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 if you're lost along the way And if you're thinking that will always be the case
When he heard the soft tapping on the door, from too low down to be a child, Sam knew they had returned. Still upset about him killing their King, it seemed the gourds wanted another taste of him. Unfortunately for them, they were about the only foe he had a chance of overpowering. He'd opened the door and with a broom, begun to make a pumpkin puree in the street.
Mia sat in the window, teeth chattering as she glowered at the attacking vegetables, but Sam kept her in. This was his battle and he didn't want her hurt, though he was sure she'd probably actually be alright (she was often more angry than he was about the mice that made it into the shop).
"Take that!" He yelled, bringing the broom down on a gourd by his feet, none of his usual mercy or peaceful attitude visible now. Leaning back on the broom, Sam glanced up - for now, they were gone, but he'd stay for a while to make sure they weren't planning a surprise attack.
You'll make a sucker's prayer Just go and leave it that-a-way
We are only haunted by the things we refuse to accept -Bridgett Devoue
Nikolai eyed the numerous gourds that seemed to have just appeared. It was startling every year frankly. They just showed up like clockwork. He made his way through the streets, carefully avoiding them. At least, until he heard yelling. Slightly worried, the young Ascended jogged over to see a man chasing off gourds with a broom. The man seemed to have it covered however as he scared off the current wave. But something seemed off about how angry the little creatures were.
Nikolai walked over. "Do you need help? They seemed particularly angry with you." His tone was a bit guarded, strangers still being a thing that Nikolai did not like. But the gourds were a nuisance to them all, and the man seemed to be a fellow Ascended. And Nikolai had been meaning to get to know more members of his new family.
Resilience is born even when we feel like we are dying -Alex Elle
So if you're lost along the way And if you're thinking that will always be the case
Sam had not expected to have caught anyones attention, but he supposed such an impassioned shout, especially here and especially from him, was unusual for the area. Laughing embarrassedly, he stood up, leaning on the broom and looking down at the splattered remains of the gourds around his feet. "Oh, um, well, I don't want to trouble you, but..." He looked over the stranger, who at least seemed like he could take on a few vegetables.
"Maybe if you could just stay for five minutes in case they come back." Usually the gourds attacked in short, close-together waves, then left him alone for a while; it had happened enough times now for Sam to notice a pattern. "Some years ago I went with a group to fight their...leader? I guess? And we killed it. We thought that would be it, but every year they come back to bother my shop." Not dangerous, as such, but annoying to be sure. "Thank you. I haven't seen you before, Mr....?"
You'll make a sucker's prayer Just go and leave it that-a-way
We are only haunted by the things we refuse to accept -Bridgett Devoue
Nikolai nodded in assent. "I can stick around for a bit." His eyes widened as Sam revealed his history with the season pest. "You killed their leader? I'm surprised that they wait for Leafchange to come around to bother you." With that kind of tension, the young Ascended wouldn't have been surprised to hear that this shop had a year-long problem.
When prompted for an introduction, Nikolai forced himself to give a hand out to shake. "I'm Nikolai Moriya. I think I've seen you around? Maybe in the Atheneum? I vaguely remember exchanging nods with you at some point there." The classic acknowledgement of one's existence when at a place filled with books. 'Oh, you exist, you're reading a book, good day.' The best kind of social interaction in Nikolia's opinion. Short and non-verbal.
Resilience is born even when we feel like we are dying -Alex Elle
So if you're lost along the way And if you're thinking that will always be the case
Sam laughed; hearing it repeated back to him, the idea that he could kill anything's leader sounded absurd, but it was true. "That's fair. I suppose I'm lucky that they only seem to come out to the light at this time of year." He wished there weren't quite so bloody many of them in Leafchange, but at least he got a rest otherwise. Still, during this season he was always twitchy, looking out for an orange blur in the corner of his eye; Sam turned quickly towards a building where he thought he might've seen one hide.
