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!
In a rush, his eyes shot open and he took in a few heavy breaths, despite no longer needing to breathe. His mind was spinning and whirling with thoughts and emotions. What happened? It was as though he had blacked out, one moment he was about to walk into his room and the next? No idea. Feeling underneath his fingers, it wasn’t hard to tell he was outside. The world around him was easy to see, leading him to not immediately realize it was night out. His eyes searched for the warmth of the sun, the sight of its beautiful rays, only to feel nothing and see a glowing moon in its place.
Slowly, his body sat up and he let out a shaky sigh, simply out of habit. Before him stood a powerful building of sorts, a needle maybe. It was tall and mighty. Never had Robin seen something like it before. Surely, he couldn’t be far from home. He knew that he wasn’t out for long, maybe a minute at most. How did he end up outside of all places? The countryside was a solid hour away and even then it looked nothing like this. Had he been drugged? Had a spell cast on him? Robin didn’t really have any enemies, save for some work competitors and fellow students, but none of those would hurt him in this way….right? That seemed to be the only logical reason. Nobody had discovered teleportation yet, it was purely experimental and even when tried, it wouldn’t go far.
Where the hell was he? Stumbling up to his feet, Robin called out. ”Hello? Anyone there?”
Loren had been spending more time than was probably healthy examining the Spire. Partially, it was due to his increasingly frequent trips to Halo, which obviously required him to pass through the dark tower, else he venture out to the former Mathair. However, some of it was simply his tendency to seek out the secluded and less populated areas of the Hollowed Grounds to think. And to escape the horrors of his life.
Regardless of the reason, he was seated in a cross-legged position attempting to meditate when night fell. He stubbornly stayed there, even in the dark. When the voice cried out, though, he cracked his eyes open and rose to his feet. Padding over, he spotted the stranger easily enough. "Yes." The summoner's call was gentle. "Are you lost?"
A voice rang out and his eyes shifted around, nervous to see who it was. At the simple 'yes', he believed that maybe it was his captor, the person who ripped him away and dragged him into the middle of nowhere. However, a man soon appeared, one who proceeded to ask the obvious. Still, even though it was obvious, Robin was nervous enough to not point it out. Instead, he was far more focused on trying to figure out where he was.
"It seems as though I am...." His words became quiet towards the end as his eyes continued to shift around before they landed back on Loren. He tried to gather in whatever information he could. Already, the gigantic spike was far different from what he was used to, but the man's outfit? He hadn't seen anything like that in his days. "Do you know where I am? Or where I can get back to the city?" Ah yes, blissfully unaware, but also surprisingly polite. What a shock.
Loren smiled as sympathetically as he could manage, given his current grief. ”In a place that is entirely unfamiliar to you?” he supplied, his voice soft and gentle. Clasping his hands behind his back, he tried to make his posture as unthreatening as possible.
At the stranger's questions, the summoner sighed. "You're in the Hollowed Grounds. In the world of Caido." His voice was as comforting and soothing as he could make it, and his eyes studied the other man's for any sign of an adverse reaction. At the question, the Launceleyn bit his lip. "What city are you thinking of?" Again, his tone was as polite and soothing as he could make it.
It wasn't that Robin believed the man could hurt him, because obviously he couldn't. Robin knew a scholar when he saw one and this man was no fighter, he was scrawny, tall, gangly, and everything that wasn't a fighter. He did have a distrust for why this man happened to appear out of nowhere the moment he arrived. Unless people just regularly walk around in the middle of nowhere, that's too much of a coincidence. "Well....yeah. I have no idea where I am." Shouldn't it be obvious?
And then things got weird. What the heck was a Caido? The man didn't even go on to explain anything, instead, he started asking him where he came from. Maybe that's how this place refers to a country, calling it a World. Maybe the man knows how he can get back! "I'm a city called Briest, it's in the country of Pinesmi." Surely, he couldn't be too far away from it. "Is Caido close to any other countries? Or worlds? If that's what you call it." He'd try to be respectful of this country's strange ways and customs
Loren gave the other man a sympathetic smile. At the confirmation that the stranger was, indeed, an Outlander, the summoner clasped his hands before him. "There's a settlement close by. Why don't you come with me, and I can explain what happened to you while we walk." He gestured at the distant buildings, before returning his hands to their previous position.
