CbN012: Disco Non Elysium

General Summary

The Confessional - April 25th, 2017
The end of April finds the streets of Chicago slick with rain. Thunder rumbles in the distance as lighting illuminates the dark skies above. The wind is howling, sending leaves and debris flying through the air, as people hurry along the sidewalks to try and find shelter from the storm.
As the evening draws closer, a group of young vampires make their way to a repurposed church in the heart of Southside. The church has been transformed into a club, a haven for the city’s undead, and tonight it’ll be the host of an unforgettable party for kindred.
The vampires take pause as they approach the church, looking up at the stained glass windows which cast a multicolored glow onto the wet pavement below. The sound of the rain drums on the roof and adds to the eerie atmosphere.

Welcome to the Confessional

The inside of the club vibrates to the rhythm of pulsing music and is filled with revelers dancing in the dimly lit interior. The air is thick with the scent of incense and the buzz of conversation. Despite the storm raging outside, the party is in full swing and newcomers quickly get caught up in the festivities.
The church is a sprawling multi-level space, with a main dance floor surrounded by balconies overlooking the central space. The architecture is a mix of gothic and modern, with soaring stained glass windows, stone arches and intricate carvings juxtaposed against neon lights and sleek metal accents. An ornate chandelier hangs at the center of the dance floor, serving as an elegant disco ball of sorts and reflecting the neon lights all across the room, illuminating the walls filled with graffiti in a kaleidoscope of colors.
Throughout the club, there’s various booths and tables meant for casual conversations, and while most people at present are drinking, chatting or dancing, others are also engaged in heated debates or more intimate activities. Near the bar is an altar of Lilith, the goddess worshiped by the cultists attending today, which adds a touch of reverence to the otherwise wild atmosphere.

The cultists, dressed in modern bohemian clothing, are easily recognizable by their unique symbols and tattoos. They are an eclectic group of vampires who are open about their sexuality and embrace their love for Lilith and the Earth. Some are dancing but most sit in quiet contemplation, paying respects to the goddess they worship.
With the passage of time the storm outside also begins to pass, the winds dying down. The rain becomes soft patter and the streets of Chicago fall quiet once more. But within the walls of the club, the party continues, fueled by the blood and energy of the kindred that call the city home.
From the second floor the Lost Boys look down at it all, eyes sharp and shifting around to make sure nothing is out of the ordinary. As “ordinary” as a club full of vampires can be.

Party Hats On

Kindred of importance in attendance:

• Erzulie , Mother Above All, is running the show. She is currently trying to calm down a black man dressed in business casual attire.
• Bennett , who runs the Red No.5, is the black man in question, who’s uncontrollably angry that the Confessional was chosen for this event instead of his club. He’s complaining and gesturing around to Erzulie.
• Edith Beaubien , The Painted Lady, is opening up a private booth in one of the club’s corners. She’s known for her tattoo services.
• Adze , Father Above All, sits in one of the booths nearby overlooking the proceedings. He’s here to watch over his flock, but something has got him in a nasty mood.
• Francois Mamuwalde , The MC of the Blood Disco, is here to make sure everyone is having a good time.

Before the party had started, Marcel sent a message to Mary for Clem. Apparently, Adze is the person in charge of not only the Blood Disco but all the clanless masses. He’s rarely seen unless he wants to be and it’s a rare opportunity for the Coterie to make introductions and gain favor with the elusive Nosferatu.
Maude does a cursory scan of the crowd and can tell there are kindred drinking blood on the dance floor - and while they are being sneaky about it, the Confessional has booths meant for this. Maude shakes their head in disappointment but as they’re about to go put some kids in their place, they spot Jason pushing his way through the crowd and any other possible intentions slip from their mind like water down a drain.
Despite the coterie adamantly disagreeing with Maude’s idea to invite Jason to the disco, Maude had gone behind their backs to do so regardless. It was not only the grand opening of the Confessional, but also their very own birthday - how could they not invite Jason? They bustle with excitement seeing that he had accepted their secret invitation afterall.
From the crowd below, Jason throws a look towards Maude and disappears behind the Peter Pan wall. Maude wastes no time making their way downstairs and follows.
They find Jason at the end of a hallway that should not exist. Maude feels their vision go black and white, neon lights guiding them towards him and the rest of the party fading away into the background. The Primogen is wearing a fedora and is dressed as though he’s been superimposed right from a Noir film, with a candy cigarette hanging from his mouth as he smiles.
“Happy birthday Maude.” He says as he tips his fedora. They talk briefly, never long enough to satisfy Maude, but he mentions that he has a gift he’ll give them later tonight before heading back to the party.

