Name/Nicknames: Malik Aswad
Gender: Male
Rank/Position: Sled Pilot
Age: 19
Birthplace: First Centauri

Physical Description: Malik�s mostly Egyptian background is apparent in his appearance; he has deeply tanned skin, and sleek black hair that�s about shoulder length and is usually kept in a ponytail. He also has a shadow of black stubble around his chin. His eyes, however, are a hard, cold blue-gray, indicating that there is other ancestry in his line. He�s a tall young man at 6' 2", and has a fit, muscular build. He is rarely seen wearing anything but his pilot�s uniform. The grim set of his jaw and his unfeeling eyes show that he is serious about what he does, and also manage to scare off anyone intrigued by his appearance.

Personality: Malik is a Thread-fighting fanatic. He�s dedicated his life to destroying Thread; he hates it. He works himself very hard to become adept at fighting Thread on sleds. He is rebellious, determined, and short-tempered. He is often sulky, sullen, and/or snappish. He does not get along well with other people. He is so obsessed with Thread that practically everything he does and every decision he makes has at least the tiniest indirect relation to fighting Thread. He fights Thread with such vigor that he�s well known at New Landing for his fanatic, if supremely efficient, methods of fighting Thread. He was skeptic of the dragons at first, but brief glances of the growing dragons have mostly eased his doubts. After all, his fire-dragonets are good Thread-fighters; if he were to bond with a dragon, and the dragons actually work, he could keep fighting Thread even after the sleds all go kapoot.

Background: Malik spent the first eight years of his life on First Centauri. His childhood was more or less normal and happy; he had been too young when the Nathi War ended to remember anything coherent about it. His parents and eldest brother were all war-survivors, and when the Pern expedition was proposed, they were happy to help finance it and to go along with it. Malik, for his part, was excited - real space travel! Cool!

So they were among the colonists on the Pern expedition. For Malik, Pern was love at first sight; here was a beautiful planet, with a lot of space, and no wars or anything icky like that. The planet was made even more fantastic when the dragonets were discovered; barely two months after the creatures had been found, Malik had managed to acquire one - a charming little blue he named Scooter. Later on, he also obtained one of the mentasynth-enhanced dragonet, this one a brown whom he called Rat.

Then, when he was about sixteen years old, Thread fell for the first time. Scooter and Rat would simply not let him outside, and Malik was confused - but oh well, he had school work to do. His final exams were coming up and he had to study, and maybe consider what he�d be doing for a future career. But when he became aware of the Threadfall, he was shocked and horrified - his parents, brothers, and sister were all out and about, hunting or farming or taking care of their livestock.

All but Malik�s sister died. It was a terrible blow to Malik, who had been very close to his family and loved them all deeply. He became infuriated with Threadfall, and obsessed with destroying it; he no longer questioned what he was going to do as a career. He was going to dedicate his life to being a sled pilot so he could fight Threadfall.

He wasn�t much affected by half the colony leaving, or the move to New Landing, or even the dragon project; he was completely obsessed with fighting Thread and learning to be the best sled pilot he could be. Many of the students and teachers were surprised at the level of his obsession. But why should they complain? He was one of the best students, despite his anti-social attitude. He completed his pilot training at age eighteen, and, for a year, was a superb sled pilot, fighting Thread ferociously every �Fall.

However, when he occasionally saw the young dragons, he realized that they were growing, and were bigger than his fire-dragonets. Well, if they would someday be big enough to ride, they would be better then sleds! Malik instantly applied to be a candidate for the next dragon clutch, not caring if that clutch was man- or dragon-made.

Family/Friends: Father - Abeir Aswad, 50 when died, deceased
Mother - Nadiana Aswad, 48 when died, deceased
Brothers - Rishid Aswad, 25 when died, deceased
Kadin Aswad, 18 when died, deceased
Sister - Damali Aswad, 26, veterinarien, New Landing

Hobbies & Skills: Threadfighting, Threadfighting, and, oh yeah, Threadfighting.

If your persona were a song, the title: Real song or made-up? Well, real - Headstrong, made-up - Dark Obsession

Pets: blue fire-dragonet Scooter, brown menta-dragonet Rat