SuvwI'
Shrogh Sub
By Carolyn Winifred
Rated: G (young
Klingon warriors)
Summary: A tale to instill Klingon virtues in already virtuous
Klingon children (with apologies to Hans Christian Anderson)
Startrek and all therefrom belong to Paramount, a Klingon warrior's
heart is always free.
SuvwI' Shrogh Sub
There were five and twenty SuvwI' Shrogh. They were all brothers
for they had been forged from the same old Shrogh areca. The held
their bat'leths ready and looked straight ahead. The first thing
they heard, when the lid was raised off their box, was a boy
clapping his hands and shouting 'SuvwI' Shrogh.' It was the boy's
First Right of Ascension and the SuvwI' Shrogh had just been
given to him. He set them up on the table and fought the battle
of tong veh. Only one SuvwI' Shrogh was left standing when the
battle was over.
When evening came, the boy put all the other SuvwI' Shrogh in
their box, and the people of the house went to bed. Now was the
time for the toys to fight amongst themselves. They challenged
one another and had feasts. Dawn found the toys back, resting, in
their places.
A storm approached the city outside. A great gust blew the window
open and the SuvwI' Shrogh fell head over heels from the third
story! He fell at terrific speed and landed with his legs in the
air and the tip of his bat'leth stuck between the paving stones.
The boy and his ghojmok ran down to look for him. They nearly
stepped on him, but they failed to see him. If the SuvwI' Shrogh
had cried out 'Here I am!' they would have found him. But he did
not think to cry out when he was in uniform. Then it began to
rain. The drops fell heavier until it became a downpour.
When the storm had past, two boys came along. "Look!"
said one. "Here is a SuvwI' Shrogh. Let's send him for a
sail."
So they made a boat out of stiff parcel paper and put the SuvwI'
Shrogh in the middle of it. Off he went down the gutter. The two
boys ran alongside, shouting "Qapla'". What waves there
were in the gutter, and what a fast current!
The paper boat bounced up and down and whirled round and round,
until the SuvwI' Shrogh was quite dizzy. But he was Sub and didn't
move a muscle. He just looked straight ahead and shouldered his
bat'leth.
The boat entered a long drainpipe. It was as dark as the box the
SuvwI' Shrogh had shared with his brothers. A great water rat
swam up. "Where's your pass?" demanded the rat. "Let
me have it."
The SuvwI' Shrogh Sub did not speak but held tighter to his bat'leth.
The boat rushed on, the rat close behind, gnashing his teeth and
shouting, "Stop him! Stop him! He hasn't shown his pass!"
But the current grew stronger and stronger. The SuvwI' Shrogh
could see daylight before him at the end of the drainpipe. He
could also hear a roaring sound that was enough to strike terror
in the boldest heart. The drainpipe poured down into a wide
channel. He was already so near it that he could not possibly
stop.
The paper boat was swept out into the channel, and the SuvwI'
Shrogh Sub held himself as stiff as he could. The parcel paper
lost strength to fight the water. The SuvwI' Shrogh Sub stood up
to his neck in water, and the boat sank deeper and deeper. At
last the water closed over the SuvwI' Shrogh Sub's head. And in
his ears rang this refrain from an old song:
Oh SuvwI' Sub, goodbye!
Thy end, rejoice, is nigh.
The parcel paper gave way, and the SuvwI' Shrogh fell through the
bottom. But at that moment he was snapped up by a great norgh.
Oh, how dark it was inside the fish! It was even darker than in
the drainpipe and there was so little room. But the SuvwI' Shrogh
was as Sub as ever and lay full length, shouldering his bat'leth.
The fish twitched and twisted as the bat'leth of the SuvwI'
Shrogh cut swaths through its insides. At last it became quite
still and a long time passed. Then suddenly there was a flash
like lightning. The SuvwI' Shrogh was once more in daylight and
someone shouted 'SuvwI' Shrogh!'
The dead fish had drifted to the edge of the canal and been
picked up for dinner by the kitchen toy'wI"a, who had just
cut it open with a mek'leth. The toy'wI"a picked up the
SuvwI' Shrogh Sub and marched him into the chamber of the epetai.
Everyone was eager to see the SuvwI' Shrogh Sub who had traveled
inside a great norgh and killed it. The SuvwI' Shrogh Sub was
proud.
One of the children grabbed the SuvwI' Shrogh and flung him into
the great fireplace. The SuvwI' Shrogh Sub stood in a blaze of
red light. He could feel himself melting, but he stood firm, bat'leth
at the shoulder. The boy reached in, trying to rescue the SuvwI'
Shrogh, but the fire was too hot.
The SuvwI' Shrogh melted. The next day the chamber toy'wI"a
threw the lump of Shrogh out with the ashes. The SuvwI' Sub was
now in Sto'vo'kor.
tlhIngan Hol
SuvwI' =
warrior, The Klingon Dictionary
Shrogh = low quality metal, A Call To
Darkness, TNG novel
areca = common musical instrument, A
Call To Darkness, TNG novel
ghojmok = nursemaid, ST Encyclopedia
Sub = brave, TKD
norgh = fish, TKD
toy'wI''a = servant, TKD
mek'leth = short sword, ST Encyclopedia
epetai = master, The Final Reflection,
ST novel
Sto'vo'kor = heaven
bath'leth = sword
qapla - success
---- End ----