Damen of Akielos (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
giantanimal) wrote2023-06-09 09:45 pm
giantanimal) wrote2023-06-09 09:45 pm
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User Name/Nick: Shana
User DW:effulgent
E-mail/Plurk/Discord/PM to a character journal/alternate method of contact: plurk: antivillain, discord: antivillain.2451
Other Characters Currently In-Game: N/A
Character Name: Prince Damianos of Akielos
Series: Captive Prince
Age: 26
From When?: Beginning of book 3 when he's just gone into a battle where he's way outnumbered and never received back-up from his frenemlover, Laurent. In canon, he survived and won despite the odds because he's a terrifying beast but in game, he'll have been slain. And be PISSED about it.
Inmate Justification: Damen sees himself as a good person and the novel generally portrays him as such, which makes sense given it's from Damen's point of view. However, Damen is very good at repressing anything that isn't "fine" and there's a lot he isn't dealing with. He also tends to aggressively and often violently shut down anything that questions his strongly held views, and sometimes he gets so angry that he kind of blanks out for a moment and then people around him are dead. Which is definitely not good, even if the people he kills are usually enemies.
His views on slavery also definitely need to change. He's under the impression that it's fine so long as the slaves are treated well, though his recent experiences have certainly challenged that perspective.
Arrival: Absolutely against his will. He might have agreed once he accepted he was going to die, but Damen's allergic to acknowledging his own mortality.
Abilities/Powers: No supernatural powers, but his strength and fighting abilities are top of human physical ability if not slightly higher. He also has a dimple so his smiles are just unfairly charming.
Inmate Information: Damen was born and raised to be king. Unfortunately, so was his bastard brother, who was heir to the throne until Damen was born. Damen cares deeply for his family, but he's benefited from his privilege and has often been blind to the suffering of others until it's too late. His friend Nikandros warned him about Kastor but he refused to listen. And that's how he ended up shipped out as a slave to an enemy prince whose brother Damen had killed. But he even now struggles to understand how their relationship could have gotten that way. His loyalty is admirable until it leads to his inability to accept truths that contradict his views and his aggressive and often violent responses to having those views questioned.
He's been through a lot lately to make him reconsider some of the specifics of his views, but he still is incredibly stubborn and struggles with nuance. Specifically, after Kastor sold him to Laurent, Damen came to trust and even love Laurent despite the horrors Laurent put him through. While this in itself is not a bad thing, his inability to accept moral ambiguity causes him to repress Laurent's abuse, which has just added to the massive overflow of pent up bad emotions that are not, despite his assurances, 'fine.'
He's adaptable, and despite his high ranked birth, fine with hard work and discomfort. He prides himself on his ability to endure. This is due to both his time as a soldier and toxic masculinity. In general a lot of his issues come down to toxic masculinity, honestly. The only discomfort he isn't able to endure... is the emotional kind.
Path to Redemption: Damen needs SO MUCH therapy. Okay, but more specifically the first thing he needs to acknowledge is that he's absolutely not fine and that shoving his trauma down and ignoring it does not actually mean it doesn't exist. He also needs to acknowledge that his blackout rages are NOT GOOD even if they tend to generally be aimed at people who deserve it. He just really needs to not jump immediately to violence!!
Healing and true redemption can start once he's admitted there's a problem, but getting that admission is going to be TOUGH.
He also needs to like... get all the way on board with slavery being bad but he's like 3/4 of the way there anyway. He just hasn't thought through the reality of what it'll be like to have slaves when he goes back to Akielos so he hasn't made the final connection there.
History: Prince Damianos grew up knowing he would be king of Akielos one day. He was second born, but his big brother Kastor was a bastard, so Damen was heir as soon as he was born. Damen grew up loved, trusting, and a bit naive. He idolized his big brother and never thought for a moment that Kastor could have any negative feelings about having lost his future crown. Damen just went through life thinking the best of everyone and believing everyone was as straightforward and sincere as he was. He also believed that the slaves that served in the palace (including in his bed) were treated well and valued and liked being slaves. So maybe a little more than a bit naive. He just had no reason to think critically about the systems that benefited him.
He excelled at fighting and sports and all things physical. When Damen was nineteen, Akielos went to war with the neighboring country of Vere. Damen went with them and lead soldiers into battle. The war ended with Damen and Prince Auguste fighting a duel to Auguste's death. Vere had also just lost their king, so the king's brother, acting as Regent to 13-year-old Prince Laurent, ordered a surrender. Damen earned the title of Princekiller that day. He also earned the enmity of Vere and even more love from his people.
Things were going pretty well until Damen's father got sick. It was a long sickness, and eventually the king died. Damen found out about this when soldiers invaded his room and took him prisoner. He found out that it was on Kastor's orders, but he still thought it was a mistake up until they dragged him to the slave quarters and clapped him in golden chains. It was then that he learned that Kastor wasn't the only one who had betrayed him--Damen's lover, Jokaste, had joined Kastor, and the two of them had conspired to send Damen to Vere as a slave to get him out of the way. He was gifted to Laurent of all people (now 20) and proceeded to have a very bad time of it. Laurent didn't know Damen's true identity (or so Damen thought), but Laurent was still more than happy to take out his rage at the entire country on Damen.
