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!
Fetch the strongest substance you can think to get your hands on. The Voice's request echoes in Isla's mind, and whilst she knows she can go almost anywhere to look for this substance, she feels as though she ought to stick to the Hollowed Grounds. Besides, the Ruins are full of things as of yet unexplored, and Isla is sure there must be something worthwhile and then some in the wreckage of the past city.
The Prince keeps watch for her, humming softly to himself and absently clearing a path to make it easier for Isla to walk back. In the meantime, the Remedy is exploring the shell of an abandoned house, digging around in rotten drawers and under damp floorboards. It isn't the most enjoyable work, but she's never shied away from the less glamorous parts of life.
my heart and soul were never mine to own, what do you care to die for?
There’s a moment of searching through the Grounds for the items he needs, depositing them at the VlamVloed before he takes the trek back to King’s End. Part of the search has included trying to pinpoint where the Overseer has gone, trying to figure out where he might find Isla when she isn’t in the Infirmary or at her home.
Rumor has it they’ve spotted her heading to the Ruins. So that’s where the Flood goes, ducking below the hanging beams of some of the debris, scouting for any sign of Isla. Off in the distance he can hear some shuffling, something that has him drawing closer. “Isla? You here?” He calls out, his accented voice reverberating off the walls when he comes face to face with a surprisingly attractive body guard of sorts keeping watch over something. “You’re not Isla.” He remarks curiously, squinting at the Prince.
we die alone, we'll all die young
what do you care to die for? what do you care to die from?
SUNJATA
No permission needed for power play!
Feel free to use magic/force on Sunjata, without killing him <3
Sunjata speaks with an Australian accent and has a passive magic that makes him produce a subtle scent that matches exactly to whatever those around him most desire him to smell like.
"No, I am not Miss Isla," the dark haired man says mildly, having stopped in his path clearing to plant himself quite obviously between Sunjata and where the doctor is scoping out the ruins. The Prince is about to speak again, to inquire about who the Flood might be, when the woman of the hour actually appears, drawn by the voices. Wiping a smudge of dirt off her cheek, Isla brightens at the sight of Sunjata.
"I didn't expect to see you out here!" She grins, drawing up beside the Prince and patting his arm. "This is... well. It's a bit of a story. This is the Prince, believe it or not. He's my companion now. Prince, this is Sunjata - he's a friend." And Isla never expected to have to make formal introductions for her companion, but here we are.
my heart and soul were never mine to own, what do you care to die for?
Miss Isla? What kind of formal bullshit was this? And who even was this? The questions blur in his mind, caught up only a second later as he flounders slightly, steel gaze lifting to see the Overseer with a hint of a smudge on her cheek and a bright smile that’s aimed his way. His lips part, half ready to say something in response to how he hadn’t expected to find her down here when she drops the ball on him.
“Th-” He pauses, a huff of disbelief leaving him as his gaze drops to the Prince with a furrow of his brow. “The Prince? Holy shit.” He mutters, a hand rising to rub at his throat – not at all awkwardly, not at all as if he was trying to push out the sudden memory of that. And awkwardly, because the man – companion? – seems relatively put together, Sunjata tries to do his best to offer a smile to the Prince. “We met once. Sorry… About all of that.” His nose wrinkles and he shifts his weight from one leg to the other, gaze lifting to Isla. “I was hoping we could chat for a second. I have some big news…” The hand at his neck moves to gesture unhelpfully in the air.
we die alone, we'll all die young
what do you care to die for? what do you care to die from?
SUNJATA
No permission needed for power play!
Feel free to use magic/force on Sunjata, without killing him <3
Sunjata speaks with an Australian accent and has a passive magic that makes him produce a subtle scent that matches exactly to whatever those around him most desire him to smell like.
The Prince offers Sunjata a polite enough smile at their introductions, dipping into a shallow brow before straightening up once more. "No, I am the one who ought to apologise. I was very much not myself back then. The centuries drive one quite mad, when there is nothing to act as a tether to reality." And evidently, Isla has become that new tether. She smiles between them as they exchange words, before her eyebrows raise at Sunjata's request.
"Big news, huh? Hopefully you're not about to tell me that the war is about to start," Isla says with a grin, beckoning for him to follow her back into the ruins. "Do you mind if we talk while I keep looking through this house? I'm trying to find something for a quest for the Voice," she says. In the meantime, the Prince goes back to clearing the path around them, leaving them to it.
my heart and soul were never mine to own, what do you care to die for?
