going under
Noah Olson
the Forsaken
Hunter

Age: 34 | Height: 6'2 | Race: Demi-god | Nationality: Natural | Citizenship: Halo
Level: 9 - Strg: 49 - Dext: 47 - Endr: 46 - Luck: 47 - Int: 1
EIRA - Mythical - Griffin (Venom) VI’ADORE - Mythical - Unicorn (Healing)
Played by: Time Offline
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Posts: 2,009 | Total: 2,361
MP: 1005
#1
The sun's coming up
The closer he got to where Maeve was, and where Korbin was, the more panic rose in the Sentinel's throat. His hands felt clammy, and he continuously clenched and unclenched his hands, occasionally shaking them out as if to rid the feelings from his body through the tips of his fingers. The queen must have left a notice with her staff because, as Noah entered the court and spoke -- carefully, briefly, discreetly -- his reason for entry, they were quick to point him in the right direction.

"Maeve?" Noah asked, stepping through the door with eyes scanning the room for the dark haired queen. He stood before the door, but closed it quietly behind him. He did not close the distance between them or look anywhere in the office other than Maeve once his eyes found her. "Wher--where is he?" Noah asked, voice cold but still riddled with grief, the lump in his throat evident as he swallowed it down halfway through his first word.

But the steel around your heart is starting to rust
table code from sky
Maeve Ansel
the Nightshade
Madame

Age: 26 | Height: 5'4 | Race: Accepted | Nationality: Natural | Citizenship: Torchline
Level: 10 - Strg: 35 - Dext: 37 - Endr: 43 - Luck: 37 - Int: 1
AIDON - Mythical - Dragon (Fire Breath)
Played by: Artio Offline
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Posts: 2,404 | Total: 3,277
MP: 877
#2
"What a shame she's fucked in the head," they said.
Time had passed. So much time. Too much time. Maeve knew he would come. Noah promised to come. Still, they weren't able to make time stop. Not in this regard. Korbin still lay in the clinic, preserved to the best of their ability, but already beginning to wither away. Word had only just reached her that Noah was here before he was pushing into her office. The Nightshade's eyes snapped up and that grief she had so carefully buried away surged to the surface, making her eyes swim with tears, vision going blurry as she stood on shaky legs.

Her middle was round with child, so close to her due date now and it took effort to stand, moving toward Noah quickly despite this. Noah might not have closed the distance, but Maeve did. She drew herself to him like a moth to flame, tears slipping down her cheeks as her arms came up on their own accord, wrapping around his neck. No one else knew. No one else cared. Not like she did. Not like Noah did.

A shaky breath tumbled past her lips, face pressing into his chest and for a selfish moment she stole the comfort this provided, "The clinic. I'm sorry, Noah... I tried." She rasped, voice tight with grief, threatening to give out in a moments notice.
Maeve
Noah Olson
the Forsaken
Hunter

Age: 34 | Height: 6'2 | Race: Demi-god | Nationality: Natural | Citizenship: Halo
Level: 9 - Strg: 49 - Dext: 47 - Endr: 46 - Luck: 47 - Int: 1
EIRA - Mythical - Griffin (Venom) VI’ADORE - Mythical - Unicorn (Healing)
Played by: Time Offline
Change author:
Posts: 2,009 | Total: 2,361
MP: 1005
#3
The sun's coming up
Noah's face dropped as Maeve moved away from her desk. The fact that she was heavy with child was not lost on him, but the circumstance that brought him here was heavier than that. He would congratulate her at a later time, when he was more pulled together and did not feel like a frayed string. The queen embraced him, and Noah merely stood there. He couldn't feel his limbs.

Drowned? Confusion swam through the grief and swarmed his mind. He knew the youngest Hale could swim -- they were all taught at a young age how to protect themselves and save their own lives if they ever fell through the ice on the Sea of Glass. Noah had watched the boy pass his trials, better than both of his siblings, and swim. After many quiet moments, Noah finally spoke. "He can-- he could-- Korbin can swim--" He sobbed into her, arms dull at his sides despite how hers curled around him. Everything felt numb, and the Sentinel was rendered immobile for several minutes, before one arm lifted slowly to rest in the small of her back. His forehead rested on her shoulder. "Take me to him."

