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!
"Sure, but that is not how the game works." The Lullaby teases as he sends a pulse of amusement through the attuned bond at the same moment as he squeezes Ronin's hand. "It's called two truths and a lie, not two truths and one heroic fact about Ronin's life that seems like a lie, but isn't."
Soft panels of afternoon sunshine stretch down through the thick canopy of trees overhead, dousing the Greatwood in gobs of gold and green. Though Leafchange has certainly got its claws into most of the forest, here on the outskirts where the rush of the Stone Symphony is an ever-present hum, the abundance of water has kept things quite green.
Playing this particular game was quite difficult for the Taliesin's given just how much they knew about one another, but therein was the challenge. And the prize? Being able to choose both what they would have for dinner later, as well as the evening's activities.
remi
Styling stolen from Sky (obviously)
Speaks with a thick Italian accent.
Force and magic can be used against Remi without permission.
"Okay, but in my defence--" Ronin's defence, apparently, is squeezing Remi's hand and dragging him closer, before falling back and into the currents of the Stone Symphony with a shit-eating grin. Listen, if he makes the game into something else, maybe they can play that instead. Besides, it's very difficult to lie to a man who can feel your emotions through touch, and who insists on holding your hand while you play.
Alright, so maybe the current was stronger than I expected it. And it's colder than I thought it would be, he continues through the Attuned bond, all but wrapping his arms around his husband like a leech as they sink further into the Symphony. Luckily their strength is such that holding their breath is, you know, fine. And there can always be a kraken and a leviathan in the water if needed, too.
"Mmm, point taken." Remi agrees as below the surface of the water his tentacles grip the slimy stones with sucker-y ease. 'Means I win, though.' He adds with a crooked smile and a quick kiss to one of Ronin's cheeks.
Grinning stupidly as he wraps his arms around his husband's body, the Lullaby spider-walks them up the current. It's a slow-going affair even for a demigod, and though walking on the shore would have been much easier, so what? "I heard that there are large caverns below the water now." Remi explains as he staunchly pulls them forward. "Bubbles of air to breathe as well." One of his tentacles raises before plunging down quite far as the pair reach the drop-off that heralds their arrival at the sunken gardens.
With just a waggle of his eyebrows to indicate anything is coming (though no doubt Ronin will feel the surge of Remi's excitement through their bond), the Lullaby plunges them both down into the chilly water before using his tentacle to pull them under the current where the water is suddenly still and dark and deep.
remi
Styling stolen from Sky (obviously)
Speaks with a thick Italian accent.
Force and magic can be used against Remi without permission.
"I'll always concede a win to you," Ronin informs his husband - especially if he gets consolation kisses, which certainly seems to be the case here. And given that Remi is content to spider-walk them along the bottom of the Stone Symphony with his tentacles, the Supernova becomes little more than a floatie passenger harrassing the other man with wet kisses. "Oh is that so?" he murmurs of the caverns and the air bubbles, glancing up only when he realises Remi has fallen to a halt.
"Let me guess, this is the part wher--" Not at all upset to be correct, Ronin is nonetheless forced to take a gulp of air as the Lullaby ploughs them beneath the surface of the water with a crackle of excitement. At this point he simply goes with it, and only as things grow dark and deep and still does the Nova partially shift himself enough to be able to see and navigate through the depths.
Let me guess - there isn't exactly a map of this place, he muses, leaving a stream of bubbles in his wake as he kicks his way forward.
"You are going to regret saying that." Remi hums wickedly, filing away this particular moment in time that he could (and absolutely would) bring it up to use against Ronin at his earliest convenience.
It absolutely is the part where; now that both men are grotesquely half-shifted and liable to scare away anyone else who might be sharing the waters' with them, the Lullaby releases the Nova enough that he won't be caught by the leviathan's tail. What do you need a map for? The half-kraken wonders with a challenging smirk.
