dear_mun | Canon is Vampire The Masquerade Bloodlines

I'll take that as a compliment. Was yours also hand selected for her leadership skills and dedication to public service?

Good, that's how it was meant. --Hmm, does it count if she selected herself?

Then, thank you. I suppose it does, although it is much harder to be objective about yourself, isn't it.

I haven't had the pleasure of an introduction. I'm Sebastian LaCroix. And you?

Well, I can't deny that. Gov did have to ratify her claim before they let her found the freehold, though, so at least someone out there found her fit to lead.

I'm Devero, lately of Valdana's Freehold. It's a pleasure, Mx. LaCroix.

...Freehold? You're a changeling? [That amuses the mun, at least, which is always the most important thing.] How large is this freehold?

Yes, the, pleasure is mine, Devero. In either case, you aren't Kindred, so there's no need to stand on formality, you can call me Sebastian.

[This mun is amused too, but dear Dev is canon-blind.] A what? I am a hi-tek, but if I'm a changeling, no one's seen fit to inform me.

Sebastian, then, and I'm starting to get a feeling that I'm missing something here. 'Kindred' is new to me as well.

It isn't often in this place that I'm completely out of my depth, but we can trade vocabulary all night, if you'd like. What's a hi-tek?

I don't know much about changeling society, only the basics (and even then, with the way our various communities interact, a goodly amount of that is likely exaggerated). Kindred, however, are what the general public refers to as 'vampires'. But I gather your freehold is something else entirely.

Sounds like fun to me. [Seriously. There's a nerd in there under the muscles.] It means I have a lot of metal under my skin-- [Psst, Dev - simpler.] That is, I'm a cyborg.

...And you're a vampire. [Hoo boy. He wasn't expecting that.] Ah-- no, when I say freehold I just mean a small community, where most of the residents are united by something-- a goal, an ideology, something like that. What do you mean by it?

I see. I shall reserve the more probing questions for when I know you better, if at all...? Unless you aren't particularly sensitive about it.

Yes. You could never tell from looking, I even breathe unnecessarily. You don't last long if you can't emulate the kine, they tend to be understandably murderous, when they discover us.

If you don't mind my saying so, without seeing it, it sounds like a society that would work much better than many others... how do you handle law enforcement? From what I know, it's just a refuge of kidnap victims who share a common abductor. But the Good Folk keep away from my kind, for the most part, and we return that favor.

Oh, no, please, ask away-- I'm former World Guard, my cyborg Implants are standard-issue. And like I said, I'm hi-tek; I wanted to be augmented.

The kine-- I'm guessing that means non-vampires. Humans? ...You...feed on humans?

I hear things were a lot less... civilized, back when there were billions of people on the planet. But that was hundreds of years ago. Law enforcement, that would be the Guard. We-- they have jurisdiction almost everywhere. ...Sounds like your freeholds would benefit from dropping a line to the World Guard, if they had it; where I'm from, Gov doesn't tolerate shit like that.

I wasn't certain if you'd had some kind of injury. Where and when I'm from, concepts like cybernetic implants are still in their infancy, and applied solely in the medical field. But you elected to these procedures... was it for humanitarian reasons, or mercenary ones? (In my experience there are not many other reasons to do anything).

Unavoidably, we do, yes. That is how we perpetuate our post-death existence. But it isn't necessary to kill them, when we do. A discreet, intelligent Kindred can feed without leaving more than an addled memory of a pleasant sensation and a five minute gap in a human's awareness.

I should hope a very brutal form of justice is practiced on those who can be proven perpetrators, but I am myself an adjudicator of laws, so I suppose I'm biased.

Edited 2019-04-24 19:43 (UTC)

That's a little cynical, don't you think? I joined up because my teachers said it would be a good fit, and I would be able to do a lot of good as a Guard. Help people, protect people. ...Which I suppose counts as a humanitarian reason.

Would I be wrong in guessing that there are indiscreet, unintelligent Kindred, then? What reason otherwise would people-- humans-- have to want to kill your kind?

Heh, spoken like a true lawfolk. Are you a judge of some kind, then?

Only a little? I see, so your authority figures put you on the path - without knowing more about it, I can hardly pass judgment on it. But you sound contented, which is a good sign.

You see? If you were motivated by the desire to bully others into submission to feed an ever-hungering insecurity in yourself, I would classify that as mercenary. How old are you?

Mmm, unintelligent, uninformed, and depraved. This is why we enforce rigorous --'birthing' methods to make more of our kind. No one pro-social wants vampiric serial killers running around slaughtering humans, but unfortunately not every Kindred thinks humanity is worth preserving or living invisibly alongside. My sect wages a quiet war with the Sabbat, whose primary goal is the enslavement of humankind, to use as literal cattle.

I don't expect ordinary humans to bother discriminating between us, but I find the hunters' bloodlust for our extermination a bit disturbing.

I am a Prince. I enforce the Traditions of a given domain which I command, and exchange security and safety for Kindred with obedience to my opinions on legal matters, yes.

