Post by "Danny" Damascus on Jun 12, 2008 0:35:56 GMT -5
Name: Damascus (to non-dragons, he's "Danny Crane")
Age: Many thousands of years. Appears in early to mid-thirties as human.
Race:
Fantasy Race: Dragon
Nationality:
Economic Class: Impoverished
Gender Identity: Male
Sexuality: Heterosexual
Political Belief: Communist
Religious Belief: Animist
Organization: Leilah (the Red Dragon)
Occupation: Transporter, collector, driver and general go-to guy
Skills:
- Really good at aking an escape from danger
- People person
- Professional driver
- Hand, bladed melee and firearms training
- Excellent long and short-term memory
- Bartending
- Juggling
- Unicyling
- Cooking
- Housekeeping
- Carpentry
- Painting
- Singing
- Plays numerous instruments
Weapons:
Powers: (all of Damascus' powers are currently sealed by his Curse but should be mentioned)
1. Change into human form
2. As a dragon, Damascus possesses an immortal form. When if his body is killed he does not die. Dragons, even when killed in their true form, can sleep a death-sleep as dreaming gods until they can 'live' once again
3. In his dragon form, Damascus can bellow fire hot enough to vaporize most metals on contact
4. In his dragon form, Damasucs is protected by his natural carapace and scales but also possesses a magic 'second-skin' making him further resistant to convention weaponry as well as proving mildly effective against supernatural effects
Weaknesses:
1. Curse of Manala - a constant burden Damascus may only lift by fully adopting the beliefs of Manalism. Until he converts, he is stripped of all of his powers and confined to human form. Also, when he acts in ways that break with the tenants of Manalism, he is subjected to great pain.
2. Weakness to cold - as a red dragon, Damascus is naturally weak to the cold in human form and more susceptible to magical frost in both human and dragon form.
3. Womanizer - Damascus cannot resist the urge to engage socially with the opposite sex. He'll fall for a pretty face; a smoky voice; big, bashful eyes or a healthy figure every time.
Appearance: Damascus is the oldest living red dragon in existence and stands multiple stories tall, dwarfing a significant number of man-made structures. He weighs enough to punch into sewer lines by walking along a street. His scales glistened with a powerful carapace in numerous locations giving more armor to his majestic form. He is unmatched in beauty and raw strength, the pinnacle of draconic desire.
In human form, Damascus is five feet, eleven and three-quarters inches tall. Damascus is a beautiful dragon and so he takes the form of a painfully beautiful human man. His living conditions detract significantly from his appearance, though. His hair is dark, long, unkempt and disheveled. Under the dirt and grime, his skin is tanned and smooth. His eyes are wide and soft, colored a light gray flecked with a shimmering sky blue. He always as a smile in place when first meeting people and when he really means it, people forget the dirt and grime when he smiles. He has heavy scarring on his torso with scattered, light scarring on his face and hands.
Damascus never wears more than what he absolutely must and always buys cheap.
Personality: Very honest while always trying to keep everyone around smiling and happy. He hates Manalism but doesn't go out of his way to get into their's, finding it best to just avoid conflict. When presented with the option, Damascus chooses to run away instead of hurting another (or have himself end up hurt). If someone is in trouble then he will almost always drop whatever it is he's doing and try to help as best he can. He likes long conversations with interesting people and is always eager to hear what they have to say. He takes care to not be the topic of discussions because he has a tendency to ramble with his memories and also because he doesn't think of himself as being that terribly interesting, no matter who he might be talking to. Damascus isn't one to give up after only one try in anything; if he wants something done then its probably getting done, one way or another.
Story: Long ago, a goddess of darkness forged servants for herself. When the goddess was overthrown by other gods, her servants were freed and took other roles in the forming of the world. Damascus was one of these servants. Dragons walked closer to the divine than most other beings. Hand made by their goddess, they where aside from angels and elements, beings altogether different. Damascus was the greatest of the red dragons.
When the dragons were first created, as belief among such creatures goes, they were of many colors and many temperaments. Many were evil, malicious creatures who sought only personal gain. Some were altruistic creatures and majesty and honor. Damascus was the first red dragon to be designed and molded. His life was long; he lived in every manner which might be imaged by men and felt every feeling there was to feel, preformed every deed, heinous and virtuous, that had been imagined. He lived as men of every country and sometimes he lead and sometimes he followed. He lived as a fearsome and mindless beast and as a living god. At one time, he found a mate, a black dragon called simply Raven. The romance was a match of beauty and love and long ages past between the two in bliss.
