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!
03-12-2021, 08:26 PM (This post was last modified: 03-18-2021, 04:53 PM by Ronin.)
we shall heal our wounds, collect our dead
So here he is, back in Torchline. Back in the bar he'd gotten trashed in when he and Remi had first arrived at the islands, but a different person now than he was then. Work is proceeding with the skyboat route between Torchline and Stormbreak, and his notice has been posted. Honestly, in a place like these islands he doesn't expect many bites - because who would want to leave a place of relative freedom for the restriction of a militia?
Then again... that's precisely what Ronin had done.
Either way, he sits at a large table with a drink in hand, his hair tousled by the sea breeze and his clothing much more befitting the place he used to live; an open shirt, pants that are still damp from the walk along the beach, and shoes which he's kicked off under the table. Oh, and a dragon.
Sugar is draped along his shoulders, pale and snoozy, her ribbon like tail curling towards his bicep. The size of a small housecat at best, his draconic companion has grown nevertheless into something sleek, sassy and dangerous when she wants to be. For now though? She's just keeping him cool while he waits.
This is a mini event for any Accepted who would like to join the Stormbreak Dragoons! Please feel free to pop a post in to chat with Ronin if you are interested.
This thread will remain open until monsoon season (so the start of April) because reasonably the Hanged Man will be closed at this time.
Anyone who does decide to join will be considered a 'dragoon in training' until you are able to afford or otherwise obtain a dragon companion. The reason being that the dragoons work in tandem with their companions, and you can't really have one without the other.
Here he is, back in Torchline, back in the Hanged Man. An’ Raza’s seen the notice he put up, askin’ specifically for Accepted folks t’be “Dragoons” or somethin’ like that. In Stormbreak. Which is a place she heard the Order folks talkin’ about, an’ that was an odd conversation. Odd enough t’make her ensure she has her earrings on when the demigod shows up.
Since he’s a payin’ customer, Raza delivers a drink, but instead’a returnin’ to the bar, she plops down next t’him an’ crosses her arms across her chest.
Is she interested in bein’ a Dragoon? No. Her bar is her home. Does she want t’ know more? Yes.
“So what’re the bars like in Stormbreak?” she asks casually, heavily implying that he’s missing out on everythin' the Hanged Man has to offer while living there.
Why is he here again? He doesn't give two shits about the accepted, ascended, old gods, new gods bullshit. He probably should but he doesn't. Things that don't affect him directly don't matter much and he's made a point of ignoring all of it. But he's bored. Of Torchline, of his life. And dragons are pretty sick.
Sure he's got Maeve now, in whatever capacity that is. But he doesn't expect her to stop living her life how she wants for him and he hopes she doesn't expect the same of him. So here he is. When he enters the bar, he gives a little wave to Raza, looking around before he spots Ronin. Well. He thought the dragons would be bigger. Still kinda cool though.
He perches himself a few seats away from Ronin. "M'here 'bout the.. dragoons?"
"Like here, but rainier." Ronin drawls, lifting the drink that Raza brings in a toast and taking an experimental sip. It's good - all the drinks in the Hanged Man are good - but he's not sure that she's the type to join the Dragoons. Which beggars the question as to why she's here, because Ronin likes to think his notice has been quite clear.
Then someone else shows up, and Sugar lifts her head from around his shoulders to huff a breath of cold air at the newcomer. Had the pale dragon known that Locke has issues with her size maybe she'd not be quite so welcoming. "You're at the right table," he says, offering out one of the other drinks already on the table for Locke to help himself to.
"They're a militia in Stormbreak. Accepted only, because of the dragons. Hence... dragoons." He grins. "Soldiers and their companions learn to fight in tandem. You much of a fighter?"
