Matthew "Dragonscar" Moore/Biography

From Unofficial Handbook of the Virtue Universe

SPOILER WARNING! If you plan to roleplay with my character, I suggest you hit the Back button and find this out in-character. Otherwise, read on.

In the Beginning

Life, for the boy who would become Matthew "Dragonscar" Moore, began in wonderful monotony.

Born in a small, rural town in the Midwestern United States, raised as a church-goer, and a good student for the first half of his life, Matthew was a quiet child who grew up without many friends. While lonely at times, in his youth, he had a good relationship with his parents, whom often took him fishing, camping, and hunting. Taught from a young age to be independent, he was perfectly content to make few acquaintances in school, and play by himself during recess.

That is, before he met a girl named Valerie.

At first, Matthew's new "friend" was a bit too ... exuberant for his tastes. She was quite forward, loud, and forceful, and this easily intimidated the boy, who was unused to interaction with kids his own age. She would tease and play pranks on him for fun, and initially, this drove him away. Her persistence, however, led him to confront her about why she was so spiteful towards him.

Her reply was, simply, she liked him.

Much to the delight of Matthew's parents, he had finally made friends with someone his own age. Less often, Matthew would be with his parents, and instead spent more time with Valerie, teaching her the game of survival, as his parents had done.

"How long is this gonna take?"
"Just a little bit more. We have to make sure the tent won't fall over in the wind."
"Come on! We can do that later. The fish aren't gonna wait for us."
"Just as soon as we're done."
*CLICK!*
"There. We're done. ... Valerie?"
"Come on! Hurry up! I'm starving!"
"Valerie, wait! That's not the way to the lake!"

Little could separate the two through junior high. Matthew and Valerie both made more friends than either would know what to do with as time passed on, but they would always make time for each other and their little excursions. Summers were spent going on camping trips instead of sleepovers, and unlike other kids their age who preferred sports or video games, they were more at home in the serenity of the woods.

It was during their last summer before high school, though, that one such trek would change their lives forever.

The Red Man

Alexei Creminov was born to a single mother on the cold, northern frontier of Russia. A hard worker in his youth, Alexei strove to find more in life than that of a simple peasant folk in the heart of the dying USSR.

After his mother's death, and upon the collapse of the Berlin Wall, and the fall of the Iron Curtain, Alexei took his younger sister Irina across the sea to America. Acting as her legal guardian, Alexei entered college while over-timing at an energy laboratory in New York. The hours were grievous, but he managed to eke out a life for both him and his sister--one greatly improved from where they came from.

"Nngh ... Alexei?"
"What are you doing up so late?"
"I could ask you the same question. What are you doing?"
"I have to finish this essay for my class tomorrow morning. What about you?"
"The light woke me up. Couldn't sleep."
"You're not going to be able to keep your eyes open in school tomorrow."
"Well, that never stopped you, did it?"
"Heh. No, I guess it didn't."

High school was a rewarding experience for Irina. While she had some difficulty speaking fluent English at times, kids in her age category were friendly enough to help her through. Her grades were phenomenal considering she was a fresh-faced immigrant, though she often credited her older brother for helping her with the tough subjects.

Life would take a tragic twist for the siblings, though, when Irina was jumped in the street by a drug addict. After wounding her fatally and stealing her belongings, her killer disappeared, never to resurface. Irina passed away in the hospital with Alexei at her side.

With his spirit crushed from his sister's passing, Alexei considered giving in to a life of mediocrity--the reason he had striven all these years was gone, and with it, his motivation. In all likelihood, many tragedies would have been averted then and there if young Creminov had simply been allowed to fall through the cracks. There was one man, though, who saw potential in his co-worker.

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