Damascus, after great passage of time, found a roost in which he might rest and busied himself with the task of resting his powerful and immense form. Raven, his mate, would not content herself to long slumber and chose to be distanced from Damascus for the time. He slept and empires came and went, many worlds ended and some worlds were born before he rose again. The mighty dragon had become resolved in his long slumber, having been granted visions; he would no longer act as an oppressor, he would dedicate endless lifespan to bettering the creatures of the world. He walked and lived as man did and lead and aided him. He flew over man¡¦s head as his equal and benefactor, asking no more of any person than they might ask of another. He was altruistic, selfless and ever vigilant for corruption and malice. Damascus opened eyes and ended violence with words, not fire or claw. And yet, there are myths, even now, of continents utterly devastated by liquid fire and from the raging core of the world itself. The great red dragon caused gods to tremble when angered for he became a manifestation of great power and majesty when possessed of unbridled rage and fury.
But time progressed ever onward and many beings began to resent the supernatural, the superior beings of the world were frowned upon and shunned from a great number of societies and civilizations. Damascus fled the growing evils of the world, resigning himself to his chambers under the world, committing himself to slumber once more and lamenting for the victims of mortal evils.
Damascus heard a clarion call in his slumber, awakening in a future time that was unhallowed, abominable and wrong to his eyes which had once seen naught but beauty. He found nightmares instead of men and none stood to oppose this new regime, this "Father Manala." In his human form, Damascus met the soon-to-be god in single combat and was narrowly defeated by the dishonorable Father Manala. As he nursed his pains, Father Manala began setting into place the curse that would one day undo the majestic dragon.
The gods were mired in bureaucracy and brought no aid to Damascus; the great red would have to stem this tide of malice alone. A second time Damascus and Father Manala met, both convinced of the other's evil, willing to spare no mercy. The rage of Damascus met the full power of Father Manala and when the world had been shaken to breaking, Damascus stood the victor. Though he refused a show of mercy, Damascus' death blow never reached the evil deity for Manala's followers were upon Damascus and, weakened and broken, the dragon was forced into a tactical retreat though he still managed a sizeable slaughter of Manalists.
As he sought shelter, Damascus slowly succumbed to the curse. When he found refuge and slumbered to recuperate, the evil unleashed by Father Manala took hold of his power and subverted it, manipulating all of the charity and giving within Damascus' being into pain and suffering.
Waking in torment, Damascus was naked and without aid in an isolated section of what had been southern Germany. Powerful priests now did the bidding of Father Manala and were instantly aware of the force emanating from Damascus for the curse caused a fearful hate within the souls of true believers. Eventually discovered, Damascus hid from his Manalist pursuers at first in the wild, steadily making his way to a great metropolis, finding that dirty, unemployed, naked men were not welcome. He hid once more - though it was difficult - living an impoverished existence, constantly on the run. He found shelter in various places and found rags with which to use to keep him warm. He found safe haven, from time to time, with men who remembered kindness and charity and these aided him in his flight. He knew of only one other to escape the thrall of Manalism: another red dragon such as himself, who resided in one-upon-a-time Afghanistan, growing opium. Though he held nothing but evil in his heart for others of his race, he was to learn that Leilah too hated the Manalists. Given this, Damascus knew he would one day travel to Afghanistan to ally himself with this other.
Through contact with idealist who believed as he did, Damascus worked for various underground organizations to find the means to get to Afghanistan. He became adept at knowing the people under Manalism - exploiting the lust for greed and profit to have wicked men destroy themselves, leaving numerous communities touched. He traveled across the length and breadth of Europe. It was during this time of temporary service-for-hire that Damascus met the golden dragon Dionysius once more. Dionysius gave Damascus a great deal of aid, saving him from assault by Creditors and the Economic Council. The two never saw each other again after this but they left on good terms.
Damascus, having accumulated sufficient funds, traveled to Afghanistan. Leilah recognized Damascus' pure intentions at once and gave him work. Finally having successfully allied himself with her, he now makes a living working as a man who can get the job done. Damascus gives much to the community to which he belongs, a community which seeks to organize, to seize power for the oppressed masses and, together, abolish the terrible structure that is Manalism, eventually to establish a classless and equal society.
