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!
you had a heart, it's been gone since they left you
It was a terrible mess. One of the towers had collapsed, roofs caved in, debris scattered all over the town. Korbin stared at the remnants of the Palace and sighed, dragging weary fingers through the hair before he pressed the hat back down over his head. He had slept a few hours, and felt much better for it, but there was so much that needed to be done. He was trying to survey the damage to see what could be salvaged, but found that it was a project just getting close to the ruined building.
He'd had some hope that the infirmary might still be intact, but that had been crushed straight away. Now, along with a few others, Korbin worked to clear a path to the storage rooms - or what was left of them - to see if any of the food or lumber could be salvaged. There was not a lot of talking as they heaved aside rubble and shoveled through snow; he tried to keep up the mood as best he could, but didn't blame anyone for being reticent.
Anger boiled within him, more and more with every hour that passed and the true scope of the disaster was made clear. The Launceleyns had much to answer for, both Neron and Zariah alike, and he did not envy Weaver the decisions she would have to make.
Stealing a break for himself to straighten out the back and catch a breather, Korbin stepped aside so he wouldn't be in the way. Settling himself into a sheltered nook by a wall, he rubbed at his eyes; it felt like he could sleep for days.
Loren hadn't slept, not really. Although he'd closed his eyes, images from the day keep playing over and over again behind his eyes. Even Astra, who had crawled into bed beside him, hadn't been able to soothe him.
Eventually, he'd just thrown off the blankets, and staggered into the washroom. Scrubbing off the dirt, grime, soot, and blood as best he could, he threw on whatever clothes he could find.
Then he'd marched toward the Palace, an empty pack on his back. Expression blank, he ignored his companion's concerned bleats. However, when he spotted Korbin taking a break, and, beyond him, some workers digging through the debris, Loren headed towards them without a word. He began shifting rubble as best he could, while Astra watched him with concerned eyes.
you had a heart, it's been gone since they left you
He spotted Loren as the healer came towards them, but said nothing. Korbin watched him as he joined in with the work team, and was not surprised to see that the others were less than friendly to the man. They didn't exactly tell him to fuck off, but their sentiment was made clear in the way they acted. Heavy building blocks were more tossed than handed over, shovel handles were recklessly flung around with clear address towards the man, and more than one rough elbow could have been avoided.
The young raven watched it go on for a while, conflicted. On one hand, it was very easy to use Loren as a target to take out frustrations on. He could renounce his name all he wanted, most people hadn't even heard of it yet, and would see him as a Launceleyn for a long time. The brother of the Hailstorm, who brought down the wrath of Eirachi upon the Citadel.
But... on the other, Loren wasn't Neron. He wasn't Zariah either, the witch who had sacrificed her own child for.. what? Were they to believe that she had done it for Halo? She, who rarely even showed her face down in the Snowcloak. And Korbin knew Weaver would be rather unhappy if the guy was beaten black and blue, which might happen if this continued.
Still. He kept watching for now, vaguely interested in seeing how Loren would handle the displeasure of the people.
Loren handled it by ignoring it, basically. Catching the heaviest blocks without complaint even when they made him stagger, taking the blows from the shovels and the elbows with just the occasional grunt, not responding to the dark looks, he just kept at the work. Astra bleated reproachfully at the workers, and then glanced at Korbin, clearly displeased. Even that wasn't enough to get Loren to react.
Instead, he just continued to do what he could. He dug in the most unstable looking areas, tackled the biggest pieces of debris on his own without prompting, and didn't take a break. Instead, he just accumulated cuts and bruises and muscle aches, without any sign of it showing.
you had a heart, it's been gone since they left you
It was difficult to say whether it was really a good approach or not. For a while, Korbin took a dark satisfaction in seeing the guy be jostled around. But when Loren continued to do nothing, and the bullying became more pronounced, a scowl slowly crept over the young man's face. The bleating of the luxere sounded accusatory, somehow, and a vague sense of shame settled into his gut.
