Da'an
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Da'an is a character in the science fiction television series Earth: Final Conflict, played by Leni Parker. He is a member of the Taelon race, an androgynous race of energy beings.
His divided loyalties and appreciation for humanity's many attributes endeared him to many, but also created new problems. Da'an made an immense impression on fans.
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[edit] History
Not much is known about Da'an's history, since most of his two-thousand-plus years have been spent elsewhere. However, we do know that he has been a member of the diplomatic caste and a war tactician for much of that time, as well as being the last Taelon to successfully reproduce, which created Zo'or. He has been unswervingly, fiercely loyal to his people in their fight against the Jaridians.
That unswerving loyalty began to shake when he arrived on Earth, where he became the Companion to the United States. In this position, he has more influence than even the President, and certainly more public popularity. Da'an enjoyed the mass adulation of most of the Earth's population, for his ethereal appearance and kind demeanor, as well as his willingness to use his race's scientific knowledge to help humankind.
His life changed when a sniper seemingly tried to shoot him, and hit megamogul Jonathan Doors instead. Da'an was deeply troubled by this event, but he was also impressed by police captain William Boone, with whom he felt a deep bond. He invited Boone to join them as an implant, but Boone refused. After his wife's tragic death, Da'an offered again, and Boone refused... until the human Resistance movement recruited him. Da'an was greatly pleased by the addition of this new implant, and was growing closer to Boone until the latter's untimely death. While Da'an taught Boone about Taelon culture and language, Boone began to change Da'an's mind about humanity's strength, spirit and compatibility with the Taelon race. These changes had a profound impact on them both.
At Boone's funeral, Da'an was saved from a killer probe by alien hybrid Liam Kincaid, whom he was intrigued by. He took Liam on as his protector, and formed a sort of parent-child relationship with him, partly out of his liking for the young, brash hybrid and partly out of repentence. This situation climaxed after Da'an's horrific transformation into an Atavus. Liam revealed his part-alien heritage when he saved Da'an, and subsequently took Da'an down to the Resistance. Out of sympathy to their motives, Da'an did not reveal their location.
This also added to Da'an's desire to keep relations between humanity and the Taelon Synod -- headed by his offspring Zo'or -- from becoming too rocky. He challenged Zo'or several times, and was nearly killed by him on a few occasions. But Da'an also begins to worry that he is abandoning his own kind, and attempted to regain Zo'or's trust. He also found the relationship with Liam Kincaid becoming increasingly difficult, as his own divided loyalties began to trouble him. Despite this friction, Da'an cares deeply for his protector, and would never willingly put his protector in the way of harm. However, he frequently puts himself on the line, in the interest of helping his own kind to survive -- even to the point of repeatedly endangering his life.
[edit] Family
We do not know if Da'an has had a mate, or several over his lifetime, or even if Taelons require mates in order to reproduce. His parentage is also unknown, although fan speculation suggests that he may be the child of Ma'el, due to their resemblance. Da'an seems to have a connection to Ma'el, but it's not clear whether this is because of their shared convictions, or because of something deeper.
We also do not know how the exact number of Da'an's offspring. He has several who, due to lack of core energy, are in a sort of comatose state. He has at least one living adult child, Zo'or, with whom he has an antagonistic relationship. Despite this, he loves Zo'or deeply and even implicated himself in a murder that he believed Zo'or had committed. He also later shared his life-force with Zo'or, to keep his child from entering a deathlike sleep. He is willing to forgive all of Zo'or's personal transgressions, and cares deeply for Zo'or's well being.
Though they are not truly related, he shares a similar relationship with the newborn Liam Kincaid. Though he also clashes with Liam, Da'an cares for the young man and assuages his parental feelings with teaching and guiding Liam.
[edit] Personality
Da'an is a fascinatingly complex creature, full of contradictions and difficult divisions. He is a loyal Taelon who is desperate to save his species, yet he has an abiding love for humanity. While he has taken a part in great injustices, he has a great love of fairness and justice. While he is peaceful by nature, he can be fiery and intense.
Da'an is deeply nostalgic and gains strength from the beauty of his lost homeworld, as well as his appreciation for humans' creation of beauty as well, and their love of freedom. He also is extremely capable in a crisis, bringing his Taelon serenity to the fore when he feels others need his help. When pilot Lili Marquette was severely injured in a crash, Da'an created a camp, bandaged her injuries with a piece of exocovering, and roasted small animals for her to eat.
Despite his great age, Da'an has a childlike liking for new experiences, such as being immortalized in a 3-D artwork. He also becomes excited when he sees Liam Kincaid's attraction to a young artist, and attempted to help bring them together.
[edit] Appearance
Da'an's appearance is that of a small, slender humanoid with a bald head and no gender-specific characteristics. His voice is pitched too low for a woman and too high for a man, adding to his androgynous appearance (exactly how he produced Zo'or is open to speculation). His eyes are a brilliant cobalt blue, and his skin ranges from pale human tones to pure white. He wears an "exocovering," ranging from black to purplish-blue, which apparently acts like a second skin.
In reality, Da'an has few of these characteristics -- like all Taelons, he is primarily made of energy, and a little matter mixed in. He is actually translucent and made out of channels of glowing blue energy, with some vestigial characteristics like eyes and mouth. Since he is primarily energy, Da'an cannot be injured by bullets or knives, although these can pierce his exocovering and rip it.
