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A Meeting with the Prince
Topic Started: Jul 21 2014, 03:55 PM (178 Views)
Andrew Cutting
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Toreador Primogen
Andrew had made the appointment as the message had instructed and now arrived early as usual. The people at the desk knew him and who he was and so let him straight up to see the Prince without any delay.

"My Prince, you requested a meeting."
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Angelo
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The Barkeep
"I did."

It was definitely Angelo's voice, but to hear it coming from the pale marble and tastefully carved mahogany furnished room that Andrew saw before him was not quite the Angelo he would have known up until this point.

The man himself descended the stairs from the roof access and closed the door, a pale suit jacket and fitted shirt accompanying jeans and old but well cared-for shoes - quite unlike the last time they had met in person. Angelo calmly closed the roof access door and smiled, his hair wind-rushed but not nearly long enough to be rendered untidy by such, "Helps me think, standing up there. Hell of a view on the right night." He gestured for Andrew to make himself comfortable and leaned himself on the nearby desk - the chair that went with it had always seemed too bolt-upright. "I feel I owe you an apology, Andrew. My way of expressing gratitude for attaining anything has always been to enjoy the perks granted by it - and I feel that I have been doing more of that at the expense of seeming available to discuss our further plans for the city and how we may help each other. We are not the best of friends, but you have my respect and admiration - I like to pretend I have the same, though whether that's the truth is something more in your command than mine, heh."

He paused briefly, uncertain of what to begin with. Leslie would remain a point of contention, but the city itself had to come first. That, then, was what he would open with. "Beginning, then, as I mean to go on, is the issue of several rumours that do not favour our goals of stability here. The scattered talk of a potential Archbishop looming is, as always, a concern - and my command of Camarilla reconnaissance is not as yours is. What have you heard?"

There was a part of him that would always feel a little more pleased with himself than was helpful that Cutting would, even if only for appearances, jump up and down to any chosen rhythm if he demanded. That part, thankfully, was not present. It wasn't of any use here. Here, they took care of business, or one of these nights the business was going to take care of one or both of them.
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Andrew Cutting
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Andrew sat, albeit cautiously; he knew that Angelo could not afford to eliminate him, but at the same time he did not much trust the Prince's common sense or grasp of what was good for him. Even so the Brujah spoke of a peaceful exchange and of business that needed to be attended to which was promising - so far Andrew had been acting on his own initiative doing what was best for himself alone without consideration of how the Prince fit into it all. Angelo had never been especially hands on when it came to the fine tuning of the complex machine that was the Camarilla in Detroit; he played his part of course and got the job done, but when it came to the intricacies of intelligence gathering and under the table politics the business was more or less left to Andrew.

With the question of the new Archbishop raised Andrew paused to consider precisely how much he should tell the Prince - after all he knew a great deal about the matter in question but some of it was privileged information beyond the purview of even the Prince. That is to say that the Family had made it clear that all information relating to Solomon Cutting was to be released on a need to know basis - of course the Prince did need to know some of the story but just how much was difficult for him to say.

"The subject is a complicated one; publicly the arrival of a new Archbishop is unconfirmed and unacknowledged, thus it remains rumour - privately however his presence has been confirmed. He is arguably the most powerful and dangerous individual to lead Detroit's Sabbat since Madam Tye perished and once I explain who he is you may understand why." The Ventrue shifted in his seat as if uncomfortable; of course in truth he was incapable of feeling any such embarrassment or awkwardness about the situation, however for the purposes of diplomacy it was always best to make a display especially when handling such delicate information. "His name is Solomon Cutting, a villainous rogue who betrayed his family and his bloodline. The man is quite insane and what he lacks in resources he makes up for in individual ability."

"He was embraced shortly after myself, but unlike me has not been restrained by the dictates of Camarilla law. Since his betrayel he has murdered and diablerised his way across kindred society, but he disappeared about twenty years ago and was assumed dead, until he turned up early last year in Fresno. We, that is to say the Family and I, are quite sure that he has not infiltrated our ranks with any agents, I have taken particular care to maintain the sanctity of my own network."
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Angelo
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The Barkeep
Angelo nodded, and hand rising to his chin. That was bad news, but it had been bad news before the details came. "You're right - that is a good deal more... Complex than it might otherwise be. I'll keep a closer watch on my establishments personally and set up a Camarilla response team they can call - once we hash out the details as to who - or indeed what - should be on that team, I suggest you issue it to any of your own properties. If Solomon has any history with you - and if current events are anything to go by, he just might - then you may even have more use for it than me. In relation, though... "

