Life- Day 6

(Days 1-5 play an crucial role in understanding Day 6. Just sayin.)

(*Really. If you haven't read the first five days, you will not understand.)

The water grows colder by the day. Much has happened in this place I call my home. It began in the morning, when light first reached its pinnacle, and the mana did fall down, as regularly expected. Shadows previously gone unnoticed did flit into my heart as I made my way to the far Western Wall of the world. Eyes like daggers following my every movement, every glint of light an attempt to penetrate my soul in a gaze as piercing as the sharpest blade. I continued my stalwart march, my only wish to reach the place of Frank's rest in peace, without confrontation of any sort.

I did not make it without confrontation of any sort.

Just within sight of his chosen rock, there came a group of larger fish, arranging themselves in a single row, blocking me from my desired way. I made attempt to swim above, but the blockade would not be broken. Resolute as I was, however, to reach my beloved friend, I did not give in and return to my own abode, but made an attempt to communicate, limited as their capacities were.

"Good brothers! Greetings this day!"

Vacant stares.

"If you would pardon my intrusion in this apparently hostile blockade, I would only like to pass through, temporarily, in hopes to visit my good brother Frank. He is my dearest friend, you see, and especially in this day of eerie wonder and questionable safety in being outside of one's home... My passing through will be quick, I promise you, and if you wish, I might -"

It was at this point that they beat me, and left, without further adieu.

It was in this battered state, laying upon the pebbly earth below, grasping to consciousness and breath as a tightly as a dying goldfish could possibly manage, that the purest of lights came over me, and not just me, but my consciousness, my everything, my being and all that I was and am became consumed by its brilliance and beauty, its depth of white-ness, as curious as it sounds. The light seemed to draw nearer; escape, had I wished to attempt it, would have been impossible. We seemed to merge, the light and I... it becoming me, and I... light.

While in this state of seeming immaterial, I attest to you this day, I had a vision. A vision of life BEYOND our world, this contained... box, this prison! There is more, I know now, there is. I dare not now divulge the beauty of things to which I bore witness. To do so... no, my words cannot describe them! But know, dearest one, KNOW THIS: I shall see these things again, and soon, if I can accomplish it. And this time, it shall be in the flesh.

Invigorating as the experience was, it did nothing to change the fact that I was still lying upon the cold, unforgiving ground, blood streaming slightly from my gills, body twitching in the aching memory of my assailants. There I lay for some time, in no small wonder, realizing that if I were not soon found by some friend, this may very well mean an untimely end to my still young and ambition filled life. I was not about to let this happen.

Gathering all my remaining strength, I gave one powerful kick, a lurch in the direction of Frank, sending me a small distance westward. More blood seeped from my wounds, and now darkness, not light, began to gather around me. I fought off this enticing foe; I must continue, I MUST reach Frank.

Frank, my brother, I repeated in my mind. To him I must go. Kick. Darkness. Fight. Kick. Darkness. Fight. On and on this circle of painful progression pressed on...

I do not know how much time passed. I know the light overhead had already disappeared, and other fish were not to be seen. I reached the rock under which Frank resides, shut my eyes, and felt my spirit part from my body.

My life as Peter the Fish had ended.

Life- Day 5

(Reading days 1-4 helps. A lot.)

Things have changed within our watery home.

Those with whom we had once lived in harmony, do begin to swim against our chosen path. They did not understand the calculated decision made the previous day... They saw death, and they saw me. To them, I am one to be feared. None dare swim alone in my midst. Only Frank doth stand by my side, ne'er failing to share a bubble of support to my cause and my dignity.

Oh what great loneliness would be mine, if not for my beloved brother! This world unconquerable, conquered, when together our shadows stand.

May it always be this way.

Life- Day 4

(Starting with day 1- a good idea.)

Today...

I killed a fish.

Think of me how you will. But I feel no remorse, as I do not feel it to have been murder. It was a tragic loss, necessary for the good of the all, and the continued protection of our existence.

I will relate to you the events leading up to the event.

It was no later than twenty minutes after the light shined its brilliance down upon us. The being inside my brother and I (Monster, Fiend, Devil we shall call it!) had begun to sound its morning rage, gnashing against my insides, as would a trapped lion inside an oozing bubble of meat. Patiently swimming along the sides of our world, I waited for that regular grace to fall upon us, the flaky blessing of life let down to satiate the terror and protect my family from the thing inside me.

Wait, I did. As did Frank, my brother.

Perhaps we were being punished for some unknown offence? The reasons, I know not. Yet for whatever sake or... purpose, the gods had in mind... The manna... it did not come today, as regularly expected.

We waited. We WAITED! Longer than you could have known, we waited... dear one... we waited...

But it did not come.

So I made a decision.

