STONe #1

In an arid world filled with decay and despair - where the faith of the people rests in a thirst for something to believe in - a mysterious girl with mystical powers of sight tries to find a way forward for her tribe.

The book begins with a history of the earth. We are informed that a giant sea creature called Stone destroyed five continents and drank the seas. From space the earth now looks brown, as all the oceans have been replaced by the Sakai or "sand sea": sort of like liquid sand.

On the Sakai, a gang of youths are on what appears to be an old oil derrick. They are anxious, because one of them named Zizi has been in the Sakai for over ten minutes. Suddenly, she comes bursting out of the sand riding what seems to be a mutant dolphin called a "devourer". They disappear back into the sand, and we get our first look inside the Sakai. It's full of floating half-skyscrapers and other ruins of civilization. Zizi comes up once more, this time with the dead devourer in tow. The youths congratulate her, but want to hurry up and return home. Zizi calls them cowards and tells them that the "Black Current" is straight ahead. It's revealed that Zizi is the only one with the ability to see the Black Current. The teens prepare to get in their boat and head home, but are interrupted by a roguish stranger passing by in his vessel. The stranger asks them if they know anything about a nearby "treasure island". Zizi sarcastically asks him if he's supposed to be some kind of pirate. The stranger responds that he prefers "aggressively persuasive merchant" and tells the group that he heard it was possible to catch lots of sand whales near the island.

Meanwhile, a tall tatooed man named Gaira is returning home from an unsuccessful hunting mission with his crew. They live on an ancient aircraft carrier, and the people are despondent. It's been three months without a whale being caught. As he disembarks from his hunting vessel, Gaira talks to an elder named Thunder. Gaira tells the elder that the lord of the Sakai appears to be deserting them, but Thunder tells him not to blaspheme. They go on to discuss Zizi and her ability to see the Black Current; Gaira is suspicious and considers them children's stories. It's also revealed that it's impossible for a normal human to see inside the Sakai. As they walk and talk, they're shocked to see a devourer hanging from a hook.

Nene and Zizi are deep within the carrier, bathing in the lake that surrounds the tree of hope. Nene notices the wounds on Zizi's arm and asks her how she got them. Zizi makes up an excuse and says that she fell, however Gaira enters and says they look like devourer bitemarks. We can tell that Nene has a crush on Gaira because her word balloon has a tiny heart inside it. Anyways, Gaira asks Zizi if she was really the one that killed the devourer. Zizi remains silent, and then he asks her if she can actually see inside the Sakai. He tells her of their people's history. Of how they came to their "island" 300 years ago riding on the back of a great sand whale. He tells her that she is different; no one else could have killed a devourer within the Sakai. Zizi stares at the tattoo on the back of her hand and her interior thoughts reveal that her parents had came to the island while they were pregnant with her. They never told her where they were from originally.

Zizi and Gaira walk up to the deck and continue talking. He asks her if she can see into the Black Current. Zizi sarcastically asks him why he wants to know. Gaira grabs her and tells her that the Black Current destroyed the ancient civilizations; if it comes they island it and everybody aboard would be destroyed. Zizi says that the last time she felt the Black Current was on "Lighthouse Island", about 10km west. She sticks her hand into the sand and tells Gaira that Black Current is not coming their way; however pirates ARE.

Captain Suv(the roguish stranger Zizi met earlier) hears from his crew that they're nearing the bountiful island. They ask for permission to land, but Suv denies the request. He tells the crew that the island is supposedly full of savage natives, and he wants to do some "sightseeing" first. At that moment, something attacks Suv's ship and destroys the stern. Suv asks what just happened, and a giant mutant whale called a leviathan jumps out of the water and takes another bite out of his ship. Suv pulls out a gun and shoots the creature, to no effect. Then Zizi appears in the sky with a harpoon in her hand. She pierces the monster and rides it away from Suv's ship. The leviathan attempts to dive, and creates a whirlpool in the sand. The leviathan surfaces again, this time Zizi is victorious. She has killed the monster. Suv is awestruck, and decides that he picked the wrong week to quit drinking.

