39. Malta’s Dying Paradise
Suri lifted his head to look at the sky.
Though the lightning shield obscured the clouds, he could see them gradually shifting into a purple-tinged mist. The cloud’s hue deepened, spreading over all of Malta. The fully purple mist-cloud moved like a living creature, slowly circling along the outer edge of the lightning shield.
The cloud had nowhere to go.
“It’s like the cloud has become a wall. It’s made a huge barrier separating us from the outside world. We’re practically trapped”
Maru’s voice trembling with fear.
“Hey, hey… relax… We’re from a family line of explorers, a royal family, remember? Have you ever seen an explorer die?”
Suri was scared too, but he didn’t want to show it. He wanted to appear composed for his friends.
“…Uh… yeah, I have… Amundsen… Scott… and plenty of others…”
Maru was shaking.
“Hey… those were polar explorers, weren’t they? We’re… yes, civilization explorers! Indiana Jones didn’t die, right? Don’t be afraid.”
Suri’s voice rang out boldly.
“The lightning shield has already turned Malta into a sealed chamber… It’s like a huge steamer”
Maru murmured, sweating profusely.
Marblem sat off to the side, humming a tune to himself, not even bothering to glance at Suri and Maru’s conversation.
“…Hey… you insolent boy… What’s with you? No empathy at all?”
Suri shouted.
“Go on, fight… fight all you want! Who’s really being insolent here? Faced with a great catastrophe, you insignificant humans are the arrogant ones, aren’t you? Humans… you’re so weak and so full of yourselves. Do you think fighting will change anything? If it were me, I’d be doing something useful with my time, not just waiting to die like dung beetles. You idiots.”
Marblem sprang to his feet, glaring fiercely. The ever-smiling Marblem suddenly looked quite intimidating.
At that moment, the last rays of sunlight were completely blocked. Only the faint glow from the lightning shield illuminated the darkened Malta. The three children and Marblem exchanged anxious glances.
“It feels like ghosts could appear at any moment… It is terrifying…”
Sabi pressed close to Suri.
“Ah… look at that… Just look! Stop fighting and look. Please, look!”
Maru shouted like a madman.
The once deep turquoise waters of Malta had turned into a murky ash-gray.
Dead fish floated on the surface, and seaweed drifted lifelessly. The seawater bubbled like a boiling hot soup, and within this churning broth, tiny specks wriggled repulsively.
The tiny specks grew larger, finally revealing their true form. They were luminescent tentacles, eyeless and mouthless, just writhing appendages of some monstrous lifeform. Like a kraken from ancient myth, yet far more alien and grotesque.
These glowing tentacles began to slither ashore. Wherever the tentacles passed, strange, glowing crystalline structures sprouted rapidly from the ground.
“…Not even ancient relics show anything like this… I’ve never seen it in a movie… It’s like watching a game’s cinematic,” said Suri, unable to believe the reality unfolding before him.
“It’s Nova’s Imperial Army… Those flickering shapes I saw… they were these things…”
Marblem stared, as if his soul had left him.
“What do we do? We’re all one body, right? Tell me, Marblem. You said we should do something? Don’t tell me you’ve turned coward now?”
Suri grabbed Marblem’s arm and shook it.
“Wait a second… I’m thinking too. When we unite into one body, we become a massive electrical force. But I’m not sure if that’s useful now… The lightning shield’s electricity far surpasses our power. Also… as great as I am, my special skill is possession-magic. I might not be as good at brave breakthroughs as you are”
Marblem said sincerely.
“Stop pretending to be humble, you coward…”
Maru glared at him.
The lightning shield covered the island completely, cutting off all airflow. With the sun’s heat trapped inside, Malta’s temperature kept rising. There was no escape from the heat. It grew hotter and hotter.
“The ground… the ground…”
Maru began hopping in place.
The ground was sinking, gradually melting. In the distance, Valletta’s golden limestone buildings were melting and crumbling bit by bit. Underground water boiled up, bursting through the earth. All the plants were dying.
Birds could no longer fly, falling to the ground with dull thuds.
Lizards scurried around, trying to find shade, but eventually died too.
No insects remained; not even one could be seen.
The oxygen thinned, becoming increasingly scarce.
As the boiling seawater evaporated, Malta’s landmass effectively grew larger.
Malta had become a giant pressure cooker, slowly killing everything trapped inside.
It was no paradise—Malta was turning into a massive tomb.
“Dad…”
Suri called for his father.
[To be continued…]
** Starting November 2023, The Korea Daily is excited to publish the fantasy novel series “Sword of Malta – Lightning in 72 Years” on our website. This new captivating series follows a trio of young adventurers on their quest to uncover the mysteries of ancient civilizations, including the Maya and Inca. In an exciting development, Netflix is currently adapting the novel’s storyline into a film.
The ‘Sword of Malta – Lightning in 72 Years’ is the latest novel authored by Jeeyoon Ha, who created the “Pangaea series.” Ha’s debut novel, “The Pangaea: Finding Xibalba,” was selected by the Korea Creative Content Agency in 2022 as part of their initiative to support the global export of fantasy literature.
Readers can eagerly anticipate the online publication of two installments each month, with new chapters appearing bi-weekly, offering a regular escape into this magical realm. *Mark Oh translated the Korean novel into English.
