| Dietrich Astor | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Age | 35 |
| Gene Status | Advanced |
| Profession | Bodyguard |
| Affiliation | Linderman Group |
| Ability | Super Speed |
| Played By | Daniel Brühl |
Notes
- Linderman's personal bodyguard
Character Information
Six feet tall, Dietrich has the lean build of someone who keeps in shape. All the better to show off those impeccably tailored suits he wears. Early to mid thirties, he's got short dark hair which is generally well groomed. Deep green eyes below a thick brow and a long, narrow nose. Just a hint of stubble, a design choice rather than simply a lack of shaving. He carries himself with a lazy posture, prone to slow languid movements. His accent is generic American, difficult to distinguish any particular locality from it.
Second generation German father, and third generation Italian mother. Dietrich’s childhood wasn’t exactly typical. It was no secret that his father was connected to organized crime, since he had a penchant for bragging about it. That and drinking at home and treating his wife like crap. Rarely physically, but emotionally. The girls on the side were hardly a secret either. His father’s family were not a big group, disparate, spread out across the country. Mother’s family was unsurprisingly large and mostly centered around Vegas. With numerous cousins his age, Dietrich became close with one in particular, Johnny, and the two were quite inseparable, going to the same school and living nearby.
The trips to the gun-range for family fun, and the endless stories always inspired Johnny more than they did Dietrich. As he grew older, he focused on studying and wanting to do well in school while Johnny focused on small time crime and tried to avoid school as much as possible; despite this, they still remained close. His friend wanted him to want the same things, and for them to ‘take over the town’ together while he was more wanting to avoid turning out like his father.
Johnny became closer to his father, while he went to college (although remaining in Vegas to do so). He’d decided to aim for accounting and had begun to feel as though change was possible and that he could make his own way in life. He’d fallen in love, gotten a girlfriend and everything seemed to be going to plan. Which is generally a sign that something awful is about to happen, where these things are concerned.
The final year of college, right at the start. Perhaps it was some resentment on Johnny’s behalf for being abandoned from all those dreams he’d made for the two of them. Perhaps he’s just a spiteful bastard. Whatever it was, the affair he’d been having with Dietrich’s girl became less secretive. The screaming match that followed between the two ‘friends’ ended with the would-be accountant being stabbed and taken to the emergency room. Adding insult to injury was the fact that his father took the ‘victor’ off for drinks to celebrate instead of going with his own son to the hospital.
Trying to get back into the swing of things in college proved difficult, after a protracted recovery and a lot of missed classes during the important time along with a brief foray into pain killer addiction. There was a lot to resent about how things had turned out so of course there’d be revenge on his mind. It was his mother who slipped, letting out in tired, over medicated conversation about some deal that father and Johnny were working on. A way to get one over on Linderman and make out like kings.
Being in a connected family, Dietrich had plenty of people he could call on for information. While he’d tried to avoid the life, it had undoubtedly left its stain upon him regardless. Good old fashioned snooping and following were also called upon to uncover more details about this plot. Gradually, things fell into place. A combination of grand theft along with slipping information to enemies that could conceivably put the criminal kingpin in a potentially fatal situation while relieving him of numerous assets. Having been discarded, had his plans dashed and stomped upon and his heart broken it was time for payback.
He left the warning until the last minute, wanting to take part in this undoing. The sneers and dismissive attitudes turning to surprise when guns were drawn and tables turned. Of course, a failing student — no matter how prepared and self trained and familiar with shooting — isn’t that much of a match for two career criminals. Johnny got a gut shot, the prelude to what would likely be a slow and painful demise. The second shot went wide though, leaving him open to being disarmed. Then the beating began.
Of course, the arrival of the Linderman goons was somewhat well timed. Starting to lose consciousness, Dietrich wasn’t entirely aware of what was occurring but the warm flow of blood wasn’t the source of the heat that was overtaking his body. Nor was it the dizzyness or possible concussion that inspired the sense of vertigo as he exploded into movement. Suddenly behind his father. Suddenly having a chair in hand. Suddenly smashing the chair into his father’s back at impossible speeds with sickening sounds. The alien sensations, that heat and the accumulated injury making it all a blur as the tables turned again and the punches began with horrifying speed that left the newly arrived people somewhat dumbfounded to watch the murder. Over all too soon, leaving Dietrich out cold amidst the carnage.
