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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!
Gazing at Liam as he began to process her questions, she ate more slowly from her own bowl. This was nice. More than nice; if evenings like this was what living in the Greatwood would bring then she had been a fool for resisting for as long as she had. Maea enjoyed tackling the problem of what to do - with themselves, with the region, in what capacity - and she especially liked seeing how expressive his face got as he thought. If at first she'd written him off as just a pretty face and thought nothing more about it, now that she knew him better those same handsome features were gaining character, speaking a langage she was growing to understand. And appreciate. And the moment she caught herself staring, her gaze darted off to the side, seeking refuge in the safety of their conversation.
"People need a place to stay if they come here," she reflected around a piece if venison. "The inn that's here is perfectly adequate under normal circumstances... but now there are no vacancies." Perhaps a new project could mean expanding the inn. "People also need to eat, so we might need to check with the Bodega to see what the merchants are running out of. And look over the skyport, to ensure it's holding up." All things they could do without stepping on any toes, all projects that approached the responsibility of a government without actually being one.
"Maybe if we did some projects around the region, you could get a better feel for if you want to do more, or not?" she suggested. Maea thought he would make a good ruler, but that meant nothing unless Liam wanted it for himself.
Tell the tales of the trail of dead Lovers learned from slower hands
Liam stared at Maea, impressed with her foresight. He’d admired her the entire time he’d known her, but this was something else entirely, a side of her he hadn’t seen before now. ”You have a knack for this kind of thing, don’t you?” he asked her, curious to uncover more of the puzzle that was Maea. In truth, this kind of thinking was foreign to him. He wasn’t sure he’d be able to take care of the Greatwood property alone. But if he had Maea’s help…
”Will you help me?” he asked, hazel eyes trained on her face. It was a big ask, he knew, for someone who had only just decided to make the Greatwood their home, but he suddenly couldn’t imagine doing all this without her. Somehow, along the course of their shared journey thus far, Maea had become invaluable to Liam, a presence that strengthened and comforted in equal measure.
And if her helping meant more nights like this in his future, then he certainly wouldn’t complain about that, either.
03-22-2025, 08:10 AM (This post was last modified: 03-22-2025, 08:13 AM by Maea.)
// won't you breathe with me? //
And thus the table turned. It was her turn to be stunned into silence, because there was more to that ask than being the supportive friend who came with helpful suggestions. On one hand it was easy - of course she would help - but on the other, she had painful proof that maybe she wasn't very suited for a role in the spotlight.
Drawing in a slow breath, Maea set the spoon down. The way Liam looked at her was very flattering, and incredibly worrying. Like he was growing expectations around her she was unsure she could live up to.
"Mh... in theory, perhaps. Organization is... I enjoy it. But I am less good with people. When I lived in the Grounds I served as diplomat for a while.... and it did not end well. I made terrible misjudgements, antagonized the rulers, placed them in danger – " Noticing that her shoulders had begun to creep up towards her ears, she made an effort to relax. Looking back up at Liam, she tried to smile. "I'll help you however I can, of course. But if we're doing what I think we are, I don't think mine should be the outward face of this region. It would come with... baggage." And this place had enough of an uphill battle to fight as it was.
Tell the tales of the trail of dead Lovers learned from slower hands
Diplomacy was not an area that Liam had ever considered for himself. He was a soldier, not a politician, after all. He was made for shouting orders in battle, fighting to the death if that was what it took. That stubbornness and tenacity had never been something that made him feel particularly attuned to ruling, although he supposed that it would be helpful enough, if he went down the path he thought they were uncovering.
But did he want to? It was true that he wanted to help the Greatwood. He wanted to see his region prosper in more ways than one. Was that all that it took in the end? A desire for better and a willingness to try?
He listened to Maea’s story, his eyes unreadable. ”Did you learn from it?” he asked, watching her. It was one thing to make a mistake once, and another entirely to allow it to rule one’s life forevermore. ”You wanted a fresh start, right? You don’t have to do anything you don’t want to do, of course. But I think we all make mistakes, and it’s what we do after that matters more than the original mishap.”
Opening her mouth to answer, she faltered. Closed it again, because he deserved more than a hastily blurted out response based on fear, worry and lacking self-esteem. Taking up the spoon once more she pushed pieces of vegetable around in the broth, thinking back to the incident and its aftermath.
