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!
10-20-2019, 07:21 PM (This post was last modified: 10-20-2019, 08:19 PM by Delphia.)
DELPHIA
Delphia had remained hidden from much of the discord that had harmed the Greatwood in the past seasons, but that did not mean she was unaware of it. No, she had been very aware, hence her absence from it all. Death was the silent recipient of its aftermath, the solution one only Vi and Rae could concoct. But now with balance resort, she ought explore again, looking for souls, restless and earthbound in the wake of their tragic deaths.
So silly that tragedy would keep a soul from seeking her father, the creator of love and the most compassionate of souls.
LongNight did nothing to keep Delphia inside. She did not need light by which to see when she had little spirit friends to guide her path. Elemental spirits, playful and bright, bounded effortlessly through the snow, seen only through her steely gaze. She walked along quietly, banks of snow swept aside by tree limbs as she went, her friends and the forest itself making her way clear and easy. But suddenly her friends came to a halt, and so too did the daughter of Death. Looking up from her winter-worn boots, she gazed out across what was called the Hollowed Grounds. The sight alone sent a wave of uneasiness through her, her stomach churning with sickness. Death hung in the air, metallic and cold, too soon, too soon. The tip of her index finger drew circles on the pad of her thumb, feet unwilling to move one step closer to the border of the two places. She gently placed her other hand against the nearest tree, staring out in horror at the darkness.
These Grounds were not Hollowed. They were Tainted. And it made her sick.
Nephele is probably too fearless sometimes. When the sun goes dark and the monsters prowl outside the Greatwood, terrorizing the humans there, she remains safe and protected within the confines of the forest. Though she is curious about the humans, and has had a few positive experiences with them, as a whole they are still the bane of her kind. Stupid, short-lived, short-sighted. Everything is so ephemeral to them, and none of them have the mind or motivation to preserve things long-term. All they care about is the now. Nephele hates that, can't help but recall the scorched earth beneath her feet, the ash staining her hands and dress as she planted Vi's rose.
Had they not destroyed enough already?
Tempting fate is not something Neph does lightly, but her wings are a quiet displacement of noise in the silence of the woods around her. She does not approach the border directly, skimming alongside the inner curve of the trees, hazel eyes staring out into the blank darkness as if it would suddenly unveil all the secrets of LongNight for her.
No, instead her gaze finds a woman. Barely more than a shade in the oppressive darkness, only thrown into relief by the glow of a few fireflies. At first she thinks it's one of her own, and descends from the boughs, feet landing lightly on peat and moss. "Hello," she calls idly in their archaic woodland language as she approaches, the darkness concealing the lack of wings that would have prompted a far different response. At least until she approaches further, stopping dead and expression twisting into a dark, distrusting expression. "What are you doing here?" Her voice is low and hard, suspicious. Delah had allowed entry into the Greatwood, but she was sure the warrior would not have allowed them safe passage during LongNight. They could face their sins elsewhere.
Tearing, ripping, bones crunching, blood staining the ground; men, women, children screaming, crying, agony, agony, agony, agony - this dying is so painful!
The daughter of death trembled from head to toe, pale eyes wide, gazing into the nothingness. So many voices, all at once, echoing from the grounds beyond like thunderous retribution amidst the silence. Her finger spun circles on the pad of her thumb, her mind desperate to find a singular melody amongst the cacophony of screams, but instead she fell ever deeper into the endless cries for mercy, all met with silence and darkness and restlessness; boiling over, giving into hatred of unanswered prayers, unable to rest- why why why why why why?!
"Father, I'm afraid..." she whispered into the darkness, as jarred by the endless refrain of the grounds before her as she was of her own rising fear.
But the discordant silence was broken by a voice and she whipped her head around, breathless as steel eyes fell upon the form of a fae woman in the dark. Her words barely registered, her tone even less so. What was she doing here? "The forest spirits led me here to listen." she said softly, speaking the ancient language of the Fae with well practiced clarity.
