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 fire crackles at his feet, the fading sun casting beautiful colors behind the faint trail of smoke and embers that takes up his vision. He camps light in the summer, hardly setting a camp at all to speak of considering he will only be here for a night or two at best. Aside from his bedroll and pillow, the rest remains packed away to the side as he sets about preparing his meal for the night.
In the fading light of the evening, with empty hills around him and town far afield, Caden feels bold enough to utilize his magic as he cooks. Tins of ingredients float about, summoned to his hand and sent back to their place in an easy rhythm that speaks of deep comfort with his abilities. His upbringing had been a paradoxical mix of magical freedom and a paranoid reclusivity that had ensured it could only be practiced in the most private of sanctuaries. Practicing beneath the open sky makes him feel all the more connected to the world around him, and a small smile works its way onto his lips as he floats the thyme into his hand, seasoning the meat before him liberally.
Though I know my heart will break I'd still tell the surgeon to put it back in
Alys had grown somewhat familiar with King's End, having visited several times now in bouts of restlessness that took her from Halo. It wasn't that she didn't love her new home - she did - but sometimes her search for new muse for her artwork took her afield. This was one such trip, and she hiked through the wilderness with a newfound strength and endurance that she had not possessed several months prior. The training that she'd been doing to strengthen herself and her magic was beginning to pay off.
The light was beginning to fade, and Alys saw a shimmering light in the distance that she identified as fire. Usually a loner, Alys had recently begun to enjoy human companionship in Tal and Ru, and on this particular day, she was missing her friends and wishing she could sit with them around a nice fire and listen to them talk about their days. So with a hint of longing, she angled her path towards the fire, wondering who she might find hunkered near the flames.
She wasn't expecting to find another Abandoned - or, at least, she assumed he must be Abandoned, what with the way things danced through the air around him. He was tall, perhaps a little younger than her, with red hair that shone in the firelight. Items - presumably ingredients for his dinner, floated around him, going to and from his hands as he needed them. Alys smiled at the show of magic, with only a hint of jealousy that his magic was something actually useful. "Hello," she said, rather more kindly than her usual gruff greeting. "That's quite impressive. I wish I could do that."
Somewhere in the back of his mind - or perhaps in the spirit plane - Caden's uncle was scolding him to hell and back for letting his guard down. Not just with his magic, but with his surroundings, because he doesn't hear the woman approaching until she is already talking to him. Caden jolts hard, and the tins of seasoning fall immediately with little thunks in the grass. Terror grips his heart and steals his breath immediately, visions of blood and gore and his uncle's vacant eyes suddenly washing over him as his magic grips instinctually at the dagger on his hip.
He goes utterly still as the actual words themselves register past the tone and shock of company. She wishes...? But no. Anyone without magic could feel envious of the Abandoned for their strength. He cannot be too hasty.
Turning - and simultaneously hoping his bloodless face is not quite so obvious in the firelight - Caden looks up at the woman standing nearby and tries to think past the roaring of blood in his ears. "S-Sorry, you startled me." Casting his eyes about swiftly for any others, Caden relaxes minutely at seeing she is alone. It doesn't mean she isn't a threat, but certainly less of one. "Thank you. Um, are you...also -?" Caden twitches his wrist slightly, righting the seasonings and lining them back alongside the log he's sitting on. Even the word cannot escape his throat, like a sour lump that chokes him whenever he tries. Maybe the vagueness will benefit him; what little it can given she has already seen him performing his magic up close.
Though I know my heart will break I'd still tell the surgeon to put it back in
Alys was perhaps not as cautious as she should be when traveling alone, but she, too, had been startled in the past by strangers appearing from seemingly nowhere. She held up her hands in the universal gesture that said, I am no danger to you, and took a slight step back, giving the man some space. "Sorry," she said, eyeing the dagger at his hip and wishing that her bow wasn't currently strapped to her back. She hadn't really considered stranger danger, but it was a bit too late to leave the man alone now.
"Abandoned?" she said with a grimace. "I hate that name, don't you? Like we're dirty or something." She flicked her wrist, summoning a copy of herself, which waved before disappearing. "But yes, I am." She slowly lowered her hands, hoping not to further startle the young man. "I can do illusions, but not much else. It's a shame. There are so many more useful magics."
The gesture is appreciated if Caden's relaxing shoulders are any sign. Though his hands had never reached for his dagger, he can see how her eyes dart to it, and releases his magical hold on the item without letting it waver. It would be offensive in his eyes to show how much of a threat he had assumed her to be. "Ah, no, I'm the one who's sorry. Shouldn't have gotten so distracted." His smile is more of a grimace, embarrassed to have been so deep in his own head.
She takes him completely off guard with her forthright acknowledgment not only of their race but the demonstration of her own magic. Caden is certain he's gawping unattractively actually. "U-Uh," he manages to spit out first, and then silently pats the log next to him, hoping to use the extra time to get his scattered thoughts together. "We actually used to be called Acquired you know." His uncle had called them that more often than not, no matter how archaic the term. "But I think your magic is beautiful." It could almost be considered a come-on, but it's clear he means it in the same way as sunsets and other awe-inspiring natural elements. "You can use it in all sorts of ways; mimicking birds and prey for hunting, distracting enemies, entertaining kids..."
