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Post by spasticjazzhands on Dec 25, 2019 17:38:22 GMT -8
¸,.•º˚º•.,¸¸,.•º˚º•.,¸¸,.•º˚º•.,¸¸,.•º˚º•.,¸¸,.•º˚º•.,¸¸,.•º˚º•.,¸¸,.•º˚º•.,¸¸,.•º˚º•.,¸¸,.•º˚º•.,¸¸,.•º˚º•.,¸ A commotion from alongside the water's edge distracts a few stray critters. What emerges first seem like a bunch of arguing humans swimming along the river but soon others realize that there's something different about them, especially the way they communicate. They argue through a series of clicks and rapid hand movements with disgruntled looks on their faces. It seems they have travelled a great distance. "Golly!" A pink-haired...something...eventually exclaimed with the most intelligible words. "Just put the dang shark on the riverbank if you're going to hit Huhū with it!" A large slap startled those near. A entire shark (thankfully dead) is now in view on the sand. Two more quickly follow along with four tuna fish. A garbled neigh is heard and an excited hippocampus is doing its best to jump out of the water like a dolphin. While listening to little understandable snippets of their conversation, some information regarded the beings is gathered. Trevor was the name of the siren who is the best at communicating with other above-world or land beings; he also was the one with bright pink hair. Kanikau was the leader of the pod, perhaps because she seemed the harshest. Huki donned a stenson, weirdly dry even after being submerged underwater for who knows how long. Hilahila, a tired young woman, stayed closeby to Bale with his small rimmed glasses. Paakiki was the oldest of the pod by far and was the next contender to who was the meanest of the group. She was also closely followed by Huhū who seemed passive and cradled an obvious broken wrist. Ikehu had long, dark green hair and smiled and laughed the most, especially at Nani the hippocampus' antics.
¸,.•º˚º•.,¸¸,.•º˚º•.,¸¸,.•º˚º•.,¸¸,.•º˚º•.,¸¸,.•º˚º•.,¸¸,.•º˚º•.,¸¸,.•º˚º•.,¸¸,.•º˚º•.,¸¸,.•º˚º•.,¸¸,.•º˚º•.,¸ "Want to barter, want to trade? Want to buy your worries away? Step right up (cause we cannot)! Step right up to our little shop!" Trevor avoided a tug on his sleeve and instead received a harsh clicking lecture. "Right, right, Kanikau, keep your head on. Feel free to barter for our delicious offerings! Shark is great for feasts, a real ocean delicacy. Tuna is a pain to catch sometimes, so we did you a favor dragging them all the way here. Careful though, we will bite, so it might be best to stay out of the waters for the time being!"
¸,.•º˚º•.,¸¸,.•º˚º•.,¸¸,.•º˚º•.,¸¸,.•º˚º•.,¸¸,.•º˚º•.,¸¸,.•º˚º•.,¸¸,.•º˚º•.,¸¸,.•º˚º•.,¸¸,.•º˚º•.,¸¸,.•º˚º•.,¸ to be continued...font: shardee
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Post by spasticjazzhands on Dec 26, 2019 13:48:10 GMT -8
WAHI A MAKE E MAHELE AI MĀKOU " 'TIL DEATH DO US PART " ( 008 ) TW: cannibalism impliedlua wai | water cave | moku hau'oli | happy ship | māhū pō | night vision | 'enlelo ma'alahi | siren language | 'aka'aka | fuck | moe ʻino ʻoe iā ʻoe
| damn you to hell | kāʻoki ʻia
| dipshit | mele loea | song immortals | kēnā | siren | kahu | guardian | kauwa | servant | e hele i ka ʻoki!
| go to hell serpent! | 'ala | bitch | he aha ke ano o kēia?
| what the hell is this? | scum | scum | hele pela!
| bug off! |
Kanikau | lament | Hilahila | confusion | Nani | beaut | Ōpala | garbage | Huhū | nervous | Paakiki | stubborn | Ikehu | energy | Huki | drawl | Anaia | merit | Bale | barley | Olakino | health |
Olakino finally got the opportunity to look at Huhū’s wrist without Paakiki tutting and sighing directly behind. Huhū sat with his arms crossed, now so used to it broken and hurt that he automatically carried it in the way that cradled it. He silently held out a practiced hand but Huhū only looked at it dumbly. “Your hand, if you please,” Olakino snapped his fingers. He gently took his injured hand and twisted it inspecting every angle. Huhū let out a quiet gasp and snatched his arm back. “Don’t complain, you let it get this bad without treatment.” Olakino chided. Huhū offered his hand again with no arguments. Olakino hummed. “Anaia mentioned you broke this years ago which is evident. Your wrist bones tried to heal here,” Olakino traced a path near his thumb, “but wasn’t set properly. Your scaphoid bone, the one that connects to your radius, or arm bone, isn’t in its proper place. This has caused what we call a non-union and it’s severely affecting your range of movement. Your wrist needs surgery.” He concluded.
“Surgery?” Huhū repeated. “Is that even possible?”
“In the shallows, yes.” Olakino released his wrist and it was pulled to his chest once more. “You would be propped up against rocks and a stick to clench with the pain. Shouldn’t be terribly hard, but even if we are successful, you will still have a much higher chance of arthritis forming in your wrist.”
“I’ll have to discuss this with Paakiki.” Huhū muttered.
“You’ll need surgery as soon as possible,” Olakino urged, “Soon it will be unsalvageable.”
Huhū nodded solemnly and swam away, surely dreading telling Paakiki the update about his wrist. Olakino watched him with little interest. He was an odd character, very much the victim of Stockholm syndrome and manipulative gaslighting. Come to think of it, most of the other sirens were also suffering from different conditions. He had already made Hilahila very upset when officially diagnosing Bale with brain damage. It’s not like he was surprised, a lot of first turned sirens were affected by oxygen deprivation in one way or another. Turning was an art that had to be practiced and perfected…Olakino would know. Huki obviously carried lots of built up resentment and not just directed towards sirens either. Kanikau had major abandonment issues, Ikehu was a borderline alcoholic with no reliable means to get her fix, and Anaia experienced full on flashbacks. It seemed that Trevor and Nani (which was a hippocampus even!) were the only beings somewhat functioning down here. Speaking of which, his fellow pink haired siren was approaching. “Have you broken something as well?” Olakino took in Trevor’s figure. Nothing seemed out of place including every button and crease on his old navy uniform. It clearly had been well-cared for over the decades along with his dyed hair and other aspects of his appearance. Now that Olakino was paying closer attention, Trevor looked rather pleasing.
“Just concerned about Huhū.” Trevor shrugged but kept a well-meaning grin on his face. “I’m glad he’s finally having someone care for his wrist. It looks nasty and is rather useless on gathering patrols now.”
“I would assume so,” Olakino huffed and tugged at the sleeves of his doctor’s coat. He too had made sure to maintain his coat as well; it was the only link to his old above-world life and medical accomplishments. “If you’re so concerned about him, then why are you allowing him to continue his duties?” He raised his one pierced eyebrow.
Trevor spread his hands sheepishly. “He only listens to orders from Paakiki…and you’ve been around here for long enough to know it’s best to not question Paakiki, especially to her face.”
Olakino tapped his chin. “She could be easily overpowered but that wouldn’t be the preferred method, I assume.”
“I prefer not to hurt anyone, even evil old lasses.” Trevor chuckled and was pleased when Olakino let out a soft snort himself. “Though I’m sure Paakiki has some knitting needles or some trick up her sleeve.”
“Speak of the devil…” Olakino rested a soft hand on Trevor’s arm to quiet him. Trevor followed his gaze, after taking in the angled features of the shaman’s face, and sure enough, Paakiki was swimming over and she did not look happy. Huhū trailed behind with a forlorn expression.
“What did you say to my kauwa?” Paakiki shook her fist at Olakino. “What is this about surgery? You will not cut into him, you will not fix him, you will not interact with him anymore!” She stopped with her hands on her hips.
“Ma’am,” Olakino raised his hands in sort of a disarming gesture but his voice was firm and steady, “If Huhū doesn’t have surgery, he will permanently be disfigured and unable to use his arm.”
“He’ll use it if I say so!” Paakiki shook her finger in his face.
“Get your talons away from me!” Olakino hissed. For the first time, Paakiki looked into another face and was taken aback. His eyebrows were furrowed over his purple eyes that seemed as sharp as daggers. “Touch me and you’re dead.”
“Well, I never!” Paakiki regained her composure quickly. She flipped her hair in a haughty matter and spun to face Huhū. “You are not allowed to talk to this man ever again!” She poked his chest forcefully with each syllable. “Nor the others!” Huhū weakly nodded and allowed himself to be dragged by his collar away from the two sirens.
“I think you’ve royally pissed her off.” Trevor rubbed his chin watching the two leave. “I’d sleep with one eye open if I were you.”
“I deserve to be dead if I were overpowered by that old hag.” Olakino stretched. “I just feel sorry for Huhū.”
“There hasn’t been a siren I’ve run into that turned out to be courteous.” Trevor allowed a bit of bitterness to enter his tone. “I’m sure once Huhū has a chance to speak for himself, he’ll reveal his true negative personality.”
“Oh?” Olakino turned to Trevor with eyebrows raised, “What makes you different than everybody else? What makes you so high and mighty?”
Trevor was taken aback, “What do you mean?”
“What is the above-world saying?” Olakino mock-thought for a moment. “If you run into an asshole in the morning, you ran into an asshole. If you run into assholes all day, you’re the asshole.” He straightened his doctor’s coat. “Just because everyone else has problematic characteristics doesn’t mean that you don’t. Get your foolish superiority complex out of here.”
“I’d like to think I’m a bit different as I’ve never taken it upon myself to bestow my fate and curse on somebody else.” Trevor huffed. He was getting riled up, and he hated getting riled up.
“Oh, fuck off!” Olakino dismissed him with a hand wave and an eye roll. “Go tell that to someone who cares.”
And with that, any attraction Trevor had previously felt got squashed down on the ocean floor.
Anaia and Huki were now used to seeing the reptilian man on their patrols periodically. He dropped off packages filled with minerals, twine, various items of food, and even larger items like saddlebags and medicine. Now that they were used to seeing him occasionally, there had been no more slip ups from Huki uttering anything he might regret later. It was a chilly day in the autumn waters of the abyssi and Anaia wanted, no needed, to get closer to digging deeper into Huki’s past. Calling a turtle man dad just wasn’t normal even for cursed sirens. “Huki…”
“I said I don’ wanna talk ‘bout it.” Huki pulled his Stenson lower. He seemed to do this whenever he started to become uncomfortable.
“It’s just very…” She didn’t want to say weird and deter him from speaking. “I didn’t know if you were remembering your past or anything. Talking about it might help.”
He made a few vague hand gestures before settling on leaving them spread out at hip level. “Mah pa wasn’t ev’r real…” More vague gestures, “…present.”
“Oh,” Anaia said, “Like an absent father.”
“Ya, that’s wha’ I said…not present means absent.” Huki brought his arms closer to his chest. Anaia would have to thread the waters more carefully if she wanted to know more. “He nev’r said he was proud or anythin’.”
“So…the look of harsh disappointment was typical for his face.” Anaia concluded. Huki grunted and their patrol was mostly uneventful. The only notable part was watching a pod of dolphins in the distance. Anaia pointed them out excitedly. “Do you think we can get any closer?”
Huki shook her off with another grunt. “Prob’ly, but why would we wanna?”
“They’re amazing, such graceful creatures.” Anaia ignored his protests and dragged him closer. Some of the dolphins noticed the strangers approaching and looked their way curiously. “So curious and playful.”
“They’re not as good as ev’ryone thinks,” Huki narrowed his eyes.
“Regardless,” Anaia butted in, “It’s fun just to watch them interact with the world.”
“Nah,” He drawled, “They’re naht doin’ anythin’ special. If we can wrangle one, we could use it to hunt or chase out threats.”
“Not everything has to be tamed for our own uses.” Anaia regretted turning his attention to the sea life. “We can admire them for what they’re built to do: just live.”
Huki shrugged and pulled his Stenson down, clearly ending the conversation. “Things are meant to be molded by the top predators, and guess wha’ darlin’? That’s us.”
It started off as a day like any other: at sunrise, the light rays started swimming their way into the underwater alcoves cracks and filling them with slightly warmer water and a small hint of light. This led to the majority of the abyssi migrating out of their alcoves and into the warm shallow waters. Even Paakiki let Huhū join in the underwater sunbathing. The only two sirens not up and ready were Hilahila and Bale. Kanikau wasn’t too concerned; Bale preferred the quiet anyway especially after their grueling market expedition.
It wasn’t until a blood red plume started to dissipate in the surrounding waters that the sirens started to feel uneasy. Huki tracked the trail to the source with a lazy hand. “Looks like it’s coming from down yonder.” His gesture rested onto one of the back alcoves. If they remembered correctly, it was Hilahila’s as a slight glimpse of her painted colors could be seen from this distance.
Kanikau opened her mouth for a better sense of what was happening. “It’s siren blood.” She concluded and smacked her lips. “Either Hilahila or Bale, I can’t tell.”
“Definitively male.” Olakino added. “You can taste hints of testosterone; it’s a smoky flavor.”
“Well, let’s go help then.” Trevor rose from his relaxed position. Adrenaline filled him just like it did on stormy nights at sea. He grasped Olakino’s wrist and yanked it up, receiving a heavy push from the shaman.
“Don’t touch me,” He hissed but didn’t lie back down.
“You go waste your time down there,” Paakiki hadn’t moved a muscle. “Huhū, go fetch me a coconut.”
Ikehu looked rather queasy. “Send my regards.” She waved a faint hand in their direction and turned away.
Both Anaia and Kanikau reached for the spear resting in between them. After a brief silent standoff, Anaia relented and Kanikau grasped the spear, notches and all. She led the way with an anxious Trevor and an intrigued Huki close behind. Anaia and Olakino followed less urgently. “Shouldn’t you be more worried?” Anaia muttered to the shaman.
He only shrugged and made a vague gesture to the larger amount of blood now dying the water. “There’s no blood transfusions down here,” Anaia pretended to know what that meant, “so that volume of blood will most likely be fatal. No need to hurry.” Olakino concluded.
“That’s kind of a disgusting way to think,” Anaia pointed out.
