Full Name: Tristan Marks
Nickname: None known
Age: Approximately 1,500
Age apparent: Early to mid 40's
Gender: Male
Sexuality: Heterosexual
Occupation: Vampire
Languages: Several with little to no accent, including English, Gaelic, French, Spanish, German, Italian, Danish and Russian.  A few others in older dialects or with only partial conversational ability, including Mandarin, Japanese, Hindi and Navajo.
Species: Vampire (Belle Morte)

Powers: All Standard Powers, Resist Silver, Share Power, Rise Early, Major Pyrokinesis, Empathic Voice, Human Servant Creation, Call Tigers, Ardeur

Ardeur:  Tristan's Ardeur focuses on the resistance to and denial of hidden desires.  Usually, the power works only one on one, with a widespread effect only acting like a mild intoxicant, making people more likely to say things they'd otherwise be embarrassed to admit, talk to someone they'd normally be too shy to approach, or otherwise try something they were otherwise afraid to do.  At its most refined, when targeted, it works like a scalpel, digging into a person's heart, looking for that thing or those things they deny themselves, whether it be chocolate cake or a sexual fetish.  It enflames that desire and feeds off the struggle to resist.  The desire need not be released or realized for him to be satisfied, but if it is it's like icing on the cake, the final bit of sweetness before he loses interest.  Unfortunately, he's typically bored and unsatisfied, especially given the openness of most modern people, and is always looking for something he hasn't seen or drawn to those that fear or suffer more from the effect, leading him to feel guilty and resist and deny his own power.  The irony isn't lost on him.

Personality: Tristan's personality has shifted dramatically in the past centuries, as transient and changing as the times.  There were years of anger and fury, ages of isolation and sadness, centuries of near emptiness with only the most fleeting satisfactions holding his last bit of humanity in hand.  For a brief time, he was happy, spirit revived, smile relearned, and then it was gone, leaving him to relive old memories.  For the past few years, he has lived in virtual isolation, masking his connection to the world and maintaining only the most tenuous grasp in the hopes that one day the feelings that had been reborn in L.A. would live again.

When well and healthy, Tristan seems charming and personable though with a dangerous tension always held in check.  Stubborn and firm in his resolve, Tristan can be a fierce friend when needed and a terrible enemy when angered.  A firm believer in the old saying, sticks, and stones, he's not easily roused to anger and takes slights and insults easily, often finding them amusing.  However, when pushed too far, his fury is single-mindedly focused and unstoppable, often accompanied by a total disregard for his own safety.

He despises games of power and though he does his best to hide it, typically has a low opinion of most vampires (and an only slightly higher opinion of were-leaders).  Lesser vampires, were, and humans are a mixed bag, taken as they come, but often looked at as lesser, albeit sympathetic beings.

Though he enjoys the finer things in life, he holds little attachment to those things, with few exceptions.  In general, this extends to people, though he has been finding himself growing attached to the living more easily of late, a fact he's yet to examine very closely.

Height: 6’
Weight: 190
Eye Color: Piercing Blue
Hair Color: Blonde
Hair Style: Short
Complexion: Varies from pale to ruddy, depending on mood, feeding habits and exposure to the sunrise/sunset
Body Shape: Muscular and well defined
Clothing: Tristan usually dresses in suits, but has spent the past few years dressed down in jeans, t-shirts and basic work clothes.  No matter what he wears, he tends to make it seem expensive and comfortable at the same time.
Overall Appearance: Tristan has piercing ice-blue eyes and a chiseled face that seems sometimes calm and collected, sometimes distant and cold, sometimes as if amused by an inside joke, and sometimes worn to the point of breaking. Usually only seen in immaculately tailored clothes and groomed perfectly, he exudes an aura of self-control, power, and relative disinterest. However, when his interest does shift to someone or something, it seems that person or thing is all that exists in the world.

