Releasing The Ocean

Releasing the Ocean
By Alan Smithee


A wind blew across the trees. The leaves on the trees of the Moonguile
forest rustled in the cool night. The song of the crickets toned in the vague
distance.

A lone traveler disturbed the peaceful silence of the forest. His shadowy
figure was silhouetted by the moonlight. He walked in earnest, in search of
someone or something.

She must be here, he thought. But why would she sneak off like this?

Kalas' cloak rippled in the night wind. It ruffled his rather unkempt blue
hair, yet he was never one to really mind. He stepped along the puddles of
the forest floor. To that place...

Yes. That fateful place. The place he was after when they had first met.

Kalas stepped across the verdant grass, lightly glimmering in the light
of the starry sky. He spied four robed women at the pond. Beyond them,
she was waiting. Xelha was gazing into the spring. Her sunny blond hair
gently moved with the cool wind.

I knew it, Kalas thought. He felt very uneasy. He knew she was hiding something.

"Kalas! I've been waiting for you", Xelha called out to him. She then turned to her
companions, and they walked back, passing Kalas briskly. They seemed to
understand she had something to tell him, and wanted to tell him.

"Xelha, what are you doing here?" Kalas asked.

Xelha looked in his eyes with serious expression drawn upon her face. She
stood firmly. Her charming red coat highlighted her body. A white choker
covered her neck. She looked very much like one accustomed to harsh, cold
weather.

"When did you notice?" she asked.

Kalas curtly replied, "I knew something was up... when you bonded with my
guardian spirit."

Xelha looked down at the grass. "I see."

Kalas continued, "Also... when we were trapped between dimensions. On our
way to Mira."

Xelha nodded. She knew he was talking about that time. While trapped, on
board the deck of the Mindeer, Kalas recited that prayer--the prayer of the
ocean. She instantly recognized the prayer and asked him how he knew it.

"Even more," Kalas said. "You saw me. Back here in the Moonguile forest,
right before we met in Cebelrai. You must have overheard us."

Xelha nodded. A sad look spread across her face. She had seen Kalas
before they met in Cebelrai. She remembered him speaking something to his
guardian spirit. And then he passed out.

Kalas gave her a piercing glance. He was intent on finding out what was going
on.

"Xelha," he said. He paused, then continued, "Tell me. Who are you? What's going on?"

Xelha broke the gaze, and stared off into the spring. She said nothing. The
sounds of the spring rolled gently, accompanied by the tender sounds of the
night creatures.

After a minute of awkward silence, she spoke, "I'm just Xelha. Last of the Ice Queens".

Kalas knew she was hiding something. Furthermore, they both knew that it
would have to be revealed tonight. Right here. His chest beat nervously,
concealing the black fires of dread burning insode of him.

"What do you mean by 'last'?" Kalas asked.

Xelha did not look back at him. As she stared into the spring, small droplets
formed in her eyes.

"That day I first met you, here in this forest. It seems like such a long
time ago," she said, her voice showing her near the point of breaking into
tears.

Kalas remained silent. He dreaded whatever her secret might be.

She continued, "Did you know that Moonguile forest had another name? Once, it
was called the Moonglade Forest."

Kalas nodded, wondering what she was getting at.

"But... as time passed, people started calling it the wrong name. Eventually,
the wrong name stuck and its original name was forgotten."

She continued staring into the pond, refusing to look at Kalas. Her chest
rose visibly, as her own heart started beating faster due to nervousness.

"Maybe we do the same things. We neglect what's important to us. We leave them
and forget about them. To the point where we deceive others... and eventually ourselves."

Kalas still waited for her to tell him what she was getting to. Sensing he
was getting impatient, Xelha turned around. She finally looked at him, barely
avoiding looking into his eyes.

"Kalas, a thousand years ago, five islands rose to the sky to escape the
pollution left by the war with the gods. The ocean too, was sealed away to
prevent it from becoming polluted."

She took a step towards him and finally met his eyes. Her emerald eyes
gleamed in the soft lights of the night. She held her left arm tenderly over
her chest, her palm resting on her bosom as her fingers were over her heart.

"Kalas, the ocean is right here... inside me. I am the ocean."

