The Cainites of Milan, 1490
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Containing the Observations of Cecco Rucellai of Clan Ventrue, as given in a Report to Her Highness Lucia Magdalena, Princess of Florence; and other
Commentary by various Worthies(All comments by Cecco are in brown italics)
The Prince: Ercole de Hauteville is a strong and decisive man, skilled in the arts of war; I have seen him ride in tournament and think him quite the equal of any Hero of legend, alive or dead. It is said he destroyed the Brujah Geoffrey Greymantle in single combat, although few witnesses are able to describe the battle, as it was faster than even immortal eyes can see. He is a man accustomed to command, and inspires great loyalty from mortal and immortal followers alike. He is also very pleasing to the eye; tall and fit, broad of shoulder, with a mane of yellow hair and a beard like a lion's.
Nor is he unlearned, like some other soldiers. I do not believe he has Latin, but he can read and write in the Norman tongue, and has, since his accession, acquired Lombardic and some Tuscan as well. It is true that he lacks somewhat in the manners and subtleties of courtiers; he can be blunt and outspoken. Nonetheless, his nobility of spirit is worthy of Arthur himself. Alas, as long as he refuses to ban the Lasombra from his city, he too must face the dangers of the dark sorceress Morgan LeFay and her son Mordred, of whom I shall speak later.
Isabella d'Arezzo: Ah, the young Princess. She's a country girl by birth, you know; though one would never realize it till she opens her mouth and talks at length - which is thankfully rare. Beautiful creature, though. Can't argue that. You should hear the sonnets visiting Toreador compose to her, Helena this, Laura that and Blanziflor what-have-you...faugh. And of course she can dance and embroider and all those ladylike things.
Well, Ercole needed an appropriate bauble to hang on his arm, and he needed to make peace with Lucia and the Florentines. Isabella answered both requirements admirably - though I do hear her Sire Isador was less than pleased about the whole thing. Now whether she answers any other requirements Ercole might have is an open question. Oh, she behaves as a good wife should; I've never heard her so much as cough at another Ventrue, much less her lord husband. But there's a brain under that mass of ringlets and pearls, I don't doubt, and a woman's wile or two...-- Bishop Leone Colonna
Federigo da Siracusa is, like his Sire, a soldier. He was the Prince's chief mortal lieutenant until he was wounded in some battle against the Spanish; Ercole Embraced him for his loyalty and cunning, and he has since proven himself worthy of that gift. As his Sire's chief general and condottiere, he must guard the security of the realm; it is he who deals with the Princes of Ercole's subject Domains, and in this he and his men have been brutishly efficient. I understand that Federigo now seeks to be appointed Prince of one of these subject cities; this rumor has naturally caused great concern among those who rule there now, as each seeks to prove his or her own loyalty to the Prince at the expense of the others. Federigo is a harsh man, and does not suffer his will to be challenged by those he considers of lesser rank than himself - which appears to include most others of our kind. Fortunately, he is rarely at court, as Ercole constantly sends him abroad on official business.
Gianpaolo Bardi: Messer Bardi is a native of this city. In life, he was a most prominent banker and merchant whose business interests extended to France, Venice, and even our own Florence, as well as throughout Lombardia. Since the Embrace, he has continued to acquire and oversee such trade and business concerns as may add to the Prince's wealth and power; he also has the duty of maintaining Ercole's contacts in the Sforza household and among the more powerful members of the Duke's court.
Messer Bardi is shrewd and cautious in his business dealings, always looking for the most profitable means to the end. When the necessity of collecting on some debt arises, he pursues his creditor with such ruthlessness as a Pharisee might envy. I have been most cautious, in my dealings with Messer Bardi, not to be placed in any position that might in any way compromise my service to your Highness.
Vincenzo Della Torre: Vincenzo is the Eldest of our clan in this city. Moreover, he seems to be the only survivor, other than the Contessa and her brood, of the old court of Guy dell' Aquila. I am not certain why he was spared, unless it were simply because he had proved of insufficient ambition and courage to pose any threat. His Sire and, apparently, all the rest of his blood were destroyed during a less-than-successful rebellion some centuries ago; until Silvio da Valente granted him the boon of Siring, Vincenzo was the only Ventrue in the city. Perhaps he was once of greater heart, but he was broken by the Lasombra long ago. His two childer have little to do with him: Benedio has come under the tutelage of the Prince and his progeny in all things of import; and he is often seen in the company of Marius Della Torre as well. The girl Elisabetta is, I believe, under the care of Lady Isabella, with an eye to securing some future alliance.
