Duplicity App
Apr. 19th, 2020 11:58 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
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Name: Dirk Door: Door pass: Submissive Canon: Original Character Canon Point: Post "canon" Age: +2000 years Appearance: A Good Dog History: Dirk's kind has been described under many names throughout history (Cwn Annwn, Black Shuck, Barghest, etc.) but to the few who study and understand such things, they are officially referred to as Canis inferis, and colloquially known as hellhounds. This variety of lesser demon was created solely to track, hunt, and destroy at the whim of whoever stands as their master at the time. Sometimes, this master is a demon Below who sends the hounds up to retrieve or destroy something important, but it is much more common for this master to be a human summoner up on Earth. Born as just another nameless individual in this horde of demonic hounds, Dirk's existence was largely made up of lazing around Hell until he was summoned for brief (and often devastating) jaunts around the material plane, only to be pulled right back into the Pit when his work was over, repeating this pattern for dozens of centuries. Time passes differently in Hell than on Earth, and so even though Dirk was technically born to the same litter as many other hellhounds, it is scattershot how "mature" each one was considered when compared to another. He has perhaps not been summoned to the surface as often as some of the others, and maybe some aspect of his personality is partly to blame for why he has never been designated for a leading role in the pack, but Dirk is still considered a fairly immature member of his species. The first time he was really able to run on his own as an equal member of the pack, allowed to exercise his power and see some of the destruction he was capable of bringing, was during the burning of Rome in 64 AD. It was a truly exhilarating experience to bring down such a cornerstone of the mortal world at the behest of his summoner, but it was also the first (and most significant) time that Dirk had felt something like regret. He'd been intensely fond of the ancient Greek world, and the Roman empire had been similarly nostalgic for him. Though he'd only dodged in and out of the timeline, sometimes not seeing that part of the world for half a century at a time, watching it change over time had been a deep source of fascination for him. So, to destroy this thing that he'd very much liked, especially murdering scores of people he had been walking among and enjoying the company of only days before, stirred up many feelings that he'd never experienced before. When asked, he'd say that it was something that had to be done, it was his job, horrible things happen to people all the time, but he still thinks about that event more often than he probably should. Over the course of the centuries that followed, now that he was a fully-functioning "adult" member of the horde, he was sometimes summoned along with a pack and sometimes alone, depending on the desires and level of ability of his summoner. During these forays to the surface, there would sometimes be a little extra time either before his summoner located him (targeting wasn't as much of an exact science as one might expect), or before the job would need to take place, when he would have the opportunity to do a little sight-seeing. Dirk has always considered himself a tourist on Earth, and he explores and parties as much as is he can get away with in the short time that he has, every time. Then, after carrying out his work, he would watch--or know with conflicted certainty that it would happen soon--as his summoner would fall into a demise brought about by their own lust for power, and he would be yanked back home. Very occasionally, he would instead be destroyed or banished by his master's enemy or some very lucky holy hunter himself, resulting in his visit becoming much more exciting before being cut short. This is how his existence went on for centuries, and likely would continue until the end of time: be called to Earth, desperately visit and learn and enjoy himself for the blink of time that he has, carry out whatever selfish plans his master had in mind, and then return home one way or another to wait for the next one. The most recent time he'd been summoned was by the youngest person he'd ever seen successfully perform the ritual. Instead of some warlord or sadistic master of the occult, Dirk found himself pulled into the Information Age by a twelve year old boy who believed a demonic ritual would solve all of his problems. With a hellhound loyally standing by his side, he was sure he would finally win the respect and power he had always felt deprived of. This boy was the one who gave him the name "Dirk," and who had influenced his appearance to be the over-the-top mashup of biker and Hot Topic that he wears now. The kid had thought it was "cool" and Dirk couldn't help but be charmed and saddened by him. He did whatever the kid asked, and did what he could to try and keep him from ruining himself, but the preteen was completely unprepared for the violent world of demonic politics that he'd jumped into. The boy ended up just as ripped apart by it as every other one of Dirk's summoners had been. So, Dirk once more returned to Hell to get back to the waiting game, trying very hard to forget his last trip to the surface, adding it onto the big pile of things in his head that Don't Matter Anymore. Duplicity Update: To Dirk, Duplicity was a combination of the best parts of Hell and the worst parts of Earth, and his opinion of it drifted back and forth in this Limbo during his stay there. To avoid the discomfort of having to think too hard about this place and his situation, Dirk dove headfirst into that Denial thing he's so good at, focusing only on partying and fulfilling the whims of his Dominant. As long as he played the part of a good dog, he wouldn't have to face the unbelievable reality of his situation, the fact that he should maybe stand up and fight against it, and the fear that his beloved Dominant would probably fall to the same corrupting end as all of his summoners had in the past. Before he'd been pulled from the city just as mysteriously as he'd arrived, the signs of his Dominant's personal corruption had already begun to show. Now, with him returning (without a clear memory of what might have happened between his exit and his return) he will be struggling to fit back into the old space he'd previously made for himself in the city, reconnecting with his Dominant, and hoping even harder that this all won't result in history repeating itself again. Personality: » Loyalty Dirk is very much a dog in regard to his outlook on life. He's friendly with everyone as if he doesn't notice when they aren't returning the sentiment, even though he knows that he will be diving in and out of those friendships in the span of a night. The connections he makes are almost always destined to be temporary. However, if he does manage to form a real bond, that person becomes part of what he considers to be his pack and they are treated to every bit of fierce loyalty that goes