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!
02-02-2021, 02:09 AM (This post was last modified: 02-02-2021, 02:09 AM by Oliver.)
It had been a while since Oliver got the chance to truly stretch his legs and work out. One of the things he missed was the unpredictability of snow. It was a nice challenge to work with and yes, at any point he could go to Halo- but also ew. Winter was inevitable and he was going to train when it forced its way into his life. He wasn’t about to seek it out and live miserably in that frozen wastescape. But ah, enough of that.
The construction was very minimal. A wooden pole with two burlap sacks filled with straw and strapped to it, back to back. It formed almost a torso, of sorts. He might’ve made more additions to it if he had the energy, but this would work.
With a staff in hand. Oliver worked on his swings, trying to practice hitting at it in different ways, mostly with a running start. It must’ve been pretty humorous to see, to say the least. A man bundled up with hair similar to the snow, running around and swinging at a sack.
02-02-2021, 05:05 AM (This post was last modified: 02-02-2021, 05:07 AM by Henry.)
could somebody check my pulse? it's been a minute since i've tasted blood. i forgot how good this was
Henry's sick of sitting in Torchline, staring at booze and beautiful, sunkissed people. That's what he's doing here, in the Greatwood. He's never really been, and now's as good a time as any for him to spread his wings. The large, dark eagle drifts over treetops. He's curious, so every now and then he dips in and out of glens to check things out.
It's pretty quiet, truly. That is, until he spots a flicker of movement. Through the trees, just as he passes by, he thinks he sees someone. So he doubles back, neck craning back to try to see what's happening. Given that he's currently in his eagle form, once the branches stop obscuring his view, he can see pretty well what's going on - even from the height he's at.
But Henry... oh, Henry.
He's so caught up in watching what this guy is doing to a few bags of straw, even comments to himself 'hey, he's got moves!', that he completely miscalculates where the trees around him are. He nearly collides with one of them. Squawking raucously in alarm, he narrowly veers out of the trunk's way.
But he's lost pretty much all control at this point. Huge, lengthy wings waver and wobble through the air currents that are barely able to stabilize him. Soon, he comes spinning down into the ground. He lands heavily on his talons, stumbling and crashing from the impact, not but ten feet away from the other person.
It takes him a few moments to gather himself, feathers puffed out with hurt pride and a few wounded honks to match. Then, he remembers he has an audience.
Awkwardly, he slowly turns around to face the stranger and... blinks. Shit.
Should he shift back into a person, and reveal that he's a complete idiot? Or should he pretend he's just an animal, and go along with that? Eh, he's never been much of a liar.
So he sighs and shifts back into himself. He puts a hand up to the back of his head, offering an awkward grin, face flushing from embarrassment. "Hey, uh... you didn't see that... right?"
His wacks at the straw torso were- well- wacks. They were landing where he wanted, mostly. Once or twice he slid far more than he liked but it was working like how he wanted. Things were going smoothly... for him.
It seemed a certain bird wasn’t doing as good, seemingly the opposite.
Loud caws and other bird sounds echoed around and Oliver immediately looking at the bird with wide eyes, clearly confused on what on earth was going wrong. And things were certainly wrong as down came the bird, tumbling on down and crashing into the snow.
And that voice- it was unfamiliar, but it solidified something. An Attuned.
The blonde tilts his head to the side and his head jumps back a bit as the man shifts back, taking in the sight as much as he could. It seemed the guy was pretty damn embarrassed- almost trying to brush it off.
”No, yeah, I totally missed that really rough landing.” A playful eye roll and Oliver tries to look the man over. ”You okay? Not hurt or anything.”
02-03-2021, 04:33 AM (This post was last modified: 02-03-2021, 04:34 AM by Henry.)
could somebody check my pulse? it's been a minute since i've tasted blood. i forgot how good this was
Henry checks out the man in front of him. Well, checking out may be a furtive exaggeration. He's just.. observing, really. Really! Although, he's pretty cute for a guy out in the middle of nowhere, beating up a straw target. But hey, Henry's not one to judge on appearances. Apparently he, himself, didn't look very swordy - but he is. Well, he wants to be, anyway.
He grins sheepishly at the other guy's comment. "Ah... I see," he grunts as he gets up onto his feet. Stray snowflakes are brushed off of his clothes, especially his pants. The cold grips him through the material, but he's at least dressed for the cold. A dark, thick cloak drapes around his shoulders but, the hood is left down. He's not really the hooded, mysterious type. He makes a show of looking himself over.
