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!
Blinking at the roar of the dragon and the sudden series of shouts from Melita and commands from Jack, Saiden peered ahead to try and see what the commotion was. Lacking the spyglass or height or supernaturally enhanced vision, he unsurprisingly saw nothing. "Reel what in?" As he called out, he tapped into his magic once more.
This time, he didn't just stop his wind from one direction, he reversed its direction entirely. He poured as much power into the air magic as he could, doing everything within his power to slow the Ark down. Hopefully it'd be enough to avoid whatever had gotten everyone's knickers in a twist. "Damn it Jack, I'm a cook, not a windmill," he muttered under his breath, though he was following the orders of course.
Saiden uses his air magic to reverse the direction of the wind in the sails to try and slow the Ark down.
Air manipulation: Can manipulate the air. Must be within a 30ft radius and allows the user to levitate medium-large sized objects up to 5ft above the ground . Control is excellent.
Type: Grey | Rank: Upgraded
He scans from above, head craning a bit at Melita’s calls — the edge of a wing ruffling with the wind as he soars above and off to the side of the Ark, about as much of a confirmation he can give in this form. And that’s when he sees it, the entangled cloud wyrms thrashing in the ocean, he diverts his course. A bellowing call leaves his throat, a sound sure to distract, and he begins to notice that the Ark turns to face it.
Good.
But curiosity gets the better of him, nearing the water now that he’s sure the Ark is following, before talons reach the surface of the waves a ways away from the rest of it to not invade the space, shifting as he reaches the cold surface of the waves into his orca shift — diving below the waves and heading back to the cloud wyrms, checking to see if they’re caught on anything.
Sunjata calls to the Ark to alert them, before diving into the water and shifting into his orca shift to see if they’re trapped by anything other than themselves!
in the moonlight
SuNJATA
No permission needed for power play!
Feel free to use magic/force on Sunjata, without killing him <3
Sunjata speaks with an Australian accent and has a passive magic that makes him produce a subtle scent that matches exactly to whatever those around him most desire him to smell like.
see the sunset turning red let all be quiet in your head and look about
Well, that didn't take long.
You look up when the dragon roars and Jack starts shouting, peering into the water and catching sight of scales among the waver. "Wyrms," you huff, feeling sorry for the poor things, idiots that they are. "How'd they manage somethin' like this?"
You make your way over to the railing, grabbing a length of net as you go. The dragon-governer-biter has already dropped into the water and turned into an orca (show-off), and as the Ark adjusts trajectory to head toward the wyrms you square your shoulders, tying off the end of the net and readying to throw it overboard. "Try'n get 'em inta this so we can haul 'em out!" you call to Jata, yeeting the rope into the water (hopefully) near the wyrms.
Zeph gets a net and throws it overboard to scoop out the wyrms
There are times when the unseen can be even more dangerous than what our eyes behold
All good ideas, but things are naut going to go the way you've planned. It seems the placement of the cloud wyrms has been entirely orcastrated by the ghost whales below—whales Sunjata is going to quickly see as he shifts and dives below the surface. The wyrms are tied together, bones and other reef-trash used to tether their bodies. Deep in the dark are two ghost whales, one of which rockets toward the orca. It slams against his side, shoving him beneath the water. Of course above, none of this can be seen.
With her momentum at nearly full-speed, Saiden isn't going to be able to slow the Ark enough. She'll come aside the wyrms but will sail by, causing Zephyr to throw his net out onto absolutely nothing. The best course of action is likely for the Ark to make circles around the wyrms, or take another turn to let her fully come to a stop.
The ghost whale not having targeted Sunjata now streaks toward the surface, the bone-y cage of its skull bashing against the hull of the Ark. It doesn't surface, but seasoned sailors like Jack will be absolutely shore to recognize the sound of bone against wood.
Your randomly chosen order is: Melita, Jack, Saiden, Sunjata, Zephyr. Please post within 48 hours of the person before you. And to ensure that nothing is missed, please include a summary of your actions at the bottom of your post, including the description of any magic/items/feats that are being utilized!
Like some child possessed, the beast howls in my veins
Gods, there was suddenly too much going on.
Cloud wyrms, her uncle shifting, nets being thrown, magic being cast, and there she stood, incapable of assisting – save for proffering warnings or suggestions. If Saiden was too busy with air currents, would he be able to strive for the wyrms? “Could you scoop them out with your water magic?” Meaning the creatures stuck along the waves – not the ones suddenly careening into the ship. She’d seen him wield it enough times – but wasn’t certain the stretch or limit of incantations. A thought, when she actually had one.
Otherwise, she set to grind her teeth when the Ark was rammed hard; and the significance of seasons before mauled into her. “Not again,” she muttered under breath, as if daring to provoke the fiends, eyes going towards Sunjata briefly, assuming he’d be out of there soon. Out of range.
Then the youth turned, shifted, her cannons towards the water – intending to fire where they’d felt the ricochet, the resounding machinations, of those damned whales.
--
Melita suggests scooping the cloud wyrms out with water magic to Saiden.
She also tries to fire her cannons at the ghost whale hitting the Ark.
