From Attuned to Ascended to Ancient, Kiada Njovu-Reyes has been reborn several times throughout her short life, but her fighting spirit has never once been diminished. With beauty, grace and a quick wit, Kiada is the whole package wrapped in an infectious smile. Recent endeavours have found her in the heart of the Hollowed Grounds, aiding the region and bettering it for her new Ancient kin, and whatever she does next, we know it's sure to pack a punch.
Congratulations, Kiada!
Credits
Court of the Fallen was created in October of 2018 by Odd, Honey, and Crooked.
Skinning and hosting by the epically talented Kaons, and functionality fanciness by the coding magic of Neowulf. If you ever see either of them around, make sure to show them some love!
05-01-2024, 10:47 PM (This post was last modified: 05-02-2024, 10:14 AM by Odd.)
HOTARU
Hotaru is not exactly pleased with the news she is receiving lately. First she hears of this tournament via a letter - a mass letter, Remi, how gauche - and now she finds out Seren is back by virtue of having to fight the girl? To top it all off she knows she's quite underwhelming amongst the demigods given her newness to the role, so she is also expected to lose gracefully sometime this afternoon? Something she hates to do?
What a waste of a great beach day.
Nevertheless she stands waiting for Seren on their section of beach, bracer fixed to her arm and slingshot held loosely in her right hand, tapping it against her bare thigh. Glowing beneath the sun, she nevertheless smiles warmly at Seren - even if she's admittedly a little glad to throw some punches - and beckons the girl forward. "Long time no see sweetheart," she calls, and with nimble fingers pulls a sphere from her pouch to load and shoot it near Seren's legs. If it misses, perhaps the frozen sand will create difficult terrain for the young woman. No time to waste right?
- - -
Hotaru arrives with only her bracer and projectiles from her profile listed below, and shoots a projectile at Seren's legs to try and freeze her in place or create icy terrain beneath her if it misses.
Type: Dark | Style: Defensive | Level: Upgraded
Ornate Leather Bracers | The wearer can, at will, redirect both magical and physical attacks. For magical attacks, can redirect them within 10ft. Physical attacks must be within melee range to be directed, and can then be redirected within 10ft.
Type: Light | Style: Offensive | Level: Upgraded
Elemental Projectiles | A small bag with an unlimited supply of incredibly dense spheres of ice. Best when used with a slingshot, but can also be thrown. Explode upon impact in a 5ft radius. Will not melt while in the bag.
Oh, drunken gods of slaughter You know I've always been your favorite daughter
Hotaru has a passive magic that makes her glow with an internal golden light; it makes her appear youthful and her hair seems to look like moving sunlight. Can only subtly illuminate dark spaces.
If Hotaru was secretly miffed at the prospect of losing gracefully somewhere down the line, Seren came into the ring without any illusions of making it past a second round. Actually, she had been more than excited to meet Hotaru again, and looked forward to a worthwhile lesson as much as a chance to test her mettle.
But it was over before anything even began. She barely had the chance to wave back to the radiant woman and begin to move towards her, when the projectile erupted by her feet.
That was all she remembered. Next thing she knew, Seren found herself on the ground. Her head rang like a gong, and the entire front of her body felt bruised. She started to move, but quickly stopped; something hot and metallic trickled from her nose, and from the mouth, and as a wave of nausea hit she could only roll over and retch into the sand.
In the sky above, Umbra let out a keening roar of shared pain; in a rumble of dark wings the blue dragon came swooping down and placed himself between his bonded and Hotaru. Steam rose from his nostrils and the gaze that fixed on Frey's most recent demigod was belliggerent.
Battle born they send us Covered in our noble blood
✰ Starlight (Passive) | Starfilled night billow around her like a veil as she moves. It is more noticeable in daytime and when she make sudden movements.
Umbra isn't the only belligerent draconic presence around Seren, as it happens.
Having left the group of spectators after finishing his fight with Deimos, Ronin is a quickly growing silhouette on the sands as he hurries towards where his daughter has fallen. One might think, given who her opponent had been, that he'd be more interested in dishing out harsh words or confrontations as he arrives, but the reality is that he couldn't care less about the Valkyrie in the moment.
With pale wings bursting from his shoulders, he crouches down beside his daughter and shields her from the bright sunshine overhead, still clutching the fountain water he'd brought from the medical tent. "Hey," he pants, reaching out to steady her by the shoulder, uncorking the water. "Here. Drink some of this, if you can. You'll feel better, I promise."
