R
Ravenfrost
Guest
Original poster
Dionysius
Main Base: The Land (business office and bachelor quarters)
Alternate Residence: The Sky (official von Scheidten family residence)
Name: The Honorable Dionysius von Scheidten
Goes by: Mister von Scheidten
Role: Citizen; Financial Backer/Investor
Character Pitch: Dionysius and Valentin, twin brothers orphaned at age 6, were taken in by their grandparents, Baron Quirinus von Scheidten and his wife Sarah. Raised from birth in an elite anachronistic environment they are sole heirs to the Baron's wealth as well as having their own considerable independent fortunes.
Almost identical in looks, the twins are opposite in temperament. While the gentle, kind-natured Valentin takes after their deceased father, Dionysius seems to have the temperament of their dead mother--a Russian beauty with the face of an angel and the soul of a she-devil. (Madness is rumored to have run rampant in her family.) Dionysius seems to find almost everyone except family and their retainers unbearably lacking and irritating, holding them at arm's length with a demeanor that ranges from glacial to volcanic.
Why are they in the Golden City?
The old Baron turned his back on society after young Valentin proposed to the girl he loved and was thrown out by her parents, who sneered that the von Scheidtens were "grasping parvenus--nothing better than robber barons!" (Since the von Scheidtens did not rise to prominence until the late Middle Ages.) Furious, the Baron vowed to seek a better, more open-ended life for his grandsons. Having heard about the Golden City from a friend and having a fascination for tinkering and inventions, the old man happily set up as an investor there, soon becoming known for his fair dealings and business acumen.
Initially, upon arriving in the Golden City, the two brothers were frequently seen in each other's company. However, these last few years it has become quite rare to glimpse them together.
Increasingly, Valentin's delicate health keeps him sequestered at the Baron's imposing residence in the Sky (he enjoys calligraphy and flower arranging on his better days). Dionysius, however, trained to become the Baron's business partner. Surprisingly, Dionysius seems to enjoy the work and is doing well at the firm, Bright Horizons, which is welcome news to his family. However, his anxious grandparents are still waiting for the day when he will bring a friend (or sweetheart!) home for dinner.
Having had his fill of elitist Sky-dweller society and marriage-minded individuals, the irascible Dionysius subsequently acquired an independent residence on the Land, purchasing a building for renovation, adjacent to the office. Slowly, he is beginning to look less like a relic of his grandfather's era. Notably, he has become more careless in attire and his bachelor quarters are in dire need of organization. Plus his cooking is atrocious. Reluctantly, he must look to hiring a servant or two.
Suddenly there arise sordid rumors of a sadistic criminal nicknamed the White Snake, a human trafficker who specializes in tender young flesh, and is purportedly tall, thin, pale, and well-favored. "Speaks like a gentleman," it is noted.
"If I had a silver for every rumor about a 'fair-haired' criminal in this city…" sneered Dionysius, crumpling the flyer which an avid busybody had brought to show him and throwing it after the fleeing rumormonger. "Keep yourself and such damnable trash out of this office, you old bag of wind, or it'll be the worse for you!"
Appearance / Comportment: Currently 25 years of age. Dionysius (and his twin brother Valentin) inherited the looks of their mother--a Russian ballerina who looked made of glass, but who could arm-wrestle a man twice her size. Dionysius has long white-blonde hair, pale smooth skin, and eye color of a crystalline gray-blue. He is 6 ft. tall, graceful, slim of build, but sleekly muscled. He possesses a cold feline beauty and has a low melodic voice which often descends into harsh tones. His demeanor with strangers is often detached, haughty, suspicious, or combative. Born under the sign of Scorpio.