But the steel around your heart is starting to rust
table code from sky
Maeve Ansel
the Nightshade
Madame

Age: 26 | Height: 5'4 | Race: Accepted | Nationality: Natural | Citizenship: Torchline
Level: 10 - Strg: 35 - Dext: 37 - Endr: 43 - Luck: 37 - Int: 1
AIDON - Mythical - Dragon (Fire Breath)
Played by: Artio Offline
Change author:
Posts: 2,404 | Total: 3,277
MP: 877
#4
"What a shame she's fucked in the head," they said.
The ever stoic Noah. So strong. So still. So resolute. Maeve wrapped him in her embrace even though he stated stiff in her arms, dropping her head against his chest even as her tears stained his shirt, breaths coming in short little pants even as she tried to keep herself together for him. Except she wasn't the stoic one. She wasn't the strong one. Not out of the two of them.

His voice was rough like sandpaper as it cut through the silence, choked with a sob, all of that grief finally bubbling out of him like water through the cracks in the Sea of Glass. The very sea that Korbin learned how to swim for in case he ever fell through that ice. Her hand came up, cupping the back of his head, fingers slipping through the dirty blonde strands in a show of comfort. Despite her moniker and the poison that sometimes coated her tongue, Maeve was a soft thing. Made for comforting those around her and soothing the pain that life inflicted on those who were forced to live through it.

It made no sense. How Korbin died this way. How he passed like this. None of it made sense, but Maeve didn't have answers for him. Not about this. Slowly, Maeve drew back, cupping his cheek in her palm as she brought his forehead down to hers for the span of a breath. "Okay... Come with me." She murmured, drawing back, but not releasing him fully. Instead she kept a hold of his hand, leading him through the darkened streets of Torchline towards the clinic where Korbin was waiting for them. There is no one else there aside from the one nurse, but she doesn't stop Maeve from heading to the back where he is.

He's laying on the table, dressed in a loose fitting shirt and linen pants, clean and pale. He's gaunt, skin ashen, and cheeks more sunken than usual. Thanks to the preservation they've done he's not decaying yet, but they won't have much longer. Maeve stood to the side, giving him space, but offering her silent support should he want it.
Maeve
Noah Olson
the Forsaken
Hunter

Age: 34 | Height: 6'2 | Race: Demi-god | Nationality: Natural | Citizenship: Halo
Level: 9 - Strg: 49 - Dext: 47 - Endr: 46 - Luck: 47 - Int: 1
EIRA - Mythical - Griffin (Venom) VI’ADORE - Mythical - Unicorn (Healing)
Played by: Time Offline
Change author:
Posts: 2,009 | Total: 2,361
MP: 1005
#5
The sun's coming up
Each step towards where Korbin lay made his limbs heavier and heavier. Invisible hands held him back, spirits pulling at him to keep him away. Perhaps they were trying to help keep him from the demise of himself, from the ultimate shattering of his heart. Perhaps they were trying to stir the ire within him, the rage surrounding the grief. He could swim was all that the Sentinel could think as he walked--trudged--silently in Maeve's wake.

He stood in the doorway for a moment, steadying himself on the doorframe before stepping through. He took in a deep breath and held it, everything in the room except the body of the youngest Hale fading away. Even Maeve was no longer within any perceivable thought. Noah's cheeks burned with dried tears from their walk from her office to the mortuary, and his eyes stung as new, fresh tears threatened to breach the guard of his eyelashes. He let his breath out slowly as his hands lifted to rest on Korbin's arm. As the hunter's calloused fingers touched down on cold, pale skin, his breath was pulled from his chest again.

He wasn't sure how long time passed as he stood above the dark-haired youth, tears dripping down and staining his dark clothing. Finally, a shaky breath, and his apology, "I'm so sorry."