“Think of it like EMTs train,” He noticed the blank look on her face, “Emergency personals whose job is to tend to the worst of the worst. They do not run towards their victims, no. They walk to keep the adrenaline and fight or flight reflex at bay. What if I can be useful when I get there, but my mind is muddled by my own neuro chemicals? I would be just another body in the way.”
“I understood only half of what you said,” Anaia crossed her arms. They were nearing the entrance now and the blood was becoming more pronounced. She held her breath as they passed through a cloud of the metallic substance.
“Panic, bad and useless.” Olakino had his hands up again enunciating his words. “Calm, good and helpful.”
Anaia dismissed him with a rude hand movement but was secretly glad at the easy explanation. “Yeah, yeah, right like always.”
“Very,” He nodded as they ducked into the alcove. The water was thick with blood.
Hilahila was crouched in the center of the floor kneeling over the unmoving body of Bale. In her shaking hands was a steel dagger that glistened red. She reached for his face with her sticky hands and messily caressed his cheek. Some of his own blood now smudged his small round glasses resting haphazardly off his nose. “Honey? Honey?” Her voice shook. Anaia fanned some blood out of her vision to try to see where he was bleeding from and gasped in shock. Hilahila had taken the dagger and left jagged cuts in each flap of scarred tissue binding his legs together. His exposed bones and muscles attracted small flounder and cod fish, all trying to get a piece of the fresh flesh. “Bale!” Her hands curled into fists as the dagger slid from her fingers. She beat on his chest but got no response. “Bale!” With each cry of his name came a thump of her fist but the only movement coming from his body was just in response to her breakdown.
Trevor snapped out of the daze the rest of the sirens had been in. Each of them were just staring at the gory sight in front of them without having the slightest idea of what to do. “Hila, you’ve got to stop!” He pulled her back and tried to restrain her arms. Even though he was a good foot taller and twice the amount of muscle, her frenzy could not be contained. She lunged forward and grabbed the bloody dagger once more.
Hilahila spun around and faced Trevor holding the dagger in both hands pointed at his chest. “Don’t get any closer.” Trevor obeyed with his hands raised in a pose of obvious surrender. With trembling hands, she slowly moved the dagger down to her own legs.
“STOP!” Trevor shouted again but it was unclear if Hilahila even heard his protests. Like in a trance, she raised her hands above the first piece of fleshy scar tissue and forcefully brought the dagger down until it sunk hilt-deep in her flesh. She let out a sharp breath but yanked the dagger out, sending a new stream of red through the water, and stabbed again and again. The sirens swam back almost choking on the large amount of blood now surrounding them. They couldn’t see Hilahila anymore but could only listen to the rips and tears of steel against flesh and muscle.
The sirens had to spend the next two days sleeping on the shelf rock in the shallows to let the waters clear. Every now and then, someone would duck away to “check if lua wai was habitable” yet but returned while wiping their mouth.
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Post by spasticjazzhands on Jan 10, 2020 18:11:18 GMT -8
MAI HĀNAI I KA HOLOHOLONA HIHIU " DON'T FEED THE WILDLIFE " ( 009 ) TW: quick alcoholism mentionlua wai | water cave | moku hau'oli | happy ship | māhū pō | night vision | 'enlelo ma'alahi | siren language | 'aka'aka | fuck | moe ʻino ʻoe iā ʻoe
| damn you to hell | kāʻoki ʻia
| dipshit | mele loea | song immortals | kēnā | siren | kahu | guardian | kauwa | servant | e hele i ka ʻoki!
| go to hell! | 'ala | bitch | he aha ke ano o kēia?
| what the hell is this? | scum | scum | hele pela!
| bug off! |
Kanikau | lament | Hilahila | confusion | Nani | beaut | Ōpala | garbage | Huhū | nervous | Paakiki | stubborn | Ikehu | energy | Huki | drawl | Anaia | merit | Bale | barley | Olakino | health | Nahesa | serpent |
Ikehu shielded her stash of leftover wine she had traded for at the marketplace. She had bragged about carefully rationing the bottles which is a big deal for a borderline alcoholic. And Olakino wanted to just take that away from her, and for what? SURGERY? Well, once she paused and thought about it, it was a noble sacrifice, but also she finally acquired wine and the last of it was to be used as an anesthetic? Understandable…but unfair! “What, are you a child hiding a stash of cookies?” Olakino snapped his fingers. “We don’t have all day, you know. Huhū’s in a lot of pain.”
She hated being called a child but couldn’t help her whine. “But it’s miiiiiiine!” Ikehu triumphantly watched Olakino duck out of her alcove. She thought it would have been a lot harder to convince him to find another anesthetic source, and she did admit she felt a little bad about not helping Huhū in his time of need. All her guilt was quickly washed away, however, when Olakino returned with Anaia and Huki, both wielding staffs. “They won’t beat me up.” Ikehu crossed her arms.
“Oh, I glad’y will,” Huki raised his staff and Ikehu flinched. He was rather threatening.
“It’s for Huhū,” Anaia held her staff firmly. “You got the rest of the wine, come on.”
Ikehu crossly drifted away from the bottles and Olakino quickly descended on them. “Ridiculous,” He muttered and rolled his eyes as he grabbed the half-filled bottles. “What are you, three?” Ikehu didn’t grace him with a response; she turned tail and swam out without a second thought. For the first time since she was turned, she thought of her father. She didn’t like that.
Huki and Anaia were no longer warriors on this day; they had become Olakino’s personal bodyguards. They had sufficiently threatened Ikehu and now they had to keep an irate Paakiki at bay. “You are misusing my kauwa without my direct permission!” She was screaming while shaking her fists. Huki held up one hand to her sternum keeping her back.
“I’m helping your kauwa live, dammit.” Olakino muttered. Huhū just watched the madness with wide eyes. “This way, Huhū.” He led his patient to the shallows where Kanikau and Trevor had created a makeshift cot with large, flat rocks. “Your hand will have to be out of the water. This pully will keep it steady. I might have to put screws in,” He opened his hand to show a variety of screws, “and then we’ll close it up and hope for the best.” He pushed Huhū onto the bed not allowing him time to protest. “I’ve gathered enough materials and sterilized them to the best of my ability, but honestly, anything would be better than your wrist now. So, lean back, take a big swig of this wine,” Olakino also took a drink before offering it to the siren, “ugh, Ikehu was excited about this stuff? Anyway, this might take all day, so just try to relax…”
Ikehu sat broodingly on a rock shelf overlooking a rather large drop off. Not even watching Wahi swim around with her mother, Nani, could replace her wine. Also, she missed the appaloosa hippocampus that was shipped back to Mekhanikos. While it was completely fair to send the twin to the father’s settlement, Ikehu wondered if she would have been cheered up more seeing two foals playing. A guttural grunt sent a shiver down her spine. The surgery must have started. Just like the night Hilahila and Bale died, she felt queasy just imagining what was happening, so she set out to wander away from the noises.
Since she hadn’t had her daily ration of wine, she had more energy than usual. Perhaps drinking herself into a half-stupor wasn’t the best for productivity? Nah, that would be ridiculous. She crossly screwed up her eyes and put her head in her hands. Drinking had turned into her escape, both under the sea and in the above-world. She had been the life of the party, retaking her bad alcohol memories and spinning them into (mostly) positive ones with friends. Now, she had no friends or booze. Sitting with her knees pulled up to her face and her head buried under her mess of hair, she swore she felt a gentle hum residing from deep inside of her. A soft pull from her very core calmed her. It seemed the ocean was singing a lullaby with warm currents and soft bubble streams creating a soothing melody.
hush now, mo stóirín She shifted her head slightly, sending a comforting cascade of hair down her back.
close your eyes and sleep Her eyes were still shut but her expression was now relaxed and slack.
waltzing the waves Her upper back muscles relaxed releasing her body of tension.
diving in the deep Ikehu leaned into one of the faint currents and let it lift her off of her seat. With the same relaxed air, she let her body float freely wherever the current wanted to take her. No…wherever the current led. It wasn’t taking her anywhere; it is just a regular occurrence in nature.
oh, won’t you come with me She drifted deeper into darker waters, but she wasn’t paying attention.
where the ocean meets the sea Her consciousness was also drifting away; the darkness of the depths ate at her mind.
and as the clouds roll by How deep could sirens go again? Did they stay in the light as a preference or was the pressure too much for their human-like bodies still?
we’ll sing the song of the sea Ikehu opened her eyes just a sliver. She thought she saw a faint light in the distance, down even further than she had already floated.
oh, won’t you come with me Any residual thoughts of her father had dissipated, and a calmness entered her body. Was she dying? If so, why was she not fighting it?
we’ll sing the song of the sea Trevor craned his neck to peek over Olakino’s shoulder and paled. He had never really wondered what inside a human wrist looked like and he certainly never wanted to see it. He inhaled sharply and ducked back into the water to regain some senses. “If you didn’t like looking, why did you bother?” Olakino’s voice greeted him when he breached the surface once more. Instead of answering, he slipped under the water once more and childishly flipped him off. After Kanikau’s five minutes holding the pully system up, he took her place and grumpily watched the doctor at work. His angled features were contrasted by the tip of his tongue sticking out the corner of his mouth. Kinda cute…he found himself thinking. NO! He would NOT think THAT! Olakino was RUDE, ARROGANT, and OBNOXIOUS! Kanikau tugged his jacket and they switched places again. See, I was light-headed from above-world air, he frowned at himself, going crazy. But when it was his turn to keep Huhū’s hand in the air, he also couldn’t stop himself from staring at Olakino.
Ikehu was not dead though she was closer to dead than to alive. She had passed the sunlight zone where sirens rarely strayed and had drifted into the twilight zone. Only faint rays from the sun waved in the water and her māhū pō was working overtime to make out outlines of her surroundings. Directly below her was an entrance to a cavern. Without hesitating and without using common sense, she entered the cavern and was shrouded in complete darkness. Her māhū pō yielded no help and the only thing keeping Ikehu from bumping into walls was gut instinct, or perhaps it was something more?
Huhū’s wrist was finally sewn shut with bonus screws inside. Every ounce of his body ached, and he was sure he would pass out if he even tried to move. “All better, ol’ sport!” Trevor’s voice came from his right. Huhū didn’t bother turning or answering.
“Not all better,” Olakino corrected, “It will be extremely uncomfortable for the next few weeks or even months. I wish I had even a fraction of medical supplies down here, but I think I did a fine job with what I had.” Cue a loud sigh from Kanikau. “However, you on no circumstances are allowed to go do any work or even pick up anything with that hand. If I have to beat Paakiki over the head, I will. You are on bed rest, mister.”
A meek nod was all Huhū could muster. He drifted in and out of consciousness while it was decided Kanikau would wait with him for a while before he felt up to moving back to his alcove. The captain passed time by skipping stones and diving for any litter that made its way into the reef. As the sun started to go down, Huhū was starting to feel more alive than dead and even risked turning his head. Kanikau was picking at a stained glass jar underneath the dusk light. She paused sensing his gaze lingering on her. “You’re alive,” She stated and continued her fiddling. “Can you move your wrist?”
Huhū let out a sharp gasp of pain as the new screws creaked in his wrist but his hand didn’t bleed or fall off, so he figured that was a good sign. He flexed a couple fingers. Good, he had full movement. “It…hurts.”
“Surprise, surprise,” Kanikau rolled her eyes. Her expression softened, however, when she inched closer and lightly touched his arm inspecting his new sutures. “You will have to actually rest from patrols.”
“That’s not up to me do decide.” Huhū said hoarsely.
“And it’s not up to Paakiki to decide either,” Kanikau frowned, “I want you to rest and be useful again. And guess what, Huhū? I’m in charge.”
Huhū stared at his wrist intently thinking. “I’m sorry I tried to kill you, Kanikau.” His voice was barely above a whisper.
Kanikau was taken aback. No one had ever apologized to her before, and she didn’t know how to react. “Well, don’t be sorry,” She said quickly, “I broke your wrist, so we’re even.”
“I shouldn’t have ever tried to kill you.” Huhū sighed. “Can I sleep out here? It’s nice under the stars…and farther away from Paakiki.”
“Only if you’re okay with staying alone,” Kanikau rose from her seated position. “I’m going back to my alcove; I don’t care what you do.”
“I think some time alone would be nice,” Huhū leaned back on the flat rock bed and shut his eyes. “Thank you for all you do.”
Ikehu came to rest on a breathing creature; she couldn’t see it but only felt its body rising and falling underneath her. Its body was covered in scales, but the scales themselves were not smooth but rough and textured. She let out a small bubble in surprise as its eyes blinked open and met hers. Its eyes were cloudy white and pupil-less. It let out a low call, almost too low for Ikehu to hear, and she figured it was using echolocation. Ikehu’s long hair that had fanned out to its full volume was pushed back slick against her body as the creature burst forward with a speed she wouldn’t had ever guessed was possible for such a large being. She hung on to the snout of the creature, dangling over the darkness of the abyss below as the two of them swam faster and further and further and faster. Suddenly, it was pitch black and cold and filled with what Ikehu could only describe as complete nothingness until all of the sudden, they were directly south of the coral reef. Ikehu quickly let go shaking. Now that the sun was streaming through the water, she could take in the beast before her. It was definitely blind as its eyes didn’t even try to follow schools of fish darting around. Its scales were a mix of dark grays but with an iridescent shine in the sun. It was also about twenty-five feet long with a thick neck and large blunt fins to powerfully propel itself in the water.
Ikehu looked at her own arms and legs and her skin was paler than usual, even her scar tissue binding her legs together. “I-I’m alive,” She stammered. The sun above said that it was morning when Ikehu first moped about around noon. At least one day had passed since she was near the reef.
So am I.
Ikehu heard the voice again, though this time it wasn’t singing. The creature seemed to be the source of the voice though only telepathically. “I don’t think I can bring you back to your cavern, miss. I’m sorry but I don’t think I’d survive going that deep again.” She reached out to pat its snout comfortingly and the creature leaned into her touch. A rumble came from deep within its throat, almost like a purr.
I will stay with you.
“With me?” Ikehu said incredulously. “We don’t have space for…whatever you are.”
I believe in your language you would call me, Nahesa.
“Well, then Nahesa…that’s a little complicated, can I just say Nessie?” Ikehu asked. “I don’t even know what you eat or anything.”
We are bonded now; I die with you and you die with me. You saved me from death, and I saved you; we are one and the same.
“How?”
