78 — THE APPLE OF EDEN
The afternoon on the Death Queen Island was scorching hot; one pondering that it could be due to the sul would be wrong, because in fact the ground itself was warm and sometimes incandescent thanks to the active lava of a volcano that rises on the island's highest mountain. The sun was often hidden behind clouds of smoke that the volcano's mouth blew into the sky.
Beneath the soot and leaning against a dunghill of shattered ancient armors, a child is excited with a doll in her hand; a doll made from the scraps of metal from that place, roughly in the figure of a girl. Another equally clumsy doll was lying on the floor.
"And that's what you get for challenging the most powerful one of this place. That's right, I'm Lunara, the Queen of the Death Queen Island. Blergh!" she spoke, as if she were doubling the voice of the doll in her hands.
And then she shocked the two metal dolls, making a thousand noises with her mouth simulating the most divine of battles with the dolls made of broken pieces of the dark metal of that rubble.
"What do you think about creating some of these for real?" said a voice, interrupting her play.
When the girl looked up, she saw on top of a pile of metallic rubble the figure of another girl wearing crude clothes like hers. But then it was someone she already knew, for she was the most famous warrior in the region.
"Oh, you're Ikki, right?" said little Lunara. "I want you to know that you got lucky. If you haven't got that Armor, I'm sure I'd get it in a few years, you would see!"
"Lucky for you I made it there first." Ikki said, going down to Lunara. "So tell me little girl, do you think you can create armor like the ones you made for your dolls, but instead of doing for play, doing it for me, for my size, like the Phoenix Cloth?"
"Oh, of course I can, but I'm no Black Saint. You should go talk to them."
"They've already agreed to join me. But now I need them to look like our enemies."
"Like a mod?" Lunara asked, finally interested.
"An improvement."
Ikki knew that she had won the girl there, as she was very famous in the region for not leaving that metallic dump, which was where the leftovers of the Clothes crudely created by the Black Saints of the Death Queen Island went. Lunara was one of the last generation of orphans sent by the Graad Foundation around the world, before the old Kido's death; and, perhaps luckily, Ikki had recently gained the Phoenix Cloth, saving her from a terrible training.
"You said the Black Saint accepted." added little Lunara. "Are they nice?"
The question disconcerted Ikki, who didn't even think for a second if they were nice boys and girls to be together. She didn't quite know how to respond, and her answer was perhaps more fraught with rancor than truth.
"They're orphans like us."
Lunara was thoughtful and went back to looking at her little metal figures.
"Am I going to be part of a group, then?"
"Of the best group." teased Ikki, with a slight smile on her face.
And that made the little girl's face light up. She was in.
"Captain's log, eighth day of voyage. We managed to seal the first Relic and that brought a great boost to everyone's morale. We crossed the waters of the Indian Ocean without major problems, thanks to the exemplary performance of the crew, and finally arrived at the icy waters of the the Southern Ocean, where temperatures on the high seas are already drastically lower. Ensign Lunara's Nautical Chart indicates that the next Relic lies within the icy continent. We anchor close to the coast and set out to seal the second Relic. The exploration team feels confident. So do I. But the ice wall in front of us is an absolutely spectacular and terrifying sight to behold."
Within the auxiliary boat, little Lunara wore a white fur coat that was too big for her arms; Seiya had given it to her to use so that she would feel less cold on that icy and inhospitable mission. Ahead of them stretched an all-white coast. There was no stretch of beach, the dark and icy ocean met with a vertical glacier, with huge platforms. They would have to climb if they wanted to go forward.
"Are you sure it's in that direction?" Seiya asked everyone.
"Yes. The ensign's notes are always accurate. We need to get to the top of this wall." Geist commented beside him.
The massive ice rose steeply and vertically for more than twenty meters and almost blended in with the white sky from that part of the world. Lunara put the smaller version of the nautical chart she was carrying in the pocket of that white coat and seeked on the boat for a dark chain with a triangular tip; she gave it to June, who had trained on Andromeda Island and was also very skilled. The Chameleon Saint burned her emerald green cosmos and released the dark chain that buried itself many meters into the ice wall; it was as steady as it could be. Kaire took the other end and tied up the auxiliary boat so it would be there when they got back.
