Alma Fatara, Anjengan, Iwak Ngasin, Juling Jitu, and Gagap Ayu were gathered at a spot on the beach, specifically under a coconut tree.
They were playing "Hermit Crab Rises From the Grave".
The game required each player to have a champion hermit crab. The playing field was a shallow hole in the sand. Each hermit crab was placed into the hole, which would serve as a grave for the hermit crab. Then, the hole was filled in, burying all the hermit crabs inside. The filled sand was not allowed to be pressed or compacted. Afterward, they simply waited to see whose hermit crab emerged from the sand first.
"Come on, Black Shell!" shouted Iwak Ngasin, shouting at his hermit crab.
"Rise up, Juling Warrior!" shouted Juling Jitu, standing up and posing, as if about to transform into a Power Ranger.
"Sexy Butt! Sexy Butt! Sexy Butt!" shouted Anjengan, like a fanatic female fan cheering for her idol K-Pop star.
Gagap Ayu's style was different again.
"Ge-ge-get up, Ge-ge-ge...."
"Gear!" Gagap Ayu's four friends shouted in unison, pointing at the little girl with the beautiful, dark face.
"Not ge-ge-gear, but a grave!" Gagap Ayu corrected, scowling.
"Hahaha...!" They all burst out laughing.
"Pe-pe-pratty Sea Pe-pe-prince!" Gagap Ayu shouted, calling the name of her favorite hermit crab.
"Hahaha...!" Alma laughed out loud, like a father's laugh. "Hey, Ayu! Where did the story come from that the Sea Prince is beautiful? The normal one is either Handsome Sea Prince, or Manly Sea Prince!"
"It's up to me, Alma. That's my h-h-hermit crab, whatever I name it!" Gagap Ayu flexed her muscles with her unique stuttering.
"Oh, whatever? Then it's up to me what I want to name my hermit crab," said Alma. She then shouted at her hermit crab, which hadn't yet emerged, "Get up, Gagap Ayu Flat-nosed! Come on, Gagap Ayu Flat-nosed!"
"Hey, Alma! That's a teasing name!" Gagap Ayu protested, disapprovingly.
"Eeeh! That's my hermit crab, it's up to me what I want to name it," Alma argued, pouting.
"That's not allowed, Alma. If you're just teasing, there's no way you can play!" said Anjengan, also blaming Alma.
"That's right, Alma. If you want to fight, then fight. But if you want to play, don't pick a fight!" said Juling Jitu, a boy with a pair of crossed eyes.
Suddenly, their argument was interrupted by the shout of Iwak Ngasin.
"Someone's risen from the grave!"
Suddenly, all five of them focused their gaze downward. The sand they had piled up began to move, indicating a hermit crab was about to emerge from its grave.
"P-pe-pe-pretty Sea Prince!" Gagap Ayu shouted when she saw a hermit crab emerge from the sand.
"Slamet Linglung is out!" Alma shouted as her hermit crab followed Gagap Ayu's. "Come on, Slamet Linglung! Charge at that Pratty Prince!"
"Wow, Alma, that's terrible. His father's name was used for a hermit crab!" said Juling Jitu.
"It's okay, my father likes it when his name is everywhere," said Alma.
"Oh, why did you stop?" said Gagap Ayu, disappointed.
Gagap Ayu's hermit crab stopped after emerging from the sand. Unlike Alma's, it continued moving and walked away from its grave.
"Hahaha! The Pratty Prince had a seizure after being buried!" Alma said, laughing at Gagap Ayu's hermit crab.
After that, the other three hermit crabs also emerged, rising from their graves.
"Hooray! Slamet Linglung is the champion! Hahaha!" Alma cheered, then laughed loudly.
"Hey, hey, hey! Shut up!" Iwak Ngasin yelled at his friends. He ignored his hermit crab as it continued to walk away from the competition.
"Why? Oh, it must be about to fart!" Anjengan snapped, taking two steps back from Iwak Ngasin.
"Hahaha!" They laughed and quickly backed away from Iwak Ngasin. They agreed that their friend was playing a prank.
"No. Look over there!" the skinny boy corrected.
Alma and the other three shifted their gazes into the distance, to where a row of fishermen's boats were moored.
At the fishing boat mooring in Iwaklelet Village, two adult men were standing there. The two well-dressed men were inspecting a boat, as if searching for something inside.
Their clothing indicated that they were not the boat's owners and also indicated that they were not residents of the village.
"That's strange, isn't it? Even the Sandal People aren't dressed that well. They must be trying to steal a boat!" said Juling Jitu, analyzing.
"They're dressed nicely, how could they be thieves?" said Anjengan.
"It could be," said Gagap Ayu.
"Yes, it could be. They could have stolen their clothes so they wouldn't be suspected," said Juling Jitu.
"Come on, everyone, grab some rocks! Let's throw them at the boat thief!" commanded Alma.
Although they often fought and argued, when it came to moving together, Alma was the leader.
"Thief...! Thief...! Boat thief!" Alma shouted as she ran towards the water.
"Thief...! Thief...! Boat thief!" Alma's four friends shouted as they also ran.
Hearing the shouts, two young men who were searching for something on a boat were startled. When they looked toward the source of the shouts, several rocks were already hurtling through the air, attacking them.
The two handsome young men easily dodged every stone thrown at them.
"What's this, Jura?" asked the young man in a smart blue shirt. From his left waist hung a sword and its sheath. His name was Sugang Laksama. "People are starting to arrive!"
Sure enough, because of the loud shouts of Alma and his friends, the people who heard them immediately moved to the beach.
Seet! Tak!
A pebble flew fast and hit the young man named Sugang Laksama in the head.
"Akk!" Sugang Laksama screamed. He grimaced, clutching his head as he glared at Alma, the child who had thrown him.
The boats were moored some distance from the sandy beach. To reach them, people on the shore had to wade into thigh-deep water.
"Come on, Sugang!" called out a young man in black named Jura Paksa.
Jura Paksa ran lightly from one boat to another, relying on his lightness skills.
Sugang Laksama, whose head was bleeding from Alma's throw, quickly darted over the row of floating boats. He followed Jura Paksa. Eventually, the two young men darted to the sandy beach and sprinted away.
The fishermen of Iwaklelet Village had arrived and met the young children.
"What are those two doing in the boat?" asked an adult man.
"I don't know, it looks like they're trying to steal the boat," Alma replied.
The boat owners then went to their boats in the water to inspect them.
"I didn't know those two men were powerful," said Juling Jitu.
"You made his head bleed, Alma. Be careful, I'm afraid they'll come and seek revenge on you, Alma," said Iwak Ngasin.
"Aaah, never. If they come again, I'll throw them again," said Alma.
"But those two men were handsome," said Anjengan flirtatiously, smiling to herself. (RH)