Age: Many thousands of years. Appears in early to mid-thirties as human.
Race:
Fantasy Race: Dragon
Nationality:
Economic Class: Impoverished
Gender Identity: Male
Sexuality: Heterosexual
Political Belief: Communist
Religious Belief: Animist
Organization: Leilah (the Red Dragon)
Occupation: Transporter, collector, driver and general go-to guy
Skills:
- Really good at aking an escape from danger
- People person
- Professional driver
- Hand, bladed melee and firearms training
- Excellent long and short-term memory
- Bartending
- Juggling
- Unicyling
- Cooking
- Housekeeping
- Carpentry
- Painting
- Singing
- Plays numerous instruments
Weapons:
Powers: (all of Damascus' powers are currently sealed by his Curse but should be mentioned)
1. Change into human form
2. As a dragon, Damascus possesses an immortal form. When if his body is killed he does not die. Dragons, even when killed in their true form, can sleep a death-sleep as dreaming gods until they can 'live' once again
3. In his dragon form, Damascus can bellow fire hot enough to vaporize most metals on contact
4. In his dragon form, Damasucs is protected by his natural carapace and scales but also possesses a magic 'second-skin' making him further resistant to convention weaponry as well as proving mildly effective against supernatural effects
Weaknesses:
1. Curse of Manala - a constant burden Damascus may only lift by fully adopting the beliefs of Manalism. Until he converts, he is stripped of all of his powers and confined to human form. Also, when he acts in ways that break with the tenants of Manalism, he is subjected to great pain.
2. Weakness to cold - as a red dragon, Damascus is naturally weak to the cold in human form and more susceptible to magical frost in both human and dragon form.
3. Womanizer - Damascus cannot resist the urge to engage socially with the opposite sex. He'll fall for a pretty face; a smoky voice; big, bashful eyes or a healthy figure every time.
Appearance: Damascus is the oldest living red dragon in existence and stands multiple stories tall, dwarfing a significant number of man-made structures. He weighs enough to punch into sewer lines by walking along a street. His scales glistened with a powerful carapace in numerous locations giving more armor to his majestic form. He is unmatched in beauty and raw strength, the pinnacle of draconic desire.
In human form, Damascus is five feet, eleven and three-quarters inches tall. Damascus is a beautiful dragon and so he takes the form of a painfully beautiful human man. His living conditions detract significantly from his appearance, though. His hair is dark, long, unkempt and disheveled. Under the dirt and grime, his skin is tanned and smooth. His eyes are wide and soft, colored a light gray flecked with a shimmering sky blue. He always as a smile in place when first meeting people and when he really means it, people forget the dirt and grime when he smiles. He has heavy scarring on his torso with scattered, light scarring on his face and hands.
Damascus never wears more than what he absolutely must and always buys cheap.
Personality: Very honest while always trying to keep everyone around smiling and happy. He hates Manalism but doesn't go out of his way to get into their's, finding it best to just avoid conflict. When presented with the option, Damascus chooses to run away instead of hurting another (or have himself end up hurt). If someone is in trouble then he will almost always drop whatever it is he's doing and try to help as best he can. He likes long conversations with interesting people and is always eager to hear what they have to say. He takes care to not be the topic of discussions because he has a tendency to ramble with his memories and also because he doesn't think of himself as being that terribly interesting, no matter who he might be talking to. Damascus isn't one to give up after only one try in anything; if he wants something done then its probably getting done, one way or another.
Story: Long ago, a goddess of darkness forged servants for herself. When the goddess was overthrown by other gods, her servants were freed and took other roles in the forming of the world. Damascus was one of these servants. Dragons walked closer to the divine than most other beings. Hand made by their goddess, they where aside from angels and elements, beings altogether different. Damascus was the greatest of the red dragons.
When the dragons were first created, as belief among such creatures goes, they were of many colors and many temperaments. Many were evil, malicious creatures who sought only personal gain. Some were altruistic creatures and majesty and honor. Damascus was the first red dragon to be designed and molded. His life was long; he lived in every manner which might be imaged by men and felt every feeling there was to feel, preformed every deed, heinous and virtuous, that had been imagined. He lived as men of every country and sometimes he lead and sometimes he followed. He lived as a fearsome and mindless beast and as a living god. At one time, he found a mate, a black dragon called simply Raven. The romance was a match of beauty and love and long ages past between the two in bliss.
