EVERNA Ring of Fire

RATAUKA Part 4

The three men then climbed onto a nearby floating board. Nirya looked at Sabailuha with a face full of question marks. Sthira seemed to frown, while Arumi was still too shaken to speak, let alone think clearly.

Sabailuha looked at Arumi, then said, “Lho, isn't this one of Jayandra's Senopati? Why did you guys save him?”

“There is something in him that is very likely in line with our purpose, and he has revealed part of it while raving earlier,” replied Sthira. “Leave sure that he and we are actually on the same side, and the four of us, we will definitely get stronger.”

“Well, now I will drive you,” Sabailuha said.

As Nirya glanced towards the setting sun, she suddenly pointed to her right side and exclaimed, “Friends, Arumi, look at that!”

All eyes were turned in the direction pointed. A sailing ship with a capacity of about a hundred people appeared in the distance, approaching the expanse of ship debris.

“Arumi, it seems that one ship Jayandra returned, looking for the survivors who are still alive!” exclaim Nirya. “It turns out there are still people who care about you!”

Arumi washed her face with sea water, trying to see more clearly. Turns out to be true, it was a Jayandra-flagged ship. The expression of the girl's face that was originally pale turned bright, although she was still impressed trying to hide her excitement.

On the other hand, Sthira quickly exclaimed, “Quick! We signal the ship by reflecting the sunlight on the blades of our weapons! And you Sabailuha, hide under the sea so that the ship is not afraid to approach!”

“Good..” Sabailuha slowly immersed herself under the surface of the water, although the impression of laziness and reluctance reflected through her gestures.

Keeping the beam they were sitting on unshakably, Sthira and Nirya unsheathed their respective weapons and reflected the sunlight towards the ship. The blades were rotated around in such a way that the reflection of the light seemed to twinkle. As a result, the ship slowly turned the bow and drove right towards Nirya, Sthira and Arumi.

Then came the cry of a man from a distance, “Hooi! Anyone there!?”

Arumi's turn exclaimed, “Arumi Dyahrani's Senopathy!”

“Who are those two more people?”

“They are both my saviors!”

“Alright! Thank goodness you are safe, senopati!”

Shortly thereafter, the ladder of the mine was lowered from the deck of the ship. Nirya rose first, followed by Arumi and finally Sthira.

Exhausted, Nirya immediately leaned her body on the first seat she saw, while Sthira chose to sit cross-legged near Nirya on the deck of the ship.

“Hai, who said you two can do anything here as you like?” sergeant Arumi suddenly, his eyes look unfriendly.

Sthira and Nirya gasped and rose to their feet instantly. But they did not immediately draw weapons. That's because Arumi doesn't have a gun. Arumi had indeed lost her bow, and the girl had not unsheathed the keris hanging on her back.

Seeing this reaction, Arumi****smile. “Of course I said I could. No matter where you come from, it's only natural that I thank the people who saved my life. Thank ye. Well, what do you guys want in return?”

Sthira replied, “We only need a crossing to Jayandra. The rest we can talk about..”.

Arumi raised one palm and interrupted, “That's it first. You rest, I have to convent with nahkoda.”.

Suddenly Arumi, Nirya and Sthira are surprised by the appearance of Sabailuha on the right side of the deck of the ship.

“Surely you have no intention of leaving me, do you!?” said the sea dragon-man.

“Of course not,” says Sthira steady.

Nirya chimed in, “Or else you're back as Minata. Traveling with such a form will certainly be very troublesome.”

“Sorry, I can't confirm that.” Almost simultaneously, Nirya and Sthira turned their heads towards the source of the sound. There stood Arumi, ready with a bow and arrow that he borrowed from a soldier.

“What do you mean, young girl? “ Sabailuha stared straight at Arumi's eyes and facial expression.

Arumi replied, “You know exactly what I mean, Sabailuha! Just think, how could Jayandra's people like me let the one-man creature that had destroyed our country fleet hitch a ride on our ship? Don't expect!”

“It wasn't my fault! You guys forced me to unlock Ratauka! I was just defending myself! Prevent war from breaking out again! Prevent Swarnara who was caught off guard by the disaster destroyed by the greed of the neighboring country! If you were me, you would definitely do the same, ‘kan?”

“Can be.” Arumi kept aiming. “But you can be quiet and not interfere in Jayandra's affairs, evacuate these two friends to the mountain without having to blow it up. Sabailuha, Ratauka's guard who had been ignoring the turbulence of the world around her suddenly cared. With the fleet destroyed, Jayandra was now vulnerable to Kalinga raids, even Akhsar. Don't you think that far before you act?”

