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defector[Character Name] Dominic Sorel
[Canon] Eureka Seven (manga, but using the anime as backbone)
[Point Taken from Canon] Post Ch. 20, aka after his death
[Age] 20
[Gender] Male
[Sexual Orientation] Heterosexual, but too head over heels for Anemone to consider anyone else.
[Eye Color] Grey
[Hair Color] Black
[Height] ... He's, uh, short. Probably around 5'6, if I had to make an estimate?
[Other] His back is covered in scars left from his burns, and there's a large scar on the left side of his chest/abdomen.
[Clothing]
[Background]
Once upon a time (ten years ago, to be specific), there was the Summer of Love.
Otherwise known as the greatest disaster in history.
To make a long story short, the Seven Swell phenomenon occurs, which, despite being very pretty, is also incredibly deadly. It causes trapar levels in the air to rise dramatically, which ultimately leads to civil unrest and wars. Swept alongside the wave like everyone else, Dominic’s town is destroyed, leaving Dominic homeless—and without a family. Surrounded by destruction and the dead, a soldier named Dewey Novak finds him and takes him under his wing, promising him a “righteous world” should Dominic follow him.
This event seals the story of Eureka Seven, and Dominic’s role amidst it all. Through Dewey, Dominic meets a nameless girl—a science experiment—his age. Out of pity for her, he brings her a piece of the outside world: an anemone flower. Upon discovering that she likes it, he proceeds to name her after the flower, sparking a friendship of sorts with her. And then, over the years, that friendship turns to love.
… Only on Dominic’s part, sadly. Along the line, Anemone becomes rather psychotic and abusive—and being promoted to her caretaker, guess who’s her favourite punching bag?
Either way, Dominic joins the military presumably once he becomes of age, quickly rising through the ranks until, by the start of the series, he’s become a second lieutenant. Unfortunately, life isn’t all fun and games (or rather, work) during this time. Less than three years before the beginning of the series, Dewey is thrown in prison.
However, when another Seven Swell is witnessed in the present, Dewey is released and promoted to the ranking of a colonel. Like before, Dominic and Anemone, who’d remained loyal to him through the years, are taken under his command. They’re sent to search for the Amita Drive, an object that unlocks the full potential of the Nirvash typeZERO—that is, the first LFO/giant robot ever found, currently in the hands of a rebel group called the Gekkostate. As Anemone is able to detect the presence of its pilot, Eureka, the two easily track and shoot down the Gekkostate.
Eureka and another member, Renton Thurston, head out in the city that the Gekkostate crash-landed in, where Eureka’s health takes a dive for the worse. It’s then that Anemone and Dominic finds them, the latter taking them captive for interrogation regarding the Amita Drive’s whereabouts.
—Except Renton has no idea what that is until Dominic shows him a photo, despite being the one who delivered it to the Nirvash. Even then, Dominic fails to make any progress, interrupted by Anemone’s friendly chat with Eureka—and then by the sudden occurrence of a Kute-class Coralian.
Simply put, a Kute-class Coralian is a large—very large—sphere of concentrated trapar that appears mysteriously through history, and releases massive amounts of energy and hallucinogens. For ordinary humans, to approach one means certain death.
However, Renton does just that when the Coralian abducts Eureka and Anemone. In order to the save the former, Renton flies towards it in the Nirvash, which comes to his aid. As for Dominic? Although he’s initially against the idea at first, Renton’s words convince him to go out and save Anemone as well. Or, perhaps, the right word there would be try. Unfortunately, Dewey orders him to stand down, claiming that going after Anemone would be foolish. While that order probably saved the crew’s life, it can also be seen as the beginning of Dominic’s wavering loyalty—a conflict that forms the backbone of his development throughout the series.
Eventually, the Coralian disappears, and Anemone is retrieved. Once she recovers, Dewey presents her with her own LFO: Nirvash typetheEND. Ecstatic, she uses it to obtain the Amita Drive, nearly killing Eureka in the process. Again, Anemone’s not quite right in the head. It only gets worse when Dewey puts her through an experiment to try and synchronize her with the Amita Drive, but due to her not being the real thing—i.e. Eureka—the experiment fails, leaving her in a poor state. Dewey, nevertheless, shows no concern, only serving to worsen his image in Dominic’s eyes.
Of course, the Gekkostate doesn’t react kindly to having something of theirs stolen. Holland launches a surprise attack to get back the Amita Drive, and would’ve succeeded perfectly had the still-recovering Anemone not intervened. While searching for her, Dominic comes across Holland as the man crawls across the floor, badly injured. Although the strength of the man’s will briefly stuns Dominic, it’s hardly impressive to Dewey—who chooses that moment to enter the scene via stabbing through Holland’s hand. However, Holland still refuses to falter, commenting that he has found what he fights for and has no regrets, even if he “dies like a maggot.” Moved by these words, Dominic is unable to shoot him yet again, despite Dewey’s orders. His hesitation allows Holland’s allies to rescue him, with the Amita Drive and all. Dewey is obviously none too pleased, telling Dominic that he failed as a soldier.
