Clan Hecata (Heck-ahh-ta)

"Mama, we're all full of lies

Mama, we're meant for the flies

And right now they're building a coffin your size

Mamawe're all full of lies

--Mama, My Chemical Romance, 2006

The newest iteration of The Clan of Death. Formerly the title of the old Clan Cappadocian, then held by the slightly more modern Clan Giovanni, the tougher nights and passage of time have rendered many Necromantic clans down, and so with the rise of more enemies in the form of the Second Inquisition, among other issues, unity was needed above all. A family merger connected ten various bloodlines of necromancy-adjacent Kindred into one new family unit, Clan Hecata. Together they hold a unique mastery of the shadowy art of the dead, using bones, flesh, and spirit alike in their mystical works.
As they are the newest clan, even if they're made up of the old features, they haven't filled much of a niche in Kindred society, but as one of only three clans that aren't devoted to either the Camarilla, Anarchs, or the Sabbat, they are a powerful and useful neutral ground for all parties. Especially since the other two clans are the oft-hunted Salubri and the mostly eradicated Ravnos.
In their recent formation and pooling of resources, the Hecata brandish the following common Kindred Disciplines to cement their status in the modern night. Since they're made up of many bloodlines, some variation can occur, but this is the average set.

• Auspex - You can't have a proper witchy mystic without the ability to perceive beyond normal sight. Whether it's Seers with their premonitions, necromancers dealing with normally invisible spirits, or even the mundane brute arm keeping an ear out for trouble, Auspex is a reliable talent for the clan.
• Fortitude - Look, if you're going to be a vampire, a mafioso, and work with poltergeists and zombies, you need to be able to take a punch and/or a psychic assault.
• Oblivion - One of only two clans with the natural ability to dip into the dreadful darkness of the bloodlines not included), Clan Hecata tends to take a subtler approach with their magic, using it to pierce and mold the veil between worlds or harness the power of undeath, versus Clan Lasombra's more effective yet brash approach. The Hecata even have specialized rituals known as Oblivion Ceremonies that mirror the Rituals of Blood Sorcery.

Structure

Clan Hecata, as mentioned previously, is made up of various other pre-existing clans and their internal bloodlines. All of these had some power over necromancy, and so there was some basis to merge together before a multitude of outside circumstances really sealed the deal. The Primary Clans and their bloodlines that went into making Clan Hecata are as follows:

• Clan Giovanni was the biggest contributor, as it was the Giovanni who remained after the disappearance of Augustus Giovanni that called the Family Reunion that created the new clan.
• Underneath the crime family structure of the Giovanni are the Families Giovanni, Dunsirn, Puttanesca, Rossellini, and Milliners, along with their allies the Pisanob.
• Clan Cappadocian, referred to now as Harbingers of Ashur, were the former clan of death before the Giovanni usurped the title. Former bitter enemies, the changing times have put them into allegiance with one another.
• Within Clan Cappadocian as a whole came the bloodlines of the Lamia and the Samedi as well.
• The Nagaraja, known as the Flesh Eaters, originally formed similarly to Clan Tremere, being mages who experimented with vampiric Vitae, this time those of Setites, now known as the Ministry, who unexpectedly appeared during the Family Reunion.

While most of the bloodlines follow their own structure, which tends to exist rather loosely outside of direct sire-childe-allies relations, the Clan as a whole is still often led by Clan Giovanni in their new role as La Familglia Giovanni. Their size, wealth, and success in criminal enterprises give them a lot of weight just about anywhere. But of course, as a family the other clans get their voices heard too.
The biggest decisions are made by a council, formerly of just the Giovanni but now with other clan representatives, known as the Anziani (Italian for Elder/Senior) Council, with the mysterious figure of the robed Capuchin as their known voice. But outside of their centers of power, the council only has fringed influence.
Tacoma and Seattle don't have the largest presence of Hecata families, as even among Crime Families there hasn't been as much direct contact. Across the Narrows, from Bremerton all the way down to Gig Harbor however has had a small yet lucrative family, mostly of Rossellini, holding operations as far back as the 1940's. Due to that proximity, there are enough Hecata in Tacoma to be noticeable, but most of them are of the non-mobster variety.

