Islands of Fire Read online

  Though Kina has killed people before, she has never seen her own actions so reach so deeply into the lives of innocents. She feels her stomach tightening, and she barely has the chance to duck away from the assemblage before she loses the contents of her stomach in a clump of grass.

  Wiping her mouth, she slinks over to a tree and sits against it, letting the tears flow.

  At last the scene is over, and Kina can see Kauana`i gathering the recruits. She gets up and comes back, trying to compose herself.

  Kauana`i once more eyes her closely as she falls in line. “Everything all right, recruit?” he asks. “You seem disturbed. Surely you’ve seen people die before, great warrior!”

  “I’ve seen plenty,” she says, trying not to notice the other recruits staring at her. “Many of them have fallen by my hand. I’m simply weary from my voyage and from training.”

  “Yes, I’m sure that’s all it is,” Kauana`i says.

  The recruits are led back to the barracks. As they begin to once more prepare for their beds, Kauana`i corners Kina just outside the door. “I need to speak with you about your training tomorrow,” he says.

  The others file in through the door, and then it is just her and Kauana`i. Perfect. She has been waiting for this moment.

  “So, Mai of Apahana,” he says, unable to keep the sneer of sarcasm from his voice. “Have you considered our arrangement?”

  “I have,” she says. “Tomorrow night, then?”

  “So it shall be,” he says, and plants a kiss on her cheek. “Get some sleep. You have a full day of training tomorrow, and a full night of me after that.”

  “I look forward to it,” Kina says, and goes inside.

  Water and Blood

  The next morning, the recruits are roused from their beds and led on a punishing endurance run. It takes them down the coastline, up into the hills, along the narrow spine of a high razorback ridge, then back down through humid, dense forest. Kina wonders if this was planned, or if this is Kauana`i’s way of sending her a message.

  After a brief meal and rest, they spend the afternoon sparring in the yard. Sometimes they use hardened poles and clubs, and other times with their hands. They throw each other down in the mud, scramble through gravel and dirt, and pummel one another until everyone is bruised and weary.

  As the sun sets, there is music and dancing. A bonfire lights up the yard, everyone dining on a mouthwatering selection of meats and fruits.

  Despite the exertion, Kina’s appetite fails her. She manages to eat some papaya and a couple of strips of boar meat, but in the end she wanders away from the fire. She is just too nervous about Kauana`i, unsure how she’ll handle the situation. It’s clear she will have to kill him; she can only hope an opportunity presents itself.

  Looking up at the moons, both of which have risen and chase each other across the darkening sky, Kina whispers a quiet prayer to Mother Ocean, begging for her guidance. None comes.

  A voice behind her says, “Looking at the stars?”

  She turns to see Kauana`i leaning on a palm trunk. No telling how long her had been there.

  “The moons,” Kina says, returning her gaze to the heavens. “Back home, we used to call them ‘The Lovers.’ The big, dark one is Ku`a and the small, bright one is `Olo`au. Ku`a runs from `Olo`au, and then he lets her catch him and they make love, and then it is Ku`a’s turn to chase `Olo`au. They love one another but both are afraid. Love is dangerous. It is easy to get hurt.”

  Kauana`i moves closer, touching Kina on the shoulder. “`Olo`au shouldn’t play so hard to get. Ku`a is stronger, more powerful. The tides turn to him. The animals respond when he rides high. Even women respond to him. `Olo`au should be grateful for such a lover.”

  “She is, in her way. She’s lonely. But she is also frightened.”

  “What is there to fear? She will be treated well. And she will learn that Ku`a grants favors to those who return his affections.”

  Without looking at him, Kina says, “Enough talk.”

  “I agree. But we cannot do anything here. There are too many people around. I have a place I like to go. Follow me there.”

  He breaks away, and Kina watches him return to his hut. After a while, he exits with his shark-tooth club, walking off purposefully, as though he has business he must attend.

  Kina trails behind him, keeping a good distance. She considers retrieving a weapon of her own, but knows she would only arouse suspicion. She needs to be able to leave the village without drawing much attention. Once she meets Kauana`i, she’ll have to move quickly to take the club from him.

  Kauana`i leads her out to the shore. Waves crumple against the sugary beach, still lit up by the remnants of sunset. Kauana`i heads along the dunes, walking slowly as though just out for a pensive walk. It isn’t until they’ve gone a long time, the village out of sight behind them, that he stops.

  The beach he has chosen is secluded, a C-shaped inlet cut into the shoreline. Waves lap against a line of rocks offshore that prevent larger combers from reaching the sand. Kina can see Kauana`i come to a stop, gazing out at the water, his long hair catching the onshore night breeze.

  Kina’s feet crunch sand as she walks toward him. “I chose a romantic place,” he says. “Do you like it?”

  “I do,” Kina says. “I bet the other girls did, too.”

  He looks at her. His shark-tooth club is tethered to his side. Both of his hands are on his hips, a casual-looking pose, but Kina knows he doesn’t yet trust her.

  “What does that matter? You’re here because you think of yourself. I know women like you. There isn’t anything you won’t do in the pursuit of what you want. So, what do you want?”

