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[skladka]

PLAYER INFO

Name: Chase
Age: 20+
Contact:
whitespire

CHARACTER INFO

Character Name: Aleksander Kirigan/The Darkling
Canon: Shadow and Bone (Netflix)
Canon Point: Near the end of s1, during his fight with Mal
Appearance: link
Age: Unknown, upwards centuries

Character snapshot: The Darkling goes by many names, most recently Aleksander Kirigan. A rare type of Grisha (his world's version of a mage) that can control shadows and amplify other Grisha's powers, Kirigan is immortal. Hunted by those that don't understand Grisha powers, he's responsible for creating a calamity in his world known as the Fold and killing many people out of the grief and rage of losing a loved one. The Darkling, realizing what he'd done, faked his own death. He's resurfaced under other identities, always inserting himself into Ravkan politics and claiming to be his ancestor, sidling up to the King in his world to make a Grisha army. His ultimate goal is to achieve the eventual control over the Fold he'd created centuries ago, giving him enough power to essentially control the world. Kirigan is ambitious, patient, and deadly, willing to bide his time and manipulate in order to get exactly what he wants.

World description: The Darkling is from a country called Ravka, which is essentially fantasy WWI Russia. He's a Grisha, which is a (very rough) equivalent to a magic user. There are different types, ranging from those that have control over the human body to those who have control over things like metal. There are rare versions of this--a shadow summoner can summon shadows, a sun summoner light, a tailor can alter physical appearance--but they're few and far between. The greater and rarer the talent and the more they use it, the longer Grisha live, hence Kirigan's immortality. Grisha are normally seen as lesser or frightening to those without gifts, be it out of fear or jealousy or because they're 'unnatural.' Ravka is the exception, for the most part, thanks to the Darkling.

In Ravka, Grisha are trained as their own army, separate from those that don't possess powers. This is lead by General Kirigan, a shadow summoner. Ravka has been torn in two by a huge expanse of darkness known as the Fold for a hundred years, threatening civil war, and is has been at war with places like Shu Han and Fjerda for centuries.

History: Long before Grisha were respected and powerful in Ravka, Kirigan was known as the Black Heretic. Hunted by Ravkans but in love with a healer Grisha, Luda, he found their home surrounded one day. He attempted to give himself up peacefully, wanting to spare Luda's life, but the King's men were ruthless and stabbed her. Kirigan, enraged, killed every person there and vowed his revenge.

Despite his mother's warnings, in his grief, anger and need for revenge, Kirigan turned to forbidden magic known as merzost to create an army and amplify his power. It worked, though at a price: the Black Heretic created an gash of pure darkness across Ravka known as The Fold and turned countless people into Volcra in his attempt. Knowing that he would be hunted even more, the Darkling faked his own death and after ensuring his mother was alive, Kirigan began to bide his time.

He's spent countless years with countless identities, all to sidle up to the King of Ravka. Hardened by his desperate actions, Kirigan sought out as much power as he could, creating an army consisting only of Grisha under the guise of serving the King, looking to find a way to control The Fold he'd created. After centuries, an opportunity was finally given to him in the form of a sun summoner, Alina Starkov: he proceeded to manipulate her, telling her that together they would destroy The Fold and bring peace to the world, all the while cutting her off from her only friend and having his mother train her. He preyed on her naivety and insecurity, and once a creature that could amplify power and give them the final push she needed appeared, he sent out men to find it.

Unfortunately (or fortunately, if you're on the side of good), Kirigan's mother helped Alina realize what he was doing. As she attempted to track and kill the creature herself after running away, Kirigan followed closely and killed it for himself, and using her childhood friend, Mal, as leverage to capture her. With the help of one of his soldiers, he fused the creature's bones in both himself and her, giving him complete control over both her power and The Fold.

His plan failed, however, thanks to Alina, her friend, and a group of thieves from Ketterdam. A final battle took place in the Fold itself, where Kirigan's plans to control the fold and therefore control entire nations were dashed. In a moment of poetic justice, he was left to die at the hands of the Volcra, creatures in the Fold he had turned that were once human.

What are your character’s mental/emotional strengths?
Patience: The Darkling is immortal, and has lived for quite a long time. He's a patient man, waiting and biding his time until he feels like it's the right moment. While said patience isn't infinite, as he's lived for years it's quite above average. This is a man who literally waited centuries just for the whiff of a Sun Summoner.
Charisma/Manipulation: Asides from his good looks, Kirigan has a magnetic aura about him--as shifty as he can be at times, despite the fact that he's a shadow summoner, his Grisha army tends to view him with mostly awe. He knows what to say to get a person to trust him, and exactly how to say it.
Determined: His morality is grey at best and nonexistent at worst, but everything he does he wholely believes it's for the greater good and for him and for Grisha--as long as he believes in this cause, he's determined, ambitious, confident, and will stop at nothing to achieve his goals.

