What do you get when two ruthless assassins raise their daughter travelling through the wildest reaches of Caido? Take one look at Theea and you'll get a pretty good idea. Cheerful and tenacious in equal measure, and curious beyond all else, she began her journey on a mission to find those her mother once called family. And find them she did, soon rubbing elbows with demigods, leaders and even ghosts from the past. Her determination is resolute, her thirst for knowledge unmatched. We can't wait to see where her next adventure takes her!
Congratulations, Theea!
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!
07-01-2025, 11:16 PM (This post was last modified: 07-03-2025, 11:40 AM by Zavien.)
Life can be tough, there's no doubt, But hope is the thing we can't do without.
The Bodega was packed with people, the shops bustling as customers moved from door to door to escape the growing chill that came with Leafchange. Most had flocked to see the multitudes of colors that began to bleed across the canopies like warm sunlight staining their leaves, but others chose to abandon the outdoor activities that belonged to Longheat in favor of knit sweaters and warm beverages, both of which the Fae were quite skilled at.
Zavien could attest to it, indulging in the coffee that warmed his hands as he strolled through the stalls. He was taking the moment to relax and peruse as he figured out what offerings he might want to bring on his trip to the Observatory, Sol trotting at his side, happily munching on a skewer that had long since been cleaned of its meat.
Glancing around, a familiar face caught his attention in the crowd, causing his brows to raise and a beaming smile to tug at his lips. He stepped forward to greet Vi's demigod with a polite nod, hoping he didn't appear too excited by their impromptu meeting. "Noah. How are you doing?"
Zavien
Right things with joy will come about... In good time.
"Hear one positive and one negative accounts of the Voice, Safrin, Ludo, or Frey from 8 different characters who have met them personally:
? I would like to Skip with MP"
With the Family gone, Noah felt safe for the first time taking his kids on a trip outside of Halo. Thye ended up in the Greatwood, again, where he could search for more roses and they could explore safely. Ravenna had chosen to stay home this time, with some other responsibilities that came with her aging and her new apprenticeship.
He was able to breathe deeply for a moment.
In the bodega, Noah thumbed through a crate of dried herbs—lavender, thyme, something blue-green and bristly whose scent reminded him faintly of Cordelia—when the voice reached him through the noise. He looked up. The smile was unmistakable--Zavien, coffee in hand, looked utterly at ease in the chaos. Perhaps he was breathing for the first time in a while, too.
Noah straightened, a flicker of surprise crossing his features before he dipped his chin in greeting. “Zavien,” he said, tone level but warm. “Didn’t expect to run into anyone familiar.” He shifted the bundle of goods under his arm, several packages of things that Marcus and Margot had chosen before he sent them too the find them something for lunch.
“I’m doing alright." A beat passed, and he glanced toward the path Zavien had come from, then back. "I brought my kids for a visit. First expedition out of Halo in...a few years."
Life can be tough, there's no doubt, But hope is the thing we can't do without.
Laughing lightly, Zavien shrugged his shoulders. "I wasn't either." But Caido had a way of bringing people together in unexpected places, like random forests or haunted graveyards. It shouldn't surprise him anymore, but sometimes the emotion was a welcome break in the stress, so he tried not to anticipate it.
The mention of kids had him grinning, his eyes moving to look for them in the crowd. "That's sweet. How old are they?" He'd always gotten along with kids; memories of playing and laughing with the youth of the Silk Houses rose in his mind, softening his smile to something more somber, a worry about whether they'd made it out or if they were still trapped amongst the Void.
Zavien
Right things with joy will come about... In good time.
"Hear one positive and one negative accounts of the Voice, Safrin, Ludo, or Frey from 8 different characters who have met them personally:
? I would like to Skip with MP"
When Zavien showed clear interest in his children, Noah beamed. His chest swelled slightly and one could say he stood a little taller. His smile broadened across his features and wrinkled the corners of his twinkling glacier eyes. "Twelve this year. Frey aged them from infancy to adolescence a few short years ago." Noah said, head turning to see if he could spot them in the crowd. Alas, the twins were gone too far into the bodega to be seen from this vantage point on their way to find something to eat.
"What brings you out this way?" Noah had assumed that Zavien had fled Stormbreak all those months ago. He understood what it was like to be a refugee, having been dethroned and banned from his homeland once. All before Vi took him in. But as soon as Morgan had died and Neron had run away in disgrace of her murder, the demigod went back to Halo. He was sure Zavien wanted to return home, but wasn't sure if there was something totally keeping him from it.
He didn't have much knowledge of how Stormbreak was, after all, in the wake of Dahlia's claws.
Pushing up from the ground before you is a blood-red rose.
You’ve encountered one of Vi’s Roses.. This counts as a rare creature encounter for the purposes of levelling, but does not count as a Random Event for levelling or MP. There will be no further admin/re intervention. You can post a link to this thread in the character updates thread if you pick the rose, to have it added to your inventory.
Vi's Roses (rare): A beautiful crimson flower with thorns of deep gold, it is rumoured that these roses are coloured with Vi's lifeblood. When planted, they have the ability to cleanse the area around them.
Life can be tough, there's no doubt, But hope is the thing we can't do without.
Zavien had heard of Frey's increased aging, although he couldn't imagine what that was like. Still, the pride was evident, and he couldn't help the returned grin even if he didn't have a chance to meet them. "That's a cute age. Their personalities really start to shine through their interests."
There were multiple reasons for his visit, but as his mouth opened to answer, his eyes caught on something that slowly unfurled from the dirt beneath their feet. Zavien stopped breathing, his words weightless without the support. "It can't be. The chances - " But he knew that chances had nothing to do with this. It was a blessing through and through that had him lowering to his knees before the rose.
