CANON PERSONALITY: Zelman is, in a word, bored. He has been for well over half of millennia, since the fall of his House, and yet it was that first century as a vampire that has shaped him the most.
He’s seen what happens to even the strongest of bloodlines when the patriarch loses the ability to ‘hear’ his Blood, how it devolves into an all-out war to prove themselves between the sire and his children. Because of that Zelman has a certain ruthlessness in him forged by that war that enabled him to kill and survive until he was left as the lone descendant of the warrior Asura’s bloodline. He alone inherited the Fire God’s flames from that implosion within his House and in doing so; it gave him a singular focus on himself and his Blood. To him, the weight of the ‘voice’ and guidance contained in the Blood that he inherited from his sire, the blood that carries a thirst for chaos and combat, is the true Legacy of their bloodline.
And it’s a weight he carries with ease, no guilt or remorse for being the last of them to be found. After all - he has no reason to feel either.
Thus, he’s careful to listen to the ‘voice’ of his Blood, lets it guide him more than anything that happens around him ever could. It is largely because of this that he has such fine control over both his actions and emotions considering he’s had roughly 800 years to observe humanity and vampires alike. He has a fairly long fuse on a cool burning temper, making him more prone to being annoyed than angry in most situations.
He’s usually calm and laid-back, but always watching those around him, especially those he finds fascinating - which is no easy feat, gaining his attention, given his somewhat jaded view on the vast majority of mediocre beings that surround him. To him they’re so boring because they’re easily manipulated through their wants and desires, their greed. They don’t offer any resistance; much less hold any particular mystery or originality that would make them interesting. And so for him, dealing with them is more a game than anything else.
Whether it’s his underlings, or someone to feed from, they’re there more for a moment’s amusement than anything else and once they’ve served that purpose, he doesn’t really care what they do. He often acts as if he can’t be bothered to rein them in when they do excessive things but then, they are criminals, cutthroats, and younger bloodlines of lesser vampires.
The concept of morality, of right and wrong, are not ideals that he’s invested in at all. As a matter of fact, when asked if he’s a bad person he’ll say yes, but there’s fun perks to being a ‘bad guy’. Laws, crime, honorable actions, they’re all polite faces to hide behind, so far as he’s concerned. He’d rather show you his confident, knowing smirk from the start then laugh at the surprise when they realize his fangs actually bite. In this way he comes across as more ‘human’ than the other vampires in his canon, save possibly Cassa. He’s one of the few Old Bloods that have constant contact with ‘regular’ humans and vampires instead of just the scions of the great houses, therefore he’s more comfortable with the modern world and it shows in everything from the way he dresses to the way he talks at times.
He’s got a sharp wit, which he often shows through sarcasm and taunting his peers, and in the way he reveals his more introspective side to Kotarou over ramen, when they were discussing the legacy of their Blood.
However, it’s the anticipation of real chaos, chaos that can make things move that he anticipates, and the possibility of true combat that earns a measure of excitement, all revealed in his eyes since his customary slouch never really changes. He’s looking and waiting for the one person that he can fight against without restraint. Someone that can truly match him in power and bloodlust but since he hasn’t found anyone that measures up yet, he’s content to sit back and watch the other Houses vie for power while he amuses himself pulling strings beneath them. In other words, he accepts the status quo with a touch of old acceptance and resignation, which all lead back to the fact that he’s bored, again.
POINT OF DEPARTURE: N/A ABILITIES: His strongest ability is called Eye Ignite It is a focused attack that calls forth ‘God’s Fire’ - flames that move at his bidding, with nothing more than a shift of his eyes. He can choose what burns and how hot, as well as the duration of the flames - with the strongest level of this being a gigantic ball of flame as big as a medium-sized house. His control of flames is absolute, even to the lesser extent of snapping his fingers to light a cigarette or lighting candles without looking at them. And he can disperse said flames with nothing more than a deliberate blink.
He can use this ability to such a degree that he usually battles while standing in a relaxed slouch, both hands in his pockets.
The Eye Raid is his second strongest ability which only requires focused eye contact to establish and allows him to physically control the bodies of both humans and vampires alike. It locks them in a stasis where they sit or stand so that they cannot move their limbs at all without his permission, though they’re still capable of speech. He can also use this ability to force those under his control unconscious - and while all vampires appear to have this ability, it’s the Old Bloods, like himself, that can control larger groups for longer times and with less overall effort.