There was another pair of chains Lunara had brought with her, with razor-sharp hooks on the ends, which June swung to the top of the ice wall so they could climb; expert Saints that they were, it didn't take them long to leap across the vertical wall with the aid of the retractable chains. Little Lunara was the last to climb, hoisted up by the very force of the mechanical chain she had invented.
In front of them a gigantic white plateau opened up, stretching out in all directions, and a biting wind fluttered the hems of the overcoats they wore. They followed Lunara, who went ahead like the navigator she was. The plateau led to a hill that rose low on the horizon; they left the pure ice to walk on the mountain tundra, when something spectacular began to happen as they walked: the ice drastically diminished.
The frozen grass of moments before was turning into a green and impossible trail, as they descended through a valley where, little by little, the trees began to reappear with their natural colors and not the white layer of snow. As they emerged from the valley at last into the landscape that opened up at the bottom of it, they stopped, surprised and dazzled.
"By Athena, how is that possible?" Seiya wondered, while Lunara beside him had a twinkle in her eyes.
It was a paradise valley.
A low, crystalline river flowed along one side of the valley, bordered by a green plain on which grew a low, colorful plantation where a few people were making a brief harvest. A few small wooden houses smoked through simple chimneys and there was a clear sign of occupation as well as enormous contentment among its inhabitants. The exploration group looked at each other, unable to understand how this was possible.
"I'm already warm." Lunara said, taking off Seiya's white coat and handing it back to him.
"How is this possible? Even the sky is clear and blue." June said, looking up.
"Ensign Lunara, are you sure we're on the way to the Relic?" asked Kaire.
"Yes, captain." she replied. "She's definitely somewhere around here."
"An idyllic valley in the middle of Antarctica is not an ordinary thing." commented Geist very seriously.
"Let's investigate." said the Captain. "Hide your Cloths and stay alert. Even Paradise has its mysteries."
The five crew of Athena's Galleon descended to the valley floor and it wasn't long before they were noticed. And, to their surprise, they were greeted with a huge celebration by everyone. Soon they were surrounded by practically all the inhabitants of that paradisiacal valley; everyone wore improvised, light clothes, had a huge smile on their faces. All adults, happy, of the most varied races and genders, heights and widths.
They were greeted with a variety of welcomes in different languages and cheerful, nods and caresses. An older woman knelt at Lunara's height and offered her a light candy.
"What an adorable little girl. Want a sweetie, honey?"
"Oh for sure." Lunara accepted at once, putting the whole delicious candy in her mouth, to the horror of June, who barely had time to stop her from eating, for fear that there was some poison in there.
But little Lunara found it delicious and had her cheek pinched by the lady.
"It's been a long time since we've seen a child." she commented to Kaire, who was the only fully grown adult of them all. "You are all very young."
"Did you also shipwreck near here?" a man asked them.
"Yes, we encountered difficulties in the Antarctic seas." replied the Captain for them, and Geist noted that the Captain chose to embark on that narrative lest he touch too close to their true mission.
"Come on, you've arrived just in time. It's lunch time!" he said, showing two huge carrots in his hand. "We know how difficult it is to cross the plateau, so first you'd better rest for a while."
The Captain looked at his crew and nodded. And so they entered that impossible village in the heart of Antarctica. Little Lunara went hand in hand with the lady who had given her a candy and was soon greeted by a stocky and affectionate gentleman, who seemed to be the woman's partner. Among that entire population, there was a young woman who appeared to be the youngest of them all, although she was just under Captain Kaire's age. She also greeted them and Seiya noticed a brief smile on her face when she looked at him.
The village had several curious buildings, as they were of different sizes and colors; sometimes the doors or windows were more crooked than they should be and the whole architecture of the place had an enormous aesthetic detachment in favor of comfort and simplicity. The five were escorted as in a procession; taken inside the biggest building of all in the middle of the village, with a huge ceiling, where it was clear that it was the place where they all slept together.
