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!
It's a glorified maze when you get right down to it. Strip away all of the legends and the rumours and it's simply the OG of the Labyrinth from the Grounds. You can give shrubbery some sentience, but at the end of the day, clever leaves really can't be all that dangerous. Besides, the worst that can happen is you get lost, and if you do, you can just climb up a hedge, have a peek around, and see where it is you're meant to go.
Honestly, all these stories about kingmakers, and gods and magical fire...it's all just PR and marketing.
After Amun's experience getting trapped, he probably should've been more cautious. However, he refused to let fear rule him. That's why, after he'd recovered from his ordeal, he made plans to head back into the Wilds.
At least this time he was smarter about it. He left a note explaining his destination in his shop and gathered some supplies: rope, torches, a sword, and the metal gauntlets he'd taken to wearing most of the time.
Preparations complete, he headed out to King's End, Zhanshi making a small tunnel by the potter's side. He couldn't say how long he roamed before coming across the hedge mage. It looked shockingly like Labyrinth of the Hollowed Ground, so much so that he actually laughed when he saw it. Pausing for almost a moment, he plunged into the nearest entrances.
The branches rustled in a slight wind. Although he trained his ears, there was no sound of the misleading Speaking Squirrel, so at least that was a plus. He continued deeper into the maze, following turn after turn and doing his best to keep track of where he'd went.
Nope, not a speaking squirrel to be found. Which is a relief really, because all that chattering can really get on your nerves. Luckily for Amun, there is only the chilling wonderful sound of silence. Without the need to breathe, the only noise the potter will hear is the smooth hum of his body and whatever noise his Landshark companion makes.
Yeah, the peace and quiet is definitely nice.
It isn't terrifying at all.
Although...I mean, really there should be more noise than this. At least some rustling from the branches? Wind? Literally any flauna? Should Amun pause, he'll notice that...actually no. Things are far quieter than they should be. Were he to clap his hands he'd find the sound muffled, as if he had earplugs half in his ears and half out.
Besides the slight rumble of moving earth, Zhanshi didn't make a sound (because apparently sharks don't). Amun's feet crunched on the ground, but he slowly became aware that the rest of the sounds around him had faded. Stopping, he did a circle, examining every inch of his surroundings. As he did, the little landshark would make a circle at the potter's feet. The companion would use whatever senses he could to check out if anything was in the earth around them.
The Ascended unsheathed his sword and raised his free hand, opening a small gap in the palm of his gauntlet with his metal manipulation upgrade. Once his observation was complete, he would make his way to the next intersection. If he reached it, he'd poke his head around the corner(s) and look for whatever he could spot in the distance.
Zanshi will find that everything seems right as rain, to borrow an incredibly strange expression. Their senses pick up the rustling of the leaves and grass, and even the sounds of the worms and other dirt-dwellers.
Sword ready and senses turned up to 11, Amun will make his way to the intersection ahead. As he pokes his head slyly around the corner, he'll see nothing but the continuous meanderings of the maze. Faded leaves that seem to blend into one another reveal nothing of note, except...well, it was LongHeat, sure, but shouldn't the leaves be more..vibrant? Should Amun look around he'll find that this portion of the maze is quite pale and desaturated.
Or...had it always been that way? If Amun is able to glance at any part of his own skin, he'll notice that his normally bronzey complexion has faded as well. Zanshi is able to answer this with a resounding: ???????????????????. The Landshark can see the colours of the maze just fine.
Amun you..didn't pop any strange pills before coming in here, did you?
Given the feedback from Zhanshi, and that Amun hadn't popped, snorted, or shot up any drugs (and even if he had, he wasn't sure they'd work on his Ascended physiology), there was something fishy going on. Frowning, his grip on his sword would tighten. Backing up a few steps, he would retreat from the intersection.
Once he was a short distance away, he'd turn and try to backtrack a bit. His goal was to see if the strange decrease in sight and sound was localized, or if it was somehow fixated on him. At the same time, he'd sniff at the air and reach out to brush his hand against the leaves to see if all of his senses were being affected.
