Damien Kole

“We are the music makers, and we are the dreamers of dreams.” 

Occupation: Defender of Animus, Animus’ Minister of Science & Minister of Music, Spec Ops Agent (St. James), Musician & Producer, SCIENTIST!, Former Master Pilot (Resigned), Founder of the LUMINA Society (Animus), Employee of Massive Dynamic, Member in good standing of the Guild Theatrica

Father: Known by a very few to be Federation Presidential Assistant Landor Yorke

Mother: Known within his circle of intimates to be the Princess Sunflower “Kingmaker” Angelos

Relatives: Mathilda Leon (Wife), Jackson Warren (Cousin), Michael Jonathan Kole-Leon (son, age 24), Jackson Damien Kole-Leon (son, age 20), Lillian Grace Kole-Leon (daughter, age 17), Chance Sunflower Kole-Leon (daughter, age 16), Tomas Remy Kole-Leon (son, age 14), Madalyne  Kole (sister, largely unknown), William Bell (brother, known by only a few), Michael Adam Kole (twin brother, deceased), Raymond Sawall (nephew, age 13), Rassilon (Half Brother)

Race: Cornelian

Aliases: Dame Kole, Damiana

Known Abilities:

Ability to Hear Powers (Ear of the Spheres), Animus Logrus Adept, Expert Demonologist, Shape Shift (May have demon form), Female true form, Science!, Music!.

Known Skills: (Student of Pilots Guild, Mathilda Leon, Various Fey Musicians, Lydia Cantrell, Jackson Warren, Various Amazon Trainers associated with Olivia North (Diana?), Rupert of the Reich, Priest/ess Karol Morrenson, Belle Morrenson, Lauren Helgram)

Supernatural level of Science!. Supernatural Musician, Producer, and Songwriter. Logrus Guitarist. Expert Mathematician. Amateur runner. Expert Programmer/Hacker. Expert Tantra Practitioner. Starship Pilot (basic).

Inventions:

Sonic Screwdriver Mk. II (psionically-adjustable acoustical transducer, weapon, and tool), Nasty Girl (w/ assistance from Lauren, a modular stun weapon), The Land Shark (An earth boring machine, utilizing principles of the sonic screwdriver, and vibratory liquifaction), SPARK armour (Sonic-enabled Panoply Augmented by Radiant Kavortium) – currently worn by Animus SPARK Troopers, Sonic Disruption Weaponry (MK’s I, II, III, and IV are personal arms, ranging from pistol to rifle. MK’s V-IX are mobile field, vehicle mounted. gun emplacement pieces. The MK X Sonic Annihilator is the main gun on the Starlight Cruiser.),  The Starlight Cruiser – Flagship of the Animus Starmada (independently shadow-worthy), Warren Series Jump Bikes (employing kavorite-enabled contragravitic circuitry), The Anima Globus (A trans-Animus communications system, employing the Aether phenomenon), Cosmic Love (a personal mission-ready shadow-worthy starship), Antivox Earbuds/Headset (a device which provides excellent defense against the vocal command power of the Wolfe family), Valet and Nanny Clockworkers (Samsonik, MechElle, and MechAnny, respectively). Kole-Vandradyne Aetheric Drive (a starship drive for Animus craft), ‘ole in me pocket (a flat space handkerchief of energized nanoweave), Magic Marker (machine ink, psi-active, contragrav properties), Sound Sponge (privacy field), The Magnum Opus & Versetarium (a Multiversal Cosmonic Construct), Grav Discs, Psionic Interface Module and software, Holoproj Technology,  Inviso Field Generator.

History:

Damien was born in Baton Rouge, Louisiana on St. James. After the death of his twin brother at an early age, Damien’s father focused a great deal of effort on making sure his remaining son was raised to be tough. Damien’s natural inclinations towards science and music were squashed, and replaced with a seemingly endless variety of sports. Track wasn’t manly enough, so his father pushed him into boxing and football.  Damien threw several major games just to spite his dad.