It all happens quickly - and Jack curses himself for his own bad luck. He's not tangled personally with ghost whales other than last season, and he hadn't realised they might be so smart. More fool him. "She makes a good point," he calls to Saiden, having to resist the urge to level a glare at the other man's comment, however whispered he thinks it's been.
He leaves the cook to deal with the water, barking out commands for the Ark to stay circling the wyrms, beckoning for Zephyr to come and help out as well. Melita already has the cannons covered, and whilst they'd lost a net, they've got bigger things to worry about now. "We keep moving - grab the wyrms and we sail!" he shouts.
Jack calls for the Ark to keep circling the wyrms to see if Saiden can try and scoop them out of the water. He asks Zeph to help man the ship, while Melita fires her cannons at the whales. He can't see Jata and is unable to communicate with him.
As Melita and Jack's calls rang out over the decks, Saiden rolled his eye. "I can try," he responded after discarding a half-dozen ill-advised replies, inclduing a quip about the trouble they'd had last time there were cloud wyrms on deck. Releasing his air magic, he gave the sails one last look and sighed, wondering if the natural wind would be enough to carry them out of the range of the ghost whales.
Then he dashed to the rail nearest the ghost whales. Making sure he had a firm grip on it, he yelled down to Sunjata. "Attempting to bring the wyrms up!" Whether or not the governor heeded the Hali didn't matter, but he figured the other man should know. Then Saiden stretched out with his water magic and tried to scoop the wyrms up and onto the deck.
Saiden moves to the rail closest to the cloud wyrms, takes a firm grip on the rail, and tries to scoop the wyrms up with water magic.
Water manipulation: Can manipulate water. Must be within a 30ft radius. Control is excellent
Type: Light | Rank: Upgraded
i am on a journey to discover what it's like to be free of all my demons
He dips below the surface, taking a deep breath as he does. And thank the gods for that — because he dips below the waves and everything breaks loose. Ghostly creatures of bone and sinew rise in a steel vision, the shark bite scarred orca having little to no time to do anything before one rams into him, dragging him deeper.
He has a few thoughts at first, attempting to evade the ghost whale the best he can to rise to the surface, the Flood shifts from orca to dragon, hoping that his wings might grant him some buoyancy, hoping that his armor might replace the soft flesh of blubber, hoping he might be able to get out of the water and back to the skies again.
Sunjata shifts to dragon form to try and intimidate the ghost whales and to get to the surface so he can fly out of the water!
SUNJATA
No permission needed for power play!
Feel free to use magic/force on Sunjata, without killing him <3
Sunjata speaks with an Australian accent and has a passive magic that makes him produce a subtle scent that matches exactly to whatever those around him most desire him to smell like.
see the sunset turning red let all be quiet in your head and look about
Oh well fuck. Sailor you may not be, but you recognize the telltale sign of ghost whales as well as any of the rest of 'em, your skin going appropriately pale. The tied-off net is left behind in favor of responding to Jack's call for aid, though hopefully the rope will help create drag and slow this beauty down.
There's a very expressive grunt exchanged between you, as well as a meaningful look, and of course the psychic bullshit you're not aware of. "We'll keep 'er afloat," you promise Jack, nudging him away from the helm of the Ark and taking the wheel into your own rough hands. He's got a whole crew to boss around and get in position. You can manage the helm for a bit.
Gritting your teeth against the strain (and high-key elated by the grand power that is steering a fucking ship), you haul the wheel around to get the Ark turning so that the whales are better in Melita's sight (starboard? We're gonna say starboard. It's a better word than port).
Zeph takes over the helm and tries to turn the ark so that the cannons are facing the ghost whales
There are times when the unseen can be even more dangerous than what our eyes behold
Melita 's cannon' fires into the water. Whether it's successful she'll have no idea given that the creature hasn't surfaced..whether it hits Sunjata below, she'll have no idea either. As Jack barks commands and Saiden white-knuckles on the side of the boat, nothing exciting happens. The cook is able to raise the water around the wyrms, but given the strength of his magic, the length of the two near-dragons, and the weight holding them down below the surface, Saiden will realize fairly quickly he's not equipped for this sort of thing. And then there's Zephyr, steering the boat around despite not having a single idea where the whales are below.
Having more than enough time below the waters to plan its next attack, the ghost whale which had targeted the Ark does so again. Its head strikes the bottom of the hull causing the Ark to rock back and forth as far below deck, the boards groan their disapproval.
The other whale, intent on Sunjata, continues to follow him. Not deterred by his shifting beneath the water, it opens its massive jaws to try and bite at the now-dragon's tail to drag it back into the depths. Missing, it instead bludgeons its massive face against the dragon's body, hindering Jata's attempt to fly from the water (which, given how wet his wings are and the utter lack of anything with which to press off from, is going to be quite difficult).
I'm going to treat the Ark like a D&D vehicle encounter. If Jack gives the "Full Steam Ahead" command on his turn, I'll give the Ark extra speed. If he gives the "Take Aim" command, I'll give advantage to any Ark-weaponry used. For every crew member who steers/tends to the sails, I'll add extra speed for that turn. You can still act individually of course.
