From being an Abandoned who had rarely left the Hollowed Grounds, to embracing the call of adventure, to dying and being reborn first as an Ascended and then as an Ancient, Maea has gone through quite the amount of changes in her life. One thing remains common, though, in her attempts to find out just where she belongs; she’s always had a craving for knowledge which has brought her to so many places and to meet so many people here in Caido. We can’t wait to see what else is in store for her!
Congratulations, Maea!
Credits
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!
Noah ventured to the Hollowed Grounds to scout out some land to try and rehabilitate. He was mounted on the back of his new and great steed. The unicorn’s ears twisted around and his nostrils flared in the new space, but he stepped forward on massive and confident hooves. Noah reached down to scratch his neck for reassurance. As they moved through the inner workings of the Grounds, Noah would smile and wave at those he remembered and that chose to greet him much the same. Last time the hunter had been here, he helped reconstruct their town hall. Some of them, especially those that helped with the project, seemed to welcome him.
While not having a leader may not be benefiting the people at the time, it benefitted Noah in that it wasn’t someone who despised him and banned him from the place his god has tasked him to assist. He came upon a small clearing and Vi’dore stopped at the edge. The Sentinel slid down from his companion’s back and knelt down to touch the soil. It was dry and warm, and the grass was already starting to die in the heat of the start of summer.
It's definitely too hot for most to be out tilling the land, but in the Grounds, choice is still a luxury that a lot of people don't have. And where there are crops and people tending to them, there are always things waiting to cause them trouble. This isn't Fox's usual hunt - he'd been hired to walk the perimeter of some farmland and ensure that nothing was awry (i.e. either looking to eat the plants, the farmers, or to otherwise cause shenanigans).
And honestly, it's been quiet. Indeed, when he steps into the clearing it's with nothing more than a small jar of flinthoppers knocking against his hip, his bag hitched over his shoulder and his shoulders bared to the sun. Coming across a man and a horse unicorn is something of a surprise, and if he hadn't recently been to King's End and met a man with a herd of unicorns, this might have been something of a special occasion.
"Are you lost?" he asks, unintentionally echoing Morgen's line from when they'd first met. Because call him crazy, but Noah doesn't look like a Grounder or a farmer.
With keen senses and brilliant hearing, Noah was alerted to the stranger’s approach because of his companion before the man mad his way all the way towards them. The hunter looked up as he approached, unable to stop himself from taking in as many details as he could.
”No.” Noah said, standing up straight again and wiping his hands on his pants, the dust falling around him in a cloud. ”I was just trying to examine this,” he gestured out to the clearing, ”to see if anything could be planted here.”
Vi’dore shifted and snorted some, taking a few steps towards the Ancient to reach his muzzle out and sniff. Noah didn’t say anything as the unicorn greeted the stranger, but lifted his hand to run it down the muscular length of his neck.
"Ah," Fox responds, feeling immediately foolish for assuming the man doesn't know where he is and why. As for the clearing, the hunter raises his eyebrows and glances down at the dry, parched earth. "Probably with enough care, I imagine. You'll have a tough time of it this season, though. And this land runs right between two farms, so you might step on some toes by accident."
As if by way of explanation, he gestures out beyond the clearing to a field that's been left fallow, along with a smattering of houses. "Though you probably already know that," he adds, again wondering how he's managed to go from fully functional adult to someone who perpetually walks around with their foot in their mouth.
He's about to excuse himself, because who the fuck needs him poking around in their business, when the unicorn comes to snuffle at him. "Hey there," Fox murmurs to Vi'dore, though he doesn't reach out for the creature, knowing better than that. In the jar at his hip, though, the flinthoppers do make a bit of a racket.
STill new to this world, formed out of celestial energy and and almighty touch by Vi, the unicorn was curious. More curious than cautious, it seemed, as he accepted the stranger. The grey stallion took another step towards Fox to sniff at his chest, his sword-like horn dangerously close to the Ancient’s face (though, the unicorn was oblivious to this being dangerous). Noah let his thoughts roll over the unicorn, and snorting some the companion moved away from them to graze.
”I definitely don’t want to do anything to piss off the locals.” Noah agreed, and took the advice Fox gave seriously. He did not want to come in, high and mighty, as if a savior complex rules his life and the Hollowed Grounds simply could not live without Vi’s demigod. ”I’m Noah, by the way.”
Unable to keep the smile from his face, Fox is simultaneously amused by the unicorn's interest and also worried for his eyesight, the hunter leaning back a little to avoid the wickedly sharp point of the creature's horn. "I never considered myself an animal person before," he confesses, straightening back up to watch Vi'dore head off to find somewhere to graze, leaving the two men to their conversation.
"Ah, you're not from the Grounds?" Don't sound too relieved about it, Fox, geez. "If you're looking for somewhere to plant something, I know a place beyond the farm boundaries," he offers. "Are you looking to move here, or something?" Why else would he want to cultivate an area of the land? "I'm Fox. Nice to meet you." Reaching out, he offers the other man his hand to shake.
"No. Halo." Noah offered the information freely, with a slight shake of his head. The information that Fox gave intrigued the demigod, and he lifted his brow and his expression showed the interest clearly. "I'd love to see that spot." The hunter lifted his hand some to gesture out for Fox to lead the way, if the man were willing to take him to the place he mentioned.
"No, not really. There's not enough ice here." Noah joked. "I'm just scouting out the land for someone." He didn't feel ready to divulge that he was trying to complete his next mission from Vi, his patron god. He was not sure how those living here would feel about Noah's motivations, despite how he had helped rebuild their council hall recently. This place was so heavily touched by the Voice and her people that he wasn't sure how willingly they'd accept the hand of the old gods, even with their triumph in the war.
