Mind's Eye Theatre - Vampire The Requiem.pdf - RoseRed

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Two: That what you once were is not what you now are. As a mortal is a sheep, so
are the Damned wolves among them. That role is defi ned by nature — wolves feed
on their prey, but they are not cruel to them. The role of predator is natural, even if
the predator himself is not.
Three: That an ordained hierarchy exists. As man is above beasts, so are the Damned
above men. Our numbers are fewer so that our purpose is better effected.
Four: That with the power of Damnation comes limitation. The Damned hide among
those who still enjoy God’s love, making themselves known only to exemplify fear.
The Damned shall make none of their own, for such is a judgment of soul that is the
purview only of God. The Damned shall suffer yet more should they slay a fellow to
take his soul from him.
Five: That our bodies are not our own. Our purpose is to serve, and when we
stray from that purpose, we are to be chastened. The light of the sun excoriates; the
fl ames of a fi re purify fl eshly evil. The taste of all sustenance other than Vitae is as
ash upon the tongue.
Members
Unlike the Invictus, which appeals more to elder vampires than young, or the Carthians,
who tend toward the reverse, the Lancea Sanctum projects an equal appeal to undead of
all ages. What an elder looks for in the covenant, however, is often not the same as what
interests a neonate.
Most elders join for religious or spiritual reasons. Some come to the Sanctifi ed seeking
enlightenment and understanding. They have walked this Earth for many mortal lifetimes and
have come to see that they — and their race — must have some higher purpose. They believe
that God must have had some reason for making them what they are, and that Longinus’
philosophy offers them at least the fi rst few steps on a path toward answers. Others join the
covenant not to seek answers, but to provide them for others. Religious zealots often believe
that the entire world would be better off if everyone simply turned to their own way of thinking,
and the fanatics of the Lancea Sanctum are no exception. Many elders join (or remain
with) the Sanctifi ed not for their own sake, but for the sake of others. They would make all
vampires everywhere understand what they are, what they should be and what they must do.
They’ll all be better off, then — and those who must suffer and die in the process, well, it’s
all for the best of reasons.
Of course, it would be foolish to imply that all Sanctifi ed who seek the conversion of the
entire undead race do so for altruistic reasons. Some want to convert their brethren only to
exalt their own position. Surely God will eventually reward them. All they must do is prove
themselves worthy by converting just a few more nonbelievers.
The majority of young vampires who are drawn to the covenant are enticed not by any deeply
held religious convictions, but by a lack of those selfsame convictions or any other solid sense
of identity. The Lancea Sanctum, more than any other covenant (except possibly the Circle of
the Crone), allows and even demands members to accept what they are. For a neonate seeking
direction in something so drastically different from mortal life — casting about not only
for someplace to belong but for someone who can provide answers for “Why?” and “How?”
— few things are as comforting as being told that it is acceptable to be a monster. Even if the
newcomer doesn’t believe it yet, being told that she has become something greater than she
was is comforting in an unlife otherwise punctuated by new and alien urges.
Obviously, these are generalities, not hard-and-fast rules. Many neonates join the covenant
because they already hold certain religious convictions, and many elders seek the same sense
of belonging that attracts childer. And, of course, Sanctifi ed of all ages join simply out of ambition,
as advancement is often easier among the Lancea Sanctum than in other covenants.
chapter one: society of the damned