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!
As Maea squeezed Amun's hand, he held hers firmly. Seeing the smugglers breaking through and being to try and squeeze through, his eyes narrowed. Slowly, so as not to disturb the water, he tapped the back of her hand. Lifting his other hand from his cutlass, he made a parting motion, as if trying to indicate to her she should subtly help them with their efforts. Honestly, he wasn't sure she could even see it.
With that, his fingers crept down to his hip again. Grasping his cutlass tightly, he settled in to wait. He'd gone entirely still again, a quiet patience and anticipation stealing over him.
She could see it, but Maea wasn't convinced it was the right thing to do. Wouldn't they notice if it became too easy? Could she really work the magic subtly enough from this distance, without drawing attention to them? And if she failed... Amun would be at risk.
Biting her lip in indecision, she stared at the smugglers efforts. Saw how long it took them. Knew it was too slow, that the risk of something going wrong increased with every second. Cursing internally, Maea squeezed his hand once, a quick 'okay', and reached out for the ice with her magic. Tried to raise the temperature of it from the inside, so their fire would melt it quicker.
But it took all the concentration she had, and without noticing, the girl began to drift upward in the water. Her white hair and skin shimmering in the reflected light of the fires.
I'm an angel bored like hell And you're a devil meaning well
BASE INSPIRED BY ODD <3
♦ Violence, magic, thievery is permitted with Maea at all times. DM me if you have any ideas ♦
As Maea finally agreed to try and hasten the melting of the ice along, Amun gave her shoulder a firm and encouraging squeeze. He kept that grip as she worked her magic (he assumed). However, when she began to rise up, he frowned. Moving as slowly as he could, he used his grip on her to pull her back down.
Unfortunately, even light and weightless as she was in the water, the angle was awkward. So he let go of his cutlass, and used both hands to drag her to the bottom. Moving his feet, he braced them against the wall so that he wouldn't start floating up as well, pushing them both down as best he could.
She was vaguely aware that Amun held her anchored, but so much focus was spent on coaxing the magic into doing what she wanted that she had nothing left to spare for helping. At least she hadn't slipped up yet, and through the murmur of water and her own heartbeats she could hear the excited shouts of the smugglers as they finally broke through and widened the opening enough to hurry through it.
Only then did she let go of the magic, exhausted from using so much of the ice. Stirring slightly, she put a hand to Amun's shoulder in quiet gratitude, but also to suggest they should stay put a little bit longer. Just in case they doubled back.
Then it was only the small matter of finding their way out again..
I'm an angel bored like hell And you're a devil meaning well
BASE INSPIRED BY ODD <3
♦ Violence, magic, thievery is permitted with Maea at all times. DM me if you have any ideas ♦
Seeing as Amun had no intention of moving just yet, he reached up to pat the hand Maea placed on his shoulder in what he hoped was an understanding way. Still holding her down slightly, he let go with one hand. With it, he took the patch off his neck and placed it on his face.
Waiting for a little bit longer, he had the patch shift to a shadowy appearance. With that, he cautiously lifted his head from the water. Hoping that the patch and the darkness and his coloring would keep him hidden, he strained his ears for any hint that the smugglers had caught on to their ruse.
When nothing jumped out at him, he reached down. Gently, he encouraged her to rise to the surface slowly just as he had.
Strange situation thought it was, to be held down under water in a pitch black cavern, possibly still followed by smugglers... Maea found that she wasn't hating it. Not the danger, or the strain on her body, or indeed the risks. There was a rather unfitting smile on her face as she waited, taking the chance to breathe - bizarre as it sounded, being submerged and all - and a strange humming of excitement in her blood. Not that she wanted the smugglers to come back, but... she also kind of did. Just to see if she could take them on.
when Amun indicated for her to follow, she too rose up slowly to the surface, pulling Ludo's shawl from her hips to drape over her head, keeping her pale hair and face from glowing in the dark. She too listened tensely for sounds, but all she could hear was the faint drip of water, and echoes of everything and nothing. Certainly no footsteps.
She exchanged a look with Amun, though not actually able to see him in the dark without the fireglow... and slowly Maea began to ease herself up out of the water.
I'm an angel bored like hell And you're a devil meaning well
BASE INSPIRED BY ODD <3
♦ Violence, magic, thievery is permitted with Maea at all times. DM me if you have any ideas ♦
Amun was not smiling as they surfaced, though Maea likely couldn't tell in the gloom. Not trusting the ruse to fool the smugglers for too long, he grasped her hand firmly once more. Helping her rise from the water with his other hand, he helped her up and out of it and onto solid ground again.
Then he tugged gently, but insistently. Assuming she followed, he would lead her in the opposite direction their pursuers had taken. Retracing their steps, he took a different branch as soon as he could. Thoroughly lost in the warren of tunnels, he tapped her hand when he felt a breeze stirring, hoping it might lead to an exit. However, his sensitive ears also caught a rumbling in the distance and his eyes narrowed at the sound
She wasn't interested in lingering either. Maea paused only to make the water drain away from their clothes and shoes, to prevent any trails of dripping water from revealing their location, and then followed Amun. Holding his hand, she was left to once again stumble along in his wake. Relying on his keen eyes to guide them, while she strained to hear anything above their own footsteps.
