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!
may we dance until it rains, may we drink to hide our shame. we're all pretty when we die
There are times when Sunjata simply leaves the hustle of Haulani and his boxing ring, to relax in one of the many shifts that linger beneath his skin. Sometimes it’s for hunting, other times it’s for giving into those instincts so they don’t come out during normal interactions. Today, however, he can see the storms rolling in the distance, the dusk making the world warm and nice as he settles beside the lighthouse, giving that latter attempt at working on his instincts out of his system.
He’s coiled up in his cobra form, slithering along the ground and through the grasses for a section nearby, instincts at the ready as he follows some kind of small mammal through the long dunes, sand clinging to inky scales. His attention is focused almost entirely on the creature as he follows it, leaving much of him as a trail behind — roughly all of the six feet this form is in its length. He’d likely be smarter, sticking to the shadows so his dark body is missed easier, but he’s confident nothing terrible would come out of it. After all, he’s already got a variety of other shifts that might ward off unfriendly visitors.
SUNJATA
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.
A thing she practices and is getting better at, the more she is able to listen to the cat-ness and not the Lily-ness of her. She stalks, moving far more quietly through the grass and sand than she did before, but the occasional flick of a tail or an ear, the crack of the smallest twigs gives her away. She’s… relatively unsuccessful thus far.
That is, until something draws her attention and she turns, following quickly through the dusky night - whiskers a whiskerin’ and eyes drawn into tiny slits. She doesn’t realize that another hunter is after the same bit of prey, something decidedly reptilian (which is, perhaps, why she doesn’t realize). And as she seems to come their prey from a different angle, there’s no opportunity for them to cross paths, for her to see the evidence of something slithering along and opt to change course.
No, they’re headed for a collision. And the mouse is stuck in the middle.
Hey Mister, you can never own me I only let you hold me
may we dance until it rains, may we drink to hide our shame. we're all pretty when we die
He’s also too intensely focused on the mouse that darts between the grasses, searching for some underbrush, some hole to hide into until the hunters have passed. He misses Lily completely, zoned in, jaws parting slightly to let a forked tongue slide out to ensure he’s on the right trail. And before long? He can almost taste it, speeding along until he’s nearly within striking distance. He thinks about using his venom, but at the present moment the thrill of the chase is too strong.
So he gets as close as he can, pausing as the hood to this cobra form fans out, raising his upper body to lash out at it with a quiet hiss only to come face to face with a very familiar feline. There’s a pulse of surprise, but he’s already going for it — the predator in him lashing out toward the mouse and missing it with a quiet curse, but at least he hadn’t bit her. Lily, is that you? He rumbles down the attuned bond, coiling up and letting his dark gaze flicker over the feline, not recognizing her among the few strays he takes care of up here.
SUNJATA
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.
Indeed, the thrill of the chase is on and all consuming.
Her ears twitch in the direction of a rustle, but Lily overrides it, leaping to pounce on the mouse and - comes face-to-face with a very large snake instead. She hisses, yowls, twists in the air, moving the way that only truly startled cats can. Her fur gets big - big - making her into more of a red puffball than a cat, ears flattened against her skull and everything posturing to make herself not prey to the snake. She can’t have it going after her just because it lost the mouse.
That is, until Sunjata’s voice comes into her head. The redhead doesn’t relax - not fully - but the bared canines hide back behind her lips and her expression visibly changes. Still keeping her distance from the cobra, Lily warily asks back, …. Sunjata?
If it is him, when the fuck did he become a snake?
Hey Mister, you can never own me I only let you hold me
may we dance until it rains, may we drink to hide our shame. we're all pretty when we die
Holy shit, she freaks out. It causes him to abruptly pull back his hooded head, dark eyes scanning the cat that looks more like a fluff ball while he coils up and withdraws his head to give her space. Still doesn’t change the forked tongue that pokes out at her, trying to scent her and ensure she’s the one he thinks she is. The mouse is lost, but that’s not really his worry at the moment, not with the fear that he can almost taste on the air.
His name within her voice invading his mind causes him to relax, his head lifting and body turning a small amount as his tongue darts out toward her again. Yeah it’s me. He rumbles down the bond toward her, trying to seem less of a threat than he is. What’re you doing here? Aside from hunting mice. What was she doing in Torchline of all places?
SUNJATA
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.
The snake confirms his identity, causing Lily to de-bristle herself, resuming her regular size and more or less getting rid of hostile signals. Taking a few steps closer to inspect his newest (to her) form, Lily’s whiskers and nose are furiously at work. She has very little experience with snakes - let alone something as big and as potent (compensating, much?) as the hooded kind Sunjata currently embodies. His question, however, puts her on edge. What, like he owns Torchline, and she has to ask permission to be here? With a bit of a sneeze at the query, she informs him in a very pointed manner, I’m not just going to sit in the Grounds and watch this world pass me by. A tiny, agitated flick of her tail. Why wouldn’t I be here?
Hey Mister, you can never own me I only let you hold me
may we dance until it rains, may we drink to hide our shame. we're all pretty when we die
He confirms that he is indeed Sunjata, and he watches the cat with dark eyes as the fur flattens along her skin again, as her attention turns to him to sniff and inspect, the hood flattening a small amount as he lowers himself, turning to focus back on the feline while she follows through with it. His question is aired, and there’s a light sneeze at the inquiry that Sunjata finds a small amount of amusement in.
No, not that. He rumbles (though had he meant it? It’s hard to tell) and he sends her a slight pulse of something like laughter, before he’s shifting to get a bit closer to the feline, giving her a bit more of an inspection as well – forked tongue darting out toward her. I just assumed with Deepfrost approaching you might be getting ready to sing to the luxere. The cobra head shifts, dark gaze lingering on the feline huntress.
