What do you get when two ruthless assassins raise their daughter travelling through the wildest reaches of Caido? Take one look at Theea and you'll get a pretty good idea. Cheerful and tenacious in equal measure, and curious beyond all else, she began her journey on a mission to find those her mother once called family. And find them she did, soon rubbing elbows with demigods, leaders and even ghosts from the past. Her determination is resolute, her thirst for knowledge unmatched. We can't wait to see where her next adventure takes her!
Congratulations, Theea!
Credits
Court of the Fallen was created in October of 2018 by Odd, Honey, and Crooked.
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08-09-2024, 03:22 PM (This post was last modified: 09-05-2024, 10:33 AM by Aurelia.)
Aurelia
The familiar tavern's warmth enveloped Aurelia as she stepped inside, the low hum of conversation and clinking glasses a comforting counterpoint to the bustling port outside. The air hung heavy with the scent of aged wood, spilled ale, and the faintest hint of sea salt, a nostalgic blend that tugged at her memory. Her gaze swept across the room, seeking out familiar faces amidst the dimly lit tables and boisterous laughter. Disappointment flickered in her eyes as she recognized none, a stark reminder of the time that had passed and the changes that had swept through Torchline in her absence.
Where was Melita? The fiery-haired woman had been a constant presence in her early days in Caido, a fellow outsider navigating the complexities of this new world. Aurelia's heart ached with a mix of worry and longing. Had Melita survived the war? Was she still in Torchline, or had she, too, been swept away by the tides of fate?
Of course she had. Melita was a survivor, a force of nature as unpredictable and resilient as the ocean itself. Aurelia pictured her friend, her laughter echoing across the waves. A wistful smile touched her lips. She would find Melita, one day. But for now, she had other matters to attend to.
Like drinking.
Tonight, a stiff drink felt like a necessary indulgence, a way to ease the tension that coiled within her and to toast the bittersweet homecoming that lay ahead. She pondered her options, her curiosity piqued by the unfamiliar labels and exotic aromas.
"Hmm..." she mused, looking over the colorful array of bottles. A playful smirk tugged at the corner of her lips as she turned to the young woman serving drinks, "So, what's the good stuff these days? Been a while since I had a proper taste of civilization."
looking in the mirror, drop of rum on my tongue with the warning to help me see myself clearer
Sunlit Shadows (mastered) | The user can read the surface thoughts and emotions of those within a 60ft radius. Control is excellent. Note: "Thoughts and emotions" include anything written in a character's narration in a post.
Type: Grey | Style: Offensive | Level: Mastered
Deadly Recall | Can recall 1, or 2, or 3 of her feathers to her hand, within a range of 30ft. Recalled daggers do 1/2 damage when recalled.
Rescue (Mastered) | Remi can bring a fellow Old God demigod to his side in a time of crisis for three concurrent posts. One use per thread. If the summoned demigod also has mastered this ability, they can remain until the end of the thread.
Flora, who needed something to keep her mind off of the train wreck that was the last few days, just so happened to be the one serving drinks. Sure she was doing a fairly piss poor job of it—things were late or forgotten, orders messed up, drinks dropped—but it was her fucking bar so they could all just deal with it.
The fact that she wasn't charging anyone that evening helped considerably.
"Welllllll, guess that all depends for the vibe you're after." The queen hums, widening her aqua eyes suggestively. "These ones are good if you're just here for a good time but plan on going home solo—" She gestures on the menu to a list of fruity cocktails that had more sugar than alcohol. "These ones are for if you need liquid courage—" Flora continues, pointing to the whiskeys and dark rums. "And these are for when you want to just say fuck it and have a good time." Tapping at a group of cocktails she'd curated herself, Flora bounces her eyebrows.
"Or you just ask me to bring you a drink and I get you whatever I'm drinking." She adds with an easy laugh.
My house of stone, your ivy grows
And now I'm covered in you
Mastered Item:
Type: Light | Style: Other | Level: Mastered
La Verbena | A personal skyboat (schooner) capable of travelling at 2x wagon speeds over most types of terrain. Can accommodate 2 people onboard during flight.
I've done nothing wrong Except for all the atrocities
Not one to walk up to someone and ask ‘em where they just put a dead body (after all, she’s no snitch), Melita instead easily slid across the bar and sat in front of Flora, in her usual unbothered flounce of movement and motion.