As soon as they entered, they sat down on a huge bench near the door; a group said goodbye to them so they could prepare lunch. Seiya noticed the girl approaching to take his fur coat and hang it on a rack beside the bench.
"You won't need it here, trust me." she said with a heavy accent, and Seiya thanked her. "I'm Barbara, what's your name?"
"My name is Seiya."
"Nice to meet you, Seiya. Get some rest, but when you can, come down to the well for something to eat."
She brushed a speck of snow from Seiya's disheveled hair and smiled, before heading out the huge entrance reminding him to go to lunch when they were a little more rested.
"Who is the person who takes care of this community?" Captain Kaire asked an older man among them, who smiled back at him.
"There are no leaders here. I'm just older than all of them, but here we're all the same."
Captain Kaire looked at the half-dozen people tending to them, some brushing the snow off their clothes, others looking for something for the comfort of the guests between the beds and some just watching the newcomers. There was enormous contentment on everyone's faces.
"I'd like to know more how all this is possible." commented the Captain, again to the man's tender smile, but who spoke to him was the woman beside him.
"We are a community made up of castaways from many generations. We found a refuge in this little piece of paradise." she said. "Whatever you want to ask, you can ask any of us, because the answer will probably be the same, and sooner or later we'll all know anyway."
Little Lunara continued to be pampered by the lovely couple, who placed her on top of one of the beds and took off her boots so she could rest a little before they went out to eat.
And when all the ice was cleared, the warm clothes piled up or hung up, their boots dry and their feet warmed, those nice people withdrew from the huge building. The candy lady left them the last words before they left.
"We know that crossing the ice is very tiring, and we also know that we are many and very curious, so we will leave you here and, in your time, feel free to come and feed; you all will be most welcome."
"By the way," added the man beside her. "welcome to Terra-de-Santo."
And so he closed the door, leaving them alone in that huge building with at least twenty beds spread out, many pushed together, at odd angles, some tidy, others untidy. Captain Kaire got up and watched through a window as those inhabitants simply returned to their daily tasks with a huge smile and lightness on their face. He was still totally dizzy, especially as things had gone so fast since they arrived in that village.
"Oh, I loved this place." Lunara said with the huge cheek of the candy that she was still sucking in her mouth.
It wasn't just Kaire who felt overwhelmed with kindness, chatter, and welcome; everyone, in their own way, felt more relieved to be able to breathe a little of the silence that was left when everyone left. They looked at each other and Seiya noticed how June had a huge mistrust in her eyes.
"Don't you like Heaven, June?" asked Captain Kaire, finally getting to his feet.
"That doesn't feel right, Captain." she said. "A paradisiacal valley in the heart of Antarctica, in the south pole, with a lot of happy and content people. I do not like this."
"But they didn't do anything wrong, our stuff is all here, we're not trapped or anything." tried Seiya.
"And they gave me candy!" said Luna.
The Captain was still looking at the inhabitants through that window, but from there he saw absolutely nothing strange. They really looked like a happy and peaceful community, while they were really tired from the crossing, the cold and distrustful of that warm welcome.
"What do you think, first mate?" he asked, finally, and she raised her eyebrows, as if trying to reflect on the situation.
"I hate having to agree with Chameleon." she began, and June rolled her eyes beside her. "But she's right that this seems unlikely and suspicious. But I also find it very intriguing, as this village seems to match the imaginary descriptions in many books from the early 19th century about a mysterious civilization in Antarctica. Called Terra Australis. Many stories were written about this place, which was the name by which they knew the southernmost part of the oceans."
"And what did those stories say?" asked Kaire.
"They spoke of a Paradise. A place where people prospered and were happy, where nothing was lacking and where there was no hunger or disagreements."
"Are you saying this is the Garden of Eden?"
"That could be one of the interpretations, Captain." she confirmed.
Captain Kaire left the window to look at his crew and found them tired, as was to be expected after so many days on the high seas and a crossing of the South Pole glaciers. Lunara was the one with the reddest and happiest face with the huge candy in her mouth.
