Into Many Worlds - A Collection of Short Stories

Ura and the Turtle

Once upon a time, young men knew the heavy weight of honor and responsibility and carried it with pride. Ura, the eldest son of the tribe's chief, was no different.

He sat on the sand as the sea crashed and the white foam lapped at his feet. In the distance, Ura could hear the drums beginning their song of celebration, as he battled with his decision.

Bragged to be the best looking man in the tribe, his thick black hair reached to the small of his back, and smooth tanned skin covered his taut, lean body. He had his mother's light eyes and his father's strong chin. His father always said that their only differences were their eyes and that Ura had his mother's merciful and loving spirit.

"Ura, we must go." Jaka, the second eldest of their seven siblings, stood behind his older brother, gently reminding him of his duty.

Ura's role as a male and the next chief was to provide food for his tribe. He hunted, and he fished; anything that could feed his people. This made it bittersweet to pull the net out of the ocean to find this beautiful turtle.

Jaka kneeled down beside his brother and admired the creature. Though twisted and wrapped in the aging brown net, the turtle was relaxed as it looked at them.

"It is a beautiful turtle, Ura. We will have a grand feast tonight. The shell will make an excellent shield, and its skin—a lovely dress for our sister!"

Ura looked over at his brother, his mirror image, his twin, younger by just minutes; dark skin tanned from the sun, eyes as bright as the sea and the grass, and a smile that stretched from ear to ear. That same smile looked tight and grim on his brother's face. Jaka reached towards the turtle, eyes shining with hunger.

Ura shoved him over. "Don't touch her."

Jaka stared at him in shock and stood to shake the sand off.

Grains of sand fell in Ura's hair and onto his skin as he still stared at the turtle. "See you at the feast," he grumbled at his brother, dismissing him.

Without another sound, Jaka walked away to leave Ura staring into the eyes of his new friend. The heavy burden of being the eldest son sank in. He looked out onto the sea and let the somberness of responsibility crash into him.

"It's my responsibility to bring in the food to feed my village," he whispered out into the air. The sting of tears bit behind his lashes. "How can I bring you back to the village where you will no longer be the beautiful creature you are?"

Its bright green eyes swelled, reaching out to his spirit. The green swirled into the brown of the shining shell, dripping with water, hypnotizing him. Before Ura understood what was happening, the net was thrown away, and the turtle had reached the water.

Ura stood on weak knees as the waves began to slowly swallow the turtle, until it twisted its head to look back at him, waiting. His heart beat a cadence, pounding against his ribs as he heard the drums of the starting celebration.

"Go, you must go," he urged his friend, "before they come."

With the nod of the creature's head, time seemed to slow. Once again, he was mesmerized by the turtle's beauty, yet this beauty seemed strange to him.

A dust of sand swirled around the turtle, pushing back the blue water until it raged against an invisible wall. Before him, the animal he saved turned to him. It seemed to stand on two feet and grow.

Ura was too shocked to turn away from her. His lungs burned as he held his breath. His heart beat harder and faster, making him dizzy.

She reached one hand out to him. "Ura."