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!
what tried to destroy you didn't have the strength
While Deimos might have look relaxed during slumber, in the most recent dream he’d been restless and apprehensive, and even more so after learning of upcoming dilemmas, movements, and motions. So by morning’s edges and fringes, he’d awakened with a keen sense of responsibility and dread – which may not have been much different from past dawns, but certainly altered by the latest state of affairs.
Rather than immediately turn and wake Evie with every vivid detail, he glanced over at the Evergreen, quietly sighed, and rose to attend to breakfast – for that could be done mindlessly while everything else rambled through his brain.
Leaving his partner to the rest of her slumber peacefully, he meandered to the kitchen, drawing the fire into the hearth as he passed, and glancing out the window to the sunrise. Moments later, he bowed his head, turning on the stove and unearthing pans from their respective cabinets. Quietly, for despite his physique he could be stealthy when it was required, he snagged at sausages and eggs, beginning to tend to their cooking. Only then did he glance down at his wrist and see the bracelet again; all too tangible and definite.
Unaware of all that has transpired in the measly span of a few hours, Evie awakens slowly, bleary eyes cracking open and head turning instinctively to the other side of the bed even as her hand slides across the sheets unimpeded. Both turn up empty at the same time, signaling her beloved has beaten her to consciousness. Given she's inherently a morning person anyway, Evie doesn't bother lingering in the bed or mourning Deimos' absence. Tossing back the sheets, she leaves Micah curled up and slumbering at the foot of the bed to pad barefoot out into the hallway, ears tuned for any sign of where Deimos went.
It shouldn't surprise her that the answer is the kitchen. The tile is cool under her bare feet as she wanders in, cracking a yawn and pushing her hair out of her face as she heads straight for Deimos to wrap her arms around his waist from behind. Forehead tilting against his spine, she hums a pleased sound. Now everything is right with the world. "Mornin'," she mumbles into his back, content to impede his movement from behind until she has gotten her fill of him. Maybe then she'll consider making them tea or coffee.
There's sleep in your eyes, I'll pull the curtains back gently
what tried to destroy you didn't have the strength
The crackling of sausages, bacon, and the wafting aromas of breakfast would’ve snagged at the Evergreen eventually, of that he was certain, but the gentle and soft footfalls alerted him to the actions of sooner, rather than later. Shielded and shrouded by her instantly, he nearly laughed, easing the breadth and tautness of his spine to something pliable. “Morning,” he rumbled in return, and she’d be able to feel the entire vocalization through his frame.
Adjusting a few of the portions of meat and eggs, he sidled and turned in her grasp to face her, head bowing, mouth pressed against her crown. It would’ve been much simpler to revel in nothing but this, simplicity and peace and repose, tendered with love, but then he straightened again, eternally a creature known for getting straight to the point. “Safrin visited Ronin and I in our dreams last night.” And before she got the wrong idea, his brow arched, only giving himself some pause for her to navigate through what was coming. “It was to deliver some ominous news.”
Though the food hadn’t been what woke her this morning, the smell of its beginnings makes her stomach twinge with interest as she presses her cheek into the curve of Deimos’ back. His greeting rumbles through her entire front with how she is pressed up against her, making her smile and close her eyes, content to linger as she often does on these quiet mornings.
Except it seems this day is not among those historical moments. Evie doesn’t begin to take notice until after Deimos has turned in her grasp which she obligingly loosens, humming happily as he presses a kiss to her crown. It’s not until he straightens and she feels the rigidity of his spine beneath her arms that alertness prickles past her lingering sleepiness.
Reality kicks in swiftly, and concern immediately overtakes her - for Safrin, yes, but also for Deimos. “Ominous? So nothing has already happened, right?” Merely a portend, a warning? Or something more concrete? Clearly Deimos is physically okay, which is enough to inspire gratitude in the Evergreen. “I’ll put the kettle on. Tell me what she said.” Loathe as she is to part from him physically right now with bad news on the horizon, she suspects they’ll need the caffeine.
There's sleep in your eyes, I'll pull the curtains back gently
Suddenly there is nothing but ice and wind all around you. Like being plunged into a whirlwind the air grows even more bitterly cold than it already was, and though you try and struggle against it, you feel your feet beginning to slip.
Before you know it there is a sudden SCHWAACK. Snow falls from the sky and you suddenly realize that there are two water elementals only a few meters ahead of you. They seem to be playing a game of…ice-ball-tag? Whatever it is they’re doing, it’s extremely dangerous.I’d…leave them to it, if I were you.
