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!
Knocking on Wessex's door made Cam nervous, but then everything made Cam nervous -- a clinically diagnosed anxiety disorder will do that to you -- so it didn't really bother them. This should be the easy part, really, after their little trip to Torchline to infiltrate Ronin's recruitment session. They didn't feel like they'd learned much, really, but maybe their new knowledge would enlighten Wessex somehow. At least they'd gotten a look at Ronin's ring, even if they hadn't seen him use it -- unless the fact that it had glowed to identify the Accepted counted?
Cam hoped that Wessex would find what little information they had learned useful -- and not just because they naturally wanted to succeed in any task set before them. Ronin had repeatedly dodged the question of just who his dragoons would be fighting, which would have been suspicious even if Wessex hadn't already told Cam about the Order. And if there was a group in Caido prepared to hunt down and kill everyone who wouldn't worship their gods -- to go to war to destroy a rival goddess and her followers -- Cam wanted to help stop them.
They'd always wanted to think of themself as a hero, to save people from injustice, but they'd always assumed that they wouldn't be capable of actually doing so. And maybe they still weren't -- they weren't exactly a warrior who could defend the Grounds from the Order -- but they did want to help any way they could.
cameron ?
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Anticipation and anxiety don’t have the same physical reactions that they used to, but that doesn’t stop the Wraith from feeling restless and slightly worried. Had she prepared them enough? Sent them into the dragon’s den?
The only thing she could do was wait until they returned - and keep busy until then - whenever that unspecified then would be. So she waits, until even Daphne is irritated with her and is in the process of sending her out when there’s a knock at the door.
Wessex rushes to answer it, managing to tidy her emotions up by the time she turns the knob. “Come in, come in,” she says with a relieved smile, ushering them inside and to the sitting room they’d been in before, doing her best not to demand everything from them all once.
"How did it go?"
there was a time that we were kind, but now don't write me, you're not fooling anyone
Cam picked up on Wessex's stress, a little -- it was perfectly understandable, after all, and they knew all about anxiety first-hand. They sat down, but didn't waste any time in answering.
"I don't think he suspected me -- at least, if he did, he didn't say anything about it. I feel like I didn't get that much information out of him, but I did see his ring. Well, he was wearing several rings, but he had one that glowed in the presence of Accepted, so I think that's probably the significant one. He said that was how he could tell that we were Accepted, and that only Accepted could join because the dragons would only bond to Accepted -- oh, yeah, he had a dragon. Just a little one. And they're building a skyport in Torchline."
After relating this information, Cam stopped to take a deep breath and consider whether they'd left anything out. That was all the major points, they felt, though they could certainly go into more detail.
cameron ?
"Cameras" by Ennev is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 2.0
04-08-2021, 11:25 PM (This post was last modified: 04-08-2021, 11:25 PM by Wessex.)
WESSEX
She’s grateful for what seems like understanding and getting down to the meat of it; no pleasantries, no small-talk, just down to what happened. Wessex listens intently, hands folded in front of her as she leans against the mantle (there’s no fire this time, what with the weather turning warm). It turns out to be good news, causing the Wraith to offer up a tight smile and appreciate nod.
“No, I don’t imagine he thinks many Accepted are left in the Grounds. And the ring lit up?” Pausing, she has to think briefly before shaking her head. “Well that has to be it. I don’t know how else a ring can tell if someone is Accepted or not. On the other hand, I guess he’s truly a member of the Order now.” Which is a shame, because she’d had nothing against Ronin before.
Now they have to be sworn enemies and all that. A damn shame, really.
“So the Dragoons partner with dragons? Guess the name makes sense. And so does the pairing... especially against Ascended.”
there was a time that we were kind, but now don't write me, you're not fooling anyone
"I guess not." Cam nodded at Wessex's question, but added, "I think the ring only told him that there was an Accepted present, though, not how many. So maybe it could be fooled by someone standing next to an Accepted? Like, he'd know one of the pair was Accepted, but he wouldn't know which one."
Cam had a feeling that they might be the only Accepted available for such hijinks, though ... they were still thinking about what Nate said, about potentially Ascending. That would throw a wrench in those plans.