And she would’ve done something reasonable like start a part of a conversation, but one fucking blink later, she’d rotated her head around to see Aurelia.
It took several considerable moments for her mind to catch up with the information – a stunned and bewildered haze forming over her mind – because it’d been actual years with wars in between and then just sauntering in here and –
“Aurelia?!” she screeched instead, as she lacked most of the finer things in life (like volume control). “Where the fuck have you been?”
Aurelia's brows furrowed in a mix of curiosity and confusion as she watched the bartender's animated performance. She was undeniably striking, her features carrying a strange familiarity that Aurelia couldn't quite place. "Hey, do I know y--"
The question died on her lips as a whirlwind of red hair materialized beside her. The woman's stunned expression mirrored her own, and then came the screech, a familiar voice cutting through the tavern's din.
A stunned silence hung in the air as Aurelia processed this. Memories flooded back - shared experiences, the unspoken bond forged in a foreign land. A kaleidoscope of emotions swirled within her, joy battling with guilt, relief wrestling with the ache of lost time.
"Melita," she said in shock, much quieter in contrast to the Honeybee. Tears quickly welled in her eyes though they did not fall (yet...), "you're a sight for sore eyes."
"It's been too long," Aurelia admitted, her smile softening as a hint of wistfulness crept into her eyes, "I've missed you."
As for Mel's question? "I've been in the Oerwoud mostly... it's a long story, but after Milo I..." she shook her head bitterly and gave Melita a pleading look, "I'm sorry that I left."
looking in the mirror, drop of rum on my tongue with the warning to help me see myself clearer
Sunlit Shadows (mastered) | The user can read the surface thoughts and emotions of those within a 60ft radius. Control is excellent. Note: "Thoughts and emotions" include anything written in a character's narration in a post.
Type: Grey | Style: Offensive | Level: Mastered
Deadly Recall | Can recall 1, or 2, or 3 of her feathers to her hand, within a range of 30ft. Recalled daggers do 1/2 damage when recalled.
Rescue (Mastered) | Remi can bring a fellow Old God demigod to his side in a time of crisis for three concurrent posts. One use per thread. If the summoned demigod also has mastered this ability, they can remain until the end of the thread.
Waiting for the end of the question only for it not to come, instead of flinching away from the whirlwind of copper hair, Flora grins openly at the arrival of her friend. About to make some comment about a certain pale-haired problem that they had in common, suddenly greetings are exchanged and the Doubletake can't seem to quite parce the Honeybee or the Fireheart's tone. Melita didn't seem mad at the other woman, but nor did Flora think she was radiating with joy at seeing the brunette, who seemed suddenly more like a kicked puppy than a woman who wanted a fun night out.
"Soooooo....." The queen interrupts, raising an eyebrow and looking mostly to Melita to explain. If this was some long lost love nonsense Flora was going to excuse herself right then and there. She doubted it, given everything she knew about Melita, but gods she also hadn't thought Asta would turn out to be the asshole he was either, so right now she sort of thought anything was possible.
"I'm Flora, by the way."
My house of stone, your ivy grows
And now I'm covered in you
Mastered Item:
Type: Light | Style: Other | Level: Mastered
La Verbena | A personal skyboat (schooner) capable of travelling at 2x wagon speeds over most types of terrain. Can accommodate 2 people onboard during flight.
I've done nothing wrong Except for all the atrocities
Her eyes narrowed, incredibly uncertain of how to react in this regard. There were a myriad of different ways – hostility, warmth, delight, irritation – and all of them parsed through in a mixture of disbelief, bewilderment, and maybe annoyance beyond the hurt measures of those disappeared and gone. The Honeybee had always been the type of individual to mourn quietly and with little emotion; pushing things aside with a flash and flare and nothing else. Moving on. That’s how she’d survived.
And when friends kept dissipating into the wind and air? “Thought you were dead,” she announced, nose wrinkling, fingers restlessly tapping against the bar. “You missed a lot.” And what would it be like, to simply meander and poof and turn into vapor and have no consequence for it? Gods.
Mulish and uncertain, she almost asked her what the hell she’d been doing in the Oerwoud while a war waged and people died, and wouldn’t it be nice to avoid everything altogether? The demigod didn’t have much use for Aurelia’s tears, but she could look away for a moment, gather whatever wasn’t anger and fury and parse through explanations with Flora. “Aurelia used to work for Jack on the Ark with us. First mate and everything.”
