Children of Recognition

Our story begins a turn of the Mother Moon after the Crowning. Shoresprout and Inkbottom are playing on the northern headland. Shoresprout has seaweed draped over her hair and is flinging her head around in melo-dramatic fashion pretending to be Winnowill and acting out Winnowill's last encounter with Jormak who is performed by Inkbottom. Shoresprout dives off the cliff into the water below, but when she surfaces she finds that her young friend has disappeared somewhere. She is somewhat cranky because he is not taking their game seriously, and tracks him to a lonely spot on the beach later on. He appears to be talking to air, and when she asks him what he is doing, he tells her he is talking to his new friends. She is perplexed because she cannot see a thing.

Meanwhile in the grotto, Raenafel has had time to establish herself in the colony. She has met the WaveDancers, been given her own space, has told her survival story to one and all, but is now faced with a problem: divided factions within the community over her right as the Crown. In the council chamber where remnants of the shattered crown and trident lie in the middle of the circle reminding the colony of their folly, she is confronted by three groups placing different demands on her. The traditionalists (Jormak, Paffa, Maron, Burdekin, Zadori and Kadva) insist that she undergo a challenge to undo Winnowill's false crowning (that is, Raenafel must win back the right to become Crown by completing a test to prove her worth). The believers (Kirith, Rhialdor, Hyfus, Barmek, Sleia and Tentus [who incidentally has recovered from the sickness]) support Raenafel as the one and only blood-leader, and argue that the Crown had been claimed under false pretences through deceit and is therefore not valid. Then there is the third group who follow Sydor's ideals (Korillia, Irralee, Shoseabee, Lazik, Tilaweed) who are counting on his recovery to fulfil his grand plan of returning to the palace leaving the cursed world they inhabit behind them.

Not only does Raenafel need to contend with bringing some sort of unity back to the colony, but she also has her unborn child to think about. She holds the responsibility of Crown and leader, mother to child and clan, as well as that of healer. There is also much she has to learn about the world she has been hidden from for the better part of her life. It is a burden she must carry without the support of Barmek who is estranged from her. They have recognised and sated the physical need to procreate, but Barmek refuses to acknowledge the relationship beyond this point and leaves her to single motherhood.

Barmek is very sullen and moody and keeps himself on the periphery of the colony as does Jormak but for other reasons. The former is angry and confused about his feelings for Raenafel and the stigma of Recognition. He wants no part in the upbringing of the child since he knows what the consequences will be. The latter is in self-exile because of his shame: he trusted and loved foolishly. The brothers come together for one brief moment as they sit talking at each other about their trials and tribulations but not really listening or bonding with one another. The fight seems to have shifted something, but not reconciled their relationship.

Hyfus on the other hand begins to take more than a passing interest in Raenafel, and steps in as a surrogate mate. He also takes on a role of comforter and protector, but whenever he does something for Raenafel, he reminisces about the time he and Tilaweed did the same thing during the latter's pregnancy many seasons before. When he asks Raenafel at one stage if he can feel the baby's kick, she says no. She wants Barmek to experience it with her, but she knows she cannot coerce him to come back to her. Recognition gave him no choice, but she does.

Meanwhile, Sydor sits in a catatonic state in his sleep chamber. He holds an exulted position in the colony as a martyr for having put himself on the line with Winnowill supposedly for them. Everyday Irralee comes to visit him. She feeds him, chatters to him, and washes his feet. But there is no response. (Winnowill has succeeded in releasing Rydos' fear and guilt and the black memories that go with them. Now Sydor struggles to take control again. He must pacify Rydos, and find his own way out through the maze of the psyche.) But even though Sydor is relatively helpless at this moment, the effects of his twisted visions have spread beyond the colony.

Inkbottom avoids Shoresprout more and more now preferring to communicate with his imaginary friends. Shoresprout calls him names and tells him that he is going stupid then saunters off to do her play-acting by herself. She is caught by Jormak who frightens her by giving her a good shaking for mocking him. Sleia interrupts and tells him to get a grip on himself, and they have an argument.

But the spectres of Inkbottom's imagination turn out to be more than just hallucination. For he is communicating telepathically with two strange mis-shapen elves from a distant island about a day's swim away who have been lock-sending to him for some time. They are the only two surviving Children of Recognition that were kidnapped many moons ago. They are Shardon and Illora.