SUNJATA
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.
Oh. Well - she sits and wraps her tail around herself, pulling herself up to her full cat height (which isn’t very tall). Her gaze doesn’t leave that forked tongue as it investigates, privately finding this…. long, scaled form far less handsome than his panther shift. Or maybe it’s her perspective as a whole that’s changed. I can do both. That is, explore Torchline and sing to the luxere. Besides, I’ll be staying here for LongNight. So she might as well get to know the city and all it has to offer: women, men, sand and water and warmth. It’s everything a cold-hating lady could wish for.
And what have you been up to? Besides cycling through two different partners, running away to Torchline, and becoming an Arbiter? His title - it’s familiar. She remembers him saying something about it in the Atheneum, but had never told her what an Arbiter does, exactly.
Hey Mister, you can never own me I only let you hold me
may we dance until it rains, may we drink to hide our shame. we're all pretty when we die
The feline sits and wraps her tail around herself, drawing her posture up higher and Sunjata’s own head and … Sort of torso? Follow suit, lifting to better view the feline and the posture she takes. There’s a hum of amusement sent down the bond toward her at the comment of doing both – figuring that it’s definitely true and perhaps maybe he was trying to cover his ass for being so surprised she was here. Still, the cobra’s head tilts curiously at the mention of her staying here for LongNight. Are you and more Grounders coming? Or just you for a vacation? He sends over with a bit of wry amusement.
But the question of what he’s been up to almost feels loaded in a sense. He’s been up to a lot of things, really. And the cobra’s hood flares a small amount, black scales gleaming in the sunset-light as he considers her, forked tongue poking out once more. Helped save the city from a volcanic eruption, tried to run for governor, became the Arbiter instead. He sends the feeling akin to shoulders shrugging with that before his head tilts toward the lighthouse. I basically enforce the laws. It’s not like it seems so fancy, really, more challenging than anything with the hotheaded lot of the Torchers. And what have you been up to? He asks, returning his attention to her, wondering if she’d managed to turn in Frey’s quest and if the deity had sent her off on another.
SUNJATA
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.
I don’t know who all is coming - at least me and Sam - but given the options between killer monsters and the god-forsaken frozen wasteland that is Halo, Torchline is the only real option for LongNight. They both know it. The flare of wry amusement at the question covers her surprise that he doesn’t know what’s going on, or who all’s coming. Or maybe it hasn’t been solidified on this end yet.
Taking a moment to groom away a bit of dirt that had gotten all up and down one of her front paws, Lily multi-tasks as he tells her about what he’s been up to, noting that he studiously refrains from talking about anything personal. Typical. Recalling a bit he’d once told her in the Atheneum, there’s a bit of a snort from her again. So much for wanting to blend in, huh? And so as not to seem too bitchy, she quickly follows it up with, Well, congrats nonetheless.
And as for herself, she pauses for a moment, glancing up at the stars in the sky to try and recall if anything notable has happened since she last saw him. Same old, same old for me, really. Having fun. Making friends. Living life as a cat and bird a bit more. And therein lies the problem, really; it’s home, but llife in the Grounds has gotten boring and predictable. Is she ready to move? Not quite. But there’s a bit of a wanderer in her now and the shifts won’t be denied.
Hey Mister, you can never own me I only let you hold me
may we dance until it rains, may we drink to hide our shame. we're all pretty when we die
He sends a breathy, almost snakelike chuckle down the bond toward her. Torchline is the only real option. Halo was far too cold and dangerous on its own. Here in Torchline? No snow to be seen, no real threats aside from volcanos and the people… Which really wasn’t all that different from most places. But he coils a bit further, tail flicking as he goes to rest his head along his scales, keeping his dark eyes on Lily as he explains what he’s been up to and what he’s done. I’m afraid I don’t get a chance to blend in anymore. Not when he had made a name for himself in the Grounds and his face was known well enough in Halo.
No, there really wasn’t any way to fully hide. Might as well just go for it in the end.
So he settles and listens to her explain what she’s been up to, coiling a bit tighter as he focuses on the feline and not the myriad of other things happening around them. And how do you like being attuned? Now that she had more experience with it. Was it something that similarly to him, can’t imagine how he had managed just as an accepted before? Or was it something that still felt different?
SUNJATA
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.
Okay, so they’ve passed the polite small talk and are on to the boring small talk. One of Lily’s ears flicks back and forth for a moment before she stands and stretches a bit, scratching her claws in the dirt between them. It’s ok, Sunjata. We don’t have to do the small talk thing. They don’t owe each other anything. And if Lily is perfectly honest, she’d rather get back to hunting. I’m staying with a girl called Lirsi. Cute redhead. There’s something in her tone that might allude to a bit more, but if there is anything overt, it’s locked up tight.
See you around. Turning on her paws, she gives him a moment to say something before she bounds back into the darkness, black-tipped tail waving in the air, eyes all sorts of peeled for a late night snack.
Hey Mister, you can never own me I only let you hold me
may we dance until it rains, may we drink to hide our shame. we're all pretty when we die
Honestly, there’s almost a pulse of relief, a hint of amusement as Lily’s voice enters his mind. And were he there as his human self, he’d probably end up smirking and offering a huff of laughter in response to it. As it stands, however, all he has is his forked tongue poking out toward her and a slight dip of his dark scaled head. Well, enjoy your stay. He offers her, giving a pulse of what might seem like a wink of sorts back.
He doesn’t doubt she will enjoy it.
If you need anything, I live in the house just back there next to the governors. He rumbles back toward her, before lowering himself and uncoiling himself, returning his own hunt in search of something to sink his fangs into.
- FIN
SUNJATA
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.