You’ve encountered a water elemental! This counts as a rare creature encounter for the purposes of levelling, but does not count as a Random Event for levelling or MP. There will be no further admin/re intervention. If you choose to follow this creature, you do so at your own risk, however, just having it in this thread is enough to satisfy your levelling requirements. You may not kill your rare creature without admin permission.
Water Elementals (Uncommon/mythical): Not much is known about these creatures other than that they appear during particularly nasty storms. With the ability to manipulate the water in the icy-landscape as well as that within your body, water elementals range from incredibly dim-witted to quite clever.
what tried to destroy you didn't have the strength
The Sword could wish this wasn’t how the world worked – that they’d have their own time to muse and prosper and do nothing but rest within moments. Perhaps they’d already had those idle hours, and would simply crave them for years to come all over again; because they truly hadn’t had turmoil since the war, and while he’d never quite be used to the manner of repose, the serenity, the tranquility, of just being had been remarkable. He watched as she already began putting pieces together, eternally clever, and his features maneuvered into a meager frown. “No. Not yet, anyway.”
Maneuvering out of her way so she could fetch the kettle and place it on the stove, he moved another few pieces of egg and meat around, beginning to supply the information – ignoring the pelting of snow at the door. “She feared something was coming – but outside of Caido.” In all those other fragments and figments – he could imagine much like Isilme, Helovia, and anything else that once or presently existed. “She needed to leave to see if she could prevent it.” The implications there, of course, being that Halo wouldn’t be able to snag at their regional quest from the starry goddess, and so many other notions clattering together. “So Ronin and I are acting on her behalf – at the very least coordinating leaders and demigods together for a meeting, probably at the beginning of Deepfrost.” He ceased there for a moment, glancing back to gauge a reaction, and to give her a moment to snag at the details.
The elementals beyond their window panes scare the life out of her given how quickly the tone has become somber, and Evie's heart rabbits in her chest as she glares ineffectually out the glass at the water spirits playing some form of game just beyond. Turning away to rest her hip against the counter as the water begins to heat, Evie lends her ears readily to the information Deimos has to share, her slight thoughtful frown deepening over time into something more somber.
"Given how often The Voice meddled beyond this realm, I suppose we shouldn't be surprised a threat from beyond could still exist," she murmurs, rather certain he hadn't meant a land other than Caido, some island or other mass of earth - even if that may have been preferable for Safrin to concern herself with. "I wonder why she would choose to go alone?" Worry creeps unbidden up the inside of her ribs, shining through on her face as she bites her lip.
The soft early whistle of the kettle distracts her, and she sets about making their cups as Deimos continues to cook. "I think that's the best start we can ask for. I'm glad she told you before she left, it gives us more time to get everyone in the know." Setting the tea to steep, she braces her hands on the counter and simply stares at the changing colors of the liquid for a moment, lost in her own head. As a Grounder, she can't help but begin to think of the worst, and it makes her skin feel tight and itchy with the need for action. Instead of weathering it alone, she turns back around to go back to Deimos' side, even if it's only a few inches of difference in proximity. "Perhaps inter-region relationships will be vital sooner than we expected." They would need to help each other and remain close at hand politically if something dire enough to prompt the absence of one of their heralds was shadowing their doorsteps.
There's sleep in your eyes, I'll pull the curtains back gently
what tried to destroy you didn't have the strength
Considering how many Outlanders, from many walks of life, had been peeled and absconded away from their homes at behest of the Voice, he could only agree with her first sentiment. How they would manage to come into this land, without the former New God’s assistance, was also something that snagged at the edges of his mind – amidst of number of inquiries without answers.
As for the other question, he could only hazard a few guesses, as he’d never been one to presume Safrin’s stance or measures on anything. “Maybe out of caution for everyone else.” An altruistic semblance nonetheless, his eyes rested on the stove, flickering back and forth between the kettle and the food cooking, snagging at a plate and a spatula to begin placing the eggs down for their breakfast.
He wasn’t without ideas though, at least on the part of their regional quest. “I have some other thoughts about what to do over Deepfrost,” amidst the journals in their study. “Like a defensive addition to the dome,” protecting them from the coldest portions of their chosen climate. A long sigh filtered through, and he nodded, before his gaze landed on bacon and sausages, flipping those over again, the crackling appeasing him for a moment. “Most likely. She wanted us to think carefully on how we made use of the lands. Especially if conflict is coming.”
Evie knows too little of Safrin to determine whether altruism is one of the herald's attributes, but given what she knows of both Deimos and Amalia, she - perhaps foolishly - believes it to be possible.
