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!
It was growing dark. The blazing sunset had faded away into shadow as the sun sank below the horizon. A wind picked up and the tide turned. To his chagrin, Korbin realized that the sandbank he had followed was slowly disappearing into the sea. With the night descending upon him, trying to fly back over the unfamiliar terrain would be dangerous.
Sighing, he kept going. If he was effectively trapped here for the night, he might as well make himself comfortable.
The seaglass cathedral was small, and not really all that impressive in the dark. Korbin couldn't hear how it sang to him in the breeze; it just looked like the best place to keep out of any nightly rains, and stash the items he'd sent to trade for.
Not unusually, his mood was less than bright, and the faint hiccups were only interrupted by his occasional heavy sighs.
We don't have to smile We don't have to make friends
Amun had been exploring the cathedral out on the sand bar, very sure that there was more to the place than met the eye. However, at the faint sound of hiccups, he frowned. Stealing around to the front, he laid his hand on the hilt of the cutlass.
Then he peered inside the small structure. When he saw it was Korbin, the potter raised his eyebrows. Lifting his hand from his blade, he leaned against the doorway. "You alright, mate?" His voice was soft, but friendly enough, all hard feelings from their last meeting already forgotten.
As he waited for a responsible, he looked over the hunter. He seemed relatively unchanged, but then again so did the Ascended. Sighing, he settled in for another long and annoying back and forth about how tough life was.
The inside of the structure was equally unimpressive in the dark, and as he couldn't see anything, Korbin just settled on one of the benches inside. Leaning his back to the wall, he tried to make himself comfortable, maybe sleep... The constant rumble of waves against the rocks vibrated through the building however, and he couldn't quite relax.
Only a sense of movement in his periferial vision alerted him to the presence of another. Looking up sharply, Korbin spotted a dark silhouette in the brighter patch of the entrance. He tensed, hand scrabbling for the knife in his belt; he couldn't make out any features and had no idea what the figure wanted.
We don't have to smile We don't have to make friends
As Korbin reached for his knife, Amun raised his hands in a placating gesture. "Easy. I'm not here to fight." At least not physically. Seeing as his eyes had no trouble piercing the darkness, he often forgot that others did not have the same ability.
Moving into the cathedral proper, he sat down next to the hunter. Careful to keep the cutlass out of the way, the potter just looked around at inside of the strange building. It offered no more clues as to the why and how and what of its existence than the outside did. Sighing, he shifted so he could give the other man his full attention.
The gesture only eased his tension moderately. Keeping his hand on the hilt of the dagger, Korbin followed the silhouette with wary eyes as it made its way into the building. There was no attack, and if the person was speaking, he couldn't hear it...
Making no move to rise or leave, the young man just watched, waiting. There was no sign of recognition on his face, or in his eyes; it was too dark to make out details. A thousand thoughts ran through Korbin's head, plans formed and discarded... But his expression only showed suspicion and patience. Waiting for.. something.
We don't have to smile We don't have to make friends
As there was no sign of a response from Korbin, Amun rolled his eyes. However, he decided not to speak further. Instead, he just took out the square he carried around with him at all times.
Placing it on the palm of his hand, he held up his arm. Ordering the patch to glow softly, he shuffled through all the colors of the rainbow before settling on a plain white. Shifting so he was laying on his back, he used the patch to try and see how the crystals of the cathedral might react to stimuli. However, they shimmered and glittered like normal crystals did, and he let his hand fall back to his chest.
The sudden flash of light made his eyes sting. He turned his head away to let them get adjusted, but was soon drawn back in by the way it changed color. When the light turned white, and the person shifted, Korbin's eyes widened in recognition.
Letting go of the dagger, he relaxed again, and settled back against the wall. Sighed, as he watched the Ascended flash the light around the structure; he was intensely curious about a number of things here, but knew there was no way for him to get answers, even if he asked.
When Amun's attention fell on him again, Korbin met his gaze and inclined his head in a slight greeting. But he didn't say anything, and to no ones surprise, there was no hint of a smile.
