Kamapua’a is an Hawaiian demigod who holds dominion over the rain and fertility. Though he is half hog and half human Kamapua'a is tall and handsome. His dark eyes sparkle with mischief and he is quite charming. However, beneath the charm there is a sinister interior to Kamapua'a. The Hog Child is a jealous demigod, quite aberrant and possessive.
Pele is the goddess of wind, lightning and volcanoes. Arrogant about her beauty, she is wary of anyone who tries to usurp her powers or manipulate her feelings. Often when tired of lovers she destroys them by luring them into a volcano’s lava flow.
Since she and Kamapua'a became lovers their relationship was often tempestuous. Each was envious of the others beauty. However, Pele truly loved Kamapua’a in spite of their difficulties with intimacy. Quite often Pele’s thoughts were gloomy because Kamapua'a sought to control every part of her life. She dared not look at other men nor focus too much on her work. There was trouble if all her energies were not focused on manipulative Kamapua’a. The jealous rages and possessive obsession caused Pele to suffer and she decided to leave the islands and her lover.
Pele's departure was deceitful and their break up humiliating; at least in the eyes of Kamapua'a. His rage at Pele forced him to take dire action. The beneficial rains with which this demigod nourished the islands were about to turn into something injurious and hostile. Kamapua’a conjured a hurricane. The huge storm began gyrating wildly in the waters of the Pacific. North of Galapagos and southeast of Hawaii, the category-five hurricane churned in the direction of Panama. With deadly determination Kamapua'a, demigod and hurricane, was on a destructive course of revenge.
Pele had forsaken Kamapua'a and sailed away. On an outrigger she hoped to find deliverance from the sadness and the oppressive eyes of her estranged lover. Entering the locks of the Panama Canal she hoped to hide somewhere along the warm waters of the Caribbean. The volcanoes there would make her feel less homesick.
It was perfectly obvious to Kamapua'a that Pele was following after another man. If needed, this deified mortal intended to destroy the world searching for both of them. Somehow their destruction would ease his indignity.
From Hawaii Kanaloa, the mighty god of the sea, recognized the vindictive presence of Kamapua'a in this storm. Action to assuage the tender ego of the Hog Child would have to be swift and nimble. Jealousy and vengeance would meet stalwart resolve to save the world from ruin. Kanaloa summoned Aloha Duke from the ranks of the Night Marchers - the ghosts of great Hawaiian warriors. Night Marchers move at dusk chanting and protecting the islands. The world needed protecting now.
A vortex spun on the shore sucking up sand and water. A lightning bolt struck it and with great thunder Duke Kahanamoku (Aloha Duke) emerged “in the flesh” again. The wind sifted through his dark hair as he stood on Waikiki Beach – his home. Gazing at Diamond Head he took strength from the waters of this beach. The salty air filled Duke’s nostrils and his toes sank into the wet sand. He listened to Kanaloa.
“Hear my words, Aloha Duke,” said Kanaloa, god of the sea. “Dark powers have stolen the spirit of a great storm at sea. Kamapua'a has taken the will of this tempest. If allowed, he will destroy and kill until the earth is completely obliterated. Aloha Duke, I send you to intervene for the earth and all that live here. Talk to the Hog Child and convince him to vacate this storm and resume his peaceful ways. The islands need his rains and the children long for his rainbows.”
Energy surged in the heart of Aloha Duke. He pointed his long surfboard southeast toward the vengeful Hurricane. Kanaloa, the sea god, lifted a wave thirty feet high to carry Aloha Duke to the storm.
The battle with Kamapua'a would be keeping Pele safe and rescuing people in front of his dangerous waters and wind. Aloha must do this while appeasing the half-man/half-hog. If he thought Pele was there, perhaps Kamapua'a could be tricked into spilling his powerful winds in some less harmful location.
Hurricane Kamapua'a was ripping through the Isthmus of Panama in pursuit of Pele when Aloha arrived. Pele was sheltered in the Panama Canal, leaving the Pacific and transferring to the Caribbean Sea. Duke rode the storm surge ahead of the horrible hurricane to better rescue people in the clutches of Kamapua'a. Enraged, the demigod tried to overwhelm Aloha with wind and powerful surf but Duke was too nimble. The storm moved over the Isthmus and into the Caribbean Sea. In restless waters ahead Kamapua'a could see the tack of Pele's sail moving towards Cayman Island. His desire to catch Pele caused him to forget Aloha Duke's interference. The turmoil of his fears, his worries and anger were directed to the Caribbean island of Cayman. There he saw Pele.
Again, Aloha Duke moved before Kamapua’a, thwarting his focus and spreading peaceful rescue in front of the stormy tumult. While the Hog Child focused again on Duke's surfboard Pele considered riling an ancient volcano and striking her estranged lover. However, sensing his destruction, Pele realized that she loved him too much to destroy Kamapua’a. Pele chose to flee the island and escape into the Gulf of Mexico as the hurricane and demigod wrestled with Aloha Duke.
However, her departure was not unnoticed. Kamapua'a pressed the chase advancing between the Yucatan and Cuba. Gaining speed and power, the storm entered the Gulf of Mexico.
These were strange waters for Pele, but she could do nothing but flee her lover. She moved northwest ahead of the hurricane and arrived quickly on the Texas coastline. Squalls and lighting were already disturbing the shores of the Texas coast. Pele abandoned her outrigger to seek shelter farther inland.
