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!
Living beyond your years
Acting out all their fears
As he walked up to the manor, Adam wrung his hands and wondered if he was really about to do what he was about to do. Had the him from a year ago seen it, he would have spat; but he had matured in the last year in ways he had never expected to and so he was coming to try and speak to a noble rather than just steal or shoot.
Of course, Zariah wasn't a noble in the sense of his old world, but she had a manor and she had once been a Queen (Or...still was a Queen? Whatever. Adam didn't really care about rich people business), so it was close enough. Close enough that he had made an effort to look a little more neat before he came than usual, knowing it would probably help his case. Eyes scrubbed of make up, hair not brushed but pulled back with a leather strip, shirt buttoned enough to hide his chest. He felt wrong, sanitised.
The only reason he had gone to so much trouble was because of Peter, of course. He had never felt comfortable with the man's seemingly ill-advised joining of the Launceleyns (which Adam was still pretty sure was a cult) and as much as Peter seemed to want to stay, Adam felt if he could show him a good enough alternative, a way to belong without a new name and a list of duties, he might stray. So he had come to see if he could crack a deal with Zariah about getting Pet out, now that he'd heard she was back in town.
Not that he actually wanted to do anything for the moment. Just work out some terms to take to Peter and chat about, if Zariah would give them.
Was it a dick move to be going ahead and doing this without asking Peter? Most likely. Was Adam doing it anyway? Unfortunately, yes, but with an oddly painful guilt with each step.
Knocking on the door to the manor, he tried not to look up at the windows, which each reminded him of the similar house where he had once met death and gotten away; his hand stroked across the scars on his neck as he waited.
Zariah had merely been doing a sweep of the manor to see if there was anything of value left - which under Loren's sloppy hand had come under serious ruin in her eyes. It was messy and dirty and more of a bachelor pad than anything now. She couldn't wait to get back to the Citadel and cleanse herself of the filth that seemed to infiltrate every corner and crevice of this steaming trash heap called the Hollowed Grounds.
And of course, someone knocked at the door.
As she opened it, her expression was non-existent. Wide hazel eyes stared at Adam with a blank, doll-like gaze, her face a porcelain mask of nothingness. She didn't recognize the man at all, and frankly had no clue what business he had here. That he knocked surprised her, since Loren had seemed to take in a multitude of strays. Certainly this was one. "Who are you?" she asked bluntly.
Living beyond your years
Acting out all their fears
In some ways, Adam was hoping he wouldn't get an answer so he could just walk away and say this was a misguided idea and wouldn't have worked anyway, since clearly they didn't answer the door to people like him. But no, Zariah had to open it.
Immediately it was clear that the woman at the door had no time for pleasantries, something Adam both hated (those people were always so boring) and loved (those people were always so fun to wind up). Putting on his best smile, he asked: "Hey, yeah, I'm looking for a Zariah...? Is that you? I've got a...deal I'd like to chat about."
Her expression didn't change in the slightest. In fact, she looked all the more a pristine statue for how little she moved; the slight breeze playing with her crown of wild curls the only indicator that she was indeed not made of stone. But finally she did move, arms crossing over her chest and head tilting slightly to the side. Her eyes narrowed the tiniest bit, lips ever so slightly pursed. Her interest might be piqued, but she held very little hope that this interaction would lead anywhere she had interest in.
"Yes, I am Zariah. You must be new to not recognize your former Queen." she said dryly. Which, that he knew he name at all, meant he likely wasn't that new and so...strike one against the poor bastard who thought he could play games with the Launceleyn family head. She was in no mood for that, and her patience was growing shorter by the second. "What sort of deal could you possibly have to interest me with. It best be good. I do not appreciate my time wasted."
Living beyond your years
Acting out all their fears
"Oh right, yeah, sorry. I came in at the end of last Longnight then spent a couple months basically just black out drunk, so..." Adam shrugged, the smile on his lips indicating he was not at all ashamed of this time, but he hoped it would suffice as an excuse for his not recognising her. "All clean now, though." He added with a wink, just in case she was the temperance sort.
She definitely seemed the ill-tempered sort, anyway. "Yeah, so...it's about Peter. You know him, right? Member of your little...family thing." Adam vaguely gestured about with his hand, trying to avoid the word cult. "...Could I come in? I've got some stuff to offer. Or I can just go to Loren, your choice." He shrugged, hoping there might be some sibling rivalry (or...parental? Or...cousins? He really had no idea how this thing worked) he could use.
Zariah's expression melted from expressionless to unamused the more Adam spoke. Each word grated on her patience and it eroded with terrifying quickness. "My little...family thing." she said dryly, contempt dripping off each word. For how much effort he had put into his appearance, one would have thought he would have put more effort into the drivel spewing from his lips.
And that he dare try to goad her with Loren? Please.
"Loren is a traitorous wretch with about as much authority over the Launceleyns as a rat over dragons. Now you've approximately three seconds before I electrocute you until the flesh melts from your bones to spit out what you have to say." she said sharply. As she did so, cold blue lightning began playing around her fingers, crackling and sparking.
Living beyond your years
Acting out all their fears
Zariah was obviously displeased with Adam's presence and not afraid to show it, but if it bothered him she would not be able to tell, the highwayman wearing the same easy smile and hands on his hips, as if engaging in a casual conversation at the bar. He was interested to learn there was some contempt between Loren and Zariah, apparently - something to work with?
"That's kinda extreme, isn't it? Be a ballache to clean up, too." But Adam would do her the honour of cutting to the chase. "Alright, so basically I've got two questions. Can Peter just leave your family if he wants to? And if not, what is it I'd have to give to you to sweeten the deal enough for you to let him go?"
Zariah’s eyes narrowed further, dangerously so as he continued to speak. Whoever this man was had a lot of gall, and usually she looked fondly on those with some bravery. But there was a clear undertone of insult towards her and her family, and she was not pleased about it. Without so much as a warning, a small bolt of lightning shot forward from her fingers, hitting Adam right where his collarbones connected. The strike was not enough to kill, or even grievously harm. But it was a strong warning, one that would leave him momentarily dazed and shaken; a sudden zap of sharp pain followed by a numbing weight to his whole body as he grounded the electricity to the ground.
Then she stepped toe to toe with the man, the heels she wore bringing her much closer to his height than she actually was. ”Let me make myself perfectly clear, Mr. Pikely, if you so much as insinuate another insult towards my family the next time you see Peter will be at your funeral if there is enough left of you to warrant such formalities. While I am certain it is nice for you drift about in the half drunken stupor of your pitiful existence, Peter requires structure and predictability and you are clearly incapable of providing either given your complete and utter incompetence. Now I am going to count to five and if I can still see you by five, we’ll play a game of target practice.” she hissed.
Living beyond your years
Acting out all their fears
Before Adam even had a chance to work out what Zariah was doing with her fingers, he had a spark in his chest that snapped throughout his whole body like a snap of lightning. He stepped back, stumbling over his feet and screwing up his eyes. Coffee immediately jumped forward, teeth bared, threatening Zariah to try hurt his human one more time.
"Oh, fuck, fucking hell--" Adam mumbled, finally finding his voice again, as Zariah continued to speak. With a roll of his eyes he began to walk backwards, steps still shaky, whistling for Coffee to follow. "Alright, shit, I'm going. I'm still dating Pet though and fuck you if you think you can do anything about that."
His words didn't quite have the bite he wanted though, not with the shaking of the voice and the way he was tripping over his own feet. Coffee hissing at the door, he walked away from the manor, cursing Zariah's name.
