Deadly Elegance
From Unofficial Handbook of the Virtue Universe
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| Commissioned image by John Becaro | |
| Deadly Elegance | |
| Player: @Menagerie of Dreams | |
| Origin: | Natural |
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| Archetype: | Arachnos Night Widow |
| Threat Level: | 50 |
| Personal Data | |
| Real Name: | Melisandra Shahrizai |
| Known Aliases: | Deadly, Elegance, Meli, Mel |
| Species: | Human |
| Age: | Unknown |
| Height: | 6'4" |
| Weight: | 142 |
| Eye Color: | Sapphire |
| Hair Color: | Violet |
| Biographical Data | |
| Nationality: | Exact Unknown (Believed of mainly Egyptian and other Middle Eastern descents) |
| Occupation: | Assassin |
| Place of Birth: | Unknown |
| Base of Operations: | Confidential |
| Marital Status: | Single |
| Known Relatives: | Seth (son), Aiyana (daughter) |
| Known Powers | |
| Regeneration, Extreme Acrobatics & Agility | |
| Known Abilities | |
| Martial Arts, Ballistics, Demolition, Espionage, Subterfuge. | |
| Equipment | |
| Claws, Darts, Daggers, Swords | |
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Contents |
"Family"
- La Diablesse - Melisandra's fiancee, she has entered a blood pact with the powerful succubus, though it's the last thing on her mind. If anything, she has found a great life and affection for the woman as much as she tried to convince herself it was just a spell. Meli frequently appears to go in an almost quiet, "cute" mode around Dia. Quite happily accepting the equal partnership and allowing Dia to be one of the few people who can actually admonish her without any rebuttal. Meli enjoys nothing more than being in quite solitude with Dia, simply warmed by the woman's presence so much so that she frequently comments she forgets about Dia's origin or powers, not that they ever mattered to her anyways.
- The Lady Immolatasia - Quickly becoming Meli's greatest confidant and best friend next to Dia, the Lady Immolatasia is an enigma, one Meli finds herself wanting to know more and more in sincerity. Having once laughed at the woman's claim that Melisandra would gladly follow her, she has found herself inspired by the woman's drive, passion, and sincerity. As well as her Machiavellian approach to things. Yet there is also more, it appears the lady is helping cultivate a side of Meli she long thought dead, a lighter side to herself that knows restraint instead of bloodshed. Meli has quite openly declared she has fallen in love with this woman as equal as her love for Dia, but for now accepts a strong friendship and a sister.
- Aiyana Darknze - An extremely close confidant, Melisandra has named her daughter after this woman. There seems to be a great respect and understanding between the two women regarding privacy, one's inner darkness, and a general enjoyment of inflicting pain upon others. There seems to be a spark between the two that will never be explored due to their mutual life situations, but if anything it brings them closer together as friends.
- Unchainer - Melisandra's ex-girlfriend, the two realized after spending time with each other every day, they simply did not work as a romantic couple due to their similarities. They have amicably split and remain close friends. Melisandra still has great respect and affection for the woman.
- Widow's Chain/Daisy Chain - Melisandra has a profound respect for this woman as an assassin, friend and sister. There are few she speaks more highly of with sincere respect than this woman.
- Midnight Enchantress - A young demon girl named Zoe that Melisandra has adopted like a fond pet. The girl is sickening adorable and cute, and much to Melisandra's chagrin has adopted Melisandra as her Mother since the girl has no parents.
- Webmistress Aurora - Perhaps the one woman (besides Unchainer) who can easily get under Melisandra's skin, Aurora is the one person Melisandra gives the most lenience with due to her great affection for her. The most endeared of all her "sisters", Melisandra would fight without hesitation for Aurora....if she doesn't kill the girl herself.
- Arcadian Angel/Arachnian Angel - The enigmatic woman named Annalise has become Melisandra's personal medic, especially for her children. She is a bit protective of the woman but at the same time so is Annalise of she. They seem to have reached an agreement of keeping tabs on each other, creating a close sisterly bond.
- Sniper Widow - Melisandra's adopted Anastasia Petrova as her "Mother", while she may disagree at times with Anastasia's decisions, she greatly respects the woman and recognizes she would not have her freedom from Apep without her assistance.
