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!
Almost 18 hours after the party in Meadowreach had abruptly broken up, and Juniper hadn't gone home yet, had made little effort to return to the Greatwood, hadn't even left the Barrows. Instead she sat at the top of the stairway that rose from the Barrows and ended so abruptly, so high. She'd walked up here instead of flying because she feared that its supposed ability to grant wishes might not work if she cheated. Did she truly believe that speaking her wish here, into open air, would make it come true? Not really. But it was worth a try, wasn't it? Because everything else she'd tried seemed to have failed; because her world was coming crashing down, and she could only watch in slow motion as it crushed the scaffolding she'd tried to shore it up with.
There would be war.
It shouldn't have come as such a shock. Juniper had seen the signs, had watched the tensions climb. But she'd been so determined to stop it, so devoted to her futile plans -- she had really thought she could make a difference. She had refused to believe in the inevitable.
And then the voice of prophecy had told her otherwise.
What was Juniper to do now? Should she disregard the voice and continue her efforts for peace, despite the nagging certainty in the back of her mind that war would come? Would it be worth it to stave off conflict for even a few seasons if she could?
Or should she give up? Accept the oracle's words and turn her attention to preparing for the inevitable battles? Turn her attention inwards, to the preservation of the Greatwood, rather than to the fate of all Caido -- put her people first, stop caring about the fates of strangers?
Juniper couldn't accept either of those paths. Not yet. So she'd come here, in this last-ditch attempt to make a wish that she knew no real god would take seriously.
"Please," she whispered into the wind. "Please save us -- all of us -- from war.
Juniper
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Sah was still in the area at the time. Even though he'd left as the party drew to a close, moving on foot hadn't gotten him too far in 18 hours. Especially since he'd set up camp for the night before only a few miles off. As such, Sah was close enough to Juniper's location that Lilly picked up the Fae's scent. Whining softly, the pup changed directions suddenly, veering away from their path home.
Narrowing his eyes Sah was about to ask what was wrong when she sent him a burst of emotions. Curiosity, sympathy, determination. Lilly wanted to follow the scent and find the person who smelled sad. "Alright. Let's go."
Letting the pup lead, Sah and Lilly soon came to the Last Step. The Abandoned was wary of approaching the stranger but the wolf pup had no such reservations. Walking up with her ears up and tail wagging, Lilly gave a friendly yip towards Juniper.
The wolf pup's yip cut through Juniper's despairing thoughts, and she turned to look down at the approaching duo. The moment was broken; she knew now that there would be no response to her wish. That shouldn't have hurt as much as it did -- she'd known how low the chances were. But something in her had still hoped. Something in her always hoped, and that only made more trouble, didn't it?
"Hello," she called down from the top of the stairs, trying to keep her dejection out of her voice, with mixed success. She'd been sitting on the top step with her legs dangling over the empty void where the stairway ended -- no Fae needed to fear falling -- and now she pulled herself back onto the step and stood to greet the man and his companion.
Juniper
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Sah picked up on the woman's distress, his brows furrowing in concern. "Hi. Are you ok?" He approached but paused a few feet away from her spot on the step, not want to encroach if she wanted to be left alone. Lilly however had no such reservations and bounced over to sit underneath the ledge. She glanced up at the the Fae, tail wagging.
Sah shook his head fondly. "Sorry about Lilly. She tries to befriend just about everyone." Those that the pup somehow judged to be of decent character that was. She hadn't been wrong yet which was rather impressive. The wolf pup also seemed particular drawn to those who needed comfort, hence the current situation. The Abandoned realized he hadn't introduced himself and gave the woman a gentle smile, rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly. "I'm Sah by the way. If we're interrupting I can grab the excited puppy and leave."
"I'm fine," Juniper said, a bit embarrassed that a stranger had picked up on her distress. Yet something about Sah -- or maybe it was Lilly's friendliness -- made her want to share her worries. She hesitated. "It's just ... were you at the party last night?"
It felt like a lifetime ago already. Juniper hadn't been carefree in a long time, but she'd felt so much lighter last night than she did now. She'd set aside her burdens for one night, and look where it got her -- look where it got them all.