At Boston University, and finally away from his father, Damien quickly wiggled out of a business major, and pursued his love of music. He played in several local bands, and switched the majority of his classes to reflect his new focus. About a year later, his parents discovered that he’d abandoned his business degree and cut him off financially. Fortunately by this point, Damien was making sufficient money as a musician to easily survive on his own.  It wasn’t until his girlfriend at the time, an occultist named Nell Lawrence, committed suicide by jumping off of the BU library that he decided to drop out of the music program and move to NY.

After  much session work, and many attempts to put together a successful touring band, the line-up of the Hollowmen finally gelled (Anton Kilvorkian – vocals and rhythm guitar, Peter “Jeckie” Jekyl – bass guitar, Lee “Beastly” Beester — drums/percussion). The band became the Indie darlings of the NY scene, before signing with Merge Records. They toured extensively to promote their first album, Unhallowed, which earned a best new artist Grammy. One year later, they released “Spiritual Eyes”, which propelled them to full time headlining status, and earned them a best alternative music album grammy.  Rumoured to be “dissolving into an orgy of their own excesses”, they withdrew to an old plantation house in Delacroix, Louisana, set up a recording studio, and began working on their third offering, a double album titled “Chorus and Cacophony”.

At the album release party several months later, a strange event occurred which left several hundred people dead or insane. Damien went mad and was instiutionalized. He was 27 years old. His bandmates never recovered, but six months later, Damien began to show signs of recovery. He spent over a year in the sanitarium, drifting in and out of  a drug-induced stupor. “Chorus and Cacophony” went multi-platinum, its success fuelled by the bizarre and tragic circumstances surrounding the band.

Eventually Damien figured out that if he ever wanted to get out, he’d have to tell them that the voices in his head had stopped talking to him. Sleeping with his therapist also seemed to help lubricate the wheels (or whatever) of the system. Damien didn’t know that an outside force was also working towards his release.

During Graeme’s command of Spec Ops, Damien was picked up from the sanitarium and drug to a debriefing of a team of seasoned agents. Graeme made it clear that Damien could go right back to the sanitarium, or he could stay and see what the world hidden by the shadows might offer him.

He was still on his meds.

He decided to stay.

Damien would like to think that Graeme (who turned out to be a relative) had his best interests in mind, but recent events have him wondering if he might not have just been exploiting him.

Many missions later, Damien has managed to survive, but not without cost. Several recent careless blunders have him on the outs with several friends, and he’s currently working to rebuild trust.

UPDATE: Damien has worked himself back into the good graces of his many friends, and kept his nose clean for a good long while. His composition of a Wedding Suite and Love Theme for A.C. and Jade’s wedding was well-received by those in attendance, and marked a noted increase in his command of his art. The various creators at the wedding seemed especially pleased with the musical nods to each of them during the speeches segment of the ceremony.

Damien and Mathilda have spent many years on Mandala in extreme fast time, raising their 5 children, and herding Animates. Their home is always open to their friends, who have all been included in the kids’ lives as well. Damien still works with his cousin and good friend Jackson Warren at Massive Dynamic several days out of the Liberty week, and remains on-call for special projects at his cousin’s request. Damien continues to train with his wife at her dojo on Animus proper, and can be found there sporadically during the course of the Animus week. Damien is still on-call to SpecOps of St. James, for consultation or field work.

He and Mathilda have been very active in assisting the Church on St. James in their on-going battle against the Forces of the Dark, and in aiding relief efforts through their more mundane offices. His work with the Ministry of Music on Animus continues to be a passion, and he can be found on the campuses and in the salons offering instruction and arranging patronages. Within the ministry he is referred to as “The Maestro”. His work with the LUMINA Society on Mandala drives the advance of Animus’ Science! in support of Lord Jonathan’s benevolent governance. He and Jon remain besties, and collaborate on all manner of projects, burning the midnight oil in creative frenzies sometimes lasting days.

Update 2: Damien has been training with Priest/ess Karol Morrenson at the Temple of Morgan on New Yorvik, and has been spotted at many of the other major temples of the city, making multiple visits to the temples of Phoebe, Roland, and Larabelle.  His work with the band Kole can be heard on occasion in the Empire. Damien and Mathilda have been active supporters of Edwardiana in their on-going war with the Randol-Goa’uld Alliance.

Damien Kole selected discography: