V:tM - New Orleans by Night

Dahak · Post by **Dahak** » 2003-01-16 07:19am

Dachlan turned towards the other couple sitting on the couch with him and Daffyd.
"And why are you here, if I may ask?" He interrupted Josh and Michael's talking.
"I mean we are all here for a reason, are we not?"

Post by **haas mark** » 2003-01-16 08:26pm

Dahak wrote:Dachlan turned towards the other couple sitting on the couch with him and Daffyd.
"And why are you here, if I may ask?" He interrupted Josh and Michael's talking.
"I mean we are all here for a reason, are we not?"

"That we are," Michael replied. "But is that for you to know?"

Josh interrupted, "We were to see Anna last night, but we didn't have a chance. In any case, my name is Joshua."

"And mine is Michael." He extended a hand to the other man.

Kelly Antilles · Post by **Kelly Antilles** » 2003-01-16 09:28pm

Anna took a deep breath before continuing. "The book. I know that's what brought you all here. A book some Giovanni wanted bad enough to attempt a coup in my own establishment." She rubbed her arms, hugging herself as she remembered the carnage from the previous night.

She sighed. "The book is in Latin, the word of God. Appropriate for a clan from Italy. It is simply a book about the clan from their origins to modern day. I'm sure you're wondering why they want a book that's only about that back so badly.

"Well, I found something that will be very dangerous in certain hands, especially mine." Her voice took a dark tone to it. "First, a little background. I spent my first 50 or so years as a vampire in London. The Prince of London is..." she paused a moment as if not really convinced to use that word, "a Ventrue by the name of Mithras. Mithras is an ancient vampire, very skilled and very dangerous to those who wrong him.

"I left London in the late 1880s. Mithras left shortly after that on one of his... walkabouts, for lack of a better term. He tends to leave London for lengths of time because he can't sit still for very long. It is thought that Mithras is possibly a childe of Ventrue himself."

She looked and saw the bored looks on their faces. "Yes, I'm sure you're wondering why I'm telling you this. It's important, trust me.

"Sometime in the 20's, the Giovanni happened across Mithras. They pooled their sources and put him in to torpor. No other Ventrue in the entire world knows this. We've all thought he was still wandering. The Giovanni have him hidden somewhere, ready to use him against the Ventrue at a moment's notice. I think that moment has arrived."

Captain Cyran · Post by **Captain Cyran** » 2003-01-16 09:51pm

"Sometime in the 20's, the Giovanni happened across Mithras. They pooled their sources and put him in to torpor. No other Ventrue in the entire world knows this. We've all thought he was still wandering. The Giovanni have him hidden somewhere, ready to use him against the Ventrue at a moment's notice. I think that moment has arrived."
____________________

Colin's jaw dropped a bit as Anna finished talking. "You're saying that some Fourth Gen. Ventrue is sleeping somewhere in the city, and that the Giovanni are gonna wake him up and set him loose on us?" Colin turned around and slammed his fist into a wall. "And I thought that things couldn't get any worse! I might as well just put a stake through my heart right now and end it."

Colin sighed and turned back to face Anna. "Any other bad news that I should know about before I start making up plans to take out half the Giovanni population and probably a few Antideluvians while we are at it?"

Kelly Antilles · Post by **Kelly Antilles** » 2003-01-16 10:02pm

She shakes her head. "No. They are going to use him as a bargaining chip. A way to silence the Ventrue so we will not rise against them as they attempt to overtake the Camarilla."

Post by **haas mark** » 2003-01-16 10:18pm

Joshua was still interested in talking to the other man, but he perked his attention toward Anna as she talked. He listened, interested. Silence the Ventrue? What? he thought to himself. He watched her quietly, as well as the other man, whom he did not recognize.

Stormbringer · Post by **Stormbringer** » 2003-01-16 10:20pm

"Oh it can get worse. Diablery, forced siring. There are any number of advantages to having the Childe of an Antideluvian in these times of thin blood. Black mail not the least of them. The fact that they've set up an unknown puppet to seize the city is proof that this is serious indeed."

Alec was nervous, very nervous. News like this would spread like wildfire. Everyone here had to join them or they would all be having a fatal suntan soon. This would alter the balance of power and where it would land is anyone's guess.