Benedio Brandini: A cherub, to be sure; golden and beautiful like Antinous, slender as a willow-branch, he stands out even in a court already replete with handsome faces. I am told he spent some time at University, and his gentle, refined way of talking does indeed bespeak the scholar rather than the warrior. Nonetheless, it has evidently pleased our soldier-Prince to steal him out from under Vincenzo's nose, to become a patron to him and entrust him with the sorts of little tasks with which one teaches a young Cainite the ways of immortal courts. As far as I can tell, Benedio has no objection to this treatment; though I wonder if Signor Marius, who has been his boon companion for some years, can so patiently watch the ascension of yet another Ventrue.
Elisabetta Bossi: Vincenzo sired her, but it was our Prince who chose her for the Embrace - a pity he did not solicit his Lady's opinion of her first. But men's eyes are often blind to the true predator among them, and this pretty little slip of a girl has all the weapons of our sex well honed. She knows well how to command their interest and direct it to her advantage, all the while pretending that she is in desperate need of their most immediate assistance. Now that she has the added benefit of her Sire's Blood, no mortal man is safe from her wiles. I can hope that Ercole will find an appropriate match for her in some distant country before she attempts to play her petty little games to our Cainite courts, or there is no predicting what havoc she might wreak. -- Contessa Alianora dell' Aquila
Cecco Rucellai: Our man of goodwill from Florence, eh. One might ask the needless question: if Lucia is so kindly disposed to us, why must she send us a spy? I will admit, this one is well-fitted to his task. Cheery by nature, and you so rarely see that among our kind; easy to talk to in that dangerous way some fellows have. Learned in court arts, but by no means learned enough to be intimidating - he can fence a little, ride a little, play the lute a little, sing a very little... and if he has any Latin or Greek whatsoever, then he hides it well. And always so eager to help out, particularly with projects of a civic nature! Well, if he thinks he's going to wheedle his way into my confidences, he's very much mistaken. I can't help noticing my lord Sire keeps him somewhat at arm's length, too. Naturally he gets invited to all the major court functions - but the invitations he really covets seem to be quite slow in coming... -- Messer Gianpaolo Bardi
Contessa Alianora dell' Aquila and her brood are by all accounts the last of the once-great House dell' Aquila; I doubt I need remind your Highness of the name of her Sire, the late and unlamented Prince Guy dell' Aquila. That she survived while he did not is nothing short of amazing: the equally late and unlamented Prince Silvio da Valente would certainly have been wiser to slay her as well when he took the throne. It seems he spared her because the Tzimisce sorcerer had taken a fancy to her. However, while she remains bound to the Tzimisce in Blood, the degree of control he actually exercises over her actions seems questionable indeed.
I am told the Contessa actually bargained with our Prince over his right to the throne, and agreed to support his succession, although her motivations for this remain unclear. The Contessa's years surely number no less than five hundred, and her brood are hardly childer themselves. As of yet she he has given no cause for suspicion - she has been, in fact, almost kind to the Lady Isabella, and always treats the Prince with perfect courtesy and respect, offering her advice as he requires; but I fear that if there is yet a Visconti viper in this court, it is she. Perhaps she is merely waiting until she judges the time is ripe to restore the dell' Aquila dynasty, either in her own name or that of Mario Della Torre, the younger of her two sons-by-Blood (and by far, in my humble opinion, the more ambitious and dangerous).
Monsignor Francesco Dantini: Of all the Lasombra of Milan, Monsignor Dantini is the least like his kinsmen; despite the dubious gifts of the Contessa's blood, he seems to possess a scholarly and introspective nature more suited to a Brujah or Cappadocian. He was a member of the Dominican Order in life, and still wears their habit, and practices his calling as a priest, including celebration of the Mass for those of our kind who wish to attend. He has great learning, and does not scorn either the writings of antiquity or the most modern; he can speak and write in the Tuscan as well as any Florentine, and in the Greek and Latin, and in the tongues of the Germans and French as well. He is fond of conversation and debate on any number of subjects, and possesses a keen and penetrating wit. I confess that I find his company most enjoyable, even if I have not yet found a means to loosen his tongue on more important matters than Plutarch and Livy - for his volubility ends most abruptly when it comes to the doings and plots of his Sire and his brother.
