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!
The times are changing, and Maru feels it in his bones. It is a subtle, imposing presence that burrows into his skin. The volcanic explosion is change enough, and its far-reaching consequences have yet to settle and be seen, but Maru is used to such elemental transgressions. With a firm word to Delta to avoid the bordering waters he has set out on his own, conch shell left behind. There has been no word, no contact, and the man wonders if perhaps the Governor has perished beneath the molten destruction. How shall the mouth-breathers handle such a crisis?
These thoughts accompany him as he moves through the water with firm, practiced pumps of his tentacles, content to take his time. It is a beautiful day after all. Meant to be savored.
The isles are ever-changing, but they are full of thick sandy beaches that he is content to drag himself upon, strong arms levering his body out of the water as it cascades down his back from his long ebony tresses. Turning to prop his hip upon the sand, Maru stretches out his tentacles into the sea and stares out over the sunlight dancing upon the water, content to bask in its warmth and that of the sand cradling him from below.
my whole life is mine, but whoever says so will deprive me,
for it is infinite.
Amun had been out to the Kuali'i Isles once before. However, according to rumors, they seemed to change and shift over time in patterns that no one quite understood. So he went back out there, charming another fisherman into letting the Ascended onto his boat in exchange for help with the haul.
Deposited onto the beach, he frowned. Granted, he frowned often these days after the death of his friend, but this time it was due to not being able to tell if this was the same island he'd been on before or not. Finally, he sighed, and began to make his way around the small landmass.
Of course, he rounded the beach and saw something that made him stop in his tracks. For a moment, he was even shocked out of his depression. "I always knew these beaches had a nice view." It came out in a slightly suggestive tone, though it was muted, somewhat. Putting his hands on his hips (shirtless as he was, it accentuated the lean muscle of his build), he grinned faintly at the half-man half-octopus before him.
Company is certainly not what Maru is anticipating today, much less company in the form of a mouth-breather. Or that is what he assumes the man to be, having never encountered any of The Voice's creations. Maru rolls to prop himself up better, idly flicking a tentacle through the surface of the water in acknowledgement as fathomless, pitch eyes fall upon the newcomer.
Such flirtations are new to him, at least from anyone who does not live and breathe the ocean the way he and his kind do. But Maru is certainly no spring chicken himself, one elegant brow rising as he boldly sweeps his own gaze across the man before him. "Shall you enjoy the view or merely commentate upon it?" The low, dark rumble of his voice is still not as familiar to him as the telepathic form of communication he is used to utilizing. Maru does not gesture for the man to join him, no such invitations or pleasantries extended when he is content to survey him unblinkingly. "You are far from your normal waters. What brings you here?" Nothing if not curious when presented with the rare chance of speaking with a mouth-breather without it being transactional in nature.
my whole life is mine, but whoever says so will deprive me,
for it is infinite.
Seeing as Amun was assuming this was simply an Attuned in a partial shift, he continued to grin faintly. "I intend to enjoy all my senses, if I can." Those he had, at least. Pausing for just a moment to make sure the stranger truly didn't mind the company, the potter took a few steps forward.
Then he sank down in the sand next to the other man. Shifting his legs, the Ascended dipped his own bare feet in the water and just sat there in companionable silence for a moment. "How do you know I'm far from my usual waters?" It was a weak deflection and his grin slipped away at the end of it.
"Honestly, though? A few reasons I supposed." He gestured at the horizon. "I enjoy exploring new places and meeting new people. But right now...I'm in mourning. And these isles have a quiet beauty that suits my current mood." Shrugging, he glanced at the stranger. "What brings you here? Unless these are your usual waters and I'm simply intruding on them."
Maru merely hums, a deep vibration in his chest, feeling no need to respond. There is no reaction one way or the other as Amun steps closer, still merely watching him with his dark eyes. Awaiting a choice to be made. One that comes summarily as the man sinks down into the sand beside him. Maru reclines back onto his elbows to settle further in parallel.
"Land walkers do not often visit the Isles, and rarely without nets and tools." An assumption maybe, but one that he is confident in making. Amun does not have the look of a native Torchline citizen. Despite the sun and surf, the Torchliners are quite similar to their Halovian kin in usually not venturing out without having some sort of reward on the line. "Mourning with company...an interesting choice. Who are you mourning?" Maru does not have a vested interest in the man's woes, but he too mourns any loss of life. Rae's creations are precious, and Caido as a whole can be cruel and predatory.
Looking back out over the horizon, he ignores the sand clinging to his long hair as it trails along the beach. "These are my waters. But a beach is not water, and you are not intruding." As simply said as the man himself.
my whole life is mine, but whoever says so will deprive me,
for it is infinite.
