Ghosts of Parihaka

by David Hair

  ‘Sorry.’ Mat ducked his head, though his father couldn’t see him. ‘It’s been all on, Dad.’

  They talked for a while and he spoke to his teary mum too, before he began to run out of credit, and he still had another call to make. He promised them he was fine, and swore he’d phone again tomorrow. Then he tried Evie, and found her already en route to Dunedin. Goldston had shown her a portal to the real world, and she was well enough to rent a car and drive. She’d arrived about an hour ago.

  ‘Are Damien and Shui okay?’ Riki asked.

  ‘Shui’s wound is still serious, and Damien didn’t want to leave her behind. He told me they’d be in Arrowtown for a while,’ Evie told them. ‘He said they’d make their own way north, once she’s recovered.’

  ‘Glad she’s out of the woods, and it’s good that Damien is with her,’ Riki said. Then his face fell. ‘I had wanted to see Dame again, properly.’ Riki had also rung home earlier to reassure his family he was okay. He still wasn’t sure what to tell them: unlike Mat’s parents, Riki’s knew nothing at all about Aotearoa, and Riki wanted to keep it that way.

  ‘Damien said they’d call into Napier on the way north,’ Evie told him. She looked pale and pensive, and Mat could tell that every time she looked at him, she remembered Aroha’s claim over Mat’s soul. He felt the same way. The coffee tasted bittersweet.

  ‘And the Treaty?’ Riki asked Mat.

  Mat glanced about him. He’d not mentioned the Treaty to anyone last night. He dropped his voice to a whisper. ‘Bryce burnt it.’

  Riki whistled softly. ‘What does that even mean?’ Cassandra asked.

  ‘Jones and Wiri both thought that the Treaty binds Aotearoa spiritually, and forces the people to seek peaceful solutions. Without it, there could be war.’

  ‘Then we’re in the shit, aren’t we?’

  ‘I guess. But Bryce is dead. So if there is a war in Aotearoa, it will probably only affect the North Island.’ He shrugged, unsure what to think. He almost said ‘Jones will know what to do’, then remembered: his mentor was dead. He blinked back tears. Evie put a hand on his arm and squeezed, but when he thought how much he wanted to reach out and hold her, it didn’t help much. He wiped his eyes and looked away stoically.

  Outside, people came and went. A tall blond guy with an Indian girl on his arm, laughing over some joke only they knew. A Maori man with a white wife walking their toddler, each holding one hand as the child bounced between them happily. For an instant they were Mat’s parents, and he was that child. Two girls walked past hand in hand, chatting animatedly; a Japanese youth with pink hair was juggling oranges, busking for money; a Hari Krishna acolyte was handing out pamphlets with a broad smile. There was a tolerant harmony here, an acceptance of difference that John Bryce and his contemporaries would have struggled to recognize. Modern New Zealand: diverse, open, heading in all directions at once, trying to be all things to everyone. Many worlds, bumping against each other, a creative destruction, forging a billion new worlds from the wreck of old ones. Not perfect, far from it. Forgetting much, learning more. Confusing and incoherent. Beautiful for all that.

  Kiki has the Wooden Head. Byron is going to try and take Aroha for himself and I’m pledged to stop him, though it means I can’t be with the girl I really want. The Treaty has been destroyed and there’s going to be a war in Aotearoa that might rip apart the real world too. But this litany of his fears didn’t shake Mat too much: he’d got through things that had appeared worse before.

  He turned his head away from the window and watched his friends. Riki and Cassandra seemed to be in some kind of post-trauma fervour, wrapped up in each other. Maybe it wasn’t just a fling after all. He hoped so: they looked good together as they stood up.

  ‘We’ll give you kids some time on your own now,’ Riki said with a knowingly parental air.

  ‘Don’t run out on us again, you,’ Cassandra warned Mat, wagging a finger. She winked at Evie. ‘We’ll be in the park when you’re done.’

  Mat waved them off, then he and Evie ordered more coffee and sat quietly for a while, just looking at each other. Eventually Evie spoke up. ‘So, I understand I owe Aroha and you for the fact I’m still here.’

