Character Description - Death (original) (raw)

Death. Son of Nyx, the Night, and Erebus, the Darkness. Brother to Hypnos, the bringer of sleep, and uncle to Morpheus, the lord of dreams. A primordial god with an august heritage and no reason to care about the mortal lives he steals away. A notorious chess player and a master strategist. He is the great equalizer; peasants and kings alike bow to his might. Receive his kiss, dance his waltz, and be forever free from the confines of Earth, unless you are talented enough to beat him at his own game. Thus it has been for all eternity, and thus it shall always be.

Except for Empress Elisabeth.

As a teenager, Elisabeth was swept into Death’s embrace after falling from a botched tightrope stunt during the announcement of her sister’s (hopeful) upcoming engagement to Franz Joseph, emperor of Austria. Elisabeth was the absolute antithesis of Death, full of wit, vivacity, life. Death was entranced. Never had he seen such spirit in a mortal. She was young, tiny, and frightened, but she begged for her life and he could not find it in himself to refuse her. He knew she would come to hate him if he kept her, but he was equally unwilling to simply release her from his arms. Death restored her life, but vowed to one day win her love on his own terms.

Over the years, Death consistently appeared at Elisabeth’s side, both offering his support and love and demonstrating his ability for cruelty. He concluded Elisabeth’s wedding ceremony to Franz Joseph with a resounding ringing of the cathedral bells accompanied by ominous laughter. He appeared at her reception and commandeered a dance, reminding her vividly of the role he had previously played in her life and assuring her that no matter what she chose to do, her last dance would ultimately lie with him. Frightened, Elisabeth fled into the waiting arms of her husband, but she soon came to believe that those arms no longer represented protection, love or happiness. Crushed by the weight of her court responsibilities, forced into isolation from all her favorite pastimes, and controlled by an overbearing mother-in-law, Elisabeth soon sought escape by any means possible. Most often this took the form of long walks and extended vacations, but Death was never far, appearing every now and again to offer a more permanent solution.

As Elisabeth continued to press on with her life and reject her erstwhile suitor, Death began taking matters (and players) into his own hands. He welcomed Elisabeth’s eldest daughter, Sophie, into his deadly embrace when she was but a child, which crushed Elisabeth’s spirit. Despite the fact that she’d had barely any influence in her children’s’ upbringing, the loss still cut deep. When she was denied the chance to raise her only son, the Crown Prince Rudolf, Death reminded her of how cold and heartless the world could be, and how he could easily release her from such pain.

Thus far, Elisabeth has managed to spurn the affections of her resilient lover, despite the growing distance between herself and her husband. Perhaps her most successful achievement was during her coronation as Queen of Hungary, presided by Death himself. Elisabeth assured him that if she was to dance, either in life or death, she alone would choose the music and her partner. She would play the marionette to his puppeteer. However, she has yet to face Death’s most intricate plan yet, the one which will more than likely reveal him as the master chessman that he is. Since his childhood, the Crown Prince Rudolf, longing for the affection his parents either could not or would not give him, has been visited by a “friend” who always seemed to know what he needed and was thinking. Now an idealistic young man, Rudolf is treading an uncertain path with his parents, his wife, and the people of Austria and Hungary. Death always seems to be around to lend a sympathetic ear or offer advice when the prince needs it most, and his influence is becoming extreme. If his manipulation of Rudolf succeeds, Elisabeth may stand to lose more than she had ever believed, and yet may still only find eventual comfort in the one who is both her tormentor and savior. Despite her best efforts, Elisabeth may find that her last dance does indeed belong to him.

ETA: For some reason it will not allow me to add "Death" as a tag. I also tried "Der Tod" just in case. I'm not sure if this is because only mods can add new tags, or if LJ just doesn't allow any form of the word death, but I figured I'd mention it. ^__^