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Post by Demona on Jun 4, 2012 0:40:35 GMT -5
..:: Player Information ::..
Player Name: Jen
Age: 32
Other Characters Played: Maleficent, Princess Aurora, Hades, Phoebus, Elisa
How You Found Us: Founder
..:: Character Information ::..
Character Name: Demona / Dominique Destine
Gender: Female
Type of Creature: Gargoyle by night, Human by day
Rank: Force of Evil
Movie/TV Series: Gargoyles
Home Island: Isle of the Statue
Personality:
Demona is cunning and manipulative. Though she used to be innocent, loving, and fiercely loyal, her good-natured personality was long snuffed out during the hardships and oppression she experienced in her own lifetime and then the centuries she experienced during her extended lifespan.
Above all else Demona has always retained an innate sense of righteousness. Even when she still lived in Scotland with Goliath and the others she had very strong beliefs about how things should work. She resented the humans for coming and taking over their home and was angered that she and her kind were consistently treated with fear and loathing despite proving themselves time and time again.
Even then she was good at hiding her feelings. Outwardly she would show none of her inner fury and hunger for vengeance, instead allowing herself to be placated by Goliath who always tried to calm and talk sense into her during her righteous fits. However, her frustration and anger over the situation festered inside her and inwardly she was always thinking, always conniving and scheming to find ways to make those who deserved it pay for their crimes and injustices.
This hatred reached a climax when she joined forces with the Captain of the Castle Guard and helped plan a siege that would rid the castle of the humans and unfortunately the plan backfired in her face. Somewhere in the back of her mind, Demona is aware that the massacre was partially if not wholly her fault but she refuses to acknowledge that fact. Instead she directs the anger and hatred and guilt she feels toward herself at the humans. And really anyone that crosses her the wrong way.
Demona is very mono-focused on her goals. She has no hobbies or interests, and focuses her efforts on research, study, practicing her sorcery, making investments, and other steps toward whatever goal she has in mind at any given time.
One thing that can be said is that one cannot trust Demona under any circumstances. She- outwardly- cares about no one but herself and will do whatever she needs to do and betray whoever she has to betray to get the job done and meet whatever objective she has set out to achieve making her an extremely potent wild card.
Though she does tend to honor her alliances, Demona gets trigger happy when it comes to the former members of her clan and will tend to forego any previously agreed upon capturing status's if she has the opportunity to take them out. She also has a 'hurt them before they hurt me' mentality. If she has even the smallest of feelings that her partners might be double-crossing her, she'll turn on them first.
Though Demona has very little room left in her heart for anything but anger and hate, she still has feelings for Goliath and deep down it hurts her that he would choose the humans over her and their kind- or so is the way she sees it. It is just another way that things aren't happening and people aren't behaving the way that she believes they should.
Because of her still somewhat conflicting emotions towards Goliath, she hates and despises the human Elisa Maza who befriended the rest of her clan upon waking from their thousand year sleep. She can see the way Goliath looks at her and it fuels in her an anger to surpass all her other hatreds. The idea that her love has chosen another- a human no less- over her drives her to the edge of whatever sanity she has left.
One small glimmer of hope, as Goliath might see it, is Angela. Angela is the biological daughter of Demona and Goliath. Gargoyles consider all of their clan their sisters and brothers and sons and daughters, usually disregarding the ties of blood, but the fact that Angela is her biological daughter somehow breaches the centuries of ice that has built up in Demona's heart.
Demona does regret that she and her daughter must be separated by their beliefs but whatever her soft spot for the girl, whatever her conflicting emotions for her former love, they are not enough to bring her back from the place her hatred keeps her caged.
Powers, Skills, and/or Any Other Abilities:
- Gargoyle Physiology: In the evening hours when she is in gargoyle form, she possesses all the traits and powers of her race including super strength and durability. She has strong claws that can puncture stone and metal, allowing her to climb up buildings and other structures. She also has wings but they don't allow her actual flight. Instead he is able to use them to glide from high points, generally reached by climbing with her talons and claws. Once she is in the air she can use her wings to stay aloft with ease.