The woman startles, posture tense and motions swift. Nephele freezes as soon as the lack of wings registers, her face twisted in a subtle snarl, unsure where this meeting is going to go. They stand at a tense impasse for a moment, Nephele's wings flicking like an angry cat's tail. Not quite nervous, but unsettled. On edge.
And then the woman speaks, in her language. Nephele bares her teeth in a snarl, making an aborted motion with her hand as she takes a bold step forward. "Don't you dare speak to me in that tongue," she hisses, feeling the burn of emotion like a fire in her breast. Who had dared to teach their language to this wingless child? An intruder in their forest, in their life? Playing at being one of the Fae? It's a grievous insult.
"Then they can lead you back out," she states firmly, forcing herself to calm even as her hands shake with ill-concealed emotion. It's not unlike her, passionate in her emoting as she is, but Neph wishes she had Eriadne's sense of control and composure. Already her nerves are frayed from the Blight, from her sister's entrapment, from LongNight. This isn't something she wants to handle on top of it all.
The rage in the woman's voice startled Delphia, enough to pull her out of the downward spiral she had found her mind in. She blinked a few times, as if coming to after being dazed or asleep. Why was this woman angry with her? She had yet to meet a Fae who didn't prefer to speak in their own language than the common tongue. "What?" she asked, confusion clear despite her rather blank expression.
Lead her back out? Ohhhhh...
"I was born here, in the Greatwood. I am of the Thanatos and Mort." she said. Her human family had lived on the Northern edges of the wood for many generations, friendly neighbors of the Fae. And of course, Mort had been outside the barrier, so being his progeny meant she could not have lived within the barrier. "My name is Delphia Thanatos. I help soothe restless spirits so they can find their way to my father's realm." she explained.
Nephele tries to reign in her anger, the heat of it unfamiliar in her veins. She is on edge, and she knows it, but she can't seem to control the spiral of her thoughts. Taking a few deep, measured breaths, the Fae closes her eyes and tries to reach for memories of Jiao and their conversation beneath the stars. There are good humans out there. We have to give them a chance, let them prove themselves one way or the other. The thought does little to calm her, though she does clench her jaw until the tension releases slightly from her shoulders.
"I'm sorry," she manages to say, though her words are stiff enough that the truth is clearly struggling to exist on her tongue. One brow crooks at the admittance that the woman is apparently half-god, not that it really means much to someone like Nephele who values science over faith. But her hands still shake and her wings still hum with a low, frantic energy that she can't shake.
"Being born here might lend you credence, but it's hard to see you here, wingless and human even if only partially. The humans have harmed our woods grievously, and it's...not easy for me to get past instinctive responses." It's the closest to an explanation she can give, though her proudly tilted head and sharp eyes disclose how reluctantly she admits these truths. That the only apology Delphia will receive is the one she has already been granted. But she can at least extend a small olive branch, and tilts her head slightly in acquiescence of the woman's apparent claim to the land - not that the woods can really be claimed, but it's the thought that counts. "I'm Nephele." Family names don't mean much to her, so she doesn't bother to share it.
The apology was a surprise, and her expression relaxed - not quite a smile but a pleasant expression. "Apology accepted, though it is unneeded. You are just protecting this beautiful testament to Vi and Rae." she said, gesturing to the wood around them. The Fae protected it and called it home, as she called it home. She would never fault a fae for that. Though, you'd be hard pressed to find the things that Delphia would fault a person for.
She hummed a low tone as the Fae explained herself, steel eyes looking back out towards the darkness in front of them. "I pity them. The people in these Grounds. I do not think Vi and Rae combined could grow enough white sage to burn to cleanse this place." she said softly. It all felt so wrong and twisted, her soul not quite able to grasp onto the why or how, that power yet beyond her reach.
"It is good to make your acquaintance, Nephele. Your spirit should do your people proud." she said, that soft pleasant expression suffusing her face again as she looked at the fae. "Did you venture into the Grounds to plant the roses?"
