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This Section is considered Out of Character information unless you are involved in the story lines discussed.

• The Invictus
  • Addison Whitfield
    • Granted rights to influence the Freemont east fief for the payment of one small boon per year. Stipulations to this agreement: no hunting within the domain, and not allowed to influence the Freemont Fief. Veles respects Addison for what he has achieved, but views the party scene as a bit frivolous, but that doesn't keep him from attending.
  • Franco Martinez
    • Franco is afforded a lot of leeway with Veles' due to his defection to the Invictus from the movement. He has offered Franco his assistance a few times when Franco needed it without much of an argument. Franco and Veles don't have much going for them on a spiritual level, but Veles doesn't try to shove his beliefs down his adopted grandchilde's throat either.
  • James Stuart
    • James and Veles have a strange relationship, they have respect for one another and Veles has been the most open to explaining his beliefs to James' when they were being questioned by the mekhet early in the history of las vegas. There is an open line of communication between them, and they make deals on a regular basis.
  • Nathaniel Sanders
    • Veles has a long time friendship with the Prince of Las Vegas that has earned him a few privileges throughout the history of the kindred in Las Vegas. Not the least of which being his claim to domain of Glitter Gulch. He acts as Primogen to Nathaniel and is known for giving accurate advice when it is requested.
  • Violet Townsend
    • There is a cordial relationship developed between Violet and Veles, which allows them to do business with one another and be amiable towards one another when need be, but it doesn't go much past that. Anyone who would have tried to influence Las Vegas Campaign Center or Canyon Club within his domain would have been told that these sites were the sole purview of Violet Townsend, and then forced out of them.

• The Carthian Movement
  • Cha
    • The relationship between sire and adopted childe has been tense ever since she left the Crone to join the Carthians, but they still share a deep respect for one another that sometimes tips the scales in her favor. He is still a father figure to her, as well as her childer.
  • Nikolay Turov
    • Blah blah blah
  • Vasily Petrovich
    • Currently has an amiable relationship with Vasily and is helping them an to find his place in the morally gray scale that the Duchovian Kindred try to occupy. Veles respects the russian for what he does and his influence, but he keeps it at that and tries not to delve into too much business with Vasily or any of the Carthian Movement out of respect for his Invictus allies.

• The Circle of the Crone
  • Anthony Lazarak
    • Anthony is both a friend and a childe to Veles and acts as his Vedun, sort of second in command when Veles isn't around. Anthony and Veles have ongoing business arrangements outside of the covenant affairs, and they work together for the betterment of the lineage and the circle as a whole.
  • [[Ephemeral Deville]
    • Ephemeral is a constant thorn in Veles' side but he sees a different side to her that most don't quite understand. In his eyes there is raw power laying dormant just under the surface of her porcelain doll exterior and Veles has taken her fully under his wing to try and teach her how to unlock that power. Despite his best efforts Ephemeral doesn't seem to fully grasp his teachings, though she has learned to respect and fear him in the same stroke.
  • Grayson Lazarak
    • Grayson is Veles enforcer and muscle when the going gets tough, and everyone pretty much knows it. There's much more to their relationship then just that, though, as he's more then just a hired mercenary. The Lazaraks are a tight knit lineage that support one another when it matters most. Grayson is allowed to feed within Glitter Gulch.

• The Unaligned
  • Deangelo Bell
    • Veles is amused by the erratic behavior of the young kindred that has spurned such events as Pool Table Throwing, and liberal uses of dominate within the Elysium. Its evident that Deangelo thinks Veles is some kind of loon too.

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Great Perun rages in us all, demanding change whilst our bodies remain unchanged for eternity, it is the quintessential paradox, and often one must revisit the past in order to enact the change the soul requires in the present.

Mortal Life (1884-1910)

I can remember the ranch as if I was just there only yesterday. Long before I ever felt the presence of the Spirits I tended the land and the livestock and made my way in life by living off the land. My father taught me how to clean an animal respectfully, and use every piece of it to fit our needs. One animal could feed my family for a month, and its hide would clothe us, its bone could be made into tools. Even from that young age I had a deep respect for the bounty of nature and the spirits of the wild. My father built the ranch around eighteen seventy five. His ancestors had immigrated to America from Yugoslavia and over time had traveled west ward in the hopes of finding fortune in the new land. Several generations later my father migrated to what would later be known as Las Vegas and started the ranch in the hopes that it would become a larger settlement in time. His spirit must be amazed at the development that occurred in this last century.

My mother migrated with her family from Mexico, and they came to live on the ranch my father built a few years later. Their caravan stayed at the ranch for just about a year, but during that time my mother and father fell in love and when her family left my mother decided to stay behind to raise a family. The religious backgrounds of my parents were an interesting combination, but religion wasn't a real big part of life on the ranch. The only thing that mattered back then was the bounty of mother nature and the toils of living in the vast desert. The Ranch had become a thriving, yet small, civilization thanks to the small oasis nearby that provided drinking water for the inhabitants. At a young age I idolized the Cowboys that worked for my father in taking care of the cattle and breaking in the horses we used for transportation. They were a mixed lot of individuals, some had problems with the law in the cities from which they came, but all of them had a love of gambling and alcohol. Watching and later participating in the games of poker is where I developed my quick wit and my relationship with the spirit of luck. I was somewhat of a "Card shark" as they call it now.

When I had reached the age of being a young man my mother suffered a bite from a Rattlesnake while she was out riding her horse. The wound wouldn't have been fatal but the medicine man that the ranch had come to rely on had also left to find supplies. The venom of the snake became too much for her and she passed away. Her death hit my father and I very hard and we began to explore the spiritual side of life as a way to come to terms with her passing. He began to tell me about the folklore of his people, and the idea of the World Tree. It was a concept that I latched onto, as it helped me to understand that while my mother had passed on from this life that her spirit would be reborn from the great tree. I also had begun to spend a great deal of time with the medicine man, an Indian who also believed in the existence of spirits though his views differed slightly then my father's. He taught me how to ask the spirits for their assistance in aiding small ailments and I was allowed to witness first hand the power of bargaining with the spirits of nature.

