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!
Gliding over the water and grass as if it belonged to her (and really, of all the people to claim ownership, the Witch was probably one of the most legitimate), Mildew softly stepped through puddles and wet mud without a flinch, looking carefully to the ground with calm brown eyes for things only she knew to look for. The discarded bud from a dead flower, the shell of a creature that had left it in the dark; ingredients for her designs.
Occasionally she would kneel and speak in a hushed tone to something on the ground too small to be seen from a distance, a worm or a beetle, small companions that she would allow to climb onto her hands if they wished to travel a distance with her, those coming for especially long journeys resting in the basket on her arm, hand-woven and containing her treasures. Her long brown dress, caked in mud and flowers, stray pieces of grass, somehow did not smell despite its dishevelled appearance, and even her hair full of feathers, mud and other debris of the swamp managed to keep a glamourous bounce around her face. It would be clear this was someone long involved in the Wilds, almost a part of it entirely.
A noise in the distance drew her attention, something new and not of the animals or nature she knew. They said the storms had gone...bringing a hand up to cup her mouth, she called: "Who's there? If you're hiding you may as well come out, darling, because I will find you."
For all the beauty and allure of the tropical haven that was Torchline, Aurelia had grown more and more curious to see the rest of Caido. She had no intention of actually leaving. That wasn't even a thought to cross her mind, especially after... well, ahem, after her agreement with Jack, of course. It was just a matter of being good for her word, no other reason!
The Grounds were... eerily like the city she was born in. A bleak, grayness seemed to take the color out of everything and some of the citizens were clearly troubled. A few of them regarded her with guarded suspicion but, others were more welcoming. Lots of Ascendeds there, too, she would take note of. As she gathered materials and met some new people, she kept hearing something about 'storms'. It was often excitedly (or warily) followed by words like 'new' and 'unexplored'. Gaining an interest, she went to go see it for herself; this new, unexplored place that had been unveiled by the passing of the storms.
Everything she'd heard about it appeared true, even from a distance. It was a vast, brand new region, teeming with life and mystery and... probably lurking with danger at each turn. A few people scoured the outer limits of it, peering around and jotting down notes in little journals - researchers, probably, trying to err on the side of caution before diving right into the Wilds.
Even as she passed by them, they gave her words of caution. Who knew what could be out there, watching, waiting? Did it want to help or harm? Aurelia was more than prepared for such a task, though. She knew places like this were not for the faint of heart. Anything could happen. But, in the end, this looked more familiar to her, more like her world, than any other place in all of Caido. She longed for the rush of being in the wilderness again.
Ignoring their calls, she placed her hand on the hilt of her hunting knife and crossed that invisible threshold, took that brave, first step.
She came well-armed; a set of three throwing knives were tucked into a specially made pocket that wrapped around her thigh, her hunter's knife (with its own sheath) was tied securely to her belt, and she wore tooled bracers on each arm. As for her clothes, they did well enough to keep her skin protected from irritating plants or wandering insects. She wore gloves that expanded all the way up to her elbows and banded pants that gave her plenty of mobility - should she have to do a lot of climbing or running. Her shirt was more lackluster, a loose-fitting white garment with not much use other than to keep her torso covered. Tied to her pack was a water pouch of sorts, and within it were a few various materials and tools that might come in handy should she get into some trouble. After the incident in Apopo, she tried to be a little more prepared for the call of adventure that she sometimes heeded. She was not invincible, after all.
Aurelia made it pretty far, considering. She traveled stealthily for the most part, which would prove to be both quicker and safer. She didn't aim to disturb the area around her, only to observe it. Her fingers would not touch anything they didn't need to, not even to trace along large, purple palm leaves or to prod a strange-looking bug. The area all around her was fascinating, even if she didn't indulge in her curiosities. She didn't want to overstep.
Hours passed like that. Finally, she broke through the treeline, coming to a halt and panting like a dog. Still not back to my old self, she thought, a subtle shake of her head in disappointment. She leaned down to rest her hands on her knees, bent over as her hot breath rolled through the air around her cheeks. It would've normally taken her far longer and far more difficulty to get this tired. Gotta muscle through it.
