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!
"Oh, so emotional pleasure, mental pleasure, that sort of thing." They were too caught up in thinking to analyze the possible meanings behind the teasing tone and wink. "So I suppose that's not too bad then, really." They nodded thoughtfully.
A THIRD OFFER OF ANSWERS!! Remind me to thank The Voice for sending me a very helpful one of her... um... followers? children? Ascended. But, strangely enough... "Well, actually, I... can't think of anything else right now." They chuckled sheepishly. "It's pretty rare I run out of questions. I'm sure I'll think of some more eventually, but..." They noticed Amun's attention was really more on the sea. "I shouldn't keep you any longer. You've been a wonderful help, Amun, thank you very much!"
Amun gave up on trying to be suggestive and simply nodded at Quanil instead. "Not too bad at all." However, his expression had grown more than a bit forlorn.
"You're very welcome. I'll see you around." Somehow, he managed to keep the annoyance out of his voice. With that, he waved goodbye to them.
Then he turned and finally made his way down to the beach. He eventually found a secluded spot and sank down to the sands. He didn't know how long he just sat there, watching the water lap at the shore. All he knew was that for once, the sight of the sea did little to soothe his tattered soul.
"Take care!" Quanil called after him. They returned their attention to the building, but their mind was now full of the questions and ideas Amun had raised. And they were grateful for those, and mindful that he had known Miss Maea.
So Quanil left the building and also made their way to the beach. They walked along, letting the tide lap at their feet until they found something that made them smile. And they bent, and picked it up, and ran back to where they'd last seen Mr.... uh, Amun.
"Here," they said, standing over him and holding out their offering. It was a small conch shell, about the size of their palm, white on the outside, smooth and pink inside. "Miss Maea got one of these for my sister when she was sad. So I thought maybe it would help." They smiled. "And if there is any way I can help - since I can't bring back the dead - please let me know, okay?"
Amun had not at all been expecting to see Quanil again for a long time, let alone just after he had left them. So when they ran up, he turned to face them. His expression was honestly shocked.
Standing up, he gingerly took the conch shell from them. Slipping it into a pocket, he nodded "Thank you." His voice was quiet, but grateful. "I appreciate it. And I'll let you know." For once, the potter was basically at a loss for words.
For a long moment, he was silent. Turning to stare at the horizon again, he finally knelt in the sand. Making sure they were above the tide line, he started scraping some sand into a small mound. Reaching out, he grabbed a piece of driftwood. Standing up, he brushed off his hands. "It's not much, but it's a marker. Maybe we can make something more permanent later."
Quanil watched this with interest. It wasn't until Amun grabbed the driftwood that they realized, "A memorial spot for Miss Maea? Oh, yes, I'd like that!" They looked around and ran to grab a stone that might help the mound stay a bit more intact.
They got down on their knees to add the stone, and smiled again, first at the mound and then at Amun. "She'd like it here by the sea, I think. What a great idea! And something permanent later, yes. I-I'm not sure what, but I'd like to help if there's anything I can do. I'm very good at following directions. Uh, so long as I don't overthink them too much." They cleared their throat and looked back out to the waves. "She liked it here."
As Quanil added a stone, Amun grabbed a few more shells. He arranged them as artfully as he could, hoping that people would realize this was actually a memorial. Granted, it might not be enough to stop the Torchliners from messing with it, but it was better than nothing.
Nodding thoughtfully, he found himself smiling sadly as he gazed at the totally inadequate marker. "For starters, we'd need to find a more appropriate place for it. Somewhere along the sea, like you said, would be good." Once more, his eyes were dragged to the horizon. "There's...someone else we should consult about it too." Amun would absolutely ask Sunjata what he would like.
"Oh, Mr. Sunjata? Yeah, we should get him involved. He'd be a big help and I know he'd want to contribute." They paused before they mused aloud, "I wonder if he'd name it? Something with a 'v' in it probably."