Signor Marius Della Torre: At first glance, Marius seems but a proud cockerel, the scion of a mortal family which, like his immortal family, was once of great import in this city. Still, he bears himself as a nobleman and courtier ought; he is intelligent, charming, courteous, and daring, skillful in warfare and the dark arts of his Lasombra heritage. Nor is he truly as young as he looks, having merely been Embraced in the flush of his youth; he has had at least a century to perfect his subtlety, and it seems he has, on more than a few occasions, made use of it. In this I see the hand of his Sire, who is clearly grooming him for some greater purpose. However, with the recent arrival of Don Alfonso, perhaps he now sees other paths open to him than the one she has chosen; I am told she is less than pleased about his recent choice of companions.
Bishop Leone Colonna: The sole survivor of Silvio da Valente's brood, and a Roman, which describes him well enough. I have come to the conclusion that the Prince permits him to remain in Milan solely in order to distract the Contessa; after all, what could be better distraction than one of her own Clan whom she does not control and who does not by any means wish her well? The Prince treats the Bishop with respect and counts him among his circle of close advisors, a circle in which the Contessa is not included. I also suspect, given the rumors I have heard of great strife among the Lasombra clan to the south and in Sicily, that Bishop Colonna has far more enemies without the city than within, and is thus reliant upon the protection of our Prince.
Don Alfonso de Castile and Dona Teresa de Leon: Upon their recent arrival from Spain, they were granted sanctuary by the Prince, again, I believe, to provide a counterbalance to the Contessa. And indeed, the Don and Dona do not seem to be her friends - perhaps Silvio da Valente was cleverer than I first realized in giving her to the Tzimisce, for her marriage and Blood Oath to him has evidently weakened her status among her own clan.
The Don, alas, embodies all that is ever said about the Lasombra clan; he regards all other lineages as lesser than his own, and treats only the Prince himself, and perhaps the Bishop, as anything close to a social equal. It should come as no great surprise to your Highness that the Don and the Bishop are thick as thieves, and cooperate in proving themselves endlessly loyal to Ercole; Dona Teresa, for her part, has become a companion of sorts to Lady Isabella. I am not entirely certain of the arrangement between the Don and the Dona. She is not his progeny, and does not seem to be bound to him; and he shows her the same superior disdain he shows the Contessa, even though the Dona is certainly more submissive and pliant to his will. The only other thing I would note is that the Don's distaste does not appear to extend to the Contessa's childer; in particular, young Marius (as he prefers to be called) often keeps company with the Spaniards.
Petrucchio the Fool: A dwarf and quite an ugly little man, but as he has survived through nearly as many changes of rulership as the Contessa herself, perhaps not nearly as foolish as he first appears. He has a sharp wit, and a tongue to match. I understand he is as popular with the court of the mortal Duke as he is among our own kind; but then, the Sforza are great collectors of curiosities. However, after several attempts at engaging him in conversation, I have come to the conclusion that he is quite mad. I believe the Prince may well have bound Petrucchio in the Blood Oath, given the level of devotion the dwarf extends to his liege; to anyone else, his lack of proper respect and deference is deplorable. For some reason, probably during the time of anarchy before Ercole took the city and the throne, the old jester Embraced a dwarf woman, as ugly and misshapen as himself; she is his constant companion and partner in all his tricks.
Droga the Astrologer: He arrived along with our Prince, and had apparently been in his service for some years even before that. Droga is from the East - in fact, I believe he once dwelt in Constantinople. At any rate, he has the look of a Greek about him. I am not certain how he came into Ercole's employ, but I have begun to suspect that he owed the Prince some great debt, perhaps his very existence.