"We need to find the Poseidon Relic and seal it. Do you think it might be in this village, right now?"
"It's possible. Nicol's nautical chart tells us that it is somewhere in this region."
"You're not suggesting that we go into people's houses looking for a relic, are you?" June asked.
"No, you're right, June." agreed the Captain. "These people have done nothing but welcome us. Let's go to that lunch they so want to serve and then spread out over the village; look for anything suspicious that is in sight. But be discreet."
Lunch was served at a huge communal table where the inhabitants were already seated exchanging pots, plates and juices among themselves. When the five appeared in the center of the village, they were greeted with lots of smiles from everyone; the lovely couple from earlier rose to escort them to their seats at that table. Lunara sat between those two, who served her vegetables and rice, while Seiya sat next to Barbara, the girl who had taken his coat. She reached for a plate for him to help himself to.
The food they had on the high seas, while lifesaving and nutritious, was far from delicious or unforgettable, so that open-air lunch with the aromas of sautéed and fried vegetables made it seem as if they were in paradise. And for that reason, as if they weren't on a divine mission, they took care of lunch in silence, absolutely renewed for being able to eat so well. But the silence was not just for those visitors, but also for everyone who lived there and also ate at that table.
A silence that also extended to the moment they finished their meal; Seiya even tried to praise the food for Barbara, but she only responded with a silent smile. Seiya looked for his Captain Meko with his eyes and found him equally confused by that moment, as everyone was silent, without saying a single word. There was no longer the sound of cutlery or dishes, no one was chewing anymore, it was an intense silence. As if someone had died.
Finally, at the end of the table, a man stood up to whom they had not been introduced. And as soon as he got up, then everyone got up to remove the dishes, pans and utensils to a huge tub of water where a group would take care of washing until dinner. Kaire and his crew helped as much as they could, at least taking their plates and cutlery to the designated spot. It was there that Seiya felt his arm being pulled by Barbara, for him to accompany her.
"Let's go to the creek." she invited, with two metallic mugs in her hand and a smile on her face.
He followed her across a short meadow and was filled with a terribly familiar feeling; his face was cut by a reassuring smile as the girl ran lightly ahead of him. Upon reaching the stream, she dipped the two metallic mugs and offered one to Seiya, drinking from the other.
The water was crystal clear, icy and delicious.
"I hope you enjoyed the food." she began.
"It was great. It's been a while since I ate something this good."
He still remembered having lunch with Saori on the Rodório pier.
"I know how it is. Food on the high seas isn't the best." she commented.
"Not even a little." he agreed. "Did you also sail?"
"Oh yes. This is a shipwrecked village. Everyone here was a navigator before."
"And what happened for you to be here?"
"My parents' boat hit a block of ice near here." she said, showing the couple who were sitting in the distance while Lunara told a thousand stories for the two of them to laugh. "And then we ended up here in this community."
"And what were they doing in those waters?" asked Seiya, making her smile.
"The oldest story in the world." she began. "They were after a treasure."
"A treasure?"
"Yes." she said. "And they're sure they have found it."
Seiya looked at her a little confused, and saw her eyes point slightly towards that sunny valley; he finally understood the treasure they had found. Seiya, seeing the sun in Barbara's eyes, finally understood the familiar feeling he had beside her: it was almost as if Barbara's perfume reminded him of Seika. Her eyes also glowed very similarly.
He felt good and let himself be warmed by the impossible sun from the south pole.
Watching everything next to a crooked building, Geist noted with some strangeness that Seiya's sudden approach to Barbara, as well as the joy that Lunara brought to that couple. There was something strange that seemed to resonate with her Cosmo in the air, something she wasn't quite sure how to explain. She heard a deep voice behind her speaking to her.
"You should go enjoy the sun too."
He was an older man, with a white beard but calm eyes. She felt a chill at the sight of him; he had his arms crossed behind his back and a brief smile on his face. He noticed that Geist looked at what he was hiding behind his back and made a point of showing it: a book with a leather cover.
