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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!
Once Flowerbirth had arrived, it had seemingly been an endless barrage of meetings, updates, and abysmal news and circumstances. And they felt no closer to any end goal in sight; instead, Deimos felt like they were always ten steps behind the pace of the Family nowadays. With Seren’s funeral, there’d been an instance for at least several of the leaders to discuss matters together, though he figured they’d all be reaching the same conclusion. Flowers and Starfall. The dilemma surrounding Ronin.
The finer details would and could be assembled and parsed together, and there were still inquiries, participation, and notions to be had and shared with the rest of them. Trusting Flora would be able to have enough security for their impending discourse, the Sword arrived with all the stoicism, forbearance, and fortitude stuck across his features, nodding to several patrons before taking his seat, and waiting for everyone else to make their way into the threshold.
what does it mean to look upon a ruin we are boneless. we are boiling hot blood.
Flora breezes through the Hanged Man with practiced ease, curls bouncing brightly over her shoulders and golden jewelry glittering defiantly in the dim lighting of her bar. Her expression brightens noticeably when she spots Deimos, even though the stoic shadow that always follows him seems particularly heavy today. She can’t blame him, honestly—between Seren’s funeral and the Family’s constant antics, everything’s been, well, a mess.
"Hey, Deimos," she greets, voice lively but laced with the tiniest hint of sympathetic exhaustion. Leaning casually against the polished bar top, she props one hand on her hip and gives him a tired smile. "So, Halo made it through LongNight, huh? That’s gotta count as a win." A small one, maybe negligible in the big scheme of things, but something, at least.
Straightening again, Flora sweeps a quick glance around the empty tavern, having kicked out all of her regulars an hour or so before. Spice sat poised by one of the windows, her frosty breath sending small cracks of ice across its surface as she continued her watch. "Can I get you something to drink while we wait for the others?"
Flexing like a goddamn acrobat Me and karma vibe like that
Spice would soon spy a familiar figure approaching the bar. The Tidebreaker was no stranger to the Hanged Man. He ducked his head beneath the lintel of the door with the ease of long practice and stepped into the dimmer light within. Demigod he might be, but the Flowerbirth humidity was not kind to his hair and so today it was tightly braided back, casting his serene features into harsher lines than usual.
Though perhaps the grief of multiple losses over LongNight had their part to play in that as well.
Seeing Deimos and Flora already arrived, Hadama nodded to both and made his way over to them. He took a chair at the table the Sword had chosen and settled gingerly into it before speaking. "Flora," he murmured in quiet greeting to his co-ruler, offering a ghost of what might have been a smile for her in spite of the dark tidings the new year had brought. The corners of his crinkled subtly before the brief light faded and he turned to the Warden with more solemnity. "Deimos. How is your family?" Were Evie and Erebos unscathed in the wake of so many other tragedies?
He arrives last, though not for the fact of not knowing where he was going – just trying to parse between everything that’s happened and currently still happening that seems to be nonstop since the sun rose. Heaving a small sigh as he steps through the entrance to the Hanged Man, he immediately drifts toward Flora with a smile of greeting, a nod to Spice, then to Deimos and Hadama.
“Sorry I’m late.” He’d already talked with Deimos, at least, so while the other man is busy answering questions, Sunjata leans against the edge of the bar, the flecks of grey in his hair brighter this time around than they had been previously. The mood itself was murkier, a darker, melancholic aura surrounds the inside of the bar and he's fairly certain they're all feeling the deep sting of the void at this moment.
rely a bit too heavily on alcohol & irony
BASE INSPIRED BY ODD <3
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.
He wasn’t left to his own devices for long, and he glanced upwards from his brooding convictions at the table to Flora, granting a nod and tilt of his head in acknowledgment. “Not unscathed, but yes. I think we need to count the successes when we can.” Especially now – though he made no mention or inquiry of how Torchline had fared. Seren’s death was enough of an indication – and along with several assaults in various regions, and with Halo’s destroyed springs, the ominous notes were clear.
Belial lurked outside, otherwise he likely would’ve tried to join the dragon along the window, and the Sword watched, somewhat with bemusement, as the other companion seemed intent on glossing over any ability to peer within. “No, thank you.” He wanted a clear mind for any upcoming discussions.
Hadama’s appearance came soon after, and he gave another nod of solemnity. “They are well.” He wouldn’t have been here otherwise. Evie could hold the fortifications and region while he was gone – her particular brand of ferocity would keep the masses together until he returned. “And thank you again for your help at the Citadel.” And perhaps the situation with the titan had given some strong indications of things, and plots, to come.
