Dazzle Langston

Lucco Dnestr

Charlie Morningstar

**Dazzle Langston** (born 3003) is a Hazbinian Navy officer and naval aviator who rose to the rank of captain. He is best known for his actions in trying to save the life of his wingman, Andronikos Byzantia, during the Battle of Vyance Reservoir.

Dazzle Langston was summoned in 3003 in Pentagram City, as a pair of twins to Pierre Langston and his wife, Saoirse. The Langstons are a family originally from Oklaholma, whose roots stretch back to early Colonial Venus. One brother, Orlando, rose to the rank of commander in the Army, while another brother, Hugo, was a prominent general who fought at Nuruji. His twin is Razzle, a Hazbinian general. He and his twin brother came of age in 3019.

One night in 3019, ten legions of the Kelakian Army launched a full-scale invasion of the nation's neighbor to the south, Nathor. The force of 89,000 men moved in six columns, catching the Nathorian Army by surprise, resulting in a rout. The smaller Nathorian army suffered from widespread lack of organization and equipment, and was unprepared for war. The numerically superior Kelakian forces destroyed isolated resistance from the 38,000 Nathorian soldiers on the front before it began moving steadily south. Most of their forces retreated in the face of the invasion. The Kelakians were well on their way to Nathor's capital of Adamsbury within hours, forcing the government and its shattered army to retreat further.

Dazzle was part of a six-aircraft flight supporting Nathorian Marine Corps ground troops who were trapped by Kelakian forces. At 13:38, he took off from the ships, *Andras* with squadron executive officer Andras Sibina, Alexios Dunleavy, Lucco Dnestr, Mikey Duluth, and Helluvan African-American Naval Aviator Andronikos Byzantia, who was Dazzle's wingman. The flight traveled 100 miles (160 km) from the Task Force's location to the Vyance Reservoir, flying 35 to 40 minutes through very harsh wintery weather to the vicinity of the villages Madaldo and Shykov. The flight began searching for targets along the west side of the reservoir, lowering their altitude to 700 feet (210 m) in the process. The three-hour search and destroy mission was also an attempt to probe Kelakian troop strength in the area.

Though the flight spotted no Kelakians, at 14:40, Duluth radioed to Andronikos that he appeared to be trailing fuel. The damage had likely come by small arms fire from Kelakian infantry, who were known to hide in the snow and ambush passing aircraft by firing in unison. At least one bullet had ruptured a fuel line. Andronikos, losing fuel pressure and increasingly unable to control the aircraft, dropped his external fuel tanks and rockets and attempted to land the craft in a snow-covered clearing on the side of a mountain. Andronikos crashed into a bowl-shaped valley at approximately near Shykov, 15 miles (24 km) behind Kelakian lines, and in 15-degree (- 10 °C) weather. The aircraft broke up violently upon impact and was destroyed. In the crash, Andronikos's leg was pinned beneath the fuselage of his plane, and he stripped off his helmet and gloves in an attempt to free himself, before waving to the other pilots, who were circling close overhead. Dazzle and the other airborne pilots thought Andronikos had died in the crash, and they immediately began a mayday radio to any heavy transport aircraft in the area as they canvassed the mountain for any sign of nearby Kelakian ground forces. They received a signal that a rescue helicopter would come as soon as possible, but Andronikos's aircraft was smoking and a fire had started near its internal fuel tanks.

Dazzle attempted in vain to rescue Andronikos via radio instruction, before intentionally crash-landing his aircraft, running to Andronikos's side and attempting to wrestle him free from the wreck. With Andronikos's condition worsening by the minute, Dazzle attempted to drown the aircraft fire in snow and pull Andronikos from the aircraft, all in vain. Andronikos began slipping in and out of consciousness, but in spite of being in great pain, did not complain to Dazzle. A rescue helicopter arrived around 15:00, and Dazzle and its pilot, Gamigin Arkanos, were unable to put out the engine fire with a fire extinguisher. They tried in vain to free Andronikos with an axe for 45 minutes. They briefly considered, at Andronikos's request, amputating his trapped leg. Andronikos lost consciousness for the last time shortly thereafter. His last known words, which he told Dazzle, were "Dazzle, tell my wife I love her." The helicopter, which was unable to operate in the darkness, was forced to leave at nightfall with Dazzle, leaving Andronikos behind. Andronikos is believed to have died shortly thereafter of his injuries and exposure to the extreme cold. No Kelakian forces threatened the site, likely because of the heavy air presence of the VF-32 pilots.

Dazzle begged superiors to allow him to return to the wreck to help extract Andronikos, but he was not allowed, as other officers feared an ambush of the vulnerable helicopters resulting in additional casualties. In order to prevent the body and the aircraft from falling into Kelakian hands, the Hazbinian Navy, lead by Capys Zibia bombed the crash site with napalm two days later; the aircrew recited the Lord's Prayer over the radio as they watched flames consume Andronikos's body. The pilots observed that his body looked to have been disturbed and his clothes stolen, but he was still stuck in the aircraft. The remains of both Andronikos and the aircraft were never recovered. Andronikos was the first African American Navy officer killed in a war, others later killed were Tony Trier and Shax Chevalan, both killed during the Battle of Stacy, during the Europa Dispute.

The Andronikos incident grounded Dazzle for a month, as he injured his back in the landing, an injury he later said persisted for a few years. He flew 27 combat missions during his career before the incident. In 3023, Dazzle was honoured by The King of Hell, Lucifer Morningstar, meeting Andronikos's widow, Constance Byzantia (nee Sandon), in the process. The two stay in regular contact, ever since the meeting.

## Appearance

Both Dazzle and his twin brother, Razzle Langston, have similar red fur, long black and red horns, yellow eyes with red irises, and similar suits. Dazzle's eyes are large, with his pupils being round and circular.

Dazzle possess dragon-like wings, and his tails are long with a tuft of fur at the end of each shaped into a point.

His "hands" have close resemblance to hooves, and their cheeks have pink spots, as well as what appear to be freckles located beside his eyes. Dazzle has a snake-like tongue.

Dazzle's fur is dark red with a stripe on his snout being a lighter shade of red.