Credits Written bys Justin Achilli, Kraig Blackwelder, Brian Campbell, Will Hindmarch and Ari Marmell. Vampire and the ‘World of Darkness created by Mark Rein* Hagen Storyteller Game System Design: Mark Rein* Hagen Developed by: Justin Achill Eaitor: John “Superintendent Chalmers" Chambers ‘Art Director: Richard "Goed Lord!” Thomas Layout & Typesetting: Ron Thompson Interior Art: Mike Danza, Guy Davis, Rebecca Guay, Vince Locke, Mate Mitchell, Chriscopher Shy, Richard Thomas and Andy Trabbold Front & Back Cover Design: Ron Thompson. © 2002 White Wolf Publishing, Inc. All rights reserved. Reproduction without the written permission of the publisher is expressly forbidden, except for the purposes of reviews, and for blank character sheets, which may be reproduced for personal use only. White Wolf, Vampire, Vampire the Masquerade, Mage the Ascension, Hunter the Reckoning, World of Darkness and Aber rantare registered trademarks of White Wolf Publishing, Inc. All rights reserved. Dark Ages Vampire, Werewolf the Apocalypse Wraith the Oblivion, Changeling the Dreaming, Werewolf the Wild Wese, Maze the Sorcerers Crusade, Wraith the Great War, Trinity, Guide to the Camarilla, Guide to the Sabbat and Victo: rian Age Vampire are trademarks of White Wolf Publishing, Inc. Allright reserved. All characters, names ind text herein opyrighted by White Wolf Publishing, The mention of or reference to any company or product in these pages is not a challenge to the trademark or copyright concemed. This book uses the supernatural for settings, characters and themes. All mystical and supernatural elements are fiction and intended for entertainment purposes only. This book contains mature content. Reader discretion is advised. For a free White Wolf catalog, call 1-800-454-WOLF Check out White Wolf online at heep://wwwawhite-wolf.com; alt.games.whitewolf and rec games frp storyteller PRINTED IN CANADA. (504 LITTON DR STONE MOUNTAIK, CACay ee AW I | Kh AR Table of Contents Drelude: The Turning of Adam, or Innocence Conquered Chapter One: The Empire After Nightfall Chapter Two: The Clans } Chapter Three: Characters \ Chapter Four: Chasing Sunset Chapter Five: Storytelling Chapter Six: AntagonistsPrelude: The Turning of Adam, ~ or Innocence Copquere¢ i gD Leas in the Alfa te pai and’ roarh fi ur & theados soa fiom Craumstance, He T be rebwrrad te Reider. 1s ad reall a partially oe: salon, ad Oo Tah ry aria, Ye Aid saabapss of the fare, fa ae Li wolore rgb & ip ye ieee lan pr i ting ed iitldy Fe al ie aie age Dee iat, uch was Yay di & ade iyaty of the nighetew hours, Teall ec nioee, (hp bata stbostil b has? Bina cng Boon oe BZ Sigg) feet aig Pe oe ns paasents of - Hadllor: had net boon bom: A ee worst ender storm was ae Cine Tees A ag msselagigled te sua tip the ares Sunni shag to Styria three Tas returning, < aThrough a proxy, I had arranged lodging in the private residence of some aged and country-bound minor lord named Trobury who no longer found the journey to London worth his while. These fine apartments, while more than comfortable, were decidedly removed from any major thoroughfares, being iborhood that had, evidently, seen a notable reversal of in recent years. Lacking proper upkeep, the buildings along that and other nearby streets evinced a pronounced shabbiness, even in the wan illumination of the gaslights. The street lacked anything resembling a whole: some character, a fact that troubled me noe atall. Neither rake nor doxy posed any threat to my welfare, hough Iwas likely, in the fullnessof time, topose one to theirs All the came, ifone sets up one's situation soas to be entirely insulated from the very possiblity of danger, then one has already been bested by the circumstances of existence and may as well acknowledge as much and be buried with all due ceremony. From my pocket, I produced the key to the door of my new sanctuary. In correspondence with my proxy, Ihad been most particular with regard to my lodgings, particularly certain of the more... unusual elements. I walked around the squat tower to insure thateverything was in onder, The place was at once simple, solid and unassuming. As I had been careful to stipulate, sc was built quite sturdily of stone. Alluding to London's aggressive criminal element, | had requested that all of the pointed Gothic windows be boarded up before my arrival in the interest of my personal security. From without, the place looked rather like the tower of a prison or an abandoned fortress. ‘The exterior meeting with my approval, | unlocked the enormous oaken door. The single oil lamp | had requested burned dimly, barely banishing the shadows to their corners. Taking it up, I toured my new rooms. The various chambers were s0 luxuriously appointed as to verge on the Dionysian. Silk and velvet were the only fabrics in evidence. Blocking the view of the boards, the sharply arched stained-glass windows were exquisitely wrought, and should J evertire of lookingat thera, I could pull the heavy velvet draperies. Every color in thar room was. rich and deep as nature allowed, and the room was beautiful, hough the walls were so busy with draperies, tapestries and queer old paintingsas to renderallof the roomsatouch claustrophobic. The large stand-upmirrorin the boudoironly served to multiply the sensual richness of the room, Acer abit of necessary settling in, Idonned my capeand went back out into the night. There was much to do in this old, new city AsI made for busier and brighter streets, itseemed as though I was walking a gauntlet of whores. They lingered in doorways and rippled into and cut of alleyways like cats, frequently shadowed by the ne:vous looking men