With Sunjata arriving, and having already put forth a discourse between the pair of them, he fought the urge to tap his fingers on the table, and instead, leaned back, steeling a breath. “I think we all need to discuss next steps, given how things are progressing.” Glancing between the lot of them, as everyone settled and sat, his jaw clenched. “Sunjata and I have already talked about going to Starfall. We need to retrieve void crystals for our regions anyway.” Pausing, and steeling another breath, he persisted. “There have been ideas floating around about doing so in teams of volunteers.” Perhaps they might have names or further notions. “And we would need more flowers.” In the simplest of terms. Flora had been the most successful of their lot, as far he knew, and they might all to eventually take her prior route in yielding to the Big Gods.
His eyes flicked briefly to the Flood, who had some more damning information to share, and then back to the group as a whole, leaving it wide open for any semblances to follow.
what does it mean to look upon a ruin we are boneless. we are boiling hot blood.
Nodding to Deimos’ offering of information, all things they’d already talked and planned about as the Sword indicates, his steel gaze flits to Hadama and Flora in turn – wondering briefly what their thoughts on it were, before he has to add on the additional portion of information that has his stomach curling. His jaw works briefly before he regards Flora and Hadama – because Deimos already knew and was there for all of that information and experiences that still harbored some amount of trauma.
"There’s more, too… Uh, so, after I got cleansed from the void in the springs, I can tell when people are infected.” Just in case they didn’t already know – because he’d done a decent job at trying to keep it quiet, he thinks. “That being said… Ronin… is infected. Recently, though I’m not sure when. He was fine up until I saw him at the festival before LongNight. So… Deimos and I had already been trying to figure out what the next steps were after Remi told me that he and Ronin would have to take a step back because of Dahlia’s threats.” Now, he isn’t sure how much of that is true or if it were Ronin’s infected state luring them away because they were strong and the Family was trying to take as many pieces off the board as possible.
“I just told Remi, so I’m not fully sure what the plan is yet, but we don’t really have a way to heal him yet because of the springs.” Gesturing to Deimos with a frown that deepens and tugs awkwardly on the scar tissue that bisects his cheek, the flood reaches up with a lightning scarred hand to rub tiredly at it. “And as an aside, I talked to Frey and the Refuge can’t be protected against the Family unless we get a vial of their blood.”
Sunjata realizes again and again that he hates always being the bearer of bad news.
rely a bit too heavily on alcohol & irony
BASE INSPIRED BY ODD <3
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.
Flora’s entire expression freezes at Sunjata’s words, her carefully maintained ease shattering instantly as shock—and something sharper, deeper—cuts through the calm mask she'd worn moments before. "Wait—what?" The words come out softer than intended, her voice suddenly feeling thick and distant, as if she'd said them underwater rather than in the warm, dim glow of her own bar. Her fingers tighten involuntarily around the edge of the polished counter, the knuckles of her ringed fingers going pale. "Gods. Fuck."
For a few beats of silence, Flora stares blankly down at the woodgrain, trying to make sense of what this actually means. Ronin, infected? Her thoughts churn furiously, confused and panicked, and for just a moment, she genuinely looks as young and scared as she feels.
Blinking rapidly, Flora shakes herself free from the initial shock and lifts her gaze again, swallowing hard as she nods in acknowledgment, carefully composing herself back into something resembling the poised queen she was supposed to be. "Okay, well.." she exhales roughly, voice steadier now, though still edged with a deep unease. "If he's infected maybe that makes what I wanted to say a little less crazy sounding."
She raises her chin slightly, shoulders straightening as she glances firmly between the demigods and Deimos. "I know it probably sounds crazy, but maybe someone should go talk to Dahlia again." Pausing, she glances between the three. "I mean..just look around. Jack and I were murdered for helping, Halo has been fucked over like crazy because of the hotsprings, and now Vox is sending us all messages as if they have everything in hand, and.." well, it seems like they do. "..they've now stolen a sword that has a chance of instant death when it's used, and now we're down two demigods if Ronin is infected. Three, counting Seren." Her voice strengthens with resolve, even if her eyes still carry a shadow of worry. "I just...what if all they actually want is to sit up in Stormbreak and let weird void animals roam around and to call this place home?" Almost certainly that wasn't it, but given how impossible it seemed winning was, surely knowing what was in store wouldn't be such a bad thing?
