The Coral Testament chainmaille carried the weight of stolen

carried the weight of stolen memory: the sound of silks whispering down marble halls

but a promise: to hear the call of the deep

strength and grace

the laughter of friends

A leaf caught between worlds — split

The Coral Testament chainmaille carried the weight of stolenThey found her journals waterlogged, pages salt stained and illegible save for the sketches: spirals of coral, spines of sea creatures, notes in the margins written in a language no one could place. She wore her findings as offerings. Gold and silver links like chain spun tidepools, and at the centre, a single bead of coral deep red, like something still alive. She claimed it was reclaimed, not harvested. She claimed the reef gave it freely, in