I suppose it might be overbearing, to someone like yourself, but we the adjudicators could do little without the strong arm, like yourself, agreeing with our methods.

Edited 2019-04-25 12:35 (UTC)

I am. [Now, anyway. ...Mostly.]

Mm, I do see what you mean. I met my fair share of folks in the Guard who were in it for the wrong reasons-- like being a Guard gives them some right to control the civs instead of just the privilege to serve them. --I'm thirty-eight, why do you ask?

As cattle? Charming. Sounds like humans where you come from are lucky to have your--sect? --between them and these Sabbat. And I thought we-- that is, the Guard-- had their hands full with the ludds.

Personally, I find bloodlust in general is a bit disturbing, but I've been told I can be a bit of a prig about that. [SHRUG CITY.]

A Prince, eh? No offense intended, but isn't that kind of...archaic?

--No, that's hardly overbearing; there's no point in even having laws without appropriate enforcement, now is there?

I'm surprised, honestly. Few people can say they are. And it looks as though our muns are planning for the worst, but I can't say that surprises me.

I suppose because you seem mature. Young by our standards, but older by the human ones.

You could say so, yes. When we're not at each other's throats, we do good work. Is it a stretch to assume 'ludds' are a protest group who oppose your hi-teks?

I try to avoid it, yes. Blood calls for more blood, and it never ends.

No offense taken; I promise you it is more of a democratic role, despite the name. I have at any given time representatives of each clan - often six, in this case five - called Primogen, who must approve of my decisions. I keep them happy, and everything proceeds smoothly. If they are not happy, progress grinds to a halt and I can do nothing.

Le sens commun n'est pas si commun, Devero. But I'm glad to see you think so.

Oh good, I was worried it was just mine. I don't mind being put through my paces, but you'd think there would be a line here somewhere.

I can't decide if I should take that as a compliment or not. Although I wonder if folks where I come from live longer than you're used to; I certainly wouldn't call myself 'older'.

Ooh, some in-fighting, then? What is this group of yours called? --Heh, more like they protest everything the World Government stands for. We let them do their own thing as much as we can, but they can't seem to let us alone to do ours.

...No, it never fucking does, does it?

And that, in turn, provides some incentive to keep them happy. And they work to keep their clans happy, in turn, I suppose?

It really isn't, that's the truth. Some things must be universal.

You would, wouldn't you.

Ventrue are master of the double edged compliment, but that one was sincere. In my lifetime, the expectancy was under 30. Now, it's 76-80 for kine. My people can live forever, provided there is no ...misadventure. You understand why even here, I am reluctant to be explicit about what would kill us, I hope.

Your augmentation helps extend your life, I imagine.

We are the Camarilla. It's complicated, and I don't want to bore you, but the simple overview is that there are three more "noble" clans in our society who have different ideas about rulership, and three lesser clans who have different ideas about being ruled over. It makes for a great deal of friction.

I see... Protestors are useful, if only to inform you about where your public policy might be adjusted, but you aren't empowered to change policy, so I can see why it may be frustrating.

Precisely. Provided they aren't interested solely in preserving their own skins. As you can probably attest in your own world, we strive toward an ideal, and meanwhile make due with reality.

Getting familiar, are we? --But it's hard not to in a situation like this, when I can taste what you're thinking, mun. [What. I'm thirsty.]

Of course. No need to expose a weakness unnecessarily. Only 80, though? Things are certainly better than that where I am, between our Implants and just... improving things, everything from before. Most folks reach 140, 150 easy, as long as something external doesn't take them out.

Hmm. That does sound complicated. Then again, when isn't there friction when you have different groups all vying to share control over something?

I just wish they'd leave us alone, since our public policy is to ~~respect their terrible life choices~~ let them do their own thing. But you're right, it's not up to me to try and figure out how to deal with ludds. I'm no politician.

...Hah. Well, doesn't that hit the nail on the head?

If you don't have a care, doubtless they'll have us getting familiar with one another. I can't blame mine - the Kiss is intimate, there isn't much getting around it. [Thirsty, indeed.]

I'm glad we agree. I admit, it is of little consequence to me, positive or negative, how long the kine live. So long as they do so happily and without knowledge of our existence, I am doing my duty well.

And I wouldn't want to wipe them all out just for disagreeing with me, either. I feel one of my Primogen has that course in mind.

What do they do, instead of leaving you alone?

The Kiss-- you mean feeding, don't you...?

That's part of your role, then? To keep your Kindred under humanity's radar?

Good. That way lies autocracy, and no one needs that kind of archaic bullshit-- except your autocrat in the making, I suppose. I hope you've got something in mind to nip that in the bud?

What else? They attack. They raid our agricultural facilities, attack reclamation sites, try to trap resource scouts and exploratory teams; they've even gone after conservation officials and naturalists in the field! They're convinced we're going to kidnap their citizens and steal their resources, or something equally paranoid and ridiculous.