"So are you in, gentlemen?"

Post by **haas mark** » 2003-01-16 10:27pm

"Aye," said Michael and Joshua simultaneously.

"No reason not to be with you," said Michael. "But," he continued, "we do have other things to discuss..."

Stravo · Post by **Stravo** » 2003-01-17 12:12am

"In? In what?" Reece snorted. "We need a clear objective and avenues of escape when things get hairy or are you talking just storming around and killing Giovanni? That usually doesn't go over well and god forbid the new prince decides to declare that we're nothing more than a Sabbat pack...then we have Cammie Justicars snooping around and they could care less about justice, all they want is to restore order and they'd burn all of us in a second to do it."

Jack crossed his arms and frowned.

"Before we undertake this we have to realize that we're in way over our heads and this new prince whoever they are holds the cards. If we start a war with the Giovanni that prince will do anything in their power to restore order. So if we're doing this lets have a plan, an organization, supplies, objectives and most importantly we need some solid intel." He grew more animated as he spoke. "We need to stockpile some weapons and start creating dumps throughout teh city. We need a group for rapid attacks and retreats, we're not going to win this in a stand up fight, the Giovanni aren't pushovers and they are an entire clan structure, we're a rag tag bunch of pissed off kindred."

Jack suddenly looked self concious.

"Sorry, some old relflexes just kicked in." he muttered.

Post by **haas mark** » 2003-01-17 12:44am

Michael glared at the man. "Yes, all that may be needed, but also keep in mind that Anna knows what she is talking about. Just because you're used to rushing into things does not mean that we should rush into this."

"I agree with both of you," said Joshua. "We do need to stockpile, but we also need to be careful."

Dahak · Post by **Dahak** » 2003-01-17 08:20am

Dachlan was silent for a moment, deep in thoughts.
When he spoke at last, his voice was...dark and vicious.
"I know Mithras myself, as I am of London origin myself. As Anna said, he's...difficult. But no one deserves to be used by Giovanni. So I am in."

Dachlan fell silent again, until he was struck by a thought.
He turned towards Joshua and Michael.
"I am sorry," he said, sounding more like a human again, "I didn't want to seem impolite. I am Dachlan DeVries, and this is my friend Daffyd here."
Dachlan shook the other man's hand, and then looked back at Daffyd.

Why couldn't I have met him in a nother time? Why in such a dengerous one?

"Daffyd," he whispered in his ear, "Darling, I know this might sound fantastic and all. But I tell you this: stay very close to me, and don't trust anyone else. Do you understand?"

"Yes," he answered, "I guess so. I want to be with you, and I've been running my whole life. But not this time. I want to stay. With you."
Dachlan softly stroked his cheek and smiled at Daffyd before he turned his attention back to the others in the room.

Dahak · Post by **Dahak** » 2003-01-17 08:44am

((As I'll be afi (away from internet) for the weekend, try not to blow to much stuff up in the meantime *g* ))

Mark S · Post by **Mark S** » 2003-01-17 02:46pm

"So what ARE we doing? What IS the objective? Re-instate this friend of yours as prince, free the old timer, get the book out of the city, just kill these Giovanni, all of it or something else?

"Personally, I agree with the need for more information on who this new lord is. Someone who they're not likely to know should go introduce themselves and see what they can see. Maybe these guys will want to make sure everyone new to the city is in line with their plan. I haven't been around here since the place burned down so I could probably pull it off. I'll just tell them I'm passing through and paying respects. Hell, it couldn't go any worse than the last time I infiltrated an enemy."

Oberleutnant · Post by **Oberleutnant** » 2003-01-17 08:16pm

The Ventrue society and Camarilla, perhaps the greatest achievement of all Vampires, were threattened! Anton knew he could not back down. He glanced at Anna and the others with a fiery gaze. "They must be stopped or everything our clan has worked for centuries will be in vain... I'm in and all my resources are at your disposal."

He paused, thinking about the last night's scene in the Eye.

"Mr Rece, please don't get me wrong. I have no doubts about your fighting capabilities - I saw with my own eyes what you can do. However, if things are as badly as Ms Bruck described, we are severely outnumbered. Do we even have any trustworthy allies ín New Orleans? ''Be prepared'', that's the motto of your scouts, isn't it Jack? So by all means, take care of the guerellia tactics and weapons stashes, etc, but I sincerily believe that this is a war we cannot win by going toe to toe with the enemy. There has to be another way."