Flexing like a goddamn acrobat Me and karma vibe like that
It was a relief to hear that some, at least, had escaped the claws of LongNight. That Evie and Erebos were safe and well, and that Halo was in the Evergreen's capable hands while Deimos was away. Hadama inclined his head in acceptance of Deimos's gratitude but he stayed quiet as plans began to unfold. Some were familiar, while others were new to his hearing, and he nodded slow, silent acknowledgment at the need to go to Starfall, though he kept his thoughts to himself for the moment.
Sunjata's admission drew a curious look from the Tidebreaker that quickly turned to wide-eyed surprise as the imperturbable Mer King was, in fact, perturbed at the news that followed. Shock caused him to draw in a sharp breath, brow swiftly furrowing as Flora spoke for them both. For Ronin, one of Vi's own champions, to be turned...
Flora recovered more swiftly than he did, but the words that followed did nothing to assuage his concern. His brow furrowed more deeply, a frown joining it as she continued to speak, and a muscle in his jaw jumped as she mentioned Seren.
But he drew in a deep breath as she finished, and the shake of his head was once again slow and controlled as his features smoothed back into stoic neutrality. "Sunjata spoke to Dahlia," he pointed out, emerald gaze flicking to the Flood with a silent apology. "It did not end well for him. Dahlia has no reason not to infect anyone who swims into her grotto. And she has a great many reasons to infect any leader who tries."
He rested his hands on the table, fingers spread wide as he contemplated them for a moment before raising his head once more. "Safer to ask Safrin what she knows of their intentions. What she saw in the stars that sent her to face them far from here, first." His pause was somehow grimmer as he turned his head to share another glance with Sunjata. "There was a vision I was told of. Over a year ago. A dark god growing in Starfall's heart. One as strong as Vi, or Rae." His attention returned to Flora, trusting that Deimos and Sunjata had already figured out the direction things were heading. "The Old Gods will not tolerate another new god on Caido. There will be divine war again if we cannot stop the Family." And who knew what the consequences for the world would be this time. "Better that we find a way to destroy the sword before it can be used against us again." Against Flora, or anyone else they loved.
His jaw tightened and he turned back to the leaders of the other regions. "If we cannot rely on Remi and Ronin, then I will join you on Starfall. I am not their equal, but Deimos and I were effective against the titan." Hopefully their teamwork would continue to prove deadly against the creatures of the Void even on their home ground.
The news of Ronin reverberating again, and the notions that Remi now knew, still gave the Sword an inward grimace. “He could be healed by a Big God,” like Vi, for instance, if they could get to him into that sort of situation. It wasn’t entirely dire or hopeless –
Though, then he stilled, listening to Flora. He wasn’t quite capable of masking his bewilderment, or surprise, at her ideas – because for all she’d suffered through, she seemed quite willing to give herself up to the Family, and his eyes darted back and forth between every other leader. Echoing Hadama’s sentiments, Deimos swallowed down the confusion and turmoil for pragmatism, brows furrowed and mind striving to wrap his head around precisely what he wanted to say. “Given what they have already done to you, I cannot imagine it would go any better.” They didn’t know if Ronin’s abilities would work now, given the infection, and all the other probabilities potentially coerced through plague or death. And after all of this – was that what Flora wanted? "If that was all they craved, why would Safrin have gone to fight them off?"
The vision the Tidebreaker spoke of was the same and Sunjata had seen – and multitudes of others, first reported after the prophetic and damning means floated into their minds. “And based on that dream, I wonder if we are running out of time.” He tilted his head vaguely at the semblance of destroying the relic, sighing. “Which means we would have to find it, and its current owner.” And based on things he’d heard, wasn’t someone they’d yearn to cross.
But Hadama’s agreement meant one more to their party, and perhaps more of a chance of success. He nodded again, the uncertainty beginning to claw its way back into his ribs. “Thank you.”
what does it mean to look upon a ruin we are boneless. we are boiling hot blood.
Flora’s fingers tighten subtly around the edge of the bar, her expression smoothing back into something cool, composed—too composed for someone who had just been hit with the revelation that her father had been infected. But there’s a flicker of defiance beneath her bright blue gaze, something steady and unshaken, despite the tension curling in her chest.
