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!
my whole life is mine, but whoever says so will deprive me,
for it is infinite.
Amun had continued his explorations of Torchline. Though The Voice had urged caution and patience, she'd always rewarded initiative, so he figured it couldn't hurt to poke around. Today, he'd spotted something interesting just as the sun was setting: there was a pretty little sand bar with what looked like a structure on it.
So the potter had swum out to check it out. Emerging from the water, shirtless and dripping wet, dressed only in a pair of shorts with a cutlass at his hip, he jogged through the sand. As he approached, he realized the building was some sort of temple, made beautifully from materials from the sea. Moving forward, he inspected it more closely, running a hand over it and grinning as the wind made it sing.
they say it's all been done
but they haven't seen the best of me
The song was haunting and beautiful, and Ronin had heard it a number of times now. Though this was a first - trying to approach the sand bar wasn't really on his list of to-dos, but the day had been slow and he had thought about losing himself to the sweet melody. As he approached, however, seated upon a nimbus as white and fluffy as any that drifted across the deep blue overhead, he realised he was not the only one with a similar idea. Spotting a figure among the structure, Ronin slowed the progress of the cloud.
"It's beautiful isn't it?" he called out as he got close enough (hopefully to be seen and heard), hopping down from the nimbus and approaching lazily, his bare feet sinking into the soft sands.
my whole life is mine, but whoever says so will deprive me,
for it is infinite.
At the sound of Ronin’s voice, Amun spun around. There was something frantic about the motion, and his expression was fearful. Spotting the Dark Star, the potter’s eyes narrowed.
Despite the other man’s casual approach, the Ascended backed away swiftly. ”You. It came out more of a scared hiss than an actual word.
Raising his right hand, palm facing towards Ronin, Amun glared. ”Stay away from me.” Then, not trusting the Dark Star in the slightest, the potter fired off a flash bang directly at the other man.
Without even bothering to see it it worked, the Ascended turned and sprinted directly towards the water. Unless stopped, he’d dive in and sink to the bottom.
they say it's all been done
but they haven't seen the best of me
It was only as Ronin got close enough to make out the features of his fellow sand-bar visitor that he recognised (vaguely, like it was from another life) the man as one of the Ascended from the Temple. His lips parted that he might call out... what, exactly? A greeting? An apology? But before he got the chance the stranger was up and backing away, and Ronin was not so used to the fear on people's faces as he might have liked to believe. A further, tentative step forward resulted in what the hunter could only liken to one of his starbolts being shot in his direction.
Flinching back automatically, a hand reached up to try and cover his eyes against the wicked light, but it did little for the noise. Starlight flickered from him in fractured waves, though the emotions that caused them were unclear. Still, when he blinked and the spots finally started to clear from his eyes, the man was already in the water.
What had he expected? That the whole world would welcome him back with open arms by his virtue of his being Ronin Taliesin? That his actions would not have consequences?
"I'm sorry," he called out into the waves; sorry for frightening the Ascended, sorry for destroying the Temple. Sorry for it all.
my whole life is mine, but whoever says so will deprive me,
for it is infinite.
Luckily, Amun's flash bang was enough to deter Ronin for a few precious seconds. That allowed the potter to begin swimming in practiced, if frantic strokes. He was only a short distance away from the shore when the Dark Star called out an apology of all things.
Still without bothering to look back, the Ascended practically screamed out his answer. "Fuck off!" It was wild and annoyed and scared and pissed all at once. That done, he slipped under the waves, hoping it would deter any further communication or worse, attacks. Once underwater, he continued kicking and swimming, not even caring where exactly he went so long as it was away from the other man.
they say it's all been done
but they haven't seen the best of me
Ronin could do nothing but stand in the shallows as the Ascended called back his frantic expletive and continued to swim away, fast as his arms and legs could carry him. He was not so vain as to think he might change the other man's mind, or chase him in the hope that he could right his own reputation. He had been told to fuck off - rightly so, based on his previous conduct with this particular person.
And so it was that he let Amun go, let him shrink away into the distance until he was no longer visible. Ronin only stayed to watch and ensure he didn't get into any trouble, his cloud dissolving aorund his heels and the haunting melody continuing to blow about him in the sand bar. Actions had consequences, he was learning.
