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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!
there exists a tipping point between gods and monsters
With permission given (or rather, with a shrug and a your funeral, along with a reluctant caveat that the Theocrat will send someone with him to see what the fuss is about), Jack heads to the Labyrinth a couple of days after the turn of the season. Unused to being away from The Ark for long - and equally as unused to this region's climate at Longheat - the captain is in about as dire a mood as might be expected. Still, he's present if nothing else, a light breeze whipping around his shoulders and hair and his shirtsleeves folded to the elbow as he falls to a halt.
Lowering his sunglasses enough to gaze at the entrance of the Labyrinth with clear skepticism in his eyes, he's not sure what to expect from the tangled hedges or the rumours he's heard about what might lurk within. Something something the maze moves around, something something boggarts are scary? All of this implies that Jack is afraid of anything, and... well, it's not untrue, but it's also not the sort of thing he expects to jump out and say boo at him.
PQ+ for Jack to kill a boggart as part of his quest for Safrin!
Boggart (???/mythical): The boggart can take nearly any form that it can pull from your mind. As such, it's almost impossible to know just how many reside within the Labyrinth. What is known however is that they usually hunt in pairs, with one trying to frighten an intruder towards the other where they can be devoured and dragged back to their lair.
The thing about never knowing when her brother's birthday actually was, was that she was always prepared for it. It's counterintuitive I know, but if Flora always had a gift on hand for the botanist, she'd never be caught empty-handed. You see the logic? All that was to say that before she met with Danta, the Doubletake had decided to go for a little stroll through the labyrinth to try and bring back a cutting from an Efas Herb for Mateo to grow.
"Son of a bitch." The queen grumbles as she's met with yet another dead-end inside of the maze. Likely only one layer deep, Flora had assumed getting in would be the easy part after having heard how much these mazes liked to fuck with people.
"Can you go up and see which way it is?" On her shoulder, Spice flares her nostrils before leaping forward, her tiny wings flaring out from her sides and sending her in a smooth arc above the top of the hedges.
Flora has everything on her profile, including Spice.
I'm stupid but I'm clever I can make a shitshow look a whole lot like forever and ever
love, do you want love? do you want lust? say you don't know
It’s a shame that the butcher doesn’t know just yet what he’s walking into. Designated by Danta to go and find out what the fuss was about, and a promise to come back when it was done, Astaroth thrives in the warmth of Longheat and the humidity that seems to linger within the confines of the maze walls, full of pollen and additional heat. He comes as prepared as can be for whatever might be out there, silently sending up a prayer to Dygra that it isn’t another one of those stupid infected wicker women, dressed in dark slacks, boots, and a nice dark shirt – harboring a good amount of flexibility for whatever might be coming their way, but still just as put together as ever.
A knife sits in his boot ready to be withdrawn, the cane left at home until he can get it functional enough to use. And the rest of it? Well, he’s got magic at his fingertips, ready to be used whenever needed.
Approaching the entrance to the Labryinth, he spies a rather rugged looking man – shorter, given Asta’s got his impeccable posture as usual, but he cares little about the differences there. Figuring this was whomever he was supposed to meet he flashes a sharp toothed grin of greeting and a dip of his chin. “Hello, Jack, is it?” His voice is rich and accented and cuts off precisely as his head swoops over to spot a tiny dragon and an all too familiar voice – which causes his smile to turn masked and a drop of dread to sink into his gut. Fuck.
there exists a tipping point between gods and monsters
Turning a fraction of a second before the other man appears, Jack's eyebrow raises - and his chin raises, too - until he can look the tall Ancient up and down with the sort of expression that suggests they've met before. They haven't, of course, and though Asta might assume that the familiarity comes from rumour and reputation, it goes far deeper than that. They're both about to find as much out. "It is," he confirms. "And you must be Astaroth." The Theocrat hadn't said as much in truth, but it's an easy lie to say he'd given the man's name.