Here's your answer: it doesn't appear to be localized. As you backtrack the effect on your senses remains. The maze is lacklustre though no portion of it appears dead. It...is just losing its colour. Ascended olfactory senses are poor to begin with, so sniffing the air doesn't provide a ton of information, but as Amun reaches out to touch the leaves, the feedback is weak. Not unlike his hearing, it's as if his palm has grown numb; he can still feel, but there's not a lot of information being transmitted back from his skin.
Oh! You know what might be a good idea? Why don't we have a sit-down and run a scan?
Backtracking didn't do anything to help. If anything, it made it worse, though maybe that was just time. Still frowning, he ordered Zhanshi to stay close as Amun made his way back to the intersection. As he walked, he initiated a system scan; nothing felt wrong, but then again he couldn't really feel anything at all, and he wanted to figure out whether the problem was internal or external.
As he waited for the scan to complete, he'd peek around the corners of the intersection again. Although his vision wasn't the best at the moment, he would still try to catch a glimpse of anything that could explain the issue.
It would take a few moments for the scan to complete. Enough time for Amun to complete another unhelpful circuit of his immediate area. Or, maybe it was helpful; no evidence was a type of evidence, wasn't it?
ding! Scan complete!
Ah. There's yer problem right there: You're dying, Amun! And not in the existential sense; you're dying quickly, and right now. Based on all calculations you...will be dead in about an hour.
Well, that answers that. Any last words? Dying thoughts? And—
rustlerustle. Ahead there comes a sound so crisp and perfectly heard that it's probably enough to make you jump.
Well, that was unfortunate, and very fucking unusual. Gasping, the sound muffled as everything else, Amun patted himself down as if to find the source of the damage. So when something made a noise behind him, he did jump a little, though it was more like he whipped towards the sound that he'd heard. Making sure
Ordering Zhanshi to stay a short distance back, the potter dashed towards the sound, since he wasn't sure he was capable of stealth with his senses as dull as they were. As he moved, he raised both his sword and the palm he'd exposed, preparing himself for a fight.
Amun will find an area that feels sensitive. On the soft swell of his hip are two perfect circular wounds, not unlike the bite from an ascended. The strange part is that neither he nor Zanshi will have any recollection of when the potter might have been bit.
Rushing headlong into what might be his very last fight on earth, Amun will find...oh. Nothing at all. Nothing but the closing and twisting of the hedges as the maze now tries to quite obviously get him lost and keep Zanshi away. The Landshark can of course burrow underneath the hedges, but it's still a dick move to be sure.
The rustling continues as the maze opens before Amun, clearly trying to lead him further in.
Amun poked at the wounds that he had zero recollection of receiving. They didn't hurt, obviously, but he took in a sharp breath as he realized he couldn't remember what had caused them. However, as the hedges started to press in behind him, he turned to glare at them.
They were blocking Zhanshi too, but the little landshark just dove a little deeper underground to bypass them and follow in the potter's footsteps. For the Ascended's part, he briefly toyed with hacking through the bushes that were attempting to herd him. However, given that time was short, he turned to follow the path that was open before him.
As he did, he took in another deep breath. Then he called out ahead of him, cupping his free hand around his mouth to try and direct the sound. "If this is some kind of trick, well done, but I'd rather sit down and chat."
For a moment the hedges cease their shoving and cajoling as the potter calls out. To his own ears, his offer will sound fuzzy and distant, but if it isn't clear by now, that's only because he's dying. Apparently finished their consideration, the hedges shift until the Eye of Fire appears directly ahead. Fire and ascended don't really mix, but if you're on death's doorstep anyway, what's there really to be afraid of? And hey, if Amun explodes, he can die knowing he's taken out part of the maze with him.
Look, there's even a seat made out of brambles for him to sit on.
There was a slight pause after Amun spoke before the herding continued. Growling under his breath, he forged ahead until the maze opened up to an unusual sight: a bowl cupping an enormous bonfire. There was a seat made out of branches that he stared at for a moment as Zhanshi (hopefully) caught up. The potter would make a circle around the flames, examining every part of it with his admittedly compromised senses.
As he did, his companion would tunnel up the surface. Then the little landshark would try to launch himself into the air to see how far the exit from the maze was and communicate anything unusual about the area to the Ascended. As Zhanshi tried to scout, Amun would poke at the flames with his sword.
