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!
08-20-2020, 04:24 PM (This post was last modified: 08-21-2020, 03:25 AM by Loren.)
like thunder gonna shake the ground
Loren hadn't really gotten the chance to explore the new shift he'd discovered within himself. So, once he'd recovered from the expedition to rescue Eirachi's brother, he'd headed towards Halo's (hopefully) refurbished training grounds. Flying there as a goose, he landed and simply settled down on the ground for a moment.
Then he shifted to that enormous lion with weirdly metallic fur. Not knowing his capabilities, he let himself sink into the instincts of the form. Gathering the muscles of his legs, he pounced on one of the training dummies. It collapsed under the weight of his form. Not expecting that, he found himself skidding on the ever-icy ground before his claws dug into it, leaving long furrows behind.
08-23-2020, 09:38 PM (This post was last modified: 08-23-2020, 09:39 PM by Oliver.)
OLIVER
His journey to Halo was a long one- and it certainly wasn't considered a fun one.
Oliver had once more needed to deliver something. Payment had been upfront leaving him with a very light load now, able to really do whatever he wanted at this point. After a bit of exploring and seeing what sorts of wares they had to offer, Oliver ended up checking to see all the damage. Using his leopard shift, he went on a lengthy exploration to get a good look at what remained of the events of Deepfrost.
It'd lead with him aimlessly wandering, using his nose to guide him as he made his way eventually into the training ground. At one point he considered hunting, but he instead just let his instincts carry him.
And honestly? Fuck his instincts because of course, it just had to bring him into absolute danger.
How the hell a gigantic scary-ass lion ended up in such a location was beyond him. The moment he spotted it, he immediately lowered his body to the ground. His ears tightly pinned against his head and his tail began to fluff out. Claws nervously dug into the snow, creation the faintest sound of crunching before he forced himself to stop. What the fuck? He called out through the bond, not realizing that this was an attuned. Instead, Oliver was fully focused on waiting for the creature to leave so he could escape unscathed.
After pouncing on the first dummy, Loren had moved on to the next one in the row. He was mid-leap when Oliver's mental voice echoed through the bond. The lion completed his attack, knocking the dummy down.
Then he spun and began to stalk around, as if casting about for the other cat. The Firebrand had caught the faint sound of snow crunching, and he began to pad forward. His steps were surprisingly quiet for such a large animal.
Leaping up a series of crates, he landed on the rooftop where the other man was hiding. Only then did Loren respond. Now is that any way to greet a friend? His thoughts were amused, satisfied from the brief stalk and hunt but still wanting more.
The great beast started to trek towards Oliver and it was absolutely terrifying. Oliver had never fought a creature like this- not alone. The largest thing he had combated against was the mud monster and that... well, it's better left unmentioned. Regrets of never fighting or training overcame him. Deimos was right: he was drastically unprepared and even though he had been trying to practice lately, it wasn't going to be enough in this situation.
Lowering himself even further into the snow, Oliver regretted the speckling of his shift and his inability to hide. The fur along his back began to rise up almost, puffing out. His tail fluffed up even more and his ears were now tightly pinned against his head. The predatory feelings were slowly overcoming him and Oliver was prepared to run or fight.
It was when the beast had finished climbing up higher when Oliver was just about to shift into his woodpecker shift, using it to hopefully getaway. The lion was at an absolute advantage and there was no time left for hiding, it was obvious that he had been spotted and he was now the prey...
And then Loren finally spoke.
Anger, surprise, a small bit of happiness, and mostly anxiety flooded their bond in a flash. Oliver really wasn't doing great after this moment and he was still almost cowering in his spot. Don't fucking do that! It was supposed to come out angry but instead he mostly just sounded upset.
Come down here... you almost scared me to death. That much was obvious and although Oliver tried to calm down, his heart was still racing and his body was still ready to flee. When did you get this shift? It's fucking massive. While Oliver was still super eager to see Loren again, there were questions that desperately needed answers.
As Oliver responded in fear and anger, Loren felt amusement bubble up in his mind. He huffed out the equivalent of a feline laugh, feeling his fur settle. Sorry. It was just a bit of fun. Fighting against the instincts of the new form, he hopped down to the training ground proper.
Sending the mental equivalent of a shrug to the blacksmith, the healer settled down, heedless of the snow. No idea. Recently. Then he perked up, lifting his head. Actually, you wanna help me get used to it? Are you up for a little tussle? He pushed his way back to his feet and began padding in a circle around the other man.
Luckily, Loren wasn't too bothered by Oliver's reaction. The other man's emotions through the bond did help Oliver to calm down, his ears returning to normal and lifting back up. Got to say, I'm a tad bit jealous... I mean look at you. All in good fun, Oliver was absolutely happy with his shift and was merely trying to joke around.
The spotted, and still slightly fluffed up, tail swishing behind him as he eyes the lion. Thinking for a moment, Oliver nods. I guess... but! You better not get me too hurt... and I'd like a proper drink or meal with you too. It's been too damn long. And there it is. Happiness seeps through the bond as Oliver is finally able to vocalize that he is happy to see Loren. A little training battle wasn't going to fulfill his desire to spend time with his friend so
obviously Loren would just have to spend more time with him.
Rather than raising himself from the ground, Oliver watched and waited for the perfect moment. His hips practically vibrated as they swished back and forth, anticipating the man to finish the circle and arrive in front of him before...