Releasing the stones now that there is no current to try and sweep him away, Remi flits through the water with ease. Who knows, maybe we will find a spring of hot water down here. They'd stumbled on to stranger things in the past, and nothing about the Greatwood suggested that such a thing wouldn't be possible. If there were hot springs in Halo, why not here?
remi
Styling stolen from Sky (obviously)
Speaks with a thick Italian accent.
Force and magic can be used against Remi without permission.
Ronin has no doubt that he will, indeed, regret saying that, if for no other reason than because Remi will ensure it. Regardless, it's a punishment he'll happily take, the Nova moving with relative ease through the dark water beside his husband, equally as mindful of any stray tentacles. Oh, you know. A bit of light reading. He snarks warmly about the map, sending a pulse of wry amusement through the bond.
A private hotspring, I hope, he says of what they might find down here in the deep. For what purpose Remi knows very well, and Ronin's thoughts are appropriately rose-coloured until the world around them suddenly blooms to light and life. The Nova's boyish surprise is perfectly illuminated against the glowing flora and aquatic life all around, and it's with a flick of his tail that he propels himself further, finding himself enthralled by the discovery.
What do you think - better than a hotspring, or...?
I think you only like maps because they have pictures The Lullaby snarks back, shooting a tentacle out through the darkened waters to try and touch any part of Ronin that might be within reach.
Gods that would be nice. Though..why have we not made a hot spring in the mountains...? Honestly, for all they were and all they could do, the fact that the pair hadn't considered this before was ludicrous and something he planned on remedying immediately. Oh...ooohh Remi hums, enchanted by the sudden brilliance of the world around them.
Reaching out with a tentacle, Remi pokes at a bit of Ringing Algae which causes bubbles to shift away from the mass of green, floating gently toward the surface. I guess it is true about the air bubbles, then. He notes, swimming closer to the Nova and shaking his head. His curls float in a chaotic halo around his forehead, and it's a good thing he still has hands with which to tease them away from his eyes.
Almost nothing is better than a hot spring. But...I wonder if we could get this to grow in the waterfall. It would look beautiful at night.
remi
Styling stolen from Sky (obviously)
Speaks with a thick Italian accent.
Force and magic can be used against Remi without permission.
Maps are pictures is what Ronin wants to fire back at his husband, but he realises (thankfully, before it escapes his lips) that the point contracts the one he's already made about reading. Wisely - and it's an occasion, so they should probably note this down somewhere - Ronin stays quiet.
You know, I have no idea. It wouldn't be difficult. We wouldn't even need it to be permanently hot - I could just go out as a phoenix and you could be an ifrit until it's warm enough. Honestly, what were they even doing with their time up at the Tramezzino, when they could be inventing things like this?
Smiling through the eerie glow around them, Ronin watches with fascination as Remi presses a tentacle against the huge domes of algae and lets a stream of bubbles escape. We should ask Mateo - I bet he'd know how to cultivate something like this up at the waterfall, he says.
And given that the air bubbles are true, it's probably of little surprise that, with a kick of his legs, Ronin swims up and pops his head right into one of the spheres. "Be honest," he says, knowing Remi will hear him in their bond if nothing else. "I look stupid like this, don't I?"
Well, now I know what we will be doing during Deepfrost. The Lullaby agrees, already wondering about whether or not the heat from their combined bodies would just cause the water to evaporate, and whether the pair could just nap on some rocks to super-heat them, before tossing them into the water.
He would. We should really bring he and Flora up to visit. Remi says. Debating whether or not to continue to hold his breath or shift so that he didn't need to worry about it, the Lullaby watches with rapt amusement as Ronin shoves his head into one of the bubbles. How's the air in there? Remi wonders with a smirk as he swims a touch closer as if to properly inspect just how stupid the Nova looked. Instead, he reaches out with a tentacle to try and pop the bubble if only to drag Ronin toward him and kiss away whatever oxygen still lingered on his lips. As much as I hate to admit it, though you do look stupid, somehow you also look impossibly handsome.
remi
Styling stolen from Sky (obviously)
Speaks with a thick Italian accent.