I’ll explain later, mo stóirín. We need rest.
Huki was disappointed at finding a pulse in Paakiki’s wrist. “'live,” He grumbled and unceremoniously shoved her to the side. The elder had fainted at the first sight of their new serpent. Everyone else tutted and went about their day. It was a good day as they had another being to learn about and Paakiki was subdued by the giant creature. Any day where Paakiki was quiet was a good day.
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Post by spasticjazzhands on Jan 10, 2020 18:17:11 GMT -8
Song of the Sea (Lullaby) Nolwenn Leroy
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Post by spasticjazzhands on Feb 23, 2020 7:56:22 GMT -8
HE WĀ PA'A, PĒPĒ! " IT'S BONDING TIME, BABY! " ( 010 ) TW: wholesome! sexual tension! dragon lore!lua wai | water cave | moku hau'oli | happy ship | māhū pō | night vision | 'enlelo ma'alahi | siren language | 'aka'aka | fuck | moe ʻino ʻoe iā ʻoe
| damn you to hell | kāʻoki ʻia
| dipshit | mele loea | song immortals | kēnā | siren | kahu | guardian | kauwa | servant | e hele i ka ʻoki!
| go to hell! | 'ala | bitch | he aha ke ano o kēia?
| what the hell is this? | scum | scum | hele pela!
| bug off! | pīhoihoi
| dumbass | mawaena
| between |
Kanikau | lament | Hilahila | confusion | Nani | beaut | Ōpala | garbage | Huhū | nervous | Paakiki | stubborn | Ikehu | energy | Huki | drawl | Anaia | merit | Bale | barley | Olakino | health | Nahesa | serpent | Piha | parrot | Gula | gold | Keleawe | bronze | Koe | remain |
Huhū flexed his wrist and it popped uncomfortably. “Your hand still on?” Kanikau glanced up from sharpening her stone dagger. Huhū nodded. He had been spending more of his time with the captain lately but was still foggy on the exact reason why. It wasn’t because she was nice (because she absolutely wasn’t), but it seemed that Paakiki was a little put off by the blue-haired siren and Huhū enjoyed some peace and quiet. Other than that, they were a good pair as Huhū seldom spoke and Kanikau thrived in silence and not having to interact with anyone else. He popped his wrist again and let out a sharp breath. “Did Olakino screw something up?”
He shook his head. It wasn’t so much pain but a new way it moved. “What do you think of Paakiki?” He asked softly.
“That ‘ala?” Kanikau snorted. “That old hag can go rot in hell for all I care. She’s insane. I don’t know how you put up with her for so long.”
“I never had any choice.” Huhū frowned. His entire underwater life was spent following her orders without question. “It’s part of the mele loea doctrine.”
“If you haven’t noticed, this ain’t mele loea.” Kanikau set her dagger down. “This is carmina abyssi where wrists get broken and fixed.” That gave Huhū a lot to think about.
“So, what can that thing do?” Paakiki prodded Nessie with her long fingernails. Ikehu instinctively bristled but the sea dragon sent thoughts of bubbling champagne to calm her. Not everyone is going to be our friend, Nessie reminded, we still have to be the bigger person.
“Whatever,” Ikehu huffed, “Nessie can do all sorts of things: echolocation, dive deep without worrying about pressure, snore really loud…”
“I would think a serpent to be more impressive,” Paakiki waved a hand dismissively. “I’m sure Wahi and Nani could do more useful things.”
“What useful things have you done, huh?” Ikehu crossed her arms. “You only order Huhū around and no one even likes you!” Remember what I said about taking the high ground, Nessie tutted in her mind, but Ikehu pushed her away. “You’re too…old!”
“My age has only brought me advantages,” Paakiki didn’t seem fazed. “I have more knowledge and restraint than some drunkard like you.”
Something inside Ikehu’s mind snapped. She had heard that word too many times before though usually not describing her. “I’LL SHOW YOU WHAT I CAN DO!” Before she could attack the elder, Nessie gently pushed her back with her tail. I have something else in mind, mo stóirín. Something you might enjoy as well. Tell her to hang on to my neck and you can sit on my back. “I’ll show you what we can do,” Ikehu ordered Paakiki where to hold. “We can do this!” She gripped her dragon and screwed up her eyes. She had no idea what was going to happen, but their surroundings were getting colder and colder and darker and darker.
Piha spotted a quiet, shaded cove out of the hot sun rays beaming down on his feathers. He swooped down and landed among the ferns to be greeted with two large eggs (for an African gray parrot), that were being warmed by a set of smooth coals. He clicked his beak and hopped closer. Before he could peck one to see if it was hollow or not, a mostly human hand erupted from the water and batted him away. Following the hand was an annoyed head of a pink haired man. “Scram!” He garbled. More sounds came from underwater. “No, I don’t need help guys, I can shoo a bird away on my own just fine.” The man shouted back down to the water. There must be more of them down below, Piha figured. Now he was annoyed enough to shift back into his human form to give him a proper earful, but as soon as his human legs touched the sand, two pairs of hands grabbed his ankles and dragged him under the waves.
“What are you doing?” Trevor shouted but was too late. Olakino and Huki had impulsively dragged the shapeshifter under the waves and were in the process of turning him. “What has he done to you?” Huki did most of the dirty work, biting and gouging, while Olakino simply offered up a stone ready to be made into a māhū pō. The boys were very efficient and had Piha successfully turned in less than a minute. “Now what are we going to do with him?” Trevor scolded. “Who’s going to drag him all the way back to the alcoves?”
Olakino rolled his eyes and glared. “You make it out to be some tremendous task. I’ll do it, lazy ass.” Trevor watched him drag the limp figure of the brand-new siren away with his arms crossed. The medic’s behavior was very annoying! And only very annoying. Not kind of hot and commanding, not at all!
Anaia lightly smacked Huki. “You couldn’t wait ten seconds until I was out of the way? You elbowed my chin.” She grumbled.
“Just felt ‘ight, doll,” Huki shrugged. “It’s the course o’ mother nature.”
“Whatever,” Anaia pushed him away. “Your thrashing might have crushed the eggs!”
“He was thrashin’, not us!”
“Who made him thrash around? YOU!” Anaia balled her fists in anger. The two arguing warriors were interrupted by Trevor yanked them to the surface. “Hey!”
“The eggs are cracking!” Trevor pointed to the fire-lizard eggs that they successfully traded the Black Rock Weyrhold for. “Look!”
“Great job, kāʻoki ʻia.” Anaia poked Huki. “You did crush them.”
“They’re hatchin’, pīhoihoi.” Huki retorted. The three watched in silence (taking turns going back underwater to breathe) as a gold and a bronze fire-lizard poked out of their eggs and shook pieces of shell off. “Didn’ tha’ guy say they were goin’ to bond with someone?”
“How do we tell?” Anaia wiggled her fingers in front of them which they playfully snapped at. “Are they bonded to us or some random person?”
“With our luck, it’ll be that shifter that you idiots just turned.” Trevor huffed.
“Which one of y’all fuckers is gonna bond wit’ me?”
“HUKI, NO!”
What’s a ‘fucker’? “Who said tha’?” Huki glanced around until the golden fire-lizard rapped his snout on his forehead. Me! Me! I did! I chose you because I like your hat. He smiled to himself. “She likes my Stenson.” I’m Gula! What’s a ‘fucker’?
“And he’s called Keleawe!” Anaia saved him from having to explain swears to a newborn. “Can they come underwater with us? Aw, he said no.”
You have to come visit us! Visit us! Or stay with us! Gula flittered around Huki’s head. This thing was starting to become a nuisance. “Yeah, yeah,” He batted her away. “We’ll see.”
Fight or flight are the commonly thought of responses to extreme terror, but Ikehu experienced freeze and Paakiki experienced scream. After a few blind punches to what Ikehu hoped was her shoulder, Paakiki quieted to a few faint whimpers. The three seemed to be in a different body of water now, she wasn’t even sure if they were in the ocean anymore. “Wh-what was that?” Ikehu stammered, hoping Nessie at least knew what was going on. We are in the Loch Ness where I was originally hatched many, many years ago, Nessie explained, it’s a very beautiful place. “But how did we get here?” By going through mawaena. It's the fastest way to travel as a dragon; the secrets of using mawaena are passed down by each dragon and rider. I can only visit a few very familiar places on my own; other places will require both of our concentrations later on. "Alright,” Ikehu really had no idea what she was talking about, but she wanted to explore the loch. “Loch Ness? This is in…” Scotland, my home country. “And Scotland is in…” The United Kingdom, mo stóirín. “Right, I knew that. Paakiki, we’re in Scotland!”
Trevor found himself sulking after watching the fire-lizards hatch. Sure, he was technically Wahi’s handler, but other than going on patrols with her, they each did their own thing. Now that he thought about it, the fire-lizards had to stay in the above-world and Wahi lived underwater with him….no, he couldn’t talk telepathically to her. So, he did have a right to be annoyed. “You’re ruining my view,” Olakino tapped him on the back, “I can’t see out into the kelp forest with you moping about.”
“Oh no, I’m terribly sorry,” Trevor said sarcastically and put his head in his hands. “What ever will you do?”
“Maybe shove you off this rock,” But Olakino only sat next to him. “You wouldn’t get so upset if you weren’t so uptight.”
“Uptight?”
“’Stop, what are you doing?’” Olakino mimicked him from earlier today. “It’s just a turning yet you were so worried about it.”
“I don’t find joy in sharing our curse with others.” Trevor sighed. It felt that he would never under the medic.
“I don’t find joy in it either,” Olakino looked at him incredulously. “It’s our natural instinct as a siren just like being hungry or tired. Everyone tries to fight it, but aren’t you tired? Being cursed as a siren is hard enough as it is, I’ve stopped trying to withhold that part of myself.”
“I don’t think I could live with myself if I ever quit pushing those feelings down,” Trevor sighed, “But every year it gets harder and harder. I hate keeping everything locked inside.” His hand instinctively jerked back as the medic’s fingers briefly ran across it. He tried putting it back in place to show that he was only surprised by the sudden touch, but Olakino was staring firmly ahead.
“No one will judge you for whatever you decide,” Olakino simply said, “We’re all in the same boat down here.”
Paakiki refused to even peek her head out of the surface, saying that she never had any interest in visiting Scotland so why waste her breath? This only gave Ikehu and Nessie more time without the annoying elder. “This loch is a loch bigger than I expected it to be.” Ikehu nudged Nessie with her elbow. “Eh? How about that?” It is over twenty miles long. “No, I meant…never mind.” Ikehu deflated a little. They couldn’t be that bonded if Nessie didn’t understand her amazing pun. Oh, Nessie interrupted, you said loch instead of lot. That is pretty humorous, mo stóirín. “I didn’t say anything.” Ikehu said as she peered across the still surface of the loch. You don’t have to; I can read your thoughts. “Oh,” Ikehu ducked back under the water to take a breath. “There’s lots of things to learn about dragons apparently.”
Koe spotted the siren with the bright purple hair only a second before he. He raised a crudely carved spear in her direction as the other taller siren accompanying him pushed down the sharpened tip. “Don’t be so hasty, Huki.” The woman siren scolded the other. “You make everything more difficult than it needs to be.”
“Wha’ kinda warrior are ya?” He shoved his Stenson down over his eyes grumpily. “If ya won’t ev’n fight, wha’ use are ya?”
“Are you really other sirens?” Koe didn’t care about their argument. “Are you sirens like myself?”
“Ya, doll,” The siren drawled, “What’s it to ya?”
“My podmates have long since died,” Koe said softly, “There seems to be a decrease in the number of sirens in the waters due to infighting. I thought I might have been the last one left.”
“Nah,” Huki waved his hand dismissively, “I turned one yesterday. Yer not special.”
“There’s a few more of us by the reef,” The woman offered her a dainty hand, “Don’t mind that pīhoihoi. He gets grumpy if he doesn’t get to stab something on a patrol.”
“Well I’m glad your mate didn’t end up spearing me.” Koe faintly smile but the other two each made a face.
“I migh’ jus’ hav’ta stab you for ev’n suggestin’ tha’.” Huki frowned. “Be careful throwin’ yer words ‘round.”
Kanikau guided Huhū’s hand softly over the coarse fur of Nani. She leaned into the soothing motions as they massaged her withers and let out a small grunt of satisfaction. “She likes her belly scratched too.” Kanikau softly suggested and Huhū followed her advice. Nani flipped her head up and down in approval. “She has another spot on her chest, but she only likes when Anaia scratches her there.”
“For being so big, she’s really sweet.” Huhū smiled, one of the first smiles she had seen from him. “Paakiki never let me get close to other sea creatures. She said they were always wild and would kill us.”
“I guess a good amount of sea life could be hostile,” Kanikau said, “but let’s have a new rule to never talk about that ‘ala when she’s not here. I like having Paakiki-free thoughts whenever possible.”
“I’m good at following rules.” Huhū gave Nani one final pat on the flank. “Ask Paa…never mind, don’t ask anyone.” He received a thumbs up and raised his hand awkwardly in response. Kanikau only laughed.
Piha regained full consciousness rather quickly for a newly turned siren, but that might be attributed to him being a shapeshifter than just a regular human. The colorful drawings that filled the cave walls from top to bottom were the first thing he noticed. There were all sorts of animals, along with a couple crudely drawn stick figures, and Piha scratched his head. He didn’t remember much, possibly nothing at all, but something about seeing a chicken reminded him of…it was on the tip of his tongue. He drifted closer to the drawing, resting a hand on the outline trying to connect with the artist themselves. This was interrupted by raised…voices? A series of different clicks and squeaks that sounded vaguely important for a reason Piha could not yet comprehend, drew him outside of the mural filled alcove.
There were other beings outside that were making all the ruckus. Looking down at himself, Piha deduced that he was also whatever what they were, with his legs bound together by scar tissue and a glowing stone at his neck. A tall, light rose haired woman was holding another back, one with long ashy hair and bright teal eyes. A fit, dark-skinned man with bright pink hair was holding another woman back, one with flashing yellow eyes and tight, navy curls. The shouting ones were pointing fingers and screeching. He wasn’t sure if he was lucky being not able to understand the argument. He drifted back into the alcove filled with drawings. It was more peaceful there.
“Paakiki, hold on tight!” Ikehu gripped Nessie’s neck, knowing what to expect going mawaena and slightly dreading it.
