Winter Solstice: Chapter 1: Driftwood

<<Kalli...>> 

A small voice drifted through his mind, gently dancing among the dreamy conjurations. The surreal world the abyssal was lost in faded away and, again, the voice called out to him.

<<Kalli, wake up…>>

His eyes opened slightly as he peered out into the dark depths of his home. One by one, the nodes that tipped his sails sprung to life. The soft light they emanated bathed the world around him in shades of purple. Sweeping his gaze back and forth, the abyssal found not a soul hidden between the silt and rocks. Only rolling currents and the out-of-place foliage delicately placed through supernatural means had kept him company during his nap.

Stretching his serpentine body, Kalli glanced towards the open water above. Somewhere up there was a small creature he unfortunately couldn’t bring himself to chase off.

<<Kalli, please, it’s important!...>>

“...coming,” he grumbled as he pulled himself away from the comfort of the weedy grasses leaving behind a thick cloud of sand and debris in his wake. Snaking his way to the surface, the abyssal thought back to the first time he encountered the phin. 

Blair, he called himself. Through bad luck or ignorance he found himself entangled in a mass of kelp. Too weak to free himself and in desperate need for air, Blair sent wave after wave of unseen cries for help, each more frantic than the last.

And only one came to his aid.

Perhaps Blair had been too inexperienced to project his thoughts louder or cover a wider distance, or maybe it was fate that brought Kalli close enough to hear the faint vocals slice through his mind. Either way, the odd pair had been near inseparable since.
 

With his ascension came trickles of light from the world above. Life grew more abundant. Numerous shrimp and a gathering of crabs clung to the jagged wall of the trench, flitting away on spindly legs as Kalli swam past. Drab greys and tans gave way to more vibrant hues. From the smallest of ledges clung various plant life swaying in the water as if waving the abyssal onward.

The distance to his supposed destination grew shorter with each second. Briefly Kalli drifted closer to the wall. The sound of his scutes grinding against the rocks pierced the silence. It was the only noise needed to alert others to his arrival.
“Kalli?” The voice from earlier could be heard just beyond the false horizon. A small head poked out from past the ledge. It didn’t go unnoticed by the abyssal. Preparing himself for what was to come, he slowed down and inhaled deeply.

“What’s going on Blair?” Kalli asked as he crossed the boundary between his trench territory and the mess of ruins and coral that rested on its ledge.

The brown phin chirped with excitement. No sign of anxiousness or worry clouded his face as the abyssal would assume from the hurried message he last received. Instead, Blair’s eyes were pinched closed by a wide smile. Remaining stationary appeared to be an impossible task as Kalli felt his head bouncing in all directions as he watched on with growing irritation.

“Blair,” he pressed, “you interrupted my sleep for what reason?”

“Oh, right!” Blair spun around, casting a glance over his shoulder with a beckoning toss of his head. “This way, follow me!”

And just like that, Blair was off. Not a shred of context, nor an explanation of where they were going. He simply swam away, peering back momentarily to ensure his deep sea friend was following behind. And, begrudgingly, Kalli was albeit with a slightly more grumpy look wrinkling his face.

It took only a second for the abyssal to match pace with the phin. Coming up alongside Blair so they were eye to eye, Kalli tossed the phin a stern look.

“It’d be nice to know what was going on, y’know, like I’ve been asking for the past hour.”

Blair squeaked out a laugh. “So dramatic! It’s been five minutes, tops.” He paused to gesture towards a shadowy behemoth lurking in the distance. “It’s an old hard-kelp, the ones that float with the finless animals on it.”

“You mean a shipwre-” Kalli began to correct, only for Blair to continue oblivious to his error.

“The phins need it to sing.” A succinct answer, Blair thought. With a pleased nod of his head, he motioned towards a similarly shaped shadow in the distance. “He’s gonna help us!”

Kalli sighed as Blair rushed off to greet their companion. Taking in the size of the long-forgotten ship, the abyssal couldn’t help but feel impressed. What little he knew of the dry world never led him to believe such a creation was possible, especially by its inhabitants. Approaching with eyes still locked on the ship, he considered their goal according to Blair.

“You need all of this?” he asked the stranger, forgoing introductions or even a mere acknowledgement of the black and white phin. The stranger didn’t seem bothered in the slightest as he smiled widely. 

“No, not quite all of it but enough to help with construction of a stage,” Dalgo replied, “preferably more intact or substantial pieces.” He dipped backwards to approach the wreck. Clamping down on a loosened board, the two-toned phin pulled back with force ripping it away from its base. He dropped it quickly to once more address the abyssal and the other phin.

“I imagine we could begin by collecting a small pile of perhaps ten or twelve and make a few trips. We phins could carry a plank each trip and maybe a couple for you, sir, and we could call it a day,” Dalgo said, “unless one of you guys have a better system in mind?”

Blair quickly swam to Kalli’s side, bumping his pudgy cheek against the sharpened features of the abyssal’s face. “Kalli, you could grow us something to help, yes?” Dalgo nodded vigorously in agreement.

“I imagine there are some elements out there that could be of use! What do you say, Kalli?” Dalgo asked.

Kalli looked from face to face, taking in the bright toothy grins and expressive joy written on their faces. The shame he would feel from turning them down was unimaginable. Possibly even capable of lasting a lifetime.

“Fine,” he grumbled as sprouts of kelp parted the sand below them, “the sooner we get done, the sooner we can go home and nap.” He shot Blair a pointed look. The phin, of course, was blind to his friend’s lasting annoyance.

It took just under an hour before all three of them were equipped with their own makeshift carrier made of kelp. A few hiccups in the process caused the trio to start from the beginning but the end result was more than the phins’ could have asked for. From their torsos hung a basket with the handles large enough for more than enough strips of wood. Kalli had his own though it was much larger and wider than he truly needed.

Another hour passed by as they worked tirelessly to rip pieces of the ship away from the hull. Even more time was spent trying to find the perfect way to fill their baskets and maintain balance against the ocean currents. The trio eventually plucked their last bit of wood, retreating to admire the sizable hole they created. If any question was raised about its origins, the curious minded only needed to take a look at the ground below where broken bits and splinters littered the sand. 

“I think we’re done!” exclaimed Dalgo, beaming brightly at the pair, “great work, you two!” He turned to lead them away taking care to keep his own basket from swaying too much.

“Let’s take it slow,” suggested Kalli, “we shouldn’t push ourselves any further than we need to.”

Dalgo nodded in agreement. Blair, on the other hand, spoke with muffled words having found one last small strip of wood to bring back.

“No, we should hurry back to get some more! I want to hear them sing soon,” the brown phin pleaded.

“Don’t worry,” Dalgo answered kindly, “there are more tasks needed before the show can begin! Come, let’s drop this off and rest for the night. I can catch some fish for us before we part ways.”

And with the warm offer, the trio pushed on towards the future setting of the famed Singers’ stage.