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!
So long sad city of angels, you aint been very good to me
It’s the edge of the Ruins – far from the remains of his home and where a few of the buildings have still remained a bit on the tall side, having not yet collapsed in on one another. And it’s the perfect place for Varus to decide to put together a new training ground. The Military Barracks were fine on their own for what it was – this? This would be something more… Enduring, more intense. Something that’s geared more towards field work rather than practice, and with the wagon he’s brought of materials, he thinks they might be able to actually make a decent space out of it.
He’d left a note on the Notice Board for any that may be interested, and waits with his back leaned against the half crumbling brick wall, awaiting the arrivals. It doesn’t take long for a few of them to arrive. He’s got the plans laid out in his head, using his experiences in the previous war to add to his bag of tricks in helping train those within the Grounds for War Round Two.
He’d had her at Training Grounds, and new type, piquing her curiosity and scratching a hopeful itch all at the same time. Not wanting to get her hopes up that it’s exactly what she wants whilst excitedly hopping around on the inside is a very odd position for the Wraith to be in.
Heading back into the Ruins, Wessex comes across Varus at the edge, accompanied by a wagonful of supplies. She glances into the wagon once she draws close enough, giving the other Ascended a little wave. “Hey, saw your Notice. What kinda new training grounds are you thinking?”
we're just two ghosts swimming in a glass half empty
They are not a fighter of any sort, even with long years of malnutrition healed away by The Voice’s loving hand. They still remain frail and unassuming. Still, that does nothing to stop Ophelia from arriving on whispering feet, overlarge eyes serene in their ghostlike blueness as they approach. Their clothing is still threadbare at best, blood staining the hem of the dress they’d Ascended in, unable to wash it fully away. It clearly does not bother them.
Ophelia approaches the gathered pair with excitement brimming in their heart, smile brightening to reveal just the barest tips of fangs poking past pale lips. “Hello family,” their chiming voice calls, a pale hand brushing pin-straight flaxen hair away from their face. “I saw your notice and wanted to help.” Almost unnaturally at ease with these relative strangers, joy suffusing their strange features as they eagerly await instructions.
trying vainly to forget the pain that came with heartbeats
So long sad city of angels, you aint been very good to me
A couple of them arrive, and it’s more than enough – especially with Wessex there, who’s greeted with a wide fanged smile of greeting. “Was thinking something… Guerilla style. Convert a few of these old homes into spaces where we can train with cover.” He offers her in response to her question – sure that it’s a good idea and varied enough from the barracks training grounds he’d scouted early on upon his return.
This one felt a bit more… Relevant for the possibility of war arriving. Knowing where to hide, knowing how to use cover to ones advantage, and it’s also something Varus is very good at.
His gaze drifts to Ophelia when they arrive, flashing them an equally bright grin of greeting. “The more hands the merrier. I’m Cal.” He offers to the newcomer, gesturing with both his hands – one flesh and one metal, before he’s walking over toward the supplies he’s brought. “First things first, let’s make sure these three houses are sound enough. I brought some beams to help reinforce them so they don’t fall down onto us.” He rumbles moving to grab the beams and pull them out to lean up against the wagon so it’s easier to grab later. Turning back to Wessex and Ophelia, he flashes them a brighter smile. “Let’s get started on investigating, yeah?”
WOOO, first task, picking which house (House A, House B, House C) and checking for stability!
Varus will take whichever’s left over. No post order <3 (Pls lemme know which house y'all pick at the bottom of your post <3)
05-14-2021, 12:24 AM (This post was last modified: 05-14-2021, 08:23 PM by Wessex.)
I know, I fought you in the dark
Wholeheartedly approving of the idea, the Queen grins ferally back at Cal because what she hears is a playground. Then a ghostly waif, wearing bloodstained clothes and a clear air of indifference to her appearance comes towards them with a sense of purpose, and Wessex can’t help but stare - there’d been the ping of new presence in her head (two actually), but she hadn’t known who.
“Are you - ?” she can’t quite place the girl, but knows she’s seen that face and those eyes somewhere, perhaps on one of her food-delivery runs. A farmhouse, somewhere. One of the rundown ones. “Sorry, It’s on the tip of my tongue -” Kind of. Almost. Shaking her head, she hopes the girl will provide the answers, otherwise it’s going to bug the crap out of her. Regardless, she offers a fanged grin in return.
Welcome to the family, she offers. We should get you some new clothes.
But they’re not here to talk about that, they’re here to work, so Wessex’s attention goes back to Cal and she nods in understanding and picks the far right house without hesitation, striding towards it and dipping in with delicate hands to test the walls and doorways for stability.