"Oh, huh. You're the second person to come to the Grounds from there recently," Fox remarks, not that he thinks much of it other than that perhaps his home region is becoming a little more popular these days. (A thought that simultaneously fills him with pride and dread). "Is it still cold there, even in Longheat?"
Nodding and heading through some of the undergrowth and away from the divide between the two farms, Fox pauses only for a second to capture another sneaky flinthopper, not wanting to give it any opportunity to flick sparks at the dry leaves in the foliage. "Well, if someone is looking to grow anything here, this is probably one of the better patches for it," he says conversationally. "Not that I'm very good at that sort of thing myself."
They travel for a few minutes before coming to an empty clearing filled with little more than thorny weeds and tall grass and Fox motions to it. "It's not that big, but depending on how many crops your friend wants to grow, it might suit."
Noah made a small noise of interest at Fox's comment, but it wasn't enough for him to stir conversation about it. He wouldn't be surprised if Evie or Deimos had been here to try and work out some politics with someone, or a group of people, since the Grounds were without a leader. It also wouldn't surprise him if Talyson had been here on a delivery, or if Deimos had come to meet with Darkeye and stumbled across this man. All in all, it didn't seem unusual to the advisor that Halovians were frequenting this place. "It's never warm in Halo, even in Longheat."
Noah crouched and, like he had been doing before, grabbed a handful of dirt to inspect it. It did seem better, darker and richer, than what he had looked at before -- but, in all reality, Noah was a hunter and not a farmer or gardener, so he didn't really know what he was looking for. He wasn't ready to really admit that, yet, even with Fox's ready admission. "I think knowing this spot will intrude less on the locals and their farms means more than the actual virility of the soil." Noah stayed crouched but rested his forearms on his knees. Jutting his chin up towards the jar on Fox's belt, the hunter asked "What are those?"
"Ah, I see. This must be quite a change, then," Fox murmurs, though it's evident that Noah doesn't really want to chat about the weather (and really, Fox, who does) so he turns his attention instead to the soil. Not knowing anything about the other man's profession, for all Fox knows he really is a farmer or a gardener, and even if he wasn't, he likely has more of an idea about what to look for than the Ancient.
Nodding his agreement if for no other reason than to pretend he knows enough about the topic to opine on it, Fox at least does have some expertise to contribute when it comes to the creatures hopping about in the jar at his hip. "Ah, these?" He glances down at them. "Flinthoppers. Nasty little things in Longheat for the Grounds - some reckon the Voice made them. If you look close, their back legs are made of something that looks close to flint. Makes sparks when they rub their legs together."
Which, as Noah might well imagine, could be devastating at this time of year.
Someone as observant as Fox is to see the tiny details on the hopper’s legs surely wouldn’t miss the way Noah’s jaw tightened and a vein in his neck popped slightly at the mention of the Voice. He couldn’t help it — he still held so much hatred for her within him for all that she had done to damage this world and its people.
”Interesting she would have created something that could be so damaging to her followers.” That is, with the fire and all. One bad interaction with the bug could have set an Ascended ablaze. If the Voice had created them, they were probably kept around by the will of the old gods when they realized what they could do against her beloved.
He stood back up and repeated the same motion he had before when he dusted his hands off on his pants. They then moved to rest on his hips as he looked around. ”There are a species of flying little bug that comes out in Halo only in the coldest of nights and during Longnight, and legends say that when they land on houses they can burn them down. Must be related.”
"Interesting is one way to put it," Fox says dryly - and yes, he absolutely does notice Noah's reaction to the Voice's name. If there were an easy way to say hey man, you hate her too huh, he might have brought it up further. Alas, they're only barely acquaintances at this point in time. "Either way, they are damaging for the farmers around here even now."
His eyebrows raise to hear of something similar in Halo, Fox not having realised that a place that cold would even be a fire risk, but here we are. "How strange," he remarks. "Do people capture them? I'll be taking these to the marketplace once I've finished my check around the perimeter. Some Grounders like to keep a couple of them to light fires and lanterns."
"Mostly kids. Adults tend to stay away from them, except to watch them. Like most creatures on the tundra, they'll eat just about anything." Which meant that they were competition, too. Halovians didn't let much competition into their house, and they certainly didn't go out of their way to keep them as pets -- or tools. "I wouldn't mind a couple, if your price is good." Noah said, his hands coming up to rest above his hip bones.
"But, also, I've uh, I've got a question. It might be a little weird." noah shifted his weight some, as if the physical movement would help with the wording of what was to come out of his mouth. "Has there been much interaction with the Hollowed Grounds and the gods since the war?" He knew that Darkeye probably hadn't gone to see them, but it didn't mean that the other citizens hadn't.
"Ah," Fox says, understanding dawning on his face as he nods to the other man. "At least here I guess we don't have to worry about flinthoppers eating all of the crops. Though that doesn't make them any less dangerous." Can't sell ashes just the same as you can't sell a ravaged harvest. He doesn't expect Noah to offer to trade for a couple of the bugs, but he nods even as his eyebrows raise a bit. "Sure," he says. "I usually just ask for a bit of food or basic supplies." It's rough going when you live hand to mouth.
If Noah is interest in the offer, Fox will shrug off the bag on his shoulder and take out a smaller jar so he can transfer a few of the flinthoppers into it for the other man. As for the gods, the hunter shakes his head absently. "None, so far as I know. Or, well. I've been to see Dygra, clearly." He gestures to himself, given that he's an Ancient. "But I haven't heard of anyone else asking for help."