Amun raised his eyebrows at the other man's comment. "I've heard of landlubbers, but never land walkers." Chuckling, it faded away as the potter's expression grew sad again. "I think you'll find I'm not like most land walkers though." Leaning forward, he dipped his hand in the water and let it pour through his fingers. "I grew up on the sea. In another world." Smiling almost fondly, he shook the last of the droplets from his hand.
Nodding, he shifted so he could look at the stranger. "Didn't know there was company out here. Not that I mind yours." The Ascended's lips twitched, showing a hint of fang. "Not yet at least."
However he sighed when the other man asked who Amun was grieving for. "Her name was Maea. I considered her family, a sister." He looked out to the horizon, then scrubbed his eyes as a bit of fluid threatened to leak out.
Raising his eyebrows, he smiled faintly, though his eyes were still sad. "Your waters? You sound like someone important." There was a ghost of the old teasing there. "I suppose I should thank you for the waters and your company both then. So thanks.' He tried to muster up the appropriate amount of gratitude but only succeeded partway.
"That is what you are," Maru points out patiently, unsure what a 'landlubber' is. Perhaps someone with enormous fat deposits akin to blubber? Though the man's origins are just as confounding, though in a more interesting sense. "A sailor, then?" There are quite a few in the waters of Torchline, and they are the only landwalkers he knows of who could have been raised 'on the sea' instead of within it.
The merman nods in acquiescence to the response, expression serene. "I will endeavor not to disturb your vigil." That, at least, Maru can attempt to give the man. "The loss of family is a burden unlike any other loss. You have my sympathies." He is a follower of Rae, but he knows that she stands hand-in-hand with Mort, that this Maea person is likely safe and at peace. Unfortunately that peace does not always extend to the ones left behind.
Maru turns and scrutinizes the man at his side, rolling the conversation with his daughter in his mind. He had told her to be careful with what she shares, and he intends to do the same. "And if I am?" Would the man change his stance? Inquire further? It's a smooth and unassuming challenge, a scientific prod of a questing finger against the man's intriguing personality. "You are welcome." Not that Maru has any sovereignty over the beaches, which is what Amun is actually enjoying aside from the view and the questionable companionship.
04-03-2020, 02:40 AM (This post was last modified: 04-03-2020, 02:40 AM by Amun.)
my whole life is mine, but whoever says so will deprive me,
for it is infinite.
Amun shook his head at the stranger's comment. "You say that like someone who doesn't walk on land," the potter pointed out, feeling silly even saying it. Still, his eyes drifted to the bottom half of the other man, which was still in the form of an octopus.
"But you're right. I was a sailor once upon a time. Maybe I will be again someday. For now I am something quite different." He rubbed his right wrist, a nervous habit picked up from when he'd lost that hand.
"Thank you." It came out softly, but with the actual appropriate amount of gratitude this time. Then the Ascended hesitated, looking back out to the waters that gently lapped against his feet. "Have you...you sound familiar with such loss." It came out without his trademark confidence.
Shrugging, he picked up some sand and let it pour through his fingers like the water had earlier. "Then I would be sharing my vigil with a handsome and important man, and I would thank him all the more for spending time with me when he surely has better things to do than listen to a stranger's woes." Chuckling without joy, he brushed his hands free of the sand. "And I suppose I should introduce myself. Amun Arlun." There was no sweeping bow or handshake that normally might accompany his introduction.
Maru gives a secretive smile, content to let the man agonize over the hints he drops without ever confirming his theories. "Do I?" Though his voice is still serene, if one were to listen quite closely they would hear the undercurrent of amusement that runs through it. "You speak much the same. How are you different?" And what had driven him away from the sea? Maru is content with knowing he would never want to be anywhere else, even if Rae gave him legs to join the mouth-breathers.
The topic of grief is not an easy one, and Maru turns to gaze out across the sea, deceptively still and enticing. "Yes, I am no stranger to it. I have lost my partner, and many friends." Leaving Delta without a mother, left with only Maru in all his inadequacies, no matter how rightly placed his heart may be. "The ache...it will never leave you, but it will not strike so deep. With time. All things with time." His voice falls far softer here, like a gentle hand upon a shoulder where he physically forsakes the motion.
A soft chuckle escapes him at the bold-faced compliment, dark eyes crinkling at the ages at the flattery. It is uncommon to meet another remotely close to his age who is still so sprightly and fervent in their declarations. "I am happy to lend my time to a similarly handsome man, whose importance is not diminished by lack of title." All creatures of Rae are created equal after all, though he's unaware of the...peculiar nature of this one's existence and what it entails. "A pleasure. I am Maru Ngata." Just as reserved as he has been this entire time, though the other man does not attempt to reach out either.
my whole life is mine, but whoever says so will deprive me,
for it is infinite.
