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Character of the Season
Once known as the Butcher of Whitebrim, he's now The Butcher of Dygra, stepping forward as the first created demigod of the Ancients. There is no question that Astaroth casts an intimidating silhouette. Tall, domineering and dangerous, if looks could kill you'd be dead already, but to get up close and personal with the Grounds' resident cannibal tells a much different story. Dripping with charm and clad in only the finest attire, Asta is a gentleman monster, as polite as they come and committed to his role as security for the Dusklight and those who have earned his loyalty. Be careful of that smile, though - those teeth are sharp.
Congratulations, Asta!
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!
angel loves to keep me spinning, much too high to see that all these chains have started thinning & hell is breaking free
The sun has returned and with it, a new vigor to finish what was started last year. The posts are a little weathered from the snow and rainstorms of the previous seasons, but they remain in enough shape to create the bones for where the river would go. Partial bits cleared out from the animals remain empty and the ground now soft and wet with the water from the snow that’s melted and soaked into their roots. In theory, it should be easy to move the trees and larger bushes that remain, to carve out the rest of the space for the river in a slow decline to help it flow better.
So, he’s sent out letters to those that would join him, one to Nova and one to Jack, and Sunjata waits with warm coffee and anything to spike them (and edible glitter to help Nova feel a little more excited about the prospect), with a wagon he leans against. In a box hanging off the side of it sit tools that may be necessary if anyone tires of using their magic or shifts, but the majority of the wagon is there to hold dirt or any trees they don’t want to plant around the river but relocate somewhere else.
And with the morning fog beginning to fade out, Sunjata waits patiently for his company to arrive to help him.
PQ RQ for relocating the trees and shrubs where the river will go! Please post your characters arriving!
every choice, every lie, demons that he kept inside angel now that i've stopped spinning, could you come clean?
No permission needed for power play!
Feel free to use magic/force on Sunjata, without killing him <3
Sunjata speaks with an Australian accent and has a passive magic that makes him produce a subtle scent that matches exactly to whatever those around him most desire him to smell like.
The best way to predict the future is to create it.
Nova is perhaps a little less than thrilled to be summoned when she'd had plans to be in Halo this season. It means she'll have to delay her trip another day or two when she'd really been looking forward to spending time with someone who won't judge her for wanting to - *gasp* - practice. Sunjata's letter had made it sound important though, and she resigns herself to helping... 'move tress'? She's not really sure what he means by that, but she figures her magic will probably be of some help in one way or another.
Not really wanting to ruin a cute outfit in the dirt and mud of melting snow, Nova wears a pair of thigh high tan boots with gold trim and accents beneath her jeans and brown leather jacket. It keeps out the lingering chill, her blonde and green curls tucked tight around her neck like a scarf. The bunch of her shoulders hides some of the disquiet in her when Nova arrives to meet the group.
Blue eyes glitter when she inhales a deep breath through the fog, a smile growing across her face when she looks at Sunjata. "Is that coffee?"
Time, it appears, is a commodity for everyone this season, and Jack is no exception. The crew of The Ark are hard at work after Longnight ensuring that she's in good working order and that the snow and ice haven't caused any problems in need of repair before they set off, and Murphy is out in the Castaway Exchange to tie up any business loose ends. This gives the Captain the couple of hours necessary to fulfil an agreement he'd made with the Archon, despite his no longer planning to be in the region to benefit from it immediately.
He arrives in his Kingmaker Coat with a scarf knotted loosely around his neck and a combination of earth and water magic peeling away any mud that tries to splatter against his legs and across his boots. Seizing a coffee and spiking it, he raises his cup in a toast before gesturing around at the sorry looking would-be riverbed "This seems cheerful," he rumbles. "Tell me where you need me - I'm on a tight schedule."
