Dolphin Way: Rise of the Guardians

by Caney, Mark

  Muddy’s normally amiable features started showing signs of irritation now.

  ‘Sky, just forget it. You’re imagining things again. Listen, I know how important it is for you to finish this last year at the Academy well. Here’s my advice: keep away from Dusk if you can’t avoid talking about philosophical things — it always ends in a fight and I hate having to listen to it. Now, no more about this please; here’s the clan.’

  As they closed with the shallow water near the shoreline they found themselves in the happy confusion of the Dune Coast Clan. The water was full of sound as the dolphins moved about in sociable groups; playing, flirting, hunting. Sky realised that there was at least one more family present now that had returned to the clan after having been away for a couple of years. He tried to remember how many that made their number now; he guessed at about sixty-five: a big clan. He and Muddy threaded their way through the groups and among the small isolated coral heads that protruded from the sand. Then there was a signature call he knew at once, with an odd, urgent edge to it: ‘It is I, Deneb Rising!’

  They replied with their own calls and Deneb appeared, his pale eyes showing concern.

  ‘Sky, my mother wants to see you immediately. Follow me.’

  Sky took station alongside Deneb who led him in silence away from the crowds and along the coast where the sandy beach turned to a harsh rock face that fell almost sheer into the water. A narrow vertical fissure in the cliff face continued downwards into the water where it widened, its two inward facing walls dropping away out of sight. They approached this, and as they drew closer, Sky could see the slight form of Silent Waters suspended almost motionless between the towering stone walls, the wavering shafts of sunlight from the surface making her pale skin seem to glow against the dark shadow of the cliffs. Deneb signalled to Sky to continue alone and turned to leave.

  Sky approached her, troubled. In spite of having been raised by her since he was only two, he still shared some of the awe that most of the clan had for their leader. He had never been summoned to see her in this way before, and he struggled to stay calm.

  ‘You wanted to see me Prime Mother?’

  ‘Yes, come closer, Sky.’ Her rich, melodious voice would have sounded as composed as ever to most listeners, but Sky detected something: a faint echo of alarm that made his stomach tighten in concern. He stopped in front of her, the two of them hanging almost upright in the rock recess; moving their tails gently to hold position.

  ‘Sky, you are doing well in your studies.’

  ‘Thank you Prime Mother, I try. I enjoy most of the lessons.’

  ‘Your teachers tell me you have great promise. This is your last year as a Novice; if all goes well you will soon qualify as an Initiate of the Way. But there are heavy responsibilities attached. We Ka-Tse have always expected the highest personal integrity of our Initiates: they should not merely be able to quote the Way. They should embody it.’

  ‘I understand that, Prime Mother, and I want to do exactly that. I do believe in the importance of the Way— it’s allowed us to live in harmony with nature for a million years after all. I want to try to embody its teachings.’

  She nodded slowly, as though to herself. ‘I believe that you do. But I have learned something today that will make others question your right to become an Initiate — will make them want to argue against it in fact.’

  Sky stared at her in confusion. She continued, picking her words carefully.

  ‘We have had a visitor. He came to seek help from the Healers, they did what they could and he has gone now.’

  Sky nodded. It was Rain Ending of course, the lone dolphin that had approached their hunting party.

  Silent Waters watched him intently as she continued. ‘Sky, you always told us that the rest of your clan died that day on the beach.’

  Sky felt as though his heart had stopped.

  ‘Yes…they did…I was sure they had.’

  ‘This visitor told us he was from your old clan. And he was not the only one to escape. He said that a few others survived too.’

  ‘What happened to them?’

  ‘He said they went separate ways, too few to make a clan. But he knew that a couple of them had been angry at what happened — were in despair. He had heard that they turned to those abominations that we do not even speak of. They joined the Guardians.’

  Sky suddenly felt very cold. ‘Why are you telling me this, Prime Mother?’

  She looked up towards the surface for a moment and closed her eyes, then looked directly back at Sky, her eyes piercing. As if trying to read his thoughts; see inside his mind; find the truth.

  ‘He said that one of them was your father, Sky.’

  Chapter 5

  “I love you for what you are

  Though your heart bears scars

  From life’s harsh tempests

  I would not wish it unblemished

  Each wound carved your strength

  Suffering gave you wisdom

  These flaws make you perfect”

  - From the Arcturus Love Sonnets

  Fades Into Dusk made her way through the bustle of the clan towards the eastern end of the bay. She kept to the edge of the groups of dolphins who were variously talking, telling stories to the young or preparing for a night hunt. As she reached the coral headland at the edge of the bay she waited, pretending to search among the sand patches for hidden fish as the perimeter patrol went by. Once she judged it was clear, she slipped around the headland and set off parallel to the coast, relaxing as she distanced herself from the clan. The sun was dropping below the low dunes on the land, a great red disc. The few strands of cirrus cloud were turning a deep purple and the sea was darkening. Once she was sure she had slipped away unseen she began to sing to herself as she swam and occasionally leapt from the water, sometimes spinning quickly in mid-flight as she loved to do.