Shaking the offered hand once it seemed it was a false alarm, Sam looked over Nikolai's face with more intensity, trying to see if he recognised him; he didn't, which was a little embarrassing, but he'd always gotten very involved in his reading.
"Sam. Wordsworth, like--" He pointed up at the sign above his store. "It's nice to hear from someone else that visits the Atheneum. It feels like a ghost town sometimes nowadays. Are you doing research for something in particular?"
You'll make a sucker's prayer Just go and leave it that-a-way
We are only haunted by the things we refuse to accept -Bridgett Devoue
"Nice to meet you Sam." Nikolai greeted, pleased that he hadn't made a fool of himself just yet. Social interactions were hard, ok? The question about his hobby however through that all out the widow. Biting his lip nervously his eyes went past Sam's shoulder, unable to make eye contact.
"Well. I.. generally no. I just really like to read the old books and.." He sighed, bracing himself slightly. "I like to study the languages as well, linguistics...you know?" Nikolai was going to scream. For some reason whenever he spoke to someone about these sorts of things, who might actually be interested in them too, he grew so shy.
Swallowing, he mentioned his current project. "Since the announcement though, I've begun to look for anything related to the Relics." It was one of the few things he could do to protect their home right now. He wasn't a capable fighter after all.
Resilience is born even when we feel like we are dying -Alex Elle
So if you're lost along the way And if you're thinking that will always be the case
Nikolai might not have known it, but he was speaking to a kindred soul, one who also hated social interaction and all it's various ins and outs; Sam would not judge the man for any awkwardness, mostly because he was too busy cringing at his own.
"Oh, I see! Well, I'm interested in that too. There are so many books in the Atheneum we have yet to fully translate...for a while I was trying to undertake it as a project, but it was quite overwhelming." Sam laughed and rubbed the back of his neck, still a little embarrassed about how quickly it had been obvious that he wasn't going to get anywhere; he recovered quickly though, leaning in and pulling out a pair of glasses from his pocket. They were broken, a cracked lens and a bent arm, but he held them as if they were precious gems. "These glasses I have...they let you translate things. Sometimes. It's useful for when I find old text. I'd love to find out the magic that makes them work so I can reproduce it."
Sweeping away chunks of pumpkin innards for the time being, Sam nodded at the mention of the Relics. "Yes...I wasn't there for the announcement, but I know of it. Have you learnt anything?"
You'll make a sucker's prayer Just go and leave it that-a-way
We are only haunted by the things we refuse to accept -Bridgett Devoue
Nikolai was instantly intrigued by the glasses, curiosity overtaking any shyness. "That's incredible! How did you get them? I'd love to get something like that. Having to constantly translate things to read them is exhausting." He rolled his eyes. ]"Or having to learn a whole new language first so that you can translate it, ugh it's so much work." Wessex had an ocular upgrade to help her, and now Sam had glasses? Nikolai really needed to get himself something similar. It's save him so much time and effort.
The question on his progress has the young Ascended sighing in frustration. "Nothing yet. I'm wondering if any of those secret caches from the Lorekeepers has anything. But I can't find those either." Those supposedly hidden prized books were tantalizing for sure.
Resilience is born even when we feel like we are dying -Alex Elle
So if you're lost along the way And if you're thinking that will always be the case
"Oh, I got them from a friend that I...haven't seen in a long time." Sam paused with a sigh, thinking of Jigano and the peaceful times they'd spent at the Atheneum before the world had become more and more divisive. Once, it had seemed like he was going to spend years with the librarian taking care of books and discussing them, but it had been a swift phase.
Putting the glasses back, he nodded. "Yes, they are very useful, but they're broken, so they don't always work." That was to say, don't expect to be able to translate entire tomes with them.
At the mention of 'secret caches', Sam tilted his head. "The...Lorekeepers? I used to be a part of the Loreseekers, and I don't recall any caches...what do you mean?"
