A/N: This is the edited version of chapter 1 of my story "The People of the Water" that will be able to stand alone as a oneshot. It's much more updated to my current writing style but I still kept a lot of the charm from the original as well
A long, long time ago, there was a group of nomads known as the People of the Water.
These people were characterized with having tan (1) to dark (2) skin, dark blue, dark turquoise, or black hair, and brilliant blue eyes.
They traveled down rivers, sailed across lakes, traversed seas, and crossed oceans. Wherever there was water, they would go.
One day these people were traveling across a large body of water on their canoes. They stopped on an island in the middle of this water for a nice rest from a long day of travel.
All of a sudden, they heard this beautiful voice that seemed to be coming from every direction.
The voice was soothing and melodious.
Their song was powerful and enchanting. It wrapped around them like a soft blanket holding them from a hard day.
The People of the Water were drawn to this voice, and they weren't alone.
Hundreds if not thousands of creatures, or manumanu*, from the depths of the sea to the flyers in the air, swarmed to this voice.
Their canoes moved up and down due to the rhythm of the wave patterns caused by the swimming of the manumanu beneath the waves.
When the angelic voice stopped, it seemed as if all life was in a daze.
When the People of the Water arrived to this place, the sun was in high rise; now, the sky was darkening with the last rays of sunset.
With the magic of that moment gone, many of the manumanu dispersed, but the one who sang the beautiful tune was still there, hidden away.
The leader of the People of the Water, Priest Akamoteen, started to look for this angelic creature.
Priest Akamoteen was a man in his late twenties. His skin, bronzed from the sun, was dripping with sweat. His long, dark hair was dressed in a braid with a blue medallion at the end, signaling who he belonged to. He took off his headband that glittered in cobalt crystals and dived into the sea.
He knew that the one that held this beautiful voice was near, but he could not see it, even with all the manumanu gone. This led him to only one conclusion, this voice must have come from a mirage.
These mirages were known throughout the world, settling along wherever the water flows.
A slight bend in space that moved and changed with the winds.
Great treasures and powerful manumanu were known to exist in these mirages. Very few gained access to them, slipping away before their eyes even settled on them.
But Akamoteen had a secret. The mirages weren't entirely hard to miss, as long as you were looking from below and not above.
The water would guide him, and guide him it did.
The second he passed the rift, he could feel the change within his soul.
Quickly, he swam to the surface and took a gasp of breath.
And there, not too far from him, he found the one with the angelic voice sitting on a rock.
The one who possessed such a voice was a brilliant blue manumanu with a red gemstone in its chest and antennae coming from its head. Its large blue eyes had yellow markings above them, and its body was almost transparent, but there was no doubting its powerful aura.
The manumanu and the priest stared at each other, eyes clashing, for quite a while before one of them said something.
"Who are you and what do you want?" questioned the azure one.
"Y-you speak?!" questioned the priest.
Akamoteen was completely baffled. How could a manumanu speak a human tongue? But the words did not come from its mouth, but its mind. So is it more than just a manumanu? Akomoteen thought so.
As Akomoteen was floundering from the sea to the base of the rock, the azure one spoke again.
"Of course I can. Have you mortals forgotten already? Has my Almegan (3) status not reached towards the seven seas?" the blue creature gave leery eyes towards the priest, "Though you must be a smart one since you have pierced through the mirage. So, I'm only going to ask once more since you wittingly avoided the question. Who are you and what do you want?"
"I am so sorry; please forgive me for my lack of manners," the priest said bowing, "My name is Akamoteen. I am the leader of the People of the Water. We were just passing through when we heard your beautiful voice singing out to the world. It reached our hearts, and I just had to find out who the owner of such a voice belonged to."
"Do you know who I am?"
"The only manumanu that I know of that can speak like you do, is one of the children of the Original One; though I have never seen them. Just heard stories of titles bestowed to them such as Prince of the Sea, Sea Guardian, and Sea Angel. But I do not want to presume since I know there are quite a few manumanu blessed with the ability to communicate with humans mind to mind."
"You are one of the very few mortalsthat I've encountered that does not know me by sight and knows of the power I possess. Interesting. Tell me Akamoteen, what is it that your heart desires most?"
