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!
Tal scuffed his way over to his next fight, giving the starchild a grimace of commiseration on his way past. At least for Hotaru he was able to summon a wan smile, reaching up to rub at the back of his neck. "Hey, Ru. So, uh. I think I fucked up earlier. Can we talk when this is all over?" The person he needed to talk to was Noah, but he wasn't going to push that until the other man was ready. In the meantime maybe Hotaru would have some insights into what had gone sideways in that first fight.
For now, though, he pulled his Goggles over his eyes and settled into a fighting stance with his Dagger, counting on the fact that everyone was too busy watching Remi and Deimos to pay much attention to him.
"Ready?" he called, but he didn't wait for an answer. Hotaru had taught him too well and he'd seen what had happened to Seren. He launched himself at his opponent, lashing out with a long-distance slice at her leg as he focused on keeping his own feet moving over the smooth sand with his brows drawn together in a scowl of intense concentration.
The Valkyrie was one of his mentors and she knew every trick he had. If he didn't take this fight seriously from the start, he'd be proper fucked. Tal makes himself a moving target and attacks Hotaru from a distance with his Dagger!
Tal has his Frostbite Cuff, See-Right Goggles, Rockhide Vest, Special Delivery Dagger (Honed by Nightmares), and his Ring of Mending.
Active this round:
Type: Grey | Style: Offensive | Level: Mastered
Special Delivery Dagger | A carefully crafted dagger veined with crimson markings, decorated with the foot of a blink hare. Upon making a stabbing motion in the air, the dagger may damage a target up to 30ft away from the user.
Type: Dark | Style: Offensive | Level: Basic
Honed by Nightmares | A curious silvery coating covers the Special Delivery Dagger. Causes extra physical damage at a Basic level.
Type: Grey | Style: Defensive | Level: Mastered
Rockhide Vest | An armoured vest flecked in black and white and lined with cool, fur-like material. This item blocks physical damage at Talyson's Mastered level. Requires a 2 post cool-down between uses.
Hotaru isn’t exactly in the best headspace either, but given what she’d seen of his fight with Noah, she can understand why he might desire guidance or a moment to vent. She may not often be selfless, but for Tal she can make an exception. “Of course,” she assures, though she suspects - especially given how recently she became Frey’s - that she’ll taste the sting of defeat that Noah did. At least she believes it will be a touch easier for her to swallow given how frequently she and Talyson train together.
He lunges quickly, and the slice of his knife is exactly what she expects given the advantage it provides him. Instead of attempting to deflect it back she grabs a sphere in her hand - insides flinching from the reminder of the damage she’d done with it recently - and hurls it close range, ignoring the blood streaming down her bare thigh. Until it immobilizes her she will bear it.
- - -
Hotaru sprints toward Talyson and hurls an ice sphere by hand when she’s at a closer range (about 7-10ft).
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.
Hotaru has her projectiles and reflective bracer.
i understand you now to be both companion and adversary a familiar thorn and threat
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.
Rising from the sea like some warm and welcome submarine is a Tumsea. With a smattering of starfish on its shell and a coating of seaweed, the creature looks as if it is trying to reflect the starlit heavens. Slow and kind, the creature glances your way, and though it is difficult to ascribe a smile to a creature such as this, indeed it seems to be smiling at you before descending down back into the waves.
You’ve encountered a Tumsea. 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. If you choose to follow this creature, you do so at your own risk, however, just having it in this thread is enough to satisfy your levelling requirements. You may not kill your rare creature without admin permission.
Tumseas (rare/mythical): Smaller cousins of the Tulmhainar, Tumseas are like moving ecosystems all unto themselves. With shells of brilliant blues and earth browns, these turtle-like creatures can grow to nearly 4ft in diameter and can hold their breath for decades at a time. Bringing vibrancy and health to all the underwater trails they follow, Tumseas are thought to be good omens and are often followed by schools of fish encantados
He hit hard and kept moving, but Hotaru closed the distance and flung one of her dangerous icy spheres at him. He was pretty sure he'd helped her upgrade those, and he definitely didn't want to get hit by one! But... was she hesitating? Just a heartbeat?
He twisted to the side as it skimmed by and exploded harmlessly behind him.
And his nose wrinkled, drawing his scowl into a perplexed expression.
Since Ru had so kindly closed the distance, the courier finished what she had started: he swapped his Dagger to his other hand and changed direction abruptly, launching himself towards her. A few steps away he hit the sand on his knees and attempted to skid past her in a spray of sand as he drove his fist towards the cut on her leg.