- Sorcery: Even before she began to dabble in technology and weapons Demona trained to wield powerful magicks. She secretly trained under the Archmage when she was young and has continued to study on her own over the centuries, honing her abilities which has made her a dangerous sorceress and force to reckon with. She can use almost any magical relic or artifact she can get a hold of.
- Technologically Inclined: Demona has an advanced understanding of science, technology, and engineering. During her centuries of life she has learned to wield and implement all kinds of weapons and firearms using the newest and latest technology to suit her grand design.
- Daywalker: Demona used to turn to stone during the day like all other gargoyles, but that is no longer the case. One of Oberon's children, Puck, decided to grant her wish and 'gift' her the ability to 'no longer turn to stone' during the day, but with a twist. Instead, at sunrise, Demona suffers a rather painful transformation and becomes human instead of stone. She suffers an equally painful transformation at sunset back into a gargoyle. Her human alias is named Dominique Destine and she is CEO of her own company, Nightstone Unlimited. She still requires sleep, and chooses to sleep as a human.
- Immortality: Towards the end of her own normal gargoyle lifespan, Demona came upon a young man by the name of Macbeth. She wanted her youth restored and he needed help to prevent from being overrun by enemy forces. They agreed to help each other and the Weird Sisters created a bond between them siphoning Macbeth's youth into Demona. As a result the two of them became immortal and have lived for centuries stuck at the ages that resulted from the pact. They can still be hurt or even die- temporarily. When they are near each other they can feel each others physical pain should they be wounded (they can also feel each other's pleasure, basically they can feel intense sensations when in close proximity) and the only way they can die is for one to kill the other. They cannot permanently die by anyone else's hand. A normal cut or scrape might heal as any other wound but anything more dire or mortal will activate their healing factor and accelerate the process.
- Manipulation: Demona is a master manipulator. She has had centuries to study and hone her social skills knowing almost always exactly what to say to get her way every time. Because her goals and plans are often rather reasonable, she is able to convince those who might otherwise deny her to voluntarily help her thinking they are doing the right thing.
- Intelligence/Strategist: Demona is brilliant. She has lived for centuries and has spent much of her time studying and learning about anything and everything. She also has learned much in the ways of war and planning through her lifetimes of experience. She can come up with any number of plans and have twice as many back up plans.
Weaknesses/Flaws: Though Demona might have many traits that could be considered weaknesses, only one individual holds the key to her eternal demise. Part of the pact that she made with Macbeth grants them both immortality, trapping them in their current state and age. The only way for them to actually die, is for one of them to kill the other, then they both die.
Temporary Death: Demona and Macbeth may be bound, being the only ones that can actually grant a permanent death to one another, but anyone else can still 'kill' them. When this happens however, they will only remain 'dead' for a few minutes. If they are in close proximity and someone else kills one of them, they will both fall unconscious and the one that was not dealt the killing blow will recover first.
Macbeth Proximity: When Macbeth and Demona are close in proximity to each other they feel each other's physical pain.
Centuries of life/Human hatred: Demona's long life does not seem to have made her any wiser. Instead, her hatred for humans seems to have grown. Demona blames all humans for what was done to her clan. She has spent centuries plotting and scheming and intends to make all humans pay for the betrayal long ago. She strives to purge the world of all humans by which she hopes to create a better world for her kind. Her hatred of them is completely blind. She particularly hates Elisa Maza because she knows Goliath cares for her. The idea that he chose a human over her infuriates her all the more. Also because Elisa is living proof that not all humans are bad which infuriates her all the more. Her long lifespan has also caused her to be a little mentally unbalanced.
Her own worst enemy: Demona is so caught up with her own agenda and her hatred and anger that she can't see the destructive path she is on.