  She kept swimming for hours, while the water gradually turned first to velvet black then slowly lightened again as the bright white moon rose; almost a complete disc. Soon she did not even need to use her echolocation to navigate and used only occasional bursts of sound to look ahead. Eventually, after several hours swimming she reached the steep sandy shelf with the familiar, distinctive rocky arch protruding from it. The moon was almost at its zenith so she was just on time. She could feel her pulse quickening. Because she was excited to be here? Or because it was wrong? She made her signature call: ‘It is I, Fades Into Dusk!’

  There was no answer.

  Storm Before Darkness was not here yet. Or not coming? He had missed two of their meetings before and had always had excuses about emergencies that had come up that needed his attention. Rationally, she knew that it was likely that there would be such demands on his time given his responsibilities, but both times she had dreaded that it must mean he was tired of her and was bored with meeting her. He seemed so different from all the males in her clan. He was obviously admired by his followers, and he had such clarity of vision. There was no vagueness about him, he knew exactly what he wanted to achieve in the world. She found that very attractive. She also found what he wanted to achieve rather frightening, but that was exciting in a way too.

  Everything she had learned at the clan told her that what Storm Before Darkness and these others said was wrong, and when she was listening to Cloud Passing or Silent Waters speaking she was almost convinced again that it was wrong. But when Storm spoke and became impassioned she was swept along by the precision and ruthlessness of his arguments. When she heard him she doubted the Way; doubted it could help them any more.

  She called out again, ‘It is I, Fades Into Dusk!’

  Silence.

  She remembered when she had first met him. She was with two other females from the clan on their way back from a hunting trip. They heard the voices of some other dolphins calling to one another. They were Ka-Tse like those of the clan, but they spoke with an odd dialect, it sounded harsher and more purposeful than the speech she was used to. Her friends
were nervous and wanted to leave before the strangers became aware of them. But she was curious and in spite of their protestations she insisted on holding back when they left. She had then silently approached the sound of the strange voices and drew closer. At the edge of visibility she could see it was four dolphins; males from their voices, in a circle on the sand, their heads low.

  She could make out some of their words and it was clear that one of them, an exceptionally large, dark skinned dolphin with a pale scar over his right eye, was their leader. He looked and sounded authoritative and he spoke with the ease of a natural and unquestioned leader. She had encountered dolphins with an aura of power before, but they had all been elders of the clan, and it arose from the respect accorded the wise. This one spoke of action, and the power was also a physical one. She was strangely attracted and disturbed in equal measure.

  She had been about to leave when he had become aware of her. She saw his eyes lock onto hers and it had felt like she had been struck a blow. She had started to swim off but he called to her to wait. It sounded like a command, and she had stopped dead without making a conscious choice to do so.

  He had left his companions and swam over to her. Once he had established she was alone, he had wanted to know what she had heard. He must have soon realised that she had really heard nothing of consequence. Their conversation had been one sided, almost an interrogation, but he seemed to soften when she answered more of his questions about herself. He seemed interested in the movements of her clan and genuinely fascinated to learn that she was in training as a Starwriter. She was flattered by his attention and so, at his suggestion, accompanied him on a swim over the shallow sand; their course following the lines of the ripples. She was intensely curious, as it soon became clear to her that he was a leader of a clan, even though he could only be a few years older than she was. She had not heard of such a young male taking that role and was quietly impressed. She was also impressed by the way he spoke and his sure, precise movements. He radiated strength. When they separated and he suggested they meet again she agreed. At that point she knew little about him, but soon they were secretly meeting regularly. She was probably already more than half in love by the time she found out what his clan called themselves. That had been a shocking day for her and she had tried to stay away from him for a while, but the lure was too great, and in any case, she reassured herself, their relationship had never gone further than close companions. She had explained that such a thing was impossible now, and he seemed to understand that. But he knew her circumstances would be different soon and he had been quite clear that he had expectations for that day. She did not know what she would do then.

  Where was he? She called again: ‘It is I, Fades Into Dusk!’

  A long pause.

  Then, faintly, a voice from the night: ‘And it is I, Storm Before Darkness!’

  Chapter 6

  “The child will have long to think on the mistake that the parent made with so little thought.”

  - Carried Westward (12,214 – 12,242 post Great Alluvion)

  A large swell rolled towards the shore, born in the deep open sea, a vestige of a far distant storm. Above the deep waters the great liquid monsters lifted and fell benignly, sleep swimming ponderously towards the land. After their long journey, the sudden resistance of the small coral reef woke them with a shock; they reared up in outrage and crashed down in white violence.

  Lying on the sandy bottom on the inshore side of the reef, Sky watched the huge breakers crash down at the surface above him, driving great billows of white into the clear water. He had lain there a long time; watching, thinking.

  ‘It is I, Deneb Rising!’

  ‘And I, Wakes Softly!’

  Deneb’s dark form appeared in front of Sky, his serious face showing concern. Wakes hung back at a short distance to give them a chance to speak privately.

  ‘We’ve been looking for you little brother,’ Deneb said gently. ‘You’ve been gone a long time.’