If the other man agreed, the Launceleyn would begin walking. "What I'm going to tell you is going to be shocking, and distressing. I'm sorry for that, and please know that I mean you no harm, and that every word I speak is the truth." Voice as low and soothing as he could make it, he paused and looked at the stranger, searching his features. "You have been portalled into Caido. Brought from your world to this one by magic." Loren bit his lip, then sighed. "I know this is a lot to take in."
A settlement was something he could get behind. If this unknown man couldn't help him, then surely someone there would be able to point him in the right direction. Travelers but exist and obviously, someone would know his country. After all, it was well off and doing amazingly, with proper rulers and people who knew exactly what they were doing. So, Robin followed after his helper, knowing that things would surely be okay...
Until they weren't.
Loren cut to the chase quickly, revealing that happened. It was....a lot. A lot to process, a lot to take in, a lot of information at one time. There were so many things Robin wanted to address. It was shocking and distressing, but there had to be an explanation. Maybe he passed out and was dreaming, though this seemed a bit too real to be a dream. It was hard to accept this as the truth, he'd have to grill him to see if it actually was. This could probably just be a country that trapped people in it by lying to them and saying that it's a new world. It's elaborate, yes, but still possible.
"How....how was I chosen of all people?" Robin chose to indulge in his story, ask questions to see if it was true or not. It was impossible to keep that up and so, Robin immediately switched tactics, instead deciding to immediately accuse Loren of lying. "Do you have proof? That I'm, you know, awake or that I'm in this entirely new world? Magic like that simply doesn't exist."
Loren sighed, and ran a hand through his hair. ”No one’s quite sure. All we know is that all of us Outlanders were deemed important for some reason or another.” This time, his voice was as calm and soothing as he could manage.
When the stranger asked for proof, the summoner glanced behind at the Spire. Then he turned his gaze to the other man. "I can assure you, you're not dreaming. You could always pinch yourself to confirm, though." Mentally, the Launceleyn called for his companion, who was never far. "As for magic, that at least I can assure you is quite, quite real." Raising one hand, a phoenix burst into being in the sky ahead.
It let out a triumphant cry as it flew overhead, sending a blast of light and heat over them. Dismissing it, Loren raised the other hand. Fur rippled down the skin of his arms, exposed in the warm Longheat night, followed by feathers, before they returned to skin. Finally, Astra trotted up, peering at the newcomer with cautious and wary eyes. The luxere pressed herself against the summoner's side. Her antlers glowed brilliantly in the darkness.
Outlander? Ouch. That's one way to call someone 'not from this place'. It seemed awfully rude, in Robin's eyes, but what did he know. Again, this place may have some insane customs. Though, it did feel weird to hear that those who were chosen were deemed as important. It wasn't just random, it was a meticulous thing where people were specifically selected. For what reason? Maybe for Robin, it was his academic abilities, that seemed to be the only solution! Was he finally going to work for something big? Maybe he could be a royal adviser.
Robin remained quiet, clearly in deep thought, watching as magic was performed before him. At first, it was nothing new. A phoenix was obviously some sort of fire magic, duh. He had been to a circus as a kid where people would perform using their magic, creating things like that. A smug look appeared on his face, realizing this was indeed fake....until Loren grew fur and feathers and- the fuck? That wasn't something he had seen before. Wasn't there ways to tell whether he was asleep or drugged? Then the cutest little deer appeared, one with glowing antlers. Now that, that wasn't magic. It was probably some new creature.
He was obviously in denial, clearly not used to having anything spontaneous happen in his life. Part of him believed that these were signs that he had entered a new world, while the other half tried to justify each little thing. There had to be a logical explanation. People didn't just get sucked into portals!
"I've seen some of that magic before....but how did you do the fur thing? Was it a potion?" He was now distracting from the truth, trying to focus on one thing rather than actually confront what was going on. "Where are you taking me to? Do you know why I was brought here?" Surely, someone must handpick and choose who is brought here. Maybe it's a king, one who has chosen Robin to serve him and use his wisdom to do great.
Loren smiled faintly at the stranger. ”Nope. Not a potion.” Then the summoner shifted fully into the form of a honey badger. Pure magic. If the other man was a fellow Attuned, presumably he'd react to hearing the Launceleyn's voice in the stranger's mind. If not, no harm done.
Either way, Loren shifted back to human. "Like I said, you're in the Hollowed Grounds. That's the name of this region, and the settlement within." He kept walking, though he tossed the other man a sympathetic look. "We don't know how or why the portals choose to bring Outlanders here, just that they do." The summoner's voice was soft.