It didn't help that Damen was used to being a prince, not a slave or even a servant, and he was used to the straightforward culture of Akielos, not the more conniving culture of the court of Vere (especially under the reign of the Regent). He had a bad time of it. He was beaten several times at Laurent's orders, including nearly to death with a whip in an act that left his back permanently and gruesomely scarred. It wasn't until Damen asked Laurent for help getting the other Akielon slaves to safety that they began to see each other differently. Laurent helped Damen, and Damen started behaving himself. And then Damen thwarted an attempt to assassinate Laurent. When Damen was subsequently caught attempting to escape, Laurent protected him in return, at great cost to himself. The Regent was sending Laurent to the Akielos border. When Damen realized it was a trap, he demanded to come with.
They still didn't like each other, but their goals were aligned, and slowly, they began to trust each other. Damen, who was an experienced soldier, helped Laurent wrangle his men into an actual fighting force. Laurent amazed Damen with his strategic mind and how much he actually cared about his country and his men. Slowly, they grew closer and started to rely on each other. And feel increasingly attracted to each other, though both of them knew it was a terrible idea and nothing good could come of it. This all culminated in Damen ended up captaining Laurent's army in a decisive battle against the Regent's allies and helping Laurent take a supposedly impenetrable fort. Laurent promised him his freedom in the morning. It hadn't become any less of a terrible idea, but the two of them slept together that night.
The next day, Damen had his collar and one cuff removed. He kept one cuff on out of sentimentality. Before he could leave, the Regent retaliated against Laurent by killing one of the few friends Laurent had and delivering his mutilated head to the gate of their fort. Damen went to comfort Laurent and promised to stay for three more days. Then Laurent left while Damen waited for reinforcements.
Those reinforcements happened to be Damen's childhood best friend Nikandros and an army of Akielon soldiers, so Damen was finally reunited with his people and restored to the title of King Damianos. He were supposed to meet Laurent in a surprise attack against the Regent, but Laurent and his army never showed up. The resulting battle was horrible and bloody. In canon, Damen won anyway. But here, we diverge and Damen dies and finds himself on the barge.
Sample Network Entry: tdm
Sample RP: tdm
Special Notes: Anything else not covered here that you'd like us to know!
User DW:
effulgentE-mail/Plurk/Discord/PM to a character journal/alternate method of contact: plurk: antivillain, discord: antivillain.2451
Other Characters Currently In-Game: N/A
Character Name: Prince Damianos of Akielos
Series: Captive Prince
Age: 26
From When?: Beginning of book 3 when he's just gone into a battle where he's way outnumbered and never received back-up from his frenemlover, Laurent. In canon, he survived and won despite the odds because he's a terrifying beast but in game, he'll have been slain. And be PISSED about it.
Inmate Justification: Damen sees himself as a good person and the novel generally portrays him as such, which makes sense given it's from Damen's point of view. However, Damen is very good at repressing anything that isn't "fine" and there's a lot he isn't dealing with. He also tends to aggressively and often violently shut down anything that questions his strongly held views, and sometimes he gets so angry that he kind of blanks out for a moment and then people around him are dead. Which is definitely not good, even if the people he kills are usually enemies.
His views on slavery also definitely need to change. He's under the impression that it's fine so long as the slaves are treated well, though his recent experiences have certainly challenged that perspective.
Arrival: Absolutely against his will. He might have agreed once he accepted he was going to die, but Damen's allergic to acknowledging his own mortality.
Abilities/Powers: No supernatural powers, but his strength and fighting abilities are top of human physical ability if not slightly higher. He also has a dimple so his smiles are just unfairly charming.
Inmate Information: Damen was born and raised to be king. Unfortunately, so was his bastard brother, who was heir to the throne until Damen was born. Damen cares deeply for his family, but he's benefited from his privilege and has often been blind to the suffering of others until it's too late. His friend Nikandros warned him about Kastor but he refused to listen. And that's how he ended up shipped out as a slave to an enemy prince whose brother Damen had killed. But he even now struggles to understand how their relationship could have gotten that way. His loyalty is admirable until it leads to his inability to accept truths that contradict his views and his aggressive and often violent responses to having those views questioned.
He's been through a lot lately to make him reconsider some of the specifics of his views, but he still is incredibly stubborn and struggles with nuance. Specifically, after Kastor sold him to Laurent, Damen came to trust and even love Laurent despite the horrors Laurent put him through. While this in itself is not a bad thing, his inability to accept moral ambiguity causes him to repress Laurent's abuse, which has just added to the massive overflow of pent up bad emotions that are not, despite his assurances, 'fine.'
