“We would enter your hut, Troe!” a voice called from outside.
Troe recognized the voice of council member Jonn. He rose from his sitting position on the floor in alarm. Obviously he would not be here unless it was important.
He saw Jonn in the open doorway. Mish and Fraut were with him. Seeing them confirmed his belief this was not a social call.
His daughter Nicha rushed up and grabbed his arm. “Father, don’t let them take me!” She sounded alarmed.
Her outburst surprised him. Why was she frightened by their presence? He waved her back, motioning she should stay in her place.
He called out, “You may enter. My humble abode is your home as well.”
He bowed low as the three council members entered. “How may your humble servant serve you?”
Jonn was all business. “We would search your daughter’s possessions.”
Nicha’s eyes grew wide. “Father… NO! Do not let them!” Then she backed into her corner in terror, arms outstretched defensively as she pleaded, “Do not let them search!”
He looked at her in surprise. “Daughter, what is this about?”
“Please father, do not let them search!”
Troe turned to Jonn, giving him a questioning look. The council member’s visage softened. “I am sorry, Troe. Two witnesses say your daughter has stolen. We are here to determine the truth of their words.”
Troe turned to his daughter in shock. “Is this true, Nicha?”
She shook her head, tears streaming down her face. “Please father…”
“IS THIS TRUE?” His loud tone made her jump, causing her to quiver with fear.
He knew his daughter. A moment later the truth flashed in her eyes. It pained him greatly.
“Why, Nicha?” he whispered in sorrow.
She was caught and she knew it. There was no point trying to deny the truth, much less put off the search. “They were such beautiful items, father!” she sobbed. “I could not help myself!”
Troe looked at her with sadness and disappointment. “You have broken my heart.” Then he bowed his head low as he quietly added, “I have failed my family.”
The words punctured her heart like a knife. She had never dreamed her theft would affect her beloved father in this manner. She had never even considered how her actions might reflect back on her family.
Suddenly she was afraid. She was certainly guilty of the theft. Was her father in peril now? What would they do to her family?
There was only one honorable thing left to do. She swallowed the lump in her throat. Then she faced her accusers.
“Council member Jonn, may I speak?”
“You may speak, Nicha.”
She dried her eyes while swallowing her pride. The young woman tried to regain her composure as well as what little dignity she had left. Then she stood tall.
Her heart beat fast as she told them, “The dishonor is mine alone to bear. I am guilty of the theft. I will produce the stolen items.”
She went over and bent down. Nicha lifted the corner of her mat and retrieved two hidden necklaces. She was trembling as she went over, stretched out her hands and then offered the contraband to the council member.
Jonn took them from her. He examined them in front of the other two. They nodded their heads in agreement.
“These are the stolen items,” he sighed heavily. “I am sorry, Troe.”
Her father didn’t even raise his head. He was crushed, the weight of the world heavy upon his shoulders. He devastated his very own daughter would do this.
What was to happen to him now? What would happen to his wife and two young sons? He was thankful they were not around to witness this terrible revelation.
“Father,” Nicha said in a trembling voice. “You did not fail me. I failed you. I failed our proud family. The guilt is mine and mine alone. I will face punishment with honor and humility.”
She had decided to accept the consequences of her actions. Now she wanted to find some way to return honor to her father and the family. Perhaps the council members would then show them mercy.
Her father slowly looked up at her. He knew what that punishment would be for this crime. It was hard to look into her eyes.
“My daughter… my Nicha… your mother… what will I tell her?” Then he bowed his head as he shook it in sorrow.
She turned once more to the council members. “Tell me I will bear the punishment alone. Tell me my folly will not be charged to my family. “Please; I beg of you!”
It was not honorable to plead. But she was seeking to intervene for the lives of her father, mother and brothers. Punishment was not only swift, but it often swallowed up entire families so as to remove any possibility parents or siblings might act in a similar manner in the future.
Jonn looked at the faces of his two companions. They nodded their heads in acceptance. Then he turned to face Nicha.
“You have admitted your guilt. You have returned the stolen items. And you accept the consequences of your actions. This is a grave matter. Yet, there is still honor in this hut. Troe, your family will not be held accountable. You are hereby absolved from the stain of this offense.”
Tears of relief welled up in Nicha’s eyes as her father replied, “I accept the council’s decree, Jonn.”
His family’s honor had been restored. But it had come at the cost of his daughter’s life…
—–
Nicha walked in front of the three council members with her head held high. Her family had been spared. That was all that mattered.
She had done a very foolish thing. Now she would pay the ultimate price. She would meet her end with dignity.