At this point, though, Dominic isn’t even listening. Holland’s conviction has forced him to take a look at himself and realize what it is he’s fighting for. And… that would be nothing he can tell of.
Clearly, the next course of action would be to make his life worse. Due to the state she was found in, Anemone’s body is now covered in scars, much to her dismay—though that word doesn’t do her grief justice. She takes out her anger on Dominic and, unimpressed by his vow to protect her, makes it clear that she hates him before being taken away for another operation. Needless to say, Dominic is less than thrilled about this declaration, and remains in that room until Anemone returns.
… By hugging him and proclaiming how glad she is that he waited for him. The appropriate response for this would likely be a flat “what.”
More than a little unnerved by this change of personality, Dominic puts up with this Anemone surprisingly well. She crosses the line, however, when she kisses him on the cheek, telling him that she loves him. When one knows that this isn’t her real personality, it’s obviously a bit difficult to be happy about that, and so Dominic isn't exactly pleased. This results in him going behind Dewey’s back and obtaining transmissions records of his. While trying to figure out his superior’s motives, he runs into a scientist (specifically, the one who took Anemone away for the operation). She comments on his unlawful possession of the records and that he seems to like to “stand out too much for [his] own good”. To this, Dominic has just one thing to say:
“Don’t scientists know the law of military? The main tower martial law second order states that ‘the military exists to bring peace to the people’. I am not… just some leashed dog.”
If it weren’t clear enough, Dominic has completely lost all respect for Dewey at this point.
During this period, Antibody Coralians attack the city. Whereas Dewey and Anemone escape in a ship, Dominic chooses to stay behind and take advantage of the chaos. While everyone else is busy fleeing and panicking, he heads to Dewey’s room—only to find that someone has beaten him there: the scientist from before. While Dewey makes a broadcast to the world, she explains to Dominic the truth, all the answers he’s wanted to know.
Dewey’s plan is to exterminate the Coralians, who are connected to planet.
Thus? His aim is simply to murder all of humanity.
His idea of a “righteous world”.
Shocked by this revelation, Dominic falls to his knees. After all, everything he’s been fighting for has been for this—the furthest thing from what he hoped to achieve.
—Except, seconds later, he receives a transmission informing him that the military is currently engaged in combat with the Gekkostate. After being told that they are needed to save the planet, Dominic immediately orders for their unharmed capture in an act of treason against Dewey, wanting to see for himself what they will do. Although Eureka is swallowed up the Coralian core that has risen from the ground, the rest of the capture is successful.
During their meeting, the rest of the truth comes out: not only do they have Dewey to worry about, but they also need to be concerned about coexisting alongside the Coralians using Renton and Eureka. The latter is a human-form Coralian, as explained to Dominic by Dewey earlier, whom Dewey duplicated—the result being Anemone—for unknown reasons.
This meeting ends short, though, when Dominic receives news of theEND breaching the core. His surprise is all Renton needs to escape, as he attempts to climb aboard the Nirvash even with his handcuffed wrists. When it becomes apparent that no one can dissuade him from trying to save Eureka, Dominic decides to go with the “if you can’t beat ‘em, then join ‘em” approach, freeing Renton from his handcuffs and forcing him to allow him to co-pilot.
Upon entering the core, Dominic falls unconscious—would now be a good time to mention that Eureka Seven is rather fond of its mindscrew? Well, Dominic enters a dream/hallucination of sorts, beginning with him waking up by a corpse. When he realizes this, his thoughts are interrupted by the sounds of explosion and gunfire; he’s in the middle of a war zone. It’s then that he notices all the ‘people’ are, in fact, merely scarecrows. He doesn’t have much time to dwell on this either, when he sees Anemone walking around a corner. Attempting to catch up to her, he runs into a uniformed skeleton—Dewey—on a horse.
“… I… y-you haven’t seen a girl here, have you…?” he asks, to which Dewey presents him with a doll, claiming Anemone to be a fake. And although Dominic protests, Dewey continues, calling Anemone an impostor, an experiment without even a name—for all she has is what Dominic chose to call her, years ago.
Other than that, she is merely a shadow of Eureka.
But of course, Dominic begs to differ.
The doll breaks in his hand, revealing an anemone flower and thus reminding him of the day he named Anemone. So, to Dewey—
“… And you, colonel… are wrong, because Anemone isn’t an impostor at all. She… Anemone is, in her own way, a flower, in and out of herself.”
Because even after all these years, Dominic hasn’t forgotten—hasn’t forgotten the smile Anemone made when he gave her that flower and a name.
