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!
09-06-2023, 05:22 AM (This post was last modified: 09-06-2023, 05:23 AM by Iskra.)
SPARKS WILL FLY THEY IGNITE OUR BONES
The night was still fresh, albeit it came sooner this time of the year, but Iskra was already heavy on his seat and leaning a bit too aggressively on the bar for support. He'd come in earlier than normal from hacking at tree trunks, the promise of a fireside much more inviting than the idea of shaking his bones against the axe handle over and over. He might have gone to the hot springs instead to heal the aches of his body, but the bar was often his hospital of choice because it promised to heal the aches of his soul, and those always felt a lot worse.
"HEY!" Iskra shouted suddenly, leaping to his feet and nearly toppling his seat with the process. "A toast," he drawled, raising his glass and glancing around the room with a giddy showmanship, "to the only family that's never done me wrong." Although he didn't spell it out, he clearly meant liquor. What was that diddy he liked the sing? A longneck, ice-cold beer never broke my heart. "SHOTS FOR EVERYONE, ON ME!" he thumped the table as he sat back down, somehow managing to keep his stool from bucking him off. He grabbed for the shot glass the barkeep slung his way (it was pure water), and tipped it back with an exaggerated gasp of air afterwards. He slapped it back on the table, upside down, and grinned.
Meanwhile, Goose waited patiently outside. He was curled up in a ball of fluff. He preferred the cold, especially compared to the smothering aromas and stifling heat of this locale. So it was habit by now, for Iskra to waltz in, gleefully greeting the other regulars, while Goose slouched down in his spot by the door; close enough to keep an eye and ear on Iskra if need be, and it let the dog sneak inside with someone when it was time to drag Iskra out by the arm.
I'm not looking for a lifetime now I like living in the city on my own
Soleil may not be very interested in getting drunk, but that doesn’t mean she doesn’t drink. Even if it likely gives her family gray hairs given the amount of nonsense she gets up to in the Kraai. She’s humming to herself and nursing some strange, colorful cocktail when a man leaps up onto his feet and shouts to the bar at large. Shots for the entire bar sounds delightful for Soleil, mind, but she can tell by the grimace on the bartender’s face as Iskra downs his shot that whatever he just got was water. Not promising for the payout for the other patrons.
“Double or nothing!” she cries from her corner, rising with a wicked grin on her face and her cocktail held aloft like a flag. Catching the bartender’s eye, she winks, and is grateful when she receives a nod of understanding in return. Perfect. The real round of shots will go on her tab.
Wiggling through the few people between her and the inebriated stranger, Soleil gracefully alights on the stool beside him and spins it a few times for good measure, long legs crossing over each other as she shamelessly peers at him. She doesn’t know him, which means he’s interesting. “You going to be good to walk home?” It could easily be said with a long suffering sigh, or a sardonic arch of an eyebrow, but Soleil’s expression is alight with warmth and amusement as she takes a sip of her own drink.
Not trying to box you in - no chains and no rope I like being free, flying when I want
JUST STARING AT THE SUNRISE ABOVE THIS HOLLOW TOWN BEEN CHASING EMPTY MEMORIES THE KIND THAT'S KEEPING YOU DOWN
"Double or nothing!"
Now there's a woman after his own heart. He turned to her and smiled, raising his empty glass and cheersing her through the distance, thumping the glass on the table as he called, "That's the spirit!"
He might have turned back to his own business were she not such a ravishing sight to behold, his interest piqued as she seemed to move his way, the distance thinning with each easy turn through the crowd. Iskra grinned; it was messy on his loosened features, the haze of drink evident in his lazy eyes. He did have to look away, for just a moment, when she elegantly mounted the stool and immediately spun a time too many for Iskra to track. Unbalanced enough as he sat, he didn't need to get wobbly watching her, so he turned to the counter and his next shot of water that wait there.
Downing it with a tilt and turning it upside down on the bar, he shifted back towards her at her question, boyish mischief glinting in the corners of his eyes. "Now why would you be troubling yourself with my aptitude for ambling at such an hour?" That is to say, it's too fucking early to think about going home yet. "Besides," he sniffed, attention darting to the door then back, "Goose hasn't fetched me yet, so I'm in the clear."
"I'm Iskra."
THIS SENSE OF INDECISION AIN'T WHAT WE HAD IN MIND
THE DREAM THAT I ENVISIONED I AM STILL HOPING TO FIND
I'm not looking for a lifetime now I like living in the city on my own
He’s far more handsome when he smiles, even with the loose slant of alcohol visible on his lips even from a distance. Affable drunks are Soleil’s favorites given her own predilection for high spirits and mischief. The types who sit in the corner and grieve or brood are usually not the types she dares to intrude upon.
