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!
They’d intended this repair to be something small, something easy. What they hadn’t intended, was for the piece of stone they were trying to catch (listen, they’re young still and not quite experienced in what not to do) falls quite heavily, and the crunch that they hear quite loudly makes their arm nearly unusable for the moment. And while they could try to heal it themself, it’s bent at quite an odd angle and the panic of healing it and having their dominant arm bent wrong sends them darting out of the Ruins toward the Infirmary as quickly as they possibly could.
Azrael slips into the Infirmary and shuts the door behind them, clearing their throat as they hold their limp arm, scanning the room with a bit of bright panic. “Miss Isla? Are you here?” They call out into the dark, alarm bells ringing in their head as they try to figure out where to find her next if she isn’t here. They certainly don’t want to go home and talk to their father about what happened.
lay you down, there's nothing to be scared of all your fears are in the breeze
"Hello?" Longnight is not as horrific as any of them might have thought it would be, and for that Isla is grateful. They don't technically need the light, but she is making sure there's plenty available anyway (even if she does check periodically, like a madwoman, to make sure no fires have started). She's just completing one of these checks in the Infirmary when Azrael calls out to her, in fact, the medic peeping around one of the doors and widening her eyes at the sight of them.
"Oh, gods - your arm," she blurts without meaning to, but let's face it - they both know it's bad. "Come in, Azrael. Let's get you sitting down. How are you feeling? Can you tell me what happened?" Already she is ushering them towards a spare room that they might sit on the bed and talk with her.
sooner or later, we all have to wake and try forgetting everything
Relief spreads through them at the sight of Isla, bobbing their head in agreement as they hold their arm, offering a small wobbly smile. “Yeah… It’s…” They begin before they shake their head, dark curls reminiscent of Bastien’s bouncing around their crown. Once Isla invites them over, they’re quick to follow, to settle in the spare room as they hold their arm, a silver flush coating their cheeks of embarrassment. “I feel fine. My sensors are really loud and I didn’t want to heal myself…” They pause, a sapphire mixed with ochre gaze lifting to find Isla’s face. “I wasn’t sure if it would heal it wrong.”
As for what happened, well, they duck their head like the youth they still feel like in their heart, gaze dropping to the floor. “Uhm, I was in the Ruins and I was knocking down an old wall and I tried to catch one of the stones.” Their gaze remains on the floor, embarrassment keeping them from looking up. “I wasn’t thinking about it and then it crunched my arm and then I ran here.” Immediately.
lay you down, there's nothing to be scared of all your fears are in the breeze
She's honestly a little surprised to see them given their abilities, but as Azrael explains it quickly becomes clear to Isla just why they haven't decided to heal themselves. "I see," she murmurs, offering a kind smile and collecting a few things from the overhead cupboard, as well as slipping her pen light from her pocket.
"Well I'm glad you came straight here," she tells them, shifting to sit down before them. "I'll see if I can get your arm set, and then any healing that you do ought to be pretty straight-forward. Do you mind if I just take a look in your eyes with my light a second? It was given to me by the Voice, and it will let me look at your systems, see what's going on in there."
Holding up the light, she waits for them to be ready before proceeding with the exam. "You know, I once dropped a kitchen knife right onto my foot without socks," she says conversationally, as if to make them feel better about it.
sooner or later, we all have to wake and try forgetting everything
Azrael has always liked Isla – and despite this small blunder, nothing about the other Overseer seems to suggest that she’s disappointed in them. It’s relieving in ways they don’t know why, but they settle easily and watch with bright eyes as Isla darts about the room, grabbing the things she needs to give them an exam. “I didn’t even clean up my tools or anything I just ran here.” They admit with a small sheepish smile.
She explains everything and Azrael nods even as the conversation seems to grow a bit more intense, worry flickering in their gaze momentarily. “I don’t mind. That sounds really helpful actually!” There’s a bit of excitement that overcomes them with it, but they calm themself down enough for Isla to flash the light and see the sensors within – the way they freak out about the broken arm, the places where it is broken, and quite possibly how long it might take them to heal.
