Post by Hematite on Feb 5, 2014 9:53:53 GMT
The Children of the Dracon are an odd faction, stemming primarily from within a single bloodline of Clan Tzimisce that strives to preserve the Dream of Constantinople in the Final Nights. They are predominantly former Obertus Revenants. In recent nights other clans have been permitted to join, but it happens only rarely.
The exact agenda of the Children of the Dracon is unknown, but they seem to be at intellectual odds with the rest of the Tzimisce. Perhaps this is due to some past transgression, or perhaps it lies in the difference of mortal stock from which the vampires were originally drawn. Whatever the case, the Children of the Dracon do not antagonize the other Tzimisce, so much as they take a consistent role of the Devil’s Advocate. If the Tzimisce favor a siege, the Children posit the values of holding back; if the Fiends support the Inquisition, the Children argue against giving any faction too much power. As many Children have inserted themselves strongly into Sect structures (many become Templars and a few European bishoprics and even a few Cardinal’s seats are claimed by them), they are untouchable for the Elders.
Although this seems arbitrary, the Children seem to see themselves as the warders of their brothers. Apparently, sometime in the mists of history, a Tzimisce made a decision that affected the entirety of his clan (perhaps resulting in the clan’s odd weakness). The Children of the Dracon have sworn to make the Tzimisce consider the full gravity of their actions... or perhaps atone for them. This sentiment has been transferred to the Sabbat as a whole since its formation and one can always count on a Child of the Dracon to contradict nearly any official decision. Indeed their sobriquet of “Devils” truly comes from the term “Devil’s Advocate” (not to mention more insulting phrases used by Clergy members who have just had to listen to a Child of the Dracon tear their plans apart in front of their court) rather than any implication of infernal ties.
The Tzimisce report that no Child of the Dracon has ever held the title of voivode in the clan, and that the Children are either incapable of learning their koldunic magic or they steadfastly refuse to; in truth, the Children think that Koldunic Sorcery is evil, and will eventually enslave the clan to demons. The distinction means little outside the clan and faction, and others regard it as a curious family affair.
In addition to viewing themselves as advisors and the devil’s advocates to the sect, the Children of the Dracon also believe in the dream that was Constantinople. In the glory days of Constantinople, as the Children claim, Cainite and kine lived in harmony. The Cainites did not rule as gods, but as superiors to the humans. It was believed that as long as order, rational minds, and justice were maintained, the harmony of the First City could be realized. Foremost, in this idea was the “Rule of Three.” Instead of one Cainite claiming the Lordship of a city, three Cainites would rule together. In doing so, it was seen that all choices, options, and merits for courses of actions could be addressed and assessed. A checks and balance system. With three equal rulers, justice would be absolutely fair, as justice would be decided amongst the Three.
While the Children of the Dracon were once a purely Tzimisce order, since joining the Sabbat as a formal faction in 1589 (much to the chagrin of the rest of the Tzimisce), their ideals have expanded. Though they keep the name of the Children of the Dracon, in truth they have come to idealize all three parts of the Holy Trinity of Constantinople and the Dream that ruled there. They believe that Cainites are superior to humans, but that does not make them gods, nor does it give them the mandate to slaughter and torture wantonly. Rationality and calm thought are their creed, and they believe that only through proper debate and consideration can harmony and justice truly be reached.
Tonight, the Children of the Dracon fully believe in the Rule of Three. They support the rule of Bishopric councils over ruling by one Archbishop. While these beliefs remain strong, the Children never act quickly or brashly. Instead, as always, they play the role of advisors to their brothers and sisters.
History
Little is known about the origins of the Dracon, only that he was the first childe of the Eldest himself, making him many thousands of years old. Not content to transform only his body, he saw himself as an agent for metamorphosis of the world. Through the power of philosophy and passion, he initiated the rise and fall of kingdoms and beliefs.
152 AD: The Dracon met his future lover and companion, Michael, during one of Michael’s journeys to the isle of Cyprus in the second century, and they became enraptured with each another.
The Toreador’s passion and perfection were irresistible to the Dracon. In return, the Toreador recognized primal energy in the Tzimisce that would be needed to build his Dream and fill his heart. The only one between them was the Ventrue Antonius, Michael's Lover, whose pragmatism and logic cut at the Dracon's heart.