Widow Techniques
Widow Training
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Arachnos Blood Widows are trained to be vicious assassins, using poisoned darts and claws to dispatch their foes quickly. | |
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Swipe is a fast slash that can cut the target, then poison them with a nerve agent that slows their recovery and movement speed. |
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Strike is a quick two-stroke slash attack that can deeply wound the target, then poison them with a nerve agent that slows their recovery rate and movement speed. |
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Spin is a 360 degree multiple slash attack that can hit all targets within melee range. The inflicted wounds are poisoned with a nerve agent that slows their recovery rate and movement speed. |
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Lunge is a forward stabbing attack with a long wrist-mounted spike, that inflicts a nasty puncture wound and injects poison into the target. |
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Night Widow Training
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Arachnos Night Widows are trained in lethal ambush techniques, as well as some psychic abilities. Many of their attacks will deal extra damage if the target is unaware of their presence. | |
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Take a moment to focus one's power, and the next few attacks will hurt more, and be a bit more accurate. |
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Pull the pin on this little number, then lob it into a group of targets. The resulting thick smoke will reduce their visibility dramatically. |
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This quick claw attack gashes the target, and leaves behind a poison that dramatically slows reflexes. |
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A high backflip, then a double slash with both claws on the way down, and any targets in front of the Night Widow are laid open and poisoned. |
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Widow Teamwork
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Widow Teamwork |
Arachnos Blood Widows are trained to work as part of diverse hit teams, using their tactical abilities to improve the entire team's attack and defense. |
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Kinesthetics and gymnast training allow the Widow to avoid incoming attacks more easily. |
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Tactical training allows the Widow to anticipate target evasive maneuvers or other factors, making attacks more accurate. |
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Having trained extensively as a member of a strike team, the Widow can direct teammates into defensive positions or movements, and thus increase overall team defense. |
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Extensive training in pain tolerance and mental concentration allow the Widow to shrug off any debilitating effects or psionic attacks, and keep fighting. |
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The Widow is highly trained in team-based tactics, and able to direct the team's attacks to enemy weak points. In addition, this leadership ability can keep the team from being distracted into changing targets. |
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The Widow is trained to direct the team to anticipate evasive maneuvers or covering movements. In addition, the increased team awareness allows for Stealth detection, as well as a resistance to visibility reducing countermeasures such as smoke bombs or tear gas. Finally, the Widow's leadership and confidence can offset attempts to frighten or confuse the team members. |
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Widows who possess Foresight are resistant to Psionic attacks, as well as Sleep, Hold, Immobilization, Disorient, Confuse and Fear effects. Their precognition becomes clearer in times of duress, providing resistance to all damage types based on their current health, as well. They also have improved Defense, due to being able to see attacks slightly before they actually occur. |
Night Widow Teamwork
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Night Widow Teamwork |
Arachnos Night Widows use their powers of stealth and misdirection to protect the entire team and cause discord among their targets. |
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This cloaking field allows the Night Widow to fade from view, and be almost impossible to detect until attacking. Even when revealed, the Night Widow has increased defense due to being so hard to see. |
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The Night Widow's mental discipline allows the body to move faster, to the point of being highly resistant to Slow effects as well as having faster movement rates. |
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The Night Widow can link the minds of the entire team for a short time, increasing accuracy of the team, and also defense against incoming attacks and resistance to psionic threats. |
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The Night Widow focuses their reflexes and perceptions to the point where they are always 'one step ahead' of nearly any attack, becoming almost impossible to hit, as well as increasing their movement and attack rate. This ability can only be maintained for a short time, and will result in complete exhaustion. |
Pool Powers
Fitness
| Fitness | Long hours in the gym result in individuals whose bodies are leaner, meaner, and better looking. |
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 Swift |
Running, cycling, rowing, and such have yielded rewards... Deadly Elegance can move faster than normal. |
 Health |
Lots of cardio exercise means Deadly Elegance now heals faster and is more alert. |
 Stamina |
All that exertion has improved Deadly Elegance's muscle circulation and lung capacity. So much for getting tired. |
History
NOTE: What is put here is not to be known IC knowledge, if you rp as if you know it and she hasn't met your character before and told them, it will be ignored. This is simply a background primer.
