Adriana Kiskocka

"Ours is a cycle of hatred. Alliances forged and broken. We have paid the price for sharing this world, and we have forgotten what makes us strong."

## Physical Description

### Eye Color

Blue

A servant girl turned Dhampir, Adriana came from humble beginnings as a maid to House Kiskocka. When Darkwall fell to the invasion of the Bronze Emperor, it was the master of the house that had chosen to save her, and bring her back from death. Renewed with purpose, and given strength she had not before, Adriana now seeks to spread her vampiric influence to others, preaching of the wonders of undeath, and the beauty of an immortal existence, and a second chance to walk this world in the shadows.

## History

Born to the orphanages of Darkwall, Adriana spent much of her early life surviving as most of the living children in Darkwall did. It wasn't until about her adolescent years that she became employed as a maid at House Kiskocka. Due to her diligent efforts, she was often favored as one of the better servants, and treated quite well.

When she wasn't actively serving, Adriana had a love for the theatre, acting in particular. On nights she could afford to, she would finish her duties early and scamper off to watch the various plays and other acting performances put on in Darkwall. Sometimes when she was by herself, she would pretend to be one of the performers on the stage, often fantasizing about romantic stories in particular involving knights and princesses.

A few years of the somewhat idyllic life led to her eventually discussing the idea of becoming more than just a maid. She admired the vampires for their beauty, grace, and strength, and yearned to be one. Her desire would soon be granted, though far more traumatically than she would have liked.

When the forces of the Bronze Emperor marched upon the city of Darkwall, Kiskocka's house was one of the nobility to escape. Thanks to the ingenuity of Mother, and Ravenwatch, there had been a sizeable amount that escaped. Unfortunately for Adriana though, her role as a servant resulted in her remaining behind to ensure their escape, and consequentially she was slain by a collapsing building, though she died ensuring their safety and survival, believing one day it would be repaid.

And repaid it was, for a few weeks after, Zoltan and Mother had retrieved her body, and through their combined magic and science, Adriana was revived, though not as a true vampire. She was stuck between a transition phase, adjacent to that of a Dhampir. She held some vampiric traits, but there was much mortality in her still, a finite thread that would one day expire.

Due to this weakened state, Zoltan, whom she now considered her father, sent her to Athreya, to study and learn in Telos. She understood the concern, and though she was saddened to not be as close to her family, the knowledge, arts, and magic she learned in Athreya was beyond her wildest dreams. Staying at a small estate Zoltan had built in Athreya, Adriana spent her free time speaking to other visitors and travelers.

One said traveler was Thomas Blackwald, a templar in service to the Sunclaw Pantheon. After months of conversation, Adriana eventually convinced Thomas that she could give him the gift of undeath, so that their love would be immortal. With his permission, she took his life and reanimated him as a Vampiric Squire, the first of her devoted followers.

Now, Adriana continues to grow her strength, studying and researching methods of fixing the flaws in the reanimation that she herself underwent, in order to truly ascend. Alongside her studies of undeath came an interest in the infernal, particularly Dispater and Erecura, for the archdevil and his wife were the exact type of love that Adriana had romanticized for so long in her plays, and the aspiring vampress was pulled towards Hell, instead of typical worship like Urgathoa or Zura.

## Appearance

Adriana is 5'3 in height, with a lithe build and only weighing 110lbs. Her hair falls to about her waist, and is often left to hang freely down the back and sides of her body, framing her face. She wears a variety of jewelry, particularly various rings of silver and red. Her hair is jet-black with cool, blue undertones, and her eyes are a steel blue-gray color. Overall she is quite beautiful, and youthful in her image. With a lack of scars and blemishes, she has a comely face and a welcoming smile.

In terms of attire, Adriana dresses luxuriously almost constantly. Favoring expensive garments, particularly those conjured from a magical object in her possession, Adriana never spares any expense when it comes to fashionable beauty. All of her clothing, even the non-conjured pieces, are of high quality, and border on even theatrical at times. Despite these gaudy displays of wealth, she's able to maneuver with ease while adventuring, aided by magic to ensure she avoids the "wear-and-tear" of a typical adventure.

Adriana's overall appearance looks relatively noble and high quality, which she enjoys, as it reminds her of the garments that were worn in the theatres she watched growing up. She dresses in a manner to reflect her romanticization of nobility, love, and the forbidden love of two darkened souls meeting in the night.