The two missing children are in fact grown up, but are hardly recognisable. They are quite deformed; their limbs have been stretched into strange shapes and they have severe structural problems with their bodies which impedes mobility. The two are fully grown, but function psychologically as children because their only frame of reference has been their keeper's cruel treatment of them. Shardon and Illora have been abandoned by the only parent they knew who has left them imprisoned in a cave on the island, and have had to survive by foraging for worms, beetles and small rodents in the confines of their cell. In desperation the stronger one, Illora, has managed to dig under the bamboo bars that keep them confined, and together they have sent out telepathic messages to the surrounding area in search of their parent figure: Sydor. Through their searching they have telepathically stumbled upon the colony that Sydor has falsely warned them about, and the burden of secrecy he has imposed upon them causes them to avoid any communication with the WaveDancers that might reveal their identity and whereabouts. However, they establish a link with the innocent Inkbottom who they recognise as also having been touched by their father's hand (he had been shape-changed to a conehead form in the previous series by Sydor who had Winnowill's help).

Inkbottom teaches them how to survive on the island. This goes on for some time. Firstly he asks the older WaveDancers many questions such as how to make a spear, the best way to catch fish, how to makes clothes or choose the best plants to eat, and then he sends the instructions to Illora and Shardon who put his teachings into practice and so manage to sustain themselves.

Then comes a time of great fruitfulness for the colony: the Spawning. It is an annual event when all the creatures of the deep - the fish, the coral, the plants, the mammals, the WaveDancers - take part in a sexual frenzy of reproduction. (This is actually a natural phenomena that happens on coral reefs). It is a visual and sensual feast. Sleia looks forward to reuniting with Barmek, but it is obvious that despite his protests, he only has eyes for Raenafel. Barmek also dislikes the fact that Hyfus has been so attentive to her needs. Sleia realises that she and Barmek will never be soul-mates, and she tells him to stop running away from the truth. He realises the choice is his, and he makes it. He goes to Raenafel. Sleia's grief is deep, and she cries continuously for a long time. She is happy for Raenafel and Barmek, but the wound of loss is overwhelming. Later on she is chastised by Jormak for carrying on so, but Kirith points out to him that Sleia and he have a lot in common. They both love deeply, have risked much, but have lost. It makes them all the more braver.

No children are begotten at the Spawning except one, and that one, in secret. For as Irralee is looking after Sydor, the energy and rawness of the occasion, brings him out of his coma. But it is not Sydor who wakes up: it is Rydos who answers the call of nature. And it is Rydos who recognises with Irralee in a moment of great passion. But as soon as the act is complete, he sinks back into unconsciousness and is swallowed up again by his psyche.

Barmek goes to Raenafel, and he feels the baby in her belly. He breaks down and tells her that he has loved her since he was a child, but he is scared now for both of them. But he will be there for her. Later when the colony demands more of her, he puts a stop to it and tells them Raenafel cannot solve all their problems. Raenafel reminds the WaveDancers of Winnowill's words, and tells them that they need to stand and work together. She is not the Crown, everyone is the Crown. With the baby on the way, they can either do nothing and wait till the Cursemaker comes again or they can start to put up a resistance. Together Barmek and Raenafel convince the others that joint responsibility is the way.

There is a comprehensive montage sequence of time passing: Raenafel and Barmek are intent on solving the mystery of the Cursemaker (and play at detective) just as Brom tried to do, the beginning of an organised defence force is seen in weapons training and sentry duty, Inkbottom is getting more and more remote from the others, Irralee is hiding away her secret until it is obvious that she is with child and speculation about the sire takes over when they try to remember who was with who at the spawning of eighteen months before, Hyfus is disciplined and methodical in his guard duty as he works to prevent history from repeating itself, Tilaweed's confronts Hyfus over why he wasn't this vigilant with their own child and accuses him of failing as a protector. And then the baby is born at the end of the montage sequence. It is a good birth. It is a time of hope and celebration, and all the community works together with a feeling that perhaps for the first time they will be able to defeat it.

As the baby is taken to the surface for its first breath, the cry of the boy child pierces the ether and the waters below and reaches Sydor's ears. This cry of life is the very thing he needs to bring him to the surface. For a moment he opens his eyes again, but then thinks quickly and realises he has the perfect disguise in order to gather information. He pretends to be in his sleep state, but his mind is clear and alert.