What are your character’s mental/emotional weaknesses?
Anger/Obsession: The flipside to being such a powerful person: the Darkling may be patient, but he still very much has a temper. His outbursts are rare, as his rage is more the simmering type, but it's very much there. It usually surfaces when his obsession or plans -- for power, for Alina, for his goals to be achieved -- falls through. A patient man, once he has an inkling of an idea for more power or a way to improve something that he deems important, he will stop at nothing and let it consume him, fixating on things. The hunt for the stag and Alina in general is a perfect example of this.
Grudges/Resentment: The Darkling can let some minor slights go, but he is very much the type to hold grudges for a very, very long time. If you've broken his trust or betrayed him, he's perfectly capable of holding onto that resentment and nursing it, usually to turn the tables and get revenge in some way shape or form.
Judgement: He's very good at playing nice, at being aloof and asking questions in a curious manner, but he'll absolutely judge you based on whether or not you're useful. This usually means that if you give him information or you have some sort of power that he deigns important, he'll try to gain your trust. Otherwise, you're of no consequence to him.
Superiority complex: Self-explanatory. The Darkling absolutely believes he's the best person to take care of or do things, and most people are beneath him.

What events or circumstances in your character’s past have impacted them the most?
Shadow Summoner: Raised before Grisha were an important part of Ravka, and being a Shadow Summoner ontop of it, The Darkling has dealt with quite a lot of adversity. His mother was strict, honing his abilities and sharpening his talent, but even early on he's fully aware that power comes with a price, and immortality means it's wise to never get attached. He's also very well aware of what it's like to be on the run or hunted because of this.
Luda's death: Unfortunately, The Darkling's origin story involves fridging a love interest. Luda's death is arguably the most important part of his journey and origin story, and what's shaped him to be so cold (and emotionally messed up) individual. All of that grief, anger, and rage has never truly left him, and created both the monster he is now and caused him to do what he deigns right or justified by any means necessary.
Alina's Betrayal: Kirigan's obsession with Alina and the Sun Summoner is unhealthy, to put it mildly. Alina is his better half in every sense of the word, a polar opposite Kirigan used for power and to further his own agenda, manipulating her into doing what he wants. Kirigan harbours feelings for her, though he has difficulty parsing what, exactly they are--there's certainly a level of genuine love there, though it's warped via his own twisted perception and blurry lines between obsession for power, lust for control, and genuine loneliness and empathy. They have a shared connection, and when Alina not only obtains the power of the stag but proceeds to fight him, for lack of a better phrase, The Darkling loses what little patience he has left--a big move, given that his patience levels are usually infinite. If anything, this situation has amped up his obsession with her and his need for power and control.

What impressions do others tend to have of your character and how do those impressions differ from who your character truly is?
Kirigan is the embodiment of shadow and darkness, yes, and while he is the epitome of 'tall dark handsome man dressed in black and probably evil,' a lot of people see his detached demeanor and aloofness as more of an inner sadness or torment. He absolutely does have a lot of this. The vast majority of folks see him either as a shifty, untrustworthy 'magic' user (he controls shadows, after all) or someone incredibly misunderstood and respected: there's almost no in between. Sometimes, it even depends on the day.

More often than not, he'll lean into one or the other, depending on either what he needs or who he's with: while The Darkling is very careful about what he says and how he comes across, he's never really outright lied other than his identity. The constants that will happen no matter what are fairly simple: the Darkling is intimidating, aloof, and a very withdrawn individual. He tends to be stoic--or tries his best to be, though he does let emotion slip (sometimes on purpose), and none of these are a lie or a show, either. Having spent so long around other people, he's learned that the best way to deceive and to manipulate is tell half-truths or omit information. This comes across even in his natural demeanor: he is who he is, but what he is is just one small facet of him.

What motivates your character?
In a nutshell: power and control. From his birth, from Luda, from the Fold's creation, from Alina--his main motivations, despite the various reasons, have always been power and control. They're not exactly the healthiest ways to seek power--the Fold is a prime example of 'intentions started out as pretty good but whoops,' have always been so he could be stronger, better, have more. He was already a powerful shadow summoner before everything else, but he craved more to put an end to people hunting Grisha. After that his excuse was because of the death of his lover, and after that, he sought to control the Fold entirely (and Alina Starkov) in order to ensure not only that he would control Ravka, but all of the world with it. Kirigan wants he and other Grisha to survive. He fully believes that the only way to do that is to make sure he's unstoppable.

