Chapter Two

Treason

Many, many moons passed. The tides eternally rolled by, aging those living within their wake and breathing the wonders of life into those of youth. As the adult orca travelled together, the calves typically lingered behind, forming a pod among them-selves of adolescence with their games and songs. Since Sage's birth, another calf, and another had been born to his mother's eldest sister Seniti, and also the youngest female in the pod, Nibiu, giving the calf pod a total of six orca, with another on its way, in the form of a brother or sister to Sage.
Best friends were made, and bitter rival ships formed within the sub pod. Sage and Elli fast became impossible to find apart, as the two sung hymns together, breaching and darting underneath the waves. Best friends and disciples to the song-master Gol, with an unknown rivalry between them, painted over with the innocence of youth and games of the child. Both learnt and mastered songs of various legends, ranging from the heroic efforts of the dolphin Ecco, to the long, emotion filled mantras of Big Blue, to the songs of the stars and the god Delphinius and the legendary city of Atlantis.
Together, the pod would often assemble simply to hear the two singing alongside. Other pods of singers, be it whale, dolphin or porpoise, would hear the songs, and those brave enough to ask would request an audience to the songs, many avoiding the fate of becoming a meal by hearing the song. And those destined to die, would make the final request to hear their songs.
Sage had grown large, from the drinking of his mother's milk, which he then was weaned easily upon fish and flesh that the pod hunted. His skin was the usual black and white clash that any orca of the pod owned, with a simple curved dorsal of his age, which would sprout as he got older in age. His dorsal and body housed a few scratches and scrapes from incidents and accidents he had learnt during his time as a youthful explorer for answers and questions. Upon Sage's chin, were five small markings. It was impossible to see them clearly, for they were a white, which mingled with the white of his underbelly. It was only under the pale light of the moon, that they shimmered slightly, as if pieces of a shiny shell had been implanted into his chin.
Elli was a little larger than Sage, but not by, as much as some would have predicted she would have grown against Sage. Still upon her mother's milk on occasion, Elli was labelled on occasion as a 'Big Baby,' although she never took this comment to heart. Elli had gained reputation as the one with the most scars, after a game left part of the Earth crashing upon her. Somehow, she survived, marred greatly, but upon healing, instantly fell back into her playful mood and toying with pod members in games.
Sage and Elli, close cousins through their mothers, were two of the pods closest members. Had it not been that they were related, some would have sworn they were life mates.
But, the pod wasn't without its problems. Uton was the unofficial leader of the calves' pod, dominating over by his age and strength. He was the one who co-ordinated the pod, with its games and giving the rules to follow. Every game ended with the one simple rule that, "Uton wins." Uton was the largest of the calves, with his muscles rippling underneath his frame. Uton's loud, vigorous voice was his prime feature, making him identifiable, no matter where he was. No adults ever saw Uton's bullying ways, for he acted as a real nice orca whenever he was confronted by an adult, and few would believe the words of the calves, whence they all firmly believed Uton to be a determined orca, but a nice orca.
Uton's best ally and friend was the female, Bria, who was his eyes and ears whence Uton was not about. Her flat songs soon began to mimic Uton's loud, tasteless song, as she became Uton's shadow, thirstily gulping down the power that radiated from him, and lingering to his side whenever he was around. Bria was a gaunt female, who seemed to prefer giving most of her catches to her master Uton than feed her-self.
The two youngest calves were Aris and Ngau. Aris was a fat young male orca that had been born less than two moons before, to Nibiu, and was her first calf. He often clashed with Uton about the games and they hated one another. Often, Sage saw in his eyes, that Uton wants to kill Aris and stepped in to prevent fights, taking Uton's verbal blows him-self. Aris' songs were deep and resounding, the markings of a true hunter for the pod.
Ngau was the youngest of the calves, which didn't understand any of these power games, rather to simply watch and play whenever she could. She was daughter to Seniti, who had mothered many calves in her life and was one of the most playful calves in the pod's history. She also enjoyed trying mimic the magnificent songs of Sage and Elli, although her song was too high to sing the notes in as excellent pitch as the two song singers of the pod did.
As a new day dawned on the pod, the moon sliding from the edge of the world, as the sun rose, illuminating the icy lands and sending a kaleidoscope of colour shooting through the waters. Fish that had laid dormant over the dark rose from the hiding places they had seized, as those that lurked within the shadows reclaimed the now vacant positions.
As the light of the sun crawled across the waters, a loud song boomed, "And now you lot, we shall play a new game… A game in which…"
"Uton wins?" a voice snarled, dripping with sarcasm and loathing.
The large male turned to face Aris, spite and anger flashing through his cold eyes. Sage, alongside Elli, blew in a sighing fashion at the surface, sending flecks of water droplets into the radiating yellow. "Here we go once again… Can't Aris just accept these games?"
"A game is not fun," Elli replied, her voice the usual sweet and loving fashion for her cousin. "Unless all can share the game. Sharing the victory, and the losses. Uton lacks the ability to share, and such, the games are fun for all, bar those named Uton."
