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!
The game? Snowball wars.
The rules? Made up.
The scoring system? Irrelephant.
The victor? Time would tell.
In one corner, weighing in at a measly 160lbs was Mateo Taliesin, who had apparently been perfecting a snowball formula. In the other, an 80lb german shepherd with a love for balls. (stop it). In the stands were two snow parents, adorned with hats and scarves who would love their snow children no matter the outcome.
With his head down and haunches raised, Ever barks loudly in Mateo's direction. All white teeth and blue eyes, the hulking black dog might have been intimidating to anyone who didn't know the mind inside was one who regularly jumped at his own shadow.
While everyone around the Falling might assume that Mateo is cowering from the big black dog (he is hunched behind a wall, after all), they would be wrong. Their snow parents know the truth, at least - and he has been sure to make a sign for them to 'hold' between them, cheering on both of their less-snowy children.
After one of Ever's bright barks, Mateo straightens up with a flourish and a victorious (read: exaggerated) laugh. He's wearing a long, Ursur fur coat and a pair of matching earmuffs, and in his hand is what looks like a cane, only it ends in three, er, wiggly bits.
And each one is coiled around a snowball.
With a flamboyant sort of yeet, Mateo flings all three balls at his ball-loving companion who most certainly enjoys a good ball or two.
Ball.
I'm a scholar and a gentleman And I don't usually fall when I try to stand
If we're going the stereotypical route, Ever is probably the bad guy here because he's black and Mateo is the good guy because he's handsome. However, anyone with a set of eyes can see that Mateo is clearly holding the secretly a bad guy weapon in his hand. Direct your cheers and crushes accordingly.
As a man, Ever is cautious and measured. As a canine, however, he is spry and instinct-driven such that as Mateo lobs the balls his way, Ever's mouth is already open to receive as many of them as he can.
Leaping into the air, his hips rotating to keep him balanced as he flies forward, Ever's powerful jaws crush not one but two of the balls. The third he's unable to get before it hits the ground, but as soon as he's able, the dog trots toward it and monches it between his jaws as well.
Mateo is handsome and he's wearing a white fur coat and earmuffs, so there's also that in his favour. It's true, though, that anything with tentacles can automatically be assumed to be nefarious; add in the fact that Ever is an adorable doggo and he's naturally going to play the part of protagonist here. Anyway. Snowballs and whatnot.
Already laughing as Ever cronches up two of his snowballs and goes to hunt down the third, Mateo is holding out his cane to retrieve three more. It's less snowball fight and more game of fetch, but he's sure their snow parents will be proud nonetheless. "Okay, don't slip!" He calls out a warning (or is it a villainous foreshadowing? mwa ha ha) and yeets some more balls in Ever's face.
I'm a scholar and a gentleman And I don't usually fall when I try to stand
Turning as his arch nemesis friend calls out a warning, Everest immediately flattens his ears against his skull. This is purely for aerodynamics of course, because as the snowballs arc in his direction, the dog leaps into the air. It isn't nearly as graceful as those TikToks you see of german shepherds running up telephone poles and doing backflips, but it's nothing to sneeze at either.
As he lands, Ever tucks his tail between his legs and zooooooooooooms at Mateo. His intent isn't to hit his friend, but rather to slide into the mound of snow Mateo was using to reload his tentacles with. It's adorable, really, to see someone like Everest Hart with the zoomies, and though the Accepted won't be able to feel the bright pulse of joy through the attuned bond, the way Ever's tongue is lolling happily out of his mouth is an obvious indication of his current mood.
Well, he doesn't slip. Far from, in fact, and Mateo is so delighted by the sight of Ever charging towards him that he completely forgets to reload his tentacles with ammo. As a result, as the large dog slams into his mound of snow and displaces enough of it to knock the (obviously a villain) off his feet. With a yelp that's as much laughter as it is an expression of surprise, Mateo goes down.
Luckily the padding of all of his layers is more than enough to break his fall, and although he's flailing to get back upright, odds are that very same padding is going to make it difficult. "Hey, hey! That's no fair!" His protests are feeble at best (Mateo is the one with thumbs right now, after all), and he haphazardly scoops up a snowball with his hand this time to try and fling it at Ever.
I'm a scholar and a gentleman And I don't usually fall when I try to stand
As Mateo struggles and flails on the ground, the large dog hunkers down ominously. Were there Grims in this world (and who knows, there could be) the black shape could easily be seen as an omen of death, especially given the bright white of his teeth just now.
Aiming for his friend's throat, it's with a small yelp of surprise that his open mouth is suddenly full of snow. Flapping his tongue about and peeling back his lips to try and spit out the remnants of the snowball, Ever gives his head a rough and offended shake before setting his sights on Mateo once more.
With a cold tongue, Ever advances, intent on covering Mateo's face with icy kisses.
Hey, maybe Mateo is the hero in this after all. He has the making of perfect prey as Ever advances; clumsy and unbalanced, wobbling into a sitting position like some fledgling bird, the botanist is shaking the snow from his curls before checking to see how his impromptu snowball assault is going on. And the answer is very well, surprisingly enough, and so it's with a dimpled grin that he watches Ever try to get the snow out of his jaws.
Only then he's on the prowl again, and in Mateo's haste to get to his feet, he of course slips and slides on his ass once more, laughing as he tries to scrabble backwards. "Hey, no! Ever no, it's cold!" he complains, and if he thought he had any chance of giving commands to his friend, he'd be trying out a sit or a heel.
I'm a scholar and a gentleman And I don't usually fall when I try to stand
Pressing one large paw onto Mateo's shoulder, the view the botanist will have is one that every pet owner is likely familiar with if they've ever tried to lay down on the floor to stretch or do yoga. Seen from below, Ever is all jowls and tongue with his bright blue eyes hidden behind the wrinkle of his muzzle. Continuing to lick Mateo as if the botanist were coated in honey, eventually, the dog lays down on his friend's chest, thumping his tail happily at his side.
Nearby their snow parents look on with identical expressions, though neither offers any words of encouragement or suggestions that either of their children should cease in their efforts.
Oh don't you worry, snow parents. Mateo is storing away this injustice to discuss at therapy at some point or another. For now, though, his best friend is treating him like an ice cream cone, and no matter his attempts to escape, he remains unsuccessful. Eventually Mateo succumbs to his fate, collapsing bonelessly in the snow with a very excitable Ever lolling on his chest. "Okay," he says breathlessly, a grin audible in his voice. "Okay, I think you are the winner."
Reaching up to affectionately scritch behind the canine's large ears, Mateo waits until he's sure he can actually sit up properly before he makes another attempt to do so. "Come on. I will treat you to something from that steakhouse in the Silk Houses. Only the best for the victor."
And so with a black dog at his heels and a gently writhing cane in his hands, Mateo kisses their snow parents goodbye and heads back down into the city. All in a day's work, so they say.
~FIN
I'm a scholar and a gentleman And I don't usually fall when I try to stand