They looked along the coastline. "Maybe somewhere private, but not too remote? Somewhere the tide could get at it occasionally, 'cause I remember her walking into the water without a care in the world. So it'd have to be stone, to keep from being swept away." They pushed their boot at the sand (not the sand mound!), watching it moosh away from their foot. "I don't know much about building, but I know even less about building on sand. So maybe not where the water can get at it, if it'll be on sand? I don't know. You and Mr. Sunjata knew her better than I did."
As Quanil started babbling again, Amun fell silent. At this point, even after such a brief encounter, he knew to let them get to the end of their current train of thought without interrupting. He was almost afraid what would happen if he sent them off on a tangent.
Nodding, he gave the marker a considering look. "Sunjata, yes. What makes you think he'd name it?" Then he shook his head and scuffed at the sand with his foot. Looking between the water lapping the shore and the small memorial his expression grew thoughtful. "Maybe we can dig a small hole in front of it, and fill it with water. That way there's water, but it's not at risk of washing away."
Quanil shrugged. "I don't know, I just wonder if he would. And if it would have a V in it." They were still curious about the naming conventions of Korofi... if that's what they were. And they hoped to find out some day.
But they went on to more serious matters. "Oh, that'd be nice. Or a little moat or something. A fountain? I'm getting too fancy maybe. I promised Miss Maea I'd go ask Mr. Sunjata for training at his boxing ring. When I do that, I could ask him about the memorial? Or you could go ask him, too, of course. I just know I have to go see him. 'Cause I promised her specifically." They sniffled. "But Mr. Sunjata's nice, and he cared about Miss Maea a lot, and..."
They sniffled again, and closed their eyes against the threatening tears. No crying right now, not when they were trying to help.
Again, Amun found himself entirely perplexed by Quanil's questions about Sunjata. "Why are you sure the name he'd pick would have a v? I know that's what he called the bar, but his griffin's name doesn't have a v." The potter shrugged, not particularly interested in the answer one way or another.
Letting them get through their latest series of questions, he hesitated for a brief moment at the end of it. Then he patted them gently and maybe a bit gingerly on the shoulder. "Why don't we both ask him? I'm sure he won't mind." Actually, he was sure of no such thing but it seemed like the right thing to say at the time.
"Oh, that's true, Miss Haai doesn't have a 'v', does she? Maybe it's just a thing about places?" They were resolved to ask Mr. Sunjata about the V's at some point anyway. They shrugged. There was no way Amun would be able to answer this question for him.
"Oh, no, I'm sure he won't! He's a very good man!" they said brightly, confidently. "Okay, so we'll each ask him when we see him. I'm sure he'll want to do everything he can to remember Miss Maea, given how much they meant to each other. And we want it at least overlooking the sea, yes? With some water nearby. Maybe a few seashells..." They were trailing off, mostly; they were muttering to themselves about what she might like.
Raising his eyebrows, Amun eventually sighed as Quanil went on about the place names. For a moment, he thought about pushing back on the notion before understandably deciding against it. "Maybe. Something else for you to ask him when you see him next." Despite his lingering annoyance, there was an almost endless patience in the potter's demeanor.
Taking a deep, and unnecessary breath, he let it out in a sigh. "Why don't we leave the planning process to Sunjata? If he doesn't have ideas, we'll come up with some." He tried to speak in as reasonable tone as he could manage.
Quanil stopped muttering to themselves at Amun's suggestion. "Oh, r-right. Yes, that's a good idea. Yeah, we should do that. I guess. I just try to be ready with my own ideas. Um. But I guess I don't really have any just now. Maybe I'll get some by then."
Amun really had to know what was coming. "Do you have any ideas?"
As Quanil asked about Amun's idea, he took another deep breath. "Not right now." Glancing at the smaller and completely inadequate memorial they'd put together, he sighed. "I'll think about it though." It came out softly and sadly.
Taking a few steps forward, he felt the water begin to lap at his feet. Slipping his hands on his pockets, he stared out at the horizon. Without looking back at them, he spoke up. "If it's all the same to you, I'd like to be alone for a little bit?" It wasn't firm, but it was clear that he wanted to be left to his own thoughts and grieving for a little bit longer.
