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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!
What, you might ask, causes the Theocrat of the Hollowed Grounds to be out in the middle of the desert at Leafchange, alone and seemingly without any supplies on hand? The answer, as you might expect, is shitfuckery. What had started as a general sweep over the Greatwood on the wings of a gore crow (he'd heard some shenanigans had happened there and that the void had vacated the forest) had turned into curiosity toward the north, where the thermals seemed toastier.
And upon arriving to scrubland and sand and blessed, shimmering heat, Danta had shifted back onto two legs to properly enjoy it. That, of course, is when he'd first spotted the gourd. Having seen them before - having preyed on one in truth - it takes a second, but he's sure that this one seems the same but different. Maybe it's the weird hovering in place. Or the glowing eyes. Or the writhing shadows that seem to be spiralling out from it.
Either way, colour Danta intrigued.
if we're in love or if we're in pain?
Code blatently stolen from queen of codes, Sky!
Horns: Diamond - they look very similar to #2 in this image.
On one of her final pilgrimages of the season (she hoped at least, because gods it was a dull thing to do), Flora had just left the boneyard when she'd come across a rather adorable-looking gourd. With Fangorn as her only real encounter with gourds, vampire or otherwise, she'd squatted down to pet the thing, only to have it try and take a chomp out of her hand, subsequently making off with the signet ring
"Oh no you don't!" Hot on the gourd's heels come Torchline's queen, a feather dagger already in one hand and another protruding harmlessly out of the sand. Flushed and looking quite furious, it takes a moment for Flora's gaze to register that she and the gourd were no longer alone.
"It took my ring!" She yells at Danta, pointing with her dagger toward the gourd before flinging the blade at it.
My house of stone, your ivy grows
And now I'm covered in you
Having been considering trying to pounce on the weird possessed gourd (or funsies, if nothing else), Danta is luckily saved from his bad decisions by the consequences of Flora's, her cry reaching him across the sand and causing him to promptly look around. Flinching automatically at the sight of the feather dagger she holds aloft - she's deadly with them and he's seen it in action too many times to know he doesn't want it turned on himself - his gaze drops down to the fleeing pumpkin and her words suddenly make a lot more sense.
"Oh!" he says helpfully, turning with a flourish and raising his hand to conjure a veritable wall of fire between himself and the tricksy creature. Either the gourd will be forced to alter its course - hopefully into the path of Flora's dagger - or they're about to dine on roasted pumpkin this afternoon. Herding prey is a different set of skills to what he's used to, granted, but he's quite enjoying himself.
if we're in love or if we're in pain?
Code blatently stolen from queen of codes, Sky!
Horns: Diamond - they look very similar to #2 in this image.
Not terribly smart and having not really evolved with any sort of self preservation, the gourd rolls right into Danta's wall of flame. For a moment nothing happens, though given that it is Leafchange and the gourds have begun to dry out, quickly it bursts into flames after rolling only another few feet or so. It's enough time for Flora to catch up, halting at the blonde's side in an effort to catch her breath. "Little...fucker.." She pants, waiting for the Maverick to release his hold on his fiery wall. Much as the queen was inclined to give the gourd a good kick, she couldn't risk her ring being flung across the hard-pack where she'd likely never see it again.
Holding up a hand to recall her blades, Flora shoots a crooked grin over her shoulder at Danta once she's able to breathe a touch more easily. "Good thing I ran into you or I'd probably be chasing that thing still." She chuckles, sliding all but one dagger back into her belt. "What're you doing out here?"
My house of stone, your ivy grows
And now I'm covered in you
Dutifully letting go of the fiery wall once Flora is beside him and the gourd is smouldering away, motionless at his feet, Danta tilts his head down at the gourd and then back up to the one he'd been having a stand off with - only to find that it's disappeared. Which doesn't bode well for Flora's question, but luckily he hadn't been interested by it for all too long. "At least you didn't get near a sand dune where it could start rolling downhill," he agrees, toeing the cooked pumpkin. "You, uh... want to get your ring back?"
As for himself, the Maverick glances over his shoulder towards his already fading footprints in the golden sands. "...I got distracted," he says, to the surprise of no one. "I heard someone had cleared out the Greatwood, so I was flying over it when I caught the warmth on the air. I didn't realise the desert was this close. What about you?" Presumably she hasn't been chasing the gourd from Torchline. He hopes, anyway.
if we're in love or if we're in pain?
Code blatently stolen from queen of codes, Sky!
Horns: Diamond - they look very similar to #2 in this image.
"Gods, I might have just given up if that was the case." Flora admits with a grin. Though she went for runs often enough on Torchline's hot sands, there was something oppressive about the desert's dry heat that had her gasping for air in a way she wasn't used to.