Back at the Party

Clementine spots Adze sitting at a booth by himself and beelines towards him with Mary. They find out that Adze offers no true alliance to the Nosferatu or the Camarilla, he wants to deal in his own world, front dealings, not the backroom business Nosferatu are usually known for. Apparently the Ventrue think Adze is doing a play for power in the city since Jackson used to be in control of the clanless. They notice that he’s acting a bit odd, pointing and laughing at Bennet.
He mentions that he runs Red No.5 and wants to topple the Succubus club. He seems to be judging the Confessional and wants to see if they can play nice or eat each other up. The choice to not use Red No.5 for the Disco this year comes from Adze messing with Bennet. He had told him the place needed renovations but in reality he just wanted to put Bennet in his place and knock him off his high horse for a moment.
Meanwhile, Kim and Liliana head down as well and approach Bennet and Erzulie. Bennet seems a few moments away from doing something stupid as Erzulie is trying her best to call him down. Liliana tries to talk to him as well while Erzulie glances at her with a thankful expression, but the moment her eyes shift to Kim they glaze over and she cannot seem to look away.
Erzulie completely disregards Bennet and walks towards Kim, immediately complimenting her and getting touchy with her. They engage in an intimate conversation as Liliana eyes them with concern and keeps talking to Bennet.
Mary steps away from the conversation with Adze, leaving Clem to deal with it. She goes to stand near the crypt’s entrance to make sure no one tries anything funny. She pulls out her phone, monitoring the tracker placed inside The Book to watch for any potential movement. It’s at that moment that she feels a tap on her shoulder and finds the smiling face of Jason in front of her, appearing as if from thin air. She’s very surprised to see him here, as she thought the group had agreed not to invite him, but tries to not let it show.
Through very well placed questions, he figures she’s trying to guard whatever is on the other side of the security door. He uses Dominate to ask what she’s so worried about and she tells him about The Book. Shortly after, he walks away and eyes Clementine as she joins Liliana.

