It started on Twelfth Night.
Luminaries from across the world arrived for the yearly ball celebrating the reign of Prince Gustov Strauss.
The name of Strauss once caused fear and envy across the Camarilla. It was whispered that he made his fortune during the height of World War II in Berlin. After the war, he relocated to Argentina, like so many expatriates. He grew to become an influential leader in the Camarilla. Some say that it was the Inner Council that asked him to move to Seattle. Others say that he ran afoul of the Setites and needed a safe refuge.
Strauss arrived in Seattle in 1953 and was Prince by the end of the year. Seattle was a savage city filled with anarchs, independents, and wild beasts. The first Twelfth Night was a celebration of elegance and the Camarilla.
By the end of the decade, Strauss ruled the city completely. He tamed the Puget Sound when Portland and California fell to the anarchs. Seattle became the sole pillar of the Camarilla on the West Coast.
That night, the Twelfth Night Ball began strangely. The Nosferatu did not arrive. It was a social snub unheard of. An entire clan ignored the call of Prince Strauss. Several wondered what new turn of the Jihad would make the Nosferatu blatantly make such an enemy, but the evening quickly turned to other events.
The evening continued to progress oddly.
The Malkavians began to talk in unison.
The Toreador became sullen and distant. First, they seemed distracted and uncaring. Then their hands began to twitch. A Toreador named Simon overturned a casket of blood wine and began to sketch upon the wall. Others began to sing. Some recited poetry long forgotten in modern night. It was brilliant. Every creation a masterpiece.
The Sheriff, a brutal Brujah named Rooster Brown, began to weep.
A Tremere named Talia began to bleed from the eyes. It was just a result of an experiment, they said. The Tremere took Talia back to their chantry. They were never heard from again.
A few vampires sensing danger fled the ball and the city. They were the only ones known to have survived the attack.
The mortals refer to that night as Devil’s Night. It was the night that the Triad Tong took over Seattle; the night they slaughtered most of the German and Russian mobsters and burned a portion of downtown.
That was the night that the Cathayans invaded. They wiped out all opposition. It was said that the Puget Sound was trapped behind the Silk Curtain.
The Anarchs were pushed into Bremerton. Some power at the Naval Base prevented the Cathayans from attacking them. Over the years, they attacked when they could and sent information to the rest of the world.
The Sabbat sent crusade after crusade against Seattle and failed.
Lexington, the Ventrue Archon, was appointed War Lord by the Inner Council and gathered a small army to prepare a siege against these Kindred of the East. Dozens of cities lent warriors and used subtle means to strike at the Cathayans. Anarchs rallied to the cause, not wishing to fight both the Camarilla and the Eastern Vampires.
On the night of the Lexington’s siege, the Cathayans disappeared. Their havens were empty. Their retainers were disorganized.
The Camarilla retook the city.
And now the Reconstruction begins….
