Tsaheylu

The Other Side of Depression

The next day, the 8 of us all swam out to the far end of the reefs. The newbies weren't as much newbies anymore, they had come far in the few days that they had been here, learning our ways expertly. They still had far to go, but for the fact that they had only been here for 4 days now and were able to stay under the water for 3-4 minutes instead of less than a minute said much about their devotion to becoming part of the Metkayina. Even little Tuk was coming far, she couldn't hold her breath quite like her siblings yet but had grown used to the Ilu and the water around her. She was special, I could feel it.

The area of the reef that we were taking the Omatikaya people to was a beautiful one; it was a perfect place to show them what some of the ecosystems around here were like. It had many different species of aquatic animals, and had many more plants to see.

'Come guys, we are close.' Tsireya signs to the others, seeing that they had fallen behind a little in taking in the world around them. Aonung and Rotxo had swam ahead, and Tsireya and I weren't far behind them, watching the other's closely in case something happened. We were close to the dangerous waters, and though nothing had ever swam this close to the village there was always going to be a first. We just hoped today was not that day.

Neteyam had hold of Tuk's hand, gently pulling her through the water as she was a bit slower than her siblings, and Kiri was off in her own direction following a fish. She kept turning her head to make sure she hadn't lost us, and soon swam back in our direction to keep up. Lo'ak was firmly behind Tsireya, not letting her out of his sight.

We swam round a corner, the sight of different schools of fish and neon lights catching everyone's attention. I giggle as I see Tuk's eyes go wide, fascinated with what she was seeing, and Lo'ak smile at Tsireya. Neteyam had his eyes trained on me, a soft, loving look on his face as he watched me swim around in circles, happy to be at one with the world around me.

Aonung and Rotxo seemed to be playing a game of tag inbetween the roots of a tree, chasing eachother happily, and Kiri seemed more than enamoured by this new part of the ocean she had not yet seen.

'This way.' I call to the others, waving them to follow me as I swam down to the sea bed. Tsireya and I gently tap a tall, concealed plant beside us, and smile as dozens of golden, glowing stingray emerge from it, fanning out into the water around us. We lift our hands into the air, feeling their underbellies as they swim around us peacefully.

Tuk swims over to my side and gawks at the rays, coughing a little as the air started to run thin in her body. I gently take one of the rays and place it over her back, letting the two fuse together and make their Tsaheylu. The small girl smiles, feeling the oxygen fill her body once more, though I could tell she was a little confused. Neteyam and Lo'ak watch us carefully, equally as confused about what was going on.

'The rays will help you breathe.' I sign, letting Tuk go. She swims off after Kiri, leaving the four of us with the stingrays. Tsireya and I gently take two more of them and place them on our respective boy's back, watching amused as they freaked out at the sensation. They look around, trying to figure how the rays were helping them breathe, but eventually accepted the unknown and followed us deeper into the reef.

Rotxo taps Neteyam on the back, indicating he was it before swimming away as quickly as he could. It takes a second for Neteyam to understand what was happening, but when he does he darts off after the Metkaynia as quickly as he could, but soon realises he had far to go until he could swim as fast as we could. He grins at me, swimming back to my side before making a point of tapping my shoulder, pulling me into the game. I shake my head and smile, pushing myself off of the seabed to chase after the other boys, Tsireya and Lo'ak swimming away from me too.