they entertained. One young and tender strumpethad the temerity to block my path. “Dressed right nicely you are, guy. Too nice for these parts. Lookin’ for somethin’, I'd say. Care to give ita toss?" [feigned bashfulness, saredalcernacely ac the ground andatherbosom, and she became bolder and took my hand. “Y'r‘and’s cold, guv.” “I'm sure you could warm it for me, my dear. “Aye, I'msure to0. I‘ave a nice warm alley | can show you right over ‘ere, if you'd care to follow me. Get your ‘and real warm like.”present myselseemed to banish the constant fog, the soot and the despair for which London was known. It was along such streets that the haves gathered with other haves to discuss the filthy and uneducated have-nots, A man ‘named Marx had not so long ago written a book on such matters, and so, it was quite frequently the topic of conversation among the clean and leamed upper classes. And there, in the midst ofall che strolling couples, was ,athing of superstition and old wives’ tales, walking amongst them, noting their pretty ways, their pleasant, empty chatter, their formal and eloquent manners, their slaring hypocrisy, their pent up, unspeakable desires. The ardent student of everyday behavior can gain in- sights into human nature that, after just a few years’ study, seem like telepathy. Ie’s what allows mediums to read their marks well enough to feign a departed loved ‘one’s postmortem je aime. It’s what had just allowed a Viennese doctornamed Freud to write books cataloguing the commonest forms of hysteria seen in the daughters of the comfortably bourgeois. And, when unbounded by the constraints of a single lifetime, it allowed me to see the soul of a man ora woman and all the stains it hore. A man in a top hat passed me. He was wealthy, ‘almost certainly an aristocrat. The look on his face was thinlydisguised rage. Ir was his intent to commit murder. A woman passed me holding her hushand’s hand. She loathed him, and yer, his family’s money provided her with things she otherwise would not have, and his nightly advances were worth suffering through in order that she might flaunt diamonds on her wrist, her fingers and on her sweet, delicate throat. A block later, | spotted a young couple. She was nalve, idealist, inall likelihood, still a virgin. Hersmile was utterly genuine, and I wanted her. Until I saw her betrothed. When Ilooked more closely at him, it was his beauty, his innocence that cried out to me. The English are not, on the whole, an attractive people. Ieisa nation of ruddy checks, crooked teeth and warts. Youth, when gifted by good breeding, can occa- sionally hold off many of these blemishes, turin theend, ‘time undermines the efforts of even the most desperate Narcissus. This young man's charm and appeal were dacaling The girl whose hand he held wes completely taken with him — and understandably so. His skin was fine and smooth, his teeth straight and white, his eyes clear and kind. His black hairlay slightly mussed, butnolesssilken forthat. Theirpostures gave away an excitemet foroneanother. Their wedking date was imminent, most likely Christmas or New Years. [found that problematic. Were they to wed, he would have been taken, be- adesire rae smirched, rendered less able to fly with me amongst the asseimblages of London’s night birds. She whispered in his ear, and he smiled, and in his smile wasall that I wanted to draw out of him, and from that moment on, no other comp, They walked in search of a carriage. She, delicate virgin, needed to be taken home and safely deposited with her family In my own carriage, | followed. I remembered the address of er home arid the face ofher father ashe stood at the front door to take custody once more of his daughter. Although I could not hear the cordial conver- sation in its entirety, I learned that her name was Annabelle. Her father was referred to simply as “Mister Pfenning.” [bribed my hackney driver not tobe suspicious as told him to follow the carriage in front of us. When our ‘quarry’s carriage stopped, | again took note of the house address. Not so grand a place as that of Annabelle's parents, but impressive for a man s0 young. jon would do, We both paid our respective drivers and got out of ‘ur carriages at the same time. He began to walk to the gate of his house, and I called out to him. “I say, excuse me, good sit, bur could you tell me where Trobury Tower is? I've only just ari and cannot fathom the organizational principle of this blasted city.” He did not want to hear me. He was too aglow with hisevening with Annabelle, hut the privilege of being a Victorian gentleman carried 2 multitude of obligations. He first assessed that I was not a beggar or a criminal of any ilk. My smile, more soothing than a living man’s, convinced him that | couldn’c possibly be. My strange- ness, pethaps some hint of an accent | may have picked up since leaving London, intrigued him, “Lbelieve I know where it is, sir, but it has not been, for years, the kind of place a gentleman of your evide stature would care to visit — not by night in any case.” His eyes were unable to leave my face. “Indeed? In that case, | would be mest appreciative if you could see fit vo accompany me to any quality establishment of your choosing that I may pick your ‘mind with regard to other ways the city has changed in my absence.” His lovely Annabelle forgouen now, he saw only me. He was tco naive to mask the awe th had ignited within him. En route, | introd him as Dr. Fordon Fortunato Fel, only recently returned from extensive travels to Europe's most easterly lands, Although he thoughtmy name odd, he had the grace not my glamour -ed myself to to say 50.