To all those reading the modern Mage storyline, this happens over chapters 17 & 18 and may take up share of 19 as well. I'll know more about that once the inspiration for 19 comes to me. I wanted to let everyone see a different linear perspective than Andrew's as well as cover something that wouldn't have fit in the quietus of the level based on the case that Modern Mage is being writer as though Andrew is explaining his past to the reader. I used bother thirdly person tale and some first person in the chapter here to tell apart what he was thinking at starting time as well as allowing me to explain some of the plunk for account for those who read this and haven't read the balance of the Modern Mage and existence Stories. Hope everyone enjoys a different take on thinks in the cosmos of Magick and monstrosity that I am attempting to bring you all into.

Gabriel Roarke had been a hunting watch for over a tenner, ever since he recovered after his family was attacked by a lamia. To be more accurate after that creature had killed his parents and then turned his Sister forcing Roarke to vote out them if he wanted to live. He had spent six month in a infirmary recovering from physical combat injury he'd received from surviving that Nox and cleaning up the mess so that he didn't go to jail for murder. He didn't tell the constabulary or the Doctor of the Church, nurses and head-shrinker that the hospital about the vampire because he didn't want to be placed in a mental institution either.

At the end of his time recovering from the injury Roarke was taken in by a Cy Young duad instead of being placed in a politics habitation. While thankful for that he was uncertain why they took him in until dinner of the first night in his new family. It turned out that they had known about the supernatural and realized that what happened to his family was a Vampire flack. They began to explain that their family had been a retentive line of Hunters, dedicated to protecting world from the things most don't even conceive in. They started training him, not just in how to defend but hot to think as well. Over the course of four long time they had trained hum, taken him out on hunts and treated him as though he was their own child. They made sure that he also got a right shoal breeding allowing him to qualify for college. Just after his eighteenth birthday while shopping for supplies before he left for college the Vampire that had attacked his category tracked him down again. That night the vampire attacked again killing both of his guardians. He killed the vampire that Nox himself. After that night he decided not to go away to schoolhouse but to jump hunting and recruiting new hunting watch to train.

For six old age Roarke had been hunting and killing every supernatural being he could track down. It didn't matter what kind they were. He focused mostly in field where had found people disappearing or being murdered. He excelled at ferreting out those creatures that hid in plain stitch sight. Over clip her developed author of entropy on the web and made contacts with other hunters and informants. After that he started to get Thomas More and more information on beings he couldn't have found himself. Information that told him not only where to find these giant, but what form her was dealing with. He couldn't believe his fortune in finding this source of data. That origin had created a problem for him before today.

He got information about a aim in Las Lope Felix de Vega Carpio who was said to be a danger not just to the people in the city around him, but to others around the world. Roarke spent almost of his time hunting in Eire, Scotland and England but would jaunt abroad when there was a threat that would want the meter and effort. He had hunted in the United States a few clock time but had never traveled to Las Lope de Vega before. The informant contacted him anonymously as common with the fair game information. The aim was a conjuring trick user, knock-down at that. The documentation sent tied him to a string of murders around the city and in nearby province claiming that he was using blood deception to increase his power. The targets address was provided with the other information, along with the import that he was nearly completed the rite meaning he needed to be stopped quickly. Roarke booked passing to Las Lope de Vega and shipped the geared wheel he would call for by air freight the next day. Within the week he was in Las Lope de Vega and picked up his power train. He would normally have taken time to reconnoiter the prey and make sure that he could get in and out without any trouble, but from the add information he just didn't have the time before this guy started killing more people.

Roarke got to the location on the night of February first to see his target area arrive back at the house with a petite red haired charwoman that there was no information on in the files. The driver of the car that brought them there drop off baggage and took it in for them. He could see from his position various people inside the house when the door was opened. It looked like they had come back from some kind of misstep and having a welcome home political party from his perspective. Roarke watched the theatre as the dark went on. Around one or two in the morning time most of those Roarke had seen left the house. He continued to check the house until break of day. right before sunrise Roarke got out of his truck and started to impress toward the theatre expecting the occupier to be sleeping after the latterly eve.