The outer bands of the hurricane were just touching the Texas shore and the ranchlands beyond. The King Ranch was a huge cattle ranch adjacent to the Gulf Coast just south of Corpus Christi. In a ranch house John Wayne, the Duke, was watching TV. About every ten years the Duke came back to earth from Cowboy Heaven to do a little hunting and fishing. He and Richard King, founder of the King Ranch, had been javelina hunting that day. The hunting wasn't too good so they called it a day, early. Richard King had gone back to heaven but Duke was watching Doppler weather from the Corpus Christi television station. He really enjoyed the commercials about fancy electronic gadgets in the early twenty-first century. Smart phones and computers were great but he didn’t have anyone to call or to e-mail. All his friends were dead – even if they lived, an e-mail from long deceased John Wayne, the Duke, would be discarded as a hoax. But the Duke was enjoying watching Doppler weather. The radar was in color and he could see the beginnings of Hurricane Kamapua'a showing up on radar. It was heading Duke’s way. Already bands of rain were blowing ashore. Watching weather reports on 3-D TV made the Duke want to check out the coastline for himself. So he mounted his horse and rode out to Padre Island to see what was going on. That's when the Duke saw Pele, the goddess of lightning and volcanoes, come ashore. She looked a little frightened and John Wayne was going to help her any way he could.
Pele could hear horse hooves thundering upon the ground and coming close. As if manifesting from the lightning that bolted above him, she could see the Duke. Not Aloha Duke, but the Duke, John Wayne. With rope and pistol and rifle he was there to do battle with the hurricane and to protect Pele. “Missy, you better jump up on my horse so we can get you out of here,” said the Duke.
Pele jumped on the saddle behind John Wayne. Duke lashed down beach houses with his rope to keep them from blowing away in the intensifying winds. Tornadoes were spawning in the squalls ahead of Kamapua'a. The Duke aimed his rifle and fired at the base of the tornados. Rifle shells disrupted the tornados’ contact with the ground. The twisters flittered away in erratic directions like a balloon losing its air. They rode up on a bluff overlooking the coastline and the roiling sea.
The real danger was now arriving on the Texas Coast. Hurricane Kamapua'a was nipping at the surfboard of Aloha Duke. Aloha dragged his board onto shore and stood looking at the onslaught of the hurricane. Huge loud waves were breaking with such force that the ground shook. Duke’s back was against the coastline, his surf board of no use now. Aloha Duke faced Kamapua’a alone and with no defenses.
Aloha raised his voice. “Has your rage blinded you to the terrible injuries you are about to inflict here. Kamapaua'a you bring the rains that bless our crops. Because of you we feast and grow strong.” There was no response. “I will not allow you to harm anyone Kamapua'a. You will have to take my life first before you can destroy the world.”
The Duke, John Wayne, could hear Aloha Duke talking. “What is he sayin’ and who is he sayin’ it to, Missie?”
“He is talking to the Demigod who inhabits this storm,” said Pele.
I don’t know what a demigod is, but if he don’t get some help that fella’s gonna’ get killed.”
Just as the huge storm surge was about to swallow the coastline and smash into Aloha Duke, the Duke (John Wayne) threw his rope. It wrapped around Aloha Duke and the Duke, John Wayne, pulled him onto the bluff where Pele and he had been watching. The surge came ashore and tore around the bluff destroying houses, twisting metal and bunching up cars. Cattle in the pastures were washed up against trees and stacked on top of one another like lawn chairs at a bar mitzvah. Ducks were floating where normally there was dry land. The two Dukes and Pele stood above all this and were yet unharmed.
Kamapua'a had been thwarted at ever point in this sojourn of destruction. Miscreant winds were at his control and they were aimed at the three helpless figures on the bluff. The Two Dukes stood in front of Pele protecting her from the brunt of the wind. There was nothing more they could do. Everything was in shambles around them. John Wayne’s weapons were waterlogged and useless. Aloha Duke's surf board had been splintered and washed away.
Just as the roiling ire of Kamapua'a arrived Pele stepped out from behind her protectors. She placed the palm of her hand forward in the direction of Kamapua'a.
“You must come no closer, my lover. If there were a volcano here I would lure you into it and I would throw myself in after you. Look at what we have done. We have abandoned our work on far away Islands and embraced this hopelessness here. We have destroyed people’s homes and lives because we cannot reconcile our differences.
“Kamapua'a, I love you. You must allow me to be who I am so that I can express my love. Come down from that horrible wind and face me here. Stand before me like the man I love.”
Hurricane force winds ceased as the eye of the storm moved on shore. Kamapua'a abandoned his rage and his despair to join Pele on the bluff.
“That is better, my love,” Pele stroked his hair and caressed his face.
Kamapua'a could say nothing, but his face showed his sadness. A slight smile conveyed his acceptance of Pele's imploring words. As the lovers embraced the hurricane subsided. Clouds evaporated. The sun shined upon the two Dukes and the lovers.
To celebrate their reconciliation Pele and Kamapua’a decided to take a sea cruise. The lovers boarded a luxury liner and sailed the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean. They sang duets in the karaoke bar. They gorged themselves on good food and fine wine and walked the beaches at sunset.
The Duke and Aloha Duke took the subsidence of the storm with great relief. They gave each other smiles and handshakes. The Duke invited Aloha Duke to take a ride around the King Ranch before going home to Hawaii. They ate Bar B Q and drank beer; swapping stories of their past lives.
Kanaloa, the great Hawaiian god of the sea, smiled at the reconciliation. He repaired the damage along the path of the Hog Child’s hurricane and healed the hurt wrought by the wayward lovers. Balance and harmony again reigned.
