Veins of Toronto (Vampire The Masquerade 5th Edition)

Mature Advisory and Disclaimer

Vampire: The Masquerade 5th Edition and Veins of Toronto contain graphic and written content of mature nature. Reader discretion is advised! The material does in no way reflect the views of its authors and is used for fictional storytelling purposes only.

The Setting

Chronicle Tenets

The chronicle tenets for Veins of Toronto were determined by the players present in the second game session with suggestions provided by the Storyteller. The tenets may be modified later on.

• Death is not meaningless
• Maintain civility
• My family: Right or wrong

The City: Views From The 416

"It's a mess
It's a start
It's a flawed work of art
Your city, your call
Every crack, every wall"

- Snow Patrol, Take Back The City

A Canadian city of five million people can withstand a lot before faltering. Unfortunately she is already suffering from collapsing economies, the falls of institutions once believed too big to fail and financial tsunamis that flood over the populace. The increasingly unpopular government is doing it's best for the town in this time of crisis, in this world of darkness. Yet the metropolis is wholly unprepared to the sudden emergence of several young vampires in the urban heart. This story follows the undead predators as they course through the arteries of the city: The veins of Toronto.

The Coterie

This section is where your character related material can be added to. The material can range from images through descriptions up to backstories. The details and attributes of your coterie can be found at the end of the section.

Desire

"I’m rolling around in blood
I’m covered in your molecules
I’m covered in your molecules
La la la la la la la la la"

- Kitten Forever, Blood Song

At first glance she looks like a lost, teenage girl, out at night way past her curfew. Her short hair is dyed red and bones stick out of her thin frame just under the skin, giving her delicate features a sharp edge. She is dressed in bright colored stockings, short skirts and tight tops all year around, but of course in cold season most of it is swallowed inside a big, bright pink winter coat. Then you might notice the little signs. Her face is pale and there is a dead look in her eyes. Stockings are worn and unraveling as is her makeup of black eyeliner and red blush, the coat looks a bit too big for her size and the top a bit too revealing for her age. Besides, that skirt is so new she had barely bothered to remove the tag showing a price she never paid. At least not in dollars anyway. Soles of her footwear are worn and littered with little pieces of glass, cement dust and whatever else you pick up living on the streets. She calls herself Desire and you realize it is not her real name, but probably something her pimp gave her along with that cheap burner phone she is glancing nervously at. Just another teenage junkie, living on the streets and looking for her next fix...

Desire is the Princess of her own mindscape, an ambassador of Unicornland with her business cards transforming into leaflets showing her in little more than high heels and a dead smile, prompting you to call her “for good time”. Half a decade of abuse and mental illness with periodically interrupted treatments and self medication of THC and MDMA have left her brain scrambled and confused like an egg in a washing machine. Alternating between moments of clarity, memories of abuse and violent hallucinations she rides her madness like a black unicorn racing into oblivion. At times frighteningly lucid, she seems to see right through the veil of life into truth of reality but the reality shifts like waves on Toronto Bay leaving the truth subjective at best. At other times she is lost in the labyrinthine dreamscape of her imagination like Ariadne in a maze with no red string but still managing to ride the Minotaur out of the labyrinth and in to the night. In short, she is barely functional in human standards but somehow makes it all work out as a vampire.

The Regency Coterie

The Regency Coterie has the following values.

• Domain: Chasse **, Lien *, Portillon ***
• Status: ***
• Advantages: Haven * (Cell *, Library *, Luxury *, Security System *, Watchmen **), Loresheet (The Circulatory System) *** (Tap into the System, Little Black Book, Farm Upstate)
• Flaws: -

The Others

Karlamagda, Alastor and Autarkis

"Tell them I've gone
And nothing's wrong
In from the past
A sudden blast bang"

- Morcheeba, Blindfold

For several years the woman revered by Dr. Leeland was only a face, a form and a presence on a video tape recording. Her name was revealed in a chance meeting with Niagaran vampires. Her position was determined by research.

It appears that Karlamagda has once been a part of a society of the undead. In this Camarilla she wore the mantle of Alastor, a champion in a secret police force gained from bringing down a vampiric criminal most wanted.

Karlamagda is the Sire of the whole coterie.

Dr. Leeland Ventresca, The Key to the Night

"Everything
Is under
Control"

- Simon Boswell, Everything Is Under Control

The nervous man known as Dr. Leeland was overwhelmed by the circumstances and quickly became the first victim of a legacy that he had apparently helped build.

A brief post-mortem examination revealed that Dr. Leeland bore a tattoo of two intertwined infinity symbols in his left armpit.

Reuben, A Kindred Spirit

"I, I'm a one way motorway
I'm the one that drives away
Then follows you back home"

- Foo Fighters, Times Like These

The very first person of the coterie's kind was a visitor from Niagara Falls.

The powerfully-built vampire of First Nations descent acted as the middleman in the urgent purchase of blood. Reuben was acting on behalf the "Senator of Niagara" but in an unofficial capacity. Further, the purchase - from the veins of and along with two hosts of specific emotional states and physical qualities - was meant for a "blue blood guest".

Reuben considered the treatment that he received from the coterie - including the granting of 3 by 3 block hunting grounds - to be generous and mentioned that Senator Veidt's Niagara was much stricter in this respect.

Kelly, Aide and Intermediary

Acting in official capacity as the Senator's aide is an overworked and feisty woman in her mid-30s. She is also the blood-sister of Reuben.

