I remember Mex telling me about Mati, but seeing her now was a bit surreal pressed up on the glass. She was Kieta’s friend, so it might be nice to get her to come to join us, but getting to her was a problem.
“That is quite the sight,” Fireden said thoughtfully, but I sucked all four back inside of me at once.
“Hello? Can you hear me?” Mati called from the other side of the glass, but I could barely hear her.
“Yes! Give me a minute, and I will come out there!” I shouted, and Mati gave me a webbed thumbs up.
I turned, jogged out of the room, and headed straight for the front of the house to get to the control room. The moment I entered the small room, the door opened, but Keri wasn't in the booth.
“I anticipated that you would be coming to see me. We really need to get an intercom set up. I was going to come to talk to you about her, but I assumed you would come to find me first,” Mex said as I walked up to the map area I had been in before.
“So this is the Mati that you were talking about? How did you know that I would see her?” I asked as I walked up to join Mex.
“I can tell wherever you are inside the house since the inside is my creation. Jilly might have built it, but I stored it using my spatial magic to replace the inside of the submarine. Since I knew that you were in the Viewing Dome, I was sure that you would see Mati,” Mex explained.
“Well, how do I get out to go see her? If she is one of Mary’s sisters, then I am going to want to keep her close,” I said, and Mex nodded, but he had an uneasy look on his face.
“You know how Mary and Missy have an uncanny ability to avoid all danger?” Mex asked, and I nodded.
“Yes, I have had more than enough experiences with it; why?” I asked.
“Well, unlike the other two, Mati makes excellent use of her ability. Each girl has a fault. Mary is blind, and her mind is that of a child most of the time. Missy is an airhead that constantly asks benign questions. Mati has no sense of fear, which makes her dangerous. She also likes to pick fights with creatures much stronger than herself, meaning that she has many enemies,” Mex explained, and I tried not to smile.
Compared to the other two, this hardly seemed like a problem. I already seemed to make friends or foes with everyone I met, no in between.
“Sure, I get it. So, how do I get out? I don't think opening the hatch up top is the best way out unless that somehow leads to the bottom of the ship. Does it?” I asked, but Mex narrowed his eyes at me.
“Did you hear anything I just said?” Mex asked me, and I nodded.
The two of us seemed to have different views on what was exciting and fun. I didn’t see anything wrong with what he had just told me.
“Yup, no fear, lots of enemies, likes to get into bar fights. Did I miss anything?” I asked, and Mex slapped his hand to his face.
“If you understand all that, then why are you smiling?! This woman is not something you should be grinning about!” Mex declared, but I waved my hand at him.
“All a matter of perspective. You might think those things are bad, but they smell like an adventure to me! Plus, she is Mary’s sister, and that is something that I am working on right now. Not like I can just not help her,” I said with a shrug.
“Fine, but remember that I did warn you. Also, the top hatch does lead to the bottom, so you will have to head back up to the top. Just be careful with her. You are strong, but both of us know that there is nothing you can do against the girl's powers. If she decides that she doesn't like you, that could become deadly for you,” Mex warned, and I nodded.
“Sure, but you know that almost every one of the women has tried to kill me in some way, shape, or form. It would be going against the grain if she didn’t. Stop worrying and make sure that we are headed to the archipelago,” I said, and Mex nodded with a sigh.
“Yes, I have us in line for the closest island here,” Mex said, pointing to the map at the island southwest of our current location.
“How long will it take before we reach the island?” I asked.
“Two days, possibly three depending on the currents. We don't really know much about how the water moves under the surface in this world. There is a chance that we even get there faster if we luck upon an underwater current heading the same direction as us,” Mex explained, and I nodded, walking back around the table to leave.
“I will go see what she wants, and see if I can convince her to join us. Not sure how long I will be but make sure that the girls don't come out after me. The last thing I want to do is chase them around,” I explained, and Mex nodded.
“I understand, but try not to get roped into something overly complicated. You might end up a good ways away from us,” Mex warned, and I nodded.
“Yes, I will try to stay close, but I can always find my way back to you all. I can sense everyone connected to me. So, you will all be like a bright beacon that will guide me if I get lost,” I said as I left the control room, heading back out to the living room and over to the elevator entrance on the side of the staircase.
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