OK... Here's Meri:
Full Name- Merovingia Harper-Chen
Age-Barely twenty-two when turned; was turned March 1861.
Gender-Female
Nationality- Originally Eurasian (Born in a minor British diplomatic outpost in Manchuria); Has been part of several nationalities, Most recently Japanese.
Character History- Merovingia (variably Meri, Vin, Vini, Vinga, Ia, or Mei, among other diminutives) was born to Sir James Harper, a minor British diplomat and peer of the realm, and May Li Chen, the daughter of a local warlord, in a now mostly forgotten village in Manchuria's hinterland in 1849; the politics of the time were complicated, especially considering that Manchuria was being contested by both Russia and China.
Still, Sir James' lot was relatively peaceful until little Meri impressed a visiting dignitary and it was decided that she should be schooled in 'appropriate surroundings.' Accordingly, her father was promoted to consulate duties in Shanghai, which had become a powerhouse of trade and political influence. Thus, at age 8, she and her parents moved to that metropolis. It was discovered later, far too late, in fact, that the 'dignitary' was one of the British empire's great spymasters, and that Meri's new school, and her new 'education,' were of a very special kind: for assassins.
Things progressed as such things will, and at age twenty-two, she infiltrated and was assigned to infiltrate the Russian Consulate in Austin, Texas, of all places; In a series of events (not all of which have come to light even as of the present), she was attracted to, and taken in by, and turned by, the leader (Morganthe* de la Villareal) of a sect of assassins and so-called 'anarchists' of a very dark and sinister variety indeed; they were a creche of vampires allied to the Russian "Cold Ones."
(It should be noted that, in the universe in which Meri was born, raised, and trained, Texas never became a state of the United States of America, but remained a republic, and in the poltical climate of the times, in which the United States was smaller and came to be bordered by several other countries comprised of the territory taken up in our own RL world by the states west of the Mississippi, became a world power that rivaled the US; thus, Austin was wooed/espionaged at that time by almost every world power of the period).
From that point onward, Meri became under the tutelage off her sire and her minions an assassin non pareil, not only deadly and ruthless but nigh deathless, and nigh unkillable as well - a trait common to the lineage of her sire.
From being burned to very nearly a lump of charred meat several years later on an airship over Shanghai harbor by a fire-throwing Texan, to having her soul ripped out and put back again; to being flung by wild mischance through time, space, and alternate realities before coming to rest in Meiji-era Japan of the Duckpond's universe, her life was already a exceedingly strange one. Then, she was recruited by the farseeing master of an obscure ninja sect purported to have supernatural connections, and still persisted in survivng whatever fate threw her way even then. Meri has seen it all, or most of it.
Her current assignment, by that same master (whose loyalty is questioned by the japanese spymasters, and whose status as a hostage supposedly (?) ensures Meri's cooperation) is outwardly to infiltrate and closely observe the activities at the station, taking no overt action, but to feed in secret under deep cover as the hunger dictates and blend into her surroundings undetectably as anything other than a denizen of the station, awaiting further orders. Such orders may in fact be already on the way.
Inwardly, secretly, she is to wait until her sect decides whether to remain faithful to the Nipponese government, or rescue the master and strike out on their own and seek allies elsewhere.
Meri, therefore, walks a very fine line and avoids trouble as much as the beast within will allow. Woe betide he who attempts to upset that balance, but it is possible to recruit her, if one can overlook or handle the necessity of feeding her inner beast.
Aircraft Name-None. Has her own wings (she mnanifests them when needed, and they disappear when she does not), and does not need an aircraft.
Aircraft Description- Hrself/her wings. She is capable of flying very fast, though not as fast as, say, a the top speed of a high-performance mid-wing monoplane fighter such as the Spitfire. She could probably keep up with a japanese parasol fighter (meaning the type with the wing on top, a la a piper Cub, for instance; such were the first purpose-built carrier-based fighters used by the RL japanese navy).
Skills- Extreme stealth; Misdirection; disguise; all weapons; many techniques and styles of fighting and both offense and defense, gained through nearly a cumulative century of existence, and more than seventy years of actual experience. Flight via use of manifested wings, various forms of apparition/disapparition. Can use literally anything as a weapon, and is extremely strong, fast, and agile. Can kill or protect with equal ease (but be warned, she has an undead immortal's outlook on survival, and on whom is worthy of survival or being protected), Has volunteered to be left behind to face the enemy alone, been damned near obliterated, and has turned up again - Many times. She can endure sunlight, and has been known to develop a tan for the purpose of an assignment; capable of tanning to a 'light chocolate' hue. Heals extremely rapidly, which coupled with her othe runcanny abilities, has caused some in her adoptive vllage to label her as an "oni," or "devil."
Gear- her beauty, a most potent weapon indeed; Her nails, which can grow into sharp and strong claws andc back again; Her canines appear normal if somewhat pointy most of the time, but can grow long in an instant; always carries some kind of metal implement, even if it's just a steel chopstick, which she is adept at throwing lethally. The same goes for wooden ones; nail file; Sword, when she can acquire one, usually a katana or long wakazushi. Always manages to conceal some kind of small handgun about her person; is fond of derringers and minirevolvers. Impossible to tell where her weapons go when she changes form or puts them away.
Personality-Ruthless; a predator, and a particularly voracious one, but with a conscience and still the vestiges of humanity and its softer sides -- but will not hesitate to kill to feed or escape detection if the situation warrants. Once befriended or allied, is loyal to an extreme and ruthless degree. Has been known to work as a prostitute as a means to complete an assignment. Clients from such activity have a tendency to turn up dead and drained, however, and anyone she considers perverted or unclean tends to get very short shrift.
Clothing- Chinese dresses when working at the club, entertaining a man (WARNING, what she considers to be 'low' or 'unworthy' types tend to be entertained for dinner - fatally), or trolling for food. For working as assassin or guard, (or when feeding, though this is not really always true), dresses in either her original all-black, form-hiding attire, or in attire appropriate for the specific job. High heels or sandals, or job-appropriate footwear. Can manifest clothing to a degree, but it is draining, and thus she prefers mundanely-made clothing.
Physical Appearance-; Long-boned in the face in the classic Chinese Eurasian style; Alabaster skin, Long, silky, shining black hair, Eyes that appear black but shine or reflect red in the dark, and burn with a reddish glow when angered or her dark instincts are aroused; the brighter the glow, the more excited or angry she is (she can mask this, but the effort is taxing; usually she hides her eyes behind dark round -lensed glasses when not in the club). Nails can become long claws if necessary, but she hates to do that, as it destroys the polish. Canines appear normal, but can grow to long, needle-pointed, slightly-curved razor sharpness when angered or aroused (or provoked to hunger).
Meri Is extremely beautiful in the stereotypical way of Eurasian beauties, whether in human-seeming or vampiric form.
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*No relation to the Sorceress of the same name from the Fantasy "D&D RPG genre.
*Yes, Meri's sire is the same Morganthe as the one to whom Steam London's Dreyfuss was affianced, and later forced to shoot in order to save his foster sister. Obviously, the "execution" did not take...
It's my intention that she will develop into either a recurring villain, or an antiheroine allied to teh Steel Birds.
