Spirits of Alaruk

Chapter 4: Voyage

It was Treke’s first voyage across the sea that evening. She had no idea what to bring for exploring a desert climate, but Siku’s family had her covered for food and water for crossing the ocean, which included several smoked fish fillets wrapped in dried seaweed, a canteen carved from an empty coconut shell, and some fresh nangangu and lirre fruit. Her sister’s blanket, an extra hempen robe, and a small satchel of healing herbs was all she had brought along with her, wrapped in waxed paper to protect against any outside moisture. Siku was well prepared herself, bringing along her fishing supplies and a mysterious bundle of something wrapped in palm leaves.

"Now, keep in mind that the ride may get a little rocky," said Siku as they both climbed into her boat. "There's a lot more wind out there on the open sea. How well do you know how to swim?"

Treke wrung her hands, concerned at the question. "Umm... not very well, I must admit."

"Ah, well... We should be okay!" Siku said blithely. She untied her boat and pushed it away from the pier, letting it drift a little. "I've made this trip so many times and never had any problems."

Treke gave Siku a nervous smile, the story of the sea fuglan's father going missing at sea still fresh in her mind. She didn't know Siku very well yet, but after witnessing her capture the giant fish in the lagoon, she trusted her capabilities well enough.

"While we're at it, would you like to learn how to paddle? It might come in handy!" Siku proudly brandished one of her canoe's oars.

"I... I suppose it wouldn't hurt." She accepted the paddle and, realizing what a piece of craftsmanship it was, turned it over in her hands to get a closer look at it. Made of hardwood, intricately carved spiral-shaped waves and crescent moon motifs adorned the handle and butt, while several notches carved along its length indicated it could be secured with rope when needed. “By my ancestors, the carving is beautiful,” she commented.

“My uncle carved that one for me,” Siku said proudly. "Now, the sail does most of the work when the wind is blowing, so we only need to steer it with this." Siku demonstrated with a second oar at the back of the canoe that was used as a rudder. "But if there's little to no wind, then you'll have to paddle!"

There was indeed very little wind on the lagoon at the moment. Treke tested the oar, dipping the blade into the water on the port side of the boat. As she noticed the canoe was starting to spin left, she switched sides and tried to correct it, soon spinning the boat in the other direction. Realizing she wasn't getting anywhere, she looked back helplessly at Siku, who returned the look with a chuckle of amusement.

"This is a lot harder than I thought," said Treke, worried she was making herself look foolish.

"Hey, it's okay! You'll get better with practice. You just have to get a feel for the water and how the boat moves. Can't get it right on the first try, you know?"

Treke tried again, moving the paddle in the water in various directions to see how it would propel the canoe. Switching back and forth on each side of the boat took too much energy, but she soon figured out a method to rotate the paddle to make sure the canoe would go in a straight line. Although she was enjoying how smoothly the boat slid across the water, it was tiring work to keep at it continuously. She did her best to keep paddling until they were far out enough, away from the village, that she could see the mouth of the lagoon.

"I think that's enough," said Treke sheepishly, handing back the oar to Siku. She managed to get to the edge of the village before deciding to stop. "Thank you for letting me use it."

"No problem," said Siku, taking back the oar. "It does take some stamina, but I'll take it from here! Once the water gets choppy, it gets a lot harder."

It was still a ways to the edge of the lagoon before it would transition into the open sea. The edge of the island's land pinched the lagoon's inlet on either side, serving as a buffer against harsh waves. There were far less palm trees on this side of the atoll. Treke held on tight to the boat's sides as the wind picked up, with Siku steering at the stern of the boat.

"Say good-bye to Sridez Island!" Siku shouted with excitement as the boat passed through the inlet, carefully guiding it through the shallow channel with the use of the oar. There were only a few other boats out this far that ventured past the protective shoreline, their owners all looking for fish.

As they sailed further away from the shore, the bottom of the ocean quickly disappeared, engulfed by the inky dark blue water. It reminded Treke of her dream; her tail light unable to penetrate the darkness. She shivered, no longer able to look down without feeling a sense of uneasiness, as if she would fall into an endless abyss if she stared at it for too long.

