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!
Carry me through this world alive I feel no more, this suffering
Silence.
Not just a beat of it, but a whole avalanche. Maea had paled at the suggestion, and grew very still. Considering him, the alternative, the unusual softness and concern in Amun's voice and expression. He really did care, didn't he... and went so far as to risk reopening a wound between them to help.
She could appreciate that, at least.
"There would be a steep price to pay, no doubt," Maea finally said. Quiet, soft, a little distant. "Even if she could, and would deign to help an abandoned... I'm not sure I would be willing to pay it."
Her hand went to the lower abdomen, where something had withered to let her see clearly. If that was the price to merely look at the world and the kind man who sat beside her? She shuddered to think what it might cost to completely overhaul her body.
Bury me in this cold light I feed the wolf, and shed my skin
♦ Violence, magic, thievery is permitted with Maea at all times. DM me if you have any ideas ♦
Amun waited as the silence stretched out, an easy smile lurking on his lips. As he'd suspected, when Maea spoke, it was full of doubts. "Maybe. Maybe not." Shifting so he could face her more fully, the smile turned into a grin, though it was still soft around the edges.
"She's helped Abandoned in the past, though rarely. After all, she was one, once upon a time. Still, if you went with me, or perhaps Nate," there was a bit of teasing at the mention of the other Ascended, "she'd likely answer." The words were almost shockingly gentle. Turning back to face the horizon, the potter shrugged. "But it's up to you. Like I said last time we spoke, consent and comfort and all that."
Carry me through this world alive I feel no more, this suffering
This was the second time she had been offered to tag along for a chat with the Voice. First Sam, now Amun... if she didn't know better, Maea would have called it a conspiracy.
But for all of Amun's teasing, she thought his offer as genuone as the concern. So she scoffed at his taunt about Nate - he had no idea how awkward that whole affair had been - and made a playful shove to his shoulder, mock attempting to push him off the slippery ledge.
"Maybe I'd be less attacked if I did go with him," she rebutted, grinning slightly. But then, her expression softened. "Thank you, though. I'll consider it? If things get too bad."
Though if she were to be honest, Maea asking The Voice for help was as likely as the sun rising on LongNight.
Bury me in this cold light I feed the wolf, and shed my skin
♦ Violence, magic, thievery is permitted with Maea at all times. DM me if you have any ideas ♦
As Maea scoffed then shoved playfully at him, Amun made a show of windmilling his arms. Of course, he was in no real danger, but he swayed back and forth before settling down with a chuckle. "Hey now, he's the one who bit you. I've been a perfect gentleman, thank you very much." He winked at her, though it was clear he was entirely joking.
His expression softened again as she agreed to at least think about the idea. "That's all I can ask." Whether or not she took him up on it was entirely up to her. Glancing at the sculpture garden, he gave her a suddenly curious look. "Y'know, I neglected to ask why exactly you were out here."
Carry me through this world alive I feel no more, this suffering
She hummed, considering him with laughter in her pale eyes, despite the attempted scowl. "I suppose that's a fair point," she admitted, giving him the win on that count. "For all that he said he'd stop, it took someone else to step in before things got... out of hand." The comment slipped out before she could stop herself, and soon as she'd said it Maea winced, turned away with color rising like a bloody dawn on her face. It was... true, indeed, but also a rather skewed version of what really happened. She regretted bringing it up at all.
Taking a moment to breathe and steady herself, she looked down at her sculpture garden below. The question was apt as it was easy to answer, but it brought a sigh from her all the same.
"Practice," came the answer. "I hoped that by going out here, no one would be around to get hurt if I lost control over the magic again." Maea gave him a wry smile. "Good thing it's only you..."
Bury me in this cold light I feed the wolf, and shed my skin
♦ Violence, magic, thievery is permitted with Maea at all times. DM me if you have any ideas ♦
As Maea revealed a little bit more about how her own bite had gone, Amun frowned. The expression looked out of place on his usually happy go lucky face. ”That's not right. I know, and I guess you do too now, that it can be overwhelming, but he should have more control over himself."
Shooting her a look, he raised his eyebrows. "Sorry to hear that, and I'm glad someone was there to intervene. Want me to have a word with him?" That offer was genuine too, though he was also worried what would happen if word of an out of control Ascended spread.
When she said that she'd come out here to practice, he flinched a little. Subconsciously, he began to rub his right wrist. "Ouch. Once again, you wound me." He looked at her sidelong. "How's the control coming along?" There was a bit more of a serious edge to the question than he usually had.
Carry me through this world alive I feel no more, this suffering
The look she gave him was startled, almost alarmed. The idea that Amun would go after Nate for doing something she'd been only too happy to go along with was... awkward. To say the least. Perhaps the man should have better control, perhaps they shouldn't have needed Sunnjata to step in to make sure she didn't get carried away, but... in the end, nothing had gone awry.
"You sound like a protective older brother, Amun" she pointed out, and looked rather delighted about it. "You don't have to, though. I'm not hurt." Not this time, at least, and some of that reservation bled through to cloud her expression. If Nate did not find another way to research her ailment, then... they would have to do it again. She explained that bit too, finding it oddly refreshing to have someone to share it all with. Someone who wasn't judging, or taking advantage of the situation.
"Mmmh... difficult to say. Making big structures is fine, but... there's so much power pressing on, all the time. Sometimes it slips when I'm not focused enough at holding it back... Sometimes when I get lost in thought it begins to leak. Frost spreading everywhere, that sort of thing."
Holding up a palm, she focused on it and made a cold, clear flower of ice grow up from her skin. It started off small, well shaped and gentle looking... but before long it was clear she began to struggle. Thorny spikes began to jut out of the structure at random, the temperature of it fluctuation wildly between icy cold and steaming hot. When ice began to shoot out from the rest of her hand, further up the palm, she hastily threw away what she'd begun to make and brought the arm up to her chest, closing the eyes to steady her breath. Ease the barriers back down around her mind.
"It doesn't... contain easily," she finally managed to say.
Bury me in this cold light I feed the wolf, and shed my skin
♦ Violence, magic, thievery is permitted with Maea at all times. DM me if you have any ideas ♦
Amun raised an eyebrow almost challengingly. ”So? I would’ve loved to have had a protective older brother.” Despite the slightly teaching words and mischievous look in his eyes, he was as delighted as she was by the comparison.
As she went on to speak further about what had happened, he shrugged and settled down a bit. "Alright. Well, if you change your mind, or would like me to accompany you next time, just say the word." He ground his fist into his palm in a classic intimidating pose, though his easy grin belied the gesture.
As she explained the problem, then went on to demonstrate, he scooted a little bit further away from her, not wanting to be that close to some out of control magic. When she tossed the flower away, he watched it fall. "Too much pressure, huh? Well then. You should let it go." He pointed at the distant horizon. "I mean, I dunno how magic works here, but that seems like it could help, right? Not having so much magic inside you. Go on then." He gave her an encouraging nod.
Carry me through this world alive I feel no more, this suffering
"I had one," she told him, eyes glittering. "It was not all bad... I've got a spot open if you want the job." Maea was sure Noah wouldn't mind. The two of them would likely have gotten along famously, being of the same light-hearted nature. Always ready to smile.
Hiding away the stab of longing behind a laugh at the idea of Amun going after Nate, she returned focus to the problem of magic. Giving him a rueful smile, Maea shook her head.
"Last time I nearly lost consciousness from doing that," she told him. "It burned right through me... But if you make sure I get back home afterwards, then... alright."
She stood, and looked around. Sought a spot she had not already filled with ice, and glanced down at her friend. "You need to stay quite a bit away," Maea warned him. "At least thirty feet... more would be better. And don't come near until things stop moving. Deal?"
Bury me in this cold light I feed the wolf, and shed my skin
♦ Violence, magic, thievery is permitted with Maea at all times. DM me if you have any ideas ♦
Amun tilted his head at Maea’s comment. ”You sure?” Giving her a wicked grin, he reached out to give her a gentle shove as payback for the one she’d given him earlier. ”Well who am I to turn down such an attractive offer?" Despite the teasing tone to his voice, he was legitimately touched by her words.
