Dolphin Way: Rise of the Guardians (21 page)

‘
Well, I don’t think anyone would blame us. Everyone knows that most of the prey stocks are at record low levels. That’s what they were talking about at the Grand Council meeting today.’

‘
Really!’ she exclaimed, ‘And what good will that do I? All this talking and nothing ever happens!’

Suddenly she shot up through the surface and flew high in the air, spinning rapidly as she flew. Sky smiled to himself and waited for her to reappear. She was prone to make these explosive leaps when she was very happy or very angry. He loved her passion but knew she was working herself up to a rant about something. She crashed back into the water with a blizzard of bubbles and swam back to him.

‘
Ooh, I needed that! So tell me, now that you’re suddenly a Grand Council member; what’s going on? Those elders talk and talk and nothing changes. I heard that you even had a Xenthos at the meeting. I hope you all gave him a hard time! Those Xenthos are taking food that is rightfully ours.’

‘
Dusk, you can’t believe that stuff. There is no proof that they’re taking more than their share of the quotas. The Xenthos zeta seemed genuine enough to me, I think they’ve got the same problems as us — he said that some of the Xenthos are thinking the same things about the Ka-Tse.’

‘
You can’t believe what he says — they’re trying to trick us. They must be eating more than their share — look at them swimming around in those huge clans; sometimes a thousand at a time; when they go through an area they strip it bare of all living things. And I’ve heard that they are breeding out of control, they are just increasing in numbers so that they can dominate the other zetii — we’ll be unable to compete with them.’

‘
That’s nonsense. Who told you all this stuff?’

‘
I don’t remember! A friend! Someone who knows we need to actually do something instead of just talking about it!’

‘
Dusk, you need to change your friends then, they are filling your head with poison. Think about what you’re saying for a moment — think about the Way.’

‘
Sky, you idiot, you sound like these old fools who can’t see that everything is different now. Ocean has changed, the Way was written for some lost romantic age. The Ka-Tse must
act
to survive! How can you be so weak!’

She stared at him for a moment, her expression pleading. He was nonplussed at her anger and did not know what to say. With a hard shake of her head, she was gone, swimming back in the direction of the clan. Sky was shocked and confused. Meeting her again he had been filled with happiness, he had dared to think to himself for a moment, that maybe it was true, maybe he was in love with this crazy, passionate creature. But then she had crushed him again — seemed to despise him even, and the things she believed now! Something or someone was changing her. He resolved to find out exactly what or who it was. He would start by going along to the Starwriters’ song. Maybe he would see something there, or perhaps find out where Dusk went when she vanished late in the evenings. Then he remembered that Venus In Mist should be at the song too. He shook his head. Perhaps he might even find out what he had done to offend her too! He was about to go when he noticed a movement. On the edge of visibility he faintly saw the shape of something big moving. He sent a stream of sonar in that direction. There were four large dolphins out there. They were spreading apart to either side of him, but not using their own echolocation.

‘
It is I, Touches The Sky, of the Dune Coast Clan!’

No reply. Now the two outer ones started to move towards the shore, still staying at the edge of visibility, still not using their sonar.

Sky started to feel a coldness inside him, and remembered Cloud Passing’s warning that he should not leave the clan alone.

‘
It is I, Touches The Sky, of the Dune Coast Clan! Are you our guests?’

This time there was a short, harsh laugh in reply.

Sky turned and started to swim back towards the clan. At once the four dolphins started to move in towards him rapidly, so he swam at full speed. The four matched his pace, two behind him, one each side and closing. His tail pumped furiously up and down, his heartbeat hammered in his head, but still his pursuers kept pace. Now they were using their echolocation freely, and he could tell by the sound that the two flanking dolphins were closing in on him, narrowing the gap between them. He knew it was still a long swim to the clan, and he did not see how he could make it. Now the two dolphins were each only a body length away from him, and he heard a grunted command from behind him.

‘
Get ready…’

Suddenly, appearing from the blue ahead of him there was a group of ten or more dolphins coming towards him! At first he thought it was more of the Guardians, but then he realised it must be a hunting party from one of the visiting clans. Without a word his pursuers turned and sped off back the way they had come, vanishing in a moment.

The leading dolphins from the hunting party shouted cheerful greetings to Sky and asked if he had seen any prey. Clearly they had not realised anything strange had been happening. Probably just thought the other four dolphins were hunters too. And they were right, he reflected grimly.

Chapter 26

“
Keep this flicker of light in your heart for me.
I cannot keep it longer in mine.”

- Ankaa Ascendant (11,688 – 11,731 post Great Alluvium)

Sky was threading his way through the bustle of visiting dolphins towards the west end of the bay when he saw ahead of him a group of the visiting elders from the other clans gathered together. As he was about to swim past them, a dolphin excused himself from the group. Sky recognised his old teacher, Passing Cloud.

He moved alongside him, saying, ‘It is I, Touches The Sky.’

The old dolphin looked pleased. ‘Ah, Sky. How is everything?’

Sky explained what had just happened; his mentor listened quietly, a concerned look in his misty eyes.

‘
Jeii, you told me not to leave the clan alone. I am sorry.’

‘
Well, never mind, you are safe, and I have some news — I have made arrangements that a senior Aligner will come here to our clan to take over your training in a few days. That was the last thing I needed to organise, so I can relax now. I am very glad you are here, I was hoping to have a few words with you before I go. Swim with me for a while.’