Realizing he's getting a bit off-topic, Caden clears his throat. "Sorry. I don't normally meet other magic users. Or...tell anyone I am." The confession burns his throat, but she had been honest first, so it was only fair to return the favor.
Though I know my heart will break I'd still tell the surgeon to put it back in
"I think you're allowed to be distracted in your own camp," Alys advised. "I'm the one who's intruding." But whoever was at fault - or not, as it were - didn't seem to matter much. The crisis was averted, and as the man patted the log next to him, Alys pulled her bow from her back to set it aside, unclipped her quiver from her hip, and set the bag containing her drawing implements on the ground before clambering over the log to sit.
Whatever they used to be called, it was better than 'Abandoned.' At the stranger's compliment, Alys blushed. "Thank you," she said shyly. She wasn't used to someone complimenting her abilities so intensely. Tal had found them impressive, sure, but not beautiful. Deimos saw only an opportunity for training. So it was with a certain amount of dubiousness that she considered the options that the man offered for her magic, finally acquiescing with a nod. "I suppose you're right. Perhaps the problem is my creativity," she said with a wink. It felt like a very Ru thing to do, the wink - perhaps her friend was rubbing off on her.
"I understand," she said, tossing her wild curls over her shoulder. "I just started meeting more of us not that long ago. Where are you from?"
Caden shakes his head, immediately dismissing the notion of intrusion. "Not at all, I appreciate the company. Besides, I'm used to sharing with travelers." Being a nomad himself and raised by a man who had impressed the importance of it, Caden is more than accustomed to caravans, communes, and hostels as well as random passersby hoping for temporary safety in numbers.
Her blush makes him smile, privately pleased even though he hadn't intended such a reaction. He doesn't try to hide it from her. He may not be a flirtatious young man, but he is very honest with his own emotions. It seems she may be as well given the boldness of her wink, which makes Caden laugh freely, tension dissipating. "Well you're in luck then; creativity is something you can build. Meanwhile, the only thing I can change is what object to juggle." He winks back at her, using his magic to levitate the spit into his hand to begin skewering the meat onto it to go over the fire. It gives him something to do while the gravity of his pending answer dawns on him.
"Nowhere really. My parents died when I was nine, and my uncle raised me as a wanderer. But if you're asking about the barrier, we were outside of it." He'd been grateful for that when it fell and all the Grounders fled from their previous prison, bearing tales of stagnancy and starvation as the fields grew bleaker with each year that made Caden's heart bleed. "What about you?"
Though I know my heart will break I'd still tell the surgeon to put it back in
Appreciating company was not something that Alys had ever thought herself capable of, but as time went on, she grew to understand just how starved for companionship she truly was. An outcast from a young age thanks to parents that didn't understand her and never made the effort to try, she'd gotten used to solitude both before leaving home and on her travels. But thanks to her friends in Halo - and her new home there - it seemed that the young woman was really beginning to come out of her shell - as evidenced by her playful wink.
Luckily, it seemed to diffuse any lingering tension. "You say juggle, I say throw," she said with a shrug. She could think of many more uses for telekinesis than she could for illusion. "Rocks, arrows, daggers," she said glancing at the one he wore at his hip. "I'd say you've plenty to work with." She watched as he levitated the spit into his hand, pondering - then she grinned. "But hey, at the very least, we both have neat party tricks."
The conversation turned, as they are wont to do, and Alys murmured condolences for a loss felt too young. Although she wasn't close with her own parents, she knew that many people were, and she felt great sympathy for those who had lost someone they had loved. "I grew up in the Grounds," she said with a shrug. "I was the only one around with magic, so I never really developed it. At least, not 'till after the barrier fell. I live in Halo now."
In contrast, Caden has yet to experience community and stability, so unlike Alys he has yet to learn the benefits of it in order to reflect on his own history of solitude and the impacts of it. Perhaps in the near future he will come to realize the longterm effects of never having a real home, but for now he is happy to share his fire and his time.
Laughing and shaking his head slightly, Caden leans forward and sets the spit up over the fire. "I'm sure my uncle would have had something wise to say about us needing to learn why each magic is inherent to us, but I was never as witty as him so you'll have to imagine it yourself." It was easy to envy someone else's powers, but they'd been born with their original magics for a reason.
Her condolences are met with a small smile, appreciative. Their loss doesn't hurt so much anymore - certainly not as much as his uncle's. Time heals all wounds. "Yeah I heard the Grounds was one of the worst regions in terms of magical sentiment. But I heard Halo was pretty full of magic users...?" He aims the question towards her, trailing off. "It's part of why I've been a bit more open with my status." Sentiment is changing, slowly but surely.
