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!
Offering Hadama a wink for his efforts, Flora spins on her heel and turns her attention to the throngs of merchants and citizens alike trying to plow their way forward and creating nothing more than a traffic jam for their efforts. "Come on ya'll. I know you can do better than this."
Swanning her way through, more than happy to shove shoulders or tickle her fingertips across waistlines and arms as she went based on what the situation called for, eventually she found herself at the mouth of the bridge. "If you keep shoving your way, this bridge is going to collapse and I can promise you I'll let you all swim your way back up here instead of calling for help." While the Noah's of the world might err on the side of the diplomatic hand-holding approach to conflict, Flora had lived long enough in Torchline to know that that pragmatic approach was sometimes better.
"Now form a line, or so help me I will have Ronin down here in a second ."
Flora takes 1!
My house of stone, your ivy grows
And now I'm covered in you
03-11-2024, 08:57 PM (This post was last modified: 03-11-2024, 09:01 PM by Noah.)
With the combined efforts of the demigod and the two leaders (sorry Tal), the squabbling and fighting died down. Satisfied with his contribution to the effort to peace and negotiations, Noah was ready to move on when Hadama listed out their next set of objectives.
He followed the group that gathered with him, and fielded some murmurings and questions about his spirit stag, as they moved towards the bridge. The Forsaken took a chunk of time to carve out a plan with his gathered group before they began taking apart the old pieces of the bridge. Half of his group was able to take out the old while the other half was able to place the new materials down, as to not work themselves literally off the bridge.
Noah takes 2 with some NPCs!
Regional Score bonus: +3 in all shrine visits, drops, PQ+s, KQs, etc. (You must post this at the bottom of any post where a +3 should be included)
Some tasks went better than others, but the important thing was that they were getting done. Flora 's combination of charm, authority, and the threat of Ronin was an effective motivation for those waiting to use the bridge to get in line and wait their turns. Her people respected a strong hand, especially one that served alcohol and threw parties, and no one wanted to be blacklisted from the Hanged Man - even if the bar wasn't quite back up and running yet.
Noah and Tal handled the woodworking with their NPCs. Speed and sturdiness were more important than style at the moment, and the northern contingent managed to keep the replacement and construction moving forward without any serious delays or injuries among their teams. While Flora kept the citizens from getting in the way of the work, Noah managed to keep his team moving quickly enough that no one got impatient enough to cause problems. As soon as they finished a section of planking, Tal followed right behind with the railings to ensure no one would get jostled off the busy bridge on accident.
The pilings in the water were in an area usually protected from strong waves and tides, thanks to the protection of the island the Docks were built on. It made them significantly easier to reinforce and broaden, and Hadama directed his merfolk and Attuned helpers with an eye to the sections that Noah was replacing above them, coordinating the work. The bridge might not withstand another Starfall, but by the time they had finished it seemed able to endure anything short of it.
The moon was moving across the sky as Flora opened the bridge to full traffic and people and supplies began to flow in once more. Hadama pulled himself back to shore and regained his legs, moving to join the team clad in simple trousers once more.
"Well done," he rumbled to them, proud of their teamwork and inclining his head deeply to them. "Now the real work can begin. We will need wood, stone, window glass, and thatch from the storehouses in Haulani. Take teams and go to these warehouses to get them." He handed out strips of wood with the addresses of a particular warehouse on each one and took the last for himself.
Time to get the bulk of the building materials! Be creative with transporting your chosen type!
1. Wood (long and unwieldy/awkward)
2. Stone (heavy)
3. Glass (fragile)
4. Thatch (lightweight and easily scattered)
Years and years of hard work and rebuilding in the wake of tragedy helped make the demigod's workload lighter. He encouraged his team as they tore off old planks and replaced them with new. He put his nose to the same proverbial grindstone, working alongside them with as much determination as any Halovian could muster (which was a lot, given all their hardships). Finally, the framework was done and they could move on to the next tasks.
Dusting himself off as Hadama returned and instructed, Noah then looked around. While Noah did not want to be an arrogant man, looking around between those gathered here it was very clear that he was the strongest. Not the strongest in the world, no. Just out of those here. So, he set his mind and body to the task of gathering the stone. He moved through the gathered citizens and pointed at those that looked able bodied and big and burly and lumberjack-esque and willing. Gathering them, and then with his address in hand, Noah set off.
Noah takes a team to gather stone~
Regional Score bonus: +3 in all shrine visits, drops, PQ+s, KQs, etc. (You must post this at the bottom of any post where a +3 should be included)
Given the choices, Flora happily picked wood. She'd be the type to always make that joke while playing Settlers of Catan. Reaching for the address, Flora waggled her eye brows at Hadama before spinning on her heel and calling for all those who were good wood-gatherers to form a line.