Villagers saw her solemnly walking in front of the council members. Immediately they knew something was wrong. They all stopped their activities and joined the growing procession.
Troe’s wife came running over from the community garden in alarm. “Husband; what is happening? Where are they going with Nicha?”
“To the lagoon,” he said dully. His shoulders were slumped. There was intense sorrow in his eyes.
“No! Not my Nicha?!”
She started to bolt toward her daughter. But her husband grabbed her and held her beside him. She began to wail as she started to protest, “Let me go – let me go…!”
“No, Lei-aun,” he told her with all the strength he could muster. “Nicha has admitted her guilt. She intends to take the walk honorably.”
Lei-aun was horrified. What had her daughter done?? She was being led to the lagoon! Lei-aun knew full well what that meant.
“NOOOO!”
She began to wail with grief, mourning the loss of her daughter. Her cries triggered the other women of the tribe. They also began to sob and wail. Custom dictated they could not join in the mourning ritual until the wife or mother first initiated the grieving process.
Nicha flinched with pain when she heard her mother’s wails. She heard the shrieks and cries of grief. It cut her to the quick.
She wanted to hug her mother once more. And she desperately needed some sort of affection from her father, if only for one last time. But now it was too late.
At this point she was no longer permitted to touch her family. Doing so would only implicate them in her crime. Then they would be forced to share her fate as was the custom of the tribe. She did not wish for that to happen.
When they reached the beach, she made her way over to the dock. She solemnly walked to the wooden raft and the cage that sat upon it. Her heart pounded in her chest.
A fire had been built nearby. It was waiting to consume her garments. She would face her final moments with the shame of nakedness.
The procession stopped at a pre-arranged point. The condemned along with the council members walked the final steps alone. Nicha struggled to keep from collapsing on rubbery legs.
Lei-aun and the women wailed loudly. The men stood quiet and solemn. Younger ones crowded around, morbidly curious to witness what was about to happen.
Nicha stopped upon reaching the fire. She turned to face the council members. Then she submissively lowered her head.
“May I speak? I vow by King Neptune who waits to receive me that I will not dishonor the tribe with my words.”
Jonn quietly consulted with his two companions. Eventually they nodded in agreement. The three of them then turned to face the crowd.
They raised their arms high. It was the signal indicating the condemned would be allowed to utter a few words.
The wailing died down. Lei-aun sobbed quietly, despairing she would never see her daughter betrothed. Now Nicha would never bear her grandchildren.
“You may speak,” Jonn said to Nicha once the cries had subsided.
She turned to face the crowd. In a loud voice she called out, “Members of the tribe! I have broken tribal law. I have stolen!”
Murmurs swept through the crowd. Now they understood her crime and the reason for her punishment. Some buzzed in shock and surprise.
“I alone must bear responsibility. I humbly request you take all dishonor from my family and our tribe for this grievous crime. Place it squarely upon my shoulders, and mine alone.”
She trembled as she spoke. Her words were braver than she felt. Then she heard the congregation chant, “Dishonor be upon you.”
She almost lost her footing as her legs shook. She wanted to break down and sob. But that would only cause more pain for her family as well as those who had once looked up to her.
She went on, trying to keep her voice from quavering. “Young ones, be warned. Honor your parents. Honor the tribe. Honor tribal law. Now I go to King Neptune…”
Her voice trailed off. It was setting in she would never see any of them again, family or friends. She had to fight to hold back the tears.
Jonn nodded with acknowledgment at her words. “You have spoken with honor, Nicha. Now it is time to remove your garments.” He said it as kindly as the situation would allow.
Nicha slipped out of the woven top her mother had made for her. Then she discarded the bottoms she had helped weave with her father’s sister. It left her feeling totally exposed and vulnerable.
She felt bad she had to toss them onto the fire. They flared to life, crackling and smoking as the flames began to consume them. And with that, it was done.
Without another word she walked naked to the dock. Niche carefully stepped onto the raft. Then she submissively dropped to her knees and entered the cage.
At that moment her mother and father turned away. They were forced to turn their backs on their only daughter now that she was naked. They had to make a show of disowning her now that her disgrace was complete. It was tribal custom.
He could only hold them back so long. Then the tears began to flow down Troe’s cheeks. His wife sobbed quietly, unable to contain her grief.
The cage was made with the bleached bones of former criminals. There were arm and leg bones that crisscrossed. They combined to make the four walls, floor and ceiling of her execution chamber.
A skull sat on each of the four corners. Four spinal columns came up from the top middle part of each wall. Four additional skulls were attached at the top.
The skull of a ram’s head hovered over all. The bones had been bleached before being interconnected. It was a rather surprisingly strong prison.
Jonn closed the opening she had stepped through, securing her inside. The other two council members joined him on the raft. Together the three of them pushed away from the dock using long, paddle-like poles.
The women began to mourn and wail once again. Younger children waved bye-bye, not truly understanding what was happening. It would be left up to their parents to explain it to them later.
Nicha’s heart pounded in her chest as she was paddled out to “the place of the guilty”. They were taking her out beyond the “Island finger”. She was going to the place where those who broke tribal law were offered to Neptune as a gift.
They had to be far enough out so the water god would not punish the tribe. There they were going to push her into the sea inside the cage. In this way they would consign her to Neptune.
Nicha’s father had tried to explain this to her long ago when she had first learned to move through the sea with the fish. He had taught her that Neptune accepted these gifts by sending his aquatic subjects to eat the guilty. In that way the soul went straight back to him. This act was also what prevented storms and sea beasts from attacking the tribe.
Nicha had always thought there was more to it than that. She thought life was above the water. But she wasn’t the only one who thought that way.
Villagers who swam with the fish too long could not come back. Their “life”, as she considered it, bubbled out of them. Once released, it could not be put back.
Once in a while a young one swam with the fish too long. They needed “life” blown back into them through their mouth. She knew that once she was dropped into the sea, her “life” would bubble away long before the fish came and started nibbling on her.
Despite her fear, it was this aspect of her “life” bubbling out of her that now excited her. She had played bubbling games with her friends in the past. They would see how long they could hold their “life” before they swam up to the top of the water to get more.
She had learned something special. She would always try to hold her “life” inside her for a long time before she went up for more. It always made the lower part of her body tingle with wonderful sensations.
On one occasion she had been out swimming with the fish. Her friend Tinsia had swam out to her. She had demonstrated how to make those tingle sensations stronger simply by touching herself in certain places.
Nicha had been hesitant at first. She had been taught that touching those places was reserved for those who joined together and became mother and father. But her friend had said if you did it by yourself in a lonely place, it was ok.
To show her, Tinsia had actually touched her. She had fingered the place where hair grew between her legs. Then she had stuck two fingers inside the opening.
Nicha had tensed nervously. Then her body had shaken from a wonderful tingly sensation. For a moment she thought she might be sick. But she had only experienced pleasure.
Tinsia had reassured her, explaining how she had observed her mother and father. She’d revealed how her mother shook the same way, experiencing similar sensations from certain times with her father. Thus, her parents would treat each other better for a while after they had engaged in such an activity.
Since that day Nicha greatly enjoyed going out to the lagoon by herself. She would swim with the fishes while holding her “life” inside her. Then she would touch herself until her body shook from those same wonderful sensations.
Now she was going to be dropped over the side of the raft while being inside the cage. Her “life” was going to bubble out of her. She was now most definitely afraid.
What surprised her was the way she was also filled with a strange sense of anticipation. Inside the opening near where the strange hair grew, she felt all wet and sticky. She could not help noticing how the tips on her mounds had risen. These were indications she’d learned from past experience that alerted her those tingly sensations were not far away.
She suddenly detected a lack of forward momentum. The council members had stopped paddling. “We are here, Nicha,” Jonn said soberly.
She gasped as her heart leapt in her chest. She felt a huge lump in her throat. Her existence was now mere moments away from ending.
She wanted to beg for her life. But she refused to make the effort. She was determined not to dishonor herself or her family any more than she already had.
She also did not want to dishonor the three council members who had taken it upon themselves to bring her out here. She knew how sorrowful they felt. She had already brought them pain by forcing them into this necessary action.
She took a deep breath to steady herself. Then she declared, “I am ready.” The words did not match her spirit. But she believed they still needed to be uttered.
“Very well,” Jonn replied. “We will slide the cage forward. Beware you do not get a piece of wood splintered into your skin.”
Nicha smiled inwardly. Concern for her welfare at this moment was strange indeed. At this point did it really matter if she was injured before she went into the water?
She could tell he did not want her to suffer needlessly. After all, he was closer to her family than most. She wondered if he felt as though he was delivering his very own daughter to Neptune.
He appeared to be struggling to remain strong in front of the other two council members. She realized there was even more pain she had inadvertently caused. If only she would have considered the potential consequences of her actions before taking the pretty necklaces.
Nicha shifted her position. She made sure she was kneeling on the bones of the cage. That way it would be easier for it to slide along the wooden surface of the raft.
