pointing at the second one, ''Join me; caves get cold during the night, and the moss will keep you warm.''
When Amethyst got comfortable, the brown-haired Siren commented, ''I've always wanted a little sister; my older siblings are horrible people.''
''We both have Azhar'Zul now, Fish, and it seems fate guided us three together, so neither of us will be alone anymore,'' she said in a groggy voice before falling asleep.