The silence stretched, but Hadama felt no need to fill it. He waited, patient as the tide that had risen to wash over their feet. The world hung balanced between the calculations of a creature far older and crueler than the demigod could fathom, but he had done all he could to tip the scales in Caido's favor. Still, he did not know how the minds of the Family worked, and there was always the risk that he had miscalculated.
The smile that emerged was not proof alone. Not until the words that followed. The Tidebreaker simply inclined his head in acknowledgment of his species' faults, unable to argue them in the face of experience.
But luck could carry a species far. Far enough, perhaps, to learn and grow from its mistakes someday.
Blue eyes bored into emerald, and Hadama held the gaze for three thoughtful beats of his steady heart before he nodded deeply, disinclined to challenges now that they had reached an agreement. The timeline was unexpectedly swift, but he did not let his surprise reach his face as he considered.
"Two days," he said slowly. Remembering Noe standing high upon Haulani next to a being of eldritch static. In spite of how much damage that static had done to the city. "For... sentiment. And those who wish to say farewell." He would not pretend to understand them, but he would not take that closure from them, either.
The smile that emerged was not proof alone. Not until the words that followed. The Tidebreaker simply inclined his head in acknowledgment of his species' faults, unable to argue them in the face of experience.
But luck could carry a species far. Far enough, perhaps, to learn and grow from its mistakes someday.
Blue eyes bored into emerald, and Hadama held the gaze for three thoughtful beats of his steady heart before he nodded deeply, disinclined to challenges now that they had reached an agreement. The timeline was unexpectedly swift, but he did not let his surprise reach his face as he considered.
"Two days," he said slowly. Remembering Noe standing high upon Haulani next to a being of eldritch static. In spite of how much damage that static had done to the city. "For... sentiment. And those who wish to say farewell." He would not pretend to understand them, but he would not take that closure from them, either.