Sky fell alongside him. Although he knew what tomorrow would bring, hearing the old one say “before I go” in such a matter-of-fact way suddenly brought home that this was the last time he would speak to him alone. Of all his teachers, Passing Cloud had impressed him the most. Every word he said was carefully considered, every thought in tune with the spirit of the Way, but not with the oppressive, axiomatic style of Green Wave Falling. Instead he would explain the whys of each question, or, more commonly, he allowed his students to discover them for themselves. For a long time Sky had not even realised that he was doing it, and then one day he had made the passing comment, “a lesson learned may be lost, a lesson discovered lasts forever.” Sky realised then this was part of his art. He did not drag his students wearily behind him to new knowledge; he set them in a good direction and let them discover it for themselves; providing guidance and interpretation where they needed it.

Sky summoned up the courage to ask what had been on his mind in the last days: ‘Jeii, tomorrow you’ll make your Darkening Dive. Why are you leaving us? You’re so loved here.’

The old dolphin looked touched but pretended to speak in a scolding way. Still, his smiling eyes showed he was not serious. ‘Now, now; we have discussed this before Sky. You know that every zeta has the right to choose the manner of their own passing. It is an elemental part of the Way: Right to Life, Right to Death. I hope you are not trying to change my mind.’

‘
No, Jeii, of course not, but if you could tell me why this is a good thing it would help me be at peace with it. We’ll miss you so.’

‘
And I shall miss all of you. Especially you, young Sky. You were one of my finest students. You have an instinctive understanding of many refined concepts that other Novices have to learn by rote, which is why I have selected you for a special path. In a way that, in part, is an answer to your question. I am so very old now. I made plenty of foolish mistakes when I was younger, but as I aged I gradually found the inner meanings of the Way and at last learned who I was, what I might be, and how to become at one with Ocean. In the last part of my life I have enjoyed knowing at last what was important. I also learned what I might be able to change for the better and promised myself that whatever I could do, I would. I have lived by that rule for some time now and admit that I am quite proud of my success in keeping to it. But now it becomes hard. My mind knows what I should do, but my body tires of following its orders. I carry a companion with me all the time now: my pain. I control him, but it is a long struggle, and while I seem to tire more easily these days, he never does. I think I would like a rest now. I have done all I set out to do. If I stayed now, my life would become too much of a compromise.’

Sky could not think of anything to say. Cloud Passing continued on, ‘Some make the Darkening Dive as an easy way out; some because they dread the thought of a long illness; the painful struggle at the back of the clan on a migration; the shadowing Cleaner waiting patiently behind. But many reach a point in their lives when they have accomplished all that they wished; have fulfilled their responsibilities, seen their young grow up, and want to say goodbye with a clear mind. They want to be remembered as they always were in their own mind’s eye: full of life and love; not some sickly creature that burdened those it loved. I have had a good life and I now would like to have a good death. I want to meet her at a time and place of my choice. Tomorrow I shall be surrounded by friends this one last time and I shall enjoy it. Beside, I am sure they will feel obliged to say some nice things in the circumstances!’ He laughed at Sky’s discomfort at his joke.

‘
Come now, Sky, I have been lucky enough to have had a life that I can feel proud of. Help me celebrate it tomorrow.’

Sky gave a sad smile, ‘Certainly Jeii, and I’ll try to remember what you’ve taught me. I only hope to have some of your wisdom one day.’

Cloud Passing looked pleased. ‘Well, that is the finest compliment a teacher can have. Now I must go, I have promised to call on many clans tonight. Farewell, Sky.’

‘
Farewell, Jeii. You’ll live on in my heart’.

‘
Ah. And
that
is the very best that
any
of us can hope for.’

Chapter 27

“
Would that we might scratch our histories upon some rock, ever there to remain. But the zetii know that nothing in Ocean lasts forever and nothing stays the same in her waters. Therefore honour the Dreamweaver and the Starwriter. Without their art we are simple creatures living the moment. All the joy and suffering of our ancestors was for nothing. The wisdom of the millennia is nothing.”

- Denebola’s Daughter (10,006 – 10,045 post Great Alluvium)

There were twenty-four Starwriters and three Dreamweavers involved in the song; as always, all of them were females. Sky had only a rudimentary knowledge of how the process worked, but knew that this must be a complex song to involve so many of them. He knew that the timing of the Gatherings was in part dictated by the astronomical events that could only be accessed by large numbers of Starwriters at once. He also knew that the Calculators used a similar technique; they would be taking advantage of the Gathering to gather together in a form of shared consciousness to process the complex data gathered by the Seekers since the last Gathering.

The Starwriters were gathering into three groups, all facing towards the setting sun. The onshore breeze had gone now and the sea was mellowing. As the sun approached the horizon Sky watched the Tonellas change to the Shade of
Ndria
against a background Kruma of
Vraxia
. A confusing reading:
death
overtaking
youth or change?
He forgot the thought as he made out Dusk amongst the Starwriters, but she was already dropping into the lower levels of consciousness and was oblivious to him. He also saw Mist, who did seem to look back in his direction, but she had a far away look in her eyes and he could not tell if she was still aware of her surroundings or deliberately ignoring him.

‘
Don’t worry my dear, it’s not you that’s upset her.’ He turned to see an elderly female near him. He recognised her as being from Mist’s clan.

‘
I am Touches The Sky from the Dune Coast Clan,’ he said.

‘
Yes, I know. And I am Fading Current from the Western Red Mountains Clan. You do know what’s wrong with little Mist, don’t you?’

‘
Well, I know about the other day of course. But I think I’ve upset her in some way, I don’t know why exactly…’

She shook her head, ‘No, you’ve done nothing wrong. What did you see at that birth?’

‘
It was hard to watch. After so much work, when the baby came out and didn’t move, the mother was heartbroken. She just kept lifting it to the surface to breathe, calling to it, singing to it, but it never took one breath. She wouldn’t let it go. At dusk two Cleaners came and circled: waiting. Mist and I drove them off but they kept coming back. Eventually, late in the evening the mother told us to go; she wanted to be alone with her baby to say goodbye to it.’