Kalas' jaw dropped open. His body twitched with the shock of the revelation.
He could not say anything.

Xelha continued, "For generations, the Ice Queens of Wazn have kept the ocean
for safekeeping. This burden was passed onto the next generation. Until this
final moment. Until now."

Kalas, dumbfounded, replied, "That's impossible!" His voice had a feeling of
anger in it. He himself had a hard time accepting what he had learned.

Xelha looked away again. She gazed back into the pond. Her eyes started to
water visibly, and the tender droplets moved down her temples.

"At first," she said, her voice very near the point of bursting into sobs, "I
thought you were sent by the Empire. But Giacomo attacked you, and I realized
you weren't with them. I didn't know whose side you were on, but that you
were under the influence of a fearsome power."

She squatted down, and placed her hands over her face to cover her tears.
"I just wanted to watch over you. I wanted to save you. I would've done
anything I could."

Kalas' eyes started to water. Xelha continued, "You and me. We were two of a
kind. We were... different. Your soul... it glowed with a shining light.
Those who can bond with a guardian spirit, they were ones who lived lives
fraught with sadness. They were ones desperately searching... searching for
something. Kalas... I wanted to be that something for you."

Kalas shouted, trying to hold back his own tears. "Why Xelha? Why didn't you
tell me?"

Shouting back, she said, "I couldn't! This was my oath! What was I supposed to
say? Was I supposed to happily chant 'The Long Lost Ocean is inside of me, so
why don't you come and have an exciting adventure?'"

Kalas looked down, and more tears rolled across his face. "I'm sorry," he
said. "I shouldn't have said that."

Xelha walked up to him and wrapped her arms around him, holding him tightly.
Sobbing, she pressed her face against his chest.

"I'm sorry, too," she sobbed. She shed tears while holding her face in his chest.
Kalas pressed his mouth against her glimmering blond hair. Then, he wrapped
his own arms around her waist and pressed her close to him.

For awhile, she cried. Kalas, with tears on his face, continued to hold her.
They both listened to her muffled sobs amidst the backdrop of the spring.

Finally, she looked up at him. She took her left arm and placed her hand on
his face, wiping his own silent tears.

"Kalas... the people. The lands have returned to the earth. They are now
waiting for their ocean."

Kalas looked back into her eyes, rolling another tear over her fingers.

She continued, "I want you to do it. I want you to release the ocean inside of me."

Kalas quietly replied, "Xelha... if I do that, what will happen to you?"

She resumed wailing. Her face was slick her tears. Kalas understood what she meant.
He closed his eyes and said, "No, I can't! I won't do this."

Xelha cried, "I'm sorry. For asking you do this." She placed her other hand
on his face. "But... we were bonded with the same guardian spirit. We can
become one. With one heart, we can free the ocean."

Kalas stepped back and looked away, into the abyss of the trees. He sighed, "Okay,
okay. I'll do it. But promise me Xelha, promise me that you won't leave us!"

He turned back around and looked at her again. "Promise me that you won't
leave me, Xelha."

Xelha looked into his eyes again, her vision blurred with tears. "Thank you,"
she said. She took his hand into her own. They both sat on the grass,
looking into the luminous pond. After a moment, Kalas released his hand and
placed it on her choker. He lifted her choker to wipe the tears from her
face.

She smiled at him. Then, she got back on her feet, looking at him tenderly.
Kalas then followed, and got back on his feet too. Then, she blushed nervously,
and moved her hands to her waist.Kalas did not notice. He was still scared of
what will happen to her.

Then, Xelha lifted up her vibrant red top, catching her white choker. She
lifted her shirt over head, then held at her waist, blushing even more. The
cool night air made her body feel cold. Her large breasts reflected the light
from the moon and the spring. Her skin felt prickly cold.

Kalas' face turned crimson. "Xelha... what... are you doing?"

Xelha dropped her shirt onto the grass and placed her hand over his mouth.
"Kalas... I trust you. We must become one to free the ocean inside of me." Xelha's
breasts lightly sagged, yet her red cylindrical nipples jutted out very firmly.

