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 brush barely stirred as Cordelia slunk through the tall grasses, nose twitching as she paused, scenting the air. Her paw raised delicately above the ground, body tensing as a snapping twig caused her ears to flick forward, body sinking low to avoid being seen by whatever was traipsing along the shoreline. Amber eyes scanned the bank of the water, trying to sight whatever caused the air to go still, but she came up short.
Slinking forward once more, the One Shot did her best to keep from making a sound, ensuring that whatever larger predator was out there didn't notice her. Not that it would matter, she had a number of shifts beneath her skin that would give her an advantage over whatever was out there.
A few more steps and Delia finally scented the disturbance. A man. Though, the scent of him carried that of other animals. An Attuned perhaps? One she didn't recognize. Her ears flick forward again, listening closely for any tells, knowing better than to reveal herself just yet.
Indeed, there was the smell of a man; a smell which would conjure up images of machines and botanicals in equal measure. The latter had more to do with Mateo than with Everest, but given how often the pair were together, most of the botanist often quite literally rubbed off on the aviator.
Having shed that form though, it was now with sleek black fur and blue eyes trained on the earth ahead of him that Everest now moved. He'd caught the scent of something that he couldn't quite place at all. It smelled earthy with a touch of copper. Something alive he was pretty certain, or at least the sort of thing which seemed alive.
Snorffling and sniffing with his tail wagging every few steps, the black shepherd brought himself closer and closer to the awaiting allogator.
If I told you that you'd do nothing with it I'd still be that cigarette that you couldn't finish
The black German shepherd appeared in her line of sight and Cordelia paused, foot still raised as she watched him meander along the shoreline. The wind shifted again, carrying with it a new scent, but one she recognized as a predator all the same. It was not far off from the dog, maybe three hundred feet, if that. Perhaps closer. It was hard to tell from her current position, but the musty wet wood scent and the unmistakable tinge of copper hit her olfactory sense.
I wouldn't go any further. She calls out in warning, extending her mental voice towards the dog, unsure if it was an Attuned or not. However, she was willing to take the chance. Especially if it meant potentially saving them from whatever danger laid ahead.
Not unlike the way the fox had paused, so too did Everest halt with one foot in the air. His ear flicked backward as if to try and gauge where the mental sound had come from, but of course it did not good. Do you know what's out there? He asked softly, slowly placing his foot down before hunkering down onto his belly and laying his nose flat between his paws.
I've never smelled anything like it before. I thought maybe a land shark because they live in this area, but...I don't smell anything aquatic about it. Did Landsharks even smell aquatic, given where and how they lived? Hmmm.
If I told you that you'd do nothing with it I'd still be that cigarette that you couldn't finish
He stops moving, his own voice filtering into her mind, Predator. Smells like wet wood and blood. She murmurs in return, slinking through the brush until she's suddenly beside him, mimicking his position. Her nose twitches, trying to catch the sent once more, hoping there might be something else that peeks through. No, not a landshark. It would have come up beneath us already. She knew from all the information that the Monster Hunter guild has collected on those particular beasts.
I could try to come up on it from the water... Cordelia suggests, unsure of why he might want to investigate the beast, but not interested in stopping him from doing so if he was inclined. Her primary concern was making sure he didn't get eaten in the process.
The canine mentally nods, even though physically he remains quite still. Though as a man Everest was tempered and quite mechanical in the way he went about his business, as a dog he was subject to the whims of his senses just as anyone else would be. Twitching an ear as well as his nose at the tiny copper shape suddenly at his side, the shepherd huffed a quiet greeting
Can you fly? The aviator wondered suddenly, it only just occuring to him now that if there was something lurking ahead, it would be useful to know if they could both evade it in the air rather than just on four paws.
Then again, perhaps it would be a better idea still to simply take to the skies now and survey whatever it was from a safer distance.
If I told you that you'd do nothing with it I'd still be that cigarette that you couldn't finish
Hunkering down into the brush, Cordelia's ears twitch forward at the slight disturbance ahead of them, barely more than a ripple against the shore. Nose scenting at the air again, the One Shot doesn't move an inch as his question echoed through her mind. I can. The Harpy Eagle was a newly acquired shift (so new there isn't a table for it yet) and one she was already growing rather fond of. I can scout ahead... Try to get a look at whatever it is.
She suggested, already slinking away from him to give herself space to shift into her other skin, feathers mixing with fur until they took over and two wings sprouted, spread wide in preparation for flight. With a few powerful flaps, she was in the air, gliding a good fifty feet up as she looked for any signs of the creature.
Keeping his eyes trained ahead in order not to miss any movement from the creature, Everest scented the air carefully. Though he wasn't familiar with what a harpy eagle smelled like, he could pick out his own kind well enough. I can be an eagle, too. He thought softly, before inching slightly forward.
Do you see it? He wondered, head still low even as he dared to ease himself ever so slightly off the ground. Crawling forward, the sound of a twig snapping ahead had the shepherd's muscles bunching beneath his black fur as his body dropped back to the ground. His nostrils flared while his triangular ears twisted radar-dish-like back and forth, trying to pinpoint the location of what he'd just heard and try to discern whether it came from the creature the pair were stalking.
If I told you that you'd do nothing with it I'd still be that cigarette that you couldn't finish