"The One Thousand and One Nights." she guessed immediately, noticing the cover.
"You know it?" the man asked.
"Evidently." she replied very seriously. "It's my favorite book."
The smile on the man's face was calm and reassuring.
"But you already knew that." she commented, breaking up the old man's expression a little. "Tell me, who is Santo?"
The man looked at her confused and she made her doubt a little clearer, after all, if anything the only saints in there were her and her friends.
"Terra-de-Santo". Geist recalled the name of that region. "The name suggests the existence of someone whose name is Santo, owner of this land."
The man, however, smiles at her and points to the stream:
"It's not the name of anyone, but of our river. Santo, a portuguese word for holy. For it is what allows us to live."
Geist looked at the stream where Seiya and Barbara smiled, some other people gathered their water as well to refresh themselves, saw how the plantations had dirt paths diverted so they could water the crops. She followed the length of the stream with her eyes to see that it fell from the foot of a mountain that rose on the other side of the village.
She looked again into the man's eyes and again felt a huge chill.
"Thank you very much, sir."
"You don't need to say thank you. Feel free to take the book with you. Maybe then you don't forget about me."
Geist gasped for air, but she thanked him and finally walked away from him as if to catch the breath she'd been missing from that encounter.
She sat down at the communal table again and sought Captain Kaire from the village; as it was a small place with few people, it didn't take long to find him next to June, talking secrets in her ear. She got up and went to them.
"Captain." Geist introduced herself.
Kaire looked at her and the three of them gathered a little further away from the inhabitants to talk alone.
"Just in time. Anything to report, first mate?" he asked.
"I hope you're not in love." June said, to a disapproving look from Kaire.
"Captain?" asked Geist, confused.
"June insists that I'm in love, infatuated with a villager." he scoffed.
"Of course." Geist seemed agreed, to Meko's surprise. "Perhaps our medical officer has found someone special among the inhabitants of this land as well."
"You watch your tone!" accused June.
"Calm down." Meko temporized. "What do you mean?"
"This place seems to fill us with sensations we're looking for." June smiled looking at Kaire, as if she was right, but Geist continued. "Seiya found a sister. Ensign Lunara found a family.
"And our esteemed Captain has found a beautiful brunette." June said, and Kaire looked at her reprovingly.
"Is she wrong, Captain?" asked Geist.
Kaire was silent and then shook his head.
"Now there's two of you." he complained. "Doesn't matter. What do you think could be causing this? Do you think it has to do with the Relic?"
"It must be the water they drink." June joked.
"Actually, I think you're right for once, Chameleon."
Geist pointed to the river and how everything was connected to it somehow.
"They call the river Santo, which also gives the name of this land. Santo is a portuguese word meaning holy. See how the river disappears behind the hill. I believe it is worth paying a visit to its source."
"Very well, Geist." said Kaire.
But then they were surprised by a beautiful brunette who seemed to materialize between them with a pink mango in one hand and a very yellow slice in the other, which she offered to Kaire; the captain greeted her with a huge smile on his face.
"Fresh from the tree." she said.
Kaire looked at June and Geist, unable to hide his smile, which fit him so strangely on his sea-scarred face. He was a great fool, and the woman managed to pull him by the arms, as if he were made of feathers; he left, but left an order.
"We'll leave as soon as the sun goes down." he said, being carried to smiles by the brunette.
June and Geist saw him being led into a grove of trees laden with fruit.
"I think the captain forgot that the sun doesn't set here." commented Geist.
"Yeah, right, sure. He must have forgotten." June said and asked with a certain mockery. "What about you, First Mate Geist, what did you find so special on this paradise?"
"A father." she replied dryly, withdrawing.
Kaire followed the brunette through the leafy woods not far from where the stream still flowed; they reached a clearing where birds and rabbits fled when the couple arrived. The brunette turned to hug him tightly and Kaire was invaded by an immense longing; the scent was her scent. It seemed impossible.
He ate a piece of the mango the brunette offered him and together they sat on a single fallen log in the clearing to rest; two happy faces.
"Who are you?" asked Kaire.