As her eyes traced across the distant landscape, she was suddenly struck. Giant, natural pillars towered across the rolling hills. Even from far away they stood like miniature mountains, provoking both awe and fear. Unease spiked in her heart and it had her pressing back into the shelter of the treeline, which was - truly - where she felt most comfortable anyway. Before she did turn away, she relished the feeling of the wind as it dried her sweat. It brought with it a familiar taste and smell; salt. She turned her path towards that familiar (well, sort of) ocean.
She soon found a waterway leading back towards that endless source, and she followed it further out. Her footsteps tried to be careful but, in the end, she really was fatiguing. Even taking sips of water wasn't enough to combat the tremble starting in her legs. As her fingers, normally steady, fumbled to cap the canteen, she saw something move in her peripheral. Her eyes snapped up and she froze, lowering her posture. What was that? Her gaze raked around, trying to find the movement again.
Distracted, her hold slipped after she secured the cap on the canteen. It went thumping down a small ridge, disappearing into a deep mud puddle with an obnoxious splash.
"Shit!" she hissed under her breath, lowering herself immediately so that she was below the brush around her. Her eyes scrunched close in frustration, flinching at the soft stir of nature around her as little mammals and insects fled from her abruptness.
A voice broke through the silence that grew in that pause, traveling across the water around them and echoing into Aurelia's shocked ears. Her eyes snapped open, drowned in every bit of her bewilderment. Her brows furrowed, pressed forth in a hard line above her gaze, as she registered what they'd said.
Slowly, she stood up straighter, above the multi-colored leaves and flowers all around her. They flourished in the wake of all this water. Even on her patch of dry land, Aurelia was anything but dry.. Her hair fell flatly beside her jawline, weighed down by the water. Her boots were caked with fresh mud and even her pants had started to get splattered with it. Her shirt, given that it was white, was plagued by sweat and twigs and leaves and dirt and - well, it wouldn't be white after this, let's just leave it at that.
But her gaze found the weilder of the voice, standing there proudly. There was no 'as if', this woman belonged to the swamps around them. She looked as though she'd come straight up from the mud, from the leaves and the moss, the bits and pieces of life and death that clung to her. Bones, feathers, flowers...
Aurelia could only stare for a moment, sweat dripping down her own muddied face. It left lighter streaks across her cheekbones, revealing the tanned skin beneath. Swallowing the dryness in her throat away, she finally spoke. But Aurelia felt like her voice was so quiet, it might've been lost in the murmurs of the swamp around them. "Who are you?" It wasn't a demand. No, not at all. She couldn't have stirred a challenge into her tone because she was so damn awestruck by everything that she was seeing. The last thing she expected to stumble upon was a woman dressed by the world and her intrigue gripped her.
Well, it seemed whoever was there was smart enough, because Mildew began to see a figure standing up. Taking a few steps forward, she leaned back and smiled as she saw Aurelia rise out of the mud, unable to help the couple of breaths of laughter that passed her lips (and not trying to help them). "You must be very confident, dear, to come into my wilds, fall in the mud, then ask who I am." She commented, chin raised in superiority, though she quickly changed, laughing again (a sound like bells in the wind) and reaching down to help Aurelia out of the mud.
"I've had a lot of names over the years. The Wilds Witch, Pythonis...now I suppose I'm going by Mildew, though - I chose it myself. One of my favourite things." She fixed Aurelia with a look, as if challenging her to make any disapproving comments about the choice of name. "And who are you?"
The woman strode forward, calling Aurelia confident for being in her wilds. Aurelia moved to step back but, stopped. A feeling of fight or flight spiked her heartrate. She balled her hands up into fists, pressing her fingers against the sweat and mud that pooled in her palms. The woman's prowess and mysterious existence made her worry for her own safety, suddenly, and she realized she wasn't brave. She was a fool.
Before she could even grit her teeth and work up the courage to tell this woman to stay back, laughter swept around her like wind. There was a musical tone in it that was soothing and charming. Suddenly, the mysterious woman, born of the wilds, extended out a hand to help her up. It made Aurelia's fists unclench and her eyes widen, enchanted. Who are you? She almost asked it a second time but, the words were lost on her tongue.
Trusting this stranger like the fool she was, Aurelia accepted the hand and pulled herself out of the mud. She gazed at her with a wonder that wasn't that much unlike a child's, hanging on her every word. Mildew would likely notice the trembling fatigue of Aurelia's muscles in that moment.
