Click here for a list of weather descriptions, seasonal festivals, and a real time:site time conversion.
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 rain had stopped, for now. Evidence of its return lingered aboev the forest canopy. Ahead, scattered among the mossy ground, lay the pools. At first Marcus thought they were ordinary patches of water left behind by rain, but as they stepped closer, the strangeness revealed itself. The surfaces were perfectly still, smooth as glass and strangely separate from one another, each pool resting in its own shallow hollow of stone and soil.
He crouched near the nearest one, careful not to step too close to the edge. “These must be the Eyes of Vi,” he said. The name felt appropriate the moment he looked down. The pool did not show his reflection. Instead, a distant horizon shimmered in its depths with rolling hills beneath a sky painted in pale morning colors. It looked real enough that his eyes instinctively searched for movement, for birds or trees shifting in the wind. Marcus leaned a little closer, fascinated.
Nova wasn't far behind Marcus - still concerned he might end up lost without her - but it was hard when her eyes kept wandering. There were so many colors and interesting plants to see. She also could have sworn she saw something cute and fuzzy through the underbrush but before she could investigate, Marcus was walking around another tree and she had to pull her attention back to him.
Luckily, the sight they found was fascinating enough to make up for the interruption. "Woah!" Her blue eyes went wide, nearly reflecting the portals - at least that's what she thought they were. Regardless, they didn't look like what Marcus called them even when she crouched next to him. "They don't look like eyeballs." The one they looked at made her think of King's End and its rolling hills, but it was mid-afternoon and the sky they were looking at was clearly morning.
Tilting her head so that the blonde and purple strands fells across her cheeks, she wondered aloud, "Where do they go?" Nova reached a hand forward, ready to plunge her hand through and find out for herself.
Marcus had been leaning closer, drawn in despite himself by the impossible horizon shimmering in the pool. The longer he stared, the more it tugged at his curiosity. But the thought shattered the moment Nova shifted beside him. Instinct snapped his attention away from the vision below. His gaze darted to her hand and how it reached out. Fascination vanished, replaced by a tight knot of worry.
“Hey—”
His voice was calm but firm as he lifted a hand slightly, a quiet signal for her to stop where she was. “You shouldn’t touch these,” he said, glancing toward her before looking back down at the strange horizon within the water. “Or step in them. Not even a little.” The words sounded almost ridiculous out loud, but the stories he had read in the library had been clear. The pools weren’t harmless wonders. One careless step, one curious touch, and she could vanish into some unknown.
“If you fall in, yoou end up somewhere else.” His gaze flicked toward the other pools scattered nearby, suspecting that each one held its own impossible view. He frowned slightly. For a brief moment a question crossed his mind that he didn’t say aloud: Hadn’t her mother ever told her about the Eyes of Vi? Nova moved through the world with such easy confidence, such certainty about magic and gods and strange places, certainly some of that had to come from what Safrin hd shared with her...and not just the fact that Safrin was her mother. “So… yeah. Let’s admire them from here.”
She paused, briefly kicking herself for not thinking that Marcus might want to go with her. Smiling, she was about to reassure him before grabbing his hand and making the plunge, but when she looked at his face, he seemed pretty serious for some reason.
Her hand hovered for a moment as she listened, subconsciously drifting back to rest on her knee while she waited for him to say why she shouldn't touch it. Surely just a little tap couldn't hurt, especially if it was a real portal that could take them on a fun adventure!
Marcus only confirmed it all, claiming that they'd end up 'somewhere else,' but he said it like it was a bad thing. She didn't get it.
Nova's pace pinched, confusion and annoyance clear in the stubborn set of her jaw. "But that sounds fun." So what was the catch? Could it be that Marcus was just scared? The thought had her brightening again, sure that that must be the case. "You don't have to worry! We'll go together!" She shifted in her crouch to take his hand, ready to help him into the water.
Marcus felt his stomach drop the moment Nova’s hand turned toward his, her fingers reaching with bright confidence as if the strange pool were nothing more than an invitation. The easy excitement in her voice clashed sharply with the warning that had tightened in his chest the second she’d leaned toward the water. Before she could pull him forward, Marcus caught her wrist. The movement wasn’t rough, but it was firm enough to stop her momentum. “Nova—wait.”
He loosened his grip almost immediately, but instead of letting go entirely he shifted backward on his heels and gently guided them both another step away from the pool’s edge. The surface of the water remained perfectly still behind them. The young hybrid's jaw feathered. “That’s not what I meant,” he said, more serious now, “it’s not like stepping through a doorway and suddenly you’re somewhere interesting.”
He exhaled slowly, searching his memory for the things he had read in the guild library about this place. The descriptions had stuck with him because they had sounded less like magic and more like a warning. He didn't let go of her, afraid she would ignore him and jump in anyway. “People say when you fall in, you don’t arrive anywhere. You just drop into nothing. No ground, no sky, no direction.”
Marcus kept his eyes on hers, trying to impart the seriousness of it all. Part of him regretted bringing them here at all. The Greatwood had a way of guiding travelers where it wanted them, and now that they had arrived at the Eyes of Vi, leaving felt less like a choice and more like a negotiation with the forest itself. “Let’s not test it, okay? I can't...I can't call anyone in case it goes bad.” Not any demigods, not his dad, not her mom.
More annoyed than startled by his repeat interruption, Nova pursed her lips and looked back to Marcus, waiting for him to give some excuse about being nervous or scared. He certainly looked concerned. His face was tense, stoney and serious as he pulled them back from the water.
