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Thousand Year Old Vampire: Guillaume d'Orléans
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<blockquote data-quote="Whizbang Dustyboots" data-source="post: 8848296" data-attributes="member: 11760"><p><strong>Florence, 1458</strong></p><p></p><p>It was Carnival, the biggest and best yet. The Medicis viewed it as an opportunity to show off their wealth and power by ingratiating the city with the biggest party it had ever seen, with elaborate parades, people in costumes and wine overflowing every cup.</p><p></p><p>I leaned in a doorway, a cup in my hand, although not one that had been stained with wine, watching the world go past my mask.</p><p></p><p>The Florentines had never truly accepted me. There were secrets I was left out of, conspiracies I knew only hints of and family squabbles that I was thankfully completely superfluous to.</p><p></p><p>But they loved money. And more than the dour vampires of Cologne, they loved what money could do.</p><p></p><p>Seemingly every vampire who danced la danza nera was by now the patron of one or more artists. I myself sponsored a sculptor of some minor promise. But the vampires also owned vineyards and sponsored schools and paid for beautiful buildings, even churches.</p><p></p><p>Having learned the lessons of the past, I had also spread my investments around. I had holdings in Lisbon and Paris. The other vampires here had warned me off of doing so in Venice and Rome, as apparently the family squabbles among Italian vampires extended beyond Florence's walls. But for now, three fortunes in three cities in three countries was enough.</p><p></p><p>I was once again content, and secure.</p><p></p><p>And yet, I heard crying.</p><p></p><p>A fair-haired woman half-stalked, half-ran through the crowded streets, eyes streaked with tears. Eyes that I somehow knew, although I could not place them.</p><p></p><p>Pulling the shadows in around me, I slipped up onto the roofs without attracting notice from the drunken revelers below and easily followed the crying woman from above. She pushed her way off the main thoroughfare, into a neighborhood full of struggling merchants and immigrants.</p><p></p><p>I could hear her shouts of frustration and rage from the street as she stood in front of an apartment building, picking at bags and boxes that had been thrown out into the street, many of which had clearly already been picked over by the revelers.</p><p></p><p>I slipped back down to street level and approached.</p><p></p><p>"Signora, what is the matter?" I had to pull my mask off and repeat the question before she heard me, over the sounds of the party and her own yelling.</p><p></p><p>"These putain have tossed all of my things out on the street without warning me! I had no chance to collect my things and now some of them are gone, forever!"</p><p></p><p>I found myself staring at her face, unable to put a name to it, but feeling I knew it.</p><p></p><p>"Your accent, you are French?"</p><p></p><p>"What? What does that have to do with anything? My employer paid for this apartment and somehow tells the landlord we have gone bankrupt before even telling me. I raced here to get my things and now ... ugh!"</p><p></p><p>I helped her collect what remained, scaring away a merry would-be looter with a dark glance.</p><p></p><p>"That's awful. Will you be returning home?"</p><p></p><p>"I don't know. My family's business went bankrupt when I was a girl, which is why I'm in Florence instead. There is nothing for me in Orleans."</p><p></p><p>I felt a shudder move through me. Her face was that of a girl I once knew, who looked at me with fear and terror as I protected her from -- someone. The memories were elusive, but I felt myself wanting to wrap my arms around her and protect her from whatever threatened her.</p><p></p><p>"What is your name?" I asked, although I knew I would not recognize it.</p><p></p><p>"Catherina Marchand. If you are here with the bank, I have nothing left for you to take."</p><p></p><p>"Enchanté, Mademoiselle Marchand. I have no interest in taking from you. Au contraire, I was thinking I might offer you a job. I do business in Paris and could use the help."</p><p></p><p>"Your French is strange," Catherina said, not withdrawing her hand from mine. "I cannot place your accent."</p><p></p><p>"I learned it long ago," I said.</p><p>[spoiler="Character sheet"]Prompt 40 + 1 - 6 = Prompt 35</p><p></p><p><em>You encounter the descendant of an old foe and help them in some way. Why did you do this? Check a skill. Create a mortal Character.