Although I witnessed the Medicine Man cure sickness with the assistance of mother nature in the way of herbs and pleading with spirits, I had not actually yet had my own personal revelation with them. That changed when I was seventeen and I managed to get lost in the desert during a trek to Las Vegas proper. My horse broke his leg avoiding a scorpion, and I was forced to walk the sands of the Mojave on foot. I quickly became dehydrated from the heat and arid atmosphere, and the stress on my body allowed my Consciousness to shift into the realm of spirits. To this day I remember the beautiful Rusalka, a water spirit, making herself known to me and guiding me through the desert towards the Oasis, and thus the ranch. At first she guided me only to a cactus, from which I was able to rehydrate myself with the water that the plant held within. After my body was rejuvenated I was able to follow the spirit to the point where the Ranch was in sight. The Rusalka left me then, but from that point on I have a deeper understanding and reverence for the spiritual realm.

It was around nineteen hundred and two when Las Vegas first became a city in the legal sense. My Father and I began to make regular trips into the town to seek out entertainment and supplies. We talked at length several times about our desires to see the city expand. When there was work to be done in the city we would volunteer and help to build the buildings that were needed. We usually were given free room and board while we stayed in the city to help out. Most of the villagers then knew of us, in some form or another. I was able to apply my skill with poker in the saloons of the small village and had quite the reputation as a young card shark. I usually left Las Vegas with a few more coins then what I came there with, but my father and I sunk that extra income right back into the city in the hopes that the increased trade of goods and services would allow the city to grow quicker.

Ironically it was because of our prominence in the small city that my sire found me. He had interests in Las Vegas that were similar to my own and when he saw how much effort I was putting into the city and learned of my belief in the World Tree and the spirit realm he began to view me as a possibility for the Embrace. My Sire was a brilliant man, but he lacked the patience that is needed to see a process all the way through to the end, and he saw me as a way of quickly increasing his influence in the budding city and giving steam to the efforts of its expansion. There was only one thing that kept him from embracing me then, and that was the fact that I was not yet a true citizen of Las Vegas as I lived outside the city on the ranch. Thus he created for me a crucible that would prove to him my worth and push me into becoming what I am tonight.

Shortly before nineteen hundred and ten the ranch began to be plagued by attacks from an unknown creature that ravaged our livestock and dwindled the supply of food to the point where the families that resided at the ranch began to leave in alarming numbers. They left both because of the decreased supply of food, fur and other goods, and because the attacks from the beast were so terrifyingly brutal that most feared for their lives. They were right, as the claws of the Gangrel are sharp and remorseless, and destroying the ranch was the first part of my crucible. No matter how dire the situation got, however, my father and I remained vigilant and even attempted to kill the beast that was attacking our livestock. We kept watch over the ranch day and night and still we were unable to get a glimpse of the thing that was causing us so many problems.

Whether it was his original intent, or if my sire just became frustrated with our will to survive and stay at the ranch, my sire decided that the next course of action was to take the life of my father. When I found his corpse the morning after the attack I felt something in me break. I had spent all of my life on the ranch with him, learning from him and looking up to him as a role model. He was the one constant in my life, someone on whom I could always rely. So naturally when he died my grief was tremendous. The few families that had stayed at the ranch left then in fear that there would be further attacks on people. As much as I wished to stay on the ranch that had been my home for twenty years, I knew that there was nothing left for me in that desolate place. I burned my father's body to ash and spread the remains through out the ranch in hopes that his spirit would find peace there. To this night I still ask the spirits of my mortal ancestors for guidance and when they respond I can hear the voice of my mother and father. My sire has told me that he was impressed with the strength of my character, and how I handled such a drastic change in my life. I still do not know the source of my strength, for inside my emotions raged. With heavy heart I set out from my home for the last time and headed into Las Vegas in the hopes that I could continue my father's work there and find prosperity for myself in the future.

I was able to barter some of the possessions of my father's that I took with me for room and board at the Inn in Las Vegas. I decided to use my skill at gambling to bring in some coin and I started to build upon that. I got hired on at the saloon that I played cards at to help tend the bar and clean up. I spent most of my time there, either working, gambling or drinking but no matter how much time I spent occupying myself my mind still turned to the memories of my father and the beast that lurked outside the city. I found a locket in my dad's possessions that contained a picture of himself and my mother. I kept that locket and would often offer praise to the spirits of my ancestors using the locket as a focal point to connect to their energy. My sire told me that he saw my dedication to them as a sign that I would one day become a very powerful acolyte, and that my faith would be unquestionable. The Great Mother has plans for us all and the crucible he invented to push me towards my destiny shaped the foundation of the Duchovia Stromu Sveta. Without the death of my father and my Sire's actions it is quite possible that the cult wouldn't exist.

The Embrace (1910)

I remember the night of my embrace quite vividly, as I'm sure more would. I had just finished earning some quick money at the Saloon and was on my way back to my room at the Inn when I was accosted by an unknown figure and quickly knocked unconscious. When I finally came to I was unaware of my exact location, but I found myself in the subterranean haven of my sire. The room I was in was dimly lit by candle light, and a dark figure sat in the shadows not too far away. I was bound, of course, or I would have got to my feet and attempted to flee that place for the fear in my chest was heavy. When the man spoke he did so as if he had known me for years, and the strange tone of familiarity only furthered the fear I was suffering. He told me that he had been following me for some time, and that he was impressed with my ability to cope with and excel through the immense amount of change I was forced to encounter. There was almost something comforting about it all, but what happened next was anything but comforting. He began to tell me that he was a Vedmak, a spirit of a man that is barred from entering the underworld and thus returns to the corpse and rises from the grave to feed on the blood of man. My father had told me stories about different kinds of spirits, and the story of the Vedmak was one I was familiar with. I was skeptical, at first, of the man but then he demonstrated that he was indeed the creature he claimed to be by showing me his fangs and claws.

Then it got worse, because he told me that the reason he had taken such an interest in me was because he wished to make me like him. He began to tell me the stories of our family line, the history of the ancestors that had come before him. I was impressed with how far back the history went , and the level of power that my ancestors were able to achieve through their worship of the spirits themselves. My sire told me that with the spirit of the Vedmak within me that I would become more powerful then any human. The only thing that I could think of at that point was the increased opportunity to make my father and I's dreams come true: to see that Las Vegas was turned from a quiet village into a bustling city. He gave me a choice, then, either I could join him in an eternity of servitude to the Great Tree and its spirit, or I could be sent to Nav and be reborn without the knowledge of his existence. After only a few moments I chose to become like him.