"I would hope so," Maea said after a while. "Certainly I learned that I am stubborn, and that my views on what is right and necessary seem more extreme than others. I don't compromise easily. I have a flawed perception of risk and reward... Afterwards, several people I spoke to accused me of trying to become a martyr for a hopeless cause... and I don't really understand why that would be an insult. But... yes, I hope I learned the perils of speaking without anything to back my words with. That day only one of the leaders present rose to support me, and I realize now that I was relying on them to mop up any ensuing mess. That is not ever going to happen again."
Her mouth drooped in a determined expression, reflecting the stubborn nature she had claimed; at least she was aware of it. No surprise there.
Tell the tales of the trail of dead Lovers learned from slower hands
It took Maea a moment to answer, and Liam immediately felt guilty for pressing her. She’d shared little of her history with him to this point, and though he’d wondered why that was, it was ultimately none of his business - which made her eventual answer all the more noteworthy. The picture she painted of herself was bleak, full of flaws that Liam had yet to see. But rather than comment on anything he didn’t have the full story of, he merely nodded.
”I won’t push you,” he told her. ”It’s good enough for me that you stay, and a bonus that you help in whatever capacity that you see fit.” Perhaps she’d begin to feel differently as they worked, as they poured their blood, sweat, and tears into bringing the Greatwood back from the brink of extinction. And if not, that was fine, too. There was no lingering deadline, no unyielding requirement. They could help for now and decide what - if anything - else to do later.
Shaking herself slightly, Liam earned another smile for the lack of judgement passed on her admission. "I don't feel pushed at all," she assured him. "On the contrary - it's been a while since I've felt this included in.. anything." If she was reticent about herself it was only because she didn't think her struggles interesting enough to mention. Having hashed them over by herself until boredom, it kept surprising her how willing he - or anyone, really - was to listen.
"I do want to help. Both the region, and you - and all the better if the two end up being the same thing. Maybe.... it's possible to learn diplomacy? It's not something I've considered since the incident, but if you think you can work with someone like me... I'll do my best and study hard." Statecraft, diplomacy, tactics and strategy; all new skillsets that would be necessary if they got so far as to take up the guardianship of the region. Until then, they would both benefit from a trial run, from shouldering smaller endeavors and sample the weight and power that came with responsibility.
A small hand crept across the tabletop, open and offering a bargain; to try, and see what happened. To keep up with the change, this new leaf, and keep walking away from solitude, now that they had found a good companion to share that road with.
Tell the tales of the trail of dead Lovers learned from slower hands
There was no judgment to be had. Perhaps there should have been, and perhaps if all this had happened a few years back, when Liam was younger and dumber and more prone to anger at the world, there would have been. But as the pair of them sat at his kitchen table, eating their stew, discussing the fate of the Greatwood, there was only gratitude for all that the world had offered him in Maea. ”I think we’ve made a pretty good team so far,” Liam pointed out with a laugh. ”I can’t imagine trying something like this with anyone else.”
Liam reached out to take her offered hand, smiling at her across the table, with the Vi’s Rose watching over them. This hadn’t been how he’d expected his evening to go, but he certainly wasn’t complaining. Warm food, good company, and a newly struck deal were things to be celebrated.
His palm tickled against her own, warm and solid and real. The weight of what they were agreeing on came slamming down on her, and her return laugh was a touch breathless. Again there was a sense of the world jolting sideways, like some loom of fate had registered her choice and slammed her thread into a new path. A bit of dissociation, perhaps? Certainly she was overwhelmed, and reluctant to let go of Liam's hand – in case relinquishing it meant she would start to drift again.
Mh, but holding on to him was alarming in an entirely different way. So she made herself let go, gently retrieving her hand under the pretense of scraping the bowl clean of stew. Not much remained, surprisingly; Maea could barely recall when she'd taken the last few bites. "Nor I," she mumbled, biting back a foolishly happy little grin. "I'm glad I met you..."
Tell the tales of the trail of dead Lovers learned from slower hands
Maea’s touch lingered just slightly too long, and Liam realized when she let go that he wouldn’t have minded if it continued. ”I’m glad I met you, too,” he said softly, smiling in return. It was a chance encounter that he counted among his blessings, that was for certain. But he’d quickly become reliant on Maea’s presence in his life, and if he thought about that too hard, it scared him.
