Atlantis

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***

We had travelled quite a long way when I saw a picture that was truly awe-inspiring. And Arthur wasn't lying about the beauty of Atlantis, at least from above it looked mesmerising.

And it didn't really look like the ancient sunken city I had imagined. It was more like a sort of modern underwater metropolis. Super-modern, to be honest.

The whole city literally glowed, because of the multi-coloured lights it emitted. Skyscrapers of incredibly huge size stretched upwards, seemingly towards the land. And the strange underwater vehicles, or something like them, moving around spoke of the advanced nature of this race. And for all that, there were various huge algae and corals in perfect harmony.

I widened my eyes in admiration when I saw all this, and slowed down a bit, which Arthur noticed at once.

- Heh, I see you really liked it. Come on, let's get you inside," Arthur said, grinning at me.

I really did follow him. We didn't go straight to the right place, but rather to the entrance... sort of. There stood... floated... drifted... in general there were two guards, in outfits both modern and ancient.

- My King, you have arrived! - They spotted Arthur at once, and swam towards him. I realised, however, that there was no sincere devotion on display. They address Arthur that way because they have to, rather than out of real respect.

- Who is that with you? -said one of the guards, as if he were addressing a fellow guard, not the king. Arthur didn't notice it much, though.

- Our guest from the surface," Arthur said with a smile, not really noticing how much the others didn't like his words. Perhaps he just didn't want to show his displeasure.

The guards didn't say anything, though, and let us go on our way, glancing at me askew.

Soon we reached the palace, which towered above the whole city, standing in the middle. Its guards didn't pay much attention to us, only quietly letting us pass and greeting us with a small bow.

And inside, I could finally breathe easy. It was dry, because of the barrier or something, and the air was also quite normal. But okay, I'm not educated enough to try to figure out how it works.

- Phew, this is much easier," I said, while simultaneously pulling all the water out of my clothes.

- I thought you'd like this environment better than the depths of the ocean," Arthur said with a laugh.

Well, he's right. In fact, when I went here, I forgot about a small fact, namely the pressure, which at this depth was not small. And the rest of my squad, even with the equipment, would be ballast. Not all of them, of course, but most of them.

- All right, where do we go from here? Are we going to meet your subjects? - I asked him with a chuckle, also expressing the fact that he was not much respected as a king here.

- Yeah... subjects," he said, understanding my quip, "Actually, no, I need to change first.

- Then let's go," I said calmly, wondering if I could smoke. As a smart enough person, well, in my opinion, I didn't just leave my cigarettes to get wet. No, I wrapped them in a cellophane bag to keep the water out. Yes, yes, I'm a genius, no need to praise me.

- By the way, Arthur, can you smoke in here? - I asked him, to which I received a rather strange look.

- I don't know... Well, as long as we're going to my place, I'll let you," he said tiredly, still looking at me strangely. Really? What's the big deal, it's just a bad habit. Everyone has to have weaknesses...

- Didn't you want to quit? It's still pretty unhealthy," Aquaman said to me as I lit up a cigarette.

- I'm not a regular person at all, and nicotine doesn't hurt me in the slightest because of my heavily enhanced physique.

- Well, suit yourself," he said awkwardly, "By the way, what do you think of the beauty of Atlantis? Judging by your expression at that moment, you liked it very much.

- Yes, the city is really beautiful. I've been to a lot of places, and I've seen some pretty beautiful things, but I can definitely put Atlantis in the top three most beautiful places I've ever seen," I said, quietly smoking, and completely destroying the ash from my cigarette so as not to litter. Still, I'm not at my house.

- I'm even curious about the other two places you're so enamoured with," he inquired.

- It's Gotham and Kyoto, I guess. I really liked the former for its dark architectural style, and the latter more for its childhood impressions," I said, remembering how I'd visited Japan in a previous life by chance. Just by winning in a random Olympics held among orphans, I was able to win a trip with other orphans to this beautiful city. And for that me, it was probably the happiest memory of my entire life.

- Hmm, maybe I should visit them myself. I've seen only the sea most of my life, and I've never travelled far from it," he said.

