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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!
you wouldn't be the first renegade to need somebody
"—not that I’m stupid enough to come alone," Flora says, her voice a low echo against the damp, pulsing walls. Her curls are swept up in a braid, frizzing around her ears despite the chill, and her sweater—cream knit with threads of gold—catches the violet glow in strange, ghostly ways. "But I had to see what’s down here, especially after everything the Family put me through, y'know?"
Her boots crunch over a crust of crystallized fungus, brittle and bleeding light beneath the tread. The air tastes metallic and wrong, heavy with something that clings to her tongue like a threat. She doesn’t lean on the walls, doesn’t touch anything, just threads carefully between a ribcage big enough to belong to a whale and something much smaller, all of it rotting sweet and sharp.
"Anyway," she adds lightly, glancing over her shoulder at Callum with a grin that’s too bright for the gloom, "thanks for being my +1 to hell’s terrarium."
Callum can't say he particularly understands the rather macabre desire to explore Starfall. In his opinion, someone who'd been through as much as Flora had should steer clear of further trauma, but who is he to judge? He's been paid handsomely to be here, so here he is. And even if he wasn't - well, it always pays to have friends in high places, and who better to owe him a favor than the Queen of Torchline?
Bioluminescent fungi light the way as they descend into the mouth of hell, accompanied by the scent of something sickly sweet and rotting, interspersed with the tang of old blood. Callum picks his way through the gloom, careful not to touch anything. He's dressed in simple dark attire suited for combat and carries a loaded crossbow - just in case. One can never be too careful, especially after everything he's heard about the Void and the Family.
"What, you thought I'd let my invisible friend come down here without backup?" Callum says, shooting a grin towards Flora. "You wound me."
you wouldn't be the first renegade to need somebody
Flora chuckles, the sound a husky note of warmth against the cave’s chill. "You know," she murmurs, stepping over the tattered remains of a leather boot with its foot still inside, "I was starting to wonder if you'd figure out that it was me that day on the beach." Her grin flashes quick and crooked as she glances his way, curls haloing her face in the lavender light. "I'm glad you did."
She lifts one hand with a flourish, fingers waggling in a loose, lazy arc to indicate the various rings on her slender fingers. "Lucky for you," she says, eyes bright, "I’ve got a healing touch." If he did truly find himself wounded, by her words or anything else, the queen was quite sure she could make it up to him.
It’s teasing, lighthearted, but there’s tension beneath it. The kind that coils between footsteps and hums under skin. Ahead, something groans—a slow, slithering drag of weight across stone, too heavy for anything small. Flora stills. Her hand drops back to her side, fingers brushing the hilt of a feathered blade. "...Did you hear that?" she asks, all levity draining from her tone, her body stilling like prey scenting the wind. The tunnel dips again, darkness pooling like water where the violet light no longer reaches.
Callum stalks forward, stepping around the remains of what appear to be a woman, if he was guessing based on clothing and jewelry - though he supposes he shouldn't make assumptions. Either way, they're very dead. No more than bones, really, though at least they're so decomposed that they no longer smell. Not that it particularly helps the stench of the Descent.
In any case, he snorts lightly. "I'd be very bad at my job if I couldn't figure it out." He shoots her a grin, his gaze catching on the rings she flaunts. If he was a betting man, he would put money on one of those being the secret to Flora's invisibility that day on the beach.
Whatever Callum is about to say in return dies in his throat as he tenses, sensing the same thing that Flora apparently does. He readies his crossbow. "Yeah," he says, a sharpness in his voice that hasn't been there so far on this little excursion. "Something's coming."
you wouldn't be the first renegade to need somebody
Flora opens her mouth, breath hitching with the beginning of a quip—something about whether being good at his job includes groping invisible girls on beaches—but the sound from ahead snaps her jaw shut like a trap. She holds still, breath caught in her chest, eyes narrowing as the gloom thickens around them. Bioluminescent light flickers along the tunnel walls like it’s reacting to something deeper, older, more wrong.
As Callum readies his crossbow, Flora doesn’t speak, insteading watching as the shadows shift again, slower this time, and then the air seems to fold.
Not loudly, not with a roar or shriek, but with a low, skin-prickling ripple like reality itself is shrugging something off. From the darkness ahead, a shape slithers into view, impossible to mistake for anything else. The serpent is massive, easily the length of three grown men laid head to toe, its slick, dark body glistening with a sheen that sucks in light instead of reflecting it. What might’ve once been rock-like camouflage is now layered in oily shimmer, corrupted by something void-born and starless.