He barely looked away, shaking his head in disbelief. "Noah. This is what I've been looking for - praying for. Stormbreak is still infected, and this - " Finally glancing up at Vi's demigod, it felt like his smile might rip his face in half, too bright to contain the hope there. "This puts us one step closer to going home."
Zavien
Right things with joy will come about... In good time.
"Hear one positive and one negative accounts of the Voice, Safrin, Ludo, or Frey from 8 different characters who have met them personally:
? I would like to Skip with MP"
Ready to continue on about his children should Zavien ask more of them, Noah was caught off guard by the dragoon's sudden shift. Glacier eyes followed the other man's and he turned fully to see what he saw.
Noah's breath caught in his chest. The rose lay cradled by the dirt, its petals soft as breath, untouched by grime. A gift of Vi, rare and radiant. It pulsed with quiet divinity, humming like it knew what it could heal—what it could save.
Talyson.
Noah could still hear the rasp in Alys' voice, the strain she tried to hide. This rose could pull it out. Pull him from the darkness left by the void. Take away the touch of Vox. It could fix him. And gods knew, after everything, Alys deserved that much.
But so did the city. His eyes widened some as Zavien exploded with hope and relief. His jaw tensed. He wanted to be selfish. To choose the man who’d bled beside him on ice and battlefield alike. But the weight of the rose before them felt heavy. Noah's arms felt heavy at his sides even as he dropped to one knee at the rose, across from Zavien.
Quietly, Noah began to harvest the divine flower. He gently dug his strong fingers into the dirt and loosened the edges around the plant. Heat rose within him and he swallowed, eyes moving up to Zavien. "My friend--" He started, and then stopped, jaw feathering again as he closed his mouth.
Life can be tough, there's no doubt, But hope is the thing we can't do without.
This would have been a moment that anticipation may have softened the blow. As he knelt by the rose, admiring it with hope and awe, Noah's actions surprised him, the slow harvesting feeling almost possessive and claiming. It confused him and Zavien didn't immediately move to help, trying to piece out what was wrong, why the man wasn't as excited as he was. Suddenly, the words and tension in the demigod's face revealed the reason: he knew someone who was infected and he wanted to use the rose to cure them.
Shock coursed through the Dragoon, the reaction so unexpected that the high of hope came crashing down around him. "Noah - I - " He nearly reached forward, but hesitated, unwilling to fight over such a blessing. Instead, he wet his mouth, trying frantically to find a way he might convince him that Stormbreak needed this.
Sighing heavily, he gathered the courage. "People I care about are still infected..." Talyson and Liam's faces flashed behind his eyes, pained and covered in hazy purple Void, yet Zavien continued on, "but Stormbreak..." He looked up at Noah, doing his best not to guilt or plead. "There are thousands of innocent people still being held hostage in the city or unable to return home because of the Void creatures. After suffering so much under Dahlia's rule..." His voice faded out, knowing he could give a million reasons why his home deserved to be cleansed - to finally be free again.
Looking down at the flower that would mean so much to his city, Zavien made the difficult choice to stand and step away, leaving the choice to the person Vi had trusted enough to make his demigod. "I won't - I can't - ask you to let me take the rose, but please think about it." Sol leaned into his leg as he ran a hand through his hair, preparing for the disappointment that might come, yet hoping it might not.
Zavien
Right things with joy will come about... In good time.
"Hear one positive and one negative accounts of the Voice, Safrin, Ludo, or Frey from 8 different characters who have met them personally:
? I would like to Skip with MP"
Noah didn’t look up at first. His jaw feathered and he felt the weight and familiar ache start to burn in his chest. Muscles tightened and coiled around his lungs.
It was an easy decision, yet more difficult than he could put words to.
The soil crumbled quietly between his fingers as he freed the rose from the earth. Its roots were finer than they should be. He was careful of the thorns as he let it rest in his open palm. He could feel its power rising through his palms like a slow burn, one that felt so familiar.
Zavien’s voice struck without accusation. Noah stared at the flower in his hands and felt his stomach twist. He didn’t interrupt. Didn’t defend himself. Just listened.
Talyson’s face burned behind his eyes.
But for Zavien to have this much relief and hope built into one—the city was bleeding—had to be. He let out a long, slow breath.
“I know what this could do for him,” Noah said at last, voice low, steady. A quiet calm that came from sacrificing over and over and over to do the right thing.
He rose, gaze meeting Zavien’s. “I will go with you to cleanse the city.”
And when it was done, he’d find another way to save his friend.
Life can be tough, there's no doubt, But hope is the thing we can't do without.
Zavien might have been holding his breath; he wasn't really sure. His eyes followed Noah as the demigod slowly moved away the dirt, watching for any signs of what he might decide. He knew it wasn't an easy decision, and even if he hadn't asked to be given the rose, the pressure was still there. It didn't feel right that they had to choose between who to save.
When Noah finally spoke again - somber and full of weight - he wondered if he'd failed, if the demigod was going to cure someone else. He couldn't help the disappointment, although he also couldn't find any anger, because both were right and both were necessary.
Only then the man stood to confirm the opposite, and Zavien felt a light burst forth in his chest again, full of the gratitude and overwhelming kindness that came with such a selfless act. The smile wasn't as full this time, aware of what this decision had cost Noah, but he offered a small one, determination, reassurance, and unrivaled faith giving it power. "Thank you. And we will find more flowers. We will keep looking until everyone is free from the Family. I promise." A vow that he intended to keep no matter what.
[FIN]
Zavien
Right things with joy will come about... In good time.