The process wasn't at all what I expected, as I had not yet gained the abilities of foresight and premonition. I was first asked to perform a ritual of worship to the spirits. I won't go into many details there but I'll simply put that it was a repulsive and grotesque ritual that was meant to "prime" my spirit for the change it was to undergo. With the ritual complete my sire attacked me with the fangs he had just shown me and began to drink my essence down into him. I could feel my spirit leaving my body slowly, trickling out and down into my sire. He took my soul into himself and used his own blood and spirit to empower it and mutate it into the spirit of the Vedmak. This process is one of the most intimate processes that two individuals could ever possibly share. It is more intense then any love, and it is more consuming then any vice. After my body perished my sire allowed my soul back into my body by feeding me only a small portion of his own vitae. My eyes opened again after that, but my sire had more plans for me. He knocked he unconscious and I blacked out.

When I came to I was buried under the sands of the desert. I couldn't tell you now how far down I was, but it felt like a considerable distance and yet I could still smell the sweet, sticky and intoxicating smell of fresh vitae roaming around above me. I dug myself out of my earthly prison, feeling the Vedmak propel my muscles forward in ways I had never experience. When I unearthed myself I found that a pack of wild dogs had honed in on my scent, and no sooner had I gained a bit of my composure did the animals attack me. I was able to easily defend myself and end the lives of the pathetic and starving animals. From their bodies I drew sustenance, and I could feel their spiritual energy drawing into my own strengthening the entity that now resided in my dead veins and flesh.

I returned to my sire and he took me in with open arms, glad that I survived his little test. The stories he told me about my ancestors started to make more and more sense with every bit he taught me. He told me about the Crone, the great spirit of the world tree, and how everything in the world is attached to her in some way or another, and that her avatar on earth taught the first of us how to manipulate the energy of spirits to enforce our will upon the world. Cruac, as I later learned, was a powerful tool that linked us heavily to the spiritual plane and it later became the source of my power. With this realization and a better understanding of the spiritual plane I began to form my very own cult at the behest of my sire. The first meetings of this cult were held in secret amongst a handful of mortals who I felt had like minded interests with my own. Using the spiritually infused blood of my new form I was able to bind them to my service and thus the foundation of the Duchovia Stromu Sveta was created.

The Trials of the Crone (1911 - 1920)

It didn't take long for me to realize the potential for gaining power in the mortal world by using my new found abilities to influence the minds of my cult and the city itself. Duchovia Stromu Sveta held within a few important mortals who had some sway in the small town. Jacob Answorth was one of them. He was a businessman who had traveled to Las Vegas because he felt as though it would expand into a much larger city and eventually bring in a lot of customers and future citizens. I was quick to pull him into the concepts of the cult and shared with the Duchovia that the spirit of a city is like any other living thing. It starts small, and it is influenced by the energy and spirits that live within it. Thus the Duchovia began to offer weekly sacrifices of their own blood to the spirit of the city itself in the hopes that their investment of spiritual energy would strengthen the city. Jacob is now my retainer, as I chose to influence his spirit and have him purchase some tracts of land around the city. Eventually the investment would pay off.

While I invested a heavy amount of time and energy into strengthening my cult and the city, I also was still under the tutelage of my sire in learning the ways of the Gangrel and of the Circle of the Crone. My sire explained to me the gifts of the blood, the power that my Vedmak was able to unleash with the proper expenditure of energy. Protean was my first lesson, a gift that traveled through the blood of my ancestors down to my very soul. My sire was more skilled with this particular gift then I ever was, and he could transform into a relatively massive Hyena. This realization caused me to take a second look at the events that lead me into the arms of my sire. My ranch was attacked by an animal, a beast of some sort, and the wounds were very clearly left by vorpal claws like the ones my sire could grow. When I asked him, he didn't deny it. I was filled with rage for the briefest of moments, but I was able to put a damper on my mortal emotions as I knew that I was much better off in my current state.

It was during this period that I began my lessons with Cruac as well, and I developed an aptitude with the ability to speak with, manipulate and coax spirits into doing what I wished. However my primary focus in Cruac, at first, was learning from the spirits the ability to decipher portents of the future. This skill is the single most useful skill I have ever developed, and using these abilities I have been able to cement my base of power in this city. The Spirits know things that mortals will never know and the ability to ask them about a course of actions and expect answers is an ability that has kept me alive for over a century.

The Departure (1922)

The ban on gambling that had taken place a decade prior wasn't nearly as devastating to the economy of Las Vegas as the railroad strike of nineteen hundred and twenty two. It was kind of a set back, i'll admit, but I knew then that it wasn't the end of the road for the spirit of this amazing city. I consulted the spirits and found that energy had already began to flow back into it and that it was only a matter of time before it took off. My sire however wasn't convinced. He had grown...detached...from the spiritual world for some reason that I didn't understand at that time. I came to find out however that he had committed Diablerie before he had ventured to Las Vegas. The act of consuming the very core essence of another Vedmak is a sin against the Crone herself. He struggled with his faith after committing such a horrid crime, but he was also very nearsighted when it came to achieving his long term goals. Thus, he decided it was time for him to move on. I decided that I would stay and carry out our plans, and see the dream of my father come to fruition.

With the decreased population of Las Vegas I made it clear to my cult that it was time to lay low and wait. I didn't want any suspicions raised that would cause me trouble in the future. Jacob continued to work within the city and with the increased benefit of my spiritual essence he was able to influence a great number of people. He even made the necessary calls to make sure that the new highway, U.S Route 91, connected Las Vegas to the outside world finally. This development was probably one of the most elements of the success of this city. It would be a few years before it was complete, but we had all the time in the world and as it was back then I had a pretty easy supply of blood being the only kindred that the town had to support.

The Spirit of the city was thriving not too long after the strike. I wasn't ever really worried, but it was comforting to know that the spirits wouldn't lead me astray and that I could count on their guidance to make the proper decisions. I could hear the voice of my father whispering to me when I asked my ancestors for advice. It was then that I decided to change my name from my mortal name to Veles Lazarak. My great grandfather was named Veles, and Veles is also the name of a rather powerful spirit that inhabits the roots of the Great Tree and learns from the spirits of the dead all the secrets of the world. It was a fitting moniker and I felt it was an important token to show that I had both evolved from my mortal shell and that I honor my mortal lineage, the Lazarak family line hailing from the dark ages of Yugoslavia.

The Spirit of the sleeping Giant (1926)

I remember how excited I was when the Highway was complete. I remember the flow of cars into the city and the new people arriving almost nightly with aspirations of finding fame and fortune in the Mojave desert. Prohibition was in full swing still, and the crime lords that had came to prominence around the country made their way into this voided pocket and filled it with revenue and entertainment. Speakeasies were very common in that time, and the amount of spiritual energy and growth that all of this triggered was uncanny. I could see the spirit of the city changing slowly as the essence of sex, drugs, revelry and greed began to influence it. I wasn't upset by this change, at all, I simply observed and consulted with the spirits as to my next moves.