"Well," started Akamoteen, "It is not just my desire, but the desire of my people. We have been traveling nomads for the longest of times. We have desired a permanent settlement where we will be able to make our home. We have prayed to the Original One and those blessed with the element of wai (4) asking for this. It seems that our worship of him drives us out of many lands, but we remain steadfast in our faith. We desired to build a large temple near the ocean so that we may worship in peace and so that we may thank The Original One for using the waters of the world to nourish and protect us."
At these words, the sea prince smiled. Never before had it witnessed such a pure heart in a mortal before, a heart bent towards peace and not war.
"Well mortal, for your pure heart, your desires shall be fulfilled. You, your people, and all your future generations will be blessed with a beautiful connection to the All Father (5). Through me you will learn more about the All Father, and your relationship with them will grow deeper. I will teach you and your people many things so that you will live in light and not darkness."
"T-thank you so very much. We are very grateful," Akamoteen bowed, forehead touching the slate rock in reverence toward the sea prince.
"With your acceptance, I will make myself known to you. Your knowledge was correct, mortal. Many call me Sea Guardian, Prince of the Sea, or Sea Angel. But my real name is Manaphy, one of the All Father's children. You may call me by the titles that you have heard from afar. But I shall give you a better name that you and your people may call me, Tui Viti (6)."
"May I just ask one question, Tui Viti?"
"Yes, you may."
"Many give you the title of prince instead of king even though you are known to control these seven seas. Why is that?"
"You seem to have lived somewhere isolated mortal. Or maybe you are not as smart as I gathered." said Manaphy, "One of my siblings is known as the king of the sea. Even though I rule now, they created every drop of water in this world that you can see and not see. With them is all of my respect."
At this, Akamoteen laughed.
He could not believe that he was getting to talk face to face with an almegan. What luck he had! Now, his culture itself will change forever from this very moment.
This was the beginning of a beautiful friendship.
Ever since that moment happened, Tui Viti Manaphy had an eternal bond with the People of the Water. Tui Viti Manaphy stayed with the People of the Water for many months and taught them many things.
After the encounter between Priest Akamoteen and Manaphy, the preparations for building a massive structure that would become home to the People of the Water and a temple to honor the Original One commenced.
Under Manaphy's instructions, the People of the Water and many manumanu started to build what would be known as Samiya, or the Temple of the Sea, for this would be a sacred place dedicated to Tui Viti Manaphy and the Original One.
Many weeks after the start of Samiya's construction, Manaphy came to visit their deer friend, Priest Akamoteen.
"It has been quite a while, my friend. It is nice to see you," said Akamoteen.
"Likewise," said Manaphy, "This is for you."
Tui Viti Manaphy handed the priest a necklace with three blue, oval shaped crystals and a bracelet with many of those crystals attached to it.
"What is this, my friend?" the priest asked, smiling at the Tui Viti.
"This is the first gift I am giving to you and your people."
When an almegan decides to create a covenant between them and a group of mortals, they will officiate the covenant with three gifts. One represents the mortals, one the almegans, and one the connection between them and the manumanu.
"I have enough for every person in your tribe. I just wanted to give you yours first. This necklace and bracelet are made of sea crystals. Whenever you need to open a door in Samiya, just hold up the crystals and they will unlock the door. These crystals will also give you healing powers as long as you and the person you are healing are in contact with water."
"Thank you so much my friend. Where on earth did you find these?"
"Places unknown to mortals. Only I know where to find them. Because of this you must pass on these gifts from generation to generation. Do not be greedy."
"I will do as you wish, my friend. Thank you for the gift you have given to me and my people. We are eternally grateful."
A year passed by and the temple was finally complete.
Everyone rejoiced!
The hard work was finally over, and the People of the Water finally had a permanent home.
Samiya was beautiful. Half of it was above the sea and the other half was below it. The bottom half was a mirror of the upper half. There was a huge tower in the middle of the temple with spirals all around it. There were fountains everywhere and empty aqueducts that ran throughout the entire building.
On the day of the completion of Samiya, the People of the Water held a huge festival on the nearby shoreline to honor Priest Akamoteen, the Original One, and Tui Viti Manaphy and to celebrate the creation of Samiya.
While the People of the Water were waiting on the temple to be complete, the Tui Viti had mercy on them and blessed them with lands in the Golden Peninsula (or what is today known as Sinnoh). The Tui Viti blessed them with most of the land of the eastern coastline.
With the relocation of the People of the Water, the temple relocated there as well. This would be their first dwelling place.
