"What the h.e.l.l happened?" She was just consoling Mrs. Gong. Having a look at her family ornament gave her an emotional outburst. Until now, Zoe was befuddled at her unusual reaction to her cherished jewel.

She was yet figuring out what made her react that way to her necklace. Was it because she has laid eyes on it before? Or better yet, was her mother familiar to her?

She was comforting Mrs. Gong, so she could ask all these burning questions. But before she even had a chance to do that, she just plunged into the gleaming waters. It was at the moment that they arrived at their destined land and miraculously disappeared.

Though, she was not sure if she voluntarily bolted into the seawater. The boat triumphantly entered the sacred threshold of the Ball's Pyramid. But it rocked as it encountered the violent winds from the strange island.

Because of this, Mrs. Gong's shawl flew again. Zoe tried to grab it. But as she turned back to her, she was already gone. All she heard was a spatter of water so to appear to be someone diving into them.

Zoe scrutinized the specific location where Mrs. Gong jumped. A while ago she noticed that the waters near the enclave were as clear as crystal. She was hoping she could catch a glimpse of Mrs. Gong and where she would go. But as deep as the eyes could perceive,  there were no traces of Mrs. Gong.

'I don't understand,' Zoe furrowed her expressive eyebrows and contemplated. I recalled seeing Mrs. Gong drown the first day that I spotted her in the Lord Howe Island.'

It was actually the reason why she met her. She saw them drowning. She, together with Lady Zhou.

She even prioritized Mrs. Gong because she didn't have a lifesaver at that time. Her head then was not bobbing up and down in the water anymore. She clearly remembered how she willingly risked her life to save her amidst the turbulent weather.

How come she could not see her right now? Did she sink? But she could gaze at the rare corals under the sparkling waters. The vast ocean is as transparent as gla.s.s.

Did she just swim away to the mysterious isle? But it is still far to be reached in such a short time span.

As she was examining the sudden turn of peculiar events, Koby cleared his throat to give out explicit instructions.

Zoe was more perplexed. Didn't they hear the mighty splash from Mrs. Gong as she dived into the waters? Why is he acting like he wasn't aware of it? And even the clueless tourists in the boat were not looking at their direction.

Koby called out a quick orientation to every pa.s.senger on the boat. "We will now drop our anchors and stopped right here. We couldn't move any farther."

"The Reeftastic has solemnly sworn a blood compact with the King of the Ball's Pyramid. They would permit us to revel in their picturesque landscape if we would settle only until this point." He winked at them.

'King? Does that mean the hidden kingdom is real? Do they have a personal connection with Koby and Captain Nicky?'

Zoe speculated if the tale of the concealed city was true or not. A curious kid from the boisterous crowd raised up his hand.

He has no idea about the secret city. What interested him was the set limitations.   "What would happen if we insist on pa.s.sing through?"

She glanced at Koby and waited for his answer. "The mighty winds would be angry and wreck our boat. And if we manage to come out of it alive, there are frightful beasts on this fortified island. They were desperately waiting to gobble up those who would try to enter it."

Koby twinkled at the responsible adults. In response, they laughed and affectionately patted their kids' heads. It may look like Koby was joking around. But to Zoe, it was not impossible.

She recalled her recent dream wherein she was in a scary forest and haunted down by a ferocious beast. She was traumatized at an early age.

Because of this, she constantly had night terrors every chance she fell asleep. But they were consistently about her mom and dad.

The first occasion she encountered that specific nightmare was when she set foot on Lord Howe Island.

At first, she thought it was because her antidepressant medicines were out of stock. But after she bought them at the nearest hospital and drank it for quite some time, she still had nightmares.

And they were all new. Like they were a major part of her past. And it is flas.h.i.+ng back from her subconscious mind because of her stay at Lord Howe Island.

Koby changed the creepy mood by announcing the activities that they could do while on that spot. "Don't you worry, lovely ladies and gentlemen. For this is the best place to see the remarkable marine lives this beautiful island has to offer. So gear up, it's snorkeling time!"

All the tourists waved their eager hands in exhilaration. They wouldn't miss this unique opportunity for the world!

The parents supported their teenagers to wear their flippers and snorkeling equipment. They wanted their children to enjoy this island's splendor while they were still there.

Zoe hadn't been able to rent a piece before she joined this tour. But this time, it looks like she would need one. She didn't know what the heck happened to Mrs. Gong!

She cautiously approached Koby. "Sir, I would like to report about my friend, Mrs. Gong. She just jumped into the waters a while ago. She was emotionally unstable, and she needs our help."

Koby furrowed her brows. "Mrs. Gong? Who was Mrs. Gong?"

***************************

Like the story? Buy me a coffee. ;)

https://ko-fi.com/authorhada.s.sah

paypal.me/authorhada.s.sah

***

FEEL FREE TO GET IN TOUCH WITH ME! :)

Discord ID: Hada.s.sah#7714

Facebook: @authorhada.s.sah

Instagram: #authorhada.s.sah

Twitter: @AuthorHada.s.sah

Lots of love! :*