Pele - A short story

The eruption took everyone by surprise, not least the man who had fallen into the volcano. He had been taking a walk, you see, and had not planned the sudden end to his day, and shockingly, his life. There was no time for him to reflect on his choices, as his ankle turned when he saw the beautiful woman, and he began the fall, and before he landed, the hot lava had engulfed him from below, and there wasn’t much chance of thought after that. As the molten fire poured up out of the mouth of the volcano, and spewed it’s burning vomit across the surrounding earth, people were too busy screaming and running to wonder why it had happened.

Which of course, Pele reflected, was the whole problem in a nutshell. None of these people paid any attention to the gods anymore. Oh well of course, they paid lip service to the one’s they had created, but there was no respect for the sheer power of the natural Gods. And, she supposed, whilst her outburst had been rather childish, set off by the man’s careless kick of a stone she had worked for hundreds of years to move to it’s proper balanced place, the did need to learn a lesson. Now of course, all the work she had done here for several millennia had just been undone in a fit of pique, and there would be questions to answer. And she wasn’t at all sure she had any. There was no further time to scheme however. She noticed that the traditional offerings were not forthcoming, there was no chant for her to be calmed by. These humans were truly insufferable.

“Is anyone else coming to gloat at my indiscretions?” Pele asked Baba–Yaga with a quick glance at her from the corner of her eye. All seeing that was a joke too. This witch woman never stayed still, constantly pacing, seeking to grind down the very earth she was forced to walk.

Before Baba could answer her, Durga appeared, leaping off the back of her tiger and falling to one knee.

“ Of course, Durga, goddess of boundaries. Did I cross the line?” Pele asked, trying for sarcasm, but pulling off nervous laughter. Durga merely scowled at her, and stepped forward to greet Baba-Yaga. Most honoured witch woman, I greet you, She said in her formal manner. Pele had always suspected that being the goddess of the volcanoes and flame was a much better deal that what poor Durga had been stuck with. She could never ever cross the line, that one. Pele stifled a chuckle so as not to offend her esteemed guest.

When Kali arrived next, Pele began to relax. It looked like there would be no punishment, only commiseration from her fellow Goddesses. Kali danced into the room, and greeted the three of them in her usual, or rather, unusual manner. Then they all sat down again. Kali spoke.

“These mortals, I know are sending you all mad. In particular you Durga, with their constant change of the rules wherever it suits them. I suggest we all take a break. We still do all the work, and they give all the praise to these ‘Other’ Gods they have created. So what will they do if we all take a week off? No fire, Pele. No defining rules, Durga. No death and no birth and no fear. And no instinct, without you, Baba-Yaga. What do you say, ladies? Shall we show them what we really do?

And that was how it came about that the days after the volcano were very odd indeed. The locals did not need to put out the fires in the aftermath, as they went out on their own. Unfortunately, so did the cooking fires, and raw fish was not appreciated by all. When the lawyers tried to argue the negligence case against the hotel for the widow of the man whose careless foot had started the whole thing, they found they had no case. It was not against the rules not to tell someone that a volcano that hadn’t erupted for two hundred ears still could erupt, and no amount of their usual tactics could bend that rule. Women who had been expecting babies that week had none. Worldwide, there was consternation as it was realised that the birth and death rates had simultaneously stopped in their tracks. The doctors were confused, but not scared by this, as they felt that there must be a logical explanation. But those instinctive risk takers on the stockmarket floor all suffered great losses in that same week. For some reason, they were not being guided in whatever way was usual for them. The goddesses, in their womanly mortal guises enjoyed a fabulous week on the ski fields of New Zealand, and when they returned to their work, the felt a sense of real accomplishment as they set about righting things. The had vowed they would take a break like this each year.