"Mildew," Aurelia echoed, letting out a long breath through her nose.
"My name is Aurelia," she answered back, looking down, "I'm nobody, an Outlander; I'm from another world." She lifted her gaze back up, glancing around until settling back on Mildew, "I wanted to see what was out here for myself. They said the storms cleared and nobody's been able to come here until now... Have you been here that whole time?" She tilted her head in concern.
Pleased to see Aurelia showing the proper respect and awe as she took in a Demi-God's name, Mildew nodded happily and held her hand until she was steady, then stepped back; if her feet landed in mud it would not seem to bother her at all, Mildew not reacting as it squished through her bare toes and splattered up her legs (which were already well-crusted in the environment).
"Dear, don't introduce yourself as a nobody. That's a self-fulfilling prophecy." She advised, crossing her arms but not wearing an unkind expression; the advice was genuinely meant. "One of those 'Outlander's... I've heard of it." Whether she approved or not was left for Aurelia to decide, Mildew herself not sure yet.
As for the storms, all she could do was laugh. "I was here hundreds of years before the storms and I'll be here hundreds after. I liked the quiet, really. Don't worry about me; I'm exactly where I want to be." Mildew had missed seeing Frey, but other than that the barrier's existence and the blocking off of other areas had not affected her too much. She was the swamp, at the end of the day, and knew her place.
She was quietly grateful for the steadying hand that was given to her, finding a more stable place to stand on some firmer ground. Her boots still sank into the mud, of course, but not as deep. Mildew, on the other hand, was quite comfortable with sinking into the loose mud. "Yeah..." Aurelia murmured with a thoughtful dart of her eyes, an acceptance of the advice.
Aurelia's brows furrowed and then, suddenly raised at the realization that Mildew was no ordinary woman. Even for a swamp witch, she was different - well, from those that Aurelia had met, anyway. To live for hundreds of years... that was both awe-inspiring and terrifying. So, was she a goddess, then?
"I can't imagine how hard that must be.." She said, the words slipping out before she could filter her thoughts. She pursed them immediately, grimacing at herself.
"Sorry... I couldn't... imagine living for so long. And being alone for all that time..." Aurelia's brows threaded together and she frowned in an altogether apologetic, yet curiously concerned look. "Are you one of the gods? Or, a herald?"
"Hard? Can't you see where you are? How could it be hard to stay in the most beautiful place on Caido?" Mildew asked with a laughing smile on her face, gesturing about to the mud and the reeds, the grey-yellow sky, each barren branch and cold gust of wind as delightful to her as a fully grown forest with a warm sun might be to others. "What's harder is all of you outside being kept out until now. I pity you."
There'd probably be more coming into her swamps soon, wanting favours and trinkets. It had been a long time since she'd made those and Mildew would have to practice, but there was excitement in her at that; a chance to flex her powers again, to serve the humans as was her task from Frey.
Aurelia seemed sweet enough and Mildew tilted her head from side to side at the final question, kneeling down to pick up a beetle from the ground that had flipped over and letting it climb over her hands. "I'm not a human, dear, but not quite a God either. Somewhere in-between, I suppose." Idly she turned her wrist, watchng her new little friend scurry between her fingers. "I help people with their problems. Or at least, I used to, before you all went away."
Aurelia's concerned frown turned into a considerate look at Mildew's very true point. Following the gesture, she lifted up her gaze to look around at the treetops, at the sky through their branches, at the bugs and critters and reeds and mud that seemed to gather toward Mildew - and, consequently, Aurelia. Even Torchline didn't compare to this place, if Aurelia was truly honest.
She looked back down as Mildew picked up a beetle, watched as it climbed around her hand. Aurelia, having not forgotten about her own exhaustion, kneeled down as well. She reached over to retrieve her canteen from the mud, watching as the wet brown liquid dripped from it. She fastened it back to her backpack.
Her green eyes became thoughtful, lifting up to meet Mildew's dark gaze, though it was locked onto the scurrying beetle.
"My world looked like this everywhere," she commented, "I guess that's why I wanted to see this place. I miss it, even though it was messed up and all it tried to do was kill me every step of the way. This place is better, though... I feel like I can actually breathe," she sighed, long and drawn out, expression somber. "I'm not a nobody but, I'm not who I used to be - and I don't know what I will be. I wish I could stay out here, like you. Free, helping the things around you."
