Evermore Roleplay

The Hessian made another appearance. The way he did so was violent. He attacked and staked Shawn and Ian, then imprisoned them while making the excuse that he thought they were Brood. This upset me greatly, but I was commanded to handle this politically.

I convinced Moira to pose as Aife, whom the Hessian had never met before. We held a meeting in neutral territory, and things seemed to be making progress toward the release of Shawn and Ian and a cooling of relations that had certainly heated up. But then the Hessian verbally attacked the very existence of She Who Sleeps, insulted the coterie, and the city of Belfast itself. It threw Moira into a rage which she barely controlled. Seeing her distress, I immediately ordered the Hessian to leave. The scene nearly grew ugly and violent, but he did leave in peace as per the terms of the negotiation.

However, after he was gone we related what happened to Aife and she agreed; the Hessian was an enemy of the city bent on disrupting and undermining our efforts here. I stated that he should be regarded as an enemy from here on out and if seen should be reported to me immediately.

It wasn’t long before he made his first strike against us, burning Tara’s opera house and assaulting her. We were able to rescue her and destroy one of the Hessian’s Germanic hit men. We heard later that Aife and Catherine were attacked by the two remaining and destroyed another of them.

During this time we discovered Nathan Foster, the elder Foster, was alive and had many questions. We were quick to inform him of his Childer’s destruction, but we also presented him with Duff, the one responsible. He was pleased and pledged more active support of the city and the coterie’s goals of reunification.

Meanwhile, Shawn and Ian were rescued by a team called in by Aife from abroad. In addition, the informant that was suspected to have given the Hessian his information about Tara and her opera house was seized for discrediting.

While Brenna and I were not under speaking terms the coterie limped along and tried to continue to function. We did investigate the missing Nosferatu named Redwall and this led us to an encounter with hunters immediately after we’d made our first real contact with a werewolf. With the arrival of the hunters so soon after we’d warned the werewolf of precisely that possibility, I’m not certain how we stand with them. I did not interfere with the battle, but did observe the werewolf did escape after being severely wounded.

I should note at this time that during all this time I had been working very hard to expand my mastery over Shadow. This led me to a new discovery — that not only could I see denizens of Twilight, I could interact with them by becoming a Shadow, myself. It was in this form that I was able to study these particular hunters from relative safety.

Eventually, confounded for not being able to be rid of me but knowing I was present, the hunters left and sent a mage to investigate. The mage and I communicated via Twilight, wherein he came to the believe that I was a creature of the Twilight realms. He was fascinated and wish to discuss some things with me but in exchange I asked for him to send the team of professional hunters away to the Continent. We would meet again in a week’s time.

After having dealt with Derry, we returned to Belfast and resumed our investigation of brood cells there. We ended up running into a some broodlings and more or less totalling a new SUV provided by Veronica to Moire. But, Brannigan was able to fix it up (given time) for a fee.

I tried to be more attentive to Brenna. I had noticed we’d drifted apart since we’d made love that first time. She was often so very angry and jealous that I’m still not sure how to deal with it. She left a note that I should see her perform at a little club near the college, so I did. I didn’t see her for hours though, and eventually my eye was drawn to that upon which I feed. I partook to fill myself, but still she had not appeared on stage.

It was around that time I met her. She was exceptionally attractive. I don’t think I’ve ever encountered someone like her. But the timing couldn’t have been worse. Brenna performed then. It was a beautiful song, I think, though I only understood a few words. I learned later that the song was meant for me and that it was about she and I.

But I was entranced by this other woman. I see it now as a terrible, terrible situation but at the time I just couldn’t see past her. I followed her out back into a garden or park. I don’t really know what it was. We had incredible, lovely sex. I didn’t feed upon her and that was probably wise because it turns out that she was a Fey who had possessed the body of some mortal victim. Of course, the Sidhe woman left her and she suddenly found herself having had sex with a stranger. She screamed bloody rape, and I left.

Brenna was understandably very upset with me. I think. You see I dind’t find out how upset she was, because she wasn’t there when I returned to the cafe. We’d never really manged to get together for more than a few words that whole evening. Saddened, I relapsed yet again and went home with a young, vibrant, buddying lawyer who was after pure, fun sex. It took my mind off things.