312 AD: The Dracon, Michael, and Antonius came to call themselves the Trinity--Michael, the Father, Antonius--and later Cassius, his childe--the son, and the Dracon the Holy Ghost. The Dream was the idea of Constantinople under Michael, who believed he was the archangel. It was Constantinople under a permanent fixture of Chimerstry and figmented daylight--it was Heaven.
565 - 600 AD: The rivalry between the Dracon and Antonius slowly gathered speed over three centuries, and eventually it caused the Dream to grow dysfunctional, as their rivalry tore the city of Constantinople apart when the Dracon tried to destroy what Antonius had stabilized, unleashing plagues and famines against his structures.
689 AD: In a final attempt to make peace between his lovers, Michael presented them the brothers Gesu and Symeon, who should become the successors and childer to each of them. For a generation, the Dream once again knew peace, but it was not fated to last.
701 AD: The Dracon's disastrous Embrace of Gesu against the wishes of his Transylvanian brethren heralded the end of the peace, and the last of the halcyon days of the Triumvirate. Gesu entered a deep Torpor immediately after his Embrace and it seemed uncertain if he would awaken.
The Dracon's rage and subsequent hunt through Transylvania for the Tzimisce that he felt were responsible has become fearful legend among the Carpathian Fiends. After two long years and the destruction of many of his kin, the Dracon finally slew his brother-in-blood, the Ancient known as Triglav, in a battle that literally shook the mountains. Only the intercession of one of the Dracon’s former students, the late Tzimisce sage Demenaus, convinced the Dracon to leave his vendetta there.
Even so, the Carpathian and Draconian Tzimisce have warred intermittently over this feud for centuries.
703 AD: As Gesu arose and embraced Antonius' promised, Gesu's brother Symeon, the jealousy of the Ventrue had reached its peak.
726 AD: When Antonius began the Iconoclast Movement to destroy the blood religions of the Akoimetai and the monastic orders of the Divinity Within that served the Dracon, he divided Constantinople and angered his childer, Caius and Septima Dominica, in the process of striking out against the Dracon.
796 AD: Caius and Septima Dominica proposed the destruction of Antonius at the Fourth Council, and Michael and the Dracon decided to slay their lover at last. It was only then that the Dracon realized that he had loved Antonius just as intense as Michael and a deep depression hit him.
888 AD: The Dracon left the city and was not seen ever since. His legacy, however, survives in the form of the Obertus revenants, the Children of the Dracon and the Library of the Forgotten, held by the Divinity Within.
The Divinity Within, the monastic cult within Constantinople under the supervision of the Tzimisce passes from the Dracon to Gesu, childe of the great Methuselah. The order of ghouled monks that practiced the ways of the Within was called the Akoimetai, later Gesudians. From them, the Obertus Revenants would later form.
The monastic orders of the Divinity Within were strong promoters of the worship of icons (who often depicted famous Tzimisce) and were further tasked with maintaining the Library of the Forgotten. Vicissitude was regarded with a spiritual reverence, as the touch of God among the flesh of the damned. Only through prayer, torture and fasting the discipline was used, believe to manifest the Communion Within. The followers of the Divinity Within often locked themselves into fasting cages, starving themselves to Frenzy and receiving strange vision afterwards that were believed to be portents of the Within. Further, the human body was believed to be incomplete, following the creation of Eve from Adam’s rib. To overcome this limitation, the Immaculate Union was devised, in which a person of the opposing gender would be fused with the body of the monk via Vicissitude. It was also believed that only a strict adherence to the tenets of Christ can allow the practitioner to achieve transcendence, as the Divinity Within is still under the control of God and only He can unlock it.
1196 AD: Gesu and his other half, his lover Lillian, performed the Immaculate Union.
1204 AD: During the Sac of Constantinople, Gesu died in the flames of his Monastery, and Symeon, his mortal brother and childe, was forced to take his place. The Tzimisce Scions beneath him recovered what was left of the Library and began scribing the knowledge they knew onto new books, among those was the Tzimisce Caelia, mortal sister to Lillian. The books recovered were given to Symeon, and Caelia, along with two other Scions of similarly photographic memory, Dusus and Gaius, each begin their own group of studied books to transcribe.
1493 AD: During the antitribu uprising, better known as the Anarch Revolt, the anarchs attacked the elders' strongholds to destroy everything associated with their former masters. Myca, on the other hand, played the monster while torturing Symeon - repeatedly absorbing and regurgitating his sire - but also took the role of scholar when he saved books at risk to his own existence.
