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!
Options and options – flipping the boat, or rendering Sunjata as the main transportation device. Loren, at least, tried once more with the oars. “Let’s try Loren’s way, and if it doesn’t work, you’re it.” Her eyes went to her uncle, a Cheshire smile that didn’t quite reach her eyes (the uncertainty warring there; apprehension curling in the back of her mind – nothing quite as smooth or simple as she’d dreamed).
In preparation, she grabbed hold of her rope from her bag, then placed it along her back again. “We can go straight then,” she murmured while getting things together. If Loren’s oar plan didn’t work, she’d tie her rope along Sunjata, and fix it to the dying vessel, and help flip the boat.
--
Melita says to go straight!
If Loren’s oar plan fails, she will try to tie a rope along Sunjata and the boat (in hopes he’d be able to tow it), and help flip the boat.
With the boat now capsized Loren and Melita will be forced into the water, but luckily it's a short swim to the rocky shore. Loren's plan to tie oars to the side of the boat is questionable, not least because he needs mastered creation magic to combine it with summoning. And so while he'll be able to retrieve one oar before it slips away, the other one falls into the water and is promptly swept away by the tide, leaving you, quite literally, up shit's creek without a paddle.
The tunnel that leads to the rocky shore is far too narrow for an orca to navigate. Sunjata will have to shift back and swim to get in any further. From her position on his back, Raza struggles to gather the supplies out of the boat before it's flipped; she loses about 30% of them in the process.
The path that opens before you is narrow, only large enough for one at a time... but hey, at least it's dry.
Loren attempts to repair the boat and is unsuccessful, losing an oar in the process. Raza attempts to move supplies from the boat and is somewhat unsuccessful. 30% of your supplies are lost! (please specify which in your post) Sunjata will have to shift to a smaller form to reach the shore.
Your randomly determined order is: Raza, Loren, Sunjata, Melita. Please summarize any action at the bottom of your post. If you decide to enter the tunnel, please state your order at the end of your post.
Look, I’m all for generating ideas but if you don’t know about boats and obviously can’t repair it… just help out. More irritated that there wasn't any coordination between the three of us to save everything before tipping the boat (and also that we’ve brought so much that we need to scramble to hold on to things), I just can’t get it all. Things slip through my hands. My bag was on my back when I hopped on to Jata, so that’s safe. I made sure to save the sword, and keep ahold of the lantern. Can’t be sure of anything else, though, as that more or less takes care of both of my hands.
Stumbling out of the water and up to the tunnel, I offer a hand to anyone who needs it, pausing for a moment to reassess what we’ve got and make sure everyone is there. Once we’re all put back together again and the boat is pulled up far enough as well, I look towards the tunnel and I fall in line - second, probably, in case I need to direct. But certainly neither first or nor last.
--------------
Raza saves her own bag, which was on her back, Flametongue, and the lantern. Helps the others to shore if they need it and also helps pull the boat up far enough to avoid hopefully avoid an incoming tide.
She will be second in line if they go through the tunnel.
04-13-2020, 09:51 PM (This post was last modified: 04-13-2020, 11:22 PM by Loren.)
LOREN
Well, Loren's latest attempt when even worse than his earlier ones. Sighing as the oar floated away, then some of their supplies as they flipped the boat, he just pushed and pulled the boat to shore. Thankfully, he was wearing everything, so he hadn't lost anything of value, just the jerky he'd precariously slipped into his pocket. Pausing just briefly to lay a hand on Sunjata, who appeared slightly banged up, the healer healed the Arbiter.
Then he walked towards the tunnel. "I'll go first." As he tried to squeeze through the tight tunnel, he compelled any nearby small mammals or non predatory birds that might be ahead to try and give him some information about what might be on the other side.
Loren loses the jerky in his pocket. He helps to get the boat onto the shore. He heals Sunjata, then goes first through the tunnel, compelling any small animals ahead to give them a sense what they might be facing.
Base Healing: Can heal 30pts of injuries per post.
Type: Light | Rank: Mastered
Magic: Can compel like-minded animals for assistance (1 large, 3 medium, 5 small, from the same animal family)
Type: Light | Rank: Basic
look at how a single candle can both
defy and define the darkness
i can't believe that you could just say that "the answers unlock this gate"
The tunnel grows narrower, but once Raza is off his back, then he shifts into himself — huffing a small amount, pressing a hand to his stomach when he reaches the shore, where the abrasions from earlier sit. The boat is fucked, but his gaze immediately slips to Melita to see if she’s held onto the weapons — he could care less about the rest of the things they’d brought.
