Kansas City, Missouri, United States

Gratiano tied the ghoul to a chair and gagged him while torturing him with a hot knife:

"You thought this would end quickly, right? Well, you made me follow you across what, three, four states? It will not end quickly, believe me."

"Mhmmmmm!"

"Here's something interesting I found in your late wife's purse… Some kind of invitation to a meeting in Richmond, Virginia. To celebrate the heroes of the Confederacy? Hmm, I didn't know rebels can be called heroes when their rebellion failed."

"Mhmmm!"

"What did you say?"

Gratiano removed the gag from the ghoul. He said:

"THEY WERE HEROES! THEY WERE FIGHTING FOR A NOBLE GOAL!"

"For what? Slavery?"

"STATES… RIGHTS!"

"So, you say the Civil War wasn't because of slavery but because of… states' rights?"

"TO… PRESERVE OUR WAY OF LIFE!

"Gosh… Sounds so stupid I have to gag you again."

"Mhmmmm!"

"Well, I'm telling you: as a guy who fought on rebels' side, I kind of feel for your Confederate fellows. But we fought for freedom while you boys fought to prevent others to be free. Your way of life is nothing more than an expression of something that I hate: domination! Look at this shit… The south will rise again. Where? Top ten illiterate states? Top ten racist states? If that is where the south will rise again, congratulations, you made it! And I've got a prize for you!"

The ghoul died immediately after Gratiano cut his belly. The vampire blood inside him wasn't enough to keep him alive for long. The Lasombra Methuselah then felt a presence that has become too familiar:

"Montano… I don't have time for you."

He then said towards another room:

"Come out and face me, shithead."

A deformed figure appeared before Gratiano, emerging from the shadows. It was a Nosferatu vampire. He said:

"Please, I didn't do anything!"

"Really? A hunter attacked me in Mobile, Alabama. He said, after I pulled his guts out, that the organization he works for received an e-mail containing a list with names. People known to be vampires. My name was on that list. It was you, asshole. However, you little plan didn't work. As you can see, your little ghoul led me straight to you!"

"Please, Archbishop, I…"

"Enough with the lies. Who do you work for?"

"Screw you!"

Gratiano then beheaded the Nosferatu with his sword. Behind him, a shadowy mass appeared, speaking softly:

"Stop playing with those miserable creatures."

"Fuck you."

"Enough! I told you to seek the Assamites. Instead, you went to the opposite direction. Georgia, Alabama, Texas, now Missouri… Where to next? Oh, don't tell me… Louisiana. You plan on eating some of that gumbo?"

His sire's sense of humor annoyed Gratiano who said:

"None of your business. And stay away from me."

"Oh, but it is my business, my childe. I have nothing against you destroying your enemies but for Christ's sake, do it faster. You spent the last month hunting ghouls and lowlife Cainites all over the place and even though I told you over and over again to seek the Assamites, you did nothing. And now, you spent an entire evening talking politics and torturing ghouls. Get the damned Assamites on board!"

"Why do you fear Ur-Shulgi so much?"

"I don't fear that creature. I fear that creature's masters. Ur-Shulgi is nothing more than a puppet with demons pulling his strings."

"He claims to do the work of Haqim."

"If Haqim is another name for the devil…"

"Please… That Ur-Shulgi fellow justifies his evil just as we justify ours. We are not different except for the fact that I can walk into the daylight and he cannot. And if by miracle or devilish machination he will gain this advantage, I will fight him and then kill him."

"Ur-Shulgi is far older and stronger than you."

"He's fourth generation like me."

"I am not sure he is even vampire. He's something more. Go and seek the Assamites, Gratiano. Bind them to Saulot. Bolster your forces and destroy everyone who stands in your way."

"And where should I found them? At the convenience store? Hello, miss, can you give me two Assamites, please?"

"Very funny… After Ur-Shulgi rose, he killed those of his clan who still follow Islam. That included Jamal, his brother. Many Muslim Assamites fled to the United States. The Camarilla believes a large concentration of them are hiding on the East Coast. I managed to track down one of their leaders, a sixth generation Cainite named Jalal. He is currently hiding in Rutland, Vermont. Go there and negotiate with him."

Gratiano didn't say anything.

Nantes, France, a day later

RECORDING STARTING

"Monsieur Bonaventure, thank you for your cooperation. We will start recording immediately. Are you comfortable with us talking in English, for the purpose of the interview?"