He paused only a beat, disguising it as another look through the window - Andrew knew him as a balls-to-the-wall war-winner, a nuke on legs - not a politician. He knew that his subtle mention of Cutting's association spreading further than most could be taken as something more... Personal. Better to take the opposite tack and keep playing up the allegiance aspect. "The Anarchs. This Archbishop will affect them - arguably more so, given that their numbers barely rank above what they were during our entry into Detroit despite a few new faces. I'd like to see the Camarilla doing its' purported duty and protecting them, winning them back with action rather than calling them 'lost' and taking the easy way out. Do you have any ideas in that regard?Perhaps a meeting between myself and the Baron, allowing an audience if the regular Anarchs and our own are so inclined?"

Word of this reported Archbishop's diablerie habit stoked an unbidden fire into Angelo's warm brown eyes - he knew the lure of it, the power soar... And the drawbacks. Harriet had been the second. He'd not even intended to... But she'd discovered his first... Indiscretion... And had been about to hand him to the Prince of New York. Not willing to suffer that fate, they'd fought - and the extra vitae had been worth every hours spent mentally fighting back a ghost. He'd gotten better at it since them - but them, with the small stable of vengeful little shattered rivals in there, he'd had to be. "I don't know, I'm just... Well, bouncing ideas off of the only person who'd know whether they're good ones or not I suppose. Apologies for using you so bluntly, Andrew - subtlety isn't much my expertise."
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Andrew Cutting
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"I'm here to assist you in any way I can. It isn't as though we have an overabundance of useful kindred agents at our collective disposal in Detroit after all; if it weren't for you and I this city wouldn't even have a Camarilla presence." Andrew leaned forward in his chair, gently propping his arm up on the chair's arm and leaning his chin upon his hand as he thought for a few moments about just what to tell the Prince; it was only natural to consider a response team, and how the Anarchs could be involved in their own plans to deal with the threat posed to the city, however at the same time he did not like to trust, nor rely upon those who did not share his creed. Anarchs were tools to be used, unfortunately they were not especially reliable nor willing when they realised that they were being used as pawns in someone else's game. "I have contingencies in place should need arise; my own security and intelligence teams are well prepared for the eventuality and I have contacts within the local police and government who can provide additional supplementary strength as needed."

"I have a standing force of around fifty ghouls who operate under the guise of private security employees and bounty hunters around the city, but they can be called upon at any time. The Cutting Building's security is run by mortals under the direction of a small group of ghouls I have had in my service for some time and I have a small team of ten ghouls stationed there to act as a crisis response unit if I need it, however my primary focus is on intelligence and defence; though well equipped I lack the numbers to start attacking Sabbat territory."

"As for the Anarchs I know little about the Baron, I know how he can be contacted but apart from that all I know is that he is a powerful Samedi elder. He has a fearsome reputation as a veteran warrior and strategist when it comes to kindred politics and conflict and it is largely this reputation which holds the Anarchs together and which has ensured their ambivalence towards us. Historically he has always worked enigmatically to try and keep the peace; whether he would meet with you now at such a time as this...I cannot say for certain."

"It is my understanding though that the Baron is not the only source of power within the Anarch society, he is a somewhat aloof figure who serves only as a guide really. As a result a number of gangs have sprung up, the largest of these being the London Anarchs who are outwardly lead by a man named Vincent Tadeu, a reprehensible young man who trades in blood and drugs; he fancies himself the quite the little criminal overlord. Perhaps it would be best to speak with him as well? I know that Evangelos Giovanni, the local Don, met with him at least once."
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Angelo
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The Prince folded his arms, his eyes seeming to flare as different thoughts passed through his mind, each a variation on how to both enforce his superiority and implore this Vincent Tadeu to think of the Camarilla as allies. After all, the kind of Camarilla Angelo intended to build here... Well, it wasn't the kind that Tadeu would be used to, given what Angelo had heard of London. "I have a thought on that, though it would run a risk. Tadeu's reputation suggests he would refuse a meeting if he even sensed there to be a choice in the matter - however false that sense may be. I'll post an employee of mine at the bar as a watcher, see what Tadeu's movements are like. I'll want to... Visit his establishment while he's there, get his attention - but on his turf. The level he's playing at, he'll appreciate being given the home advantage, even if he doesn't say it."

