Sagion's Story

Many turns ago, a ship from somewhere on the great northern continent set sail. It’s destination – the shores of Southern.

However, the ship met up with a fierce nighttime gale, and many times giant waves crashed over the bow of the tiny ship.

A small child was thrown overboard and was lost. The dark waters swirled around the dark haired lad, dragging him down. He flailed, trying to fight his way back to the surface. The air burned in hiss little lungs. A strange haunting melody sounded in his ears moments before he blacked out.

Late the next evening, a young woman found a child of perhaps three turns lying on the shoreline, not far from Sennet Seahold. His clothes were torn and soiled, and he was very still. She gingerly lifted the shallowly breathing boy, and carried him back to the hold. He began to wake once Tellia wrapped him in a warm blanket. He said his name was Sagion, and that he had three turns. Beyond that, he couldn’t remember anything more. Young Sagion was fostered to Crellan and Jelima, who had a young daughter about his age – Savi was her name.

Over time, Sagion’s natural talents began to manifest themselves. The young boy had begun to write little tunes. They were nice melodic sequences, but Sagion was still looking for "that song." He couldn’t quite describe the sound, but yet he never gave up trying to find it. Sennet’s resident Harpers caught on to Sagion’s musical talent, and arranged with his foster parents that he be apprenticed to the Harpercraft hall at Kielac Hold.

So Savi and Sagion were split, and now, at 12 turns, they were once again "alone." Sagion got on well at Kielac, and learned to play some of the more distinctive instruments – waving haunting melodies, but yet still in search of that elusive tune.

Time passed, and Sagion walked the tables to Journeyman, and was to be kept on at the hall as one of their composers. Other Harpers wove words to compliment his melodies, and he was glad they liked his tunes, but he’d keep right on looking for that tune.

Sagion arranged to go home to Sennet for his 19^th turnday, or rather, the 16^th anniversary of his discovery on the beach. There, he met up again with his foster sister Savi, who was absolutely taken with a dolphineer. Sagion had never met a dolphin, and together they traveled around the bend to Bell Hold in a small craft.

As they neared, they were escorted by the resident pod of dolphins. They’d been called shipfish in Sagion’s youth, but times have changed. They clicked and made happy noises, and walked on their tails to greet them.

Savi’s young male friend met them on the dock near the bell, and the dolphins eagerly greeted him – calling him by name.

"How about that!" said Sagion, laughter curling up the corners of his mouth.

"Waterboy!" one of the older dolphins said. "Terl remembers!"

Jekki looked at the dolphin "What did you say Terl?"

The dolphin tailwalked, then bellyflopped down into the water. "Terl remembers!" she said again.

"You remember Sagion?" The dolphineer asked.

The dolphin grinned at him. "We bring him home." The dolphin said happily.

Sagion knew he was a foundling from a shipwreck, but that he was rescued by a dolphin? How odd?

Later, Savi, Jekki, and Sagion went for a swim with the pod. Sagion loved swimming, and enjoyed shallow diving. The dolphins thought this was a great game, and dove right along with him, sometimes hauling him deeper with a tow from their dorsal fins. The Harper was pleased and had half decided to write a short tune about dolphins, to educate those inland about these aquatic mammals.

A dragon had landed, and of course, the dolphins flocked to see the shimmering blue. Sagion dove under and swam for the bottom. After a moment, he righted himself and swam for the surface.

Suddenly the harper heard the sound he’d been seeking for the past 16 turns. It was so unexpected, that Sagion panicked. Three heartbeats later, his hand met a fin, and Terl towed him to the surface.

"Silly blue boy." The dolphin said as the harper gasped for breath, clinging to her.

"I heard it!" he exclaimed, drawing Jekki and Savi’s attention. "I heard the song again!"

Savi whispered to Jekki "He must have swallowed a lot of seawater."

Terl flipped her fin, and swam around Sagion, leaving him to tread water.

Jekki thought about it. "Terl!" he called, and the dolphin lept from the water in response. "Did you blast him?" The dolphin made some response, which Sagion missed.

"Blast?" he inquired.

Jekki nodded. "Dolphins can find things underwater by echolocation." The dolphineer explained, then he looked puzzled.

Sagion had stopped a meter or two from Jekki, where he could touch bottom, and have his head out of the water.

"Sagion, go under – I want to see something." The dolphineer said, and curious, the harper did. When the ‘music’ hit his ears again, he sprang back out. Jekki couldn’t stop laughing. "You hear sonar!"

Sagion didn’t think it was funny, but now he could write that elusive melody.