  ‘I needed some time to think. It’s been such a shock.’

  ‘Of course it has. Come on, swim with us, I can hardly hear you with all this noise. Let’s go down where it’s quieter.’

  Sky slowly followed Deneb and Wakes into the calm of deeper water, reluctant to leave the clamour of the waves; the comforting caress of the swell.

  ‘Whatever everyone else thinks Sky, nothing has changed for me. I will still treat you like a brother and I’m sure my mother will still treat you like her son. You’re still the same zeta.’

  ‘Maybe I’m not though. I’ve gone through my life thinking my family was dead, now it seems my father may still be alive. And a Guardian! If half of what is said about them is true they’re bad enough. They say they condone killing other zetii sometimes and that they follow a perverse form of the Way; saying it was only really meant for us Ka-Tse or something like that — that the other kinds of zetii are inferior.’

  Wakes shook her head. ‘Even if that’s all true, it doesn’t matter. You’re not a Guardian.’

  ‘The rest of the clan won’t be as reasonable as you though — after all my father might be! Deneb, I have to know, I want to ask him what would make him do such a thing!’

  ‘Well, you can’t! You know the penalty for any kind of contact with them. You’d be crazy to risk everything now when you are almost at the end of your studies.’

  ‘Alright, alright, I know that makes sense, but I really need to know more somehow…’

  At that point Sky trailed off. Ahead of them were five adult males from the clan. Sky made his signature call:

  ‘It is I, Touches The Sky!’

  Before Deneb or Wakes could add theirs, and without any proper reply to Sky’s call, the largest of the males said, ‘Don’t you mean “It is I, Son of a Guardian!”’

  Sky recognised him as Last To Speak. One of his daughters was Bellatrix Unseen, who Sky had seen at the wreck and who sometimes attended the classes that he helped to teach at the Academy.

  Deneb advanced towards the older, larger dolphin; deliberately placing himself between Sky and him. ‘How dare you speak like that! There’s no proof of this. And even if it is true it’s not Sky’s fault.’

  Last To Speak snorted. ‘Don’t come on high and mighty with me, boy. Just because you’re the Prime Mother’s son doesn’t give you any authority over us.’ His companions circled around them, watching the exchange without comment but clearly following it with interest. Sky was shocked by the animosity but felt he had to defend himself. He moved closer.

  ‘Who told you this story?’

  ‘Everybody knows it now. And maybe you haven’t done anything wrong yet, but I think it’s just a matter of time. Like they say, “no stronger current than the father’s blood in the child’s veins”. I think the Council should get rid of you now before you do any harm.’

  Deneb replied before Sky could, his voice cold but angry. ‘Fortunately the Council are able to make their decisions based on facts, not emotions. That’s why zetii like you aren’t on it! Come on Sky, let’s go.’

  They left the group of males behind them, Last To Speak’s voice just reaching them as they moved swiftly towards the headland: ‘We’ll be watching you, Guardian’s son! The first sign of you turning bad and we’ll drive you out of this clan in a tailbeat!’

  The three friends swam around the headland into the clan’s bay. The western end of the bay was quite calm, but the breakers boomed against the other side of the protecting headland, sending fountains of fine spray to hang briefly in the bright, tropical sunlight.

  Deneb slowed the pace at last and turned to Sky. ‘Don’t pay too much attention to them.’

  ‘No you mustn’t Sky,’ Wakes agreed, ‘I’m sure most of the clan won’t think that way. It was good that you two stood up to those idiots. Deneb, you really put him in his place.’

  Deneb gave her a small smile but turned back to Sky, serious as usual. ‘Sky there’s something else too isn’t there? I talked to Muddy today.�
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  Sky had been wondering what to do about Sand and his story, after all he had promised him not to tell anyone that he had spoken to him. But now he told Deneb and Wakes what had happened. ‘Don’t tell anyone else yet though, please,’ he finished, ‘I need to find out more first.’

  Deneb inclined his head in agreement. ‘Very well. Let’s go and see mother though. Wakes, why don’t we meet you again after we’ve seen her.’

  They found Silent Water in the shallows, laying on the sand; meditating.

  They waited a short while nearby. She must have become aware of them as they could tell that she was slowly raising herself up through the levels of consciousness, making small movements, then slowly opening her eyes. Without apparent effort, she drifted to the surface, took a brief breath, then settled back to the seabed. ‘You look troubled. Has it begun?’

  Deneb glanced meaningfully at Sky, who spoke first. ‘Has what begun Prime Mother?’

  ‘Prejudice and bullying from the foolish. It is inevitable I am afraid. No need to answer; I see that it has.’

  Sky nodded, his eyes downcast. She continued. ‘There are some in every clan that can think for themselves, make their own judgements, accept and embrace change. Then there are others whose horizons are close by, who find a false courage in unthinking conformity.’

  ‘What should I do?’

  ‘Probably best to do nothing. If they see that you are hurt, it makes their sport all the more rewarding. Remember that their opinions are of no real value. Seek out the company of those with open minds. In time you will see they are the ones that really matter and are truly respected by the wise and the good.’