On this special day of the completion of Samiya, the sea angel came by to see Akamoteen. The Tui Viti wanted to show its friend something inside the temple. So, they got on a canoe and went to Samiya.
When they got inside of the temple, Prince Manaphy started leading Akamoteen deep inside the walls of Samiya.
"Where are we going my friend? The festival is going to start at sunset, and I do not think we should be late."
"Breathe easy," said Tui Viti Manaphy, "We have plenty of time before the festival starts. I need to show you something important."
"What is it?"
The Sea Angel finally stopped inside a room at the end of a hallway.
"Tui Viti, this is a dead end. There is nothing here," said Akamoteen, "Where are you taking me?"
"Go to that stone block situated in the center circle on the floor," said Tui Viti Manaphy.
Akamoteen did what Prince Manaphy said.
"Read the words aloud."
"Beyond this door which will only be opened with the People of the Water's mark lies the crown, and whosoever wears this crown will be known as the King of the Sea," Akamoteen paused, "What does this mean, my prince?"
"All will be revealed in due time. Now, put your bracelet up to the symbol of the crown, which will be known to your people as the emblem of the Sea Crown, on the stone."
Akamoteen did what Tui Viti Manaphy said.
Then the Sea Crown's emblem glowed.
The block of stone went down into the ground. A line from the block traveled to the wall creating a circle with two circles circumcised in it.
"Take the two inner circles and connect the lines inside of them together."
Akamoteen did what Tui Viti Manaphy said.
All of a sudden, the wall that created the dead end started to open up. Multiple doors started opening leading to an extension of the hallway.
Akamoteen looked back at Tui Viti Manaphy.
"Come on! Make haste! You have yet to see the best part."
Akamoteen and Tui Viti Manaphy walked through the hallway. The only light in the room came from lights near the bottom of the floor. Both of them walked for a while until they reached the end of the hallway where a bright glow was seen. The hallway led them into a rotunda.
The rotunda they were in was enormous. The hallway led to a stone bridge that connected the hallway to an island in the middle of a rotunda. From the island, there was about a thirty-foot drop into a dark abyss. There were no doors in this chamber except for the one leading back the way they came. Strangely enough, about twelve feet above the island, there were many openings in the wall that continued up for as far as the eye could see. In the middle of this room stood a massive fountain but no water was running through it. The fountain had four tiers, and in each tier, there were openings where something should go inside..
"What is this?" asked Akamoteen.
"This is what I wanted to show you," smiled Tui Viti Manaphy, "This will be the second gift I will be giving to you and your people. Each one of these openings in the fountain will contain something I like to call sea gems."
Prince Manaphy waddled over to a pile of these sea gems, grabbed one of them, and waddled back over to Akamoteen.
"Here," said Prince Manaphy, putting the sea gem in Akamoteen's hands, "Put it in the top tier."
Akamoteen did as the Tui Viti said. The Sea Prince then gave Akamoteen the rest of the sea gems to put in the fountain.
"What are these?" asked Akamoteen.
The sea gems were made of brilliant blue crystals and made of two parts. The first part, the middle, of the sea gem was rectangular in shape. It had clear vines running through the inside of it. The second part was triangular in shape and was on the ends of the rectangular part.
"When all the sea gems are in this fountain, it will be known as the Sea Crown. I hand made every single one of these gems. They are made out of the same crystals that your necklace and bracelet are made out of except they are imbued with my power. Only those who have a pure heart and have received my first gift will be able to activate the sea crown. The sea crown will be an essential part for you and your people to be able to live in a close nature with water and the manumanu that inhabit it that you are so fond of."
"This is amazing," said Akamoteen, "But how will we live with them in a close nature? We cannot breathe underwater."
"You are correct. At the moment, part of Samiya is above the waves and the other half is below them. Because of this, mortals cannot live in the area below, yet. The Sea Crown will create a sort of protective bubble around the lower part of Samiya that will keep all water out except for the water that is in the aqueducts that run through the temple, and it will create a breathable atmosphere as well. If you decide to submerge the entire temple underwater, the bubble will extend to the upper part of Samiya, and the sea crown will be used as an engine to propel you through the sea."
"When the temple is submerged underwater, you will have a choice to either keep the temple visible or turn it invisible. If you decide to turn the entire temple invisible, no one will be able to see it except for when there is a lunar eclipse. The reason this happens is because the Sea Crown allows the temple to mimic the bioorganics of my body. As an Almegan, I have the ability to turn my body invisible except during a lunar eclipse. This is because the moonlight on this occasion is different and doesn't allow us to bend the light, which keeps us from hiding ourselves."