Zizi reboards her island, while the other natives use their equipment to drag the sand whale aboard ship. The crowd celebrates her becoming a true whale-huntress. Later, she and her gang of youths take a raft over to Suv's sinking ship. She manages to persuade him to come aboard, while they tow Suv's vessel back to their island for repairs. The natives consider Suv to be lucky for bringing them the whale. Suv tells them that he heard the island was brimming with whales and wants to know if he can buy some. Gaira angrily tells him that the whales are sacred; and they have no intention of selling any to pirates. Zizi comes between them before matters can get anymore heated.

The natives hold a funeral ceremony for this killed by the leviathan. Zizi asks Suv where he comes from. He responds that he came from a long way south, and then asks Zizi why she wants to know. Zizi tells Suv to repair his ship as soon as possible, and she'll even help because she's going to come too. And she WON'T take no for an answer.

The natives have cut the whale open and extracted it's giant heart. To Suv's bemusement, they perform a ceremony and give the heart back to the Sakai. Afterwards, Suv comes across Zizi sitting next to a skimmer. She repeats that she's going with him, but Suv won't hear of it. She tells him that she can catch lots of whales for him, but Suv scoffs and tells her that she just got lucky. Zizi says that it was lucky for him, or he and his crew would have died. Suv reiterates that there's no way in hell that he's going to let Zizi leave with them. Zizi grunts and walks away. Later, Suv visits the location where the leviathan is being processed. He tries to speak to Gaira, but Gaira angrily tells him that he doesn't consort with pirates.

Meanwhile, Zizi is being prepared for her crimson tide ceremony the next day. Nene and her grandmother are excited because this ceremony will mark Zizi's transition to womanhood. Zizi, for her part, is annoyed.

Back at the whale processing station, the natives are shocked and horrified when a whale fetus or "child treasure" comes spilling out of the corpse. It's a major taboo in their culture to kill a pregnant leviathan. One of the workers becomes enraged and attacks Suv, blaming him for bringing the leviathan to them. Suddenly, another monstrous leviathan comes bursting out of the Sakai. Suv is excited, but Garai informs him that the whale is seeking revenge on the humans for killing his mate and unborn child. Suv is skeptical, until the whale starts to attack. Garai asks Suv if he's ready to fight, but Suv runs off. With his craft not ready yet, Suv and his crew board skimmers and hope to flee before the leviathan kills them. The whale starts to come after them, but suddenly Zizi comes rushing by on her own skimmer heading straight for the beast. She yells to Suv that if she kills this second whale that it will be skill and not luck. Suv yells back that she's crazy, but Zizi doesn't care. To Nene and Gaira's horror, she drives her skimmer straight into the creature's gaping maw and disappears. Suddenly the leviathan blows up like big balloon until **. Pieces of the whale go flying everywhere. Zizi emerges from the sand, covered in gore, but otherwise unhurt.

While Garai pulls Zizi out of the sand, and the other natives celebrate, Nene and Grandmother discuss the child treasure. The old woman tells Nene that ,for killing the pregnant whale, Zizi must be exiled. Nene protests, but her grandmother tells her that they cannot defy the will of the lord of the Sakai. Nene goes up to Zizi and tearfully gives her a hug. Zizi wonders what's wrong, but Nene won't tell her. Zizi declares to Nene that she needs to know where she comes form. Zizi swears that she will find it, even if she has to cross the whole Sakai.

The island natives throw their double celebration; celebrating both rescue from the leviathan, and Zizi's crimson tide ceremony. Zizi wears the ritual gown and enters the sacred room where men aren't allowed. She is told by a two attendants to step into a circle, as she does so she realizes that the circle is made of sand. Then, in a not-so subtle metaphor for menstruation, she is covered in whale's blood and her uterus begins to glow.

Meanwhile, Suv and his crew have returned to the island and face Gaira's scorn. Their vessel is almost repaired, but the natives have locked it up due to Suv's fleeing during the leviathan attack.