Unfortunately, Dewey—the real one—chooses this moment to activate a self-destruct virus implanted in theEND, meant to kill the Coralians. Dominic wakes up from the dream, just in time to see theEND about to attack the Nirvash. The two LFOs fight briefly, but when Renton’s about to launch the final attack, Dominic stops him, realizing that theEND isn’t truly attacking them. Along with that, injuries are appearing on it, not caused by them.
Defeating theEND would mean harming Anemone, and therefore it is not an option. And if they cannot defeat their opponent, then they must find a way to stop it from attacking—it’s as simple as that.
Dominic’s solution? To go to theEND himself, using the cable that it wound around the Nirvash. It’s idiotic and risky, and Renton ironically tries to talk him out of it before Dominic points out that it’s in line with their belief: to protect what’s important to them, no matter how dangerous it may be. He then tells Renton to leave without him once theEND stops moving, merely smiling when the boy objects.
And with that, he jumps.
Miraculously, he survives, though not without receiving significant burns along the way from theEND’s attacks. Despite Anemone’s usual verbal abuse towards him, he’s just relieved to see that she’s back to normal, embracing her. Noticing the burns that litter his body, she calms down, asking him why he came for her. He asks her if she would be willing to dance with him.
(It makes sense in context).
However, before she can give him a reply, she falls into a coma, due to the virus. In the hopes that being disconnected from the core will awaken her, he pilots theEND away, crashing to the ground below. Carrying Anemone on his back, he walks through the completely ruined area, still desperately wishing for her to be cured. A Coralian nearly devours the two, but they’re saved in the nick of time by the members of Gekkostate, who landed nearby.
Good news: they have a doctor. The bad news: she can’t cure Anemone.
More bad news: due to the self-destruct program, Coralians attack the core, severely injuring Renton in the process.
More good news: a possible cure is found for the virus, which will hopefully cure Anemone as well.
Even more bad news: after failing to save Eureka, Renton has given up.
While the Gekkostate works on the vaccinations, Dominic pays the bed-ridden (well, stretcher-ridden) Renton a visit. After a seemingly innocuous question about his plans for the future, Dominic tells him that that’s what he should do, even if Eureka is still out of his reach.
“Your future is your own, right?”
For what is a victory without a battle?
“In life, unless it costs you something… it’s not worth anything, is it?”
The Gekkostate succeed in creating the cure—the only problem now is that they don’t have any available pilots to fire it into the core. Renton, inspired by Dominic’s words, offers, refusing to back down even when it’s pointed out how reckless he is. To his surprise, even Dominic agrees with them. Something like that, all by himself, is beyond Renton’s limits.
—And that’s why Dominic’s going with him.
The two take off, with Renton being the one to hold off the Coralians while Dominic fires the vaccine. However, as theEND loses the arm holding the cure and the Nirvash catches it, they switch jobs halfway through. Even so, Dominic isn’t so optimistic to think that he can take care of an entire hoard of Coralians, even though he has no intention of letting any through. And, true enough, none do.
I’ve got no gods to which to pray, so…there’s none but you in whom to trust.
After all, Dominic makes a rather effective shield—
Were it possible, all I would ask… would be for a world in which she might smile.
—as his own life is the ‘cost’ he’s chosen to gain everything else.
[Personality]
There’s no denying that the military plays a large part in his life. He practically grew up in it, after all, and canon doesn’t care to indicate if he has a life outside of it. Therefore, as one might expect, Dominic is serious and pensive, never hesitating to do work. He’s a child trying to play the role of an adult, and he pulls it off because there’s no one to tell him to lighten up—and because he doesn’t seem to have any problems with it either. While he probably doesn’t consider what he does to be fun, he doesn’t view it as a chore, because… well, that would require him to have a genuine sense of ‘fun.’ Again, though, this is what he grew up with after the war—it’s all he really knows. Needless to say, he’s a hard-working individual, and one who’s trying to prove his competence to anyone who might doubt it.
However, this eagerness to be competent, combined with his position in the Special Forces, means that he feels the need to be taken seriously—something that, unfortunately, doesn’t always happen. Despite being aware that people sometimes look down on him, he doesn’t react well when they brush him off or ignore him. Consequently, he can be very smug, if not arrogant, when he gains the upper hand. In that sense, he can be insensitive, as he is occasionally willing to step over others to get what he wants. On top of that, he’s also stubborn, emotional, and irritable. Altogether, you have someone who often presents himself as dislikeable and difficult to get along with at times.
For the most part, though, that’s an attitude shown more to other soldiers than civilians, so it’s likely safe to assume that that’s the result of him trying to be authoritative. When he’s not, Dominic’s personality takes a turn for the awkward, and it becomes clear that the military has stunted his experience in social matters. He stutters, trails off, is easily embarrassed, never knows what the right thing to say is, etc. Though as a soldier he’s not necessarily uncomfortable with public speaking, he’s undeniably on the introverted side. On the other hand, it’s moments like these that show how he’s actually quite a decent guy who generally means well, even if his attitude around other soldiers makes it seem otherwise.