Angela: Though some might see her as a point of redemption for Demona, Angela could certainly be seen to Demona's enemies as one of her few weaknesses. Demona cares for Angela in a way she doesn't seem to be able to care for anyone one else. She longs to have her daughter in her life. She has often put herself between Angela and whatever is trying to harm her.
Solitude: Demona doesn't trust anyone because she is afraid of being betrayed again. Though, as much as Demona pushes people away, she fears being alone but she is too caught up in her vengeance and anger to allow anyone back in. And given the infinite life that has been laid out before her, Demona will always lose everyone around her making her less likely to want to care about them.
Thailog and Goliath: Both were gargoyles that she loved at one point or another. Though she seems to have moved past most emotion she might have for either of them, she can't help acknowledging the fact that they had been involved at one point which depending on the situation, might cause her to hesitate. She still has unresolved feelings for them, lacking closure.
Canon History:
Demona spent much of her early life in Castle Wyvern with her clan and lover Goliath. The gargoyles offered the castle and its inhabitants protection as best they could while the castle's guard gave them protection during the daylight hours when they were stone and vulnerable.
But all was not happy. Demona watched as her own people were oppressed and treated unjustly by the humans. Though the gargoyles had done nothing to deserve the treatment, the humans feared their monstrous appearances. Wanting the humans to pay for their treatment, she joined forces with the captain of the guard who made a pact with the Viking invader Hakon. She was to convince Goliath to take the gargoyles away from the castle so that the humans would be unprotected and the castle would easily fall.
For her part Demona wanted to get rid of the humans that inhabited the castle so that they might retake their lands and finally be rid of them. The plan backfired however. Goliath refused to leave the castle unprotected, and thus only he and Hudson went after the diversion that had been set up for them. As a change in plans, the captain convinced Hakon to attack during the day when the castle would remain unprotected.
The siege was successful however, Hakon betrayed the captain of the guards and smashed the stone gargoyles to pieces before he left. Demona couldn't think of a way to explain to her clan that the castle was going to be attacked without giving away the secret so with a heavy heart flew away from the castle and down to a nearby strip of land to wait out the day.
The only other gargoyles to survive the slaughter were Brooklyn, Broadway, Lexington and Bronx who were down in the rookery and Goliath and Hudson who were away. Demona saw Goliath return but couldn't face him so she flew away planning to return later and tell him she was out looking for him. But when she returned, he and the others had already been turned to stone and placed around the castle by the Magus.
Demona spent much of her life after that on the run. Refusing to ally with the humans she slowly accumulated what she believed to be all that was left of her kind forming a small new clan of Gargoyles under her rule. They scavenged and stole what they needed to survive, avoiding the mysterious hunter that was determined to destroy them, and lived in a cave in the mountains.
The weird Sisters came to Demona in the forms of Gargoyles with a message about The Hunter. They told her that he was after a new human target and Demona was determined to use that to her advantage. Using the human to distract The Hunter she would finally kill him herself. Unfortunately things didn't go exactly the way she planned. A young Macbeth was flung during the battle and hanging onto the castle for his life while the young daughter of a neighboring king tried to keep him from falling. Demona opted to save them and as a result forfeited her victory over The Hunter.
She continued to struggle on and battled the Hunter again and again only to fail over and over and watch her body age and weaken. The Weird Sisters again went to Demona with news of the Hunter, and this time advised her to join with Macbeth to defeat him. Demona refused to ally with a human ever again but did still go after the hunter, and inadvertently saved Macbeth once more.
During the battle the hunter and Demona went over the wall. The Hunter fell to his death and Macbeth saved Demona's life, pulling her to safety over the wall as she had done for him so many years ago making them even in the gargoyles eyes.
Years later Macbeth and Duncan were wandering through the mountains and came upon Demona and her clan in their stone sleep. Macbeth persuaded Duncan not to smash the gargoyles right then but Duncan returned and managed to smash about half of them before the sun went down and Demona and the rest awoke. They fled from the attackers, only a few of them remained alive.
