Durnley, Andrea Maria [DONE]

[Andrea Durnley]

Andrea Maria Durnley

PLAY BY: Zoe Saldana



♦ THE BASICS ♦

AGE: 32

GENDER: Female

ORIENTATION: Pansexual

POSITION: First in line for the leadership of raider group, The Nomads

RACE: Unregistered

♦ THE CHARACTER ♦

HEIGHT: 5' 4"

HAIR COLOR: Black

EYE COLOR: Deep brown



MISC: Andrea is covered in a number of scars, but that's simply a part of living in the ruins. Some are from bad falls and others are from scraps with other gangs. She has no piercings or tattoos, but she wouldn't be opposed to getting some. She dresses for ease of movement and has little sense for fashion. She despises dresses and skirts, as they hinder her ability to defend herself. Jeans and cargo pants with a t shirt or tank are her go-tos. In the colder weather, she dons a leather jacket that's clearly seen better days but she takes care of it as best she can. She only owns a single pair of combat boots whose soles are only attached by some hastily tied cloth. She keeps a number of knives hidden in her boots, at her waist, and in her bra. Her idea of dressing up is letting her hair hang lose and maybe smearing some coal on her eyelids if she really cares.



PERSONALITY:

"Survivors have scars. Victims have graves."

At first glance, Andrea's a stoic and straightforward kind of woman. When she's on a mission, she maintains a strict air. She has little time to deal with nuisances and she makes it obvious. Highly observant and almost permanently on edge, Andrea almost never takes it easy. As a result, she's a horribly heavy sleeper and it practically takes an earthquake to rouse her. 

Breaking through to her friendlier side doesn't take much. Though she's not quick to trust, she believes in respect and kindness. If she is treated in a good manner, it will be reciprocated. Those who do consider her a friend quickly learn that she's not a fan of being touched regardless of familiarity. She's very much a woman of deeds. You scratch her back, she'll scratch yours. This system of hers is sometimes abused though. She often takes on tasks that she has little time for but, if she likes you, then it will get done regardless of time constraints. 

Though Andrea would never admit it, she's a sympathizer. She believes in relationships and bonds instead of sheer violence. She considers stealing from other human beings in just as desperate situations revolting, but there's no place for morality when it comes to survival. Morality will only get you killed in the ruins. That is not to say she cannot be reasoned with. Give her a good enough reason and she's likely to be merciful. 

Had the world not fallen to pieces, Andrea likely would have become a teacher. She can be surprisingly patient when the occasion calls for it and she has a soft spot for children. She's intelligent and curious. She's always wished she could read and write, but she's never had the time or resources. 


SECRET(S): Andrea, though she's terrified of vampires, would very much like to meet one on peaceful terms. This is something she hasn't dared voice to anyone. 

♦ THE HISTORY ♦

Andrea considers herself to be one of the lucky ones. Then again, she considers anyone with a heartbeat to be a 'lucky one'.

Her luck started decades before she was born. Her grandfather was a member of the United States air force and was meant to fight in Vietnam until the plague swept through. Her grandmother was a Venezuelan immigrant with a nursing degree and a love for the outdoors despite her busy schedule. They were both in their twenties when the plague reared its head.  It was a miracle her grandmother was never infected despite her constant proximity in the beginning. She swore it was her prayers that saw her through. Once the hospitals shut down though, it was clear that it would take far more than prayers for the two of them to survive. 

Her grandparents left the city as soon as they could, hoping to avoid infection by avoiding populated centers. As luck would have it, their skill sets gave them better chances than most. They traveled the countryside by taking advantage of every abandoned car, functioning bicycle, and even horses they came across. Provisions that couldn't be scrounged up from gas stations or markets could normally be fixed with a few days worth of fishing. They kept near waterways and traveled north.

At first they would run into people with similar ideas but, as time went on, they found encounters with others becoming rarer and rarer. As the weather turned cold the couple found themselves in a desperate situation. Desperate enough to agree to ask to join with whoever crossed their paths next, which happened to be a group of seven who also wished to travel north. With her grandparents' skill set, the group was entirely welcoming. They sought refuge from the cold and the wind in abandoned buildings on the outskirts of cities. They came to refer to themselves as The Nomads, preferring never to stay in one place for too long. 