While Dominic’s social ineptness is usually amusing in all its awkward and fail glory, there is a more depressing tone underneath it all. The truth of the matter is that he’s like that because, as the anime implies, there’s only one person he’s honestly connected with in the last ten years: Anemone. She’s enough to stop him from being lonely—but having her in his life means that he has to put up with all the abuse, insults, and cold indifference she dishes out. Without her, he has no one, and so for him, it’s better to be hated than to mean nothing at all. Headcanon also states that this past loneliness has also desensitized him to other people’s opinions of him, to some extent. If he doesn’t really connect with others, then he has no real reason to care what they think of him. And in the military, where he’s not out to make friends, having this mindset tends to be useful.
Don’t think for a moment that that’s the only reason he puts up with Anemone, though. It’s why he doesn’t seem to mind the abuse, but it’s hardly the main reason he’s so devoted to her. It’s pure and simple: he’s completely and utterly head over heels for her. Somewhere along the way, he fell in love, and no amount of hatred from her could change that. The term would be ‘whipped,’ I believe—and Dominic is oh so whipped. He can be strict with her if it’s good for her, but he typically spoils her rotten and treats her gently and with all the patience in the world. Provided it doesn’t cross his morals, he’d do just about anything for her.
On that note, Dominic is, inside, one of the kindest people you’ll ever meet. He’s dedicated his life to protecting others, whether they be Anemone or simply innocent civilians. He firmly believes that the military exists to bring peace to the people—a belief he lives by. Even if he has to make himself an enemy of the world to protect it, he’ll do it. This probably stems from his childhood: after his parents died, he decided to follow Dewey in hopes of being able to change the world. Consequently, he's spent the last half of his life trying to do what he can to help others, to the point where it's practically a complex—he doesn't honestly know of any other way of living. A certain quote of his sums his thoughts up nicely: "What's important isn't staying alive, it's protecting what matters." And for Dominic—what matters is everything.
He’s also rather naïve and idealistic, especially where relationships are concerned. While his serious nature might make you believe otherwise, he’s really not a jaded person. He’s not blindly optimistic—or even all that optimistic—but he keeps looking forward in a manner that’s either admirable or foolish, depending on whom you ask. He sincerely believes that innocent people shouldn’t have to die (although he's realistic enough to expect it), and that even if a ‘righteous’ world is impossible to bring, that’s no reason not to try. Considering that, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that Dominic is incredibly strong-willed and well-adjusted. He’ll mope when unpleasant events occur, but never for long, and definitely not when there’s something to be done. He can go from brooding to confident in a matter of seconds, as if nothing were wrong—and it’s not an act. He understands that there will always be ordeals; if anything, he believes them to be necessary to make anything worth something. Kick him down as much as you like, physically or emotionally, but don’t expect him to stay on the ground. He could be on the verge of death, but as long as he could still fight, he would. Everything could be going wrong for him, and he’ll still get back up and do whatever he can to make them right again. He’s the kind of person who’ll fight to the bitter end, no matter how painful it might be.
That being said, it's probably clear by now that Dominic is very good with handling conflict. By the end of the series—in both versions—he's allowed the more peaceful part of his personality to envelop him, and it definitely shows in stressful situations, where he can still keep his cool. Under circumstances where everyone's pressed for time and tense, Dominic continues to act like he has all the time in the world—not because he doesn't understand the severity of the situation, but because he can still see things calmly.
But at the end of it all, Dominic is an idiot and he knows it. He’s reckless, particularly when it comes to Anemone, but in a way that makes you realize he knows what he’s doing. It just tends to be that what he’s ‘doing’ will, more likely than not, get him killed—which he’s okay with. He generally understands the risks he’s taking, and he’s decided that they’re worth it for what he might gain. Again, that’s not to say he’ll foolishly ignore the odds, however. He’s aware that he has limits—a lesson he learned the hard way—and if he knows there’s just about no chance that he’ll win, he’s not going to continue charging ahead blindly. Still, he’ll do crazy things for what he believes in, and would make a more cynical person go “What.”
Overall, Dominic is a strange balance of conflicting traits, and yet another example is the fact that he's both immature and mature at once. He's immature because really, he so very clearly thinks more with his heart than his head and is prone to complete and utter fail. At the same time, though, he understands things. He's found what makes life worth living and seen how much the world holds—and he's found his place amidst it all.
[Specialties/Abilities]
Being an ordinary human, Dominic has no special powers. However, due to being a soldier, he has basic combat abilities, as shown in the anime (he easily twists the arm of a thug who'd been grabbing his collar into an arm lock as he turns to talk to another person, and later catches the wrist of someone twice his size without breaking a sweat).
