"This is stupid," Autumn said, kicking a rock across the sand.
"Anything?" Eli asked, rolling his head lazily to look towards Victoria.
"Nope."
They were sitting on the beach on the other side of Giantrock City from where the hydra had attacked. The sand here was more like gravel, and the beach was dotted with rocks and boulders. They had stopped just short of the point where the beach transitioned almost entirely to jagged rocks, and they could see the rainbow coral reef not far off shore. They were close enough for Victoria to scan for auras with her aura vision, which she had been doing frequently for the past hour.
"Maybe we need bait?" Iris suggested, "anyone know what golden fish eat?"
"No idea," Eli said.
"Maybe the gates are open now," Victoria said, "we could just give up."
"Absolutely not," Eli insisted, "we took a quest and we're going to see it through." He took note of the position of the sun in the sky, then added, "for at least another hour."
Giantrock City dominated their view to the right, punching out of the redwood forest and casting a long, deep shadow over the waters beneath it. Iris gazed up at the monolith and the city on its back, picking out individual buildings and scaffolds and ropes. Occasionally she'd catch a glimpse of someone walking across a rope bridge or one of the wooden walkways that crisscrossed the exterior of many of the buildings. She longed to see inside, not because she was starved for civilization like the others, but because she was full of excitement and wonder at what awaited. She was still staring with a glint in her eye when Victoria spoke.
"It's here!" she hissed, holding out a hand to keep the others still. Veins bulged around her grey-mucus eyes as they stayed locked onto the aura. Cautiously, she raised a hand to point at a spot about sixty feet off shore.
"How sure?" Eli asked.
"Strongest aura so far, by a long shot," she said, "if it's not our fish, then it's at least something special."
"Autumn," Eli said, "are we a go?"
"I'm ready to give it a shot," she said, "that's the best I've got."
"Iris?" he asked.
"Ready," she replied.
"On your mark, Victoria," he said.
Victoria moved her pointed finger to a spot in the water beyond the fish, and conjured a burst of illusory aura in that spot. To those with aura senses, it was like a small explosion going off beneath the water. Instantly, the surrounding fish scattered. The one they were after was driven further towards the shore as it fled from the aura blast. It veered to the left, so she followed up with another blast to keep it on track, though it responded less severely this time.
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"Now!" Victoria shouted, pointing to exactly where the fish was at that moment, only about fifteen feet from shore.
Autumn lunged forward, leaping and landing with a splash in the gentle lapping waves. She came down with both hands as she landed, driving them into the sand beneath the water. She had never tried making a sand wall before, but she'd gotten the idea from an adventurer in the hydra fight and was pretty confident she could recreate a small version of it. The fish was directly in front of her, about ten feet ahead, and she could see the golden glint of its scales.
"I see it!" She called out, just as the first section of her sand wall rose on the other side of it. It was only about a foot wide, but quickly grew as more muddy sand rose up from beneath the water and extended the wall on either side. The two ends of the wall rushed outwards in a curve, soon forming a half circle around the fish before connecting with the shore to close it in completely.
The fish swam around frantically for a moment, searching for a way out before quickly discerning that it was trapped. Iris, perched atop a nearby rock on the beach, blipped into the water. She appeared with a splash, wrapping both arms around the fish like a bear hug and squeezing tightly. It was easily as large as she was, and she would barely be able to hold it even if it wasn't struggling. It effortlessly wiggled free of her grasp, slapping her in the face with its tailfin as it did. The impact felt like a punch, and her vision blurred.
She stood up in the waist-deep water, clutching her head with one hand and swaying. She heard someone call out her name, then the fish leapt out of the water and slapped her with its tailfin again, this time in the chest. The force sent her tumbling back into the water with a splash.
"It's getting away!" Autumn yelled, as the fish leapt out of the water and over the short sand wall.
Victoria conjured three cards, all negative effects which she placed on the fish. It became disoriented, lethargic, and confused. It slowed but did not stop, its dart towards freedom turning into a winding meander.
Iris climbed back to her feet, spitting water from her mouth with a stubborn glare as her eyes located and locked onto the golden fish.
"Vic," Iris called out with an uncharacteristically stern voice, "I need full strength."
Victoria glanced at her with a concerned, uncertain look, then at Eli, who looked unsure as well but nodded.
All at once, she dropped the cards on the fish and summoned three new ones on Iris. This left her with precious little mana remaining, and a buzzing in her head. The cards she chose were Strength, The Chariot, and Queen of Swords.
Iris felt the power rush through her and confidence overwhelm her. She blipped forward, appearing above the water but instantly blipped again, and then again. Next she appeared neck deep in the water directly in the path of the fish. It veered to her right to swim around her, and she twisted to wrap an arm around the bulk of its body. She pinned it to her hip as she reached under its belly with her other hand to grab her own arm and cinch her grip tight. The fish convulsed and struggled, but couldn't break free. She glanced up with a fierce look, eying the far away beach. Without knowing if any of it would work, she blipped.
She appeared on the beach a dozen feet from shore. Dripping wet with soggy hair draped over her face, she collapsed. She hit the gravel sand hard, completely unconscious from depleted mana. The golden fish flopped hopelessly on the beach beside her.