About to gesture for them to head into the maze - and gods, if he hadn't already fulfilled the more murdery part of his quest for Safrin, this might have been a great time to do it - he also glances up to spot a familiar dragon and hear an even more familiar voice. Rather than dread, though (not that the captain doesn't absolutely relish feeling as much from the butcher at his side), Jack is merely puzzled.
"Flora?" he calls, heading into the Labyrinth to find the Doubletake.
"Are you sure?" Frowning skeptically up at her companion—Spice's recommendation had been to backtrack and then try and sneak through a hole in the maze itself—Flora paused to hear her name ring out from somewhere over the hedge to her left. Not thinking at all of boggarts, the queen was still just as puzzled to hear Jack's voice so far away from Torchline.
"Uhm...yeah?"
Flying a touch higher, Spice narrowed her opal-blue eyes at the sight of Asta, having felt her bonded's contempt for the tall ancient as a near-constant thread of maroon over the past few weeks. Spitting a small flurry of ice from her position above, the shards fell harmlessly onto the hedges as Flora halted where she was. "What're you doing here?" She called out, her voice crisp and her thoughts brutally jaded.
I'm stupid but I'm clever I can make a shitshow look a whole lot like forever and ever
love, do you want love? do you want lust? say you don't know
Belated, as the awkwardness and dread seeps into the butcher’s bones, he clears his throat and trails alongside Jack toward the sound of the voice. “Indeed I am.” Comes the quieter tone, until the dragon captures his attention and Flora’s responding to Jack and he thinks absolutely nothing of the two of them knowing one another. He can see the ice as it glitters and falls harmlessly atop the hedges and his masked smile fades, hands clasping at his back as he focuses on the Doubletake as she comes into view and halts.
He hasn’t responded to her last letter, he knows he should have, but he had been waiting for things to feel a little less… like they’d spiraled out of control. “Danta did not wish to come and see what the fuss was about, so he chose to send me in his stead.” Gesturing with a hand and a flick of his tail toward Jack as if that explained everything, his tail swoops low atop the grasses to match the soft sigh that passes by his lips. He can’t leave with the obligation to find out what’s going on, so he doesn’t offer it, but it’s clear he’d likely prefer that option over everything else. “Quite sorry to ruin your day, darling.” His sharp teeth snap shut as if trying to keep the pleasantries he tacks onto his typical every day phrases from escaping, having failed that, he turns his horned head and looks toward the wall of the hedges, clearing his throat.
there exists a tipping point between gods and monsters
Spice is pissed off, Flora has her upsetti spaghetti tone on, and the very tall man at his side is suddenly looking much more lamb than wolf. All in all? As the Doubletake comes into view, Jack is delighted, and the sharp smile on his face says as much; Flora knows him well enough by now, too (a privilege, he might add) to be able to see it. "I'm here to kill a boggart," he informs her, gesturing around the Labyrinth, and then at Astaroth.
"Apparently, this is my escort. We've just gotten ourselves aquainted - and how lucky that we've found you now as well. Don't s'pose you feel like joinin' us? They hunt in pairs, so I've heard, so the more the merrier. Always fun to see what scares us, right?" Gods, he couldn't be more pleased about this particular turn of events.
"Which way did you come from?" This he directs to Flora. "Assume it was a dead end, hence..." He gestures to Spice.
Folding her arms tightly over her chest, Flora lifts her chin defiantly as she stares at Asta. It felt like looking at someone entirely new, seeing him now. If she'd been worried at all that the sight of him would have her wanting to slip back into his arms one more time if only for closure, she could put that fear to rest. Knowing what he'd smell like if she moved any closer, what the hands clasped behind his back were capable of doing, what the corded feel of his tail wrapped around her waist had felt like, how sharp his teeth were, only had her stiffening all the more. None of it had meant anything to him; the man before her might as well have been a stranger for how familiar he seemed.
"Here's hoping it isn't a tree." The queen snaps coldly, though as the familiar darling escapes Asta's sharp teeth, Flora can't quite hide her flinch.