Due to military training, he's a fairly good pilot, and he's been seen driving/piloting a variety of vehicles from cars to motorcycles to small planes to giant robots. On top of that, he's a good shot with a gun, and it's highly likely that he's reasonably talented with computers as well (it's implied that he hacked into Dewey's records at one point). Additionally, he has a high tolerance for pain.
[Affection]
Anything above a hug will prompt him to either jump back or shove you away. Even hugs aren't welcome unless he considers you a friend (and he'll probably still feel rather awkward about it).
[Fighting]
Kill, not without permission. Injure, yes. However, while he might argue with your character plenty, Dominic probably isn't going to start any physical fights.
[Other Permissions]
I'd rather that the fourth wall not be broken with him, but feel free to know anything about his past. o/
[Other Facts]
If you know what's good for you, don't ever trust him with a map. Or directions, period.
[Canon] Eureka Seven (manga, but using the anime as backbone)
[Point Taken from Canon] Post Ch. 20, aka after his death
[Age] 20
[Gender] Male
[Sexual Orientation] Heterosexual, but too head over heels for Anemone to consider anyone else.
[Eye Color] Grey
[Hair Color] Black
[Height] ... He's, uh, short. Probably around 5'6, if I had to make an estimate?
[Other] His back is covered in scars left from his burns, and there's a large scar on the left side of his chest/abdomen.
[Clothing]
[Background]
Otherwise known as the greatest disaster in history.
To make a long story short, the Seven Swell phenomenon occurs, which, despite being very pretty, is also incredibly deadly. It causes trapar levels in the air to rise dramatically, which ultimately leads to civil unrest and wars. Swept alongside the wave like everyone else, Dominic’s town is destroyed, leaving Dominic homeless—and without a family. Surrounded by destruction and the dead, a soldier named Dewey Novak finds him and takes him under his wing, promising him a “righteous world” should Dominic follow him.
This event seals the story of Eureka Seven, and Dominic’s role amidst it all. Through Dewey, Dominic meets a nameless girl—a science experiment—his age. Out of pity for her, he brings her a piece of the outside world: an anemone flower. Upon discovering that she likes it, he proceeds to name her after the flower, sparking a friendship of sorts with her. And then, over the years, that friendship turns to love.
… Only on Dominic’s part, sadly. Along the line, Anemone becomes rather psychotic and abusive—and being promoted to her caretaker, guess who’s her favourite punching bag?
Either way, Dominic joins the military presumably once he becomes of age, quickly rising through the ranks until, by the start of the series, he’s become a second lieutenant. Unfortunately, life isn’t all fun and games (or rather, work) during this time. Less than three years before the beginning of the series, Dewey is thrown in prison.
However, when another Seven Swell is witnessed in the present, Dewey is released and promoted to the ranking of a colonel. Like before, Dominic and Anemone, who’d remained loyal to him through the years, are taken under his command. They’re sent to search for the Amita Drive, an object that unlocks the full potential of the Nirvash typeZERO—that is, the first LFO/giant robot ever found, currently in the hands of a rebel group called the Gekkostate. As Anemone is able to detect the presence of its pilot, Eureka, the two easily track and shoot down the Gekkostate.
Eureka and another member, Renton Thurston, head out in the city that the Gekkostate crash-landed in, where Eureka’s health takes a dive for the worse. It’s then that Anemone and Dominic finds them, the latter taking them captive for interrogation regarding the Amita Drive’s whereabouts.
—Except Renton has no idea what that is until Dominic shows him a photo, despite being the one who delivered it to the Nirvash. Even then, Dominic fails to make any progress, interrupted by Anemone’s friendly chat with Eureka—and then by the sudden occurrence of a Kute-class Coralian.
Simply put, a Kute-class Coralian is a large—very large—sphere of concentrated trapar that appears mysteriously through history, and releases massive amounts of energy and hallucinogens. For ordinary humans, to approach one means certain death.
However, Renton does just that when the Coralian abducts Eureka and Anemone. In order to the save the former, Renton flies towards it in the Nirvash, which comes to his aid. As for Dominic? Although he’s initially against the idea at first, Renton’s words convince him to go out and save Anemone as well. Or, perhaps, the right word there would be try. Unfortunately, Dewey orders him to stand down, claiming that going after Anemone would be foolish. While that order probably saved the crew’s life, it can also be seen as the beginning of Dominic’s wavering loyalty—a conflict that forms the backbone of his development throughout the series.
Eventually, the Coralian disappears, and Anemone is retrieved. Once she recovers, Dewey presents her with her own LFO: Nirvash typetheEND. Ecstatic, she uses it to obtain the Amita Drive, nearly killing Eureka in the process. Again, Anemone’s not quite right in the head. It only gets worse when Dewey puts her through an experiment to try and synchronize her with the Amita Drive, but due to her not being the real thing—i.e. Eureka—the experiment fails, leaving her in a poor state. Dewey, nevertheless, shows no concern, only serving to worsen his image in Dominic’s eyes.