Of course phrasing it this way meant the NPCs who stepped forward were more of the shit-stirring variety, but the Doubletake hardly cared. Sure the planks might be unwieldy, but they could form a conga line to transport them, or worst case scenario, just borrow a horse and cart along the way.
"Come on babes, we got this." She cheered to her group before sashaying off in the direction her address indicated.
My house of stone, your ivy grows
And now I'm covered in you
While Tal was surreptitiously trying to wrestle a piece of the old rope railing away from his dragon so it could be disposed of - much to Boreal's absolute delight - Noah and Flora took their choices of transport, leaving him with a rock and a hard place. Or at least, fragile glass and a annoyingly wispy, hard-to-wrangle place.
And while he had plenty of experience transporting fragile cargo on the Peregrine, he had a lot more experience with wrangling, as his companion was currently demonstrating.
And he refused to admit that she was winning.
"Um. I can try an' haul th' Wheat thatch," he offered, taking the address from the king's webbed hand and frowning down at it thoughtfully. "Hey, can I get a hand over here?" The ones who answered the courier's call were mostly there because they seemed to be taking pity on him more than anything else, but he wasn't going to argue with results!
Dragging Boreal by her new favorite rope toy, Tal led his merry band to their designated storehouse!
Tal picks Thatch!
Left with the glass, Hadama gathered the remaining Torchers and headed for his own storehouse. He was already planning for the difficulty of the task, and sent some of his people to borrow a cart and pony while he led the rest in opening the warehouse doors and checking on the materials stored there. The windows were in good shape; some were thick enough to withstand a sea storm while others were thinner to better light in light and allow people to see through them clearly. He directed his helpers to pad the cart when it arrived and load it with their precious cargo, but as the wheels of the cart bumped over the new bridge there came a sound of cracking and tinkling from within the cart as several of the thinner panes cracked at the jostling.
(Regional Score bonus: +1 in all shrine visits, drops, PQ+s, KQs, etc. (You must post this at the bottom of any post where a +1 should be included)) Noah and @Tal also ran into problems. The demigod would find that the blocks of stone in the warehouse were awkward and unwieldy. The demigod's raw strength (and his regional bonus) allowed him to wrestle individual blocks, but his helpers struggled to lift them; the stones were more than one person alone could easily carry, and the big, burly men and women of his team kept dropping them, slowing the process down considerably.
Tal had the opposite problem. He and his helpers could easily carry the lightweight bales of thatch, but the sea breeze kept snatching the straw and leaves and swirling them away. By the time they reached the Docks, their burdens were only half of what they'd started with. It was going to take twice as much time to carry twice as much material at the rate things were going!
Ending on a high note, Flora had chosen her wood wisely. Her team might have been rowdy, but their ribald jokes didn't interfere with their ability to work, and it raised their spirits. The conga line worked like a charm as timbers were passed from hand to hand, through the streets of Haulani and over the bridge to the docks until a large pile was ready to be put to use!
Noah, Talyson, and Hadama are having trouble and will need to spend more time getting their materials transported to the Docks!
Queen Flora has finished bringing wood to her people and can choose to go help one of her hapless compatriots. Or take a break for a round. Maybe get some drinks to raise morale in the other teams?
03-12-2024, 08:20 PM (This post was last modified: 03-12-2024, 08:22 PM by Noah.)
The fact that the stones were heavy and difficult did not seem to keep the Torchers from trying. Noah was impressed with their gall and their determination, as it reminded him of the Halovians tenacity he knew so well. Proud of them for their efforts, Noah encouraged them verbally, but he also worked another plan in his mind. ”We need a cart and an abandoned with telekinesis!” Noah directed. A few of the citizens mumbled plans and then a few took off for the streets.
The wait was not that long, and as they waited Noah instructed his people of two things: firstly, not to look him in the eye when he shifted; secondly, to tell him when the team returned. Once understanding was clear, he shifted. Pulling the strength from the massive shift, Noah in basilisk form began grabbing stones with his mouth and piling them on the cart. After it was full, and he was instructed, he shifted back down.
”Now, Let’s push the cart together. And you—“ he pointed at the newly brought in abandoned, ”use your magic to support us.”
And then Noah shifted again, this time to a polar bear, and with the work of his team began to push the cart full of stones.
Noah: calls for an Abandoned with telekenisis, shifts to a basilisk to use its strength to load the stones in to a cart, shifts back and with the help of his people and the new abandoned shifts to polar bear and pushes the cart.
Regional Score bonus: +3 in all shrine visits, drops, PQ+s, KQs, etc. (You must post this at the bottom of any post where a +3 should be included)
Tal was not having a good time with his thatch. It should have been the easiest material to transport, but the night winds were tearing it loose from its bales and scattering it inland. There were probably going to be a lot of happy birds picking through it for seeds and nesting materials soon, but right now?
Right now they needed a better way of getting the bales between Haulani and the Docks.