Force and magic can be used against Remi without permission.
"We'll split the time between napping and making hotsprings," Ronin decides, his voice echoing strangely within the ringing algae, the Nova offering a warbled looking grin out into the bioluminescent waters where his husband swims. "And prancing, in my case." You know, as a very majestic luxere, as is his Safrin-given right.
"Maybe we could invite them up when it's snowing." he suggests; though it would make getting to the Cordillera a little more difficult, the Tramezzino does look picturesque in the snow. "And the air in here is a bit ringy, to be hone--" Inhaling deeply just as the tentacle comes to pop! away his reprieve, Ronin all but melts into Remi's lips, and the Lullaby is welcome to whatever breath he can take.
(It's all of it - Remi takes all of Ronin's breath away, always).
That's always good to know. Come on - let's see if we can find a bubble big enough for the two of us?
07-26-2023, 07:03 PM (This post was last modified: 07-26-2023, 07:04 PM by Remi.)
and my heart ran away with me
I have never loved you more. The Lullaby gushes, despite knowing that for all of its implausibility, his love for the Nova would only continue to grow. Can't forget the prancing. Remi agrees with an adoring roll of his eyes, wondering what form he'd opt to chase the luxere through the snow in.
Ringy? Remi echoes before he literally bursts Ronin's bubble and steals whatever kisses he can manage. The contrast of the Nova's warm lips against his despite the cool waters that flow around them is absolutely wonderful in a way that the Lullaby files away for later experimentation. For now, he releases his husband just enough for them to try and eye-spy a bubble big enough for the both of them.
To bad this was not here when the kids were young. This seems like a fun secret hide out.
remi
Styling stolen from Sky (obviously)
Speaks with a thick Italian accent.
Force and magic can be used against Remi without permission.
The prancing is directly correlated to the love, Ronin agrees, smiling against his husband's lips before they're off on the lookout for a two-person air bubble. And you talk as if Mateo or Flora wouldn't still use this as a secret hideout. I don't think age comes into it for them, he remarks, easily able to see either of their children hosting clandestine get togethers down here.
Up ahead, a larger air bubble does appear, and it's with a kick of legs and a lash of a leviathan's tail that Ronin tugs them towards it, until they can both pop their heads up and into the strange space. "See?" he says, his voice echoing within the algae. "It's ringy."
I do not disagree with you about that, I just have not seen either of them this far north for some time. Not really since Vai's death, now that he thought about it. But then, there were certain parts of the Greatwood the Lullaby had no interest in going for precisely the same reasons. Rather than saying so, Remi merely lets the swirl of his emotions do the talking for him as he steals one final kiss before swimming off in search of a large air bubble.
Tangling his arms around Ronin's shoulders and a few tentacles around the Nova's waist for good measure, Remi skeptically takes in a breath through his nose and holds it in his lungs for a moment before exhaling slowly. "For some reason I thought it would feel different, but..." Frowning playfully, he shrugs and shakes his head.
"But yes, ringy is exactly what it is." He agrees with a laugh, before using his remaining tentacles to try and slide them away from the algae. "I wonder if we can bring this with us if we move..?"
remi
Styling stolen from Sky (obviously)
Speaks with a thick Italian accent.
Force and magic can be used against Remi without permission.
Having a direct feed to Remi's emotions, Ronin needs no words to understand the other man's feelings; as such, he leans forward to press a damp kiss to his forehead once they're both sequestered within the air bubble. "Maybe they just need a bit more time," he suggests. "If we tell them there's a secret underwater hideout, you never know - that might persuade them."
Happily tangled with his husband (limbs and tentacles and all), Ronin lets Remi get accustomed to the space in his own time, preferring instead to watch the glowing, eerie shapes drift around outside the bubble of algae. This means, of course, he finds himself happily ferried along as Remi starts to move them, Ronin letting out a soft laugh and shrugging. "I mean, it seems to be working so far," he says. "We could have a tour of the place in this bubble."