  “Right now?” Kina asks. “I want you.”

  “I don’t mean right now,” Kauana`i says. “You came to Keli`anu, looking to become one of the Burning Warriors. That much I believe to be true. But you aren’t from Apahana. My best guess is that you come from the far west. You don’t act like someone from a small island, so that means Holuatao`o is out of the question. You don’t speak like the people from Aiku`anu. That leaves Kotuhiwa, and I’d be willing to bet you actually come from Huka`i. You learned how to fight somewhere. Perhaps you were in the military there. Am I close?”

  “Very close,” Kina says, moving right up to him and wrapping her arms around his neck. She plants a kiss on his lips.

  He starts to say something else, but gets caught up in Kina’s touch. When she pulls her lips away, he says, “Lie down.”

  Kina takes one step back as if to obey his command, then reaches for the club at Kauana`i’s side. She tugs on it but it won’t come free; the leather thong is looped around whalebone clasp.

  Kauana`i glares at her, realization of his suspicions confirmed. He kicks Kina squarely in the chest, staggering her back. Out of balance, she trips and stumbles into the water. By the time she has her hands under her and can think about standing back up, Kauana`i has unclasped the club. He strides toward her.

  “I should have just killed you,” he says with a grunt, and swings the club.

  Kina dives out of the way, plunging once more in to the water. Now knee-deep, the shifting sands beneath her feet make for treacherous footing. She manages to get back to her feet, but Kauana`i is advancing once more, swinging the club in precise arcs that miss her by scant inches.

  “I’m going to beat you, but not to death,” he says through gritted teeth. “Just nearly. Then I’ll have my way with you. You see? I win. I always win. And when I’m done, I kill you.”

  Kina slogs deeper, now up to her waist, trying to stay away from him.

  “Where do you think you’re going?” he asks. “You think you’ll swim away, do you?”

  Kina shouts, “Mother Ocean, I need help!”

  “You’re calling to Mother Ocean? What makes you think she’ll listen to a lying rat like you?”

  Something brushes past her feet. Instinctively reaching down, Kina takes hold of something jagged and hard.

  K
auana`i is close, now, and he raises his club to bring it down on Kina’s head. Before he can start his swing, she raises her hand out of the water, clutching the razor-sharp white pahi. Kauana`i’s eyes widen. Without hesitating, Kina slashes at Kauana`i with the pahi, and in one clean swing cleaves his legs off his body.

  For a moment she just stands there, feeling the warm water surging around her legs. Kauana`i is still alive. His torso bobs in the waves and his eyes swivel around in confusion and horror.

  There’s a quick motion in the water. A shark flashes forward and takes hold of Kauana`i’s arm. He starts to scream, but is dragged underwater.

  Kina drops the pahi. It returns to the ocean without a splash, as though absorbed by the water itself. She staggers away from the shark, her instinctive fear gradually being replaced with the sure knowledge the the shark won’t hurt her.

  She crawls back onto the beach and watches the shark finish its grim work. When at last the water is still, Kina gets to her feet and begins to make her way back toward Toko-Mua.

  At dawn, the recruits are awakened and led out into the yard to resume their practice. One of the trainers, a hard woman named Ahia, takes her aside.

  “Not today. Your training will begin in earnest when you come back.”

  “Where am I going?”

  Ahia looks at Kina as though regarding a dull-witted child. “To the Shrine,” she says, and walks off.

  Kina ponders this as she waits for her escort to arrive. Two warriors, clad in battle regalia, finally arrive with Ahia and make Kina roll up her bed. “You won’t be back for a while,” she says.

  Kina looks around. “Where is Kauana`i? Is he not taking me there?”

  “Kauana`i is missing,” Ahia says, a tinge of concern showing through her brusque professionalism. “We have people looking for him.”

  “Has he run off?”

  “Kauana`i is very dedicated to the Order,” Ahia says. “It isn’t like him to run away. Still, if he has fled, we will find him.”

  The four of them leave Toko-Mua along a trail that cuts right into the forest.

  For many hours they hike along an increasingly-steep trail. The hot lowland forest gradually gives way to a rain forest of dense ferns and towering trees. Winding along the high slopes, the trail finally takes them into the narrow cleft of a mountain valley. Here, the sun is hidden most of the day behind peaks on either side. Kina can see a tremendous waterfall, slender but almost impossibly tall, that drops from a lofty rock shelf, its cold waters carving out the valley. Plants crowd the trail and obscure Kina’s vision for a while, and when finally the trail breaks free from the vegetation she is shocked at what she sees.

  At the base of the waterfall is a roughly circular shallow lake. Crowding the lake on either shore are the mossy, crumbling remains of a mazelike city that must have housed thousands of people in its day. Dominating the center of the city is a rocky hill upon which stands a structure, shaped exactly like the temple in the desolate ruins in Lohoke`a.

  So this was where the Cult of the Ebon Flame drew inspiration. Kina knows, without even yet setting foot in this ruined city, that it will match the one on Lohoke`a. After all, it had been built by the descendants of Mother Fire’s gods, the kakonakeahi. They must have been spread all across Mokukai, Kina thinks, building their cities on every island. Was there a Kota`ianapahu in every city? No, there were only three of the relics, Kina recalls. But perhaps once there had been more. It was long ago, after all.