Oliver rushed forward and attempted to pounce onto the much, much larger cat.
Fluffing out his fur and mane, Loren stood up fully. Then he huffed out some air and resumed padding around the practice arena. To be fair, it took me a long, long time to get here. His tail flicked around as he batted the air between him and Oliver with a paw.
Deal. As the smaller cat leapt the lion snarled. Making sure to keep his claws sheathed and out of the way, he swept a paw in front of him, trying to knock the other man aside. As the Firebrand did, he sidestepped in the opposite direction of his strike, trying to take himself out of the path of the pounce.
If leopards could shrug, Oliver would've. The comment was fair enough and honestly, Oliver really didn't try to question the logic behind how shifts appeared. He knew now what they were based on, but didn't dare look too deeply into the actual science of them materializing, it didn't really matter in the end. Fair enough... here's to hoping I get a fancy shift like you one day. Now, he didn't want to be a big ass gold lion, but there had to be something fitting for him, right?
Whatever, shifts don't matter that much, at least not right now. Oliver had something else far more interesting to focus on.
A grunt left the leopard as he was punted down to the ground. It hurt a small bit, but it just shook him up, that's all. Gathering himself and getting back onto his feet, Oliver allowed his instincts to take over more, hoping that he wasn't holding himself back too much.
His prior course was no longer an option, but no matter. Oliver trekked along, trying to make it appear as if he'd try to do the same exact attack, but rather than walking further, Oliver instead cut off his walk and immediately pounced, aiming straight for the lion's neck, hoping that he could grasp on with his paws.
Loren let his tongue loll out at Oliver's words. You will. Just gotta be patient. The healer huffed out an amused breath of air.
The swipe connected, sending the smaller cat to the side. Snarling, the lion remained planted where he was as Oliver came in for another attack. Although the other man's paws would close around Loren's throat, they wouldn't be able to penetrate the lion's fur and hide.
So the healer basically just ignored the leopard's strike. Rearing up slightly, the lion attempted to crash down on Oliver, not with enough force to do any damage, but with enough force to pin the other man to the snowy ground.
08-31-2020, 09:51 PM (This post was last modified: 08-31-2020, 09:51 PM by Oliver.)
OLIVER
If anyone knew Oliver, they would know patience was not a word frequently used in his vocabulary... nor to call him... okay, maybe don't use patient and Oliver in the same sentence unless it's behind the word 'Not'.
Such is life, Oliver unfortunately is unable to do much. The last thing he expected was for Loren's body to be so rock hard. What the fuck!? A low rumbling growl erupted from Oliver and before he could react, the mighty lion came crashing down.
Letting out a rather loud howl, the leopard start to try and claw with his hind legs as fast as possible. Reaching out with his front paws, he'd try to claw and grab for whatever he could. Meanwhile, his mouth opened and he tried to bite at the man, letting out snarls and growls. It was most likely an amusing sight for the much larger cat, even more so if anyone happened to be watching.
As Loren slammed down (carefully) onto Oliver, the smaller cat went positively wild. The blacksmith scratched, clawed, bit, and scraped against the lion. And none of it seemed to do anything but tickle and press against the healer's fur. A few of the blows hit with bruising force, but none of them cut the Firebrand.
Growling again, he gathered his legs under him for a moment, trying not to let Oliver escape. Then Loren half-wriggled half-pounced forward. His goal was to fully pin the other man underneath the healer's bulk, though he wasn't trying all that hard to make sure that Oliver couldn't get our or retaliate.
Loren tried to go down and prevent him from moving, clearly, but no. No. Oliver wasn't about to let that happen. Too much energy was coursing through his veins, urging him to fight back as much as possible despite the fact that somehow, this lion had ultra-impossibly thick fur.
Trying to flip over, Oliver would do his best to claw and try to slither out from underneath the much larger cat. There wouldn't be any attempt to attack him at this point, simply his main goal was to slip out from underneath him and figure out his next action once he wasn't about to be turned into a leopard crepe. Even then... yeah Oliver had no idea what he was going to do that didn't require the use of magic or shifting out of this form... he'd be fine, yeah. Totally.
As Oliver wriggled out, Loren chuffed out a breath. Reaching forward with one paw, he would attempt to reach out and pin the leopard's tail alone, letting the rest of the cat go. The lion's growl shifted into a rumble deep in his chest. Tag. No matter what, he wouldn't let the other man's tail escape
With that, the Firebrand yawned, exposing his fangs. Alright. I have stretched my muscles enough. Licking his lips he peered at Oliver. Assuming you're good. The healer settled in for a rest, though he still kept the blacksmith's tail pinned for now. However, the Firebrand wouldn't insist on it if Oliver really wanted to get free.
Slinking out from underneath Loren was actually pretty easy. Oliver was feeling confident until he felt the fur on his tail being stepped on. The fur on his back arched and he was about to attack until he heard the small, playful comment. Breathing in deep, Oliver clawed at the ground and came at a sudden stop, trying to calm his nerves down. While he knew it was merely a joke, he was still in fight or flight mode.
Finally, once calmed down, Oliver turned the upper half of his body, ears still pinned against his head. The tail would've been swishing if possible, but alas, instead it moved ever so slightly, clearly halted by the paw. His voice came out smooth and quiet, but with a playful edge to it. Fine- it was totally a draw though. Oliver hadn't been pinned so obviously, nobody lost. He was partially joking, clearly not actually bothered by Loren's antics.