Relief only spreads when Isla offers her own blunder, and the silver flush to their cheeks calms down a fraction with it. “Was it after you Ascended?” They ask curiously, sitting nice and easily for Isla to check them up and set their arm.
lay you down, there's nothing to be scared of all your fears are in the breeze
"Very smart," Isla tells them, even if some might not believe it to be true. "You might have made it worse by trying to clean up with your arm in this state." Or they might have dinged their tools by trying to tidy them away one handed. Either way, she's happy they came straight to the infirmary. "This way, you can go back and clear everything away once you're good as new." Winking to them, she falls quiet to flash the light into Azrael's eyes.
It's incredible, actually, to watch it all happen; the sensors that ping, the areas where they are hurt, the ways their body plans to heal them, the abilities that fizz within. "It should be straight forward," she concludes, smiling to them and turning off the light to step back. "I'll go right ahead and set it, since your sensors are the only thing that will register."
And without further ado, Isla does just that - she gently takes their arm, setting the break and splinting it as well, so it sits straight and where it ought to for Azrael to heal it properly.
sooner or later, we all have to wake and try forgetting everything
That was exactly their thought too, that they might mess it up trying to fix things or clean up, might have broken it worse. And it’s one of the few times that their sensors have blared so loudly in their head that the only thought they had was getting somewhere it might stop or slow down. So they sit nice and easily, letting the light flash in their sapphire and ochre eyes, Isla too close for Azrael to focus on so they simply wait until she’s done before scanning their face for any hint of anything out of the ordinary.
“Okay! Thank you.” They say with a bright smile, letting Isla take their arm, setting it and splinting it – their sensors blaring in their mind enough that they wince slightly from the sound (obviously not from the pain) and when she’s done, they remain on the edge of the bed, their feet swinging slightly off the edge as they reach for their upgrade that heals.
Once they have it, they activate it, a bright electric field zipping around them, along Isla too (if she feels any sort of what would be pain or ailments for anyone else, she’d be healed of it too) and waits as internally their body begins to knit things back together, fixing the broken bone and connecting the two jagged pieces again.
lay you down, there's nothing to be scared of all your fears are in the breeze
"Sorry," Isla says quickly as they wince, offering an apologetic smile. She knows, of course, that it's the noise rather than any pain, but at the same time, she understands how it's a little bit gross if you aren't used to it. "I was a field medic during a war, so I suppose I take it for granted that not many people have heard a bone set." Still, she's as gentle as she can be while she finishes up her splint on their arm, stepping back once she's done so they can take over.
And before Isla can so much as remark on it, Azrael is activating their own abilities and her eyes light up; it's true that she doesn't really feel much, but any tickles in the back of her mind where her sensors are going off immediately quieten, soothed by their power. "That's amazing," she breathes, before her expression sobers a bit. "Azrael... have you heard anything regarding what the Greatwood is trying to achieve against the Ascended?" It might not be an ideal time for the conversation, but it has to be said.
sooner or later, we all have to wake and try forgetting everything
“It isn’t a nice sound.” They admit with a small smile as they latch onto their upgrade, activating it and feeling the immediate relief on their sensors. It will take a bit more to get it perfect, but at least the bone itself is connected again, that they shouldn’t have to worry about it breaking more while they clean up their tools later. It simply just feels… Sensitive, in as much of a way as the Ascended could feel sensitivity. Like a buzzing in the back of their mind that seems to suggest the healed spot is new and to be gentle with it.
It’s a warning they certainly heed as they peer up at Isla again, flashing a brilliantly fanged grin as she says it’s amazing. They’re quite proud of that upgrade too, truthfully. The sobering look in Isla’s gaze immediately has them sobering too, bright gaze focused intensely on Isla’s face. “I’ve heard… That they don’t want us in the Greatwood.” They admit softly, lips pursing slightly. Azrael had met Juniper, had even liked that Fae. Had gotten a chance to tell her all about their life and their love for the goddess that had brought them into being.
