The next time Coile sleeps, he will have a dream. It is entirely possible that the following is a mere dream, and not a divine message. But there is no way to be sure, nor can Nut be contacted regarding it.
There is a female voice sounding a lot like Nut. "In the high east of the world, in the range men call Tien Shan, on the snowy slopes of the giant men call Khan Tengri, Lord of the Spirits, there is a rare blue flower that blossoms once a century. Bring one such as it to Paragon City, alive, and replant it while it is still in bloom."
((Wait... Batman Begins?))
((Whoa. Just a coincidence actually. Didn't realize that until you brought it up.))
((Too busy to log on and do actual RP lately. If you want/need info, shoot me a PM, please?))
The goddess Nut
A for Android: Pantheon of Beauty
I have never worshipped anyone before., said Coile aloud.
He was sitting by the living room table legs bent underneath. On the table in front of him was a statue made of plastic. It was a second-hand tourist trinket that he had chanced upon while passing by a flea market earlier. On its left side a slender white candle was burning. On the right site was a sandwich on a plate and behind the plate the tv-guide.
Coile cleared his throat. This felt awkward, talking aloud and alone. He looked at the statue and tried to just think what he wanted to say but immediately his focus started drifting. He glanced at the closed bedroom door wary of making any noises. Even if he wasnt engaged in any morally forbidden activity getting caught in this situation filled him with dread. They had fought enough cultists for him not to be at ease with his present activity.
Then again, Sword had so far been a tight sleeper. Or at the very least he wasnt aware of waking her up with any background noise save for those few nights after being assaulted by Azure Sting that he had spent wandering around, crying some of the time. If he kept his voice low and steady there shouldnt be anything that might alarm his living companion. He began anew.
I have never worshipped anyone before. I have never believed in any god before. Not really. We werent brought up to think like that. All the gods or the one God were just tales. Things to study. Not that I studied gods, mind you. Coile kept a pause and stared at the statue. It had no resemblance whatsoever to the woman he had met.
You came to me when I was feeling down and lost high up on that skyscraper. In a distant way you took interest, soothed me. Then you accompanied me in search for my sister who had gone missing and helped to get her to safety. Thats when I started believing in you. You were the goddess Nut. You felt like one. You were real to me. Gently Coile brushed the side of the statue with his finger.
I have seen incredible things. I have met powerful beings who claim to have a divine origin. Architects of our reality. They are all fakes. Impostors. Beings of power who have no credentials by themselves, who only seek to add to their fictional fame and prestige. The feeling they leave is stale and repugnant. I dont care what they are. They are not gods. He bowed his head in front of the statue.
You have the air and the feel. You are ancient. You are of different breed. To you humans are still mortals, fleeting things that pass you by. You look at us from above because you are superior to us. And yet you dont feel contempt or even pity. You seek to comfort, help and aid wherever you can. That is the way of god. You dont demand our respect and gratitude, you earn it. He looked up again, a thin film of wetness blurring his vision for a moment.
You asked if what I felt was worship, or friendship. I dont think there is a difference. People of the old feared your kind. You were incomprehensible to them. Beings they had no chance at all to understand logically or even ideologically. You were so far beyond their scope of experience that they had no option but to cower and plead for mercy in exchange for their worship. You said it yourself that those days are now gone. I-, Coile stayed quiet for a moment, I think you are mistaken.
Look around you. There are superpowered beings all around you. Thousands upon thousands. Some of them godlike to people who lack these abilities. Some more powerful than you or your brethren. People are accustomed of beings giving flight or striking thunder. You are no longer feared. But that is not the root of worship. Its gratitude for the good that you do. That still stands. Those people you gave rain to. That man with broken leg on the mountainside that you gave comfort to. They worship you. They may hold no altars or sacrifices but still they have the gratefulness inside. Looking at the statue and the assorted things scattered on the table he almost made a face but instead just went on.
Nut, sky goddess, sister and lover of Geb, daughter of Shu and Tefnut, mother of Osiris, Seth, Isis and Nephthys. I dont fear you but I worship you. I see you as a friend to me. And I am in your service. You can be at many places at one time. I dont see you here. I still believe that you can hear me, in one sense or another. I have lit a candle for you, and prepared a sandwich. I am not sure why but I feel it is enough, and appropriate. They are my sacrifice to you. Then he fell silent bowing his head again. He remained still for many minutes until he finally smiled.
I was wrong. I said I have never worshipped anyone before. I was wrong. I serve two goddesses. The goddess of the sky, and the goddess of the truth. You said there are laws forbidding the relations between gods and mortals. I accept that and dont crave you. But the other goddess I love. Now he turned his stance towards the closed bedroom door but kept his words directed at the statue on the table.
She is no god as you are. She is in fact a mortal woman. But to me she is a goddess of immense gracefulness. She is the vessel for Truth, her avenging Sword striking at injustice. His head remained unbowed, gaze steady and voice level. She is Nadia Forester, the Sword of Truth. I serve her. I love her. And in this mad world maybe one day she will love me.
Then Coile turned to the candle and blew it out. He gathered the candle, the statue and the sandwich from the table. The sandwich he placed on the windowsill for birds to eat. They would soar high, high to the sky and deliver the sacrifice. The candle and the statue he placed into a drawer in his small room. He smiled faintly as he pushed the drawer shut. You two are my pantheon.