Desmond Miles

Player Name: Kris
Character's Name: Desmond Miles
Character's username wassa_matta_you
Game Series: Assassin's Creed
Link to previous app: yogurt

Additional history that happened since the last application:
Besides meeting his ancestors and suspecting he was deader than dead, Desmond hasn't been around too much. He's kept to the city and his mysteriously acquired apartment until he was sure of the situation surrounding his existence. When the turmoil in FDC had settled down and he felt safe to leave, he made his way back to the academy in order to find Connor.

As discussed between me and Liz and with permission, we thought it best if Desmond secretly rooms with Connor as another campus hobo who contributes nothing but butt imprints into sofas for the time being.

Personality Changes: Nothing noteworthy.

In-Character 1st person sample:

[ To Connor. ]

Hey, it's me, Desmond. You know, the, uh [ There's a beat for him to check his surroundings. ] Assassin. I found your number in the Academy's directory, so -

Come to think of it... [ He starts muttering. ] Pretty sure that was the 1800s... [ Christ, he's trying to remember when the phone was invented. That's what you get when you deal with the cosmic elderly. ]

[ Back to volume. ] Well, you got your voicemail set up so I'll just have to put my money on you getting this message. Anyway, I'm heading back to the school tonight. I did some thinking and I think it's time I told you more about what I know. [ Another long pause. ] About who I am.

[ Okay, this was pretty tense. The discussion warrants his serious tone, but shouldn't this be a celebration? ] I'll bring some beers and a bite to eat. Emphasis on the beers. I think we're gonna need it.

In-Character 3rd person sample:

The fabric of Desmond's hood shuffled against his ears, whispering reminders of who he was as it relaxed against his head. He had informed his employer of his resignation, all the money he had saved from working within his new life had been carefully slipped into an envelope in his backpack. He clipped the black leather pack tight to his chest, shifted it to rest easily into his form, and left his apartment for one last time.

The whole enigma behind this "afterlife" left him gasping for answers like oxygen; Desmond was drowning in questions and swinging his arms at open air with nothing to grab hold of. He finally made the decision to release himself from the fears that dissolved his will and move forward with the new world he was sent to walk upon.

He would return to face his ancestors at the academy. Connor deserved that much from him, not only as man to man, but Assassin to Assassin. Perhaps it was time to be honest with him and make sense of the universe that let him live again.

Out-of-Character Information

Name: KURS
Are you over 15?: Ye
Time Zone: EST
Personal Journal: mikenno
Reliable Method of Contact: plack
Other characters in the game:
bluestreaker
idowhatilike
hellofriend

Anything Else?: abstergo sux p.s. cw: FREEDOM

In-Character Information

Name: Desmond Miles
Game/Series: Assassin's Creed
Teacher/Student/Other: Other
Canon Point: Ending of AC3
Age: 25
Grade Level/Class Taught/Job: Charming bartender with a winning smile
Dorm or Living Arrangement: Apartment in FDC

Personality:
When we first join the world of Assassin's Creed, Desmond Miles is the victim of a kidnapping. As you can imagine, he isn't exactly forthcoming with pleasantries, so the man we first see is seriously pissed. Who wouldn't be? But his feelings on the matter are irrelevant, as you can imagine, so he submits himself to the will of the Templars (in the guise of Abstergo Industries) in order to avoid the repercussions of not cooperating.

The Desmond we're presented with is stubborn in his queries and is expectedly grumpy, but this doesn't seem to deter his sense of humor. He often responds with sarcasm and a quick wit to what others have to say to him when it's something he doesn't appreciate, and when it comes to an issue that really ticks him off, he's quick to lose his temper. This especially crops up when his questions are being avoided and he's left without a real answer to work with.

Though threatened to partake in the experiment, Desmond expresses interest at the functions of the Animus itself, so we come to see that despite the current situation, he bears a genuine curiosity about matters unfamiliar to him. He's willing to explore the unknown should the opportunity present itself, though his luck on safe opportunities as of late have been pretty low. This same inquiring nature shines through rather often throughout the games. He'll poke his companions with questions fairly frequently, an example being when he spent a good amount of time attempting to squeeze answers out of Lucy (who oversaw Desmond's sessions while he was at Abstergo) and understand her place in the thick of it. Sometimes his questions are as equally humorous as they are serious.

Desmond Miles: [While trying to escape Abstergo] What's the plural of "Animus"? Is it "Animus-es"? "Animi"? What do you think, Lucy? ...Lucy? What do they need with all of them—
Lucy Stillman: Desmond. Shut. the. fuck. up. Please.

Desmond obtained independence as a teenager, and while he ran away from home in the shoes of a boy, he quickly exchanged those sneakers for the boots of a man. Determination had him standing on his own two feet and a rebellious streak lives inside of him. He doesn't like to be told what to do and would prefer to make his own decisions, even if he doesn't entirely have a grip on the situation at hand.