Suddenly unsure of himself, he busied himself with finishing off his stew. There were only a few bites left before the bowl was empty, leaving him to figure out what to do. When he was sure they were both done, he held out a hand for her bowl and rose from the table. ”I’ll wash if you dry,” he offered with a lopsided grin, hoping that he was suitably collected. All he needed was to get flustered by Maea, and then he was sure everything would unravel, just like the good things in his life always seemed to do.
It was just as well that he didn't say anything else, because Maea's pulse was slamming away in her ears with such force that she wouldn't have heard anything. A wave was rising on the inside, hot and heavy, and despite all her long talks with Elizabeth about identifying her emotions and allowing herself to feel them, whatever this was, it frightened her. Too much, too intense, too soon - she counted the golden thorns on Vi's rose, and the petals of the flower, and when she lost track she counted the glass panes in the window and the number of planks in the ceiling until her breath came normally again.
It was the long day that made her lightheaded, she decided, as she stood from the chair and walked over to help Liam clean up. "Deal. Got a towel?" Not trusting herself to focus enough to use fire with the heat of his precence radiating against her arm; not near enough to touch, just close enough that he was impossible to ignore.
"What's the plan for tomorrow?" There would be no search for a rose; the one they already had would need a pot and she had to write to Flora, and then book passage on a skyship... Beyond that, the couldn't think. There was just the current bowl in her hands, and making sure it was properly dry before putting it away. She knew where it belonged now; could tell where the spoons should go, and how he stacked the glasses.
Such trivial things had no business feeling this profound.
Tell the tales of the trail of dead Lovers learned from slower hands
Whatever it was that he was feeling, it was almost familiar, as though he’d spotted someone he used to know in a crowd for a fleeting moment, only to then question if he’d ever seen them at all. He used the dishes as a distraction and quickly set to scrubbing them. Unfortunately, there were only the two bowls, two spoons, and two glasses - and the latter he left alone, lest they still have need of them.
A towel was procured for Maea, and Liam handed the bowls to her as he finished with the rinsing. It was a comfortable rhythm, as though they’d done it a million times before, a quiet little piece of domesticity that took Liam’s breath away. He hadn’t experienced this kind of… belonging in years. That he should feel it now was a surprise that made him feel all kinds of things that he had no business feeling.
”I’m not sure,” he admitted as he handed Maea a spoon. ”I honestly didn’t think that far ahead.” He considered the options as he washed the next bowl. ”Have you seen much of the village - I mean really seen it, not just as a place where a rose might bloom? I can show you around if you haven’t. There are a few hidden gems you might like to see. We could get lunch. Make a day of it.”
"I've had lunch at the Bodega with friends, and spent an evening at the Observatory," she replied in quiet tone, "but aside from that, I've only really passed by." As one did when preoccupied by other matters. Stopping to look at the scenery was a luxury she hadn't afforded herself yet. Only, suddenly she had oceans of time to spend however she wanted... and she couldn't think of a better way to reinforce that notion than to wile away a day in Liam's company.
Friends did that. Yep, it would be a friendly outing doing friend stuff. There was no reason at all for her stomach to grow moths over it. It wouldn't even be the first time they went out for lunch. "That sounds fun. Let's do it. I can meet you after I've run some quick errands...?" Her voice sounded astonishingly normal. Like the world wasn't upending around her, like it wasn't extraordinary how different everything had become - only half a season into the new year. When Maea said she wanted change, she'd had no idea how literally the forces of the universe would take her.
Tell the tales of the trail of dead Lovers learned from slower hands
Friends did do that. A friendly outing doing friend things would no doubt be just what the doctor ordered. Only if that was the case, why was his mouth suddenly dry and his palms suddenly sweaty? "Great!" Liam said, perhaps slightly too quickly. "We can meet here, and go from there, if that works for you." Maybe she had somewhere else in mind; Liam would gladly make any variation of their plans worked.
It was strange to be considering sightseeing after their hunt. It felt like they'd been searching for months, but it had only been a few weeks. If Liam felt this strange about it, he could only imagine how Maea must feel. Her quest was complete. She'd finished her task. Liam had always enjoyed checking off boxes, but there was also a certain melancholy that tended to accompany the completion of any big project. After all, what was one to do now that their primary goal was finished?
The good news was that they did have plans to pursue after the delivery of the rose, and until they'd returned from Torchline, he supposed they had earned the time to relax.
