Court of the Fallen was created in October of 2018 by Odd, Honey, and Crooked.
Skinning and hosting by the epically talented Kaons, and functionality fanciness by the coding magic of Neowulf. If you ever see either of them around, make sure to show them some love!
"Indeed," Hadama agreed gravely to Koa's revelation, enjoying his own half of the cooked coconut with silent pleasure. It was a simple treat, but a comforting one for all that, and he had no qualms about offering Pip her share of the bounty as well.
As their hunger was slaked and the time came to pack up the leftovers in shells bound with twine made from their own husks, the King followed Koa's gesture to the small coconut that had made its way into a net back attached to the mermanta's harness. His expression finally shifted from its serenely stoic lines, softening with respect and a certain faithful affection. "No," he rumbled, answering the second query first. "It is for a quest. For Safrin. She has agreed to help me with armor, in return for certain tasks." He looked back to the human with a curious tilt to his head. "Have you met her?" Being an Accepted, it didn't seem outside the realm of possibility that the Starry Goddess might have answered the Dragoon's prayers in person before.
Of all the answers Koa expected, a coconut for Safrin did not make the list. His eyebrows raise in surprise at the revelation; he leans forward toward Hadama, peering at the coconut in the harness as though it might hold some great secret, or start strobing with magic light. "Coconut armor?" Which isn't entirely nonsensical - you can apparently do anything and everything with a coconut, so why not use it for war?
He sits back at the question, noting Hadama's change in tone. "I haven't had the pleasure," the dragoon admits, toes digging absently into the sand. His head tilts up to the sky above, eyes tracing the first distant stars that mark the start of nightfall. "Heard lots of stories, though. That she's beautiful, and dazzles like a diamond, and the stars wrap around her like gems on a wealthy woman's neck." And yeah, maybe this is some out-of-character flowery prose, but I'm running out of opportunities to insert Moana lyrics. "And that she's cruel, and jealous, and will take apart your aching heart if you give it to her." He shrugs. I shrug. We all shrug. Let me have this.
"What's she been like, for you?"
i can't decide if it's a choice, getting swept away
"Mm. It is a matter of size." Hadama wrapped his large fingers around the small coconut, measuring it again to be certain. "I am to bring her the best thing I can fit in my hand." And while there were many options, choosing the best was a matter both subjective and personal. Given his respect for the versatile fruit, was it any wonder that he had chosen the coconut, both humble and mighty in its potential uses?
The mermanta used his water magic to bring other coconuts that had fallen during their harvesting closer, coralling a tidy net-full for later use while Koa considered the goddess who watched over Torchline. He nodded slowly in agreement to Safrin's good points, though he was notably silent when it came to her bad ones. The question that came back to him had him pausing in his tidying to look up to the sky as it began its nightly shift towards velvety darkness. "She is... shining," he rumbled after several minutes of quiet contemplation. "Shimmering. Splendid." He lifted his hand above him, fingers spread wide, and a beautiful starry ring was visible on one finger. "She has been generous to me. Kind. Gracious. Safrin is... easy to love." He lowered his hand slowly, turning to look at Koa once more from his place within the surf, his expression serene. "And hard to leave. But she rewards loyalty well." And betrayal... well, she rewarded that, too. Though Hadama had only heard the rumors of Torchline's former Governor.
"The best thing?" Koa may have gained some newfound respect for the coconut's many uses, but best? The boy shrugs playfully, raising a brow. "I think I'd bring a dragon scale. Or a bottle of really good rum." He laughs at this second suggestion, fingers running through the fur of Pipsqueak, who, now sated both in hunger and need to dig, has settled by his side.
Koa nods dreamily at the description of Safrin, his eyes catching briefly on the starry ring. "I imagine her paler than the moon, with eyes that shine like stars. At least, she seems that way in all the depictions I've seen." His voice is a little wistful, young and full of belief in things higher than himself. He's fully reclining on his elbows now, his long body sprawled comfortably beside the dwindling fire. "I guess... I understand asking a lot from her followers. She must be a goddess worth fighting for."
i can't decide if it's a choice, getting swept away
Hadama nodded, unperturbed by Koa's laughter. "These are good ideas for offerings," he agreed solemnly. After all, there were the items required for the quest, and then there was the offering to tempt the goddess's interest. They were not the same, but both were important when imploring a deity's assistance.
Which certain sharks knew better than anybody, but certain Koas might still have yet to learn.
They both looked up to the sky, and Hadama listened to the young man's dreamy description of the goddess with quiet satisfaction. "Indeed," he rumbled. "She is." Worth fighting for, and worth living for, in his estimation.
Whether Koa would ultimately choose the path of the stars or some other would be up to the young Dragoon.