  Mat dropped his eyes. ‘Yeah.’ There didn’t seem much else he could say.

  ‘I’m grateful,’ she said. ‘Truly, I am. Dead isn’t as much fun as living.’

  He shrugged. ‘I’m sorry I dragged you into this.’

  ‘Huh. Who divined what was going on and showed up at your motel in Nelson?’ Evie rubbed her good eye. ‘Listen, Mat, I get it: Aroha needs a man, and you’re it. And it’ll be the right thing for the world. Some things are bigger than what one-eyed fortune-tellers from Auckland want. I’ll stay out of the way, I swear.’

  ‘Love just happens,’ he said thickly, unsure which girl he was talking about. ‘It’s not something that can be turned on and off.’

  She nodded, and made a visible decision to choose one meaning over the other. ‘It can grow,’ she replied. ‘Once you’ve spent time with her, and shared things …’ She choked a little. ‘Maybe then?’

  He blinked back tears. Their eyes met, and something like understanding passed between them. No, you’re the one and always will be, that look said. A dangerous look.

  They both wrenched their gaze away.

  Hemi woke from the strangest dream, his hands gripping the wooden bedposts with all his strength. Because the wood was solid and real, when nothing else seemed to be.

  He clambered to his feet and looked about him. The little hut was full, his mother and father beneath a blanket on the solitary bed, his brothers and sisters all about him on sleeping mats. He’d not seen them all together since … he could not remember when. I’m dreaming this, he thought. But they woke too, and for a time there was only laughter and tears as they greeted each other. He hugged his brothers, slapped them on their backs. They all looked just the same as they had that first and last morning, in 1881. Before the soldiers came.

  Eventually they went outside, and found the whole of the village had returned. People sang and prayed aloud, in thanksgiving. Some had recollections of falling asleep in their holding cells and waking up here. Others could remember nothing at all. Only Turi and Huia were not with them. Turi’s fate left a shadow across his joy. For Huia, he felt only hope.

  The people of Parihaka gathered in the field before the gate, where they had greeted the soldiers. But as the mist burned away, and the sun lit them in gold and rose, no soldiers came. Bryce kohuru was dead and gone. The rays of the sun felt like balm as it shone on them and through them. It left a path of light, and the Prophet led them onto that path. They joined hands again and followed, singing songs they’d all but forgotten. He looked back once, and saw Parihaka vanishing behind him, a dark mote in his eye that he blinked away.

  Ahead of them two figures formed, coming to greet them. One was a stately young Maori woman, with glowing dark hair and eyes of greenstone. Hemi did not need to ask to know that she was Hine-titama, the Dawn Maiden. With her was Huia, come to greet them and take them home.

  Author’s note

  This is the fifth book in the Aotearoa series, and if you’ve been following the series you’ll know how the mythos of this series works: the Ghost World is an afterlife that collects the souls of those tied closely to its history, and those who feel passionately about the land (for good or ill). This means of course that some of the characters are real people. Both William ‘Bully’ Hayes and John Bryce fall into this category, though the incarnations of them found in Aotearoa are their ghosts, and altered by their after-death experiences. Both are far more evil in Aotearoa than history remembers them — I plead artistic licence! Richard Pearse and William Cargill, Samuel Goldston and Ah Lum, and the Larnach family, are also historical personages, hopefully represented here faithfully to what I have read of them.

  Kiki and Puarata were mythic characters of folklore, because myth comes to life in Aotearoa. They are the villain characters
of separate legends, and may or may not have been based on real persons.

  Parihaka is a real place, and John Bryce’s government-sanctioned invasion of the pacifist village is one of the most shameful events of our history. New Zealand’s discriminatory treatment of the Chinese immigrant miners is another stain on our past. Thankfully, we have come a long way on the continuous and endless journey to be one nation, diverse but unified. Though we are, of course, and always will be, a work in progress.