“There’s shiny crystals down here, I’m collecting them,” Paakiki replied from further below the loch. “Give me a minute.”
Both Nessie and Ikehu knew Paakiki was only delaying their journey back but said nothing. “So, Nessie,” Ikehu relaxed her hands and slowly stroked the sea dragon, “How do you decide where to travel?” To go mawaena, you have to visualize your desired location. If it’s an unfamiliar location, it requires more concentration and coordination between dragon and rider. “Not to offend you or anything, but you’re blind,” Ikehu said, “How do you visualize where you want to go?” No, that’s a good question. Never be frightened to ask any questions. This time, I could take us to Loch Ness without the help of you as I am extremely familiar with this place. Visualizing doesn’t have to require actual vision, regardless of name itself. I can imagine this Loch, my old home, based on my engrained feelings and memories. For other locations, I can also base thoughts from what echolocation might reveal to me there as echolocation is how I “see” normally. “That’s very interesting,” Ikehu tilted her head, “I’m glad you know what you’re doing because I sure don’t!” It’ll get easier as we familiarize ourselves with each other, Nessie assured, it’s vital as we could both be trapped in mawaena for eternity if done incorrectly. “Oh,” Ikehu’s stomach dropped, “I would prefer avoiding that fate at all costs.” That will be best. “Let’s not mention that to Paakiki,” Ikehu decided, “Otherwise we’d never get her back. Though…” She paused, thinking, “I don’t think many would complain if she never returned.”
“YOU!” Koe was sobbing and screeching at the same time, “YOU’RE THE ONES THAT KILLED MY PODMATES! YOU MURDERER!”
Kanikau regarded her with a distasteful expression. “I remember each that I kill, and you are not one of them.”
“Well, obviously because she’s alive,” Olakino muttered. “You didn’t kill someone who is currently living.”
“I have seen more calamity and grief than you’ve ever even imagined,” Kanikau snarled to Olakino, “I have never seen this siren in my life.”
“Maybe because there was tons of sirens and other merfolk about that day,” Koe spat, “It was a massacre, not a battle. It lasted days and your pod didn’t care who got picked off. We were just passing by, only bystanders but were still victims being strangers. You think I’d forget who mowed down my best friends? Because I never forget a face either and yours is the one I strangle in my nightmares.”
Piha slept restlessly through the night. The normal underwater sounds of the alcoves would take months to adjust to, and eventually he gave up and stared at the drawings along the wall. He was really drawn to the chicken, though he felt like a different avian would be better. Piha tore his eyes away from the mural and hesitantly headed out into the open. “Howdy,” A southern drawl greeted him. It seemed to be morning and the other sirens were stirring. “Whatcha do to yer hand?”
Piha looked down and was surprised to find that his left hand simply was not there. “I haven’t noticed that before now.” He mumbled. He really hadn’t as there were always preoccupying events happening.
“Well, I be damned,” The southern siren whistled as well as one could underwater. “I’d thought one would’ve notice tha’.”
Piha hummed a neutral response. He spent this time taking in the sight of the purple haired siren. “Did I know you from before here?” He asked. “You look rather familiar.”
“Well, I’d sure think so,” The siren chuckled cruelly, “I brought ya down here. Welcome to hell.”
It turned out that Paakiki was really collecting shiny rocks, though it was debatable if they were considered crystals or not. This allowed Ikehu and Nessie to explore more of the loch. Ikehu pointed out the Urquhart Castle, but instead of being ruins, it was an actual castle. “I didn’t know they fixed that,” Ikehu said offhandedly. No, this is the castle. Long before it was considered a ruin. I like looking at its whole state even though it was partially fallen when I was hatched. “So that’s like the real castle?” Ikehu gasped. “When is this? I thought you could just take us to new places.” Later on, we’ll have to pinpoint an exact time to travel to as well, but since I can travel here comfortably, I only specified sometime in the 1600s. “That’s a long time ago.” Is it? I’ve been alive for a couple centuries and still feel like a juvenile. Funny how time is so flippant in its labels. "Sure…” Ikehu shrugged. “They sure are dressed funny!” She pointed to a couple of spectators now shouting about something and pointing to the loch. Let’s go find the old one, Nessie nudged Ikehu under the water, if we make too much of a fuss then we couldn’t visit as often with too many onlookers.
“She shouldn’t have gotten in the way.”
| ¸,.•º˚º•.,¸¸,.•º˚º•.,¸¸,.•º˚º•.,¸¸,.•º˚º•.,¸¸,.•º˚º•.,¸¸,.•º˚º•.,¸¸,.•º˚º•.,¸¸,.•º˚º•.,¸ | “It was a massacre.”
| “They had an entire ocean to swim around.”
| ¸,.•º˚º•.,¸¸,.•º˚º•.,¸¸,.•º˚º•.,¸¸,.•º˚º•.,¸¸,.•º˚º•.,¸¸,.•º˚º•.,¸¸,.•º˚º•.,¸¸,.•º˚º•.,¸
| “We only wanted to help; they were harming children.”
| “Hasn't she ever heard to mind her own business.”
| ¸,.•º˚º•.,¸¸,.•º˚º•.,¸¸,.•º˚º•.,¸¸,.•º˚º•.,¸¸,.•º˚º•.,¸¸,.•º˚º•.,¸¸,.•º˚º•.,¸¸,.•º˚º•.,¸ | “We begged to be spared as we didn’t have any connection to their pods.”
| “They begged because they were weak. Survivors don’t beg.”
| ¸,.•º˚º•.,¸¸,.•º˚º•.,¸¸,.•º˚º•.,¸¸,.•º˚º•.,¸¸,.•º˚º•.,¸¸,.•º˚º•.,¸¸,.•º˚º•.,¸¸,.•º˚º•.,¸
| “They killed my family!”
|
| “Sereia killed my family and they only got in the way of my revenge.”
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Huhū was feeling calm for the first time since his descent into the ocean. Kanikau had her hands full arguing with Koe and trying to persuade the others that her actions were in the right, so Huhū took over caring for Nani for a couple days. He didn’t know what was different but didn’t mind. He would take any good feelings he could find without question. Three days after Ikehu, Nessie, and Paakiki’s Scottish vacation, they returned with slightly more knowledge about the power of sea dragons. As soon as Huhū saw his kahu had returned, the uneasy feeling of doom descended onto Huhū. “You seem tense.” Kanikau observed. She followed his gaze and huffed. “Oh, her? Why don’t you just kill her? She’s useless to us anyway.”
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Post by spasticjazzhands on Feb 23, 2020 8:02:45 GMT -8
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Post by spasticjazzhands on Feb 27, 2020 20:22:00 GMT -8
DING DONG, UA MAKE KE KILOKILO " DING DONG, THE WITCH IS DEAD" ( 011 ) TW: death but you already knew that
| Hawaiian Terms | | | English Meanings | | | Hawaiian Names | | | English Meanings | | | Scottish Terms | | | English Meanings | | lua wai moku hau'oli māhū pō 'enlelo ma'alahi 'aka'aka moe 'ino 'oe iā 'oe kā'oki 'ia mele loea kēnā kahu kauwa e hele i ka 'oki 'ala he aha ke ano o kēia? scum hele pela! pīhoihoi mawaena | water cave happy ship night vision siren language fuck damn you to hell dipshit song immortals siren guardian servant go to hell bitch what the hell is this? scum bug off! dumbass between | Kanikau Hilahila Ōpala Nani Huhū Paakiki Ikehu Huki Anaia Bale Olakino Wahi Nahesa Piha Gula Keleawe Koe Keiki | lament confusion garbage beaut nervous stubborn energy drawl merit barley health spot serpent parrot gold bronze remain child | mo stóirín | my darling |
Huhū laid on his back on the hard alcove floor; sleep nowhere close. He had no cushion underneath him; his skin tingled as the cold rock gripped him. His eyes took in every nook and crevice above him as he memorized the ceiling. His fingers wrapped tightly against the cold steel of Kanikau’s dagger. He asked to borrow it earlier in the evening, only for cutting up some pieces of shark, but both he and Kanikau knew what would happen. They knew how this would end. This was the dagger that killed Hilahila and Bale after all.
The sun rose like it did every day and warmed the ocean waters. “Another day, another dollar,” Anaia mumbled. It was too early for a territory patrol, but Kanikau now “had a stick up her arse” and wanted extra eyes in the waters. Koe bringing memories of Sereia with her caused unrest and now extra patrols were required from the warriors.
“More like anoth’r day, anoth’r nickel.” Huki grumbled. Anaia couldn’t help but laugh. “Wha’s so funny?”
“Another day, another nickel.” Anaia wheezed. “That’s too accurate.”
“Tha’s why I said it,” Huki frowned. “It’s nawt tha’ funny.”
“I know it’s not,” Anaia put her hand over her mouth to stop her laughing fit, “but it is.”
“Y’all ain’t makin’ any sense,” Huki fiddled with his hat but he was fighting a faint smile. “Yer gon scare away all the threats with all tha’ racket.”
“That’s the point of a patrol.” Anaia pointed out. “We don’t want threats nearby.”
“If ya wanna take all the fun outta it.” Huki had put on his usual sneer again. “Nothin’ ev’r excitin’ happens out here.”
Trevor threw Wahi’s remaining seaweed ration into their pen. “There ya go!” He whistled and wiped his hands on his jacket. Wahi’s ears perked up but she stayed where she was sniffing along the coral. Trevor whistled again, drawing out the sound. It seemed to beckon the hippocampi towards them, fluctuating in pitch and frequency. Someone else listening nearby may have even mistaken it for a tune. Trevor’s stomach lurched. Olakino was right; resisting was becoming rather tiring.
Keiki watched the pair of sirens pass by their hiding spot in the shadows of the reef. They were easy to avoid from all the noise they were making talking and laughing. She followed them for a while and learned how far their supposed territory stretched. She would stay outside the borders for now…watching…waiting.
The noon patrol and the afternoon patrol sucked all of the life and energy from Huki and Anaia. Now their banter ended in huffs and glares and no laughter was heard. By evening, the two had grown sick of each other and agreed to split up to cover ground…er, water…faster. Anaia had travelled all around the perimeter without meeting anything too exciting, only a stray sea turtle here and there, and it was only towards the very center where Huki was supposed to catch up to her was there something to be concerned about. She heard the high-pitched whines from a mile away or so but only caught glimpse of the hurt dolphin a few meters away from it. It had wedged itself in between two rocks and bore markings of surviving a whale attack. As she approached, the dolphin emitted a low clicking sound, and Anaia swore it was asking for assistance. She held out a shaking hand and moved closer towards its snout…closer…closer…”Whatcha find there?” Huki’s voice startled her and the dolphin flinched back from her jump.
“Don’t do that!” Anaia frowned and tried to steady her breathing. “Look, this dolphin is injured.”
Huki peered at the beast. “Well, would ya look at tha’.” He scoffed. “Whatever will we do?”
“Don’t be so sarcastic,” Anaia chided. “The bites look pretty superficial to me. I wonder if Olakino could be persuaded into coming out and stitching some of the cuts.”
“Ya wan’ to waste his sewin’ stuff on a dolphin?” Huki scratched his head. “I doubt he’ll go for tha’.”
“It’s not wasting!” She protested. “We’d be helping her.”
“And wha’? Wha’ will happ’n when it’s not as fast as the oth’rs and gets ripped to shreds by some oth’r creature? Are whales not allowed to eat now? Wha’ will they do if you continue to save ev’ry meal they try an’ catch?”
“This guy already got away.” By now the dolphin had allowed her to rub its snout. “The whale was unsuccessful.”
“Ya didn’t notice the bull sharks swimmin’ ‘bout?” Huki drew her attention to the distant circling predators a good half mile away. “They know there’s easy food near.”
Anaia huffed. “Well, we’ll make her harder prey to eat.” She rose. “You stay here, and I’ll bring Olakino to suture the wounds.” She handed him her spear that she had carved during their year of absence. “You can shoo away sharks with this.”
“Alrighty.” Huki’s eyes glinted. “We’ll do wha’ we have to do.”
Ikehu and Nessie had started practicing going through mawaena though it was a steep learning curve. Since Nessie was blind, she had to imagine the locations by emotions, sensations, and intuition while Ikehu was having trouble blocking out the actual vision of where they wanted to go. Focus on your gut feeling, Nessie urged, you’re overthinking things, mo stóirín. But it sounded a lot easier than actually accomplishing that.
Kanikau wandered over to the hippocampi’s corral and found Trevor sitting dejectedly on a rock. “What did Olakino do now?” She elbowed his back causing him to rise with a grunt.
“Nothing.” He sighed. “Just thinking about things.”
“Can you do it somewhere else?” Kanikau’s mouth slid into a sly grin. “I don’t need bad mojo near Nani and Wahi.”
“You turned Hilahila right?” Trevor cut her off abruptly. After getting confirmation he continued, “Why? Did you just get the urge? Did you just feel like singing? Why did you turn Hilahila?”
Kanikau tapped her chin in thought. “Well, I was all alone,” She hummed, “and needed at the very least someone to start building a pod. I doubted there were many sirens nearby after the war, so turning a stray diver was the easiest thing I could do.”
“It wasn’t impulsive? It wasn’t spur of the moment?” Trevor wringed his hands together.
“Not really,” Kanikau shrugged. “Hey,” She took his hands in her own. “I know we don’t agree on a lot of points, but I want you to live by your morals and not anyone else’s. I’ve found that living only to obey others’ expectations brings only hurt to all parties involved.” She squeezed his hands. “Whatever you’re going through, snap out of it. It’s annoying to pussyfoot around someone moping.”
“Thanks, Kanikau.” Trevor strangely felt a bit better. He even thought that if they had met at different times of their lives, they might have even become friends. “I guess I need to get over myself.”
“I would highly appreciate that.” Kanikau huffed again. “By the way, have you seen any sign of Huhū today?”
“I’ll keep an eye out. Maybe Paakiki has him swimming to Timbuctoo.” Trevor gave a farewell pat to both hippocampi.
“Perhaps.”
Olakino wasn’t thrilled about his human medical degree being used for veterinary practices, but he guessed it wasn’t really being used for humans anymore anyway. Whatever he thought, he truly had nothing better to do, so he dutifully followed Anaia out to where she last spotted the injured dolphin. As they got closer, they noticed a thicker stream of blood rising from behind a few rocks. “I’m assuming that’s where the dolphin is.”