Glancing over his shoulder as Jack rounds the bend, the captain's smile a confusing picture of excitement? Flora can only scoff. "If this is whose been sent to keep you safe, I've got bad news for you." Images of she, Danta, and Asta taking down the wicker woman flash behind the queen's eyes, followed by the butcher hanging on to life by nothing more than a thread. A thread that she had summoned a goddess to fix.
"If you say so." Flora murmurs doubtfully, of this being lucky and fun. "That way, but...the hedges move, hence why.." Having nodded over her shoulder, the queen glances at Spice who'd opted to sit atop one of the hedges and stare menacingly at Asta.
I'm stupid but I'm clever I can make a shitshow look a whole lot like forever and ever
love, do you want love? do you want lust? say you don't know
It’s his turn to let Flora’s words roll over him, discomfort settling like a leaded weight in his gut only added to with the fact of what they were here for. A boggart. As if the day couldn’t get any worse. Sighing and pushing away any lingering thoughts on darlings and my dears once he’s chastised himself to keep them from spilling from his lips, he begins to walk again alongside the Captain.
He can’t help but to roll his eyes at her quip, keeping his hands clasped behind him even as his tail flicks in irritation. Sure, perhaps he should be more apologetic about everything, but the butcher knows well enough that it wouldn’t go anywhere. He has apologized. He has told her the truth. And now, it was simply dealing with the verbal blows until it eventually – hopefully – didn’t matter anymore. Their dating had gotten off on the foot of miscommunication from the get-go, a bargain made for help with the tree in question, and he was simply keeping up his end. He never dared to imagine that she wanted this fairytale romance out of it. “Yes, well, I am merely here as help.” Not as protection. And whether it meant helping by distracting and taking the brunt of the bullshit, sobeit.
The butcher glances sidelong at Jack, unable to get a read on the expression displayed, but he’s content to remain silent for a moment as he focuses on the task at hand and the labyrinth he’s been to once before, where one of the courtyards had harbored a rOUS bloodbath. It’s a far more comforting thought to think about than this strange tangle of emotions. “The hedges do move quickly, so it could be possible that it isn’t a dead end now, but I shall take your lead.” Letting his dark gaze drift toward Jack, the butcher pauses for the decision to be made before he continues to drift down the path.
Astaroth will go whichever direction Jack chooses!
there exists a tipping point between gods and monsters
The only thing Jack is missing is some tea to slurp while he glances between Flora and Astaroth. It happens over a split second if that, it's true, but gods if it isn't enough to entertain the captain for a long while afterwards. Whilst it's true that he's usually not such a big fan of seething monologues, for this he'll happily pick through every word and bitter thought. In the end, though, he does step forward to slip an arm around Flora, raising his eyebrows at her as if he's someone reasonable here.
"Well, I for one am pleased to see you, love," he purrs, pleased as punch, and leads the way forward. "Let's hope no one needs to be kept safe, and we can just kill this fuckin' thing and find our way outta here, mm?" Glancing briefly over his shoulder at Asta for good measure, he goes ahead to take a look at the once-upon-a-dead-end Flora had come from.
And lo and behold, it's gone, prompting an exaggerated oooh from the captain as if they're in some wacky haunted house.
Alas, things will not continue that way. Just as the pathways branch out, a spindly sort of scuttling can be heard, and should Flora they glance to their left, it will be to see a veritable tide of spiders clambering and crawling through the hedges towards them.
Gasp! Spiders! Are they real? Is it a boggart at play? What do you do?
Very much wanting to stomp on Asta's tail with every little petulant flick of it, the queen simply narrows her eyes before muttering a doubtful "mmmk" about him being here to help.
Taking a breath, Flora tries to reach for the sound of the word love on Jack's lips in order to use it to cover up the acidic thoughts of hers she knew he must currently be wading through; while she also knew nothing about she and the captain being together would make the butcher jealous, still it helped soothe her raised hackles to have his arm around her.
