[Jaden Wolf]

Along the coast of the Ree'ne sea, near where it merged into the Nodia sea, was a surfer's paradise. Or, specifically, a pro-surfer's paradise. The rough waves were not ideal for beginners, where the cliffs took up most of the shoreline and the beaches were but gaps of crumbling stone. Only a few could even be called "accessible". Not that this stopped the surfers from getting their thrills, of course.

Though the storm sweeping the coast definitely did. It was a fairly mild bit of weather, as far as coastal storms go, but the waters here were rough enough without any kind of storm adding to them. Only the most skilled and diehard surfers were out today, most using separate beaches from each other to reduce the risk of collision. Sure, you could watch your own back out here if you knew how, but you couldn't guarantee someone else knew enough to not get you killed.

[Jaden Wolf]

One particular section of coastline had one surfer who seemed completely undeterred by the weather. Her board cut swiftly through the water, ignoring every rogue wave that crashed into her path. In fact, more than once she seemed to actually switch waves mid-air. Even the most exceptional surfers would have found her surfing amazing to the point of being downright bizarre.

Though really, she just sensed each wave just moments before it hit her or tumbled into her path. She knew exactly where the board needed to go to keep her from going under. All she needed was the skill to pull it off.

[Jaden Wolf]

And, for the most part, she did have that skill. Though her muscles screamed at the effort of jarring leaps and sharp turns, she never stopped getting a thrill from it. Even if she did, from time to time, wind up going through a wave instead of over it.

After a while though, her aching muscles started to feel more sluggish in her movements and she knew she had to take a break or one of these waves could break her.

[Jaden Wolf]

This was the moment any spectators would have called truly bizarre. It were as though the storm itself had shifted, pressing the massive waves directly toward the nearest beach instead of tossing the water about haphazardly. The low-laying clouds themselves looked as though they were being pulled into the surfer's wake.

Which any sane person would have said was ridiculous, of course.

Not that it mattered in the end, the surfer was alone here, as she had always planned to be.

[Jaden Wolf]

She allowed the waves to knock her from her board, dragging herself sluggishly from the brutal shallows with more effort than she would have liked. The open waters were much easier to handle than the foamy shoreline itself. Shallow waves always hit with a force that the larger counterparts seemed to lack. It was these that broke stone and wore down cliffs, after all.

Eventually, she was out and spilling herself onto the damp sand, breathing heavily.

[Jaden Wolf]

For a little while, she just sat there, watching the rain fall further out to sea as she tried to get her breath back. She didn't notice the footsteps over the crashing surf and distant thunder.

"That was quite a show there, love," a voice said. The surfer practically jumped right out of her wetsuit. She looked over her shoulder to see another woman in a wetsuit studying her with a glint in her eye and a grin on her face.

[Week 3]

[Crystal Synthesis Complete]