  Larnach Castle is a fabulous place, steeped in romance and tragedy. I can’t imagine anyone visiting it without being impressed, and the restoration work has been a gift to the nation. I always think of it when I hear ‘Rolling Moon’ by Dunedin band The Chills (‘Show us a castle and show us to their lair’).

  Did Richard Pearse really fly first? I like to think so: it’s a great story of a genuine Kiwi pioneer.

  Thanks for reading this far! See you in the next (and final) instalment of the Aotearoa series.

  David Hair

  Wellington, September 2012

  Glossary

  There are a few Maori words used in this story and its prequels. Most are explained in the text, but here they are with a definition.

  Please note that there are subtle variations of Maori usage in different regions of New Zealand. The definitions below are based on those given in P. M. Ryan’s Dictionary of Modern Maori (Heinemann, 4th edition, 1994; republished as The Raupo Dictionary of Modern Maori, Penguin, 2008), with reference also to the online Maori dictionary: maoridictionary.co.nz.

  Aotearoa: The traditional Maori name for New Zealand, although it did not assume wide usage until the Europeans arrived. It roughly translates to ‘Land of the Long White Cloud’. In the story I have used the word to signify the ‘ghost world’ of New Zealand mythology, history and spirits.

  Haka: A traditional Maori dance. We mostly think of it as a war-dance, which is a sub-type of haka called a peruperu and is performed by warriors as a challenge to enemies prior to battle. However, a haka can also be performed in celebration or to entertain, and not just by men. Different tribes have their own haka.

  Hongi: A traditional Maori greeting where the two participants rub noses. They are thereby symbolically ‘sharing breath’, and the visitor becomes one of the people of the tribe for their stay. The god Tane is said to have created woman by moulding her from clay and then breathing into her nostrils, and thereby gifting her life.

  Iwi: A tribe or race of people.

  Karakia: A prayer-chant.

  Kaumatua: An older man; an elder.

  Kehua: One of the many terms for a fairy or goblin in Maori mythology. For the purposes of this story, kehua denote spirit-goblins that can animate earth or wood, appearing as clay-like goblin creatures. Only about sixty centimetres tall, they are more mischievous than evil, but might be enslaved by a tohunga makutu for evil purposes.

  Kia ora: A universal greeting that can mean ‘hello’ or ‘thanks’ or even ‘good health’ or ‘best wishes’.

  Kohuru: A murderer.

  Kuia: An old lady.

  Makutu: Evil magic.

  Mana: Prestige, charisma, honour or dignity, or all of these virtues; mana encompasses the personal qualities of leadership and pre-eminence within a tribe and people.

  Maori: A Polynesian race that settled New Zealand, probably from around 800 years ago (the timing is unknown and somewhat controversial). They settled primarily in the North Island of New Zealand, and on adapting to the cooler lands, thrived and multiplied until the coming of the Europeans after Captain James Cook’s journeys in the late eighteenth century. The nineteenth century saw increasing European settlement and conflict, until Europeans dominated numerically and colonized the country.

  Marae: The central place of a Maori community. In a pre-European settlement, it was the central area of a village, and contained the meeting halls and central courtyard where social gatherings and events would occur. In the modern world, a marae is often in the countryside, and will contain a meeting hall and lawn outside for gatherings on special occasions and the funerals of noted community members.

  Marae atea: The open area in front of the wharenui, or meeting house, on a marae.

  Mere: A traditional Maori club, which could come in many forms and be made from stone, bone or wood. The term patu also means club. For the purposes of this story, I have used the word mere to denote blunt, heavy clubs which would be used to bludgeon an enemy, and I have used patu to denote lighter-edged clubs which would slash an enemy.

  Moko: A traditional Maori tattoo. Maori have a strong tradition of tattooing and this can cover much of the body, including the face. The patterns and motifs are strongly traditional. The carving of moko was a very painful ordeal, and part of the rites of passage of a young man or woman of rank — the more moko one had, the more mana and rank was implied.

  Pa: A fortified village. Pa were normally found on hilltops, encircled by several rings of wooden palisades and, once guns became widespread, also entrenched.

