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!
Into the storage room and onwards they went, the work before them giving Chuy cause to frown in concentration as he puzzled out how to best approach the challenge before them. He saw value in salvaging a few broad beams of shelving, ones that had fallen but not broken from the damage, and began stacking various crates and items on one, and instructing the others to move the deer onto the other. After procuring some extra rope, he tied the deer to its beam, and the crates down to the other, before looking to the oddly shaped bags of vegetables and flour they would certainly need going forward. After some fiddling with the ropes that kept the bags tied shut, he managed to connect the bags with one other, in a way that would allow them to be slung over a shoulder, enabling his hands to remain free to carry one of the beam-loads of food. He instructed the others to do the same, and so each person was able to carry four bags with relative ease. Stepping carefully, he and another leaned down to lift the beam with the boxes and crates on it, while the other two did the deer.
It wasn't going to be easy, but if successful, it should allow them to salvage the most of what was left to them in here.
"If anyone has magic that could help lighten our loads, now would be the time to use it," he comments between breaths, wondering if any of his compatriots were magically inclined.
--
Chuy uses some shelving to stack the crates of food on like a sort of raft. He ties the crates down with rope.
He does the same with the deer on another piece of shelving.
He then ties the awkwardly shaped bags together and slings them over his shoulder, 2 over each shoulder, 4 per person, = 16 total bags carried out as well.
They then very carefully carry each raft of food between 2 people, and he suggests that if anyone has any magic that would be useful in this situation (telekinesis or similar), they should feel free to use it if they can.
By some miracle, they all make it safely across the floor to the infirmary, but when the Wraith opens the door, her expression sours and presses into a thin line at the apparent stability.
“Unless you’re an attuned with a flying shift or have telekinesis or water manipulation, please make your way back to the safer, more stable parts of the room.” A few options come to mind, but they all depend on whether or not one of the Halovians has said powers. A bird shift could fly and pick up the items, or she could assist in shoring up the floor with an ice wielder, or by pulling the items to them with a telekinetic.
And if none of those pan out, it looks like she’s going in it alone and will toss the recovered items to the waiting group once she gets them, hoping that nothing falls through the holes in the floor, including herself. If this ends up being the case, she will flatter herself out on the floor so as to distribute her weight more evenly and then toss the items down the corridor, hoping that her strength assists with the distance.
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W asks for any of the following to stay with her while the others retreat back more stable areas: an attuned with a flying shift, or an Abandoned with either telekinesis or ice/water powers. If none of those are present, she will stretch out on the floor and army wiggle her way to the items and then try to toss them back down the hallway to the group.
And round about his home the glory That blushed and bloomed,
Noah's suggestions went down well with his team and they worked quickly to string together the wood. They had brought a lot of rope and when one of the members suggested stacking more on top of the 'sleds' they had made, it turned out that they would be able to bring along almost half of the contents within the shed. All they had to do now was to transport it back to the Snowcloak, and get inside before the cold did too much damage.
Chulane was not as fortunate. While the idea of creating the litters were excellent, his team was numb with cold and hurried perhaps too much in the desire to be done with the work. One of the planks that was pulled free smacked into a pile of rubble that supported a part of the roof, and there was an awful groaning sound as rock, ice and heavy wooden beams started to shift and move, threatening to come down upon all of them.
Wessex meanwhile had luck on her side. It turned out that two of her team members were Abandoned, and while their telekinesis was minor, they were able to carry a good deal of supplies back to the safe ground, sparing them all the risk of entering into the dangerous room. Much had to be left behind, but at least one full bag of salves, herbs and bandages had been retrieved. Now it was only a matter of getting back down safely...
Korbin and his team meanwhile were almost done. All rooms and hallways that opened into the elements had been found and sealed off, and now they moved on to insulating with what they could find. A distant tremour in the floor had Korbin pause and listen carefully. Then he urged his team on, making them hurry up so that they could go join up with the others.
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Last round!
Noah successfully strings the wood together, emptying half the storage. Just gotta make it safely to town now!
Chulane's team has terrible luck and disrupts a pile of rubble, threatening to bring down the roof over them! Better get out before anyone gets hurt!
Wessex is wildly successful in acquiring the medical supplies and now only needs to get back downstairs. Let's hope no one drops that bag!
Is but a dim-remembered story Of the old time entombed.
They were cold, they were spent. Of course they wanted to hurry, to be done with this task, even if it had gone quite smoothly so far. The creaking in the walls and ceiling was met with great concern, a couple of his helpers exclaiming and the load they shared dipping as panic threatened to take over.