Damascus, after great passage of time, found a roost in which he might rest and busied himself with the task of resting his powerful and immense form. Raven, his mate, would not content herself to long slumber and chose to be distanced from Damascus for the time. He slept and empires came and went, many worlds ended and some worlds were born before he rose again. The mighty dragon had become resolved in his long slumber, having been granted visions; he would no longer act as an oppressor, he would dedicate endless lifespan to bettering the creatures of the world. He walked and lived as man did and lead and aided him. He flew over man¡¦s head as his equal and benefactor, asking no more of any person than they might ask of another. He was altruistic, selfless and ever vigilant for corruption and malice. Damascus opened eyes and ended violence with words, not fire or claw. And yet, there are myths, even now, of continents utterly devastated by liquid fire and from the raging core of the world itself. The great red dragon caused gods to tremble when angered for he became a manifestation of great power and majesty when possessed of unbridled rage and fury.
But time progressed ever onward and many beings began to resent the supernatural, the superior beings of the world were frowned upon and shunned from a great number of societies and civilizations. Damascus fled the growing evils of the world, resigning himself to his chambers under the world, committing himself to slumber once more and lamenting for the victims of mortal evils.
Damascus heard a clarion call in his slumber, awakening in a future time that was unhallowed, abominable and wrong to his eyes which had once seen naught but beauty. He found nightmares instead of men and none stood to oppose this new regime, this "Father Manala." In his human form, Damascus met the soon-to-be god in single combat and was narrowly defeated by the dishonorable Father Manala. As he nursed his pains, Father Manala began setting into place the curse that would one day undo the majestic dragon.
The gods were mired in bureaucracy and brought no aid to Damascus; the great red would have to stem this tide of malice alone. A second time Damascus and Father Manala met, both convinced of the other's evil, willing to spare no mercy. The rage of Damascus met the full power of Father Manala and when the world had been shaken to breaking, Damascus stood the victor. Though he refused a show of mercy, Damascus' death blow never reached the evil deity for Manala's followers were upon Damascus and, weakened and broken, the dragon was forced into a tactical retreat though he still managed a sizeable slaughter of Manalists.
As he sought shelter, Damascus slowly succumbed to the curse. When he found refuge and slumbered to recuperate, the evil unleashed by Father Manala took hold of his power and subverted it, manipulating all of the charity and giving within Damascus' being into pain and suffering.
Waking in torment, Damascus was naked and without aid in an isolated section of what had been southern Germany. Powerful priests now did the bidding of Father Manala and were instantly aware of the force emanating from Damascus for the curse caused a fearful hate within the souls of true believers. Eventually discovered, Damascus hid from his Manalist pursuers at first in the wild, steadily making his way to a great metropolis, finding that dirty, unemployed, naked men were not welcome. He hid once more - though it was difficult - living an impoverished existence, constantly on the run. He found shelter in various places and found rags with which to use to keep him warm. He found safe haven, from time to time, with men who remembered kindness and charity and these aided him in his flight. He knew of only one other to escape the thrall of Manalism: another red dragon such as himself, who resided in one-upon-a-time Afghanistan, growing opium. Though he held nothing but evil in his heart for others of his race, he was to learn that Leilah too hated the Manalists. Given this, Damascus knew he would one day travel to Afghanistan to ally himself with this other.
Through contact with idealist who believed as he did, Damascus worked for various underground organizations to find the means to get to Afghanistan. He became adept at knowing the people under Manalism - exploiting the lust for greed and profit to have wicked men destroy themselves, leaving numerous communities touched. He traveled across the length and breadth of Europe. It was during this time of temporary service-for-hire that Damascus met the golden dragon Dionysius once more. Dionysius gave Damascus a great deal of aid, saving him from assault by Creditors and the Economic Council. The two never saw each other again after this but they left on good terms.
Damascus, having accumulated sufficient funds, traveled to Afghanistan. Leilah recognized Damascus' pure intentions at once and gave him work. Finally having successfully allied himself with her, he now makes a living working as a man who can get the job done. Damascus gives much to the community to which he belongs, a community which seeks to organize, to seize power for the oppressed masses and, together, abolish the terrible structure that is Manalism, eventually to establish a classless and equal society.
