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!
The herds of unicorns were indeed a pleasant addition to King's End, and Soh shared in Lena's grin as she skewered a cucumber on her fork. From what little she'd seen of the region, serenity and peace did seem to be plentiful, what with the vast green hills and beautiful flowers. She looked forward to returning one day to properly explore. "What's stopping you? If ever you wish to take some time, I will be happy to help with your Celestine duties while you're away," Soh offered with a smile.
Torchline, too, was an area that Soh wished to explore in more detail, but as far as what she'd seen to this point... "I think the Rainbow Road," she mused, biting the cucumber from her fork. "Although I haven't seen much of the area yet. I'll let you know if that changes!" she added with a laugh.
and sweetest in the gale is heard and sore must be the storm
The question stopped her for an instant, enough to chew thoughtfully on a carrot, before allowing a light laugh. “Time, mostly. I would hate to give my responsibilities to someone else,” even if Sohalia had graciously offered – the youth had her own fair share of things to do! “I’ll manage. Promise.” With a wink, she settled into another sip of lemonade, listening as the Attuned detailed her own favored ventures of the beaches and seas.
“I haven’t seen it either – though I’ve heard much about it!” The Rainbow Road seemed a highlight, simply based on hues and details. “The Miana Pool is a very curious thing too. Have you been there yet?”
that could abash the little bird that kept so many warm
Lena seemed ever the busy bee, and Soh couldn't help a pang of worry that her friend worked too much and had fun too little. At least she'd been able to coax Lena away from the Celestine today, if only for a few hours! Soh's own job allowed her the flexibility to travel, at least, and to pursue her greatest passions. She supposed that Lena might feel the same way about her own work, even if it meant that she didn't get to see as much of the world as she might have liked.
Regardless, Soh nodded and took another bite of her salad, which was rapidly dwindling on her plate. "It's incredible to see," she agreed with regard to the Rainbow Road. The Miana Pool, though, she was unfamiliar with. "No, not yet!" she said. "I should be able to soon, though. I'll be back in Torchline before too long, I'm sure." Sometimes it seemed that she half lived there, what with how often she visited Haulani. Now that Longheat was here, she wondered if Jude would show her around some other areas - some that would be nice to visit in the summer months.
and sweetest in the gale is heard and sore must be the storm
Lena was content in her line and state of work – but perhaps truthfully, she wouldn’t know what to do with herself without it. Since the loss of her sister, it’d been one of many coping mechanisms – staying busy, keeping her mind on tasks, rather than delving down into a torrent of emotions, overwhelming sadness, or bitterness. She’d promised, after all, in the midst of silence and acrimony, that she wouldn’t be like so many others, and give over to the rage and quest for vengeance. Whether or not her options were a healthier alternative may not have mattered.
Placing that note about the Rainbow Road in her periphery, she coaxed another sip of lemonade across her lips before persisting in avenues about the Miana Pool. “It has all sorts of legends around it too,” and she winked, pondering if Sohalia had heard of any in her youth amidst the world. "And if you know how to swim, all the better!"
that could abash the little bird that kept so many warm
There was much that Soh didn't know about Lena, but had she known about her friend's loss, she would have only understood all the more the way that the older woman worked. Soh, too, had experienced loss, and the only thing that had kept her going for quite some time was staying busy. Was it healthy? Perhaps not. Did it work? Absolutely - for a time, anyway.
Soh set her now-empty plate aside in favor of another sip of lemonade. Her eyes lit at the mention of legends and she set down her glass, leaning forward with curiosity. "What kinds of legends?" she asked, her voice excited. She always liked to hear more about the myths of Caido.
and sweetest in the gale is heard and sore must be the storm
Gleaning the last remains of her salad, Lena placed her elbows along the table, folding her hands under her chin as she grinned – clearly intent on telling the tale whether or not Sohalia was intrigued. But she seemed to have caught the youth’s interest, and so without hesitation, began reciting what she’d read from texts and heard from locals. “Within the Miana Pool is a creature called the L’ma. What was once a beautiful, majestic roc, was somehow cast into the sea without its wings.”
Pausing, for the tale was rather melodramatic, and the Caretaker was never quite sure where truth ended and fables began, she tilted her head vaguely, eyes gleaming. “Now it swims there for eternity, rather than flying. But it is said that if you make a wish, and throw a brightly colored stone into the pool, it could be taken to the L’ma below.” She shrugged her shoulders for emphasis. “And maybe the most beautiful stones will have their throwers' dreams granted.”
Laughing lightly, she smiled again. “Who knows – I’ve heard there were sightings of it years ago.”
that could abash the little bird that kept so many warm
Lena leaned towards the table, folding her hands under her chin with a grin. Soh waited as she told the legend, enraptured by the idea of the L'ma. A roc cast down from the heavens to swim in the Miana Pool for all eternity, granting wishes to passersby who threw in the most beautiful stones? It was fascinating, and Soh's mind immediately jumped to weighing whether or not it was true. Perhaps part of it was real and parts of it not. Whatever the truth, the idea of having wishes granted was an alluring one, even if Soh couldn't think of anything in particular that she'd wish for just now.