1550 AD: Myca, renamed Sascha, after over 50 years of torture, finally diablerized Symeon, after taking considerable time to study and take from him his knowledge. It is from this knowledge that Myca locates the other Scions in Hagia Sophia. When Sascha presents itself to the Scions, it is suprised almost at the ease with which they accept it. Caelia recognizes Sascha from the time before, when it was Myca. She remembered that during Myca's years in Constantinople, Michael encouraged Myca's thirst for knowledge. It was his intent to make the young Tzimisce a walking record of Constantinople, Michael's vision of Heaven on Earth. Unbeknownst to Myca, the Toreador Methuselah instilled him with this vision and with a need to preserve Constantinople's legacy. Myca became Michael's architect, building a new kingdom without the mistakes of the past.
1589 – The Children of the Dracon are formally recognized as a Sabbat Faction (against many protests of the other Tzimisce). The Faction leader position is offered to Sascha Vykos, but it declines. Currently the Faction is ruled by the Trinity representing the proper Rule of Three. Since only one may sit on the Consistory at any time (only the Black Hand has the special right to have all four of their Seraphs sit on the Consistory), they often take it in turns which greatly confuses the rest of the upper echelons of the Clergy.
Organization and Positions
The Children of the Dracon organize themselves much like a monastic order, with “scions” establishing monasteries made up primarily of their own broods. The monasteries coordinate their activities through the Hagia Sophia within Istanbul, which acts as a holy site for the bloodline. The scholarly wing of this order, the Akoimetai, is drawn almost exclusively from a branch of the Obertus revenant family, though this family produces some knights as well. Tzimisce not descended from a scion are rarely allowed to join, and even those who do are referred to as “carrion” and never granted full understanding of the meaning of the 12 legacies that this sect-within-a-sect abides. Children of the Dracon also tolerate the existence of thin-blooded Cainites within their ranks, a trend that disgusts conservative elements within the clan.
Before the Embrace, the Children leave the monastery to study the “12 legacies”—precepts of the order—with various enclaves across the globe. Then, they return to their monastery of origin to be Embraced. If the initiate is an Akoimetai, he is entrusted with one volume from the Library of the Forgotten. If a knight, he is charged to carry a letter in an envelope he is forbidden to open, sealed with the mark of the Dracon himself, to some other Fiend elsewhere in the world. Confirmed in the order, the new Child of the Dracon departs to establish himself within Sabbat society.
The Leader of the Dream: This position is reserved for Sascha Vykos, whose connection and love of Michael and the Dream outweighed even his hatred for its own clan. Sascha Vykos brought what it possessed of the remains of the library after eating its sire, Symeon, Gesu's brother. Although it does not lead the spiritual growth of the Children of the Dracon, Sascha Vykos is integral to them--for who else can carry on the Methuseleh Michael's plans but the protege Michael, himself, chose. This position is not recognized by the Sabbat as Sascha Vykos denies it in all official capacity to this night. This does not stop all members of the Children of the Dracon from revering the ancient Tzimisce for its perceived holiness and connection to the Lost Dream. Though it has certainly made use of the prestige and support of the Children, Vykos does not take an active role in its leadership.[/i]
The Trinity: The Scions that reside in Hagia Sophia in Instanbul--the spiritual leaders and controllers of the Children of the Dracon. These are the eldest Scions of clan Tzimisce, dating back to 1100. These positions are held by Caelia, The Father, Melian, the Son, and The Jackal, the Holy Ghost. The Trinity gain the status Unholy, Dreamweaver, and Archduke. The Trinity are the actual leaders of the Faction, Sascha Vykos having mostly left them to their own devices since leading them into the Sabbat.
Scion: A parent to their own line, the Scion is the spiritual leader and trainer within the Monastery. Scions are never made from the Carrion and are responsible for each of those within their flock; they watch over the learning families--mortal blood of their own lines--and see to the rites of Embrace when the time comes. When named a Scion, a Childe of the Dracon has already embraced at least 10 childer and guided them in the ways of the order. A Scion oversees a portion of the remaining books from the Library of the Forgotten, and there are never more than 15 at once. Scions gain the status Unholy.
Akoimetai: The scholars within the Children are almost always from the Obertus Revenant line, and are charged with the remembrance of the Library and study thereof. It is expected of an Akoimetai to carry the knowledge of the Library within them in case of loss. They are scribes and studious priests, and are almost always those elevated to Scions.