Anaia grew concerned. “There wasn’t that much blood before.” The two quickened their strokes. The bull sharks were slowly circling closer and closer. “Huki!” Anaia called out. “Is everything okay?”
“All bett’r, doll,” Came the southern reply, though when they rounded the corner, the dolphin was dead with Anaia’s spear sticking out of its side.
“What have you done?” Anaia screeched. “I told you to watch her while I go get help!”
“I helped it.” Huki insisted. “I put it outta its mis’ry.”
“WE COULD HAVE FIXED HER!”
“Or prolong it,” Huki grasped her spear and pulled it out from its hide. It came out with a disgusting sloop. “I gave it the opp’rtunity to go out wit’ dignity. It would happ’n one way o’ anoth’r.”
“You monster,” Anaia spat. "You FUCKING monster." “It’s ranch life, doll,” Huki didn’t seem too bothered by her anger. “Here’s yer spear, ya might need it again.” She snatched it out of his hands and whirled around, not looking back as she returned to the alcoves. “She got a bee in ‘er bonnet.” Huki observed.
“Could it be due to the fact you just killed a defenseless creature?” Olakino asked.
“Are you complaining?” Huki retorted.
“Not exactly,” To be completely honest, Olakino had no opinion, “Just suggesting why she might be upset.”
“Well, she needs to get ov’r it.” Huki said, “It’s the circle o’ life.” Paakiki scrutinized the basket she was halfway done weaving. She had weaved some of the shiny rocks into the basket strands, and it was coming along pretty nicely. She rotated it in the waning sunlight and smiled as it glistened. “Looks Mouawad,” She chirped to herself, “Stunning!” A shadow blocked the rays and she turned to see her kauwa. “Huhū, move!” She snapped her fingers but Huhū stayed motionless and expressionless in the entrance. “Move! That’s an order!”
Huhū drifted closer, and now Paakiki could see he was fiddling with something in his hands. “I don’t have to listen to you.” His voice was low and monotone.
“Of course, you do,” Paakiki pondered throwing her basket at him to regain his unwavering obedience. But that might ruin her basket she tried so hard to perfect. “Go do something useful for a change.”
Huhū moved a bit closer. This time the object in his hand glinted instead of Paakiki’s shiny stones. “I think I am doing something useful.”
“You’re a waste of space,” Paakiki hissed now holding the basket in between them, “Nothing you do is useful.”
“Kanikau thinks I bring value here.” It was a knife that was twisting around in his hands. The movements were clumsy, but he didn’t drop it.
“Kanikau is a liar,” Paakiki now threw her basket, perfection be damned. “I am the only one who ever tells you the truth.”
“There is no truth,” Huhū said, “Only lies and white lies.”
“Then what are you going to do?” Paakiki egged him on. “What are you going to do after I’m dead? You don’t know a life before me.”
Huhū grasped the pouch tied around his neck that contained all that was left of his sister and his only connection to the above-world. “I only don’t remember my life before you.” He tightened his grip on the dagger’s hilt. “But that doesn’t mean I should stop trying to remember.”
The elder was no match for Huhū since he was a fully grown adult male though many forgot that fact. He shouldn’t have been worried either; as the dagger flashed through the water, muscle memory took over and Paakiki was soon fileted like a fish. The veil of thick fog clouding Huhū’s memories from reemerging lifted, a miniscule piece at least. His sister’s name was Gina, and her favorite toy was a stuffed squid. He did mental gymnastics to try and tear more information from his subconscious but it was futile. But Paakiki was dead and was freed of his imaginary chains. The coral reef was going to get a special fertilizer tonight.
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Post by spasticjazzhands on Mar 4, 2020 16:39:09 GMT -8
MAKE NO NĀ HAKU 'OLUA NO CARMINA ABYSSI " SIRENS ARE DYING FOR A SPOT IN CARMINA ABYSSI" ( 012 ) TW: short post :( little muse but bulletpoints ready for next time >:D
| Hawaiian Terms | | | English Meanings | | | Hawaiian Names | | | English Meanings | | | Scottish Terms | | | English Meanings | | lua wai moku hau'oli māhū pō 'enlelo ma'alahi 'aka'aka moe 'ino 'oe iā 'oe kā'oki 'ia mele loea kēnā kahu kauwa e hele i ka 'oki 'ala he aha ke ano o kēia? scum hele pela! pīhoihoi mawaena | water cave happy ship night vision siren language fuck damn you to hell dipshit song immortals siren guardian servant go to hell bitch what the hell is this? scum bug off! dumbass between | Kanikau Hilahila Ōpala Nani Huhū Paakiki Ikehu Huki Anaia Bale Olakino Wahi Nahesa Piha Gula Keleawe Koe Keiki | lament confusion garbage beaut nervous stubborn energy drawl merit barley health spot serpent parrot gold bronze remain child | mo stóirín | my darling |
Huhū’s hands shook as he sorted the small assortment of seeds. A tremor struck as he set the coconut seeds in their place and scattered them across the rocks. “Careful,” Kanikau snapped and snatched the seeds before he could do any more damage, “These will be great for trading the next time we travel to the market.”
“I-I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to,” Huhū stammered.
“You’re not in trouble,” Kanikau’s voice was harsh but that was just her regular voice, “but you have to pull yourself together. Olakino said this trembling isn’t related to your wrist, so you need to stop.”
“I wish I could,” Huhū’s voice was almost inaudible, “I just feel so…anxious…all the time. Like something bad is going to happen but I don’t know what.”
“Get a grip on it,” Kanikau wasn’t very empathetic. “Paakiki’s dead; she’s gone forever. No matter what, you can’t bring her back, so you have to focus on what’s happening now.” Huhū only nodded. It sounded easy but was extremely more difficult in practice.
Koe pulled Piha to the side as the daily patrols made their rounds. As scouts, they had a lot more free-time than the other sirens since they weren’t actively searching for new sirens to join their pod. Naturally sirens are more isolated and independent creatures. The recent deaths and scuffles proved that to be true. “You’re one of the newer members, right?” Koe asked and received a nod in return. “What do you think of everyone? What do you think of Kanikau?”
“They’re…interesting?” Piha rubbed his temples. “I don’t have any other words to describe them.”
“What about Kanikau?” Koe repeated. “What do you think about her?”
Piha backed up a hair. “I haven’t had the chance to interact with her much. I’ve been spending most of my time pretending I’m back in the above-world and not here.”
“Good,” Koe huffed, “Stay away from that murderer. She’s a right, proper ʻala.”
“I could see how she could be a bad person.” Piha shrugged. “Most of them are down here. It seems as if the siren curse skewed our morals and made our flaws more prominent.”
“Speak for yourself,” Koe rolled her eyes, “I’m the kindest siren you’ll ever meet.”
“And a braggart it seems,” Piha shrugged. “I’m sure in time you’ll find something unsavory about me.”
“I already have,” Koe crossed her arms.
“Point taken,” Piha sighed. “You know Huhū seems pretty nice and quiet, maybe you could go bother him when he returns.”
“I’d never associate with a former mele loea kauwa that outright murdered their kahu.” Koe said. “As a former mele loea member myself, I will never acknowledge his existence. Kahus should be respected and revered for how they care for their kauwa.”
“I’m not pretending to know your experience with the mele loea, whatever the hell that is, but I only knew Paakiki for one year, and I would have stabbed her too.” Piha said. “She was unbearable.”
Anaia kept her distance from Huki after the dolphin incident. If Huki cared or even noticed, he didn’t show it. He was as unflappable as always. Now that left a bad taste in Anaia’s mouth rather than allowing her to brush his “quirks” off as just that: quirks. It was strange how often she had to stop herself from slapping his shoulder and telling him how stupid he was being. It shouldn’t have been much of a surprise, she guessed. He had always been flippant for the wildlife, and really anything that wasn’t himself, but seeing him nonchalantly hovering over the corpse really hit that fact home. Huki was not to be trusted around animals.
Trevor tossed a baleful of seaweed and kelp into the hippocampus enclosure. While either hippocampus could swim away at any time, they preferred to be kept in a deeper section of water underneath a nearby overhang. Olakino was leaning on the edge of the makeshift fence they had constructed with driftwood. “Yours is the little one, right?” Olakino plucked a piece of seaweed from the bale and munched on it. “Wahi? What’s Wahi mean?”
“Spot,” Trevor patted her flank. “Her twin lives in Mekhanikos. Fraternal though, they aren’t identical. The other is a mare named Laqueus.”
“Hm,” Olakino finished his snack. “Latin?”
“Ackerley said it was a Latin root of the French root for lace.” Trevor explained. “More accurately, lace as in ensnare, so it could also mean noose.”
“Okay then,” Olakino narrowed his eyes. “I thought you mentioned Mekhanikos were friendly.”
“They are!” Trevor protested. “Just pretend it’s just lace.”
“Hey, Ōpala!” Kanikau interrupted their conversation, “Are you going to pet the hippocampi all day or are you going to actually be useful and hunt for more food?”
Olakino burst out in a fit of giggles. “Ōpala?” He wheezed. “That’s what she calls you?”
“It’s an endearing nickname,” Trevor defended the name he had never gotten the courage to ask what it meant. “Just because you aren’t close enough to Kanikau to have a nickname, doesn’t mean you should make fun of mine.”
“Don’t worry,” Olakino wiped tears from his eyes, “I’m not jealous at all. I didn’t know you would be so defensive about being called garbage.”
Anaia broke the “no engaging” rule with Huki on the afternoon patrol around the territory. She grasped Huki’s arm, albeit a bit aggressively, and gasped. “Look,” She hissed, “When the sunlight dances across those boulders, don’t you see a glint of eyes?”
“Anoth’r dolphin, perhaps?” Huki followed where her finger was pointing. “Unless…that’s also a māhū pō to go with it?”
“Exactly,” Anaia whispered, “We should go check it out.”
“Should we?” Huki cracked his neck. “Do we need anoth’r siren? You know how well joinin’ this pod went for Hilahila, Bale, and Paakiki.”
A shadow dashed across the rocks heading for a darker shadow. “It’s a child, Huki, she can’t be left on her own!”
Olakino rapped his knuckles on the outside of Piha’s alcove. He entered when Piha called him in and was surprised to see Trevor joining him as well. Piha appeared to be continuing the murals of animals on the walls and Trevor seemed to be…drenching his hair with the dye being used at paint. He decided to ignore that for now. “Your hand,” Olakino held his hand out for Piha to rest his left hand, or lack thereof, in his palm. After a quick examination Olakino let it fall back naturally. “It looks completely healed; it must have been a really old injury or congenital defect. The pains you feel occasionally are only phantom pains and are completely normal.” Olakino stated. “No need to worry. Also,” He now turned to Trevor, “I’m no hairdresser, but that stuff with dry out your hair and make it flaky.”
“Good thing we’re underwater then,” Trevor continued reapplying hot pink dye to his hair. “If you’re so picky, how do you keep your hair that dark pink?”
Olakino shrugged, “It’s natural, I guess. It’s always been like this since I’ve been a siren at least.”
Trevor puffed out his cheeks, “That’s not fair,” He muttered to himself.
“Enjoy your painting, Piha,” Olakino said, “See you later, Ōpala.”
Keiki reached out for Anaia’s outstretched hand and grasped a half of an apple. She hurriedly took a big bite, almost choking by not chewing thoroughly. Her stomach grumbled in response and she quickly finished the fruit. “Hungry, were ya?” A male voice came from behind the female. Keiki nodded and held out her hands requesting more.
“I don’t think I have anything else…” Anaia patted her pockets and looked to Huki pointedly.
“Well, I reckon ya can hav’ this orange,” Huki offered it to Keiki begrudgingly. “I suppose yer needin’ this more than me.”
Keiki quickly peeled the orange and scarfed it down as well, juices running down her chin and fingers. “You’re the greatest siren ever!” She squealed and hugged him, sticky hands and all. “Do you have more oranges?”
Huki froze as the small child trapped him in an embrace. Anaia had to stuff her fist in her mouth to keep from laughing. “Why……let me go.” He said gruffly. The child eventually did but not after getting his cowboy vest citrusy.
“What are we supposed to do with a child?” Kanikau asked. “This is no place for a child.”
“You had no problem killing children before,” Koe muttered.
“Why don’t you go back to your coral reef bed and keep pretending we don’t exist.” Kanikau rolled her eyes.
“Just saying…’ala.” Koe crossed her arms. “I’m making the others know about your track record with others.”
“I’m sure they’ve figured out I’m not a good person already,” Kanikau said, “There’s plenty of evidence of that.”
“We can’t just send a little girl back into the open ocean,” Ikehu said, “I’m a good babysitter, trust me.”
“No offense but I wouldn’t trust ya watchin’ a dead fish,” Huki said.
“You convinced her to come,” Piha said, “Huki, maybe you should babysit first.”
“Do you want the child to hate their life?” Anaia laughed sarcastically. “Huki should not be in charge of anything.”
“I want to make it clear that I do not want a tiny shadow screwing everything I’m doing,” Olakino said. “Keep her away from me.”
“I can too babysit!” Ikehu protested. “I’m very responsible.”
“Let Ikehu and I look after her.” Trevor suggested. “We can teach her how to hunt.”
“Taking a child out to watching hunting sounds like a wonderful idea.” Anaia muttered.
“It is,” Kanikau decided, “She may be young but has to learn to be useful sometime.”
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Post by spasticjazzhands on Mar 13, 2020 12:17:00 GMT -8
KAHI MAKAHIKI PA'AKIKĪ " A DIFFICULT YEAR " ( 013 ) TW: none this time >:D
| Hawaiian Terms | | | English Meanings | | | Hawaiian Names | | | English Meanings | | | Scottish Terms | | | English Meanings | | lua wai moku hau'oli māhū pō 'enlelo ma'alahi 'aka'aka moe 'ino 'oe iā 'oe kā'oki 'ia mele loea kēnā kahu kauwa e hele i ka 'oki 'ala he aha ke ano o kēia? scum hele pela! pīhoihoi mawaena | water cave happy ship night vision siren language fuck damn you to hell dipshit song immortals siren guardian servant go to hell bitch what the hell is this? scum bug off! dumbass between | Kanikau Hilahila Ōpala Nani Huhū Paakiki Ikehu Huki Anaia Bale Olakino Wahi Nahesa Piha Gula Keleawe Koe Keiki Leoū Polū | lament confusion garbage beaut nervous stubborn energy drawl merit barley health spot serpent parrot gold bronze remain child roan blue | mo stóirín | my darling |
Huki and Anaia were once again patrolling the seas together. Now Huki was starting to somewhat notice that Anaia wasn’t as open and friendly as she once was, but he wasn’t terribly bothered. Sure, he (kind of) missed their comfortable banter, but he’d been isolated before and was fine. Sirens aren’t social creatures after all. Their fire-lizards kept pace with them above water and sometimes dove in and out of the waves quickly. Anaia was getting better at sensing what Keleawe was feeling and not startling as much when he spoke to her. Usually when she was feeling anxious or excited for no reason, it was Keleawe. Their playful chirps quieted and a knot in her chest formed. “What is it?” She asked her fire-lizard.
