Heroes of the Water Monster: Chapters 5–9

by Brian Young
In this sequel to Healer of the Water Monster, teenage Nathan is losing his ability to interact with Navajo Holy Beings, so he chooses younger Diné blood, eleven-year-old Edward, to take over guardian duties for Dew while she learns all the songs to control and protect water.

Here are links to our lists for the novel: Prologue–Chapter 4, Chapters 5–9, Chapters 10–14, Chapters 15–20, Chapter 21–Hwééldi
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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. implication
    a meaning that is not expressly stated but can be inferred
    Nathan waited for Edward to absorb the Modern Enemy hypothesis. This had huge implications. If there truly was a Modern Enemy stealing Yitoo’s river, was it stealing other sources of water?
  2. complement
    make perfect or supply what is wanting
    We Holy Beings have our own tasks and duties. Sometimes, our tasks and duties complement those of the many beings in the Fourth World. Sometimes, they conflict.
  3. tutelage
    teaching pupils individually
    It would be unwise for you to go searching for the Modern Enemy this moment, as you are uneducated. Which is why I believe our best course of action is this: we begin your tutelage this instant.
  4. diction
    the manner in which something is expressed in words
    “We’ll begin your mentorship by reviewing your pronunciation. The true power of water monster songs lies in the exact melody as well as the strict pronunciation. To fully control water, you, Dew, must speak with the original tone and diction. Not with this dirty accent, tainted by the language of the Pale People.”
  5. ideal
    conforming to an ultimate standard of perfection
    “It’s not ideal that you don’t speak the Diné language correctly,” Yitoo said.
  6. flimsy
    lacking solidity or strength
    Edward looked at the rows of flimsy neon nylon backpacks displayed in front of him. There were some decent ones, but Edward needed something more durable than what was on display.
  7. articulate
    speak, pronounce, or utter in a certain way
    Every syllable was distinct, and every consonant articulated.
  8. transmute
    change or alter in form, appearance, or nature
    All those times he brushed off being singled out because his friends told him he was overthinking were transmuted by Nathan’s words.
  9. obscure
    make unclear or less visible
    The sounds around him became muffled. The lights brightened and obscured everything.
  10. conscience
    conformity to one's own sense of right conduct
    Telling their parents about the potential Modern Enemy was more trouble than it was worth. He shoved some fries into his mouth to settle his conscience.
  11. malleable
    capable of being shaped or bent
    At the same time, Nathan took the turquoise communication stone out of the ring and rubbed his pointer finger and thumb together until it became malleable. He rolled it out in a thin line and split it in half.
  12. counterpart
    a person or thing having the same function as another
    Still hovering in the air, the frozen water divided into four different-sized chunks. Those four chunks warped as if they weren’t frozen at all, then reshaped into four ice sculptures of Yitoo, Dew, Edward, and Nathan, twice the size of their non-ice counterparts.
  13. waft
    blow gently
    They were looking at four clones of themselves inside the pool. Not exact clones—more like androids because they lacked small details like wafting hair or the stretching of fabric.
  14. dissipate
    move away from each other
    Then, in an instant, the four ice clones exploded into water that filled up the pool with a loud splash! The colors of the ice mixed and dissipated as the waters calmed into a still mirror that reflected the moon.
  15. vanquish
    defeat in a competition, race, or conflict
    Yitoo said, “With the two of you, young guardians, and the current abilities of Dew, I am fully confident we’ll find the Hero Twins and, if need be, vanquish the Modern Enemy.”
  16. unfurl
    unroll, unfold, or spread out
    The shadow fabric was large! He unfurled it and tossed it over all four of them, and there was still enough to easily hide another water monster of Yitoo’s size!
  17. considerable
    large in number, amount, extent, or degree
    Yitoo scoffed, “You’ll have to explain what a golf course is. But that amount of grass needs considerable water.”
  18. stagnant
    not circulating or flowing
    Below them was stagnant, polluted water that stank like rotten eggs.
  19. implement
    pursue to a conclusion or bring to a successful issue