Of course, the Gekkostate doesn’t react kindly to having something of theirs stolen. Holland launches a surprise attack to get back the Amita Drive, and would’ve succeeded perfectly had the still-recovering Anemone not intervened. While searching for her, Dominic comes across Holland as the man crawls across the floor, badly injured. Although the strength of the man’s will briefly stuns Dominic, it’s hardly impressive to Dewey—who chooses that moment to enter the scene via stabbing through Holland’s hand. However, Holland still refuses to falter, commenting that he has found what he fights for and has no regrets, even if he “dies like a maggot.” Moved by these words, Dominic is unable to shoot him yet again, despite Dewey’s orders. His hesitation allows Holland’s allies to rescue him, with the Amita Drive and all. Dewey is obviously none too pleased, telling Dominic that he failed as a soldier.
At this point, though, Dominic isn’t even listening. Holland’s conviction has forced him to take a look at himself and realize what it is he’s fighting for. And… that would be nothing he can tell of.
Clearly, the next course of action would be to make his life worse. Due to the state she was found in, Anemone’s body is now covered in scars, much to her dismay—though that word doesn’t do her grief justice. She takes out her anger on Dominic and, unimpressed by his vow to protect her, makes it clear that she hates him before being taken away for another operation. Needless to say, Dominic is less than thrilled about this declaration, and remains in that room until Anemone returns.
… By hugging him and proclaiming how glad she is that he waited for him. The appropriate response for this would likely be a flat “what.”
More than a little unnerved by this change of personality, Dominic puts up with this Anemone surprisingly well. She crosses the line, however, when she kisses him on the cheek, telling him that she loves him. When one knows that this isn’t her real personality, it’s obviously a bit difficult to be happy about that, and so Dominic isn't exactly pleased. This results in him going behind Dewey’s back and obtaining transmissions records of his. While trying to figure out his superior’s motives, he runs into a scientist (specifically, the one who took Anemone away for the operation). She comments on his unlawful possession of the records and that he seems to like to “stand out too much for [his] own good”. To this, Dominic has just one thing to say:
“Don’t scientists know the law of military? The main tower martial law second order states that ‘the military exists to bring peace to the people’. I am not… just some leashed dog.”
If it weren’t clear enough, Dominic has completely lost all respect for Dewey at this point.
During this period, Antibody Coralians attack the city. Whereas Dewey and Anemone escape in a ship, Dominic chooses to stay behind and take advantage of the chaos. While everyone else is busy fleeing and panicking, he heads to Dewey’s room—only to find that someone has beaten him there: the scientist from before. While Dewey makes a broadcast to the world, she explains to Dominic the truth, all the answers he’s wanted to know.
Dewey’s plan is to exterminate the Coralians, who are connected to planet.
Thus? His aim is simply to murder all of humanity.
His idea of a “righteous world”.
Shocked by this revelation, Dominic falls to his knees. After all, everything he’s been fighting for has been for this—the furthest thing from what he hoped to achieve.
—Except, seconds later, he receives a transmission informing him that the military is currently engaged in combat with the Gekkostate. After being told that they are needed to save the planet, Dominic immediately orders for their unharmed capture in an act of treason against Dewey, wanting to see for himself what they will do. Although Eureka is swallowed up the Coralian core that has risen from the ground, the rest of the capture is successful.
During their meeting, the rest of the truth comes out: not only do they have Dewey to worry about, but they also need to be concerned about coexisting alongside the Coralians using Renton and Eureka. The latter is a human-form Coralian, as explained to Dominic by Dewey earlier, whom Dewey duplicated—the result being Anemone—for unknown reasons.
This meeting ends short, though, when Dominic receives news of theEND breaching the core. His surprise is all Renton needs to escape, as he attempts to climb aboard the Nirvash even with his handcuffed wrists. When it becomes apparent that no one can dissuade him from trying to save Eureka, Dominic decides to go with the “if you can’t beat ‘em, then join ‘em” approach, freeing Renton from his handcuffs and forcing him to allow him to co-pilot.
Upon entering the core, Dominic falls unconscious—would now be a good time to mention that Eureka Seven is rather fond of its mindscrew? Well, Dominic enters a dream/hallucination of sorts, beginning with him waking up by a corpse. When he realizes this, his thoughts are interrupted by the sounds of explosion and gunfire; he’s in the middle of a war zone. It’s then that he notices all the ‘people’ are, in fact, merely scarecrows. He doesn’t have much time to dwell on this either, when he sees Anemone walking around a corner. Attempting to catch up to her, he runs into a uniformed skeleton—Dewey—on a horse.
“… I… y-you haven’t seen a girl here, have you…?” he asks, to which Dewey presents him with a doll, claiming Anemone to be a fake. And although Dominic protests, Dewey continues, calling Anemone an impostor, an experiment without even a name—for all she has is what Dominic chose to call her, years ago.