Pushing away from the wall, Korbin tucked his hands into the pockets and sauntered over to the others. When the next shovel handle came flying towards Loren, he stepped in and caught it in a gloved hand, gaze locking with the man who had wielded it. "That's enough of that, wouldn't you say." Korbin smiled. It sounded like a friendly proposal, and there was bit of glaring and huffing... But the look in his eye as he glanced at the rest made the men straighten, and with a few dark glares at Loren they went back to work.
Korbun turned back to gaze at Loren, expression neutral as he looked the man over. Signs of exhaustion was on everyone today, but there was a numbness to the healer's expression that he didn't really like.
"Why do you let them act like that?" he asked, and stepped aside to let another person past.
Again, Loren just took his knocks. When Korbin stepped in to block a shovel spoke up, however, the healer glanced up from his work. "We're just working. It's not a problem. Accidents happen." It came out in a matter of fact and businesslike tone.
As the younger Hale spoke to Loren, his neutral mask slammed into place. Turning, he lifted a large chunk of rock and staggered with it over to where they were making a pile. "I don't need you to fight my battles for me." It came out in a low whisper, and he ignored the judgmental feeling he received from Astra.
Dusting off his hands at the other man's question, the healer picked up a shovel and resumed digging. "What am I supposed to do?" Again, it came out flatly, without a hint of his true emotions.
you had a heart, it's been gone since they left you
Korbin rolled his eyes, and made no attempt to hide it. "Oh, am I? I thought you were 'just working.'" His neutrality was quickly starting to crumble, the usual old annoyance showing through. But with Weaver's words to 'be less of a jerk' in mind, he took a deep breath and did his best to keep it under wraps.
"Anything, would be a good place to start," he replied. It didn't seem to phase him that the others were working; he had been at it for a good while already, and earned the break he was taking. "I recall someone demanding a whole lot of respect for the Grand Healer before. Have you given up on that policy now? I'm not sure this is the best time, honestly."
His tone was entirely reasonable, and if there was a bit or challenge to the words he used, it wasn't wholly intentional. Without really meaning to, Korbin was falling back into the barbed banter that at one point had been the tone between them.
"You know exactly what you were doing. And that was for their benefit, not yours." Again, Loren's voice and expression were both tightly controlled, but tension was creeping into his posture. And he couldn't prevent Astra's concerned bleats.
Still digging, he paused and gave Korbin a flat look. "And what would they say if I pushed back or retaliated against them? Or if I asked them politely to stop?" Even if the Hale was falling back into their old patterns didn't mean the healer was. If anything, the more quips and snark Korbin sent Loren's way, the more closed off he became.
Resuming his work, he sighed as he encountered another fallen rock. Setting the shovel down, he cleared the edges of it as best he could. However, even then, when he bent down to lift it, he couldn't manage it on his own.
you had a heart, it's been gone since they left you
Korbin hummed and nodded, not bothering to deny it. He did laugh at the idea of Loren needing to cover for the others. "Ah, I see. You think you need to save the faces of jerks who get called out for being jerks. You don't. They knew what they were doing too. Does it look like they're sorry to you?" Korbin threw a glance at the people that toiled away amidst the rubble. One of them caught his eye and made a rude gesture; the raven made one right back, and grinned darkly.
"No idea. Maybe they would have tried to beat you up for real. Maybe they would have listened. How should I know? I'm a jerk too, I think you've noticed by now."
Alright, so maybe Weaver's hopes that he would start to behave just because she gave him a job were a bit off the mark. This really wasn't going well.
Problem was, Korbin wasn't sure he really wanted to try and make peace with this guy. It's what he should be doing, but it was made difficult by the fact that he didn't think he'd done anything wrong. Oh, sure, his choice of words could have been better, but the general message had been very much genuine. He didn't get Loren's response, or this thorny attitude now.
Korbin watched the guy struggle with the rock for a while, but when the others showed no signs of coming to help, he bit back a sigh. Alright, fine. Message taken; the healer was his problem now. He stepped in on the opposite end and hunched down, dug his fingers in beneath the rock and heaved. Muscles straining, he waited for Loren's cue and prepared to carry the burden off to the side.
Loren pressed his lips together. When he spoke, his voice was low and lacked any real emotion. "No. I think having you intervene is just going to make them hate me more. And you a little too." Indeed, the dark looks had only intensified even if the physical altercations had stopped.