</em></p><p></p><p><strong>Guglielmo Nero</strong></p><p><strong></strong></p><p><strong>Skills</strong>: </p><p>Bloodthirsty (checked); </p><p>Knows the secrets of killing vampires (checked);</p><p>I control the beast; </p><p>Skilled merchant (checked); </p><p>Cook Portuguese seafood dishes;</p><p>Knowledgeable of medieval medicine; </p><p>Knowledge of vampire anatomy; </p><p>I can draw the shadows in around myself, creating supernatural hiding spaces (checked);</p><p></p><p><strong>Resources</strong>:</p><p>The Spear of Aeolius, an ancient Roman spear capable of killing vampires</p><p>Diary: A leather-bound German-made ledger book</p><p>An ever-beating heart, which magically will not die</p><p>Florentine fencing school</p><p></p><p><strong>Characters</strong>:</p><p>Juião/Julian Black: a Portuguese orphan turned my servant turned vampire (Immortal); </p><p>Filippo Vadi: a Florentine fencing master with the fingers of his right hand cut off (mortal); </p><p>Catherina Marchand: a descendant of Cateline and Anouilh, who works for my Florentine investment company (mortal);</p><p></p><p><strong>Marks</strong>: My eyes cannot stand bright light and I have to remain in shadows at all times; my touch is fatal to plants; </p><p></p><p><strong>Memories (five, up to three Experiences each)</strong>:</p><p>1: I am Guilliame d'Orléans: I rescue a dark-haired girl from attack and Constansia pledges herself to me, believing me to be a servant of Satan, and we soon wed; Constansia conducts her Satanic rituals and summons a demon, Raum, to serve me in the form of a raven;</p><p>2: I am Wilhelm Black: Brought into the society of the Nachtvolk of Cologne, I watched their leader slowly dismember a vampire, leaving him alive for hours, just in agony; with the help of the mortal Itzig family, I become a rich merchant, with investments across Europe.</p><p>3. I am Wilhelm Black: Julian, now a violent enforcer of the Nachtvolk, gifts me an ever-beating heart; </p><p>4. I am Guglielmo Nero: After Florentine banks collapse during the 100 Years War, I move my banking operations from Cologne to Florence; poisoned by Averardo de' Medici, I wake up in Florence 100 years later, the Itzigs dead, my banking empire dismantled in my absence; setting myself up in Florence, I come to own and operate out of a fencing school.</p><p>5.</p><p></p><p><strong>Diary (four memories, up to three Experiences each)</strong></p><p>1: I am Guilliame d'Orléans: The night the other heretics were burned alive, Carnutes fed upon me as I screamed in pitch black darkness; I confront Carnutes about him making me a vampire and he confesses he did it out of loneliness and tells me I will suffer in the same way some day; Carnutes possessed Raum and led the Archbishop of Tours' men to try and killed me -- but I used the Spear of Aeolius and killed Raum and Carnutes instead.</p><p>2: I am le Passeur or "the Frenchman": The Portuguese orphan Juião helps me after I am burned by sunlight, unafraid of my supernatural nature, and I take him in as my servant; Juião teaches me to cook with the seafood I catch underwater; at his urging, I prey on battlefield wounded as I tend to them.</p><p>[/spoiler]</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Whizbang Dustyboots, post: 8848296, member: 11760"] [B]Florence, 1458[/B] It was Carnival, the biggest and best yet. The Medicis viewed it as an opportunity to show off their wealth and power by ingratiating the city with the biggest party it had ever seen, with elaborate parades, people in costumes and wine overflowing every cup. I leaned in a doorway, a cup in my hand, although not one that had been stained with wine, watching the world go past my mask. The Florentines had never truly accepted me. There were secrets I was left out of, conspiracies I knew only hints of and family squabbles that I was thankfully completely superfluous to. But they loved money. And more than the dour vampires of Cologne, they loved what money could do. Seemingly every vampire who danced la danza nera was by now the patron of one or more artists. I myself sponsored a sculptor of some minor promise. But the vampires also owned vineyards and sponsored schools and paid for beautiful buildings, even churches. Having learned the lessons of the past, I had also spread my investments around. I had holdings in Lisbon and Paris. The other vampires here had warned me off of doing so in Venice and Rome, as apparently the family squabbles among Italian vampires extended beyond Florence's walls. But for now, three fortunes in three cities in three countries was enough. I was once again content, and secure. And yet, I heard crying. A fair-haired woman half-stalked, half-ran through the crowded streets, eyes streaked with tears. Eyes that I somehow knew, although I could not place them. Pulling the shadows in around me, I slipped up onto the roofs without attracting notice from the drunken revelers below and easily followed the crying woman from above. She pushed her way off the main thoroughfare, into a neighborhood full of struggling merchants and immigrants. I could hear her shouts of frustration and rage from the street as she stood in front of an apartment building, picking at bags and boxes that had been