Aurelia's nod was slow, "I know," she admitted, her voice a hushed echo in the bustling tavern. Excuses felt hollow in the face of Melita's judgment. Self-imposed exile and a gnawing fear of rejection – these were the chains that had bound her, not the void's encroaching darkness.
Melita's wrinkled nose spoke volumes, a silent accusation that cut deeper than any spoken word. Aurelia's heart ached with the sting of her friend's disapproval. Was her fear justified? Had she lost her place in this world, in their hearts?
A bitter taste of self-reproach lingered on her tongue. No one was more disappointed in her than she was in herself. The memory of Milo, the knowledge that she hadn't been there when he needed her most, haunted her every waking moment. And Jack... his cold dismissal earlier had left a raw wound, a reminder of the trust she had shattered.
Well, at the very least Melita wasn't telling her to fuck off. That was a start...
They're upset with me now but maybe they won't always be, she thought.
"Not anymore," Aurelia echoed Melita's words, her voice tinged with a bittersweet acceptance, "And there's no way Jack will take me back now." She turned to Flora, offering a tentative smile. "It's nice to meet you."
"So you're the one taking care of this place now?" she asked Flora, her curiosity genuine. It was a simple question, a way to shift the focus away from herself and her tumultuous homecoming. Yet, beneath the surface, a deeper question lingered: Was there still a place for her in this changed world?
looking in the mirror, drop of rum on my tongue with the warning to help me see myself clearer
Sunlit Shadows (mastered) | The user can read the surface thoughts and emotions of those within a 60ft radius. Control is excellent. Note: "Thoughts and emotions" include anything written in a character's narration in a post.
Type: Grey | Style: Offensive | Level: Mastered
Deadly Recall | Can recall 1, or 2, or 3 of her feathers to her hand, within a range of 30ft. Recalled daggers do 1/2 damage when recalled.
Rescue (Mastered) | Remi can bring a fellow Old God demigod to his side in a time of crisis for three concurrent posts. One use per thread. If the summoned demigod also has mastered this ability, they can remain until the end of the thread.
First mate was it? Given the freshness of having just implicitly broken up with Asta while airing that he loved someone else right in this very bar, Flora wasn't all that successful in keeping her thoughts from spilling out onto her face as it seemed as though yet another blast from the past was here to destroy one of her situationships. She should have been happy for Jack that not all of his former friends were dead apparently, but gods she was far too young and too caught up in her own heartache to be that magnanimous just now.
Flor's lips twist slightly as she arches an eyebrow; though she did her best to appear neutral certainly some of the sparkle had dulled from her aqua stare. "Wow. First mate, that's a big deal." Leaning against the bar, the queen smiles. Given how aging worked around here, Flora might not have even been alive during Aurelia's reign as queen, and certainly the Doubletake hadn't bothered learning the region's history before fighting for her place among its rulers. And since her mother had never mentioned the cause of Atlas' death, Aurelia's name didn't ring any bells in Flora's mind as Melita offered it.
"Awh, I bet you can turn it around." She hums. "You and Jack must have been close if you were so high up." It's a touch leadingly said, but fuck if she cared. Her pride was too wounded to survive another blow and if Jack had had a thing with the brunette seated at her bar, Flora would rather cut her fucking losses early.
"Mhmmm." Glancing around the Hanged Man, the queen smirks and nods. "And Torchline, too."
My house of stone, your ivy grows
And now I'm covered in you
Mastered Item:
Type: Light | Style: Other | Level: Mastered
La Verbena | A personal skyboat (schooner) capable of travelling at 2x wagon speeds over most types of terrain. Can accommodate 2 people onboard during flight.
I've done nothing wrong Except for all the atrocities
Melita wasn’t certain what to do with the hangdog expression and the kicked puppy routine; volleying between sitting in her irritation or letting it muster away into some discordant reach. She went for a swig of liquor instead, trying to be carefully neutral and failing, eyes flickering back and forth between Aurelia and Flora, listening to the subtle marks and trying not to snort into her drink.