He's adaptable, and despite his high ranked birth, fine with hard work and discomfort. He prides himself on his ability to endure. This is due to both his time as a soldier and toxic masculinity. In general a lot of his issues come down to toxic masculinity, honestly. The only discomfort he isn't able to endure... is the emotional kind.
Path to Redemption: Damen needs SO MUCH therapy. Okay, but more specifically the first thing he needs to acknowledge is that he's absolutely not fine and that shoving his trauma down and ignoring it does not actually mean it doesn't exist. He also needs to acknowledge that his blackout rages are NOT GOOD even if they tend to generally be aimed at people who deserve it. He just really needs to not jump immediately to violence!!
Healing and true redemption can start once he's admitted there's a problem, but getting that admission is going to be TOUGH.
He also needs to like... get all the way on board with slavery being bad but he's like 3/4 of the way there anyway. He just hasn't thought through the reality of what it'll be like to have slaves when he goes back to Akielos so he hasn't made the final connection there.
History: Prince Damianos grew up knowing he would be king of Akielos one day. He was second born, but his big brother Kastor was a bastard, so Damen was heir as soon as he was born. Damen grew up loved, trusting, and a bit naive. He idolized his big brother and never thought for a moment that Kastor could have any negative feelings about having lost his future crown. Damen just went through life thinking the best of everyone and believing everyone was as straightforward and sincere as he was. He also believed that the slaves that served in the palace (including in his bed) were treated well and valued and liked being slaves. So maybe a little more than a bit naive. He just had no reason to think critically about the systems that benefited him.
He excelled at fighting and sports and all things physical. When Damen was nineteen, Akielos went to war with the neighboring country of Vere. Damen went with them and lead soldiers into battle. The war ended with Damen and Prince Auguste fighting a duel to Auguste's death. Vere had also just lost their king, so the king's brother, acting as Regent to 13-year-old Prince Laurent, ordered a surrender. Damen earned the title of Princekiller that day. He also earned the enmity of Vere and even more love from his people.
Things were going pretty well until Damen's father got sick. It was a long sickness, and eventually the king died. Damen found out about this when soldiers invaded his room and took him prisoner. He found out that it was on Kastor's orders, but he still thought it was a mistake up until they dragged him to the slave quarters and clapped him in golden chains. It was then that he learned that Kastor wasn't the only one who had betrayed him--Damen's lover, Jokaste, had joined Kastor, and the two of them had conspired to send Damen to Vere as a slave to get him out of the way. He was gifted to Laurent of all people (now 20) and proceeded to have a very bad time of it. Laurent didn't know Damen's true identity (or so Damen thought), but Laurent was still more than happy to take out his rage at the entire country on Damen.
It didn't help that Damen was used to being a prince, not a slave or even a servant, and he was used to the straightforward culture of Akielos, not the more conniving culture of the court of Vere (especially under the reign of the Regent). He had a bad time of it. He was beaten several times at Laurent's orders, including nearly to death with a whip in an act that left his back permanently and gruesomely scarred. It wasn't until Damen asked Laurent for help getting the other Akielon slaves to safety that they began to see each other differently. Laurent helped Damen, and Damen started behaving himself. And then Damen thwarted an attempt to assassinate Laurent. When Damen was subsequently caught attempting to escape, Laurent protected him in return, at great cost to himself. The Regent was sending Laurent to the Akielos border. When Damen realized it was a trap, he demanded to come with.
They still didn't like each other, but their goals were aligned, and slowly, they began to trust each other. Damen, who was an experienced soldier, helped Laurent wrangle his men into an actual fighting force. Laurent amazed Damen with his strategic mind and how much he actually cared about his country and his men. Slowly, they grew closer and started to rely on each other. And feel increasingly attracted to each other, though both of them knew it was a terrible idea and nothing good could come of it. This all culminated in Damen ended up captaining Laurent's army in a decisive battle against the Regent's allies and helping Laurent take a supposedly impenetrable fort. Laurent promised him his freedom in the morning. It hadn't become any less of a terrible idea, but the two of them slept together that night.
The next day, Damen had his collar and one cuff removed. He kept one cuff on out of sentimentality. Before he could leave, the Regent retaliated against Laurent by killing one of the few friends Laurent had and delivering his mutilated head to the gate of their fort. Damen went to comfort Laurent and promised to stay for three more days. Then Laurent left while Damen waited for reinforcements.
Those reinforcements happened to be Damen's childhood best friend Nikandros and an army of Akielon soldiers, so Damen was finally reunited with his people and restored to the title of King Damianos. He were supposed to meet Laurent in a surprise attack against the Regent, but Laurent and his army never showed up. The resulting battle was horrible and bloody. In canon, Damen won anyway. But here, we diverge and Damen dies and finds himself on the barge.
Sample Network Entry: tdm
Sample RP: tdm
Special Notes: Anything else not covered here that you'd like us to know!