Knowing full well that the underworld would always have some sort of influence in the city I decided to begin to work my way into their graces. I made sure that their key players were taken care of properly when they came to Las Vegas, I swindled and dealt with the seedy types and took my fill of their blood. I wasn't looking for lasting connections, I was only looking for one amongst them that showed promise as a servant. Jacob too kept his ear to the ground for me and put me in touch with a few people who turned out to not have the strength of character I was looking for. In the process of looking for a new Votary i came across a coterie of new kindred that had just arrived. This coterie of Invictus were the first kindred I had met outside of my sire and I was intrigued. I watched them from a far for a while, being mindful of my tracks and making sure they were unaware of my existence until I wanted them to be.

I watched from afar as the coterie spread its influence over the city like a blanket. I'm sure they knew I was there, given that they would have come into contact with my own influence, but they were too busy with their internal squabbles to really care about my existence. After a while, however, I realized that one of them had killed one of the members of his coterie. Nathaniel Sanders had declared himself prince of Las Vegas and the other members of the coterie fell into line under his rule. I knew that this was the beginning of the true kindred pull over the city, and it was exactly what my sire and I had desired, so I made myself known to the Prince and offered my support of his Praxis without complicating his take over of the city. He seemed to respect me, if only in words, and I grew to respect him as a leader over time.

The Underworld Connection (1930)

It was around this time that the Hoover dam was slated to be built and the city saw a huge jump in population and revenue that gave it the edge it needed to survive. The workers that flooded into the city spent most of their time working on the Dam, but when they were done with their long days work they retreated into Las Vegas for leisure time. The Underworld Crime Lords began to offer entertainment for these workers, and prostitution, and gambling became a theme in Las Vegas. All of this increased attention to the more seedy aspects of the city allowed me to continue to grow my cult, which now was substantially large. We still continued our practices of feeding the spirit of the city with our own blood. I decided it was time to draw the attention of the crime syndicate to see how they would react.

I allowed bits and pieces of false information to be integrated into the underground circles in the form of rumors and here-say. I watched intently for the signs of someone whose spirit was attuned with the city. Most just laughed off the rumors that I spread, some just looked nervous, but one man... Anthony Costas... saw within these rumors a potential threat and bad business for his customers. He started to dig around and ask questions, and I knew then that he would be a powerful ally. With the spirits guidance I was told to allow him to learn of my cult's meeting place. The man had every intention to burn it to the ground but when I approached him and broached the topic of spirituality with him his spirit opened up like a torrent of water that had been building up behind a dam and allowed to burst through. He understood my beliefs better then any of the other cultists, and so he was allowed to join my cult. I now had my tie to the Underworld that I had sought for a while.

Anthony quickly became a reliable member of the Duchovia Stromu Sveta, and many of the cultists looked to him for guidance with their spiritual concerns. I saw in Anthony a passion like I had once had as a Mortal and I asked the spirits if he was destined to obtain his own Vedmak. The spirits didn't have an answer for me then, but shortly after I had considered performing the ritual of embrace the Prince decided that it was in the best interests of the city that we should all embrace a new child. Although the spirits didn't expressly tell me to embrace Anthony, I knew that the timing of the Prince's decree was not a coincidence, that my question had been answered. Thusly I began to prepare for him a Crucible designed to test his capabilities.

James approached me around this time too in order to start working out a deal between the two of us. He wanted to gain some pull in the judicial areas of the city, a lot of pull, and beings as I had been around since the cities inception he was right to think that I knew the movers and shakers in that area. He offered a Large boon for my services and I was in no position to turn it down. So I made some phone calls, set up some meetings and championed his name to the ears of the most influential people I could get a hold of. I kept pushing his name out there until he was satisfied. He says I did a good job, and I immediately call in that favor for him to put some work in training Jacob to the fullest extent he is capable of reaching.

The Lineage Expands (1931-1935)

The Prince had urged us to embrace in order to expand the influence of the kindred in the city. I'm sure there were other reasons for his request, but never the less it was time for me to consider taking on a childe. Anthony had been performing admirably and showed a great deal of respect for the spiritual realm and thus I decided to put him to a test just as my sire before me had done, and his before him. Anthony had become somewhat powerful in the Russian mob in Las Vegas, but there was a rival crew who was trying to usurp some of his sway. With very little convincing I was able to push them into more open hostility with my prospective childe. Before long Anthony started to realize that the crew was stepping onto his turf hard. I watched from afar to keep track of his skill and poise in dealing with the upstarts, and in the end he was able to defend his territory but the crew wasn't done. In a last ditch effort they jumped Anthony, and one of his right hand men was killed. Anthony however managed to avoid injury and even returned fire killing on of his assailants. It was evident that this was a sign from the spirits themselves that Anthony was strong enough for the embrace, as none of the myriad of bullets managed to hit him.

I revealed myself to Anthony and told him about my accomplishments, about the accomplishments of my sire, and of the history of our lineage. I dare say I saw a little of my own initial reaction when I offered him this information, and the choice of being bestowed with his own Eternal spirit. Although he thought about it longer then I had, his answer was eventually to join me as my childe. I ordered him to perform the same ritual that my sire had me perform before my embrace. As he drank the mixture of earth and blood I could see in him a sort of reverence for the spirit of the animal and the earth he was consuming and I knew that I had made the right choice. Anthony is and will always be the favorite of my childer as he most closely follows my tenets of respect of ones ancestors. For that he has earned my respect. With his embrace out of the way I had fulfilled my obligation to take on a childe, but the spirits had more in store for me.

No amount of preparation would have made me any less shocked when Cha and her disrespectful sire were brought before the court of Elysium on charges of Masquerade violation. The man had embraced her due to the urges of the Prince but he hadn't taken the time to properly educate his new kindred charge. I will never forget the way I felt when I first laid eyes on her just a few nights prior to the trial. Her image burned into my retinas and the spirit of my mother nearly screamed from beyond the veil between the worlds. She looked almost exactly like my mother, it was uncanny, and her visage returned me to my mortal life on the ranch outside of the city. I did some research after our first little encounter, and learned that Cha was the progeny of my Mother's identical sister. It could not have been a coincidence then as I sat in Elysium during that trial that the mortal relation of my mother was brought before the city and faced an execution for her part in her sire's misdeeds. I think the entire congregation there was shocked when I announced to them that I would be taking Cha on as my own childe. I never shared this story with anyone save Anthony and Cha, but that night I was able to put the memory of my Mother's death behind me for the first time in five decades. I was unable to save her from death, but I saved her great niece from final death. I believe my ancestors are proud of these actions, no matter how Cha's allegiance would turn out.

