Previews
Preview of Chapter 1 - Hurricane
At her command, their black dorsal fins sliced the surface of the cold, dark waters. Matriarch Kaela was leading her pod, the Aleutian Pod, on a morning hunt. Patriarch Kiet was right by her side, his massive tail in unison with hers. Out of all of the males in the pod, even the strong hunters, Patriarch Kiet was the largest. Many prey animals feared him, including the bottlenose dolphins that the pod met every year. Mother dolphins became overprotective of their calves. They kept their distance from him. Matriarch Kaela was the largest and oldest female in the Aleutian Pod, besides the elders. In many killer whale pods, female elders were retired matriarchs, and male elders were usually their mates. If not, they were retired guard males, or elderly loners that wanted to stay in one pod until the end of their time.
“Everything good?” Matriarch Kaela asked after Patriarch Kiet had gone to check on the rest of the pod. The big male nodded. “Yes, but, as usual, some of the calves are getting a bit bored,” he replied. Matriarch Kaela whistled in amusement. “They’ll learn when they get older,” she said, rubbing her flipper against Patriarch Kiet’s side. A thought suddenly crossed the matriarch’s mind. Prey had been scarce in the past few days. Some of the pod members had managed to track down some seals, but that wasn’t enough. ‘Maybe Orcinus will send us some luck today…’ Matriarch Kaela thought. The pod needed it.
As Second in Command, one of Tauirgh's tasks was to check on the elders during a hunt. Combining her signature whistle with a series of low clicks and a razz, she spread the word: Tauirgh is going to check on the elders! Hearing the signal, Matriarch Kaela whistled in approval, and Tauirgh made her way to the elders. Out of all eight elders in the Aleutian Pod, Tauirgh's favorite was Ukar. Ukar was the second largest male elder, and he had been a skilled hunter when he was younger. His most noticeable feature was dorsal fin. The tip of it bent strongly to the left.
"Where's Mum going, Aunt Nickici?" Bryjan asked when he saw his mum swim by. "She's going to check on the elders," Nickici replied. She surfaced and dove at Matriarch Kaela's command. Bryjan, however, surfaced far too quickly. Before he knew it, there was a burning sensation in his lungs. He had inhaled sea water. Bryjan's flopped-over dorsal fin cut the surface of the water as he exhaled, removing the irritating sea water. Once his lungs were clear, he inhaled deeply and dove back into the water. "You alright?" Nickici asked. "I'm fine, I'm fine," Bryjan snapped. He was clearly angered by his mistake. "Can I go swim with Mum and the elders?" he asked. "No," Nickici said firmly. "Why not?!" Bryjan replied fiercely.
"Pod laws require to stay in the middle of the pod."
"I don't care about the pod laws!"
"Bryjan!"
"Tausius got to swim with the elders!"
"That's because Mamooka was Tausius's only relative in the pod at the time."
"Then... Mamooka should've been in the middle of the pod with him!"
"Bryjan, quiet. Your argument is invalid."
Tauirgh noticed that Nikah was lagging behind. She swam from Ukar's side over to the retired guard female. "Elder Nikah, are you alright?" Tauirgh asked, swimming underneath the larger female in order to support her. "Just a bit tired," Nikah responded, closing her eyes for a few moments. The thought of Nikah's spirit making its way to the Sea of Spirits made Tauirgh feel uneasy. After all, Nikah was the eldest female in the Aleutian Pod, and Tauirgh worried for her. "Elder Nikah," she started, "How much longer do you think you'll be around?"
Nikah had sensed Tauirgh's question coming. "Only Orcinus knows, dear," she replied, rubbing Tauirgh with one of her flippers. Tauirgh click-whistled and pressed her melon against the elder's chest. "I hope you don't go soon," she said. "The calves will certainly miss you. They love your stories. Remember when we gathered with Kahoolawe Pod and Jukian Pod? Every calf was with you after the sea lion hunt, and you were telling them about the Early Pods."
"How could I ever forget that?" Nikah asked. "And the story of me and the sea turtles?"
