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!
When Remi had approached Zariah to see if she would be willing to bring the remaining Launceleyn's to the labyrinth to test their magical strength and perhaps teach him a thing or two, honestly he had been a bit surprised at her willingness when she'd agreed. Still viewing her in the upper echelons of society, despite all that had happened Remi still felt very much the lowly commoner in her presence despite the amount that he had grown in leaps and bounds since arriving in Caido. Or perhaps it was simply the strange half-memory of Loren that Zariah's presence could not help but rouse in his mind that made him feel small and unimportant.
But she had agreed, and with details given, Remi awaited anxiously.
Given his new-found creation magic the alchemist brought very little with him. Isla was at his side, but given that this adventure was meant to test their merits and strength, she'd agreed not to interfere unless it was strictly necessary. She hadn't had any bad interactions with Launceleyn's in Northaven (and in Caido, she and Edy had been nearly thick as thieves), and as far as magic users went, the Launceleyn's were certainly a well of knowledge.
So, standing at the entrance to the labyrinth where the hedges moved and all sorts of nasty things existed within, Remi steeled himself both for the arrival of the Launceleyns as much as what he'd find within the maze.
A magical test? Fucking count, her, in. Edy would have shown up even if she hadn't been ordered told by the head to arrive.
And so, clothed in the training garb that she'd come over in, Edy arrived bright and early only to find the alchemist already waiting. Her eyes slid over him salaciously for a moment before a bright grin spread her plump lips. "All this time of you delivering booze to my bar and now I hear you're some sorta magician, huh?" Edy trilled with a grin, her once-over of Remi complete with the verdict being completely vanilla as fuck.
Bobi wound around Edy's ankles, glancing up at the alchemist without so much as a sound before plopping down to begin to chew on some clover.
Zariah only agreed because she was curious. Curious as to this fellow Loren had kept around in his last days. Curious as to what Remi knew that would make him brave enough to approach her (for while status did not matter anymore, Zariah still held that she was far above that of a common mutt like Remi). Curious to see if perhaps Loren had been keeping this man secret for a reason, one that would indicate a treachery she did not wish to think he may have been planning. So she had agreed and brought along Edrei, her now closest family member, her children aside, and their newest recruit Peter. It was time to see what the nervous fellow could do under pressure. Really, she had nothing to lose and everything to gain. Why not help him out?
Worst case scenario, Remi was a total, pitiful lump and she would get to grind his self esteem into the ground. She always did love a good mental-emotional teardown.
"Indeed. It would seem our dear Loren hid him away all for himself. A real pity, I would have liked to welcome you with open arms, if only to prove his neurotic paranoia a falsehood." Zariah said in a low tone as she approached, just catching Edrei's words. Dressed in training garb as well, she stopped next to Edrei, arms crossed. Remi had every right to feel small in front of her, despite being the physically larger presence. Zariah just had a way of looking at people that made them feel like ants, and her person exuded ownership of all in line of sight. "So the plan is to find and exterminate some monsters?" she said lightly, briefly examining her nails.
A thrum of nervous energy had infected Peter since he’d been given his first real assignment, one that had, in the time leading up to it, twisted his tongue more and made his fingers shake. Now though, following at Zariah’s heels, he was still, focused on the task at hand. This was a job, was his first job, his first chance to prove himself, and Peter couldn’t afford to fuck it up.
Blue eyes moved over Remi and Edrei, taking them in without anything showing on his face, though he had the sense to incline his head, almost imperceptibly, towards Edrei. This was their first meeting, and he had to make a good impression on her. His gaze towards the labyrinth beyond them, then, as she began to speak, to Zariah. There was still much he didn’t understand, but he was clever enough to piece things together, and assumed Loren was the member of the family who had gone missing.
Monster hunting though, if that was the plan, was something he could do. Peter straightened, standing as tall as he could manage, and waited to be told what to do.
PET
he is trying to tell you that there is some sort of shining star now buried deep inside him and he has to dig it out with a knife.
05-20-2019, 07:31 PM (This post was last modified: 05-22-2019, 05:10 PM by Odd.)
Edy always brought memories of Loren with her, which, given that he hardly remembered anything at all about the other Launceleyn, was fairly strange. Now though he simply tried to smile, laughing off what was likely some sort of slight from her. "Magician? No, certainly not. More like someone playing with something that they do not understand." However this mirth and boyish ease turned to blatant respect as Zariah arrived.
"Ahh, well...I am sure Loren had his reasons." The alchemist replied vaguely, a shadow crossing over his heart where something had once been. Now though that spot had been decidedly filled by someone else. Even so, Remi felt cold and uncertain.
With a glance towards Peter, the alchemist tilted his head slightly in greeting. Remi hadn't thought there were more Launceleyn's here, but then again the family had always been full of secrets.
"Well, monster hunting of a certain sort, I suppose. I have no real training when it comes to combat. In Northaven I was a weapons creator, but rarely did I see any real action. I was hoping given the Launceleyn's impressive lineage and history you might offer me some pointers?"
