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!
Loren nodded at Jiao’s comment. ”I think I do too.” There was precious little of it in his life, so he had to find it where he could, in the herd of luxere he just fed and the wonder at finally meeting one of the Fae. As she spoke of her home, the summoner gave her a curious look. ”I’ve never been to Sidhe, to be honest. Though I’m sorry you find it drab during Deepfrost. I’m sure it’s lovelier than the Hollowed Grounds, however, regardless of the season.” Granted, that was a low bar: the landscape was mostly desolate and grey here except for in a few special locations, and most of the people dressed as he did in plain, but utilitarian garb. Of course, it was practical, because bright, vibrant colors would just get dirty, but maybe Jiao had a very different set of priorities than the Launceleyn did.
As the light caught her wings, Loren stared at them with awe, before he realized once again that was rude. Running a sheepish hand through his hair, he thought about her question. ”I don’t know, actually. I’ve never tried.” He couldn’t help the hint of nervousness he felt at the thought. It was one thing to use his magic in battle or to heal; it was quite another to use it to lift himself into the sky. Granted, he couldn’t do it under his own power, and would have to summon something, and he wasn’t sure he trusted his energy not to run out. But in theory he could do it.
Flying had always been a dream. But it had been a shared dream, with Remi, and Loren couldn’t help but feel a little wistful at the memory and the knowledge that he’d never share that dream with the alchemist again future manticore flights notwithstanding.
"Well, yeah." Jiao replied, in a tone that implied it was obvious Sidhe was better than The Hollowed Grounds even on the worst day.
Loren's response made her laugh, because it was so, well, human. The first thing Fae tried when they were growing up was flying, even if their wings couldn't develop well enough for it properly work until they were older. "Well, I'm going to fly. You can join me, if you like, or you can stay here on the ground." She glided up a couple of feet - really, she was unable to go up much higher, but she hoped Loren wouldn't be able to follow her to find that out.
Normally, the Launceleyn wouldn’t have caved in the face of what he saw as condescension. However, he was getting a bit sick and tired of the Fae’s attitude. Beyond that, Jiao seemed oh so certain that he, a mere human, wouldn’t be able to fly. While the truth of the matter was that he didn’t know if he was capable of it, seeing her hover a couple of feet off the ground and literally look down on him sparked some competitive streak that his family had instilled in him long ago.
So, without bothering to speak, he gently extracted himself from the small luxere. She looked up at him with wide and excited eyes as he called up his magic.
A pegasus appeared, fur and feathers even purer white than the mounds of snow coating the ground. Still remaining silent, he had it kneel and swung his leg over its back; while it wasn’t quite like riding a horse, he found a comfortable seat eventually. His legs gripped the winged horse tightly and he buried his hands in its mane. Without a saddle, he didn’t want to go too high, but a few feet wouldn’t kill him.
While he probably should’ve given this a great deal more thought, he order the pegasus to take to the skies.
Which it did.
And suddenly the earth fell away and he flew in lazy circles around Jiao’s head. However, instead of enjoyment, he just felt a desperate fear and the need to cling to his mount, terrified of what might happen if he fell. Apparently, he was not the biggest fan of heights.
Jiao absolutely was being condescending, enjoying every second she got to spend in the sky above Loren. This was how she wanted the Fae to appear to humans; almost divine beings residing in the clouds, deigning to show them a scrap of attention sometimes.
When Loren began to summon the Pegasus, though, it was clear she was surprised. She had so expected the man to admit defeat, slump his shoulders and beg for a chance to achieve her kind of magic. That a human could so easily bring a magical creature to life was impressive, not that she would ever admit it. Tight lipped, she watched the wings and hooves appear, then slowly raised her head as Loren soared up.
Just as she was about to sourly admit he had impressed her, she noticed the panic in his eyes, the way he was clinging onto the horse. Perhaps surprisingly, she did not laugh - instead she flew up to be next to him and asked, trying to cling onto the Pegasus' mane and stop it: "Are you okay!?"