Back at the crimson tide ceremony, Zizi enters the tree of life. She sees a large group of stones, and a disembodied voice tells her to pick one. She wonders which one to pick, and eventually she chooses a small, black, smooth stone. The stone is warm to the touch. As she picks it up, she has a vision of a faraway rocky and cragged island. The voice tells Zizi that the stone is a part of her mother and father; it is her birthright. As the voice speaks, the stone is tied around Zizi's navel. She is told to carry the stone around her at all times because it will assure her safety.

The assembled crowd cheers as Zizi exits from the crimson tide ceremony. She tries to speak, but is interrupted by the grandmother. The old lady shouts that Zizi killed a treasure child and must be banished from the island. The crowd shouts their discontent, but Grandmother says the law is absolute. Suv and his crew sense the displeasure amongst the crowd and decide it's time they made their exit.

Nico manages to pick the locks holding their ship, and they prepare to shove off. Suv expresses some regret at Zizi's fate... until he realizes that she has also come aboard their vessel. He tries to force her to leave, but Zizi informs him that he abandoned his ship while trying to flee from the sand whale; therefore this is now HER ship. Nene comes running alongside the departing vessel, and manages to jump aboard; she is coming also, to keep an eye on Zizi. Frustrated, Suv allows them to stay. Suddenly, there's a loud clanging noise. Gaira has thrown his favorite harpoon at the moving vessel. Zizi sees him, and she realizes that he wasn't attacking them, he was giving her the harpoon.

As Suv's ship travels over the horizon, Grandma declares that Zizi may not have been born on the island, but she is their child.

It's been three days since they left the island, and ever since Zizi joined up, the ship has been followed by all manner of sand-sea creatures. Zizi loves it, but Nene is seasick, and Suv is annoyed. Suv tries to blast some of the creatures, but Zizi refuses to let him and blocks his shot. Suv asks her if the fish are ever going to leave them alone, but Zizi doesn't answer. Instead, she asks him about the Forgotten Continent where her parents were supposedly from. Suv tells her that if she wants to find it so bad, she should get off his ship and go jump on a whale. At that moment, a plume of sand rises causing the crew to think it's a sand geyser... until they become covered in whale blood. A whale explodes; Suv commands his crew to man their battlestations.

Aboard an ominous vessel, there stands a short, bald man dressed all in black. He is Commander Jango of the Imperial Fleet. An officer informs Jango that the whale pod has not altered course, and there also appears to be a fishing vessel amongst the pod. Jango wonders what a fishing vessel is doing way out there, and decides to teach them a lesson. His ship charges right at Suv's, but is slowed down when Zizi manages to hit it with a missile-spike(much to Suv's chagrin). Jango continues to plow towards them, but thanks to Nico's quick steering, they miss. As the ships pass each other, Jango drops several organic looking pods onto Suv's deck. Afraid that they're bombs, Suv orders his crew to throw them overboard, but the pods prove too heavy to move. Suddenly, the pods hatch and transform into lobster-men Crustaceans. Suv and his crew are outmatched and brought aboard Jango's vessel.

Suv tries to smooth-talk his way out of trouble, but Jango doesn't buy it. He tells Suv that he believes he and his crew to be enemies of the empire planning an uprising. Jango orders his men to kill their captives and scuttle their ship. Fortunately, Zizi(who had been hiding) jumps out and starts charging at Jango with Gaira's harpoon. A Crustacean steps in front of Jango to protect him; Zizi and the Crustacean battle. In all the confusion, Suv, Zizi, and the Crustacean are all knocked overboard. The Crustacean activates it's sand sensors, and prepares for an easy kill. It's shocked, however, when Zizi reveals that she can see inside the Sakai.

Jango rejoices as blood comes rising to the surface. He prepares to offer Nene to his crew as entertainment... until the dead lobster-man is thrown onboard. Zizi comes climbing out of the Sakai, carrying a passed-out Suv. She boastfully tells Jango that his Crustacean wouldn't have lasted five minutes as a whale hunter.

Chapter Titles

• Episode 1: ZIZI The Witch With Pink Hair
• Episode 2: The Magnificent Black Whale
• Episode 3: Crimson Tide
• Episode 4: Yellow-SUV-Marine