Nov. 17th, 2012

wellpastsaving: (i've done things i never thought i'd do)
Out of Character Information


player name: arden
player journal: [personal profile] dancinpenguins
playing here: thor, jace wayland
where did you find us? adri/bella
are you 16 years of age or older?: yes

In Character Information


character name: Darla
Fandom: Buffy the Vampire Slayer / Angel the Series
Timeline: Angel the Series 2x15 after the library scene
character's age: Over 400 years old

powers, skills, pets and equipment:

As a Buffyverse vampire, Darla is undead, possessed by a demonic soul that requires blood to survive. Their powers include:
- the ability to disguise their demonic face with the human face of their predecessor
- can't be drowned or asphyxiated
- rapid regeneration and immunity to diseases
- immunity to telepathy
- can't be seen in mirrors ( can be video-recorded/photographed)
- super-hearing, nightvision, acute sense of smell
- fighting prowess
- superhuman strength, agility, speed, reflexes
- sensing souls
- supersharp nails

Weaknesses:
- Stake through the heart (or other wooden object)
- Beheading
- Direct sunlight
- Fire
- Holy water
- Crosses
- Can't enter private residence without invitation

Darla's shown herself to be a natural at torture techniques, both physical and psychological.

canon history:
Wiki page

personality:

Darla: I’m a whore.
Priest (The Master): Well, yes. […] You should have asked for a priest long ago, child—your life may have been the better for it.
Darla: And you should have paid me a visit before today, Father—your life may have been more interesting because of it.


Very little is known about the life Darla led before she was sired by the ancient vampire known as the Master, over 400 years ago, but the few facts speak volumes about why she became who she did. The Master remarks that she's a woman without family - no husband and no inheritance, implying that she's entirely unconnected. She was still a woman of some 'property', but considering that her profession was as a whore, she certainly wasn't a well connected or rich woman, but rather one who did what she had to do in order to get by. Afflicted by syphilis at a very young age, on her death bed she displayed an irreverent and cynical attitude that seemed a logical extension of the life she must have led. She didn't believe God had ever done anything for her, and that isolation, and sense of being at conflict with the world, fighting a battle against it without the divine - or anyone - on her side other than herself, would be one of the defining factors in how her personality as a vampire was shaped.

The fact that Darla doesn't seem to remember anything about her former life besides that she was a whore - not even so much as her real name - is an indicator of just how liberating she saw her turning. To her, it represented freedom from the sort of degrading oppressive rules of society, where life was unfair and cruel. Her cynicism and sense of ostracism from society only helped to fuel her sense of superiority in becoming a creature who was stronger, more resilient, and higher on the food chain than humans, and she embraced fully the opportunity to be something more. In the Buffyverse, becoming a vampire involves being liberated of one's conscience entirely (or "soul"), and being infused with a demonic personality that doesn't overwrite their own, but rather fuses with it and brings out their worst qualities.

Darla wasn't just a particularly sadistic brand of vampire, but she was also one who valued creativity, which is what made her so infamous, and so dangerous. While Angelus might have naturally possessed a streak of brutality that rendered him a natural at the vampiric lifestyle, Darla was the one who taught him to be a mastermind of psychological torment, and to devise cruel games to keep the endless massacring interesting over the centuries. She's an incredibly devious manipulator and an expert liar, able to deliver Oscar-worthy performances to make her little games all the more interesting.



Many have commented that the Fanged Four (Darla, Angelus, and their other two creations: Drusilla and Spike) all seemed to have an uncannily human streak in that they formed connections between each other that ran deeper than those forged by most vampires. This, however, is only logical when you look at the relationship Darla had to her own creator, the Master, and keeping in mind that Darla, as creator of Angelus, set the tone for the 'family dynamic' there. The Master was old and wise enough to recognize the value in loyalty, and his focus on the rise of the Old Ones represented societal ideals of vampiric living, rather than just focusing on the day to day joys of being a really evil dude and destroying stuff. They had focus and common goals, and banded together. The Master even displayed real remorse at losing Darla when she was killed, as they'd been together for so long. While Darla won't stand for being somebody's puppet, she nevertheless demonstrated a great deal of loyalty to the Master, going back to him time and time again, and treating him with a reverential respect that showed she understood his power in relation to her own. She's drawn to that sort of power, and that's what she saw in Angelus, even if he was her own creation. She puts a lot of value on being respected and admired herself, which is one thing that is essential to her in an ally (and one thing the Master afforded her), and part of what forged such a bond between her and Angelus, who saw her as a mentor as much as a lover.

In most situations, however, Darla is simply an HBIC, who gives the orders instead of taking them. While she can demonstrate a ton of long term patience when it comes to unfolding some kind of sinister plan, she doesn't have a lot of patience for suffering fools, and she's quite simply smarter than a lot of people because she's just been along the block so long.

Darla: Turn me back! God, I can’t bear this pounding in my chest for another instant!
Angel: [quietly] It’s a gift. To feel that heart beat…to know, really and for once, that you’re alive. You’re human again, Darla. You know what that means?
Darla: Of course I do. It means pain and suffering and disease and death. I released you from this world once, I gave you eternal life! Now it’s time for you to return the favor.
Angel: [backs away a step] Favor—is that what you think? You think you did me a favor? You damned me.


Darla's rebirth as a human initially seemed to have very little effect on who she was: she remained a schemer, a killer, a liar, and a cynic about her own "salvation", and set about playing mind games with Angelus at Wolfram & Hart's request. However, her soul began to 'sink in' over time, bringing with it the weight of all her crimes, just as it had for Angel in the past. Darla reacted differently however, and instead of blaming herself for everything, tried to replace her self-hatred onto the soul itself, seeing it as a 'cancer' that had infected her. She suffered a serious identity crisis given that the monster that had been Darla no longer existed, but neither did the girl she had been before she had been turned. The fact that she remembered only nothingness after her death and before her resurrection seemed to scare her more than anything: she seemed horrified by the idea that there wasn't even Hell to look forward to after death, and later commented that even a life of 400 years seemed too short when your mortality was bearing down on top of you.

why do you feel this character would be appropriate to the setting?

She's a badass evil vampire. She'll do just fine.


Writing Samples


Network Post Sample:

Here.

Third Person Sample:

Here (action) &

Here.(prose)

Anything else?



Profile

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Darla

November 2012

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