She grinned alongside Lena's laughter, sitting back in her chair as she contemplated the tale. "How wonderful would it be if it were true?" she mused aloud, fingers itching for pencil and paper with which she could sketch such a wonderful creature. But for now, that would have to wait. She nodded towards Lena's empty plate. "Would you like seconds?" she asked politely; if Lena refused, she would take her friend's plate and spirit their dirty dishes away to the sink.
and sweetest in the gale is heard and sore must be the storm
The Caretaker continued to grin, immersed more in the lighthearted humor of it all; brief wonderings scaling back to perceive how much was truth or not. Part of the notions of stories was the imaginative notions – dreaming, perhaps, that one day it could be true, and seen with one’s own eyes. Cleaning her own plate as Sohalia mused, she gave another laugh, and then thought over the semblance of seconds. “I’m all set, but I did bring a dessert, if you’re interested?”
Snagging at her basket again, she lifted the lid and cloth, revealing her gift for the evening. “Lemon squares,” she admitted, a sheepish smile on her features, made well before lemonade had been a thought. “You can’t have too much, right?”
that could abash the little bird that kept so many warm
Imagination was as much a part of Soh's life as other lighthearted matters, and it tickled her to consider what all possibilities existed in the world. If the L'ma existed, where was it now? Could she find it and study it? Or was it extinct, lost to time? Had it ever existed in the first place, or was it just a story passed down? If that was the case, then where and how did it start? What was the lesson it was meant to convey?
As she set the plates in the sink, Lena revealed some lemon squares, and Soh lit up at the prospect of dessert. "You didn't have to do that!" she squealed in a tone that said she was very glad that Lena had. "Oh, I love them! Let me grab some new plates." And with that, she swirled in place to reach into a nearby cabinet, pulling out some clean dishes and offering one to Lena. She'd let her friend have the first pick of lemon squares. After all, Lena had been the one kind enough to bring them.
06-03-2023, 06:42 PM (This post was last modified: 06-03-2023, 06:44 PM by Lena.)
Lena
and sweetest in the gale is heard and sore must be the storm
“Of course I did,” the Caretaker countered with her luminescent grin. She wouldn’t have shown up to anyone’s sharing of food without some of her own offerings, even if time hadn’t been on her side. Placing the dessert down, she began to peel away the protective layers, and once Sohalia had presented new plates, she snagged at a corner piece. “Help yourself. Let me know what you think. It’s one of my sister’s recipes.” Back when they’d bake together, apartments across from one another.
A much happier method and memory to everything else, with a contented sigh to follow upon first bite.
that could abash the little bird that kept so many warm
Soh returned the Caretaker's smile and served herself one of the middle pieces, preferring the soft center to the harder edges. Without further ado, she snagged the dessert and took a bit, closing her eyes with contentment as the tart sweetness spread across her tongue. "It's delicious," she told Lena after she'd swallowed. "I didn't know you had a sister. What's she like?"
As on only child, and a child orphaned at a young age, Soh could only imagine what it must be like to have a sibling, but she expected that it must be marvelous. Someone to understand you and share with you, someone to love you no matter what - well, at least in Soh's imagination, that must be what siblings were like.
and sweetest in the gale is heard and sore must be the storm
Her grin remained as they parsed through the dessert, contentment reigning supreme as the tart and sugary confections and convictions pressed along her tongue. She even started another hum under her breath, until Sohalia asked an innocent question, and the happiness eased away; replaced with something fake and foreign on her features.
Because Lena rarely talked about Seraphina – not after finding her amidst rubble and ruin, once the Ascended and their brethren had ceased assaulting Stormbreak. Maybe it was out of discomfort, sadness, and everything else left behind, or the Caretaker was amongst the many traumatized Naturals who simply tried to move past the heartache as best they could – too used to seeing it time and time again. “Oh, um. Seraphina was her name. She was the Artificer here – an engineer. Very clever, focused, and driven.” Her fingers began to play with the remains of the lemon bar in her hand, tips covered in ivory powder, head bowed and down. “She, and many others, were lost when the Ascended attacked us, before the war.”
that could abash the little bird that kept so many warm
Dessert was wonderful, and Soh ate hers with gusto. It took only a few bites to make short work of the lemon bar, and she was very nearly convinced to go back for a second. Perhaps she could ask Lena if she could keep a few for later. She loved sweets, and this would taste wonderful as an after-dinner snack...
Then, unexpectedly, she caught a look of discomfort on Lena's sweet face. She frowned, suddenly worried, and then looked horrified as Lena revealed the death of her sister. "Oh, gods, Lena, I'm so sorry!" she said helplessly. "I wasn't trying to pry." She swallowed a lump in her throat, wishing there was something she could do to take her friend's pain away. For Seraphina to have been lost in an attack before the war made something click in the back of Soh's mind; she knew that Abandoned used to be Ascended, and that they had been banned from Stormbreak. She hadn't fully understood why until now. "She sounds like she was an amazing person," Soh added softly, searching Lena's bowed face, wishing she could offer more than just words as comfort.
and sweetest in the gale is heard and sore must be the storm
The apologies flickered, and then Lena felt bad about that, hands waving modestly, despite all the pain and torment stirred. “It’s fine, truly, you didn’t know.” Maybe she shouldn’t even mention Sera any longer, if it was just going to rake claws against her heart. A private sort of thing, like when she visited her memorial and place of burial.
But history couldn’t be forgotten – not here, not in those stony walls where knowledge was power and reality even starker. Tomes sprawled across libraries and collegiums, where the truth would be on open display; from the collapsed sanction where the Tower once stood, to where Ronin had to fight an onslaught of Ascended willing and eager to hunt them all down –
She bit against her lip, nodding belatedly. “She was.”
that could abash the little bird that kept so many warm
