username + id: BlueEyedKite 34400
maru name: Teufel der Meere "sea devil" - Meere
prompt:Of the many gods and goddesses, the laziest, by far, is Teufel der Meere. Meere, death god of the depths: the possessor of all souls lost at sea. Many a heartbroken mortal would wail at his gates. This annoyed Meere to no end. It was a long walk from the gates to the Sea of Souls. To be bombarded with every conceivable sob story was no life for a god. He devised a plan that would satisfy his stickler-for-the-rules siblings and relieve him of his duty. His ring, having the power to call souls from the depths, he stowed away. Yes it was reachable. Yes it would remain intact. And yes he had a convoluted riddle for some foolhardy hero to solve:
A magical place, an unfillable pit,
The ring you seek at the bottom of it.
Be not deceived by the small guise,
When completely full, the ring will rise.
A curse placed upon, ever emptying your fill.
Your task is set,
Fail.
Surely you will.
Meere had his wish. The fair few who made it to the magical pit could not get the ring to rise. Water, sand, liquid gold, no substance accumulated. All would drain out before the seeker could hope. So it was for centuries.
~~~~~~~~~~~~
He was no one special. A marumi with a muzzle gone gray. Thin as a waif. But his eyes, no one could deny how fiercely they burned. It was these eyes that stared unwaveringly ahead. At the path to Meere’s pit.
“I have shown you the way ahead, as you have asked, dear mortal. Won’t you reconsider? I sense your time on this plane is not long,” an other-worldly voice rang out in the air, despite the fact the celestial being’s lips never moved. “Why not rest, and go peacefully? Why walk a path so perilous when your hour is dire?”
The old maru did not look back at the goddess. “Thank ye fer the directions, fair lady. I’ll be goin’ now.”
“Very well. I pry no more. Farewell, favored follower."
The being of light and beauty inclined her head in a graceful bow. And then, she alighted away.
The old maru wasted no time, slipping a bag around his neck. He stooped to grasp the handle of a lantern between his teeth. Then he began the march down the cliffside. His gait was slow and stiff. The creak of his swinging lantern matched the creak of the marumi's joints. Eventually he reached the shoreline.
Just ahead, an eerie glow shone from under the surface of the waves. Round and globe-like, not unlike a bubble. A bubble that could fit a marumi but no more. The seeker ambled to this light source. His pace did not falter even as the ocean rushed to meet him. He took a last breath in before plunging into the water.
Paws churned. His bag floated upwards. The old marumi swam to the bubble. When he broke through he sucked in air between teeth still gripping the lantern. He rested momentarily. Then passed through the thin membrane of the magical globe and continued swimming.
Below him was a chain of bubbles, sinking down, and down, into dark waters lit only by the globes. Curious sea creatures swam nearby, observing the elder descend. When the marumi had reached the last of the bubbles he had passed through an underwater cave and surfaced to an open cavern.
Darkness engulfed the space. He paused by the water's edge, where at least there was some weak light given off by the final bubble. He set the dripping lantern down. His teeth found the zipper of his bag. The sound of the bag opening echoed. Out he retrieved a lump of wax. Peculiar. The maru crunched the wax until it fell away in a shower to the cavern floor. Inside was a single match.
The marumi opened a panel in the lantern to reveal a reservoir of oil and a single wick. There was a flash, a resounding crackle, as he lit the match then held it to the tip of the wick. It ignited.
The lamp revealed the contents of the chamber: containers of every shape and make were strewn about. The casualties of failed attempts. The marumi paid them no heed as he made his way to the pit's edge, carrying his lamp. Even with the added light source he could not see far into the hole.
One last item was taken from his water-logged bag. A reflector. It was positioned painstakingly, moved in incremental movements, until the light from the lantern was concentrated. One thick beam shone into the pit. The walls were bathed in the warm light.
There was nothing, save for the ragged breathing of the marumi, until—
It was as if the light was amplified all at once. The pit radiated like a bowl filled with golden sunlight. The marumi shielded his eyes to afford himself a peek. And lo, among the rays, bobbed a small silver object.
-----
"And then I slept a wink. Took a toll on me old bones. All the blasted swimming! But I got yer ring. And I brought it up. So ye take it and ye give me back Sammy Hawkins. That's Sammy Hawkins. S-a-m-m—"
"Nine-hells, I don't need you to spell it. I'm a god!" The sea devil himself, in the flesh, stomped an annoyed paw as he addressed the old marumi. "You brought a lantern. To the bottom of the ocean? A lantern?"
The gruff, elderly maru wagged the open paw that cradled the ring. "Aye. To fill yer pit with light. Now take this.”
Meere stared at the maru like he had two heads. This was a disaster. He could see it now. The beggars at his gate as soon as word spread about the return of his ring.
“I don’t want it.”
“Ya have ter take it.”
“Mmmh. Don’t you want to keep it? I bet you could sell it for… uh, a nice comb and some shampoo.”
“I want SAMMY HAWKINS!”
“Alright, alright.”
Meere practically sulked as he slunk over to the old maru. He did take the ring. He begrudgingly wore it. Called forth S-a-m-m-y from the Sea of Souls. Which by the way, wasn’t this old guy’s son or old flame or anyone important. It was just a rookie ship hand that fell overboard
fifty years ago. Some stubborn senior feeling regret at the end of his life meant that he had to be the god of the depths again? Life wasn’t fair!
Next time he’d come up with a better riddle. After his celestial family lifted his ban from the surface, that is.