She bent down to pet Lilly, smiling at the pup's enthusiasm. "It's all right -- you're not interrupting anything." It wasn't as if waiting on this step -- making wishes on myths -- would stave off war, after all. "I'm Juniper."
Juniper
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The woman's distress made sense now that she spoke. Sah found himself sighing, exhaustion settling along his shoulders. "Yes. I was." He approached until he was sitting on one of the lower steps when she confirmed that his presence wasn't a bother. "I hate that it's come to this but I am thankful to have a forewarning." As he spoke Lilly happily received the Fae's attentions. She sent an inquisitive surge toward her bonded, incidentally relaying that this woman was a species he hadn't met before.
Eyes going to Juniper curiously, he recalled the description of Fae he'd read of. "I'm sorry if it's rude to ask, but are you a Fae by any chance? Lilly seems to think so." If she was, the Outlander was going to have to restrain himself from bombarding her with questions to sate his curiosity.
Juniper nodded in agreement; when Sah sat down, so did she, sitting on a higher step so that she could pet Lilly more effectively. "I ... have been rather invested in the cause of peace. To hear that it was futile, that war will come regardless -- I don't know what to do. Do I just give up on peace? Or should I live in denial, trying to shout down a forest fire?"
Sah's question managed to distract Juniper a bit from her worries. She smiled and nodded again. "Yes, I am Fae. It's not rude to ask -- I'm not surprised that Lilly noticed. Most people do."
As if to explain why, Juniper fluttered her wings a little; they sparkled in the moonlight.
Juniper
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Sah's eyes went soft with sympathy. "That's got to be incredibly frustrating." He let out a sad sigh, running a hand through his hair.
"I don't want to give up on peace either. Especially when this war feels so wrong. But it looks like it's going to happen one way or another. Perhaps we can prepare for the worst but hope for the best? That's the saying right? Make sure that those we care about we'll make it out ok, but still try to dispel tensions where we can?" At least, that was what Sah was leaning towards. The war seemed inevitable almost, but giving up on peace felt like giving up hope.
Sah had been so focused on his thoughts that he hadn't noticed the wings initially. Not with how the Fae had been standing. He felt a tad foolish, and a small chuckle left him. "The wings should have been a give away." As he spoke, Lilly happily let the Fae pet her, pleased that she had successfully enthralled another person.
The Outlander eyed Juniper curiously. "The Fae and the Greatwood follow the Old Gods right? I've only been in Caido for a year or so, so I'm still trying to get a grasp on the different regions and cultures."
"Frustrating, yes, to say the least." Juniper sighed. "To be frank, 'despair' might be a better word."
She nodded as Sah spoke, appreciating his reasonable take. It did help, in fact, to have someone suggest a middle ground. But ... "I worry about wasting time and resources on a pointless project. If there is to be war, I can only hope that my own side wins, quickly and with as little loss of life as possible."
Juniper paused, her thoughts spiraling away: or should she hope that the war completely wiped out the "enemy," rather than giving the Voice and her followers a chance to regroup and cause further conflict?
What was worse than one war? Two wars.
Even with those thoughts unresolved, she let a quick smile quirk her lips in response to Sah's chuckle. She didn't mind his question, either: "We follow the Old Gods, and the Mathair, the goddess who rules the Greatwood. The Ascended drove her out ..."
Juniper stopped short of saying that the Mathair was back because she wasn't sure if that was common knowledge yet, and if not, it might yet prove advantageous for the Fae to keep it quiet. As pleasant as their conversation was at the moment, she didn't know where Sah's loyalties lay.
Juniper
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Sah sighed, but nodded in understanding. "I can get that. I'm struggling to figure out where I side to be honest. I'm an Abandoned Outlander, separate from all of your gods. I know almost nothing about this war except that the Voice has committed horrible crimes but that destroying her means the genocide of the Ascended. Which the Old Gods seem to want, but a large portion of their people don't." Sah summed up what little that he knew.
