Inquisition
The First Entry
By A.J. Smith
I guess the best way to explain my
current situation, would be to explain how I got to my current situation.
About a year or two ago, 1995, I was a rebellious stand-alone. I hunted
alone, traveled alone, and survived alone. I paid homage to no clan,
group, or prince. I considered myself separate from any race or god, I
was not a child of the Wyrm, or an offspring of the Wyld, and I was never one of the Weaver.
I had my own beliefs, my own religion. I believed in staying out of
anyone's wars, or trades. This was why they came to me.
An organization, hidden, and separated from all other
organizations. They took all species, accepted any member, as long
as they knew the one rule, they were separate. I quickly learned the
trade they offered, and became one of their field experts, what they called
shadows. My job was to follow any given target (my targets were given to
me in small, manila envelopes, just as names) without allowing them to know I
was their shadow, or that I was following them. I would take notes, and
write reports on the individuals, and on the occasion, I would be given an
assignment to interfere with the targets, and to attempt to alter some path of
events. It was my one failure that caused so much havoc. The target
was a Hunter, his name was John Brenlis. Brenlis was a very powerful man, who held influence on the
small city of
I had
been Brenlis' shadow, and my newly assigned job was
to ensure, in any way possible, that Brenlis grew to
no more power. My failure came swiftly. On an attempt to intervene,
I tried to assassinate Brenlis. That was my
mistake. The hunter-mayor used his own assassination attempt to increase
his hold, and his power. New Special Forces were introduced into the
police, and they were named Shock-Forces. The Shock-Forces were highly armored, and well equipped troopers. And worse yet,
they were comprised solely of Hunters. The Shock-Forces were dispatched
nightly, to hunt down, and eradicated the supernatural, under the guise of
removing crime.
This
infuriated the Werewolves, the Vampires, and all other of the kinds. Red
Talons, and other clans, began slaughtering innocents more and more, as a
declaration of war. The Vampires set gangs of ghouls out into daylight to
wreak havoc on anything or anyone they could find. And the hunters began
to savage every strange creature they could find, killing many Werewolves and
Vampires. War was declared without voice, and three factions were created.
Those who followed the Wyrm, those
who followed the Weaver, and those who followed the Wyld.
Most of the Werewolf clans joined in the Wyld, but
the Bone-Gnawers and Glass-Walkers surprised all when they sided with the
Weaver. The Vampires were spread throughout all the factions, and it is
still hard to discern which factions lay where. The Mages are impossible
to determine their overall standing, as they all act as single units. The
Hunters have joined with the Weaver, but they have joined other factions.
There was, however, a forth faction. Mine.
My
faction took a name, Watchers, and continued their previous ways of life,
changing only one thing. Instead of only interfering under strict order,
we were to interfere wherever we felt it could help end the war, in any way we
could. We became saboteurs, and assassins. Peace talkers and
diplomats. But despite our efforts, Brenlis'
influence grew. As a result of the marauding Supernatural, more Hunters
came to be, as the Veil was severed at a higher rate. The war in
But it
would only get worse. Brenlis ran for a new
office, congress. And his new influence involving Hunter-net, gave him
easy passage. To us, he was becoming a new Adolf
Hitler. The war in
It was
'97 before I finally found a way. I would act as a shadowy conscious, and
influence someone else to strike at Brenlis, and to
finally end the war. And I believe I found my choices. They will
have my help, and they may never know who I am... Only time can tell, and
I only hope they can succeed. This war, this, second Inquisition, must be
stopped.
5/19/2003