All is not well in New York City.

Four Princes have been ruling this city for two years and, for the most part, everything has been calm. But far from content. No two Princes can seem to agree on any one thing, and the powerful Primogen, led by Ventrue elder Wilhelm Gearhart, seems to be ruling the city with puppet strings. For reasons not fully understood by many, the Justicar Democritus is angry with New York. His feelings are reflected in the tensions and attitudes displayed by those directly threatened by the Ventrue’s irascible ire.

My master -- the Toreador Archon Armitage, forced into making New York a semi-permanent home, has the most to worry about. This is her turf, so to speak, and the Justicar has taken a personal interest in “her” city. Democritus has been known to swat a fly with a sledge hammer – in this case, Grendel would be the fly and New York City the impact crater. This is a risk that long-lived Kindred know better than to take.

A number of elders have come together to discuss this issue, sans Grendel. Armitage, among others, feels that the primary problem is Grendel – if the Brujah is taken care of, one way or another, Democritus’ interest in the city would wane. A second issue, which is the increasingly violent conflict between warring factions of Brujah across the river in Jersey, also needs to be addressed. Armitage has also provided the location of this little suaree – a private residence on Ward’s Island (a.k.a. Triborough Island). It probably is important to point out that this island falls under the domain of no Prince, although any of them could lay a claim to it. Were Grendel to find out about this event, he would no doubt be irate. Thus, the invitations were to a “play”, as hosted by the Archon Armitage. An event, no doubt, at which Grendel would not be caught dead.

I believe < thick dripping sarcasm > esteemed Ventrue elder Wilhelm Gearhart < / thick dripping sarcasm > is holding a financial competition amongst the Ventrue and their chief bootlickers this evening, another reason for Grendel to stay away.

The other Princes are mixed on the Grendel issue. Due to Grendel’s playing haven to the rabble and the Anarchs, those problems in the other boroughs have been minimized. And, frankly, his lack of interest in expanding his domain or direct political confrontation has been called “refreshing” by Elijah Hightower.
It has been Hightower who has been the most outspoken in his support of Grendel. Hightower is the Ventrue Prince of Brooklyn, and his financial reserves have bailed out Grendel numerous times. However, Hightower’s job has been made easier, as those who might give the Ventrue problems frequent the Bronx. Additionally, Imogen’s status as Primogen puppet paints a bigger target on her head.
Denver Hammersmith is a Tremere, and holds the title of Prince of Queens and Long Island. He is rarely seen, never holds court, and his second-in-command Monroe is nominally in charge of the city. The Tremere’s domain has been the quietest, and the trouble and conflict which has embraced other boroughs is unseen here. Whether that is due to the Tremere’s efforts or merely the feared reputation of Hammersmith is unknown.
Prince Grendel himself has been uncharacteristically quiet on the issue. He rules the Bronx with an open hand – he doesn’t care about the rest of the city.
The final Prince of New York is Imogen. Far and away, the youngest and the weakest of the Princes, she controls the center of the free world – Manhattan, as well as its less wealthy neighbor, Staten Island. She has support from several key members of the Primogen who wanted a strong say in what happened without actually having the target of Prince on their heads.

The Primogen, which is chaired by Ventrue elder Wilhelm Gearhart, is the only governing force which rules over the entire city. Also on this council are the two Tremere Regents – Monroe from Long Island and Chelsea Gray from Manhattan, Lasombra elder Angelique Montgomery and two extremely influential Toreador – Persephone and Veronique. These six Kindred play well off of each other, and have managed to manipulate things so that no single Prince has the power of the Primogen.
Apparently, they are not sure what to do about Jersey, either. New Jersey, and Newark in particular, is a hotbed of chaos. Gangs of roving Brujah are at war – no Prince wants to take care of this, but nobody wants the Justicar to have to come and take care of the problem. The Sabbat are not taking credit for the chaos, and nobody really wants the responsilbility of cleaning it up.

At the same time, whispers of a foreign threat from within New York proper are filling the ears of those who would listen. Stories of Asian vampires, of threats from the Far East have been heard by the Princes and Primogen, and this, if anything, might raise the hackles of alarmists.

To make matters worse, the Gangrel and the Ravnos, long amongst the smallest of New York clans, have begun their traditional struggle. Periodic violence has erupted in the streets between the two Rom clans, and the call for reinforcements has gone out on both sides. Clan elders Rebecca Rockefeller and Dalton Locke refuse to answer questions.

For those who haven’t kept up to date on current political events, it should be mentioned that there is some sort of loosely defined cease fire treaty between the Sabbat and the Camarilla. While the locals on an individual level may not buy into it, the Justicars sure as hell do.
How is this relevant to you, you ask? The Sabbat have sent an Ambassador to New York City – our own personal representative of the Sword of Caine right here in New York City. That way, when he cuts up a busload of tourists in Times Square in front of the national media cameras, he can claim “Diplomatic Immunity”.

What’s next? Ninjas?

Regardless, it looks as though the same maelstrom of chaos that happens every year is about to happen again. This time doesn’t look any less bloody or chaotic as the rest. For those of you who are new to our fair city, be forewarned: New York is famous for doublecrosses and dealbreaking. A wise Ventrue once said “You haven’t experienced New York until you’ve met a Methuselahs pretending to be a Neonate, a Neonate pretending to be a werewolf, a Malkavian trying to pretend he’s Ventrue, and a Toreador pretending that she’s Prince."

For your sake, I must remind you that the Archon and Princes have extended Elysium to cover the building through which we may traverse this evening. This protection extends, of course, to cover everything in this building including walls, statuary, windows and, alas, all of you.

Be forewarned, my blood-sucking, self-pretentious superiors -- there is much in the city of New York which is not what it seems. The city is famous for Methuselahs posing as Neonates, Neonates posing as Justicars, Sabbat posing as posers and Nosferatu posing at whomever they feel like. Don’t forget to wash your hands, wipe your feet and keep your arms and legs inside the vehicle at all times -- it’s going to be a wild ride.