"Okay, we gotta think smarter, not harder," he declared. His bold statement was somewhat undermined by the chortling of his dragon, which seemed to hold just a faint note of disbelief if you didn't know better. The courier shot her a glare and a huff of wounded pride before he turned back to his crew. "Let's get some spare sailcloth or tarps or somethin' an' wrap the bales before we haul 'em. So th'wind can't get at 'em," he added proudly.
He probably should have thought of it sooner, but better late than never, right?
Tal get his crew to wrap the bales of thatch with tarps or sailcloth to keep the wind at bay while they transport them!
Sure, Flora could go help one of the others, but honestly she thought her crew had earned a break. "Oh no, I think we dropped some wood back there—" Flora called in a stage whisper before waggling her eyebrows at the group around her before mouthing, Let's go get a drink.
'We'll be right back!' So saying the Doubletake and her gaggle would disappear back into the streets where they'd wet their whistles on something hoppy and cold. Sure, they'd bring some drinks back with them (some snacks too, though the best they could find were some peanuts and toasted coconut), as well as a few buckets of ice that the rest of the crew could use to cool themselves with.
My house of stone, your ivy grows
And now I'm covered in you
This time the crews got themselves together and things were able to move forward once more. Noah 's strength combined with the use of the cart made the work go much more smoothly, and in short order his team had several loads of stones delivered to the Docks for the buildings that would go on the highest ground in the center of the island. His team even made a contest of helping to push the cart, while the Abandoned with telekinesis kept the loads steady.
Tal's idea turned out to be just the trick to keep the thatch tightly wrapped and under cover so the sea breeze couldn't scatter it to the winds. Once his team figured out to stack the bales in the lee of the wood piles that were already in place their losses dropped significantly and they were able to catch up with the other groups.
Hadama revised his initial plan once it became clear that the finer glass wouldn't survive the trip in the cart. He charged his team with transporting the thicker, sturdier glass by cart, and carrying the more fragile glass by hand. It slowed them down, but they didn't need to go back as often to get replacement panes.
And as for Flora? Her team returned in high spirits, refreshed and ready to get building. The drinks, snacks, and ice they brought helped to boost the morale of the other teams, too. After a short break to rest, eat, and drink they were ready for the next stage!
"Everything is ready to begin building," Hadama rumbled with satisfaction. "Let us split up. Two to lead the construction closer to the beach and wharves, and help to plan for high tides and winds. Two to help the buildings on the other side of the island, and plan for strength and shelter." Safer, sturdier buildings for people at the Docks to retreat to in case of another emergency.
You heard the King!
Split the party in half and offer advice/plans to the NPCs in the two different areas of the Docks as they start building up their new shops and homes!
Noah was no expert when it came to the ocean and advising about building there - but strength he could advise on. Halovian homes were built tough and the Forsaken was well-versed in helping build those. Thus, he went for the second option. Strength and shelter. More up his alley.
Gathering with those that started off in that direction, the demigod took the time to talk with some of the people about their ideas as they traveled. He gave advice based on what he knew, such as stone foundations being better than wooden ones, and joists to be held together with metal if at all possible.
Once they were in the area of construction, Noah lent a helping hand where it was needed most.
Noah goes to the other side of the island, offers suggestions while they travel, then starts helping build.
It wasn't much of a surprise when Tal headed off with Noah to the inland side of things. He was good at building things, and shops in particular at this point, but in spite of his name the sea was a mystery to him. He had no idea how to build for wave action or tides, and he was afraid of screwing up and offering bad advice that might cost someone their shop again after losing it once to starfall.
Building on solid ground, though? Now you were talking! He grinned at Noah as the demigod dispensed his own wisdom and Tal waved and left him to it, heading off with a group that had planted their flags a little further away. He had some tips for building with stone on the first floors and wood on the second, and tricks for reinforcing the frames without losing ventilation. Like his friend, he pitched in once everyone had an idea of how they wanted to start, moving stone and sawing wood as needed.
Tal takes the landward side of the island and has some suggestions of his own before getting his hands dirty!
Though Hadama had legs that would allow him to lend a hand wherever he was needed, Flora thought her counterpart probably knew much more about tides and the winds than she did. So, blowing him a kiss, the Doubletake trudged after Noah.
"Now, we might have protection from monsoons thanks to Safrin, but we have no idea what that stupid new island is going to bring. That said, I know ya'll had some shoddy windows going before because of the heat, but this time lets focus on being able to board everything up nice and tight if we need to, yeah?" Bobbing her eyebrows emphatically, she nudged at the ground with one foot.
"And basements this time. Or cellars, at least." She called out, knowing that having one or the other would help not only with storage and food preservation, but would work in a pinch as a place to hide.
Flora goes with Noah and takes buildings!
My house of stone, your ivy grows
And now I'm covered in you
