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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!
Whatever is happening behind her, Flora doesn't really know; there's some movement, but as none of it sounds like Asta screaming in pain (or terror), the Doubletake leaves him to it for the time being.
"You look like shit." She taunts boggart!Jack, before silently wondering if it was in possession of all of the captain's abilities, or just a few. Mentally apologizing to the man she assumed was behind her on the ground somewhere, Flora broadcast the sharpest, loudest thoughts that she was able to, arranging her frustration at having missed the creature, her confusion about Asta and relief that he was alright, and her concern for Jack, into needle-sharp points that she let fly at the creature at the same time she released her final feather.
Flora mentally screams at the boggart and throws her final dagger, still trying to stay at the front of the group to take any attacks.
Type: Grey | Style: Offensive | Level: Mastered
Deadly Plumage | Three iridescent feathers capable of being used as projectiles. Razor sharp.
Type: Dark | Style: Offensive | Level: Basic
Star Poison | A poisonous coating on each of the Deadly Plumage daggers that adds basic damage on the initial hit.
Type: Light | Style: Other | Level: Basic
Lucky you | A ring that when worn grants +3 luck. Must be included in all PQ/PQ+/KQ/DROP posts to be counted.
Regional Score bonus: +9 in all shrine visits, drops, PQ+s, KQs, etc. (You must post this at the bottom of any post where a +9 should be included)
Type: Grey | Style: Offensive | Level: Mastered
Signet Ring | A signet ring with the insignia of a Tide Jaguar When thrown, becomes a full-grown Tide Jaguar with the same HP as the user. The animal cannot do physical damage to others, and lasts 3 rounds or until it is killed. Can only be used once per thread.
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
Still not paying too much attention to what’s happening behind him, Astaroth does notice through the wall of flame as the boggart becomes blocked off from the hedges. A moment of relief only lasts for however long before he hears Flora’s taunt, tail whipping as he starts to move slightly – half turning toward where the haggard version of the vanished man would be. Not inclined to be speared and frozen back into slumber (or death), the butcher collects the fire from the wall (giving the labyrinth a moment of reprieve from his arson assaults).
The flame warps into what is essentially a fireball, white hot and rippling with heat as he shoots it toward the Boggart!Jack that Flora’s currently shooting those feathers at. He still feels cornered and entirely on edge, but at least he can do something about it right now – so with the attempt of pouring his focus into the fireball, he watches it fly.
Asta takes the wall of fire and steps up beside Flora briefly to throw a fireball of it at Boggart!Jack!
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
Now we're talking - teamwork, dividing and conquering, and a little spontaneous horticulture from Astaroth and the Labyrinth. But there is still one boggart to contend with. It starts off well, another dagger sinking deeply into boggart!Jack's shoulder, causing the volley of ice in return to go wide of Flora (and anyone else for that matter, not that the Doubletake would have allowed them to be hit).
With a combination of fire and ice from the Ancient and Abandoned of the group, though, they are once again left wanting. (Almost as though the boggart is stronger than they are because Level 12 Flora is here, hey). Regardless, without Jack in view any longer, it refocuses its efforts to frighten, and suddenly rather than the gaunt looking captain, the boggart explodes into yet another murder of gore crows.
Two of them still have daggers plunged into them though, so there's that.
"Oh fu—" The curse is lost in the rush of wings, and without another blade in her hand to throw, Flora yanks her wrist back to recall all three of her daggers. Whether or not the one which had missed would be able to hit something on its trajectory back to her hand she didn't know, only that with hedges all around them, the last thing any of them needed was for Astaroth to have to contend with more crows in such close quarters.
"Cover yourself in fire! They won't be able to get to you!" Flora yells to the butcher, lifting her hand in the hope of encouraging her fallen feather to fly through the flock.
Flora recalls all three daggers!
Type: Grey | Style: Offensive | Level: Mastered
Deadly Plumage | Three iridescent feathers capable of being used as projectiles. Razor sharp.
Type: Dark | Style: Offensive | Level: Basic
Star Poison | A poisonous coating on each of the Deadly Plumage daggers that adds basic damage on the initial hit.
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.
Type: Light | Style: Other | Level: Basic
Lucky you | A ring that when worn grants +3 luck. Must be included in all PQ/PQ+/KQ/DROP posts to be counted.
Regional Score bonus: +9 in all shrine visits, drops, PQ+s, KQs, etc. (You must post this at the bottom of any post where a +9 should be included)
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
Ice goes wide and his fire and Flora’s feathers hit their target and Astaroth quietly relishes in the fact that it had hit, the butcher watches with a renewed sense of overwhelming panic and grit teeth, a fury brimming under his skin as he subtly thinks in a moment of his anxiety (and admittedly not entirely sure where he is currently as the flashbacks come back) I’m not going back.