"Absolutely."

"Tell me about yourself."

"My name is Alphonse Bonaventure and until last month, I was head surgeon at the National Hospital."

"Good. Tell me about the… supernatural happenings you experienced at the National Hospital, if you can."

"Let me tell you something, Mr. Beckett. My friend recommended you as a top specialist in the occult but I don't think you would believe me either. Now, before you think I am some kind of religious nutjob, I'll tell you, I am an atheist. I don't believe in God nor miracles. I still am. Because what happened there was not God's work. It is something else."

"I am not assuming anything. Describe me the events, please."

"On the 23rd last month, an ambulance brought us a child. He was playing with his friends in the street and he was hit by a truck. He was brought in at 7:12 PM with massive internal injuries and brain hemorrhage. We tried to save him but… he was declared dead at 7:43. At 7:46, the mother suffered a manic episode and we had to sedate her. From 7:46 until 7:52, the child's body was left alone in the intensive care room."

"I see."

"At 7:49, one of the nurse noticed a man entered the intensive care room. We don't allow people from the outside in there and clearly he wasn't a doctor nor one of the hospital personnel. The nurse went after him in the room. It took her just nine or ten seconds to reach the room. No man was in there… and also, no body."

"Do you think the man stole the boy's corpse?"

"Who else? But I can't explain how that man could have stolen a body in ten seconds and then take off without being seen?"

"Do you have surveillance cameras in the area?"

"We don't unfortunately. Not that it would matter. A being like that wouldn't get caught on camera."

"A… being?"

"A human being couldn't have taken off with a dead child in ten seconds from a hospital room… The windows were closed, Mr. Beckett. And he didn't leave the room by the door."

"Oh…"

"You don't believe me. But that's the truth."

"I believe you."

"Yes? Well… I guess you believe me… considering that the kid reappeared in the intensive care room… alive and without any injuries…"

"L'enfant du miracle."

"Yeah, the press likes its pompous titles. There was another case of a boy who came back to life in Texas, in the US. Fell from a horse, broke his neck… then he was fine."

"What do you think happened? Your honest opinion, please."

"If I tell you, you will consider me mad…"

"If I would have considered you mad, we wouldn't have this conversation. Please, tell me."

"I think… it was a vampire."

"A… vampire? How so?"

"After the child was found, we ran countless tests on him. We found traces of foreign blood in his mouth, throat and stomach."

"Did you analyze the blood?"

"We did but… it was… strange. The blood was nothing like human blood. I don't know what they did with it because I quit the next day."

"How did you come to the conclusion that a vampire was involved in the boy's resurrection?"

"My son studied myths and folklore. He still has books at home. It makes sense. A vampire is the only mythological being in European folklore that drinks blood or in this case, exchanges blood. Each country names it differently but it's still a vampire. A few days later, I received a strange visit from an Italian priest. I think he saw this happening before. I told him about vampires and he said that it's possible."

"Vampires drink blood, not save lives."

"Maybe this one is different."

"Tell me, monsieur, do you still have the books that you used to… learn about vampires?"

"Of course. I have them right here."

SOUND OF PAPER PAGES TURNING

"Interesting. May I borrow this book?"

"Sure. Like I said, it was my son's but he is now in England. I'm sure he won't mind. I have to say, that book was the most interesting."

"How so?"

"It spoke of strange, almost bewildering things yet… it makes sense. It speaks of secret societies of bloodsuckers that control the world, of sects of vampires that war against each other. Sounds like a horror script but… something about it makes sense, really."

"Well, I will study it and then call you back. If you have any more questions, you may call me Monday to Friday from 6 PM to 10 PM at this number.

WRITING HEARD

"Thank you, Mr… Samuel. Samuel Beckett!"

"My parents were fans."

"Great, great! Au revoir, monsieur!"

"Au revoir."

RECORDING ENDING

Three hours later, Beckett was in a seaside bar in Saint-Nazaire when someone came to him and said:

"Samuel Beckett? Really?"

"I needed a first name. What do you think about this book?"

Beckett handed the book to a dark skinned man wearing a purple suit. After inspecting it, the man said:

"This was printed recently. I can still smell the ink."

"The doctor said the book was his son's. That he had it for years."

""Bullshit. Or maybe it was switched."

"It says too much about us. And all of it is true."

