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!
Alex enters the shrine with a confident stride but there's an undeniable line of tension across her shoulders. It was her first time entering a shrine and although she knew she was in the right place, it was still a bit nerve-wracking. Walking up, she placed her offerings down for the nature gods. The offerings consisted of a variety of fresh fruits including peaches, berries, and other fresh seasonal fruits that she'd acquired from the market. As a pirate, such things were a luxury as only dried fruits could last on teh ships. She hoped that the gods appreciated them as well.
Offerings ready, Alex eyes the shrine. "Um.. hi. So...I'm Alex." She gave a small chuckle, "Sorry, I've never had the chance to come to a shrine before. Not sure if I'm doing this right." Letting out a sigh she steadies herself. "But there's a war coming so I figured I should make it clear where I fall. I'm a pirate. My life is the wide-open sea and all that it holds. I will never side with a false goddess who desecrates it with her creations."
Alex grits her teeth to let some of her anger go. "I'm with you, the Old Gods, with nature. I just wanted you to know that. And if you need anything from me in this war, I'm willing to help. I don't have much. Just an old ship and a crew that I love, but I'll do my best to help should you ask."
~
Alex offers fresh fruits from the market (peaches, berries, etc.). She's stating that she's for the Old gods (especially Frey/Rae) and offers to help in any way she can in the coming war.
Alex blinks temporarily stunned when Frey arrives. "Oh, oh. I.. uh.. wow. I didn't think I'd actually getting a response. Thank you for answering." She really hadn't expected to get this far. No response or some brief little sign of 'Ok, good to know' was what the pirate had been expecting. In the slim chance that a deity did appear, some part of the pirate assumed that they'd already have a task for her.
Thinking out loud Alex responds. "I can smuggle goods and people. Naval warfare is also an option, though I might need to give my ship a few upgrades first." If she were to fight enemies of the Gods, she wasn't sure if a ship built to fight mere merchants and the occasional pirate would hold up. Tapping her foot nervously she adds, "I can gather information as well. I'm an Accepted so I should be welcome everywhere, at least for now." She snaps a finger as a thought occurs, "I can steal things too."
Glancing at Frey, the Accepted wonders if any of that might get the deity's interest. "I'm more than willing to do any of that, or even all." Any of those tasks were things she was both able and willing to complete but she wasn't sure if Frey would find any of it useful.
"I'm not writing your story for you, hon," Frey says in response to her thoughts, continuing to enjoy the peach and the lazy blue skies and the altogether beautiful day. "That's up to you." Unless she found herself in a demigods shoes, of course. That's a little different.
Still, Alex is ready and willing if nothing else, and so Frey gets comfortable and tilts their head. "Before you try anything like that, how about you make you a little less..." They wave their hand. Fragile is probably a democratic way of putting it.
"You'll be better at participating in a war if you survive more than five minutes."
Alex would have been incredibly offended if this had been coming from anyone but a deity. As it is, the pirate's cheeks tint pink with embarrassment. "You're right. I am rather...fragile." The word leaves a bad taste in her mouth, but she gets the feeling that it was the adjective that Frey had been going for. But it does bring on an idea.
"How about this?" Alex tugs on her captain's cloak, "Is there a way to replace this with one that could protect me? Maybe something slightly armored or enchanted to make attacks do less damage?" She pauses in thought, "Maybe something against magic? If I had to choose one, fire magic?" The pirate can't help the small shudder that goes through her spine. "I hate fire." The element was a nightmare for a ship after all and it brough only painful memories to her mind.
Frey's idea was initially a little different, but their eyes light up as Alex plucks at her captain's cloak. "Fire, mm? Well that's a start," they agree, rolling to sit up a bit and spending a few moments sucking the peach juice from their fingers. "I reckon we can work with that," they continue with a nod. "Alright, each. Let's see if we can't toughen you up a bit, eh?"
Clapping their hands together, it's a deal, as they say.
Alex has received a quest from Frey! They must:
1. Complete a thread hunting and collecting the pelt and teeth of a predator.
2. Complete a thread rubbing the ashes of a bonfire onto the pelt.
3. Complete a thread having the pelt fashioned into a garment (coat/cloak/etc.) of Alex's choosing.
4. Complete a thread bathing the predator's teeth over an open flame.
Return to Frey's shrine with both the garment and teeth to complete the quest!
Alex feels a grin creeping up, "Fantastic. Thank you, Frey." She hadn't been expecting a quest that so blatantly benefited her today. It likely was due to as Frey put it, making her less fragile and actually useful. Still, the fact the deity had elected to fix that instead of simply throwing into her the fray. It further cemented Alex's belief that she'd made the right choice in coming here today.
Giving the deity one last smile, the pirate nods. "I'll get it done a soon as I can. Thank you so much." With that, the Accepted literally skips out of the shrine, eager to begin her quest.
