Ocean: The Sea Warriors (12 page)

It was dark in the islands when Gwyneth McDevitt greeted the first arrivals off the south shore of Oahu, swimming joyously in their midst beneath the starlight, knowing where the massive creatures were without the need for much illumination. Around her were blue, sperm, bowhead, and humpback whales, giant squids and octopuses, ocean sunfish, whale sharks, huge groupers from the deep ocean, dugong sea cows from Australia, and long-necked plesiosaurs that had been mistakenly thought to be extinct.

As soon as enough of the large creatures had arrived, spreading across the water like a single, sprawling organism, she dispatched them on the assignment she wanted, the one she had recommended to Kimo in the presence of other Sea Warriors, and which he had refused. Despite his wishes, she intended to seal off Hawaii from the sea by surrounding the major islands, preventing all boat traffic from either arriving or leaving. She sensed strongly,
very
strongly, that it was not enough to only strike the major swimming beaches—the demonstration of ocean power needed to be bigger. The protest needed to be bigger. And if this was not enough to get humans to change, Gwyneth had an even more extensive plan.

While numerous species of marine animals had responded to her call, Gwyneth felt a special affinity for the whales—not one type in particular, but all of them, collectively. They gave her comfort, and she knew that more whales were coming, and more of other species as well. She heard the songs of whales, the vibrating of air inside their bodies that could be heard many miles away. She even heard the sounds of whales coming from the arctic regions of the north Atlantic, such as narwhal (unicorn) whales, unique animals with long, gnarled tusks. Thankfully, the whale populations around the world were considerably larger than scientists had estimated, because many of these animals—like other large creatures—had been using their intelligence and instincts to survive, diving deep to stay out of the way of humans, keeping themselves from extinction.

Since joining the Sea Warriors (whose efforts she still admired), an odd sensation had been coming over Gwyneth, that she was more fish than human, more a creature of the ocean than of the land. Her family and all of her human experiences were fading memories in her mind; there had been so much pain that she didn’t want to think about that part of her life anymore.

For some time, ever since the data about the ocean began flowing into Gwyneth’s brain from a mysterious source that she later identified as Moanna, she had felt a more special relationship with the sea than ever—a sea that had been beckoning to her to her for years before that, inviting her to dip into the water and swim with the creatures that inhabited it.

Curiously, though, the flow of ocean information had ceased entirely after Gwyneth’s transformation into a hybrid, as if the teenager had absorbed all she possibly could, and there was no room for more. Or, perhaps—and she didn’t see how that could be possible—she had every bit of information there was to have. She didn’t think that was the case. In fact, she was
certain
of it, because she learned new things every day she was in the water. Or thought she learned them. Maybe they were actually details that Moanna had already programmed into her, but became effective gradually, like the nutrients in a time-release vitamin.

And she realized she had the answer to this question, at least in part, because there were different sources of information, including the kind you were told, or learned from personal experience, or which you already knew from instinct.

Gwyneth felt a peculiar, but undeniable sensation that she was changing into something else entirely, something that owed no allegiance to humankind. And not just emotionally and intellectually; she was undergoing a physical metamorphosis. Whenever she touched her face, she felt the features smoothing over, flattening—and her eyes were growing larger. Something was happening to the rest of her body as well, though not as quickly. The changes were not painful at all; in fact, she found them exceedingly pleasant, and looked forward to their completion, when she developed into whatever the ocean wanted her to become, whatever Moanna wanted her to become.

***

Chapter 15

Yesterday, after shutting down the major beaches of Hawaii, the Sea Warriors had all been very tired. Returning to Loa’kai late in the day, some of them had gone into town to eat, while others decided that the small quantities of food they’d eaten from the sea were enough. That evening, back at Crimson Cove, they’d all fallen asleep on the sand. All except Gwyneth, who had vanished on the way to Kauai with Alicia. Everyone was worried about the missing teenager.

Now it was the following morning, and Kimo was the first to awaken, at the break of dawn. Carefully, he moved Alicia’s arm, which had been draped over his chest, and rose to his feet.

He waded into the warm, shallow water, splashed some on his face, and used it to slick back his hair, using his fingers for a comb. Then, while waves lapped gently against his ankles, he squinted in the direction of the sunrise that sparkled across the sea, and thought he saw something out on the surface of the water—a number of lumpy objects. Going back to the beach, he crossed the cinder sand and climbed a short distance up the trail toward Jiddy’s cave, then looked again. Something was definitely out there. Whales, he thought, and other large marine creatures, congregated together like a chain on the surface of the sea. A very long chain. He could not see where the line of animals ended on the right or on the left.

Worried about their welfare, Kimo swam out in the gently rolling waves. Reaching them, he went from creature to creature, touching their sides, looking into their large eyes, speaking to them in gentle tones. All of them seemed healthy, and when he swam under them to the outside he still saw no end to the chain—it extended along the shore of Loa’kai island as far as he could see in either direction, and seemed to curve around the island.