Until we were pursued on the way by Brenna, who then tried to beat down the door. Note that this was in a women’s dormitory on a college campus. Well, the long and short of it was that I drew Brenna off and paid the lawyer for the damage to the car. Nonetheless, I think she’ll be looking to hook up with me again soon.

Brenna’s rage continued in cold revenge. She upset Tessa, who as a ghoul has a fragile mindset anyway, and got her questioning her existing. She attempted suicide but ended up in critical condition at the hospital. There was a lot more going on with the city and coterie in general during this time, but I was so disturbed by what I saw as an attempt to destroy my ghouls in a selfish act of revenge that I honestly remember little else.

Brenna, having been torpored by the brood assassination attempt, returned to us once again after having been awakened by our allies. I’m not completely sure who did it this time. It may have been Aife or Catherine.

We fell upon the brood sanctuary and fought our way past hell hounds of the most vicious nature, and guarding broodlings. Their numbers had been much reduced due to our previous encounters, but for the first time I realized how dangerous trained and ghouled attack animals could be. Nevertheless we pressed on after dispatching them and engaged the masters of the brood.

Moloch and Elia, the masters of this cell were engaged, pursued and destroyed as a group effort. In fact, Brenna and Shawn both fell to torpor, leaving very few of us to handle a demon that had been successfully summoned. Fortunately, Aife had the foresight to send us a mage ally for us who dispatched her. The demon severely damaged and almost destroyed Moira.

Kris, one of the two remaining local Kindred of Londonderry, took Brenna in a frenzied attempt to escape the blood and destruction. I pursued her, however, and cornered her but was able to peaceably take Brenna away.

After Brenna’s recovery once more, Aife took the two of us with her to locate a couple Kindred in the ancient town of Armagh. It took some doing, and on the way we met a man of faith who was able to affect us with the symbol of his faith; the cross. But ultimately he cooperated without a fuss and we had a meeting with the elusive Kindred. Aife drew up a contract with them and it appears we shall be friendly with these neighbors.

I find it fascinating because these two form a splinter group of the Lancea Sanctum. They are more… liberal in their view of the world, at least in comparison with their brethren. I believe they can be made allies in time.

Unfortunately, during a further investigation of Derry, Lorien had a mishap. I asked him to scout the cemetery, but apparently he was ambushed. The rest of us then proceeded to the cemetery to discover what happened to him and ended up in a pitched battle with both broodlings and their ghouled servants. It was a near thing, but we managed to overcome those who had been left to occupy us. The rest had managed to wrest from Lorien’s mind the location of the haven we had in Derry.

I assumed, correctly mind you, that they would then attack it, so we retreated to a backup haven of which Lorien had no knowledge of prior to being questioned by the brood. Brenna managed to get word to Tessa, who had been assigned the task of looking after the primary haven, so that she could evacuate herself and what of our belongings she might be able to grab on the way out.

Soon after, the brood again ambushed members of the coterie. This time was Shawn and Brenna, who had been hunting together. While Shawn frenzied publicly, Brenna was taken down. However, the brood assassin was nonetheless stopped. Perhaps it was fate, though. Shawn, in his mad flight across the city, found the last, most secret haven used by the brood and brought word of what he’d seen to us when he reunited with the coterie.

We had, at that time, been investigating some information that had fallen into our hands. Namely, we were checking the flats of some brood ghouls, one of which was left in a gruesome state, with the ghoul still alive but slowly dying. I tried to question him and even offer him mercy. But clearly, he was lost to the ways of the Brood of Belial. We left him to face his fate alone.

Tessa and Trina’s new exotic dancing routine has made them popular, but of course this has raised crowd expectations. They try to live up to their opening act, enhanced as it was by Brenna’s magic, but they have fallen a bit short. None the less no one can deny they are attractive and skilled. I think that it is good to provide them with this goal to pursue.

Moira, as I understand it, has taken up a job as well as a professional escort. I know that she has a very strong libido and I hope that doesn’t get her into trouble since I think that the particular escort service she is now working for has certain standards. Apparently, they are not whores.

I captured a broodling in my neighborhood and immediately remanded him to Aife’s custody. Where she puts these dangerous prisoners, I have no idea. But they are off the street. And the truth is, many of them don’t survive my techniques to capture them. It’s hard to feel guilty about that, given what they are.