Jack is here!
romancing yourself is possible, narcissistic and recommended
angel loves to keep me spinning, much too high to see that all these chains have started thinning & hell is breaking free
They begin to arrive, and were it not for Nova’s glitter, the event might be truly dismal. But as the hybrid approaches and the smile blooms on her face as she looks at him and asks if it’s coffee, he shoots her a grin and a nod. “Yup. And a variety of glitter you can add to it if you want some extra sparkle.” Let it be known Sunjata knows who he’s working with, especially in this instance as Jack arrives and promptly spikes his coffee.
He lifts his plain cup in the toast to Jack with that same crooked grin. “Sure, let’s go with that.” He says with a laugh about the sarcasm that leaves the Captain’s lips. “Alright, so the plan is to move the trees out of the way and to adjust the height of the river so it’ll flow.” Gesturing with his freehand to the sorry mess of where the river would be, Sunjata takes a moment to down the rest of the coffee.
“So I was thinking, Nova, with your earth magic maybe you could move the trees out of the way. And Jack, with your earth and water magic, maybe you could flatten it and smooth it out?” The suggestion comes before he’s realizing he hasn’t explained what he would do. “I’ll take the lead and roughly carve out the main river sections and tell ya which trees need to be pulled. Any questions?” He asks, setting the cup on the edge of the wagon before clasping his hands together and stepping into the center of where the river would go and shifts to his storm dragon shift, clawed feet flexing in the moist earth as if testing it, before he’s starting to carve out the baseline and points out a few of the trees for Nova to get started moving out of the way.
Round 1!
Nova, you’re moving trees out of Sunjata’s way!
Jack, you’re gonna come behind Sunjata and flatten the riverbed he’s making with a low decline so the river will flow smoother!
No post order <3
every choice, every lie, demons that he kept inside angel now that i've stopped spinning, could you come clean?
No permission needed for power play!
Feel free to use magic/force on Sunjata, without killing him <3
Sunjata speaks with an Australian accent and has a passive magic that makes him produce a subtle scent that matches exactly to whatever those around him most desire him to smell like.
A flash of colour draws the eye upward to a nearby tree, where a Dream Bird perches among the branches. Its feathers shimmer softly, hues shifting with each small movement.
The bird tilts its head, releasing a gentle trill that seems to linger longer than sound should, echoing faintly in the mind rather than the air. It ruffles its feathers contentedly, clearly at ease.
For now, it remains where it is, watching the world below with bright curiosity, perfectly content to perch and sing.
Dream Bird
Areas Found: Hollowed Grounds, King's End, Stormbreak — Uncommon
The dream bird is a small bird with 6 pairs of wings and is coloured an array of bright blues, yellows, reds, pinks and purples. It has a red beak with sharp teeth and pure white eyes; truly a horror to behold. A dream bird typically builds its nest high up in a tree on the outskirts of a city where it can hide from the townsfolk but still mess with their dreams. If you can find a nest and leave out food for the bird living there, they might take a liking to you and give you nice dreams. Should you try and chase them away, you can expect nightmares.
Challenge Rating: Easy
P: 88 | To Hit: +30 | Dmg: 10 Movement: Fly 50 ft.; Perch/Climb 20 ft.
SPECIAL SKILLS
Dreamweave: subtly influences nearby sleepers, gifting pleasant dreams or sowing nightmares; Favour Trade: if fed at its nest, may choose to bless the feeder with restful, happy dreams; Spiteful Reprisal: when harassed or driven off, targets offenders with recurring nightmares; Silent Drift: near-soundless wingbeats make it difficult to detect overhead
TRAITS
Multi-Winged Flight: twelve wings grant agile, hovering manoeuvres and sudden bursts; Nest-Edge Sentinel: prefers high nests on city outskirts, observing without being seen; Predatory Beak: sharp, tooth-lined beak despite small size; Nocturnal Meddler: most active at night, slipping between windows and dreams
ACTIONS
Lullaby Trill: a soft, rippling song that coaxes uneasy minds toward calm sleep; Night Terror Screech: a jagged cry that sparks anxiety and nightmare visions in light sleepers; Feather Flurry: a sudden buffet of wings to startle and blind a pursuer; Swoop Peck: darts in with its sharp beak to deter threats before wheeling away
The best way to predict the future is to create it.
