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Lords of Being

Chapter 40: Namaka Must Find Her Sister

by Barry Tannenbaum


New Blood Logs:


Tom Noon's Tale


NewEuropa

In Chaos

Voyages of the Nones

Meanwhile...

Destine

Mother Goose Chase

Ancient Oz

Varkard

Adventures of the Munch

Lanthil & Beyond

Jennifer, a kahuna of Namaka that Simon and Rosamund found at the luau at the Royal Hawaiian Hotel, has agreed to scry for Namaka. She needs a heiao, or temple to do her work. After parking in the lot of a YMCA in a residential neighborhood, Catalyst strides off into the undergrowth. We follow.

Behind the YMCA is a public garden in a valley in the middle of the suburb. The garden is closed, and there are no lights. Most of us stumble into the water. Catalyst announces (after the fact) that there are pools here. Jennifer is very amused, though she does get her feet wet too. We follow Catalyst and Sylvia to a section with lava rock arranged in knee high walls. This is the heiao. Or at least it is the remains of one; there were probably once woven walls. There are offerings still here, doubtless left by locals.

Jennifer finds the place she’s looking for, faces towards the nearest bit of ocean, crouches and starts dowsing with her I Ching coins. Neville watches avidly. Rosamund can feel Namaka’s “scent” intensifying.

Jennifer points and says, “I believe she’s right…” then stumbles to a halt with a gasp. There’s a luminous blue-green glow all around us, with brightly colored reef fish swimming through the air. Namaka’s “scent” is now overwhelming.

Rosamund calmly says, “You are here.”

Jennifer has gone completely ridged. “Yes, she is.”

“Namaka?”

Jennifer answers, “Yes.” Apparently she has been possessed by the Goddess.

“We’ve come to find you.”

“You have found Namaka.”

“We have come to tell you that your lands in the other realm are in danger.”

“Namaka knows all this.”

“We have come to help you return and bring them out of danger.”

“Namaka will not return now.”

“Why?”

“Namaka must find her sister.”

“Where is her sister?”

“Namaka must find her sister.”

Neville interjects, “Why must Namaka find her sister?”

“Namaka...” Jennifer looks very troubled. “Namaka must ask her sister for aid.”

Mabel asks, “What aid must your sister provide you?”

“Namaka must find out how her sister’s realm fares.”

“How will this aid you?”

“The realms must balance. Must be in tension.”

“You cannot tell how your sister’s realm is?”

“It is her realm.”

Rosamund states, “We are here to find you to help the land. So we must help you find her. How can we help?”

Jennifer looks at us doubtfully. “Namaka is unsure that you can help. This is matter for gods.”

Simon asks, “Lords and Ladies of the Courts of Chaos and Order, and Elemental Knights cannot help?” (They are how much older than Namaka?)

Jennifer looks again at him sharply. “This is your doing?”

Rosamund asks, “The imbalance that ripped your lands?”

“Yes.”

“We need to keep the world in balance. It is our job.”

Jennifer frowns and says, “Yes.” Petulantly.

Rosamund calmly replies, “When the land gets out of balance, we must find why and restore them.”

The fish, which were calmly swimming before have started circling Jennifer. “That is why Namaka must find Pele. If you would aid, seek Pele. I go to seek for Pele now.” The fish are circling Jennifer faster and faster.

Mabel requests, “Please remain in contact with your worshiper here.” Jennifer is now surrounded by a spiraling tornado of green.

Neville reaches for Jennifer. Before the blue-green glow just appeared to be an optical effect in the air of the heiao. As he reaches forward, Neville’s hand is soaked and shoved aside by the water spout tightening around Jennifer. Neville backs off. The spout ascends into the sky, taking Jennifer with it. After the spout’s departure, the sky is quite clear.

There’s a wet spot where Jennifer was. Hellgrammite can see a dim fading background glow. Mabel takes a bit of the rock which had gotten wet.

Rosamund picks up Jennifer’s purse. “We can at least scry for her using this.”

Hellgrammite asks, “Does anyone see anything imbued with Namaka’s energy?” Both Rosamund and Neville are sure that the coins are imbued with Her. Hellgrammite gathers the I Ching coins.

Captain Barron asks, “How do we get her back?”

Rosamund answers, “Find Pele.”

Almost simultaneously, Mabel says, “We must find Pele.”

Captain Barron states, “That’s the sister, I take it.”

Hellgrammite nods, though it’s hard to see in the darkness. “I assume she took Jennifer to have a physical manifestation.”

Rosamund agrees. “She is Her priestess. That’s her job.”

Captain Barron asks incredulously, “Is it?”

Rosamund shrugs. “She gets power, she owes something for it. When there was trouble, she ran away. That’s not a good way to keep your bargain with a Goddess.”

Captain Barron clearly is not happy abandoning Jennifer, but there doesn’t seem to be much he can do. “Back to the van?”

As we pick out way out of the heiao, Rosamund asks, “We need to find Pele. Anyone have any ideas?”

Hellgrammite notes, “Pele is going to be the energy opposite of Namaka, to keep things in balance.”

Simon says, “I was thinking we need to consult some lava.”

Neville offers, “There’s lots of lava rock here.”

DeVerre replies, “I think live lava would work better.”

Mabel says, “Pele is associated with the Big Island. I guess we go there. What’s the fastest way there?”