## Personality

Adriana's personality is often described as charming and captivating. While not intentional, Adriana often comes off as flirtatious and direct, sometimes overwhelmingly so to the discomfort of those she talks with. Her episodes of neurotic behavior coupled with her low levels of sympathy can at times leave individuals talking to Adriana as if she was shallow, flighty, or generally uninterested in anyone that wasn't herself or those she loved at the moment. Unfortunate for Adriana, this is far from the truth, as Adriana suffers from an extreme fear of abandonment, and will often go to extreme lengths to keep those she's infatuated with close to her, though nobody knows how far she would truly be willing to go to keep the ones she loves in her circle.

Despite these difficult qualities, Adriana generally tries to be friendly and open to meeting other people, and often goes out of her way to make new friends and connect in new spaces. She especially seems to brighten and light up when discussing topics of interest to her, which are typically theatre, romance, and magic. She also has an interest in philosophy and ethics, though these topics are often discussed as if removed from herself, as she cannot fathom or understand that her own morals and ethics can range from apathetic to psychopathic, particularly when it comes to justifying the behavior she exhibits with those she loves and cares for, such as her 'loyal devotees', as she calls them.

One of the most difficult things for Adriana to grasp is the idea of a true, mutual friend. To Adriana, most people, if not all of them are seen as tool, threats, competition, lovers, or devotees. She has a hard time separating the idea of platonic care from undying devotion and eternal love, and often confuses worship and attraction for love and affection. If these revelations should lead to a negative end to a relationship, Adriana often becomes cold, callous, and can even exhibit sociopathic behaviors, showing no remorse in harming or 'punishing' her 'devotees' for straying from the path of love and worship of their vampress.

Adriana believes in using society and its laws to benefit herself. Structure and organization elevate those who deserve to rule as well as provide a clearly defined hierarchy between master and servant. As a result of this, Adriana heavily supports laws and societies that protect their own concerns. If someone is hurt or suffers because of a law that benefits Adriana, she doesn't hold any specific care or concern, unless the individual(s) hurt are important to her. She's willing to obey laws, often out of fear of punishment. Because of an infernal touch upon Adriana's soul, she is very careful about giving her word, as she could be forced to honor an unfavorable contract or oath she has made. Once given, she can only break her word if she can find a way to do it legally, within the laws of the society.

Adriana generally has little to no regard for the lives of the living, as they exist to her as tools or potential converts to her cause. Despite this outlook, Adriana is capable of love and care for those she favors, but while gaining her favor may be easy, losing it is just as easy, and sometimes the wrath is not worth the admiration in the first place.

## Powers and Abilities

Adriana's most predominate skill is her necromancy. A side effect of her unlife gifted by Mother and Zoltan, she has a strong affinity for creature and reanimating a wide variety of undead creatures. Her most favored are her vampiric squires, of which she only keeps a select number of. These are considered her most devoted followers, and she holds them in high regard, as well as being willing to go great lengths for them.

Coinciding with her necromancy skills, Adriana is capable of captivating a variety of people with her leadership, drawing in living and undead alike to serve under her. Her skills of leadership are quite influential, and have been partially responsible for her gaining a number of contacts and servitors.

Beyond such, she's shown an affinity for mending injuries, as well as bonding herself to her templars, able to mitigate injuries suffered between them, and invigorating them with magic and tactical coordination alike.

## Family

* **Zoltan Kiskocka (Father - Alive) -** A vampire and a noble of Darkwall, Zoltan Kiskocka is one of the most prolific undead Chosen, and is also the adoptive father of Adriana post-reanimation, as it was his vampiric essence that fueled the magic to bring her back.
* **Mother (Grandmother - Alive) -** Another noble of Darkwall, Mother wears many titles, but for Adriana, she considers her an adoptive grandmother, as it was Mother who helped Zoltan rise to much of his current power, and her magic as well as studies and science helped with the reanimation of Adriana.

## Friends and Associations

Thomas Blackwald - The first of her devoted templars, Thomas Blackwald is a former Sunclaw templar that has since left his philosophical faith to embrace Adriana as his one and only focus, swearing fealty and devotion to her.

## Foes

Though none in specific, Adriana considers the more zealous followers of deities such as Ragathiel, Sarenrae, Pharasma, and other undead-hating cults to be in opposition to her. While not outright hostile to them, she does consider them a potential threat, and guards herself immensely when near or around them.