“Wha’s wha’?” Huki glanced at her. He didn’t particularly care for Gula’s thoughts and emotions and ignored most of them.
“I’m not talking to you,” Anaia snapped and shut her eyes. It helped her listen to Keleawe better. Something scary is headed our way, came his reply. “Like what?” I’m not sure. I know about land creatures, not about underwater monsters. That wasn’t very reassuring, she thought. It’s true, Keleawe argued, the other fire-lizards only talk about land stuff and want to know boring information about you guys. “What kind of information?” But Keleawe never answered because a giant sea otter, very angry she might add, thought that they had wandered to close to her babies and attacked.
There! It was the turtle man that left the packages of food stomping around in the coral reef again! “Oi!” Kanikau shook her fist in his direction. “Come and face me, coward!” The man just shook his head with an amused expression. He scribbled something down on a clipboard that Kanikau swore he didn’t have a moment ago. When he was done, the two stared at each other. Eventually he jerked his head to the right. Kanikau sighed but followed his gesture. A blue roan hippocampus stallion was chasing around a small school of minnows. She clicked her tongue and the stallion weaved towards her, nickering and offering its velvet nose to her hand. “Alright, we have a third hippocampus.” She muttered. Did Turtle Man know I was hoping to find a stallion to breed Wahi? Almost as if he understood her thoughts, he got her attention and pointed to the sand where the fire-lizards nested at night. Another egg was nestled among the sand and driftwood. By the time Kanikau looked back, Turtle Man had vanished. Kanikau quickly made sure the egg was warm (in between ducking back underwater to breathe), called the hippocampus over, and brought him to his new home.
Gula and Keleawe scattered and shot up in the air. The giant sea otter lunged between the two warriors and separated them in her wake. She dodged Anaia’s wild swing from her spear, all of her fencing knowledge disappearing. Instead the otter easily snapped the spear in half, all of her daily carvings turned into useless splinters. The otter twisted through the water and used her jagged teeth to tear through Huki’s bound legs. Now the scar tissue stretched apart to still connect his legs, but the split was bleeding heavily and Huki sunk down to the rocky cliffs in a daze. Anaia turned to face the otter preparing for a painful death. “It’s alright,” She tried to soothe the mother despite her shaking voice, “We aren’t going to hurt you.” Anaia held up her hands in a surrendering position, but otters know no mercy nor morals. The otter darted after Anaia who hunched and threw herself sideways. Luckily, her unpredictable movements took her out of its direct path and her back was chomped on, not her chest and neck. “We won’t hurt you!” Anaia sobbed again, clutching at her wound. When she pulled her hands away, they brought a cloud of fresh blood with them.
“I hav’ta do ev’rythin’ myself,” A faint voice spat. Huki had miraculously pushed through what Anaia figured was immense pain and was glaring at their attacker while holding a substantially sized sharp stone. “Wha’ kind o’ a warrior are ya if ya won’t ev’n fight?” Huki repeated what he had told Anaia years before as he struck the otter in the eye with his makeshift weapon. The otter snapped at his hands and arms but was no match for the enraged siren. He stoned the otter to death and was now in the danger of bleeding out. Anaia uncovered her eyes and avoided looking at the bloody corpse making its way to the ocean floor to be an easy meal for some bottom feeders. She grasped Huki’s arms, leaving bloody handprints behind.
“Let’s get you back to Olakino,” She stammered. She was having trouble forming thoughts but knew if she fumbled now, they were both goners. She started to pull Huki back to camp, who was growing pale with shock and blood loss. A tiny otter pup swam around her mother’s corpse for a few moments and decided to follow her mother’s killers. The sirens didn’t notice their new shadow at first, but Trevor was especially keen on keeping her.
“Aurunci,” Trevor patted the otter’s head. “That’s your name, little miss.”
While Olakino (along with the help of Kanikau, Huhū, and Ikehu) rushed around to get his supplies ready for Huki and Anaia, Huki regained consciousness for enough time to readjust his Stenson. “A chunk’s missin’.” He muttered and fell back into an uneasy daze.
Piha was bored of lazing around camp, cleaning up after the others, and there was only so much painting someone can handle for days on end. After making sure Anaia and Huki were still alive, he stopped Huhū and Kanikau before they went out on their daily gathering patrol and offered to come along. “You’re only a scout,” Kanikau crossed her arms, “and how are you even going to gather anything with only one hand?”
“I gathered for years with a broken wrist,” Huhū pointed out. It was strange to hear him speak up more often now that Paakiki wasn’t around. “He’ll be fine to come and hang out.” Kanikau thought for a moment before relenting. Piha figured Huhū might be the only person that could persuade her except maybe Trevor in certain situations. Piha didn’t mind; he was excited to explore abyssi territory more!
Turns out swimming around gathering up potential food items was more exercise than Piha bargained for. He inwardly groaned; he didn’t want the others to know how much he was regretting his decision and wished for a second to rest. He glanced at Huhū and Kanikau. They were expertly stripping a long piece of seaweed of its edible parts. Piha absentmindedly pulled a piece of darker seaweed up and inspected it. It didn’t look like the seaweed they were used to feeding Nani and Wahi; parts of it were crunchy and tinted brown. Thinking it was a new strain of veggie, Piha took a cautious bite. In a split second, Huhū had appeared by his side and smacked the remaining seaweed from his hand. “Do you want to die?” The siren hissed. Piha choked down the seaweed clump in shock and shook his head. “Don’t go eating things willy-nilly. Assume everything is poisonous if you don’t know what it is.”
“It’s just seaweed.” Piha stammered.
“Rotten seaweed,” Kanikau corrected, “did you not notice the disgusting color? The rotting smell?”
Piha shrugged. “I thought it was a different kind of seaweed.”
Kanikau rubbed her temples and sighed. “Let’s get you back to Olakino. I doubt it’ll be fatal, but you might have a rough few months.”
“MONTHS?”
“At the very least,” Kanikau explained, “Haven’t you ever noticed you don’t have the need to…er…. relieve yourself down here? Sirens’ bodies digest every single piece of food we ingest. Since sirens are naturally solitary creatures, it allows us to require less food, thus less hunting. So, that piece of seaweed you stupidly ate will take months to break down. Olakino can probably estimate the amount of time more accurately.”
Piha clutched his abdomen as a cramp ran through him. Was the food poisoning setting in this quickly or was it just in his head? It didn’t really matter anyway; he would be feeling his poor decision for a while.
“Oh yeah,” Olakino casually chewed a small root of kelp as he spoke. Huki had discovered kelp roots were the closest they could ever get to chewing gum, and in his case chewing tobacco. Olakino may or may not have taken Huki’s stash after he was stabilized. “That’s not good.”
“Is Piha going to die?” Trevor was chilling in the back of Olakino’s alcove for some reason.
“Of course not,” The kelp root snapped as Olakino bit down, “Just a year or two of indigestion. You probably will not have a fun time.”
“Years?” Piha sputtered. He thought it was bad when Kanikau suggested months of time being sick.
“Oh yeah,” Olakino shrugged, “Lesson one: don’t be stupid underwater.”
“Lesson two,” Trevor piped up from his spot, “Life sucks.”
“No, Ōpala, lesson two is don’t eat anything you aren’t 100% certain it won’t kill you.”
“I feel bad for Piha,” Trevor said as the gathering patrol left the medical alcove, “The poor chap gets too excited on his first patrol then gets stuck with food poisoning.”
“He’s lucky he’s alive with how much common sense he seems to be lacking,” Olakino muttered, “I have no patience for fools.”
“I’m sure you’ve made a mistake or two in your life,” Trevor dismissed him with a hand.
Olakino didn’t respond. Instead he wiped off each of his medical equipment (tools found here and there that they made do with) and Trevor watched in comfortable silence. As the last pair of bandage scissors (which were two extremely sharpened metal bits tied together) were as sterilized as they were going to get, Olakino continued to fuss with the instruments with his eyes firmly in front of him. “Why do you bother dying your hair if it’s naturally black?” He asked Trevor trying to seem almost uninterested.
“First of all, it’s actually a very dark brown,” Trevor laughed at the hint of annoyance that crossed Olakino’s face. “But, a long time ago, I befriended an otter that couldn’t see very well. I started dying my hair with anything I could find that was bright and stood out from the dreariness of the sea. When she…died…my hair was bright pink, so I just kept it pink since then.”
“And that’s why you wanted Aurunci so badly?”
“Yes, her name was Ausonia, which was the ship we were deployed on when…well, you know.” Trevor ran a hand through his hair. He didn’t discuss personal details very often. “And Ausonia was a town in Italy, and Aurunci is what the Romans called the early Italian people of the area.”
“Well, I reckon you deserve her,” Olakino looked at Trevor with a soft smile, “You do seem to have a way with animals.”
“Maybe I’m better with animals than people,” Trevor sighed recounting all of the times he was snapped at down here.
“I don’t think that’s true.” Olakino was back to fiddling with his things but a slight smile still tugged at the corner of his mouth.
It had been six months since the giant sea otter attack and both Huki and Anaia were healing up slowly. Anaia had a gnarly bite scar over her right shoulder, and Huki was permanently hindered by his torn legs. He was slower and less aerodynamic, though he wouldn’t ever admit to it. The summer was nearing to the end, and the sirens excitedly waited for their new fire-lizard egg to hatch. Leoū, the new stallion, had already taken a liking to Wahi, and both Kanikau and Trevor were ready to start raising hippocampus foals. Trevor had also introduced Aurunci to the many cats of Cyrrane and thought he found a possible mate as well. How that’s possible, well…it’s better to not ask questions.
Gula and Keleawe were getting restless though Anaia didn’t think it was due to the new egg. Keleawe wouldn’t ever really explained his change in mood; only mentioned he was thirstier than usual. Anaia spent most of her days sunning in the shallowest parts talking to Keleawe about the nuances of the sea. She was starting to get the hang of their weird telepathy ability and enjoyed being able to stay underwater and still communicate.
Dusk was settling over the ocean when Anaia was starting to feel as restless as Keleawe. “What’s wrong?” She was not in the mood for another attack. Where’s Gula? “I have no idea,” Anaia rolled to her side trying to get more comfortable, “Can’t you just ask her?” She’s not in the mindset to listen. “What’s that supposed to mean?” It’s time for me to catch her. “What’s THAT supposed to mean?” She’s going to have her first clutch. Now, Anaia thought she was getting a general grasp of the situation. That man from Black Rock Weyrhold, Bansendon, had mentioned clutches when they were trading for the eggs. A clutch was a bunch of eggs if she wasn’t mistaken. So…Gula and Keleawe were going to…mate? Correct.
When Gula appeared (along with Huki trailing behind) and started teasing Keleawe, Anaia was very glad that it was becoming night. The less witnesses to whatever what was going to happen, the better in her opinion and she figured Huki would whole-heartedly agree with that sentiment. However, the chirps and snarls of their seducing flight drew the rest of the pod to discover the source of the loud noises. Huki situated himself carefully on a rock a good few meters from Anaia. His battered hat was pulled over the top half of his face and he pretended he was only resting, but his fidgeting fingers told a much different story. “Is this what you would do once you find a nice male dragon?” Ikehu had not mastered the art of just thinking inside her head and still required to actually speak to discuss events with Nessie. “She said it’s sort of like fire-lizards mating.” Ikehu explained to the others. “It’s more intense for dragons.” Suddenly, Anaia was very glad that she was only bonded to a fire-lizard. A high-pitched cry in the air drew all of the eyes to the skies to watch the dance-like flight happening above.
Both fire-lizard handlers knew the moment when Keleawe finally caught up to Gula. Anaia and Huki locked eyes. Her heart fluttered in her chest; she thought it might be a heart attack. “I feel like I’m dyin’.” Huki sounded legitimately concerned.
“I think that’s called attraction,” Olakino said, “You wouldn’t know since you were turned too young.”
“Well, I’d rather die.” Anaia crossed her arms. The new anger inside of her trampled any other alien emotions. “I hope all of the fire-lizards bond to me and you guys can go to hell.”
After experiencing what happens to fire-lizard handlers when they breed, the other sirens were less eager to attend the hatching. Gula and Keleawe’s clutch was resting further back in the sand and the older egg had been moved closer to the water’s edge for optimal bonding proximity. Trevor was shoved to the back as he “already had Wahi and Aurunci” and didn’t need another pet. Ikehu was watching from a distance; she was curious but also wanted to give the others a chance. Kanikau and Koe shoved each other, fighting for the front position. Kanikau was the unlucky one, however, as Koe triumphantly shouted as the little blue fire-lizard told her his name: Polū.
“Howdy,” Huki poked Anaia’s bite mark which caused her to flinch. “Yer upset wit’ me. Why?”
Anaia grimaced. He was in her safe space in the shallows watching over the new fire-lizard clutch, and she didn’t appreciate seeing him. “I always wrote off your cold personality as just that: a personality. Now I see that you are a very uncaring sociopathic siren with little to no empathy for anyone but yourself.”
Huki stared at her with maybe a hurt expression? Or perhaps it was distain. “Oh, well,” He finally relented, “I can’t please ev’ryone.”