"When I talked to Dahlia," she begins smoothly, pointedly, "it went perfectly fine." Her aqua eyes flick toward Sunjata, then Hadama, her brows arching slightly. "So maybe it’s about approach. You were trying to trick her by getting her into the Refuge, whereas when I asked to meet with her it was literally just to talk."
She leans forward, resting her elbows on the polished wood of the bar, her expression unreadable as she turns her gaze back to Deimos. "And...I mean, we all know what Safrin's like. The other gods definitely don't seem as bothered by the Family's presence as she does." Maybe Safrin was just being territorial; it certainly wouldn't be the first time. "You came from another land, right?" Flora tilts her head, studying Deimos carefully. And at first, you weren’t favored by the gods here either." He hadn't come with a plan to take over, no, but if anything it only underscored her point that sometimes what the gods did or didn't approve of wasn't a good basis for judgement.
She lets the words settle, watching as the implications sink in. She wasn’t saying the Family were good, or that they hadn’t done terrible things, but what if all of this fighting was just inevitable? What if the gods weren’t protecting them from the Family—what if they were protecting themselves?
Flora exhales slowly, shifting back, rolling her shoulders as if physically shaking off the weight of what she’d just said. "Look, I’m not saying we stop fighting. But if we take stock of how things have actually gone? It’s not great. We’ve had more deaths, more stolen artifacts, more losses than actual wins." Her gaze sweeps the room, steady, serious. "And since we aren't all immortal like you three, I'm just saying maybe it's worth trying to lay the grounds for a plan b."
Flexing like a goddamn acrobat Me and karma vibe like that
He can feel the reverberations of his announcement reflect in both Flora and Hadama’s reactions, and it causes his jaw to work slightly as he listens. Flora brings up a few points that already have his gut churning, lips parting briefly to speak before Hadama’s voice interjects and he glances toward the other leader with a quiet and solemn nod. “I’ll have to leave the talking to Safrin to you all.” For obvious reasons, if that’s the route they want to take.
Nodding to hear about the dream, it clicks in his mind as a recollection as well — one he might have had, though under the infection’s claws he thought nothing of it. Hadama explains it well enough, though, that he doesn’t seem to feel the need to add more.
Except for the dream Alys had mentioned, but before he can get there, Deimos and Flora are speaking again and his steel gaze flits between the two of them. “I invited her in willingly and we talked about relatively boring things when she infected me.” He adds on, a flare of annoyance not directed at Flora but instead at Dahlia. “And then I was told to pretend like everything was fine and to try and push their names into good light.” Sighing and spinning his wedding band with his thumb, he adds an additional tidbit. “I think the stakes have changed. If they can get all the powerful people, demigods, leaders under their hold then that solves their issue doesn’t it?” If there was no one to fight back, they’d be able to roll over everyone.
So they had to act before more of them got infected.
“There’s something else that might make it hard to lay out a plan B.” He drawls, glancing between Flora, Deimos, and Hadama. “One of my citizens had a vision. It was a starry night, but rather than stars in the sky, they were full of eyes.” He harbors the basis of believing it when he adds an additional, “Which I’m leaning on believing, given that when I look at those infected now, they have far too many eyes. And teeth. And tentacles.” Maybe it’s a coincidence, maybe it’s not.
But he draws quiet again, still spinning the ring on his finger as if to try to calm the raging thoughts in his head.
rely a bit too heavily on alcohol & irony
BASE INSPIRED BY ODD <3
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.
03-10-2025, 07:30 PM (This post was last modified: 03-10-2025, 09:42 PM by Hadama.)
Deimos made a good point, but if they knew which god had made the blade, perhaps they could petition them for a way to recall its power. It was an avenue to pursue later, as the conversation shifted back to Flora's marshaling of arguments. And to Sunjata's much different experience, and the most recent vision that had the Tidebreaker's breath pausing in his throat before he inclined his head in recognition. Information clicking into place with memory and history. "I have felt them," he agreed quietly with the Flood. "In Hak Etme. Every time I step onto the sand. We have already seen, repeatedly, that the Void seeks to expand. They have been pushed back in other regions. The desert may be next." Victories, neither small nor meaningless. They had been hard-fought and hard-won, and he would not diminish their cost or their importance.
But he recognized when Flora was digging her heels in. It was not the first time he had seen her do so, and he hoped it would not be the last – for a multitude of reasons.
But it was unfortunate that she had chosen this issue to champion.
