When not frolicking amongst the waves,

the Water Warriors live in the caves of Kivia. It is said, by the gossiping wind, their caves lay behind a great waterfall. As told by the clouds, they possess an unmatched beauty and they glow ethereally. Their beauty comes not from their physical appearance, but from the light and power they exude. They do not keep flowers in their hair. They do not wrap themselves in linens and wool. They possess no gold or jewels. 

It is said that humans first stumbled upon them 2,000 years ago. The Water Warriors were amused by these new creatures. The Water Warriors are not mortals. They resemble humans greatly, but they are not human. They do not keep flowers in their hair. They do not wrap themselves in linens and wool. They possess no gold or jewels. 

Sriya Ilipilla

They swim with the fish. They bathe in the rich sunlight which streaks the water. They laugh and hum and serenade as no one before them has been known to do. They feel much. They feel love and lust and trust and betrayal. They feel sadness and loneliness and amazement and confusion. They feel no pity and no remorse. Their intelligence has not been measured; as the waves were too meek and the stones had no system of measurement. We do know that they possess vast amounts of knowledge. They get news from the waves and gossip from the stars. They do not own books, rather they borrow them from the mermaids from time to time. The mermaids and the Water Warriors get along very well. They hold tea parties and soirees. They make up poetry and songs for each other. They love and laugh. But the mermaids can only visit with the onset of spring. Until the Sun’s turn in the sky outlasts the Moon’s, the mermaids are held at bay by a current; and it sweeps them away with the start of autumn. The fall of crisp red leaves creates such a tremor, that a small hurricane forces the mermaids home.

During Midsummer, the Water Warriors hold a big festival, as is their tradition. They invite the faeries, the selkies, and of course the mermaids. They all talk and poke fun at the world, from humans to the Moon, but she always takes it lightly, continuously bathing them in her glow.

The Water Warriors live in bliss. They are as old as the seas, and do not leave their waters. They were created when first the Moon felt a twinge of fear, for no mortal may harm her with the Water Warriors as her defenders. They will outlive time and existence. They do not play by its rules. It is foretold, by the eastern winds, that when they see fit, the Water Warriors will cease to grace the wondrous seas. They will instead become the mist that clings to every mountain, that cleanses each valley when the inhabitant’s intentions lack purity. 

There have been whispers, that a fog is beginning to roll over the hilltops.

Maya terry

• Category: Painting, Prose