Chapter 2
Tane
“You can’t leave! What will I do without you? We have responsibilities here! Your father died in the last war when you were just a myr-babe, I can’t have you running off to do the same. I cannot stand the thought of losing you as I lost him. I cannot lose both of the men in my life. The thought of living my life without you in it…I would not be able to go on!” My mother cries as I start packing my bag.
“Mother, I know I am a lot like my father, you have told me this many times over the centuries. We have all heard about an uprising and how certain gods want to fight Poseidon for his throne. He has always been a just god and we were all created as images of him. He is one of the Original Twelve, and through his benevolence he has given us purpose and immortal life. It would be wrong of me not to go and stand by his side in times of trouble.”
I watch my mother sink to the edge of my bed, sorrow written on her face. She has aged since my father’s passing. Even though she is still beautiful, I can see her sadness written in the lines around her eyes.
I grab her hands and look into her blue eyes. “Mother, you know I will be cautious, and I will do everything in my power to come back to you. The last thing I want is to leave you alone, but you know I have to do my part and help if I can.”
She sighs deeply as her grip on my hands tightens. “I know how honorable you are, just as your father was. I will worry because I am your mother, but the world will end if you do not come back to me! Do you understand?”
I smile, because knowing my mother she would probably find a way to end the world if something were to happen to me.
“Yes, Mother, I understand.”
She nods her head. “I am glad. Now, take your father’s sword with you. I hope that it will bring you better luck than it gave him. I did ask the woodland nymphs to put a little extra magic on it to protect you. They owed me a favor for rescuing that little wood nymph from those mortals, so I asked them for a little help watching over you. They said that as long as you carry this sword it will protect you and bring you good luck, though I’m not sure how. I suppose you will find out when the time arrives.”
“Thank you, Mother. I’d best be on my way now, it is a long journey to Poseidon’s kingdom, and I am uncertain of what I will encounter along the route.”
“I know, just be cautious of everyone along the way until you know who to trust. I love you. Please, be careful and remember that you must come back to me or the mortals will see the apocalypse that they have been shouting about for the last century.”
I laughed, reached down, swung her up in my arms, and hugged her tight. “I love you, Mother. Remember that I am no longer a myr-babe, and have not been for two hundred years.”
“Tane, you will always be my myr-babe no matter your age. Now go before I lock you away and keep you there for a century.”
I grab the bag that will carry my weapons from the bedside and head to the water’s edge. One of the best things about being a water god is not worrying about packing clothes. Most of us have enough power to conjure up what we need from thin air. Mortals that travel all over the world must tote around large bags to carry their earthly possessions. It must be tiring, and also quite a nuisance. I am not sure how they do that, and it is something I would not want to experience. One perk of being a god is not having to deal with half of the problems that mortals do. I look back one last time and smile to my mother before I walk out the door, hoping I can keep the promise to return and not fall to the same fate as my father.
Being a Taniwha, I have never ventured far from my home before. We were born to protect the waterways. Some of the rivers and waterways are dangerous and it seems as time goes by that mortals become more and more fearless. They take small crafts that fit one person down them with a single paddle for fun. Some of the breakaways have dangerous currents that will sweep you under. Mortals like to push the boundaries of their mortality and see if they can survive. I haven’t ever understood why they do such crazy and unsafe things when their lives are so short and fragile. Some of them even act as if they are invisible, as if they are immortal. Even immortals can die, only by other immortal weapons, but we can still die and don’t take the risks that mortals do.
I venture through different canals and head south through the southern ocean’s main stream heading toward the depths of the South Atlantic sea. It is the deepest and darkest part of the ocean, and at the bottom of it is Poseidon’s kingdom, where mortals cannot go. I transform into a sea dragon, allowing myself to swim faster than I could in my myr-form. Over the centuries some mortals have seen us in our forms. That is where the myths of seeing a dragon or monster in the water come from, which could really be a Taniwha or a Selkie. The old sailors even saw myr-people from time to time when the myr folk weren’t being cautious.
In my dragon form, I am about seven and half feet long and look like a small dragon. My scales are red and black, with hints of blue to help me blend in with the depths of the ocean and its water creatures. Throughout the centuries we didn’t have to be so cautious, but now mortals have all types of machines that can be in the depths of the water, and they swim with machines on their backs to see the ocean life. We must be more careful to not be caught or seen than ever before. Mortals amaze us with the creations they can come up with, yet it also makes our lives harder to live without being seen.
As I am drawing closer to Poseidon’s realm, I see another god fast approaching from the north. I can tell he is a god, all immortals can tell, because gods have a glow about them that only other immortals can see. A strong enough god also projects a sense of power that you can pick up before you even see them. If mortals saw this one though, even without the glow, they would think that the movie they created called Jaws was real. He is a massive shark body swimming at a fast clip straight toward me. As he gets closer he shifts to a massive seal. I change into my myr-form and unsheathe my father’s sword, just in case he is one of the gods planning a battle against Poseidon, and make my stance ready for anything. As the god approaches me, he slows and transforms into his myr-form. He stops only a couple feet in front of me. He looks the part of an old sea god, long graying hair with a long beard. Another benefit of being a god is that we can speak to each other telepathically if we are close enough to each other under water, and I realize now this is why he came to me.
Are you here to start a war, son? the old sea god asked me. I’m over three hundred years old, but next to him I am sure I’m young.
I am here to protect the rightful ruler of these seas, Poseidon. If you are here to challenge who rules, you will have to go through me first, I tell him as I raise my sword.
He laughs, Relax, young one, I am headed to Poseidon’s kingdom to help fight with him against those who want to take his throne. The name is Proteus. What is yours?
I drop my sword to my side, still being cautious just in case this is a trap. My name is Tane. I am a Taniwha and have come from the Islands Southeast to help in the war against Poseidon.
I’m afraid Poseidon will need all the help he can get. He reaches out a hand for me to shake. I slowly raise my free hand and shake his. I feel a jolt at the touch and hurry to remove my hand just in case he is not who he says he is.
He tilts his head at me and smiles. Well, this will be a twist once we get to Poseidon’s kingdom. I can’t wait to see what happens.
I am sure the confusion on my face at his statement is easy to read. He laughs, Young one, I am an old Prophetic Sea God, with just a touch of hands I can see a glimpse of your future. It will be an interesting one, that’s for sure. Now