along with that. He's built to unwaveringly serve his summoner and the pack that he's running with; it's in his blood. So, since forming bonds outside of the two usual instances is pretty new for him, he generally doesn't realize that it has happened until he surprises himself by suddenly and murderously leaping to their aid when something threatens them. He may be an obnoxious, dangerous creature most of the time, but he's an unshakable friend once that connection has been made. You really couldn't get rid of him if you wanted to. Before he had left Duplicity, this aspect of his personality had shone the brightest, as his bond with his Dominant had been possibly even stronger than if that person had been his summoner. Even in his short time in contract with them, he'd proven that he would do absolutely anything that they instructed him to, including sleeping with, assaulting, and torturing others without question. » Denial The thing that keeps the hellhounds in line, more than anything else, is their naturally monumental capacity for denial and willing ignorance. Nothing is ever as bad as it seems when you decide to go partying instead. Who would ever yearn for freedom when you remind yourself that's not how the world works? If something burns down and lives are lost, that's just in your nature or you were just following orders, how could you be held accountable for that? Everything in the world is out of Dirk's hands, everything is fine, and he's sure that he doesn't feel complicated things like fear or loss. It makes him an uplifting presence to be around, even if he does tend to enable any vice he can sink his teeth into, and he spreads his own blithe brand of optimism around wherever he goes. But it also means that it's very hard to get him to accept any sort of responsibility or change his beliefs about himself and how the world works. He doesn't get angry often, but cornering him and really trying to make him face things that he is working hard to ignore is one of the fastest ways to provoke him. In Duplicity, his powers of denial had truly been put to the test, and had threatened to crack his impervious, smiling shell on more than one occasion. » Gluttony Dirk denies that he has any problems, but if he did have them, the way to solve them would be binge-drinking with eight of his new best friends. Or inciting an orgy with those friends. Or starting a friendly bar fight that grows in intensity until one of those friends somehow ends up bleeding out on the floor. Hedonism is Dirk's only coping mechanism, and while a little bit of manic clubbing or screwing or getting high on adrenaline might be good, healthy fun, Dirk doesn't know when to stop when it becomes a problem. Having fun is the first thing that he focuses on in a good mood, ignoring other potentially important things he should be paying attention to, and continuing to have fun until he can't feel anything else is where he goes when he's in a bad mood. If flooding himself with distractions and not knowing when to stop wasn't bad enough, he cannot resist trying to coax others into it as well. Demons are known for their penchant for temptation, and even the dogs are no exception. He just wants a friend to come with and play for a little while... what's the big deal? » Carelessness Dirk is a big dog who doesn't realize that he's breaking vases and terrorizing the cat when he's galloping through the house to play. Especially without a leash and master to keep him in line anymore, he's free to make as big of a mess as he wants--both accidental and intentional ones. Using his powers has always been an explosive affair, so even when he tries to use them in limited ways (phasing through a wall or trying to warm up some french fries) there's always the chance that something will be set on fire. Similarly, he never counts on the emotional damage he causes--even in people he cares about--with some of the things he does. Half of the time, he doesn't notice. And when he does notice, half of the time, he doesn't care. If he started caring now, he would have to think about all of the destruction he has wrought in the past, and that's just too much. He's also sure that even if he did try to be good and not wreck things, it would just happen anyway. He knows he's not a house pet. He's a monster from the Pit, and he can't help but burn the things around him. In Duplicity, he might have caused less trouble if his Dominant had held a tighter leash, but as they opted to let him have his fun and just make sure that the things around weren't easily breakable or flammable, this flaw in his personality wasn't at all discouraged. Powers and Abilities: - Regeneration/Invulnerability When it comes to strictly physical damage, Dirk is nearly indestructible. Blowing his body apart reveals molten "blood" that will drift back together and eventually regenerate and heal completely (including his clothes) over time. However, holy magic and other things specifically designed to destroy demons will fuck him right up. - Shapeshifting While Dirk primarily has only two forms--human and canine--both are very malleable, and he technically has far greater shapeshifting abilities than he even realizes. He typically only pays attention to his ability when shifting between human and canine, but he does occasionally tap into it when he wants to scare someone or during moments of extreme emotion. When he puts his mind to it, he can greatly change his form's size and monstrous appearance, coat it in flames, or even become pure hellfire for a brief amount of time. More subtle, artful changes are actually harder for him to pull off, but he has successfully changed the look of his clothes (and not just let them passively adapt to the whims and personality of his summoner) a couple of times. - First Glance It's true that history is full of sightings of monstrous dogs and shapeshifters, but for the most part, average people don't tend to notice anything strange about the charming, sharp-grinning man they're spending the night with, and sometimes even forget the encounter entirely in the morning. Strong-willed or abnormally observant people tend to see through it, but it's enough to get him into bars and beds and allow him to move through human crowds without a panic. (If used in Duplicity, it would be for NPCs only and I wouldn't expect other PCs to go along with it unless they volunteered to.) - Hellfire Dirk's main powers lie in the conjuring and controlling of hellfire, either using it offensively (in a variety of devastating and creative ways) or using it defensively as moats, shields, etc. He can also do a sort of short-range teleportation that can get him past many types of barriers, but this is also fire-powered. It's more like losing most of his physical form and rushing to a new place than true teleportation, however, so it can be countered by various means. This fire-rushing is mainly used to travel very quickly (sometimes creating small, collateral fires as he goes), get past certain magical barriersm or phase through thin walls. Inventory: none Samples: How he communicates How he communicates (Duplicity) How he thinks How he thinks (Duplicity) |