Deciding that there must be a way to restore her youth and realizing that there was something strange about the three sisters that kept tipping her off about the Hunter, Demona decided to seek them out. She ran into Macbeth out in the woods who was on his way to meet King Duncan and his armies. Duncan perceived Macbeth as a threat to his throne and was marching on his lands. Macbeth hoped to allow his lands and family to be spared if he simply surrendered.
Macbeth begs Demona to help protect his clan offering to protect her clan in return. When she demands to know how she can trust him to keep his word, the Weird Sisters appear proclaiming that "This bargain demands an act of good faith." They ask Demona what she desires to which she quickly replies, her youth. They ask Macbeth what he would trade for the safety of his kingdom to which he quickly replies, anything to save his family.
The sisters cast a spell on the two of them restoring Demona's youth with Macbeth's and locking her into her promise to assist Macbeth in protecting his family:
"Across the mists of space and time, we post this covenant sublime.
Macbeth his youth doth offer here, to make this one a force to fear.
While she with fang and claw and wing, doth swear sweet death his foes to bring.
By their acceptance are they consigned, unto each other's fate resigned,
forever and eternal bound, and each the other's pain resound."
Demona honors her promise to assist Macbeth against Duncan and by working together they are victorious. By destroying Duncan who was now the Hunter they not only saved Macbeth's home, but Demona was free of the Hunter as well for a time. Macbeth then became king of Scotland, keeping Demona at his side as his primary advisor.
Their alliance lasted happily for 37 years until Demona overheard Bodhe, Luach, and Macbeth talking. Bodhe suggested that Macbeth forswear the gargoyles so that the new Hunter, would lose his English allies since they were only with him to destroy the gargoyles. Macbeth considers just long enough to outrage his son Luach who defends Demona and her clan, and to infuriate Demona who flies off to make a pact with Canmore.
Demona does not show up to help defend the castle as promised and Macbeth barely escapes with his life. In his attempt to get to safety, Macbeth and Gruoch run into The Hunter who reveals himself to be Prince Canmore. Canmore then takes his revenge, killing Macbeth. It is when Canmore kills Macbeth that Demona and Macbeth discover the true consequences of the bargain they made. As Macbeth falls dead, so does Demona.
The Weird Sisters appear again and entice Demona to rise, proclaiming that she is unharmed. "Waken now to the fate you have made for yourself." Demona is once again to discover that she trusted the wrong human as Canmore has slaughtered what remained of her clan leaving her utterly alone.
"Canmore was wrong about you and Demona. He said when one dies, both die. But when one lives, both live. And thus you both shall live eternally linked, sharing each other's pain and anguish with no release until one destroys the other. Only then shall both finally perish. Together."
Both she and Macbeth lost everything when they went back on their word and they are now bound to each other for all eternity forced to live with that. 900 years later Macbeth and Demona are still at each others throats, each convinced that the other was the one that betrayed them first. Macbeth now having taken on the identity of the hunter no longer caring that he will die when Demona does.
The Weird Sisters continued to control and manipulate Demona and Macbeth over the centuries, sometimes casting spells of compulsion on them to force them to do their bidding.
In the early 1990's Demona allied herself with Xanatos, giving him the Grimorum Arcanorum and telling him about the curse placed on her companions perhaps in an attempt to manipulate him into freeing them.
Though Demona and Goliath were overjoyed to be reunited, Demona was quickly disillusioned with her beloved when he insisted he spare human lives and continued to protect them. She quickly discounted them as allies in her crusade.
Though her alliance with Xanatos eventually crumbled as do most of her alliances, she continues to search for ways to destroy the humans, and seek revenge by all those she counts among her enemies including Goliath and his clan, Elisa Maza, Macbeth, and even Xanatos after he allied with Goliath against her. She continues to be haunted by the pact she made with the Weird Sisters and her 'gift' from Puck. The only thing that seems able to pierce her icy hide of rage and vengeance, is her biological daughter with Goliath, Angela.