"Easy!" His voice was hoarse, the cold biting at his throat, misting his breath before him as he shouted the command. "Steady now," he said with the tone one might employ in calming a wild animal. His helpers complied, and he nodded as he had their attention now.
"All together now, step with me: Left! Right! Left! Right!" he set an even but relatively quick pace, hoping his guiding words would give them something else to focus on, something other than the terrifying threats of the crumbling palace around them. Working together, they could get this done.
"If it starts to come down, grab what you can and run," he said between breaths, before resuming the shouts of Left! Right! until they were hopefully clear of the ruin an able to get the food into safer storage, before heading back to their warm abodes finally.
The only true wisdom is in knowing you know nothing
With the chill setting into their bones, the group of Halovians that helped Noah gather wood moved with fierce determination. They called out to each other and helped each other forward. They were able to stack about half of the wood Noah knew was in the shed, but he waved his arms to call them all over to him before they could continue to try and gather more. He could see in their faces how miserable they were. This wood was enough for them to get started and continue to survive. "Anyone who is too cold to continue on, please head to the Kraai to warm up?" He questioningly commanded. "Who has strength to pull with me?" A few men and women raised their hands, while the majority of the group headed for the warmth found deep in the heart of Snowcloak.
"Who can rig up a harness for me with this rope? I can take most of the weight, but I will need help, too?" Noah turned towards the ends of the rope and shifted, two legs becoming four and the hunter becoming a large, muscly reindeer. He snorted and two of the women came over to him, fastening the ropes in a make-shift harness around his body. The rest of them gathered at the base of the wood. A large man with a bellowing voice counted down from three, and the group heaved the hood. With Noah's strength as a reindeer, and the determination of those left in his group, he hoped they would make it back to Snowcloak and to warmth without further incident.
--
Noah uses his reindeer shift and a few people from the group to pull the wood to Snowcloak!
Am I a prisoner to instincts or do my thoughts just live as free
And detached as boats to the dock?
Between herself and the two Abandoned, they’re able to pull the medical supplies to them, each grabbing as much as they could carry. Wessex leads the way back to the rest of the group, testing the floor again and hoping that the others step where she steps. Once back to the rest of them, They hand some items all around, just in case there’s another something - wouldn’t want to lose a bunch of things just because they were foolish enough to load up a singular person.
Again turning to the same telekinetic Abandoned as before, she asks them to help her shore up the stairs - that is, hold it all together - while the others come down quickly. The sooner they all get out of this creaky, volatile building, the better. If they all make it down safely, she’ll let the rest of the group take the lead and head out of the Palace’s ruins, bringing up the rear until they make it back to the initial meeting place.
------------------
Wessex asks everyone to take some of the items so as to distribute the load effectively, then uses the telekinetic Abandoneds again to hold the stairs together while everyone comes down. Back to the meeting place!
And round about his home the glory That blushed and bloomed,
Cautious and efficient, even amidst pressure, all three teams are able to get to safety with their hauls.
With mortar and pebbles bouncing off their shoulders, Chulane's team is able to clear out of the storage room before anyone gets, and by some miracle they manage to bring all the stacked up food as well. There is a rumble and groan as a portion of the roof crumbles at their heels, but the damage is less than it could have been.
With combined efforts, Noah's team successfully hauled the lumber back along the shoveled path. The strength of the reindeer ensured that the trip was smooth and uneventful, and before long the members of his team were allowed to shuffle off to warming fires, with a literal load off their shoulders.
Meanwhile, Wessex successfully guided her group back down on solid ground, aided by the supporting magic. No doubt the decision to spread the load between the group made a difference, and she was thanked by her team with respectful nods and approving smiles by the time they joined up with the rest.
All three group were met with cheerful greetings as Korbin's team finished off the task of sealing the useable rooms in the Palace. Rendesvouzing on the same spot as before, Korbin looked them all over anxiously to check for injuries, frostbite or other concerns. When he was content that everyone present was alright, he gave them all a wide, warm smile, obviously relieved. Quite delighted about the supplies they had found too.
"Thank you, all of you," he told them. "I'm glad you're alright. These supplies will make a real difference. Let's get inside, shall we? I'll have to check on those who were forced to turn back. Great job, everyone!"
With that, he led the way back to the town, where warm fires, food and drink awaited all who wanted and had need of it.
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This concludes the PQ! Thank you for helping out! <3
-FIN
Is but a dim-remembered story Of the old time entombed.
