GENERAL
Full name
Desdemona Esper
Nickname:
Des, Mona, or D
Clan name
Esper
Age:
16
Gender
Female
Race
Fae
APPEARANCE
Height
∆ 5"
Weight
∆ 97lbs
Eye Color
∆Grey
Hair Color
∆White
Notable Features:
∆Olive skin
∆Scar on her cheek
∆Black feline tattoo on the nape of her neck
Attire:
While she isn't against dresses, Desdemona finds leggings and long thigh high boots matched with a long sleeved tunic far more practical. She detests loose clothing with a passion as they tend to get in the way of practically everything, the only exceptions being pieces she could remove with ease. Her signature colors of choice are white, black, and gold. Desdemona is hardly ever seen without her trademark white hooded robe lined with gold thread and a mask that covers the lower half of her face. Due to her sensitivity to sunlight, she may also occasionally be seen with a parasol or thin veil to block the strong rays.
BACKGROUND
Personality
Like the darkness she rules over, Desdemona is seen as cold and mysterious in the eyes of many. As the most proficient fighter in her clan, she is considered strong and keeps up appearances like many nobles, showing off a proud and aloof temperament as if nothing has anything to do with her. However, out of the eyes of the public, she is pretty amiable, and kind, albeit soft spoken. Despite her seemingly gentle demeanor, Desdemona isn't one willing to be pushed around. With her emotions most often directing her, she has a bit of a stubborn streak when it comes to those she wishes to protect or those she wishes to kill. After her sister's death, Desdemona decided to put great effort into treating each day as if it were her last, hoping to live her sisters life for her as well so as to not let her death go to waste.
~On the flip side, she strongly believes everything you are should just go out of the window when lives are at stake and will not hesitate to kill if another's life depends on it or if the crown wishes it.
Bio
Desdemona is the firstborn of one of the Esper's higher branches and current heiress in line, the original being her younger twin sister sister; Gwyn. The two naturally grew up together and supported each other through thick and thin. Although their father couldn't tell the two apart at a glance, he had long chosen Gwyn as his favorite. She was strong, decisive, and showed the most potential when it came to leading. Almost as if the polar opposite, Desdemona was a huge crybaby with a bleeding heart and displayed only subpar skills in training. Their mother, however, was a loving and wise woman who doted on the two girls and shielded them from the cruel reality of the world as much as possible.
It all came to an end when the selection for the heir to be came along.
Their powers had always been a little strange when compared to the abilities bestowed to the other clans. Unlike the others, the Esper clan were bestowed their abilities by their guardian, Guenhwyvar which was from an entirely different plane, one no light could ever reach. Long ago, the founder of their clan formed a contract of sorts with the large feline after defeating it in battle. It is because of this contract that it bestowed not only its abilities but knowledge of how to summon its subjects from the alternate plane. The catch, however, was for only the strongest of each generation to have the right.
After Guenhwyvar passed, the Esper clan began a long-standing tradition among them that quickly became their darkest secret. Once a decade, they'd hide away and hold a ceremony to decide who would be granted the privilege of obtaining a shadow cat from their guardian. What few but those who have actually obtained their partners actually know, is that in order to bind their souls together, another soul is needed to bind the two so neither of the contracted partners could free themselves or kill their partners. To those who survive the ordeal, the entire ceremony is nothing more than the average competition. However, to those chosen, it is the day they lose someone close to them.
When it came to Desdemona, she was the sacrifice chosen since she lacked the skills to take part in the actual competition. With no bond closer than that of twins, the Superior prepared the ritual and placed the two in an enclosed area for Gwyn to do the deed in a private setting. Unexpectedly, Desdemona emerged battered and bruised. Whether Gwyn ended her own life or not remains unknown to all but Desdemona and Gwyn.
After that ordeal, her mother departed from the world, unable to bear the feeling of having lost a child. This left Desdemona in the hands of her father, who focused entirely on honing her into the daughter he wanted. It was through his training that her nature took an abrupt change into a mix of both her and her sister's personalities, making her into a bit of a complicated person in the process and a little unsure of her exact identity.
With so much of her time catching up on training, she never got to actually meet any royals despite moving into the palace once her position was confirmed. For the most part, training and learning are all she has ever known. With so little experience, Desdemona looks forward to the day she could serve her purpose.
ARSENAL
Magic focus
Umbrakinesis-The ability to manipulate and shape darkness and shadows. With Desdemona this includes the ability to solidify shadows to create constructs and weapons within reason, limited travel through shadows by melding into them, and naturally using them as camouflage.
Notes:
• When completely immersed in darkness, she becomes one with it to the point that it brings about a variety of effects. On the plus side, it enhances not only her agility and resistance to physical blows but also her flexibility as she gains the ability to shapeshift in this form. However, her aversion to light itself becomes problematic to the point where direct contact with it burns her and may prove fatal if she doesn't revert to her original form in time or if exposed to sunlight itself.
• Her eyes are sensitive to light so she wears a thin veil that nonetheless impairs her vision to some degree during the day. When that isn't an option, a parasol also does the job to an extent.
Weaknesses:
• Light is by far both a great strength and her greatest weakness as shadows cannot exist without it. Even at night, her powers rely on the light of the moon. In order to use her abilities well, there needs to be a certain balance. Too much light and she only has a limited amount of shadows with which to manipulate. On top of that, she is unable to solidify them in broad daylight. However, the absence of it leaves her with nothing to use as a catalyst. The ideal scenario would be on the night of a full moon.
• Desdemona is also unable to create darkness itself and can only manipulate what is already present. In order to gain access the connection to darkness, she must make physical contact with a shadow, be it her own or another's. Using the starting shadow as a catalyst of sorts, she can then connect to any other shadow in sight. If her sight is impaired, so are her abilities to control the shadows around her.
• She is petite and greatly lacks in both strength and defense which forces her rely primarily on stealth and speed.
• Prolonged exposure to merging with shadows leads to fear induced madness and loss of sense of reality. The probability of the loss of control makes Desdemona reluctant to use her abilities to the best of her potential.
Weapon
Desdemona is proficient in her skills with chained weapons constructed by her abilities. However, since they are rather lacking in the daytime, she wears a clawed gauntlet on one hand for close combat situations and is capable with daggers or throwing knives for mid to long range.
Mount
Gwyn
Her mount is a Shadow panther from a dark plane where no form of light will ever reach. By tying the Panther down with a name and sacrificing her own twin sister to bridge their connection, Desdemona painfully succeeded in establishing a link with the Esper's guardian beast. Though both are linked to one another empathetically and through their spiritual connection, Gwyn isn't required to take Desdemona as its master. Sentient and proud, the beast tends to make its own decisions and will only follow orders when it brings it some benefits. As an effect of the sacrifice, the spiritual link between them forces the two to coexist. If one dies, the other naturally follows, encouraging the two to work together to the end.
Armor
Desdemona wears little armor. What armor she does wear is crafted of the lightest yet highest quality metal or leather available. With stealth being her highest priority, most of her garb consists of dark colored items. For the most part, the only piece of metal you would find would be her clawed gauntlet which she wears on her left hand for close combat. As far as leather goes, she wears it over her vitals and extremities.
Example, I guess?
Extra
Dialogue
#00688B
FC
Art by Chubymi
Other:
"Dialogue"
`Thoughts`
Actions