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!
The garden was a haven – and she was too, wrapped in its stars and lines, in its pinnacles and eaves, a charitable smile lit upon her features as she hummed under her breath. Warm and gliding, pinnacles of tenderness as she walked along toes and then flatter-footed, feet bare from where she’d left her sandals along the cobblestones, breathing, exuding, calming, everything at once.
Then the world called; a familiar rhapsody, a beacon in her heart, in her lungs, as the point of celestial whims grasped and pulled. “Another one?” She murmured to herself, though the question was for no one but the sun and the grass, following its beck and call along the ethers. The closer she roamed to the beckoning, the more the twilight began to pull, stretching over like canopies, like glimmers of promises, like convictions nestled and intertwined, a heavenly and devout rapture, a blissful adornment for those who’d been stung by the reaches of the world.
But not here – where all life was precious, permitted, allowed, to mend.
The youth contained within its new enclosure gazed upon her in wonder – eyes wide while Lena smiled, reaching out her hand towards the ward. “Aren’t you beautiful?” A cousin of dragons, a relative of those voracious lizards, the cloud wyrm wiggled, a few puffs of clouds emitted from its breath, but the lack of flight was noted, cuts and slashes upon its sides. “Had a bit of a mishap, hm? I’ll get you some water first.” The creature made a sound, and she grinned again, a handwave gestured for it to wait, while she snagged at a bucket nearby, wandering down familiar, primordial pathways.
Give your heart and soul to charity 'Cause the rest of you
After the numerous interesting encounters he'd had in the last days (some good, some bad), Gideon was craving some simple relaxation. While his Cathedral was a place of serenity and peace; it was often easier for the congregation to feel at ease there than the Priest himself, who couldn't sit still in the space for more than half an hour without noticing something that had to be done: an unlit candle, a skewed painting...anything that wasn't perfect.
He needed to spend time somewhere fresh, so he had come to the Celestine. Sometimes it was good to connect with nature, with what they were fighting for and what the Gods had originally set up for them in this world. The Ascended were a corruption of the natural order, but walking in the beautiful garden was a reminder that they could not corrupt it as a whole.
Seeing Lena ahead, speaking to a Cloud Wyrm, he smiled at the gentle and quiet exchange. Gideon almost didn't want to interrupt, but he knew that Lena would see him as he passed; he stepped into the enclosure. "Oh, dear. What's happened to your little friend here?" He asked, seeing the injuries on the Cloud Wyrm.
Dipping the bucket into a nearby pool, she waited for it to fill, gazing at the starlight, at the twilight, surrounding its vestiges. It undulated, then dispersed with a ripple of her movement, but she knew she couldn’t truly disturb the treasure, the beatific, beautiful world contorted and created around them. She could be a piece of it, a backdrop of sorts, like flowers blooming and bursting for the void, but never something that wholly changed it. Maybe, eventually. Uncertain if that was even a dream of hers, she noted the bucket’s contents, then backed away, an airy smile contorting, and footsteps once more light and incandescent towards the Cloud Wyrm.
When she turned, she hadn’t expected Gideon to be there, amongst and amidst the garden. Another smile radiated for the priest, and she advanced again, granting herself access to the enclosure while the wyrm looked on curiously. “Can’t fly, it seems.” Gently placing the water down where it could drink to its heart’s content, she gazed fondly upon the creature as it sidled along the cage, eyes segmented and riveted on Gideon. What happened? She asked, while producing bandages and some ointment from her pockets, quietly and calmly unrolling them while the beast processed her voice within its mind.
An answer came in due course, with its attention still on Gideon, suitably distracted. “Ah, hunted by a Sear Cat,” she responded in kind to the priest. No judgment in her voice; respect for all living things, no matter prey or predator relationships. Perhaps the little one had been too close to land, too foolish, too youthful, to understand the dangers until it encountered them firsthand. Experience a teacher, and sometimes not a compassionate one. “Well, you’re safe here.” Another quick and rapid smile, while she readied and prepared her remedies. Her gaze lifted back to the older man for a moment, tilting her head slightly. “How have you been?”