It moves with eerie grace, wings twitching where its ears should be, useless but unsettling all the same. And then—it strikes. Fast as lightning, the serpent’s head darts toward Callum with its maw yawning open in a gaping, fanged grin, aiming to sink its void-tainted fangs deep into his side.
Shadow Serpent (Uncommon): Once a Rock Slider, the Shadow Serpent now moves with an eerie grace, its scales tainted by void energy. It lurks in the shadows, ambushing prey with a venom that induces hallucinations and despair.
Callum might have pointed out that he had hardly groped her, and that he wouldn't have touched her at all had she been visible (or, you know, maybe he would have - after all, Flora's hot), but with the appearance of something sinister slinking through the shadows, he'll never get the chance. He's ready for a fight before it appears, crossbow held at the ready. From the darkness up ahead, something emerges: something large, and long, and entirely cloaked in an oily blackness that sucks the life from the surrounding area. It moves towards the pair with a grace that belies its size.
And then, it strikes.
Callum is moving on instinct before he can even so much as take a breath, rolling to the side and out of the mammoth serpent's path. He comes up on one knee to aim and fire, the movement fluid and practiced, as though he's done this a thousand times before. And maybe he has - only not against a fucking Void snake triple his size. (He's going to have to demand a raise at this rate.) Then, rising hurriedly to his feet, he draws another bolt and begins to arm the crossbow once more, all the while moving away from the Void creature and its massive coils.
you wouldn't be the first renegade to need somebody
The bolt hits true—square in the serpent’s neck where scales shift and shimmer like oiled glass—but it might as well have been a pebble. The creature doesn’t falter. Doesn’t bleed. It simply shudders, adjusts, and keeps coming. "Great," Flora mutters, already reaching for a feathered dagger, assuming that this stupid snake was going to take a bit more effort to take down.
With a practiced flick of her wrist, she sends the blade spinning through the violet air. It sinks deep into the serpent’s flank, the impact punctuated by a metallic thnk and a burst of black ichor that sizzles where it touches the cavern floor. Still not enough.
The Shadow Serpent coils with a speed that betrays its size, muscles rippling beneath void-dark scales as it whips forward again. Its maw crashes into the stone where Callum was just moments ago, striking with such force that shards of glowing fungus rain from the ceiling. Flora ducks behind a crooked outcrop of rock, her heart hammering, breath held as the creature rears back and lets out a soundless hiss—like pressure being sucked from the room itself.
"Okay," she breathes, eyes darting to where Callum’s reloading, her aqua eyes sparkling with mischief. "You're gonna need to look a lot less cool while doing that if you want me to focus on the snake instead of you."
Fortunately for them both, Callum is cool under pressure. He doesn't even glance Flora's way as she calls out a mischievous compliment, although he does grin in reply. "Maybe that's the goal," he shouts over the soundless hiss of the Shadow Serpent. "'Daring mercenary ensnares beautiful queen' - makes for good publicity." He looses a second shot, then ducks behind Flora's outcropping, brushing his hair out of his eyes with one hand as he winks in her direction.
Then he's reloading again, the movements quick and efficient. Peering out from behind their rock, he marks the general vicinity of the snake. "Any chance you know where the damn thing's heart is?" he asks. "The quicker we take it down, the better." And the less likely it is to get off a strike that might hurt or kill either Callum or Flora - who he is, unfortunately, now honor-bound to protect, thanks to her coin in his pocket.
you wouldn't be the first renegade to need somebody
Despite the way the serpent’s hiss seems to pull the air from her lungs, Flora laughs—sharp and bright and entirely too delighted for someone hiding from a nightmare snake. "Oh, I love good publicity," she quips, crouching close enough behind Callum to peer around his shoulder. "That is until they find out I paid you to hang around with me and it all becomes a big scandal."
With a flick of her wrist, another dagger sings through the air, slicing past the violet glow to bury itself just below the serpent’s eye. It snarls—if that’s what the sudden, concussive silence is—and writhes violently, massive coils scraping along the tunnel walls in a screech of stone and scale.
"As for the heart," Flora adds, voice pitched with wry sarcasm as she ducks back behind cover, "let me just whip out my void-horror anatomy flip chart. Been keeping it in my bra, obviously." The rock they’re behind shudders as the serpent strikes again, missing by inches but cracking the stone with the force of the impact. Bits of bioluminescent lichen scatter like sparks, and Flora shields her eyes with one arm as she presses back against the wall, jaw tight.
"That," Callum says as he looses his next shot, his voice playful in spite of their grim circumstances. "Assumes that anyone ever finds out." He ducks back behind the rock. "Besides, what is it they say? Any publicity is good publicity?" Not sure he agrees with that, truth be told, but he has heard it said. As for the beast's heart, Callum snorts a laugh at the Doubletake's wry sarcasm. "Any time now, sunshine. I'd love for you to make my job easier."