Though I know my heart will break I'd still tell the surgeon to put it back in
It was indeed easy to envy someone else's powers, just as it was easy to envy someone else's life. Alys might have had friends and loved ones now, but she hadn't always. In fact, up until fairly recently, she hadn't had anyone at all - no parents to speak of, no aunts and uncles, no grandparents, no friends. It would have been easy to envy the stranger his family, if it weren't for the fact that she had her own found family now. "Your uncle sounds like a smart man," she said with a smile. Although, truth be told, she probably wouldn't have listened to the wisdom had it been presented to her.
With regard to the Grounds, Alys just shrugged. "I couldn't say. Since I didn't use my magic, it was almost like I didn't have it. It's not like there was much incentive to try to learn." It was a bit sad, when she thought about it - that she'd hidden away something that was as much a part of her as her wild curls or her brown eyes, simply because the world hadn't been ready to see it.
She shook herself. That was all in the past. "Halo is much better than the Grounds for magic users," she confirmed. Then she smiled wistfully. "I've made some of my closest friends there. Most of them have magic. There's even a magic school there."
Sorrow infuses his smile, and though it does not wither it is clearly tinged with as much grief as it is love. "Thank you - he was. He was never the fatherly type, but when my parents died he really stepped up." He had been firm on calling himself Caden's uncle however, insistent that they honor his parent's memory no matter how close they had become in later years.
Though their experiences differ, the sentiment is close enough for Caden's expression to turn sympathetic as he looks back and forth between the meat he is skewering and her profile. "I'm sorry. I can't imagine a life like that. Though we hid what we were and what we could do, my uncle insisted we practice nearly daily." Taking the spit, he places it over the fire and sits back down, belatedly wincing as he realizes how condescending that might have sounded. "What I mean is - it's not just a part of us, it is us. I've always felt at war with myself; needing to hide it, but raised to revere it."
Which is why the news of an academy makes him turn to face her more on the log. "That's part of why I've been more open about it lately. When I heard it was opening..." he shakes his head, at a loss for words that could sufficiently describe all the emotions he'd felt for days following that news. "I still can't believe it."
Though I know my heart will break I'd still tell the surgeon to put it back in
05-31-2023, 07:58 AM (This post was last modified: 05-31-2023, 07:58 AM by Alys.)
Alys Glasse
Though she couldn't fully empathize with the emotions playing out on the man's face, Alys could at least sympathize. Her expression softened as she inclined her head respectfully. She was truly sorry that he'd had to lose someone so dear to him. When Alys thought about losing the people who really mattered to her - even if those people were her found family rather than blood - it made her heart grow still and cold. Would life even be worth living, if she were to lose them?
But she shook off such morbid thoughts. Her friends were safe, last she'd checked, and the war was long since over. Caido was at peace. What did she have to worry about, really?
"I'm beginning to learn that," she assured the stranger. "It's why I joined the Academy. To learn how to accept that part of myself. To make it stronger." It was also why she'd been training physically just as much as mentally. Strength came in many forms. "If you're interested, I could put in a good word for you," she offered. "And even if you're not, you're always welcome in Halo. I'm usually there, so you can ask for me - my name's Alys. Alys Glasse."
While he hadn't noticed it consciously, her answer soothes a secondary fear that this Academy is merely a dangerous front to arm Abandoned and strengthen them, only to utilize their powers for something far darker. The Voice had sought power in a similar way, and Caden's uncle had always fiercely decried how that cruel hunger had cast thousands of magical people adrift, only deepening resentment against the heralds and their ilk.
He is about to respond to her offer when her name is given, and Caden's fair cheeks color plainly in the firelight as he realizes how poor his manners have been this evening. "I'm so sorry I didn't even introduce myself. I'm Caden, it's nice to meet you Alys." He shuffles slightly so he can extend his hand to her at his side, smiling lopsidedly. "And I'd like that. What are their requirements though? I don't know if I'll be settling anywhere yet." Still far too accustomed to half his life being spent on the road to do much more than consider his options. He is changing, and happy to be, but consistency and the vulnerability that follows is still an intimidating prospect.
Though I know my heart will break I'd still tell the surgeon to put it back in
If he had asked, Alys would have given a very thorough and glowing review of the Academy. She'd had it recommended to her by one of her closest friends and by someone she looked up to as a mentor; not to mention that Ru herself had turned out to be so wonderful. And then there were the training opportunities (which she had, unfortunately, yet to take full advantage of), and just the sheer joy of getting to know other Abandoned... well, at least in Alys's book, it was an excellent institution.
Alys smiled at the blush that mantled Caden's cheeks as he introduced himself, waving away his concerns. "It's nice to meet you, too," she said, taking the proffered hand in a firm handshake. "As for the Academy, I'd do better to direct you to our headmistress, Hotaru, but you don't need to settle anywhere to be a member. We have someone from Torchline in the Academy, so I imagine you could join regardless of where you're from." She suddenly realized that as much as she appreciated the Academy, she wasn't sure of all of its specific rules - something she should likely remedy - and desperately hoped that any further questions would be ones she could answer.
"Have you traveled to many places?" she asked then, hoping to divert attention to something that she felt she could reasonably discuss without giving incorrect information.
Minor powerplay allowed without permission.
Feel free to use force/magic on Alys.