Choices, we had two. The first, we wait longer, wait, wait, WAIT until our bodies burst asunder and become devoured from the inside, unleashing that beast upon all else in this world.

Think you for one moment, that THIS decision is one that I would make, simply for the well being of my conscious? Think you, I am one to be so selfish?

I declare to you, and all the world, that upon this day I shed myself of selfishness, and chose a second path... I swam to one spotted, and largest of my brothers, one to whom the gift of intelligence was not so lavishly bestowed. I drifted down, along his underside... his gills fluttering as I glided past... and I bit. Strait up, directly into the neck I sliced with all the strength my still not-yet-fully-developed body could muster, ripping, shaking and writhing as efficiently as I could, bringing a swift end to the unwitting... sacrifice. The mangled body twitched as signs of life diminished. He was dead.

It was not long, however, until my action did draw the attention of mine other brothers, and they did see what I had done. Yet instead of shock, of fear or anger, they seemed to understand what I had done, and immediately commenced in consuming his lifeless body. Seeing Frank with some unrecognizable organ trailing behind his mouth brought peace unto my soul, for I knew he would be safe, as would I.

In memory of that selfless fish, who today, in giving his life saved uncounted multitudes of innocent children (us, for wise as we have become, we are indeed still children), I pronounce a name upon him: Lavie Après Lamort.

In life, he was great.

In noble death, his life shined ever greater.

The flowers of life now bloom in all who were blessed

by his passing.

Now he lives inside us all.

Remember him:

Lavie Après Lamort

Life- Day 3

(Again, if you haven't read days 1 and 2 of Life, this won't make much sense.)

My brother and I have solidified our bond of brotherhood this day, by endowing names upon one another, names to be had for all our lives in this troubling world, and even unto death in another, wherever that may be. For he, I have given a most noble and glorious name, one to stand in the records of heaven forever to be of greatness in strength and reliability, one of trust, of companionship; indeed, one of a true friend. His name shall be Frank! One of boldness in words, fearless to say that what another dares not; bravery hath ne'er stood paralleled by one more worthy of its title.

And I, keeping in mind Frank's mode to communicate, did assist in my naming, and know his wish to call me Peter, Peter the Brother, the brother of Frank. OH SUCH HONOR it is! To be his brother... To be the brother of Frank.

This sacred moment passed, we continued on in our corporeal discoveries. Again I note the containment roundabout, the smallness of it's nature. As in the days before, the beasts within our bodies cried out in anger, but were brought again to peace by blessed gifts from the clouds.

It was upon this topic that I spent the majority of my day dwelling. My question is this: Why? Is there some greater power watching over us, somehow aware of our sad and desperate plight? If so, then why? Why does he care if this unbearable monster bursts forth from our bellies and consumes my brothers roundabout? Why would he care for Frank, in all his strength and perfection? The mystery gives me not a minute's rest, not in sleep, not in swim, and neither in mind nor matter is light shined upon this darkened secret...

Wonder, I do. As previously mentioned, I appreciate this phenomenon with all capacities of my being. Should we show our thanks in some form of outward expression? A prayer of sorts, making the powers responsible aware of our gratitude in sparing our lives from doubtless physical degradation and death? How would this being (or beings) hear our cries? They would need be loud, however they are spoken. I shall attempt on the morrow, upon commencement of the next rain of flaky manna upon our aquatic home.

Life- Day 2

(If you haven't read day 1 yet, you should do that now, before you read day 2. Things might make a bit more sense!)

Today we discovered. We explored our world, and found all there was to find, counted every "living" being (though I doubt their worthiness to be distinguished as "life," as the majority do not act as such, merely floating, eating, pooping, and existing,) and investigated even the green substances protruding from this world's bottom. The results of our analysis: the world in which we live is uncomfortably small, and I begin to suspect a certain "contained" atmosphere about it.

I wish also to relate a certain phenomenon that has now occurred upon two separate occasions, once yesterday, and once today. But before I do, I must first describe another... rather curious, yet... somewhat frightening occurance, one which may have something to do with the phenomenon previously mentioned. My brother and I, having just discovered the disappointing lack of personal hygene among even those who seem to be quite experienced in the mysteries of life, and having invested quite a bit of energy into doing it, realized, to our greatest shock, that it is not only from the mouth that audible communication may burst forth, but also from inside ourselves! I wish not to sound mentally unfit, nor cause unneeded panic, but it is true, and this fact does still plague me with most considerable discomfort.

I worry, for these sounds are not of our own origin. I fear, that by means I do not know or understand, we seem to have contracted some sort of parasitic organism, a leech within our bodies, which when in some way discomforted, utters forth such deep growls, terrifying to any roundabout.

