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!
Time doesn't mean much to Isla. The Ascended don't need to sleep, and with the infirmary always so busy, she often finds herself working late into the night. This is one of those nights, and the medic is making her rounds, checking on her patients and making sure there are no emergencies. All is quiet, as she expects it to be, and so she moves into the reception to check for any new patients.
It is quiet out there, too, and although Isla is relieved by it, things can change very, very quickly. For the time being, she sits down at the reception to do some paperwork, writing patient notes and sorting them into files. She doesn't need any light to see by, but there is a small lantern nearby anyway, just in case non-Ascended need it.
sooner or later, we all have to wake and try forgetting everything
With quiet steps, Darkeye walked in the direction of the reception. He had the answer from Isla with him and asked some people who were up this late where he could find her. With his spear as a walking stick and armed to the teeth as always, he walked towards them. The red and black armor looks cobbled together from different parts. He walked towards the lone light and when he saw Isla he smiled. "Mrs. Lockwood, I am Darkeye, we have written" He bowed to her very invitingly and showed her the letter from her. "If you could spare some time for me I would be grateful and look forward to talking with you."
Isla hears Darkeye before she sees him, glancing up at the sound of his spear on the ground. At first she bristles, unsure who is approaching (especially since he's armed to the teeth), but as he produces the letter, she relaxes. "We have, that's right," she says with a smile, rising to her feet.
"It is good to meet you. Shall we go to my office? It will be a bit quieter there." Leading the way, she walks through the ward to a small office towards the back of the infirmary. She steps inside and gestures for Darkeye to follow, taking a moment to light a few lanterns. "Would you like something to drink?" she asks.
sooner or later, we all have to wake and try forgetting everything
Darkeye just nodded and smiled, following her at a distance. As soon as they arrived in the office he lamed his spear to the wall and pulled out a book with the Black Manticore on the front. He waited until Isla was ready to listen to him again, "Tea, please. Whom you have Mrs Lockwood."Then he sat down on a free seat and hoped that this conversation would go in a hopefully good direction. Darkeye was a little nervous but from what he had heard so far it was time to hear from the leader of the Ascended. "I hope you are much interested as me in this conversation. "
"Tea it is." Isla smiles to Darkeye, moving to fill a small kettle with water and hang it over the fire, which she carefully pokes to life. Fire is dangerous for Ascended, and she has already rebuilt the Infirmary once because of it. Once the water is set to boil, she gathers two cups and some tea leaves to prepare their drinks.
"I am very interested," she agrees, smiling over at him. "You are the first war priest I have ever met. In your letter you said you wanted to hear about what had happened to the Ascended? And to learn more about Caido, is that right?"
sooner or later, we all have to wake and try forgetting everything
"Thank you very much I hope I didn't cause you too much trouble Mrs Lockwood." Darkeye already knew about the danger of fire for Ascended. That's why he was even more pleased that she made the tea. She was still a good hostess.
Darkeye took a sip of the tea and continued, "I want to hear from each side what has happened so far to get a picture of what kind of war is coming. So I know how to protect innocent people and what to be prepared for. I have heard a lot of things that speak against the Ascended. But the first Ascended I met was very kind to me and helped me to find my way in this world. Bastien was his name. Therefore, I would be very happy if we could have an open and honest conversation." Darkeye tried to get straight to the point.
"No trouble at all. We all deserve to be comfortable," Isla says with a kind smile, preparing their cups and waiting for the kettle to whistle. Once it did, she poured them each a cup and invited Darkeye to sit with her in two soft armchairs arranged near the fire.
Listening closely as he explains, her eyes grow sad at the mention of Bastien. "He was my friend," she explains. "I was upset to learn that he had died." He and so many others lately.
"An open conversation sounds perfect... Alright, where to begin?" She sips at her tea. "Ascended were trapped here for over 300 years, in the Hollowed Grounds. Behind a barrier. The Old Gods trapped the Voice because they believed she was too powerful."
sooner or later, we all have to wake and try forgetting everything
Darkeye smiled at her and gratefully accepted the chair by the fire, but before that, he took off most of his equipment so that he could sit more comfortably. The only thing that remained was his clothes, a dagger, and the book he always carried. He then sat down on one of the chairs after she had sat down. He spread the book over his lap. He took out his charcoal pencil, which was attached to the book with a string.
He nodded briefly. "The dead has been working a lot lately, unfortunately. I've called for a hunt for land sharks, I'll see how many come forward to make the area safer and with luck, we'll find the corpse to bury. Hopefully, there will be good meat from the land sharks and good material to use."He tried to steer the topic away from Bastien and focus on the land sharks.
