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Character of the Season
Frail in body but dangerously quick of mind, Nikandr is the sort of character who proves that curiosity can be just as perilous as any weapon. A necromancer, inventor, and problem-solver with more ambition than self-preservation, Niki approaches the world like a puzzle box begging to be opened, even when what’s inside has teeth. Blunt, dry-witted, fiercely independent, and carrying a history best left partially buried, he has a knack for making even failure feel fascinating. Whether he’s raising the dead, moving across Caido to King's End, or experiencing a hangover for the first time, Nikandr brings a wonderfully strange spark to Caido, and we can’t wait to see what trouble his brilliant mind wanders into next.
Congratulations, Niki!
Credits
Court of the Fallen was created in October of 2018 by Odd, Honey, and Crooked.
OG Skinning provided by Kaons, with functionality and many custom plugins made by Neowulf!
The color in her cheeks intensified at the question, as it forced her to take a good look at her own feelings. The finger traced down her arm tickled, painting a line of static on her skin that lingered long after moving on. "I... don't mean to be clingy or anything like that," she murmured, unsure of what he was hearing, perhaps even a bit unclear on what she preferred herself. If he got in the way of her search for a cure... but not knowing where he was was terrifying, too. "It's just... I like being around you." That much she did know, without a doubt. "So, I guess... yeah. I want to see you." In fact, she'd prefer not to part ways at all, but if he was going to Stormbreak... gods. She hated that thought so much.
Splaying her fingers open to braid them into his, Maea felt her heart beat wildly in her chest, hammering away to the beat of some drum she couldn't hear. The effect this man had on her - since when had his absence or presence and the touch of his hand gained so much power over her? Spellbound, nervous without quite knowing about what, she gazed up at Liam through frost-white lashes - praying she wasn't making a complete fool of herself by speaking so honestly.
Maea reddened at his question - something that he might not have been forward enough to ask, had he not been under the Family's influence - and Liam waited patiently, some things still being the same. Warmth bloomed in his chest at the Ancient's words, a smile blossoming on his face. "I don't think that's clingy - to like someone's company. To want to be around them." He paused, hazel eyes searching hers. Is that how she felt? Was there such thing as being around her too much? Would he wear out his welcome, chasing her further away not just from the Family, but from himself as well?
"I like being around you, too," he said, trying to catch her eye. Her fingers twined with his, and she looked up at him through frosted lashes. "So, yeah - I'll come back to the Greatwood with you." He would stay with Maea as long as she would have him - of that, he was certain. And if he had to travel a bit more than he had before... well, hopefully she would forgive him.
It wasn't too different from a pair of friends reassuring one another that the friendship still held. The words were the same, yet somehow Maea thought them loaded with a different meaning, something unspoken that had everything to do with the warmth blooming in her chest whenever they held hands. Maybe she wasn't delusional after all...? Because the way he caught her gaze and held it even as she blushed and chewed on the bottom lip to stop it from betraying the silly smile she couldn't restrain, it really made her believe that he meant what he said.
"I don't think so either, but people are different so I try not to presume," she explained, the relief of not having to part right away palpable. If he was more forward than usual she hardly noticed - even though she had to find a rose for him and even though getting him anywhere near it might prove difficult, all those were hurdles that could be overcome. As long as he remained within reach.
And it seemed he would be. "Really? Great! ...thank you." For listening. For not leaving. She didn't say it, but the tight grip on his hand saaid plenty of how worried she'd been that he'd disappear.
”Fair enough,” Liam rumbled. It was an endearing trait, really - that Maea didn’t want to annoy or pester by being something that he didn’t want. But how could he ever tire of her? Of the little blush that tinged her cheeks when she was flustered, of the smile that appeared when he’d said something to please her. And oh, how he wanted to please her. That, at least, remained unchanged.
Maea’s grip tightened on his hand, and the soldier fought the urge to tug her closer and into his arms so that he could reassure her that this was good. He wasn’t a slave in thrall; he was still himself. He was still here for her. And when she became a Friend of the Family, she would see that it was far better than being their enemy. Everything would be as it should be.
”You don’t have to thank me, Maea,” he said, his own relief that she was willing to consider what he’d said, that she’d been willing to hear him out, a palpable thing on his own earnest face. ”Did you want to leave now? Or do you have more business in Torchline, first?”
"No? I really am grateful though. There's not that many who care enough to listen to the things I say... You're a rare one, Liam. And I'm glad to have you in my life." Whether it was the shock of the battle finally wearing off or simply relief to find her friend relatively unchanged despite the terrible curse he'd been afflicted with was hard to say, but the weariness that washed over her hit like a wave. She wouldn't have minded a hug just then, but it was perhaps for the best that Liam didn't pull her into his arms at this point. She wouldn't have been able to resist, and if he kept being this kind to her when he ought to have been the one in need of comfort and reassurance, she really might cry after all.
Rubbing a weary hand over her forehead, she resisted the desire to just go straight back home. "Much as I'd love to leave... I need to check up on my friends first. Would tomorrow be alright with you?" One more night in paradise, and then she would start the hunt for roses all over again. Sometimes she wondered if she'd keep searching for the rest of her days - sometimes she never wanted to see another rose in her life. But she would. There was no path the could take that wouldn't lead her to one, because all her hopes and wishes lay on the other side of his release from the infection.
Liam was touched, and he smiled down at their intertwined fingers as his cheeks flushed with pleasure at Maea's words. They'd both been so staunchly against the Family up until recently, and the soldier had worried that this change would mean the end for them - that they would end up pitted against each other in the war that was brewing on the horizon. But it was a relief to know that he could have both, at least for now - and that, hopefully, Maea would join him in the end.
At her request, Liam nodded. "Of course. Tomorrow is fine." He paused, looking out of their alley. He wasn't inclined to return to Haulani, so maybe he'd find an inn around the port for the night. He squeezed Maea's hand once more, then let go. "I can book a skyship. I think there's one leaving around noon - we could meet up for breakfast beforehand, if you'd like."
If he knew half of what passed through her mind, he mlight not be quite so reassured that all would be well. But as Maea had learned from the fae how to bend words and speak truths with many meanings, what she said didn't always reflect her intentions. Certainly she would think about his request, and without a doubt her mind would be on him and the Family both, but as for making a choice... she would be lying if she claimed not to know her own mind when it came to submitting to the invaders.
Still. Being able to go home with Liam the next day was better than she'd feared, and when she listened to him plan the travel it was as though nothing had ever changed. He was still reliable, still reassuring, still the same man she had entrusted with her life - and would again, whether infected or not.
"I appreciate that. Breakfast sounds lovely - I'll be there."
Squeezing his hand back before reluctantly letting go, for a moment Maea hovered indecisive, torn between the need to check on Alys and her friends, and a reluctance to leave. Impulsively she reached up on tiptoes and brushed her lips to his cheek in a feather light kiss - lingering only long enough to murmur a quiet "See you tomorrow."
Before she could change her mind, Maea slipped away, hurrying out of the alley and off towards the city, head bent like one haunted by the lingering memory of a hand in hers.