---

… AND THEN THERE WAS CHAOS

Suddenly a series of very intense events happen in quick succession.
Bennet is threatening violence, his beast out of control. Liliana grabs him while Clem talks him down, pointing that he can go feed if he’s so on edge. He does not seem happy by this, scoffing and saying “and who do you think made that possible?” but going through with it anyways.
Erzulie becomes completely obsessed with Kim and begins dragging her across the dance floor. Maude attempts to get between the two, worried for Kim’s safety, but Kim makes it clear that she is just as enticed by Erzulie. The vampire takes her to one of the confession booths meant for feeding and they get freaky. Clementine and Liliana stand nearby after having dealt with Bennet and try to be respectful of Kim’s decisions but also keep an eye out in case things get out of hand.
Adze laughs uncontrollably as this all happens. Mary walks back to him and tries to calm him down and figure out what’s so funny but he just points at Bennet and laughs and laughs.
Mamawalde asks for the music to be turned off and stands near Lilith’s altar to start a ritual. She speaks firmly and loudly and brings out a knife. Liliana runs to stand nearby and just as Mamawalde is about to cut herself she grabs her and shakes the knife from her grip, using a Dominate command to stop whatever that was going to be. Mamawalde seems to be in a trance as Liliana talks to her in the aftermath.
Clementine lets out a sigh of relief as the crisis is averted. She looks around to judge the crowd’s reactions but then spots Jason leaning against the baranda on the second floor and looking directly at her. He smiles and gestures for her to come up. She hesitates for a moment, shocked to see him here at all, but ultimately heads upstairs to meet him.
They talk about inconsequential things for but a moment before the Primogen asks her about the Lasombra in the city. She denies knowing anything at first but he uses Dominate, making her tell him about her meeting with another Lasombra, West side of the city. “His name’s Talley.”
The moment Jason hears the name his whole demeanor seems to suddenly change, becoming increasingly erratic. He stands up quickly, angrily and loudly demanding Clementine to tell him more, which gains the attention of many people. Clementine looks at him confused, put off by this sudden change.
At that moment the front door of the club bursts open and in comes Rosa Hernandez, the Primogen of the Gangrel. She’s wearing dark blue jeans tucked into sturdy mountain boots and an unbuttoned dark brown flannel with a tight-fitting tank top underneath that accentuates her muscular frame. Her mere presence seems to be enough to make the intensity around the club dial down immediately.
All eyes are on her as she moves across the club with purpose. She makes eye contact with Jason, who’s still standing near Clementine on the second floor with clenched fists. Jason straightens his posture, brushes his hair and clothes and steps away from the Lasombra, Rosa’s stern expression never leaving him as he makes his way down the stairs and out of the venue.
Suddenly Mamawalde seems to snap out of her trance, Adze stops laughing, Erzulie shakes her head and heads out to clean herself and the music comes back up. Clementine stays sitting where she was deep in thought and wondering what that weird interaction was all about.
Rosa then goes to find Liliana and asks if they can talk privately, her tone is firm but not aggressive. The two gangrels head upstairs to one of the club’s private rooms as the party resumes and everyone goes back to dancing and mingling.
Maude and Mary head out to the backyard where they find Edith, the Painted Lady, who seems very interested in the setup Mary has going on for the cobweb. Edith briefly explains to them the concept of Golconda, a supposed path of enlightenment for vampires. She gives them the address to her tattoo parlor if they wish to discuss further and then heads back in to continue business.

Meeting of the Gangrels

The moment the door closes behind them, Rosa turns and immediately starts speaking, “I know about your secret, I know about McTavish. I want to help. I’ve got information that could make things better for you, but in return I’ll need your help.”
The Primogen then tells Liliana about attacks happening all around the city that may be caused by werewolves. She’s been trying to keep things in control but she needs all the help she can get and she believes Liliana can be a big asset. Liliana contemplates this proposal for a while and ultimately decides she’ll help.

Gift to Maude

A few hours before dawn The Confessional is closing for the night, vampires and humans heading out of the club either drunk, high or a mixture of the two. It’s when Maude is making their way out to head home themselves that they find Jason waiting for them near an alleyway.
Maude follows him into the dark alley and he smiles, “I didn’t forget, my birthday Childe. Your gift.” He says, smoothly using his teeth to cut open one of his wrists and offering it to Maude. Without a second of hesitation, they quickly grab onto his wrist and feed, eyes closed in euphoria. Jason’s own eyes go dark, and to Maude’s surprise they feel as Jason grabs their neck and feeds from them in a mutual kiss - a taste of each other’s blood. The highest taboo.

It’s at this moment that Maude’s vision fades and they begin to go through an out of body experience. They find themselves looking through Jason’s eyes to a figure that’s hard to see clearly, but Maude requires little to almost immediately recognize it as Elodie. Bloody tears stream down her face as Jason speaks:
"My love, it matters not that they fear you as a brutal enforcer of death, or that you're a prodigy of all the powers granted to us as Seers. You're my Childe, I will always love you."

Elodie cries as Jason comforts her until the vision fades and Maude is back in the alleyway, alone.

Chicago By Night    Campaign Log      CbN012: Disco Non Elysium

Report Date

24 Jan 2023

Related Historical Events

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  Session 12 - Disco Non Elysium
• 2023
  Session 12 - Disco Non Elysium