He is one of the Toreador, an astrologer and student of mysteries - some say a sorcerer as well, although I have seen no great feats of magic from him. (To be fair, I cannot say I have seen such feats from Master Taliesin or the Tzimisce Jovan Ruthven, despite their even more fearsome reputations.) He enjoys the Prince's close confidence, and advises him on much more than the disposition of the heavens. Although his age is difficult to guess, he is certainly not young. Those who can see such things say his soul is scarred with the marks of the Amaranth; but the circumstances of this are never spoken of, and I have not pursued it, as it did not seem wise to question the Prince's authority or discretion in this matter.
Messer Bartolomeo Rossi and Alessandro de Ferrara: Of the other Toreador, I have little to say. They have not been in the city very long. Messer Rossi arrived some time before our Prince, was caught by the siege, and, in the wake of Ercole's triumph, humbly requested permission to remain. He is an architect and artisan; he constantly petitions Ercole to bring great artists to Milan, that the city may one day become a place of beauty as well as power and wealth. De Ferrara arrived but a few years ago. He is a singer of surprising sweetness and tone, and has been of great use in attracting other musicians of quality to the Sforza court. Neither of these men seems to have much aptitude or interest in politics.
Master Steffan Taliesin: Master Taliesin is of that Order of Austrian sorcerers. I am sure your Highness knows far more of them than I do, so I will say only that the two Tremere who dwell here in Milan seem to feel they owe their allegiance directly to their superiors in Vienna, and regard their obligation to the Prince with no more care than ever the Pope regarded the Emperor. Master Taliesin keeps mostly to himself, apparently absorbed in his studies; I have heard him state in response to a court invitation that he is a Magus of House and Clan Tremere, not a common entertainer, and he does not perform tricks like a mountebank at the fair.
Alessandro, also called Alexander Marcus Aurelius: The other of that blood is apparently a mere apprentice in their dread arts; he rarely has any contact with other Cainites, save when he carries a message from his master to the Prince - from what little I have seen, he is a far friendlier sort than Taliesin, but that is assuredly not saying much. I am informed that one of the conditions laid upon the Tremere, which Ercole set when they were granted permission to dwell here, is that they are forbidden to bring in a certain kind of creature, some unnatural species of guard-beast that they are accustomed to use in the north. I also hear that Master Taliesin was most concerned, when he first arrived, over Signor Ruthven's presence in the city; I do not know whether he merely objected to having a Tzimisce sorcerer for a neighbor (for sorcerers, I have heard, rarely like each other's company), or had some reason to fear this sorcerer in particular. Since Signor Ruthven does not care for the city, and Master Taliesin is less than forthcoming, I have not had much chance to ascertain the truth of the matter.
Jovan Ruthven: As I have said, he is a mysterious figure, being of that barbarian kindred who are said to frequent the high peaks of the eastern forests, with such demonic powers of legend ascribed to them that one almost wonders if they are descended from Caine's blood or from some other even darker ancestor. Even in appearance (or so I am told; I have not yet laid eyes on him myself) he is most unusual, small of stature and dark of hair and eye - yet comely in his own foreign way. Moreover, he wears robes more common to the lands of the schismatics than to our Italia. They say he is as wise in the ways of battle as in those of sorcery; I have even heard that he speaks Latin as well as any priest. I have also heard he is no Christian. Evidently he prefers to dwell apart from the city, at a villa administered by the Contessa's minions, where he practices his heathen enchantments and hunts the peasants of the contada during the dark phase of the moon. Some insist that he can turn water into blood, lead into gold, and himself into all manner of foul creatures, the better to drink the souls of the living and undead. Given that I have heard most of these tales from members of the Order of Tremere, I am not certain how much stock to put in them.
Others:
Fra' Sigismundo the Cappadocian: He holds himself aloof from others of our kind; he is said to frequent the hospitals and has amassed considerable knowledge of medicine, including the strange practices of the Moors and Saracens. Rumor proclaims him a former member of the clergy, but as I have not met him myself, I cannot report much more than this. At any rate, he appears to have no particular importance in the affairs of the court.
Hugo the Hermit: This fellow is said to be greatly deformed, as are all of their accursed bloodline; while he is known to dwell in the city, it is not known where he resides or even if others of his clan may have joined him in the years since his arrival. I have heard and seen several things which suggest to me that there is some connection between this hermit and the dwarf Petrucchio, but Heaven alone can guess what it might be.