So he reaches for the daggers specifically, from Melita, and the brass knuckles, slipping them on before following behind Loren and pausing by the entrance as he nods to Loren as a thank you for the heal. “I’ll go last.” He offers, glancing to Melita. It’s likely best that Loren or Raza keep a hold onto Flametongue for light, and he doesn’t mind taking the very end to watch their backs. He too, compels a few bats to fly up ahead and see what they might find.
Subjata shifts back to himself and takes the daggers and brass knuckles from Melita, says he’ll go last, and compels a few fruit bats to investigate the tunnel with Loren’s creatures.
Magic: Can compel like-minded animals for assistance (1 large, 3 medium, 5 small, from the same animal family)
Type: Light | Rank: Basic
He loses the pack with water and food supplies.
'cause if you knew his name, not a thing would change you'd still be wishing you were blessed
No permission needed for power play!
Feel free to use magic/force on Sunjata, without killing him <3
Sunjata speaks with an Australian accent and has a passive magic that makes him produce a subtle scent that matches exactly to whatever those around him most desire him to smell like.
Another mess; shambles and movements causing nothing to go quite as planned. What could’ve been a smooth transition ended up with washed away adornments – the bandages gone well before she could even manage to snag at them – an oar simultaneously drifting away. An oath, a curse, snagged along her tongue and behind her teeth, but she managed to pierce them away, back into the thresholds of her mind for another time.
Her hands pulled against the boat, intending to help mire it along the shallow shoreline, so that at least there’s an attempt not to lose the vessel too. What good it would be or even matter later on was difficult to say – her mild little hopes had already been dashed. She pulled and salvaged the rope, placing it back in her bag, everything else on her person remaining – her weapons clinging in either her palms or along her back, the daggers returned to Sunjata.
On a bitter sigh, she took hold of the lantern Raza had saved too, holding it aloft as she wound her way to third in line. At this point she wasn’t even bothered to comment on her placement, as if she were one of the weaker, more ineffective ones (because maybe she was), quiet now. Fangorn bounded along her heels, grumbling, either in comfort or some steadfast protection.
--
Melita loses the bandages. She helps pull the boat in, grabs the lantern from Raza, and takes her place as third in line.
Into the tunnel you squeeze yourselves, the women sandwiched between the men (how noble). Loren and Sunjata's attempt to gain information from the local fauna yields limited results; it seems very few animals remain in the cave, and those who do are particularly annoying seabirds who squawk Hot! Hot! into their minds.
As you press deeper into the tunnel the ground begins to rumble unhappily, rocks shifting overhead. The ground is still shifting in wake of Apopo's eruption, and the sea caves are particularly unsteady. Rocks dislodge, causing debris to sprinkle over your heads- and worse. A veil of stones suddenly comes down between Raza and Melita, narrowly avoiding both women but leaving them coughing dust and ash.
At the back of the row, Sunjata is less lucky. A stalactite dislodges from the ceiling, falling down and striking the tall man squarely. It is followed by another boulder which glances off him, rolling into the exit. An exit which is still visible... for now.
Ahead, Loren's birds will tell him that the tunnel widens... and, again, that it's hot.
Do you continue forward? Or make your way back?
Rocks fall on Raza, who dodges!
Rocks fall on Sunjata, who is hit!
I’m all for making a new smuggling way in the Fingers, but I am not up for dying down here. Not with a cushy new position waiting for me back at home. The tremblings in the ceiling make me visibly nervous, but I continue on behind Loren, taking too many sips of water to ease the burning in my mouth (thanks Flametongue) as I hold the sword up to see where I can step.
Then the rocks fall and I leap forward, narrowly dodging - but when I turn around, I can see that the others aren’t lucky. Unfortunately even here, there isn’t much for me to do except try to keep an eye out for more falling rocks. Feeling the need to say something, I pipe up with “If our purpose is to explore and determine stability, I think we’ve determined this one isn’t stable.” I purposefully don’t mention heading back to the boat or even to Haulani. There’s one more tunnel left, though it seemed to be still radiating heat. There really aren't any good options or maybe she's just got super low HP and Astor doesn't want her to die.
“But if everyone still wants to go on, I’m in.”
---------------
Raza keeps an eye out for more falling rocks. Suggests going back, but leaves it up to the group.
At the rumble of rocks, Loren's eyes narrowed. Nothing fell on him, though, and he didn't turn to check on the rest of the group just yet considering he was focused on just getting through the tunnel. As some birds reported back to him, he relayed the information to the rest of the party as quietly as he could manage. "Some birds told me it's really hot up ahead."