Though not strictly telepathic, he is capable of sensing the activity of other or new vampires as they arrive in the Special Zone which, by the looks of it, is roughly the size of a large city, split into 10 districts.
Like all vampires, he has naturally swift regenerative abilities, though feeding while injured will practically instantly heal him and he has considerably heightened sensory facilities as compared to a human’s. He possesses super-strength and quicksilver reflexes that enable him to jump to impossible heights or drop from them to land gracefully. Vampires in his canon are capable of walking along building faces as if they were strolling along the street, laws of physics be damned. His vision is sharper over longer distances - enough to be able to see clearly for roughly a half mile and his hearing exceptionally acute (enough so that when he focuses, he can listen to a person’s heartbeat). He has a sharp sense of smell that enables him to smell another person’s scent on someone, or tell which vampire has already been close to a human for feeding or otherwise.
He can eat and drink regular food and alcohol and does so quite often - though his favorite things are ramen and a cool can of Coke - and he rather enjoys smoking.
He’s naturally immune to human disease and illness and the old superstitions of garlic, stakes, and crosses have no real effect on him, aside from annoying him. Holy water, salt water and sunlight, however, are more persistent problems. They don’t kill him, but they do weaken him to a literal skeleton state if the exposure is high enough. Organs, muscles, and skin regenerate quickly enough once he’s dry or in the shade, but without feeding directly after such exposure he is in a weakened state.
Blood Resonance is another unusual ability that actually falls more in line with a weakness. When a vampire drinks a person’s blood, an ‘echo’ forms between them. Meaning that with their blood in his body they can not only read his thoughts, but feel any of his unguarded emotions as well. For the human, this also means that they can see and hear that which the vampire is seeing or hearing in addition to knowing his exact location. It’s because of this that the human can sometimes ‘sync’ movement to match Zelman’s, though not always. While the resonance is in effect, the human may receive fragments of memory from Zelman, especially if his guard is lowered (a rare instance).
However all of these effects have the caveat that the older vampires like Zelman can choose how much of all of the above that the human experiences. This effect usually only lasts for about an hour or so and the reason it occurs is because their blood, before it gets broken down by Zelman’s system, resonates with its own - the theory of like calling to like. Because of this, the effects are not reversed. He cannot read the humans thoughts or emotions at all because his blood isn’t in them to resonate back with him.
He can move about during the daytime, but he is nocturnal by nature. And, of course, his biggest weakness is silver - which is capable of maiming or killing him.
**There will be a permissions post for the Eye Raid and Feeding abilities (to include resonance effects), along with a clarifier should any of his powers get nerfed for the world setting. As an additional game restriction I’m going to say his ability to turn another character into a vampire is either removed or plotted with mod approval. (Not that he’ll ever find that out - 700 some-odd years and still the last of his bloodline means he’s not willing to share his Blood with just anybody.)
INVENTORY; He’ll be arriving with nothing more than the black-and-white track suit, sneakers, and cap that he’s wearing along with a few pieces of jewelry, his wallet, and the pack of cigarettes in his pocket.
ANYTHING ELSE WE SHOULD KNOW? A quote!
“Our true essence is our Blood. The Blood we inherit endlessly is the truth behind Black Blood. It is difficult to hear its voice, but when you’ve wandered off your path, it’s not wrong to clear your mind and listen to the Blood flowing within. Your Blood will not betray you, yet the Bloodline will end when one can’t trust his Blood Anymore.”
I think that this quote is the most honestly revealing thing he says - both about how the Black Blood works and his own past. Since we know that there was a war within his House, I’d say that Asura lost his trust in his Blood, which was the cause of the conflict, and that as the last man standing; Zelman had that lesson seared into his heart. So much so that he trusts to his blood more than anything and places little value on anything else when it involves dealing with others.
***It should be noted that sexuality for him is opportunistic at best and that for their canon, being fed upon is a sensation more exquisite than sex itself for humans and vampires alike – so much so that it’s considered a dangerous form of addiction for humans, should they be fed upon too often. As one of the oldest bloodlines, however, he really doesn't need to feed all that often so it shouldn't happen too much.
