exsilium

[fishnetted]

» PLAYER INFORMATION
Player NAME: Aura
Current AGE: 24
Player TIME ZONE: UTC-5
Personal JOURNAL: archerko
IM & SERVICE: triskellions
Player PLURK: ryogi
Current CHARACTERS: Ella Ellis, Ayano Tateyama

» CHARACTER INFORMATION
Character NAME: Dinah Lance, aka Black Canary
Canon & MEDIUM: Comic Books.
Canon PULL-POINT: Just after Birds of Prey 91, before the beginning or One Year Later.
Character AGE: She’s likely 30-ish, but because she got rejuvenated on a Lazarus Pit she probably appears on her mid-to-late twenties.

Character ABILITIES:

Canary Cry : Dinah’s presentation card, basically what makes others identify her as the Black Canary. Being a metahuman (which is like saying “mutant” but apparently DC didn’t want to get into a fight with Marvel over terminology), Dinah’s vocal apparatus as a whole is several times stronger and more resilient than a regular human’s, allowing her to produce a supersonic “cry” or “shout” that can basically level a small house at its full power, as well as tearing down steel, incapacitating humans and anyone with sensible ears, etcetera. Dinah has trained it extensively over the years, to the point she’s incredibly skilled in its use and modulation, making her able to accurately deliver the degree of damage she wants, to the point she’s able to tear a cue ball into pieces out of someone’s hand without hurting the hand at all. The thing with the Cry is that it’s a cry, superpowered or not; it demands that Dinah inhales and exhales, so if someone knows what to look for, it can be avoided (if you’re fast and good enough that is). The Cry can also be easily cancelled by hurting Dinah’s throat, although gags won’t work as they only affect her mouth. Furthermore, it’s not unlimited, as every use of the Cry puts a strain on her vocal cords, and therefore Dinah needs to measure and strategize its use if she means to keep it a viable choice in long winded encounters.

Martial Arts : As a countermeasure of the reliability of the Canary Cry, Dinah has spent around half her life training nonstop with a vast diversity of fighters from all walks of life, showing a natural talent to pick up fighting styles and mastering them quickly. Dinah is probably among the top twenty martial artists of the DC Universe, which is by no means a small feat, and she’s constantly improving herself. She’s a fierce and dedicated fighter, capable of taking down enemies that possess enough power to rip her apart easily, although she’s at a clear disadvantage of people with enhanced attributes anyway.

Character HISTORY:

We've got Wikipedia
And the DC Wikia
And ComicVine.

But I did write my stuff.

Dinah Lance is the daughter of Dinah Drake, the original Black Canary of the Justice Society of America. This means that little Dinah grew up surrounded by a bunch of “aunts” and “uncles” that just happened to be superheroes. Her father, Larry Lance, was a police officer, so it was understandable that Dinah grew wishing to either become a cop or a superhero. The discovery of her Canary Cry turned the tables towards the latest, although her mother opposed since the very start, considering the world had changed too much and that Dinah would be in far more danger than she had ever been. Dinah, being your typical teenager, ignored her mother and started to seek the aid of as many fighters as she could find to take as masters, including Ted Grant, aka Wildcat, perhaps her favorite “uncle”. Her mother found out, of course, but there was no stopping Dinah; it did create a wedge between the two of them, which only got worse when her father was killed, and later Dinah Drake got sick with cancer. The relationship between mother and daughter became almost nonexistent.

Dinah was a founding member of the Justice League of America, as well as the Justice League International, which she served in for only a brief moment, and even part of a revamped Justice Society of America at some point, giving her credentials of all kinds. It was during her days with the League that she first met Oliver Queen, the Green Arrow, whom with she would have basically a lifetime love/hate relationship. Dinah quitted the League when Ollie did in order to protect his city (and also because of the death of her mother), Star City, and stayed with him as they both worked on a flower shop of their own, Sherwood Florist. Their relationship grew strained as Ollie wanted to marry and Dinah considered it was impossible due to their lifestyles. She then would be kidnapped and tortured to the point of not only losing her Canary Cry, but also her ability to have children. Even if Ollie stuck by her afterwards, things went south when he cheated on her with one of their assistants at the flower shop, as well as learning that he had fathered a child with someone else (although against his will). The fact he had been taking money from the business only made things worse. After their breakup, Dinah would meet Connor Hawke, yet another son of Ollie’s (although much older), who also told her that he had died.