"Yeah, 'm fine! Thanks for asking," he grins softly, reassuring, looking back over, "No worse for wear. You're.." he gestures towards the 'dummy', if it can be called that, "training, right? I saw you from up there. You got some decent moves, uh...?" he looks questioningly at the blond, silently asking for a name.
Oliver watches the man carefully, who clearly was quite embarrassed. It was kinda nice being on the other end- usually he was the one making an absolute fool of himself. Thankfully, the guy wasn't hurt, so Oliver saw nothing wrong with seeing some amusement in this situation, the faint inclinations of a smile causes his lips to curve ever so slightly upward.
His eyes move to glance over at the straw torso before looking back at the unknown man. "Yes- I am. My name's Oliver... if you give me a name, I'd say you're free to join me? No offense- but you don't seem the most coordinated and I'll gladly offer you any help if possible." While flying was something he could help out with, Oliver was already working on something and wanted to see if he could rope someone into helping him out.
could somebody check my pulse? it's been a minute since i've tasted blood. i forgot how good this was
He's aware of the critical gaze that's on him, though he doesn't really expect to be poked at for his embarrassing fall. He would much prefer to forget about it but, alas...
Henry lets out an offended, flabbergasted scoff, crossing his arms over his chest. "No offense, huh, Oliver? I'd like to see you land gracefully with a set of wings like that." His grin remains, though, too good natured to truly take the observation personally. "I make up for it in strength, okay," he says, and whether it's a warning or a challenge is up to Oliver's interpretation.
Although, to humble himself, Henry does have to admit that he could use a few pointers about things in general. His expression softens into a small smile and he sobers his tune to introduce himself, "Name's Henry. What are you working on?"
Holding up his hands, Oliver shrugs. "You got me- I can only turn into a small little woodpecker, nothing compared to the big strong bird you are." There's a wink and almost as if Oliver is trying to suggest even an innuendo- but that doesn't matter as he's already moving on.
"Glad to meet you Henry who has massive wings." Another wink and Oliver has to bite down on his lip to prevent himself from laughing at his own lame joke. "Trying to work on my swings, although.... I do have an idea if you're willing to try something out for fun? If you can beat me I can give you a prize or something. But that's up to you, of course. It sure would be a good way to show me how strong you are." Oh how Oliver was teasing him and trying to goad him on- but hopefully it was also obvious he meant nothing malicious from any of this. All just in good fun.
could somebody check my pulse? it's been a minute since i've tasted blood. i forgot how good this was
Henry's curious to see this little woodpecker he mentions but, he won't detract from the training the man's trying to accomplish just yet. Plus, his eyes flash back up from his thoughts when Oliver's words take on a... playful, provoking nature. Surprise raises Henry's brows. His arms remain crossed though, and there's a skeptical smirk on his face as he listens to Oliver's invitation to try something fun.
"Oh, you haven't seen anything yet," Henry remarks, lifting one brow a little higher. He relaxes his arms to his sides and begins to unfasten his cloak, to be free of anything unnecessarily weighing him down. His shirt beneath is long-sleeved but tight against his torso, showing off the muscles that ripple there. He nods to Oliver encouragingly as he folds up his cloak and sets it aside. "I'm listening...?" He begins to roll up his sleeves in anticipation of this... 'fun idea'.
The words immediately begin to work as the next things that leave Henry are just as provoking. It's exciting, to put it simply. Oliver watches as the man removes the cloak and yes, he does notice the muscles, his eyes clearly glancing down to his chest before returning to look back at his face.
"Nothing too complicated. You see my lovely creation, yeah? I'll be protecting it. All you have to do is pierce both sides. That's it." Oliver watches him with keen eyes, waiting to see if his offer will be accepted. "Now, I do have a staff myself, so how about I make this a tad more fair."
Almost to show off, Oliver settles the staff to the ground and shifts into his leopard form. Walking on over a tree, he starts to climb up. Carefully, he chooses a branch that was just about to fall off and presses a paw down, with that the branch comes tumbling down. Climbing back on down, Oliver shifts back into a human and dramatically carries over the branch.
"Feel free to use this if you'd like. You can use any means you'd like, but I thought I'd make it a bit more fair for you."
could somebody check my pulse? it's been a minute since i've tasted blood. i forgot how good this was
Henry catches the look Oliver gives him, returning it with a check of his own - though, he'd have to peel back a few layers to really get an eyeful of Oliver anyway.