Zelman Clock | Black Blood Brothers | 2/3
He’s seen what happens to even the strongest of bloodlines when the patriarch loses the ability to ‘hear’ his Blood, how it devolves into an all-out war to prove themselves between the sire and his children. Because of that Zelman has a certain ruthlessness in him forged by that war that enabled him to kill and survive until he was left as the lone descendant of the warrior Asura’s bloodline. He alone inherited the Fire God’s flames from that implosion within his House and in doing so; it gave him a singular focus on himself and his Blood. To him, the weight of the ‘voice’ and guidance contained in the Blood that he inherited from his sire, the blood that carries a thirst for chaos and combat, is the true Legacy of their bloodline.
And it’s a weight he carries with ease, no guilt or remorse for being the last of them to be found. After all - he has no reason to feel either.
Thus, he’s careful to listen to the ‘voice’ of his Blood, lets it guide him more than anything that happens around him ever could. It is largely because of this that he has such fine control over both his actions and emotions considering he’s had roughly 800 years to observe humanity and vampires alike. He has a fairly long fuse on a cool burning temper, making him more prone to being annoyed than angry in most situations.
He’s usually calm and laid-back, but always watching those around him, especially those he finds fascinating - which is no easy feat, gaining his attention, given his somewhat jaded view on the vast majority of mediocre beings that surround him. To him they’re so boring because they’re easily manipulated through their wants and desires, their greed. They don’t offer any resistance; much less hold any particular mystery or originality that would make them interesting. And so for him, dealing with them is more a game than anything else.
Whether it’s his underlings, or someone to feed from, they’re there more for a moment’s amusement than anything else and once they’ve served that purpose, he doesn’t really care what they do. He often acts as if he can’t be bothered to rein them in when they do excessive things but then, they are criminals, cutthroats, and younger bloodlines of lesser vampires.
The concept of morality, of right and wrong, are not ideals that he’s invested in at all. As a matter of fact, when asked if he’s a bad person he’ll say yes, but there’s fun perks to being a ‘bad guy’. Laws, crime, honorable actions, they’re all polite faces to hide behind, so far as he’s concerned. He’d rather show you his confident, knowing smirk from the start then laugh at the surprise when they realize his fangs actually bite. In this way he comes across as more ‘human’ than the other vampires in his canon, save possibly Cassa. He’s one of the few Old Bloods that have constant contact with ‘regular’ humans and vampires instead of just the scions of the great houses, therefore he’s more comfortable with the modern world and it shows in everything from the way he dresses to the way he talks at times.
He’s got a sharp wit, which he often shows through sarcasm and taunting his peers, and in the way he reveals his more introspective side to Kotarou over ramen, when they were discussing the legacy of their Blood.
However, it’s the anticipation of real chaos, chaos that can make things move that he anticipates, and the possibility of true combat that earns a measure of excitement, all revealed in his eyes since his customary slouch never really changes. He’s looking and waiting for the one person that he can fight against without restraint. Someone that can truly match him in power and bloodlust but since he hasn’t found anyone that measures up yet, he’s content to sit back and watch the other Houses vie for power while he amuses himself pulling strings beneath them. In other words, he accepts the status quo with a touch of old acceptance and resignation, which all lead back to the fact that he’s bored, again.
POINT OF DEPARTURE: N/A
ABILITIES: His strongest ability is called Eye Ignite It is a focused attack that calls forth ‘God’s Fire’ - flames that move at his bidding, with nothing more than a shift of his eyes. He can choose what burns and how hot, as well as the duration of the flames - with the strongest level of this being a gigantic ball of flame as big as a medium-sized house. His control of flames is absolute, even to the lesser extent of snapping his fingers to light a cigarette or lighting candles without looking at them. And he can disperse said flames with nothing more than a deliberate blink.
He can use this ability to such a degree that he usually battles while standing in a relaxed slouch, both hands in his pockets.
The Eye Raid is his second strongest ability which only requires focused eye contact to establish and allows him to physically control the bodies of both humans and vampires alike. It locks them in a stasis where they sit or stand so that they cannot move their limbs at all without his permission, though they’re still capable of speech. He can also use this ability to force those under his control unconscious - and while all vampires appear to have this ability, it’s the Old Bloods, like himself, that can control larger groups for longer times and with less overall effort.