Anton took a deep breat, fully aware that he was moving on dangerous ground by stating his opinions so openly. "As you both said, we need information - every piece of information we can dig up. Second, we need to be organised, and I see no reason why Ms Bruck shouldn't be in charge."

Post by **haas mark** » 2003-01-17 11:47pm

"Agreed," said Michael. "Anna would be the perfect candidate. She has been here longer than most, if not all, of us, and ths has knowledge that many of us may not possess."

2000AD · Post by **2000AD** » 2003-01-18 01:52pm

Armand let the man drop as he wiped his mouth. The guy would have gotten away with the mugging if he hadn't have run down the alley where he was waiting. Refreshed, Armand stepped out of the alley and looked around. There was still plenty of night left. As he walked down the street he noticed that the old antique shop seemed to have some visitors. He'd heard it was owned by a vampire, perhaps this was where everyone was tonight. "A meeting of vampires is not something a Caitiff like him would want to interrupt," he thought, "but if it is a meeting then there's something going down. That probably means trouble and any trouble between vampires will mean trouble for Caitiffs in general." As he walked past the shop he took a glance through the windows. No one was there. He walked a little further then turned round and walked back to the shop.

The door to the shop was unlocked and Armand crept in. There were no signs of forced entry and all seemed in order. As he listened he heard people moving on the floor above. He looked around and spotted a hall with a staircase at the end. At the bottom of the stairs he paused. Did he really want to do this? "F*ck it," he thought, "if it is trouble I might as well learn what I can before the sh*t hits the fan". He looked up the stairs at the door at the end of them. As quietly as he could he began to make his way up. As he climbed he began to here voices from the room, but he couldn't make them out. As he got to the top he prayed that there wasn't someone with super Auspex skills in there. After a brief pause he put his ear to the door.

"-way to silence the Ventrue so we will not rise against them as they attempt to overtake the Camarilla." said a female voice. "What the f*ck?" thought Armand," Silence the Ventrue, overtake the Camarilla? What's going on here?

"Oh it can get worse. Diablery forced siring. There are any number of advantages to having the Childe of an Antideluvian in these times of thin blood. Black mail not the least of them. The fact that they've set up an unknown puppet to seize the city is proof that this is serious indeed." Said a new male voice. A wave of fear passed through Armand. "Seize the city!" he thought, " There's been a coup?" He'd never been in a coup before but he'd heard what could happen, especially to Caitiff. "Sounds like the sh*t has hit the fan already." he thought.

Someone who probably had a military background proposed a plan, another cautioned people against rushing in while someone else appeared to do just that. As he continued listening he picked up some other things: the woman appeared to be called Anna, the son of the antideluvian seemed to be called Mithras and it was all something to do with the Giovanni. Finally someone asked what the objective was. Armand's ears perked up, but no one gave a specific objective. Yet another new voice spoke up that the woman be made the leader of the group. As another agreed with the plan Armand continued listening, eager to find out more about this secret group.

Captain Cyran · Post by **Captain Cyran** » 2003-01-18 02:07pm

Colin listened as Reece spoke. Then shook his head, he still wasn't sure he wanted to be involved in this, it would be all to simple to get out of the city, or to hold out on his own if things turned bad. Why go asking for trouble he didn't need, there were other cities that would take him in, and 'for the good of the cause' was never on the top 10 list of reasons kindred do anything.

Making up his mind Colin continued to sit in on this and listen, see what information he could get that would help him should things turn sour for him, then get the hell out of there and try to just keep living his unlife until he had to leave.

"I'm not joining this little club of doomed souls until I'm given a good reason to, this isn't my problem, why should I make it my problem?"

Stormbringer · Post by **Stormbringer** » 2003-01-18 02:46pm

"Why should you all join? It's really rather simple. It's your only choice. Simply by being in the wrong place at the wrong time you are now marked for death. The Giovanni and their allies can't let this sort of secret out and they'll kill to keep it quiet."

Alec surveyed the crowd of vampires.