Merits:
-Difficult to manipulate/influence
-High pain threshold
-Unwavering (when he becomes convinced of something)
-Charming

Flaws:
-Technologically unsophisticated (he has trouble operating a Cricket phone)
- Difficult to get close to/Often distant
-Slow to trust/Has low expectations of others
-Can be stubborn and single-minded to a fault

Other:
-Skilled musician with stringed instruments (mainly violin and piano), though he can't write a composition to save his life
-Avid moviegoer
-Talented swordsman, but has never picked up a gun (and would only know what to do based on the movies he's seen)
-Alternately has a particular attraction to strong women (not necessarily powerful ones), especially those with a high degree of self-control or damaged women, specifically those who retain an element of hope

Background/History:

~Early History~

Little is known about Tristan’s early history, and he refuses to confirm that which is. What can be supposed is that he was born in Cornwall around 500 AD. He made a name for himself several hundred years later by helping others control the growing vampire population throughout England. It was in those times that he earned his titles as he was the executioner of those who didn’t fall under the Master of the Isle’s will, many young vampires who were being sired without approval, or immigrating while trying to avoid the purge spawned by Vlad Tepes’ indiscretions.

Known for his ruthless efficiency and determination, he hunted vampires, mortals, and lycanthropes equally, without a hint of compassion or remorse. In fact, he seemed to revel in the slaughter, as though seeking to quench some inner fire in a sea of blood. But eventually, there was no one left to kill, and he found nothing left inside but a deep emptiness.

It had been nearly a thousand years since he had been turned. He was every bit a master in his own right, enough to challenge even the Master of the Isle. But, he didn’t desire power. If anything, he was sick from the bloody campaign which had cemented the Master’s position and wanted nothing more than to be left alone. When the next conflict arose, he refused to participate. Let others fight, he thought. Nothing changes in the end.

Until then, he had never questioned what he did or why. It was enough that he could inflict his fury on the world. But now, feeling empty and seeing the squabbles between vampires for what they were, pointless games played to fill the void of existence and justify the regrets of the past, he retired from the world.

Of course, that wasn’t as easy as he would have liked. The Master of the Isle took his refusal to act as a slight, and though he may have been in his right to see Tristan destroyed, he held too much respect and affection for his centuries of service. Still, he couldn’t leave the slight unanswered, and so banished Tristan from the Isles.

In truth, this suited Tristan fine, and may even, in retrospect, have been more gift than punishment.

Still, being a rootless vampire in those days was filled with a new kind of conflict. Many Masters were still establishing themselves in the cities of the world and often, they saw his arrival as a challenge. Sometimes, he was able to convince them he was not a threat and would stay for a few years. Other times, he spent mere days, leaving with new scars and ashes in his wake.

It wasn’t until the most recent centuries that he found his visits accepted more widely. Word had gotten around that he was no threat unless threatened, and so most Masters accepted his presence. In return, he respected their position and their rules.

By the 19th Century, he’d explored the greater majority of the world and began to revisit places, particularly those he’d thought held the most promise, but time and again, he found disappointment. The games of power had continued unabated. In the past, though he’d grown to dislike the politics and intrigue of his kind, he understood the need. A Master had a need to protect their Kiss from exposure, from unchecked growth, from the malaise of immortality. However, with the establishment of the City Masters and increased strength of the Council, the games had grown truly perverse and pointless. What once had at least the excuse of survival, now seemed nothing more than habit.

However, as he spent the 20th Century in the United States, moving from city to city, he saw something different in the Master of LA. Often, he found himself returning to Los Angeles to watch the progress of the new Master, curious as to how long she would survive. In time, he found himself returning more and more frequently, a growing affection forming as he watched her grow and maintain her city while other cities overturned a dozen times or more.

Still, it wasn’t a surprise when she wasn’t immune to such attempts.

With Addison vs. Clarke, any thought of a power struggle seemed even more pointless to him. Fear of exposure was no longer a threat. Now, as long as the youngest members weren’t foolish, there was little for vampires to fear. In fact, there was an opportunity for so much more than they’d ever imagined. Still, the  Termoin of LA saw the change as an opportunity to take greater control of the city and clashed with the Master over the future of the Kiss. Ultimately, the clash turned to a full challenge, with sides being drawn and death looming.

