The Gold Within

The Prophesy

                  "In the beginning of time, the goddess of creation, Mawu took clay and breathed life into it. With nimble fingers, she made a creature with gills and a tail so that she may watch her "daughter" grow in her underwater kingdom. As her child basked in her iridescent glow she realized that it might be lonely. She made creatures –all with different sizes and shapes and named them feesh. She watched her creations, but realized that she could not talk to them. She decided to try again. She sculpted the top half in her husband's image, with arms and a mouth. She still gave him a tail, so he may play in the water, skin as pale as the clay he was made with, tail glittering in the moon goddess's glow. She asked her husband, Liza, to create one in her image so her new child with not be lonely. It too had a tail, face as beautiful as the goddess. Mawu instantly became enamored, watching her new children. "

"A couple hundred years pass and Mawu and Liza were happy with their children but Liza didn't have domain over the waters, so he grew jealous. He stole some of his wife's clay and formed his own children-one in his image and another in his wife's. Their skin shone like gold and with tendrils that were as coarse as wool and glimmered like obsidian gems. Their legs split so they could play in the jungle in Liza's kingdom under Liza's sun form. He called them "akwadda (means children of) Liza" and let them know they were his. He left them and went back to his wife. She was so busy watching over her children that she never noticed her missing husband or the missing clay. One day Mawu had a dream of a storm and awoke suddenly reaching for clay to build a wall to protect her children and as her hand fumbled around, she realized there was very little clay left .She searched for her husband and found him with his own children .She noticed the creature that had her face with hair that was matted and skin that seemed to be marred by dirt and grew enraged, porcelain skin seemed to radiate with energy just below the silvery –white surface. She grabbed the last bits of clay and cursed him :

For years and years/Sun and moon departNo longer will you produce your art  Your seeds of gold will burn and dry/While the pale and white grow as strongAs my moon in the night sky  I surrender my powers unto my heir/Born of an original pairRoyalty will stand upon the rocks /Tail flicking proudly in the ocean's spray Kingdom will be poisoned by greed and strifeSomeone will have to give their life. May your earth and stone crack, crumble and fallAs the new tide turns once and for all "She took the last bits from Liza's earth and-"
"-She created the great wall that separates land and sea."

"Katu!"

"Sorry Mawa, I can't help it. You're always so serious about the legend every time the season of Mawu comes around. You know there are no akwadda .That's just a story to gain morale in the kingdom. We've heard it every year since we were guppies. It's pointless."
Mawa sighed and gently reminded the young feesh, "Katu! You must be able"- 
"-to pass on tale of old and blah blah blah, load of barnacles; Katu interjected again. He swam around Mawa and asked, "Do you wanna go to the reef?" 

Mawa's green eyes widened as she grabbed Katu by the arms .She put her pale fingers to his lips,as his ice blue eyes glittered like diamonds, filled with mirth. She shushed him before he could start laughing at the mischief he may have caused. "You know the reef is forbidden". "It's just a pile of rocks! Come on!" He grabbed her and winked conspiratorially, "I'm pretty good friends with the king's daughter.We'll be fine."Mawa giggled and poked her head out the door, her hair like strands of copper that seemed to have light emitting from within, floated lazily around her. She made sure the coast was clear before slinking past the inner walls of the palace.