But also he obviously wasn’t going to tell Jiao that. She’d been so composed and cool this whole time, and she already clearly thought very little of him, so he refused to fail in this last endeavor. It certainly wouldn’t be the first time he’d ignored his fear and discomfort. In fact, he was almost never comfortable or worry-free. Indeed, there was usually some low-level of anxiety present in him at almost every single given moment, and this was hardly an exception to that. It was just a little bit more than he was used to.
”I’m fine.” His words were short and clipped, but he was simultaneously trying not to panic, to maintain his focus on both his magic and directing the pegasus (which would stop flying if he stopped paying attention), and not to have his beast fly into Jiao as she flew up to meet him and grabbed for the pegasus’ mane. To prevent an impact, he ordered the flying horse up and away from the Fae, despite how it made his heart pound in his chest.
But Jiao wasn't going to argue - if the silly human wanted to insist, she wasn't going to lie to him, even if she could. As he soared up above her she floated down (embarrassingly she could not fly that high, so she tried to make it seem like a matter of choice rather than necessity) and watched upwards, wondering if he knew how to get down.
As much as she didn't like humans, she didn't want to watch one die. "Do you want me to try catch you?" Jiao yelled up into the sky.
At Jiao’s words, Loren glanced down at her, startled. That was a mistake: his vision swam as he saw the ground below, and he yanked his eyes back to the pegasus’ mane even as the death grip he had with his hands and legs redoubled. ”I’m not going to die! Even if I fall from here, I'd just break a few bones, and I can heal those.” He wasn’t so far up that he was in danger of splatting, whatever the Fae might think.
However, he thought he’d amply demonstrated his ability to fly. And he would very much like to come down now. So he directed the flying horse to start descending. It angled itself towards the ground, wings flapping, then tilted so its hind legs hit the ground before its forelegs did. Given that the pegasus still had some momentum, it trotted for a bit, and Loren clung to it all the while, even after it came to a stop.
Loren seemed awfully comfortable with breaking his bones, but Jiao wasn't going to insist he didn't - it would make a good story, after all. She watched with an amused smile as he continued to cling on for dear life and flap about on his silly horse, until eventually (surprisingly) he brought it down for a panicked, but successful, landing.
Jiao took a couple of steps along the wall she'd landed on and leaned in to speak to him. "Well you got up high, but it doesn't seem very useful for flying in any kind of actual direction." With a soft little laugh she looked up at the sky. "You should go find one of the humans that can turn into animals and ride on them instead."
Well, apparently all Loren’s to show off Jiao had been for naught. Sighing, he dismounted, then dismissed the pegasus with an effort of his will. It wasn’t like he needed the flying horse around any longer, and he felt better without it standing by his side. ”I would certainly bow to your superior wisdom when it comes to flying, especially since my first flight seems to have been less than impressive.” Granted, he wasn’t really trying to get anywhere—if he had, he’d just summon a dragon and cling on to that for dear life—but he could understand what the Fae was saying. Seeing as he had no interest in riding anyone (in both senses of the word timelines be damned) he wasn’t going to take her suggestion. However, it did prompt a question. ”Are there Fae who can change shapes and summon creatures as well?” He knew nothing about the magics of her kind, and was fascinated to know more.
"...It wasn't tooooo bad for your first." Jiao begrudgingly admitted, feeling a little sorry for Loren by now; he seemed desperate to impress her and she could only keep up the 'I'm a cold Fae stay away' act so long. "And your horse was kinda pretty. Does...it have a name?" She wasn't sure how it worked - did he summon the same creatures every time?
She tapped her finger to her chin as she considered his question. "Some of them can turn into animals, usually the old ones." It certainly wasn't anything she knew how to do. "I've...never known anyone that could summon things." Secretly she was actually quite jealous of the ability. How useful it would be to be able to summon little creatures to help her sew or dye! Adorable, too, if she had something cute like birds or mice help her out.
"..Hey...do you go to the market in Sanctuary much?" Jiao asked, suddenly remembering a half-forgotten plan. "Do they have a lot of clothes stalls there?"
Well. Maybe Loren had given up just a bit too soon, since Jiao gave him what could only be construed as a compliment on his flying. Perhaps there was hope for him yet. ”Thanks. And it doesn’t have a name, but it’s called a pegasus.” Luckily, she started revealing a bit of information about her kind, and he immediately perked up. ”Like the Attuned, then?”
