Cturis

The first time Kionya visited Cturis was with Jjinu for her seventeenth birthday.

The air smelled of salt and the sun beat down on her back, heat seeping through her shirt. She stood on a pier after a Toim teleported them to the island, her hands scraping against weathered wood. Between the gapes of wood, the water churned smoothly. Around them, other visitors murmured among themselves as they moved towards the island.

Kionya looked up and stopped, staring. The island was a sea of pink and purple that rose up mountain-like, cherry blossoms in full bloom. In swamps of orange, blue, and green, buildings speckled across the rising levels of the island. In the distance, Kionya could hear drums and laughter. A light breeze rustled the leaves so that a swell of pink haze rolled across the landscape.

“It’s…” the closest word Kionya could find to describe it was, “amazing.” Jjinu, who had visited before, hummed. Kionya looked at him. “This is Cturis?”

Jjinu smiled kindly at her. “Yes, this is Cturis.” Kionya nodded. "Unfortunately, since today is the solstice, Cturis'll very crowded for the festivals.”

The summer solstice was a celebration of each individual Alem power, and as such, there were many performers around the island. Kionya was Irahn and despite seeing all of the abilities at work during school, she had never been to a solstice celebration and was curious to find out what each kind did to exhibit their powers.

They moved off the pier and towards the solid ground and Jjinu took them down a street and then up a set of stairs, past two blue homes, and to the next street. Noise burst through the air as soon as they stepped onto the new road, like a bubble popping. Purple and red streamers and crowds of dancers filled the streets, the sweet smell of fresh bread and cinnamon wafted in the air, and Kionya was taken aback by the sudden burst of everything. Jjinu laughed, pointing out a couple waltzing in the road as others bopped to the beat of drums and flutes.

"Here," Jjinu nudged her. "Those are the Irahns."

Jjinu pointed them to where the other Alem had formed a circle. In the middle, two dancers, two women, bounced across the cobblestone, their movements always reminding Kionya of martial arts. The women twisted and turned around each other, swooping low to the ground before popping up again.

Kionya ducked suddenly in surprise when one of the women threw her leg up in the air and fire burst from her foot as the other one extended her fist and water came rushing out. They hopped away from each other and continued their dance, one of them bending the water around her and the other spinning flames from the sharp jabs of her fists. The crowd whooped and hollered as they continued on.

She grinned, remembering her friend Eena doing a similar dance with her for a talent show. Eena had done the fire and Kionya, who typically worked with earth, did the water. It was magnificent to watch practiced dancers do the same.

Kionya wanted to watch more, but Jjinu nuged her. "The Anchē are just up the road."

He led them past the eager Irahns to another swell of people. They were standing in front of a row of orange townhouses. They were playing the drums in a quick manner and an older man stood atop a set of stairs of one of the houses before he leapt for the street. And then in a quick moment, his body shrunk and his arms turned into a long array of viridian wings, stretched out towards the sky. In one graceful moment the man had turned into a bird, his beak parted to let out a piercing sound as he flew up. Other shape shifters had followed after him in various birds and the Anchē flew into the sky in large circles, twittering and cawing.

“Wow…”

“I know right?” Jjinu turned away. “The Oraces should be up by the gazebo.”

-----

The gazebo was large and ornate, made of red wood and a golden roof. In the middle of it was a small pond with two baby turtles splashing around. The gazebo was centered atop a hill of grass and there was a strip of land circled around the gazebo before the trees and buildings filled the space. Inside, there were only eleven Oraces, each centered around the pond. They sat on white pillows and their eyes were closed. Incense burned, smelling of jasmine, but Kionya could also smell saffron in the air. The Oraces did not open their eyes, but they swayed and hummed a tune that Kionya did not recognize, trapped in one of their trances.

Jjinu, who was also an Orace, started to sway with them, but Kionya pulled him back slightly. Once Jjinu was caught up in a trance, he would start spouting off random dates for when either it was going to rain or the U.S.A's Women's Soccer Team would win the world cup in the future. He blinked up at her, eyes slightly foggy, and grinned. He swooped down to kiss her cheek before leading her away.

They moved up another set of stairs and then another. The road they stepped on mostly had green townhouses and set up outside each home was a table and an assortment of jewelry, pottery, and woven cloth. The Alem on this street were dressed differently than all of the other Alem they had seen, with more decorative cloth and jewelry wrapped around their arms: the Yadalms.

Kionya looked at one of the Yadalm, who was selling large vases with floral patterns. The Yadalm street was no less crowded than the other streets had been, however there was no dancing or singing, except from instrument makers. Instead, other Alem were shuffling along to buy the silks and jewelry. She looked past the people and up to the buildings, noticing that the Yadalm homes had drawings and designs sprayed onto their homes.

“Cool, right?” Jjinu leaned in. “Maybe I could get you something?"

"Maybe on the way back.”