  Pakeha: Traditionally a Maori term for foreigners, although these days it has come to mean New Zealanders of European descent (primarily British, but also Continental Europeans such as German, Dutch and Scandinavian).

  Patu: A club — see ‘mere’.

  Poai: A boy.

  Ponaturi: Another term for fairy or goblin. For the purposes of this story, ponaturi are pale-skinned, man-like sea-fairies who prowl the coasts, occasionally glimpsed by men.

  Pounamu: Greenstone — a jade found in New Zealand, often used for the most precious ornaments.

  Ruanuku: A wizard, as in ‘tohunga ruanuku’. Unlike a tohunga makutu, a tohunga ruanuku’s magic is more wholesome, and not aligned to evil.

  Taiaha: The traditional Maori long-club. A taiaha looked a little like a spear with a carved point, but this was deceptive. It was not a spear, and never thrown. In fact the ‘point’ was the handle, and the thick haft of the weapon was the striking part. It was used more like a two-handed sword, and had a tradition of fighting moves associated with it. In combat, the pointed end was often used to apply the coup de grâce to a stunned opponent.

  Taniwha: A taniwha is generally seen as a protective spirit, associated with (especially) waterways, but also with other natural landmarks like caves and hills. They commonly appear in tales as giant lizard-like creatures, or massive serpents. They are also associated with great white sharks (mako-taniwha). They are sometimes hostile, and sometimes protectors of a village or place.

  Tapu: Sacred. The term can apply to a place or a person or a thing. To break a tapu — by entering a place without the appropriate ritual actions, for example — was to court misfortune, and to pollute oneself spiritually.

  Tohunga: A Maori priest or wise man (they were always male), similar to a druid or shaman. The tohunga preserved tales and legends, genealogies, and were the cultural repositories of their people. They were also looked to for guidance in astrology and as intercessors with the gods, and appear in legends as powerful ‘wizards’ with magical powers, some good and some evil. The term can also cover experts in skilled traditional fields like carving, navigation and canoe-making. The term tohunga makutu denotes a tohunga who uses black magic.

  Waka taua: A Maori war canoe.

  Whare: A house. The meeting house at the centre of a marae is generally termed the whare runanga or wharenui, and is adorned with traditional carvings at the entrance and inside.

  About the Author

  David Hair is a New Zealander living once more in Wellington, New Zealand, after nearly four years in India. He is the author of The Bone Tiki (winner of Best First Book at the 2010 NZ Post Children’s Book Awards) and its sequels, The Taniwha’s Tear, The Lost Tohunga and Justice and Utu. David is also the author of the Return of Ravana series, a four-book teen fantasy set in India, and the Moontide Quartet epic fantasy series; the first book of the latter series, Mage’s Blood, was released in November 2012. David is married to Kerry and has two children, Bre
ndan and Melissa. He has a degree in History and Classical Studies, and a passion for football (real football, played eleven-a-side with a round ball).

  The Aotearoa series

  Books one to four in the Aotearoa series

  Copyright

  HarperCollinsPublishers

  First published 2013

  This edition published in 2013

  HarperCollinsPublishers (New Zealand) Limited

  PO Box 1, Auckland 1140

  Copyright © David Hair 2013

  David Hair asserts the moral right to be identified as the author of this work. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the publishers.

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  Hair, David, 1965-

  Ghosts of Parihaka / David Hair.

  (Aotearoa ; bk. 5)

  ISBN 978-1-86950-932-3

  1. Maori (New Zealand people)—Juvenile fiction. [1. Maori (New Zealand people)—Fiction. 2. Fantasy. 3. Parihaka Pa (N.Z.)—Fiction.] [1. Pakiwaitara. reo] I. Title. II. Series: Hair, David, 1965- Aotearoa ; bk. 5. NZ823.3—dc 23

  ISBN: 978 1 86950 932 3 (pbk)

  ISBN: 978 1 77549 048 7 (epub)

  Cover design by Jane Waterhouse, HarperCollins Design Studio

  Cover images: Larnach Castle by Derek Smith; all other images by shutterstock.com