Dinah’s heroics would become an on and off thing from that point on until she was contacted by Oracle, Barbara Gordon, and was ultimately convinced to form a partnership with her as Oracle’s agent in the field (the Birds of Prey, although the name wasn’t used until way, way later). It was a bit of an odd partnership though, considering Dinah didn’t get to see Oracle, or learn who she was until months after starting to work together, but the two women quickly bonded and remained an effective team. Dinah would also regain her Canary Cry as well as her ability to have children after a mission that involved Ra’s al Ghul’s Lazarus Pit; she was also rejuvenated in the process. Dinah’s work with Oracle became her priority hero work, although at some point she went and helped the JSA, as well as returned to the side of a resurrected Ollie for a brief moment. The ranks of Oracle’s agents would finally see a growth with the entrance of the Huntress, although it was not an easy one as Barbara and Helena had a past of sorts. Things were smoothly between Dinah and Helena though, as they were both tough women that enjoyed a good fight, hence clicking almost instantly. And Huntress did save Dinah from a situation very similar to the one that had made her lose her Canary Cry and ability to have children in the past, so there was extra gratitude there.

Dinah comes from before the events of One Year Later; she’s currently happy with her work on the Birds of Prey and was sort of in the middle of some martial arts classes from Shiva. Mail delivered classes. Shiva is weird.

Character PERSONALITY:

If there is anything that describes Dinah Lance better than anything else is her predisposition to do good, even if it means putting herself in dangerous situations, something that happens quite often. Growing up surrounded by heroes and a cop dad will probably do that to one. Dinah’s greatest fear is that she might not be able to be there for those that need her, and she’s quick to disregard the risks when it comes to do what’s right. Of course, she’s trained to do so without getting too hurt in the process, but still, she’s not the sort of person you can expect to simply sit back and see how trouble develops, not if she can say something about it.

Dinah is also one of those weird cases in which her identity is not all that secret, as she never wears a mask and after she dyed her hair it became easy to recognize her, never mind the fact she has quite a reputation, both due to her mother’s run with the Black Canary’s mantle and her own track record. This has of course meant that she’s easier to find and be attacked, but Dinah prefers to live without having to hide. Outspoken, well natured and with so much self-confidence she could share with a small country and still have enough to sass her way out of trouble, Dinah is very personable, not to mention good with difficult types of person. She almost never lets prejudices cloud the way she sees and treats people and is completely willing to let their actions prove their worth, or lack of thereof. She is ridiculously loyal. Ridiculously loyal. It deserves to be repeated. Having a difficult family situation herself, Dinah puts a lot of weight into the relationships she makes. She easily befriends people, and is certain to do as much good as possible to all of them.

For whatever reason, Dinah has a pretty complicated taste on men. Older men to be exact; it’s some sort Daddy Issues up to some level, but she basically finds herself more at ease with someone she can tell that has lived and gained experience from it, although she’s not exclusively interested in just them. Dinah doesn’t really enter relationships though, and she prefers to keep her romantic affairs simple and if possible, ephemeral. She has only had a number of actual relationships and they all were awful in one way or another, so Dinah is very careful about that sort of things. She finds it a lot easier to have fun with her girlfriends Babs and Helena (and Zinda, too) anyway, and they are usually the targets of her affections. Helena specially, has grown to be among her best friends (perhaps only slightly behind Barbara), as they both have worked together in the field and created a rapport of sorts.

Strange as it might sound, Dinah’s one obvious weakness is Ollie, the Green Arrow. Although in her timeline they’re no longer in a relationship, they already share a large, tumultuous and complicated past in which he died, came back, cheated on her, hid two children from her and more, in no particular order. Still, he’s the love of her life, although circumstances (Ollie himself included) are always getting in the way. Dinah’s loyalty might also play against her, as she’s willing to sacrifice herself for the sake of her friends, something that has been exploited in the past. She has trained herself to remain calm and chipper no matter what’s going on, but she’s not inflaible.