The colony is distraught, but on the defensive. They associate Winnowill with the Curse because when she left so did Tentus' sickness. They naturally conclude that she must be back not realising that Sydor is the culprit, and it is his conscious presence that has sparked off Tentus' psychic warning. The colony decide that the safest place for the Child is the Chamber of Remembrance, and Tentus is asked to move into the grotto. He is peeved at first, but he understands it is for the sake of the child. As the colony meet and calculate their strategies, Sydor in his pseudo-coma state overhears their plans and waits for the right time to make his move. And then one day it comes. Inkbottom rushes in to the WaveDancers and tells them to come quickly. One of his friends is gravely ill, and needs help. At first they don't believe him, but he convinces them of the truth.

Raenafel and Barmek leave the child in Hyfus' trusted care as well as the other tailed elves, and journey to the island led by Inkbottom. Once there they crowd onto the beach, but Shardon and Illora have sensed that there are many strangers with Inkbottom and have hidden themselves in their cave. Inkbottom manages to lead the group to the cave, and when they go inside they find the two Children of Recognition huddled and cowering amongst skeletons of their dead companions. The place is filthy, and evidence of the atrocities that have been inflicted on them is in evidence. Inkbottom goes to them first and they understand that help is here. They allow Raenafel to heal Shardon's shattered leg which he had broken by falling off a nearby cliff. When Raenafel asks Shardon and Illora questions about who they are, and who has kept them this way, they lock-send and the story is told flashback. Sequence of attempted flesh-changing into Conehead form, other tortures inflicted upon them, the death of the others, etc. The perpetrator was Sydor. Raenafel and Barmek realise what has happened. They order Sleia and some of the other WaveDancers to escort the Children of Recognition to the Bay of Solitude at their own comfortable pace, and rush off with the remaining group as quickly as possible to get their baby.

But they are too late. Sydor has seized his chance. He has camouflaged himself in an energy bubble that reflects light while under water and therefore appears invisible (this is the mechanism he was able to use in the past to spy on the colony, to conserve his energy, and to steal away the children without being seen). He sneaks past Hyfus who is on sentry duty within the Chamber of Remembrance, and finds the baby in Tentus' sleep chamber. He steals the baby and hides it within his bubble then exits to the main chamber only to find that Kirith and Tilaweed have come to help Hyfus guard the entrance. Sydor cannot get past them, and so decides to climb up the coral sculpture to make his escape. Once out of the water, he loses the bubble shield and must remain very quiet in order to climb out.

Suddenly Hyfus receives an urgent sending from Raenafel and Barmek which provides him with information on the Curse-maker. He checks the sleep chamber and finds the child is missing. There is great panic and distress in the air. But Sydor slips on the coral sculpture, and breaks off a chunk. As it clatters to the base, the mer-elves look up to find him near the summit. He taunts the tailed elves for their helplessness on dry land, and tells them he has always hated their impure forms, and that the child he carries will only exist in the original Conehead form once he finishes with it. He climbs through the sun-catcher to the outside world only to find a small group of WaveDancers who have scaled the external wall of the Chamber (alerted and organised in military fashion by Hyfus' sending).

Sydor summons up the rarely used magic of the High Ones, and levitates across to the natural bridge known as the Lover's Hands which spans between the two rock formations in the bay. He finds that the WaveDancers have each end covered, and realises he is trapped. He dangles the baby over the edge as Raenafel approaches him from the front steadfastly pleading with him to return the baby. Barmek sneaks up from the back, never taking his eyes off the child. Raenafel gets up close to Sydor, and suddenly No-Wing jumps out from Raenafel's hair and spews wrap-stuff in Sydor's face. He drops the baby as he is encased in the sticky substance, but Barmek dives over the edge catching the child in mid-air and then tumbles to the water far below.

But the tailed elves with Hyfus at the fore have positioned themselves in such a way that they break the long fall and bring father and child to safety. Back on the bridge Sydor is totally wrapped and teeters on the bridge before plunging into the water below. His body is recovered and taken back to the council chamber in the grotto where he lies in state until a future time.

There is rejoicing at the fact that the WaveDancers have worked as one to overcome the Curse of Recognition and its instigator. But their joy is interrupted and a hush spreads over the grotto as the island party send that they are about to arrive. Raenafel tells the WaveDancers that they have found kin and not strangers on the island. Sleia and the others come in. They lift the two survivors out of the water and onto the grotto floor. There is a deathly silence, and all eyes are upon them. No-one knows what to do or say until the silence is broken by Sleia who says that today is a special day. All the Children of Recognition have been brought home. And with that she places the bones of the dead ones on the floor beside Shardon and Illora. And the last thing the reader sees is Raenafel and her baby near Shardon and Illora with the ghostly images of the departed ones hanging over the scene.