The deep blue sky blended to a bright orange as it stretched along the edge of the open sea. Treke shielded her eyes from the sun slowly escaping behind the horizon to the west. She imagined what could be beyond the horizon--perhaps more beaches with sea fuglan villages or lands with endless forests? Or perhaps the sea went on forever, as she heard stories of fuglans that ventured out and never returned. She was eager to explore more of the world, but that would have to come at a later time. Her eyes switched focus on the course ahead, curious of their destination.

"Ah, the wind is picking up!" Siku's long frilled ears stood up straight, flicking back and forth as they tested the speed and direction of the wind. "We might get there sooner than expected if it keeps up like this!"

With a sudden jerk, a gust of wind slammed against the sail, pulling the canoe forward. Treke nearly fell backwards as it skidded across the surface of the water, making her stomach drop every time the boat skipped. If it weren't for a net securing all her belongings, they would be rolling all over the bottom of the boat.

"Ohh... I don't think I'm enjoying this so much now," said Treke, starting to feel queasy. She sat down low, trying not to look at the waves.

"Try to relax! It's going to be a bumpy ride."

The sky grew darker as they continued to sail to the northwest, revealing several stars that Treke could easily recognize. To the Nuek clan, stars were remnants of ancient ancestral spirits that had long passed on and returned to the sky from where fuglans once came from. She took a moment to pray to the stars, asking the ancestors to protect her on her journey.

The wind appeared to die down a little, enough where Treke could relax and chat with her friend. "I hope you don't mind me asking, but I overheard your conversation while we were eating... You have someone close to you who lives in Hulerin?"

"Yes! Her name is Lasranu. I've been seeing her for a couple of years now, but I would very much like to live with her in Hulerin. At this point, I'll take any excuse to travel there."

"I see... That must be nice to have someone like that." Treke admitted she felt a little envious of Siku, but only because she had someone close to her outside of her family.

"You don't have anyone?”

"No, just my family. I don't have any experience in relationships, but to be honest I don't think I'm really interested in one anyway.”

"You remind me of my aunt. She has no partners nor children, but she seems content staying that way. She has lots of friends in our village though.”

"Ah... I wouldn't mind having more friends. I don't have many friends in my village."

"So you've said. I can't wait to introduce you to Lasranu. I'm sure we'll meet more people in Hulerin too. It's a big place."

Treke didn't know how to feel about visiting such a large village. While she wanted to meet more fuglans, her priority was finding Ludaru. It would be difficult searching a large area if it weren't for the trail of rranha the spirit left behind. "Y-yes... I'm looking forward to it."

A few more hours passed before they snacked on fish filets and fruit to fill their bellies up. It was relatively smooth sailing so far and the wind gave them no trouble so far, but Siku appeared to be on edge, her ears flicking and twitching for any changes in the current.

"Hrmm… The air feels off," said Siku in a measured tone. "A storm is approaching."

"A storm? How bad?"

"Bad enough. See those clouds over there, to the northeast?"

Indeed, an ominous group of dark clouds in the distance was crawling closer to their location, accompanied by a damp, chilly wind that nipped at Treke’s ears.

"Can we avoid it?"

"It might delay our journey a little, but I can try steering around it so that we don't take it on full force."

"I'd rather we delay our journey than risk drowning at sea."

"Good point!” Siku laughed in good nature. “Don't worry, I can handle this."

Treke absolutely was going to worry. As the choppiness of the waves increased, so did the bouncing of the boat, so much that it lifted her right off of her seat with each wave. Shutting her eyes, she tugged on her ears and wrapped her tail around the netting on the bottom of the boat as she endured the bumpy ride.

"The storm is getting pretty close now!" Siku shouted, the boat rocking and jolting around even more.

"Kalagala, make it end," Treke whimpered as the boat lurched back and forth, rocking her from side to side. As she tried to correct her balance, she felt it tip again, throwing her backwards, her tail losing its grip before she fell off the side of the boat.

Treke hit the water with a violent splash, her limbs flailing about in a futile attempt to save herself. The chilling seawater slowed her cold-blooded body and compressed her chest, sapping away her energy. In a moment of disorientation, she could not discern up from down. Realizing there was no immediate way out, she stopped thrashing, her muscles aching too much to continue.