The mention of glitter immediately lifts her reluctance for being there, a new shine entering her otherwise dampened mood. She accepts the cup with an appreciative wink to the Archon and clamps her hands around the warmth after dumping a heap of glitter (and sugar) into the coffee. "I knew I liked you for a reason," she chirps. As if in response, a dream bird sings back. Nova calls back with a delighted giggle, wondering if they plan to watch them work.
She nods Jack's way when he arrives, granting him a familiar smile as she sips on her drink, but then Sunjata's giving instructions. Her attention is slightly more focused than it might have been before, taking the task and responsibility seriously.
By the time he finishes, Nova has already picked the first tree to tackle, a tall leafy thing in the path of their eventual river. "Got it!" she calls, the coffee already bleeding into her energy reserves like carbonation in a rushing current. Her feet fly forward in an excited skip, her magic answering the call even while her hands are occupied by the coffee she holds.
The roots of the tree run deep, but Nova sends her magic deeper, shifting the earth around it to push and guide the massive structure out of the way. The effort is more than she might have expected, but she takes another sip of her coffee and plants her feet, determination grounding into the earth until it churns and rumbles, the tree crawling through like legs through a current towards its new destination.
Nova uses her earth magic to guide trees out of the way!
Earth Manipulation (Abandoned/Hybrid): Can create and control earth within a 30ft radius.
Type: Grey | Rank: Mastered | Cost: Action
The dream bird is an unexpected addition, but while Nova is typically delighted by the its appearance, Jack merely glances in its direction before sipping again at his spiked coffee. He nods towards the hybrid as well in greeting, by which time Sunjata is well on his way to explaining their first task. The Captain's gaze drifts this time towards the riverbed-to-be, and he gives a curt nod, already moving towards the mounds of earth and clustered trees.
"A'right, let's get it done," he rumbles, stationing himself a few feet back from the enormous dragon the Archon shifts into. It would be his pleasure to come behind Sunjata (wink wonk), and as the procession begins, he taps into the most - and least - utilised elements at his disposal.
Manipulating the earth in Sunjata's wake, it flattens out bit by bit before Jack draws the water away from it to dry it out, sending it in rivulets down the sides of the bank where it won't get in their way.
Jack flattens the riverbed in Sunjata's wake with a combination of earth and water magic!
Water manipulation (Abandoned/Hybrid): Can create and control water within a 30ft radius.
Type: Light | Rank: Mastered | Cost: Action
Earth Manipulation (Abandoned/Hybrid): Can manipulate natural earth within a 30ft radius. Control is excellent.
Type: Grey | Rank: Upgraded | Cost: Action
romancing yourself is possible, narcissistic and recommended
angel loves to keep me spinning, much too high to see that all these chains have started thinning & hell is breaking free
A quiet laugh leaves Sunjata to hear Nova’s chirp, biting his tongue from saying don’t tell your mother. Luckily, though, the work they descend into takes over any easy bantering, and as Sunjata shifts he notices the dreambird as it trills out to them. Casting a glance toward it in his draconic shift, the Heartless gets to work – talons carving out the main bed of the river, and as Nova takes the lead, trees start to move to the river’s edges.
From behind, Jack’s magic works perfectly to start flattening the churned-up earth in a gradual decline, allowing for water to flow through it nice and slow. Sunjata continues on, carving and churning up the ground. Ahead of him, Nova will find a shrub that creeps along the edge of the river, but the roots extend out toward the middle of where the river is headed. Jack, however, will find in the ground that Sunjata’s tilled, a few larger rocks can either be used to flatten and bolster the edges or be removed completely.
Round two!
Nova encounters a shrub that has deep roots that go toward the middle of the river.
Jack, there’s some large rocks Sunjata’s uncovered that can be used to either bolster the edges or be removed completely!
No post order <3
every choice, every lie, demons that he kept inside angel now that i've stopped spinning, could you come clean?