Other than that, she is merely a shadow of Eureka.
But of course, Dominic begs to differ.
The doll breaks in his hand, revealing an anemone flower and thus reminding him of the day he named Anemone. So, to Dewey—
“… And you, colonel… are wrong, because Anemone isn’t an impostor at all. She… Anemone is, in her own way, a flower, in and out of herself.”
Because even after all these years, Dominic hasn’t forgotten—hasn’t forgotten the smile Anemone made when he gave her that flower and a name.
Unfortunately, Dewey—the real one—chooses this moment to activate a self-destruct virus implanted in theEND, meant to kill the Coralians. Dominic wakes up from the dream, just in time to see theEND about to attack the Nirvash. The two LFOs fight briefly, but when Renton’s about to launch the final attack, Dominic stops him, realizing that theEND isn’t truly attacking them. Along with that, injuries are appearing on it, not caused by them.
Defeating theEND would mean harming Anemone, and therefore it is not an option. And if they cannot defeat their opponent, then they must find a way to stop it from attacking—it’s as simple as that.
Dominic’s solution? To go to theEND himself, using the cable that it wound around the Nirvash. It’s idiotic and risky, and Renton ironically tries to talk him out of it before Dominic points out that it’s in line with their belief: to protect what’s important to them, no matter how dangerous it may be. He then tells Renton to leave without him once theEND stops moving, merely smiling when the boy objects.
And with that, he jumps.
Miraculously, he survives, though not without receiving significant burns along the way from theEND’s attacks. Despite Anemone’s usual verbal abuse towards him, he’s just relieved to see that she’s back to normal, embracing her. Noticing the burns that litter his body, she calms down, asking him why he came for her. He asks her if she would be willing to dance with him.
(It makes sense in context).
However, before she can give him a reply, she falls into a coma, due to the virus. In the hopes that being disconnected from the core will awaken her, he pilots theEND away, crashing to the ground below. Carrying Anemone on his back, he walks through the completely ruined area, still desperately wishing for her to be cured. A Coralian nearly devours the two, but they’re saved in the nick of time by the members of Gekkostate, who landed nearby.
Good news: they have a doctor. The bad news: she can’t cure Anemone.
More bad news: due to the self-destruct program, Coralians attack the core, severely injuring Renton in the process.
More good news: a possible cure is found for the virus, which will hopefully cure Anemone as well.
Even more bad news: after failing to save Eureka, Renton has given up.
While the Gekkostate works on the vaccinations, Dominic pays the bed-ridden (well, stretcher-ridden) Renton a visit. After a seemingly innocuous question about his plans for the future, Dominic tells him that that’s what he should do, even if Eureka is still out of his reach.
“Your future is your own, right?”
For what is a victory without a battle?
“In life, unless it costs you something… it’s not worth anything, is it?”
The Gekkostate succeed in creating the cure—the only problem now is that they don’t have any available pilots to fire it into the core. Renton, inspired by Dominic’s words, offers, refusing to back down even when it’s pointed out how reckless he is. To his surprise, even Dominic agrees with them. Something like that, all by himself, is beyond Renton’s limits.
—And that’s why Dominic’s going with him.
The two take off, with Renton being the one to hold off the Coralians while Dominic fires the vaccine. However, as theEND loses the arm holding the cure and the Nirvash catches it, they switch jobs halfway through. Even so, Dominic isn’t so optimistic to think that he can take care of an entire hoard of Coralians, even though he has no intention of letting any through. And, true enough, none do.
I’ve got no gods to which to pray, so…there’s none but you in whom to trust.
After all, Dominic makes a rather effective shield—
Were it possible, all I would ask… would be for a world in which she might smile.
—as his own life is the ‘cost’ he’s chosen to gain everything else.
[Personality]
However, this eagerness to be competent, combined with his position in the Special Forces, means that he feels the need to be taken seriously—something that, unfortunately, doesn’t always happen. Despite being aware that people sometimes look down on him, he doesn’t react well when they brush him off or ignore him. Consequently, he can be very smug, if not arrogant, when he gains the upper hand. In that sense, he can be insensitive, as he is occasionally willing to step over others to get what he wants. On top of that, he’s also stubborn, emotional, and irritable. Altogether, you have someone who often presents himself as dislikeable and difficult to get along with at times.
For the most part, though, that’s an attitude shown more to other soldiers than civilians, so it’s likely safe to assume that that’s the result of him trying to be authoritative. When he’s not, Dominic’s personality takes a turn for the awkward, and it becomes clear that the military has stunted his experience in social matters. He stutters, trails off, is easily embarrassed, never knows what the right thing to say is, etc. Though as a soldier he’s not necessarily uncomfortable with public speaking, he’s undeniably on the introverted side. On the other hand, it’s moments like these that show how he’s actually quite a decent guy who generally means well, even if his attitude around other soldiers makes it seem otherwise.