For his part, Tristan remained neutral. Despite a request, he refused to support the Temoin, even though it would mean trouble should Catherine lose. At the same time, he didn’t go to her aid, which she hadn’t asked for anyway.  In the end, the Temoin and his/her more ardent supporters were scattered or destroyed but left the city in a weakened state.

It was sometime later, when things had begun to recover, that she came to him, offering him the position as her new Temoin. Though he refused out of hand, he had to admit he was intrigued. She hadn’t asked when he could have aided her against her challenger, nor had she asked when she needed to restore order to her city. Instead, she had waited until it was clear she wasn’t asking out of need, but choice. With that, his respect for had grown even more.

Though he had refused, she knew she had his interest. While he hid it well, it was apparent that he found her interesting and more than a little alluring, but beyond that, he held deep abiding guilt for the ages of horror he had caused and equally, for centuries of inaction while he watched others do the same.

In the end, it was he who came to her, asking if the offer still stood.



Ancient History (Unknown to all, unless there’s a darn good reason for someone to know):

Tristan was born in Lyonesse around 500 AD. Adopted as a favored son by King Mark (his uncle) and raised in knightly ways, Tristan served in many campaigns, even before leaving his teens. Over time, he became the King's most trusted knight and was given tasks no other could be trusted to undertake. One such task was to bring the Princess Iseult, back to Cornwall to marry the King. Iseult
was unimaginably beautiful, born of Faerie blood, and given to Mark to end a blood war between Ireland and Cornwall. Trusting no one more, King Mark sent Tristan to escort the princess from Ireland.

Upon meeting, Tristan fell instantly in love with her, and even before returning her to Cornwall, the two became lovers. Still, as had been agreed, she married King Mark, cementing a peace between her land and his.

Despite his loyalty to the King, Tristan couldn’t resist his feeling for her and they remained lovers for years. Though they took great care in keeping their affair secret, in time, the King began to suspect.

Finally, setting a trap they were caught. In a rage of grief and fury, he swore to make Tristan suffer unimaginably. The pair escaped, for a time, but were eventually rediscovered. Iseult, desperate to save Tristan’s life, made him promise to return her to King Mark and leave the country, using her Faerie power to ensure his promise.

Though it pained him deeply, Tristan couldn’t refuse her, and agreed, leaving Cornwall for Brittany.

He wandered for several years having many adventures. Then one night, he came upon a half dozen knights assaulting a beautiful maiden. Rushing to her aid, he slew the knights, but not before receiving a mortal wound. Knowing he was dying, he called out to Iseult, knowing only her magick could save him, and though leagues away, their bond allowed him to be heard, and Iseult sped on her way.

However, Isolde of the White Hands, the vampire he had saved, misunderstood his pleas. Thinking she was the Iseult he called to, thinking it was she he professed love for, gave in to her own Ardeur and turned him, to save his life and have him forever.

Sadly, when Iseult arrived, she found Tristan ‘dead’, and in her grief, lost her will to live, killing herself and collapsing on his ‘corpse.’ When Tristan awoke, he was horrified, not only at the loss of Iseult, but at what the vampire had done. Furious, he flew into a rage, killing her without a thought.

With nothing left to love, neither father nor King, neither lover nor sire, he turned his rage towards the whole of the world where he was eventually found by a Master who would one day unite the Isles under his domain.

Other Information:
-Tristan is a reasonably skilled musician (with stringed instruments), though he can’t write a composition to save his life.
-He can speak over a dozen languages fluently, with little to no accent.
-He has a particular attraction to the Fae blooded.
-Avid moviegoer (one of the few times his sadness seems to fade).

Side Plots: Alternatively a friend or enemy to the Faerie Court, depending on Oberon’s (consort to Queen Titania and father to Iseult). Depending on his mood, Oberon either sees Tristan as a son-in-law who never was or the reason for his daughter’s death.