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The Secret of the Coconut Gods


by asyanica

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A cool, soft breeze drifts in from the east as you walk upon the still-warm sand of the Mystery Island beach. As the sun begins to set, it reflects off the cerulean water and sends small beams of light glittering across the Coconut God statues, picking out the delicate carvings.

But what exactly are these strange monuments? A remnant from a long-forgotten age? A practical joke that no-one bothered to clean up? Or are they something more than that?

The Coconut statues sit on a nearby island northeast of Mystery Island. They gaze out upon Mystery Island towards the Cooking Pot and the Lost City of Geraptiku. Both of these famous locations are a part of Mystery Island itself and form a great element in its culture and superstitions. There are many great and spooky stories about Geraptiku and the Cooking Pot. I’ve heard many in my time, believe me.

The Island natives may provide a clue to this conundrum. These Coconut JubJubs inhabit the deep jungles of Mystery Island. They have various traditions and rituals, all of which must somehow be associated with the Gods. These connections only the leaders of the tribes, and maybe Jhuidah, truly know. They are the most likely cause of the Coconut statues. They probably carved the statues themselves eons ago and somehow positioned them on the islands.

I caught up with one on a recent trip to Mystery Island, and managed to get a few words out of him:

Me: “So, what do you think of life in Mystery Island?”

Native: “Yuggamaaaaaa!”

Me: “Uh... ok. Do you know how the Coconut God statues came about?”

Native: “Oooka buka... Noohua fer goould. Kraal orf tief dourk.”

Knowing by then that our efforts to understand each other would be fruitless, I bent down to become at eye-level (JubJubs are very short creatures), pointed to the statues and repeated the question. The JubJub looked at me with a twinkle in his eye and ran off back into the jungle. JubJubs are strange like that, I guess.

There are stories of the statues speaking to visitors. I must say, stone sculptures talking may be a bit farfetched, but to properly examine this issue we must investigate every aspect of it.

An eyewitness account told me that she saw them speak. Well, normally you hear things speak, but no matter. I am quoting her exactly as she said it because that’s how I roll. *is annoyed*

Anyway, this witness described how she was sitting on the beach when it happened:

“It was about 8 o’clock at night. My friends and I were having a game of beach volleyball at night. It was a sleepover, you see? Anyway, all my friends went to get some food, so next thing I know, I’m on the beach. All alone. By myself.

“So, I’m sitting on the beach all by myself. Suddenly, a great breeze swept through, and everything felt cold. Then, a big rumbling noise began and I heard a tremendous deep voice booming out across the beach. I don’t know any of the native language, but it sounded pretty serious. When my friends came back, I asked them about it, but they said they didn’t hear a thing!”

Such is the nature of the island. Strange things happen to strange people; many cases of which no-one has heard the likeness of before. There are always new, bizarre things happening on the Mystery Island beaches, as well as inland.

Soon after the report I had a sudden realisation. I think that’s actually called an epiphany, but maybe that is something I saw in a movie or something... Hrm...

Huh? What? Oh, right! The article! ^^;

Anyway, I realised that Jhuidah, the Island Faerie, must know about this. She is the Island Faerie, after all. She’d know all about everything on the island. Right?

To be honest, I was a bit nervous. Meeting up with a powerful Faerie, who can float up when her eyes turn red whilst her giant cooking pot becomes angry and spews out noxious green goop and scares tourists so much that they run out screaming in a frenzy of madness, is a tad bit daunting, you see?

Upon my inquiring about the source of the Coconut God statues, Jhuidah became quiet. She looked around furtively, as if checking for eavesdroppers, and leaned close to me from across her bamboo dinner table. Catching on to the idea, I followed likewise.

Jhuidah whispered, almost too quiet to hear. “Can you keep a secret?”

I nodded, not daring to show the excitement bubbling up through me.

She smiled, and murmured back, “I can’t tell you that.”

The excitement died down immediately. “Why not?” I answered, trying to look as innocent as possible.

“Because you’re a reporter for the biggest newspaper in Neopia.”

Oh, right. I forgot about that. Now this reporter may be a reporter, but does that mean that she can’t keep a secret?

Mystery Island, as with many other places in Neopia, has a great number of secrets and, well, mysteries. I deduce that that’s how Mystery Island got its name. The Coconut God statues are one amongst scores of other unclear stories. It is surprising that the sheer number of uncertainties and strange disappearances do not keep tourists from visiting the Island.

This may mean something. Why do they keep coming, even though they are fully aware of the many dangers of Mystery Island? Would the Coconut Gods have something to do with it? Somehow using ancient magic to attract tourists, to keep their home economically stable so their native makers have a better life? It is a plausible theory. It could explain why Jhuidah wouldn’t, or couldn’t tell me these things. Yes, magic is a very, very probable solution. Magic can explain many things on Mystery Island.

To discover the secret of the Coconut Gods would be to uncover the life of Mystery Island itself. Only a select few know about it; and even then they have a significant position in the culture of the Island. Anybody else knowing about it may spark something big, even a war maybe, and that is reason enough to keep the secret of the Coconut Gods.

 
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