"Yeah, he wouldn't say what exactly he expected to fight -- he was really cagey about it, actually. I tried to push him on it but he kept avoiding the question. So I'm guessing it's, uh, you." Cam paused. "Especially against Ascended? Do dragons just hate you or something?"
cameron ?
"Cameras" by Ennev is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 2.0
“Interesting…” musing quietly on Cameron’s own ideas about the ring, Wessex hopes that’s the case, because if so then she might be able to wrangle another trick or two from somewhere up her sleeves. Especially if she can, at leat momentarily, appear to be Accepted - companion and all.
Which brings them to the Dragoons. And unfortunately for Wessex, she can put two and two together. Pressing her lips together, she shakes her head. “No, it’s not the dragon’s hatred - have you met my companion, Loki?” Pausing to see if her companion might be in the house - or at least nearby and able to fly in through a window - the Queen then continues. “It’s all the Dragoons and it rubs off onto their companions, the dragons. You see, Ascended are exceptionally flammable, so an air borne fire-breathing weapon could be… devastating.”
She’ll just let that brutal, burning-alive image sink in for a minute.
there was a time that we were kind, but now don't write me, you're not fooling anyone
"You have a dragon? Named Loki?" That's so cool, Cam thought, but they reserved that statement for when they'd actually met Loki. It would be awesome to encounter a dragon under less fraught circumstances, though. Man, Caido might have some disadvantages over Cam's home, but it also had dragons, so they kind of felt like they were coming out of the deal pretty OK.
"Oh, ouch." Cam winced at the image of the Ascended being particularly flammable, of a dragon raking a group of Ascended with its fire -- that would be horrific enough with non-Ascended people, let alone ... "Man, why do the dragon riders here have to be assholes?"
It was such a cool concept, fighting alongside a dragon. Cam really would have considered joining the Dragoons if it weren't for the whole genocide thing.
cameron ?
"Cameras" by Ennev is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 2.0
Chuckling, Wessex attempts to clarify. “We have each other. She’s my companion, which means we’re soul-bonded.” The idea of anyone owning Loki is fairly laughable, not just because of her feistiness and spirit, but because who really owns a dragon?
Remarkably on cue, Loki arrives at an open window and lands on the sill, craning her neck in with a slightly annoyed pulse to the Wraith. “What? Oh. Here she is - “ Half to Loki and half to Cameron, the demigoddess introduces the two of them to each other. “Loki this is Cameron. Cameron, Loki.”
To her credit, the dragon is polite and offers a rumbled greeting, but her attention lies on whatever Wessex has pulled her from. “Dragon riders? Is that - did Ronin mention the Dragoons riding larger dragons?” that had always secretly been the Wraith’s dream, befriending a dragon enough for it to let her ride on it, scorching their enemies. But in the hands of another… the idea is suitably terrifying.
there was a time that we were kind, but now don't write me, you're not fooling anyone
"Soul-bonded?" Cam said. They knew that some people in Caido had supernatural creatures at their sides, but they'd never heard that term before.
And then Loki entered the room and it was time for Cam to stare at her in awe. "Oh, wow. Hello, Loki. You're beautiful."
They stood up -- slowly, not wanting to startle the dragon -- to get a better look at her, though they didn't try to come any closer, unsure how such an approach would be received. Ronin's dragon had seemed docile enough, but Cam suspected it would be a bad idea to treat a dragon cavalierly. And they weren't sure she was happy to see them -- they weren't exactly good at dragon body language or anything, but they thought they read some tension in Loki's muscles.
"Hm -- oh, no. Sorry, he didn't say anything about that, just that the Dragoons would fight alongside dragons. I just sort of ..." Cam trailed off, unsure how to explain that they'd read so many books about people riding dragons that it had seemed like the natural result of pairing humans with dragons. But after all: "I don't know how big the Dragoons' dragons get. The one Ronin had with him was pretty small."
cameron ?
"Cameras" by Ennev is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 2.0
“Mhmmm. I can feel her feelings and she can feel mine, amongst other things. When I found her it was like something inside me… clicked into place.” Smiling to herself as she remembers that day in the Spire (and that alone makes her think that Loki was Voice-sent), when she found Loki crying all alone. So small, so helpless- to the beautiful night-terror that she is now. Almost too big to land on the Wraith’s shoulders.