The Launceleyn knew how it worked He’d be happy to explain how his magic worked, especially since it seemed there might not be summoners among the Fae. ”Well, I’m the only one in the Hollowed Grounds with summoning magic strong enough to call upon mythical beasts.” It was a fact that took some getting used to, considering that he’d come from a land where summoning was common and not considered one of the most powerful arts.
Her next question caught him off guard and his brow furrowed as he thought about it. ”Not really. I don’t know of anyone who has a dedicated clothing store or stall.” He gave Jiao a considering look. ”Are you looking to buy or to sell?” She’d commented on people’s clothing before, but he couldn’t tell why. Whatever answer she gave would inform his next response.
"Well I know that." Jiao insisted, trying to pretend she hadn't just forgotten the word. Though she was a little disappointed he didn't name his cool mythical creatures. If she could summon, she thought she would find it very hard to send the animals away without naming them and giving them cute accessories.
"Kind of like the Attuned, I guess. But any Fae can do it if they learn how." The fact that she wasn't shifting right this second made it obvious she had not yet learnt how to do it and Jiao seemed embarrassed by this and eager to move past it. That he was the only one who could summon mythical creatures though..interesting. Was he a special human? Maybe one to keep her eye on, at least.
She smiled to herself as he told her there weren't any clothes stores yet. Well, her stall would certainly be an explosion of new life, then. "Sell. I'm a seamstress. Everything I wear, I made myself." Holding up the hem of her dress she spun around so Loren could see all the detail, the way it sparkled and reflected the light.
At Jiao’s words, Loren bowed his head, both as a sign of apology and so that she couldn’t see the little grin that formed on his lips. ”My apologies, then, for telling you something you already knew. Though, if you don’t mind me asking, are there tales of the pegasi among the Fae?” The Launceleyn hadn’t seen any flying horses in Caido—which wasn’t to say they didn’t exist, given the weird shit this world tended to produce—but maybe Jiao’s people had legends and myths. If so, maybe there were creatures he’d never heard of before. The thought caused excitement to bloom in his chest, though he knew he had to play it cool.
Still, even the little pieces of information she was providing were fascinating. ”That’s incredible. Do you have to pray to the Gods, or are you so beloved the forms come to you without asking?” Try as he might, he couldn’t keep the barest hint of jealousy from creeping into his voice; despite all his magic, he knew he wouldn’t ever be beloved by the deities of this world, simply because he had magic. Magic he’d been born with. Magic he loved, for sure, but hadn’t exactly asked for. ”You mentioned your people had magic. Is this what you meant? That you could take the form of animals?” It didn’t seem that way, but they didn’t have summoners, so it couldn’t be magic as he understood it.
As she twirled around, he gave her an appreciative smile. ”Beautiful. Truly breathtaking. I imagine your wares would be quite popular, if you chose to bring them to the Hollowed Grounds.” He gestured at his own rather unflattering apparel. ”I’m sure you already guessed that we’re not the most fashionable bunch. I’d be happy to show you around, and help you get set up, if you’d like, though I imagine you don’t need my help.” Again, he was being a bit outrageous with his flattery, but it was paramount they improve relations with the Fae. And Jiao was the only Fae he knew. This was a chance to open trade between their lands, and trade was a solid foundation to rest on.
"Erm-- well-" Jiao really didn't know. "I might've read it in a book sometime, I dunno." If she could've, she would have lied and told him that she saw Pegasi when she woke up and was an expert on them, but unfortunately she was tied to the truth.
Loren's question confused her and she tilted her head. "Do humans...have to pray to the Gods every time they want to shift into animals? It sounds inconvenient." She felt like that wasn't true, like she'd seen humans change before her eyes without first seeing them fall to their knees in prayer. "We have magic and we can become animals and we don't need to...ask the Gods for any of it. You just need to want it, and as you grow older and practice..."
She shrugged. That was just how it was. It was not in her nature to grovel, to ask for much; if that were the condition for power she might not ever have it.
"Thanks. I know you aren't fashionable - that's why I want to set up the store." Jiao laughed, the sound like ringing bells. "I might take you up on the help, though."
