Ocean's Kiss

by Lani Wendt Young

  You are the Bone Bearer. Speak and the ocean will listen.

  Daniel called for the sea to raise him up, and she did. He burst from the water, on a jet blast of diamond blue fury. Where is it? Where’s the shark? He was poised for battle, ready to take on the creature. But it was gone. Daniel sent his senses far and wide, seeking for the creature everywhere. Nothing. He was left with questions only.

  Who had sent the great shark? Who had taken the Tangaloa Bone?

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN

  Daniel sat by Ronan’s bedside, willing him to wake up. The healer had assured that Ronan’s injuries weren’t critical, but still he worried. He knew enough about the cruel trickster that was fate - that could return his father to him, only to snatch him away again, right when he Daniel, was ready to be a son.

  So when Ronan’s eyes finally opened, Daniel had to restrain himself from suffocating him in a bear hug. Contenting himself with a wry, “So you’re back.”

  “Like I never left,” joked Ronan weakly. A wince of pain as he tried to sit up.

  “Take it easy. No rush. They’re not kicking you outta here any time soon. You’re a hero,” said Daniel with a grin. “You get royal treatment for as long as you want.”

  Ronan frowned. “What are you talking about?”

  “That little girl you saved? The whole island is talking about it. How you risked your life for her.”

  “Yeah right,” said Ronan drily. “You’re the one who saved us all. I just fell over in the mud.”

  “That’s not what she says,” said Daniel. There was knock at the door. “You have a visitor.”

  Ronan turned his head. A huddle of people stood in the doorway, clustered around a little girl in a pink frilly dress. Ronan didn’t think he’d ever seen so many ruffles on one dress before. The girl walked over to the bed. She carried a beribboned box in her hands, which she carefully placed on the bedside table.

  “Mr. Ronan, my name is Veikune. You saved my life and I am forever thankful. Your courage and bravery is highly commended. I am in your debt and one day, hope to repay you in kind.” She spoke with a high pitched voice, in perfectly annunciated English.

  Ronan looked ill at ease, confronted with this somber little girl who didn’t look much older than five years old but carried herself like she was a Queen. She didn’t look anything like the muddy tearful little girl he had pulled from the storm. “You’re welcome. I was happy to help. You don’t owe me any debt. Besides, I wasn’t alone. There was a girl there too. She took you to safety. I didn’t really do much.”

  A young Fakaleiti came forward from the doorway. A familiar face that Ronan recognized from the storm. “I’m Pilolevu. You risked your life to save Veikune. Even though you are a stranger. And a man. We’re all grateful.”

  The little crowd all nodded and added their thanks as they came forward, laying gifts on the bed.

  Ronan was stunned. Bewildered. He smiled weakly and nodded his head in thanks, waiting until they had left before turning questioning eyes at Daniel. “What was that about?”

  Daniel laughed. “Apparently you didn’t save just any little girl. Veikune is their great hope. The first Vasa Loloa child born here in a very long time. She’s supposed to be the Covenant Keeper one day. And until then, she’s got a lot of expectations on those ruffled shoulders of hers.”

  Ronan looked at all the gifts. “If this is what I get for helping one little girl, what did they give you for saving the whole damn island?” he joked weakly, before feeling gingerly for his bandaged wounds. “So how bad is it? When can I get up out of this bed?”

  “You’re a very lucky man. They found you beside the river. Lying on a bed of seafoam. You were sleeping peacefully. Someone had cleaned you up and fixed the worst of your injuries. The healer tells me they were pretty extensive and you should have died. Whoever healed you? Had the magic touch. The healer wants you walking around today. She says its good for your recovery. You can come help us clean up the mess out there.”

  “I’d laugh but I think that might hurt,” said Ronan. “Have you heard from Leila? How’s Kirei? Everything okay there?”

  Daniel reassured him that all was well back in Samoa. He’d given Leila the barest of breakdowns about what had happened over the last forty-eight hours. He suspected she would be pushing him for more details when he got back home, and his wife would not be happy about the risks he’d taken without her. But for now, just hearing her voice was a joy.