But the steel around your heart is starting to rust
table code from sky
Maeve Ansel
the Nightshade
Madame

Age: 26 | Height: 5'4 | Race: Accepted | Nationality: Natural | Citizenship: Torchline
Level: 10 - Strg: 35 - Dext: 37 - Endr: 43 - Luck: 37 - Int: 1
AIDON - Mythical - Dragon (Fire Breath)
Played by: Artio Offline
Change author:
Posts: 2,404 | Total: 3,277
MP: 877
#6
"What a shame she's fucked in the head," they said.
Maeve didn't push once they geo there. She remained silent, letting the Sentinel grieve, giving him the time that he deserved with Korbin. It didn't change what happened. That the youngest Hale knew how to swim and et somehow drowned. It wasn't until his voice broke through the silence, offering the raven boy an apology that he didn't need to give, but gave out anyway that she stepped forward. Her hand came up to rest on his back, rubbing gentle circles just below his shoulder, "I'm sure he knows, Noah. That you loved him."

She murmured, offering what little comfort she could in this moment, knowing that it wasn't much. Maeve drew quiet for a span of the breath, "What would you like to do with him?" She knew that he wasn't welcome in Halo anymore. Could he even take him home to bury him?
Maeve
Noah Olson
the Forsaken
Hunter

Age: 34 | Height: 6'2 | Race: Demi-god | Nationality: Natural | Citizenship: Halo
Level: 9 - Strg: 49 - Dext: 47 - Endr: 46 - Luck: 47 - Int: 1
EIRA - Mythical - Griffin (Venom) VI’ADORE - Mythical - Unicorn (Healing)
Played by: Time Offline
Change author:
Posts: 2,009 | Total: 2,361
MP: 1005
#7
The sun's coming up
"He would still be alive if I hadn't." Noah choked, his fists curling the dark fabric of Korbin's shirt. He believed that -- all of this, everything that had happened in the last few months, was all his fault and it was all because he was selfish. Noah scoured the tundra for the raven until he finally found him and brought him home. Noah pressed him on towards what he thought was the right path of healing for the youngest Hale. Korbin would had fought the dragons at the Sentinel's side if he had asked him to. Now the boy -- the young man -- was dead.

And it was all Noah's fault.

The tears streamed uncontrollably down his face at this point as he lowered his forehead down to rest it against the raven's. He closed his eyes, unable to bring his breathing back to normal as he sobbed against the boy's face. He stayed in this posture, like he had before, for several quiet minutes. It was as if he were turning to ice himself, the grief and sorrow closing in on the shadowed cavern of where his heart used to be. Ice took no prisoners, and it was consuming him. "I have to honor him. A warrior's death -- a pyre." But for that Noah would need Deimos, and the Sword was not allowed on Maeve's sands.

But the steel around your heart is starting to rust
table code from sky
Maeve Ansel
the Nightshade
Madame

Age: 26 | Height: 5'4 | Race: Accepted | Nationality: Natural | Citizenship: Torchline
Level: 10 - Strg: 35 - Dext: 37 - Endr: 43 - Luck: 37 - Int: 1
AIDON - Mythical - Dragon (Fire Breath)
Played by: Artio Offline
Change author:
Posts: 2,404 | Total: 3,277
MP: 877
#8
"What a shame she's fucked in the head," they said.
Her heart broke for him. It shattered completely. Ever stoic Noah, unmoving as ice and as warm as a crackling fire in the hearth, was crumbling before her into a million little pieces. Fractures and fractals that couldn't possibly be put back together. It wasn't her job and she doubted it ever would be, but Maeve couldn't help the way she drifted to him now. It was more difficult to mold herself to his back with the swell of her belly, but her arms wrap around his middle and cheek pressing between his shoulder blades. She didn't argue with him or tell him not to say it. She didn't push because it was impossible to push against a wall, but she did what she did best, offered comfort through her touch. It was all she knew to do.

