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!
Sah stood at the entrance to the forest with his hunting bag over one shoulder and Lilly sitting at his feet. Pad and the twins were at Ilma's for the day so that the Abandoned could focus on the investigation that Deimos had assigned him and Noah. Packed in his bag was the usual hunting and skinning gear alongside a copy of the notes the Sword have given him, as well as a journal and pencils.
As he waited for Noah to arrive, Sah eyed the forest with cautious curiosity. The steel of the trees made him think of the New God's shrine that was once at the Fangs. The metal that had felt more alive than static, seemed echoed in the forest in front of him. A breeze went past, and the trees chimed as it past, almost as if greeting the element. Either that or scolding it for the disturbance of their leaves. Sah wasn't sure. He didn't speak magic tree.
I can't wait for this no more,
My eyes have come undone
Eira would stay home with Cordelia. The kind griffin was concerned as the woman grew, as well as excited for the new life that it meant. Noah, too, was excited, and had to promise Cordelia that he would take his compass along on this trip. His nearly-full and ever trusted notebook stuck inside his pocket, and a kiss stuck to his wife's forehead. Leaving early, Noah headed towards the Hollow Forest.
Greeting Sah with a low whistle to alert the once-wolf of his presence, Noah sidled up to him. He had his spear as well as a few knives sheathed along his belt, tucked beneath his Sentinel's Coat. "Let's get after it, then." Noah said, flashing the Wild Thunder a shit-eating grin before stepping into the dark forest.
Sah rolled his eyes at Noah, letting out an exaggerated scoff as he bumped his shoulder against the other man in greeting. "Well, hello to you too." Chuckling, he fell into step beside his friend, now family, as they entered the forest. Immediately, Lilly began to sniff the air, her ears rotating to take in the new scents and sounds of the forest. Her cautious excitement was obvious.
Meanwhile, Sah silently scanned their surroundings. "Even if they're man-sized, they probably have webs, right? That might help us spot them." He quietly asked Noah, not wanting to make a ruckus lest they alert unwanted attention. This forest was still too new, too unpredictable. For all they knew, spiders were the least of their worries.
I can't wait for this no more,
My eyes have come undone
It was hard for the hunter not to wish that Sah could communicate over the attuned bond like so many of his comrades. While he did not begrudge the once-wolf and his nature as an abandoned, it was all just easier to communicate without words sometimes. Thus, Noah simply nodded at Sah's idea. Like the other man, Noah did not want to make much noise. If the spiders had sent hunters fleeing -- hunters who spent their lives defending against ursur and giant and wolves and other arctic animals that wanted to eat them -- then certainly they were a fearsome creature to behold.
Noah moved through the singing trees as silently as he could manage. Though he was silent, he did not cower or crouch as an apprehensive man might. No, Noah moved with a boldness that only came with the shadow of last year's happenings in the Draig brought. Though, when a branch snapped an unnatural, ringing, metallic snap, Noah paused and lifted his spear.
There were times where Sah too wished he had the benefit of the Attuned bond. But he had no desire to become a hybrid. The idea of being able to shift into a form so like his original one, yet not the same, hurt. Becoming a physical wolf but lacking his wings sounded like a nightmare more than a blessing. The only future in which he would do so was if Safrin herself ordered it. The Abandoned would hybridize without hesitation.
While Noah strode boldly, Sah walked with quiet confidence. Seeing his companion's change in stride was bittersweet. Noah had grown into a force to be reckoned with, yet the cost had been unfathomably high. The Abandoned was proud of him and he hoped the scars from last year healed with time.
The Wild Thunder froze mid step at the sound of a branch snapping. He reached within and grabbed hold of his magic, ready at a moment's notice. Lilly raised her hackles and silently bared her teeth in the direction of the noise as the group waited to see what would emerge.
I can't wait for this no more,
My eyes have come undone
Men were never quite so lucky.
They were here to look for spiders and investigate them. Take notes. Draw. Though they were Monster Hunters by nature, their task was that of espionage against the newly settled creatures. To gain an upper hand on them that they might not send hunter's fleeing back home in the future.
But the snap of a branch did not give Noah any hope that their mission would only be information gathering. He gripped his spear tight and, despite the confidence that had guided his silent steps, his heart thumped against his ribcage like a hammer. Another snap came, and Noah felt the world darken around him until a flurry of feathers and an incessant screech filled the air. Noah took a step back and prepared his spear, sucking a breath between his teeth.
Relief and, though he would be unwilling to admit it, slight embarrassment, washed over him as a small murder of ravens erupted from the trees and flew over the men and the wolf.
Sah's eyes widened as the ravens flew past with haste. He paid no attention to Noah's embarrassment, instead his eyes peered intently into the woods from which the birds came. Lilly too, began to sniff the air urgently to try and pinpoint what had startled the murder.