Though not strictly telepathic, he is capable of sensing the activity of other or new vampires as they arrive in the Special Zone which, by the looks of it, is roughly the size of a large city, split into 10 districts.
Like all vampires, he has naturally swift regenerative abilities, though feeding while injured will practically instantly heal him and he has considerably heightened sensory facilities as compared to a human’s. He possesses super-strength and quicksilver reflexes that enable him to jump to impossible heights or drop from them to land gracefully. Vampires in his canon are capable of walking along building faces as if they were strolling along the street, laws of physics be damned. His vision is sharper over longer distances - enough to be able to see clearly for roughly a half mile and his hearing exceptionally acute (enough so that when he focuses, he can listen to a person’s heartbeat). He has a sharp sense of smell that enables him to smell another person’s scent on someone, or tell which vampire has already been close to a human for feeding or otherwise.
He can eat and drink regular food and alcohol and does so quite often - though his favorite things are ramen and a cool can of Coke - and he rather enjoys smoking.
He’s naturally immune to human disease and illness and the old superstitions of garlic, stakes, and crosses have no real effect on him, aside from annoying him. Holy water, salt water and sunlight, however, are more persistent problems. They don’t kill him, but they do weaken him to a literal skeleton state if the exposure is high enough. Organs, muscles, and skin regenerate quickly enough once he’s dry or in the shade, but without feeding directly after such exposure he is in a weakened state.
Blood Resonance is another unusual ability that actually falls more in line with a weakness. When a vampire drinks a person’s blood, an ‘echo’ forms between them. Meaning that with their blood in his body they can not only read his thoughts, but feel any of his unguarded emotions as well. For the human, this also means that they can see and hear that which the vampire is seeing or hearing in addition to knowing his exact location. It’s because of this that the human can sometimes ‘sync’ movement to match Zelman’s, though not always. While the resonance is in effect, the human may receive fragments of memory from Zelman, especially if his guard is lowered (a rare instance).
However all of these effects have the caveat that the older vampires like Zelman can choose how much of all of the above that the human experiences. This effect usually only lasts for about an hour or so and the reason it occurs is because their blood, before it gets broken down by Zelman’s system, resonates with its own - the theory of like calling to like. Because of this, the effects are not reversed. He cannot read the humans thoughts or emotions at all because his blood isn’t in them to resonate back with him.
He can move about during the daytime, but he is nocturnal by nature. And, of course, his biggest weakness is silver - which is capable of maiming or killing him.
**There will be a permissions post for the Eye Raid and Feeding abilities (to include resonance effects), along with a clarifier should any of his powers get nerfed for the world setting. As an additional game restriction I’m going to say his ability to turn another character into a vampire is either removed or plotted with mod approval. (Not that he’ll ever find that out - 700 some-odd years and still the last of his bloodline means he’s not willing to share his Blood with just anybody.)
INVENTORY; He’ll be arriving with nothing more than the black-and-white track suit, sneakers, and cap that he’s wearing along with a few pieces of jewelry, his wallet, and the pack of cigarettes in his pocket.
ANYTHING ELSE WE SHOULD KNOW? A quote!
“Our true essence is our Blood. The Blood we inherit endlessly is the truth behind Black Blood. It is difficult to hear its voice, but when you’ve wandered off your path, it’s not wrong to clear your mind and listen to the Blood flowing within. Your Blood will not betray you, yet the Bloodline will end when one can’t trust his Blood Anymore.”
I think that this quote is the most honestly revealing thing he says - both about how the Black Blood works and his own past. Since we know that there was a war within his House, I’d say that Asura lost his trust in his Blood, which was the cause of the conflict, and that as the last man standing; Zelman had that lesson seared into his heart. So much so that he trusts to his blood more than anything and places little value on anything else when it involves dealing with others.
***It should be noted that sexuality for him is opportunistic at best and that for their canon, being fed upon is a sensation more exquisite than sex itself for humans and vampires alike – so much so that it’s considered a dangerous form of addiction for humans, should they be fed upon too often. As one of the oldest bloodlines, however, he really doesn't need to feed all that often so it shouldn't happen too much.