wrath of the Sea Queen (222 page)

C
a
eli
learned
that
Rika
created this
creature from nothing more than water and pieces of ocean flora
.  Beneath that black suit was no
real
man.  The only parts of him that resembled a human were those which were visible
;
his face and hands.  Rika created him
as a collector, sent to
run errands for
her
on
the
l
and
that
she could not traverse
. 
His unique nature
allowed him to travel in and
through any natural substance.  That was how he
seemed to vanish and reappear.
To
beat
this opponent
, C
a
eli
had to
find the
bonds Rika used to hold
h
im together
and break them
. 

She
used her gift
to reach through the water
and
search for th
ose bonds
. 
The man
was an intricately woven design, complicated
beyond
her
expectations
. 
It
was going to take some time.  O
f course,
Rika's servant
was not standing idle while C
a
eli tried to unravel him.  Instead, he
repeatedly
tried to
t
rip C
a
eli
and
force her beneath the water
's surface
.  Several times,
his razor sharp fingernails
sliced
across
her skin
, but caus
ed
only minor
damage
.  She dodged
the majority of
his strikes and side-stepped his attempt
s
to tackle her, all the while working on the strings that held him intact.

As she continued, C
a
eli misjudged a few steps and a
resultant
slashing pain in her
stomach
and across her
left
forearm
were the penalties for her errors
. 
A wave nearly knocked her over as she realized that her opponent had maneuvered her out into the deeper water.  It now reached higher than her waist as she stood facing him.  C
a
eli
cautioned herself t
o be more careful.

"
There!
"

She found one of his primary
strings
and pulled
with her gift
.  The man stumbled and appeared to lose some of his cohesion.

"
C
a
eli
,
n
o
!
  Wait!
"
  Vin's voice sounded in the distance, and
C
a
eli
reflexively turned to see him
come
running
out of the lounge
.

It was a costly mistake.  The man seized on her distraction and
succeeded in
knock
ing
her from her feet.  C
a
eli recovered her focus quickly, tugging again at the bonds holding
him
together.  Even from her
newly
submerged
position,
C
a
eli
was able to pull the man along with her as she tumbled through the tide
. 
She
could not stop
and wait for
Vin
to reach her
. 
C
a
eli
had to finish this fight. 
She
concentrated a final effort on the remaining
bonds
,
pulling each string at the same time;
separating them all at once.  Her success was much
greater
than anticipated.  The man
in black
was suddenly
gone.  He had not vanished this time.  C
a
eli had
ripped
him apart
.

She
felt no remorse for the death of this constructed creature, only a
mild sating of
her anger.
 
C
a
eli
slowly
began to
work her way closer to shore
as she resurfaced in the chest deep waters
.

"
Is that the best you can do?  Send your lackey
yet
again
? 
I even came to the water to make it eas
y
for you.  But, i
f you want me
now
, you are going to have to
deal with me
directly
,
"
C
a
eli dema
nded of Rika.

"
Really, C
a
eli, I
ha
ve given you every opportunity to make this
friendship
pleasurable
, but each time
I reach out,
you force me to
remind you of
your weakness
.
"
 
Rika's
response was immediate.

C
a
eli
was inflicted by
a sudden wave of pain
greater
th
an th
e one she suffered at the arena a few days earlier.  It dropped
her to her knees
beneath the water
.  C
a
eli remembered
vividly
.  She also recalled that Rika
had been
able to ease that pain.  If
Rika
could do it,
then why c
ould
n't she?
  The
ir
gifts were
similar, if not exactly
the same
.  Al
though Rika was more experienced
, C
a
eli gr
e
w more confident
with each success
. 
She
decided to learn from Rika's veteran skills
et
. 
Within moments,
C
a
eli
was able to undo the pain Rika was causi
ng her and return to her feet.  Vin was there to help her up.

"C
a
eli, stop this.  You can't face her like this."  Vin pulled C
a
eli out of the water
and
several feet further
up the beach.

"Vin, please
d
on't make this harder for me. 
Please g
o back inside. 
I have to do this."

"I know
you
have to face her
, but not like this.
"

"
You said you wan
ted to deal with me directly.  D
o so now.  Come to me on the island.
"

His contact with C
a
eli allowed Vin to overhear Rika's comment.

"No, C
a
eli. 
You're weak, still recovering. 
Do not
meet
Rika
o
n her
terms
, where she is at her strongest.  You can't win like that.  I want you to end this, b
elieve me, b
ut you
ha
ve got to give yourself a fair chance," Vin tried to explain what he discerned from Raphael's visit. 

"How
should I do that
?  I don't know any other way."

"Give yourself time to rest and heal
.  Get well and build up your
physical
strength
.  Then make
Rika
come to you.  Play to your strengths, not hers.
  There is no reason to rush into this.  Take as much time as you need.  Don't let her rush you.
"

"
You
are ou
t of time.  I am tired of waiting
and tired of playing games with you
.  Either you come to me now or I will unleash this storm's full fury
right now
.  No one on this island will survive
,
" Rika threatened.