  “What is this place?” she asks.

  “We call this Ka`atahako. It’s an old word that means, ‘Place of Ghosts.’”

  “So it’s haunted?” she asks.

  Ahia says nothing. The group works its way into the labyrinthe of old stone walls and avenues. Unlike the ruins in Lohoke`a, these rocks are covered in moss from the perpetual mist coming down off the waterfall. In places where the moss doesn’t grow, Kina can see weathered old carvings. They’re hard to make out, victims of time and erosion, but Kina can tell they look astonishingly similar to those at Lohoke`a. Not coincidentally, they also remind her of the runes that had been carved along the obsidian pahi. After all, it had been found here, she reminds herself. No doubt it had been discovered in a chamber much like the one where the strange burning shield had rested all these centuries.

  The center of the old city gathers around the rocky hill upon which the old temple stands. This one looks to be in better shape than the one on Lohoke`a. While that one had gaps in the tall, spear-like roof where the stones had fallen through, this one appears largely untouched. Or perhaps it had been repaired? As they grow closer, Kina begins to suspect the latter. Many of the stones on its towering roof are free from the moss that seems to grow every in this city.

  It soon becomes obvious that Ahia is leading Kina to the temple. On either side of the entry arch burn two guttering torches. From deep within comes a red glow like embers in the core of a dying campfire.

  “Am I to receive special training here?”

  Ahia replies, “All recruits are brought here when they have shown their mettle in combat. Congratulations, Mai, you have passed to the next stage. Say nothing as we go in. I shall do the talking. Speak only when spoken to.”

  They walk through the arch. The interior of the temple is open, just as the others had been. The same ring-like trench with one open face is cut into the floor, surrounding a raised platform, and this one is also filled with crackling fire. In the center of the room at the top of the platform is a stone slab. Strange implements of bone and wood are laid out on one end of the slab. Waiting for them is the kupuna named Meke`u. He is wearing ceremonial garb of red feathers with yellow inlay that create the appearance of a cloak on fire. There are others here, too, six of them, standing against the far wall.

  “Is this the recruit who is known by the name of Mai?” Meke`u asks.

  “It is,” Ahia says.

  “And who is presenting her?”

  “Ahia Te`aha`eku of Toko-Mua.”

  “Send her forward.”

  Kina walks forward until she is told to stop.

  “Turn around, Mai, and honor the Guardian of the Fire.”

  Kina turns as instructed and sucks in a breath in shock. Hanging over the doorway, suspended by lengths of twisted rope, hangs a massive skull easily the size of three humans. It looks like nothing Kina has seen before, a long, flat cranium graced with a crown of horns, gaping empty eye sockets, and a row of shark-like teeth.

  What kind of creature could have had such a monstrous, hideous head? Kina gazes at the jagged saw of its jaws, imagining them clacking shut on a screaming warrior, instantly slicing him to ribbons.

  “Bow!” she hears Meke`u shout. Kina drops to her knees and prostrates herself before the thing. Her pulse is racing, sweat forming on her brow. It is hot in here, and she is starting to think she knows what this might be…

  “Rise, and face me.”

  Meke`u bids her to come over to the slab. When she is standing beside it, he raises his arms.

  “Mai Pu`i of Apahana, you have been called today to the sacred shrine of the Holy Fire to receive your warrior’s mark, and your baptism in fire. Do you seek the secrets of the Flame?”

  “I do.”

  “Then your initiation is to begin. From this day forward, you will no longer be Mai Pu`i of Apahana, but Mai Te`aha`eku of Toko-Mua. Your old life is no more. You give your life to the Flame. Please, disrobe.”

  Kina hesitates only a moment, then peels off the kapa skirt. Meke`u instructs her to climb onto the slab, and she does so. The others standing near the wall now come forward, carrying bowls of oil. They anoint her with it, filling the room with an intoxicating scent that immediately starts to go to Kina’s head. She can feel her skin warming under the oil, the blood coursing through her body. When she closes her eyes, she sees only roiling clouds filled with burning sparks. Somewhere she is sure she can hear a sibilant hiss, a long and deep grumble. When she opens her eyes again, the room seems much darke
r. The shadows of the people around her are cast high on the wall like dancing giants. Their faces seem distorted.

  “What-“

  “The initiate is not to speak during the ritual of the Flame,” Meke`u says. At some point he has donned a mask, one depicting a cruel-faced woman roaring with rage.

  The others have taken up the strange tools at the end of the slab. They are now standing all around her, three on each side. Each holds a different implement in one hand and a small wooden bowl in the other. They dip the sharp tips of the tools into the bowls, then lean in toward her with them. Kina can see the sharp points dripping with black dye.

  Now she realizes what the ritual is about — the tattoos! She tries to sit up, to leap off the slab, but she finds she cannot move. Her entire body has gone numb with the strange oil. It seems the only thing that can move are her eyes and her mouth. Her nostrils flare and she tries to scream, but now nothing even comes from her throat.