1999: The Final Nights Arrive

Joshua began the new year with Morgan with few questions answered and many more on his mind. First among them concerned Joshua's mentor, the Magister Demetrius le Marchant. Joshua's sudden interest after being away from the Chantry for over fifty years came as a result of the connection he forged with his previous incarnation -- a Hermetic mage and Marauder called Arminius. The discovery that he had met Morgan in a past life only strengthened their bond. On the other hand, it brought a new awareness of his Avatar's personal agenda. Joshua was unaware of his Marauder-state, as the dragon kept such memories from him. He needed little prodding from the Avatar to pursue these questions to the bitter conclusions that would follow, however. From his point of view, Joshua was determined to return to his old Chantry where he was trained to find out more about Arminius. Joshua knew that his mentor once was a member of Arminius' Cabal; clearly, Demetrius knew more than he had said. Why had his pater hidden what he knew of Joshua's past life?

Unfortunately, the revelations that carried Morgan and Joshua into the new year would have to wait: the Sabbat across the river demanded their immediate attention. Dewey, a Ventrue ally of theirs, was picked off by the Sabbat, and Morgan was among those leading the charge to West Necropolis to rescue their friend in the first nights of 1999. The hostilities escalated to the point that a Sabbat War Party was called out against Morgan and her mage paramour. It is not an enviable badge of honor to have survived such an assault -- szlachta, war packs and even a vozhd ambushed the pair. Were it not for Tremere gargoyles given to them for protection, Morgan and Joshua might well have died that night. Again, it was a lesson Joshua would not forget. Those who might question his zeal in the war against the Sabbat need only be reminded of the War Party to understand his pure and simple hatred for the "Sword of Caine."

In spite of the personal feud between the Necropolis Gangrel and the Sabbat, larger events in the Kindred world soon demanded the Clan's attention. It wasn't long after Morgan and Joshua recovered from the attack that news spread of the Gangrel Clan leaving the Camarilla, under the leadership of then-Justicar Xaviar. Morgan was understandably furious: as a stalwart soldier for the Camarilla nearly her entire unlife, the mere idea was anathema to her. Still, what was done could not be undone, and the Necropolis Gangrel unwillingly went along with the order, coming as it did from the eldest and most influential of their Clan. Morgan, as their Primogen, could not stand for this, though. Faced with the certainty that the Clan would scatter to the four winds, she banded the local Gangrel together under a new banner, creating the Gangrel Palatine in accordance with then-Prince Damascus. Subsequent treaties with anarchs and Giovanni cemented the existence of the new Gangrel Domain, an island of Clan influence in the Camarilla city. When the last of the old Prince Jessica's mortal pawns was removed from his post as Parks Commissioner, the path was clear for the Palatine Gangrel to make their own way through the Final Nights, with Morgan as their Jarl Palatinus.

Shortly after the foundation of the Palatinate, the local Kuei-Jin turned their attention to Swope Park, and a shadow war of mortal gangs fighting for turf in the Gangrel domain hit the papers. Meanwhile, the Asian vampires themselves staged an attack on the Camarilla Elysium itself. Joshua was instrumental in driving off the assault, and personally responsible for warding spells against Kuei-Jin that were placed on the vampire club. In this way, the independent Gangrel proved their continued loyalty to their Camarilla allies. It wasn't long after this that Joshua was promoted to a manager's position at Fallen Angels; though his status as a ghoul-Marauder was unchanged, his special talents could not be denied.

The fledgling Palatinate was beset with trouble, though, and its first Constable, Damian Stark, was deposed for harboring his twin, a Garou vampire hunter. Between this, the Kuei-Jin and the ever-present Sabbat, one would think this was enough for one night. Even so, the personal agenda of the dragon would be pursued in spite of it all. Michael Steiger took on the duties of Constable for the Clan, and other worthy Gangrel rose to become Chancellor and Steward, extensions of the Jarl Morgan's will. Morgan's creation proved tough enough to survive such things, and this gave Joshua time to consider his past-life awareness once again. Questions for his mentor, Demetrius, grew to prominence in Joshua's mind. Eventually, he knew that he had to have some answers. After nearly fifty years, it was time to go home -- back to the Tytalan Chantry where he had been trained.

Joshua explained the properties of Horizon Realms to Morgan as best he could, in preparation for the trip home. Neither he nor Morgan were prepared for the welcome they received, though. After entering through a special "back door" created centuries ago for the use of the resident Hermetics, they found a Realm in chaos...a Chantry assimilated by the Technocracy. The unforeseen loss was devastating to Joshua, but Morgan stood by him, helping him recover. Turning his grief to the service of his Word, Vengeance...they took the war back to the enemy. Demetrius' parting curse upon the Technocrats, an unending and wildly violent storm over the Realm powered by elemental spirits, gave Morgan and Joshua the opportunity they needed. The Construct was weak, only a few years old, and vulnerable.