"Does it even matter who I am?" she asked with the most beautiful smile in the world.
It was a little ridiculous, but it didn't really matter to Kaire.
"Why do I feel this way?"
"Because it's what you want." she replied. "And me too."
She then approached the Captain, but he hesitated, dodging the kiss.
"I'm sorry." he said. "It doesn't feel right."
"Why not?"
"You are not her." he said, looking at that brunette.
And got up from the trunk.
"No one is." said the brunette behind him. "Nobody here is somebody. We are who we need to be."
"For whom?"
"For us." she replied.
"I don't understand."
"It's not just me who completes you, Captain. It's not just my perfume that soothes your longing." she then took his calloused hands and traced with her delicate fingers the scars Kaire had on his face. "You also have part of what I need."
"Who are you?"
"Someone who lost as well."
He was looking at her, not pleading eyes, but terribly strong, which was how he remembered her.
"It's as if the people here represent exactly what we miss."
"It's exactly like that." she agreed.
"So you know that too?"
"Everybody knows." she said.
"And don't you think it's strange?"
She looked to the side, at the flowers blooming in the grass.
"Everyone here fled to the sea, each for its own reason, each from a different part of the world. And everyone here has encountered some kind of tragedy on the high seas. Just to meet again here. It was strange to have lost my husband. Having decided to take my father's yacht and travel to the South Pole. It was strange to have survived the storm. It was strange to have found a paradise valley. Meeting you, however, is not strange. It's a gift."
He smiled, but let his head drop to the floor, somehow despondent, but still very divided. She got up and hugged him in such a creamy way, that the giant Meko felt as if he had melted in that spot; the scent of her hair was the most ravishing perfume to him.
But he was a Captain of Athena.
"I'm sorry." he began, breaking the embrace and breaking the brunette's heart as well as his own.
He forced himself to look into that brunette's eyes, which were tearful, and he had to be very strong to let go of her hands; but the longing was so strong that she ran again to hug him and Meko had to be very strong not to let himself fall with tenderness.
Until he finally left that clearing to return to the village in search of June and Geist, but they were nowhere to be found.
The river became more and more mighty as they went along its course, away from the village and up slightly up the hill through which it flowed. They turned a narrow curve to the left and saw that the river dropped by a low drop, but dammed by a beautiful lagoon. The pond preceded a cave entrance, which had two very prominent stone stalactites in front of it.
"Another cave." June observed, remembering the Island of Children.
"I don't feel any Cosmos inside, but we have to stay alert." said Geist.
They bordered the lagoon and descended some natural steps from the cave entrance, when they realized that, inside it, the cold was immense. It was completely frozen, invaded by snow and a terrible temperature.
"Who's there?" said a voice in the darkness, before the pair could see anyone in the cave.
Geist asked them both to stop walking and didn't let June put on her Cloth, as it didn't seem like the time for battle after all.
"We are from the village of Terra-de-Santo." said Geist.
"You shouldn't come here." said the voice, finally revealing itself.
A Poseidon Marina.
There was no room for doubt, for he was dressed in wonderful pearly blue armor, which June recognized to be of the same material as the terrible telkhine. But this figure was, in a way, much more mysterious, for his voice was sweet and delicate, as were his facial features. They couldn't tell if it was a man or a woman under that armor.
Noticing the pair on guard, her eyes twitched slightly and she immediately guessed they weren't inhabitants of Terra-de-Santo. But he still wasn't sure who they were either.
"Who are you?"
Geist stepped forward.
"I am Geist, the Silver Saint of Argo."
"A Silver Saint. You are a long way from home, Saint of Athena."
"And you are one of Poseidon's Marinas." said June.
"I am Oceanide Santo." she said, looking at the two of them. "I assume you are also of the Order of Athena."
They then placed themselves on guard, one on each flank of Santo.
"There's no need for any of that. This sacred cave will see no battles."
"Do you know why we're here?" asked Geist.
"No." she replied dryly. "Should I?"
"We are here to seal the Relic of the Sea."