----------------
Wessex chooses the far right house hi, I'm dumb. House C.
we're just two ghosts swimming in a glass half empty
They are all newly met, and the questions come summarily, but Ophelia has no desire to hide anything in the first place. As they go to answer Cal first, they pause instead as Wessex’s contemplative stare and trailing words catch their attention. Their smile does not necessarily fade, though it becomes a touch bittersweet perhaps. Wessex is familiar to them after all. Back when they were both human; their parents had never let them past the farm boundaries without one of them present, and so Wessex had been one of the few fresh faces they’d ever known. “Ophelia,” they say to both at first, eerie blue gaze turning back to Wessex for a moment. “Athanasia,” they clarify, sure Wessex will know the surname more immediately. They’d been a ghost of a thing whenever the Wraith had visited, and their family had certainly never prioritized introductions, insular and paranoid as they’d been. They certainly don’t blame the Queen for her inability to place Ophelia’s name. Surely all the children had appeared the same, gaunt and curious on the fringes of interactions.
The mind speak makes them startle, though their expression is more awed than scared. Glancing down at their clothes when they’re mentioned, they smile beatifically. “I had nothing to barter. But it would be a good plan.” As with most things, it hadn’t bothered them to be turned away.
Luckily clothes will not determine their usefulness, and they take instruction quite well, wandering over to the first house on the far left. Structural integrity is at least something they know after years of repairing the dilapidated barn and patching the roof of their home. First they inspect the outside, venturing in with a cluck of their tongue at the state of it. It will definitely need supports on the sides.
- - -
Ophelia picks house A!
trying vainly to forget the pain that came with heartbeats
So long sad city of angels, you aint been very good to me
Wessex’s grin is received with an equally vibrant one from Varus, who regards the newcomer with ease – even as the response of names and something else is made. “Thanks for joining, Ophelia.” He rumbles, before the tasks are laid out and everyone takes to them like ducks to water. This parts the easy one, though, he finds. Varus chooses house B, the one that’s left over. And within it? A surprising amount of soundness. The only problem being a few of the bricks have broken in places, but all the loadbearing sections are surprisingly good still.
House C for Wessex goes decently well as well. It isn’t as sound as the house Varus has picked. A few of the beams have termite damage and it looks like a few of the stones have fallen out of the wall that supports it. It would take a fair bit of work, but it’s something they could all manage.
House A for Ophelia goes roughly about the same as Wessex’s. They’re correct in the need for supports on the sides, the beams splintering under the weight of it. And rather than an overabundance of termite damage, this one has a family of rats that have holed up in the corner of it, their eyes watching Ophelia curiously.
Round Two:
House B is the most sound so far, House C has termite damage and stones that have fallen out, House A needs new supports and also to remove the rats from within!
“Ah, of course…” Wessex says softly, for their family’s troubles were also sequential, both of their lines ending with Ascension. Perhaps another time they can talk as equals about the Grounds and its change over the years - after they have some cleaner attire, of course. (Wessex is certainly not so fastidious, but there is no reason for one of her family to look like they’ve been through hell when she can help).
Offering a fanged smile before they scatter to their respective houses, she answers Ophelia again, mentally. If you think at me and I’m close, I’ll hear it. Kind of rude sometimes, but Cal knows about it - and it’s important to know. So after this, she will take them under her wing for a bit - but until then, there’s work to be done. The Wraith heads into her chosen house and begins to find some instability and the tell-tale signs of termite dust as the base of one of the big support beams. Tsking to herself with a click of her tongue, she moves on and finds stones missing from the tops of corner of the wall - luckily the roof of the floor above was sturdy enough to stay intact.
So Wessex heads back out again and goes for one of the beams Varus has brought for them, wondering how she’s going to switch one out by herself. It isn’t a matter of strength, it’s a matter of coordination, so as she slowwwwwwly maneuvers with the new support beam, she tries to line it directly up with the old beam and then press quickly against the two trying to shove the old one out and replace it immediately with the new beam.
-----------------
Astor knows nothing about building a house and Wessex tries to replace the old, termite-ridden beam with a new one by lining them up and shoving one out and the other one in as quickly as she can.
we're just two ghosts swimming in a glass half empty
Cal's vibrancy is appreciated, and met with a beatific smile like those seen in Renaissance paintings, somehow both worldly and innocent. "My pleasure. It is what family is for." Their devotion saved and reserved for chosen family in place of blood, as if knowing all along this would be their fate. As they begin to part ways to set their minds to the tasks at hand - or perhaps the reverse? - Ophelia hears Wessex's voice in their head, as clearly as if the Wraith had spoken, and their ghostly blue eyes widen with an academic sort of delight. A furrow forms between their fair brows, an adorable look of concentration flitting over their features as they try to somehow think 'loudly'. There is nothing in my mind you are unwelcome to, sister. Releasing the lip they hadn't known they'd bitten in order to give a parting smile to the woman before they trail off to their chosen abode.
Rats are far from the worst fate, and Ophelia contemplates silently on how once upon a time it would have been a lucky find - food for the evening if other meat was short. Such worries are beyond them now however, and all that's left is the task of relocation. With no fear of pain if bitten, Ophelia heads straight for them, bare hands pale and reaching for the smaller ones tails. Perhaps the parents will follow if their offspring are in distress, and as such Ophelia heads back out of the house and across the pathway to find a more suitable - but still decrepit - home for them.
