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!
I'll keep breaking my own heart, finding ways to make it out I'm still not what I wanna be, what more do you want from me?
Swimming had been a necessary skill to learn after he'd been kidnapped, but Harper remembers learning alongside their elephants in the blissful years before that time. He might never have been a champion swimmer before they'd gotten their hands on him, but those memories are tinged with the warm edge of fondness and delight that only a young child can truly experience. Moving to Torchline had been interesting to say the least, with so much available water to enjoy. After living most of his adult life in a concrete jungle, the on-demand swimming access was almost too much for his brain to handle. It hadn't taken long to remember old habits and lessons, still far too physically fit to need to work up to it either, and so it stands that Harper has become a bit of a beach bunny.
The weather isn't perfect of course with monsoons on the horizon, but the rain is warm when it does come, and for now - though the skies are grey and oppressive - it seems to be holding back. So Harper is easily found out in the waters, bobbing along in the wave area on the surfboard he'd had made when they first arrived. The waves keep pushing him back inland, but when they do he merely turns and uses a few powerful strokes of his arms and shoulders to get back out a decent distance, and begin the process all over again. It's a soothing ritual, boring to others maybe, but Harper finds it fascinating to watch how the isles move of their own accord. Waiting around to decide if maybe he should strike out towards one and explore for a little bit, but hanging back all the same. Waiting for that perfect one...
"i can't find a thing i don't like about you", and i'm like "don't worry you will"
More than once, Nate had been captivated by the islands that drifted lazily on the ocean, passing by the windows of his home like the most distracting, least exciting movie he'd ever seen. It was how he'd spent a decent amount of his time, while he'd been in that cold, senseless fog after his attack, until Longnight took the view from him, until certain events snapped him out of it.
More than once, Nate had ventured out to the islands, on a little dinghy, or by the power of his own breathless, tireless body and spending hours drifting along with them, only leaving again as familiar coast began to fall away. While there was no sleeping as an ascended, that didn't mean he didn't feel a kind of restful peace, swept along the ocean by a power he didn't understand.
Earlier in the day, he had decided on the latter. Had stripped to little more than a pair of boxers, had swum out to an island at random and had planted his ass, languidly watching the beach slip along, his little house slip out of view. Nate was content to stay like that, though he did call out a cheeky "Ahoy!" to the first person he passed, someone on what looked like a surfboard.
I'll keep breaking my own heart, finding ways to make it out I'm still not what I wanna be, what more do you want from me?
It's a rare enough beautiful day - or what amounts to it in monsoon season - that company is hardly amiss. Most skim by on well-used boats, nothing more than a nod or wave of the hand. Fishermen and the like, out here for business instead of pleasure. Harper responds in kind, reluctant to keep them from their craft, idly thinking of Mateo as they go past. The waves and the heat are enough to keep him company, so he doesn't mind the relative silence as he drifts along. Happy to slowly start to feel the burn of muscles in his arms and shoulders after a few hours. It's not nearly so intense as his training regiment, but given enough time it still gets the job done.
The shout of hello - or rather the amusing alternative - is enough to have him swinging his head around to locate the person it came from. They're on the beach, and seem to be staying there by the rooted look they have. Harper lifts an arm with a sunny grin. "Ahoy!" he shouts back, letting the waves push him back towards shore. It's good timing, and after a moment of deliberation he slides off the board, paddling with an arm tossed over it until he can touch silt once more and clambers out of the water with board in hand. The sand is hot beneath his feet as he approaches despite the thick clouds overhead, and he sinks the tail end of his board into the sand as he moseys closer. "You seem a little lost at sea, friend," he laughs good-naturedly, not spying any sort of vessel and hoping the man hadn't been unaware of how the islands like to move and ended up too far from the mainland.
"i can't find a thing i don't like about you", and i'm like "don't worry you will"
His call is enough to draw attention to himself, though its the oceans waves that carry the stranger closer to Nate, rather than any magnetism of his voice. Scraps of sunlight peeking through the scattered clouds have him lethargic, slow, or at least that's the excuse he's going to use, if his stillness is questioned. He does convince himself to sit up, once it becomes clear he's not going to be the lone denizen of this particular island any longer. Nate watches the other man approach with a one eyed stare and a grin.
"Can't be lost if you don't have a destination in mind." Comes his immediate response, Nate not minding the difference in stature between them, with him still seated as he is. The single blue eye narrows as Nate looks the other man up and down. "I've seen you around." It's an irritating familiarity, like pressing his tongue into the spot a tooth was pulled from. "You... do security or something somewhere, don't you?" Maybe it was too much to ask for him to know everyone in Haulani, but if he could manage at least passing familiarity with most people, it was an accomplishment.