"Aren't boggarts, like, never what they actually seem? How're you going to kill one?" As they turn the corner, Spice gives a little trill of distress at the same moment Flora hisses in a breath, her fingertips clawing at Jack's side as she flinches and comes to a dead stop. "What the fuck." She moans, her thoughts growing fuzzy with too-small hairs and scuttling legs that felt as if they were suddenly crawling all over her body.
I'm stupid but I'm clever I can make a shitshow look a whole lot like forever and ever
love, do you want love? do you want lust? say you don't know
Watching Jack step forward to slip his arm around Flora allows for a brief breath to escape him – paying absolutely zero attention to it (you’re right, Flora, it doesn’t make him jealous. It makes him a touch relieved, in fact), he trails along behind the duo as the Doubletake’s question is raised. It’s a good point, but Asta is fairly confident it would be more beneficial to try and consider attacking the center of mass (in whatever shape it chose, center it and aim, and hopefully something would do the trick).
Already a touch on edge at the thought of the boggart and keeping thoughts of certain corvids from encroaching too soon, his gaze snaps at the movement to their side and Flora’s complaint, to which the butcher grimaces slightly and finally unclasps his hands behind his back. Snapping his fingers to bring fire to life, he realizes that burning through the hedge would likely cause more harm than good, and so it’s with a wall of flame to their left that the butcher creates and focuses on, moving it however needed for the spiders to hopefully barrel straight into a fiery surprise.
Astaroth makes a wall of fire to try and keep the brunt of the spiders from reaching them!
Fire Manipulation: Can create and control flames. Must be within a 30ft radius.
Type: Dark | Rank: Mastered
Citizenship Ability:
The world is new to you, and you to it. During PQ/PQ+/KQs/Drops, you roll with advantage on luck-based rolls and receive an extra name during drops. (In order to use this, make sure to note the ability at the bottom of each post)
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)
there exists a tipping point between gods and monsters
Smug as a smug thing, right up until Flora's thoughts turn itchy and spindly, Jack wrinkles his nose across at the wall of spiders and lets his arm tighten around the Doubletake as if to keep her from peeling away and fleeing - something he imagines the boggart very much would like them to do. "My plan was to basically just keep hittin' it until it died," he confesses to her, about to summon a gust of wind to blast the spiders back when, lo and behold, their resident Ancient comes to the rescue.
"That'll do the trick," Jack drawls, raising his eyebrows and not trying to hide that he's relatively pleased by the appearance of the wall of fire. (He can always appreciate power, especially when it comes to his assistance). Alas, given that the spiders are not real, they aren't silly enough to fry themselves on Astaroth's flames.
No, instead they warp and shift and change.
Over the wall of fire comes a literal murder of enormous gore crows, croaking and cawing and beating at the air on dark wings. Perhaps that will be enough to peel someone away from the group. (You, Asta. It's you, babe).
The spiders didn't work, so here come some gore crows to spook one of you!
Indeed Flora does want to turn and flee, because that's what a reasonable person does when they see a wave of spiders scuttling at them. As Jack's arm tightens around her, the pressure seems to squeeze all the colour from her thoughts until there's nothing but ashen panic that suddenly glows with the presence of Asta's fire.
Sighing, thinking that would do the trick, it's only as Spice snaps her teeth from the air that Flora gets a sense of what's coming next through her companion's eyes. The spiders hadn't been real, and now they were—
—"Cover your eyes!" Flora yells, whirling away from Jack with her hands outstretched like she might somehow shove Asta to the ground where she could make him blot out the sudden presence of dozens of black wings. Though her thoughts won't give the captain any clues as to why gore crows might provide such a problem, that her previous animosity for the ancient has all but been replaced by unfettered concern might at least suggest that she knows something about this that he doesn't.
I'm stupid but I'm clever I can make a shitshow look a whole lot like forever and ever
