The Night Marchers

The Tale of The Night Marchers

It was a dark night on the island of Oahu. The moon lit the sandy shores of the vast stretching

beaches and the waves crashed in rhythm with the night. In the forest a symphony of sounds

made by the local animals could be heard. The island was alive.

“Come on we are going to be late for the party!” Ana called from the front porch.

“Coming!!” A voice from upstairs replied. Ana checked her watch before letting out a heavy sigh.

As promised Mekie came quickly down the stairs. Both girls grabbed their flashlights before

heading out into the dark summer night. As they walked they stuck close together, not wanting

to get lost in the deep thicket. The surroundings grew darker as time passed and both continued

their chatter to try and calm the nerves of traveling so late at night. All was well for a while until

there came a thumping in the distance. A heartbeat the shook the ground.

Thump thump.

Thump thump. Thump thump!

“What’s that sound?” Mekie asked with a furrowed brow.

“I’m not sure. It sounds like drums..” The two of them stopped walking. With nervous hands they

flashed their lights through the trees. At first they saw nothing but then they noticed a glow

coming from the beach in the clearing. The two slowly drew closer to the sound of the drums.

Curiosity overtook them and drove them onwards to investigate. As they looked out onto the

beach and into the moon touched water they saw a crowd of people in the waves. These people

held torches and had the ghastly appearances of ancient Hawaiian warriors. As the warriors

drew closer the fear took hold.

“What are those!?” Mekie turned to Ana with a frantic look.

“I think those are Night Marchers... we have to run!!” Ana turned quickly, leading the both of

them back into the forest. They ran as fast as they could, but still they could hear the Night

Marchers following behind. With a shriek Mekie tripped over a root, causing Ana to tumble right

over her. They laid on the ground in horror. The Night Marchers were going to get them.

“They are the Night Marchers- they travel at night to be respectful of their chief..” Ana explained

in a panic.

“How do we stop them from coming after us!?”

“The legend says that in order to survive we must show them we aren’t a threat. We must go

unclothed and lay face down alright?” Ana explained. She was trying to stay calm to survive.

“Alright.” Mekie nodded and the two of them did what they had to do to survive. They laid there

very, very still as to not upset the Night Marchers.

“They may spare us If we have warrior ancestors.. or we may need to take one more

precaution.” Ana spoke in a whisper as she said this.

“What type of precaution?” Mekie asked, trying to ignore the drums getting closer.

“We have to show them we have respect for them. We have to pee ourselves.”

There was hesitation to do such things but the girls both had what it took to survive. Finally the

marching was upon them and the steps of the Night Marchers were near feet away. With baited

breath they listened as the ghost warriors passed, trying not to make eye contact with any of

them. The fear consumed the both of them as they waited for their ghastly judgement. Finally,

the fiery torches and sounds of the drums moved forwards and into the woods. They were safe.

They survived the Night Marchers.

The Night Marchers is a Legend used to scare people into not going out at night in Hawaii. The legend takes place at Night and describes the Night Marchers wandering the islands. In the legend the people who go out at Night are faced by the Night Marchers and don’t usually survive. The reason this story is so scary is because there is no great way to survive, for example one way is to claim ancestorial ties which is hard to do now a days. The other way people don’t want to do it because it’s humiliating therefore there is no good end to the story. This wards people away from going out at night as they listen to the story and don’t want to get caught. It is likely this story was also told to children to discourage them from wandering off in the night.

BIBLIGORAPHY

McElroy, Kalena. “Huaka’i Pō: The Legend of the Hawaiian Night Marchers.” Culture Trip, 29 Aug. 2018, theculturetrip.com/north-america/usa/hawaii/articles/huakai-po-the-legend-of-the-hawaiian-night-marchers/.

This site describes who the Night marchers are, details the legend, and explains any recorded accounts of the night marchers. We found this to be a credible site.

Chandler, Nathan. “The Legend of the Mysterious Night Marchers of Hawaii.” HowStuffWorks, 18 Oct. 2019, people.howstuffworks.com/night-marchers-hawaii.htm.

this source describes the warning signs of night marchers and the history of how they came to be. This site was credible

AncientPages.com. “Beware of the Night Marchers - Deadly Ghosts of Warriors Who Kill with Just One Look.” Ancient Pages, 20 Mar. 2023, www.ancientpages.com/2019/07/23/beware-of-the-night-marchers-deadly-ghosts-of-warriors-who-kill-with-just-one-look/.

This website details the encounters of people with night marchers as well as their orgins. This website was found credible.

Fact and ficton

1 Hawaii is a real state. Hawaii Maps & Facts - World Atlas Hawaii is the 50th date in the United States

2 Oahu is a real Hawaiian island. Oahu has he capital of Hawaii in it which is Honolulu.

3 there are sacred places on Oahu.Oahu Sacred Places - To-Hawaii.com

4 there is no video evidence of the night marchers besides stories. Huaka'i Pō: The Legend of the Hawaiian Night Marchers

5 there were Hawaiian warriors. Hawaiian Warriors | Koa Warriors | Hawaiian Koa Warriors and Army

6 Hawaiian warriors travel at night. Same website as five