"Colin, you're clanless and young. Do you seriously think they'll have any problem killing you? Making you vanish for good? Compared to this Prince of the City a young Caitiff is nothing. You'd be lucky to escape at all."

Alec considered his next move. This group would clearly need a leader and a military commander. And Reece was right, they needed to figure out what to do. And of course they needed to figure out what the hell was going on.

2000AD · Post by **2000AD** » 2003-01-18 03:01pm

Armand listened with interest. Another Caitiff was a member of this group and that interested him, perhaps the stories of tolerance in New Orleans he'd heard about were true. What the other vampire said also made sense, but one particular part made aother wave of fear pass through him. "Simply by being in the wrong place at the wrong time you are now marked for death" Obviously this was a very dangerous place to be. In Armand's mind a debate raged: Stay, learn more, but possbly be killed. Or go now, giving him a chance of getting out of the city before even mpore trouble started.

Oberleutnant · Post by **Oberleutnant** » 2003-01-18 05:11pm

((ignore))

Kelly Antilles · Post by **Kelly Antilles** » 2003-01-18 09:26pm

Anna raised her hands. "Please, don't make me have to break out the Ventrue guns," she said, hoping they'd realize she was threatening to use Presence on the entire room.

Once she had their attention, she continued, "I am not saying we wage war against the Giovanni. I only mean that we need to be careful. All of you need to be careful now, especially since you have probably been seen with me. I haven't the means to see into the dark lands, but I am fairly positive there are a few ghosts watching me.

"Here is what I propose as a possible means of action. We need to find Mithras. We need to get him to safety. And we need to do it fast." She paused, guaging their reactions.

2000AD · Post by **2000AD** » 2003-01-19 08:05am

Oberleutnant wrote:"And who might you be?" Anton asked, looking at Armand over his shoulder.

Note: Armand is outside the room with his ear to the door. If you've got x-ray eyes or super-auspex then accept my apology.

Dahak · Post by **Dahak** » 2003-01-19 01:12pm

"Anna, that is all quite nice," Dachlan said, "but we do need some piece of information. New Orleans is a big place, and many places to hide a torpored vampire. And I don't guess we'll find a talkative Giovanni. OR is there something you haven't mentioned yet?"

Captain Cyran · Post by **Captain Cyran** » 2003-01-19 01:17pm

"Colin, you're clanless and young. Do you seriously think they'll have any problem killing you? Making you vanish for good? Compared to this Prince of the City a young Caitiff is nothing. You'd be lucky to escape at all."

Alec considered his next move. This group would clearly need a leader and a military commander. And Reece was right, they needed to figure out what to do. And of course they needed to figure out what the hell was going on.
_________

Colin laughed a little, "Just because I'm young doesn't mean I'm a fool. I know damn well that those undead bastards won't think twice about killing me or any of us. But that doesn't mean I'd give them the chance to, I've got more than enough escape roots from this place if I need them. The only reason I even bothered showing up is because I want revenge against the Giovanni, but now I'm not to sure this was a good idea."

Colin payed attention to Anna, prefering to listen by his own will than by hers. "I still say, what the hell does this have to do with me? I'm not gonna do this out of the kindness of my cold dead heart. As far as I've seen this is a Ventrue, Giovanni problem, it's got nothing to do with me."

With this Colin turned and started towards the door, wrapping his scarves around his face Colin placed his hand on the knob. "I'll probably have to get involved...but I'd much rather not, I'm taking my chances out there rather than taking my death with you guys." Colin waited for a moment, a small part of him wishing for Anna or any of the others to give him a good reason to stay here and fight.

Oberleutnant · Post by **Oberleutnant** » 2003-01-19 01:48pm

What a miserable little idiot, Anton thought. Never trust a Caitiff or he will betray you at a moment's notice!

"So would rather stay as an outcast of our society, living your miserable life alone without friends or allies? Fine, you are free to do whatever you want. However, the Ventrue clan has maintained order and stability for hundreds of years and when times are bleak, others look for our help. You see, we are respected," said Anton with pride in his tone.

"When Ventrue are threattened, it affects all Kindred, even Independent clans and Caitiffs like you. If Camarilla loses control in New Orleans, I don't think it stops there, and there is no telling how badly things will then be. This is already your problem, wheter you want it or not."

(( 2000AD, good point! I should read other's posts more carefully...))