Kalas stood dumbfounded. He certainly wasn't anticipating this. He had never
done this with a girl before. He had kissed with his childhood friend, Trill.
One day, she took her own shirt off, and Kalas freaked out. She never
mentioned that since then.

Xelha sensed he was too nervous to move, so she undid his cloak. She threw it on
top of her shirt on the ground. Then, she undid his shirt and threw it on the
pile too.

Kalas finally mustered the courage to place his bare arms around Xelha's body.
Her nipples pressed against his bare chest. The silky skin of her body
caressed against his rough arms. His wrists rubbed against the ridges of her shoulder
blades. Her skin felt very warm.

Xelha smiled, tears still in her eyes which gazed at him. "Kalas... I'm.. I'm
so glad to be with you finally." Kalas was so overcome with rapturous bliss that he
could only let Xelha's name escape his lips. Yet her name. The very feeling
of her escaping his lips was as sweet as honey.

She pressed her face into his, and put her lips against his. She started
kissing him lightly, her eyes focused on his. Kalas nervously kissed back,
gripping her body against him tighter, his hands feeling her tender sides.

Xelha let the kissing remain at a constant pace, hoping Kalas would be more
daring once he felt more comfortable. He was definitely a nervous sort of
guy. Yet she loved him for it. Despite his betrayal back at Azha, he still
appeared so pure and childlike. She knew that unsullied feeling. That feeling of wanting
to throw aside everything for that pure love.

Sshe brushed her right fingers across his chest. He may have
been unaware of it, yet he had a nice muscular chest. His coarse skin lightly
parted as her fingers moved down his chest. He was nervous, yet he still had
the urges of a man. With enough stimulation, his raw urges might overcome his
nervousness.

She stopped kissing him and pulled her head away. Kalas mumbled her name and
moved his hands onto her silky shoulders. Her shoulders... her skin was so
taught and smooth. Her shoulder bones, alongside her hot smooth skin,
caressed against his rough hands.

Xelha kneeled down, her knees pushing her skirt against the grass. She
removed the belt buckle on his pants. Then, she pulled down his pants
alongside his underclothing, leaving his erect member jutting out from his
groin area.

She smiled mischievously as she took the head of manhood between her thumb and
finger. Holding him in a grip, she moved her fingers a short distance
alongside his penis. He was solid hard. She could feel the ribbed veins beneath
the skin. His veins pulsed, yet also felt rock hard, as if they were bones themselves.

Looking up at him, she grinned. "Kalas... there's no more need to be shy.
You and I... we can become one."

Kalas looked down at a kneeling Xelha. She was so beautiful. There was nothing
more beautiful than her. Absolutely nothing. Her neck-length cropped blond hair
illuminated her head so vibrantly. Her skin was so smooth. Her slightly chubby
figure was both cute, innocent, endearing... yet also so mysterious and beautiful.
She was... everything.

He wanted to be one with her. To exist alongside her. Yet he was scared to
move. He wasn't used to such emotion.

She increased the pace of her fingers. A light moan escaped his lips. Taking
that as a cue, she moved her mouth against his member, taking it up to where her
fingers were starting to rub him more quickly. She sucked along the inch-long
space between the end of his penis and where she had him gripped. Kalas,
unable to restrain his reaction to the feeling, started calling her
name repeatedly between moans.

"Xelha. Xelha. Xelha!" Calling her name made it all the more intense for
him, and for her. He was giving himself to her. He started to feel very
pent-up in his groin, as if it would explode at any minute, covering
everything nearby with his seed.

Yet, sensing him being near climax, Xelha removed her fingers and pulled her
mouth away from him. Kalas' body shifted and twitched nervously. He was
panting. Yet he was far being having his fill.

Xelha stood back up and pressed her face against his. She whispered softly,
"Kalas. The rest... the rest is up to you."

"Xelha.. why? Why are you doing this to me?" he stammered desperately.

Xelha smiled and press her hand on his face. "Kalas, be brave. Give yourself
to me. With that, we can become one."

His pent up feelings finally spurred him to action. He put his hands on her
bright pink skirt and started pulling it down, not truly knowing how to remove
it.

Xelha thought of helping him, yet relented. It didn't matter if the skirt
tore. For all she knew, she wouldn't need it anymore. Alas, if only Kalas
would no longer need his clothes.

