Heirs of Mana Omnibus
Books 1-3
Matt Larkin
Contents
Skalds’ Tribe
Dramatis Personae
Terms
Map
Tides of Mana
Prologue
Part I
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Part II
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Part III
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Chapter 33
Chapter 34
Chapter 35
Chapter 36
Chapter 37
Epilogue
Author’s Note
Flames of Mana
Prologue
Part I
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Part II
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Part III
Chapter 33
Chapter 34
Chapter 35
Chapter 36
Chapter 37
Chapter 38
Chapter 39
Epilogue
Author’s Note
Queens of Mana
Prologue
Part I
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Part II
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Chapter 33
Chapter 34
Chapter 35
Chapter 36
Chapter 37
Chapter 38
Chapter 39
Chapter 40
Chapter 41
Part III
Chapter 42
Chapter 43
Chapter 44
Chapter 45
Chapter 46
Chapter 47
Chapter 48
Chapter 49
Chapter 50
Chapter 51
Chapter 52
Chapter 53
Chapter 54
Chapter 55
Chapter 56
Epilogue
Author’s Note
For my daughter.
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Dramatis Personae
People of Uluka‘a
Haumea, the former God-Queen of Uluka‘a, now vanished
Kū-Waha-Ilo, her mate, also missing
Namaka, her eldest daughter, the Sea Queen
Pele, her second daughter, the Flame Queen
Kapo, her third daughter, who left for Sawaiki as an apprentice to Uli
Hi‘iaka, her youngest daughter, still a child, raised by Pele
Leapua, kahuna to Namaka
Upoho, wererat foster brother to Namaka
Milolii, a mo‘o (dragon) who raised and trained Namaka and Upoho
Kahaumana, Namaka’s first husband
Kanemoe, Namaka’s second husband
Aukele, Namaka’s third husband, from Sawaiki, son of Huma and Uli
Lonomakua, kahuna to Pele and her mentor
Moho, a spirit working with Pele
People of Kaua‘i
Uli, a sorceress from Kahiki who came to Sawaiki fifty years ago with Kapo
Huma, first husband to Uli, King of Lihue
Kalana (deceased), brother of Huma, husband to Uli after she divorces his brother
Hina, daughter of Uli and Kalana, wife to Hakalanileo
Hakalanileo (Haki), King of Waimea, husband to Hina
Kana, elder son of Hina and Hakalanileo
Niheu, younger son of Hina and Hakalanileo
Lonoaohi, Hakalanileo’s chief kahuna
Kamapua‘a (Kama), a wereboar son of Uli and Kalana, raised by his sister Hina, now banished and living as a bandit
Makani, a bandit, Kamapua‘a’s second-in-command
Ioane, another bandit
Malie, a female bandit
People of Mau‘i
Hinaikamalama, Queen of Hana, loyal to Poli‘ahu
People of Vai‘i
Poli‘ahu, a queen on Vai‘i, a kupua associated with Mauna Kea
Nalani, her counselor
Lilinoe, a snow akua, Poli‘ahu’s mentor
Waiau, a snow akua subordinate to Lilinoe and bound to Poli‘ahu
Kahoupokane, a snow akua subordinate to Lilinoe
Kepawa, King of Puna on Vai‘i, recently dead
Naia, widow of King Kepawa
Milohai, her younger brother
Keanu, high kahuna to Kepawa and Naia
Kamalo, second kahuna to Kepawa and Naia
Makua-kaumana (Makua), a prophet kahuna from unknown lands
People of Moloka‘i
Kaupeepee, a raider based on Moloka‘i, working against the Kahikian invaders
Ilima, one of his warriors
Keoloewa, King of Moloka‘i, Kaupeepee’s brother
He‘e
Punga, he‘e ambassador to Mu
Rogo-Tumu-Here (Rogo), the legendary leader of the he‘e rebellion and originator of the Rogo War
Mer of Hiyoya
Latmikaik, Queen of Hiyoya, Voice of Rongomai ‘Ohana
Inemes, her cousin
Matsya, an ambassador to humans, Rongomai ‘Ohana
Mer of Mu
Aiaru, Queen of Mu, Voice of Kuula �
��Ohana
Hokohoko, a warrior of Kuula
Ikatere, Voice of the Dakuwaqa ‘Ohana
Kuku Lau, his eldest daughter
Nyi Rara, his second daughter
Tilafaiga, his niece, sister of Taema, a tattoo artist
Taema, sister of Tilafaiga, a tattoo artist
Ake, Commander of the Dakuwaqan Rangers, younger brother of Taema and Tilafaiga
Opuhalakoa (Opu), High Priestess and Keeper of the Urchin, Voice of Ukupanipo ‘Ohana
Daucina, a diplomat, Ukupanipo ‘Ohana
Deities
Elder Deep, the mer name for the master of Avaiki
Kanaloa, god of the ocean and of magic, god-king of the he‘e, enemy of Kāne
Kāne, the highest of the gods who created the Worldsea with the Deluge but spared mankind through the line of Nu‘u
Kū, war god, affiliate of Kāne
La, a sun god defeated by Maui
La‘amaomao, wind goddess
Lono, agriculture god, affiliate of Kāne
Manua, deified ghost king from the first wave of settlers to Sawaiki
Maui, a kupua who brought fire to man, defeated monsters, found Sawaiki, and died trying to give mankind immortality
Milu, queen of the damned, mistress of mist
Mo‘oinanea, progenitor queen of the mo‘o
Wākea, the sky god
Terms
General
aikāne, intimate, often sexual relationships between members of the same sex
aloha, “love” used for “hello” and “goodbye”
heiau, a temple
kai e‘e, a tsunami
ki‘i (tiki), carved wooden masks representing gods
kilu, a game like quoits where a gourd is spun to hit a spoke, often earning one sexual favors
kōnane, a game like checkers
mahalo, “thank you”
mana, spiritual energy, but also life force
mele, a chant
