Katherine Morrison, Chapter 1, by Kenneth Melvin Katherine Morrison, Chapter 2, by Kenneth Melvin Suzana Miller, by Yanick Champoux
"A bound is set to our knowing, and wisdom is not to search beyond it. Men are only men."
Mary Renault
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Katherine Morrison, Chapter 1, by Kenneth Melvin Katherine Morrison, Chapter 2, by Kenneth Melvin Suzana Miller, by Yanick Champoux
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There are indeed things that go bump in the night. Never believe otherwise. How quiet sleeps the innocent minds in their beds, never knowing what horrour snatches at their existence. The stuff of terrible legends and forgotten dreams, vampires, werewolves, malevolent ghosts, and ancient nature spirits still live, feeding off the life force of innocent men, women, and yes - especially the children. Evil finds the lives of the innocent the sweetest. How many murders or disappearances have an even greater horrour lying beneath the surface of such tragedies. Pierce this veil into a world of madness - a world of darkness - a world of despair. Few who venture into this world return, and of these, fewer still can claim a semblance of sanity.
But because of the sacrifice of a brave few, who know the truth of the night's whispers, and who still dare venture out - it is because of them, these Hunters of Darkness, that we can sleep and pretend that the world is as safe and normal as our parents once told us. Come, walk the path into darkness. Keep a tight grip on your sanity when you feel it slowly slipping from you. Though you might loose in the end, others will take up your quest. You, have come to take back the night. Who hunts the hunters? - You do.
The Mortal chronicle deals with the Hunters of some sort. They will be either seekers of knowledge such as the Arcanum or Watchers; or those seeking to destroy evil incarnate, such as the members of the Legacy or the Society of Leopold, etc; or a little of both, such as government F.B.I. agents sent to investigate both the paranormal and the cults that interact them. There are strange reports from Watsonville, where supposedly slain gang members are seen fighting on other nights, murderers that stalk by night preying upon the homeless but leaving no trace except a missing person whose name was never known, strange rituals in the mountains involving animal and possibly human sacrifice, a cult of fanatics setting up a church in town, livestock slaughtered by savage beasts that are only half seen in moonlight, homes reporting paranormal activity, or if it is to be believed, actual ghosts who beseech them for aid, and a rash appearance of decapitated bodies that the local authorities have hushed up. Perhaps your character is a victim of Vampire hunger or a Werewolf's rage. Perhaps she is curious or has stumbled onto something that has intrigued her. Perhaps, having talent, he has been recruited by one of the aforementioned groups. How will you face the darkness and unknown?
Though it is not a prerequisite, many of the possible mortal characters are assumed to be hunters of some sort. What is required of a mortal concept is that the character has the motivation and ability to interact with the World of Darkness. They are not just everyday Janes and Joes, but they are people who've had extraordinary experiences, insights and/or opportunities and who've acted on them. Though you are not restricted to these groups, nevertheless, the following organizations will be the most commonly encountered. {Any character from these organizations should have a high resource and possibly a high contact rating to reflect membership resources not available to the general public. (Note: If you have the rulebooks for "The Halls of the Arcanum", "The Hunters Hunted", or "Project Twilight", please note that certain conceptual changes will be made from the way these organizations operate and the individuals who make up their hierarchy. But we'll discuss that more when it comes time to make up your preludes.)}
The Arcanum: The local main Arcanum chapter is headquartered at the Rosecrucian Egyptian Museum in San Jose, near the border with Santa Clara. It is a very old body of mystics, scholars and adventurers who have banded together to learn all they can about the denizens of the World of Darkness. Other than collecting information, the Arcanum forbids interference with said denizens. Knowledge is an end to itself and it is said that some Arcanum members have found ways to extend their lifespans through alchemical means largely resulting from their research. However, the Arcanum is not without its rivals. Long ago, rejecting the notion that Immortals were of any significane, the Watchers split off from the Arcanum before much of recorded history. Many Arcanum members do not even know of their existence, nor would they care. But, it is a different matter with the Legacy. Back in the 18th century, Arcanum members who rejected the purity of knowledge and who sought to fight the powers they were witness to rather than learn from them split away and formed what eventually was to become the Legacy. Legacy Chapter Houses, organized exactly like Arcanum Chapter were formed, not to learn from the supernatural world - but to destroy it - utterly. Though other hunters, like the Society of Leopold, have existed - they are rejected as minor organizations, whose impact is minimal. But having been born from their own organization, the Arcanum views the Legacy, fueled with the tools of centuries of acumulated knowledge - as a threat and an unparalleled rival that is to be thwarted and destroyed by every means - even by the sacrifice of the lives of Arcanum members.