Maeve drew back enough to allow him to straighten, keeping a hand on his back, rubbing gently as she wiped away her own tears. "Whatever you need, Noah. Anything." She murmured softly, chewing on her bottom lip, eyes roving over him as she waited for him to expand on what exactly it is that he needed from her. "Just tell me."
Maeve
Noah Olson
the Forsaken
Hunter

Age: 34 | Height: 6'2 | Race: Demi-god | Nationality: Natural | Citizenship: Halo
Level: 9 - Strg: 49 - Dext: 47 - Endr: 46 - Luck: 47 - Int: 1
EIRA - Mythical - Griffin (Venom) VI’ADORE - Mythical - Unicorn (Healing)
Played by: Time Offline
Change author:
Posts: 2,009 | Total: 2,361
MP: 1005
#9
The sun's coming up
It was good that Maeve did not work to try and get Noah to see true reason. It would be a failed endeavor, at this point. Eventually, maybe his heart would heal enough that he could see all of this for what it was. But, for now, Noah simply closed in on himself. Darkness surrounded him, ice covered him. He was quiet for so long that he thought Maeve might have slipped away, but when he finally looked up and became cognizant of his surroundings, the woman was pressed into him. He melted into her warmth for a moment, the stone of his shoulders drooping.

"I need a boat." Noah started, sighing heavily between his sentences. "I need his body taken to the boat. We will set him out to sea, and I will send a lit arrow." He wanted to ask for Deimos, but bringing him in surely would mess up the timelines take too long. Noah needed to set Korbin's body out tonight, and pray that his soul made it to Mort, to reunite him with his family and bring him final peace.

But the steel around your heart is starting to rust
table code from sky
Maeve Ansel
the Nightshade
Madame

Age: 26 | Height: 5'4 | Race: Accepted | Nationality: Natural | Citizenship: Torchline
Level: 10 - Strg: 35 - Dext: 37 - Endr: 43 - Luck: 37 - Int: 1
AIDON - Mythical - Dragon (Fire Breath)
Played by: Artio Offline
Change author:
Posts: 2,404 | Total: 3,277
MP: 877
#10
"What a shame she's fucked in the head," they said.
He was silent for a long while. Many seconds passed and many breaths left her lungs in that time she stayed pressed against his back. It was only once he melted a fraction that Maeve considered pulling away. Her hand remained on his back, maintaining a contact with him as they stood there, waiting for his plans to be aired. Maeve nodded easily, "Okay. Let me talk to a few people. Arrangements will be made." She murmured, drawing back towards the door, stepping out to speak to someone on hushed tones. It was a few minutes before she came to join him once more.

"Would you like to carry him? They'll have a boat waiting for us by the base of the cliffs and a fire made." They went off ahead of the queen and her current counterpart, intent on implementing her request as quickly as possible, knowing that this has waited far too long at this point.
Maeve
Noah Olson
the Forsaken
Hunter

Age: 34 | Height: 6'2 | Race: Demi-god | Nationality: Natural | Citizenship: Halo
Level: 9 - Strg: 49 - Dext: 47 - Endr: 46 - Luck: 47 - Int: 1
EIRA - Mythical - Griffin (Venom) VI’ADORE - Mythical - Unicorn (Healing)
Played by: Time Offline
Change author:
Posts: 2,009 | Total: 2,361
MP: 1005
#11
The sun's coming up
"Yes." Was all Noah said as he composed himself. He gathered every ounce of strength he had within himself, which at this point was not much. Still, the man that had just broken down before the body of his last loved one, he returned to stone. the Sentinel scooped his arms beneath Korbin's body and lifted it. This was not the first time that he had carried the young man, but this was certainly the easiest physically. There was a lightness to him that Noah knew only came from his soul passing on. He only hoped that by setting his body to rest that his soul would find its way to Mort.

Noah followed Maeve away from the mortuary and out into the open world. It was dark, and exceptionally quiet for what he knew of Torchline. Despite the stone covering his face and solidifying his jaw, there was a lump in the hunter's throat that could not be swallowed down. Finally they made it to the boat that her personnel had arranged for. There was a fire raging and, because Maeve knew who Noah was, a woman standing with a bow and a single arrow. Noah set Korbin's body in the boat. Before he could speak, there were a few people dressed in black placing beautiful flowers all around him. Somehow, Noah thought the youngest Hale would appreciate that, though with a Halovian pyre there would not have been such delicacy and beauty given.