In Derry, Shawn and Brenna discovered that a local Kindred was under siege by the brood that had overrun the area. They have thus far avoided invading his place, though at that time I didn’t know why that was.

We discovered where a brood meeting was to be held. We surveyed the junkyard and prepared. I was able to disrupt their planned ritual and sacrifice, and Moira got the prisoner free while I went to aid the rest of the coterie in dealing with the brood. I had, by that time, already dispatched what I thought to be the leaders of this particular ceremony with Moira’s aid and scared off their ghouled servants.

Ultimately, Brenna was badly injured. She was taken by a Kindred resident and brought to Hal, who raised her to consciousness from torpor. I wasn’t very happy with that little event as it seemed a political move on Hal’s part to begin making inroads on our coterie. I don’t take kindly to any external influence of our members, save for Aife’s.

Ian was taken away as a corpse by the PSNI and brought to the morgue, but I retrieved him and sent him home to recover on his own. Aife found a replacement for him, or at least someone who could fill in while Ian recovered from torpor. He was a Nos named Lorien. Interesting fellow.

Soon after the first Brood cell was wiped out, the Circle affirmed Moira and Brenna’s status as Acolytes and welcomed Shawn as a voterie. Later, I revealed ambitions to Aife to become Guardian of Belfast and of the coterie. She accepted my appointment as such but first tested me against the entire Coterie. It was a long test in which they used fire to prevent me from achieving the conclusion of the test, but ultimately I did prevail.

We also received word of a Brood cell active in Derry, and what few Kindred might be there were under siege. It was time to lift this siege and liberate the Kindred there. However, much reconnaissance was necessary and unfortunately our preparations took a good deal of time.

In the meanwhile I executed a theft of a comic book for the crime boss, MacMasters. I used Tessa and Trina in this and met with good success. We even attempted to make the victim’s life a bit better. He might never even notice the loss since we replaced it with a counterfeit. MacMasters was pleased and agreed to toss some jobs my way from time to time.

Then Brenna did something unexpected. She helped my Tessa and Trina, making them exceptionally alluring with her supernatural powers. They both then launched an exotic dancing career together and were received extremely well. I was surprised by this because Brenna had displayed jealousy over my spending time with them and certainly did not enjoy entertaining the thought of me having sex with them. Of their own volition, they purchased Brenna a beautiful dress as a thank you.

Reconnaissance in Derry then led to an encounter with a pair of Brood that were tormenting a mortal. Brenna and I engaged them and dispatched them, but narrowly avoided being spotted by the police. I led them away from the scene in a car chase. I ended it by driving the care off a bridge and leaping free. It was a narrow escape but it did work. On the way back on foot, I encountered a werewolf for the first time on my own. It seems he was more curious than hostile, however.

At this point, the team assembled for the mission. Veronica’s had a ghoul whose purse had been taken by a Brood cell and she was fearful what they might learn from her servant. After blessings granted by Aife, we assembled and descended upon the brood, splitting into two groups.

One group consisted of Brenna and Ian, where were less adept in a fight and they were to verify whether a neighboring house were occupied by Brood ghouls and if so, neutralize them. Well, they did the neutralizing, though I’m not all that sure there were any Brood ghouls. But they survived and that’s always a positive.

The rest of were reinforced with Brannigan, a local fighting Kindred, and Catherine, a nutty but cute little Venture Kindred. We hit the main house pretty hard. Our plan was to gang up on individual brood members and take each one down with maximum speed and efficiency. We essentially mowed through them very rapidly, ending with a confrontation with the elder. I ran him down and confused him within a swathe of darkness under my command when Catherine display unusual kindness in her request to allow Shawn to have the kill. I let Shawn have him.

The cell was thus terminated. Once again we bore witness to the depravities the Brood inflicted upon their human victims — this need not be detailed here, but know that it was truly horrible. The elder had the ability to drain vitae from a group of victims remotely and with horrid results for the victims.

We did recover the purse of the ghoul servant that belonged to Veronica. She was a mousy, scared little woman and she had right to be. Veronica intended to punish her for allowing herself to be assault and the purse taken. It seemed to be the last straw by Veronica’s reaction, or perhaps she just didn’t react to failure well.