The awkward smile bleeds away into something more relieved, something easier as the Prince speaks. And if he hadn’t related enough to the Prince before, well, there’s something that certainly a connector between what he says and how Sunjata had grown up. Regardless, though, his attention is on Isla now with the big news he has to share, humming a soft laugh under his breath. “No. Not as far as I’m aware.” He wouldn’t be here, if that were the case, but she doesn’t know that.
“Let me know if I can help you search.” He offers, nodding to her own suggestion, stepping through to help move things for Isla to search for whatever it is the Voice has tasked her with. In the meantime, he clears his throat. “I’m… A demigod now.” Might as well rip the bandaid off, right? He stills, though, letting his steel gaze drop to her to see how she reacts.
we die alone, we'll all die young
what do you care to die for? what do you care to die from?
SUNJATA
No permission needed for power play!
Feel free to use magic/force on Sunjata, without killing him <3
Sunjata speaks with an Australian accent and has a passive magic that makes him produce a subtle scent that matches exactly to whatever those around him most desire him to smell like.
"Well that is good, at least," Isla says with a chuckle, ducking back into the house she was ransacking through and hefting a few large pieces of stone out of the way. "The Voice has asked me to try and find the hardest substance I can think of," she explains, peering at the debris beneath the stone. "My first thought was diamond, but failing that, I know some metals are pretty mighty in their own right..."
Oh but then Sunjata says he's a fucking demigod and Isla all but stumbles to her feet, having backed up a few steps automatically. She naturally thinks of Safrin - because of course she does - and that can never end well. "Does this mean we have a problem?" she asks softly, her fingers already tipped with blades, just in case.
my heart and soul were never mine to own, what do you care to die for?
“Diamond is tough.” He agrees softly, nodding as he helps her search. He doesn’t know entirely what theyre looking for, though, in terms of the metals so all he can really do is help lift things where he can and move out of the way when he’s definitely blocking the path. Still, as he offers his news and watches her stumble, a hand extends toward her to help balance her should she need it – but his gaze is quick to spot the silver tips to her fingers, the blades that have extended there.
The hand falls and he shakes his head, gaze drifting back up toward Isla’s face. “No.” Not a problem at all. “Well, you don’t. I will, though.” He tries to offer a crooked smile at that, one that bleeds into a sigh as a hand rises to run through his hair, to rest at the back of his neck. “I’m a demigod for Frey, actually.” He lifts up the sleeve of his lightning scarred arm to reveal the missing tattoos, all while his eyes remain focused on Isla. “Which as you know, they don’t tend to care about the Ascended as much as the others do.”
we die alone, we'll all die young
what do you care to die for? what do you care to die from?
SUNJATA
No permission needed for power play!
Feel free to use magic/force on Sunjata, without killing him <3
Sunjata speaks with an Australian accent and has a passive magic that makes him produce a subtle scent that matches exactly to whatever those around him most desire him to smell like.
All thoughts about looking for metal or jewels have vanished from Isla's mind, which is a real shame because there is a jewellery box underneath what Sunjata has just hefted out of the way for her, and the Ascended has completely failed to notice it. If she had a heartbeat it would be thrumming hard in her ears right now, and she's holding her breath even without the need to breathe. So when he says they don't have a problem - when he mentions Frey of all the gods - Isla is completely dumbstruck.
"I... what? For Frey? I don't..." She shakes her head, hoping that Jata will help to fill in the blanks for her, with any luck. "So you aren't here to... you know, smite me?" she asks slowly, the scalpel tips to her fingers slowly melting back into her skin.
my heart and soul were never mine to own, what do you care to die for?
The second her silvery fingertips become regular again, Sunjata’s smile grows a bit brighter, remaining by the spot where he’d hefted some heavy rubble off the top. “Gods no.” He rumbles with a small hum of a laugh, rolling his shoulders back and placing his hands behind his back as he stands up a bit straighter. “I went to ask them for an item. Something… To help Nate and I, you know.” Obviously she did. Because of the room. “I got the quest for that but they offered me quite the incredible deal to become one of theirs.”
Taking in a deep breath of the dusty air around them, he tears his gaze away from her to look around the spot he’d just revealed, finding the jewelry box and plucking it from the box to step toward Isla and hand to her. “I might be able to work with them on making it so you don’t need the room any time you want to have fun.” It comes out softer, something bright crossing his face. “I also got to keep all of my shifts and the possibility of keeping my family safe during the war if I talk to the Voice.” He hums, certainly needing the Voice’s approval if he’s trying to hide Nate away for it.
But regardless, he watches her carefully, still trying to ensure that she doesn’t think he’s there to smite her.
we die alone, we'll all die young
what do you care to die for? what do you care to die from?
SUNJATA
No permission needed for power play!