Angelo glanced out the window again, his brow furrowing. "There's war coming to those streets out there, Andrew. We don't need to have friends or trusted retainers... But we need our army. The fact that it's looking mostly like Anarchs right now is just because they haven't met me yet. I want you to be ready to give them any necessary details - as I'm sure you do with me, filter out whatever won't help or will just complicate the matter further. But any way you slice it, we need infantry - and the Anarchs have every reason to fight just as hard as we'll have to. We've held a ceasefire long enough to have some level of trust were we talking to reasonable people... So let's hope that's what they are."

He let silence fall between them - Detroit, like the cars she used to make in such abundance, moved swiftly from the boredom of peace to the hyper-kinetics of ultra-violence with little warning if you stood in the way. They were never going to be fully prepared - but they needed to limit the damage done, both to the Camarilla and to the Anarch Movement if Angelo had his way. Anarchs were just Camarilla who'd been disappointed and tossed aside, that's all. He was perfectly happy to listen to their problems where he could. The issue, of course, was whether the coming storm would allow for that, or whether he too would have to throw the Anarchs under the bus. "I'll speak with Tadeu first, then. If Deveaux sees himself as more adviser than a truly authoritative Baron, I'll speak to his people and appeal to them before I go to the man himself. Before we leave the topic entirely, though - if the streets are to ring loud with gunfire, who do we suspect will be holding the guns? Solomon Cutting aside, I mean. Surely a city can only hold so many diablerist mad men in its' limits at once."
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Andrew Cutting
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"I wouldn't recommend trying to get too close to Tadeu without his knowledge; I've sent a number of agents into Anarch territory, one of whom had the specific task of infiltrating the man's operations. He returned to us in pieces, and I mean that quite literally; such a tiresome pain explaining to the postal service why dismembered body parts are being FedExed to me." Andrew sighed once more, a grave look of great boredom spread across his face as though nothing being discussed was of any great interest or importance to him. He was too old to be showing off emotion now and there was little call for it, especially when in the presence of the Prince against whom he held the motto 'Give him nothing.' "That man may not count subtlety among his talents but he knows how to keep his house clean. I'll try and get another man inside for you but to be honest you'd probably be better off just going and speaking to the man yourself, since you have a certain charm with the common man."

"As for the disposition of enemy troops... I understand the Anarchs have had a few showdowns with some packs of ghouls, plus the number of violent nazi pretenders running around the city with shaven heads has seen a sharp increase since this whole affair began and my information tells me that this isn't a coincidence. When the Sabbat were cut down during their last rising in Detroit they lost all of their high ranking members and most of their middle management and the few kindred that were left are neonates or thin bloods. Overall of little concern. What is worrying is that some of the ghouls and neonates we have encountered who we have confirmed have a tangible link to Solomon display a peculiar set of traits that I'm quite unfamiliar with."
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Angelo
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The Barkeep
Angelo's eyes momentarily narrowed - Andrew was hiding something. He and Cutting didn't get along well enough for him to know what, but that wasn't the point. Hiding what had led Solomon Cutting to Detroit? Understandable. The Cutting Family... Well, to call it secretive would be an understatement. They made the Rothschilds look painfully overt by comparison. Hiding the identity of an archbishop on the rise when he dwelt in your home city... Well, that wasn't good business.

But that wasn't what he was hiding now. "But you do know of them, as unfamiliar with them as you may be." He stated. The Prince didn't ask any further for information - he expected it. This was something he felt grateful to have separating his own motives and those of his ally - a sense of practicality. Of course, he could tell Cutting nothing - but why? That served nothing. Andrew's refusal of information only impeded Angelo's mission to drag the Camarilla out of its' self-serving miasma of egos and aging rulers in glittering, modern fiefs. To halt the march of progress from hierarchy and corruption of leadership into Genuine protection for all members of the Camarilla, regardless of age... And fierce, terrible vengeance wrought upon those who would slay them.

