The surfboard rental shop at the beach was happy to create a fresh set of boards for Max and Nico when they arrived and provide hints on the best spots to paddle out to get into the surf that was breaking against the cove.
With physical skills like theirs, he wasn't concerned about them getting hurt or their level of expertise. The Crusader Class Pilots rarely had an issue surfing unless they made a bad judgment call or their body was still recovering from a major injury or cybernetic replacement.
The Cove was part of the private area as well, not open to public surfers to land on unless they wanted to jog down the shoreline to get out of the resort's portion of the beach.
For that reason, anyone who surfed there was considered a bit of an elitist, and the waves were empty.
They had to borrow the surf shop's change room to get into swimwear, but after that, the crowd was happy to let them through and see the two superhumans head out into the water. It wasn't every day that they got to see someone who had no fear of the ocean head out into the surf, and these two were the reason for the long weekend.
Nico hopped into the water, and Max laughed at the wake left behind as she paddled out to the far side of the breakwater to get set up faster than most powerboats were moving through the water.
He was right behind her, planning to take the next good one after she picked her line. There was timing to the waves, even here on the Terminal Ship. Unlike the conventional logic of the videos Max was hastily watching so he didn't look like a fool, the waves here seemed to have a larger curl every fourth and not every third wave.
So, once Nico paddled out into the waves and hopped to her feet, riding up the side of a curl, Max started watching the waves come in and looking for just the right spot.
If he got into it right at the edge, he could ride it further, but he didn't want to go all the way to the far side and end up on the rocks. Even with his constitution that would be a painful experience. Instead, he would double back to stay near the center of the wave, in the largest rise where a particularly sharp underwater shelf had forced more water to the surface.
Nico made it smoothly to shore just as Max was paddling into the wave, trying to properly match his speed to the movement of the water. Then, as he got near the top of the swell and it began to rise at the breakwater, he hopped to his feet and raced down the ridge into the fast-growing curl.
As he cut back and forth through the water, Max began to understand why the amphibious species loved the ocean so much. This was a lot of fun, just gliding across the surface, turning himself nearly upside down in the curl, and then rolling the board back underneath himself to continue his journey.
He didn't know that was not how normal people surfed. He had seen it in the live stream videos of the pros and it looked fun, so he just went with it and did whatever he felt like.
The rush of the ocean drowned out the cheering of the crowd, and Max dulled his mind reading to the point where he would only feel extreme situations, leaving himself essentially alone with the wave, right up until it began to crash on the beach and he had to race forward to avoid being crushed underneath it.
"Well, aren't you just a natural in the water? We've got a whole ocean on the ship and I think that this might actually be the first time you've ever been to one." Nico teased as Max picked up his board and walked onto the shore.
"You know, I think you might be right. The taste of saltwater in my mouth is definitely a new one. It looks like we're not the only ones who are feeling like a trip through the big curls today though. See the two headed out there now?" Max replied.
Seeing the Commanders going to snobs beach, combined with the quality of the waves, was enough to lure more surfers over, much to the dismay of the elite resort staff.
"Don't worry about them, they're only here for the waves, I doubt that any of them care about the dignitaries further up the beach," Max informed the nearest of the staff members.
"True. We will just keep an eye on them anyhow. There is enough armed security on the beach that nothing short of a war should cause a major issue, but the boss doesn't want that war starting on his shift." The bellboy laughed.
"Understandable. There is always tension when so many politicians and wealthy business sorts are in one spot. It's not easy being a hotelier on days like this. It looks like he's done a great job though, I don't sense any major complaints, and that alone is an accomplishment with this group."
"I will wait until we're not in public to tell him so, Commander. Now, where did that last man go? Oh, there he is, that was a hard crush." The worker chuckled as a surfer missed the timing to exit and tumbled through the surf under the weight and motion of the collapsing wave.
Max and Nico headed out again, showing off for the crowd and enjoying the waves for a few hours before the beachfront dinner service began and they had to come back in and put proper clothing on again.
It was a bit of a shame, they should have tried to muscle the guests into making it a tropical-themed event so that they didn't need to get all dressed up again.
Well, mostly dressed up. Nico still had her bikini on under her dress.
This content is taken from fr(e)ewebn(o)vel.𝓬𝓸𝓶