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!
01-22-2020, 10:36 PM (This post was last modified: 01-22-2020, 10:38 PM by Jiao.)
JIAO
The second the news reached Jiao that there was a new place that could be reached by the portals, and it was warm and had a sea...she practically ran out of Halo. To the portal, zipping back to the Greatwood just to get herself a summer wardrobe ready; oranges and pinks in loose, floaty fabrics and hair ties to keep her neck cool - she was going to be the belle of the beach.
While Halo had been special to her as the first place she'd really escaped to once leaving the Greatwood, it had hardly been a welcoming or comforting environment and she was more than ready to move on in her travels. To better and brighter things, as her mother might once have said. As she stepped through the portal, ready to wow in her flashy sarong, she practically shrieked with delight at the sight of the ocean.
Flitting down the sand with half-steps and half-flight, she tossed her bag to the side and jumped into the ocean with a happy laugh, rolling about in the surf in a moment of pure unadulterated glee.
Saiden wasn’t particularly fond of outsiders, which was funny considering he was one himself. Still, they were lucrative, so long as he knew to keep his eye out for likely targets. One presented itself almost immediately as soon as he sidled up to watch the comings and goings from the portal.
Although he'd never seen a winged woman quite like this, he'd grown used to seeing weird shit since coming to Caido, so he didn't bat an eye. Instead, as she flung herself towards and then into the ocean, he padded silently behind her. Seeing as she was kind enough to leave her bag behind her, he checked to make sure she was fully occupied by the water before kneeling beside it.
His hands darted inside, and he stuffed the fabrics there into his own pack quickly. Although he was shirtless, with just a rope belt, shorts, and sandals on, he had a bag tossed almost carelessly over his back. He just threw the first handful into his bag before straightening up, whistling a cheerful tune and beginning to walk towards the strange lady. "First time in Torchline?"
The water was playful, everything she had hoped it might be; pleasantly warmed by the sun and beautifully clear, so much so that Jiao thought if she squinted out to the horizon she might be able to see fish beneath the surface. She was so preoccupied with this task, looking out for any glimmers of colourful schools out in the sea that she did not notice Saiden stealing her fabrics, did not even know he was there until she turned and jumped, water splashing as she took a step back.
"Oh, um, yes. I...guess the natives don't usually get this excited by the water." Jiao said with an embarrassed huff of laughter, walking out of the surf onto the shore and hugging her arms. The man before her was rather naked, moreso than she was used to (especially after spending time in Halo) and Jiao averted her eyes from his nude torso, either looking determinedly at his eyes or away at the beach.
Still, despite this awkward hurdle, she had begun to explore partly to meet new people, so she stuck a hand out between them. "I'm Jiao. Who are you?"
As Jiao averted her eyes, Saiden grinned broadly. He knew the effect he had on pretty much everyone, so he flexed a little for her benefit (and for anyone else who might be watching). ”Oh, we know the Ocean has its charms.” Chuckling, he waved his free hand. At his command, the waters danced and leaped. ”As do you." Now that he was closer, he examined her, noting her beauty and her seeming lack of weapons.
Unlike her, he had a cutlass belted to his hip. "I'm Saiden. Now, tell me, Jiao, what brings you to Torchline? And is it just your, or can I expect to see more of your lovely kind around?"
The flexing provided no real benefit for Jiao, partially because she wasn't looking and partially because she wouldn't care anyway, beyond a vague curiosity about how one got such oddly round arm muscles. "It's...really amazing." She said of the ocean, still letting her eyes drift over it in wonder, though she did turn to look at him and grin as he complimented her, a hand coming up over her mouth.
"It's just me. I wanted to explore, get away from the Greatwood. I've been to Halo, but...I heard it was warm here." It was certainly far more welcoming than the freezing peaks North from Torchline, even with all the various dangers and rascals about. "Do you live here?"
Jiao's open admiration for the sea was enough to bring another smile to Saiden's lips. "Aye, I agree." There was an almost adoring tone to his words. "The Ocean is beautiful and terrible, so better treat her right. Though I suppose that goes for any lady." With that, he let go of his magic, dropping the water he'd been making dance before them.
"That's a shame, though I suppose it means more attention for you. You're alone out here then?" He gave her a confused look. "Halo?" The name didn't mean anything to him. At her question, though, he grinned again. "Aye, that I am." Stepping forward as the water came in, he let it wash over his feet.
01-29-2020, 08:15 PM (This post was last modified: 01-30-2020, 11:39 AM by Jiao.)
JIAO
"Mmm...yes. The waves do move like a beautiful woman, don't they?" Jiao's soft little sigh of admiration after this, the way her eyes seemed to yearn to run back into the ocean, would perhaps reveal to Saiden quite where her interests lay. As the jumping water ended her eyes finally pulled away from the ocean for the moment.
More attention for her was always welcome. "Yep, but I can look after myself. Y'know, Halo, the snowy place through the portal? I went all the way around there and I even faced an Ursur." This was a stretch of the truth (not quite a lie, though she still struggled to speak it), but if the man didn't know about Halo, he wouldn't be able to tell.
He stepped closer and Jiao took a step back, further into the water. "So do you live in a house, or just on the beach? I heard once that people in places like this burrow themselves in the sand to sleep."
