The Next Day

  Year 602 of the Divine Empire

  It felt wrong that crabs were edible. Kālai were descended from crustaceans, after all. Eating their less developed kin felt sort of like a human eating a monkey. That said, Nohea hadn’t eaten anything since the Lua’i and they weren’t about to risk going into the jungle after that run-in with the pilikua nui. Leaving Kanoa alone on the shore probably wasn’t a good idea, so hunting for fish in the ocean wasn’t going to happen. And so they were left without choice, and were forced to eat a large crab they had found scuttling on the ground. The muscles they pulled out of the creature’s legs looked too much like their own, felt too familiar. It felt uncomfortable to swallow them, but Nohea was so hungry at this point that it didn’t matter. At least they could eat it, they noted. They had heard that humans would die if they ate raw meat, unlike kālai who merely preferred it cooked. It was possible this was a myth, it’s not like they had ever met a human before. There were a lot of other “facts” about them that Nohea doubted were true, like how they traveled on floating wood or grew thin cords all across their bodies and would even cut them short. They seemed like unusual creatures, they wondered if they’d ever get a chance to meet one.

  Putting that aside, they really needed to figure out how to get Kanoa to eat this thing. The child seemed unwilling to interact with anything resembling an insect, no matter how much they explained that crustaceans were entirely different creatures. It took nearly a half hour of convincing until she finally ate a few legs worth of meat, though she did make the claim that she would never eat them again. Not that Nohea was going to argue, it really did feel too much like they were eating one of their own. Regardless, it seemed like she was at least comfortable enough that she was willing to speak with them, even if her questions and responses were made as short as possible.

  “Where?”

  “Excuse me?”

  “Where are we going?”

  “. . . oh. I never explained that, did I? We’re going to another village, hopefully one that’ll be nice to live in. Or better at the very least.”

  “How long?”

  “Until we get there? A few days, I think? I don’t know how big the island is, so I’m not sure. There’s a pāpaka village that’s a lot closer, though. I’m hoping we can get there by the end of the day.”

  “Papaka?”

  “Heh. It’s pāpaka, dear. You need a bit more emphasis on the ā. They’ll make more sense when we see them so be patient, alright?”

  Kanoa didn’t speak any more. When Nohea looked down to the child walking next to them, they saw her normally flat faced appearance had morphed into a look of confusion. Chuckling, they also noticed that her strides were beginning to slow. As impressive as it was that she had managed to keep up for so long, it would probably be best for the adult to take the brunt of the work. Noticing Nohea’s gestures, Kanoa climbed up onto their back once more as the two of them continued across the island towards Kuapo’i.

  —

  By the time the pair reached the pāpaka village, the sun had already begun to touch the horizon. The orange glow over the waves certainly enhanced the surreal nature of this town, which was like nothing Nohea had ever seen before. There were no houses there, just a collection of tents and shop stands set up to create an isolated market district. Nohea knew that pāpaka were nomadic creatures by nature, and that Kuapo’i was more of a breeding ground than an actual village, but it still felt strange to see what seemed to be a single district built into the beach. The area surrounding it was an odd place to build a village as well, it was a jagged shore made of stone with water that immediately dropped off to being too deep to see the bottom. No kālai would choose to raise their children here, as it was far too dangerous to teach them to swim. Nohea had heard plenty of the “barbaric” practices of the pāpaka, and though they disliked the disdainful term they could not help but feel as if there were far kinder places to raise your young. Nervously, they continued towards the village, an action that was stopped when what they thought was a large boulder in their path began to shake and uncurl. Kanoa let out a sound that was halfway between a yelp and a sharp inhale, while Nohea was merely frozen in place as they stood face to face with a pāpaka for the first time.

  While kālai and pāpaka were said to have developed from similar types of crustacean, it was clear that they evolved in very different directions. Where kālai were generally shaped like humans, though much larger and more angular, their distant cousins were entirely alien. The man (they assumed it was a man, the rumors they’d heard said the women were far larger) more or less matched Nohea’s eye level, though he was likely multiple times heavier than them. He looked as if a massive crustacean had stood upright, with the barest evolutions to resemble a humanoid. His head was boxy and insectoid, with a mouth that was just a pair of twitching mandibles and bulbous, black orbs for eyes that made it hard to see what he was looking at. The head rested upon a hulking body that resembled that of a lobster, but curved so that he stood upright with a fanned tail trailing behind. He stood upon six chitinous legs, with arms ending in large crustacean claws mounted on what could perhaps be described as shoulders. Nohea had always disdained their neighbors for treating people they had never met like barbaric monsters, and yet could not help but feel nervous around the creature that now stood before them. It didn’t help that he was just standing there, making this odd chittering sound. It took a few moments before they realized that without tongues, this must be the only way pāpaka could speak.