"But despite this weakness, the Sea Crown has tremendous power. When someone with a pure heart touches the Sea Crown, it will wrap the person in a golden light, grant the person with the ability to breathe underwater, and allow them to travel at fast speeds beneath the waves. However, this will only last for a few hours."
"This… this is incredible," said Akamoteen, "But I am still quite confused. What did the text on the stone mean when it was talking about wearing the Sea Crown? This massive structure cannot be put on someone's head. And what did the text mean when it stated that the one who wears the Sea Crown will be known as King of the Sea? I thought … You told me that Supreme Almegan Kyogre was the King of the Sea."
"You are correct. No one will be able to actually wear the Sea Crown, but the words do not refer to a physical crown. It refers to the ability to control the Sea Crown, which controls the temple. There will only ever be three people who can control the Sea Crown, me, the current high priest or high priestess of our people, and your heir. The wearer of the Sea Crown can activate a defense mechanism, which causes the temple to create golden tentacles that can cause great destruction. Whoever controls the Sea Crown, controls this power. Whoever controls the Sea Crown will be called King of the Sea."
"The reason this title is given is because the Sea Crown possesses power that rivals my sibling's. The Sea Crown possesses my power. Just because I am small, does not mean that I am weak. To us Almegans, the word king means creator, and the word prince means ruler. However, to you mortals, the word king means ruler. The text favors the mortal definition so that all may comprehend. With this power, you will have all authority over wai and the manumanu with its affinities through me."
Akamoteen stared in astonishment at Tui Viti Manaphy. He couldn't believe how amazing this gift was.
"I-I…Thank you so much," said Akamoteen, "You have given us far more than we deserve. Is there anything I could possibly do to thank you for your kindness?"
Tui Viti Manaphy just smiled at Akamoteen and said, "My friend, you do not need to repay me. I am repaying you for the kindness you and our people have shown me. You are the first mortals I have met in a very, very long while that were not after me for my power, and you all have a great faith in the All Father. That kind of behavior should be rewarded."
Akamoteen picked up Prince Manaphy and hugged them.
"Thank you my friend. Thank you so very much."
They stayed like that for a while until the Sea Prince broke the silence.
"Akamoteen, I want you to activate the Sea Crown."
"But why me?"
"Because you have one of the purest hearts I have ever seen."
Akamoteen smiled at this.
"All you have to do is put your hand on one of the sea gems. The sea gems should react to your sea crystals. If your heart is as pure as I believe it to be, it will connect the sea gems to the sea crystals, and they will resonate with each other activating the Sea Crown."
Akamoteen put his hand on one of the sea gems and concentrated. He believed that one day his people would be able to befriend all creatures of this earth. He believed that friendship could transcend species. And he believed that no matter who or what you are, everyone deserves love and respect. That is what he focused on.
At these thoughts, his necklace and bracelet started to glow. One by one, each sea gem started to glow. Water started flowing through the aqueducts and quickly expelled itself from the lower half of Samiya. The protective bubble started to form around the lower half as well.
Finally, all of the sea gems were glowing, and the fountain they were in was surrounded by water. The Sea Crown was activated.
"Once the Sea Crown is activated, it cannot be deactivated," said Tui Viti Manaphy, "The only way to deactivate the Sea Crown would be to take out the sea gems, but if you do that, the temple will start to fill with water and sink, self destructing itself."
Akamoteen nodded. He understood the importance of leaving the sea gems alone, especially while people were in the temple.
"Please protect the Sea Crown…" said Tui Viti Manaphy forlornly.
Akamoteen was concerned. He had never seen his friend look so sad before.
"I know that not all mortals are bad, but I have had my fair share of encounters with humans that only know greed or hatred. There are too many people who would use my gifts for their own evil deeds. I am trusting you Akamoteen."
Tui Viti Manaphy looked right at him and said, "I am trusting you and your people to protect what is mine. For what I have given, I can take away. The gifts that I have given to you and your people are some of my greatest creations. I expect those who use them to have good hearts, not bad intentions. I am trusting you Akamoteen. Do not betray me."
Akamoteen sat back on his knees and held Prince Manaphy's hands in his.
"My friend, I could never betray you," said Akamoteen with great understanding, "You have given my people and I something we never thought feasible – no – possible."
