The Ghost Waters.
All the investigation vessels had formed a mixed fleet of twelve ships and were slowly advancing.
At the heart of the formation, surrounded like a moon amid a host of stars, lay the Riyao Group freighter USS Arizona. Inside its control room:
"Stay alert and keep a close eye out for anything unusual. We're approaching the area where all those incidents occurred. Keep your eyes peeled and report anything you find immediately!" ordered a slightly overweight, middle-aged captain, his expression grave.
"Yes, sir!" came the chorus of replies in the control room.
Everyone knew what the captain meant by "all those incidents." Four of the group's freighters had already disappeared or sunk here. For vessels belonging to the Riyao Group, this was an ill-omened place!
If Riyao hadn't offered ten times the usual pay, and if the previous ghost incidents hadn't all ended without casualties, they would never have come here, not even at gunpoint. Anyone with eyes could see they were here to serve as bait!
Seeing the tension on his crew's faces, the captain offered some reassurance. "There's no need to worry too much. Look around you! We have warships from Rabbit Country, Neon Country, and South Korea, along with research vessels from plenty of other countries. We're perfectly safe!"
"Captain, those warships are powerful, sure, but will their weapons work on ghosts?" the first mate asked nervously.
Shooting ghosts with cannons? It sounded pretty exciting, but wasn't it common knowledge that energy beings were immune to physical attacks?
"Don't worry! With so many of us here, it might not even dare show up. Besides, even if the weapons don't work on the Ghost Captain, we still have one final trump card!" the captain declared earnestly.
"What is it?" Everyone perked up.
"I've prepared no