The cold puff of air makes his skin crawl and he lightly rubs his arm before taking the drink offered to him. He licks his lips before taking a drink, listening to Ronin talk. Militia huh.. Not really the way he tends to go. If anything, he doesn't like authority or being told what to do. (Except in bed. But he has a feeling that's not going to be an option.) Then again.. Dragons. He'd also be leaving Maeve but they're only loosely a thing so it's fine. Right? "Used to fighting more hand to hand but I'm not new to it. Willing to learn though." He's had a few broken noses in his day, gotten stabbed once, you know, the usual. He's never been formally trained or anything though.
"Same" Ronin admits to Locke with a wry smile. "I'm an Outlander, and in my old world I was a soldier then, too. I specialised in hand to hand combat. Would be good to have a decent sparring partner again," he admits, leaning back to take another slow sip of his drink.
Who would they be building the militia against, though? "Any who try to threaten Stormbreak," he says with something of a lazy shrug. "Isn't that the way it always goes? I daresay Torchline has its own militia, you just don't call it as such." He has no doubt about it, in fact.
"Either way, I'm currently speaking with the Governor about potentially establishing a travel route between the islands and Stormbreak - I know it would be a big ask, for people to just... leave with no way of knowing if or when they can return."
Cameron took a deep breath before walking into the Hanged Man. Bars weren't exactly their natural environment to begin with, and add to that their secret mission ... they were understandably even more nervous than usual. No, they told themself, forget about the secret mission. They were genuinely here to ask about joining the Dragoons. If they could convince themself of that, they ought to have a better chance of convincing Ronin.
They lost track of all of their intentions as soon as they got a good look at Ronin, however, because he had a dragon.
"Oh, sweet," they whispered, coming closer. Concentrate, Cam. But this might work to their favor, actually: they could use their excitement about the dragon to sound more interested in the Dragoons.
Approaching properly, they put their hand on the back of a chair, about to sit down. "Hey, you're Ronin, right? I'm here about the Dragoons."
cameron ?
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03-18-2021, 06:42 PM (This post was last modified: 03-18-2021, 07:50 PM by Raza.)
don't you know we're outlaws
givin' the finger to death itself
Well that sounds like shit, honestly. Drinkin’ is a great rainy day hobby, but it’s even better when the sun’s out. She makes a face, clear about her thoughts on Stormbreak’s apparent weather, but doesn’t move from her spot quite yet.
This is her bar after all. She can go where she wants, and Ronin hadn’t indicated he wanted privacy - just look at all the drinks on the table - so Raza lingers, curious, as a man she’s never seen before enters the Hanged Man and makes a beeline for Ronin (who is, admittedly, one of the few there right now. Perhaps that’s why Raza’s around, she’s bored and fucking off).
Snorting in regards to Torchline’s militia, Raza cracks a joke. “Yeah, we call it a mob. You saw it with the Gov’nor recently.” Maybe. If the stranger was paying attention. Unfortunately for her and fortunately for Ronin, two more come into the bar in quick succession, one making their way to the group and another to the bar, which means Raza fucks off and goes back to work.
Locke grins around his drink, "Don't know if I'd make much of a match for a properly trained solider. Most of my scraps were on the street and had a lot less rules." He can't say he isn't interested though. His eyes flit over Ronin and he hums softly, tilting his head. Yeah no, this dude could probably kick his ass, at least a little bit. Lucky for Locke, he kind of enjoys getting his ass kicked.
He nods to what Raza says, "Yeah, more a mob than anything." He kind of scoffs, shaking his head. He wasn't there for the little riot but he heard about it of course. But the answer to his question does give him a bit of pause. Does he care to protect a place he's never been? Does he even care to protect Torchline?
"It's cute you think anyone joining you would want to come back." Make of that what you will. Locke takes another drink, eyes cutting over to Cameron as they join them. He holds up a beer to them, eyebrow raised. He kind of thought he'd be alone in this.
Oblivious that one of those joining him is not as they seem, and raising his glass in a toast to Raza as she leaves, Ronin brings his attention fully to the potential new recruits. "That's me," he confirms to Cameron, while Sugar - drawn by the new newcomer, raises her head and stretches along the length of the Star's shoulders, before nosing out her slender neck to investigate the other two men properly.