We don't have to smile We don't have to make friends
As Korbin just nodded, but said nothing, Amun grimaced. Sighing, he scrubbed a hand across his face. Uncharacteristically grumpy, he gave the hunter an unamused look. "What's got your knickers in a twist today? Like I told you last time, if you want me to leave, all you gotta do is tell me." There was something strangely matter of fact about his tone.
Hand still glowing softly, he slipped his fingers together and rested them on his chest. Going still, not even breathing, he just stared unblinking at the ceiling. Other than the way his eyes flicked as they tracked the shadows and light playing out across the ceiling, he looked more like a corpse than anyone living.
He rolled his eyes at the grumpy expression. It matched Korbin's feelings quite perfectly, Apparently Amun had a lot to say about something, but though the young raven recognized the shape of a few words, he couldn't make any sense of what it was.
"I'm deaf," he just said, pushing the words from his throat guided by the vibration alone. Muscle memory of the vocal chords. "Can't hear you." His voice was rather quiet, clearly taking care not to about, as he had in the beginning. And the musicality was faded, rusted and strained from lack of use.
His gaze lingered on the man. The way he could go still like that was both fascinating and alarming. It sent chills down his spine, made him want to do something, anything, just to coax some movement back. To confirm that Amun really was alive still.
We don't have to smile We don't have to make friends
At the admittedly terrible sound of Korbin's voice and equally admittedly good explanation for his behavior to date, Amun's eyes narrowed. For a moment, he just considered the hunter. However, the potter sighed and held up his palm again, directly where the other man could see it.
The glow shifted and warped under the Ascended's mental commands. For a moment, it spelled out words. That sucks. It began to move again, taking on a new shape. What happened? The area he had to work with wasn't large, so he was sticking to short and simple messages for now. Giving Korbin an expectant look, Amun gestured with his other hand for the hunter to speak. Or...something.
Following the indication to gaze at the man's palm with a puzzled expression, Korbin's eyes widened as he saw the light change shape. Clearly startled, it took him a moment to register the question, and even longer to realize he didn't need a paper to write back on.
It was a sad day when even you forgot that you weren't mute as well as deaf.
"Cursed. At a shrine," he said slowly. Made sure to articulate properly, as he had no way of knowing if he used the right volume. Better too quiet than too loud though. Having people wince at you wasn't fun.
"How... are you doing that? Magic?" Korbin couldn't help but to ask. Quietly thrilled at being able to communicate without having someone barge into his head, or by scribbled notes.
We don't have to smile We don't have to make friends
Wincing in sympathy at Korbin's words, Amun's thoughts jumped back towards the square. The lights crawled over his palm again, forming new letters. Shit. Who cursed you? Pausing to give the hunter time to read, the potter watched gave the other man an understanding look, not minding the weird fluctuations in tone and volume.
Again, the Ascended concentrated. Sort of, flashed on his palm, followed promptly by, Ascended tech. He shrugged, since he didn't really have a better explanation than that. Peeling off the patch for a moment, he waved it in the air vaguely before re-adhering it to his skin. Patiently, he settled in to wait for Korbin's next reply.
With creeped out fascination he watched as the flap of what looked like skin was peeled off and then replaced again. It was weird, but thinking about it as magic did make it a bit easier to accept. Having seen fire and earth do weird shit all his life did numb him after a while.
"Useful... I don't know who. Never saw. Just lost my hearing. Then - " he hiccuped, and made a sour grimace "- this happened when I went back."
A flat gaze was leveled at the man, waiting for Amun's inevitable judgement. The laugh, the suggestion that he only had himself to blame. Stupid enough to go back, of course there would be a second curse.
We don't have to smile We don't have to make friends
Nodding in understanding at Korbin's words, Amun gave the hunter a sympathetic grin as he revealed the hiccups were also a curse. Once again, the potter made words scrawl across his palms. Bad luck. Then he frowned, slightly. Gods won't cure? The confusion was evident on his features.
Pausing, he finally shrugged and shifted the letters around again. Could ask Voice. He couldn't promise that she'd help, especially for a near stranger, but he figured it couldn't hurt to at least ask. She might know the details of the curses, even if she wasn't willing to break them on Korbin's behalf. Still, it was the other man's choice.
