Mikku

Mikku remembers the sting of rope burn, the frantic energy of hauling nets from the rapids below Waterfall City as a youth. Their eyes, always intense, scanned the water for advantage, not beauty, seeking to out-catch everyone on the lower docks. One evening, an elder handed them a single fishing rod and a glowing lantern. “The river gives what it will,” the elder said softly. “Your fire is bright enough to see that.” For a season, Mikku’s only catch was frustration. But slowly, the fight left them. These days, their lantern is a familiar, steady light by the pale stone temple. The focus in their gaze hasn't vanished, but it has changed; it is the deep, still attention of a hunter who has learned the greatest prize isn't pulled from the water, but found within the waiting.