"True, true…" Sage nodded, as he witnessed the fury fire commence burning in the ebony eyes of Uton, as the cold darkness of defiance freeze over the eyes of Aris. Pushing his flukes into action, Sage floated between the two glaring cousins, calmly stating, "We need not to fight. Aris is no fury flyer, and Uton is no hungry one, so what threat causes us to fight between brothers?"
"Oh, silence your songs, legend whiner," Uton barked, his song harsh and jarring towards Sage. "All you ever sing of is legends, love and lore. What use is that in an existence like this? We are masters of the seas, we are overlords of all life, and we are above all others, as I am above all of you."
"That's right," Bria piped up, her song sounding more and more identical to Uton's with each passing day, as she floated alongside him, providing support if Sage teamed with Aris, who was still eyeballing Uton and growling in anger, rage and the desire to tear his relative limb-from-limb. "Uton is destined to rule this pod and all you will have to obey his command."
With a snort through his blowhole, Uton smirked, "You sing whiner. What powers are there in singing? The song is merely a tool used to hunt and for entertainment. As soon as I seize control over this pod, I shall do away with all songs, but for the use of hunting. These ridiculous hymns of some stupid singer named 'Fecco' are worthless and nothing but a pack of carp bile."
"It's Ecco," Elli protested as she entered the fight, backing up Sage. "The legend is of Ecco, the saviour of the seas, who if he hadn't risked all, you would not exist today."
"Carp bile… Bunch of lies all of it!" Uton snapped, his smile a nauseating twisting of glee. "Dolphins are weak and nothing but food. There is no way a dolphin could be a champion as those songs sing of. Another orca, perhaps, but a dolphin…"
"Carp bile… Carp bile…" Ngau laughed, sensing a new game to play, giggling and circling the group in her game of repeating whatever she heard as a song as a game.
"Ecco did exist!" Sage argued, his beliefs and loyalty being tested. "There is the sunken city that others sing of… and what of Big Blue… Songs of his passing exist… and then there's the Asterite…"
"Asterite! Asterite!"
"Please don't tell me you actually believe those pack of calf chatter," Uton laughed in mockery. "You are a bigger baby than even Elli is Sage! This proves it!"
"Bigger baby… Bigger baby…"
Elli's eyes narrowed in rage, and she clacked her jaws, ready to launch her-self upon Uton right there and then. Sage put out a pectoral to prevent her advance, and she stopped, but he sensed the rage burning within her blood. "I believe what I will Uton… I ask you not to agree with me, but you should respect that it is my choice to believe what I will…"
The elder calf snarled, baring his teeth right there. "I know what I believe… That these stupid songs have befuddled your minds. You have forgotten the hunting, the thrill of living as the rulers of the seas… You are now nothing more than a weakling…"
"Weakling! Weakling!"
The tension in the water was high as Sage, Elli and Aris glared at Uton and Bria. Ngau continued her circling and giggling. Finally, Elli moved aside, "Let's take our leave Sage. He's not worth it. I'll meet you in the bay with mother and Gol, so we can sing some more…"
"Yes," Bria tittered nervously and maliciously. "Flee from the master like the cowards that you are. None of you are worthy to be in his presence."
"None of us wish to be in his presence…" Elli snapped, as she disappeared into the blue, fading into the darkness. A few seconds after, with an excited squeal, Ngau shot after Elli, interested in the idea of learning to sing some more.
Uton smirked down at Sage and Aris, a cruel glint of idea in his eyes. "All alone, with no one to protect you… How pitiful. How do you fare now, song singer and fat whale?"
"We are fine," Sage snapped, the anger in his eyes as he turned his back to Uton, about to follow Elli to learn to sing more, ignoring the large whale. "And we will not be alone much longer, whence we rejoin the pod."
Aris swam up to Uton in protest, and raged at him as he spat, "You can leave your games floating to the hungry ones, for all I care. You are one of the worst whales to ever deal with, and I will have nothing to do with you, or your plots from now on… I pity the pod that ever follows you!"
As Sage swam, he suddenly heard a squeal and a most sickening crack. Wheeling about in the water fast, his eyes widened in sudden shock and horror at what he saw.
The corpse of Aris sank slowly, the spine severed in two, from a powerful blow of the flukes. The flukes of Uton had laid the strike to Aris, which had brought his short life to an end… the beginning. Sage stared at horror at the corpse as it floated down, the life from Aris' eyes faded.
Killing a pod member had a single punishment to the pod.
Banishment.
Uton had committed the most heinous crime the orca pod could own, out of simple rage and hate. Striking down a fellow relative in anger, laying the blow that broke all life. Sage's eyes glowered in anger, as he realized that Aris was gone, and now the adults would know the true extend that Uton was willing to go to, in order to seize power.
Without warning, Uton dived down and collected the inert body of Aris and lifted him to the surface. Noticing the confused look to Sage's eyes, he smirked, "Know this whiner… I am Uton. And I am that who that will rule the sea. And none, be it this forgotten kin, Elli or even you, will stand in my way…"
A simple glance was given to Bria from Uton. With a fatal leer, she launched into a bellow for all around to hear. A statement that chilled the blood flowing through the veins of Sage, and shattered his world…

"Come quickly! Sage has killed Aris! Sage has just killed Aris!"