  “Oh, um. . . Hello there . . . sir? I’m sorry, but I don’t understand you. Do you speak kino by any chance?”

  The pāpaka paused his chittering, then slowly bobbed its form up and down. Nohea assumed that this was a stand-in for a head nod, as it didn’t seem like his head had the articulation needed to do so normally.

  “Oh, good. Sorry friend, I’ll have to learn a few phrases later. Could you point us towards someone who we can talk to easily?”

  Bobbing his body again, the pāpaka turned and scuttled off towards the market. As the two of them began to follow, Nohea let Kanoa back onto the ground so she could explore independently. She was a bit nervous, as their guide’s appearance was a bit too similar to the bugs she feared. Still, Nohea didn’t seem all too afraid, and his legs weren’t very spindly. Besides, it seemed like he could understand them. It felt weird to be afraid of someone who was trying to help the two of them, so she would try to be brave. She liked the sounds he made as well. They sounded pleasantly rhythmic, like the beating of drums.

  The pāpaka scanned the various stalls as he scuttled about. It didn’t seem like any of his kin worked here, with this area seeming focused on offering crafted goods to the less innovative people. The kālai merchants were busy cleaning up after a long day of trading, with some pausing to greet the three of them as they passed by. It seemed that a few of them knew the pair’s guide, so Nohea was able to learn his name: Ikaika. They did wonder why he had a kālai name, as it seemed unlikely that he would even be able to pronounce it without a tongue. It was probably a matter of convenience, and was really fueling Nohea’s curiosity about the culture that had developed there. Fortunately, their intrigue was soon to be satisfied as they arrived as Ikaika called out to a specific kālai, who seemed to be packing away a cooking set.

  This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.

  “..-. .-. .. . -. -.. .-.. -.-- / --. .-. . . - .. -. --.”

  The man turned, smiling kindly as if recognizing an old friend. “Hmm? Oh, hello there, Ikaika. Is there something you need?”

  Ikaika pointed to Nohea and Kanoa. “-.. . ... .. .-. . / ..-. --- .-. / .... . .-.. .--. .-.-.- / ..- -. -.. . .-. ... - .- -. -.. .. -. --.”

  The merchant turned to them. “I’m guessing you two don’t speak pāpaka?”

  “Afraid not, friend. My. . . companion and I come from Ho’okahi. As you probably know, the elders there have outlawed interacting with outsiders.”

  “Ho’okahi, eh? Can’t say I’ve met anyone from there before. Didn’t think they just let people leave like that.”

  Nohea shifted uncomfortably. The restrictions on leaving the village had started a few years before they were born, so they weren’t sure how others would naturally perceive them. Telling the truth was probably the best bet, even if they couldn’t reveal everything.

  “. . . They don’t, though we didn’t exactly ask to leave. Oh, yeah, my name’s Nohea by the way. This little one here is Kanoa.”

  “A pleasure. People call me Pika, and I work as a cook here.”

  “A cook? So you make food for others? I wasn’t aware that was a profession.”

  “It isn’t, normally, but the pāpaka don’t really know how to cook. They spend most of their lives underwater, you see. They still like cooked fish, though, so they provide me with deep sea fish in exchange for me smoking a portion of the haul. You’d be amazed at the stuff they can pull in.” He pointed behind himself to a twelve foot long oarfish hanging on a set of hooks.

  “Weird. . . do they taste good?”

  “Not usually, but people still enjoy the novelty of them.”

  “Fair enough. . . Well, anyways, I was hoping you could give us some directions to Kālepa? I assume we can just keep following the coast, but we’ve already almost been killed on the way here.”

  “You know, you two might be in luck. Us merchants here travel back and forth every five days, and the trip back home is tomorrow. I’m sure you could find someone with space on their luhi.” He gestured to the large pack animal sleeping next to his stand. The luhi could best be described as clawless hermit crabs large enough to carry around three kālai on their backs.

  “Well that’s certainly convenient. Thank you for your time, friend, but we’re going to have to leave now. I should probably find somewhere to sleep for the two of us.”

  “Heh. I think your companion is ahead of you there.”

  Nohea turned back to Kanoa, seeing her cross legged down on the ground. Despite her obvious nervousness, she was still a six-year-old child who had been traveling all day. It helped that Ikaika stood over her protectively, almost making a shield out of his body and claws.