Fuck. “Seren!” Her heart leaps into her throat, free hand outstretching instinctively before Umbra descends, and Hotaru can’t be offended even though she certainly would never dream of doing anything else to her that might endanger her further. But as she reaches for magic that no longer exists, she realizes her uselessness immediately, and her chest shakes with terror to see another long-limbed youth on the sands.
She had been careful, had aimed for her legs (gods what if she hadn’t?), had tried to gauge how strong Seren might be but she’d been gone so long and -
As Ronin rushes the ring she feels relief instead of fear, because all she can think is that Seren needs help, and it can’t come fast enough. But as much as she wants to help she can’t, and she doesn’t want to linger or step on parental toes -
Her eyes instinctively try to scan for the group on the hill, bond and voice ringing in disoriented unison, a plea for stability; “Sunny?”
Oh, drunken gods of slaughter You know I've always been your favorite daughter
Hotaru has a passive magic that makes her glow with an internal golden light; it makes her appear youthful and her hair seems to look like moving sunlight. Can only subtly illuminate dark spaces.
anyway, you say you're too busy saving everybody else to save yourself
He avoids the fuck out of Ronin for good reason, the macaw swooping in and shifting back into himself in a cloud of sand that’s kicked up as he stops directly in front of Hotaru, back to Ronin and Seren just in case the two watchful dragons aim to try anything.
It’s also to body block Hotaru from running over to check on her, unsure what that outcome might be. Though it isn’t a fear for him when he hears her call his name as he swoops into her vision.
“Hey, hey, I’ve got you, love, I’m here.” He hums to her, reaching for her and pulling her in, already knowing that it’s going to be eating at her. Time for checking in can wait, though, and Seren is in good hands with Ronin right there, so he offers himself and his shoulder for the Valkyrie, ensuring she knows that she is his main focus.
and you don't want no help, oh well that's the story to tell
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 sour stench of sick emanated from the ground. Somewhere in the back of her mind Seren knew that should be the least of her worries. Between the awful pain and the distant murmur of the audience, and Hotaru's distraught voice - but in the amalgamation of awful things, the humiliation of puking in front of everyone present stung the worst.
Did that mean she was fine? Did it mean she wasn't? She couldn't tell. Couldn't quite focus her addled mind enough to summon a Star critter to heal herself, even though she really needed to get up and make sure Hotaru was alright –
Ah. But then her father was there. In the cool shade beneath his wings she leaned into the steadying grip. No longer straining just to sit, she managed to accept the healing water and sipped it slowly, feeling how it began to spread warm tingles through her body. Rinsing her mouth, and wiping at her blood streaked face, gradually Seren began to feel like herself again.
"Thank you," she mumbled, trying a smile; it wobbled, but stayed. "I'm okay."
Battle born they send us Covered in our noble blood
✰ Starlight (Passive) | Starfilled night billow around her like a veil as she moves. It is more noticeable in daytime and when she make sudden movements.
"That's good to hear," Ronin says with a warm smile, waiting until Seren has had enough healing water to be reasonably steady before he guides her further into his arms. "I guess that means you get to sit and watch from the sidelines with a cocktail from here," he murmurs, scooping her up and rising to his feet so he can walk them back to where everyone is watching the proceedings.
"Don't worry," he adds in a whisper, his smile turning crooked, "I lost my fight, too. Deimos is a force to be reckoned with - we can watch the rest together."
Recognising that Sunjata has arrived to stand with Hotaru but understandably only having eyes for his daughter, so long as Seren doesn't have any objections, he'll start the trek back across the beach.
Sunjata is there in an instant, and his body stops her from advancing as her heart commands her to, rattled by the swift way everything had gone impossibly wrong. His voice is distant and overlaid with the buzz of adrenaline in her ears, but the width of his shoulders cut her line of sight and his hands anchor her down in the here and now. Her hands tremble when they reach for him in return. A touchstone as much as a leash, so she doesn't make things worse in the pursuit of fixing them.
Instead she just folds into his embrace, shutting out the sound of the sand beneath Ronin's boots as father and daughter move away. It's going to take her longer to get herself together enough to follow them. Stay with me, she pleads, though she knows Sunjata will regardless. Just a few more minutes, until she can swallow it down enough to face her next opponent.
- Fin!
Oh, drunken gods of slaughter You know I've always been your favorite daughter
Hotaru has a passive magic that makes her glow with an internal golden light; it makes her appear youthful and her hair seems to look like moving sunlight. Can only subtly illuminate dark spaces.