Your randomly chosen order is: Melita, Jack, Saiden, Sunjata, Zephyr. Please post within 48 hours of the person before you. And to ensure that nothing is missed, please include a summary of your actions at the bottom of your post, including the description of any magic/items/feats that are being utilized!
Like some child possessed, the beast howls in my veins
This wasn’t going well, and they were running out of efficient tactics. No enchantments for the wyrms. No ability to see if she’d been successful with the ghost whales, though judging by the way the Ark rocked and jeered, the cannon fire hadn’t subdued them. They’d be stuck and then doomed if they stayed much longer, and the air of frustration bristled over her – irritated that she’d have to abandon her post.
Or that she couldn’t fire off the arrows infused with electricity, since her uncle had somehow managed to get himself dragon-fied and stuck in the ocean. “Can we get him out of there?” She yelled, hands cupped around her mouth to anyone who could hear – half-tempted to do it herself, if she could physically lift a frickin’ beast and hurl it out of the fathoms. There was the pondering too, if the rest of the crew wouldn’t care, and she’d be forced to do something drastic to save Sunjata. The name to call was nearly on her lips.
Instead, her jaw audibly clicked back together, a snarl rippling through her form, as she went to tend to the sails, gaze constantly watching, so they could potentially evade the ongoing shitstorm.
It's going nowhere fast, and Jack is nowhere near dumb enough to risk his ship and the lives of his crew, and the Governor (hE gUeSsEs) against two ghost whales and gods know what the fuck else. "Turn us about," he barks to Zephyr and the rest of the (lol NPC) crew. "Abandon the wyrms - we outrun the whales!"
To Melita - who is already on the move, he is glad to see - and Saiden, this means helping the Ark to gain speed however they can. And for the captain? Well, he's on net duty.
Hastily tying a length of rope around his waist and making sure it's tightly tethered to the Ark, in case he gets flung overboard, Jack pulls in the net Zeph had thrown, only to try and redirect it to where he thinks the dragon-orca-Sunjata is doing whatever he's doing. "Oi!" he bellows across the waves. "Get the fuck to the net and we'll haul you in, you stupid prick!"
Ever the gentleman, Jack.
Jack instructs them to go Full Speed Ahead, and plans to retreat and outrun the whales. He also throws the net towards Sunjata, so he can grab it and get pulled back aboard.
like a secret or a sin
JACK
Jack being an Abandoned is common knowledge these days, however his Telepathy remains a well-kept secret:
Magic: Passive Telepathy | The user can read the surface thoughts and emotions of those within a 30ft radius. Control is excellent. Note: "Thoughts and emotions" include anything written in a character's narration in a post.
Type: Grey | Rank: Mastered
Also branded with a small star tattoo beneath his left eye.
Nodding at Jack's orders, Saiden pushed off the rail and returned to the sail. "Fine by me. The wyrms are too heavy to rescue anyway. More like worms." He glanced at the captain as he passed. "Get it? Cause they're fish food?" It was a terrible pun but the cook grinned nevertheless.
Raising his hands, he called upon his air magic to fill the sails once more. The wind rose, filling the cloth and caused it to billow. "Didn't see the guv'na down there while I was peeking over the railing. Too dark and too much roiling water, ye know? He might be a goner." He called it out for everyone to hear, though he was not particularly perturbed by that notion.
Saiden informs the crew that he didn't spot Sunjata underwater. Saiden also heads over to the sails and uses his air magic to fill them to make the ship move as fast away from the ghost whales as possible.
Air manipulation: Can manipulate the air. Must be within a 30ft radius and allows the user to levitate medium-large sized objects up to 5ft above the ground . Control is excellent.
Type: Grey | Rank: Upgraded
i am on a journey to discover what it's like to be free of all my demons
It’s a good thing Sunjata doesn’t particularly hear the conversation above, the water able to drown out everything aside from a thundering heartbeat that has his ears ringing — the swish of a tail, the near bite from the ghost whale. He thinks he might have gotten close to the surface before he’s rattled again, maw snapping in the water as he’s rammed into again, pulled from the surface.
He hears the net in the distance, splashing into the water, wheezing a bit with lungs that struggle against the constant barrage, Sunjata tries to change course, trying to reach for the surface and the net to grab onto, kicking out a clawed back foot to hopefully slash the ghost whale as he does.
Dragon!Jata tries to get to the surface again to grab the net, kicking out with his back feet to hopefully claw at the ghost whale on him!
Using Citizenship Ability for the last attack:
Torchline: Torchline has taught you to survive her weather and her terrain. Once per PQ/PQ+/KQ/Drop, you can 'shrug off' half the damage from ONE non-lethal attack. (In order to use this ability, you must put a clear note in the bottom of your post immediately following the attack you want to 'shrug off').
SUNJATA
No permission needed for power play!
Feel free to use magic/force on Sunjata, without killing him <3
Sunjata speaks with an Australian accent and has a passive magic that makes him produce a subtle scent that matches exactly to whatever those around him most desire him to smell like.