Feel free to use magic/force on Sunjata, without killing him <3
Sunjata speaks with an Australian accent and has a passive magic that makes him produce a subtle scent that matches exactly to whatever those around him most desire him to smell like.
Isla softens slowly, like a spring uncoiling, and as Sunjata offers out the box she'd missed, she reaches out to take it with a grateful nod. "Oh," she says helpfully as she hears him explain, unable to stop the smile from tugging at her lips even as she drops her gaze to the top of the jewellery box. "I see. Well, I suppose that beats the two of you moving to the Grounds," she agrees.
Never has the Remedy heard such an offer from a god, and it's enough to drag her gaze back up to Sunjata's face. Unceremoniously, she sits herself down on a low, half crumbled wall. "Jata that's amazing," she whispers. "You and Nate could be the peacekeepers in all of this... you especially. Like a bridge between the Old Gods and the New." Unable to wipe the smile off her face, she lets out a soft laugh. "Congratulations."
my heart and soul were never mine to own, what do you care to die for?
She takes the box and he returns to the position he was in before, arms latched behind his back as he draws up again to focus on her, still keeping his distance just enough to be less overwhelming in the space given his height. “Too many people come knocking if we aren’t out in the middle of nowhere.” Sunjata admits with a crooked smile and a soft laugh, a shrug of his shoulders.
As for the offer, though, she sits on a crumbling wall and he looks away, around the small little tunnel they’ve found themselves in to find a piece of rubble placed perfectly on a box that he imagines would be perfect for sitting – something that he steps over to and sits down upon to join her, to be a bit more eye level. “That’s essentially how they put it. They said Safrin was turning me into a soldier and war wasn’t my thing. Which… Is fair. I did a civil war once and it left a bad taste in my mouth.” He admits with a soft snort. But he leans forward, propped on his elbows. “It’s so relieving Isla. To not feel like I have to ride the line between being a perfect Old Gods soldier and go home to a demigod for the opposite side.” He murmurs.
“So I want to help where I can and you’re the Overseer here. Perhaps we can help each other?”
we die alone, we'll all die young
what do you care to die for? what do you care to die from?
SUNJATA
No permission needed for power play!
Feel free to use magic/force on Sunjata, without killing him <3
Sunjata speaks with an Australian accent and has a passive magic that makes him produce a subtle scent that matches exactly to whatever those around him most desire him to smell like.
Later Isla will realise how non-threatening Sunjata is trying to be, and she'll very much appreciate it. For now she can only respond in kind, relaxing against the wall and rubbing at her forehead, smiling down at the jewellery box. "Gods, I bet. It can be lonely, though, if you're out in the middle of nowhere. Don't forget to visit, both of you." Sunjata and Nate, at least, are still more than welcome in the Grounds.
Nodding gently at his appraisal on the whole war situation, Isla raises her eyes even as she works open the box. "I know exactly how you feel. I just can't keep out of it, though... not as a medic." It's different to being a soldier; being able to patch people up is more difficult to step away from.
"I'd like that a lot, Sunjata. And it looks like you might have already helped me out quite a bit." The jewellery in the box is untouched, by the look of it, and Isla begins to sift through it. "What can I do to help you, though?"
my heart and soul were never mine to own, what do you care to die for?
“We won’t.” Sunjata offers, the smile on his face turning mischievous and far more amusing as it spans in a Cheshire grin across his face, tugging at the scar. “If I get that item you’ll likely be seeing a lot of us.” Here he winks, humming a soft laugh in accompaniment of it before he settles in the little makeshift seat he’s picked.
The smile fades to seriousness, nodding his understanding as to how she wouldn’t be able to stay out of it due to her profession. “I can imagine.” It’s sadly said, but with the way she starts to pick through the jewelry, Sunjata lifts a hand to create a small pocket of water, drifting it over toward Isla so that she might be able to wash off any dirt that might be caked within the jewels themselves. “I need to help four pairs of people have sex for that quest from Frey. If you, or anyone you know, that might be willing to help me out with that, please let me know.” He offers, head tilting slightly as he focuses on keeping the water bubble going.
“Aside from that, there isn’t much else I need help with until I figure out what exactly it is I am to do.” Head tilting this way and that, the longer dark curls falling in front of his face. “I can offer a shift of mine as part of the little bargain.”
we die alone, we'll all die young
what do you care to die for? what do you care to die from?
SUNJATA
No permission needed for power play!
Feel free to use magic/force on Sunjata, without killing him <3
Sunjata speaks with an Australian accent and has a passive magic that makes him produce a subtle scent that matches exactly to whatever those around him most desire him to smell like.