No permission needed for power play!
Feel free to use magic/force on Sunjata, without killing him <3
Sunjata speaks with an Australian accent and has a passive magic that makes him produce a subtle scent that matches exactly to whatever those around him most desire him to smell like.
The best way to predict the future is to create it.
Holding her glittery coffee in hand, Nova lets her eyes guide her magic. The way she stands and stares at them until they move makes it seem almost like she's intimidating them to get up and move on their own. The earth shifts around them like they're wading through water, trying to escape her scrutiny.
The first shrub she tries to move proves to be more stubborn than the trees. She tugs against the plant, urging the earth to shove it out of the path, but it stays firmly in place despite her forceful persuasion.
Nova grinds her teeth and spreads her magic farther than before, moving more earth than she ever has, trying to encompass the roots she can't see.
Nova moves the stubborn shrub with earth magic.
Earth Manipulation (Abandoned/Hybrid): Can create and control earth within a 30ft radius.
Type: Grey | Rank: Mastered | Cost: Action
Unlike Nova, anyone looking at the Captain would not be blamed for assuming he isn't using any magic at all, and is merely on a strange little stroll through a developing riverbed being led by a colossal dragon. He continues to sip at his coffee, his coat fluttering at his heels, and the earth flattens out before his feet ever touch it. Ahead, however, he does notice the few larger rocks protruding out from the ground, slowing his steps to consider them.
Removing them without giving them a use feels like a waste of valuable energy, so he opts to concentrate his power on the boulders to guide them towards the banks of the river. Once there, he uses further magic to carve places for them to sit without encroaching into the water too much, seeming satisfied with their placement.
The detour means he's got some catching up to do, but he's sure Sunjata would prefer this than to have people ironically injure themselves in a healing river.
Jack uses the rocks to bolster the edges of the river!
romancing yourself is possible, narcissistic and recommended
angel loves to keep me spinning, much too high to see that all these chains have started thinning & hell is breaking free
As Nova works against a stubborn shrub with roots that seem to go on for days, her earth magic churns the ground before Sunjata reaches it. Eventually, it gives, and with the help of more of her earth magic it begins to shove off to the side of the riverbank where she can set it back up again to thrive with the water from the river so it doesn’t need to go too far away. Or, if it’s offended her beyond repair, she can choose to place it further away.
For Jack and the boulders he’s encountered, the Captain’s magic makes quick work of moving them into their own spots, creating a kind of stony boundary for the stones that have been smoothed and weathered over time.
Sunjata continues to dig, however, carving out the sections of the river in his shift to ensure they have a space for the river to go. The sun continues to move and they continue to keep up the pace, a little train of workers creating the baseline of the river.
Everything continues to go smoothly until Nova encounters a willow tree sat in the river’s soon to be location, which might make for a cute breezy tree on the river bend if she chooses to move it to the edges. Regardless of what they decide, Sunjata and Jack continue their work, stumbling across an unmarked grave that Sunjata digs into unaware, leaving him to pause and carefully try to pluck it all out to be reburied elsewhere not in the middle of the river.
And without making it obvious, because it is Jack’s secret, he thinks toward the Captain with a quiet little request that he might fill the deeper hole he’s just dug to try and even it out.
Round 3!
Nova’s encountered a willow tree. Does she put it on the edge of the river bend or does she move it out of the way entirely?
Sunjata’s encountered an unmarked grave he’s dug out and he silently thinks toward Jack to ask him if he can fill the hole he’s made!
ALMOST THERE GUYS, LETS KEEP ON DIGGIN’. No post order <3
every choice, every lie, demons that he kept inside angel now that i've stopped spinning, could you come clean?
No permission needed for power play!
Feel free to use magic/force on Sunjata, without killing him <3
Sunjata speaks with an Australian accent and has a passive magic that makes him produce a subtle scent that matches exactly to whatever those around him most desire him to smell like.
The best way to predict the future is to create it.