Still digging, he didn't even bother glancing up from his work to respond to the Hale. "Considering you just ousted Neron and Zariah, any hint of defiance from me will just cause them to paint me with the same brush." Again, Loren didn't sound bothered by that. Didn't sound like much of anything but tired, resigned, and distant.
As the other man came to help Loren, he didn't respond much. He just lifted his half of the rock and moved it to the pile as quickly as possible. Setting it down carefully, he dusted off his hands. "Thank you." Turning, he picked up his shovel again and got back to digging. It was backbreaking work, trying to get through the already frozen ground.
05-18-2020, 11:52 PM (This post was last modified: 05-18-2020, 11:54 PM by Korbin.)
you had a heart, it's been gone since they left you
"That's possible," Korbin conceded. He threw the others a thoughtful look. They averted their eyes when he gazed their way, but there was quiet muttering all the same. "Still. It won't do for people to treat members of the Warden's cabinet that way. Exchanging words is one thing; physical violence is another." Had they actually challenged the Healer verbally, Korbin wouldn't have interfered. But they needed Loren, for his healing skills if nothing else, and disrespect to him was the same as disrespecting the Warden.
Which was a problem, when said Warden was his sister.
Heaving the stone aside, Korbin dusted snow off his gloves and nodded briefly under Loren's thanks. Without saying much more he resumed the attempt to dig the way through to the storage rooms. But after a while, it became clear that the rubble was just piled too high; they would need more people to make it through.
"Alright, let's break for now," he told the workers. "I'll gather up more people and we'll make another attempt after we've eaten." There was a moment of debate between the workers, some alternatives offered and stubborn insistence of continuing anyway. Korbin listened, but ultimately stood by his decision, and made sure the workers scattered before he turned back tto Loren.
"When did you eat last? I think we need to talk," he said. "Properly, without an audience."
As Korbin explained that verbal attacks were acceptable, but physical ones weren't, Loren raised his eyebrows. "Why is emotional harm less important than physical harm?" The question came out in that same flat tone as everything else he'd said.
Nodding when the Hale called for them to pause, the healer whistled for Astra. Turning, he fully intended to pick through the ruins of the Palace on his own. When the other man called after Loren, though, he halted. "What did you want to talk about?" Folding his arms across his chest, he waited patiently to hear what Korbin had to say. Astra, of course, tried to nuzzle his side, so he reached down with one hand to scratch under her chin before returning to his previous position.
you had a heart, it's been gone since they left you
"Because violence only breeds more violence. Words only cut if you let them, and there's always a chance for understanding to grow. I've never seen that happen in a fistfight." Weaver might disagree, but he had never found that kicking the crap out of someone made him understand them better.
Korbin waited until the others were gone, then he settled in where the wind couldn't get to him. Standing around in the cold really would punish him eventually, but all the shelters were crowded, and this wasn't the kind of talk he wanted to have an audience for. Loren wasn't exactly helping; the young raven pulled off a glove and dragged a hand over the face.
"Weaver asked me to join her council, and I said yes," he told Loren, without preamble. "And I know you two are... involved." It was the best word for it he could come up with; Korbin wasn't sure how serious it was on Loren's part. That Weaver had said anything at all about it said a lot about her own feelings, and he did try to respect that. "Both of those things means we're going to see each other a lot. So if we have any problems, I think we should settle them, as soon as possible. For Weaver's sake."
Tucking the hands into his coat pockets, Korbin watched Loren for a reaction. The guy seemed to have a lot of pent up stuff going on, and the raven was a good target; he definitely wouldn't suffer from a bit of yelling. This time, they could even hash it out with proper words. No need for mental sparring.
Loren narrowed his eyes slightly at Korbin's explanation. "So you don't think hateful words breed hate in the same way physical violence begets violence?" This time, though the healer tried his best to keep his tone neutral, it was clear he disagreed with the Hale's analysis.
As the other man explained what he wanted to talk about, Loren nodded. Fingers still stroking Astra idly, he chose his words slowly and carefully. "Weaver and I are involved, yes. And I don't have any problems with you." He gestured for Korbin to lay out the no doubt many problems he had with the healer. He would hear them out with as much patience as he could muster.