"You do." However, Amun's tone was not even slightly insistent or curious, merely observational. Smiling faintly, he looked over at Maru, studying the other man's features. "I'll tell you mine if you tell me yours."
With that, the potter's smile broadened, prominently revealing his fangs. "I'm an Ascended. I'm sure you've heard all sorts of stories." The smile slipped away as he tensed slightly for Maru's reaction.
However, at the shared grief the Ascended could hear in the other man's voice, Amun relaxed slightly. He even grew so bold as to lay a hand on Maru's shoulder. "I know. I'm sorry for your losses as well." The potter's hand slipped back into his lap. "And thank you for helping me pass that time." It was truly grateful.
A ghost of his former good cheer passed over his features as he grinned. "Oh so you think I'm handsome?" There was a slightly teasing tone to his voice. "The pleasure is all mine."
Before Maru has the chance to negotiate such terms, the man is baring a curiously fanged smile and explaining that he is something called an Ascended. Maru has heard the mouthbreathers call themselves a variety of things, Accepted and Abandoned, but this is a term he has not heard before, and the assumption that he has makes a dark brow rise. "No, I have not. I'm afraid I'm unfamiliar with the term." Perhaps a little too close to revealing that he is no mere Attuned man, but it is a dance he can only manage for so long. Though reticent to reveal his race to this stranger, it has happened before. So long as they are not aware of the underwater kingdom where his people reside, or cannot reach it, he does not mind.
The touch does not bother Maru, though he does not lean in or pull away in either reaction. He is not a tactile man himself, but he is willing to accept that which he does not personally initiate. "You are welcome. Company is the only other balm for grief that time cannot supply." Delta's existence alone had helped him through the grief of losing his beloved, though she had been young enough that he could not have sunk into his misery anyway. Taking care of a child is far more important after all.
"I'm sure my thoughts on the matter would not dampen your confidence one way or the other," Maru teases, or what passes as teasing for a man like him, which amounts to smoldering eyes and the faintest twitch of a smirk at the edge of his lips.
my whole life is mine, but whoever says so will deprive me,
for it is infinite.
As Maru revealed that he actually didn't know what the Ascended were, Amun blinked in surprise. "Wait, really?" Shocked at this development, he turned to face the other man. "Have you heard of the Voice?" It was clear the potter didn't quite believe this development, or know how to deal with it.
Nodding in agreement, he left his hand on Maru's shoulder for now. "It depends on the company. But...yes. Good company and time can heal even the most terrible of pains." The Ascended smiled gratefully at Maru, both for his understanding and for providing said company.
Chuckling the sound dark and low, Amun smirked as well. "No, but it's nice to hear every now and then." However, even he couldn't keep up the flirtation for long in the face of his grief. "I take it you know these isles well?" It came out in a much more normal tone.
The man's shock is amusing, though Maru only shows it in the smallest curl of his lips. "I am not one to lie," he confirms simply. The following question is similarly received with a blank and unmoved expression. "Unless you mean the one you speak with, I am afraid not." Maru doesn't mind admitting that he does not know something, even if it seems to baffle the other man.
A soft hum of agreement trails out of his throat, peacefully leaning the slightest bit into the pressure of the hand upon his shoulder in acknowledgement of the touch. There is nothing more to say on grief and mourning that has not already been said, and Maru is a man of few words. But he is not the type to ignore a direct question, and his pitch eyes sweep over the isles around them. "Yes. They are as much home to me as anything else. Is this your first time visiting them?" Or would he be surprised to learn of their transient, playful motions?
my whole life is mine, but whoever says so will deprive me,
for it is infinite.
Well, shit. Amun hadn't met someone with absolutely no knowledge of the Voice before. His hand fell from Maru's shoulder as the potter considered how best to proceed. Finally, he decided honesty was the best policy. "The Voice is a goddess. A new one, though that term is relative. She managed to create the Ascended, among other things, and in the process ascended to godhood herself." He paused to let that sink in. "In time, the old gods and the new went to war with one another, though no one is quite sure who struck the first blow or why."
Strangely enough, his voice held the tones and cadence of a practiced storyteller. In addition, his tone was carefully neutral. "The Voice lost the war. She was imprisoned in a place called the Hollowed Ground, trapped for over three hundred years. Eventually, though, she managed to escape her prison." As he spoke, he watched the other man carefully, wondering how he would take all this.
When Maru asked if this was the Ascended's first time visiting the isles, he shook his head. "No. But I didn't get a chance to explore them last time. I was...distracted." By grief, the same grief that found its way back onto his features now that the surprise of having to tell the story of the Voice was gone.