My Lineage had begun to expand at this point where it became imperative for the Kindred of the Duchovia Stromu Sveta to have a place of their own to offer worship. As the spirits would have it, the land that the ranch occupied had become subsumed into Las Vegas proper by this point and I was able to find property that had been recently built over the remains of my father's home stead. It took a great deal of influence to get the building rezoned the way I wanted it to, and I had to resort to making a deal with the Mekhet James Stuart in order to get all the work done. However, soon the building was complete and my cult had a new place in which to offer their sacrifice to the spirit of the city and the world tree. Chrám na Svete Stromu was born, a building with an open court yard in the middle completely secluded from the outside by the building itself. In the middle of the court yard a great oak tree had been planted and the mortal members of the cult grew the tree from these early years all the way until present time. It is now a full grown tree and a very powerful representation of the World Tree itself. Although I was wary about asking the Mekhet for assistance, he did very well in getting what I wanted. I swore him to secrecy on the location of the haven, and in exchange for his efforts and his secrecy I marked a Large boon to him as owed.

1935 -1950

My Childer, both of the blood and adopted, were doing well for themselves in their own way. Anthony had expanded our resources a great deal already since I sired him, and was taking well to the lessons I taught him about the spiritual world. Cha, on the other hand, wasn't very inclined to believe past the mundane. She still clenched onto her mortal religion and it was hard to shake her of that belief. I could see the spirits of chaos and indecision were closely tied into her existence and I knew even then that she wasn't meant to be a member of my covenant. It hurt, I guess, to know that i had failed at showing her the true world beyond the veil. However at the same time I wanted to allow my childe the freedom to explore her own faith and options - so I didn't push her like I did Anthony. I continued to give her lessons and awaited the night that she would tell me she was not an acolyte.

I began to invest a huge amount of time and energy into cultivating a less bustling part of the city, closer to the ranch that I grew up on as a mortal. The area that is now known as Glitter Gulch started back then as a sort of desolate place but over time and with my carefully guided hand I was able to start the process that would lead it into becoming what it is tonight. I had Jacob become my leading man in this project, and even now he helps me keep the mortal allies I have in the domain in line and under my sway.

Anthony and Cha began to become very competitive with one another, like most siblings would, and I did nothing to discourage this competition. It helped to push Anthony further and to assist Cha in becoming her own person. I noticed at this point that Cha had become somewhat addicted to vitae. The spirits advised me that it would be a wise course of action to allow the feeding so that I could instill upon her the seriousness of what she was doing. Taking the essence of another Vedmak into yourself is a dangerous act that can force allegiances and ties where you may not wish for them to be. I kept a close eye on her and Anthony's interactions from then on.

When World War two started up I decided that it would be a good idea to hold a city wide ritual to ask the great spirit of War and storms, Perun, to advise us on the outcome of the war. Not too long after I broached the idea for this ritual with the citizens of Las Vegas did James come to me and express his desire to be part in the ritual. James had always been interested in my beliefs and practices, and so I offered him a role in the ritual. A few kindred in the city decided to attend, but they didn't really know what to expect. By now they had all heard that I was an oracle of sorts, and that I gave out very accurate and powerful information. None of them really knew the full extent of what I do, however, and when I took the life of the mortal soldier in order to offer his essence up to the Great War Spirit, there were murmurs amongst the gathered kindred about my humanity. James agreed to sacrificing one of his eyes so that I could use it to enhance my ability to see beyond the physical realm. When I was able to proclaim to them that the efforts of the war would drive the economy higher then it had ever been, they scoffed. The expression on their faces when I turned out to be right was priceless, and a few individuals began to seek me out to get their own personal fortunes read.

Anthony didn't need any further compulsion to begin to invest in the entertainment sector. I knew that the business here was going to expand over the years, so we both made a joint investment as silent partners in El Ranch Vegas, a casino that was just starting off prior to the commencement of the War. Anthony had his own problems to deal with too as Prostitution became illegal shortly after the gunnery station was built in Vegas. I watched as my childe stretched his influence and took hold of the reigns of the underground prostitution ring. This move kept our pockets lined for a great deal of time and helped me to further expand my influence over the slowly building Glitter Gulch.

Anthony had long since left the chorus and joined the Circle of the Crone as a full member. I begun to pass down my knowledge of Cruac to him and teaching him about the more secluded parts of my heritage. By the end of nineteen fifty he had become powerful enough to refine his blood like I had a few years prior. With this refinement came a deeper understanding of the methods by which to manipulate and coax spirits to do our bidding. Our futures seemed rather bright as we relied on the spirits of the city and our control over them to guide us along our paths towards success.

This was also around the time that Violet Townsend found her own Vedmak at the hands of her sire. The rumors that circulated through Elysium and beyond were so varied and contrived that I tried to avoid listening to them. The Bad Penny, as she was called, seemed to be possessing of a very strong spirit and when she later came to me in order to do some work locating her a retainer I accepted and fulfilled her request. There were some looks from those who didn't want to deal with her when the boons were marked on the Prestation list, but I would later find out that my ties with her would pay off a great deal.

1950 - 1960

My personal power and understanding of the ways of Cruac had grown to the point that I could plead with even stronger spirits to give me the information that I sought. I used this new found power to make a few wise investments in the kindred and the city itself that would pay off in the end. The most beneficial investment I made during this time was in Violet Townsend who I was able to get a boon out of for services performed, and that relationship has since blossomed into a beneficial business relationship when I need it. The spirits also seemed to be pointing towards a rather chaotic event that would be transpiring later in the decade, but I was unable to fully discern what that event might be.

Cha had been a member of the Chorus now for nearly two decades and hadn't made any advancement towards joining the covenant fully. Her beliefs were still shaky and her mind was still not made up. The Spirits advised me to put her to a test to give her the push she needed to take the actions that would lead her to becoming the person she was destined to be. So I summoned her to my haven and told her that the time had come for her to make a decision and to fulfill the final requirement for entry in the covenant, she was to find for me a mortal who was on the verge of suicide so that we could manipulate a spirit close to death to learn more of Nav, the Underworld. She found the target just fine, but when I handed her the knife and told her that she must take his life in order to draw the essence of his soul into the physical plane She reacted like I knew she would. She left the temple, and later renounced her ties to the Circle.

