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've got an appetite for destruction, i guess that makes you just like me
Nate's brow rises, somehow casual and pointed all at once as Sam talks about the smuggler in a very incriminating way, though the little smile speaks volumes more than his words ever could. It wasn't his business though, much as he wanted to poke into it, to offer the portent that nothing happened for free, so instead Nate simply nodded. "You'll have to let me know the way." He says simply, before dropping the subject, just to keep himself away from the temptation of the tease.
The sad tale that Sam spins has ice flowing in Nate's veins, so close to his own plans, that he's belatedly relieved that he'd been too wrapped up in hurt to have truly spoken his mind at the shrine. Somehow, losing everything hadn't registered as an option. "Shit." He finally says, after his silence has stretched out into something uncomfortable. "Do you know what you're going to do now? What... what about fluid, or... I guess you have Zeph, huh?" The implication is clear in his voice, less a tease and more a simple joke though.
"It's on the r..road into Haulani, ju-just after the beach. Not too far." Hopefully that would reassure Nate, if he was worried they were about to go on a long hike together. Thankfully he didn't say anything about Sam and Zeph's relationship; the last person Sam wanted to comment on it was Nate.
Nate's silence and subsequent curse was gratifying in a way; Sam knew that Nate had struggled with the Voice and wondered if he found Sam's rebellion brave. It certainly wasn't anything Nate had done yet for all of his ranting: in fact, the new companion by his side was probably if anything the evidence of him being bought back to the Voice's side.
"I'm g-going to ask the Old Gods for h..hee..help." It was clear from his voice he was anxious and with his mind occupied, the comment about Zeph went by thankfully mostly unnoticed. "..Not to jo-join them. But..maybe...they co..could see making me unascend as a way t-t-to harm the Voice."
you've got an appetite for destruction, i guess that makes you just like me
"Oh, that close huh?" Nate hummed, more worried about the fact that Sam felt like he needed an escort for the short distance than whatever time they were going to spend together. With an apology out in the air, with the both of them actually acting civil, he could do this for a while. After all the only real wedge between them was the one he'd put there, and if they could both ignore it, there was no problem.
Despite what Sam might think, might hope, the only thought on Nate's mind regarding his rebellion, his exile from the ascended was worry. How close had he come to that being him? Sam was far more devout than he was, than he'd ever been, and it didn't make any sense. It just made a low anxiety bubble in his guts, his jaw working.
A brow lifted as Nate turned, his steps not pausing despite the fact that he wasn't looking where he was going. "You think they're gonna answer?" He asks gently, trying to keep his voice nonchalant, to ignore Pemota's quiet indignation at how much hope he had attached to the question. "I hope it works out for you Sam." It might sound particularly warm, but it was selfish, Nate wanting there to be a precedent he could follow after.
"Mmmhm. He ha-has a very nicely placed h..house. It's right by the beach." Sam commented, completely missing Nate's concern. For the moment he wasn't too focused on his own safety, pretty sure that no one would mess with him with Nate next to him; as far as he knew, this was right in the other man's wheelhouse. "...From...wh-what you told me about your old li...life, do you f-ffind it easier here? With the...c..crime stuff. I mean."
Nate's question was one he couldn't really hope to answer; Sam just shrugged. "With Am-Amalia there they might, but I d..doubt they'll actually help." He would be very surprised if they did.
you've got an appetite for destruction, i guess that makes you just like me
Nate simply hummed in response to Sam's words, not really listening to them as he instead focused on his own muddled mess of piety. If driving a stake between him and the Voice would reduce him so much, perhaps he needed to rethink his approach, needed to be a little more careful with his tone when he next visited a shrine.
Of course, the question draws him right back into the conversation, a slow smirk spreading over his face, even as his brows rise in something that's trying to be surprise. "It feels a hell of a lot more like home, if that's what you mean. And I'm in a good place, a real fuckin' good place here." With his clinic, with Sunjata, with a shiny new government title.
Not knowing who Amalia was, all Nate could do was shrug along with the other man. "Guess you just have to hope for the best, right?" He licked his lips then, turning something over in his head, before he spoke up again. "If you need uh, help with anything, you can ask me." It's not an offer he would make normally, but there was history between him and Sam, and the other man was just so sad now.
Sam would be lying if he said there wasn't a small bitter part of him that felt a knife twist in as Nate extolled the virtues of his life here in Torchline, something that Sam knew had to be in large part due to Sunjata. Still, he supposed if he was trying to be a mature adult about this, he was now meant to be happy for Nate. He forced a smile.
"..R..right, thank you." He mumbled, but he knew if he needed help Nate would not be the first person he went to. Still, he was an acceptable guard for the walk home and as long as they were together, Sam kept thinking of pleasant small talk to make: when they finally reached Zeph's home, he was relieved.
{FIN}