So saying, the entrance of the labyrinth suddenly seemed to shift, moving a few feet to the left. With a look towards Zariah that seemed to border on someone asking for permission, the alchemist turned and reached out his hands. As he did so, the hedges stopped moving and were awkwardly pulled back to their original place by Remi's magic.
Into the labyrinth we go! No posting order.
nobody hangs hard times on the wall
Coding base by Sky!
Speaks with a thick Italian accent.
Force and magic can be used against Remi without permission.
Zariah glanced up from her nails as Remi spoke, looking as emotionless as ever, which could be easily misinterpreted as boredum. But she didn't particularly care if she insulted the alchemist. He had come to her seekinf guidance afterall. Had he not been Loren's plaything once upon a time she might've not even bothered. What did he have to offer her after all? But she was curious to see what about this man held Loren's interest. Everything he did had been carefully calculated for his own survival and promotion.
Where did a naive, accented, dishwater blonde fit into that agenda? Curious, curious.
Her eyes flicked to the entrance as it moved, then to Remi as he looked at her like a lost puppy dog. She merely raised a brow. What, he needed permission now too? Was he not here to show what he could do and receive instruction? But he soon followed it by manipulating the labyrinth to bring the entrance back. A complex piece of magic that, bending living things to one's will always trickier than that of non-living things. She dropped her arms and walked into the labyrinth then, head held high, shoulders back, exuding confidence and ownership. "Perhaps you've potential." she said quietly as she passed Remi .
Zariah walks into the labyrinth like she owns the place.
Peter let his gaze wander towards the labyrinth, his posture slacking the slightest bit as his attention shifted towards the shifting tangle of bushes. His brows knit together as the bushes were pulled back into place, surprised eyes moving first to Zariah, then over to Remi, newly appraising the man.
Not that the distraction of the hedges or Remi’s show of magic distracted Peter from his true focus. The moment Zariah moved, Peter was at her heels, a glance soared to see I Edrei would precede him. Sharp ears caught what she said to Remi, jealousy rising like bile in his throat. Peter didn’t spare the taller man a glance as he stalked by, the only indication that there was any change in his emotional state showing in his clenched hands, already pale from scars but now bone white from the pressure he exerted.
Once inside the hedges, Peters head swivelled from side to side, keeping an eye out for anything that could be anything. He didn’t want to let himself be shown up again.
Peter enters the labyrinth on Zariah’s heels and keeps an eye out for danger.
PET
he is trying to tell you that there is some sort of shining star now buried deep inside him and he has to dig it out with a knife.
Edy gave the new kid a once over. Well, Peter more specifically since apparently there might be two new kids on the block. Wordlessly she looked to Zariah, a silently raised brow that clearly meant who the fuck is this on her face, but the head gave no answer. As soon as Zariah was ahead and into the maze, Edy's facade of subtle respectfulness dropped, and she flashed the alchemist a wild and shit-eating grin on her way into the labyrinth, indeed stepping in front of Peter.
Whether this was as a show of some sort of heirarchy or just so he could look at her ass was entirely unclear. However as she went, she waggled fingers suddenly full of fire at Remi, grinning broadly. "My way would have been a bit hotter, but you do you." She said with a laugh, sashaying easily behind the head of the ever-growing family.
"Th..thank you." The alchemist murmured as Zariah strode past him, quite unsure how to take her statement. Compliment? Challenge? Provocation? Blinking and swallowing down the lump of uncertainty that had formed in his throat, he watched Edrei follow easily in Zariah's wake, fire blooming from her fingertips. He wanted to laugh, but suddenly being in the presence of three very powerful (he assumed) Launceleyns made him feel ever boyish, low-ranking, and meek, just as he always had in Northaven. Smiling gently as Peter passed—though the man didn't seem to spare him a glance—the alchemist cleared his throat, took a breath, and followed them in.
"Nearer to the centre I encountered a boggart once. I thought that perhaps we might seek one out, and you could show me how to properly use magic offensively? Or...perhaps how to use magic to stop the threat before it begins?"
So saying, a number of speaking-squirrels suddenly appeared at the top of the hedge holding crude sticks and chattering loudly. At once Remi's gaze grew flat, he tilted his head and sighed an unimpressed sort of sound.
"I have encountered these creatures before. I found a girl once, lost in this maze being tormented by them." He added, shaking his head ruefully. With an angry below a veritable wave of the rodents appeared, leaping from the top of the hedges towards the magical quartet.
Oh no! Attack of the speaking squirrels! Attack them! (preferably with magic <3)
nobody hangs hard times on the wall
Coding base by Sky!
Speaks with a thick Italian accent.
Force and magic can be used against Remi without permission.
Zariah did not spare Remi a glance as he begun to speak. Stopping a threat before it became one, hm? "Interesting. If you wish to end threats before they become them, you must be willing to risk destroying the innocent." she said lightly, as if not discussing killing innocent bystanders."Though if you are skilled you should be able to pull your punches, so to speak, if necessary should you wish to be merciful. Though I've found mercy terribly overrated."