“You technically just bought me a drink, can’t I be curious whether my benefactor will make it home safely?” Her grin is equally mischievous to match his own, hiding her soft laughter into her straw as she watches him down another shot of what is still most definitely water. “Though if you’re still able to use words like ambling maybe I shouldn’t be worried.” Unless he’s just particularly clever, the eloquent type who wouldn’t be brought low by alcohol.
Whether he extends his hand in greeting or not, Soleil snags at his closest hand and drops a chaste kiss onto his knuckles - something she has employed liberally for the way it usually sets men on the back foot (and helps weed out the annoying ones who can’t take the joke). “I’m Soleil! Though I’m very curious who this Goose is. A companion?” They’re more common than pets, but she also wouldn’t discount a Halovian being nicknamed Goose, so maybe it’s that burly man in the corner with all the tattoos? That would be delightful.
Not trying to box you in - no chains and no rope I like being free, flying when I want
JUST STARING AT THE SUNRISE ABOVE THIS HOLLOW TOWN BEEN CHASING EMPTY MEMORIES THE KIND THAT'S KEEPING YOU DOWN
He laughed at her point, "Ah, so you're like a mercenary, a bodyguard I can employ if I pay in drink?" He chuckled softly, only jesting. "I'll have to keep the rounds coming then." Not one to be shy about his own image and what a female bodyguard might say about himself, Iskra was just happy at the prospect of getting to watch Soleil ruin someone. Maybe it was the way he was raised, but Iskra always had an affinity for strong women. Fortunately, they never seemed to be in short supply in these parts. Although, he was equally terrified by having to face any of them and their wrath - better to keep up the jokes.
Soleil proves no less capable as she reaches down for his hand, brushing a kiss against his knuckles in a most surprising way. Although Iskra cannot deny that having close proximity to those lips is a pleasure, the surprise of it all has him withdrawing his hand, holding it in his other as if needing to check it for wounds and guard it. Her bright response afterward though is equally distracting, and Iskra falls easily back into a laugh, thoroughly delighted by this mischievous creature. "If you were looking for my lips, they're up here," Iskra crooned, pointing up at his face, his grin unable to keep from spreading and dancing in his eyes. "Perhaps I ought to be worried about you," he jokes, knowing full well she made no mistake.
Circling back to her actual question, Iskra nods his head towards the door, sobering a bit as he says, "Goose is my dog, the best companion a man could ask for. Someone I simply couldn't live without." Though he could not see the bundle of fluff enjoying the frozen hellscape out there, he knew the mutt was there, ready and waiting if need be, as he always was. "He saved me," Iskra intoned seriously, his voice thickening with emotion. "I owe that dog my life." He blinked as someone walked through the door, breaking the stare Iskra had on it. He glanced down then back to Soleil, attempting another smile, aware he'd gone someplace else for a moment there. "You have anyone like that?"
THIS SENSE OF INDECISION AIN'T WHAT WE HAD IN MIND
THE DREAM THAT I ENVISIONED I AM STILL HOPING TO FIND
I'm not looking for a lifetime now I like living in the city on my own
So few people ever look at Soleil and think something as complimentary as mercenary that she is shamelessly and instantly flattered in a way that's quite visually obvious as she flicks her hair idly over her shoulder and leans in, eyes dancing with approval. "I was thinking more along the lines of a crutch to get you home, but if your journey home is so fraught then I can absolutely be your bodyguard too." Though Soleil can't envision any dangers to protect him from aside from the deadly pairing of his own fumbling feet and the particularly icy cobblestone outside.
He withdraws his hand promptly, but she's pleased when the fun of the moment isn't ruined in its wake, laughing brightly at his forwardness. "I'm a mercenary, remember? My aim is always true," she imparts with a cheeky wink. She'd certainly kiss him if he were sober, but alas.
Such sentiment in the wake of what she'd thought to be an easy question is unexpected, but it pulls on Soleil's soft heartstrings something fierce. Her own gaze goes soft just seeing him so transparent with his adoration, inspired and a little in awe of his frankness. It is a rare quality in most Halovians, this sort of emotional honesty, and Soleil has often been an outlier herself because of it. "Dogs and wolves are the noblest and most loyal creatures. You must have a good heart to have earned his faith." Soleil frankly trusts a dog's judgment of character more than most men, so she happily cinches her positive assessment of Iskra then and there.
As for herself? Well. Soleil's own expression goes soft and far away in the same manner as Iskra's had. "My brother, Luka. He's my twin actually. We were brought here by the Voice after my entire family died - including ourselves - and we only had each other in this completely unfamiliar world until our dad found us a season later." Being blase about having felt the end of her own life is the only way Soleil can compartmentalize that moment, but it often brings the mood down in her experience, so she gives Iskra a sheepish smile. "But I hope for a companion of my own someday. Pet or otherwise. I only hope it will be as wonderful as Goose," she compliments, accustomed to smoothly moving the topic away from herself with lighthearted airs and laughter.
Not trying to box you in - no chains and no rope I like being free, flying when I want