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Post by spasticjazzhands on Mar 31, 2020 17:02:40 GMT -8
HE 'ANO KOA PAHA 'OE? " WHAT KIND OF WARRIOR ARE YOU? " ( 014 ) TW: alcoholism, bloody death, trauma injuries...im sorry
| Hawaiian Terms | | | English Meanings | | | Hawaiian Names | | | English Meanings | | | Scottish Terms | | | English Meanings | | lua wai moku hau'oli māhū pō 'enlelo ma'alahi 'aka'aka moe 'ino 'oe iā 'oe kā'oki 'ia mele loea kēnā kahu kauwa e hele i ka 'oki 'ala he aha ke ano o kēia? scum hele pela! pīhoihoi mawaena | water cave happy ship night vision siren language fuck damn you to hell dipshit song immortals siren guardian servant go to hell bitch what the hell is this? scum bug off! dumbass between | Kanikau Hilahila Ōpala Nani Huhū Paakiki Ikehu Huki Anaia Bale Olakino Wahi Nahesa Piha Gula Keleawe Koe Keiki Leoū Polū 'Aukā | lament confusion garbage beaut nervous stubborn energy drawl merit barley health spot serpent parrot gold bronze remain child roan blue fleck | mo stóirín | my darling |
“I’m confused,” Koe stroked the two new otter pups’ heads. “You’re saying Aurunci bred with a cat?”
“Well, a half-wildcat,” Trevor corrected, “Look, I don’t particularly understand it either, but we also drown people and eat them so it’s not the strangest thing I’ve ever seen.”
Ikehu squealed as one of the pups dove farther down to swim through her curtain of hair. “THEY’RE. SO. CUTE! What’s their names?”
“The girl is Trieste after one of the largest Italian sea ports. The boy is Tergeste which is the original roman title the port first had.” Trevor explained. “They’re all mine.”
“You can’t hoard all the otters,” Koe whined, “They roam around; they don’t belong to anyone.”
“Well, they’re mine, too bad.” Trevor pulled the pups close to him and they nuzzled him. “I am their mother, see?”
“I think Aurunci would like to have some words with you about that,” It was true, the new otter mother was circling the sirens keeping a close eye on her babies. “Also, she gave birth to two cats. How does this happen?” Koe closed her eyes trying to figure out simon’s, whoops, she means the gods’, rules over animal cross breeding.
“It doesn’t matter,” Ikehu assured her with a calming pat of her hand, “they have loving homes in Cyrrane where there’s already an overpopulation of cats there. They’ll have friends!”
“Hush, I think Nani and Wahi are coming over to say hello to them.” Trevor shushed the ladies rather rudely. He was becoming quite protective like a new mother would.
Along with Nani and the other hippocampi came Kanikau much to Koe’s dismay. “Have fun with your new children, Trevor,” Koe sneered at the approaching captain, “The reigning ‘ala is here, and I don’t want to deal with her.”
“No one is forcing you to stay here,” Kanikau was close enough to hear their exchange. “Just leave if you don’t like me.”
“Well, since I bother you just as much, I prefer staying close,” Koe narrowed her eyes and crossed her arms, “And I can’t wait to watch you die, however and whenever that happens.”
Now that Anaia was spending less time with Huki (it was almost scary how much time the two had spent together), she had taken up a role as groomer and carer for all of Abyssi’s animals which had recently risen a significant amount. Trevor had been preoccupied with his new children, or otters as the rest of them deemed. That left Anaia caring for Wahi along with her new foal, Aukā. This also meant that she was spending more time with Kanikau, handler of Nani and Leoū, as well. Anaia had learned to steer clear of the snippy captain, but they both loved their animals each in their own way.
Anaia noticed that Kanikau rewarded Nani with praise (and the occasional treat) after she had completed a task or trick very well leading the hippocampus to have a strong desire to please. Anaia’s way of bonding with her charges was more loyalty based as she wanted the hippocampi to want to be around her which eventually led to them taking direction from her easier.
Now Anaia wasn’t a psychologist in any way, shape, or form, (hell, she originally wanted to be a veterinarian and stay away from humans) but she couldn’t help becoming a backseat psychologist. Kanikau rewarded for obeying commands but turned a blind eye to the hippocampi showing affection towards the siren like she couldn’t even imagine another being wanting anything other than treats. Did she not believe she was worthy for the unconditional love that animals could bring or was that even a conscious thought? Surely being rejected by the folk she considered her actual family had screwed with Kanikau’s mind, but Anaia didn’t know to what extent was a conscious act. It must be easier to assume everyone dislikes you than to get your hopes crushed every time.
“What is this?” Kanikau and Anaia returned from their noon chores to find Huhū writing words on one of the rocky cliffs with Hilahila’s leftover paint. “What does that even say?”
“’Seaweed Seminar’ apparently,” Anaia read, “Is this mandatory?”
“If everyone keeps poisoning themselves with seaweed, yes it is,” Huhū said without turning away from his scribbling. Now it seemed that he was drawing different species of seaweed on the wall. It was a little hard to decipher his handwriting as his (mostly) fixed wrist was still stiff. Piha blushed sheepishly from his quiet spot by Olakino’s medic alcove. His stomach was still upset from the bite of rotten seaweed he ingested. Trevor waved Anaia and Kanikau over to where he and Olakino had situated themselves. If Anaia wasn’t just seeing things, she could have sworn they were holding hands.
“Isn’t it wonderful seeing Huhū actually speak and take charge?” Trevor said, “I didn’t think he could speak ʻenlelo maʻalahi for like two years.”
“Truly wonderful,” Kanikau said sarcastically, “but I don’t appreciate being lectured like a baby.”
“Well, I don’t want to treat sirens for simple indigestion,” Olakino huffed, “and we can’t let the child poison herself.”
“It’s natural selection,” Kanikau argued.
“No, keeping children alive is not natural selection,” Trevor waggled a finger, “Natural selection is teaching children…”
“Or adults,” Olakino added.
“…or adults,” Trevor paused for a dramatic effect, “and they refuse to listen and avoid dangerous items.”
“Maybe Koe can eat some seaweed and die,” Kanikau smirked, “and die slowly.”
“Why do you hate her so much?” Anaia asked. She had some guesses but wanted to see what Kanikau would voice.
“She hates me,” Kanikau shrugged, “and it’s fun to have an enemy near. It keeps things exciting.”
“You say the most worrying things sometimes,” Trevor playfully shoved her shoulder. She forcefully shoved him back. “I just can’t wait to bond to my own fire-lizard.” He looked to Anaia. “I want to communicate telepathically; that seems so cool.”
“It’s jarring at first.” Anaia said. “And it can get annoying when Keleawe won’t stop complaining about being hungry.” You said you liked it when I talked to you. Just kidding, she assured her fire-lizard with a small laugh.
“I can’t believe a fire-lizard chose Koe over me,” Kanikau was back to complaining about Koe. “As far as I’m concerned, Polū is a traitor to all sirens.”
“That’s a little harsh,” Trevor said.
“I don’t understand all this hype around fire-lizards. They can’t even live underwater.” Olakino said. “Too many people down here talk to me already. I don’t need to be bothered any more than I already am.”
“It’s like having a friend available for advice any time of day,” Anaia smiled thinking about Keleawe. He enjoyed telling her about his findings in the above-world and she sang him to sleep if he was having nightmares.
“EXCUSE ME!” Huhū slapped a staff on the rocks a couple times to get the gossipers attention. “WE’RE LEARNING HERE IF YOU CARE TO LISTEN!”
“I liked him better when he was quiet,” Olakino muttered.
“Did I say he could use one of my staffs?” Kanikau snorted. “How rude.”
Keiki found the Seaweed Seminar very helpful. She swiped the remnants of the paint Huhū used for his demonstration and spent the remainder of his talk painting pretty swirls over her body. “Why’re ya makin’ a mess?” The southern drawl that invited her into the pod made her jump. She glanced at Huhū but thankfully he hadn’t noticed.
“I’m draaaawing,” She stuck out her arms to show her masterpiece.
“It looks dumb.” Keiki held back tears. Maybe he wasn’t the greatest siren ever like she first thought.
Ikehu stared at Koe, her black hair flowing gracefully behind her. Her turquoise eyes almost matched the color of the water sparkling atop the coral reefs. She sighed, Koe is so pretty. Tell her. “I can’t.” Ikehu protested. “But I wish you could see just how pretty she is. Too bad you’re blind.” It is unfortunate. You should tell her how pretty she is. "I can’t.” Ikehu put her head in her hands. “I’m nervous. What if she laughs at me?” Everyone loves compliments. “I’m still nervous.” I just told Polū to tell her.
“YOU DID WHAT?” Oh, he said she’s coming over here.
“NESSIE, WHY?” You’re welcome.
Anaia waited patiently through Huhū’s presentation. She was a bit bored as it was basically just common sense, but the others had proved that common sense wasn’t so common down in the ocean. “I really liked the visuals,” She told Huhū as he approached after his seminar. “It really helped me…uh…visualize everything.”
“Thanks,” He didn’t seem to pick up her awkward vibes, “I wasn’t that nervous talking in front of everyone like I thought I’d be.”
“I said it’d be fine,” Kanikau snapped, “You have to have more confidence, Huhū.”
“I’m trying,” He assured her, “I really am.”
“You think I’m pretty?” An amused Koe loomed over Ikehu who was crouched with her head buried into her knees. “And you made my fire-lizard tell me?”
“I didn’t make Polū tell you!” Ikehu’s cries of protest were dampened by her hair. “Nessie was being nosy and decided to go and ruin my life.”
“Ruin your life?” Koe kept herself from laughing at her. “I was going to thank you for the compliment but if you think I’ll ruin your life then I won’t.”
“No, no, no,” Ikehu backpedaled, “You can thank me.”
“Oookay,” Koe said, “Thank you for thinking I’m pretty. If you were to ask me, you’re not bad yourself.”
“I’m gay.” Ikehu blurted out.
“Cool, me too.” Koe allowed herself to laugh. Ikehu was not very good at flirting. “Are you trying to ask me on a date?”
“Maybe.”
“Okay.”
The following months were pretty uneventful; Ikehu managed to talk to Koe without hiding her face, and Anaia had discovered that hanging out with Kanikau and Huhū was surprisingly bearable. Without a certain old hag, Huhū was outspoken and had a dry sense of humor, and away from the large pod, Kanikau showed her more vulnerable side where Anaia discovered she did have a heart.
Anaia felt like she had found her place down in this cursed ocean. She spent more time with the sweet hippocampi, the fire-lizards at the surface, and even Trevor’s otters.
What do you with a fire-lizard underwater? What can they do; they can’t breathe in water? Four years of bonding and plenty of annoyances, has earned Huki relentless telepathy! He can’t go mawaena yet, ‘cause he only has a ‘lizard, and the ocean is a big scary place. But somehow he can’t shake, the feeling he might make, a difference in the siren pod!
“Seriously,” Huki argued with seemingly no one. To the untrained eye, he looked insane but in reality, he was shouting at his bonded golden fire-lizard, Gula. Like Ikehu, he wasn’t the greatest at keeping his words in his head for Gula to read. “If you tell me about those weird kittens one more time…” He let the threat dangle. But the kittens look really weird, Gula protested, their pelts are thicker and seem to repel water. “I. DON’T. CARE.” Huki wished he could rise up to the surface of the water to give Gula a better piece of his mind, but his newly ripped legs…?...tail…? prohibited any fast movements. You’ve been in a rotten mood lately. Is it because nobody likes you anymore? “Did they ever like me?” Huki muttered. “Does it even matter? Being friends with someone isn’t going to stop the inevitable.”
“Ikehu…” Koe brush a long strand of her causal-dating-only-friend’s hair behind her shoulder. Ikehu leaned in for a kiss but was gently stopped by a soft hand. “You know what we talked about a couple weeks ago?”
“I haven’t had a drink in like…forever,” Ikehu protested but kept her eyes trailing a stream of bubbles.
“And how long is forever?” Koe said, “You tasted like cheap wine a few nights ago. I know you can’t become sober overnight and I don’t expect you too, but this is becoming an unhealthy habit. I don’t want to see you buzzed and just lazing around.”
Ikehu’s mood quickly shifted. “I’m not my father, Koe. It just…enhances my free time.” She fidgeted. “It’s not unhealthy or anything like that.”
“When Polū tells me how often you’ve been trading little sucken treasures for BRW’s cheap wine, it’s hard to believe that’s true.” Koe clasped her hands tightly in her lap. “I don’t want you to feel like I’m abandoning you because I’m not. It’s just I cannot be your girlfriend if I have to be your mother as well. I’m not Norman Bates.”
“So…we’re done?” Ikehu held back tears.
“At this point, yes,” Koe wasn’t blind; she wiped away a tear that had escaped from Ikehu’s tear ducts. She didn’t know how it was possible to cry underwater. “We’ll both work on ourselves first, okay? I’ll work on my deep-seated loathing towards Kanikau and you’ll work on becoming sober.”
Ikehu chuckled nervously. She knew Koe would never be close to forgiving Kanikau or even coming to terms with the contexts. And she also knew that she had a problem that was starting to spiral out of control. “I won’t even look in any alcohol’s direction,” She used to hate that lie that her father always said. He would be rubbing his temples and dry heaving after a rough night of binge drinking. But she wasn’t as dumb as he thought she was; she knew he would be back to the bottle that very same night, and now she understood how easy it is to fall back into long-time habits. “I’ll change,” She had a feeling Koe knew that was a lie as well, but she was kind enough to not point it out.
Huhū, Kanikau, and Nani were still in charge of little Keiki. They kept a closer eye on her after she almost made the same mistake as Piha, and Kanikau was ready to allow the child to tag along on another patrol. She was not a very nurturing presence. Surprisingly, Huhū was. Seeing her studying him, he patted a small pouch that he always tied around his neck. “Did I ever tell you what I have in here?” He asked. Kanikau shook her head. “My little sister and I got turned during one of our first ocean fishing expeditions. She didn’t survive.”
“It’s a little macabre carrying around children’s teeth.” Kanikau at least had enough sense to whisper that part. She didn’t want Keiki to know how lucky she was to be turned. Or maybe the lucky ones are the ones who are eaten…she had no good answer for that. Something, something survivor’s bias or whatever.
“Everything down here is a little macabre,” Huhū tucked the pouch back under his shirt. “She had some sort of attention disorder. Handling Keiki is a piece of cake compared to keeping Gina occupied.”
Kanikau huffed and glanced up to call Keiki back. Except Keiki wasn’t in front of them. Or behind them when she spun around. Or really anywhere in their line of sight. This is a problem…Kanikau looked to Huhū who shared the same expression of fear. “We lost the child,” She whispered.
“KEIKI!” Huhū started to call frantically. “KEIKI, COME BACK HERE PLEASE!”