"Y'don't need to go easy on me!" he growled in passage, his voice gruff with adrenaline but his pale eyes offering a rough reassurance. Thanks to Ru's teaching, he was tough enough to take what she could dish out.
No sooner had he made it passed her then he noticed something rising from the nearby waves, and it was Tal's turn to succumb to distraction.
Look, a Tumsea! Tal tries to punch Hotaru with an unarmed strike!
Type: Grey | Style: Defensive | Level: Mastered
Rockhide Vest | An armoured vest flecked in black and white and lined with cool, fur-like material. This item blocks physical damage at Talyson's Mastered level. Requires a 2 post cool-down between uses.
Type: Light | Style: Other | Level: Mastered
See-Right Goggles: Reinforced goggles capable of seeing with perfect clarity regardless of conditions, up to 30ft. This includes magical darkness. Can see through illusions at 5ft, and be aware of illusions under 10ft.
Hotaru’s knee buckles beneath his fist and a snarl of pain hides the whining undertone of it, his accusation inaccurate but his awareness of her hesitation unerringly accurate. With him at close range now, Hotaru tries to stay close range while her thoughts fritz and scatter in different directions.
She could try and strike back, knows it’s likely her best bet for dealing damage given how she has taken multiple steps back by becoming a Demigod, but her compulsion leaps to her tongue instead. She just needs a second to think damn it. “Freeze!” She bellows it, hoping it might take him off guard in terms of volume even if she can’t contest him magically anymore.
- - -
Ru tried to stay in close/grappling range while using her Compulsion to try and make Tal freeze.
Magic: Compulsion | Outside of a KQ/PQ+, can influence a target within 10ft of her to do something they would realistically find themselves doing. In a KQ/PQ+, gives disadvantage against 1 target within 30ft. ((END+LUCK+d100 contested roll).
Type: Dark | Rank: Upgraded
i understand you now to be both companion and adversary a familiar thorn and threat
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.
After telling Hotaru to focus, it was really fucking embarrassing for Tal to get distracted immediately afterwards. And yet, here he was, his eyes leaving his opponent to linger on a heckin' adorable turtle that gave him a little smile--
And Hotaru's command rang out, clear as a bell and with all the atavistic power of his second grade schoolmarm's voice, locking his joints and briefly turning his insides to water.
He couldn't even yelp as his jaw froze shut, too, and he struggled against the compulsion mentally even as his body remained unmoving.
But hey, at least he could watch the Tumsea for a few more seconds as it swam away! Tal is FROZEN and cannot act!
Talyson goes rigid all at once and Hotaru’s relief crashes through her like a wave. What is she doing? He deserves her full focus. Even if she doubts she’ll win, he should earn it on his own merit. She can’t be thinking of Seren right now, or Deimos facing off in a two-to-one for the second time. Right now she has to do her best and go down swinging.
She mentally utters an apology to Tal as she grips his shoulders where her grapple had landed and uses the grip as a brace to drive her knee into his stomach just below his sternum as hard as she can while she has the chance to make a move on him. Hopefully it would wind him or make him vomit but wouldn’t break anything vital, even if it would hurt like a bitch.
- - -
Ru uses her grip on Tal to drive her knee into his abdomen in an unarmed strike.
i understand you now to be both companion and adversary a familiar thorn and threat
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.
The good news was that apparently being kneed in the stomach was a cure for tetanus compulsion-freeze!
The bad news was that it fucking hurt. Not as much as getting hit in the face with Noah's Roar, but at least Tal had been able to brace for impact on that. Ru hit him while he couldn't defend himself, and the worst part was that she drove the breath out of him so he couldn't even complain about it properly!
Tal folded over her knee with a sound like a rubber chicken reinflating, and in spite of his Goggles he was seeing stars and not thinking particularly straight. Knowing he didn't dare take the time to wallow in his pain, he forced himself upright as fast as he could, figuring Hotaru's perfect, petite chin couldn't be too far away and determined to clock her one in return. Tal pulls up into a shameless headbutt like the messy bitch he is!
Type: Grey | Style: Defensive | Level: Mastered
Rockhide Vest | An armoured vest flecked in black and white and lined with cool, fur-like material. This item blocks physical damage at Talyson's Mastered level. Requires a 2 post cool-down between uses.