He did not, however, contest her points outright. He knew her too well for that. The too-cool look in her eyes was familiar enough that he could sense she was prepared for a fight. Something she rarely did unless she had an ace up her sleeve. And so instead of refuting her points or offering counterarguments she could sink her teeth into he simply watched her, outwardly calm in spite of the fear that Ronin’s infection lodged in his heart.
”You intended to learn more about the Family and what they wanted when you met with Dahlia before,” he said instead, meeting the eyes of Deimos and Sunjata to explain what Flora had done in case they did not already know. His emerald gaze returned to his co-ruler, solemn with the gravity of their conversation. ”A year ago. Before you were marked by the Family for death.” Cruel, perhaps, to remind her that she was not currently well received by Stormbreak’s Queen and her fellows. But an important point to raise when her father now served the Reaper, and they did not know how deep those purple tendrils went into a victim’s soul. Whether or not he would revive her if Dahlia ordered him to stand back. ”What did she tell you of them then? Of their own intentions?”
He didn’t particularly enjoy the thought of comparing himself to Dahlia; brow arching slightly at the others addressed their concerns. “I think that is likely where the similarities end.” Rather than continue or counter the argument, since it seemed Flora was going to be much like her mother and stay on her point, regardless of any sense coming from anyone else, he remained stoic and quiet, taking it all in. Sunjata tried the same track, and Hadama appeared to strive for a different approach; he’d let the answers settle over the remainder of those points – hoping, perhaps, the Doubletake would understand from her own experiences alone, that wandering off to Dahlia now would be foolish and reckless. And likely to be a repeat of her prior circumstances.
Visions had a compelling outlook too, and his eyes narrowed as Sunjata described the effects. “Have any of you felt like others were watching you? We have had other similar moments in several regions.” And corresponding to what the Tidebreaker offered…perhaps he wasn’t simply paranoid. Maybe something was occurring, and they were being watched, listened to, and corralled at all times.
what does it mean to look upon a ruin we are boneless. we are boiling hot blood.
03-11-2025, 08:47 AM (This post was last modified: 03-11-2025, 08:48 AM by Flora.)
flora
Flora's fingers tighten against the edge of the bar, frustration curling hot and tight in her chest as the conversation continues to spiral in the same direction, leaving her feeling some child allowed to eavesdrop at the adult's table. She swallows down the sharp retort at the tip of her tongue, instead turning her gaze to Sunjata. "Okay, but let’s be real for a second," she hums, tilting her head. "That might’ve been what you said to Dahlia to get her to come, but Remi told me the point of it was to see if her abilities worked in the Refuge. And if that’s what it was actually about, then yeah, I can see why she’d consider that a trap. And, maybe she infected you just to answer the question you asked her there for." That yep, her powers really did work.
Her gaze flickers to Hadama next, arms crossing over her chest as she levels him with a look that is equal parts defiant and weary. "Yes, fine," she relents, rolling her eyes. "Dahlia did say they were looking to expand, and that anyone who stood in their way would be eliminated." All the more reason to find out more; what did standing in their way mean? Were their options other than becoming a Friend of the Family, or had everyone just assumed that's all there was?
Flora shifts her weight from one foot to the other, exhaling roughly, before letting her gaze sweep the room, catching on each of them in turn. "Look, I think you’re all being a bit naive here," she says flatly, and there’s no teasing lilt in her voice now, no playful edge to soften the bite. "So far, everything we’ve tried has just been sheer brute strength. And what has that actually gotten us? More deaths, more stolen artifacts, more of us turning into whatever the hell they are." She gestures vaguely, frustration flickering in her aqua gaze.
"And if you’re not even willing to entertain any other idea besides we’ll fight until we win or die," she scoffs, shaking her head, "then fine. I’ll just do it on my own so that the rest of us aren't fucked over when you all get yourselves killed." Bold a claim as it might seem, the queen felt she was entitled to it. Hers (and Hadama's) was the only region protected against the void, she'd gathered more flowers than anyone else for the cause, and had been the only one to (successfully) meet with Dahlia. Yes okay she'd also been murdered for the amount of cleansing she'd done, but if anything that only bolstered her opinion of herself because at least she was trying.
"Like, is Halo even going to get their hot springs back?" She asks of Deimos, before glancing toward Sunjata. "And what about the Refuge? Can't Frey do something to make it protect against the Family too?" Because those seemed like much better plans than storming into Starfall or worrying about VisIoNs.
Flexing like a goddamn acrobat Me and karma vibe like that