Shaking his head with clear frustration he added, "I just want the people in Caido who I care about to survive. And I don't know how to do that at all."
The Abandoned listened curiously as the Fae described the Goddess of the Greatwood. It was new information for him, and a reminder that there was still much about Caido's pantheon for him to learn. Maybe Juniper would indulge a few more questions?
"I thought the Mathair was a tree, or at least a spirit tied to a tree? She's a goddess?" His brows furrowed. "I thought I heard something about the tree being destroyed or burned? Is that how they drove her out?"
Juniper nodded as she listened to Sah. She could understand all too well his struggle to choose a side -- if she had been an Outlander, with no ties to her people or anyone else in Caido, she might have stood in limbo as well. "You've summed up the situation well. The Ascended attacked my people, murdered our guards, drove out our goddess -- yet I still believe that not all of them deserve to die. Not all the Ascended were involved in the attack; there are civilians among them, children. Yet it seems the only way to stop the Voice's machinations is to destroy her, and she has made her followers dependent upon her for their very lives ... and afterlives."
She sighed. "This is why I sought peace: because the consequences of victory for either side are horrific. But if last night's prophecy is to be believed, a negotiated solution is no longer and option. Maybe it never was. I ... I didn't want people like you, people who are just trying to live their lives, to get drawn into a conflict like this."
She framed it almost as an apology -- she did somehow feel that she had failed Sah, failed Caido as a whole. If she had done better, if she had acted quicker, if she had pushed harder ... Perhaps there was always going to be war, if it was the gods' will. But she would always wonder if there was something she could have done.
"She is a goddess," Juniper answered, nodding, with a note of pride in her voice. "The Ascended attacked the Greatwood, slew her guards, and burned the tree in which she resided, all to put a portal in its place. The Mathair vanished, and for many seasons we didn't know if she still existed -- but we had faith. And she lives."
Juniper
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Juniper's apologetic tone had Sah giving her a warm and sad smile. "It's not your fault. This is on the gods more so then the people. We played a role in it's creation, yes, but this is their war. Please don't blame yourself." The idea of a single person, especially one who wanted peace, taking the blame for this war was unacceptable. Sah might not know Juniper, but he knew there was no way this was all on her.
Hearing about the Mathair's story had Sah's brow furrowing. "That's horrible. All to place a portal?" He shook his head, disproval clear. "I'm glad that she is ok though. The Fae must be relieved." Juniper's wording caught Sah's attention. "If you know she is alive, does that mean she's returned to the Greatwood? Into the tree or some other place?" He paused and then shook his hands. "You don't have to answer if you don't want to. I vaguely recall hearing that Fae can't lie."
Juniper smiled, though her eyes were still sad. "I know. I know there is no fighting the gods' will. It still won't keep me from wondering, from asking 'what if' ... but I can't tear myself up over it. My people need me."
Then she nodded, more than happy to agree with Sah's horror at the Ascended's actions. "The Mathair may have survived, but even she cannot bring back the Fae whom the Ascended killed -- whose families still mourn them."
Hesitating, Juniper considered whether she should tell Sah about the Mathair's return, or keep that secret. It might not hurt to have a goddess in the Fae's pocket when it came to war -- unless the Ascended already knew of her return. Still, better to err on the side of caution. "I'd rather not say. But you're right -- Fae cannot lie."
Juniper
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Sah gave the Fae an understanding smile. "I get that." His tone took on a solemn note and he found his gaze going skyward in contemplation. "In my world, I was the leader of my kind. Their wellbeing, their happiness, their safety. I felt all of it on my shoulders. It was an honor." He let out a sigh. "But I couldn't help myself from placing blame for every strife on my shoulders as well. It took an almost intervention from some close friends to get me to stop doing that." Sah shook his head with a small chuckle that was tinged with grief.
Turning back to Juniper, he gave her a nod. "I understand. You have to protect your Goddess." Sah filed it away that fact about Fae, hoping to ensure that he never accidently pried to deeply. To ensure he always gave them a way to back out of questions they didn't want to answer. It felt too manipulative to do anything else.