That said, after he ran away from the Farm - his home until the age of sixteen where he was raised in the Assassin brotherhood by a strict father among other families of assassins - Desmond lived the night life as a Brooklyn bartender for approximately nine years. Seeing as he wasn't allowed to leave the Farm and explore the world around him, this built intense hostility toward his life as an assassin early on and encouraged Desmond to live more within the crowds and among people from then on.

Desmond's desire for freedom and exploration, among his scorn for what he believed were his parents being wild conspiracy theorists, drove him to his escape. Well into his 20s did he enjoy life outside of the secret war box he was born within, travelling until he reached New York and settled into life there; parties and drinking, mocking the world he came from (Shirley Templars, anyone?)... However sometimes his nostalgic and sentimental spirit would kick in, feeling the hollow passage of his life corroding in his heart and making him wish he were home again, despite his pride insisting he had no need for his family anymore and he'd never look back, no matter how badly he wanted to.

On that note, Desmond tends to, and has admitted to struggling with completely expressing his feelings and opinions. Typically his hesitation lies with displaying gratitude, apologizing, and conveying that he cares about someone, likely due to his treatment growing up in something of a "tough love" environment. However at the same time, Desmond can be one of the friendliest men you'll ever meet if you aren't trying to kidnap him, kill him, or put him into a coma!

Judging by appearances, Desmond can look like your average quiet guy just passing through New York's subways, hidden in the shadow of his hoodie, but in truth, he's quite the outgoing charmer once he charges up his smile. In fact, if you get Desmond talking, he'll talk. With anyone he feels like being friendly with, Desmond is rather playful and will kick up the banter as the situations sees fits. To snatch a quote from an anonymous user that I personally agree with, Desmond "[hides] in "boring" as a cover but [comes] alive in his freedom."

[ Assassin's Creed 3 spoilers head. Apologies! ]

The ending of Assassin's Creed 3, where I'll be drawing Desmond from, marks a pivotal decision he must make that will result in the fate of the world, as well as seal his own. We follow Desmond gunning for freedom, dreaming only of that since he was a child. Much of this has influenced his life and his decisions. It helped him pick his battles, choose his side. In many ways, it will never cease to shine high above him and guide his way.

But within that desire he found compromise. Desmond understood that we are still bound to the shadows that light brings. In this case, absolute freedom would bring countless destruction across the planet. A hopeless end. At the cost of taking the right to live from billions, freedom would thrive.

On the other hand, the risk of a goddess enslaving mankind. Control and power held over them, just out of reach. But those billions would live. They would have a chance to fight, even with a dangerous hand overshadowing them all.

It's within this decision that we see how Desmond hasn't just been trying to meet the goal of saving the world along side his Assassin brothers and sisters, but that he's been paying attention to what lies within our world's history. We see how much he's learned about his own life through the lives of his ancestors. How a conflict and struggle between two sides - which used to be so simple for him; his freedom versus the will of the brotherhood/his family - should they come together, could have saved them all. That he can decide to see both the light and the darkness, and that they can coexist.

Desmond's final decision falls into a realm of possibility that though these sides carry heavy burdens of war between them that they may come together and fight against that which would take everything from them. Desmond bets his life on the Assassins, on the Templars, on humanity as a whole, no matter who they are. He bets his life on compromise, on hope, and... well, on freedom.

Backstory:
There's two aspects of Desmond's backstory that can be touched upon: The events of the games themselves and a sequence of memories he revisits while in a coma referred to as Desmond's Journey, which goes over his life (from Desmond's perspective) just before the first game takes place. The former wiki link, however, has a summary of the latter.

His arrival in FDC takes place just as Desmond makes the decision to basically sacrifice his life for the world, and this is represented in my third-person sample below, which is also my DR post which is also doubling as my intro post, if Desu is accepted.

Anything Else?: I would like for him to eventually migrate to the Bird Cage (HA HA), but for now, just some bozo off campus.

In-Character 1st person sample:

My name is Desmond Miles.

You know, I never thought it would come down to this when I first stepped foot off the Farm. Back then I hated everything about it. I hated the isolation from the world. I hated my family. My Mom. Dad. [ He chuckles, though it's hushed like a whisper lost to the wind. ]

It wasn't that long ago I remembered what I lost. [ A beat. ] What I threw away. Every sight, sound, and smell came back to me so clearly. I was there in my mind, racing through it all... Yeah. Remembering where I came from. For a few blissful moments I would close my eyes and forget the training, the pain. Only remembering the good times in between.

I really thought I could go back.

I mean, Hell of a party the apocalypse is, right? Did some couch surfing with buddies between states, continents... Complete with bad trips and foggy memories. I got the whole college frat boy package in the span of a few weeks. I can't really complain.

"When this is all done..."

When this is all done...

No matter how many times I said that before the next plan someone would make, I had to suspend my disbelief just to humor it all.

When this is all done, we'll celebrate.
Take a vacation.
Go home.

[ There's a pause again for thought. He looks up after a moment and smiles. ]

Think Bad Weather would hire me back? I've got a pretty good list of new drink names in mind...

In-Character 3rd person sample: DR Post