"Additions to the dome would be good. The dragons during the war kept many of our fighters from reaching the gates." Namely Hotaru and Sah, who Evie would have been relieved to see show up to help fight the banshees back. The magic-dampening mist had been almost impossible to contend with, but Evie is uncertain how they would even defend against that.
"We should promote the use of the Refuge more this time around, while also encouraging training for any who feel they might want to be involved in the fighting." Halo is particularly blessed to have the Shields and many similarly minded folk who would be happy to spar, but Evie always wonders if death could have been prevented if more people had stopped being stubborn and gone to the Refuge in the first place. Lost in those memories, Evie deems their tea ready and picks up her favorite mug, visually at odds with Deimos', and begins to blow quietly over it to let it cool enough for her to drink.
There's sleep in your eyes, I'll pull the curtains back gently
what tried to destroy you didn't have the strength
Turning the stove off, he relinquished the other portions of their impending meal to plates – the bacon’s aroma crisp in his nares, and worth stewing over, despite the amount of notions they’d be going through for the rest of the day. “Right, something to defend Halo from whatever else threatens from the sky.” Another sigh managed to unfurl from his tightened chest, and he sidled over everything to the table, so they could partake in a satisfying mind amidst the whirlwind.
Snagging at the kettle and his own mug, he managed a smirk. “Do I not encourage training enough?” He already had some lined up for the impending season, and the regular rotation of duties, schedules, and skirmishes, and pondered, beginning to wonder if he should be forcing more of their citizens out for patrols and jogs…
Word of the Refuge might’ve left him rankled simply by wake of Sunjata, but he stifled down the rancor for the reality of it. “The problem will always be that we do not know what we are facing yet,” and so many would want to play their roles and parts. “But we can continue to offer it as an option, regardless.”
Though she'd been the type to run on tea or something from Amalia's bakery in the morning before knowing Deimos, he had certainly instilled in her proper appreciation of - and even reliance on - a full breakfast. Her stomach rumbles the second he plates the bacon.
Moving in his wake with their tea, she sets each mug down and slides into her chair with an impish grin already aimed his way, eyes crinkling. "There's always room for improvement, as someone I know says quite often." Usually in regards to weapon familiarity or musculature, but Evie will happily turn his own phrase back on him - even if she highly doubts he could encourage training any more than he already does.
Sensing they've reached a bit of a dead end with what they can feasibly do in the wake of so little information, Evie comfortably hooks her ankle behind his own and nudges his tea closer, reminding him wordlessly of its presence. "There's too many variables to really plan around. We can only continue as we have, but with more vigilance." Something the both of them have in spades given their history with Caido. Though the news had been startling, Evie is glad to know it won't ruin their quiet morning together, even if she'd rather have answers and direction over the vague sense of a ticking clock.
There's sleep in your eyes, I'll pull the curtains back gently
what tried to destroy you didn't have the strength
The Sword would always be a proponent of a full breakfast – a meal guaranteed, and built to last, given how often they ended up skipping meals when there were more pending events, predicaments, and circumstances laden at their feet. Settling down into the chair, and smiling as Evie pushed his tea closer, he rolled his eyes at his words echoing back in reverberations, if not tone. “Still stands true,” he mused back, nose wrinkling in a tease. As for the other particulars, he’d have to accept the reality of the beckoning unknown with a singular nod, but it didn’t cease him from creating a pad of paper and charcoal from appearing on the table.
He took a few more bites, also not intending to ruin the morning, but already calculating straight into Warden-mode. “Sohalia should be coming soon,” for meetings between Abandoned and Stormbreakers. “Is there anything we want to ensure happens?” There’d been quite a bit said throughout the latest gathering; protection and vigilance the most vital, but he didn’t want to forgo or forget anything else largely at stake.
Glad to see him brightening from the grave news he’d had to share so early in the morning, Evie hides her little grin into the rim of her mug. “Then we’ll just have to preach it even louder in the coming seasons.” Would they even have that much time to prepare? At least with the war they’d had an idea of the race against the clock. Now, they’re entirely in the dark.
But they still have time, even if the amount is unclear. Evie won’t let herself linger on the trepidation, not when they already have plans in motion, ideas underway. Instead, she focuses on the prospect of Sohalia’s visit, and spears a piece of egg with a smile. “Well, how about we draft something?” All it takes is a bit of magic to pull her journal from the coffee table to her open hand, and though she usually decrees no work while eating, Evie thinks she can make an exception this once if it helps them think of more hopeful things.
- Fin <3
There's sleep in your eyes, I'll pull the curtains back gently
