Sonata, the one in charge of the Drywalking ceremonies, spoke in a strange tongue, coaxing Daryah from the rocks.
Defeated, Daryah moved closer to the water. Her legs dipped below the surface as Sonata curled her fingers around the pearl necklace at Daryah’s throat. The pearls were integral to the ceremony, supplying the essence to give a Drywalker legs. Sonata lifted the necklace from Daryah’s neck, but she clung on to them, sputtering in that strange human tongue. The woven seaweed pulled and snapped. The pearls plunked into the water, forever lost at sea.
Then, she grabbed Daryah’s arms and pushed her under the water. Daryah thrashed, creating sea foam over the surface. Pearlina stared for what felt like years. When Daryah resurfaced, her gills sliced across her throat. She was no longer out of breath. She flicked her fin and reached for Ambudhi as Mother plunged the dagger into his chest. Two other males grabbed his arms and dove under the surface. Instead of a human, Ambudhi would serve as the sacrifice to their troop.
Daryah’s screams echoed in Pearlina’s mind. She clasped her hands over her ears, as did others. This instance would forever serve as a reminder that the humans were still their enemies. Even though a human hadn’t held the dagger that killed Ambudhi, humans themselves were to blame for his death.
The troop turned away from Daryah, diving under the surface to complete the ceremony.
Syrene left Pearlina’s side, following them. Pearlina remained, keeping her head above water. Those who didn’t complete the ceremony were no longer welcome. As Ambudhi would reunite with the watery depths, Daryah would perish in the water, but many years later. No one would mourn her.
Their eyes met. Daryah shook her head and screamed again.
Pearlina couldn’t take the sound anymore. She took one last look at the land in the distance and dove. She couldn’t wait for the day when she could avenge Ambudhi. She would fulfill her duty to the troop and allow them to continue for generations and rule the sea, unlike Daryah who would die alone and without ceremony.
Even years later, Pearlina still experienced Daryah’s banishment during her sleep. The memories were more vivid as her own Drywalking ceremony had arrived. It was her turn, yet she wished it were any of the others. Her time had come. She was the eldest of the unbonded females and had no choice.
She woke before Syrene and swam out of their hidden cove, deep below the surface, where the humans rarely ventured. The periphery of the cove was home to plentiful sea life. A school of fish leisurely swam by. Not one part of her wanted to leave this place, but it was her duty. The survival of their kind depended on the strength of the females, and the ability to reproduce. On land, she’d prove her worth and dedication. When she returned, she’d bond to a male and never be faced with another human again.
The ceremony seemed simple enough, but the memories of Daryah clung to her mind like coral to the cove.
In the time since then, Pearlina only left her home for hunting journeys. For prolonged periods, she distanced herself from the land. The rest of the time she waded through life, wishing she could stay under the surface for good. It wasn’t the most ambitious of plans, but she didn’t want to be a burden, like Daryah. Pearlina would live a long life, serving their survival.
Above her, the sky light altered the hue of the water as it started to filter down to the depths of the cove. The ceremony neared.
The announcement of her betrothed worried her as much as going onto land. Who would she spend the rest of her life with? Those who were bonded in the troop never traveled without their partners. When one died, the other went shortly after. The only one Pearlina ever imagined by her side was Syrene. It was hard to believe any of the males could take her sister’s place. But as a member of the troop, she trusted the ceremonies in place.
Syrene’s signature vibration approached. Pearlina fisted her hands by her sides before flicking her fin in her sister’s direction. The last ceremony passed through Pearlina’s mind. The Drywalking ceremony had taken place in less than one cycle of the sky light. The female, Tamami, had brought a human corpse to the cove before any of the troop noticed her arrival. She’d bonded to her betrothed before the second day of her proposed ceremony. It was a feat to rival, but Pearlina didn’t have a competitive spirit.
Syrene’s hand touched Pearlina’s shoulder. Sister, are you ready?
Yes.
Syrene moved in front of Pearlina and took her hands. What is wrong? Today is a celebratory event.
For some. Pearlina removed her hands from Syrene’s and turned away, wanting her mind to be private for once.
With a flick of her fin, Syrene appeared in front of Pearlina again, but this time, Syrene kept her hands at her sides. Her eyes said enough.
There was nothing to say. Pearlina had no choice.
It had taken Daryah’s fateful Drywalking ceremony for Pearlina to finally understand why Syrene preferred the water to the air. Their cove was uncomplicated and straightforward – the way Pearlina now preferred.
The Drywalking ceremony was a disruption to her life, but a necessary movement forward for the future of their troop. There was no going back, and Pearlina would try to return to the water as soon as possible.
In the time before her ceremony, other betrothed females passed down information to help Pearlina to succeed on land. Strange words and customs rolled over in her mind. The most elusive information was how she would capture one of the humans for the sacrifice. All the tales from the females were different. Their choosing depended on how quickly they could gain a human’s trust.
Pearlina always thought humans were like any other food source she had hunted at sea. But the bonded had told her they were a different type of prey. They were cunning and selfish and would do anything to survive. Pearlina didn’t appreciate the challenge. Each Drywalker after Daryah had to prove themselves. Since then, all the females worked hard to show the troop that they were deserving of their roles as Daryah’s memory hovered over them. While Pearlina tried to prove herself in other ways, the Drywalking ceremony mattered most to them.
Vibrations from the members of the troop coursed through her body as she neared the location of the ceremony. It took place near a cliff face at their cove’s edge. It was where they brought the bodies of the humans for sacrifice – a place Pearlina tried to stay away from as much as possible. When she and Syrene were young, they had dared each other to swim as far down as possible. But they each only swam a few yards before gliding up to known territory. Souls of the humans haunted the depths, enough to keep the young ones away.
Pearlina feared her mission more than the souls. She scanned the troop for the unbonded males. One of them would be her other half for the rest of her long life. She couldn’t imagine who had been chosen for her.
Before Sonata became one with the sea again, she’d passed her duties to her daughter. Zimra had completed the ceremony for several cycles. Her obligation to the troop revolved around the Drywalking ceremony, though she would never take part. She held the burden of the secrets of the seas, carving the runes into the chosen pearls to be a part of the ceremony.
For a long time, Pearlina hadn’t cared to know how it all worked, as long as it was over as soon as possible. She wasn’t looking forward to the long and tiresome swim to land, or to drowning a human, though she had imagined it more recently. She tried to think of the humans as large marine creatures. It was the only way for her to think about taking one of them under. Her skills at hunting weren’t all for naught.
Syrene glided next to Pearlina, but she kept her hands to herself. It was Pearlina who reached out.