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!
If one went looking for trouble, one was likely to find it. Wasn't that how the saying went?
Hadama certainly couldn't argue with it as he floated near the shore, contemplating a grouping of broad-petaled flowers that would have been stunning in previous years. Now those petals were grey, and even from the water he occasionally caught a waft of the changed blossoms. The perfume was enough to induce seasickness in the hardiest native of Torchline, whispering of honey and decay and things better left buried.
The mermanta kept his cautious distance from the twisted flowers, emerald eyes intent on watching what insects and animals were drawn to them, and which avoided them. Watching the shadows, too, that crawled and skittered unnaturally around the bases of the unearthly blooms as they bobbed lightly in the Flowerbirth breeze.
This was, he decided, not a good omen.
Void Blossom (infected variant - Torchline): Originally a breathtaking flower along the coastal regions of Torchline, the Void Blossom now exudes an aura of impending doom. Its petals, once radiant with fiery hues, have turned ashen, and a sickly sweet scent wafts from its corrupted bloom. The Void Blossom attracts not only insects but also the shadows of void-infused creatures, making it a perilous sight for those who venture too close
Flora's voice is bright and bubbly despite the unseasonable tides that were bashing rather relentlessly against the shoreline. In truth, she was a bit worried about the Hanged Man given its proximity to the water, but that was an issue for another time. Or perhaps never at all. Quite a lot hinged on the conversation she, wrongly as it happened, assumed had been planned to take place right now. Little did the Doubletake know that it was more happenstance that had bright Hadama to the shoreline instead of her note.
So saying, the Doubletake raised a hand above her head to give the merking a brisk wave, before tugging at the shawl she had draped over her shoulders.
Flora's note had arrived moments after he had left on his scouting mission and even now waited for his return. Her voice, however, reached him clearly and he turned from the ominous blossom to face the young beauty. A few flexes of his tail sent him closer in to shore so they could speak more easily.
"I did not," he admitted, allowing a hint of curiosity into his voice. "But it is good to see you. Have you been well, Flora?" Emerald eyes searched his friend's face for tension or shadows. He had given her space since the Deepfrost meeting, but he had come by the Hanged Man on several occasions to quietly ask after its mistress's health while he had a relaxing drink. It wasn't the same as hearing it from her lips, however, and he fell silent again as he waited for her own recounting of how she was doing in this season of uncertainty and strange omens.
"Oh?" Nearly the girl asked well, what are you doing here then, but stopped herself as the obvious answers flooded in: it was a free region, he was the King, blah blah blah. "I've... not not been well." Shrugging and walking closer to the coast, Flora raked her fingers through her hair to try and undo what the sea breezes had done in tangling her locks, before letting her hands flump to her sides.
"I mean, aside from all this nonsense." Flora vaguely gestured at the waves as well as the void flowers while keeping her gaze on the King. "Well, since you didn't get my note, I don't want to bombard you if you're like...not in the mood for it, or if you were out...you know." Again, she shrugs. Just because Hadama was King didn't mean that he had to be on all the time.
Rising from the sea like some warm and welcome submarine is a Tumsea. With a smattering of starfish on its shell and a coating of seaweed, the creature looks as if it is trying to reflect the starlit heavens. Slow and kind, the creature glances your way, and though it is difficult to ascribe a smile to a creature such as this, indeed it seems to be smiling at you before descending down back into the waves.
You’ve encountered a Tumsea. 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.
Tumseas (rare/mythical): Smaller cousins of the Tulmhainar, Tumseas are like moving ecosystems all unto themselves. With shells of brilliant blues and earth browns, these turtle-like creatures can grow to nearly 4ft in diameter and can hold their breath for decades at a time. Bringing vibrancy and health to all the underwater trails they follow, Tumseas are thought to be good omens and are often followed by schools of fish encantados
It took a moment to parse the Doubletake's meaning, but when he determined that she was well enough the mermanta gave a nod of acknowledgment, relief settling over him in a subtle shifting of muscle and bone across his shoulders and chest.
The strange flower was not something that was easy to ignore, but Flora had a way of drawing the eye that was even more powerful than the bloom of ill omen. For a moment Hadama tried to still the breezes around her as she briefly battled her hair, but though his eyes flashed a pale grey his Air Manipulation was too weak to reach across the distance between sea and shore.