He said nothing further, his gaze upon Cutting unwavering but kept away from outright hostility. He had thought that such grim news would have encouraged Andrew to put down his grudges and take up arms for the city in which he made hims home. Perhaps expecting true pragmatism from a Rose - even one as grim as Andrew - was too much.
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Andrew Cutting
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Andrew shifted position once more; the number of secrets, the amount of information that he was having to keep back was frustrating the Prince, but unfortunately there was simply no way around it - the Family's interests came first and his sire had given him clear instructions on the matter. Keeping him altogether out of the loop though was dangerous so some information had to be shared and if he gave just a little more than what was asked of him perhaps the Prince would back off a little and give him the space he needed to see to his affairs. Besides there was still some information that he could quite easily share, but the more he appeared to be holding back the more he could reveal without giving away anything important; if he treated everything as though it were highly classified then when he gave it up, no matter how insignificant it was, it would seem all the more valuable.

"Well these abilities are somewhat unusual; they seem to be largely immune to pain, feral in manner and aspect and possessed of some putrid disease which strengthens their body and will beyond the normal bounds of a mortal - even one empowered by kindred vitae." The answer was direct, its brevity lending strength to the tone of reserved honesty with which it was delivered; insignificant details like this were hardly secret but let Angelo think he was pulling teeth and he'd be satisfied with the answers he got when they finally came. "If I were to hazard a guess I would put my money on a Setite's involvement somewhere up the chain, but at this stage I can offer no more than an educated guess."

"It is my understanding that the Anarchs have borne the brunt of this latest offensive so perhaps they could tell you more. The cemetery in the West Side was attacked fairly recently and I have word of a raid lead by Anarchs in the East."
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Angelo
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The Barkeep
Angelo nodded, steepling his fingers and tapping his thumb to his bottom lip rhythmically before striding towards a cabinet and opening it up, retrieving a pen and paper and using the top of the cabinet as something to lean on. He had no indication that that was all Andrew knew - and past experience would suggest that Andrew would hide anything he felt he could get away with hiding. Let the man have what little information he would rather not share - so long as Cutting thought Angelo was unaware, he remained less likely to impede the progress of any agents who worked for the Prince alone.

"It sounds very much like my only course of action is to seek the rebellious youngsters for aid. Much as I'm more of a trusting sort than you - intended as a compliment - I'm not keen on playing every card without necessity. Vincent Tadeu has never seen the face of Angelo Matachelli, and that'll help me in the long run." He continued writing - a date and a time, along with a location. He passed it to Andrew and spoke, his finger tapping specifically at the mention of the Fox Theatre, "I want you to set up an Elysium meeting specifically inviting the Anarchs, as many of the known big influences by name if possible - and you're to call Mr. Tadeu to the stage first. I'll take the stage to talk with him afterwards, hidden in the crowd - but only after his presence where all can see him is assured. We need to ensure their compliance if not their friendship."

Leaving the details in Andrew's more than capable hands, Angelo further elaborated on the intended actions for that night, "Before this is to occur, I'll speak with him anonymously, attempt to get him to tell me as much as he would a newcomer looking for employment. I've the build and the brawn to make an Anarch, if not the inclination - but that can be... Replicated. More important is that he realizes I'm someone he can rely on to not put stakes in him and his people - even though I could have the first night I met him."
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Andrew Cutting
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"I will of course set up this gathering as you ask, however I do have some reservations regarding your plan." Andrew returned to his impassive, almost bored manner as he responded to Matachelli; he'd been watching the Anarch power players in Detroit for some time, their brand of politics was simplistic to the point of childishness compared to the Camarilla's but it nevertheless required a close eye to understand and follow. Tadeu was, according to his files, somewhat paranoid and valued honesty, honour and trust above all; if the Prince began his relationship with the young Anarch with deception then it may colour his entire plan and set them back in their efforts. As much as he held a professional and personal rivalry with Matachelli they were working for the same side; that meant warning him of the possible consequences of his proposed course of action. "Tadeu is a paranoid man, rich coming from myself I know, but combine this with the fact that he holds himself to a certain code of honour and trust it may be better if you avoided covertly approaching him. I have it on good authority that Evangelos Giovanni met with him directly and established a good working relationship with him; my agents meanwhile have periodically returned in pieces or not at all."

"I would propose that you do as Giovanni did, meet with him directly, even if you don't discuss business at first contact, at least then he knows who you are and what you are about. Out of respect I'd also recommend you speak with the Baron before you speak with Tadeu; Deveaux is not a jealous or prideful man, but there are rumblings of a possible schism among the Anarchs between those loyal to Deveaux and those loyal to Tadeu."
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