Akamoteen got up, touched one of the sea gems, and said, "I will never forget what you have done for me and my people, and I will make sure that future generations will continue to remember as well. Today I vow that my future lineage and I will protect the gifts you have given us, and we will also protect you."
All of a sudden, Akamoteen's body started glowing gold!
Manaphy looked up at Akamoteen and laughed.
"Congratulations! You have activated sea majesty," said Tui Viti Manaphy smiling.
"What?" said Akamoteen bewildered.
Akamoteen didn't know what was happening to him. All he knew was that his body was glowing, and he was afraid. He could feel the power running through his veins. Power to topple cities. Power to destroy hurricanes. Power to disperse the waves.
"Sea majesty. You activated sea majesty," said the Tui Viti, "Remember when I said that the Sea Crown could grant someone pure hearted with the powers to breathe underwater and travel through it at high speeds. Well, this is it. I called this state sea majesty. Amazing, is it not?."
"Sea crystals, sea gems, Sea Crown, sea majesty. You really like the word sea, do you not?"
"Well, excuse me," the Sea Angel pouted, "I don't see you coming up with anything better."
At that, they both laughed.
Tui Viti Manaphy and Priest Akamoteen swam together for a while before heading back to the festival.
Everyone was upset at them for being late, but they rejoiced once Priest Akamoteen told them what had happened in the temple.
This was a new era for the People of the Water.
It had been two years since the last time Tui Viti Manaphy was at the temple. The People of the Water had become quite accustomed to living in Samiya. Most people lived inside the temple, but there were quite a few who lived on the nearby coastland. Sea majesty was also used quite often. About twenty percent of the People of the Water had the clearance and a pure enough heart in order to achieve sea majesty. But besides that, nothing changed.
Life happened the same way it did as when they were traveling nomads. They taught their children. They hunted. They fished. They sold their items and curios. They farmed. They laughed and played. But the one thing that drastically changed for them was their connection to the Original One. This connection grew and grew. Their dreams as a civilization were finally being achieved.
Besides this change, something else also changed.
Priest Akamoteen had gotten married to a woman named Kalena (7).
Kalena was a wonderful woman with a love for her people. She would do anything to preserve the history and traditions of the People of the Water.
One day, Tui Viti Manaphy decided to come to Samiya. It had been quite a long time since he had been back. He missed the friends he made, but he especially missed Akamoteen.
Manaphy entered the sea temple through one of the aqueducts. Once inside, he found one of the temple's guards and asked him where Akamoteen was. At this question, a young woman came up to them to ask what was going on.
"Who are you?" asked Tui Viti Manaphy, looking at the woman with suspicion.
The woman got on her knees and bowed towards the Tui Viti.
When she got up she said, "Tui Viti Manaphy, my name is Kalena, High Princess of the People of the Water."
Prince Manaphy told the guard that was there to leave.
"Come," said Tui Viti Manaphy, walking away from all the people, "So, you are the High Princess of our people."
"Yes," said Kalena smiling, "I am the High Princess, and my husband is Hydro Priest Akamoteen, the one you are looking for. He talks much about you."
"Wait," the Tui Viti stopped walking, "Your husband is Akamoteen?"
"Yes, your majesty," said Kalena, "Why do we not take this conversation in my chambers?"
So they walked for a while until they reached a room with double doors. Kalena opened the door allowing Prince Manaphy to enter the room first and then entered herself.
The room was quite large. It had large light blue walls with windows showing the ocean outside.
"So, how long have you and Akamoteen been married?"
"Well," said Kalena, "We have been married for two months, but we were courting for ten before he asked my father for my hand in marriage."
"How did you meet him?"
"I was sitting on one of the bridges on the outer edges of the temple when he first saw me. I was singing, and he came up to me. He said that my voice reminded me of his friend and that it was so pure and so beautiful that he just had to come see who was singing. I was astounded. I never let anyone hear my voice, and the first person who hears me singing just happens to be the Hydro Priest."
"Were you apprehensive about courting him?"
"Very," Kalena laughed, "I thought that the hydro priest could do much better than me. I mean… There are so many more women that are smarter, prettier, and just over all better than me. Also, there are so many women that have a better connection to wai manumanu. You would think he would go after a girl that was the epitome of what our civilization says a woman to be."
"When did you know that you loved him?"