Knight: Inspired by the frightful visage of Sascha Vykos itself, the Knight is a more young sect within the cult. Despite what it would imply, Knights are not often trained for combat as much as they are prepared for diplomatic communications. They are often the faces of the Children of the Dracon, and are the most numerous sect within it.
Carrion: Those who aspire to the teachings of the Dracon who are not among the Tzimisce lines that trace back to a Scion are called Carrion. They are not fully inducted, and go through no rites. These are those who joined the order after Embrace, and are rarely looked well on by those others within the Sect.
All members of the Children of Dracon gain the status Devil in addition to any other status traits.
Prominent Members[/u]
Sascha Vykos – Tzimisce Archbishop of Washington D.C.
Clan: Tzimisce
Generation: 6th
Faction Position: Leader of the Dream
Much has been said about Vykos already in this page and a more complete background for this NPC can be found in Children of the Night as well as a prominent role in both the Modern Nights and Dark Ages Clan Novel series along with additional information in the Dark Ages supplement Constantinople by Night. Vykos is an enigma to most who have met it, though very few leave a meeting with the Tzimisce elder unshaken. Though it is regarded as the Leader of the Dream, Vykos has always denied that role. It maintains its membership in the Children of the Dracon, supporting the leadership of the Trinity and claiming only to be a Scion.
The Jackal – Tzimisce Faction Leader (The Holy Ghost)
Very little is known of the Cainited called the Jackal. It has been seen wearing many faces of many genders, but in recent nights it makes very few public appearances. Only those at the highest levels of the Faction can claim to have met it. Rumours abound that the Jackal may actually be the Dracon himself, and that is why Vykos refused leadership, but these are only rumours. Only Vykos and Caelia could confirm and both of them refuse to confirm, or perhaps more importantly deny, this rumour.
Huroff – Cardinal of the Netherlands
Clan: Nosferatu Antitribu
Generation: 6th
Faction Position: Carrion
The enigmatic Cardinal, like many of his clan, is a very elusive creature. Few knew a great deal about the Cardinal, other than his signing of the Code of Milan. What is known is Huroff is perhaps the most famous non-Tzimisce member of the Children of the Dracon. It is known that his association with the Children of the Dracon goes back earlier than the formation of the Sabbat, but none knows exactly when or how he joined their ranks.
The Nosferatu Elder opened his land as a refuge to the Anarchs during the Great Uprising, likely due to his strong ties with the Tzimisce (though some hint at a deep rivalry with one of the Camarilla Inner Circle) and has since been a staunch member of the Sword of Caine, if a confusing and difficult one. It is through his action that the Sabbat gained control of the Netherlands and hold it to this night. During the Sabbat Civil Wars Huroff once again offered his homeland as a refuge while serving as Cardinal, maintaining the Netherlands as one of the only places of neutral territory. He openly opposed the wars, insisting in each case that all sides were being foolish children. When the Regent called for an end to the Civil Wars, Huroff was one of the first to come to Mexico City. His signature is on both the Purchase Pact and the Code of Milan.
Tonight Huroff’s domain of the Netherlands is one of the few bastions of Sabbat power in Europe outside of Spain. He is one of the few Cardinals who makes a point of attending every meeting of the Consistory, much to the hatred of his fellows, for he loves playing the irritating role of a constant devil’s advocate to everything the Consistory decides.
Radu Bistri – Cardinal of the Midwest
Clan: Tzimisce
Generation: 7th
Faction Position: Carrion
A former Revenant of the Szantovitch line (who would later interbreed and join with the Zantosas), Radu was bred for statecraft and social warfare. He is an accomplished diplomat and politician, famous for his stirring public speeches. He is most famous for being the principle writer and advocate for the Purchase Pact.
A relatively recent convert to the Children of the Dracon, he only joined following the lead of Sascha Vykos, whom he had long idolized. This decision put him greatly at odds with his fellow Tzimisce who had long despised the Children. Radu is convinced that his “exile” to America is due to Tzimisce politicking to sideline him. He was appointed to the post of Cardinal of the Midwest, largely to be a principle troubleshooter for the uprisings there. Radu deeply resents his placement in America and wants to return to a position in Eastern Europe.
For more information on Radu, see Transylvania by Night.