Her feet dragged, scuffing the damp dirt until she stood impatiently waiting for him to explain why. She tilted her head and crossed her arms, confident and defiant of whatever excuse he meant to give. After all, she wasn't scared, so he shouldn't be either.
It was hard for her to admit that drifting in black nothingness didn't sound nearly as interesting as she'd thought it would be, but Nova also wasn't convinced that she wouldn't appear in the hilly reflection they saw in the water. She narrowed her eyes, stubbornly lifting her chin. "How do they know that?" If they'd gone and come back, she could easily test it for herself. She didn't get why Marcus was making such a big deal out of it, even to the point of thinking they'd need help.
Nova shook her head, blonde and purple hair having turned damp in the misty rain so that strands stuck to her star freckled cheeks. "I'm here. We don't need anyone else."
Marcus held her gaze, even as she pushed back against him. The stubborn lift of her chin, the way her arms crossed like she could simply decide the danger away—it made something tight settle deeper in his chest. His eyes flicked briefly toward the pool again, then back to her, as if he didn’t trust it not to change when he wasn’t looking. The distant hills still shimmered there, calm and untouched, like it had never held anything else. For a moment he didn’t answer her question. Then, he exhaled slowly, forcing the edge out of his voice before he spoke.
Her words lingered and they should have been comforting. Instead, it made that something in his chest tighten further. Because that wasn’t the point. Marcus shifted his stance, stepping slightly between her and the pool without making it obvious, his hand finally slipping from her wrist but staying close, ready. “It’s not necessarily about needing someone else.” he said. “It’s about not putting ourselves somewhere we can’t get out of on our own.” He glanced around the basin, unease creeping back in. “The Greatwood doesn’t always give you a second chance.”
He took another breath, almost a sigh. ”Let’s just go check something else out, hm? Maybe we can fly a little.”
Nova didn't back down. Her blue eyes swirled like a miniature galaxy threatening its own gravitational pull, ready to devour whoever stood in her way - and that was looking a lot like Marcus right now. She straightened her shoulders, puffing her chest beneath the cross of her arms as if it might make her bigger than him.
Staring him down, she bristled at being denied anything, let alone a fun trip into that portal looking thing. Sure, he'd said it went to black nothingness, but surely there was a way out if people had lived to tell about it, and she didn't like Marcus implying that she wouldn't be one of them. Her abilities were her pride, and despite the heightened caution in his eyes, she didn't take kindly to his doubt.
The ever-present sparkles around her winked out of existence, a slight chill beginning to permeate the air. "What makes you think I can't get us out of there?" Her tone was icy, defensive, and sharp, daring him to make her prove exactly what her magic can do.
As if preparing to answer her call, a low thrum started in her veins, frost forming at her fingertips; but as he let out a resigned breath, the magic paused, curious of what else there could be for them to check out. She was skeptical that it would be better than this, her stormy eyes narrowed as she listened, refusing to lower her offenses yet. Suspicion laced her voice as she asked slowly, "Like what?"
Marcus didn’t miss the shift in her, the way the light around her dimmed, the cold creeping into the air, the silent hum of something gathering beneath her skin. He had seen enough magic to recognize when it was about to tip from playful into something sharper. His shoulders tensed, but he didn’t step back. But he didn’t rise to it either. Instead, he let out a slow breath, steadying himself before answering. “I don’t think you can’t,” he said carefully, meeting her gaze without flinching. There was no challenge in his voice, just a grounded certaintly layered with a gentleness he had learned from the way his mother dealt with Ravenna and Margot's tempers. “I just don’t think it’s worth proving.”
He glanced past her, back toward the trees they had come through, where the Greatwood thickened again. Then to the south. Then, deliberately, Marcus shifted the conversation. It was not abrupt, but with intent, like guiding someone off a dangerous path without making it feel like a loss. “There’s another part of the forest not far from here,” he said, tone lighter now, though still measured. “Ludo’s Woods.” Which, like the Eyes of Vi, Marcus only knew about from books and stories and word of mouth.
A faint, almost crooked smile tugged at his mouth as he added, “We could make a game of it. Tag. Or hide-and-seek.” His eyes flicked back to hers, gauging her reaction. “You seem pretty confident you wouldn’t get lost,” he went on, a hint of teasing threading into his voice now. “So it might actually be a challenge.” Marcus tilted his head slightly, easing back a step, raising his hands and arms in arcs at his sides to entice her into his game.
Feet spread and offenses at the ready, Nova was more than prepared to prove exactly how capable she was. If Marcus didn't think she was strong enough, she would just show him by jumping into the water and getting out herself; but as he spoke, he was calm and collected, claiming belief in her abilities while adding the lazy argument that it wasn't worth her time or effort. Nova wasn't sure she believed him about either point, but he didn't look like he was lying, and the invisible fur along her spine began to settle with an unconvinced "Hm."
His lighter tone didn't immediately brighten her mood, yet he'd certainly caught her attention. The frigid air began to shift again, calming into the quiet breeze of the forest as she looked to where he'd glanced as if she could see whatever lay beyond. She pursed her lips, remembering the pretty forest where the masquerade ball had been. Although it'd been cool, the festivities were what made it interesting, and she was more inclined to explore the portals.
Until Marcus made a competition out of it.
Nova tried to contain the excitement that suddenly threatened to take hold, her eyes gleaming as she lifted her nose stubbornly in the air. "Fine." Then, before he could try getting a jump on her, Nova turned and sprinted towards the woods with a burst of sparkles, shouting a giggled challenge over her shoulder, "First one there gets to hide!"