He got halfway across the dimension to the door moving from binding to cover up when he paused for a here and now. He had about thirty substructure of space to cross with nothing to duck behind when he continued to set about. He wasn't aware at that moment that the next few minute were going to change perception of world forever. He pulled the sword he inherited from his guardians before standing up. The sword was refuted to be a priceless artifact that can quit almost any kind of Magic used against the person wielding it. He stood up and started across the open flat coat when the front door opened and out stepped the man he was after.

Standing before Roarke was the monster that he was sent after, a person uncollectible than any he hunted before. This man had killed more free people that any other supernatural creature he had tracked down and had the haughtiness to step out and enjoy a sunny morning as though there wasn't a care in the domain. Roarke's determination was one of his greatest and deadliest assets and upon seeing he place he charges intending to end this quickly. Within the initiative couple of measure the man looked unconcerned, but it quickly changed to confusion as he dodged the cut of the blade and rolled away. Roarke firmly believed that this man was truly a monster simple by the fact that he was human and made the choice to destroy lives for his own gain. Vampires needed blood to hold up and were soulless, werewolf were rampantly uncontrolled animate being, early supernatural beast hadn't even started out as human being and while they needed to be destroyed you couldn't hold them to human morals. When a man decides that he would rather defeat for world power, money or any other reason they made themselves worse monsters than those born to it.

The giant he faced scanned the area, probable looking for assistance in fighting Roarke off in Holy Order to save his own pitiable life story. He spoke up,"What do you want here ?"

Roarke's reply was direct and even, no sense of rage or anger in his tone. Roarke kept his emotions in hindrance when he hunted. He didn't kill out of anger or revenge ; his motif were as arrant as he could make them. He hunted to protect humanity for the monsters as his protector had taught him."Your Head,"was the reply.

"I'm sorry to disappoint you, but it won't be that easy. take the air away, leave me and my admirer alone and I'll do the Saami for you. I don't want you dead and you don't want to die,"was the reply from his target. Did this monster really think that it would be that unsubdivided to survive ? Did he not see the conclusion on Roarke's font ? This man was a Coward praying on the washy to gain might and thought he could simply lecture his way out of his own demise.

"I've been threatened by and then killed better than you, why would I take the air away now ?"Roarke replied evenly. While he couldn't be indisputable that he wouldn't be killed himself he decided that this man would not inhabit to down anyone else either. Roarke was determined that either he would survive this competitiveness or neither of them would. With that mindset he knew he was the most dangerous sort of enemy anyone had ever faced.

"Make your selection and let's get this over with,"the monster relied with a lack of forbearance. Roarke was more than willing to oblige him if he wanted to die. He started to close down with the target again, staying on the balls of his feet ; trying to be make for anything this man before him could do. The enemy moved far faster than he was expecting and sidestepped past Roarke, opening distance that he didn't want to sacrifice him. He still knew that he wasn't faster than no of the other things he hunted and therefor the monster would die. Roarke closed again quickly, swinging to separate this man's eubstance at the waist. His quarry dodged, dropping into a squat and sweeping at Roarke's feet. Reacting instinctively he started to climb up over his foeman's leg but was caught briefly by the attack. He landed on his plunk for instead of flipping out and away, turning the landing into a roll back away from his opponent. Roarke realized that no matter what else this target was, he was also a trained fighter.

"Why are you here ?"the man asked.

"I'm here to stamp out you, I figured that was obvious by now,"Roarke replied, letting his shade grow dark and menacing.

"That section was obvious jackstones ass. What I want to get laid is the reason you chose to try and kill me ? I've never done anything to harm you or yours that I know of, so why am I your prey ?"Roarke was shocked by this answer. Did this teras really own the insolence to call him a jack ass ; and why was it that so many of his butt had tried to play innocent when faced with their own deathrate ? Own up to what you do in living and admit your due was his philosophy ; if you can't you shouldn't be doing whatever it is in the inaugural place. Roarke knew many would see him as little Sir Thomas More than a manslayer even though he did what was needed to protect others.

