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!
Memories sweet whispers are all that we'll have left
So fall into these arms tonight and share this one last breath
In a land that was so different than what he had ever known, Noah was captivated. He moved along in his reindeer form, eyes wide taking in all that he could and ears rotating on the sides of his head to catch any sound of danger. His cloven hooves set into the loamy soil, still damp and warm from a morning rain. The feeling of grass and moss and softened, moist dirt between his toes was as different from the snow of Halo as the sun is to the moon. It was another world here, one he had barely begun to touch and explore.
He followed the stream that turned to a river he and Deimos had travelled with. The sounds of spring and the dancing of creatures was alive and well around him, and it made his heart nearly flutter. If someone had told this hunter two years ago that he would be standing here, now, in a place like this, he would have laughed in their face. He would have mocked them for their foolhardy lies and their pipe dreams -- but now, here he was, standing in a meadow of a place so beautiful it put every painting Delphine had ever created for him to shame.
Perhaps she had strayed a little too far. The quick sojourn into the Wilds to see for herself exactly where Stormbreak lay in relation to everything else had turned into a far longer journey than Seren had planned for. Guilt had begun to gnaw at the back of her mind, and she told herself that she would only linger for a few more hours, then go straight home. She just wanted to see where this trickle of water was going. Smell the spring air, and see if she could find just a few more budding flowers. The rolling landscape was laid out as a garden all around, it would be... rude, wouldn't it, to just rush through without appreciating all the splendours. Right?
So she pushed the nagging thoughts of her father a bit further back and let the sound of murmuring water soothe her mind back into the usual cheer. Barefoot she leaped from stone to stone at the edge of the stream, and stopped only when she found herself with a wide gap between herself and the next perch. The water was growing deeper as the banks stretched further apart, birthing out into a winding river. Humming to herself, Seren squinted against the sun and tried to gague how far it might be to the rock. Could she jump it? It seemed possible, and with a look of intense focus she bent her knees slightly, gathering herself to make the leap.
It's written in the stars above Exactly who we are is just enough
✰ Starlight (Passive) | Starfilled night billow around her like a veil as she moves. It is more noticeable in daytime and when she make sudden movements.
Memories sweet whispers are all that we'll have left
So fall into these arms tonight and share this one last breath
The river rolled between hills carefully and Noah continued to follow it. Crystal clear waters let him see fish beneath them, their scales glinting beautifully as rays of sun leaked through the water and shone down on them. The reindeer lifted his body to an easy trot, following the riverbed. His cloven hooves sunk into muck and wet sand, all while his heart filled with satisfaction and joy of the beauty of this place. While nothing would ever replace his fondness for the frozen mountains and the winding tundra, this place was still wondrous to him.
The sun warmed his back and he slowed to a stop, shaking out his body and lowering his muzzle to drink. The reindeer took his fill, glacier eyes scanning above him as he did so. In the distance, he saw a figure moving over the water. He lifted his head curiously, the sunbeams behind the girl making her look nothing but a faraway shadow as she danced and leapt from one rock to another. The reindeer moved closer, slowly, keeping his head low.
Remi had once warned her about the possible repercussions of climbing rocks. The memory of that conversation whispered through the back of her mind as she aimed for the next perch, but Seren did not pay it much heed. The water did not seem deep. She knew how to swim. And anyway, she knew how to make herself float in mid air, so how bad could it be?
Bad, as it turned out. As she braced herself and took the leap, a lip of water licked across the stone she stood on and turned it slick. Slipping, she found herself plunging into the water and the stone she had wanted to jump to was suddenly much closer than it ought to have been. There was no time to do anything before her head connected with it. There was a sickening crack and instead of magic only white light filled her senses.
The water was very cold. Deep, too. A current ran swiftly beneath the calm surface, threatening to drag her under. Dazed, the girl gasped for air, swallowed water and tried to fight it. But the current was too strong, and Seren found it nearly impossible to move her limbs. Helplessly dragged downstream, the girl was barely visible; a mere white speck of billowing dress in the midst of the river. Darkness hovered beyond the edge of sight, threatening to swallow her up.
It's written in the stars above Exactly who we are is just enough
✰ Starlight (Passive) | Starfilled night billow around her like a veil as she moves. It is more noticeable in daytime and when she make sudden movements.
I won't stop breathing 'til my heart stops beating
The reindeer moved closer to the jumping shadow, watching curiously. His position had not been given any notice, the fun with which the girl -- now easily seen as the glimmer of the sun fell behind some trees as he approached -- kept herself was swallowed so wholly in her glee. He could have chuckled at it all, until he watched her own feet betray her. She slipped on a slick rock and went down, too quickly to catch herself. Panic struck through the hunter like lightning and he was running towards her before he was conscious of it.
Hooves turned to feet as he ran on the riverbank, watching as the girl gasped and her head fell beneath the water. "No!" Noah called out, running into the current without hesitation. He swam for her, his body being pushed along the current at the same rate as her's, though several yards behind. He watched as he body bobbed up and down and submerged his own body, shifting into his bear form. It was a strong swimmer, even in the unforgiving Sea of Glass.
The bear pushed with the current, legs propelling his mass towards her far better than his human body could. He reached out with front legs, attempting to wrap around the girl and bring her back to the surface with him.
The world was a blur of water and light, of encroaching darkness. And pain. In her head, in her lungs. In her limbs as the chill of the water bit into her skin, zapping away her warmth a little more with each passing moment. If she had been coherent, there were a number of ways in which she could have saved herself, but Seren couldn't think clearly enough, couldn't focus enough to draw on her will.