But war was war, wasn’t it?
lay you down, there's nothing to be scared of all your fears are in the breeze
Satisfied that Azrael will be alright now in a physical sense, Isla starts to clear everything away while they continue to talk, and she pauses before considering what to tell them regarding the Greatwood. "Yes," she says eventually, nodding and closing up her cupboard sso she might turn to face them. "But now they are trying to make sure that it will happen, rather than just asking us not to enter the woods."
Tucking a lock of hair behind her ear, she moves to sit down once more before them. "To do that, they require our fluid. And although I don't agree with it, it's very important that nobody gets hurt. And as I'm sure you know, the Greatwood has a lot of people in it who could force us to give up fluid if we refuse. So if any of them ask... just give them a sample, alright? It isn't worth fighting about, and I wouldn't want to see anything happen to you. Okay?"
sooner or later, we all have to wake and try forgetting everything
“I thought we were being good about it.” They admit with a sort of childish innocence, dark brows inching together, a small wrinkle forming between them. But Isla takes a seat again and Azrael’s multicolored gaze is glued to her, taking in everything that she says. They need Ascended fluid, she doesn’t want anyone to get hurt, and most of all it’s that if it comes down to it to just give it to them.
If they knew what feeling sick felt like, they think it might apply right now. There’s an uncomfortable churning within them that they can’t describe, and they look away from Isla toward the cupboard she’d just closed, their fingers tugging at a loose thread in their pants. “Wessex said not to give parts of us up… If – If it happened and I did it, would she hate me for it?” They ask with a deepening frown, finally turning their gaze back to Isla.
lay you down, there's nothing to be scared of all your fears are in the breeze
"As far as I am aware, we have been," Isla murmurs, nodding to Azrael and giving a frown that seems more sad than anything else. In fact, she is the only one who has been wandering the Greatwood as of late, she thinks, and it's explicitly been with Remi as a guide. "I suppose they just want to make it more official, with the war on its way." She sighs. Everything comes back to the war lately. Isla supposes it's only to be expected, but it doesn't make it any easier.
Azrael looks away and Isla finds herself glancing back at them on reflex, tilting her head. As she realises the cause of their concern, she can't help but smile, reaching out to pat their good arm. "No, I don't think she will hate you," she assures them. "I think Wessex means giving parts of ourselves up voluntarily, without being asked. If someone threatened you with harm if you didn't give a sample of your fluid, that's a bit different. I think your father would agree as well, right?"
sooner or later, we all have to wake and try forgetting everything
11-14-2021, 03:30 AM (This post was last modified: 11-16-2021, 05:53 AM by Azrael.)
Azrael
They frown further with the information Isla gives them, nodding in understanding but still hating it all the same. They’ve read about war, they haven’t experienced it. The only thing they’ve experienced thus far is feeling like Public Enemy #1, and if they’re being honest it’s quite disheartening. All they want to do is explore and make friends and have everything be fine – but they suppose that’s life isn’t it?
Azrael’s gaze flickers away from Isla to look at a speck on the ground, anything but Isla, until she’s patting their good arm and their gaze flickers back up toward her from beneath dark curls that mimicked Bastien’s so well. “Yeah…” They agree after a second, nose wiggling as they consider it. “Papa would want me to do anything to not get hurt.” They admit, though the thought causes a small edge of a smile to cross their face. They’ve heard stories, of course.
lay you down, there's nothing to be scared of all your fears are in the breeze
"And I can hardly blame him. You're very important to him," Isla says softly, smiling down at Azrael. "So as long as you aren't offering yourself out to everyone, I think you'll be just fine. I just don't think it's worth risking yourself if someone is threatening you over it. I'd do the same in your shoes," she assures them, before stepping back and giving them a final once over with her optical upgrade, just to make sure everything is hunky dory.
And, finding no problems, Isla smiles to them afresh. "I think you'll be good as new in no time at all," she concludes. "Would you like me to show you around the infirmary? Or do you need to go and collect your tools from the Underground? Either way, I hope you know you're always welcome here, hurt or not."
sooner or later, we all have to wake and try forgetting everything