You'll make a sucker's prayer Just go and leave it that-a-way
We are only haunted by the things we refuse to accept -Bridgett Devoue
Nikolai snapped his fingers. "That's what the name was. I got it mixed up. You were a member?" He eyed Sam curiously, resisting the urge to bombard him with questions. "If you don't know of any caches, there likely aren't any. Wessex mentioned the possibility and I was looking based on that." He felt a small tinge of disappointment that he'd been looking for nothing, but only mildly. There were still plenty of secrets hidden in the Atheneum for him to discover. Plenty more leads to be found.
Nikolai's brow furrowed as he focused back on the issue at hand. "But in terms of trying to find things on the Relics, do you know any collections of books that are older then those in the Atheneum? I haven't gotten through everything obviously, but there's been nothing."
Resilience is born even when we feel like we are dying -Alex Elle
So if you're lost along the way And if you're thinking that will always be the case
"Yes, I was close to the man that ran it." It had been a time of hope, then. Clearing out the basement under the Atheneum, sorting the books and preparing for adventures...Sam had never seen any 'caches' though. Jigano had been a secretive sort, especially towards the end of their friendship when trust had begun to run dry, but Sam thought he'd have at least heard of some kind of secret stash. "I don't know of anything like that. The guild hall is still down there, if you want to go and look. It's not locked."
Not like there was anything worth much down there anymore, except things that might be of interest to a few nerds.
As for Relics...Sam puffed out his cheeks and shook his head, about to point out he didn't know how old the relics were - when suddenly a orange blur launched itself at his feet, and another, and another - taking advantage of his distraction, they came in a wave, gathering around the two men and trying to claw up their pant legs. With a yell, Sam resumed his broom-smashing.
You'll make a sucker's prayer Just go and leave it that-a-way
We are only haunted by the things we refuse to accept -Bridgett Devoue
Nikolai shrugged. "It might be worth looking, just in case then." He didn't have high hopes now that Sam had given him more context, but there likely wouldn't be any harm in taking a quick look. At worst, he found nothing and at best, something useful.
Nikolai let out a very undignified yelp as the gourds appeared. On reflex, he kicked out, managing to send one sailing into a nearby window. It splattered against the glass but he didn't have time to be satisfied. Another was already replacing it. Nikolai looked around for anything he could use as a weapon and came up short. "Do you have another broom or something?!" He asked Sam as the young Ascended resorting to just punching the pest.
Resilience is born even when we feel like we are dying -Alex Elle
So if you're lost along the way And if you're thinking that will always be the case
Thankfully, even if Nikolai was caught by surprise, he seemed to know how to handle the gourds, sending one flying and splattering with his foot immediately. Sam yelled approvingly, stomping and smacking his own fair share of the naughty root vegetables. His rage was interrupted when Nikolai asked for a weapon of his own; Sam blinked for a second, taken out of his gourd-destroying stupor, then nodded.
"Not quite a broom, but--" Opening the door just a crack, Sam reached in and tried to grab a fire poker from the basket near the fire. Managing after a slightly undignified wobble and almost-fall, he pulled it out and handed it over. "This should do. It's heavy enough." Now he had a whole new wave of gourds to deal with that had arrived while he was distracted: he began his broom smashing anew.
You'll make a sucker's prayer Just go and leave it that-a-way
We are only haunted by the things we refuse to accept -Bridgett Devoue
Nikolai took the fire poker with a grin. "Perfect." Improvised weapon in hand, he turned back to the gourds. With a swing of the poker, he sent a few tumbling down the streets. The poker was heavy enough that it gave them a good shove, much to his satisfaction. Eyeing the sharper end of the poker, Nikolai gave stabbing one of the gourds a try. It gave a furious scream but soon fell silent. Seemed like stabbing worked too.
Determination renewed, Nikolai set about swinging at, stabbing, and otherwise tormenting the pest to the best of his ability. "I hate these things!" He yelled, kicking away one that had attempted to bite his leg. Scowling, he sent the pest flying with a swing of the poker.
Resilience is born even when we feel like we are dying -Alex Elle