- If you want, we could go to Gotham sometime, I know a bar there," I said with a grin. But I didn't really know how to act... friendly? I'd never really had any real friends, just comrades on the battlefield who had my back, saving me from death. There were just acquaintances with whom I could sometimes chat or go out. But friends?

Arthur is basically not a bad guy, and quite positive and cheerful. So they and I could be friends. And Neo's okay too... I don't know if I want to make friends. Some part of me deep down doesn't want to, though I'm rather afraid of it. I don't know how to describe it... Eh, well, I won't worry about it too much. If it works, we'll be friends.

- That's not a bad suggestion, but we'll have to find a really good time when we're both free," Aquaman said simply, smiling.

- Okay, we're almost there," Arthur said to me as we turned, but at that moment, a girl came out from behind that corner.

A fairly young red-haired girl in a green tight suit and something like a tiara. And I even already know who it is. Mera, the queen of Atlantis, or not yet. Maybe she's just Arthur's fiancée, or maybe they're not even in a relationship yet.

- Arthur, you're already here," she said happily, immediately walking over to Arthur and kissing him. Yes, they are definitely in a relationship already.

- Ahem, Mera, we're not alone here," he said a little embarrassed looking at me. Huh, apparently someone is shy.

- Ah, is this the surface guest you were talking about the other day? - She asked, looking me over.

- Yeah, you two haven't met. Sweetheart, this is Edmont Kent, an important man on the land, comparable in power to the finest warriors of Atlantis. And this is Mera, my wife and Queen," Arthur introduced us, apparently having already figured out how to introduce me.

- Nice to meet you," I said, looking at her calmly.

- Nice to meet you too," Mera replied.

- Okay, wait for me here for a while. I still need to change," Arthur said calmly, walking through the door around the same corner that Mera had come out of.

The two of us stood silently in the middle of the corridor, staring at each other. It was strange, because I had no idea what to talk to her about. Arthur had been born on land, and we understood each other pretty well. But she was already a resident of Atlantis... Strange.

- Arthur said you were quite strong, and spent a long time convincing the elders that you could help us with your power. So what exactly can you do? - she asked me, apparently tired of standing in silence. Though perhaps she had originally wanted to ask that, but was held back by politeness.

- My abilities are actually quite versatile... Well, first and foremost I'm physically strong. It wouldn't be particularly difficult for me to destroy a small mountain with a punch. I can also control various elements, but mostly water. You could say that controlling water is my strongest ability. I could easily create a Tsunami if I wanted to," I said, giving a rough idea of my abilities. I'm not quite sure how to create Tsunami, but in theory I should be able to do it.

- Wow, that's even stronger than I thought. Arthur talked about your power, and helping to destroy one of Flood's bases, but I still expected less," she said, genuinely surprised. Yeah, well, who would have thought a surface dweller would be so powerful? That kind of thinking could hit the Atlanteans hard when the world starts having real problems. Like Darkseid, Trigon, and similar personalities. For then the Atlanteans will also be at the forefront of the Earth, and far from being the strongest....

- Okay, I'm done," I heard Arthur's voice, who came back to us a second later, already in his suit. Yeah, orange doesn't really suit him, to be honest.

- Where to next, then? - I asked.

- Ehhhhh, to meet the others," Arthur said rather sullenly.

- Don't sigh so much, Arthur. For now, the others are quite prejudiced against you because of your origins, but they'll definitely change their minds after we destroy the Flood. They'll see your strength and they won't dare to cross you anymore," Mera said, taking the young king's hand.

The young king really doesn't like all his counsellors, and they don't like him very much either. It's a very jolly atmosphere, in a word. And I'm going to have to be a part of it.

I just want to believe that once I go in there, they won't look at me like I'm retarded. On the plus side, it won't be long and I won't have to see them much, because after the mission I'll be out of here. And no one will appoint me U.S. Ambassador to Atlantis after the peace is made, because I have a lot of things to do.

And while I was thinking about not the most pleasant things, we got to the Throne Room, where we were already waited for. Eh, the next few hours weren't going to be easy at all.....

***

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