He tilted his head to the side in consideration as she continued, and steely brows rose in mild bemusement. "I was studying these." A brief gesture of one hand towards the ashen flower and its shadowy attendants. "But I am glad you found me." The corner of his mouth quirked up in the hint of a smile, hoping that he would still be glad in a few minutes. "What is on your--"
An old friend, or perhaps a new one, surfaced nearby and Hadama fell silent to watch its benign passage. Seeing one so near to one of the Void Flowers was reassuring, and after the tumsea dove again the mermanta turned back to Flora with a smile that was more relaxed and open.
"I hope this means you bring good news?" The question, though solemn, held a hint of his subdued teasing in the deep inflections of his voice.
"Oh yeah?" To be polite, Flora cast a look back toward the strange growth before frowning. She was sure Mateo would have plenty of thoughts and feelings about them, but despite her name, Flora was definitely not as intrigued by the new plants as others likely were. "Do you think they're related to those shooting stars?"
Silenced momentarily by the presence of the Tumsea, Flora too allowed the great creature to pass with a sense of wonder and appreciation. Maybe it was a sign of good luck, for what she was about to say? Grinning crookedly at the king, the Doubletake shrugged and waggled her eyebrows as she fully diminished the distance between them and sat down on the sands.
"Harper wrote me a letter. I know—" Holding up her hands as if to indicate that wasn't even the best part, the girl continued. "He's abdicating. Moving to King's End." Again, this wasn't the best part either, but Flora knew from her own reaction that Hadama would likely need a minute for the information to settle, or at least cool.
Biting at the inside of her cheek, Flora sipped in a breath. "I want to lead alongside you. There's basically no one else anyway, but I want it, and I think I can do it well. I'm way stronger now, and I have connections, and..." Again her teeth find the inside skin of her lip. "..and I don't think you should bother with a vote either. Look at Torchline's best leaders; Remi? Sunjata? Voted in. But Maeve? You? They were picked. Torchline doesn't make the best choices for herself. They picked Harper after all, who in his time here, basically did nothing at all and is now fucking off."
"Mmh. The timing is... suspicious," he admitted. "But there is no other proof. Yet," he added after a moment's thought. There had been other instances of corruption in the past, after all. Plagues and blights that required no otherworldly origin to ravage Caido and its people.
But the tumseas were a good indicator of life and health in the seas. Hopefully their blessings extended to the shore as well, and Hadama turned his full attention back to Flora with a tilt of his head that invited her to speak her mind as she made herself comfortable near the chilly surf.
And because they were friends, he did not entirely hide the flicker of fresh, raw pain when Harper's name passed Flora's lips even before her revelation, though his wince lasted only a moment before he mastered himself and his emotions once more. The waters around the King stilled as he swallowed hard, eyes closed and breath drawing in long and slow through his nose before he released it just as slowly. After a long and tense moment he drew a deeper breath and opened his eyes, giving the Doubletake a careful nod. "Yes," was all he said to the news.
There was, it seemed, little else he could say in the face of such unchangeable facts.
And as the breeze shifted and the scent of the strange flower wafted towards them the mermanta listened to Flora's pitch, both surprised and not. The Tidebreaker drew another slow breath, and then a second before he met Flora's eyes frankly. "Your timing is not... good," he admitted, each word chosen with care around the fresh wound where his most recent co-ruler had once been. "In the end, Maeve also..." He paused, searching for the right words before speaking with clear enunciation: "fucked off."
Emerald eyes closed, a long blink of deep thought before he opened them again. "I will not say yes or no today, Flora. I need time before I will trust a co-ruler again." As he had taken time after Maeve's abdication before seeking a new partner in leadership. "And I need to know that you will not leave like they did, when the waters between your personal life and your crown become difficult to navigate."
Perhaps a good deal of misunderstandings would have been washed away between the pair if only they'd both been able to tap into the attuned bond with one another. It was in moments of heightened and confusing emotion that the abilities of the Attuned really won out against the attributes of other races, and yet... watching the King's face and the slow swirl of the water around him, Flora could at least surmise the emotions Hadama felt on the surface. What churned deeper in his waters she could only guess at.