Edited 2019-04-27 23:44 (UTC)

Yes. I don't have to guess how pleasurable it is for humans, I've experienced it, I think that's quite important. Your blood isn't in any way compromised thanks to your mechanical aspects, is it?

Precisely. We call it the Masquerade. As the city's Prince, I am responsible for upholding the rules most conducive to maintaining humanity's ignorance of us. This includes not making new 'vampires' carelessly, as they frequently attack humans for grudges held in their lifetimes, out of hunger or plain confusion and fear, and so on. If someone wishes to take the life of a mortal and turn them into one of us, they must seek my permission. Anyone failing to do this is killed, to stop them rampantly army building.

(Of course the Anarchs complain that this is persecution, but if they weren't so busy whinging, they might have asked for my permission and received it already)

Strauss is a very difficult case. At the risk of sounding impolitic, the Tremere were only allowed into the Camarilla because we were afraid to tell them no. They are far from popular or trustworthy, as a body, though individuals can be highly meritorious.

And they have sufficient food and resources of their own? They can survive, or thrive, without needing to interact with your sites and facilities?

Your world is very different sounding, I mean no accusation by these questions. Forgive me if they are somewhat ignorant, I seek only a better understanding.

Not unless I've just had a nanotreament, I don't think-- ...Hnh, I just distinctly heard the mun say "It wouldn't be very fun if it was, now would it?" I suppose that answers that.

Hmm. Well, I can see why someone might chafe at having to obtain permission from one person to perpetuate their kind, it sounds like you, at least, allow yourself to be kept accountable and not-- well, turn into an autocrat. And as kine, I can certainly appreciate checks put into place to keep my kind safe from yours--

Not that I think there are anything like Kindred where I come from. Just, hypothetically.

You can be impolitic with me; there's no possible way I can have any kind of impact on the state of things where you come from. Not from this place. What makes them so scary?

You're fine. I know things were very, very different even where I come from, before the Pathogen brought everyone together. It doesn't surprise me that it's different from my world to yours as well.

Ludds have everything they need out there, if they would just put in the work to take advantage of it. It's not like there's any shortage of resources available. There are outsider communities that do just fine and somehow manage to leave us alone entirely, unless they're reaching out to us for trade or we're buying scrap off of them or something. And the stuff they try to steal from us? We would give it to them freely if they would just ask. That's the part I really can't understand.

Good. My clan in particular has certain... intolerances. You might consider them allergic reactions. (And I should hate to be so uncivil as to vomit on my rescuer, as well).

While reproduction is the automatic right of all living beings, Kindred are - unnatural, you see? I don't mean to say we have no right to be on Earth, that's the line of the hunters. But we must take care that our spread does not threaten our resources, and consequently ourselves, more than other creatures.

(I would say "can you be certain" but your level of technology might make it easier to detect a walking corpse.)

Unlike the rest of us, hypothetically descended from a single line, the Tremere did not have their 'vampirism' traditionally given them. They diablerized - that is to say, they murdered and consumed - a different line in order to steal their immortality. Since then they have done little but arcane and distressing magic, including experimenting on other clans to create races of servitors, and so on.

If the Camarilla had not accepted them, they would have become our enemies, and we can ill afford such a foe. That is politics, unfortunately.

Pathogen? That sounds suitably ominous... Typhus? Trench fever?

'Put in the work', hmm? Interesting. I will say those who are too proud to ask for help and resent it when freely given are some of the most impossible to work with. I sympathize.

...It never would have occurred to me that vampires could have food allergies. (Please, Sebastian, that's natural; no need to moralize a biological function as civil or uncivil.)

I do see. I suppose there's only so far my, er, living existence maps to your unliving one.

(I'm pretty sure said walking corpse's Implant would be losing its little electronic mind. That said, who knows what's going on outside of Gov?)

While I can't say I really understand the particulars, I can see the shape of the thing. Talk about a rock and a hard place. [Devero knows about those.]

So your kind have...magic? [He's a sci-fi boy, that's way outside his realm of experience.]

Influenza. A pandemic one. Billions of people died.

Thanks. It's validating that someone from somewhere so different to my world can still get it.

There's much we do and don't do, and much of what hollywood puts forth is deliberate misinformation about our habits. While I'm grateful for the sentiment, any Ventrue finds such biological functions mortifying. We must be above these displays.

It's best to remember certain things can only exist in metaphor, yes.

What do you mean, there are places your world-police-state doesn't see into?

Yes, it is a mess. But while we have so many external enemies, we can ill afford to make more. At least the werewolves are currently critically endangered, soon to be extinct.

'Magic', the 'supernatural', some might say the very act of corpse regeneration is magical. It's something science doesn't know how to explain yet, so it is outside the realms of the language to encompass, as well, beyond these country bumpkin terms.

Billions. That's incredible. Your infrastructure must have been almost destroyed...

Canon is Vampire The Masquerade Bloodlines

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