The Serpent strikes again. Shards of rock rain down on them as the stone protecting them shudders and cracks. "If I die today, do me a favor and go into full mourning. Really get people talking." Then, with a wink, Callum darts to another collection of rocks, hoping to draw the Shadow Serpent's attention away from Flora. It is, after all, his literal job to protect her - and one that he's only doing a passable job at currently.
you wouldn't be the first renegade to need somebody
Flora snorts behind the rock, a breathless, incredulous sound laced with laughter. "Sunshine? Gods, are you talking to me or the snake?" she calls, grinning even as rubble dusts her hair and the walls shiver around them.
He winks, and she lets out a short huff—half warning, half fond exasperation—as he bolts for another cluster of stone. "Oh, don’t worry," she calls after him. "If you die today, I’ll mourn so hard. Black veil, dramatic tears, tell everyone you were a proper gentleman and the best lover I ever had."
As he draws the serpent’s attention, she rises into a half-crouch, waiting—watching. Its coils twist toward him, body sliding like ink across the cave floor, belly briefly exposed in the unnatural light. "C’mon, c’mon…" she whispers. Then she throws. The dagger slices through the air in a gleam of gold and steel, sinking deep into the soft seam of scaled underbelly just as the serpent twists. It lets out a soundless, psychic shriek—like a scream caught in the back of the mind—then rears back, body thrashing violently.
"I think I got it!" Flora shouts, raising one hand and yanking sharply—her blade ripping free from flesh with a wet, satisfying tear. The serpent surges toward Callum one final time, jaws wide and void-light gleaming between its teeth. But halfway through the lunge, it falters—convulses—and collapses mid-strike, its body crumpling in a lifeless, coiling heap at the mercenary’s feet.
"Mm, fair enough. Sunshine doesn't suit you." At least there is something to be said for Callum's sense of humor, which draws laughter from the queen even as rubble rains down around them. Then he's off, drawing the snake's ire as he darts behind another nearby pile of rock.
Leaning against the stone as he reloads his crossbow yet again, he snorts a laugh. "A gentleman?" he shouts over the sound of the serpent's coils sliding across the ground. "How dare you?" He manages to get off another shot - but only just - and it goes wide, earning a muttered curse as he ducks back behind the stone. The good news is that he has the snake's attention. But the bad news is that he has the snake's attention.
Then there's a sudden, soundless shriek, and a victorious shout from the queen; and just as the Shadow Serpent dives for Callum once again, it convulses, collapsing into a heap at his feet. The mercenary regards the snake coolly, then looks up at Flora, raising a brow at her. "Remind me why you needed me along?" he said with a grin. "Seems like you'd have been just fine without my daring altruism."
you wouldn't be the first renegade to need somebody
Flora laughs, breath puffing out in a huff as she rises from behind the shattered rock. "Nooo, sunshine is a new one," she admits, brushing bits of lichen from her sweater. "Usually I get some kind of flower." Y'know, because of her name. She casts Callum a sidelong glance, curls loosening from their braid and catching the violet light. "But if gentleman’s off the table, then yeah—sunshine suits me about as much as that suits you."
The serpent’s body is still twitching faintly when she strides past it, the last of its void-light dimming like a dying star. With a flick of her wrist, the daggers she’d thrown twist free from the carcass and zip neatly back to her hand. She tucks them away with casual grace, already stepping lightly over coils that still steam at the edges.
Callum’s grin earns a smirk in return. "If you’re so altruistic, you can hand back the payment in your pocket," she teases, chin lifting as she crosses toward him. "You’re here as snake bait, obviously. And I have to say—" she pats his shoulder with mock approval, "you were very convincing."
"Ah," he says, as though some new understanding has dawned on him. He bends to pluck a bolt from the still-twitching serpent's neck (?). "You need to hang around more creative folk. Flowers are so... uninspired." Besides, flowers are soft. Deadly, sometimes, sure, if you happen to pick the right ones. But they don't have any of the fire that Flora has thus far displayed, and that seems like a missed opportunity if ever there was one.
Maybe sunshine will stick, after all.
Cal moves to continue gathering the crossbow bolts, tucking them easily back into his quiver as he retrieves them. "Handy," he says of her daggers, eyeing them appreciatively. He really should appeal for something like that - maybe some arrows that return when called, or an enchanted quiver that never empties.
As for his altruism, his grin sharpens. "No wonder you were so vague on the details of the job," he says. "I'd have charged double to play snake bait. For the expert dramatics, of course."