"I actually think my timing is great." Flora counters, meeting Hadama's gaze unflinchingly. "You have no council, your goddess is gone, and Torchline is ... " Glancing down the beach at the void flower, before out toward the horizon line which appeared far choppier than it should have been given the time of year, the Doubletake raised a pointed eyebrow. " ... well, time isn't a luxury you have. This isn't about your feelings, this is about Torchline, and frankly, you need someone like me if you're going to get her back, because she's dying, Hadama.
Our people are leaving. The fact that literally the coldest place on the continent and some ghost-haunted grass fields are stealing away our people should tell you something. You might have good and clever ideas about things, but no one can motivate people like I can." Given the tavern opening had rivaled the sort of activity not always seen at god-level events, Flora didn't think she needed to articulate that point.
Flora's confidence was compelling, and Hadama gave her his full attention as she continued to make her case. His chin dipped in a small nod of acknowledgment at her mention of council and goddess, but at the insistence that their region was dying his steely brows rose.
"Safrin will return," he said calmly, unperturbed and steadfast in his belief. "But your point about a council is good. When times were quiet, it did not seem necessary. Now..." With Harper gone and unusual LongNight lights and strange weather and plants cropping up, it was, indeed, too much for one person to handle. "...Yes."
Emerald eyes continued to meet blue as the mermanta paused, considering his next words carefully. "King's End will draw the curious. As Torchline did, when the portals first opened." he said slowly. "Others, I have not heard of, but Harper... indeed. And you played a part in that." He, too, was unflinching as he spoke, calm but weary in his words before he rallied. "But I have others I am working to bring to our shores."
The tavern's re-opening had, indeed, been the finest party Hadama had seen on the surface, but that was a year in the past now and time had marched onward, inexorable as the tide. His voice was low and slow and steady as he spoke, laying out his own concerns so that she could answer them. "You want to lead. I want proof that you can be a good leader, Flora. And that you will not abandon your responsibilities if you are bored. What happened to the rocks you volunteered to gather from Apopo three seasons ago for Torchline's sake? What happened to your guild?"
At that, Flora's laugh was immediate and dry. "I didn't, actually. He said, and I quote I can't stand to watch the city I love go to shit." Reaching into her pocket, the Doubletake produced the scrap of parchment penned by the former King. "That's on you, babe. Actually, Harper said I should come with him." She adds with a shrug; in short, they were basically besties now.
"Yeah, well right now I want proof you can be a good leader." Flora countered brazenly. "What about those pirates we took down? What about all the others apparently in the waters, aiming attacks at merchant ships? What was done about that? What about your little meeting weeks ago about what to do about Safrin's warning? Has anything been done about it, or are you still so concerned about that stupid fucking fountain?"
Rock volunteering was OOC. Grinning rather mischievously all of a sudden, the Doubletake just shrugs vaguely. "Guild's doing great. Not much lost and found happening right now. You know, with how high the tides have been."
Looking toward the horizon, the Doubletake took a breath. "I'd be a good leader for all the reasons I said before. I'm strong, I have connections, and I actually care about Torchline enough to fight for her. If I just wanted power I'd go take the Greatwood from my aunt. Sunjata offered me a place on his council with my mother, but I'm still here."
He took her grin in stride, unperturbed by her sudden shift in mood and merely raising a steely brow. "Hmm." It was not a subject he chose to push at the moment, however, not when the Doubletake reiterated her credentials and the Tidebreaker followed her gaze to the horizon, quiet for a short time thereafter.
"Torchline will always be your home," he said at last. He spoke slowly, finally allowing the weariness to enter his voice. "And I do not doubt that one day you will rule her. And rule her well." Finally he turned to look at her, and though there was a hint of regret in the set of his jaw and the tilt of his brows, his gaze was firm. "But I will not appoint you as co-ruler today, Flora. Not if you cannot compromise when we disagree. Not if every disagreement becomes a battle."
He inclined his head. "But we will speak again soon. And I will tell you my answer then." With that, the mermanta slid back into the deeper waters and dove, shape shifting smoothly into that of a broad-winged manta, skating beneath the powerful swells.