The Kindred of the city had a hay day with the news and a few of them questioned my ability as a teacher. A few more dramatically inclined Kindred reminded the court that I had agreed to take on Cha and take responsibility for her education.Violet surprised me when she stepped in on my behalf and made a simple remark accounting for how far Cha had come under my tutelage. She swayed the opinions of the members of the city away from detesting me for allowing my adopted child to leave my covenant. For her efforts in covering up this potential slip up I offered Violet a small boon.

James' had began to try and convince people that it would be a great idea for the Kindred to develop control over the Las Vegas police department and to use them for our own ends.James and I had always had an open means of communicating our ideas, and when he came to me for consultation I contacted the spiritual realm and asked them for their guidance in the matter. The images that flashed through my mind seemed to indicate that this was a valuable endeavor and I advised him to proceed with his plans . James pushed his plans with the other kindred of the city and eventually the Prince gave into his request and gave him permission to do so. When the plan went awry and the police force became hunters James took the heat for it. James wasn't too happy with me about this, but in the end we were able to get over our differences and settle back into neutrality.

Anthony and I had gained quite a significant amount of money from the El Rancho Vegas, but he came to me and told me that he had a plan that would make us ten times as much. I was skeptical at first, and it was nearing the end of the decade that the spirits told me would be chaotic. I tried to convince him to postpone his plans, but Anthony was adamant and I admired the zeal in which he stuck to his guns. So I agreed to go along with his plan. We manipulated the Casino beyond anything that the authorities of the day had seen. There were more then a handful of workers that we implanted in the casino under the control of our Vedmaks and on our pay roll. The plan was to wait for a busy night when the vault was full and then break in to steal the money and set the casino aflame. This was obviously the chaotic event that the spirits had warned me about, and so whilst in the midst of the heist I took a moment to spill my blood and ask for further advice. Anthony didn't know what to think when I told him to leave a portion of the money behind in the vault, but later when the fire was investigated it turned out to have been the right move. Some of the coin had become melted into the wall and it gave the impression that all of the money had been destroyed in the fire. We made a significant amount of money from this endeavor, and I used my portion of it to invest in such a way that I knew I would never need to worry about finances again.

1960 - 1970

Cha left shortly after the new decade rolled around to go handle some business back in LA. I had no idea then that when she left she was going to become influenced more heavily the Carthian Movement. Out of all the things that happened with her, the one i'm most disappointed in is her eventual defection over to the Movement. While she was gone I received post cards from her with various little updates as to her progress. I must say that I actually looked forward to reading each one, right up until I learned that she had become invested in the Carthians. I never responded to her cards, but they kept coming in once every six months or so. I had to consult the Spirits of my ancestors then, and I learned from them that she had found her true place in the Danse Macabre. I resolved myself to simply dealing with her choices, and asked the spirits to watch over her and bring her back to me safely.

In nineteen sixty five Anthony and I sat down to discuss the future of the Circle of the Crone. It was always assumed that I was the leader of our covenant, even by the outsiders, because Anthony was my childe. The meeting I had with him simply developed that concept a little further and I announced that I would be taking the role of Heirophant in Las Vegas. One can never be too sure when more kindred would arrive, and I wanted to set myself as leader of the covenant before any could come to try and usurp that power over me. I appointed Anthony as my Vedun, a position in which he would act as my second if anything where to ever happen to me or if I was unable to attend a ritual ceremony.

Prince Sanders started to request some tithes for the domain and influence in his city. There were some murmurs of discontent from some of the kindred in the city, but those with any bit of intelligence kept those feelings to themselves and paid up. I found myself surprised that it took the prince nearly four decades to decide to collect on tithes. It is, after all, his right to tithe those in his city as he sees fit. I went out of my way to come up with they payment for my tithe as quickly as possible to make sure that the Prince was well aware that I had no issues what so ever in paying my dues for being within his domain. I have a feeling that this is just one more reason why the Prince didn't seem to hesitate when I would later ask for Glitter Gulch as my own domain.

The tourist trade was in full swing in Las Vegas by this point and the population of our city had expanded dramatically in a few years time thanks to the ever increasing amount of casinos and resorts opening up that needed workers to fill their ranks. While life was great for some, those who were forced to live outside of the strip found the city to be a lot less glimmering lights and a lot more dismal. Even the spirit of the city itself had been growing and changing over time, and the mortal cultists in the Duchovia Stromu Sveta could feel the atmosphere in our temple changing as well. When the Prince and the Invictus began to pressure Anthony and I to embrace I had to work hard to convince him that if we agreed to do such a thing that we would be allowed positions within the city. I pushed for a position as a Primogen as I had already been giving advice to his Grace over time. My pushing paid off and I was given the title of Primogen. There were rumors abound about me taking this position, some considered it just a candy title given to appease me. Whatever the reason, I would prove that I was a valuable asset.

Anthony set his eyes on a man named Grayson who was one of the Mafia's prized fighters and someone on whom I could eventually come to rely. Grayson was a bit rough around the edges when he was first chosen for the embrace, but my Childe was able to craft for him a Crucible that pushed him into becoming a very potent individual. The fact that he chose to embrace outside of the cult was reprehensible in my mind, but hindsight being what it is I could have asked for no better of a Grand childe. I chose a member of my cult that had begun to show promise, a (wo)man named (blank) who had skill as a medicine (wo)man and holistic healing. I thought that (his/her) addition to the Danse Macabre would round out the kindred population and her views on the world were he least likely to cause another defect over to the Carthian movement. With Grayson and my new embrace we had fulfilled our promise to the Prince and I started to devote time on training my new childe.

1970 - 1980

If my ability as an intermediary to the spiritual realm was incomplete before, I had by this time gained enough reputation among the kindred as a skilled oracle that any question on my skill was put to rest. It had become a popular amongst many of the kindred to come to me for advice before they acted on their desires and plans. In retrospect to the history of Las Vegas, this decade was somewhat of a slower period of time. Kindred in the city were able to push forward their own individual plans. There was a lot of younger blood coming to the city either by way of embrace or just coming to Las Vegas and I knew that I would have to defend my domain from the intentional and unintentional violations of these new Kindred. Grayson had been performing well as a new member of the Chorus, and his martial skill was unquestioned, so I worked out a deal with him to be my personal enforcer. To this night he still keeps my domain safe from interlopers and offering me protection when I need it.