» EXSILIUM INFORMATION
Chosen WEAPON:

Dinah’s chosen weapon is her motorcycle. It’s not going to change much, but it has now been upgraded with an AI that will grow over time. Right off the back, the bike can be called with a small dispositive that Dinah owns, and it has a pretty good autopilot function that allows it to maneuver through difficult terrains. It also comes with a self-repairing function.

As it grows, the bike will start to integrate weaponry (like the Canary Cry grenades that Dinah once used) and its specs will start to go up beyond of what a regular motorcycle can do.

Character INVENTORY: Just her clothes, her communication devices (earrings sand a necklace with the shapes of birds) and a Black Canary Costume on a backpack.

» PREVIOUS GAME INFORMATION ( IF APPLICABLE )
Previous GAME(s): N/A
Previous GAME SETTING(s): N/A
Previous GAME CR: N/A
Your character's DEVELOPMENT: N/A

» SAMPLES

First PERSON:

[ The video clicks in and Dinah is sitting comfortably inside some building, munching a hotdog. ]

Someone please tell me there are cheeseburgers in this watery hellhole.

[ You just give her a moment to finish devouring the hot dog. Once she’s done, she’s ready to get down to business. ]

Oooookay, so I got the You’ve Been Chosen! Tour, saw the sights, got myself soaked wet and found the dirtiest, smelliest and cheapest hot dog stall that has ever been put in a corner. Exsilium, huh?

[ She shrugs, her tone casual, but those who know her might notice the tension in her shoulders and the sharpness in her eyes. ]

Sure beats Apokolips any given day in my list of worlds to suddenly get zapped into. I mean, if you can work out the plumbing issue… [ She points at the rain that can be seen in the window behind her. ] It would be great, really.

Anyway, I’m not much into whining. Name’s Dinah, Dinah Lance, and if you’ve seen a nerdy redhead on a wheelchair, a flighty Italian lady or a trigger happy…uh, blonde, do let me know. Babs, Helena, Zinda, if you’re hearing this, I’m starving, so be the friends you’re supposed to be and get me something to eat.

Third PERSON:

“Well, that was fun.”

She was talking to herself, mostly, as half the gang that had tried to jump her were lying on the ground, unconscious, and the other half was lying on the ground, twitching in pain. Dinah rubbed the knuckles of her right hand, although it was more for show than anything related to having punched one too many idiots with it in the last five minutes. “So, I’m trying to understand here, you do this to anyone that passes by? And you, let me get this straight…tell them it’s because you’re protecting your honor?”

Scoffing, Dinah made her way to the one that looked like the gang leader, or at least the one with the worst sense of fashion. It truly amazed her how some things didn’t change independently of where you found yourself. “You should have better tried to protect another things, if you catch my drift, tough guy.” The problem was, Dinah didn’t know what to do next; was there even a police to call in this wet piece of wasteland? Ever since she had ended up there, the fact simple thieves couldn’t be properly brought to justice had bothered her a good deal. Sure, she wasn’t suggesting that someone opened a prison or something, but the Initiative fellas seemed to be more concerned with the past and future rather than the present, and that certainly sit badly with her.

“So what’s gonna be eh? I think I saw a large chunk of rusty, yet sturdy wire on my way here. How bad do you think it would feel if I wrap you all nice and tight with it?” Dinah smiled as she apparent gang leader’s eyes widened, something more powerful than pain taking in; fear. “A girl like me, I don’t like leaving loose ends, you know? Then again…”

Ten minutes of threats later, Dinah was fairly certain she wouldn’t need to worry about some punks trying to protect their honors around the zone anymore. She was going to walk around for the next days (or weeks) though, only because you could never be too sure. She was going to need a talk with Oracle about street violence though; maybe Babs had figured a more graceful way to deal with miscreants. Or maybe she had something big and ugly that Dinah needed to punch. In all honesty? She was hoping for the later.

» ADDITIONAL NOTES
At the moment of picking her weapon, Dinah asked if there was something they could do about her hair dye, so it would be awesome if they had worked something to make her blonde permanently or something.