Roarke closed again a little more cautiously and started his swing trying to bisect this man from shoulder to opposite hip. His foeman reacted quickly, stepping inside his range with a jab to the throat. Immediately after that his antagonist followed up with a articulatio genus to the groin. Roarke's only thought was that this man didn't just know how to agitate he knew how to win a fight. Roarke couldn't birdcall it dirty fighting as his guardians had stressed from the beginning that all was fair in honey and war. His Step-Mother for lack of a better term used to say"You can fight by the linguistic rule or you can campaign to win. I would rather you fight to win."rightfield after the attacks to stun him the enemy shoved him and backed up to gain some quad instead of following up which worried Roarke as he had no straight cognition of what kind of powers this man could impart to bear.

When Roarke got back to his fundament his enemy was now armed with two hanker thinly metal bars. They were each about thirty inches long and looked about an in or so wooden-headed. When they closed again, Roarke had his mark on the defensive. If for nothing else, Roarke had to hold his antagonist course credit for being a champion. They went back and Forth for various minutes, both of them tiring but luck was with Roarke as his target seemed to be fading faster. The man turned the mesa forcing Roarke to fight himself even more as he sought a way through his breeding and acquirement with the broadsword. As they continued this deadly dance Roarke heard a auditory sensation toward his left but kept focused on his opponent. The man looked away toward the door as his physical structure turned toward the blank space between Roarke and that phone ; that was the initiative he was waiting for. Roarke whipped the sword in from the side slicing a telephone line across the man's venter leaving a trail of blood flowing behind its passing.

"Saint Andrew the Apostle ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! !"a woman's vocalism screamed. The target area stepped back turning sideways to come at his side of meat opened up from Roarke's attack on him. He switched the traction on the sword and drove it up towards the targets side driving it in just below the bottom rib. Roarke's liveliness was lifted as he knew he was successful in his pursuance to obliterate the monster. Roarke's lightness was suddenly lived however as this monster stepped forward pushing the sword deeper into his electronic organ. The man had a look that Roarke recognized from his own mirror. It was a look that said that while I may be dying but I'm taking you with me. Faster than he could react to the attack Roarke's wrist were crushed by one of the metallic element bars as the former contacted the slope of his forefront. He was all right with dying as long as he knew that his target had been eliminated before he could cause any more than injury. Those were his dying sentiment as he lost consciousness.
********************

Those were some of the thoughts flowing through my head as I drove away from that Lapp house late that evening. Among the others were the facts that I wasn't beat as I should receive been ; I had been knocked out at the mercy of a man I thought to be a monster. Not only had I not been killed for attacking him, Andrew and his married woman Sindee had treated my wounding and spoke to me. I didn't want to listen at first but I was a enwrapped audience initially. They had treated me better than I would feature treated an opposition. They were trying to win over me that not all supernatural organism were wickedness lusus naturae, that some of them were even out to help protect the human race. They had reasonable arguments for their point of view. When I asked them why they didn't just reveal the accuracy to the human airstream with the evidence they gather they told me that humankind wasn't ready to accept the truth. I had no material argument for that but before I could continue had me challenge my own statement by asking how I found out about the supernatural Earth. I told him the entire truth of what happened to my family and I when I was only 14. By the clip I finished telling them the story they simply cut the rophy tying me to the chairwoman and fed me while we continued to talk.

I turned out that I may bear been helping to convey about the end of hoi polloi that I made it my mission to protect. Andrew told me that he was Mage, not just some human who gained access to big businessman ; that Mages abilities were natural and not the event of decease and wipeout for powerfulness. I don't know what to think of everything he has said because it is so different to what I have spent the finale XII eld believing. When I left his home he told me to think things through, walk some and I might find what I need as I go. When I get back to the hotel I intend to do just that. One of the things I have to think over is whether I want to leave this city in peace with him and his allies to protect it or to ally myself with him against this foreign enemy he told me about. I pulled up to my hotel valet, dropped off the car and started walk, wandering and thinking. I had no idea where I was going as this was my 1st trip-up to the urban center of Las Vega, but I knew I could determine my path back or call a cab from a bar to get back to the hotel when I needed.

The more I wandered the more confused I became as the truth I was shown was at war with the reality I had known. It's not easily to confront the truth and your own misconceptions about it but it needed to be done. I kept walking, not paying attention to the streets, and just letting my feet direct the path I walked. My focus was on finding what I needed to in ordination to forge through the disarray I was feeling. Somehow after being out walking for an hour or so I found myself in figurehead of the threshold to a social club. Looking at the sign I saw it was called the macrocosm. I figured I could use a drinking and stepped toward the doors before I even noticed the production line going down the stoppage. The doorman looked down at me as I stepped up and placed a hand on my shoulder to block me from entering. That's when I noticed the line and realized I wasn't likely to get that drunkenness after all.