Sighing, Noah slipped his boots off and stepped into the shallows of the water. He placed his hands on the back of the small boat--an obvious construction for what was transpiring here--and with only a moment of hesitation, pushed him out into the open water. The woman with the bow and followed him, and as Noah turned to take it from her, she turned to another on her side and took a torch from them. Noah nocked the arrow, and the worker lit it, and seamlessly, the Sentinel turned, aimed, and fired.

The boat ignited.

"May he burn brightly."

But the steel around your heart is starting to rust
table code from sky
Maeve Ansel
the Nightshade
Madame

Age: 26 | Height: 5'4 | Race: Accepted | Nationality: Natural | Citizenship: Torchline
Level: 10 - Strg: 35 - Dext: 37 - Endr: 43 - Luck: 37 - Int: 1
AIDON - Mythical - Dragon (Fire Breath)
Played by: Artio Offline
Change author:
Posts: 2,404 | Total: 3,277
MP: 877
#12
"What a shame she's fucked in the head," they said.
The flowers had been her idea, gathered from the Halenani to blanket his body, the last blooms before the drop in temperature caused many of them to stop flowering for the season. It's the least she can do along with the other arrangements. Maeve didn't have to wade into the waters with him, but she did, standing at his side as he took aim and said his final words. She said a silent prayer to Safrin, requesting the goddess to hang stars for him, hoping that she hears this one.

As the ocean carried him away, Maeve drew in a shaky breath, turning back to the Sentinel with watery eyes, "He's at peace now. I hope that you can find some too." She murmured, reaching out to take his hand, giving it a gentle squeeze. "If you need anything you know where I am..."
Maeve
Noah Olson
the Forsaken
Hunter

Age: 34 | Height: 6'2 | Race: Demi-god | Nationality: Natural | Citizenship: Halo
Level: 9 - Strg: 49 - Dext: 47 - Endr: 46 - Luck: 47 - Int: 1
EIRA - Mythical - Griffin (Venom) VI’ADORE - Mythical - Unicorn (Healing)
Played by: Time Offline
Change author:
Posts: 2,009 | Total: 2,361
MP: 1005
#13
The sun's coming up
Noah brought the bow down and his arms went limp at his sides. He could not take his eyes off of the burning boat as it drifted out into the depths. The stone returned to his features, even as Maeve gripped his hand. "Thank you." He whispered. Despite the coldness in tone and feature, the words were sincere. Maeve had no responsibility to Noah, nor to Korbin, and she chose to keep safe and honor the raven boy despite that. Noah truly was thankful for her, and would keep her a close ally in the coming months.

"I am returning to King's End, but first I need to venture to Stormbreak. I need to speak with Phoebe." He turned to her and one of the attendants came and took the bow back from him. Noah moved back up to shore, brushing sand from his feet and ankles and putting boots back on. "Can you help me arrange those travels?" And here he was, back to business as usual--

--though now with one less piece of himself.

But the steel around your heart is starting to rust
table code from sky
Maeve Ansel
the Nightshade
Madame

Age: 26 | Height: 5'4 | Race: Accepted | Nationality: Natural | Citizenship: Torchline
Level: 10 - Strg: 35 - Dext: 37 - Endr: 43 - Luck: 37 - Int: 1
AIDON - Mythical - Dragon (Fire Breath)
Played by: Artio Offline
Change author:
Posts: 2,404 | Total: 3,277
MP: 877
#14
"What a shame she's fucked in the head," they said.
"Of course." The reply is instance, answering both his thanks and his request. It was the least she can do in all of this. Maeve might not have been able to take the pain away or ease his mind, but she could do these things. The Nightshade trailed after him, wringing out the salt water from her skirts, "I can make sure you have passage on the first Skyship out tomorrow morning." She murmured, expression somber as she held his gaze, clearly seeing the pain that lingered just behind the ice in his gaze.

True to her word, the Nightshade ensures he has a spot on the first ship out. She sends him off with some honey and a soothing balm for dry hands, advising him that it would help to keep his skin from cracking in the cold, knowing he'd be braving the elements in King's End. With a reminder to write should he need anything, Maeve sends him off, knowing that he's leaving a part of himself behind.

~FIN <3~
Maeve


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