The other man started to read from it and then said:

"Whoever wrote this was either one of us or a ghoul. Though I'm leaning towards a Cainite. The info is too intricate. Check this out: in 1493, the Convention of Thorns ended the first Anarch Revolt."

"Yes, clearly written by one of us. But why?"

"To expose us, certainly."

"The one who wrote this is either crazy or stupid or both. However, this is not my problem now. My problem is the one who bring dead children back to life."

"A Salubri, for sure."

"Since this Antediluvian talk started, the Salubri are becoming bolder. First, I heard rumors that Saulot is in Romania with the Inconnu. Then I heard he is in Vancouver. Then, Gratiano de-bloody-Veronese appears on live television in the middle of the day. Then, a massacre happened in Atlanta, Georgia. Every member of a Christian organization that happened to also be ghouls for the Sabbat were tortured and killed. Gratiano was involved, I'm sure of that."

"Do you think he threw his lots with Saulot?"

"Clearly. He gave Gratiano daylight. What more could a Kindred want?"

"Fuck me if I know. Give one of us the sun, endless supply of blood and he still wants more. It's in our nature. So, where to, Beckett?"

"I think I'll go back to the States."

"For what?"

"A friend of mine informed me that he tracked down a Toreador antitribu named Abdul."

"Who's he?"

"I suspect he might be the fifth generation vampire known as Ibrahim, a childe of Iontius."

"Oh… Iontius."

"Anyway. Let's talk another time. Goodbye, friend."

Beckett shook his friend's hand and left the bar. He took out his phone and said:

"Prepare the plane. We go back to the US."

Suddenly, Beckett felt something entering his chest. Before he could react, he fell unconscious to the ground.

Paris, France

"Mr. Beckett, I apologize for bringing you here this way but I was afraid you would not cooperate if we asked nicely."

Beckett noticed he was in a luxurious suite at the top of a tower. He looked at the window and started to shout:

"CLOSE THE BLINDS! CLOSE THE FUCKING BLINDS!"

"Easy, Mr. Beckett. How many years passed since your last sunrise?"

Beckett opened his eyes and looked at the blue sky. He then said:

"Saulot."

The Antediluvian appeared before him, followed by a mummy which moved very slowly. The Gangrel said:

"I didn't know you dabbed in mummy magic."

"What… Oh, this is my brother, the one you know as Malkav."

The mummy then said:

"Gangrel."

"Charmed… So, what do you want from me?"

"To talk, of course. You see, I intend to collect those of our blood that are more… intellectual in nature and desire more from unlife than just to quench their thirst for blood. In the last hundreds of years, you uncovered many of our secrets. Consider this a chance of a lifetime… or two, in our cases: an interview with those you name… Antediluvians."

Beckett smirked and said:

"Very well."

"You are very trusting, it seems."

"I don't look a gift horse in the mouth. If you want to talk and if you swear to me that after we talk, I will be able to leave unharmed, I will be more than happy to… interview you."

"Of course. I swear. I suspect you want to record our interview. By all means, do it."

Beckett checked his pockets and noticed he still has his recorder. After he prepared it, he said:

"It's all set. First, tell me who you are."

"I am Saulot of clan Salubri, childe of Enoch, childe of Caine, child of God."

"I am… Malkav."

"For the record, Malkav is also a childe of Enoch and a childe of Caine."

"And a child of God."

"Uh… yes, Saulot. May I call you Saulot?"

"Of course. This is my name."

"Good. So… uh…what is your intention for the Kindred world?"

"Peace, of course."

"Peace?"

"Yes. Peace."

"Between whom and whom?"

"Between the sects that are dividing our kind, between us and the other supernatural races of this earth and most importantly, between us and the humans."

"Humans don't know about us. Most of them, anyway."

"Once, they knew. We lived as one."

"They were your food."

"True. But I never hurt them for my own pleasure, unlike my other immortal brethren. I gave them paradise in our city."

"Tell me about the city of Enoch."

"Oh, yes. Our home, our true home. You see, before we were scattered all over this world, we lived in the city of Enoch. What do you want to know? How beautiful and harmonious were its gardens? The palaces? How it was the first bastion of civilization before it was all taken away from us? If so, I can speak for days on end about it, though I don't think you want to hear flowery descriptions and hyperbolae."

"Not really. I want to know the… essence of things."