Up one set of stairs, down another street, and over to another set of stairs, they kept moving, although his hand never left hers and her feet never ached. Best birthday present ever.

“On our way back down, we can visit the Toims."

"Nah, I heard all they do is race and I see enough of that at school with Uki and Twan."

He laughed, his brown hair swishing to the side. "Of course." 

They walked along the cobblestone for a little longer, but the Vibrem were just around the corner so they stopped to watch. Out of all the dancers, the Vibrem were the most in synch and graceful. Their steps were careful and exact, twirls and dips timed perfectly as others did the same three steps down the street. One foot out, twirl, then jab diagonally to the right, repeat. Their sashes and dresses twirled in bright rays of cerulean and white. They hummed as one, voice rising up and down in soft rolls of vowels that drifted in the air long after they moved onto the next verse. Kionya watched them dance down the street as one.

"It is always lovely to watch the Vibrem," she whispered.

"Yes. It's a shame so many of them are too hypersensitive to join in."

Kionya shrugged. "Let's leave them to it."

“Okay, the last ones are the Riorts. They celebrate at the top of the mountain.” 

They moved up the stairs. The streets they passed were quieter, with few Alem wandering along to their homes. As they moved higher up, the petals started to fall from the trees, sprinkling the cobblestone with pink. The couple was silent, but not awkward; Jjinu kept twirling a lock of her brown hair. 

They took another flight of stairs. Kionya wondered who designed the island and who came up with the bright idea to put stairs everywhere, but she vaguely remembered it being a woman named Hja Tamn, but couldn't remember much else. Her history teacher would shake his head at her, but it was summer: it didn't matter anymore. As they moved up, Kionya could tell they were reaching the top since the houses were more spaced out and she could almost see the other side of the island from where she stood. She also heard a lot of yelling and screaming.

Kionya glanced at Jjinu in concern, but he smiled and they kept moving. The trees at the top were tall willows, their leaves swaying in the breeze, and the ground was grass rather than stone, tickling her ankles as she walked forward. At the summit, Kionya could see a large crowd of people circle around the center. Behind them, the horizon was a clear blue where the sky kissed the sea. Jjinu led them forward, his head held high. They shouldered through the crowd. Kionya could hear the sound of punching and kicking, the noise of the crowd swelling in glee. Jjinu settled them in the front of the ring.

At the very center of the summit of the island, there was a large circle of sand and a railing that surrounded it. Inside, were two men, barely clothed, and fists readied. Runes of sorts were etched into the sand and despite how many times the men walked across the letters, the symbols never lost their shape.

One of the men was deeply tanned and muscular with short black curls. Along his back were many tattoos with runes similar to the ones etched in the sand. The other man was tall and thin with white hair and bright blue eyes. The tanned man had bruises on his chest and a split lip, but the tall man looked completely unharmed. The two men stalked each other around the ring for a few moments, but the crowd continued to cheer and scream.

The tanned man lunged forward and tall man side-stepped him, making the brunette turn back around quickly to slam his fists forward. The tall man grabbed the man’s fist, twisted his arm sharply so that even Kionya could hear a cracking sound, and shoved him into the sand. Kionya watched with horror as the brunette got up and twisted his arm back together. Jjinu made a noise next to her. Then the men started to fight again.

“It's a good thing Riorts have impenetrable skin, right?”

“Y-yeah. Is that guy okay?” 

“Perfectly fine.”

“Why are they fighting? What’s with the other guy?”

“Every summer solstice, some of the strongest Riorts fight against one of the gods to earn their respect.”

Kionya looked at the white-haired guy. “That guy’s a god?”

“Yeah, it's Ciclou. Remember him?” She shook her head. The name was familiar, but she didn't know why. “He's the god of dreams?" She shrugged, vaguely remembering him. Jjinu waved his hand. "It's cool. I've only ever seen him here one other time. Usually Yisdir or Pehlo like to fight in the festivities.”

“Huh…” Kionya looked away and back to the fighting.

Ciclou and the Riort were now jabbing at each other’s guts and faces. Now that Kionya knew he was a god, Kionya could see that Ciclou was clearly holding back on the Riort, not punching with his full strength, allowing the Alem to graze his cheek once or twice. It was interesting to watch, but Kionya didn't like violence.

It was clear that Ciclou was finished fighting the Riort because in one swift movement, he slammed his fist into the Riort’s face and the man fell to the ground, unconscious. The crowd roared and Kionya felt completely off balance, the crowd slamming up against her and jostling her around. 

"Hey can we go?" she shouted.

Jjinu nodded, grabbing her hand again, and led her back out of the crowd. They moved away from the knoll and back to the stairs.

"Let's go back to the Irahn's," Kionya suggested.

"Of course."

The stairs creaked under her feet. At the bottom of one of the landings, Kionya swooped in to kiss him again. His lips were soft and they were out of breath. She pulled away.

"Thank you for such a lovely birthday."

He smiled.