My influence in the city had always been strong, but with more competition for limited number of allies in the city I decided it would be best to fortify my holdings and expand my own personal influence. Jacob's influence in the Bureaucratical and Research section of the city was strong, and my pull over the religious groups within the city was nearly complete, but it was time to gain some nominal influence in all aspects of the city's economy. I decided the easiest way to do this would be by bringing in a few more Votaries from the cult that could help expand and defend my position as a powerful player in the influence market. Mischa Drabinski was the wife of a powerful Russian mobster in Las Vegas, and she was also very spiritual and had found her way into the Duchovia Stromu Sveta a few years prior to my decision to make her my new Votary. With her pull over her husband she had influence over the Underworld that would help support Anthony's dominance over that sector. Frannie DuPont was a socialite that made her living as a professional escort to the most powerful men and women of Las Vegas, and bringing her into the fold helped me secure a few more needed allies to help build a strong defense. Neither of them could resist the offer of spiritual and physical power.

By this time I had become almost a master of the powers of Cruac and had even expanded my knowledge of my sire's own rare blood magic. My childer had begun to show promise in these skills as well and So I helped them to develop their own skills and put our minds towards the effort of developing new rituals that could benefit all of the Duchovia Stromu Sveta for time to come. This is a process we are still working on to this night, but when we have mastered the ability to manipulate the spirits in new and interesting ways we will be a force unmatched in the city save for maybe the The Prince himself.

Cha Returned to the city right before the turn of the decade and when the rest of the city learned of her new allegiance to the Carthian Movement there were some murmurs and rumors that flooded the streets. Again Violet helped to squash those rumors by pointing out that I had no impact on what happened to her while she was in Los Angeles. Irregardless of her poor decisions in covenant I noticed that Cha was much happier in her new role then she was prior to leaving the Circle. I had to learn to deal with her now that she had returned, and I asked her to meet with me at my haven. I told her then that I would be as supporting a sire as I could without calling into question my allegiance to the Invictus and the The Prince and I think she respected me for giving it to her straight. It was at this time that I realized that I had an unrequited physical attraction to my adopted childe. I gave into my lusts, but I was able to keep her from trying to feed from me once again.

Cha also requests from me a pretty big favor around this time, but i'm not going to go into too much detail about that. Suffice it to say that I had to stick my neck on the line for her, but I did it for two reasons. One, cause she agreed to pay me a large boon in order to get it taken care of, and two because I wanted to illustrate that even though I don't agree with her allegiances and views on politics that I am still and will always be her sire. When you don't have a thing like common blood descent to remind your charges that they are your family, it takes a little more effort to keep the family ties in shape. She has always been loyal, no matter what.

Cha embraces Franco Martinez and I have a new addition to my extended family. At that point in time I had to question her taste for childer, but Franco has since come to impress me. In an odd, but satisfying, turn of events only two years after his embrace Franco decides that he is going to join the Invictus. The spirits were attempting to teach Cha a lesson, and it was one that she wasn't nearly as prepared to deal with as I was. Then again, I did have twenty years to prepare for her leave whilst she only had two. She pretty much disowned the young kindred, and I wouldn't have that in my lineage, even if it was on the adopted side. I went to Franco, told him that I was proud of him for making a tough decision, and then sought out Cha and pointed out the irony of the situation to her. In as kind and neutral of a way as I could I essentially told her to get over it and find a way to get along with her childe. She wasn't happy about it, but she listened.

1980 - 1990

Perhaps she was fueled by her "failure" with Franco or maybe it was just time for her to embrace again, but Cha yet again recieved permission to embrace and my lineage extended once again with a new Grand Chlide. Michielle Costillo reminds me a lot of Cha's attitude and demeanor, and I came to find out that the woman was her lover before the embrace. I request to meet my new grand childe after she is taught the funadmentals of society. In our meeting the upstart childe made a rude remark when I told her about the legacy of my line. She didn't seem to respect the fact that our lineage has extended far beyond the recent past. I commanded the spirits to punish her for her transgressions, and watched her through the eyes of the spirits. She shrunk back when I demanded her respect, and Cha stood by my side rather then defending her childe. I'm not quite sure what effect that had on Michelle but from then on she had a bit more respectful tone when addressing me, and when I witnessed her performing a selfless act while under the effects of Cheval it gave me a new found respect for my Carthian grand childe.

The hunters, who had started their mission in Las Vegas after James' idea to ghoul members of the Police Force, were picking up in strength and power during this time and our kind had to be very careful to avoid their stakes. To make matters worse the digital age had a negative impact on our ability to blend in on the streets of Vegas. Cameras suddenly started showing up everywhere to record every move the populace made, and we had to begin to expend more of our will to appear as something more then just a blur on their media. The Hunters were smart, they used this to their advantage and there we no small number of hunter related kindred deaths. The most prolific of these deaths was the death of a recently arrived coterie of kindred that were staked and left for the sun atop the Bellagio hotel. Fear quickly spread through the kindred populace.

Cha had gathered a few others to join a coterie of kindred that acted as anti-hunters, and hunted them down to make sure they would do no more harm to our numbers. As much as I try to avoid assisting the Carthians, I knew that this was a worthwhile effort and so I asked the spirits for their guidance. I passed on information that the spirits shared with me to the coterie and their efforts were a successs for the most part, and when accompanied by the efforts of the Invictus the threat of the hunters was lessened a great deal, but we still had to deal with the impact of this new digital age on the hunting grounds of Las Vegas.

1990-2000

Sometime in nineteen ninety five we started to notice a new player in the underworld circles within Las Vegas. A person calling himself The Borzoi started offering his servies as a cleaner and a contract killer when the price was right. I made sure that Anthony was doing his research on the new power player, who eventually turned out to be the kindred Vasily Petrovich. I tried not to get involved too deeply with the Russian, but as fate would have it his spiritual interests were similiar to my own and as such we had a lot in common and when he surfaced in Kindred society we started a casual relationship of discussing spiritual topics. I left the major underworld dealing with the new arrival to Anthony.

It was at this time that Ephemeral Deville was first turned over into my care. Her sire did not have any explanation for the strange visions she would have. I knew that she suffered from a similiar affliction as I, and that with the proper education and tutelage she could turn that affliction into something that could work to her benefit. We began to start lessons with her on the ways of the Circle and not too long after we inducted her into the circle as a member of the Chorus. She had a lot of work to do at this point before she would be allowed the secrets of Cruac, due to the fact that she seemed to have a severe addiction to the attention of others. I was used to it though, having raised a Daeva.

