Songs of the Sea

Chapter 4

Chapter 4

The Story of Kirklin and Klem

A long time ago, after the land people drove the Sea People away from the land, a warrior was born named Kirklin. We remember him as Kirklin because he was the greatest warrior who ever lived among the Sea People.

Kirklin’s mother knew he would be a strong and capable warrior as he grew up. Bigger than the other children born during his season and a much faster swimmer, he could throw a spear harder and longer than most of the adults in his family pod. He grew up to be the most handsome male of his season. At the Winter Meeting of his eighteenth season, he met Klem at the Presentation Ceremony.

Just like Kirklin, we only remember her name as Klem. She was the most beautiful female of her season. She had stunning red hair and her tail sparkled green in the sunlight.

Kirklin and Klem were Coupled that same year. For their parents and the other adults, it was a joyous occasion. The others were happy for them as well, but the young men and female Alewars were jealous that Kirklin had captured Klem’s attention. The young females and male Alewars felt the same of Kirklin.

None of that bothered Kirklin and Klem. After Winter Meeting, they went away North to the Summer seas with Klem’s family, as was customary. It’s been this way since the first Princess and it continues today.

The next Winter, Klem had a baby. They named the beautiful boy Kudron. He looked just like Kirklin, only with red hair like Klem. Every bit as strong at the same age as Kirklin, he showed as much promise that he would be a mighty warrior like his father.

Kirklin proved to be a great soldier and protector. He perfected his scouting skills to steer the pod clear of the sharks ever present in the sea. He was a great spear maker and helped teach the other men how to make sharp points out of rock, shell, and bone.

In Kudron’s fifth season, during the Summer Migration to the North, a school of sharks overcame the pod. The females and children were able to escape and get ahead of the sharks, pushed along by the strong current. As they swam away, the males did their best to fight the sharks, but the currents helped the predators just like the pod.

Kirklin, being the brave and strategic warrior he was, separated himself from the group and retreated behind the sharks. He watched with fear and sadness as the sharks attacked the males in the pod and gained ground on the females and children. Kirklin said a prayer to the Princess and promised a Sacrifice if only Klem and Kudron could live.

During that prayer, the solution came to him. There was only once choice, one Sacrifice that could lure the sharks away from the pod. Kirklin’s last heroic deed was to pierce his side. When the smell and taste of Kirklin’s blood billowing out of his body reached the sharks, the school turned in unison toward the wounded hero. While they attacked his body in a frenzy, the rest of the pod escaped and reached a safe cove for the night.

Since then, Kirklin’s Sacrifice is hailed the highest honor a male can pay his pod to save them from predators. Adults don’t go looking for trouble, but if it comes between a predator and the pod, Sacrifice is the best possible solution to save the family.