How does your character handle crisis or adversity?
Crisis and adversity are things that he is absolutely no stranger to. As stated throughout, the Darkling is very much a patient person--for the most part, this is a pretty steadfast trait. Kirigan has had a lot of experience with things going pear shaped, and he can usually handle things in a calmed and focused manner, although he will absolutely judge those not as composed as he is. He's been around for a while and is not opposed to helping people. He's handled a lot of messy, messy shit solely by being the leader of an army. That being said, if said crisis of adversity is something that directly gets in the way of his own plans when they're just coming to fruition, it's a completely different story. He's literally tied Alina to a skiff so she wouldn't run away, for example--and the closer he is to whatever set goal he has when something interferes with it, the higher likelihood all patience will disappear completely and he'll fly into a rage.

Skills, abilities, and physical weaknesses:
Shadow control and manipulation: What it says on the tin. The Darkling can control and create shadows, darkening a room, dimming light, or even choking people with it. He can even going so far as to use them to perform what's called 'the Cut,' an ability that makes said shadows sharp enough to slice and decapitate. Obviously this will have to be nerfed, along with most of Kirigan's abilities--I'm happy to say the offensive versions of his shadow magic will cost great strength and energy in order to pull off, and at some times not work at all due to the setting!
Amplifier: Kirigan is a living amplifier, and his blood and bones (or touch) amplify other Grisha's abilities to be more powerful. For nerfs, maybe he can still amplify others but on a less powerful scale? Otherwise, this can either be nerfed completely or to only work with other Grisha.
Immortal: Ageless and pretty much unkillable. Obviously, this will be nonexistent in the game.

Inventory:
-His kefta, a special uniform designed by Grisha to be bulletproof. Given his canon point, however, it is absolutely torn and filthy and will need repairing.
-Himself. That's it, just him his clothes and his fancy coat.

HORROR INFO

What aspects of your character are you most interested in exploring in a horror setting? The Darkling is a tricky individual, and while he's a villain, I'm really interested in seeing him in a game where he's forced to cooperate with others. Eventually, I'd love to him to potentially do some sort of player plot in the long run, but I very much want him being an unwilling team player in situations he can't control, having to rely on others, and having to be vulnerable around folks. A horror setting's perfect for this--for a man who is obsessed with power and control, stripping away that agency is fascinating for me.

What is your character’s mental state upon entering the game? Thoroughness is appreciated here. Kirigan is torn between rage and grief once more, this time instead of the death of Luda, it's because Alina has rejected him and his plans--and not only that, but Mal, someone he views as lesser and inferior, has just thrown him to the creatures he's created in a beautiful display of poetic justice. He's centuries old, the vast majority of his life at this point has been waiting for this plan to come to fruition, and it's not only gone sour but his life is on the line and he's being torn to shreds by Volcra. It's not good. He's not doing so hot.

Emotionally, all of that rage that's been simmering for who knows how long has finally surfaced. He's on the cusp of ultimate power and it's been yanked away by the one girl he's developed incredibly intense feelings for, both positive and negative. He's feeling every moment of frustration tenfold, that stoicness and patience he's so very good at being completely stripped away and leaving nothing but rage and frustration behind. His determination is still there, more than ever, and spite burns strong in him for Mal, for Alina, for everyone who's interfered.

What unsettles and frightens your character? What sort of encounters would chip away at your character’s psychological stability?
Shadows he can't control. His powers failing him, people reading and seeing through him. People getting into his head, people knowing how he operates. Being hunted solely for who he is, being unable to control others. He's perfectly fine not being in a position of power if it suits what he needs out of a situation, but most of the things that will put him under psychological duress revolves around not being able to predict what's coming next, or the inability game any system or people in charge. Essentially, this game setting is already his worst nightmare.

What horrifying events or genre elements would you like to see utilized in the game? I'm a big fan of psychological horror, less so on body horror--demons, monsters, possession, that sort of stuff is hella cool. Things where characters question reality a la the Silent Hill franchise, monsters or things symbolizing people's pasts and trauma.

SAMPLES

Test Drive Thread: Alina Starkov, ongoing
Log Thread Sample: Gildor Helyanwë
Log Thread Sample: Raylan Giveens, ongoing