The shrub has certainly offended Nova, daring to stand in her path with more strength and stubbornness than any of the giant trees she's moved thus far. Its roots are deeper and uglier than the rest, tangling where they don't belong and refusing to move without an act of god powerful earth magic. But she does finally manage to rip the shrub from its place in the ground, shoving it so far away that she hopes it dies of thirst when Longheat comes.
Drying some of her sweat with a gentle gust of wind, Nova takes another sip of coffee and refocuses on the path before her.
A giant willow stands tall and proud in the center of the soon-to-be-riverbed. Its towering branches are turning green with life, leaves dangling like beads that rustle in the breeze. She wonders if there are flowers waiting to blossom when the weather warms, and she imagines that it would be a beautiful piece of colorful shade when people are floating down the river.
Ever the artist at heart, Nova takes a deep breath and lets her vision take form, carefully guiding the willow tree up along the side where it can hang like a romantic curtain over the water at the bend in the river.
Nova puts the tree JUST AROUND THE RIVERBEEEND!!!
Earth Manipulation (Abandoned/Hybrid): Can create and control earth within a 30ft radius.
Type: Grey | Rank: Mastered | Cost: Action
Having used some of the churned up earth in Sunjata's wake to even out the ground where he'd relocated the boulders, by the time Jack catches up to dragon and hybrid, he's just about finishing his coffee and turning up his collar against a sharp breeze. Ahead he can see Nova hard at work still, feeling his own magic start to wick against his energy with sustained use, but he's got enough to see this through.
The request comes filtering through his telepathy like something gravelly whispered into his ear, making him flinch just ever so slightly, the Captain not used to people utilising his abilities this way so much any more. But he spies the unmarked grave and the deeper hole left in its wake, approaching it to try to fill the space with more dirt and earth.
He has to manoeuvre it from the banks of the river a bit (not yet having the ability to create earth), which might leave a gentle but quirky little jut around the bend, but it's enough to pack the gravesite and leave it flattened and innocuous along the riverbed. "That should do it," he mutters, picking up his pace to continue after the Archon in his dragon shift.
Jack fills the hole left by the unmarked grave!
romancing yourself is possible, narcissistic and recommended
angel loves to keep me spinning, much too high to see that all these chains have started thinning & hell is breaking free
The willow tree stands tall and proud, and as Nova reaches out with her earth magic to start to shove it over toward the side, she’ll find it goes surprisingly willingly. Perhaps, it’s because it knows she isn’t going to remove it completely from where the water would go, but instead places it in a space where its roots would constantly be watered and healthy, allowing for that pretty shade on the riverbend. And when she’s done, the leaves seem to sigh with some sense of relief.
As for Sunjata and Jack, the grave itself is exhumed and Sunjata takes a break in churning the ground to give it a proper place to sit. And upon his return, a snort of a sound as close to a thanks leaves the dragon for Jack’s help in covering the gravesite enough that it isn’t going to cause a steep drop off or additional pooling.
Things start to get smoothed out from there – everyone working in tandem and moving little things here and there and the ground flattening in that slow decline with the help of Jack’s magic. And before they know it, the flags that have marked the river’s end start to become visible. Exhaling a sigh of relief to see it, Sunjata calls out ahead to Nova. Hey Nova, maybe you can finish up the river in the shape of a pond? He’s not an artist like she is, but he thinks she’d get the gist of what he’s asking for. And from behind, Sunjata will help carve out whatever else she needs while Jack smooths it out for the last of their task.
Round 4! LAST ONE
Everything’s gone super smooth for the rest of the river’s spot and now we’re heading toward the end point!
Nova please make a cute rounding off point that could be a pretty pond. Sunjata and Jack will come in and do the finishing details!
No post order!
every choice, every lie, demons that he kept inside angel now that i've stopped spinning, could you come clean?
No permission needed for power play!
Feel free to use magic/force on Sunjata, without killing him <3
Sunjata speaks with an Australian accent and has a passive magic that makes him produce a subtle scent that matches exactly to whatever those around him most desire him to smell like.
