Kamapua'a called upon the gods of storms and rain to seek wrath on Pele, but Pele, who looked to the power of fire for defense, explained that if she was drowned, he could never have her (via Coffee Times). To that he retorted that if she were to burn him in defense, she would starve without the fertility his rains brought. At this stalemate, the two embraced as lovers, and some say it was the only time Kamapua'a ever felt whole. Confused by the uncharacteristic love Kamapua'a showed her, Pele retreated, telling her once lover that he could reign upon the eastern valleys of Hilo, Hamakua, and Kohala. There, he could keep them wet and fertile, while she kept her western side of the mountain warm and sunny.
Although Pele ran from Kamapua'a, he searched for her endlessly, only retreating to the sea when he saw the volcanoes she created erupt. Pele eventually grew to miss him, and seasons later, bore his son, Opelu-nui-kauhaalilo. To this day, Kamapua'a is said to reign from the ocean, protecting the pigs of Kohala and abundance of life in Hawaii, by roaming its many waterfalls. Many scientists believe the arid climate found on the western side of the Big Island is caused by mountains blocking the humid, ocean wind from the east, the same wind that makes the eastern mountainside rainy and fertile (via Paradise in Hawaii). But maybe, just maybe, it was the doomed love of two deities that created Hawaii's landscape as we know it.
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