Give your heart and soul to charity 'Cause the rest of you
Lena's smile was a beauty befitting the garden and Gideon instinctively grinned back, stepping further into the enclosure. It was hard not to smile anyway, in such a beautiful place, the twilight atmosphere highlighting and touching each natural wonder that grew from every surface. If he ever got to see where Safrin lived (if the Gods did live in physical places, that was), he felt sure it might look like the Celestine.
"I see. A shame." Getting closer, he knelt to watch the Cloud Wyrm drink, meeting it's eyes. The creature was pitiful as it was and when the story came to light, he tutted and tilted his head to look down momentarily. "Sounds painful. Still, I'm sure here you will receive the best care possible in Caido." He spoke to the wounded creature, keeping his distance but internally thinking a prayer for it, swift but truly meant.
Lena asked after him once it seemed the Wyrm was assisted and he shrugged, waving his hands in a gesture meant to communicate so-so. "Some good, some bad. I met..." He let out a sigh, not wanting to even bring legitimacy to the words he was about to say. "An Ascended Demi God, recently. The experience of such evil has shaken me, truthfully. It's why I came here."
Lena nodded, the grin still there, while the creature drank, while she hummed soft, soothing tones, taking some ointment out of her laden pockets, and placing some along her finger. With the Cloud Wyrm slightly distracted by Gideon’s presence – its eyes watching the subtle shifts and movements – she could easily swipe the herbal remedy along its side without complaint. “Very well done,” she cooed, a silly smile igniting when the animal swung its head back in shock. The bandages came next, though it seemed far more wary now; her eyes going to Gideon for a moment. “Do you think you could hold it? While I put the bandages on?” Or vice versa really; she simply didn’t have enough hands for the task. If Gideon was uncomfortable with it, she wouldn’t force him.
And while she made her other preparations, his shrugs, his sighs, indicated some other things, nuances flickering. Her head rose and tilted, the grin suddenly vacant, gone, vanquished as the words trickled down through her spine. “An Ascended Demi God?” Her words were quiet, dignified, but the terror, the horror, began to slide along them, syllable by syllable. Lena was not a being easily rattled or shaken; strong to the core, but this, this was truly terrifying. “How – how did such a thing happen?” And were there more? Was there anything to be done? The thoughts of too late surged along her spine, and she took a few quick, deep breaths, understanding why he’d come to the garden now; lacquered and layered beneath cosmic stars, where the dreaded wake of the Ascended didn’t exist.
Give your heart and soul to charity 'Cause the rest of you
It was calming for Gideon to see the way Lena gently took care of the creature, her practiced hands doing what she needed to gracefully; he wasn't sure he could matched her expertise but he nodded at her request, never one to turn down someone asking for help. He went to gently hold the Wyrm down, his large hands on either end of the creature leaving the part that needed bandaging free. With his thumb he softly stroked it, hoping to give some kind of comfort.
Hearing her repeat the words back to him made it all the more clear just how contradictory and disgusting they were. He nodded gravely, letting out a heavy sigh through his nose and mouth. "As far as I can tell, made wholesale by the Voice. Constructed from machinery and the magic she possesses then turned out on the world." Gideon shook his head and looked off into the distance, though his hands remained steady on the Wyrm. "There's some part of me that feels sorry for the thing. Never had a chance to be normal, to be a human. But it's a sign of a worrying new era - Ascended made instead of only converted." He was sure she could work out the implications: armies produced, their own people outnumbered.
Gideon complied, and the Wyrm didn’t protest, the calming, balming essence of the world around them helping to sanctify. She wound the bandages gently, gracefully, as she’d done hundreds of times before, a well-worn melody along her breath in mellifluous song, rhapsody and harmony intending to weave their threads around the delicate creature. It shuddered under the Priest’s touch, but made no move to flee – and so eventually the necessities were bound. “Thank you so much,” she beamed, and then he’d be able to let go, to set it amongst the enclosure.
She rose from her crouch, coiling the rest of the unused cotton back into her pockets, and listened to the rest of the speech - repressing a shudder. Her imagination could only run wild at that point, education, wisdom, and sagacity built upon legions of legends and tales, of the possibilities of all the things now coming and colliding again, a present riddled and rankled with mayhem, with bloodshed, with tyranny. She placed her hand in her pockets, pulling at the fabric from within, and she made to maneuver out of the fold. “Is…is there anything we can do to stop it?” Lena wasn’t a member of the Order, but she understood they’d been moving along in their circles and sanctions, searching for those who could help.
Give your heart and soul to charity 'Cause the rest of you
Watching Lena's gentle hands tend to the Wyrm, Gideon smiled. A microcosmic reminder of what the Order was there to do: heal and cure the natural world, sooth that which had been ruined. In the Celestine as well, beauty surrounding them, he found it quite moving; just the thing he needed for his soul after the experience at the Spire. When prompted he released the Wyrm, slowly rising his hands not to scare it. "Do you have Sear Cats in this garden? Might end up back here again..." He said, the thought coming to mind with a little laugh, as he couldn't quite imagine a Sear Cat prowling along the Celestine.
In a way it was relieving to see that Lena was as horrified as he had been; it meant he could know he wasn't over-reacting. "I'm hoping to ask Ludo tonight." He said, nodding in the direction of the Shrine.
"Sometimes there's a part of me that wonders if I could save the Ascended from their own damn curse...not those like this Demi-God. The ones who fall into it...Outlanders that show up like that." Sighing, he shook his head and shrugged. "I've heard its permanent, though. The way she ruins their bodies."
“Hm. Not lately.” A wry grin followed, understanding the implications; but each enclosure was separated, and if the little one could recover, they’d be out there amidst the world again, hopefully having earned their lesson from their previous Sear Cat lesson. A majority of the animals within were often quite young, and simply based on ignorance and ineptitude, they struggled, and under the care of the stars, ended up striving – to be released to try again.
But the far more pleasant subject matters dipped and slid away, and she stored another breath in her lungs, slowly let the air out as she stared across the expanse, mind reeling. Would Ludo be able to come up with something sufficient? She’d like to think so, in the positive reel of hope, that someone would find a way, a method, to make the realms not so dastardly, treacherous, and cruel, that the Voice’s efforts would be in vain. “Let me know if there’s any way I can help.” A smile fostered along her lips, but it seemed forced, didn’t reach her eyes; hiding from the unknown, the apprehensions twisting alongside and within.
Ruined bodies, blood no longer pumping through veins, a whole host of other cataclysms deemed unholy and seditious – her fingers turned over one another while she thought. “Has anyone ever tried?” To send them back to salvation? Or was it too far gone?
Give your heart and soul to charity 'Cause the rest of you
"The main way that we all can help is to pray and act within the Gods plans, as always." Gideon said softly, speaking with the quiet wisdom of his position. He knew that it was often difficult to know what those plans were and that many said they prayed when they didn't...but all he could do was serve as a reminder. "Forgive me the intrusion, but who is it you pray to the most, Lena? I could wager a guess, but..." He smirked, shrugging. "I'd be interested to know."
Gideon reached to gently run his fingers over a leaf, feel it's edges, the irregularities and beauty of nature. "I don't know, but I do know they've never succeeded. Too far gone, I'd think. When someone makes a decision like that, they're signing away their life." He sighed and shook his head, releasing the leaf and looking up to Lena.
"I do sometimes wonder if we're sheltered here in Stormbreak from the realities of it. The Ascended...they aren't like you or me. They're cold, changed." The memory of Osozo surfaced immediately, glowing hair and flickering features.
A nod of understanding enacted again, as she ensured enclosures were shut, locked, and they continued along their walk of the Celestine – her eyes going to other creatures stirring within, listening to their needs, their yearnings, stopping only to fill more water from her bucket at a unicorn foal. Maintaining of faith – something she’d always had abundance of. Something gifted and enacted since infancy, grounded in her allegiance to the Old Gods, to their wisdom and sagacity and kindness. “I can do that.” Another light smile, tucked along her mouth, residual, familiar, something to place there when a frown wouldn’t do. His inquiry made her blink, then laugh; she always thought her loyalty and devotion obvious. “To Frey, of the nature side, and Rae. Though I am partial to Safrin as well.” Her head tilted, airy wonder, before returning her attention back to the foal waiting for the water. “What about you?”
Too far gone; nothing to be done, like a death sentence, a warrant enclosed upon broken, rigid, rendered souls. Something in those notions made her shudder, a soft shiver through shoulder blades, while she gave the unicorn a soft pat, and stepping away to let it have its fill. “I’m glad we have a sanctuary here.” But what about the rest of the world? Did they matter?
She bit her lip and pondered, closing the gates behind her. “And what about the Outlanders? The ones that had no choice?” Much like the Abandoned, born or twisted into their roles? The complications spiraled against her, and Lena didn’t know how to feel about them. Pity? Sympathy? For things that would’ve have what they did?
Give your heart and soul to charity 'Cause the rest of you
Gideon looked with passing interest at each of the creatures as they appeared about them, smiling at those he liked. Perhaps it was inappropriate for a Priest meant to love all of the world the Gods had provided and cultivated around them, but he certainly had favourites. The same could be said for Deities; he nodded at Lena's preference, as it made sense, but laughed when the question was directed back to himself. "Well, I pray to all Gods, as the year goes on. However, if I am honest...my prayers to Ludo are always special to me."
He nodded gravely about appreciation of their city, where Accepted were the only, well, accepted people; it was a comfort, to know he lived in a pure place unaffected by the ills of the modern world. "Yes, we are fortunate. Even other places that have not been connected to the Grounds until recently, such as the Citadel...they have been infiltrated. An Ascended was the Warden, for a time." What a terrible fate for a City; as much as he was not thrilled about the new Abandoned leader, at least it was an improvement.
The question of the Outlander Ascended...it was a difficult one, and one he'd struggled with himself. Gideon sighed and shrugged, resigning them to their fate within his mind. "Not all parts of the process we hope to enact will be pleasant. Those who did not have a choice in the matter...well. I pity them, in a sense, though the Voice must have seen something in them to bring them over here already corrupted. Perhaps she has a way to know which are susceptible to it. I can see no solution other than to treat them the same as the Natural Ascended."
While she often included Ludo in her prayers, as was customary in the anthems, she’d yet to frequent a completely reverent semblance to the herald of death. Perhaps it was the subject matter, despite Mort’s gentle ambience, despite the indication that all souls would once more come together, or perhaps she simply hadn’t given it the right amount of time and dedication, caught up in the throngs of nature. “What do you ask it?” Not to pry, not to be privy to private thoughts, but a gesture of faith and curiosity, the lightest of grins remaining, and maybe the slightest of teasing mannerisms, ethereal laughter bounding and exuding as they crossed back over pathways marked by stars.
Lena knew of the other worlds – but hadn’t been – so she could only nod at the circumstances surrounding the Citadel, eyes flickering down to the ground, mind pulsing in apprehensive coils and notes. “What do you think draws them to her?” The notions of power? A lack of pain? She couldn’t quite fathom it – but she’d been Attuned, graced by her gods to walk amongst their flora and fauna, raised to assist, to prosper in the life beneath their precision and knowledge. What would someone yearn for in the Voice’s reach? Why would they choose to go to her?
At his sigh though, she knew the inquiry to be heavy, looming, weighty; because some hadn’t made a choice at all. Because some were destined to merely be that way by misfortune alone. To treat them like all the others seemed horrific, but then – she didn’t know what else to do. “It’s a shame they cannot be changed.” Reformed. Renewed. “What if…,” and here she ceased, pausing, uncertain if the thought should even be entertained. “What if we could turn some of them against her?”
Give your heart and soul to charity 'Cause the rest of you
"When I was younger, all the usual questions." Gideon took on a humble, nostalgic smirk, thinking back to the anxieties of youth and all he had once sought to know from the Gods he now served for nothing more than the joy of it. "How it was to die, what would happen when I got there, how souls are formed...now, though...we usually discuss how to deal with the Ascended, though I find that Ludo also has the most patience for answering questions in any variety of topics it finds interesting. Provide the right entertaining offering, and it stays for quite some time." He'd had longer conversations with Ludo than with any other God, even though he'd spoken to all the Heralds throughout his time as a Priest.
Her next question was one that made him sigh before he gave the answer, for he knew it was depressing and hopeless. "Power, I suppose. Immortality. Maybe they fall into her myth that tradition has fallen and it is time for a new way. Regardless of the reason, their souls are soon corrupted and changed and their bodies ruined beyond repair."
The suggestion to turn Ascended against their Goddess was certainly a novel one. Gideon stopped, looking at Lena with a slight tilt to his head. "And how do you propose we do that?"