This was very strange, and became even more so when he identified plesiosaurs with the large animals. Although the long-necked creatures were thought to be extinct, he already knew that was not the case, because he had previously seen them in the depths of the ocean, where they concealed themselves for their survival. But what were they doing in Hawaii, and why were they in this formation?

In the water, he became aware of a voice, calling out his name—and he recognized it as Gwyneth McDevitt’s, transmitted to him through the molecules of the sea: “Come to Honolulu quickly, the entrance to Pearl Harbor! Bring the Sea Warriors!”

“What is it?” Kimo asked her. “Are you all right?

And, though Gwyneth had always spoken haltingly when using her vocal chords, now her words formed smooth sentences, with a hint of her British accent: “The Navy is using warships like ice breakers, trying to push blue whales that are blocking the harbor out of the way. The creatures are crying out in pain, but are resisting, pushing the big ships back, even driving one of them against a rock breakwater.”

“Gwyneth, what is going on?”

She told him how she had summoned the biggest marine animals in existence, that many had arrived and more were on their way, from all the seas in the world. She said she had gone against his orders and used the big animals to seal off every one of the major Hawaiian islands from the ocean, stopping all boats and ships from going in or out.

“Put an end to it!” Kimo transmitted. “You’ve gone too far, interfered with the military and commercial operations of the United States. We don’t want to be in that position!”

“I must refuse,” she responded. “I will not change this.”

In a state of agitation, Kimo rousted his followers and gave them a quick explanation—what little he knew. Within a few minutes, the Sea Warriors swam under the ring of large-bodied creatures around Loa’kai island. Then Alicia, summoning all of her strength, successfully generated her largest wave yet—more than enough to accommodate everyone—and they sped toward Honolulu.

It was unlike anything Kimo had ever seen before, and certainly not what he had intended when he decided to put on a demonstration in the Hawaiian islands—and far beyond anything that Jimmy Waimea had written about in yesterday’s Honolulu Mercury News. In a buzz of noise, police and news helicopters hovered overhead, while small planes circled. Pleasure craft, fishing boats, and large ships were anchored inside the circle of sea animals, and outside it as well. Most of the harbor patrol and police boats were inside it. And, just as Gwyneth had said, the U.S. Navy was using two destroyers from the Pearl Harbor side in an attempt to nudge whales and other large creatures out of the way.

Off to one side, Gwyneth swam beside a blue whale, and she appeared to be using the molecular system to transmit tactics to the animals—because wherever the military ships were trying to push, additional large-bodied animals appeared, and pushed back. In addition, whale sharks and sunfish bumped against the sides of the ships’ bows to divert them, while additional animals pushed the sides of the sterns of the vessels, causing them to go off course, but constantly attempting coming back as their desperate crews tried to regain control.

He saw the captain of one vessel standing on a forward deck with binoculars, trying to figure out what was going on, and how to counter it. Seamen in crisp white uniforms lined the decks of both ships, some with cameras—until a sudden downpour of rain forced most of them back inside, and caused the helicopters and planes to turn back or try to fly above the clouds. Finally, the destroyers gave up and steamed back into Pearl Harbor.

At the head of the Sea Warriors, Kimo swam to Gwyneth, who had crawled onto the back of one of the smaller humpback whales. Leaving his other followers in the water, he climbed up to sit beside her.

“I don’t know what got into you, to do this,” he said. “It’s causing complete chaos, and is not helping our cause one bit. It will only make people angry with us because of what I told Jimmy Waimea to print, and they will link this event to that story, saying I didn’t tell the truth. It’s about my credibility; you’ve gone so far beyond what I intended that it makes me look like a liar.”

“A bigger event was needed,” Gwyneth said, no longer speaking with halting words. Her eyes were bright, and even more strikingly blue than before. “I put up floating barricades around each island.” She stared at him with intensity and determination. “I told you we needed to shut down more than swimming beaches, but you didn’t listen. The plight of the ocean is a serious matter, a very serious matter. It goes beyond using tourists to gain publicity for our cause.”

He started to say something when he noticed that her face seemed slightly different—something around the eyes, nose, and mouth. Were the features a little smoother and flatter? Were the eyes larger than before? And her ears—they didn’t look right, either. Too small? Kimo tried to remember what she’d looked like the last time he saw her, but wasn’t certain, and felt overwhelmed by pressure and anxiety. Stress could be playing tricks with his mind.

Tears streamed down Gwyneth’s face. “Finally, the ocean is speaking out!” she exclaimed, “and this
will
get the attention of the world. For decades, the Cousteau family and other good people have publicized the plight of the ocean, have lobbied for changes and had some successes—but not enough. The time for niceties is past. The time for negotiation is past. We need
direct
action; we need to get in peoples’ faces, and refuse to move. We need to interfere with their use of the seas.”