Over the years, the small group grew in size. Her grandparents gave birth to her father 4 years after the plague. Her grandmother died in childbirth and the community mourned the loss of both a dear member and a medic. It would be some years before they would meet a doctor willing to join them. When her father was 8, his father became the leader of The Nomads. When her father was 16, he met her mother; a newcomer a couple of years older than he. 

A few years later Andrea was born as a second generation Nomad. By then, the group had approximately 40 members and it had lost many of its nomadic traits. While they still had a tendency to travel, they remained near Chicago. Roads had fallen into disrepair and wild animals were a constant threat, never mind the gangrels. The Nomads opted to wander in the summer but stuck close to the city once the cold sank in. As a general rule, they were a relatively peaceful group. They were not pushovers though. When Andrea's grandfather took over, he'd taken care to teach men and women alike how to defend themselves. They practiced with BB guns, taking care to save precious ammo for when they truly needed it. If they were successfully raided, they made sure the attackers would think twice next time. 

This was the world Andrea grew up in. She knew she was an unregistered human, but she and the other children in the group wore it like a badge. It was better to be free and unregistered than some monster's bloodbag. She knew how to count up to 100 so she check on provisions, but that was about the height of her education. She was far better versed in fighting off an attacker and, by the time she was a teen, she proved herself a worthy adversary. She learned it was easier to ignore hunger if you filled your stomach with water. She learned that skinning a rabbit is never as easy as it looks. She learned that a bullet was worth gold - whatever that was. 

While her parents were generally hesitant to let her be on her own, she and the other children were slippery. They often left the watchful adults to play in the ruins or in the forests, but they always kept knives handy. Every few years, they'd run across a gangrel. Sometimes, they'd be lucky enough to spot it in the distance, but the cards weren't always in their favor. Andrea witnessed an attack firsthand when she was 14. Though she didn't know the child personally, she and the rest of the children stayed close to the main group for a few weeks afterwards. 

As she grew into a woman, Andrea stuck to her curious nature. She often volunteered to go on reconnaissance missions despite being the leader's daughter. She was small, fast, and intelligent. She was also cocky. It took a few mistakes for her to learn, but mistakes were rarely forgiving in the ruins. She's lost men to other unregistereds, gangrels, and collapsed buildings. At the same time, she found clean water sources, relatively untouched scavenging sites, and even a stash of hooch. The night everyone got roaring drunk is her favorite memory. 

The past decade has gotten harder for The Nomads. Travelling has become even more difficult and they are practically stationary. They've scavenged and hunted to the best of their ability, but they were finally forced to sink into raiding like the other gangs. While most everyone was opposed to finally going on the offensive, starvation drove them to the point of pushing morality aside. With her father in his fifties, Andrea convinced him to allow her to lead in his stead. He agreed. 

While some men might claim that Andrea led them to a glorious victory, Andrea herself would never consider it glorious. Yes, they won. Yes, they ate their first hot meal in weeks. Andrea's not sure it was worth it. They lost five of their twenty attackers that day. Two of them had been close friends. The fallen on the other side were worse. Some had been children eager to draw their first blood. Others had died holding onto the very supplies that had to be wrenched from their grasp. It's a memory that she will never be able to erase. 

Her father's health has recently begun to deteriorate. He has slowly become more and more forgetful. There are whispers of some disease known as Alzheimer's, but that's about the most that Andrea - or anybody else for that matter - knows. While he is still considered fit to lead, Andrea's highly aware of how the clock keeps ticking. One day soon, she may find herself having to lead her people. While she considers it an honor, it's not what she wants. Frankly, she's much more suited to taking orders than giving them. This has been the cause of many sleepless nights. Worse yet, she's still curious. All she's ever known of vampires are gangrels. As of late, she's found herself wandering closer and closer to the walls on during her solo scavenging. She's often heard tale of a network tunnels underneath, but she hasn't dared to step foot inside yet.

♦ THE PLAYER ♦

USERNAME: Naga

AGE GROUP: 19

EXPERIENCE: 6 years or so

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