The Truce of the Singing Families

Before the Self fully understood the language of the Singer, all they could do was echo in lights the sound patterns they heard. The Tiili at that time didn't know this part of the ocean floor was inhabited by intelligent bioluminescent life, and treated it as data storage.

Activating the lights.

"activating the lights"

Adding to memory.

"adding to memory"

Recall by the title "The Truce of the Singing Families".

"recall by the title the truce of the singing families"

"These are the terms agreed to by the Tiili, Vaha, and Edulu".

"these are the terms agreed to by the tiili vaha and edulu"

"Feeding: All singing families will eat in different regions, so that no pod will disrupt another in their need to eat."

"feeding all singing families will eat in different regions so that no pod will disrupt another in their need to eat."

"Edulu will hunt near the ground in the parts of the world that receive light."

"edulu will hunt near the ground in the parts of the world that receive light"

"Vaha will hunt away from the ground in the parts of the world that receive light."

"vaha will hunt away from the ground in the parts of the world that receive light"

"Tiili will hunt in the parts of the world that do not receive light, and are forbidden to eat any member of the other singing families no matter how young or feeble."

"tiili will hunt in the parts of the world that do not receive light and are forbidden to eat any member of the other singing families no matter how young or feeble"

"All singers are to be allowed passage to their designated feeding locations."

"all singers are to be allowed passage to their designated feeding locations"

"Aid: All who sing will assist in defense of other singers against the threat of the evertoothed."

"aid all who sing will assist in defense of other singers against the threat of the evertoothed"

"All will respond to any emergency cry from a singer of any family."

"all will respond to any emergency cry from a singer of any family"

"All will freely provide any information, when known, of the locations of other singers' feeding grounds."

"all will freely provide any information when known of the locations of other singers' feeding grounds"

"By cooperating in these ways, all singing families will grow stronger together without harming each other."

"by cooperating in these ways all singing families will grow stronger together without harming each other"

"Each family will be responsible for any of its members who break the truce."

"each family will be responsible for any of its members who break the truce"

This agreement has been in force for a full cycle of eclipses.

"this agreement has been in force for a full cycle of eclipses"

There is no excuse for violating any of its provisions.

"there is no excuse for violating any of its provisions"

By including it in the education records, no Tiili old enough to be capable of willful violence or inaction can claim ignorance.

"by including it in the education records no tiili old enough to be capable of willful violence or inaction can claim ignorance"

This completes the record.

"this completes the record"

...Is there anything else?

"activating the lights"?

They must be gone. But that was interesting, have we heard the sounds of "truce" before? We'll need to study this a long time to make sense of it.

Time frame: ~28 million years in the past