01-29-2020, 09:46 PM (This post was last modified: 01-30-2020, 11:41 AM by Saiden.)
our sins are washed away
Saiden made a big show of looking between Jiao and the water, comparing the two of them. ”Aye. I suppose it’s beautiful as a woman. Though some women are more beautiful than even the Ocean, in their own way.” Grinning at her, he took another step into the water, practically basking in the sun and the sea.
Giving her a considering look, he hiked his bag higher on his shoulder. ”Is that so? What’s an Ursur? How’d you face it, as you say” His questions were eager.
Laughing, he shook his head. ”Neither. And you clearly heard wrong, though I guess some do that.” Giving her another once over, he smirked a little. ”You’re a landlubber through and through, aren’t ya?” Clearly he thought that was a bad thing.
"Mmmm..." Jiao agreed, this time determinedly not taking a step back - the water lapped around her heels as she dug her toes into the wet sand, not wanting to let Saiden back her any further towards the surf.
At least she might be able to use her 'facing' of the Ursur to impress upon him her might. "It's a big beast from Halo. Claws and teeth and fur." She lifted her chin, looked at him down her nose. "Bigger than anything I've seen here." This was true, if only by the fact that she hadn't seen many animals at all in Torchline yet. "I..well. I..."
The truth, someone else got a ghost to take us away from it, was hardly impressive, so she simply crossed her arms and concluded: "And well, I'm not dead, so yeah."
"A...landlubber." She repeated, never having heard the term. "Maybe. Where do you live then?"
Saiden grinned as Jiao took a step back. Instead of taking another step forward himself, he took a step to the side, so that he was next to her rather than driving her further backwards. "So you ran from this Ursur, then?" There was no judgment in his voice, simply idle curiosity. "And we've got some beasts here in Torchline that are enormous, and they have things far more dangerous than claws and teeth." He kept smiling at her.
Chuckling, he shrugged. "Definitely a landlubber." Gesturing out at the ocean, he kept grinning. "I live on a ship. How about you? Still living in the Greatwood?" He tilted his head and considered her.
At least he'd stopped driving her back into the ocean. Jiao looked Saiden up and down suspiciously as he stood next to her, frowned as she wished she could deny his claim about her running, but...it was true and her lips would not allow her to turn down the truth.
"Well I haven't seen any beasts yet here. They must all be hiding from me." Jiao claimed, looking out at the trees on the cliffs as if daring any creature to come out and face her. Not that she had much in the way of defensive or offensive capabilities (the rip in her wing spoke to that), but she wanted to try and appear at least somewhat competent to this odd man.
Living on a ship...Jiao pulled a face. "Isn't it always moving? Don't you get sick? And the ocean smells." It was beautiful and all that, but she was not at all used to the fishy scents she'd discovered on his visit. "No. I don't live...anywhere, now, really. Just wherever I go. I'm a traveller." She declared, holding up her bag.
Saiden smiled. "Perhaps they're just in awe of you. After all, we ain't never seen anything quite like you before." Tone still friendly, he waved vaguely at her wings with his free hand. "Don't take this the wrong way, but what exactly are you?" The words might've been rude, but at least his tone was oddly polite.
As Jiao sent him a barrage of questions, he grinned easily. "Well, I could tell you. Orrrrr..." Letting his voice trail off, he leaned in for an almost conspiratorial whisper. "I could show you." Laughing brightly, he leaned back again. "After all, sailing is the only proper way to travel."
Jiao blinked in surprise at Saiden's question, never having been asked 'what are you' before and for a moment entirely unsure of how to respond. When she'd ascertained he wasn't joking (through the use of a lot of squinting and frowning) she flared out her wings to their full potential. "I'm a Fae. We...live in the Greatwood." She wasn't really sure what else to say without prompting. "You...you've really never heard of us?"
Saiden's offer would have been tempting, if not for the way he leaned in. Jiao hesitated, wanting very much to see the boat, her natural curiosity taking her over...still, she wasn't completely naive. She prodded a finger into Saiden's chest, glaring up at him. "I will come see your boat. But I wanna make something totally clear. I'm not interested in your whole sexy pirate beach man thing and I'm not going to be kissing or doing anything else with you, so...so back off, buddy."
Shrugging at Jiao's response, Saiden gave her a confused look. "Yeah, no, never heard of the Fae or the Greatwood. So there are more of you? Do all Fae look like you?" Obviously he was intrigued by the revelation of another race (merpeople had been a shock, but this was something else), and his questions were eager.
When she told him in no uncertain terms that she wasn't interested he raised his hands in mock surrender and took a step back. "Fair enough. I'm not a pirate though." He grinned, not at all put off by the rejection. "You still wanna see the ship? It's this way." Regardless of whether or not she agreed, he would begin to make his way down the beach towards the distant docks.
Soon enough, the Ark came into view. It was an incredibly impressive vessel, and he practically bounded up the plank that led to the upper deck. "Captain! Got something you might be interested in." The cook's voice practically boomed across the deck as he called out for Jack. Although the Hali didn't know if the other man was around, this would either confirm it was safe to bring a stranger aboard or bring the captain over. The other members of the crew gave Saiden friendly nods, and he waved cheerfully at them.