The combination of ruthless revenge, looking out for his interests and exhibiting a power made Dietrich all too interesting to Linderman. The ‘offer he couldn’t refuse’ in this case was far from an unpleasant choice. Opportunity, training, wealth, living the high life, being able to look out for his mother. While he could’ve returned to college and redone a year, it was impossible to resist temptation when presented on a silver platter. Not that his education went to waste, since learning so much about finances put him in excellent stead where crooked activities were concerned, laundering, casino arrangements, following the dollars.
Coming to terms with this ‘power’ took the longest time, while also providing a distraction from the fact that he’d betrayed his principles for convenience. The knowledge that there was so much more however, did make it hard to want to just go sit at a desk and tally figures. After getting situated, meeting others and beginning to train had its way of settling his mind, smoothing out the kinks and before he knew it, he was starting to simply enjoy life in a way he hadn’t for a very long time.
The physicality of his power took some considerable adjustment, but it’s not as though Linderman couldn’t afford to provide him with the best training. Here was an asset in the making, new and raw and vulnerable ready to be claimed and shaped. The business side of things was an easier accomplishment, giving him a way to show his worth while still being crafted on the inhuman front. As the years passed, and he became further enmeshed within the workings of the Linderman group and Vegas operations, his skills honed yet no less hungry to learn more, he gained more responsibility and ultimately earned his position as Linderman’s personal body guard. Part of the inner circle, he took a large hand in keeping things moving after the man’s disappearance, aiding in keeping the sharks at bay during that interim period.
Now with his return, things are moving back to how they were, a focus on getting the house in order. After all this time, Dietrich still has issues with trust. He doesn’t fully trust anyone, although given his duties he realizes that Linderman at least, has to trust him to a significant degree, which is about the closest he comes. He’s shown nothing at all to make his loyalty questionable, yet this is primarily self-interest at work, rather than obligation. There’s value in being loyal. However, since Linderman has come back, there have been rumours. Some people say that Dietrich is the weak link in the chain. That if there’s something untowards that needs doing out of the eye of the big man, then of the inner circle, he’s the one to approach. In truth, this is a carefully crafted ruse. He does in fact take some liberties and provide advantages to people looking to get one over on the kingpin. However, it’s all entirely sanctioned, and reported, and monitored. He plays along with the game to weed out those who have designs above their station, playing the long game in taking care of business.
- Cupcake ipsum: dolor sit amet. Biscuit cake soufflé liquorice marzipan dragée marzipan tart jelly beans. Pie lollipop brownie gummi bears.
- Fruitcake sweet roll: cookie bonbon cotton candy cookie ice cream pudding apple pie. Brownie powder liquorice carrot cake brownie gummi bears cheesecake powder. Bonbon sweet marzipan.
- Dessert soufflé: pudding marshmallow chocolate bonbon topping. Croissant ice cream applicake marzipan candy gummi bears oat cake. Sweet roll caramels powder tart tootsie roll gummies icing jujubes.
Dietrich’s speed is not the long distance running kind that will take him anywhere. His general appearance is that of a languid, lazy figure. When bursting into motion it’s generally so quick that the movement is impossible to track. Over particularly short distances, it can almost seem like teleporting. It’s perhaps the training that has developed it in this manner; learning to be able to move in front of a bullet, or knock a weapon out of the way. He’s faster than most awakened in the sprint, and has learned to utilize it to lethal advantage.
There’s a build up of force about him as he moves, knocking things aside without injuring him — small or insubstantial things that is; a chair would be blown aside, but a concrete pillar would splat — but this also translates into his impact with others. Punching someone at incredible speed is going to hurt them, but won’t pulverise his hand. He’s also capable of moving individual parts of his body, such as to draw or quickly reach out and grab something.
He can maintain a sprint for approximately a hundred feet before needing to return to normal speed, due to the heat the movement generates. He can only travel distance by making short bursts and then running normally for thirty seconds before bursting once more but even this is tiring and will quickly soak his attire with sweat. His main focus is upon being where he needs to be. Drawing and firing a gun faster than a would-be assailant, getting in the way of the bullet, or knocking someone aside before they reach their target. Even like this there’s still a certain exhaustion that will set in; a protracted combat with frequent bursting will leave him sweating and drained and sluggish for a time afterwards while recovering.