  “How’s Ilisapesi?” asked Ronan. “Did she make it?”

  “Yes. Already made a full recovery thanks to her Telesā gift and the healer. Supervising the island cleanup.”

  “That’s good news,” Then Ronan said, “I saw her Daniel. Moanasina. She came to me in the storm. She knew me. I heard her whisper my name. I have to find her. Bring her home.”

  “She is home Ronan. The sea is her home.”

  “No. She’s not happy there. I know it. That’s why she’s been following me, you. She wants to remember who she is. Come back.”

  “We don’t know that,” said Daniel. “She’s had twenty years to come back. Why hasn’t she? What’s stopping her?” There was unspoken hurt in his question. The hurt of a little boy who used to dream about his mother coming to get him from school.

  Ronan had a flash of memory. To a silver studded night on a black sand beach, where Moanasina had shared her deepest fear. Where he had made her a promise.

  “Maybe she’s afraid?”

  Daniel shook his head slowly. “You haven’t seen her in Vasa Loloa mode. The sheer power she has? That’s not a woman who’s afraid of anyone. Or anything.”

  But Ronan had his mind made up. “I made Moanasina a promise. I may be twenty years late, but I’m going to keep it.”

  It didn’t matter what Daniel said, nothing would change Ronan’s certainty.

  Later that day, Daniel accompanied Ronan on a short walk to the beach. Healer’s orders. Ronan didn’t make it very far though and Daniel fetched him a chair so he could rest and watch the afternoon fade. The cleanup was still in progress and even with everyone on the island working together, it would take time for it to be restored to its former state. But the island was still beautiful. The sun was setting in a silken sky, over an azure sea, painting the horizon. The tide was coming in, lace edged waves creeping higher on the silver black sand.

  Ilisapesi joined Daniel at the water’s edge. “How’s the patient?” she asked.

  “Doing good,” said Daniel. “Overwhelmed by all the attention and gratitude from your sisterhood though.”

  “We expect such actions from Telesā, from those blessed with Fanua’s gifts,” explained Ilisapesi. “We’re surprised when there are heroes in everyday life.”

  “You sure you should be up and about like this? You’re supposed to be a patient too.”

  Ilisapesi only smiled.

  “The shark,” said Daniel slowly. “Did you call it? Is it one of yours?”

  Ilisapesi shook her head. “No. From what you’ve described, that was no ordinary shark.”

  “You got that right,” agreed Daniel with a grimace. “That thing was massive. Some sort of mutant shark. I thought maybe Moanasina sent it.”

  “I don’t think so. I can’t be sure because I’ve never seen one, but I believe that shark was an Aitu of the gods. Tangaloalagi has a handful of chosen creatures that do their work. They stand sentinel, act as messengers, run errands.”

  Daniel raised an eyebrow in disbelief. “That was some errand boy. So you think the gods took the Tangaloa Bone back?”

  “It makes sense,” said Ilisapesi. She pointed to the devastation around them. “See what we do to each other for want of it? Perhaps it’s godly wisdom that none of us should bear it. Its power was strong enough to awaken Vasa Loloa’s gift in you though, and for that we all give thanks. You saved our island. And Ronan too.”

  Daniel nodded, thinking of the piece he still wore around his neck. A piece he would keep quiet. He grabbed the moment
to ask the Covenant Keeper a question that had been bugging him. “Why did you let Ronan come to your island? Was it the sand dollar he showed you?”

  Ilisapesi raised an eyebrow at him. “Of course not. I brought him here because he’s ocean-kissed. Look, can’t you see it?”

  Daniel turned to follow her gaze to where Ronan sat, looking out to the distant horizon. “See what? I don’t see anything.”

  “Look again, with the eyes of Vasa Loloa,” instructed Ilisapesi.

  Daniel looked again, and this time, he caught it. There was a tinged edge of blue around Ronan, an aura of some sort. Faint and barely legible. But it was there. “What is that? Ocean-kissed. What does it mean?”

  “It’s an old Vasa Loloa custom. Not many practice it any more. If a Telesā wants to keep a loved one safe, then she gives them the breath of the ocean, a special kind of kiss, a mark. They carry it on them for the rest of their lives and it marks them as a chosen of Vasa Loloa. A beloved. We must give them aid. Shelter them. If you harm one who bears the ocean’s kiss, then you will face their wrath.”

  “Y’know there’s something I don’t quite get,” said Daniel with a bemused grin. “Every Telesā I meet tells me that oh Telesā don’t love. We’re not like other women. And yet time and again, I keep meeting Telesā who do exactly that. Fall in love. Bear children. And love them.”

  Ilisapesi laughed. “The ocean’s kiss is rare. I’ve walked a long time on this earth, but I have only ever bestowed it once.”

  “So you only have one beloved,” said Daniel. “Not so different from us after all then. Most of us only ever find one great love in our lifetimes.”

  “Perhaps,” conceded Ilisapesi. Her face turned serious. “I was wrong to threaten you. I didn’t trust you. I’m sorry. Can we blame it on centuries of superstition about male Telesā being an abomination?”

  “Apology accepted,” said Daniel. “We all carry beliefs and attitudes handed down to us. It’s hard to break free from them and seek truth and knowledge for ourselves. My wife, Leila, she’s always challenging my old-fashioned views!”

  Daniel spoke again. “I understand why you wanted the Tangaloa Bone though. This island is a special place. The work you’re doing is so vital for the survival of Fanua, of earth itself. But as the Ariki’s attack shows, you are vulnerable. Especially while you’re in the development stage and waiting for the young ones to grow and master their gifts.”

  “I am afraid for them,” admitted Ilisapesi. “I hope the best for them, but I fear we won’t be able to keep them safe. There’s so much they have to learn, so much we need to teach them. But time is running out. For Fanua and for Telesā.”

  “I have a suggestion. And please know, it comes from a place of concern. I care about the Vasa Loloa. These are my people too. I want to help,” said Daniel. “But what I propose, requires that you can see boy Telesā, not as an abomination. But as a blessing from Tangaloalagi. Its actually not my idea. A…friend envisioned it first. She said to me, that these are desperate times for our mother earth. We need all the Telesā that we can find, to unite and work together so we can save Fanua. What’s needed is a new era when Gifted male and female should stand together and fight against all that threatens the sanctity of the earth which gives us life.”

  “I’m not sure I follow you,” said Ilisapesi slowly.

  “The Telesā will listen to you. To each of the Covenant Keepers. Sign a peace treaty. Establish a new order for Telesā in Oceania. Tell Telesā everywhere, that they must stop killing their boy children. Make new laws. We could bring Telesā here to be trained. Together. By you. And the other Covenant Keepers who agree with the vision. You’re doing amazing STEM work here. But you need more power. Open your doors to male Telesā. On my way here, I met two brothers taking their grandfather’s taro to the market. Both of them had the Tangaloa Bone burning so bright that it lit up the whole street. They need guidance and teaching. Think about the kind of power they would bring to your Covenant if you invited them to join you here.”

  Ilisapesi stopped walking and gave Daniel a long considered stare. “Your idea, it has merit.”

  Daniel grinned. “You sound surprised. Why? Because I’m a man?”

  “No. Because you are young,” she corrected him. “And the vision that you speak of, is one that even the oldest and wisest of us could not have imagined. I will think on it.”

  “I have one more thing to ask,” said Daniel. “For Ronan. And since we’re being honest with each other, it’s for me too.”

  “You want to know about the Guardians. That’s sacred knowledge for Vasa Loloa and I need permission before I can speak of it to you. Come see me tomorrow and I might have answers for you.”

  They walked on in companionable silence for a few more meters before Ilisapesi stopped to point out a furrowing in the sand up by the tree-line. “Look! The eggs are hatching.”

  Daniel saw the sand moving, as hundreds of little feet scrabbled, beaked noses nudged, and determined baby turtles dug their way up out of the earth. Breaking first through their shell casings, where their mothers had carefully placed them and painstakingly, slowly covered them, with awkward flapping and shuffling of their flippers. The little creatures dug with stubborn determination, breaking free from their nests and then turning their milky eyes towards the sound and scent of the sea. It was an awe-inspiring sight.

  Ilisapesi called for the Vasa Loloa. “They have to watch over the babies, make sure they reach the water. That stretch of sand isn’t much, but it’s the first most dangerous journey they’ll have to overcome.” She pointed to the swarm of birds that flocked overhead. “See? The predators. They’re here.”

  Responding to her call, the Vasa Loloa came running. Young and old, children and sisters. They took up sentinel watch over the mass eruption of wriggling babies, carefully picking them up if they started out in the wrong direction, and facing them the right way. Others waited by the water’s edge, chasing away birds that tried to dive in for an easy meal. Daniel went to help. The operation took much of the night, as everyone worked together to keep the baby turtles safe, to watch over their first clumsy steps to the beckoning sea. And with each tiny creature that they helped guide to the water, Daniel felt another spark of hope. For the future of Fanua. For humankind.

  CHAPTER FIFTEEN

  The next day, Daniel received a formal summons to Ilisapesi’s chambers.

  “Our sisterhood wronged you,” said Ilisapesi with stiff formality. “We offered you safe passage and betrayed you and yours. As Covenant Keeper, I bear that responsibility. What price will you exact for retribution?”

  “My father came to Tonga seeking knowledge of the woman they called Moanasina. I would ask please for answers to our questions.”

  “I’ll tell you what I know. There’s an ancient practice among Telesā, the knowledge of which was handed down through many generations. It was whispered from the very first of us, they who were created by Tangaloalagi. It is sacred knowledge to our sisters and never spoken of outside our Covenants.” Ilisapesi paused. She looked utterly miserable, as if it pained her to speak. “I break trust to tell it to you, but have no choice. It’s your right of retribution.”

  “Thank you. I’ll keep this knowledge secret. You can trust me.”

  “As you know Telesā can live long. Our knowledge of Fanua, plants and ocean’s bounty, also helps us to prolong our time on this earth. When you’ve lived as long as I have though, you come to realize that longevity isn’t all that it’s made it out to be. More time to witness man’s foolishness and laying waste to our Vasa Loloa…”

  She paused and the room was heavy with sadness. “However, some Telesā choose the path of guardianship eternally. They have the required strength, fortitude and courage. Instead of death, they choose to offer their spirit to Fanua. For us, that means giving your life to Vasa Loloa.”

  “You mean suicide?”

  “No, don’t be foolish. You covenant with Vasa Loloa to become a Guardian, then ca
st yourself into the ocean. She gives you a new body, one that can live, breathe and move freely under the sea. You have unimaginable power. You are immortal, insomuch as your survival is intertwined with that of the ocean.”

  “And your old body?” asked Daniel as he struggled to make sense of this reality.

  “Who cares? Gone. Dead. An empty shell. Like so many others that litter the beaches all over the world. Bodies are shells Daniel. Surely you know this? Even raised the way you were? Please tell me Salamasina taught you that truth?!”

  “Yes, of course. Our bodies are just shells,” said Daniel. Even as everything logical inside him, every western textbook he’d ever read, screamed that this was mystical nonsense. “So if that’s Moanasina in a different shell, then why doesn’t she know us?”

  Why didn’t she come see me a long time ago? Why didn’t she care enough to stay with me?

  “Because Telesā remove their memories before they become guardians. Vasa Loloa is wise. She knows it’s difficult to shed our old shells, even though we have outgrown them and she has prepared a wondrous new body for us. She washes your memories away. Then you are ready to rise up as a guardian.”

  “So there’s no chance of a Guardian regaining those memories?”

  Ilisapesi smiled then. And the look on her eyes was soft and tender. An unusual thing for a Telesā. “Now we come to the truth of what you’re truly seeking Daniel Tahi. You want to know how you can get your mother back.

  “I don’t believe she chose to become a Guardian willingly,” said Daniel. His voice caught. On hope, fragile and gossamer thin. Like seafoam before the sunrise. “I think she became a Guardian so she could protect her child. And now that I’ve met the man who fathered me, I believe she became a Guardian so she could one day, be with him again.”