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!
Deimos was full of good suggestions today. Do the difficult things. Write stuff down. Eat pumpkins, and spend more time with that one friend. Seren glanced at him, bemused for all that she was grateful for the advice. He was starting to sound very much like her father. Or maybe some helpful uncle - the thought was not unpleasant. "Maybe I will," she replied. "Did... did it help? Punching him in the nose, I mean."
Maybe she should be shocked or appalled, but Deimos' amusement made it seem like an almost friendly thing to do. Meet, greet, punch in the face... She was tempted to ask why, but was afraid of evoking the same kind of tension as before. Unwilling to trigger some more emotional hand mines.
Finally turning her attention back to the landscape, Seren spotted a smooth-looking trail that led up on an elevation. Indicating it with a gesture, she took point and began to scale it. Eager to get a bit more of an overlook over the region - perhaps something interesting could be found from there. More than rocks and occasional bursts of steam.
Battle born they send us Covered in our noble blood
✰ 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.
Back to bemusements, and not some pressing wake of untouched anguish, the Sword continued to inflict his smirk and snicker into the backdrop. “We were training.” By way of explanations, as if this made it all the better to land his fist into Loren’s nose, and break it. Satisfying, in a way, of brutalizing the smug adornments. “He had a very punchable face.” Not insinuating she should agree, though many others probably would. “But he healed it right away, so no harm done.” Another shrug of his shoulders as they walked, pressing into the obsidian floor, affixing his eyes to the trail she indicated. “And he was always willing to help.” In any circumstance, it seemed.
Over the crest, following after proportions rising, gave a glimpse into a void down below. Some stray pumpkins, bumbling and rumbling their way around the solidified layer of once-hot magma, and another creature he’d yet to see before. Crocodilian would be the best word to describe it; much like the swamp dwellers, only clearly crusted over with rock and ancient, primordial lava – an opposing counterpart. “I am not familiar with that animal,” jutting his jaw in its direction, though his murmur was quiet, uncertain just how stealthy, swift, or quick the fauna was. There were always a range of abilities to ensure their safety, but he also had no inclination of aggravating the thing.
Ah, training. Then it was only natural, she supposed. The notion of anyone having a face that welcomed fists made the girl laugh with amusement - her recollection of the man's appearance was vague at best, restricted to an impression of someone blue-eyed and lean that towered over her when standing up. Not entirely accurate anymore, she suspected.
The venture yielded something interesting, indeed. Following Deimos' indication, it took Seren a moment to pick out what he was talking about. Well camouflaged, a rock among other rocks, she drew in a slow breath when she was able to make out the reptilian semblance.
"It... could be a lial," she said, keeping her voice down even as she crouched down, to make her silhouette less noticeable. "I've only read about them - " she had only read about most creatures in Caido " - so I can't be sure. But if it is, we shouldn't disturb it. They are very hot, and kill their prey by touching it." Very quickly, her book had said, but what that meant in practice was hard to know.
With some interest, Seren spotted a gaggle of gourds trundling along towards the creature. Was it interested in vegetables?
Battle born they send us Covered in our noble blood
✰ 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.
Deimos wasn’t even remotely surprised to hear about its potential deadliness. Based entirely on his experiences in Caido, it was more bewildering to find a gentle animal; many cretins, monsters, fiends, and predatory beasts lodged and lingering within these hallowed halls. But there was always a purpose to their creation, he supposed, and they had no reason to disturb it. “Continue on, then?”
Which he would’ve done, save for the experience in watching a lial go after the vampire gourds. Perhaps the sentient pumpkins hadn’t seen it, immersed in that lethal, rocky camouflage, or they simply didn’t care, as previously demonstrated in their other moments of stupefying bloodlust. With sharp jaws, powerful movements, and the aforementioned speed, the lial lunged, quickly grasping one of the fauna in its mouth, and that was the end.
He arched his brow, and shook his head, motioning around the crest and knoll. “There are gore crows around here as well. And large, blind rats.” The Climb seemed to house a great many sources of brutality.
07-14-2021, 12:01 PM (This post was last modified: 07-14-2021, 12:06 PM by Seren.)
Seren
Nodding fervently, the girl began to inch back even before the lial had finished its meal. Seren had no desire to linger. She'd had her fun with the gourds already, and this creature spelled more trouble than it was worth. Others might disagree and go after it for the potent blood, but she had no interest in drugs or glorious deaths.
"A friend of mine has a Gore Crow shift," she commented, when Deimos brought up other creatures within the landscape. "They are quite beautiful, but I wouldn't want to get near a wild one. Not with those claws." She peered up at Umbra, a little concerned about him - but the Blue was coasting along on the warm winds rising from the Climb, and seemed in no mood to fight or harrass today.
The kept roaming, exploring and talking quietly until the sun began to descend in the sky. When the novelty of the area lost its charm, the two intrepid wanderers returned towards home - parting for now, but certain of future chances to meet. They had made promises, after all.
- FIN
Battle born they send us Covered in our noble blood
✰ 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.