"It was around five months ago," Kalena smiled at her happy memory, "We were outside staring at the stars. He told me that he could not help but feel so grateful for living here and for being the current hydro priest. He told me that he thought that the elders would never choose him because he was so young, but they did it anyway. They somehow saw something in him just like how you saw something in him on that fateful day. You do not know this Tui Viti Manaphy, but the day Akamoteen found you, our people had just been driven out of the land we were staying in. We are not nomads by choice. People drive us away because we are foreigners in their land and prosperous while they are not. He said that he believed it was destiny when we met you just like it was destiny meeting me. At that moment I knew how much he loved our people and how much he loved me, which made me realize how much I loved him."
Kalena felt a bit exposed now. She had just dumped a whole lot of her thoughts and feelings onto the Tui Viti, and she didn't know what to do. She didn't want to embarrass herself in front of him, especially since her husband adored him.
Tui Viti Manaphy was pleased with Kalena's answers. They may have even loved Kalena. She was honest and sincere. They were glad that Akamoteen found someone to love and someone who loved him back.
All of a sudden, a small, wai manumanu with a long tail and a webbed mane came running into the room going towards Kalena. Kalena picked up the creature and started hugging and petting it.
"Tui Viti Manaphy, this is Mia, my vaporeon."
Prince Manaphy watched how Kalena and Mia interacted with each other. He noticed that they were very affectionate and that they looked happy together. This pleased him.
"You know," said Kalena, "I've always wondered what it would be like to be able to actually understand Mia when I am talking to her. I feel like I get a general understanding of what she is telling me, but I'm never a hundred percent sure. I just keep thinking that maybe, if I could just understand her, my bond with her would grow. But you don't have to go through that; so, I don't know why I just told you-"
"Sing with me," said Prince Manaphy.
"What?"
"Sing with me. I want you to sing with me. Please. When I sing, I am able to reach the hearts of others. I want to know if your voice can reach my heart. Then I will know who you truly are."
"Oh, um. Alright."
Kalena was a bit scared. She felt as if Tui Viti Manaphy just put a whole lot of pressure on her. She wanted to be perfect for them, but she was unsure if she would ever be. She has never sung in front of anyone before, and even though her husband has heard her sing before, he has never heard her sing purposefully to him.
However, all Kalena could do is try her best, and that's what she did.
Tui Viti Manaphy started singing first. Then when she felt ready, Kalena joined in too. They sounded beautiful together. Their voices resonated throughout the entire temple. Everyone could hear their song and were captivated by the love they felt.
When they stopped singing, they looked at each other and smiled.
"That was wonderful," smiled Akamoteen standing in the doorway.
Kalena gasped, "How long have you been here?"
"Long enough. You two sang wonderfully together."
Tui Viti Manaphy hopped over to Akamoteen and jumped into his arms.
"It's been quite a long time my friend," said Akamoteen, "I missed you greatly."
"I know. I missed you too. I just had a lot of work to do. You have a wonderful wife. She is perfect for you."
Kalena blushed at this.
"I know. That is why I love her so much."
"Akamoteen, Kalena," said Prince Manaphy, "I need you to gather all of the members of the People of the Water on the shore tomorrow."
"Ok," said Kalena, "But why? What are you going to do?"
"Just trust me," smiled Prince Manaphy, "It will all be worth it."
The next day had come and every Samiyan had arrived on the shore of the peninsula. All Samiyans young and old were waiting for Prince Manaphy to show up.
When Tui Viti Manaphy finally came, everyone was staring at him. He was carrying a golden scepter with a deep blue orb on top of it and the Sea Crown's emblem on the handle.
Tui Viti Manaphy created a podium made of water in the shallow depths in the middle of the shoreline. Powerful manumanu flanked them on all sides.
"As you all know, I am the one who called you all here today," said Tui Viti Manaphy.
Tui Viti Manaphy came to the beach strong and with a serious attitude. He knew that this would be one of the most important days in their lives.
"I am grateful for the great kindness and great respect that all of you have shown me. I am proud to call you my people. But I will not always be here. I cannot always protect you, but your Hydro Priest and your High Princess can. I have lent them my strength, my power. From now on The People of the Water shall be ruled by you Hydro Priest Akamoteen and you High Princes Kalena and all of your direct descendants. You shall rule your people with pure hearts and guide them towards harmony with manumanu, especially the ones with a water affinity, and help them develop a strong relationship with the All Father."