    They never offered any form of thanks for the water they greedily drank. They kidnapped the original caretakers of the land and implemented their will over the land.
  20. indulge
    treat with excessive pampering
    Was he no better than the people, white or otherwise, who ignorantly indulged themselves while people who lived on Diné Bikéyah, like Nali, were made to suffer?
  21. sternum
    the breastbone
    Nausea bubbled in his sternum and dizziness spun his head. Edward felt his upper body leaning to the side.
  22. petrified
    (of organic matter) turned to stone or a stonelike substance
    Stumps of petrified wood lay in rows across the earth to their right. The outside of the rock wood was deep red and resembled cracked canyon walls.
  23. bearing
    (usually plural) a person's awareness of self
    “And when water monsters enter those boundaries, our abilities are more powerful. Edward, have you collected your bearings?”
    “Yeah. Just don’t go as quickly or else I’ll throw up,” Edward said.
  24. undaunted
    unshaken in purpose
    “Follow me,” Yitoo said, undaunted by the horrid stench.
  25. in vain
    without a successful result or effect
    “Please know that your death, painful and slow as it was, will not be in vain. I will unveil the Modern Enemy that is stealing water from Diné Bikéyah.”
  26. futile
    producing no result or effect
    There are plenty of us who try to sing back the rains. We have little successes, here and there. But more often, the moisture we summon isn’t enough. Some of our siblings, Canyon Mist being the first, elect to live in silence. They don’t sing because they feel their efforts are futile.
  27. entity
    that which is perceived to have its own distinct existence
    A cruel and heartless entity is stealing the waters.
  28. surmise
    infer from incomplete evidence
    “That is the tricky thing—identifying it. Long ago, it was easy to identify an Enemy. But in this era, it’s possible for an Enemy to hide in plain sight,” Clay Lake surmised.
  29. imperious
    having or showing arrogant superiority
    “Imperious Yitoo Bi’aanii,” Canyon Mist said, bowing. Her voice sounded like it once had been sweet, but now carried bitterness, like moldy honey. She didn’t look at all happy to see her older sister.
  30. disdain
    lack of respect accompanied by a feeling of intense dislike
    “I said not to bother,” Canyon Mist said with disdain.
  31. dwindling
    gradually decreasing until little remains
    Then I realized what was causing the dwindling rains. Something was taking the water away from Diné Bikéyah.
  32. susceptible
    yielding readily to or capable of undergoing a process
    I traveled across and even beyond the sacred boundaries, knowing that outside of them I am susceptible to death.
  33. fracking
    a method of extracting natural gas or oil from rock
    You’ve not seen the sludge of fracking turn a clear river into dark brown muck.
  34. defile
    make dirty or spotty
    “Imagine that, dear oldest sister. Owing nothing to any being. Living for ourselves, instead of indulging the ungrateful greedy humans of the Fourth World who would defile our precious waters?”
  35. submissive
    inclined or willing to give in to orders or wishes of others
    There was plant life. But everything was so dry and just barely alive. The life here, both plant and animal, was submissive to the whims of nature. This wasn’t living; it was survival. It was borderline torture.
  36. whim
    a sudden desire
    There was plant life. But everything was so dry and just barely alive. The life here, both plant and animal, was submissive to the whims of nature. This wasn’t living; it was survival. It was borderline torture.
  37. undulate
    occur in soft rounded shapes
    They crossed the lone paved road and continued forward into a vast and semi hilly sandy desert. It wasn’t as vibrant as the Painted Desert, but there was color and undulating hills, crevices, and plateaus.
  38. render
    cause to become
    Yitoo said, “My absence has turned her bitter. What renders my heart into pieces is that many more of my sisters and my brothers might have endured similar trials. I wasn’t here to protect them.”
  39. cultivate
    teach or refine to be discriminative in taste or judgment
    “That action is both firm and loving, an attitude I hope you cultivate, Dew.”
  40. obsidian
    glass formed by the cooling of lava without crystallization
    The Hero Twins, sons of Father Sun and Changing Woman. They traveled to the realm of the Holy Beings to go to the hogan of Father Sun for the sacred Obsidian Armor and the Four Sacred Arrows—Dawn, Rainbow, Folding Darkness, and Lightning.
Created on Thu May 30 15:34:40 EDT 2024 (updated Fri May 31 16:08:49 EDT 2024)

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