"Why?"

"I… need to know something. You see, across my travels I saw many things, things that convinced me that Gehenna is not just a singular event but many and each such event is tied in a cycle of destruction and rebirth and destruction again. I want to know if this can be stopped. If the cycle somehow can be broken. Maybe you had this knowledge in your ancient city."

Saulot started pacing around the room and approached Beckett from behind. He said:

"What do you think is Gehenna? I don't need to know of prophecies and fragments of lost knowledge. I want just your honest opinion."

"It's a mystery to be solved. And if our species can be saved if I solve it, more reasons for me to try."

Saulot smiled and said:

"If you want to save the children of Caine, then we are natural allies."

"Umm, yes. Uh… Malkav? It's this the correct way to call you?"

"It will suffice."

"What is with the mummy body? For the record, Malkav is currently within the body of an Egyptian mummy wearing a mask with what seems to be ancient Greek inscriptions."

"This is Alexander the Great. Or was Alexander the Great."

"So… Malkav has taken over Alexander the Great's corpse. Can you please tell me what happened with you? Did you go into torpor? Or did you remain active in this world? You are one of the most… mysterious ancient so I need to ask you that."

Malkav didn't respond. Beckett couldn't tell if this was because of the mad psyche of the Antediluvian or because he wanted to annoy him. Saulot answered for him:

"Some things are best left unsaid. You wouldn't understand."

"Try me."

Malkav eventually said:

"I drifted on the currents of the mind."

"I… understand. The Malkavians deserted the Camarilla the moment you two returned. Are you planning on forming a new sect?"

Saulot said:

"No. There is too much division already in the vampire world. Like I said, I search for likeminded fellows that would help me usher a new age of peace. We suffered enough. Ever since Caine was cursed by the Creator, he and his descendants suffered from endless hunger, pain and loneliness. I want to bring joy."

"Do you believe the myth of Caine?"

"It is not a myth. It's the truth."

"What about what is said in the Book of Nod?"

"True. But of course, you have the right to doubt it… but you weren't there, friend. I was there. I sat with my sire and his sire in the golden palaces of Enoch. Just like Malkav did. Caine tended the fields before his fall into darkness. He raised crops so that his family can eat. He was a caregiver and he fell only because his love for God burned him."

"If the Book of Nod is to be believed, he killed his brother out of envy."

"No. He sacrificed him to the One Above. God demanded only the youngest and sweetest to be given to Him and what did Caine had that was young and oh so much beloved by him? Abel. You see, Beckett, what is the greatest proof of love than renouncing love?"

"I see. Tell me about Lilith."

"A temptress. She gave Caine power but at what cost? Even more hatred from God."

"I must ask you a question that probably is on everyone's lips: is there a God?"

"It must be. He offered us the greatest gift imaginable."

"What? Our curse?"

"No. Golconda."

"Many of our kind consider Golconda to be a myth, a story told by elders to manipulate younger Cainites into doing their bidding."

"Oh, that couldn't be farther from truth. Golconda exists and more importantly, it works."

"It allows you to walk into the sun."

"Not just this. You see, when you walk the path to Golconda, the challenges you face are tremendously difficult yet the reward is invaluable. It is a choice."

"A choice?"

"Yes. I don't know if the choices are the same for every Cainite who reaches Golconda, but I was given three choices: to die and exist for eternity in Heaven, to see the face of God and live in His light. Or I could have become human again, to enjoy the short but simple life of a mortal, with all its good and its difficulties. I chose the third way."

"What was it?"

"To remain an eternal presence on Earth, invulnerable. The sun can't hurt me, the stake can't subdue me. Not even the diablerist can withstand my presence inside him. The cost was great however. I will never die. I will never see God and I will never achieve peace. Yet my powers increased tremendously, beyond anything I could do before."

"Why did you choose to remain forever on Earth?"

"I feared death, Beckett. And I… forgot how to be human. I remained true to what I become and I tried to find succor in an eternal existence."

"What exactly do you need to achieve Golconda?"

"The desire to change. You see, this is why not many vampires can achieve it. We Cainites are beings of stagnation. We don't change. This is why the majority of those who share our blood can't achieve Golconda. To achieve it, one must feel regret and return to Humanity."

"I can see why this is a problem for Kindred. Saulot, tell me about the Baali."

"The greatest enemies of all existence. Cainites who chose to damn their souls even more by consorting with demons."