At this, there was slight unrest within the people. Never before had their Hydro Priest and High Princess been chosen through a family line. The elders have always been to one to choose them.
"I know this is all new to you," said Tui Viti Manaphy, "But this is my decision as long as you are my people. To show you how the line that I've chosen will bless all of you with a prosperous nation, I will bless them with my last and final gift to the People of the Water."
"This," said Tui Viti Manaphy referring to the scepter, "contains my final gift. The scepter is gold to symbolize the greatness and prosperity of this nation. The Sea Crown's emblem is on the handle to show the world that this belongs to the People of the Water. And the blue orb symbolizes your connection to the water and to me. This blue orb is called the Great Sea Spirit Sapphire. The Sea Spirit gives the master of this scepter the ability to communicate with wai manumanu. The master of this scepter can also give others the ability to communicate with wai manumanu for a few hours. The masters of this scepter will be the Hydro Priest, the High Princess, and the next in line for the throne."
Tui Viti Manaphy walked over to High Princess Kalena and gave her the scepter. The crowd was deathly silent wondering what would happen next.
"So that you will always know who your leaders are and who your next leader is, I will mark the Hydro Priest, the High Princess, and their future line."
Tui Viti Manaphy's antennae started to glow red and a symbol appeared on Priest Akamoteen's left arm.
"Hydro Priest Akamoteen has just been marked with the emblem of the Sea Crown," the crowd gasped, "Whoever the next hereditary priest or priestess from the line of Hydro Priest Akamoteen and High Princess Kalena will be born with the emblem of the Sea Crown on their left arm."
Tui Viti Manaphy's antennae started to glow red again and a necklace appeared on High Princess Kalena's neck replacing the one containing the sea crystals.
"Since High Princess Kalena was not chosen to be the High Princess, she will be given a necklace with the Sea Crown's emblem on it instead, but that does not diminish her power. She and her husband will rule the People of the Water together with equal power among you. High Princess Kalena will be given a replica of the necklace to give to her future son or daughter-in-law."
The crowd was silent. They didn't know what to think, what to feel, or what to say. It was as if they were in a daze. Akamoteen saw this and decided to say something.
"I would like to make some remarks," said Hydro Priest Akamoteen.
Tui Viti Manaphy nodded and let Akamoteen speak.
"I know that you are all scared. A lot of change has happened in these past few years. But I promise that these changes are the beginning of a new era for us. No more will we have to be kicked out of foreign lands. No more will we have to travel through the night trying to outrun our enemies. No more will we have to be nomads. Things that we thought were impossible are now possible. So I urge you, all of you, to support each other, to support the Elders, and to support me and my wife as we transition into a new period of our civilizations life. So please, will you lend us your strength?"
There was a yes here and a yes there. People were saying yeses everywhere! Cheering and clapping were happening throughout the crowd. Who knew Akamoteen could be so inspiring? Today was the first of many celebratory days.
Today was the start of a new era.
Word Count : 5,627 (original)
Updated Word Count: 6,392
Original Date Uploaded: Saturday, February 20, 2021
(originally posted on FFN in 2019)
Edited and Uploaded as a Oneshot: Saturday, November 4, 2023
Author's Notes:
I based some of the culture and language of the People of the Water off of Polynesian Islanders. When I first wrote this story, the influence was mostly from native Hawaiians. Now in the present day, because of the existence of Alola (as well as me wanting to write about them too lol), I decided to also take some influences from Fijian culture
(1) tan - think Shauna's skin tone
(2) dark - think Lenora's skin tone
* manumanu - Fijian word for animal; the People of the Water use this as the name for Pokemon; so Pokemon are called manumanu for them; translation from
(3) Almegan - combination of alpha and omega; one of the many deities of the Pokemon world that are connected to Arceus' pantheon
(4) wai - the Fijian word for water; so I used this word as a way to talk about how the People of the Water would call water pokemon (wai manumanu); translation from
(5) All Father - the Almegans are the children of Arceus, or as humans say the Original One. The Almegans refer to the Original One as either the All Father or the All Mother
(6) Tui Viti - when doing my research, the Kingdom of Fiji was established in 1871 after the collapse of their previous confederacy. The monarch of their new kingdom was given the title (to my understanding) of "Tui Viti." This is the title or honorific that the People of the Water use for Manaphy
(7) Kalena is Hawaiian for chaste, pure