From his time as a canine and his experience with canines in general, the Outlander was well aware of the relationship that ravens had with wolves. The teamwork between the two species was well known, as was the typical attuite of the ravens. For them to flee was a warning in itself.
He nodded towards the direction from which the murder had come, urging Noah to follow him. Then Sah began to cautiously make his way deeper into the forest, eyeing his surroundings cautiously, magic ready just beneath his skin.
I can't wait for this no more,
My eyes have come undone
The ravens disappeared into the dead, metallic trees and Noah let his breath out slowly. The cawing faded away, though still echoed alone in Noah's ears. Every image of a raven, no matter the circumstances, always reminded him of Korbin. He was sure that if the boy were still alive, he would be joining Noah and Sah today on this quest.
Glacier eyes turned to the once wolf at his nod, and Noah lifted the hand holding his spear in a fashion that gave permission to the abandoned to go. Sah led the way, and the hunter followed without hesitation. He, too, believed that something provoked the ravens to react as they did. There was still a confidence to Noah's steps, but something had changed about it. He followed more of Sah's approach -- a slower, more calculated crawling stalk.
This forest and its inhabitants were too great of an unknown to rush into this hunt. Every new location deserved caution, but in a forest of metal, a concept Sah had never encountered, it was doubly necessary. He continued forward, keeping note of every aspect of their surroundings. As such, when Lilly froze, her bonded did so to less than a second later.
Sah twisted slightly so that Noah could better see what lay in front of them. There was a small path, created by trodden feet. What made it different was that the marks didn't resemble human or even mammalian feet. No. The prints were bizarre and unlike anything the hunter had ever seen. Too many footsteps for each gait, too many feet.
And if that wasn't enough of a giveaway, deeper into the depths of the forest and along the path, something could just barely be discerned. A thread connecting two trees that was just barely visible in the reflection of the trees. They had found their path.
I can't wait for this no more,
My eyes have come undone
Noah nodded at his fellow hunter as they came upon their path, and moved for them to keep going through together.
He wasn't sure what to expect, really. The description of what they had been sent to find really didn't give him too much of a picture of the creatures. Maybe that was because he had only ever seen wine spiders, which weren't much to be thought of while gorged with fermented grapes or overflowing with clear liquor. The forest around him, though, helped paint the better image.
The cawing ravens and the metallic trees, the way his sensitive nose picked up the faintest hint of blood.
He reminded himself they were here to observe and gain information in an attempt to settle the hair that prickled at the base of his neck as they moved down the path.
Silently, Sah began to walk along the spiders' path, ducking what webs he noticed. The one good thing about large spiders was that their webs appeared to be rather large as well. Large enough for a nimble person to maneuver through without cutting a thread. He had a feeling that if a single one broke or was touched, the spiders would swiftly emerge.
But perhaps that was what was needed to find them. Sah motioned for Noah to stop for a moment before reaching down and grabbing a small rock. Carefully, he threw it till it hit a web a few meters away. Watching as it got stuck and made the web bounce slightly, Sah waited to see if a spider would emerge to investigate.
I can't wait for this no more,
My eyes have come undone
Sah's decision was only the correct one because they were on a mission to study the spiders, and you couldn't study something well enough if you never found it. Noah held in his breath as he watched the rock stick to the web and bounce the strong thread. His eyes swept up and down, around, and he turned pre-emptively to be back to back with the Wild Thunder. All for safety, of course. He was ready with his weapons and magic and shift should it come to that, but if they could just study how the spiders acted when their webs--
and then the Sentinel was cut off from his thoughts when a massive spider dropped out of a tree above him, and knocked him down below its abdomen.
Sah whipped around at the near silent sound of disturbed air. He turned just in time to see Noah go down. "Shit." Whispering a curse, he held out a hand and attempted to use his air and telekinesis to shove the spider off of his friend. Thankfully he seemed to have caught the creature off guard as it was moved back a few feet., slightly disoriented.
Now with Noah a few feet in front of the spider and not beneath it, Sah rushed forward and held out a hand to help the Sentinel to his feet. The second that he was, Sah stepped back and braced his magic for the spider's inevitable counterattack as it shook off the blow.
I can't wait for this no more,
My eyes have come undone
Noah’s back hit the ground hard and pushed the air from his lungs with an oof erupting from his mouth. Instinctively, Noah used his spear to guard himself. The staff lifted and Noah stabbed at the spider atop of him. It hissed and snapped pincer-like jaws towards the Sentinel. Noah kicked up at the spider, too, and stabbed again.
Thankfully it gave him enough of an advantage against the creature to scramble out from beneath it. Grunts and growls of frustration ripped through his teeth as he swiped at the spider. This strike, however, was not intended to stab or slice. A burst of brilliant sunlight shot from the tip and towards the spider.