Captain Barron replies, “Hop over in the plane.”

Simon turns to deVerre. “You go with them. I’ll go check out Diamond Head.”

Neville asks, “And do what there?”

“Contact the ghostly folks. They might be able to help.”

Rosamund muses, “We never found out whose priests they were. I had the impression they were Pele’s.”

Simon replies “Could be.” He clicks the watch, and he’s gone.

We make it back to the van without falling in the water, again.

*

Over at Diamond Head, Simon has returned to where we left the Nightwalkers on the crater rim. He sees a shape striding towards him. It looks familiar. It’s the single minded ghost, or ka, homing in on him. Simon waits for it. When it arrives, it intones, “You must find her.”

Simon asks, “Pele or Namaka?”

“Namaka.”

“I have found Namaka. She says I must find Pele.”

The ka seems startled. “You have found Namaka?”

“Yes. She had lots of water and fish.”

The ka freezes. Simon hears the sound of a conch shell being blown in the distance. Striding towards him is the group of Nightwalkers we encountered earlier in the evening. The one in the lead appears to be identical to the ka that was dogging us. The ka is suddenly pulled back into the lead Nightwalker and disappears. The Nightwalker in the lead asks, “You have found Namaka and must find Pele?” Simon nods. “Then go to Kilauea.”

“My friends are in the process of doing just that.”

“What is your difficulty? You know where she is. She is in Kilauea.”

“Are you sure of that?”

“That is her home.”

“Namaka would have already tried that.”

“Namaka would be… cautious… in approaching Kilauea.”

“She looked most concerned.”

Once more the lead Nightwalker asks, “Namaka seeks Pele?” Simon nods again. There is much buzzing among the Nightwalkers. They look concerned.

Simon says, “There are… things… that need fixing.” The Nightwalkers look at him as if he’s explaining that the sky is “up”. One in the back rolls its eyes.

Simon continues, “Large things that need powerful fixing.” There’s more mumbling in Hawaiian.

One of the other Nightwalkers asks, “What do you know of Pele?”

“Mostly what is written in the tourist books. Not very much. I’ve been more concerned with sand and glass and tech than Goddesses.”

The second Nightwalker says, “These are things from after our time. You must be very polite to Pele. You must be generous to Pele.”

“I gave her lava.”

More muttered conversation in old Hawaiian. Probably that giving lava to Pele would be like bringing coal to Newcastle. Finally the lead Nightwalker says, “That would suit. However, we were thinking of strong drink. She is fond of that, from humans. Go to Kilauea. Be generous and polite. You seem to know what gifts would be likely to please Her. You have your… book to tell you.”

“Will you remain hereabouts?”

“We can be met hereabouts.”

“Is there any better place than right here to contact you?”

“This will be fine.”

“Can you move things that are physical?” In response, one of the Nightwalkers picks up a rock and throws it over Simon’s shoulder. Simon picks up a rock and entangles one of its atoms, and hands it the ghost. “Please carry this if you go away.”

“I’m not sure this stone can follow us where we must go.”

“Then put it at the nearest place where I can contact you.”

Simon pulls out his phone and calls Neville. “Hello. Simon. Hold out the hand holding the phone.” After a moment to allow Neville to react, pop. Simon’s in the van.

Settling into an empty space, Simon mutters, “I need a glass conch shell.”

Rosamund asks reasonably, “Why don’t you shape one?”

DeVerre pulls out the lump of sandstone she made from the sand of Namaka’s island and starts kneading it.

Simon adds, “The Nightwalkers say that we should give Pele strong drink.”

Rosamund snorts. “Runs in the family, doesn’t it? Do we have some on the plane?”

“We haven’t been encouraging the captain to drink.”

“We can stop at one of these stores.” Catalyst parks the van at the next liquor store we pass.

As we exit the vehicle, Simon notes, “When I take prospects out, they often like exotic drinks. And sometimes they like ones that flame.”

Rosamund suggests, “Perhaps pepper vodka. We can get a case of assorted types of liquor and find something she likes.”

While we wander through the store, Simon asks the proprietor if he carries the appropriate vessel for making flaming drinks.

“You’d want a brandy snifter, sir. We don’t carry them here.”

Rosamund asks, “Do you have one of those scorpion bowl things?”

“No. They’d have them down near the airport.” He gives us a couple of names.

Rosamund gets a box and puts in pepper vodka, tequila, 151 rum, Hawaiian rums, 2 bottles of Pele Rum. When we explain that we want to make an offering to Pele, the proprietor recommends a cocktail named a “Flaming Volcano”. We buy the ingredients and a cocktail recipe book. We’ll need a blender. Hellgrammite is in charge of that.

We stop at one of the souvenir stores that was recommended and buy a volcano bowl. Rosamund also picks out an oriental table to place the bowl on, along with a box of extra-long straws (recommended as a safety measure in the recipe). Simon asks for hollow drink stirrers. Glass, of course. The shopkeeper finds some. Rosamund then distracts Simon with the display of Swarovski Crystal figurines. He picks out about a dozen to add to the Glass Menagerie.

We return to the plane, for the trip to the island of Hawaii. After filing a flight plan, we take off, climbing into the air right over Diamond Head. Half an hour later we land at Hilo. It’s now late at night.


Last Updated: Feb 21, 2010
©2009 Barry Tannenbaum, All Rights Reserved

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