I had intimate relations with Brenna. By that I mean sex. It was… unusual. Brenna is a very strange creature, herself. Alluring yet with an unsettling air about her. In short I could not resist what was offered me. Perhaps it was a mistake, for she takes the offering of herself extremely seriously. But I have to admit the sex was very good for someone as unaccustomed to it as she was. I remember thinking this could be very interesting. That turned out to be a vast understatement — but that’s another story for later.

I assisted the coterie in their investigations. A girl had been kidnapped by a local terrorist group and we went digging for clues, only to run into some Red Hand Defenders. They were defeated fairly handily, of course and information gleaned. This led to a location of a party and we practically walked in on an assassination. It didn’t really concern me; one bad person being offed by another. Only in this case the assassin was female and had used sex to get close to her quarry, then shot him in the head. Actually, she turned out to be quite pleasant and cooperative. She gave us the address where a kidnap victim was being held. We turned it into the police for reward money, and the local military got the credit and the glory for saving the daughter of a bishop. It was a public relations coupe for the British, really.

And we were a bit richer for it. All in all, a profitable and useful evening.

I was able to finally meet with Veronica shortly after that. she had a bit of a problem with a ghoul of hers having been assaulted and her purse taken by a Brood cell and we agreed to help her with it. I must say, she too is quite beautiful. How is it I am so fortunate that I am surrounded by such lovely women? I thought the hammer would fall sooner or later, and eventually it did. But that is a story yet to come.

During this time I achieved regnancy over Tessa and Trina. They are convinced they are in love with me; such is the power of the Blood. But they are most malleable now and I continue their training. It is a busy life to try to counter all the evils of a city overrun by Brood and worse as well as train mortal henchmen, but it must be done.

As part of my plan of increasing influence over my own neighborhood and neighboring ones, I began to prowl the streets and put down criminals who bothered me or folks who had to live on the streets. I don’t suffer scavengers or parasites.

In February, I took part in rituals of the Circle of the Crone for the first time. While not a full member, Aife still has me charged as protector. I oversee things more than I participate, but I do find them fascinating. There is more to the Circle than just Kindred; a large portion of the pagan flock is made up of young people around college age.

It was about this time that we discovered an item hidden by Duff. It appears to be the heart of his sire, still possessed of her soul. It seems he had a point to his ruthless and cruel tortures; he was trying to find a way to bring his sire back full into the world rather than being forced to continue to languish in a slowly rotting piece of meat. It is unknown whether his Sire had fallen to the same desperate path to power that Duff had. In fact, nothing at all is known about her.

I also had my first encounter with an agent from London, someone who claimed to represent the Empress’ (so she styled herself) interests. Although Brenna had panicked and frenzied at the sight of the wolf-dog, I was able to hold her long enough to allow her to regain her composure. She apparently has a particular hatred of wolves. I sent her along to Bunnies, the club Tessa and Trina have begun working at. It was a strip club and Brenna was quite lost there, but I didn’t realize that until later.

The meeting went well enough. He called himself The Hessian and we came to terms on how to get messages back and forth to each other via tying a ribbon upon a particular tree in a park.

In pursuit of knowledge, Ian and others of the coterie had Duff re-awakened. I was not present, being informed that they could handle it. Apparently, they very nearly were overpowered by him, even in his weakened state. Perhaps they will take it as a lesson that caution is wiser than bravado, but I doubt it. I also doubt they learned much of significance from him, but I would like to be wrong on that point.

I was given a new task during this event by Aife to track down a survivor of the slaughter of the ruling Kindred last year. Her name is Veronica and is thought to be the one member of my Clan present in the town. I was eager to locate her, and eventually was able to discover a contact, a lawyer, through whom I might meet her. I set up a meeting date, then continued my expansion of influence through the Ardoyne and North Ardoyne areas.

In so doing, I took it upon myself to clear up an irritating problem. The local drug gang kept shooting at our new haven. It was time to meet with their leader and straighten things out. Via my new contacts on the street, I found the nearest heroin house. Moira and I investigated and found a very cooperative young female drug addict. She told us everything we wanted to know in exchange for a bit of sex, of which Moira and I were happy to partake with her.

This led us to Trent. He was at a local underground fight and I met with him, explained that Duff’s gang was out and I was in place now, and didn’t want trouble. Thanks to Brenna’s gift, which somehow made me far more personable to people than I usually come off, he agreed. In fact, I even made an impression upon the local crime boss, MacMasters.