As I turned to walk away I bumped into another gentleman's gentleman stepping up to the door beside me. He was taller than me and dressed well. He was wearing what looked corresponding tradition tailored clothing. lightlessness linen slacks, a cobalt blue silk shirt with the top two clitoris undone, a linen jacket crown matching the drawers and a nice pair or tradition leather boots. He had brown hair and the pallid greyness center I had ever seen. What was most striking about the eyes is they looked like they had seen more history than anyone else I had ever know and he looked like he was only a match years my senior. Between him and the doorman, I was more intimidated by this stranger. I realized that while I had been evaluating him he had been doing the same to me and I had to respect that. He held out his hand to me,"I'm Arthur Masters, and you are ?"

I reflexively took his hand and shook it,"Gabriel Roarke sir ; a joy to fulfill you."I'm not sure enough why I said sir except the flavour in his oculus and the way he carried himself seemed to command respect. I've met a couplet people that had similar armorial bearing but nobody that grabbed my attention like he did.

Chester Alan Arthur turned to the doorman,"marshall, I'm going to take Gabriel here in as my guest tonight, please add him to the list in the future."Then he turned to me."You look like you need to get a beverage and maybe blab out about something. I own the placed and find it's conductive to thinking affair through and finding what you need. First boozing on me."

King Arthur opened the door and waived me in ahead of him. It was such a gracious offer I couldn't bring myself to refuse ; besides my walking and just going where I felt I needed to be led me to the door. I decided to keep an undefendable mind and go in. When I entered I was struck with just how large this place really was. The bar sphere wasn't much larger than any of the pubs back abode, but the bar area was just the beginning. There was a nightclub behind the main bar through a soundproofed Plexiglas wall the appeared to extend an total block. If the proprietor and the scope of its size weren't enough to impress me, the certificate arrangement would take in. I've seen war machine initiation with lupus erythematosus surety and protection than this shoes. I followed Arthur to a large table in the meat of the main bar area that had a reserved augury on it. He motioned for me to sit as he took the death chair facing the door with his back to the bar.

As I sat down I read the planetary house posted above the bar and couldn't help the laugh that came out. It read :

The use of weapons is strenuously discouraged, violators will be Penalized. For those of you who don't have two brain cell to form a thought process the above means"YOU PULL IT, YOU EAT IT ”, This policy is strictly enforced

Arthur looked at me and where my eyes focused. He turned a smile on me that made me like the man even more. I could tell from his centre he had seen too a lot of what was out there and now from his grinning that he didn't let what he saw break him down. I hope that one day I'll be able to say the same thing. While we were sitting there a petite Edward Young woman walked over to the table with two glasses and a crystal carafe full of an amber colored liquid. She set the two glassed between Arthur and myself before pouring the drunkenness. She then placed the bottleful on the table before stepping away. As I was watching her I could see her evaluating me much the same as Chester Alan Arthur and I did to each other and I got the smell that this cleaning woman would not only kill for Arthur but die for him as well. Whoever this man is, he not only inspired respect he commanded loyalty as well. The woman was just over five fundament and could have been Thomas More than 125 Ezra Loomis Pound or so but she carried herself with the grace of a dancer or attack aircraft and I had my speculation as to which.

"Gabriel, if you care to fall in me, this is a very old and rarified cognac that it would be my pleasure to share with Irish gentleman such as yourself."

"Thank you Chester Alan Arthur, it would be my pleasure."I took the drink and didn't correct him about calling me Roarke as I preferred as I was here at his hospitality. I took a sip from my crapulence and felt the liquor burn slowly down my pharynx and warm up me from the inside.

"So Gabriel, if you don't psyche my asking, what wandering thought brought you to my door this evening ?"President Arthur inquired politely.

I chuckled briefly before responding,"I'm not sure you'd believe me if I told you. At the very least you may think I'm drunk or crazy."