Sighing, he shrugged. "Like I said, it's a lot to take in." Holding out his hand for the stranger to shake, the Launceleyn smiled again, still faint. "I'm Loren, by the way."
Not....a potion? And then things got freaky and Robin couldn't stop himself from placing a hand over his mouth. "Fuck....you're like a badger-human hybrid!" Then where the hell did the feathers come from?! And of course, he didn't hear anything that was sent to his mind seeing as he wasn't attuned. Just as quick as he went down to being a badger, he was once more a human.
"So....what you expect me to believe is that magic from this realm, brought me from my old realm? And now I'm here?" It was too fantastical to believe. Maybe he could indulge in the man's fantasies, but the moment anything went wrong he would fight back for his life. In the meantime, he'd find a way back seeing as he needed to get back to school.
Reaching forward, Robin chose to be polite and shook Loren's hand. "My name is Robin Bailey." The Bailey family was famous in his city, seeing as they had a well-off company that had been around for many years. "What exactly am I supposed to do here? At least, what do I do until I can get back home and go back to school."
At the other man’s surprise, Loren couldn’t help but grin. ”I’m called an Attuned. We’re blessed by the old gods of this land with the ability to shift into animal forms, and more gifts besides.” Then his expression faltered a little. ”Well, actually, what I am is a bit complicated. An explanation for another day, perhaps, when you’re not so overwhelmed.”
At the stranger's question, his request for clarification, the summoner nodded. "Yes." There was complete certainty behind that word.
Robin's palm was cooler than the Launceleyn had been expecting, and he felt his brow furrow before he smoothed it out. "It's nice to meet you, Robin, though I imagine you might feel a little differently, under the circumstances." Then Loren hesitated. Biting his lip, he glanced away from the new arrival. ”I...I hate to be the one to tell you this but...there’s no going back. For any of us Outlanders.” There was a great deal of grief in that admission, despite the summoner's best efforts to hide it.
Taking a deep breath, he schooled his features into a pleasant mask, and paused for a long moment to let the bad news sink in. "As for what you can do, I've got extra rooms if you'd like to stay with me while you get back on your feet. What were you studying?" Then the Launceleyn swept his gaze over the other man once more. "Are you too warm? Too cold?"
That was another thing that was weird. Gods? Actual gods? Robin wasn't sure even the darkest parts of his mind could come up with something like that, so maybe this wasn't a dream. "I'm not familiar with gods....or well, I know what they do, but where I come from we don't have them." No gods to speak of, none whatsoever. He knew that some other lands believed in their own things, but he knew his beliefs were the truth. Robin was a tad bit offended that Loren didn't think he could handle the big news, but he chose not to push it.
The moment he heard the big news, his heart fell. His eyes widened and his mouth opened agape. No....no that couldn't be. He had to be able to go back. He'd just have to find a way. "I....be honest with me, Loren. Were you forced into dragging me here? There has to be a way to get home. It's simply....how can another world exist? One completely detached from my old one?" He was in complete and utter denial, refusing to accept any of it as truth.
"I don't want to burden you, Loren. I'll stay with you for a couple of nights, but then I must work towards making my own home." And getting himself back to his own country. Though, he was a tad bit touched that Loren actually asked him how he was feeling. Maybe Loren wasn't that much of a bad guy. "I'm...actually feeling perfect." He didn't feel too hot nor too cold. Hell, not even the slightest bit of either.
Loren smiled faintly. ”I know how you feel, trust me. My old world didn’t have gods either, so it took quite a large adjustment to get used to that idea.” Voice soft, he tried his best to be as calm and comforting as he could manage.
Unfortunately, it wasn't enough to actually lessen the impact of the worst part of the new arrival's new situation. Sighing, the Launceleyn shook his head at Robin's accusation. "No. Trust me, I've been in your shoes, and I wouldn't wish this on anyone." The summoner bit his lip. "I wish I knew the details of how it worked, I really do. Sadly I don't, and no one else does either. I'm sorry." Although it wasn't his fault, his tone truly was apologetic.
He nodded at the other man's comment, though Loren's eyes were distant and haunted. "You wouldn't be a burden, trust me, but that works for me. Happy to help you with whatever you need." Smiling, though it was forced, he kept steering them towards the Settlement, which was growing closer. ”No physical discomfort at all? That’s good.” It also partially confirmed a suspicion the Launceleyn had about Robin.