Raising his eyebrows, he smirked a little. "Might I suggest you stop before the point of unconsciousness this time? Still, it's a deal" He hopped off his perch easily enough, landing in the soft snow below. Padding into the distance, he put well over thirty feet between them. Then he turned to face her, keeping an eye out just in case.
Warning or not, if she looked like she was endangering herself he'd swoop in.
Carry me through this world alive I feel no more, this suffering
It seemed her new brother wanted her dead. The girl feigned losing her balance and swiveled her arms around for a while, then straightened up and poked her tongue out at him.
Making sure that Amun really did follow her instructions, she waited until he was far away before she took a deep breath. Just to be safe, she made her way down from the elevated height and back onto the ice below, while steeling herself as best she could. She had never let go like this before. Not intentionally, not entirely.
But she'd said to try, so... here goes. She dropped her barriers. All of them. All at once.
It was an eruption. Not unlike a volcano bursting up through the earth from its molten core, the ice exploded up from all around the slender young woman. She did not try to control it, or steer it, just unleash it, and as such it acted entirely on its own. Jagged spikes burst out from all around her, melted and reformed, taking on new shapes and building, building like a cocoon of frozen water around her. It was cold, then suddenly hot as the temperature of the liquids fluctuated with her emotions, almost boiling a hole into the sea below, then rapidly froze again.
For a few minutes, the air was filled with the hissing, spitting, yowling creak of moving ice... and then it grew quite still.
Sitting in the center of it all, at the core of a broken fortress spanning all the distance she'd warned Amun to keep, was Maea. Like some elemental chick in a nest of ice. She gasped for air, so spent that her body was trembling. A trickle of blood painted a red line from her nose to her lips, and her eyes looked a bit glazed.
She couldn't quite remember what had brought her too her knees. Was just glad that it was over.
Bury me in this cold light I feed the wolf, and shed my skin
♦ Violence, magic, thievery is permitted with Maea at all times. DM me if you have any ideas ♦
The eruption was enough to cause even Amun’s eyes to widen. It seemed impossible that much power could be contained within a single person, but he didn’t exactly have another explanation. It subsided after an indeterminate amount of time, though ice still creaked in a manner that worried him.
Enough that he didn’t wait for everything to settle, but sprang forward. His speed and agility was enough to carry him through the treacherous field Maea had created. It didn’t take him long to reach the center.
Frowning at the blood on her lip, he tore a strip from his sleeve. ”Well that was certainly impressive. And hey, you’re not unconscious.” Holding out the scrap of cloth for her to wipe her nose, he gently tried to slip his arm under her shoulder and behind her back. If successful, he’d try to lift her up as best he could.
Carry me through this world alive I feel no more, this suffering
Approaching steps made her look up. Amun came back a little quicker than she might have advised him to, but Maea felt it in her bones that she was drained again. Spent, unable to lift so much as a pebble. He should be fine.
Dazed, she did not try to pull away from his ministrations. She did want to protest his use of a sleeve to wipe away the blood - she had a handkerchief, somewhere - but only managed to shake her head a little. Lean into him as he supported her, helped her up. While not exactly warm, the ascended was still not half as cold as her skin; only the dark rags about her shoulders kept her from getting frostbitten by her own magic.
"Always something," she said, voice a little slurred. "Are you... okay?" There was a touch of color to her eyes as she looked up at him. A pale shade of lavender, soft and worried; she didn't want to have hurt him. Even by accident.
Bury me in this cold light I feed the wolf, and shed my skin
♦ Violence, magic, thievery is permitted with Maea at all times. DM me if you have any ideas ♦
Although Maea was dazed, she was at least somewhat responsive. Amun grinned at her reply, though he was still gentle as he lifted her from where she’d been. ”Come on, wipe your nose.” At her concern, he chuckled, the sound a little less cheerful than normal. ”I’m just fine. I’m tougher than I look, and I waited until it had all settled.”
He continued encouraging her to walk in the direction of the road. ”Come on, up you go. You did your part, now I get to do my bit and escort the maiden home.” Bumping her with his hip, he smirked. ”You’re going to make a regular knight in shining armor out of me if you keep this up.