Early Beginnings
The woman who calls herself the Deadly Elegance does not know herself her true origins, only things told to her by the man she called father and the bits and pieces she has ascertained in her travels and search. She believes she is mainly of Egyptian descent, with a mixture of a few of the other ethnicities which comprise the Middle East. What she does know is she was adopted by Al'Shaed Shahrizai as an infant. The first few years of her life she recalls of happy ones, Al'Shaed was a doting father and while she did not understand the nature of their home or why she had such a large family, there seemed to be affection for her though she always wondered why so many also seemed to be afraid of her.
Around age 5, she would discover why. Al'Shaed Shahrizai was the leader of a guild of assassins which had existed for multiple millenniia. In fact the name "Shahrizai", was not a last name but rather a title derived from an ancient language translating to "The Death's Hand". As his "daughter", her father quickly inducted her into the ruthless lifestyle of the assassin. Much to his pleasure she would quickly exhibit the natural capabilities he saw in her and proved herself advanced far beyond many of the other children the guild had "adopted" into the fold. In time she was practicing with the adolescent disciples, but secretly, she ached, detesting her life and how her once loving father seemed to become more cold and detached. Soon many of those she considered "family" did the same, it was then the young girl learned the cold truth, she was simply another weapon, just a more guarded one for who had adopted her. This could have broken many a child, but Elegance struggled through, determined to earn back her family's love by becoming the greatest among them.
The Shahrizai's Curse
A dark secret kept from Elegance was the legacy of a brutal history of each Shahrizai. In many of the recorded (and unrecorded) massacres and bloodbaths in human history, a Shahrizai was the cause. At first, they were directly on the battlefield and as the centuries went on, subtly directing from the shadows. It would later be discovered this was due to a madness which would claim all Shahrizai and turn into full-blown insanity. At first, it was believed due to the lineage descent of the title, and that changing a policy to the one who proved themselves greatest would claim the title and solve the issue, but in time the madness still returned to each holder.
Al'Shaed was no different. Completely convinced the world was impure and defiled, he wanted to cleanse the world of its sins and create a new one in its place. For years he sought to find his method until one night a vision came to him. Approached by a figure shrouded in darkness, they foretold how his daughter was a descendant of an unknown tryst between Alexander The Great and an Egyptian concubine. The figure proclaimed the girl as the next great conqueror but she would need assistance. He had to seek out and bind her to a great ancient power and secure her chances to become the next Shahrizai.
A Forced Binding
Al'Shaed became consumed with discovering the great power to tie his daughter to when eventually another vision came, this time of a long forgotten temple just outside the town of Al Minya along side the River Nile. the Egyptian god Apep, the deification of darkness and chaos and the personification of all that was evil. Apep was seen as a giant snake, crocodile, serpent, and Al'Shaed sought nothing more than to make his daughter the new vessel for the god.
Taken against her will the girl was chained to a stone tablet as a ritual of binding was performed. Whether it was due to her not being completely of Egyptian descent, the possibility that she was actually a descendant of Alexander The Great or simply her own strong spirit, the young girl fought off the god's attempt to replace her soul, but still fell under the binding of the god. She attained the snake god's "gift" of regeneration, heightened senses and most notably, self-produced toxins which could come from her nails which she could grow like talons. Al'Shaed was disappointed he had not unleashed Apep, but was still satisfied he had created an avatar to carry forth his mad plans.
Fighting One's Destiny
The young girl struggled with what she was, constantly Apep tried to get her to surrender control to them and let them wreak havoc. And once a year, during the Winter Solstice the god would get let out and the girl would wake up with destruction wrought before her. But in time she strengthened her control, learned the god's abilities, but kept him at bay. This infuriated her father who constantly berated her for denying her destiny. She bid her time, accepting whatever destruction Apep would cause when he was released, and letting her father dream of his mad quest.