When Cameron doesn’t approach, Loki tilts her head in slight confusion, looking between her bonded and the Outlander. Her wings flare and she huffs slightly, looking back to the world beyond Theskyra House. “Oh, go on,” she tells her, with a flick of her hand, and Loki goes on without any hesitation. “She’s kinda like a teenager now,” the Queen offers in explanation, shaking her head in mock exasperation.
She is, however, glad that Cameron might be mistaken. A person on a life-sized dragon would be a terror - alone, the companions are more manageable. “Any companion can grow to be about the size of a small dog,” she offers, “but there are other, bigger dragons in Caido - hence my alarm. “
there was a time that we were kind, but now don't write me, you're not fooling anyone
"Wow." Cam smiled, thoroughly charmed by the idea of soul-bonding, which had been a component of some of their favorite fantasies at home. To find out that it was real -- well, it was a lot like finding out that dragons were real. And magic. They were just doing a lot of that lately. "That's so cool."
Had they said that already? Probably.
When Loki left, Cam couldn't avoid the rather devastating feeling that they had somehow disappointed the dragon. They told themself they were being silly, to have social anxiety over a dragon -- though, honestly, who was more worth impressing than a dragon -- and Wessex's words helped; they managed a smile. A dragon teenager, huh? "Have you been together since she hatched, or ... ?"
Cam nodded at the concept of bigger dragons -- they'd heard those stories even in their short time in Caido. "Yeah, I really hope they only have access to the little bitty dragons. The big ones would be ... an issue."
cameron ?
"Cameras" by Ennev is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 2.0
“Thereabouts, I think,” Wessex answers, not quite sure of the answer herself. “When I found her, she couldn’t have been that old. But that’s purely based on her needs and size at the time.” So she shrugs, having not thought too much about it.
Big or small, Loki is the unspoken light of her life at the moment. When everything else is chaos, Loki is there. The demigod doesn't know what she’d do without her, now, even though she’d spent forty years of her life without a companion - now that she has one, losing her would be disastrous. “I could probably talk about her forever, but then nothing would get done.” Joking, it’s mean to mean that they should return to the matter at hand.
“Thank you for this, truly.” Wessex continues, returning to Cameron with a heartfelt expression. “Once we get the second look, I’ll probably need you to come to the Temple with us when we return to the Voice again. But in the meantime, is there anything I can do for you? Anything you need?” Anything at all, she seems to imply, and Wessex would try to see it done.
there was a time that we were kind, but now don't write me, you're not fooling anyone
Cam nodded. They, too, could have talked about dragons all day, but they understood that Wessex was a busy woman, ruling a region, and needed to move on. So they pushed away their further questions and focused on the matter at hand.
"Don't worry about it -- it really wasn't that much, and I'm glad to help." As nervous as Cam had felt about the encounter, ultimately they'd faced no danger, just a brief conversation. Oh, sure, things could have gone bad -- but they hadn't. "Just let me know when you need me again."
But when Wessex offered to do something for Cam, they hesitated. "Well, I talked to Nate, and he said the Voice could probably help me with -- with the medication I take, that I can't really get here. I don't necessarily need help with that -- he said he'd introduce me. Just thought I should mention it. He said she might ask me to Ascend."
They're feeling out Wessex, a little: should I join you? Become more than an ally of the Ascended?
cameron ?
"Cameras" by Ennev is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 2.0
Visibly a little surprised, Wessex makes a sound in the back of her throat.
“Huh. That wasn’t what I expected at all.” Unexpected, yes, but quite a nice surprise and she finds herself grinning a little at the prospect of them joining the family. “She can be very generous,” the demigod begins, allowing herself to lean against a side table’s edge and nodding thoughtfully. “I’ve no doubt she’d welcome you. Don’t know what kind of medicine you need, but if Nate can’t get it for you, then as long as you’re aware of the tradeoffs and don’t mind…” she shrugs.
It’s an adjustment, is all. One every Ascended has been through - or is going through.
“I Ascended because I was sick. Didn’t want to waste away like the rest of my family.” And so, without knowing how sick they are or what might be wrong, she tries to affirm the reasoning behind it.
“Do you think you’d want to? Ascend?”
there was a time that we were kind, but now don't write me, you're not fooling anyone