Darkeye nodded and began to write down the conversation as he had done with Remi on a new page. "Forgive me for asking, but is it okay if I record our conversation? My memory isn't the best." He pointed at the book.
Darkeye makes himself comfortable and Isla does the same, settling in her seat (the one furthest from the fire, naturally) and lifting her cup to sip at her tea. She tilts her head and smiles to hear that he is planning a trip out to hunt landsharks. "That sounds like a very sensible idea," she agrees. "Do be careful out there though, all of you. If you require any medical assistance afterwards, please come straight to the infirmary." Landsharks were no laughing matter - Bastien was a testament to that.
Isla nods as he moves to write down their conversation. "Feel free," she invites, before continuing. "In recent years, we discovered how to bring down the barrier around the Grounds. Not to cause any harm, you understand. We merely wanted freedom - and it was not only the Ascended. There were others trapped here as well, and they deserved a chance to be free the same as us."
sooner or later, we all have to wake and try forgetting everything
Darkeye nodded at her and hoped that their conversation would be calmer than the one with Remi. He sipped the tea and enjoyed the wonderfully fresh aroma. "Thank you for that, I just hope that a few more people will come forward. If need be, I'll do it alone. But thank you for the offer. If I survive this, I have a request to make of you, Mrs. Lockwood. I want to finish the work Bastien started and replace the roads of the Grounds with colored stones and I wanted to let you know about it and ask for permission. It seems that melancholy is over the Grounds and I want to change that," Darkeye hoped for approval.
Darkeye continued writing, comparing it to what he had heard from Wessex and Deimos. From that point on, the stories changed. He flipped back and started writing down questions on another page.
"The Hollowed Grounds are a close knit and resilient group of people, I have found," Isla says, smiling over the rim of her cup. "I doubt that you will be out there alone to face the landshark. And I do hope you survive - there are far too few good men left in Caido, and I have a feeling that you are one of them."
Tilting her head, Darkeye's request is a strange one, but only because Isla can't imagine the battle-hardened warpriest doing the work that Bastien - an eccentric man, to be sure - had started. That isn't to say she disapproves, though. Quite the opposite, in fact; her blue eyes light up and she nods to Darkeye.
"A lovely idea," she agrees. "If you would like help with that, I can arrange it with you."
sooner or later, we all have to wake and try forgetting everything
Darkeye smiles politely and gives her a nod. He doesn't know whether to take this statement seriously or not, since he hasn't known Isla that long, it could just be a political statement. "I thank you for that statement" Darkeye smiles back.
"I have some other things to do, but when I know I have the permission, I'll finish it. It's important for me to finish the work Bastien started. I think that I will need help, materials and helpers are always needed for such a project. I will come to you when I am ready. This man has shaped the image of you Ascended Ones in my mind." Darkeye wrote it down and thought about how he would do it best.
"Do you want to continue with the story or is this the end?" Darkeye doesn't want to interrupt her in her telling.
She means it seriously, but neither of them know each other that well yet, and so she merely gives a kind nod in response to his gratitude. "Bastien was a good and kind man," she agrees. "His child is very much the same - their name is Azrael. I am sure they would want to help as well, should you wish to finish the work he started. If you let me know when you plan to begin, I'll make arrangements and let them know."
As for the story, she lets out a soft sigh and sips again at her tea. "It is the end of the beginning, I suppose you could say. When the barrier fell, the Old Gods were unhappy about it. I believe that is why we will eventually go to war. They don't like that we are free, now. But all the Ascended want is to live. Not to rule, not to be better than anyone else. Just to live our lives."
sooner or later, we all have to wake and try forgetting everything
Darkeye nodded to her. "I will get back to you soon Mrs. Lockwood. But first I have to survive the hunt after that we will see. It won't do any good if we make plans and I don't come back." Darkeye wanted to jump in the air with joy at her statement. But he could control himself and a grin was visible.
Darkeye continued writing and nodded to her in response. "Do you allow me to ask you a few questions about this? It is said that the Blight is a plague that appeared after the liberation. Can you tell me something about it and what the Long Nights monster is all about? I know that this is an unpleasant topic. I am trying to help as much as I can. But I need to know more. I do not want to attack anyone here. It's just the points I've heard from a lot of people." Darkeye had already asked this question to many people, but he was curious to hear how the Ascended Ascendant would answer.