Santo seemed to reflect on that information and took a deep breath looking at them. If it was possible to read his features, it was as if there was a huge disappointment. And finally he put himself on guard, also looking hard at them, for, after all, maybe this cave really was going to see a battle.
June and Geist touched their pendants, revealing the Urns on their backs, and in a flash of light their armor wore their bodies. Oceanide Santo saw before him two magnificent Saints of Athena. And his posture calmed down.
"I won't stand a chance against two Saints of Athena."
June and Geist also calmed the guard and the Argo Saint asked.
"Do you know where the Relic is?"
Santo closed her eyes and walked to the back of the cave, with the two following in her footsteps. They didn't go much farther into the cave, and soon they saw a crude pedestal with a beautiful golden emblem: two serpents each devouring the other's tail. Behind her, a trident inscribed in the stone. It was, without a doubt, the Relic of the Sea.
Geist removed the Seal of Athena she was carrying, but Santo's voice was heard again in the cave.
"Do you really want to do this?" she asked, and they both looked at her.
"What do you mean?" June asked impatiently.
"You have experienced paradise. The village of the shipwrecked. Happiness and contentment. All of this is only possible because of the power of the Relic."
The two looked at each other and Geist guessed.
"You're using the divine power that overflows from the Relic to make those people have perfect days." she tried.
"I don't see a better way to use a god's power." he said.
"But it's not just a green Paradise with lots of fruit." said June. "It also makes people believe they've found people who matter to them."
"Isn't that Paradise?" Santo asked June.
June didn't know how to respond and saw how Geist hesitated before that Relic, as the memory of that old man who reminded her so much of her father invaded her chest.
"We're here to make sure Poseidon doesn't resurface in this time. We must seal this Relic." Kaire said, emerging from the cave.
The three looked back and found him with tears in his eyes and a sad face. He walked over to Geist, took the Seal of Athena from her hesitant hands.
"Will you stop us?" he asked.
Santo, who saw the pain on Kaire's face, responded calmly.
"I don't care about Poseidon. I cared that everyone lived in peace. I'm sorry you want to destroy that peace."
And then she took a few steps back, leaving the decision to them.
Kaire then burned his silver Cosmo and finally sealed the Relic of the Sea from that cave, extinguishing its ephemeral golden glow. The immediate consequence was that the ice in that cave very quickly melted through the wall, through the ceiling, through the floor; the temperature became milder, and for a moment it seemed to June that they had actually done the region a favor.
But when they noticed Santo leaving the cave, the trio followed him outside and found the lake completely frozen over. The snow-covered valley, the whitish sky; the cave all frozen and looking even more terrifying, for it looked too much like a serpent with its mouth open. Santo stood there on that frozen lake as they gathered back to the village and found it being buffeted by an icy wind.
"Seiya! Lunara!"
The trio called out to them, when finally the two, embracing, with Lunara wearing her fur coat again, emerged from the largest of the buildings and joined them. Their faces carried an enormous sadness, which Kaire recognized so well.
"We found and sealed the Relic of the Sea." said the Captain to him and looked around the place looking for that woman. "What happened here?"
Seiya looked back, where curious eyes watched them through the windows.
"They stopped loving each other." replied Seiya simply.
And so they walked back to the frozen plateau. Without the divine river of Relic of the Sea, the people who lived there became distrustful of each other, leaving behind the peace that once reigned in that beautiful valley. Next to the sun that never visited that place again.
ABOUT THE CHAPTER: Another chapter I adapted a Star Trek episode into the story. A lot of stories were written about the mysteries of Antarctica and some of them were about it really being a paradise, so I used that motto to introduce this mystery in the fanfic. At the same time I thought it was interesting to show a very different Marina from the telkhine that absorbed children's vitality, this one used Poseidon's power to make people happy. It's also an important chapter, because we're still getting to know the crew and I needed to put what was important to each of them so I could develop further down the road.
NEXT CHAPTER: NIGHT AT THE SANCTUARY
As Captain Kaire and his crew cruise the Seven Seas, the night at the Sanctuary is filled with longing.