"Maybe it's something else that would cause it to appear. I don't think staring at the map is going to do anything," Uncle Elias presumed.
I shook my head slowly, staring at the screen.
"This SOM5 thing is so unpredictable. I wish I had an instruction manual on how to use my abilities," I retorted.
We were trying to get the satellite imagery, to display the missing island. But our efforts were in vain. It just did not work. I guessed it could have been because we were not exactly using state-of-the-art satellite imaging. But it should have still worked nevertheless if it was really an SOM5 thing. Technology was not an issue for the SOM5. The ways of the SOM5 were mysterious, psychological, magical even. It should have worked.
Unless Uncle Elias was right. Maybe something else would trigger it, and whatever it was, we did not have it now.
"But the Grey said I would know. He said I was the only one that could find it," I said, exasperated.
I grunted. It would have so much easier if he'd told me how. How was I supposed to just figure this out?
"It's okay, Laila. For now, let's just square down to the areas, most likely it'd be in," Uncle Elias said reassuring.
I meekly nodded.
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Speculations on the location of Atlantis were vast. There were plenty of theories, hypothesised by scientists and scholars, since Plato to our modern day researchers.
What Atlantis was, itself, remained a mystery. Whether it was truly an advanced civilization, or merely fiction.
Ancient astronaut theorists have all had their hypotheses of Atlantis. They assume, it was actually an advanced alien spacecraft, that descended our planet, spread knowledge and shot back into the sky. This theory rose due to the statements that claimed Atlantis was way advanced for its time, and disappeared in a day and a night.
I myself have various theories regarding Atlantis. There were plenty of dots you could connect it to. From the Greeks, to the Egyptians and even the Mayans.
So, after all that, I find out that Atlantis is actually a secret time traveller base, of humans from the future, which cannot be detected by the extraterrestrials.
I would have not thought of that. But it was now a fact I had to believe.
"So Atlantis was speculated to be located around the Mediterranean, near islands such as Crete, Santorini and Malta. Some say it was even located in Europe. They claimed it's located at southwest Andalusia.
"But the most famous, is of course it's location in the Atlantic Ocean. Around the Straits of Gibraltar, but in relative proximity to the Mediterranean Sea," Uncle Elias explained.
"But how are we supposed to look for something, no one has ever succeeded in finding?" I asked the dreaded question.
I knew it was all going to point back to me. I was supposed to know this. When I really needed my SOM5 abilities, this happens. It was so frustrating.
"You know what guys, let's just call it a day. Maybe something might happen soon, and voila I will know the location," I said in surrender.
"But Laila," Uncle Elias tried to call me back.
I shook my head at Uncle Elias,"I'm serious. The way this SOM5 works is pretty unpredictable. I'll try my best to see if I can dig deep enough into my thoughts and find...," I trailed off, when it dawned upon me.
Dig deep enough into my thoughts.
"That's it!" I exclaimed.
"Okay, Uncle Elias, I'll be going. See ya!" I said before rushing out of the building, leaving a dumbfounded Uncle Elias and Axel behind.
-----------------------
I did not particularly know where I was going, but I did know that I had a strong instinct to go to a relatively calming and quiet place. And my feet did bring me there.
I stopped after I entered the round thicket of trees secluding the clear lake. The same lake I used to sit around with my dad, stargazing. The same lake Axel brought me to when I had a breakdown after finding out the truth about myself.
I did not know why this lake brought a strange sense of peace to me. But it did. And I needed the peace of mind right now.
I sat down on the grass which was partially covered in snow, and stared into the clear frosty lake.
My plan was ridiculous. But if it worked, it would be worth it.
I wanted to try and drift back into that hidden part of my mind. The part of my mind, that held my memories. And the same way I retrieved the memories I lost, I hoped I could do the same and grasp the hidden information on Atlantis, that the Grey promised I had.
But I was still unaware on how I did it. It just simply happened. It had a low chance on happening again.
But after a week of searching with Uncle Elias and Axel, and getting nothing out of it, it was definitely worth a shot.
I decided that the best way for me to get to that state of subconscious was to forget the world and immerse myself deep into my thoughts. In short, fall asleep.
But falling asleep just like that would not just work. If not I would have gotten the answers already.
I had to dig deep enough, focus my thoughts. And hopefully it would work. I had to somehow master meditation.
I took a deep breath, and closed my eyes.
I focused hard, letting my abilities flow through me freely. I stopped pushing away the feelings I got when something SOM5 happened. Instead, I accepted it.
I felt electricity flow through me. All the senses in my body shut down, as the electricity concentrated up my neck, into my head.
I slowly felt myself drifting away from reality. My body unconsciously fell flat against the snow, but I did not feel a thing. I was already apart from my body, travelling into the vast expanse of my mind.