Kelp Cleanup at Aquella: The Plan

Taro opens his eyes after walking through the portal into Aquella. He looks ahead to see at what’s  supposed to be an ocean, that is layered with dark green mush. His nose is hit by a pungent smell. He can’t help but shake his head in disgust.

 

Immediately he notices an enormous gray seal on the sand with white color around its eyes. It matches the description of the one he would meet up with, regarding the flyer posting he read back at the inn. It is gazing longingly into the distance as if it had lost all hope.

 

“Hi, are you Sundra?,” Taro whispers before he realizes he would probably have to say it again but more louder.

 

The seal’s eyes grow wide as it flinches, not expecting to hear a voice right behind her.

 

“Oh my goodness!! You caught me off guard! Yes, hello I am she! Welcome to Aquella! Are you here regarding the posting about the cleanup of kelp on our waters?”

 

 

“Yes I am. My name is Taro. I read about what has been happening here, and I’ve come to offer my support!”

 

 

“Thank you Taro! As you can see its quite an eyesore.. but the more help the better! Those frilled urchins, as small as they are, wreck so much havoc on our waters. As you can see there aren’t very many of them at the surface right now as I’ve.. Dispatched most of them myself. But that’s only one temporary solution to our problem.”

 

Taro stopped himself before saying anything after he looked at her face. She had small gashes and a few  purple pins sticking out of the entrance of her mouth. As if she has been ferociously chewing away at something that would surely cause pain to someone.. right? He deduced to not ask about it.

 

“Give me one moment to check something Sundra.” Taro says to her in a reassuring manner.

 

“I think I have an idea.”

 

Taro spreads his wings, and after stretching them out, he darts heavenward into the infinite blue sky.

 

“Its endless. Endless kelp for what seems like miles,” Taro says to himself as his body is being up-drafted by the salty pacific gusts.

 

“But. There is quite a bit of barren land off in the distance that could probably hold some of this kelp. Its not much, but its something.”

 

Taro descends towards the island that seemed to at one point had a lot of foliage but is now desolate. He lands feet first onto the soil and starts to theorize to himself.

 

“Okay I know exactly what to do.”

 

Taro makes his way back to where Sundra is and notices other seals surfacing in the distance. He lands next to her and she begins to tell him about how the waters have been getting colder since the kelp is blocking the sunlight from reaching the ocean bed floor.

 

“I see. That would affect it quite a lot I’m sure... Sundra, I have an idea, but I’m going to need to have your back with this.”

 

 

“Of course, anything!” The seal said unknowing to her that it would be something quite literal.

 

Taro flies onto her back and asks her if he is too heavy. Sundra jokingly tells him he is as light as a feather. Taro flies off her back.

 

Sundra then rolls into the water per Taro’s instruction, and plows through the kelp towards the direction of the barren island, with Taro flying along her.

 

---

 

Taro shouts from the skies, “We’re almost there!!”

 

As they arrive at the island Sundra’s eyes begin to open as if she had recalled something important.

 

“I remember this place!!” Sundra says as she shakes off the remaining kelp from her body. “This is where two great dragons battled. Their underwater fight surfaced here for a bit and scorched everything that was alive. No one comes here anymore since there is nothing left.”

 

“I figured something catastrophic happened here, but I wouldn’t have fathomed it would’ve been that.”

Taro shivers at the thought of dragons lurking around the ocean.

 

Taro lands at the coast of the barren island with Sundra quickly pulling in behind him.

 

“You might want to get back quite a bit. This is going to get crazy,” Taro vocalizes.

 

Taro stands still as he begins to concentrate. Suddenly an immense wind encircles him.

 

Taro gestures his arms towards the kelp mats over the water and immediately the wind around him rushes over towards it. The wind swoops under it and pulls it up into the air. Taro motions his arms towards the dry dirt towards the middle of the island and the soppy kelp gets propelled towards the ground.

 

Splat!

 

Sundra looks at Taro is surprise as she’s never seen such a small being packed with such tremendous power.

 

“You told me you would take care of it, but I wouldn’t have imagined this!!” Sundra shouts as the violent winds dance around their ears.

 

 

After a few more rounds of launching heaps of kelp from the water onto the island, Taro begins to slow down a bit as his energy had been expended.

 

Taro sits down next to Sundra for a bit as they look at the bay area starting to shine from the sunlight hitting it.

 

“Where does my part come in mastermind?” Sundra jokingly pokes at Taro.

 

 

“Right now actually!!” Taro says as he informs her that she can go into the water again”

 

Sundra notices a circle of frilled urchins separating the kelp from the water surrounding the clearing he made earlier.

 

“Sundra, you LIKE how those taste don’t you?” Taro teases.

 

Sundra puts on a guilty face that quickly breaks into a wide grin.

 

“I do!! I do love them!!” Sundra exclaims exuberantly.

 

 

“Does it hurt when you eat them?” Taro replies.

 

 

“Not in the slightest! I have thick skin!” Sundra remarks.

 

 

“Okay Sundra, you can take care of those! After you dispatch them I will stand on your back further away from the island so I can get more of the kelp moved to land. It’ll save me from having to fly, and using my wind abilities at the same time!”

“It’s a triple win!” Taro shouts! “The ocean gets cleaned, you get to feast, and the job gets a bit easier for me!”

 

-------

 

Sundra and Taro look at the amass of kelp they were able to gather from the ocean.

 

“Sundra, you know, another reason why I wanted the kelp here was because the nutrients in the kelp will help the soil become rich again in time. And not long from now life will begin anew here. It’ll become a home for new creatures and living things.”

 

 

Sundra looks at the island with hope in her eyes. “Yes it will. Thank you for everything Taro.”

 

 

“I’m not done just yet!” Taro interjects

 

Taro reaches into his pocket and pulls out some seeds.

 

“You know, these are my favorite things to eat..”

 

Taro jumps into the air and glides around the island dropping seeds from his hand onto the kelp debris.

 

“But, I think the island will appreciate them more.”