“I mean, you’re probably right,” the Honeybee started off, waving her hands in an offshoot way. Jack would be irate. “Did you talk to him already?” Worming one’s way back into the Captain’s good graces was something of a stretch – Melita would know, given how often she was purposefully irritating him. Even if Flora managed to strike up something of a lead; but the demigod suspected there was something else laden there. “Or do you have other plans?” Maybe they could tell her to go to Frey’s Breath and wander around looking for some flowers.
After taking another drink and looking around again, her gaze sauntered back to Aurelia, pointing at the Accepted for emphasis and with some glimmer of a smirk. “Flora and Hadama run the whole region now.” So if she wanted to make something of herself in front of Le Queen, now would probably be a good time.
Flora smiled at her but there was something behind her eyes that made Aurelia have to consciously stop from raising her brow. This effort, however, was thwarted when there came a needling question. She smirked and shook her head, "If by close you mean anything other than friends, no. I earned that place of my own merit. I'm an outlander. Jack, and Melita, helped me find my footing." She explained before she glanced over at the Honeybee, as she asked about her plans.
"Well, I left the Oerwoud after something began corrupting the wildlife... I want to help however I can. Didn't know where best to start but I went to Jack first thing, and uh.. well, I'm sure you can imagine how not happy he was to see me just show up." She scoffed.
She was about to ask for a drink at last when a most unexpected revelation was cast upon her; the new (new to her) Queen of Torchline.
"Oh." She met Flora's magnetic gaze again, but was not sure what to say at first...
"I'm not sure how I'm supposed to act now. I've never had a queen also be my bartender." Flora looked young to be queen. It was a lot on a person's shoulders... but she looked to be handling herself just fine. That was good.
"You must like the bar a lot, or is there no one else who can run it for you?" It was a genuine curiosity. How did she have the time for it all and running the tavern at the same time?
looking in the mirror, drop of rum on my tongue with the warning to help me see myself clearer
Sunlit Shadows (mastered) | The user can read the surface thoughts and emotions of those within a 60ft radius. Control is excellent. Note: "Thoughts and emotions" include anything written in a character's narration in a post.
Type: Grey | Style: Offensive | Level: Mastered
Deadly Recall | Can recall 1, or 2, or 3 of her feathers to her hand, within a range of 30ft. Recalled daggers do 1/2 damage when recalled.
Rescue (Mastered) | Remi can bring a fellow Old God demigod to his side in a time of crisis for three concurrent posts. One use per thread. If the summoned demigod also has mastered this ability, they can remain until the end of the thread.
Having already braced herself to hear an answer she didn't like, that the Fireheart was nothing more than a friend to the captain felt a touch anticlimactic and nor did it deflate the Doubletake's sense of impending dread the way it should have. That was the thing about building yourself up to hurt your own feelings, the truth never really fixed anything.
Grinning at Melita for her contribution to Flora's introduction, the Doubletake gives Aurelia a curious stare, trying to size the other woman up and decide if her comments were meant to come across as abrasive as they were or if the queen was just being overly sensitive. "I mean, I can always just not serve you then if that makes you feel better.' She says with a smirk before her gaze flits towards the Honeybee, her raised brow a silent question of what the fuck? before straightening. Torn between giving the real answer (I just went through a sort of breakup) or being flippant about it (pulling an Elle Woods and saying, what, like it's hard?), the queen opts for somewhere in the middle.
With a shrug, she glances around, eyeing the easy chaotic air of the tavern. "I'm not usually serving, but in terms of keeping this place running?" She grins. "Let's just say owning the most popular bar in Torchline has its perks as a queen." I.e., a constant source of bribes in the form of free booze when she needed to call in favours from the public at large.
My house of stone, your ivy grows
And now I'm covered in you
Mastered Item:
Type: Light | Style: Other | Level: Mastered
La Verbena | A personal skyboat (schooner) capable of travelling at 2x wagon speeds over most types of terrain. Can accommodate 2 people onboard during flight.
I've done nothing wrong Except for all the atrocities
Melita’s brow remained arched; maybe half in amusement, half in expectation. Flora already seemed irritated with Aurelia, and the Honeybee herself was indulgent into the emotion simply because of the years long gone by, and her own spiteful manifestations. But she would hear some explanations, she supposed, wondering how much they’d matter in the long run, and if others would hear and simply hand wave them away. Though she gave a wink in the Doubletake’s accord as soon as the ‘what the fuck’ signal had flown.