Game Information:
As Demona cannot actually die, she was never imprisoned in the Forever Stone alignment not withstanding.
After the incident with the Hunters Demona went into hiding for a while until everything died down, later returning to Destine Manor to resume her role as Dominique running her company.
Demona wants about as much to do with the humans of this realm that are playing 'rulers' as she does with whatever relationship is finally budding between Elisa and Goliath. The idea of someone that she once cared for so much involved with someone that is not only of a different species but of the species that she so deftly loathes is repulsive to her.
Since she is not much in the loop of Rohandor's rule, she isn't privy to the information yet that the Forever Stone has been breached nor that certain individuals like Thailog may have escaped.
Anything Else:
Demona becomes human during the day. As a 'reward' for presenting the Child of Oberon, Puck, such an entertaining evening, he granted her wish to be able to 'walk in daylight without turning to stone.' Though she simply meant that she wanted to remain in her gargoyle form when the sun came up, Puck did some creative interpreting and allowed her to be 'flesh' in daylight.
Demona is a gargoyle who has been alive for centuries. She can transform into a human by day and is bound to another individual granting her immortality so long as neither of them kills the other. She is a tragedy of a character having started out with such seemingly harmless intentions and having been beaten down and betrayed by humans for centuries leaving her barely a shadow of the person she once was.
Also, as Demona and Macbeth can feel each other's intense pain when in close proximity, they also can feel each other's pleasure.
..:: Sample Post ::..
It was night, but certainly not dark. Not dark the way Demona defined it. The people of this century had no idea what the word actually meant with their bright cities and streets. When she and the world itself were younger, she lived in castles illuminated by lanterns and torchlight and though they kept the halls sufficiently lit, the fire didn't blot out the stars like this harsh artificial light the humans depended on now.
Back then, when the lights went out it was dark. A pitch terrible black that only the shadows and other frightening things that used that darkness for cover could see through. Nothing could be expected to hide in this sickly washed out light reflecting off the scattered cloud cover.
Demona didn't know where she was and that did not please her. More than anything Demona needed to know what was going on at all times. Needed to be in control. It was the force that drove her to betray others before they could betray her. When even just the illusion of control slipped through her claws it made her wary and angry and this was no exception.
Since she no longer was forced into the stone sleep like the other gargoyles, Demona required regular sleep just like anyone else. She usually chose to sleep during the day while in her human form which seemed like the best plan to keep her on the same schedule as the bulk of her enemies and keeping her somewhat less vulnerable.
This time however when the transformation back to her gargoyle form had awakened her, she had not been where she had fallen asleep. Instead her cold blue reflection had been scowling back at her from a mirror on one of the foreign walls. She seemed to be imprisoned in a hotel room. Though the room seemed nice enough, the fiery gargoyle was not about to wait around for whomever or whatever had snatched her away from her home and immediately had gone about looking for escape.
With her superior strength she had picked up one of the chairs and hurled it through the window and quickly dove deftly after it, keeping her wings retracted until she was clear of the jagged edges of the now broken window. Gliding around and back towards the building, she had sunk her talons into the hard stone of the building, ascending towards the roof hoping to get a better idea of her location.
A deeper scowl now formed on Demona's sharp features, cutting short her musings of the past and true darkness. There was no way she could be where she though she was. There couldn't even have been enough time to get her from the northern side of the east coast to the southern side.
"Unless of course I'm still asleep," She mused aloud dryly, the sound of her own voice a comfort. The idea that this was some sort of dream world was just as farfetched as having been transported the great distance without her sleep being disturbed. She's appeared here like magic. ...Magic.
Demona could feel her body temperature rising and her eyes flashed red as she roared with sudden fury. That could be the only explanation. Whoever was behind this was going to meet a very drawn out and painful end. Hoping to gather more information, Demona leapt from the building, letting her wings catch the wind as she soared off in the direction of the distant castle.