2003

Addison Whitfield had always been quite the partier, and his parties were enjoyable to attend. So when I was invited to another one of these events I of course accepted the invitation, not aware that it would be the stage for Ephemeral's first melt down. Apparently she had been told, or perceived, that Cha was somehow responsible for her club being shut down. In the worst display of etiquette I have ever personally witnessed, the young goth walked up to the Hound of Las Vegas and slapped her right in the face. The dim of chit chat that had once filled the room went deathly quiet in the moments between the slap and when Cha grabbed the flimsy neck of her assailant. She drug Ephe outside and I followed behind. Not too long after she released my student she told me I better get her under control, as she stalked off to channel her anger somewhere else.

I made my disappointment in her very clear when I illustrated how unintelligent it was to assault a member of the Prince's Court in a public forum, for no better reason then an alleged attack on her physical holdings. I could see the shame fill her eyes as I lashed out at her verbally and told her that she would offer an apology to all parties involved in this incident and that I would punish her for making the Circle look week at an event held by a member of the First Estate. I had intentions of holding a rite to officially adopt her into my lineage, but I didn't go through with that rite at that point as I wanted to see how she would be able to smooth things over with my other Adopted childe.

2007

It was early in two thousand and seven when the Prince held a court to hear petitions for claiming territory. When I spoke my interest in claiming the territory that I had worked hard on expanding since the thirties, he didn't seem to have to think too much before he granted me the domain. Perhaps it was due to the many many years of unquestioned support I gave him, or his value of me as a seer. I'm not sure, but from this point on I knew that my lineage, and my cult would be taken care of so long as I kept the domain in tip top shape. I had every intention of doing just that.

With so limited an amount of territory it was inevitable that there would be those who were furious with the decisions the Prince made. A handful of kindred got escorted out of the Court meeting by the hound. It was quite the scene and those three Kindred had to be removed before we were able to get back down to business and regain our composure. The rest of the court meeting went without further incident, but there were still some brewing hostilities among the kindred involved.

The economy of Las Vegas hit some hard times around this time, and I lost a little of my investments and had to sell some things off that were costing me more then what they were worth. In the end though I was able to keep myself from losing too much of my accumulated wealth. After this point I cut back on my expenditures and investments to the point of just sustaining myself until the Economy eventually returns. I'm still waiting for the economy to return so I can continue my investments and expand my resources. In an attempt to make up for some of this lost revenue I began to sell the right to feed within my domain and sent Grayson after those who were feeding in my domain without leave. My Childer and Grand Childer were not exempt from this fee, but I didn't ask from them as much as I would have an unrelated member of the city. Currently my domain allows myself and my direct lineage to feed without much qualm.

Violet's childe, Damien Reese, caused a little of an uproar when he embraced the Imp like Deangelo Bell without permission. The Prince was just a little upset by the whole thing and for the first time I saw him lose his temper in an uncharacterist display by throwing a pool table and destroying it. Violet was at the recieving end of the Prince's outburst, but she had little control over the situation, still its not wise to irritate the prince.

As if his embrace wasn't hard enough, Imp had another slip up where he allowed himself to get shot up by some thugs and had to pretend to be dead. Luckily for me Michelle was with him when it all went down and she called me to ask for assistance in cleaning up the mess. It's pretty hard to find a body that has the same physical characteristics as a pointy eared street hopper, but I managed to pull it off and help imp replace his real corpse with the stunt double. I made it known in elysium that he had agreed to an exchange of a medium boon for my services, after all it wasn't exactly easy. He didn't protest too much.

Vasily did protest though, he thought that my involvement in this matter was stepping on his toes and cutting into his business. In response he decided to attack Jacob's influence in the research field, and he suffered a loss to his pull in the area. I was furious when I found out about this, and in response I black listed him from a few clubs in my domain that I knew he frequented, including the Moulin Rouge. Eventually our hostilities faded away as we both let each others transgressions slide, but I have a feeeling if bad blood were to rise again those slights will come back into the forefront of our dealings with each other.

2009

Sometime in the middle of the year of two thousand and nine, imp came to me for a bit of any education on what it meant be any acolyte. The young kindred was still unaligned and had yet to find his place in the world. I didn't, and still don't, really care too much for him but I didn't despise him by any means so I offered to allow him to witness a ritual of divination where I sacrificed the spirit of a Dog up to the world tree to entice the Crone to give me some insight into his current issues with his grandsire. I advised him of something that he should say to Violet that actually backfired on him and didn't help his situation at all. If the man had any interest in joining the circle prior to that I'm fairly positive that the ritual did anything to help the situation. My theory is, however, that he already thought I was crazy before this interaction.

Vasily encroached upon Anthony's allies when he put a hit on one of his allies without realizing it. The result was an ugly allies war between the two. I of course backed up my chlide at first, and with the recent sting from Vasily's attack on my own allies, I was sure that he meant to do exactly what he did. As time went on though I saw that it was all a misunderstanding. I had to think quickly to bring peace between the two and to keep them from going into an all out war, so I did what any Father would do to his child to keep them safe... I lied. I told Anthony that the spirits had shown me a premonition of a dark time in our lives if this conflict would continue. He listened. The hostilities subsided. Mission accomplished.

2010

Imp decided not too long ago to have a mental breakdown or something and came into elysium with the intention of doing...Who knows what...by dominating several kindred to shut the fuck up. He ended up getting drug out of elysium by Cha. The fledgling has a lot to learn about his place in the world, but one has to admire his audacity. It will either serve to empower his person or it will get him killed. Either way if I just let it play out the situation will handle itself in the long run. Maybe I should take a more active stance against this sort of outburst.

Ephe is a constant source of enjoyment and frustration. She has some sort of penchant for the melodramatic that makes her a handful to deal with, but luckily enough for her I have raised a few Daeva (who coincidently are less drama queens the Ephe is). My relationship with Cha remains to be an enigma, with both of us having the respect of the other but not being willing to blur covenant lines to really embrace that relationship. At the very least I know that she can count on me as a sire, and her as a Childe ... the rest is up to the spirits.

Anthony and Grayson thrive in this city in their own ways and the relationship between us is close knit and powerful. There isn't a command I could give them that they wouldn't carry out if I demanded it. They aren't blind idiots, they would ask why the task needed to be done and they would try to learn from my visions, but they would follow me straight into the abyss if I needed allies to fight back the darkness. These ties will never break, as our spirits are entwined to each others destinies in a way that my Adopted line will never be.