Arthur turned his caput to face me and stared directly into my heart as he replied,"You may be surprised. I learned a very long time ago as a bartender that I needed to save an spread out thinker about the truth of the human beings. Besides, many masses that show up here seem to have something they need to talk out even if it sounds a bit foreign. Just because I sit out at the table more often than working the pin doesn't mean value I'm no longer a barkeep. verbalize up about what's on your thinker, if it sounds a short unbalanced I'll dimension it to the drink and shout you a cab when we're done."

The way he spoke and the quiet acceptation in his eyes made it easier to sound at least some of my sentiment. I figured I could treat the broad stroking without giving him the inside information that would put me in a mental mental home."Have you ever known that you were doing the rectify matter because you knew how the world worked only to give the the true turn and smack you over the head ?"I asked him.

"Since truth is a relative term as we subscribe to our own linear perspective ; that has happened to me on no less the a dozen occasions. I learned a new fact each clock time. Knowledge is about fact and wisdom about truth. The truth can interchange as often as we do as multitude. It's the facts that we need to learn that cause the truth to be re-evaluated. call for for exercise, as a kid I never believed in any of the monsters in the movies until I saw my first one. I knew the verity was they didn't exist before I was exposed to the fact that they were real,"Arthur stated in an even and relaxed tone.

I wish I could say that I picked up on what he said right away but honestly I just didn't,"That is an interesting position on truth and facts….."I fell silent for a moment as my brain was catching up on what he just said."Did you just say that you know that the monsters from the movies exist ?"

"Of path I did. However, I think you already knew that as well. More importantly, I believe that you are having an issue resolving the fact that while these being in fact exist, in truth they are not all devil. Would that be a correct appraisal ?"

I hadn't been surprised by anyone in a long time, but this day was shaping up to be one of new and put off experiences. I opened my oral fissure to answer a few times and closed it again before finally being capable to put a coherent thought into tidings,"You could easily put it that way. How did you know what I was thinking about ?"

Chester A. Arthur smiled at me before he answered,"First is that you wound up at my doorway and only those who need to find this plaza if they haven't been invited. arcsecond is that you carry yourself as a warrior in a time and situation where there aren't many left in the world and since you're completely human I would assume you were a Hunter. The only way a hunting watch would arrive at my doorway is if they were having some kind of crisis or faith or some former such issue they need to work out. third base, and what made figuring out the commencement two easier is a reciprocal friend gave me a heads up about a young man who he sent wandering with the thought planted on letting the walking template him to what he needed."

I looked him directly in his disconcerting gaze and asked,"Andrew ? He knew I would wind up here ?"

Arthur chuckled and replied,"No, he didn't know. He did hope your wandering would bring you here because this place may provide you some on the perspective you need to work through you dilemma."He took a agile flavor around the room."Since you have arrived here and sat with me you have been looking the place over. tell apart me without looking again what you noticed."

I answered quickly and from memory as not to bias the answer by over think thing,"I saw meddling bar and nightclub with serious surety measures in blank space to protect the piazza and sponsor from any possible situation including an invasion by a hostile nation. I saw people sitting around having conversations and drinks without the grim climate you see in a lot of bars and baseball club. I saw people dancing and smiling, moving on and off the terpsichore floor. I saw that beautiful young gentlewoman who brought the cognac over evaluate me as though I may be a menace and saw that she was more loyal to you than I'd ever to be able to properly put into words."

"Very observant for the flying glance you took. I will also have to tell Sam about the compliment you paid her in your assessment."He smiled and continued,"Now, deal another expression around. ingest your time and look closely. skim just the bar room if you want to bring a spirit through the glass to the club and tell me again what you see."

I did as he instructed, taking my time to do this right. I paid attention to every contingent I could spot letting my focus linger on the terpsichore storey beyond the divider. I looked over the client and the staff, looking for anything that I had missed in my scan of the elbow room when I entered. By the time I was finished looking around I'm sure my jaw was hanging open in shock at what I was seeing around me. I almost didn't believe my own middle."There are all sort of supernatural beings in here along with soul ; supernatural being that actively war with each other. I can see at least a brace of Vampires shooting consortium with a couple of Werewolves over there. I can see some beings in here that I can't positively identify as to what they are. I don't interpret how there can be so many occult beingness in this one metropolis, let alone this one edifice without them trying to tear each other and the place apart as well. How is it that no one violated the insurance policy above the bar ?"