Keiki paid no attention to the gatherers’ cries, probably because she didn’t hear them. She made sure to steer clear of any of the seaweed; she still wasn’t completely sure which were safe to consume. This sent her wandering a bit closer to the depths of the ocean. Well, not the depths as they were originally pretty close to the surface, but deep enough that the difference of sunlight was quite noticeable. A couple of oddly shaped rocks caught her eye and she sank further down to inspect them. She stifled a scream as a velvety muzzle brushed against her bare arm. “Nani!” She exclaimed and turned to pat the hippocampus. “You startled me,” Nani nickered. After she had Wahi, she was a pretty good babysitter. At least, she never lost Huhū or Ikehu and they were the closest they had for children for a while.
“I’m not lying,” Trevor protested, “I really was the champion at our annual slingshot competition.”
“That’s probably not something you should be bragging about,” Olakino plucked a piece of rotten seaweed. Since he had an ounce of common sense, he didn’t plop it into his mouth and instead tossed it deeper into the ocean to avoid any other food poisoning cases. “How many people were competing anyway? Were you the only one?”
“No….” Trevor bit his lip. “There was three of us.” He admitted.
“Oh my god, how lame,” Olakino laughed. “I thought sailors in the navy would be more interesting.”
“The only thing separating other sailors and the navy is a different uniform,” Trevor fiddled with the buttons on his.
“Well, I do love a man in uniform,” Olakino smirked, “If only my man wasn’t such a nerd.”
“What did you do in your free time?” Trevor was buzzing at the thought of finally being a sort of couple, of course to the arrogant doctor that he was not attracted to in any way. “I bet it was something equally nerdy like reading encyclopedias.”
“I played baseball,” Olakino closed his eyes. He didn’t allow himself to think of the past very often, especially the parts he had grown to regret. “I was scouted for different colleges before I quit.”
“That is significantly more impressive than slingshots,” Trevor said, “Why’d you quit? I would’ve loved playing baseball if it had been more widespread when I was not cursed to live in the ocean.”
“A lot of factors went into that,” Olakino puffed out his cheeks. Trevor took the hint: drop it. “And I don’t think slingshot skills translate into baseball.”
“I bet you they do,” Trevor said, “Hand-eye coordination translates easily.”
“I highly doubt that,” Olakino laced his hand in Trevor’s, “I say we test it out. I haven’t pitched in years.”
“I’m assuming we’re using currents to our advantage?” Trevor squeezed his hand.
“Obviously,” Olakino pulled Trevor along, “All we need is a round rock and a sturdy stick.”
“How did you lose an entire child?” Kanikau pulled a thick patch of kelp apart. No Keiki here, she huffed.
“Me? Have you forgotten you are a part of this as well?” Huhū arguing while looking in a shallow alcove. No luck there.
“We both know that I should not be trusted with keeping children safe,” Kanikau shooed a school of fish away. “I probably shouldn’t even be in charge of a pod,” She paused before she continued with a threat, “and if you tell anyone I said that, Keiki won’t be the only siren missing around here.”
“Whatever,” Huhū dismissed her with the wrist she had broken years ago, “We all know we’re each one bad day from snapping.”
Keiki showed Nani the rocks she found excitedly. She knew she was supposed to be gathering things but after almost eating rotten seaweed last year, she was a bit hesitant. She felt a lot safer down here away from all of her growing responsibilities. Wait…for a second she swore she heard some voices. She paused and swam a few meters up. It certainly wasn’t Kanikau and Huhū, these voices were much deeper and dare say happier. “Hey, batter, batter! Hey, batter, batter! Swing!” If Keiki listened hard enough, she thought that sounded like the Trevor, but she wasn’t sure.
“No…” That was Olakino no doubt. It wasn’t hard to hear the disappointment in his voice. “You aren’t supposed to taunt the batter when you’re the batter.”
Keiki giggled to herself. She didn’t know what they were arguing about but listening to adults argue was silly. Grown-ups were supposed to know everything; there’s no need to fight. “And that’s out of the park!” Trevor yelled again. A big smash brought her attention to immediately above her, just in time to see a large boulder tumbling down the cliff towards her and Trevor had time to yell, “FUCK!”
Huhū and Kanikau turned towards the heavy crashing of rocks meeting rocks. “You don’t think…” Huhū trailed off. He didn’t want to think of the worst-case scenario. Kanikau shot off in the direction of the commotion with Huhū close behind. Before they spotted the cause of the noise, they spotted a pair of pink headed sirens making a beeline towards an overhang a bit below.
“He aha ke ano o kēia?” Kanikau’s voice shook.
“I kind of, maybe hit a rock in this direction with a current that probably had a little too much…oomph.” Trevor stammered. He pointed at a lock of dark pink hair peeking out from a hunk of rock. “That’s…not…that’s…that’s..”
Olakino rested a hand on his shoulder. “You’re going into shock.”
“Well, don’t!” Kanikau ordered. “Put on your big boy pants and get your shit together. We need to get the debris moved now.”
Huhū already was kneeling down and carefully pulling the smaller chunks out of the way. It was a twisted game of pick-up sticks. “Hurry,” He weakly called through tears, “Th-there’s blood.” It took all four sirens to gradually move the broken pieces of boulder off of the small body of Keiki. Olakino took the task of pulling Keiki out slowly in case of any brain or spinal injuries but had trouble with her lower half.
“Wait, there’s fins under here too,” Olakino touched the fin of Nani and elicited a soft nicker from her, “She’s alive as well.” As they unearthed more of the hippocampus, it was clear she had taken the brunt of the impact. She strained to sniff at Keiki, and looking into her eyes, Olakino saw unbridled concern. “She’s alive,” He patted the hippocampus. He was never the one to go crazy over their gaggle of sea creatures, but now he had no doubt that Nani had purposefully shielded Keiki. The sun was setting and the water darkening by the time both Keiki and Nani were freed. Olakino was to the side tending to Keiki while the last of the rubble was cleared. “A minor concussion,” He muttered to himself, “The spine will have to be evaluated closer when she’s conscious.”
Kanikau wiped her brow, “We might have to leave Nani here overnight. I doubt three of us could get her back safely in the dark.” She patted her hippocampus’ head. “You did so good today, I’m very proud of you.” She whispered and kissed her forehead. Nani leaned into her touch. “I’ll come back at dawn, alright?”
“I’ll stay with her tonight,” Trevor said.
“Don’t be ridiculous,” Olakino frowned, “You’ll be freezing.”
“Nani will be cold too,” Trevor crossed his arms. “And I’m the reason she’s down here injured.”
“First of all, this was an accident,” Olakino said, “Second of all, it would be both of our faults then. Third of all, it won’t be any better for you to be aching and tired tomorrow when we need everyone to help.”
“Alright,” Trevor looked at Keiki’s limp figure, “I’ll carry her back.”
“I will too,” Huhū offered, “You’re not the only ones who messed up. We’re the ones who couldn’t find her.”
“She’ll most likely survive,” Olakino said, “That is if she doesn’t freeze to death out here.” He shivered. The waters were cooling off quickly now that night had set in.
“See you in the morning, Nani,” Kanikau gave one last pet to Nani. “Time to head back.”
Keiki fell in and out of consciousness throughout the night, though Olakino wasn’t terribly worried. She only showed signs of a concussion and shock and with his steady eye, she was moderately alert by morning. He stayed back to diagnose her while the rest of the sirens left to haul back Nani. While the camp was quiet, he used Bale’s old glasses to direct light into Keiki’s eyes to dilate her pupils. “What hurts?” He asked briskly. He didn’t know how long she would be able to answer questions before drifting into another period of rest.
“I have a headache,” It took her longer to string a sentence together. “And I’m cold.”
Olakino wrapped her in Trevor’s navy jacket that he left behind. Trevor normally wouldn’t go anywhere without it, but he was too frazzled this morning to remember. And Olakino didn’t mind seeing him in just an undershirt. “I’m going to put pressure on different points on your body and you’ll tell me how much it hurts on a scale of one to ten, ten being the worst.”
Keiki weakly nodded. Olakino started up at her neck. “Eight?” Now her shoulders. “Six.” Her arms and torso were not as sore but as Olakino prodded further down her waist, there was a point where her pain level was zero.
“We’re using a scale between one and ten,” He said impatiently. At her age, she should have the concept of numbers down. “Zero isn’t an answer.”
“But it doesn’t hurt at all,” Keiki protested. “So, it’s zero.”
“…at all?” Olakino dug his sharp fingernails into her hips. “What number is this?”
“Still zero.” Keiki started to pout. “I wanna go back to sleep now.”
“Alright.” Olakino sighed. He got enough information anyway; she was paralyzed from the waist down.
“Whoa, whoa, whoa!” Olakino stood guard in front of his alcove’s entrance. “I’m a doctor, not a veterinarian!”
“Well, I never got to vet school so you’re the best bet.” Anaia argued. “I’m sure hippocampus cuts are close enough to human cuts to treat.” But it wasn’t like treating Keiki since instead of using a proper number scale, Nani would swing her head around and nip at Olakino if he found a particularly sore spot no matter how much Kanikau and Anaia calmed her. Unfortunately, it seemed that Nani had the same diagnosis as Keiki; everything beyond her flanks was paralyzed.
Kanikau rolled over in her sleep onto a small rock. That was enough to wake her from her restless dreams. For a few minutes she laid there with the rock still digging into her skin. She couldn’t bring herself to move as if she thought the uncomfortable feeling was deserved. Why did she feel so much dread?
Piha’s stomach was finally settling and he hoped to return to work in the next few months. He had helped transport Nani yesterday and felt exhausted but not unwell. He sat next to Koe as the sirens ate a small breakfast. “You’re quieter than usual,” He noted, “Is it because of your breakup with Ikehu?”
“No, not that,” Koe twirled a piece of kelp in her hand, “That was just a casual thing. No…the fire-lizards are unsettled and none of them will explain why.”
“Should we be concerned?” Piha still wasn’t entirely sure how fire-lizards worked.
“I’m not sure,” Koe closed her eyes. Piha guessed she was asking Polū more questions. “He just said to ‘stay out of the way today’ whatever that means.”
“That sounds like we should be concerned.” Piha lost his appetite and was disappointed. He missed wanting to eat his favorite foods. “He didn’t say what about?”
“Nope,” Koe frowned. “And it’s rather annoying!” She definitely directed that point at Polū. Piha’s stomach rolled, all appetite gone. The only thing he’d have for breakfast today would be his nerves.
“They’re both paralyzed,” Olakino announced to the pod. “They’ll have to learn how to move and live differently, but their other injuries are treated.” Keiki was crying softly in the corner, head in her hands with her tail jutting out uselessly. Nani seemed pretty chill to be honest; she wasn’t too concerned. Kanikau gave her a confident pat and Anaia hugged the hippocampus’ neck. Trevor and Huhū tried to get Keiki’s attention by doing some lame magic tricks. Huki adjusted his hat. It felt like Trevor and Olakino had proved that nothing good came from the ocean; the minute you’re having positive experiences is the minute your luck turned.
Huki sat still watching Nani do her best to swim. By flinging what she could of her back end and exhausting flipping of her front legs, she could move unreliably and slowly. After a while, everyone’s attention switched to something else, except Huki was still tailing Nani. It seemed like she was heading towards the shallows. I don’t like how this day could go, Gula butted into his thoughts, Go back to Anaia. “You know I don’t h’ve friends, especially her.” I cannot stop Keleawe from fetching her then. “She’s no threat to me.” If you say so.
Huki now ignored the agitated fire-lizards now soaring overhead. Every once in a while, one would dive in to check what was happening. He regarded the lame hippocampus with uncaring eyes. He both knew and didn’t know what he would do. Was he doing it to rile Anaia after their argument? Was it to show Kanikau that no one is in control? Was it just out of boredom?
He looked at the large rock in his hands. He didn’t remember grabbing it, but it was in his possession whether he liked it or not. Huki…Gula once again interrupted, just leave. No matter the outcome, you’ll be gone one way or another. “I’m not useful myself.” The self-hate boiled to the surface. “What does it matt’r?” Nani swung her head towards him as he approached. She nickered, recognizing him with her big, doe-y eyes. As the first swing struck her in the face, she reared back but rolled awkwardly on her numb fins. The sharp stone glistened in the sun as it smashed against Nani’s cheek, fracturing her skull. One of her front legs kicked him in his chest and he was knocked into the sand gasping for breath. He wrapped an arm around his torso and felt a fractured rib. Nani rested as well, blood clouding the water. The fire-lizards screeched in the air above. Stop! But it was too late, Huki rose, now even slower than usual with his torn tail. Nani had little fight left in her, almost allowing herself to succumb to her fate. She grunted one last time before the heavens took pity and let her die.
Keleawe must have already prepared Anaia for the scene she arrived at as tears already were running down her cheeks. “Why?” She stood over Huki who was laying on his side. Something else must have snapped along with his ribs and his sanity. “What good does this do for anyone?”
“She can’t go on patrols anymore.” Huki coughed. “Not a v’ry good horse then.”
Anaia picked up the bloody rock that laid beside him. Huki scrutinized her face. Did she have the strength to follow through with her thoughts? “What message will this send to Keiki?” She let the blood drip on her hands. “Patrolling isn’t important; companionship is.”
“Does it look like I have companions?” Huki asked. “I can barely swim, I can’t be a warrior.”
“Of course you can, you just choose not to,” Anaia hefted the rock into her dominant hand. “Do you also choose to be put down, just like an unwanted ranch animal?”
Huki felt fear for the first time under the ocean. Now that he was looking death in the eyes, he was scared. But how different would death be to being a siren? “You won’t kill me,” Huki called her bluff, “You couldn’t hurt a plankton.”
“But I’m a warrior, aren’t I?” She whispered. Her grip on the stone tightened. “What kind of a warrior am I if I won’t even fight?” Like Huki did minutes before, Anaia swung down and the rock connected with his temple. A little bit of blood dripped from his nose, but he was dead, Stenson askew. Gula let out an unnatural shriek.
Back at the alcoves, Kanikau was startled by a feminine voice speaking in her mind that was not her own. She pressed her hands against her skull. She killed him! “Killed who?” Kanikau hissed. Anaia killed Huki! While she was surprised with the turn of events, she knew what this meant. “Koe,” She called out triumphantly. “I’m bonded to a gold fire-lizard! Eat it and weep, blue ‘ala!”
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