Morgan's introduction to the Ascension War began with a search for survivors and prisoners taken from the destroyed Tytalan Chantry. This led to an assault against the Construct's weakest stronghold, a university in Germany. Joshua called on what allies he could find, mainly his old friend Benjamin Carlisle, who fell in this opening salvo against the Technocracy. The battle in Germany cost them dearly, but Joshua's allies secured the Node and discovered a single prisoner who was still alive after poring through the Construct's records. Demetrius was that survivor, and he was being held captive far from his old home. In spite of the losses they took in Germany, the discovery that his mentor was still alive steeled Joshua's resolve. Morgan could see that the fury in him would be satisfied only when things had been set right. There was much to avenge, now...both the indignity of his pater's imprisonment and the tragedy of his best friend's death.

Driven to rescue Demetrius from the clutches of the Technocracy, Joshua did not rest until they had devised and executed a daring plan. Morgan's Sire, Dieter, helped them to find allies -- however unwilling -- among the Garou. Traveling far from Necropolis to the cold forests of Saskatchewan, the unlikely group made their way into the Umbra in search of their target. The Technocrats held the advantage, but it proved inadequate against a combined force of supernaturals, the likes of which they had never expected to encounter. With Demetrius rescued, the skin-changers were left to fortify their prize. The loss of the Wyldling Containment Grid and Joshua's spiteful parting shot to the technocrats may well have been the last nail in the coffin of Null-B. The unbridled ire of a Master of Forces is a terrible sight.

Joshua's aged mentor was a broken shell of a man, withered and bereft of his wits from long imprisonment. A truly black-hearted technomage had devised an insidious method for keeping the old Magister prisoner, even at an Awakened Node. Joshua was loathe to use magick on his pater, for fear of making things worse. Morgan nursed the ancient mage back to a semblance of health, helping Joshua to reach his mentor's battered psyche. Days slipped away, then weeks; Demetrius' fugue-state seemed impossible to break. Morgan's persistence and the gift of Malkav allowed her to gradually bring Demetrius out of his catatonia.

Joshua could see, however, that he could not finish the work his Word demanded of him soon enough. It was clear that he could not offer a recovered Chantry to his mentor single-handed. Even though he had achieved mastery of Ars Essentiae -- and the Magister Scholae rank, in his own eyes -- Joshua was forced to turn to his still-recovering mentor for aid in the fight. Though Demetrius' rank in the Order of Hermes was higher, he lacked the will to call upon his most potent abilities. Mentor and student formed plans for the battles to come, as proper Tytalans should do.

And yet, Demetrius watched his protégé carefully. By the time they had first worked the Art together, he knew Joshua had changed. This became most obvious when, with Morgan's encouragement, Joshua dared to perform a resurrection of his fallen comrade, Dr. Carlisle. Joshua was loathe even to try such a feat, due as much to the difficulty of such a task as his personal views on fate and death. But at her urging, he decided to try...to be the master of cruel Fate, that took his friend from him too soon. Demetrius provided the wisdom and the magickal lore of ages of experience to back up Joshua's impressive, nearly uncontrollable powers. The two master Hermetics would not be denied, and so Joshua's beloved Etherite friend was returned to them.

Morgan believed that Joshua and Demetrius working together was the key to snapping the old wizard fully out of his fugue-state -- to make him feel needed. The elder Tytalan's experience, of course, was essential. Certainly he knew more of the enemy's defenses, and more about their disparate allies' legendary strengths. The plans were laid in place, and new compatriots found for the bold series of attacks to come. They knew, after all, that the Technocrats would be prepared for some kind of attack. The newly vibrant Dr. Carlisle and his most promising student, Professor Incendiary, were stalwart warriors in the battling. The Technocrats were not ready for the all-out war that broke out against every installation of their already-weakened Construct.