It had been worn smooth in many places. But every now and then a splinter worked loose from the sun, wind and rain. She did not wish to be hurt by one now.
The three men pushed until the cage slid forward. Nicha’s eyes grew wide with fear and anticipation. Her heart beat wildly in her chest as a part of the cage slid out over the water.
Jonn signaled to the other two members. They were to push as hard and as fast as possible. There was no point in prolonging what was to befall Nicha.
The cage slid forward. It reached the edge and started to tip into the sea. Nicha instinctively cried out before gasping as much “life” into her lungs as possible.
The raft momentarily became unbalanced. The cage picked up speed. Then it entered the water at an angle before starting to settle.
There was no more time for words. One moment she was at the surface. Then next, she was in the water with the fishes, the cage taking her straight to the bottom.
The condemned and the cage sank quickly. A small trickle of bubbles marked the place where it went down. Up at the surface Jonn murmured, “Goodbye, Nicha.”
For a moment he fought to hold back the tears. Then he gathered himself. In a loud voice he called out across the sea….
“King Neptune? I humbly request you treat this gift with honor and respect.” Then the council members did an about face to begin their paddling back to the village. There was no more thought given to Nicha.
The cage reached the bottom and quickly settled upright onto the sand. Somehow Nicha maintained her kneeling position. Some of her “life” bubbled out of her mouth.
The sun shone brightly. It fully illuminated the water. Nicha had a view of hundreds of feet in any direction.
She saw the raft heading back to shore. It jolted her, filling her with fear. It was official; she was truly about to suffer the consequences of her actions.
As usual, her body began to tingle with those feelings she had grown accustomed to whenever she was in the water. Only this time, they seemed stronger. The tips of her mounds stood erect from the sensations she was experiencing.
That area where the hair grew strangely seemed very sensitive. She was alone; no one was witnessing her final moments. What would it hurt were she to experience pleasure again before “life” bubbled out of her?
She reached down and rubbed that area. Nicha made sure to touch that little piece of skin that always became swollen. It felt so good whenever she brought her fingers across it.
More “life” bubbled out past her lips. ‘Maybe I’ll see King Neptune,’ she thought as she ran her fingers across the hairy area. ‘I wonder what he looks like.’
She began to feel that familiar pain inside her. It always occurred whenever she needed to go up to the surface and breathe more “life”. It was a pain that burned in the upper part of her body.
She stuck two fingers deep inside her. She felt gratitude Tinsia had showed her so long ago. Now she would get to experience that tingly sensation one last time.
She wondered what it would be like not having “life” in her body. Would she be able to see… to feel? In her fear there was a certain sense of wonderment at the new journey she was about to embark upon.
More “life” trickled away, drifting up toward the surface. The pain was becoming intense. It was more than she had ever experienced before.
This was the longest she had ever gone without “life”. It felt like the fire she had thrown her garments into. A similar fire was now burning hotly inside the upper half of her body.
Her lower extremities began to shiver in that area where she felt the tingles. She rapidly thrust her fingers in and out. Her body instinctively reacted in rhythm to her hand movements.
Nicha sensed the moment was close at hand. There was regret she would never see her family again. She experienced both fear as well as a sense of perverse excitement.
“Life” burst out of her mouth. She simply could not contain it anymore, no matter how hard she tried. Instinctively her lungs tried to take in what was not available at the bottom of the lagoon.
Nicha got water down her throat. At that moment the sensations she longed for totally enveloped her. They seemed to shake her like leaves in a wind.
Instinctively she swam upward. Nicha only succeeded in hitting the top of the cage with her head. Then she started flailing with her arms and legs.
Her body convulsed as she jerked around. Spasms overwhelmed her. That’s when a second orgasm slammed into her, much stronger than the first.
Her eyes rolled back in her head as the sensations shook her. She convulsed painfully until it felt like there was no more “life” to expel. Nicha grew still as air trickled out of her mouth and nose.
She stared with lifeless eyes. Her mouth hung open from her last failed attempt to get “life”. That’s when it seemed like she was walking in a mist.
It was very strange. It felt like she was inside one of those fluffy white clouds up in the sky. Then she saw someone approaching.
Was it King Neptune? He looked familiar. Then he stopped right in front of her.
She smiled when she saw it was her father. He hugged her as though there would be no consequences from such an intimacy. Then he told her, “Your honor has been fully restored.”
Nicha was filled with joy. The vision of her father began to fade. Then everything went dark all around her…
2004 (written Apr 13 ’04; ed. Nov 6 ’20 by riwa)
(Inspired by a creation I found which I included for illustration purposes.)