Watching Aurelia idly as she let the beetle explore her hands, Mildew let out a quiet breath of laughter at the mud dripping from her canteen; she reached into the bag on her hip, well-hidden in her skirts and made of the same earthy colours, and brought out a glass jar filled with a cloudy yellow liquid. "Would you like this juice, dear?" She asked, holding it out towards her. If Aurelia drank, she would find it was surprisingly tangy and sweet, in contrast to the lands it must have come from.
"There are plenty things out here that might try to kill you...you were lucky." Mildew said easily, as if this thought was no more than a mere passing idea for her (and really, it wasn't; if she cared for every traveller coming by, she would have broken her heart a hundred times by now). "Though you are unlikely to come into any dangers here. The lands know me too well to throw their attacks at me."
Seemingly, something Aurelia said was amusing; Mildew laughed loud and shook her head, curls of hair bouncing around her. "Who knows who they will be! You can't expect to know your future...or at least, not on your own." Her lips parted in a grin and Mildew, now sensing where she might be able to get some business, asked: "Would you like to know it? Your future, that is. I can help with that, darling."
The juice presented to her came as a bit of a surprise. Suppose even the demi-gods need to eat and drink thanks to their humanity. She hesitantly took the bottle in her hands, giving it a gentle swish and watching as small particles stirred. The yellow color was reminiscent of pee, if she was being honest, so she gave it a sniff to confirm that it was not.
Aurelia was, typically, a careful person - even if the risks she took would indicate the opposite. Some things need to be done and some ventures can't be ignored, after all. Who better to take charge than oneself? But Mildew seemed genuine and non-threatening thus far. If it turned out this was poison, well, some lessons are hard-learned. Aurelia took a small sip. Tangy..
"What fruit is this made from?"
At Mildew's smooth, cautioning words, Aurelia lifted her brows and leveled her gaze back upon the swamp-dweller. She opened her mouth to speak, to promise that she'd be more careful, that she might've guessed that already, but her lips closed almost as soon as they parted because Mildew had begun to laugh. At first, Aurelia almost felt offended. The words following pulled Aurelia in, though. Her eyes widened, first, at the insinuation, and then at the offer.
Perplexed, Aurelia said, "I-I don't know. I mean, yes," and her excitement became more palpable with the utterance of that word, her legs shifting underneath her and her eyes igniting with that internal flame. It doused somewhat, though, "but- I'm afraid I don't have much to offer you in exchange for... what you're offering... Is there anything I could do for you?" If there was anything Aurelia didn't like, it was unpaid debts. Especially to those like Mildew, who only sought to help her. Although, she still wasn't sure what this offer entailed, exactly.
Mildew watched Aurelias suspicion of the juice with a bemused smile on her face. If she was in the right kind of mood, she could be offended by that kind of hesitation, but as it was she just found it funny that the human apparently couldn't even trust a drink when thirsty. "It's mostly apples...some berries that grow around here too." Her eyes drifted off for a moment, then snapped back to Aurelia along with a mischievous smirk. "Oh, and bird shit scraped off the roof. Secret ingredient."
It was up to Aurelia to decide if it was a joke or not.
The acceptance of her offer drew a more genuine smile, one that could be described as menacing if one chose to see it that way. "Oh, you don't need to pay me, sweet. The joy is in seeing the cards. Now...if you want anything to fix your fortunes, that's a different story, but maybe it'll be great, hm?" She knelt down and picked up a last few plants, letting the beetle on her fingers wander off into the undergrowth. "You'll need to come with me to my home. Quite the honour; no human has been in there for over three hundred years."
01-02-2021, 10:10 PM (This post was last modified: 01-02-2021, 10:10 PM by Aurelia.)
Aurelia
Aurelia's expression curled into an incredulous smirk, promptly handing back the juice. "Gives it a real kick," she jested in return, all in good humor of course. Deep down, she hoped it really was a joke.
With fervor, she rose up from her spot knelt on the ground. The shaky protest in her muscles was mostly ignored as she moved to stretch her arms and legs with the first few steps she took after the other woman. The smile on Mildew's face did little to perturb her, Aurelia's own exhaustion working in favor of the offer. Even if she were more physically in shape, less fatigued, she wouldn't have been so bold as to outright decline. She might've been a little more careful to accept, but instead she simply said, "Very well. Lead the way."