Biting his lip, he continued pressing forward. "I agree. But someone could always clear the rockfall, and we don't have a viable boat to explore the other options. I say we at least see if there's a way through." That said, he moved through the tunnel as carefully as he could, unless Sunjata and Melita voted to turn around.
Loren lets the group know it's hot up ahead and votes to move forward.
look at how a single candle can both
defy and define the darkness
i can't believe that you could just say that "the answers unlock this gate"
The tunnel seems to go deeper, and warmth continues to spread, and there’s a slight rumbling before the rocks begin to fall between the two women sandwiched between him and Loren, and Sunjata’s distraction at ensuring Melita’s okay completely goes to the rock that tumbles down and stabs him dead center in the shoulder. A hiss and a Korofi curse leave him, slightly off balance as the boulder glances and he leans against the wall a brief moment, feeling blood begin to pool beneath his shirt.
“Not sure how useful we’ll be in getting out if the rocks block the path back.” He rumbles, muscles clenching in his jaw. “The tunnel to the right seemed relatively shallow. I say we check that one out and if it’s also no good, we can come back to this one.” He offers, lifting a hand to his shoulder to press against the pool of blood with a light hiss, gaze drifting back to the rest of them.
Sunjata chooses to back out to try the last tunnel.
'cause if you knew his name, not a thing would change you'd still be wishing you were blessed
No permission needed for power play!
Feel free to use magic/force on Sunjata, without killing him <3
Sunjata speaks with an Australian accent and has a passive magic that makes him produce a subtle scent that matches exactly to whatever those around him most desire him to smell like.
She had no ability this time to withstand her irritation, jaw clenching, teeth gnashing, a fume of sighs warring from her chest. If she were capable of breathing fire, this might’ve been the time, imagining a plume of smoke rising and curling from her nares. Except they didn’t need the heat, based on the Attuned’s assessment; what they really required was some amount of luck. Her eyes narrowed, staring along the unsteady rocks, dislodged stones, debris faltering overhead, using her arm to shield her head.
Once its certain that everyone was all right, the youth simply listened to the others. They had no ability to maneuver rocks, unless someone had an unforeseen or unknown earth incantations, and she hesitated to bulldoze on ahead with another tunnel to explore. Another sigh filtered and flickered, eyes going to Sunjata’s now bleeding shoulder. “Let’s try the last one. If it’s worse than this,” and her chin jutted towards the ridiculous avenue they already embarked upon, “We can come back.”
Maybe – if it still remained.
--
Melita votes to go back to the tunnel to the right!
The tunnel protests as you turn, the earth still shifting and cracking above. More rocks fall, though both entrances remain open - for now.
This time being in the back works well for Sunjata. The first one out, he escapes before the ceiling further gives way. The rest of the group is less fortunate: stones begin to clatter down, the dust and ash obscuring vision. While Loren is able to avoid the brunt of it, Melita takes a solid hit to the shoulder, and Raza... well. Unable to avoid it in the debris, Raza critically fails is struck squarely in the head by a falling stalactite.
Back at the fork in the path, your three options remain open. The right path looms ahead, warm water calf-deep, as yet unexplored. But if the exit is looking appealing to you, hey, none of the natives will call you a coward.
Probably.
Rocks fall on Raza, who is hit!
Rocks fall on Raza, who is hit!
Rocks fall on Melita, who is hit!
Rocks fall on Loren, who dodges!
I’m relieved that the others also think we should turn back and do an about-face, dutifully following the line with an eye towards the ceiling every now and then. But these things can be sudden and as we’re just heading back into the open tunnel, it gives way. I leap away from Melita, avoiding the rock that hits her in the shoulder - and directly into the path of something else. There’s a flash of pain and the world goes dark as I fall to the ground. Everything rings. Everything blurs. It feels like I’ve been hit by a sledgehammer and I’m on my hands and knees.
----------------
Raza falls to the ground with her head injury, ears ringing and vision blurry. To no one's surprise, she isn't thinking of the next steps.
Seeing as they had turned around, Loren had a great view of the rocks coming crashing down onto Raza. As she fell, he immediately rushed over to her. Putting a hand on her shoulder, he immediately sent a burst of healing magic through her, healing as much of her injuries as he could, especially the ones to her head.
Making sure she was out of the danger zone, he reached out a hand and laid it on Melita's uninjured shoulder, healing it as well. Glancing between the redhead and Sunjata, the healer pressed his lips together. "We should get out of here. This isn't worth it." As he spoke, he would gently try to urge Raza to her feet.
Loren heals Raza and Melita and votes to get out of the caves.
look at how a single candle can both
defy and define the darkness
