The masters stood, watching the third screen from the left—the island Desmond was on.
Susanna had one hand over her mouth, worry written all over her face.
Richelle's jaws clenched with a hint of concern. Jean and Kopoo stood, frowns creasing on their faces.
Maxwell however looked calm while Pharouque's expression was just unreadable.
A door behind opened and in walked Father.
"What's going on?" He frowned, looking at the screen. "This isn't part of the test is it?" He added, walking towards them.
Susanna turned to him. "N-not at all."
"Then hurry. Open a portal to the island, right now."
Father commanded, pointing to the screen.
Susanna turned to the screen, closing her eyes to try and focus but nothing happened for the next few seconds. Then a few more, groaning with frustration creasing on her face.
"I can't. It's not working." Abraham frowned at the response.
"Why are you guys so stressed?" Maxwell, asked not sounding the least worried.
"And you..." Richelle snapped her head in his direction, her voice low with venom. "Why do you look so calm about this?"
Maxwell shuddered at the ominousness in her gaze and looked away. "What? They are just dar-tandemons. I bet the kids can handle them."
Kopoo glanced at him with mock irritation. "Are you an idiot? Or have you forgotten that dar-tandemons in groups are not always alone?"
"Yeah!" Richelle jumped in. "Once they work in packs then it means there is a higher ranked demon controlling them in their midst."
Maxwell sighed, rubbing his temple. "Yeah but... they should know the risks involved in being a warrior. This will be a good experience for them."
Richelle hit him in the head so hard he dropped to the ground. "Jeez! You really are an idiot."
"Susanna!" Jean stepped in. "Take us to the weather deck and get the ship closer to the island."
Susanna immediately opened a portal and stepped in first, exiting on the weather deck. The other six masters exited one after the other.
Maxwell came last, rubbing his head with a whimper.
Susanna then stretched her arms sideways, mist converging into a huge portal ahead which the ship went through, closing in on the island.
Jean stepped forward, taking in a deep breath as his gaze raked over the island. His eyes glowed a golden light[Divine Vision: Dimension Scan].
The whole place suddenly went black and white in his vision. He narrowed his eyes, gaze deepening as some sort of an orange, spherical barrier around the island.
"As I suspected." Jean began, drawing the others attention. "They've set up a barrier to prevent anyone from going in or escaping. That's why Susanna couldn't teleport us in."
"Haha?!" Maxwell grinned with a mocking tone. "Looks like physics bent the space witch back this time, huh?"
Susanna face flushed a deep shade of crimson. "I-I never called myself a space witch. It was just a nickname people created."
"And..." Jean narrowed his eyes further, picking up five orange flaming dots. His eyes shot wide in panic. "Those are ori-tandemons. Six of them."
"What?! Ori-tandemons?" Maxwell sighed with a hint of relief. "You guys were worried for nothing."
This time, Kopoo smacked him just as hard as Richelle did, making Maxwell drop to the ground, clutching his head with a loud groan.
"One thing I'm confused about." Kopoo spoke up, turning back to the island. "Why did they only choose to attack this island and not the rest?"
"I know right!" Maxwell spoke up almost too quickly. "I was thinking about that. They might be targeting someone so why not just wait and find out. Who knows? Maybe a miracle might happen."
Richelle sighed, shaking her head. "You and your fantasies."
"What? Am I wrong?" He asked desperately, waiting for an answer which never came. Muttering something under his breath, he got back up.
Father walked over to the edges of the ship, looking down into the water. "Jean! How deep does it go?"
"I can't really say but..." Jean closed his eyes, one hand holding his chin. Then he opened his eyes, still glowing. "Approximately four thousand meters."
"Seriously?" Pharouque spoke for the first time in ages. "That deep." He added and sighed. "This is going to be a hassle."
Father turned to the group with a serious expression.
"We're going in from beneath." Almost all the masters turned serious at his words. Maxwell and Pharouque held a slight frown—not worried ones. More like "why do I have to go" frowns.
"Get ready to jump." Father activated a gold arm guard on his right arm.
"I can't believe you guys." Maxwell sighed, rubbing his head. "But maybe this isn't such a bad idea." He brightened up. "Maybe I could witness that miracle up close when I'm there."
Pharouque brightened up as well and nodded. "You're kinda right. That actually sounds interesting.
Maxwell and Pharouque fist bumped with grins on their faces.
Richelle rolled her eyes. "Typical!"
Father's eyes glowed as some sort of transparent layer covered him and the other master's skins.
With that, he dived, head first. The other masters followed closely behind.
What was surprising was, there was no sound—no splash— as they entered the water. It was like, passing something through a bubble.
And they descended deeper into the ocean with surprising speed. Like, a group of people falling from the sky. There was no force opposing their movement.
That was one outstanding characteristic about Father's ability [Viscosity: Anti-Viscous armor].