Yet Kalas managed to pull it down, alongside her underclothing. She stepped
out of the skirt. Her full body glimmered in the moonlight. The reflection
of the pond highlighted the vivid yellow hair covering her womanhood. She was so
womanly and so beautiful. Once again, she clasped her hands with his.

She sat down, her bare bottom feeling the piercing blade of grass. She then
let go his hands and laid back, her smooth back meeting the rough blades of grass.
She laid her legs flat against the rough grass and spread them.

Kalas kneeled down in the grass between her spread legs. She smiled, gaving
him a reassuring nod. Kalas clumsily put his hands on the grass by her hips,
and moved his body on top of hers. Surprisingly, he was able to easily
find his way into her.

Her womanhood felt even more warm and moist than her mouth. He slid further
in before putting his hands on her upper arms, once again feeling her silk skin
in his palms. He put his lips around hers and gently nibbled at them.

He was scared. Yet he loved Xelha. He realized that with his love for her,
he should overcome his nervousness. He wanted to... make her happy. He
wanted to give himself to her.

He started sucking on her tongue as he continued the rhythm of movement inside
of her. He felt around her walls, searching for some tender spot. Something
which would stimulate her even more. He wanted nothing more than to please
her.

Her body glistened so beautifully in the moonlight. Her tears were gone, and
instead replaced by sweat. He was sweating too. Their bodies were
intertwined together in a sticky caress. A lightly sweaty aroma mixed with
the scent of the fresh air of the forest. This was all so intimate. It was so hot.

He continued thrusting inside of her. Xelha started moaning, yet her moans
were stifled by her lips being covered by his. Her stomach started to more rapidly
rise and fall.

Their eyes never left each other--their mutual gaze remained unbroken. Even if they could
not speak at this moment, their eyes said it all. They were both comforting
each other, loving each other, and giving themselves up for each other. It
was bliss. Here, both were freed from the human burden of loneliness.

Kalas felt very aware of his own body. He felt at whole with his own body, yet also at
whole with hers. He felt that childlike sense of happiness, wonder, and awe knowing that
his body could provide such for Xelha.

He felt himself nearing climax again. He slid his hands off of Xelha's
forearms, past her sweaty underarms, and slid them under her back. He pressed her closer.
He was not going to lose her. Xelha, sensing his determination, put her arms
around his back, feeling the muscles jutting in his back against her wrists.

They were together, wrapped, enveloped. They were one. And finally, Kalas'
groin burst, sending his white seed tumbling deep inside of Xelha. He continued
spilling his seed for a few seconds. Yet those seconds felt like eternity.
He was acutely aware of his own body providing the seed to Xelha. He was
aware of her receiving him.

After that moment, he let go of the kiss. They both were breathing heavily,
in awe of both the physical and emotional of what they shared.

"Kalas." Xelha smiled weakly. "Thank you."

"Xelha, you aren't going to leave me, are you?"

Xelha replied gently, rubbing his shoulder blade with her left hand. "That
dream I had two years ago. Kalas, it wasn't of the end of the world. It was
of you. You were crying. Kalas... I'm so glad to finally be able to be with
you... and I only wish I could stay."

"Xelha. No!" he sobbed.

Her cohorts from Wazn returned, sensing it was done. One of them looked to her and
spoke, "The ocean will finally return. You both will be remember in legends to come."

More tears rolled down Xelha's face. "I don't want to be remembered that way. I
just... want to be a couple, like any other. Kalas..." She closed her eyes
and went limp.

Kalas, hardly aware of himself being naked in front of four other women, held
her closer. The warmth of her spirit started to dim.

"Xelha. No!" No response. "Xelha."

Her body was limp and heavy. Her spark faded out, and her body
started to become wisps of light drifting up into the sky like ephemeral mist.

"Xelha..." he cried, now only feeling the cold grass beneath his naked body.

Only moments ago, the stars brightly shone across the night sky. Now, it
started raining. Yet Kalas was unaware of the cold droplets against his naked
body. He sat in the grass, his head places against his knees, sobbing and
shivering.

He loved her. He always had. Yet he said nothing. Nothing until the very
end. They were together... and now they are apart.