What do you get when two ruthless assassins raise their daughter travelling through the wildest reaches of Caido? Take one look at Theea and you'll get a pretty good idea. Cheerful and tenacious in equal measure, and curious beyond all else, she began her journey on a mission to find those her mother once called family. And find them she did, soon rubbing elbows with demigods, leaders and even ghosts from the past. Her determination is resolute, her thirst for knowledge unmatched. We can't wait to see where her next adventure takes her!
Congratulations, Theea!
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Court of the Fallen was created in October of 2018 by Odd, Honey, and Crooked.
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While fixing up the shrine, Hadama had overheard some of their Fae helpers mention the Undercroft and the knowledge stored there. Curious, he had remained an extra day to investigate. He did not know if it was likely, but he had hoped that there might be records of Vi's Roses there. What areas of the Greatwood they had been found in, and where they had been seen most often. Some way to narrow down the search for the elusive flowers that had the power to purify the Void from their world...
Conveniently, part of the archive was in the water and that was where the Mer King was to be found. He assumed - perhaps incorrectly - that the drier floors of the Undercroft would have been searched already by Fae and human alike. The deepest sections were likely the oldest and also the least accessed, given the water that filled them. Hadama moved slowly through the still waters in his mer form, reading the text upon the walls and stones - and occasionally upon the skin of a sleepy tudalopus as he hummed a Mer lullaby to it - seeking answers, or at least hints of where to go next.
Sah was getting frustrated at the lack of success that they all seemed to be having in finding the flowers. At the same time, an itch or sorts had started in the back of his mind. It had started not long after they had finished the shrine and had only grown since. The pull was leading him towards the Hollowed Grounds, which thankfully was his destination for tomorrow. The portal there made getting home a rather easy task, despite the distance.
Unsure of what he would find, the hybrid had elected to delve into the city and prepare. A few extra rations and other supplies were on the top of his list. But so was knowledge. He'd been to the Grounds plenty of times now, but he had hardly scraped the surface of its secrets. Visiting the Undercroft and taking a look at some information about the neighboring region was worthwhile.
As he perused the higher shelves, he heard a splash from deep below. Looking down, Sah spotted a familiar figure. "Hadama?"
Sah
Minor powerplay allowed without permission. Feel free to use force/magic on Sah without killing him.
Magic: Cold Resistance (Passive) | Can comfortably exist in temperatures as low as -45c. Will experience colder temperatures as if they were -30c cooler (i.e., -60 would feel like -30) Type: Grey | Rank: Upgraded
The voice was distorted by the echoes off of water and stone but given how recently he had heard it, it was still recognizable. "Sah," he called back, his voice low but resonant in the underground library. He set the octopus he was reading gently aside and swam towards the stairs of the entrance to the submerged levels. He pulled himself partially up them to peer into the floor above, his tail draping down into the water below and flicking idly in the glowing lights that cast blue and green shadows through the lower floors.
"What knowledge are you looking for?" Although the Roses were on the top of his own thoughts, there were many things that could have drawn the Halovian hunter down into the Fae archives. Given how Sah had so recently helped him with the shrine it was an easy thing to add whatever his friend was looking for to his own search of titles.
Sah hummed, trying to put what he was feeling into words. "Partially something that can help us in the search for flowers. But also, hopefully, some personal answers." He reshelved a book that he'd been skimming, being careful to put it back in its proper place and not disturb whatever organization existed here.
Leaning over a rail to focus on Hadama he elaborated, "I've been feeling an odd sensation pulling me to the Grounds ever since last night. I've been there numerous times, but I have no idea what might be causing this. I thought that I'd read up on some of the more obscure facts about the region in case anything resonated before I followed the pull." Because there was no denying whatever this was.
It was a vaguely familiar sensation, similar to the instinctual nudges that had led him to various magical encounters. But this one was something that Sah had never felt before. There was something new out there that was calling him. It was as exciting but disconcerting.
Sah
Minor powerplay allowed without permission. Feel free to use force/magic on Sah without killing him.
Magic: Cold Resistance (Passive) | Can comfortably exist in temperatures as low as -45c. Will experience colder temperatures as if they were -30c cooler (i.e., -60 would feel like -30) Type: Grey | Rank: Upgraded
If Hadama was curious about the personal matters Sah spoke of, he was too polite to pursue it immediately. Nor, as it turned out, did he need to. The hunter was kind enough to offer an explanation and the Tidebreaker listened solemnly before giving a slow nod of acknowledgment. "The Atheneum may have more answers," he said slowly. Mention of the grand library in the heart of the Grounds was not easy for the Mer, but he kept his personal feelings hidden deep, and the Bond remained as still as a frozen pond. "I understand that the Fae could not see what happened inside the Barrier for several centuries." Their knowledge of the Grounds was either very recent, or very old, though since the War and the rise of the Symphony the Fae had seemed to become even more insular and disinclined to leave their forest, even if they no longer rejected human trade and tourism.
A pull towards a particular place, however... Hadama paused, seeking such a directive within his own chest. Perhaps one of the strange gatherings that sometimes drew together people from all over Caido... but no, he felt no desire or inclination to go to the Grounds himself. "I will look for mention of the Grounds down here, however. How long will you stay?" He was here until sundown, at least, but he was unsure if Sah intended to travel by skyship, or to use some other method to head to the place he was being pulled.
Sah nodded, "I plan to stop by there too." it had seemed like a waste not to check the Undercroft since he was already here. His brow furrowed at the mention of the barrier, "That's what I've heard as well. With how interconnected the regions have grown in recent years, it's almost difficult to imagine such distance." There was a unity in place, even before Starfall and perhaps that was why they'd been able to react so quickly.
The Hybrid smiled warmly at the Demi-god, grateful for his offered assistance. "Thank you, I'll probably leave tomorrow morning. I can get there rather quickly with my magic." Less than an hour, actually, given that the two regions bordered each other. He'd just have to hop to the end of the Greatwood, walk across the border, and then jump to wherever he wished to go in the Grounds. Teleportation was fantastic.
Sah
Minor powerplay allowed without permission. Feel free to use force/magic on Sah without killing him.
Magic: Cold Resistance (Passive) | Can comfortably exist in temperatures as low as -45c. Will experience colder temperatures as if they were -30c cooler (i.e., -60 would feel like -30) Type: Grey | Rank: Upgraded
Mmh. The world had changed drastically even before the War, but the majority of Hadama's life had still been spent below the waves, when most of the Mer had avoided contact with humans and the surface world and the continent had been intact, yet far more politically fragmented than it was today. But for Outlanders who had been on Caido less than a decade, it probably was difficult to remember the times before.
Hadama inclined his head in acknowledgment of Sah's gratitude, and considered his timeline. "Indeed. I will also be here the rest of the day. I will let you know if I find anything." Teleportation was, indeed, fantastic, even if his own was rather limited. An inconvenience, to be sure, but far better than needing to swim the entire way; journeys of weeks were now less than a day thanks to Safrin's blessing.
He released the railing and slid back into the waters, finning slowly back to his tudalopus to take up where he had left off. It was a tale of the Blight that had led to the creation of the Roses before the War, a tale he knew from the library in Stormbreak but this one was told from the Fae perspective and was far more enlightening given how much more immediate the threat to the Greatwood had been at the time. He sank back into his research with quiet focus, leaving Sah to pursue his own studies until a librarian rang the bells to let them know it was time to leave for the night.