Flora’s suggestion is met with an agreement, stepping over to prevent himself from burning her because despite everything, she’s on his side here, and he sharpens his focus into encasing himself in flame to keep the crows from diving in toward him and blotting them out from his vision.
Astaroth steps away from Flora and basically encases himself with fire to keep the crows out!
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)
09-02-2024, 01:22 PM (This post was last modified: 09-02-2024, 01:23 PM by Jack.)
there exists a tipping point between gods and monsters
Flora's daggers wrench back through the air and directly through two of the crows that are already impaled, and the cry that rakes through the Labyrinth this time is a combination of gore crow and the boggart itself. Her third dagger, alas, doesn't manage to catch any of the murder, but two out of three ain't bad.
And this time, at least, she's got back-up. He might still be invisible and bleeding, but at seeing the boggart warp into something flighted, Jack blasts his air magic into the creature and connects, sending the flock slamming into the ground with a thump.
Squawking their dismay - and completely missing a volley at Flora while they are at it, they consider Astaroth wreathed in his flames and opt to remain in exactly this shape, as if keeping him out of the fight is too tempting a chance to refuse.
Gods but things are happening fast, and yet not fast enough.
Stepping to the side in order to give Astaroth space, both so that she isn't singed by his fire and also to actually give him space, large as he is, as soon as one of her daggers is back in her hands, Flora hurls it at the flock that Jack has brought down to the ground. The fact that the flock has been moved at all by unseen hands at least suggests to the queen that somewhere Jack is doing alright, and with Asta now more or less at her side, she feels quietly confident in their abilities to perhaps see this through without her having to ferry one of them to Ronin afterward.
Flora throws a dagger!
Type: Grey | Style: Offensive | Level: Mastered
Deadly Plumage | Three iridescent feathers capable of being used as projectiles. Razor sharp.
Type: Dark | Style: Offensive | Level: Basic
Star Poison | A poisonous coating on each of the Deadly Plumage daggers that adds basic damage on the initial hit.
Type: Light | Style: Other | Level: Basic
Lucky you | A ring that when worn grants +3 luck. Must be included in all PQ/PQ+/KQ/DROP posts to be counted.
Regional Score bonus: +9 in all shrine visits, drops, PQ+s, KQs, etc. (You must post this at the bottom of any post where a +9 should be included)
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
Wreathed in flames as he is, he can distantly hear the thump of the gore crows as they slam toward the ground, and as Flora sends another dagger, the butcher can see the vague outline of her shape through the moving flames. Finding some semblance of confidence, perhaps because the crows are on the ground, the butcher’s flame starts to diminish toward his feet, curving up around his face and his horns.
Getting a better view of the situation, the butcher sends the fire back toward the crows on the heels of Flora’s dagger. “I fucking hate crows.” He hisses as he sends it out.
Astaroth sends fire back toward the crows on the heels of Flora’s dagger!
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
When they go hard, they go overkill, as it happens. Although both Jack and Astaroth will send out magic to assist Flora - fire and ice respectively, as it happens - it's very much not needed. Only one dagger is required to take out the boggart for good, and it shrieks and hisses its death as the crows become little more than black ash smudged against the dirt of the Labyrinth. Panting and appearing beside the Doubletake as he removes her invisibility ring, the captain absolutely looks worse for wear; the front of his shirt at the very least is dripping red, though he's not on his last legs just yet.
"Send your dragon up to get us out of here?" he suggests to Flora, waving a hand to send a blast of air magic down the hedgerows, blowing the ashes away until there's nothing but stillness and silence left around them. "Quick an' quiet as we can, if you don't mind." He doubts they'll have any objections somehow.
The boggart is dead! Let's get the fuck out of here!
Boggart#1 209/288 Boggart#2 0/288 *Killed by Flora for levelling purposes!
With a sigh of relief that has her shoulders sagging, Flora recalls the dagger out of a pile of ash. Rubbing the back of her wrist across her forehead, the queen turns as Jack appears at her side. Immediately her mouth drops open, the pooling blood on the front of his shirt significantly worse than it had been when she'd glanced him out of the corner of her eye. "Jack," she hisses, her thoughts suddenly downy-soft with concern for the state of him.
'Uh..right.' Swallowing, Flora glances up, and while Jack will likely be able to feel the mental tug that rises from the queen's mind, it's Spice who eventually answers it. "This way." She whispers, holding out an arm to tuck around the captain's side for support if he needed it.