But Remi went on and she raised a brow at him. For a moment she was silent, before glancing up at the squirrels. "That was my daughter. You must've been the hawk then." she said dryly, watching the squirrels blankly. But some vengeance was now at her fingertips. So these were the little shits that chased Beatrix through the maze hm? "Do not hesitate, or second-guess. Such emotions are useless and cloud your judgement, leading to death. Kill, or be killed. Those are your only choices." With a small wave of her hand lightning rained down onto the squirrels, intent on electrocuting the little bastards in a very painful fashion.
05-27-2019, 11:31 PM (This post was last modified: 05-28-2019, 07:37 PM by Edrei.)
thought i was cool
"Kill or be killed." Edy chimed from behind, fingers still waggling with bright flames. With a glance towards Peter, the dark-skinned mage flashed him a smile of shockingly white teeth, before turning back to the rodents who had decided to form an offensive against.
At the mention of Bea, Edy glanced back toward Zariah with one of those comical-frowns as if someone else might be watching for her reaction. Edy, of course, didn't think that Bea had told her mother about that. Since you know, it was such a fucking clusterfuck.
"Listen here you mangy little fuckers." The mage said, a vivacious sort of glee in her eyes as she neared the hedges. "Your little spears n'shit are cute, but ain't no one fucks with Bea and gets away with it." So saying, fire blazed from her finger tips. In a wave that engulfed an entire side of the hedge, Edy poured all that she had into the heat and the flames to burn the absolute fuck out of any gossipy-rat that didn't have the sense to high-tail it the fuck away from her.
It felt like it had been nearly a lifetime since Peter had been embroiled in such a strange situation. He was certain he was missing things, a few pieces short of the full picture, but that didn’t matter. This was a role he could slip into like an old glove, comfortable enough with it that he even mirrored Edrei’s smile back at her, the expression far less bright on his own lips.
While he didn’t echo Zariah’s sentiment out loud, it was clear Peter had no qualms with it. While squirrels were not the enemy he would have expected, any chance Peter had to prove himself was going to be seized. His hands moved, twitched more than anything, and then there were flashes of silver in among the fire and the lightning, balls of long, sharp needles popping into existence among groups of the rodents, one, then two, then three, each of them impaling everything around it.
This was where Peter thrived. Where he had a goal, and someone to impress, and the ability to do both things. He just hoped it was enough.
PET
he is trying to tell you that there is some sort of shining star now buried deep inside him and he has to dig it out with a knife.
"What?" Remi echoed after Zariah, his pale eyes large and full of confusion. Surely there were other ways that avoided risking the innocent? There had to be. "I have never wanted to hurt anyone, not in a long time." The alchemist admitted in a low tone. There had been that one time, with Martha and her boyfriend...but that was a chilling and far gone memory that the alchemist preferred not the think about. Zariah would likely think him naive and weak, and perhaps he was. But it was simply not in his nature to inflict pain. "Ahh.. yes. I was. Err, am." Remi stuttered, taking a breath, watching both Zariah and Edy breeze past and begin easily dispatching the small creatures.
In a shocking display of fire, lightning and whatever it was Peter was doing that also seemed just as deadly, for a moment the alchemist was all but stilled by the sheer power around him. With none of the aggression on display around him, Remi reached into the very bushes themselves causing the leaves and vines beneath the rodents to steadily creep up and around the offensive creatures. Remi wanted to bury them in the greenery, but not actually kill them. Whether this was what Zariah had meant he wasn't sure, but the alchemist wasn't entirely convinced that kill or be killed was a mantra he could live by.
Completely defeated by the group's magical prowess, the alchemist continued to lead his companions through the maze. Glancing over his shoulder he looked towards Zariah, swallowing uncertainly. "The last time I was here the boggart took the form of Loren. Though...it was not quite him. If it does so again, will that be..." Glancing from Zariah to Edy and then back again, he bit his lip. "..a problem?"
So saying, the bushes before them began to part ominously, and something that sounded like it was only a few corridors away gave a horrific roar.
Oh no! How will you prep for whatever is coming?
nobody hangs hard times on the wall
Coding base by Sky!
Speaks with a thick Italian accent.
Force and magic can be used against Remi without permission.
Zariah watched Remi’s contribution with equal parts surprise and disappointment. Remi clearly had talent, far more talent than she had anticipated – and yet he refrained from killing the little beasts. In a way that was also impressive. To have the control to keep from killing something was more difficult to come by, but still…did he have the heart to do what was necessary?
Did it matter?
”It isn’t about wanting to kill, per se. The Launceleyns were the king’s magically offensive hand. We did his dirty work for a thousand years. It wasn’t about want, but about need. It is survival, and it is what has made us great.” she said, her voice a bit softer. Remi didn’t seem the sort that responded to harshness, and needed more codling (no wonder Loren had liked him so, such a mouse). She raised a brow at his concern over the boggart though, and couldn’t resist a dark laugh. ”In order to pass a certain point in the Spire, I had to kill illusions of my family, including my spouse and children. A boggart of Loren will be nothing.” she said with a smirk. ”We do what is necessary, regardless of sentimentality.”
But a mighty roar caught her attention. Perhaps this would be more fearsome than the stupid chipmunks or whatever they were. Lightning sparked at her fingertips, ready to be flung at their enemy at a moments notice should it come charging.
