When Dolphins Ruled the Earth, by Ravi Hayashida
Prompt Submitted by Vikki Westerkov Pod 1 left the Bay. Travelling in groups was always the best way to go, as far as Lacey thought. Togetherness, harmony, and protection against other predators. She especially hated the killer whales that just seemed to come out of nowhere. Thankfully, the tech lab based out of the Oceanic Coastal Waters had developed a very accurate sensing device that, when attached to their tails, would send a small shock if something was looming behind them. Time and again it had proven effective enough to allow fellow dolphins to flee. Also, with a bit a evolutionary luck, dolphins were always just a bit smarter than those large predators. Without any apparent communication, the pod suddenly changed direction and, like a well-oiled machine, they moved as one. The lead, Hiram, was sniffing out where the next feeding spot was located. Occasional high pitched squeaks gave Hiram and a few others that were attuned to it the clues they needed to find an especially nice group of tasty fish. This is what Lacey loved the most: freedom to swim, together when the whole pod would benefit, but also the liberty to stay behind if she wasn’t particularly feeling it. There was no pressure, and every member of hers, and other pods, felt the same way. It was such a glorious feeling. With the world being more than 75% water, there were a multitude of places to go, and she had been to them all. From the warmest waters to the almost painfully frigid oceans of the north and south, Lacey had been able to take advantage of her ability to explore. She had heard legends of dolphins from the Way-Back time that this freedom wasn’t always the case. In fact, there were land-based life forms that seemed to dominate the land and oceans. Some even hunted dolphins. It was strange to her that there would have been a life form that benefitted from hunting dolphins. Other than hunting some of the same food sources, there was really no need. It just seemed silly. Hiram’s great grandfather was reportedly a survivor of those dark times. The stories he would tell of humans hunting or, sometimes, capturing dolphins for no reason. He even said that some dolphins were forced to perform the most absurd tricks to ensure their own survival. No one believed him, but he was adamant that this happened. He did have several scars that no one could really explain away as they didn’t appear to be from natural sources like rocks or coral. Not even shark attacks would leave those kind of scars. But, the old man was insistent, and he did tell the best stories, so growing up, she and the other younglings would gather around and listen, mesmerized by the outlandish environments he concocted. Those were good times as well. There was one story about a dolphin that claimed to have been captured and had tried to actually communicate with these land beings. To do this, he had tried to learn their language and tried really hard to reach out to them, to explain how intelligent we were and how we could help them live in this world in harmony. Foolish beings didn’t seem to understand and, for some odd reason, they employed some quite disturbing tests and behaviors to force him to speak their language. All that he could come up with was this odd word, “hand”. He never did go any further with explaining what they did to him, poor creature. But as time went on, the land beings eventually were eliminated. The structures they left behind were still visible from the shores if they went close enough. But since dolphins had no ability, and no real interest, in travelling overland, they never explored any further than coasts. However, one of the great discoveries was that these beings seems to like to harvest fish and create areas where the tastiest fishes would spawn and grow. This made hunting so much easier. It was so nice of them to leave these hatcheries behind. She wanted to thank them for all the fish, if they would have still been around. Soon, Pod 1 had reached one of the hatchery areas where the fish had grown old enough for them to harvest and feast. It was good to be a dolphin. Why would anyone want to be anything else?
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