Grinning to Locke, Ronin can only shrug his shoulders. "Torchline is a paradise for a lot of people," he points out. "It was for me, for a while. As for bar brawls, I didn't used to be a very 'good' soldier," he confesses. "Lawless scraps on the street were just as good an excuse to fight as any. Either way, I can teach you to be a properly trained soldier, if that's what you want. And you can still scrap, if that's what you're into." He chuckles.
03-21-2021, 04:26 PM (This post was last modified: 03-21-2021, 04:26 PM by Cameron.)
Cameron nodded in greeting at Locke -- who looked much more like a potential Dragoon than Cam did, at least in Cam's own opinion -- but made no move to take a drink, since they didn't really like alcohol. Besides, their focus was quickly on the dragon, as they sat down. Oh man, she was so small and amazing and alive. They'd heard rumors that dragons existed in Caido, which was awesome, but they'd never expected to actually see one.
Sitting down, they tried to turn their attention to Ronin instead of his companion. "I'm interested in joining the Dragoons, but I have some questions. Like ... why only Accepted? And how do you know someone's Accepted? I haven't been in Caido that long, so I'm still not sure if I might have, you know, powers I don't know about."
Those were the questions Wessex had recommended starting with, and Cam kept in mind Wessex's other instructions, too. Trying to make it look like their interest was in the dragon on his arm, they took a look at Ronin's hands, looking for rings.
cameron ?
"Cameras" by Ennev is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 2.0
Locke finishes his drink, setting it down to take up another. "Surely you know not to judge a book by it's cover.. Or a paradise by its shiny beaches." It's almost said in jest. Almost. Locke loves Torchline but he hates it just as much. He's not sure Stormbreak will be any better but he's willing to try. "But I am interested, obviously.. Wouldn't be here otherwise." He has better things to do, like sleeping in the sun. Or getting drunk. Which, admittedly he's kind of doing right now. He'll stop before he gets to that point but.. "And I'm always down for a scrap or two."
He's about to just.. accept when Cameron starts to speak. Admittedly it is kind of curious.. He hadn't really thought about it that deeply. So instead of speaking, he just takes another drink.
Of course, Ronin isn't expecting any double crossing, and so he's all but an open book as they speak at the table in the Hanged Man. Not only that, but as Cameron looks to the Star's hands, they'll see them adorned with rings - one in particular is glowing, though, and he raises his hand to wiggle his fingers. "Put it this way," he says, "I can tell that at least one of you here is Accepted." Smiling, he moves to address their other question. In the meantime, Sugar slips from his shoulder to investigate the newcomers further.
"Only Accepted are able to draw the attention of dragons as companions," he explains. "I'm still relatively new to the militia as well, but from what I've experienced, your dragon is just as important as you are in training and in any battle. That's why it's Accepted only - it's a very specific way of fighting, and one without the other doesn't really work." Raising his drink in a toast to Locke as if promising a scrap in future, Ronin hopes that adequately addresses their questions.
Was the glowing ring the Order ring that Cam is supposed to be looking for? Did this count as seeing Ronin use it? They kind of doubted that -- that would be way too easy.
The fact that only Accepted could work with dragons was interesting; it made Cam feel better about being Accepted, actually. Might not get cool powers, but they could potentially get a dragon someday, and that definitely made up for it. "That's really cool, actually. So everyone who joins gets paired up with a dragon?"
They might have sincerely considered joining the Dragoons just for the dragon, if they weren't so unsoldierly that they doubted they'd make the cut -- and if they were OK with the whole genocidal religious war thing. That gave Cam an idea for another question, one that might actually be more for Locke's benefit than their own: "So who -- or what -- would we be fighting, anyway?"
cameron ?
"Cameras" by Ennev is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 2.0