“Gwyneth, please listen to me when I say –“

She cut him off with a crisp retort: “I will not listen to any argument asking me to change this.”

“Very well.” Kimo slid down the side of the whale into the water, and swam beneath the surface, alongside the cordon of large sea creatures. While doing that he transmitted commands to all of the animals, ordering them to disperse throughout the Hawaiian islands, for this demonstration to end immediately.

But when he surfaced again, he saw that nothing had changed. In fact, just as Gwyneth had said, more large animals kept arriving, adding to the bulk of the resistance—some were species he’d never seen before in these waters. He tried several times more, then gave up and conferred with Alicia.

The rain had stopped, and the clouds were drifting away, toward the west. In increasing sunlight, Kimo and Alicia swam in place on the surface, while more than two hundred Sea Warriors gathered around them, waiting to be told what to do.

“She’s summoned many species that are rarely seen in Hawaiian waters, or which have never been here before,” Kimo said. “Dugongs, narwhal whales, minke whales, even creatures thought to be extinct, such as
plesiosaurs
. I don’t like this; I’m fearful of the consequences.”

“We need to begin by going to Jimmy Waimea and explaining what happened,” Alicia suggested. “At least that will stem the tide of anger against us. Gwyneth has gone rogue, and we’re not able to change what she did.”

“Maybe we could take her into our custody,” Kimo said, “and somehow force her to do what we want. That probably wouldn’t work, though. She’s too intense, too focused on what she thinks is right.”

Gwyneth surfaced behind them as Kimo was talking, and she said, “You’re right. It wouldn’t work. I feel no allegiance to humans; I don’t care if you look like a liar, because that is beyond my personal feelings. I am a creature of the sea, owing my loyalty to the sea. You should feel the same.”

With that, she turned and started to swim away, until Kimo grabbed one of her arms. She was small, didn’t resist. A whale outside the barricade turned toward Kimo and drew closer, but remained a distance away. Kimo looked at the teenager and said, “I’d like you to remain with me now, and we’ll try to figure out the best thing to do together. Does that sound all right with you?”

“I already know the best thing to do.”

“You owe me and the other Sea Warriors some allegiance, Gwyneth. We got you out of that hospital and brought you here, invited you to join our organization.”

She pulled her arm free, but made no effort to leave. “I am still a Sea Warrior,” she said. “All right, we’ll work together.”

The whale turned away, resumed its place in the formation.

An hour later, Kimo, Alicia, and Gwyneth met Jimmy Waimea on the island’s southern shore, at One’ula Beach. The newspaperman greeted them as they emerged from the water and walked onto the sand.

With a grim smile, the small Hawaiian man removed his sunglasses and said to Kimo, “You’re certainly causing a lot of trouble. And embarrassment for me and my paper. You didn’t tell me the truth, did you?”

“I did,” Kimo insisted, “what I knew of it, that is.”

“One of our members went rogue,” Alicia said, without looking at Gwyneth. “Our warriors were only supposed to shut down the beaches, but one of us had other ideas, and managed to secretly summon all of these mammoths to the islands.”

“Including at least one species that was believed to be extinct,” Jimmy said. “Plesiosaurs, if what our oceanographer friend Fuji Namoto says is correct. Speaking of the governor’s wife, she’s here in Honolulu, and tells me she’s setting up a new Sea Warrior office.” He paused. “I have many questions to ask you, Cousin.”

“And I have very few answers. I wish the demonstration didn’t get out of hand like this, but at this point all I can do is to try to convince our … rebellious member … to disperse the animals.”

Jimmy looked at Gwyneth for a long moment, then said to Kimo, “At least the local environmental activists are on your side. I’m going to be covering their demonstration in downtown Honolulu later today. They already supported the beach shutdowns you did yesterday, and now they’re organizing a big march to protest the action of the Navy in trying to push the whales and other leviathans out of the way. The animal rights folks are up in arms about that.”

Kimo nodded. “It’s all happening fast.”

“Too fast for a small-time newspaperman like me. The national news organizations are setting up operations here, in force—they’re coming in by air, on every flight from the mainland.”

“I just want them to write our story honestly.”

“You can be sure I will, but you are making powerful enemies, including the U.S. military and the federal government, who call you eco-terrorists and charge that blocking Pearl Harbor is a national defense matter. Except for environmentalists, animal-rights people, and a handful of scientists, there is a big public outcry against you, too, and the local business community isn’t happy, either. The blockade of the islands is causing quite a ruckus in the tourist industry around here, Kimo, especially when everyone learned it was intentional and you were involved—even if you say you were only trying to shut down the beaches. The flames are being fanned by bad press from the newspapers, television stations, and radio stations that Alicia’s grandfather owns. Mr. Ellsworth already had a grudge against your family before all this, so don’t expect him to ever publish anything positive about you.”