Grimacing at the mushy remains of the gourd, the queen sinks down onto her heels, using the blade of her dagger to try and push apart the orangey goo. Glancing up at the Maverick through her bangs, the blonde bounces her eyebrows suggestively. "That someone was me," she purrs before looking back to the gourd. Spying her ring, she flicked it onto the sand before reaching into her pocket for something to clean it with.
"Oh, I was just in the boneyard doing Accepted things." Flora murmurs with a shrug. "We have to do, like, pilgrimages? and visit all the shrines all over the continent." It was lame and arduous, but if it kept the gods answering her (literal) prayers when she needed them, who was she to complain?
My house of stone, your ivy grows
And now I'm covered in you
One queen's oppressive is another theocrat's delightful, or so the saying probably goes; as such, Danta can only grin and shrug his shoulders to Flora. "If you'd run into me and asked nicely, I'd have tried to track it down for you. On the wing, mind. I don't run unless my life's in danger." As she will have experienced personally.
Scrunching his nose as she goes poking around in pumpkin guts to retrieve her ring, Danta crouches beside her as well, offering out a suspiciously clean and pressed handkerchief for her to clean it off. (If you guessed that it doesn't belong to him, you'd be correct). "Pilgrimages? Sounds fun, if you're into that sort of thing. D'you always leave offerings to the same god?"
He knows Accepted have their preferences, but surely it pays to keep all of the deities sweet. Lucky for Danta, there's only one goddess in his life - the best one, if you ask him.
if we're in love or if we're in pain?
Code blatently stolen from queen of codes, Sky!
Horns: Diamond - they look very similar to #2 in this image.
Snickering under her breath at that, Flora arches a brow. "I always ask nicely," she purrs, before glancing over the Maverick's shoulder. "I take it that means Asta isn't with you?" No doubt Danta wouldn't be as keen to go flapping off if his ornithobic boyfriend was around.
Accepting the handkerchief without suspicion, Flora wipes at the ring—and then her fingers—before handing it back with a hum of thanks. "I guess? I just do it so that they keep showing up when I need them." She explains with a casual shrug; case in point, the fact that Safrin and Rae had appeared and saved her ass in the Greatwood not long ago. "Uhh, I do for Safrin. The only other god I might consider is one of the Frey's, and they don't seem the sort to actually care." There was a bit of family politics involved, but never mind.
Slipping her ring onto her finger and giving the gourd a grimace just for good measure, Flora stands. "You know? I think I hate the desert." She decides, planting her hands on her hips and glancing around at the miles and miles of nothing.
My house of stone, your ivy grows
And now I'm covered in you
Nodding a little in agreement, though he does have to rack his brain for a second, he'll admit that Flora does usually phrase her requests nicely. The requests themselves might not be as gentle, of course (see Danta falling out of a tree to get seed ghosts), but the asking is. "Hm? No, not today. I wanted to check the Greatwood out before we tried exploring on foot," he explains, though his eyes do flick automatically over his shoulder as if expecting the familiar tall shadow to be there.
"Sounds like a fair trade, even if you do have to haul yourself out to the ass end of nowhere." He grins; he might do the same himself, if he had the ability to call down literal gods for assistance. (Well, one god in particular, given his nature). "You do?" He laughs at that, clearly not feeling the same loathing for the rippling heat and dry air. "I'll not ask if you want to keep exploring with me, then. Oh - but make sure you find time to come to the Grounds next season, yeah? It's Asta's birthday."
And yes, Danta will be throwing a celebration. And no, the butcher doesn't know about it.
if we're in love or if we're in pain?
Code blatently stolen from queen of codes, Sky!
Horns: Diamond - they look very similar to #2 in this image.
"Ah, well. If you do go, remember to be nice to the trees. If you're rude, they'll just keep spitting you out of the woods and you'll never get to see the really interesting parts." Flora explains casually, as if sweet talking a few oaks and pines was as obvious advice as saying to run from the sight of dragons.
"Right? Especially with my compass. Getting here is a bit of a pain, but at least I can disappear home again." So saying, she pulls said compass out of her bag with a grin. "Yeah, sorry. There's really not much to see. Not compared to the Greatwood, anyway." Sure, call her biased, but this was also a boring fucking desert, and as no part of Flora was predatory in nature, there was nothing of interest here for her.
"Gasp!" Flora's blue eyes light up, her head immediately nodding. "Gods I wouldn't miss it." And, now that the three of them had sorted their shit out and were all back to being friends, she absolutely wouldn't.
"I'll see you soon, okay?" Raising her eyebrows, her parting remark more a warning that she was liable to show up at the Dusklight one of these days, Flora rises onto her toes to press a kiss against the Maverick's cheek, before pushing the button on her compass and disappearing.
~FIN
My house of stone, your ivy grows
And now I'm covered in you