She was but a piece of driftwood hurtling along with the river's flow. There was a lesson to learn from that, if she survived the experience. And it was an if, her odds dwindling a little more for every breath she couldn't take. Darkness was coming. The water rose up around her. Or was she sinking? Perhaps this was the end. What all that her mother's grand promises amounted to. Perhaps her one purpose in life was to cause her parents grief. Oh, Father... she was so sorry.
And then someone was there. Something that made the water splash and crest over her head. A big bulky body collided with her, and Seren felt the brush of soft fur, deep and plush as it passed over her fingers. An instinct made her grab it and then she just held on. Hard, desperate, because her life did depend on it.
It's written in the stars above Exactly who we are is just enough
✰ Starlight (Passive) | Starfilled night billow around her like a veil as she moves. It is more noticeable in daytime and when she make sudden movements.
We all want something to hold in the night
We don't care if it hurts or we're holding too tight
The bear swam against the current to get towards the bank. The river was wider here than where he had jumped in, and nearly twice as wide a where she had fallen in. Despite his massive size, his paws no longer touched the ground and he was pushing with all of his strength against the water. He knew he needed to get her out quickly, but it was proving difficult. The attuned struggled and struggled, the cold water pushing against his side and splashing into his face. His back paws pushed down and out, paddling water away from him until he felt a paw brush against a rock -- and he pushed hard against it. It was enough propulsion to get him to a shallower part of the river, and Noah clamored onto shore with three legs -- the fourth holding the girl against his white body.
Noah set her down on the riverbank and shifted, wet white fur turning to wet blond hair stuck against his head. He breathed heavily at this point from his struggle in the water, but his focus was on saving the girl. He was not sure if she had taken any water into her lungs, but he moved on instinct. He would rather she did not, and he did what he did, rather than act as if she didn't and have her drown on his way to take her to a healer. He straightened her on her back and tilted her chin back. He lowered his head to listen for her breathing, one hand coming up to her neck to check for a pulse.
Should she not be breathing, Noah would start resuscitation efforts.
Seren was only dimly aware of the efforts taken to save her life. At some point her grip on the bear's fur slacked and slipped away. An hour - or a second - later her numb body was hauled up onto something that did not bob and sway. She tried to draw for breath, but could not. She tried to open her eyes, and saw only red; blood washed down over her face from a cut in the forehead that ached and throbbed. The blood was warm against her cold skin; it seemed the only thing in the whole world that was warm.
No... that was wrong. Hands were shifting her about. They touched her chin, and then her neck. Kind hands. Warm hands. Seren wanted to reassure them that she was fine. But all that came through was a waterlogged gurgle as her lungs continued to drown, even out of the river. How inconsiderate of them.
It's written in the stars above Exactly who we are is just enough
✰ Starlight (Passive) | Starfilled night billow around her like a veil as she moves. It is more noticeable in daytime and when she make sudden movements.
We all want something to hold in the night
We don't care if it hurts or we're holding too tight
Panic bubbled in the hunter's chest as he listened for her breathing. "Shit, no." he hissed between clenched teeth, instantly moving his body to resuscitate her as best as he knew how. His mother had taught him and his brother how to help drowning people. It was a danger they faced on the Sea of Glass, which moved and shifted with a mind of its own. Before having the ability to swim within those waters as a polar bear, this was a skill he hoped no one would need to use on him, but anyone who came with him knew. He pressed his hands down on her chest and pumped for the amount of time he thought proper, before moving his lips to hers and breathing the breath of his own lungs into her mouth.
Rae, please do not let this girl die. Help me. He prayed as he worked, his shoulder sharp and pushing against time. He knew he needed to get her to a healer, someone to bring her back to the state she belonged. He was not sure who he could get her to, but he knew he needed to. He continued to pump her chest and breathe into her, praying all the way.
He repeated until the girl coughed up the water that was trapped within her lungs (and he wasn't sure how long that took).
It did not take much for the efforts to take effect. The hunter's hands were strong and the girl small. Before long there was a gurgling sound from her throat, and water came spouting out, accompanied by weak coughs. Retching and choking, Seren tried to turn, but found that she could not. Her limbs would not obey her, and though she was not truly unconscious she was not so clear of mind as to communicate either. Her eyes sought something to focus on, but there was no light behind the blue irises.
And before long, even that small wakefulness faded away. The darkness finally won. A slightly deeper breath made its way down into her sore lungs; then she grew limp. But the chest kept rising and falling in a faint yet steady rhythm. Alive, still and in the hands of the stranger who had safeguarded her life. The rest would be up to him.
It's written in the stars above Exactly who we are is just enough
✰ Starlight (Passive) | Starfilled night billow around her like a veil as she moves. It is more noticeable in daytime and when she make sudden movements.
We all want something to hold in the night
We don't care if it hurts or we're holding too tight
Water gurgled and bubbled from her. Hope fluttered in Noah's chest for a moment, but it was as short-lived as a single flicker of a flame with no kindling. He frowned as she moaned and groaned. He knew he needed to get her out of here. Pulling her body, mostly limp and growing colder, he set her up against a boulder before using it to hoist her onto his back. She was small, her body lithe. He knew he had the strength to carry her through his various shifts, but chose the one first that could cover the most ground.
The body of a man shifted to that of the reindeer once more before Noah took turn to head back in the way he knew home was, in the way he knew healers were. He moved with haste, knowing the journey would be arduous, but worth it for the survival of the young woman. He prayers did not cease as he moved from muddy bank to loamy soil, ears rotating and eyes staying keen for danger.