He sets his cloak down on a nearby stump and turns back to face Oliver, folding his sleeves up to the elbow. The chill reaches his skin and prompts goosebumps to raise up in protest but, he ignores it. Soon enough, he'll get his blood pumping and the cold will be a relief.
"Sounds easy enough," his eyes follow Oliver with great interest, smirk ever-present on his expression. He's only a little taken by surprise when suddenly he's changing into a cat. Well, a big cat, sorry.
When he's presenting the stick to him, back in his natural state, Henry nods and accepts the makeshift weapon. "Unfortunately for you, I'm proficient with sticks," and this isn't even meant to be an innuendo, more of a reference to the fact that he often practices with 'weapons' of similar make. A flush creeps into his cheeks as the realization sinks in.
"Alright, let's get this started, shall we?" He moves on a bit quickly, hoping not to dwell too long on that.. unintentional, but still shitty, joke.
He allows a few moments for the both of them to prepare themselves for the engage. Henry's greatest strength is, well, his strength. So, he wonders if he can simply overpower the other in order to get to the target. With this in mind, remembering things Aisha had taught him, he doesn't deliberate too much longer. Spurring into the action, Henry dives to make a jab at Oliver's ribs.
Raising an eyebrow, Oliver notices the flush. "Ah- a top then?" And before Henry can even respond, Oliver is already changing the subject. "It'll be fun to see how you compare- Can't say I've ever seen you train before." And yet another innuendo- this time he completely didn't mean to make it sexual but it was too late for that.
"You make the first move." A small smile and Oliver watches with calm eyes, eager to see what would happen next.
A staff comes swinging towards him and Oliver immediately moves to block it, swinging his own staff at the branch to block it from colliding with his stomach. If he's able to shove the staff away, he will move to try and swipe at Henry's ankles, hoping to knock him off his feet.
could somebody check my pulse? it's been a minute since i've tasted blood. i forgot how good this was
At first, Henry's so taken aback by Oliver's bluntness that he audibly stutters, "Ah- wh- I-" He lets out a laughing breath and scratches the side of his head because, for once, he's at a loss for words. He resolves a bit as another joke is aired but, then he's prompted to make the first move. He's beyond glad to stop deepening the blush on his face, flexing his jaw to still his smile.
And he strikes, shoving the branch through the air. After all, it hasn't been carved into something more... aerodynamic, so he has to work a little harder - which he's not opposed to, of course. But Oliver is quick, which leaves a quicker impression on Henry, and his first strike is countered. A ghost of a grin makes its way over his mouth as he attempts to start a second attack. However, Oliver's staff swipes for his ankles, pulling them right out from under him.
He slams onto his back with a huff of an "Oof!"
Dark blue eyes arc over to Oliver. He's a bit winded from that but, with a determined grin, he gets up as fast as he can and steps back a foot or two. "You're pretty fast," he remarks, sounding casual, though there is genuine admiration in his tone. Then, eyes darting between Oliver and the dummy, he makes a move to go for it, attempting to clear Oliver's reach entirely. He jabs for one of the sides.
A raise of his eyebrow and Oliver chooses to leave it at that. The man was already struggling to respond and perhaps he had been a tad too confident. It was far different from an older Oliver- a quivering mess of a man who couldn't stand up for anything.
"Pardon me- that was a bit... harsh of me." He was playing dirty and it wasn't quite fair. Oliver chose at that point to decide to, well, play a little easier? Then again, it was also a challenge for him. Choosing to protect fully rather than attack. It was a change of pace and he'd work with it.
Once more, Oliver would move to block again, swiftly bringing his staff to the side to try and stop the oncoming attack. If he was successful, he'd push back against the staff to allow himself some more space.
could somebody check my pulse? it's been a minute since i've tasted blood. i forgot how good this was
Henry splutters as Oliver's staff comes out of ~nowhere~ and blocks his path again. He's cast backwards, nearly falling again from the force of Oliver's strength. His lips purse together on one side of his mouth, having initially thought himself the stronger opponent. However, he's not disappointed to find out he was wrong.
He gathers himself together, preparing for another attempt. He adjusts his grip on his weapon, eyeing Oliver with a raised brow, "You're uh.. pretty good at this, huh?"
With a heaving breath leaving him, he squares his stance and makes his next move. The branch swings against Oliver's arm - the one holding the staff, hoping to get him to drop it. If he does, then maybe Henry would have a better chance of hitting the thing at least once.