The elder suddenly felt depressed. "I'll miss them too," she said quietly. "I'll miss everyone. But always remember that when a killer whale's spirit travels to the Sea of Spirits, it will watch over its family and pod." Again, Tauirgh pressed her melon into Nikah's chest. "I know Mum and Dad are up there, watching over me right now. Perhaps your Mum and Dad are watching over you right now, too," Tauirgh said.
“Everything good?” Matriarch Kaela asked after Patriarch Kiet had gone to check on the rest of the pod. The big male nodded. “Yes, but, as usual, some of the calves are getting a bit bored,” he replied. Matriarch Kaela whistled in amusement. “They’ll learn when they get older,” she said, rubbing her flipper against Patriarch Kiet’s side. A thought suddenly crossed the matriarch’s mind. Prey had been scarce in the past few days. Some of the pod members had managed to track down some seals, but that wasn’t enough. ‘Maybe Orcinus will send us some luck today…’ Matriarch Kaela thought. The pod needed it.
As Second in Command, one of Tauirgh's tasks was to check on the elders during a hunt. Combining her signature whistle with a series of low clicks and a razz, she spread the word: Tauirgh is going to check on the elders! Hearing the signal, Matriarch Kaela whistled in approval, and Tauirgh made her way to the elders. Out of all eight elders in the Aleutian Pod, Tauirgh's favorite was Ukar. Ukar was the second largest male elder, and he had been a skilled hunter when he was younger. His most noticeable feature was dorsal fin. The tip of it bent strongly to the left.
"Where's Mum going, Aunt Nickici?" Bryjan asked when he saw his mum swim by. "She's going to check on the elders," Nickici replied. She surfaced and dove at Matriarch Kaela's command. Bryjan, however, surfaced far too quickly. Before he knew it, there was a burning sensation in his lungs. He had inhaled sea water. Bryjan's flopped-over dorsal fin cut the surface of the water as he exhaled, removing the irritating sea water. Once his lungs were clear, he inhaled deeply and dove back into the water. "You alright?" Nickici asked. "I'm fine, I'm fine," Bryjan snapped. He was clearly angered by his mistake. "Can I go swim with Mum and the elders?" he asked. "No," Nickici said firmly. "Why not?!" Bryjan replied fiercely.
"Pod laws require to stay in the middle of the pod."
"I don't care about the pod laws!"
"Bryjan!"
"Tausius got to swim with the elders!"
"That's because Mamooka was Tausius's only relative in the pod at the time."
"Then... Mamooka should've been in the middle of the pod with him!"
"Bryjan, quiet. Your argument is invalid."
Tauirgh noticed that Nikah was lagging behind. She swam from Ukar's side over to the retired guard female. "Elder Nikah, are you alright?" Tauirgh asked, swimming underneath the larger female in order to support her. "Just a bit tired," Nikah responded, closing her eyes for a few moments. The thought of Nikah's spirit making its way to the Sea of Spirits made Tauirgh feel uneasy. After all, Nikah was the eldest female in the Aleutian Pod, and Tauirgh worried for her. "Elder Nikah," she started, "How much longer do you think you'll be around?"
Nikah had sensed Tauirgh's question coming. "Only Orcinus knows, dear," she replied, rubbing Tauirgh with one of her flippers. Tauirgh click-whistled and pressed her melon against the elder's chest. "I hope you don't go soon," she said. "The calves will certainly miss you. They love your stories. Remember when we gathered with Kahoolawe Pod and Jukian Pod? Every calf was with you after the sea lion hunt, and you were telling them about the Early Pods."
"How could I ever forget that?" Nikah asked. "And the story of me and the sea turtles?"
The elder suddenly felt depressed. "I'll miss them too," she said quietly. "I'll miss everyone. But always remember that when a killer whale's spirit travels to the Sea of Spirits, it will watch over its family and pod." Again, Tauirgh pressed her melon into Nikah's chest. "I know Mum and Dad are up there, watching over me right now. Perhaps your Mum and Dad are watching over you right now, too," Tauirgh said.