When Souls Breathe On

Part IV ~ The Sea's Mysteries

"What do you want more than anything?"

"Life."

The voice came from above the waters. Yet not from the sky. It was not good. Yet it sounded like honey.

"Life?" It said. "Why life when you could have power or wealth or knowledge?"

"Because with life I can have all of those. If I chose only one I would die then loose everything." The girl replied. She flashed her eyes. "Life is all there is to want.

The honey-voice whispered "Sometimes the thing you want most, even when good, has a funny way of coming at the only time you would wish it would not."

Casuarina's eyes widened. The subtlety was gone – replaced by fear.

For she had been given life.

Kasha grabbed Patrick as soon as he exited the gate. "Perry!" She tried to make her voice sound happy. But right now she was going through some terrible thoughts.

Rejection.

And Patrick had been allowed inside.

Uncertainty.

But Patrick was found.

And when she saw that, and fully remembered the importance of this, all her days of worry over him she momentarily forgot the Temple, the blue lights, and the bloody feather. "I'm so glad that you are okay." In her mind she laughed as she realized how stupid her words were. He was basically dead. A floating soul.

One that was all but alive.

Still she hugged him as tight as she could.

"Kaasha." He hadn't changed. Being dead hadn't changed his mind at all. They had allowed him in. What did one had to do to be worthy? She perplexed over this only a moment before hugging her brother again.

Kisel meanwhile had been standing back, all this time watching the two. He was not awkward, he just didn't know what to do. And also he remembered how angry he was when he had been denied entrance. It was one of the few things he could remember. That, and his pride and anger that had forced others to drag him away from the gates.

But now that Kasha seemed to be getting half-way over her excited anger and surprise, he approached them. "This is your brother, I suppose?"

"Yes. This is Patrick. Perry, this is Kisel." She had to grab hold of his arm as he was getting distracted.

The boy smiled at Kisel. "Hi." His grin was very full of teeth, his red hair wild and the water floated through it, making it go wild every where.

It was then Kasha understood why everyone had dreads or braids. The wild look was nice, but it probably would get irritating.

Before Kisel could answer the boy, Patrick was already looking away.

Kasha tried to apologize. "Sorry, he isn't always that rude."

"No need to be sorry," Kisel smiled. "It's perfectly okay."

Now that the initial shock was over, Kasha decided to ask what was on her mind. "Perry how did you get in there?"

He grinned and pointed to the man with the scales and feather. "He lets me in. He says I issh gooot. I am bigg an gooot." And then he made a face. "But he cuts me, Kassha wif thet pokey fethar'."