Takeh

I breathed slowly, weaving my wings through the ocean. The water seemed to thicken with cluttered objects that the two-legged animals threw at me. It almost seemed as if they were driving us away, infecting our homes in hope of suffocating us. Just like my father.

I pushed through the objects, holding my breath upon encountering large clusters, just like what mother told me to do. My wings grew tired with each struggle to push through.

Just as my wings weakened my mother, Loretta, would take me under her large wing, giving me a little boost. "Takeh?" my mother called beside me. Her eyes clouded over as she struggled to find the natural ocean flow while unsuccessfully avoiding collisions with the two-legged's suspended poison.

I glanced at her pained smile. I ran my eyes along her back, watching her weak spin jerk whenever she crashed into an object. Although she was stronger then me, I could tell she was brittle. As if another impact would break her.

"Takeh..." she whispered, a sorrowful anger seeped through her gentile composure. "I remember a time when you were really little..." she trailed off in thought she focused on avoiding a transparent box of some kind. "a time when the water was as clear as crystal... a time when we swam with the flow of the ocean. When I could feel the waves push me forward, almost playfully..." Her whisper got softer as she thought.

"what's wrong mother?" I asked, slightly nudging her back to reality.

She didn't flinch. She just kept swimming, glancing off into the cluttered distance. "You're father was very brave." She sighed, supressing sobs. "He..." she swallowed. "He always said 'the ocean flow will bring us peace. The waves will always carry us home.'"

Suddenly a transparent object, a flimsy and flexible one hit her wing and was sucked into her gills as she breathed in. "Mother!" I cried, swiping at the object as she gasped.

"Ta... Takeh" she managed between gulps. Her eyes widened as she flapped her wings in panicking, pushing me backwards.

"MOM! Hold on I'm coming!" I cried, swatting my way through the cluttered objects to get to her. "Where are you!"

My wings seemed to get heavier as I rushed towards her fragile body. Her panicked movements subsided as her wings started to jerk.

I could feel my heart racing as the objects cluttered my vision. "MOM!" I yelled again, rapidly swatting my way through the minefield to reach her.

Her movements slowed as she started sinking towards the sand. I rushed to her side and desperately swiped at the object that blocked her gills.

"Tak... eh" she strained, pain clouded her eyes as she gave up struggling. "s... save your... self."

"NO! MOM!" I cried, my heart beat faster as I watched her body stop moving. Going limp. Lifeless.

Panic set in as I startedflapping away, breathing rapidly. I suddenly stopped, holding my breath uponnoticing another flimsy object. In my gill.