Maea didn't hear anything though, nothing distinct enough. She did feel the breeze though, and nodded that she felt it too. "What is it?" she whispered, her voice barely there - but she hoped he was like Sunjata. Able to pick up on people's smallest breaths, with that preternatural hearing.
I'm an angel bored like hell And you're a devil meaning well
BASE INSPIRED BY ODD <3
♦ Violence, magic, thievery is permitted with Maea at all times. DM me if you have any ideas ♦
Whispering just as softly as Maea, Amun shrugged, hoping she'd understand the motion through their linked hands. "I don't know." His voice came out tightly and nervously. "Hopefully an exit." With that, he began pulling her as quickly as he dared in the direction he thought the draft was coming from.
Every once in a while, he'd lose it. Every time, he would stop. "Hang on." Giving her a reassuring squeeze, he'd waited until he felt it again before continuing on. He reached a crossroads and he ventured down on path before realizing the breeze faded away to nothing. Backtracking rapidly, he started down the other path, relieved the draft was growing stronger.
Unfortunately, the faint rumbling in the distance was growing stronger as well.
"Lets hope so." It was a complex maze of tunnels, most completely dark and buried under rock. Every once in a while there was a pillar of light streaming down from above, where rain and wind had eroded the stone and created air vents, but they were few and far between, and Maea was left to follow Amun mostly blind. For all that she trusted him and was willing to go where he led her, it was frustrating to be left unable to help, and it grated on her.
Gradually, the draft increased and soon even Maea could hear the rumble that first caught his attention. "I wonder... if it's the ocean," she whispered again, a little louder to make herself heard over the sound. "Crashing waves.... that's perfect, it means there's a way out." Now if only there were no jagged cliffs or slippery rocks to climb over... she was tired. Had some magic left in her, but probably not enough to create any miracles.
I'm an angel bored like hell And you're a devil meaning well
BASE INSPIRED BY ODD <3
♦ Violence, magic, thievery is permitted with Maea at all times. DM me if you have any ideas ♦
Amun just shrugged again at Maea's hope? prayer? comment. It wasn't like they had much choice in the matter. They made their way through the dark tunnels, and he after passing a few of the shafts of light he eventually decided making a little light with his patch probably wouldn't give them away. So he ordered it to glow again.
Pausing for a moment, he hesitated before nodding. "Could be." Unfortunately, he thought the rumbling was coming from behind them, not in front, and he was very much afraid that while it might be the ocean indeed, it was the flood of high tide and not a safe escape.
Still, he said none of this, just walked more quickly now that she could hopefully see a bit. "Come on, let's find out what's ahead." He continued to follow the draft, which at least was strong enough that he didn't lose it anymore.
With the light from his patch, Maea could keep the pace better. She didn't stumble as much, and after a quick squeeze of gratitude she let his hand go. He sounded hesitant when repling to her thoughts, and it dimmed her hope somewhat. "I'm right with you," she assured when he forged ahead, the draft like a cool sigh on her face now.
Turning around a corner, the path ahead began to slope slightly downwards, but it brightened steadily as well. And just around another bend in the path, the ground fell away into a giant pit, like a hole had been drilled through the stone from the surface and straight down.
Inching carefully up to the edge, Maea peered down; the rumble was almost deafening here, and she could see waves churning into froth below. It was like the floor was suspended on pillars, creating a hollowed out section of rock between the open air above and the sea below, with perhaps a few feet of open air to jump... Only, the water was white with foam, thrashing and gnawing at jagged rocks that jutted from the surface.
"Well, we've found a way out," she said. Turning her head, the girl peered upwards as well. To see if it would be possible to get out that way.
There was another sound too though. A churning, muffled sound, that made the ground beneath her feet vibrate softly.
I'm an angel bored like hell And you're a devil meaning well
BASE INSPIRED BY ODD <3
♦ Violence, magic, thievery is permitted with Maea at all times. DM me if you have any ideas ♦
Nodding at Maea's comment, Amun let her go to make her own way through the tunnels. When they came upon the hole in the ground, he nearly fell into it. Only a quick scramble backwards saved him.
Peering into it he sighed, the sound long suffering. Glancing back towards the tunnel behind them, his eyes narrowed as the rumbling increased in volume. The floor began to vibrate, almost, which was definitely a bad sign.
So he stepped forward, turned his back to the put, and opened his arms. "Let's take it. Come on, I'll hold you and take the brunt of the impact. You just do what you can to calm the water and keep us away from the rocks. Sound good?" Although he was still speaking in that light tone, his expression had grown deadly serious.
He was right, there was no other way. The hole in the ceiling was too far up and too small for even her to crawl through. Still, Maea stared down at the churning waves, something cold and terrible crawling through her innards. Fear. Not a feeling she was terribly accustomed to.
"You'll get hurt!" she protested, not moving an inch towards his open arms. "There has to be something else, some other option.." Maea could face down an ursur without flinching, could hunt Cloud Manta and brave the deep dark without batting an eye... But this? Knowingly letting someone get hurt to get her out of a pinch? She couldn't. No.
The rumble behind them got louder. The path was truly vibrating now, pebbles and water raining down from the rock above. Crawling up her spine.
I'm an angel bored like hell And you're a devil meaning well
BASE INSPIRED BY ODD <3
♦ Violence, magic, thievery is permitted with Maea at all times. DM me if you have any ideas ♦