  “.--. .-. --- - . -.-. - .. ...- . -. . ... ... / -.-. --- -- ..-. --- .-. -”

  “Don’t worry, he’s not going to hurt her. Ikaika’s always been fond of children. The man’s already sired around a dozen broods at this point.”

  “A dozen. . . How old even is he? How long do pāpaka usually live?”

  “No one knows. People say Ikaika’s somewhere close to a hundred years old, or at least that he’s one of the older ones here. It’s not like we can ask them for the specifics, so it’s kind of hard to tell.”

  “What do you mean? Can’t you just talk to them?”

  “Sort of? Pāpaka don’t speak using words. Those noises they make are just describing their emotions and states of being. Their society seems pretty comfortable overall, but they can’t really spread information between each other. Even if you found a way to get Ikaika to tell you how old his kind can become, he probably wouldn’t even know.”

  “How odd. . . But I guess if it works for them it doesn’t really matter? Either way, thanks for looking out for her, Ikaika.”

  “-... .-.. . ... ... . -.. / .-- .- .-. –”

  Pika takes on a confused expression upon hearing a shift in Ikaika’s rhythm. “Blessed? I’ve never heard that word used outside of my lessons. . . Nohea, do you know what he could mean?”

  “Well, she is a Pōmaika. It’s not hard to notice, especially when you’re as close as he is.”

  “. . .I’m sorry?”

  “Oh, yeah, she got blessed when she was born six years ago. She even channeled Kinohi’s power directly a couple days ago.”

  Pika’s face switched between a myriad of emotions as he muttered to himself. “Not even Kehlani has gone that far. . .”

  “Did you say something?”

  “What? Oh, no, nothing important. Say, since those two seem pretty comfortable where they are, why don’t you all sleep by my stand? Most people just sleep where they work here anyways, and I think I have some extra blankets somewhere. . .”

  “Oh, really? Thank you, that would be greatly appreciated.”

  Shaking his head, Pika searched his supplies for some sleeping arrangements. Looking back at this strange pair, he couldn’t help but be exuberant at his good fortune. As hard as it was to imagine a child being blessed in such a backwards village, he wasn’t about to doubt the oldest inhabitant of Kuapo’i. It wouldn’t pay directly to bring such a valuable child back to Kālepa, but the favor of the village’s alaka’i was notoriously difficult to earn and he would likely benefit from her appreciation. The only thing he wasn’t certain of was what to think of the Pōmaika’s guardian, who seemed to be a strange person overall. As progressive as Kālepa was, the artist’s complete rejection of gender norms was definitely enough to raise some eyebrows. Even more unusual was their complete disregard of the goddess’ magic. Did people in Ho’okahi just not think much of Kinohi? Or was the person before him some strange outlier who simply wasn’t concerned that the child under their care was walking proof of the god that created their entire species? With an attitude like that, Pika could only imagine how dangerous of a person Nohea could be to be associated with. Regardless, he wasn’t about to miss out on a chance to gain the favor of multiple blessed ones, so he hurriedly gathered up some grass blankets and brought them to the pair.

  As Nohea finished tucking a blanket under the sleeping Kanoa, they propped their own on the side of Ikaika and began resting against him. The hulking pāpaka didn’t seem to mind this, even shifting his rhythm to what they could swear sounded cheerful. As the odd trio settled down to rest for the night, Nohea couldn’t help but be amused by how disturbing this would seem to anyone from their homeland. A pāpaka, a person without a gender, and a Pōmaika who chose to be around both of them. They didn’t know what fate awaited them at their new home, but they had a feeling it would be unlike anything they’d ever known before.

  —

  Elsewhere

  “There you are.”

  Ailu observed the three of them from far out into the water. Her serpentine form twisted and shook with excitement as she had finally found her future friend. She had never seen anything like Kanoa before, a hominid who was born with magic woven into her body. Even other serpents weren’t like that, except for her parents, of course. They were going to be great friends, she just knew it. Ailu had no idea if she’d ever find another child who could understand her, and wasn’t about to spend the rest of her own childhood with only her family as company. Still, she would have to wait. Based on that hunter’s reaction when she tried to ask him for directions, hominids seemed to be frightened by her natural form. Her mother and father knew how to take on hominid forms, so maybe she could ask them? They didn’t look like any creature she had ever seen before, but they had legs and thumbs so it was probably close enough. “Just you wait.” she thought. She swam out into the open sea, back to her home where her parents undoubtedly worried at where their hatchling daughter had disappeared to. They would meet again, Ailu would make sure of it.