mo‘olelo, tales, legends, and genealogies that contain within them a kind of mana
‘ohana, family, including extended family
pahu, wooden drum topped with sharkskin
tabu, sacred proscriptions
‘ūkēkē, stringed musical instrument
ali‘i, the chiefly class, including royalty
kahuna (plural kāhuna), a member of the educated class of priests, shamans, and teachers
Places
Uluka‘a, an island off the coast of Kahiki
Kahiki, an island (Tahiti)
Sawaiki, an archipelago north of Kahiki (the Hawaiian islands)
Savai‘i, an island (in Samoa)
Old Mu, a continent that sank and left behind various archipelagos, including Sawaiki and Kahiki
Kumari Kandam, a continent to the west that sank after a war with Old Mu
Uekera, the Tree of Life
Undersea Kingdoms
Akakor, a mer kingdom in the Aethiopic Sea
Baltia, a mer kingdom in the North Sea
Cantref Gwaelod, a mer kingdom in in the West Sea
He‘e Aupuni, the he‘e kingdom, located south of Mu
Hiyoya, a mer kingdom that broke away from Mu
Lemuria, a mer kingdom in the South Sea
Mu, a mer kingdom centered on the sunken ruins of Old Mu
Ogygia, a mer kingdom in the Middle Sea
Ryūgū-jō, a mer kingdom in the East Sea
Beyond the World
Pō, the Astral Realm (e.g. the Penumbra), literally “night”
Avaiki, the World of Water, native world of the mer
Lua-o-Milu, the “pit of Milu,” an underworld of ghosts
Bestiary
akua, gods, including mer and menehune
‘aumakua (plural ‘aumākua), ghost gods and ancestor spirits
kupua, demigods, including shifters and mo‘o
lapu, angry ghosts (wraiths)
menehune, Earth akua
mer, Water akua (e.g. mermaids and mermen)
mo‘o, smaller dragons descended from the great taniwha of old, sometimes able to take human form
Nightmarchers, spirits of darkness or possibly ghosts that steal souls (The Wild Hunt)
taniwha, sea dragons
Clothing
malo, a man’s loincloth
kihei, a shoulder wrap
pa‘u, a woman’s skirt
tapa, cloth made from tree bark
Food
awa, a narcotic drink
imu, an underground oven
poi, paste made from taro root
Tides of Mana
Prologue
Days Gone
Moonlight barely filtered down through the waters to the seabed. A human would have called Tenebrous Chasm a place of utter darkness, but Nyi Rara’s mer eyes could make out a dance of shadows in the depths.
A plethora of vibrant scents drifted on the ocean currents here. Fish, of many kinds. Mer, concealed within the chasm. And decay—rotting corpses far below being slowly devoured. No blood left though.
It made her gills itch, nonetheless.
“Easy,” her father said, swimming up beside her.
Nyi Rara flashed a mirthless smile, not bothering to conceal that her shark teeth had descended in agitation. “This is a mistake. You cannot trust the Hiyoyans.”
Her father peered into the chasm, then glanced back at his assembled crew. Merchants, mostly, though they had a pair of Rangers among them, and common warriors as guards. Father had left Nyi Rara’s older sister in charge of the ‘ohana while they were away, insisting Nyi Rara come along and witness this historic deal. A deal that was meant to heal the rift between Mu and Hiyoya, or at least begin the process.
A reversal of the Sundering.
That, Nyi Rara thought, sounded unbelievable. The two mer societies had held in tenuous peace—or even open skirmishes—for all the centuries since they’d split apart. Reconciliation would require forgoing vengeance for more than two thousand years of grievances. It was before Nyi Rara was born, before many of the mer now were born, but her father remembered the time when Mu was a single people.
He leaned in close to her. “If this truly allows for a blending of societies, Dakuwaqa ‘Ohana may have the chance to reclaim the throne.”
“‘Ohana is everything,” Nyi Rara intoned, hardly thinking about it. Their family had lost the throne so very long ago—retaining only the titles of prince and princess for her bloodline. So long, only a handful in the ‘ohana had lived back then. Still, she would enjoy putting the bitch queen Aiaru in her place.
Would enjoy it … if it were possible. But Tenebrous Chasm was a no man’s land dividing Mu from Hiyoya to the south. Tales told that any who swam here failed to swim out again. Some claimed the he‘e—sentient octopuses—occupied the chasm, for it lay near enough to their Aupuni. Others believed the Hiyoyans themselves patrolled the depths, hunting for trespassers. Once, her cousin Tilafaiga had even told her a rumor that a taniwha lurked down in the darkness, though the great sea dragons were almost all gone now.
The merchants carried shells filled with trade goods. Worked jewelry of pearl and gold, human-wrought iron—it didn’t last long, but it had numerous uses—coral knives, and some prize Father seemed especially convinced would entice even the most reluctant of Hiyoyan merchants into a trade.
Nyi Rara grimaced, shaking her head. “I have misgivings. Severe misgivings.”
Father had arranged this trade envoy with Queen Aiaru’s blessings, but if it went wrong, Dakuwaqa ‘Ohana would bear the blame for it.
“It’s too late,” her father said. “They know we’re here. We cannot simply swim away. This is our chance to restore Dakuwaqa. Trust me.”