Mages, Garou, and Kindred joined forces for the endgame. The battle plan required such circumstances. The well-coordinated assault nearly ended with the first move, however; unexpected help from a wild pack of Marauders nearly destroyed half the assault force. Were it not for Demetrius conjuring a Hermes Portal as an escape route, the backlashes of the Wyld-mages would have killed the lot of them along with their unfortunate Technocrat enemies. Even now, Joshua is only dimly aware of his Marauder state, and the psychotic allies from Null-B returned the favor for having brought down the technocrat Node in Saskatchewan. In spite of the initial setbacks, Joshua led the attack elsewhere, gathering his allies for the coup de grace. The assault force traveled to the Horizon Realm, once the earthly installations were taken. With cold, calculating precision, Joshua and his mage allies locked with their enemies in a stalemate of spell and counter-spell. They left Morgan and the others to subdue the Construct's last defenders. Much to their dismay and rage, the Garou in the strike force found corrupt Fomori among the enemy forces. Though is took mere minutes, the battle seemed to last so much longer. When it seemed that Morgan was in mortal danger, Joshua fell upon the enemy's fortified base with all the power his Avatar could muster. Drawing attention away from the field of battle, Joshua turned the tide with his wild abandon. He was rescued in turn from the depths of the Construct when the black dragon inside him would not let him go.

The Technocrats' own devices were overloaded with Paradox energies. Demetrius led a hasty retreat to the far side of the Horizon Realm through another Hermes Portal. Morgan and their allies, most battered, some dying, looked on as Joshua's personal war against the Technocracy ended in a mushroom cloud of raw, unbridled Forces. Vengeance was served.

Joshua and Morgan were promised a place in the new Chantry, but chose to spend their time after the war's end at home, back in Necropolis. Demetrius offered them but one revelation after all that happened. They were linked beyond ties of blood; they are twin souls. It was the last thing Joshua expected, but once they were told, it couldn't help but make sense. They were not allowed to rest on their laurels, however. They knew that with Demetrius' return to the Order, questions would be raised about the Errant Joshua, who they had thought was slain...and the breach of the Code of Hermes his marriage to Morgan represents. Necropolis was not kind to them either, for that matter. The Sabbat continued to rally their numbers from time to time, attacking anyone who gets too close. It was perhaps the discovery of the Ventrue Simerah Marquez's Sabbat sympathies, and the subsequent backlash of the Ventrue against Joshua for discovering the fact, that started the two clans on their long decline in peaceable relations. Then-Primogen Vergadain got on Joshua's bad side over the incident, certainly, not a particularly wise thing to do.

With the war back on the home front, Joshua once again became the lone hunter...patrolling the Gangrel Palatine and the surrounding area for any Sabbat to slay. The Gangrel Clan has also dealt with problems coming from within; one notable incident occurred shortly after the summer of 1999 and the Week of Nightmares had passed. The elder Gretchen, aka "Kitty Kat," was nearly stolen away by the even older Gangrel Dod, her Sire.

Still, the reckoning with the Order of Hermes was not long in coming. Joshua answered the call in October -- he and Morgan made the journey to Doisstep for the tribunal, and Morgan soon found herself embroiled in a larger political struggle between the Janissary and Flambeau Houses of the Order of Hermes. Joshua himself was to be a pawn in the mi'as of Hermetic politics, and the trial had scarcely begun before he was challenged to certamen by a Janissary master. Joshua proved his mettle in the circle, weathering the potent attacks and backstabbing treachery of Magister Geneva Bye with a variety of Arts no one expected of Demetrius' protege. Morgan, in turn, realized they had an unusual ally in old Master Porthos and the Flambeau, and they escaped with his aid in the wake of the botched certamen challenge.

While Morgan was right at home -- and yet not -- in the quicksand of age-old Hermetic politics, Joshua benefited from sharing lore with his Tytalan compatriots. They only learned later of the disaster which befell Doisstep, and the Nine Traditions besides, some time later. Between this and later ward research with Maga Clare, he honed his skills to a fine edge and was recognized as the foremost expert on the Kindred among his kind.

It was fitting, though, that the end of 1999 brought Joshua's attention back to Necropolis, and his friends in the Clan Gangrel. New waves of nightmares and horrors in Fleming Park got the attention of the Palatine Gangrel, and the Clan banded together to battle a new threat that was entirely their own to handle. Nephandi, fomori, Bastet and other, more alien monsters fell in a war beneath the placid surface of Lake Jocomo. Only a mass fish kill and a scattered number of articles ever hit the newspapers, but Morgan and Joshua survived a threat from the Deep Umbra, the likes of which he had never experienced before. A grizzled veteran of the Ascension War, Joshua was far more familiar with battling the Technocracy, but the dragon's rage was tremendous when directed against the Nephandi. In the end, the rest of the Gangrel Clan accomplished more through teamwork and stubborn tenacity than Joshua and his fiery rage could do on his own. And so the year ended -- with the Ravnos largely destroyed, the Gangrel surviving outside the purview of the Camarilla, and Joshua himself dealing with the consequences of his soul-twin being undead. It was certainly an interesting time, reminiscent of the old Chinese curse...

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