The Light in Aquala

The old woman watched as her best friend Martha was helped into the last boat by the swarthy fishermen.  The children whom Martha cared for, all who had lost their parents, and her 2 cats and 3 little dogs were already settled inside the boat, watching her with scared eyes, unsure of what was happening.

Bjibj watched as Martha got comfortably settled and then raised her eyes, looking over to her once more. Her eyes were filled with concern and silently pleaded for #000 to join them.

Bjiji smiled slightly, nodding her head, a gesture acknowledging her friend's concern, while at the same time reassuring her that she would be okay. Martha shook her head in frustration at her best friend, knowing that once Bjiji made up her mind, nothing would convince her to change it.

The boat was finally loaded and ready to go and as the oars were gently lowered into the ocean, a ripple of excited whispers started among the children.

The scariness of the clicking noises and the multitude of the strange, bright neon floating lights hovering above the jungle canopy were being quickly forgotten as they embarked on their new adventure.

Salt spray splashed against their eager faces, the morning air refreshing and a warm breeze caught the sail, speeding them along.  She watched for a few moments before turning her back to them and heading towards her hut.

She could hear the barking of Martha's dogs as they happily defended the boat against the squawking seagulls.  The birds gracefully glided on the air currents, hovering over the boat, hoping there would soon be little fish thrown overboard that they could greedily partake of.

They were used to the fishing boats sharing their wares with them, even though the humans kept the biggest fish for themselves.  This day was very unusual, since the fisherman had a boat full of people and animals instead of fish.

It was a very strange morning for the birds, who were still keeping a wary eye upon the bright Neon lights that were retreating, backing away from the beach, heading deeper into the jungle.

As Bjiji walked stiffly back across the beach, she slowed a few times and helped herself to some roasted fruits and sweetbreads from the morning fires. The villagers had already taken what they could carry and had left the rest behind when they fled this morning.

Most of the village had escaped along the coastline trail heading North, where they would meet up with those in the boats filled with the infirm, the older ones and Martha and her children.

She would miss them all but knew that she would catch up with them later, after she had delivered the messages that only she knew about.

The old woman hobbled up the few stairs into her hut and closed the door gently.

She made her way slowly to her table and sat down, enjoying her meal, surprisingly relaxed despite the organized flurry of activity this morning.

Bjiji sipped the last of her tea and breathed in the warm comforting scent of the last piece of sweetbread before popping it into her mouth.

She then walked over to her sink and washed her tea mug, dried it carefully, and then slowly turned to look at the wooden chest at the back of her simple hut.

She had casually placed some blankets and odds and ends on top of it.  No one knew about the secrets it had been keeping secure for so many decades.

It looked like every other wooden chest common in their village, maybe just a little older, weathered and scratched.  She hadn't opened it for decades, not until this morning when she had taken the ancient box out of it and given it to Mara.

Mara was one of only two people that #000 had ever met that had the Neon on her face.

Mara's Neon glowed the most beautiful blue and green colors, swirling rapidly whenever she was excited.  Her long blue Neon hair was lit up at night with tiny little lights, which could be seen that running up and down the occasional strand at night.

Bjiji's Mother had told her that she was bound to meet someone with the Neon when she grew old, since that would be the time when this fascinating trait would reappear once again.  It seemed to skip generations, and someone was born with this dormant gene only once every third generation or so.

It was supposed to appear soon after they were born, and this was the case with both Mara and her sister Lena.

Lena had glowing golden hair and exquisite Neon orange glows on her face.  They danced like little flames of fire when her emotions were heightened by joy or fear. She was adventurous and full of life, whereas Mara was studious and loved the world of science.

Although so very different, they were inseparable growing up.

Many in the village had become used to seeing the sister's unusual looks, and the little children were always delighted and fascinated by the colors swirling.

But there were a few that would look at them in sideways glances, their eyes narrowing in dislike or suspicion.  These were the ones that #000 had always kept her eye on, since it was her duty to guard these sisters as they grew up.

Even though no one else in the village knew of her assignment, she took it seriously.