"How did they came into being? Many vampires say that they were your creation."

Saulot returned to his seat, in front of Beckett and said:

"Unfortunately, it's true. I created them but not by will."

"What happened?"

"Let me tell you a story. Cainites of old, such as us the Antediluvians and our sires, have this power of… giving form to emotions. Each feeling we possess can be made into something else, something physical, tangible. It is something the childe of Caine Irad tried to do: to focus all his evil into one foul mass and expel it from himself."

"It is said that the Tzimisce Antediluvian was Embraced that way."

"Exactly. You see, he poured all that evil inside a being, while Embracing it. I wanted to expunge it from myself and then destroy it completely. But tell me, Mr. Beckett, can you destroy hate itself? Can you destroy fear? Can you destroy evil? You can't. However, you can try to contain it somehow. I, for the lack of a better term, sealed it in a feather. A dark feather taken from a crow. That feather was given to one of my fellow Antediluvians, a man I trusted more than almost anyone else."

"Who was that man?"

"You know him as Cappadocius. I know him as Sargon, his real name, the one he had before he became Cainite. Others may know him as Ashur."

"You mean to tell me that Cappadocius was the Antediluvian that created the Baali?"

"Yes."

"Do you know how he did it?"

"Sargon was… an interesting fellow. An intellectual but at the same time, a fanatic. He spoke of salvation long before the religions of the world started to talk about it. He believed he will go to Heaven if he brings salvation to others but he didn't pursue Golconda. Instead, he made an experiment: he wanted to create the most evil being in the world and then to bring salvation to it, to become a Messiah and secure his place in Heaven. But in order to do that, he had to use something as a catalyst."

"That feather…"

Saulot nodded:

"Yes. He didn't want to fail so he tried to create more than one such… specimens."

"The three. The first Baali."

"They have my hatred and the blood of Sargon in their veins."

"Incredible."

"For you, Mr. Beckett. Not for us."

"Are there any other Antediluvians active in the world, besides you and Malkav?"

"I don't know. Probably, they are. Or probably not. I can't say for sure."

Beckett stopped the recording machine and said to Saulot:

"I stopped the device. Answer me a question but be sincere."

"I've been sincere with you our entire discussion, Mr. Beckett."

"How can Gehenna be stopped? Not philosophy, but means to end it. Tell me how and I swear to you that I will help you."

"I don't know. You would need a being with great insight to answer that, one even greater than mine or even my brother's."

"Is there anyone who has a greater insight than Malkav?"

Malkav broke the silence and said:

"Eight hundred years ago, a childe of mine named Tesus ventured in the dark forests of the Carpathian Mountains to fight his Tzimisce enemy. He spent almost his entire blood in the fight and even after he prevailed, he was weak almost to the point of death. He reached a village somewhere near a stream and saw a beautiful young girl washing her clothes in the moonlight. He craved her blood and entered a mad Frenzy. He attacked her, ravishing her and gorging on her vitae. She died. What Tesus didn't know was that the entire scene was seen by the girl's younger brother, a child no more than nine. When my descendant saw the boy, he attacked him too but… when he saw his tiny body covered in blood, he regretted it and Embraced him immediately."

Saulot then said:

"That boy can see the future. All futures. Every possibility."

"And where is this boy? How do we get to him? Is he still among us?"

"Yes. His name is Nicolaus."

"Where is he?"

Malkav said:

"He is in torpor. Last time he emerged, his machinations destroyed an entire village in Mexico."

"What happened?"

"Are you familiar with the history of the Crying Lady? The llorona?"

"Yes. A Mexican legend. It is said that a woman fell in love with a prince and he gave her sons. Yet when he cheated on her, she threw their children into a river to spite him and after that, she killed herself too. The villagers left because they believed they are cursed by the woman's deed. Hell, people even say that her ghost could be heard crying on the bank of that river ever since."

"Everything was caused by Nicolaus. The nobleman falling in love to the poor woman, him cheating on her, her mad reaction… My grandchilde used Dementation on them."

"A cruel boy."

"This boy is older than you, Gangrel. A fifth generation vampire trapped in a child's body having a child's mind. He didn't answer my call to come to Vancouver because lies dormant underneath a school in Buenos Aires."

"I will retrieve him."

Saulot smiled. It seems he managed to win a powerful ally.