Now, was this sound my only observation, I may have had reason to rejoice, but alas, fate has not granted me such a blessing. It is more- something far more terrible than such ominous utterances of disapproval. I tell you now, that when it's primal urges are not fulfilled, it doth attack, scratching, gnawing, biting, doing all it can to satisfy it's unknown desires. I dare not think on the outcome of prolonged resistance to such torture. I am as a time bomb, I think... could such a horrid thing ever escape me? A monster, released upon the world due to my inability to placate it... I admit, I shudder even now, considering my plight. I must not allow this creature inside both my brother and I to escape. This could be my calling in life... it is a duty I accept most solemnly.

This phenomenon I earlier mentioned, it is one which is difficult to explain. It seems to occur at the pinnacle of these ragings, when this monster's wrath inside becomes most furious... from the heavens above, a manna is sent down, to tame and mollify this mysterious foe. Twice now it has come down, twice now it has saved us. My understanding of this miracle is extremely limited; any attempt of explanation would be, at this point in time, mere conjecture. I must consider this matter further before designating any source. As for now, I can only say that for it, I am extremely grateful.

Life- Day 1

Today I was born. To whatever purpose god had in his most unknown and puzzling mind, I was born apparently not like my brothers and sisters. Not to say I do not resemble them, no, into all the aquatic and fishy ways I was very much born, complete with gills for breathing, eyes for seeing (though quite bequbbled), a mouth, fins, scales, and whatever else it is that distinguishes us as such beings. It is just... as time goes by, I begin to notice a pattern of regular... mindlessness... about my siblings. I beg your pardon for my openness in this observation, and perhaps it is only my own inability to understand them which contributes to my thinking this, but in the already many hours since my hatching, the most interactive sign of remote intelligence I have yet to observe manifested itself in a single well timed bubble released from the mouth of one of my brothers.

As I was in that very moment swimming above him, the released mouth-bubble reached up around my bosom, causing the most curious of sensations as it glided up and around my leftmost fin, and continued it's journey above. Excited by the possibility of intended interaction, I swam down to my shimmering brother, a swelling in my heart incomparable to any I had felt before, my being reached out to him in that one moment of desperate hope... I cried to him, "Brother, my brother! I have felt your signal, your call for companionship! I am here, and together we shall strive to understand this lonely and terrible world, we shall travel together and adventure to the deepest trench and ascend to the greatest of mounts! Together we shall overcome all the cruelties of life, in it's sorrows, it's pains, it's tears, the very abominable pits of despair and hell's dragonous resistance to the progression of our living souls! Together we shall survive, and not just that, but live, thrive, find our happiness, our wives and bear children! As brothers we shall stay together, forging a bond so unbreakable that only the jarring claws of death could ever pull me from your side!"

It was in such a manner that I declared my ultimate allegiance to my comrade, for my fear of living a life in the ultimate darkness of dwelling alone in my sentient state of being had already begun to creep into my fragile bones, not yet overpowering, but indeed present, as an itch under the furthest of scales, unreachable by even the most outstretched of fins. To be alone, even in the most desirable of circumstances, I feel would be the most terrible of fates, one which would presumably lead to my very undoing.

My oath of allegiance complete, I did stare into the eyes of my brother, and he into mine, and it seemed for a time as if his eyes did glimmer, as though his soul did yearn with all extremities of his very capacity to cry out in joy, to celebrate this finding with outward expression as did I- but then, just as I believed the realization had sunken in, to be recognized in it's utmost purity, he did wait... and wait... and wait. My smile of joy did begin to fade, and I admit, the thought had already come, "There now, you (for I have still not yet found a word to call myself), he is just like the others, his mind just as small as those roundabout."

Alas, I was all but given up, when suddenly, as he allowed happen in the time of previous communication, my beloved sibling let a second signal fly: a lone bubble, which I know to have been his way of showing loving approval, his design of saying to me, "Yes, brother, yes! The thrill of my finding of thee doth fill me up with the most wonderful feelings of life! Together we shall go forth, we shall strive together for life and liberty, and always together we shall stay until such jaws you conveyed doth forcefully part us!"

And so I found my brother, and conversed with him the rest of the waking day, and then some, discussing our plans for life, for discovering the world, for learning all there was to learn before we grew old and died, and upon the mention of death, we discussed the meaning thereof, and decided it to be something we should earnestly avoid, and not something to be striven after.

Throughout all such speech, my noble brother was always limited to his simple releasing of mouth bubble, but in doing so, I understood all that he wished to communicate. You see, I soon came to understand, my poor brother does suffer from a certain speech disability, that in such capacities he is all but incapable, stopped though upon the verge of unrequited expression. His only form of expressing his every need, desire, thought or idea, must take the form of that single, fragile bubble, released from the most precious reaches of his undying soul. But as he is my brother, I do swear ne'er to abandon him; his need for me doth not overcome mine for he, for as he hath boldly stated, we are one, and shall be forevermore.