While Dominic’s social ineptness is usually amusing in all its awkward and fail glory, there is a more depressing tone underneath it all. The truth of the matter is that he’s like that because, as the anime implies, there’s only one person he’s honestly connected with in the last ten years: Anemone. She’s enough to stop him from being lonely—but having her in his life means that he has to put up with all the abuse, insults, and cold indifference she dishes out. Without her, he has no one, and so for him, it’s better to be hated than to mean nothing at all. Headcanon also states that this past loneliness has also desensitized him to other people’s opinions of him, to some extent. If he doesn’t really connect with others, then he has no real reason to care what they think of him. And in the military, where he’s not out to make friends, having this mindset tends to be useful.
Don’t think for a moment that that’s the only reason he puts up with Anemone, though. It’s why he doesn’t seem to mind the abuse, but it’s hardly the main reason he’s so devoted to her. It’s pure and simple: he’s completely and utterly head over heels for her. Somewhere along the way, he fell in love, and no amount of hatred from her could change that. The term would be ‘whipped,’ I believe—and Dominic is oh so whipped. He can be strict with her if it’s good for her, but he typically spoils her rotten and treats her gently and with all the patience in the world. Provided it doesn’t cross his morals, he’d do just about anything for her.
On that note, Dominic is, inside, one of the kindest people you’ll ever meet. He’s dedicated his life to protecting others, whether they be Anemone or simply innocent civilians. He firmly believes that the military exists to bring peace to the people—a belief he lives by. Even if he has to make himself an enemy of the world to protect it, he’ll do it. This probably stems from his childhood: after his parents died, he decided to follow Dewey in hopes of being able to change the world. Consequently, he's spent the last half of his life trying to do what he can to help others, to the point where it's practically a complex—he doesn't honestly know of any other way of living. A certain quote of his sums his thoughts up nicely: "What's important isn't staying alive, it's protecting what matters." And for Dominic—what matters is everything.
He’s also rather naïve and idealistic, especially where relationships are concerned. While his serious nature might make you believe otherwise, he’s really not a jaded person. He’s not blindly optimistic—or even all that optimistic—but he keeps looking forward in a manner that’s either admirable or foolish, depending on whom you ask. He sincerely believes that innocent people shouldn’t have to die (although he's realistic enough to expect it), and that even if a ‘righteous’ world is impossible to bring, that’s no reason not to try. Considering that, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that Dominic is incredibly strong-willed and well-adjusted. He’ll mope when unpleasant events occur, but never for long, and definitely not when there’s something to be done. He can go from brooding to confident in a matter of seconds, as if nothing were wrong—and it’s not an act. He understands that there will always be ordeals; if anything, he believes them to be necessary to make anything worth something. Kick him down as much as you like, physically or emotionally, but don’t expect him to stay on the ground. He could be on the verge of death, but as long as he could still fight, he would. Everything could be going wrong for him, and he’ll still get back up and do whatever he can to make them right again. He’s the kind of person who’ll fight to the bitter end, no matter how painful it might be.
That being said, it's probably clear by now that Dominic is very good with handling conflict. By the end of the series—in both versions—he's allowed the more peaceful part of his personality to envelop him, and it definitely shows in stressful situations, where he can still keep his cool. Under circumstances where everyone's pressed for time and tense, Dominic continues to act like he has all the time in the world—not because he doesn't understand the severity of the situation, but because he can still see things calmly.
But at the end of it all, Dominic is an idiot and he knows it. He’s reckless, particularly when it comes to Anemone, but in a way that makes you realize he knows what he’s doing. It just tends to be that what he’s ‘doing’ will, more likely than not, get him killed—which he’s okay with. He generally understands the risks he’s taking, and he’s decided that they’re worth it for what he might gain. Again, that’s not to say he’ll foolishly ignore the odds, however. He’s aware that he has limits—a lesson he learned the hard way—and if he knows there’s just about no chance that he’ll win, he’s not going to continue charging ahead blindly. Still, he’ll do crazy things for what he believes in, and would make a more cynical person go “What.”
Overall, Dominic is a strange balance of conflicting traits, and yet another example is the fact that he's both immature and mature at once. He's immature because really, he so very clearly thinks more with his heart than his head and is prone to complete and utter fail. At the same time, though, he understands things. He's found what makes life worth living and seen how much the world holds—and he's found his place amidst it all.
[Specialties/Abilities]
Due to military training, he's a fairly good pilot, and he's been seen driving/piloting a variety of vehicles from cars to motorcycles to small planes to giant robots. On top of that, he's a good shot with a gun, and it's highly likely that he's reasonably talented with computers as well (it's implied that he hacked into Dewey's records at one point). Additionally, he has a high tolerance for pain.
[Affection]
[Fighting]
[Other Permissions]
[Other Facts]