Oh she’d already gone to see Jack. Melita might’ve paid well to have been a fly on that god damned wall. “Soooo you won’t be back on the Ark then?” Her head tilted vaguely, either predacious or simply being an annoying fuckwit, like a cat batting their newest prey between their paws. “Well, we’re all busy trying to fight off the Void shit,” and then she swung her hand in the direction of Starfall. “The Oerwoud, as you already saw, Feverlands, and Greatwood are already infected.” She glanced back at Flora, to see if either of them wanted to mention the unfolding plans as of late, or hold off. Besides, there seemed to be the weird bar thing going back and forth. “Depends on what you want to do, I guess.”
Realizing her comment might have inadvertently offended the queen, Aurelia's lips turned into a more sheepish smile. Her eyes widened slightly, a flicker of embarrassment crossing her features. She tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear self-consciously.
Her voice carried a hint of apology and a desire to smooth over any awkwardness. "Actually," she began, her tone more tentative now, "if it's not too much trouble, I'd love a drink. Something strong, maybe. It's been a long journey, and..." she paused, choosing her words carefully, "I could use something to... steady my nerves."
Her gaze remained trained upon Flora's, a silent plea for understanding shimmering in her eyes. "I didn't mean any offense," she added softly, "It's just... been a while since I've been here."
A brief silence fell, punctuated only by the clinking of glasses and the murmur of conversation around them. Aurelia made no notion to, in this moment, declare her past title. The war had changed everything, and she had changed with it. The crown no longer fit, and she had no desire to reclaim it.
Although she wondered at what happened to Maeve...
"Soooo you won't be back on the Ark then?"
Aurelia's smile faltered, replaced by a look of quiet determination. "No," she replied simply, her voice steady.
A spark of curiosity flickered in her eyes as she leaned forward, eager for information. "The Feverlands and the Greatwood too... what about the other regions? What's the situation here in Torchline?" Just how far had it spread? "Do you know anything about its weaknesses?"
Her questions tumbled out, a reflection of her eagerness to understand the enemy and contribute to the fight. The years spent in isolation had left her hungry for knowledge, for a sense of purpose beyond her own personal struggles.
looking in the mirror, drop of rum on my tongue with the warning to help me see myself clearer
Sunlit Shadows (mastered) | The user can read the surface thoughts and emotions of those within a 60ft radius. Control is excellent. Note: "Thoughts and emotions" include anything written in a character's narration in a post.
Type: Grey | Style: Offensive | Level: Mastered
Deadly Recall | Can recall 1, or 2, or 3 of her feathers to her hand, within a range of 30ft. Recalled daggers do 1/2 damage when recalled.
Rescue (Mastered) | Remi can bring a fellow Old God demigod to his side in a time of crisis for three concurrent posts. One use per thread. If the summoned demigod also has mastered this ability, they can remain until the end of the thread.
Both the benefit and disadvantage of being young was how quickly Flora could flit from mood to mood. Just now, though, as Aurelia seemed to settle into herself—or perhaps the Doubletake was merely reading more into it than there actually was—her own features softened as the prickliness of her previous mood melted away. Besides, Flora was too in her own head about Asta and Danta to have the energy to play mean girl for long.
"I've got just the thing." The queen announces with a grin. Spinning around, her back to the pair for a moment, Flora whips together one of her favourite drinks. Twisting back, the queen sets down a heavy glass filled with a liquid that had a vaguely blue tinge to it. "My dad makes it. There's a waterfall that flows upside down in the mountains and that's what he makes his gin from." She explains with a grin.
"You can always work here if you want." Flora offers with a small shrug. "If you need something to do while you sort everything out." No doubt it was probably beneath Aurelia in some respects at least given how outdoorsy the woman looked, but hey, if she wanted something to keep her mind occupied with, there was always something going on in the Hanged Man.
As for the void? Flora sighs as she leans an elbow against the bar and rests her chin in the palm of one hand. "Mmmm, just those three so far but it definitely seems like it's spreading. Torchline is nearly completely protected, we've just got two tasks left to go and then the entire area will be free of the void." Well, as far as they knew anyway. Grinning, the queen glances towards Melita, bouncing her eyebrows at the mention of weaknesses. "I'll let you field that one, demigod." She teases.
My house of stone, your ivy grows
And now I'm covered in you