- - -
Ophelia scoops up the baby rats to relocate them first!
trying vainly to forget the pain that came with heartbeats
So long sad city of angels, you aint been very good to me
It might have taken a moment for Wessex to figure out how best to fix the supports, but she does a rather good job at swapping them out quickly. The new board goes into place, taking out the other one with ease. Given the termite damage, the board that falls out starts to break apart, collapsing into a heap of splinters, bugs, and dirt where it clatters to the ground. But that one’s replaced and simply needs to be nailed into the wall, before the rocks are looked at.
Varus’ house is an easy fix as well – picking up the bricks that have fallen out, putting them in a pile just outside the missing door so that he can easily take them out later. And then it’s just, tearing out the grout from the previous bricks that had fallen and replacing it with new grout and new bricks. It’s a good thing the ex-Assassin had come prepared with the material for it.
Ophelia has some good luck, too, the rats are too young to fully be able to run amok in the building and they are quick to snatch up the tails of them – causing quite the outrage from the mother rat, who hisses and chases after them as they move the rats outside. All that’s left for them is clearing out the nest and fixing the supports and termite damage.
Round THREEEEEE
We had good rolls so:
- Wessex’s house just needs the stones fixed!
- Varus is putting in new bricks
- Ophelia gets the rats to leave but needs to clean out the nest and take care of the termite damage and support beams!
When the support beam falls and splinters, spewing bits of wood and bugs everywhere, Wessex takes a petty moment to laser the troublesome insects to death, literally setting the wood dust and bugs on fire with her laser eyes because, fuck termites.
Once that is done to her satisfaction, the Wraith looks to holes she noted earlier and hums to herself, getting closer to check the size and shape and the other rocks around it. Once she has an idea of what she needs, Wessex heads back outside and collects an armful of rocks, carrying them in to play a game of tetris in an effort to fill in the hole as tightly and effectively as possible. If this house is to be a training ground, making every effort to not have something collapse on them is important.
------------------------
Wessex goes outside to hunt for good rocks to fill the hole in with and then tries to set them in the wall tightly and effectively.
we're just two ghosts swimming in a glass half empty
Success feels different after their Ascension. Purer somehow, to do things because they desire to and not because they are ordered to, or their body will wither and die if they don’t. Watching the creatures run off together in a less than uniform group, Ophelia smiles and returns inside to clean out the remainder of the nest. Only once the debris has been discarded to prevent any further temptation to the animals lest they return, Ophelia focuses on the structural problems.
The beams that need replacing are at least already supplied outside which is immensely helpful. Ophelia doesn’t have to worry about splinters or pulled muscles as they lug the beam inside, though coordinating breaking through the termite crippled old beam without bringing down the house is a challenge. It comes down to timing and choosing the right order of replacement - replacing the weakest beam first, relying on the others to be just barely sound enough to hold while Ophelia inserts the new wood.
- - -
Phi removes the nest debris and goes about replacing the support beams!
trying vainly to forget the pain that came with heartbeats
So long sad city of angels, you aint been very good to me
One thing we’ve learned in this adventure, is that the queen is very good at tetris indeed. The stones fit in easily and tightly, fixing and supporting the rest of the wall around it and Wessex will soon find that the wall doesn’t dip as it had before, thanks to her Ascended strength of forcing the stones into the space. Now all that’s left for the Queen to do is fill it with a bit of grout to keep the stones all nice and snug.
Ophelia fairs well too, the nests are easily cleaned out and they do a good job at removing the termite infested boards. Their timing is perfect, removing one board and replacing it with another just in time before the walls have a chance of acting out against it. Now all that’s left is for them to nail the boards into place so that it retains its shape, and perhaps to add a layer to the wood to keep the termites uninterested.
Varus has a bit of difficulty fitting the bricks into place. Apparently having a metal arm makes it more difficult this time around to try and fit things in nicely. But he does a decent job in replacing them, despite it taking twice as long as it would otherwise.
LAST ROUND <3
- Wessex does GREAT TETRIS!! All she’s gotta do now is fill it with grout to seal it!
- Ophelia does well as well, gets all the supports replaced, and just needs to nail them into place and maybe coat it with something that makes it less appealing to termites.
- Varus struggles with the bricks and it takes him roughly twice as long as it should have for him to replace it.
we're just two ghosts swimming in a glass half empty
Success is a strange feeling, but they float on it like a feather, ethereal and joyous. Physical endeavors had never been their calling, more like an assured downfall. Every single action and reaction from their Ascension is confirmation of all they have achieved by becoming Bright. Even fixing up old houses feels like deliverance.
As such they practically bounce out of the house, smiling like a radiant angel as they collect nails and a hammer from the tools and instruments Cal had gathered. Gliding back inside they begin nailing, unafraid of missing the nail with no pain to feel. There is at least a sincere attempt to place the nails where they're needed instead of willy-nilly, but Ophelia is certainly no carpenter.
Depending on how well they do they venture back outside to find something to deter the termites from inhabiting the new beams. Garlic blooms are the first odorous thing they can find, and they happily crush the bulbs against the beams to rub the scent into it.
- - -
Ophelia nails the beams in place, and uses garlic as a natural deterrent for the termites (I can't believe I googled that)
trying vainly to forget the pain that came with heartbeats