Glancing toward Asta, the Doubletake looks him up and down. Certainly he was more dishevelled than she was used to seeing him, but at least physically he was in one place. "You good?" She asks gently, and not simply because they were trying to stealth their way out of the labyrinth.
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 the boggart as it falls, the butcher works his jaw and exhales a sigh of relief as crows turn to ash, blown away on a wind that has him glancing toward his companions to take a quick assessment of the situation. The blood spreading from the Abandoned’s chest as Flora’s arm wraps around his side to help, the butcher moves to Jack’s other side for any additional help that might be required. “For now, yeah.” Comes the deep Whitebrim grit, no suave velveteen hums of his voice.
Still twitchy and thrumming with adrenaline and no place to put it, the butcher simply shrugs out of his waistcoat as they walk, slipping out of the black shirt beneath and revealing the multitude of scars carved by those brutal beaks mere seconds ago. Bunching it up into a ball, he hands it to Jack. “Apply pressure to your chest until we can get out of here.” Comes the rough demand, while the butcher slips the waistcoat back on, leaving it unbuttoned but at least covering the majority of his scarring.
there exists a tipping point between gods and monsters
"I'll live," Jack quips, as one might expect, though as Spice heads above the hedges to lead them from the Labyrinth and Flora ghosts up and against his side, the captain doesn't stop her. He expects it from her, though, slipping her ring back onto her finger before resting his arm around her shoulders. Astaroth, though, is another story, and it's with near suspicion that he side-eyes the Ancient, eventually reaching out to accept the shirt to press against the puncture wounds in his chest.
"Guess now you can tell your Theocrat what the fuss was all about," he rumbles; keeping his mental barriers up for all but the loudest (i.e. life or death) thoughts from his companions, Jack remains silent for the majority of their journey out of the maze.
When the entrance does appear up ahead, the trio barely make it through before the hedges change their mind, Jack hissing a curse and glaring back at the Labyrinth once they're on the outside, for better or worse. "I for one ain't goin' back in there," he decides. "I'm headed for Jack Tar from here." Maybe he'll send Asta's shirt back to the Dusklight. Maybe he'll give it to Flora to covet burn.
Whereas before the slip of Asta's accent had filled Flora with heat, now it only served as a reminder of how little she truly knew or understood him, leaving the space she'd carved out for concern over his wellbeing filling up with ice. Of course then he's stripping off of his shirt, and it's well-timed that Jack's mental barriers go up as it saves him from the thoughts that seeing the butcher without his shirt on inspires in the queen.
With Spice above, flying low enough to try and evade any sort of detection and high enough to make out the changing patterns of the maze, the trio make it out relatively easily. Glancing at Jack, Flora frowns slightly and nods. Are you going to be okay? She wonders, and if he doesn't reply because of the height of his mental walls, she'll simply take it as a yes.
"I..uh...have to go meet with Danta." Flora mutters uncertainly, unsure if the polite thing to do was offer to walk back with Asta or do the exact opposite and just compass her way back into the Grounds. "Are you gonna...go?" Lifting her eyes to the ancient, she raises a brow. Given the crows, the sound of his voice, and the way even she could smell the blood on Jack, it wouldn't have surprised her if what the butcher wanted was to be alone.
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
Suspicion or not, Astaroth doesn’t care. What he does care about is the fact that the man he’s supposed to escort is actively working on bleeding out – and the butcher, for as sharp and shark-like his teeth are – can’t think of anything else but the blood that infiltrates his nose in a tinge of iron and the shadows of gore crows behind his lids each time he blinks.
So it’s with a heavy sigh that he tries to stretch out – chastising himself to get it together as a mantra in the back of his mind – until he blinks his surprise at Flora’s question, blatantly ignoring Jack for the moment and uncaring whatever he intends to do with his shirt. “I’m uh…” He trails off, not sure what the fuck to say. Sure, he’d love to go and drift off and have his panic attack somewhere else. Or, he could go back to the Dusklight and prowl into the establishment and seek out the bottle of Halovian whiskey he knows Danta’s stashed somewhere and thrive as a Frankenstein version of himself and Ferox.
The latter sounds better, though, and he realizes belatedly he’s been staring at her as the muscles feather in his jaw and he shakes his horned head to get out of the thought space a little bit. “Going home. To the Dusklight. You can come too, if you want to.” He understands if she doesn’t want to. He wouldn’t even blame her if she didn’t. Between the abyss of his thoughts right now and the departed pleasantries and disheveled state, the butcher isn’t sure what good it would do whether she did or didn't join him.
But at least she’d asked to accompany him, rather than silently following him while he has his breakdown.