The Bloods: Meeting in the former church on Washington St. that by day is the African American Cultural Center, the Bloods are an informal group of hunters who stalk the night, acting as protectors of the common man. They will hunt down any suspected creature of the night and have found good fuel for their activities in the nearby area. Originally composed of young African American men, the Bloods have since matured into an organization which accepts all races, creeds and sexes into its ranks. The Bloods have to be wary of their activities; not only from the foul fiends they hunt, but also of the police and other authorities, who are suspicious of their activities. Two of the Bloods original members are in San Quentin Prison, having being convicted of 1st degree murder charges. These "brothers" face their long sentences with the conviction that they are soldiers to a higher cause and theirs is a burden to be borne. The Bloods know of the existence of other groups of hunters - but view them with extreme distrust as elitist gatherers of knowledge to only pretend to destroy; but who would rather sit back and let grunts like the Bloods do the dirty work. But that's fine with the Bloods. In fact - that's how they like it. Who can you trust but your own? Come take the Blood Initiation and stalk the night.
F.B.I. The Federal Bureau of Investigation has a special division devoted to paranormal research. Disbanded for a time, this secret division has been revived and has received more funding and personnel than at any time during its existence. The code name for the organization is "Project Twilight." Locally, its nearest field operatives are based in Monterey, San Francisco and Los Angeles.
The Legacy (Societas Albae Viae Eternitata - aka S.A.V.E.) is an organization of hunters which split off from the Arcanum long ago, frustrated by the evil they had witnessed and the unwillingness of the Arcanum to defy it. Though only dating back to the late 18th century, Legacy Chapter houses have resources and textual files that rival those of the Arcanum. Indeed, the organization started when several disgruntled Arcanum members left, unhappy with the Arcanum's do nothing attitude about what these members saw as evil incarnate. Entire chapter houses defected, taking their precious stores of knowledge with them. This resulted in a civil war between the groups that still continues, albeit secretly and often with more subtler means. The Legacy has organized its members into chapter houses, just like the Arcanum. But unlike the Arcanum, Legacy volunteers make it a full time career of hunting creatures of the night; and many vampires (including one supposed Antidiluvian and three Methuselahs), werewolves (entire septs), mummies, demons, gargoyles, immortals and magi have been destroyed by this organization, though not without cost. Legacy members have given their lives so that their fellow men could walk the night without fear from evil shadows. Men and Women from all walks of life, law enforcement, scholars, upper class gentry, etc have all banded together to fight evil incarnate. The Legacy trains its investigators very well before sending them into the field and usually more inexperienced investigators are teamed with their more learned colleagues, who are the leaders of the team. Their U.S. headquarters is in Arkham Massachusetts. The Legacy knows of other hunter groups, both formal, like the Society of Leopold, and informal local groups. The former is seen as a group of religious fanatics - and the latter are discountable as unorganized and uneducated rabble, more dangerous to themselves than to the Darkness they propose to fight.
The Society of Leopold: This organization was born out of the fires of the Spanish Inquisition. Though open to all crusaders, most Society members are of a strictly Catholic Christian background. This organization is fanatical in its pursuit and destruction of creatures of the night and its members can be found everywhere throughout the Western world. A member has recently arrived in Santa Cruz to assess whether the area is worthy of greater attention. His name is Father Antonio and he is the new head parish priest at Holy Cross Church. Though the Society shares many of the same goals as other hunters, it guards its secrets by pain of excommunication and, death if need be. No others are to be trusted as all have private agendas to pursue - and any who know about evil and who will not act openly and forcefully against it are as bad as the evil itself - and are to be treated accordingly. Have you not heard the call? Come and join the Crusade. You will be the Hand of Justice and the body of Righteous Vengence.
The Watchers: Long ago, during the time of the advent of the great civilizations - in a time when the supernaturals walked freely among men - as much as gods to these primitives - there was born among mere mortals those who could not die - the Immortals. The Arcanum - then known by a different name - studied these immortals for many centures; but at a great meeting it ultimately rejected the idea that these beings were anything but an aberation - unworthy of further consideration. Those Arcanum brethren whose lives were devoted to studying the immortals, knew otherwise. They knew that the immortals had been sent to earth for a higher purpose - to fight among themselves until only one champion remained; and that that champion would then decide the purpose and fate of all mankind. Rejecting the dictates of the Arcanum Concordat, these brethren, who had called themselves the Wathers, formed their own organization dedicated solely to the observation and study of the immortals. Like the Arcanum, they were forbidden to interfere or even to make themselves known - fearing that it would affect the outcome of which immortal should win the Prize. The Watchers are concerned with only one thing - which immortal will win the Prize. In time, they have forgotten about the organization from which they were born - nor would they care. They know to what path fate has set them - the most important of all. For there can be only one - and the Watchers must know who it is and who to deal with this immortal when the Prize is won.