Culture

The Culture of a Hecata generally is based on the family they come from, but there are some unifying factors. A connection with death and the undead is the key throughline between all of the 10 bloodlines, even if they don't always use it. The Giovanni and their offshoots have their uses for ghosts and ghouls, either as servants, collateral, or weapons. The Nagaraja keep up an innate connection with the very forces of Oblivion and Entropy itself, and the Cappadocian bloodlines cover many different aspects of necromancy in various different applications, they take the role of veritable sages of the art.
Some parts of the clan have taken on a new witch-like aesthetic, fitting the name Hecata and the new syncretism felt across all who touch the shadows of Oblivion. This has led some to organize covens and even cults around the world, using their ties to oblivion to reach even further past the veil and cause more harm or benefit than they could alone.
In Tacoma, while there isn't a whole underworld of the clan, there are enough of them around for some social delineation based on those lines, mostly less about who they are as people but what they can do. Those who are more on the mafia crime family side of the Clan are called the Old Money and are often seen as more reliable for financial work and criminal advice. The more magically inclined ones are called the Covened, and they organize into their circles and structures and offer their spiritual services for a variety of purposes. But, both of those groups tend to be rather closed in, you have to know someone who knows someone to even run into them, and after that make it worth their while to help you.
This is where the third group, the Constantine's, come into the mix. Unlike the other two groups, they don't hold as much loyalty to the family or their cults/covens that've popped up. While they might still have ties to either group they are free-wheeling workers for hire for either set of skills. The name came about mainly due to one person, the Hecata detective Amets Chaput, who many have likened in personality and skills to the comic book character John Constantine.
When it comes to the compulsory side of Kindred existence, the Hecata in their union seemed to have a mystical patch note of sorts. All of the collected clans no longer suffered their individual curses, and instead now suffer from two overall. First, when their mystic Compulsion kicks in, they are filled with a sense of morbid fascination or a need to seek it out. Their Clan Bane that deters them is gained from the Nagaraja who joined them: where most Kindred delivers feelings of bliss and ecstasy with their bite, making feeding good for their partner too, the Hecata deliver only pain and convulsion. Whether feeding from corpses, made or pre-made, is a mercy is a debate among the clan.

Public Agenda

The "public" agenda of the Hecata is to research the mysteries of death and oblivion, while the criminal aspects of the family are more focused on financial gain and manipulation of trade and opportunity.

Assets

The Giovanni have access to wealth and boons highly among the clans within the Hecata, while the Cappadocians have a monopoly on history and esoteric knowledge.

History

General "History"

The modern nights have not been kind to Kindred as a whole, but the Giovanni were hit particularly hard. The Second Inquisition throughout the U.S. was eliminating a lot of their operations and members, their pact with the Camarilla was rumored to come to an end, the head of the family vanished into thin air, and in Venice Clan Cappadocian dealt them a heavy blow. This isn't even to mention the wave of vengeful spirits released by the turmoil of the aforementioned events. Suffice it to say, the Clan was in dire straights. 
Thus, the Giovanni called for negotiations with the Cappadocians, each side bringing representatives of their bloodlines, with a surprise appearance from the Nagaraja as well, for what would be known as the Family Reunion. As the negotiations were sealed, and the new Clan spread through the night, eyebrows and concerns were raised across all sects, wondering what this new union will do.

The Sound Area

Neither of the former Clans that make up the Hecata had much of a presence in Tacoma previously. While they had their branches and their kine minions in the south sound, most of their actual presence and interests were in Seattle. While that's waned slightly in the modern struggles of the clan, the new Clan Hecata and their more diverse and collated areas of expertise have vastly increased the amount of the clan in the area.
While Seattle proper doesn't have many Hecata, only around 30 have been properly counted (as much as that's worth), the allied Camarilla domains have a fair amount as well, especially the wider Bremerton Domain, run by a member of the Rosselini family and their allies.
In Tacoma itself, plenty of Hecata have taken the chance to side with the rising Anarch community, as the clan as a whole is technically Independent. Many of the full Anarch-leaning of the clan are of the witchier persuasion versus the organized crime family members but the margins are close. While there haven't been any big events or histories involving the Clan, present or past, the uniquely thin veil in Tacoma does make it an intriguing source of Wraiths and Specters ripe for using, so perhaps the future holds many possibilities for Clan Hecata and Tacoma.

Territories

Just because the Clan itself is Independent doesn't mean that everyone stays out of Camarilla politics. In fact, they love to entrench themselves no matter the allegiance, cause towing the lines is good for business!
While the clan's connections with secretive organizations, independent work, and less-than-usual cult activities leave them largely unknown, a few known notable Hecata (and their connected clans) are as follows:

• Ornella Giovanni - Prince of Atlantic City, New Jersey - La Famiglia Giovanni
• Roger de Camden - Prince of Edinburgh, Scotland - Harbingers of Ashur
• Rosa Rosselini - Prince of Bremerton, Washington - Little Siblings (status unknown)

Founding Date

~2010 CE

Type

Geopolitical, Clan

Alternative Names

Clan of Death, Necromancers, The Family

Predecessor Organizations

• Clan Cappadocian
• Clan Giovanni

Demonym

Hecata

Related Species

• Kindred Vampire