Draic Kin
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Draic Kin or, simply, the Kin is a race of ancient dragon-like extraterrestrial sentient beings living on Earth, as featured in the adventure game The Longest Journey and its sequel Dreamfall.
Contents |
[edit] Nature
The true nature of the Kin (the word "dragons" is rarely used by knowledgeable people) is still a subject of much discussion among the fans of the games. They are tremendously powerful and their abilities surpass those of the humans both in magic and science. Their life expectancy can go up to millenia although they are not immortal. Some of the most ancient legends in Arcadia hint that their nature is similar to that of the Creator, but April Ryan defines them as aliens, though no information about their origin is provided.
According to the Arcadian legends, it were the Kin who came up with the idea of the Divide and the Balance and the helped humans to Divide the Earth into Stark and Arcadia, thus, saving it from imminent destruction. Consequentially, the Draic Kin have been perceived as the good-nature spirits and the protectors of the Balance ever since. It is also a subject of much debate whether the Kin can travel between the Twin Worlds: while no Kin seen in the games has ever used a Shift or any other means to travel across the Divide, there have been multiple hints that they are capable of doing it, such as when a Starkian Kin refers to an Arcadian priest as if they have met each other personally.
When living among humans, the Kin assume human forms to fit into the society, although their (apparently) real form is that of giant reptiles. All Kin seen in the games appear in their reptilian forms at least once in TLJ, and never - in Dreamfall.
[edit] Four Kin
In the games, only four Kin are said to reside in the Twin Worlds. It is unknown whether there have been more before the Divide, or whether there are still more of them living on Earth in secret. To preserve the Balance, two of the Draic Kin reside in Stark and two in Arcadia.
[edit] Red Kin
The Red Kin goes by the names of Cortez and Mannie Chavez in the games (though only by the latter in Dreamfall). It has been often discussed on the fan forums whether he was the One Kin who helped the Twelve Sentinels to Divide the Earth, because he has often expresses much more interest in human culture than any of his fellow Kin. He lives in Stark and prefers to stay in the shadows of the society, maintaining an image of a wierdo and unrecognized genius.
Cortez apparently enjoys assisting humans who cross the Divide, for example, he sent Brian Westhouse to Arcadia in 1934 (in Dreamfall, it is hinted that Westhouse's journey might have been a part of a bigger plan), he is the first Kin, after the White Mother, who approaches April Ryan in TLJ and it is he who sends her on her journey to restore the Balance. Cortez plays a mentor figure for April in the first days of her journey until he gets captured and imprisoned by the Green Kin. By the time he manages to escape, April is almost done with her mission, but immediately thereafter the Red and the Green Ones have a duel with both apparently perishing in the end.
The Red One's death has been disputed often enough (even April herself wonders about it in her diary). Since the players don't get to see his body, many refused to believe him dead, despite numerous hints that it is really so. The argument was further heated up by the fact that Cortez is one of the only two Kin who appears in Dreamfall, although only in a brief flashback scene that depicts events before the journey of April in the first game.
[edit] Green Kin
The Green Kin is known as Jacob McAllen or the White Cardinal in Stark. He is the head of the Church of Voltec, the Starkian Vanguard (renegade Sentinel whose aim is the reunification of the Twin Worlds at any cost), and de facto the mightiest political figure in Stark. Unlike the Red One, McAllen feels inclined to interfere in the political power plays of the humans and is considering a world domination once the Worlds are one again.
McAllen plays the role of the chief antagonist in TLJ although he is not a typical villain. In TLJ, he appears as the Kin who is most interested in science and technology among his brethren. As his plans for the Twin Worlds go against those of Cortez, the two have a constant silent confrontation that culminates in their duel and their consequent (and apparent) death.
[edit] White Kin
The White Kin is the only female Kin on Earth. She resides in Arcadia and is featured prominently in Arcadian Legends as the White Dragon or simply Mother. It is unclear whether "Mother" is an alternative name of the White Kin or a role she plays in the cosmology of the Twin Worlds.
The White Kin is, according to her own statement, April Ryan's mother but she spends most of the time in TLJ battling the Chaos Vortex off-screen. In the end, she dies of exhaustion but is reborn in her younger daughter, whom April commonly refers as "sister".
The young White Kin is a prominent figure in Dreamfall, helping first April and then Zoë Castillo on their journeys. She also explains that someone or something hunts down the Kin and that she doesn't feel the presence of the others anymore. While some fans interpret this statement as a conclusion that all other Kin are dead, others point out that the young White One admittedly hasn't yet fully grasped her innate abilities and may be mistaken.
In the final chapters of Dreamfall, right after April apparently dies at the hands of the Azadi, the young Kin also falls victim to an unknown attacker (whom she herself apparently recognises moments before the attack). What has actually happened to her afterwards is not clear.
[edit] Blue Kin
The Blue Kin also known as the Old God is the second Arcadian Kin and the least prominent one in the games. This is explained by his apathy and passiveness compared to his brethren - while the others actively participate in the life of the Twin Worlds, the Blue One prefers to keep slumbering on the bottom of the Sea of Songs and await the right time to leave Earth for good with his "children" - the winged folk of the Alatien and the mermen Maerum.
The Blue One is by far the most enigmatic of the Kin. No one knows what his human form looks like, what his true attitude to the Balance is, or why he has so little interest in the Twin Worlds. Various theories have been speculated on among the fans, ranging from him being the One Kin who assisted the Twelve Sentinel to him being the Azadi Prophet seen in Dreamfall. According to the young White Kin, he is already "gone" when the events of Dreamfall take place, which led fans to theorize whether he simply died or finally fulfilled his dream and left for the stars with Maerum and Alatien.
Apparently, the Blue Kin is about the only one in Arcadia who can occasionally extend authority upon the Dark People.
[edit] Others
It has been speculated that April Ryan, while explicitly stated on multiple occasions not to be one of the Kin, still relates to the dragon species somehow. While some fans point out that her relationship to her "mother" and "sister", the old and the young White Kin, may be purely spiritual in nature, others maintain that it could also be a literal biological kinship. The latter argument is supported by the fact that the identity of April's real father or even if a father was at all needed is unclear.
Alatien and Maerum, the assumed direct descendants ("children") of the Blue Kin, are also often considered one of the lesser Kin, which is supported by their reptilian outer appearance.
[edit] External links
- Draic Kin in the TLJwiki