As they went, Aurelia made sure to keep up with her normal routine of being non-destructive of the life around her. Sometimes it's important to leave a trail in the wild, to better follow your steps back. But in Aurelia's line of work, that wasn't the case. Out of habit and her own comfort - and, now, especially out of respect - she tread lightly. "So... How do you do it? You said something about cards?" The questions came across as more casual, but she was genuinely interested.
"Ha!" Mildew grinned, pleased that Aurelia joked with her; the swift return of the juice did imply that she was worried it was more than a joke, but the Demi Goddess took some mercy, taking it back and having a sip herself before putting it back in her bag.
Mildew didn't seem to have to focus on not leaving a trail after herself, the reeds and plants of the land almost parting and re-merging as she passed with little effort, creatures of the swamp either respectfully sitting aside or wilfully going with her, those small enough taking short rides on her shoulder or gripping onto her feet. She glanced back, not needing to see the way she was going, knowing it well.
"I can't give you all my secrets, or anyone could do it, right darling?" She laughed lightly, a hand over her mouth, but did concede to something of an answer: "Truthfully it's hard to explain to a short-lived mortal...no offense. In essence, I have a sense of you, and the cards help me to mould and guide that sense into answers." As they slipped between two trees, suddenly before them would be her hut, a wooden structure with a thatched roof and endless trinkets hanging from every inch, the building almost difficult to take in all at once from all the colours and lights.
The stairs creaked as they headed up and through the door, which felt surprisingly sturdy despite it's rough wood construction; inside was a homely two-room interior, the door to the second room shut off. The first had a fire in one side, encased in a very old metal frame that lifted the smoke up into a chimney in the roof, endless shelves of bottles, ingredients and utensils; the walls were coated in herbs and ingredients, each noted with a small label listing their name in almost-illegible handwriting.
Mildew gestured towards a pile of cushions in one corner for Aurelia to sit, then went to a shelf on the far wall, taking out a case full of hundreds of cards and sifting through them, apparently taking at random a pack of about 80. "Try to get yourself in a relaxed state of mind, hun." She encouraged, leaning over to the fire and throwing a herb onto it which would envelop the room with a heavy, sleepy scent and light blue fog.
Aurelia was focused on how small frogs and other creatures were clinging to Mildew's feet when the witch turned to answer her question. Her green eyes lifted back up to the smooth, youthful face of the woman - a surprising trait for a long-lived immortal. "Oh... right..." was all that she could say in response, reflecting on the answer given. A sense that was turned into answers, which had to do with one's future.
The concept confused Aurelia but, she was willing to see if it might work; if she might be able to confirm whether or not her future in Caido was worth fighting for - or if she should just give up while she's ahead. Or... whatever. She wasn't entirely sure what she wanted to know, what she wanted from her future, her mind frazzling at such a broad question.
The two of them breached the twin trees, standing before a hut. Aurelia paused every now and then to take it all in; decorations that hung like leaves from the branches, creaky steps, the heavy door, the closed room, a warm fire, and shelves of endless objects. Aurelia stepped closer to one of the shelving units, peering at the assorted ingredients and their labels. "This is an impressive collection," she commented, glancing back over to Mildew as she gestured. Obliging, Aurelia sank into the cushions a bit more readily than she intended to.
She made sudden realization in that moment, as the witch prepared to begin her ritual. Truthfully, she didn't want to go into the forest and live like Mildew; peaceful, unbothered, close to nature. No, as nice as it seemed, as much as Aurelia knew she could thrive in such a place, she didn't really want it. She wanted to stand amidst the chaos and hold on tight... because that was all she knew. But, at the same time, if she lost everything again, if that hold she had on things now began to slip instead of fasten, she didn't know if she'd make it a second time.
So when Mildew asked her to relax, tossing something into the fire, Aurelia sank her chin into one of her hands. "That's like asking a mountain to become a valley," she chuckled, though she could already feel a sort of haze fall across her eyelids, weighing them down a little. Even her voice had lost its edge as she glanced toward the cards in curiosity, trying to see their faces. "Can I ask something specific? Should I um... should I stay in Torchline? Like, is that where I... I don't know, belong?"