This is it, she thought as darkness closed in around her. How ironic it was that she lived on an island her whole life, yet she didn’t know how to swim. This is the price I must pay for my foolishness. I’m going to die before I even make it to my first destination. I should have never left home…

A loud splash near her jolted her back to consciousness before she felt something grab her leg. Wanting to scream and gasp for air, she dared not open her mouth to allow the sea to drown her. In a panic, she lashed out in vain with her other leg, but the assailant continued to drag her away. She feared she was going to die for certain this time when she noticed familiar green lights glowing next to her. Someone was trying to save her. Calming down, she allowed herself to be pulled along until she finally broke through the surface of the water. Lifting her head out of the water and gasping for fresh air, she realized Siku was bobbing along right next to her.

"Are you okay, Treke??" Siku cried, pulling her back onboard while the wind whipped them about.

Still unable to speak, her lungs winded, Treke responded with a reluctant nod. She was technically not okay, but at least she was alive.

"We need to get back into the boat quickly! The storm is almost right on top of us. Here, grab this!" She handed Treke the end of a rope to let her pull herself up. The other end tied to the boat, it was all that was keeping their heads above the treacherous water.

"Hold on, I'm going to try steering us out of here!"

They braced themselves against the wind as Siku took hold of the oar rudder, attempting to change direction, but the wind was too strange for her to handle on her own. "This is bad! I need to adjust the sail! Here, take the rudder for a minute and try to keep the boat going straight ahead."

"B-but I..." Treke hesitated, too afraid to move. What if something went horribly wrong and it ended them both? She was still sopping wet from falling into the sea and didn't want to think about it happening again.

"Come on, Treke, I need your help! I can't do this alone!" Siku cried.

Although she was terrified, Treke had to remind herself why she set out in the first place--she wanted to help others. Like Siku, her journey too was something she couldn't do alone. "Y-yes... I must keep going." She grabbed the rudder and held on tight, struggling against the violent sea that threatened to smash apart their vessel. Siku, free to tighten the windward spilling line, flattened the triangular crab claw sail into a curved shape, reducing its surface. The boat's rocking soon died down enough so that the fuglans were able to catch their breath for a moment.

"We did it… Good job, Treke. We should be okay now as long as we stay away from the storm," said Siku, taking back the rudder.

Treke let out a relieved sigh and sank down into the boat, enough where she could no longer see the churning waves. "Thank the ancestors. This is so nerve-wracking," she muttered, wringing out her soaked robes. It was fortunate the night air was warm enough not to give her the chills, but her robes would still need to be dried in the sun. She quickly changed into her spare hempen robe that she brought along and set the wet one aside to let it air out a little. Looking up at the sky, she noticed the clouds were clearing, which helped put her at ease. With the stars in full display, it was much easier to navigate at night.

"Look, you can see Gezuitaid!" Siku pointed to the largest moon, its pale yellow light basking everything in a comforting glow. It was only a few days from being full, which meant a new month would soon begin. "She's been protecting us this entire time."

"Thank the moons and stars," said Treke, bowing her head respectfully. She felt her mind begin to clear under the soothing starlight, when she heard a soft familiar voice alert her.

"Treke..."

"Ah!" Treke jolted upright at the voice and looked around for the source of the voice before remembering there was no one else on the boat. She was still not used to having a spirit taking residence inside her own head. "Ancestor Klaiune?"

"I apologize for my absence, child. I should have warned you that I have limited kenha during the day, and dealing with the tukra took the last bit out of me."

"Is that so? Well, I'm happy that you're back with me."

"For now, child. The light of the stars energizes my kenha like a flower in the sunlight, but frugal when there are no visible stars in the sky, or you may find yourself caught in darkness with no magic to save you."

"I understand. I don't intend to waste this gift on frivolous matters; I want to use it to help others."

"My dear Treke, you are a gift to fuglankind. I see that I did not choose poorly."

"Thank you, Ancestor Klaiune. I appreciate you." Treke looked up at the stars again, admiring their glittering brilliance that speckled the swirling pink and purple pools of the night sky. She let out a long sigh, happy that she was able to make it out this far, despite just nearly drowning in the sea. Perhaps she was still in shock from the whole ordeal, but she didn't want to think about what could have happened if Siku hadn't been there to save her.

The sea was much more gentle now, paired with a breeze that pushed the outrigger canoe with short bursts of wind. Treke rested her head on her bag, the soft blanket inside making a comforting pillow. Allowing the gentle rocking of the boat to calm her nervous energy, it was enough to help lull her off to sleep, if just for a few hours.

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