thrown out into the street, many of which had clearly already been picked over by the revelers. I slipped back down to street level and approached. "Signora, what is the matter?" I had to pull my mask off and repeat the question before she heard me, over the sounds of the party and her own yelling. "These putain have tossed all of my things out on the street without warning me! I had no chance to collect my things and now some of them are gone, forever!" I found myself staring at her face, unable to put a name to it, but feeling I knew it. "Your accent, you are French?" "What? What does that have to do with anything? My employer paid for this apartment and somehow tells the landlord we have gone bankrupt before even telling me. I raced here to get my things and now ... ugh!" I helped her collect what remained, scaring away a merry would-be looter with a dark glance. "That's awful. Will you be returning home?" "I don't know. My family's business went bankrupt when I was a girl, which is why I'm in Florence instead. There is nothing for me in Orleans." I felt a shudder move through me. Her face was that of a girl I once knew, who looked at me with fear and terror as I protected her from -- someone. The memories were elusive, but I felt myself wanting to wrap my arms around her and protect her from whatever threatened her. "What is your name?" I asked, although I knew I would not recognize it. "Catherina Marchand. If you are here with the bank, I have nothing left for you to take." "Enchanté, Mademoiselle Marchand. I have no interest in taking from you. Au contraire, I was thinking I might offer you a job. I do business in Paris and could use the help." "Your French is strange," Catherina said, not withdrawing her hand from mine. "I cannot place your accent." "I learned it long ago," I said. [spoiler="Character sheet"]Prompt 40 + 1 - 6 = Prompt 35 [I]You encounter the descendant of an old foe and help them in some way. Why did you do this? Check a skill. Create a mortal Character.[/I] [B]Guglielmo Nero Skills[/B]: Bloodthirsty (checked); Knows the secrets of killing vampires (checked); I control the beast; Skilled merchant (checked); Cook Portuguese seafood dishes; Knowledgeable of medieval medicine; Knowledge of vampire anatomy; I can draw the shadows in around myself, creating supernatural hiding spaces (checked); [B]Resources[/B]: The Spear of Aeolius, an ancient Roman spear capable of killing vampires Diary: A leather-bound German-made ledger book An ever-beating heart, which magically will not die Florentine fencing school [B]Characters[/B]: Juião/Julian Black: a Portuguese orphan turned my servant turned vampire (Immortal); Filippo Vadi: a Florentine fencing master with the fingers of his right hand cut off (mortal); Catherina Marchand: a descendant of Cateline and Anouilh, who works for my Florentine investment company (mortal); [B]Marks[/B]: My eyes cannot stand bright light and I have to remain in shadows at all times; my touch is fatal to plants; [B]Memories (five, up to three Experiences each)[/B]: 1: I am Guilliame d'Orléans: I rescue a dark-haired girl from attack and Constansia pledges herself to me, believing me to be a servant of Satan, and we soon wed; Constansia conducts her Satanic rituals and summons a demon, Raum, to serve me in the form of a raven; 2: I am Wilhelm Black: Brought into the society of the Nachtvolk of Cologne, I watched their leader slowly dismember a vampire, leaving him alive for hours, just in agony; with the help of the mortal Itzig family, I become a rich merchant, with investments across Europe. 3. I am Wilhelm Black: Julian, now a violent enforcer of the Nachtvolk, gifts me an ever-beating heart; 4. I am Guglielmo Nero: After Florentine banks collapse during the 100 Years War, I move my banking operations from Cologne to Florence; poisoned by Averardo de' Medici, I wake up in Florence 100 years later, the Itzigs dead, my banking empire dismantled in my absence; setting myself up in Florence, I come to own and operate out of a fencing school. 5. [B]Diary (four memories, up to three Experiences each)[/B] 1: I am Guilliame d'Orléans: The night the other heretics were burned alive, Carnutes fed upon me as I screamed in pitch black darkness; I confront Carnutes about him making me a vampire and he confesses he did it out of loneliness and tells me I will suffer in the same way some day; Carnutes possessed Raum and led the Archbishop of Tours' men to try and killed me -- but I used the Spear of Aeolius and killed Raum and Carnutes instead. 2: I am le Passeur or "the Frenchman": The Portuguese orphan Juião helps me after I am burned by sunlight, unafraid of my supernatural nature, and I take him in as my servant; Juião teaches me to cook with the seafood I catch underwater; at his urging, I prey on battlefield wounded as I tend to them. [/spoiler] [/QUOTE]
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