SPLASH!

Hao plunged into the murky depths of Katana Creek, the impact of his fall sent ripples of pain through his battered body. As he sank, he use his Vibe Sense to survey his surroundings. The underwater world was a treacherous place, littered with shards of metal, broken blades, and other remnants of past battles. Hao could feel the vibrations of every tiny particle in the water, including the sinking cage that held Maelstrom, the T-Biter, and the Sword Fishes.

‘There they are.’ He thought.

Determined to save the creatures, Hao swam towards the cage with every ounce of strength he could muster. In this dark, submerged world, his blindness was an advantage; his lack of eyes forced him to rely on his Vibe Sense, which allowed him to navigate the dangerous waters much easier, although he wasn’t a great swimmer like his friend, Mentos, the seasoned Scrap Diver who would have been proud of his efforts.

‘I need to hurry before I lose track of them.’ Due to the combined weight of Maelstrom and the T-Biter, the cage was sinking rapidly much to Hao’s annoyance. His lungs burned for air, yet he focused on his task, pushing aside the growing pain and exhaustion. He needed to reach the cage before it was lost forever in the abyss of Katana Creek. He increased what he could of his swimming impetus until the cage came into his range where he could physically interact with it. That area was surrounded by the oppressive darkness of the deep waters.

‘They are not looking so good.’ He observed the drowning expression on Maelstrom and the T-Biter.

Upon reaching the cage, he found it difficult to open the lock that held the door shut even though he was using his sword to pry it open, the strong currents were working against him.

‘Come on you damn thing. Open!’ He forced what little strength he had left to do the trick.

He was so focused on this task that he didn't notice the ominous presence lurking nearby – a semi-metallic shark known as the Steel Maw. The shark was a terrifying creature, with a body that was half flesh and half metal, its jaws lined with razor-sharp steel teeth. It was a deadly predator, one of the many dangers that Scrap Divers had to contend with on a regular basis.

Whoosh!

‘Huh!’

Suddenly, the Steel Maw attacked with its jaws biting dangerously close to Hao's body.

‘What the heck!’ He barely managed to evade the shark's lunge, his heart was pounding in terror as he realized how close he had come to death.

‘Where the hell did this creature come from?’ He thought to himself while gaining some distance, moreover, locking on to his target with Vibe Seeker, whilst bubbles oozed out of the corner of his mouth.

Whoosh!

The shark couldn’t afford to starve any longer, so it swung its tail viciously to gain more momentum as it rushed towards Hao. ‘Here it comes.’ He summoned all his strength and agility to engage the shark in a harrowing underwater battle. Each exchange was a tango of life and death. He did his best to deftly avoid the Steel Maw's relentless attacks, countering with a series of desperate slashes from his Vibe Edge.

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Cut! Cut!

Although his hits connected, the metallic framework of the beast was too robust to contend with. ‘Damn, it’s hard.’

Hao couldn't keep this up forever – he was running out of air, moreover, the Steel Maw was persistent in its pursuit. Therefore, he needed to act soon.

‘Fine, since this blade won’t cut you up, I just have to raise the volume of this water.’ In a moment of desperation, Hao pulled a recently acquired skill from his Blade Edge’s arsenal.

BOOM! After aiming his weapon at his incoming target, it created a powerful sonic wave, the force of which sent the Steel Maw reeling back into the darkest depths of Katana Creek. The look in its pernicious eyes promised vengeance, but for now, Hao had bought himself some precious time.

‘Whew, that was a close one.’ Albeit he was still within a large body of water, a frustrated droplet of sweat still found its way trickling down the contours of his face.

‘Shoot! I almost forgot about them. I better hurry.’ With the shark momentarily driven away, Hao returned to the cage and managed to pry the door open with ease this time now that the pressure was getting to the rusted locks. He quickly freed Maelstrom and the T-Biter, before untangling the Sword Fishes' tether from the cage.

‘Let’s rise!’ BOOM! Once more, Hao used Volume Raiser to propel the rescued beasts out of the water and onto the dry shore. Unlike the other beasts, the Sword Fishes surfaced with relative ease due to their aquatic nature. They were stunned by the fall, which was why they didn’t act sooner to free themselves and their cargo from Katana Creek.

“Ahf! Ahf!”

Finally, Hao broke through the surface, gasping for air. He swam and clambered onto dry land. Maelstrom and the T-Biter, both under the influence of sedation, remained motionless on the shore, while the T-Biter's body began to swell from the excess water it had absorbed. Sadly, the T-Biter succumbed to the effects of the water, its life was extinguished.

“Hmm… so that one didn’t make it huh?” Hao felt a bit of regret, but as long as Maelstrom was alive, their mission was not in vain. He was one step closer to realizing his goal, however…

Standing up, he noticed smoke rising in the distance – a grim reminder of the Skyship crash. Fear and concern welled up inside him as he wondered about the fate of his friends. He murmured to himself, "Mentos, Yoad... I hope you're both safe."

“So you survived the fall, little worm!” At that moment, Kiera and her remaining gang of Bastian Bandits appeared in the sky, riding their fearsome Beast Companions. She was very persistent and determined to crush Hao to a crisp of dust and retake what was rightfully hers. Her hatred for him was seething deep, fuelling her unyielding hunt.

‘It’s her again?’ Hao, still exhausted from his underwater ordeal, glared at Kiera as she and her gang swooped down towards him. The beasts they were situated on growled, moreover, snapped their jaws, eager for a fight. Hao steeled himself for the imminent battle, knowing that he couldn't let them take Maelstrom or the Sword Fishes.

“Very well, I’ll dance with you, but this shall be our very last bout.” Hao sounded serious as if he was preparing to rend bones from flesh. If he had eyes then his glare would have probably cut through his enemies. SWOOSH! He unsheathed Vibe Edge from its scabbard, its blade shimmering with a dark-sapphire energy that was slightly absorbing the light around it while giving off a faint musical tune.

“Look at this punk!” Spat one of the bandits, “Does he actually think he can take on all of us at once.”

“He’s completely out of it.” Commented another one of Kiera’s goons. “That fall must have jumbled his brain cells.”

“That must be it. The fool has bubbles popping around in his head and now he thinks he is hot shit.” This bandit also unsheathed his Blade Edge and shouted, “Let’s cut this punk up and feed him to the fishes! What do you think about that, big sis?”

“Sounds like a glorious plan.” Responded Kiera brandishing her Serpent’s Lash that sparked when it hit the ground.

“Come, I’m not afraid of you lot.” With an unwavering stance, Hao beckoned his enemies to a duel of Crossblades.