Sabailuha. Apparently his indifference all along had blunted his reason and conscience. He knew exactly the answer to refuting Arumi's words, but he didn't want to say it. Either for the sake of self-esteem, protecting Nirya and Sthira, or both.

Reiterating his intention of taking revenge on the destroyer, Arumi shoots. Before Sabailuha could move, the fiery arrow had first struck the horn at the end of its muzzle. The arrow bounced and did not stick in the very hard horn, but it was enough to make Sabailuha gasp and lean back, ready to attack with all her energy.

“The second arrow will definitely penetrate your heart,” Arumi said. He deliberately aimed at the horn as a bluff and warning.

Realizing the danger that would occur if Sabailuha was dying and becoming desperate, Sthira advanced to a position between the archer and the dragon. Excitement, “Enough already! Sabailuha, I think your role has been enough to get here. Let us go.”

“Lho, why?” sabailuha protest. “Don't I agree to come with you?”

“True. But now Mount Ratauka has erupted. Inevitably, as his caretaker you must take responsibility. Help us save the surviving soldiers, let them return to their families. At least maybe Sang Srisari will understand your actions earlier and forgive your sins, deliberately exploding Ratauka that you must keep from erupting prematurely.”

Arumi's forehead wrinkled, feeling strange with Sthira's words earlier.

But far more important now is Sabailuha's reaction. The dragon-man silently pecked for a moment, then spoke, “You're right, Sthira. My holy oath to the Srisari, Mother Nature has tied all my existence to Mount Ratauka.” He pointed to a large bracelet that seemed to shackle his neck. “Because Ratauka erupted, I have to stay around here until the Ratauka Key Occult Script reappears in my body.”

Arumi snaps, “Sabailuha! Don't think I'll just let you go after you've taken out many of my water-devil brothers! Feel our retaliation all!” Strange, maybe the memories of those rigid floating bodies changed Arumi's mind very suddenly. He even risked the fate of all the people on the ship by shooting Sabailuha once again!

This time, a fiery arrow struck Sabailuha's left chest, in the heart area. Sabailuha was pushed back and fell, plunging into the sea.

A few moments later, Sabailuha did not appear. Allegedly everyone, Arumi's magic arrow must have broken through Sabailuha's weak point and killed him.

“Sabailuha is dead! Revenge our brothers avenged already, let's turn the bow to Jayandra!” The cheers of the entire crew welcomed Arumi's orders.

On the other hand, Nirya watched all of this with a pale-pale face. He then approached Sthira and whispered, “Arumi. His mind can change drastically at any moment. Do you still want him to help us with our mission?”

Sthirapun frowned. “Depending on the results of our conversation later,” he said. “We all know Arumi killed Sabailuha out of spite, and he was hesitant because Sabailuha did not attack the ship immediately after her appearance.”

“But Arumi now knows Sabailuha is siding with us, and maybe now he has guessed some or all of our plans. We're not safe on this ship, Sthira! At any moment, Arumi could have changed his mind, forgotten his mind and attacked when we were off guard like Sabailuha earlier.”

“I know. But we better be careful first. Remember, we're on Jayandra's boat. Later when we have tracked the land, we only discuss our plans and offers to Arumi. Whatever the outcome, we must remain alive.”

Nirya did not respond to her comrade's words anymore. Her physical and mental exhaustion had reached the threshold, so the girl turned her gaze around, into the vast ocean. Something on the surface of the water made Nirya gasp. He rushed to the edge of the deck to see it more clearly.

Apparently, a long giant dragon, with giant fins at its tip, was diving from the surface into the sea, continuing away from the ship. There's no mistaking it, it's the lower body of the giant dragon-man, Sabailuha. It is almost impossible to find another sea dragon around Mount Ratauka, Sabailuha's territory.

Nirya's temporary conclusion, Sabailuha was not really killed when Arumi was harvested earlier. The arrow must not have hit his heart, missed a little bit in the chest and was held up by a thick skin that protected his chest like a harness.

This means that Arumi was deliberately seen killing Sabailuha, so that his wife was stronger in the eyes of his men. But actually he did not kill the guardian of Mount Ratauka, maybe so that the balance of nature around him is maintained.

Like it or not, rose a speck of admiration Nirya will intelligence Arumi to investigate. But his heart has not calmed down, at least before ascertaining whether Arumi will support, let or be a big barrier for this “Antapada” Peace Mission.

Illustration: Flying Mandau, a weapon typical of the Dayak tribe, Kalimantan - a reference to the large Mandau belonging to Sthira named after Gharma. The size of the Sthira mandau is one and a half times larger than the regular mandau.