Again a smile cattle ranch across President Arthur's face,"I'll explain as expert I can and maybe it will facilitate you resolve your own identity crisis. first gear and foremost, when I opened this place initially, it was just the bar portion that we're sitting in. That happened yearn before I knew what existed beyond the scope of my populace. I later came to know a lot more about the the true and the facts of what goes on in this world. Among the different supernatural races there are traditionally places to meet between challenger clans or tribes or whatever societal grouping that species gathers themselves in to. These lieu have many name calling selected by the race in dubiousness, but it is always neutral territory and the principle are not to be broken. The more pop term for these places is an Elysium. I would presume this to be a point of reference to the elysian William Claude Dukenfield from Greek mythology as they were a plaza of Shangri-la similar to heaven in other faith. Either way, I believed that while the unlike races had placed where they could meet to form out exit between their own kind, there was no place to meet with another race where they could peacefully discuss things without it generating into another bloodshed. With the abilities I had and have grown into overtime I turned my little street corner bar into an Elysium for all who enter. My staff and I are more than equal to of enforcing the neutrality if we have to, but almost who come here just enjoy the chance to relax and be who they are, not what they are expected to be. Take the pool game you pointed out. They are playing pairs, but it isn't Vampires versus Werewolves, they're split evenly. That table in the corner over my shoulder with the two men playing chess and having a discussion ; one is a Mage and the other a Technocrat. Outside of this piazza they are mortal opposition because they have dissimilar impression. In here they discuss their belief in hopes of opening the other individual's eyes to the truth as they see it. And Samantha whose loyalty to me you commented on ; I owe her my life several times over and not once has she allowed me to thank her or repay her with any sort of favour beyond the friendship we share. She is elderly than me by an ordination of decades even though she appears untried. She is a Warrior of exquisite skill, a loyal and lamb friend, a confidant and ally as well as a form hearted charwoman once you get to know her. Sam just also happens to be a lamia. The first gear think you need to think about is that just because some writer put something in a book because they didn't understand and were afraid of a niggling Truth doesn't mean they were right. Now, don't get me amiss and take they are all honest law abiding hoi polloi no matter what they are. Like human beings, the supernatural have some that are born practiced and will always be so and some that are staring evil and like it there. The residuum of the population of supernatural beings falls somewhere in the hoar area and should be treated as they treat others."Arthur's grinning turned from openly well-disposed to one of mischief-making. He reached up into the air next to me and made a sound like glass or metal snapping then gain out like he was handing me something before continuing,"Now that I have completely broken your handle on realness I need to give my bartender a break while you think though all that has been revealed to you today. If you have interrogation or need to utter let me know. If you need a drive back to your hotel, Saint George will apply you a drive unless I'm free to do so."He stood to go to the bar and as he turned to walk away,"You're welcome here whenever you want."He poured me another glass of the cognac before taking the decanter to the bar with him.

So there I sat, a Orion in the middle of a club total of the brute I had hated and hunted for twelve geezerhood. I thought about seeing just how effective the staff could be a enforcing the weapons insurance policy, except that was not what I wanted to do. None of these people had done anything to me and they didn't seem to be doing anything overtly evil as I looked around the room. I saw a mates of Vampires feeding, but the the great unwashed they were feeding from offered their necks and wrists to the lamia in question. So there I continued to sit and set about to patch up my last twelve yr with the last twenty dollar bill four hours. Not an easy chore and one that had my ego taking a beating at the way I was used by my informant. As a good deal as I wanted to blame it all on the mystery person, I had to train the blame for not researching the mark myself and allowing myself to be used as a weapon. I can't differentiate you how long I was sitting there in that chair, struggling with the right-hand result to my conundrum, but the sun had risen before I finally walked out of the beingness and headed for my hotel.

As I walked down the street, I looked back at the name of the place and found it fitting. It was a billet for all those in cosmos to go and unbend without needing to press senseless wars, worry about being killed simply because of who or what you were. It was also a reminder of the gold to strain for ; a peaceful existence. I still had to go back to see Andrew and talk over what the other option he was offering. That however could hold off until the next day as I'd already been up around forty hours or so now and needed to remain .