Veidt, The Senator of Niagara

While there are senators appointed by the Canadian government for the province of Ontario the name Veidt does not correspond with any of them, living or dead. Even if the title has been invented by its holder the Senator is very real player both in the Niagran region and in sectarian politics.

Locations

Toronto

The Hotel

"Immerse yourself in the excitement of the city at Sheraton Centre Toronto Hotel. Perfectly situated in the heart of downtown's Financial and Entertainment districts, our 4-star hotel is ideal for every visitor."

"All of Toronto's attractions, from Eaton Centre to CN Tower, are within easy reach of our family-friendly hotel. The subway is also close at hand for added convenience."

"Whether staying with us for work or fun, we look forward to welcoming you to our downtown Toronto hotel."

- Hotel Description, URL: http://www.marriott.com/hotels/travel/yyztc-sheraton-centre-toronto-hotel

The Hotel is located in the Downtown Core of the Old Toronto district. The building has a clear view over the Nathan Phillips Square to the Toronto City Hall and many other landmarks of the city.

The Hotel is the coterie's inherited Domain.

The Penthouse Floor

"Once you're above the city lights
Won't want to spend another night, down there on your own
The holding on display for us
The altitude is dangerous, but we ain't going home"

- John Legend, Penthouse Floor

Eighteen windowless hotel rooms, a large hall, a secret library and a cell. All protected by independent fire prevention systems, a CCTV control station overlooking every room in the hotel underneath as well as the nearby streets and two shifts of guards. This is the heart of the Hotel.

The Skybar and Spa

The rooftop bar's drink selection is extensive. The large curtain-covered windows give a fantastic view of the skyline. The adjacent spa has an infrared sauna, which can help in losing weight, improves circulation, detoxes the body and offers pain relief. The 25 meter swimming pool has been drained of water, divided into two sections and equipped to hold at least five vampires against their will for extended periods of time.

Hamilton

A 50-minute south-westward drive from Toronto along Highway 403 takes one to Hamilton. It is troubled by pollution, filled with the desperate and was once the hometown of Desire.

"Blood Exchange Clinic"

The city also houses a "blood exchange clinic": a front of The Circulatory System. It is from within this place that the weekly deliveries of coma patients are delivered to the 4-star hotel lying in the Toronto city center and back again. Nourishment aside the ethical consideration of this system is left to be judged by its primary beneficiaries: members of the coterie.

Niagara Falls

According to Reuben's comment Niagara Falls is once again open. This makes visits to the site possible if made with the proper procedures, preferably by mail. This area with 88,000 inhabitants houses four known vampires. As of Summer 2016 there is a city-wide restriction on hunting in place, which allows feeding only from animals.

The Garden

"For over 70 years, visitors have come to discover paradise at this lush oasis, just a short walk south from Niagara Falls and Table Rock Centre."

"Collections of orchids, succulents, and other tropical plant species are on display throughout the year, along with floral shows that reflect the changing seasons."

- Garden Description, URL: http://www.niagaraparks.com/visit/nature-garden/floral-showhouse

In late June 2016 two members of the coterie met with Niagran vampires and their guest in a floral paradise. This oasis was the Floral Showhouse built near the falls. Because of a dire financial situation most of the greenhouses remain closed despite the tourist season.

The Story

I. No Turning Back From This Party

"The throat is deep and the mouth is wide
Saw some things on the other side
Made me promise to never tell
But you know me, I can't help myself"

"Now I've got something you have to see
They put something inside of me
The smile is red and its eyes are black
I don't think I'll be coming back"

- NIN, Came Back Haunted

Five lives in the depths of the city each celebrating the summer in their own way. Then a hard blackout and a fall into a nightmare. Awakening in the cold future as a cadre of a kind with all sharing a craving for human blood.

• Session Date: 20.4.2019
• Timeline: June 2008-February 2014
• Present: Baptiste Arsene, Gordon Chan, Desire, Jack Eskridge, Martin Roskop
• SPCs of Potential: Mrs. Eskridge, Ms. Maxine, Miss Roskop (mentioned only), Dr. Leeland Ventresca, "Everlasting Benefactor"

II. Everyone Is An Altar

"The transformation is invested
With the mysterious and the shameful
While the thing I am becomes something else
Part character part sensation"

- Bauhaus, Mask

Observations of the immediate surroundings. Two years later established and settled in. Then the telephone rings for the first time leading to a meeting with another: A kindred.

• Session Date: 2.8.2019
• Timeline: February 2014-Late June 2016
• Present: Baptiste Arsene, Desire, Jack Eskridge, Martin Roskop
• SPCs of Potential: Reuben

III. Predators; Aren't We All?

"Driving faster in my car
Falling farther from just what we are
Smoke a cigarette and lie some more
These conversations kill
Falling faster in my car"

"Time to take her home
Her dizzy head is conscience laden
Time to take a ride
It leaves today
No conversation"

- Stone Temple Pilots, Big Empty

Searching for and preparing the right kind of gifts: Sad, sweet, sullied. Taking a step in another's kingdom and leaving a mark on every doorway. Widening own perspectives and planning to shake the nocturnal societies to their cores with the power of independence.

• Session Date: 16.11.2019
• Timeline: Late June-Early July 2016
• Present: Baptiste Arsene, Jack Cool, Desire, Jack Eskridge, Martin Roskop
• SPCs of Potential: Max, "Violetta", "Stina", "Reina", Misha Torelli, Kelly, Senator Veidt, Lord Ralfi