Eventually she grew strong enough and as an young adult, confronted her father, demanding her freedom from the guild and denying her future title as Shahrizai. Her father became furious at her disrespect and reminded her that no one left the guild alive. Showing no fear, she turned and began to walk toward the exit when he ordered the entire guild to kill her at all costs. What resulted was as a bloodbath. Unleashing the skills she had learned as an assassin along with the god's power, even the greatest the guild had in its halls fell before her.
In the end there was only two left breathing, herself and Al'Shaed. She approached the man with a tumultuous storm of emotions. The young girl inside aching in agonizing pain, that the man she adored had turned himself and her into such monsters, the woman hungry for freedom, seeing her chance finally at hand, and the god inside her, hungering simply for blood. Broken and battered, Al'Shaed looked at her, lost in his insanity, laughing proudly. Telling her she was following the plan. Looking into his eyes, she realized then the man she considered father had long been gone. Lost to the Curse of the Shahrizai.
With tears in her eyes, she gave the man one last kiss and then plunged a dagger into his heart. Turning around, she walked out of the halls, but not before setting an explosive, ensuring that no one would ever leave the halls after she did.
A New Mentor
She would flee to Europe. A young girl, uneducated, she relied on her assassin skills, hiding what she was and scrapping out a life for herself from her own merit. At first working for lowly gangs and petty crime lords, she eventually would make enough of name for herself to garner the attention of the leaders of many European nations, wealthy aristocrats, and more influential clientèle. But with this notoriety came the notice of already established "fixers". Most notably, one Madame Giselle Bouvais, the notorious "La Renard" or "The Fox". A long experienced and veteran mercenary of many private wars.
The two women fought a vicious battle, and refusing to call upon the abilities of Apep, Elegance was eventually defeated. Preparing to die the girl knelt before the woman ready. However Giselle found herself impressed by the girl's natural abilities and instead gave her a choice, become her student or die on the spot. Elegance easily chose to be the woman's student and spent four years learning all she could. First and foremost was being caught up on basic education as Giselle put her through a strenuous program of science, mathematics, classical studies, and etiquette. She was determined to turn what she saw as a "wild animal" into a sophisticated, refined woman.
Much to Giselle's pleasure, the girl picked up quickly rapidly advancing in all her studies and blossoming into an elegant and quite intelligent woman. It was during their many sparring sessions that Giselle quickly came up with the name "Deadly Elegance". Soon she would send the girl out on important missions, helping her make a name for herself as she sought to pass the torch to the girl and retire. She also made sure to carry her to all important social gatherings (much to the girl's displeasure), educating her on the important of subtlety and subterfuge.
One Man's Treachery
Elegance would have readily and easily lived out the rest of her days at the side of Giselle. However, it was not meant to be. The "Count" Jacques LeBeau was a frequent suitor of Giselle, repeatedly showing upon her doorstep with gifts and sweet words. Though Elegance frequently attempted to counsel her mentor against trusting the man, Giselle fell in love and soon the two were engaged.
However, it would be short lived, as in the pursuit of living a lavish lifestyle, the Count had racked up an incredible debt with the Rascalov Mafia Family. Having a long standing feud with Giselle over the assassination of their patriarch, they offered the Count a reprieve. All debts erased, if he killed Giselle. Easily deciding an escape from debt over his supposed love, the Count poisoned her during a candlelight dinner. He would have quickly made away with priceless artifacts and her cash on hand if not for Elegance who returned early from a mission, dispatching her target sooner than expected.
Upon seeing her beloved mentor slumped over the table in an eternal sleep, Elegance howled and burst into a fury as the snake god within her took over. The Count would suffer an indescribably horrific week of pain and suffering, taken to the brink of death but left alive to suffer more until finally his mind and spirit broke from the torture. She would leave his rotting carcass in the nearby river for the animals to devour while giving Giselle a soldier's burial on her property. Eventually she would learn Giselle had bequeath her extensive fortune and assets to Elegance but it did not salve the deep wound. The girl would swear off love, considering it a liability and would not stop until she had wiped every Rascalov and their associates from the face of the Earth. Even the children were not spared her fury though she gave them all quick, painless deaths despite Apep's hunger for carnage.
The Ongoing Story
The ongoing story can now be found here: An Elegant Saga
Categories: Character | Villain | Arachnos Widow | Female | Natural | Double Agent
