Then there was Samantha Castle. White hair, steel grey eyes, a sharply angular face, always dressed in black. All she needed was a large pointed hat to complete the picture of a stereotypical witch. Older than most realized or chose to admit, Castle struck fear into the hearts of the heartless with but a glance. She was the last Prince of St Louis and her rule was a dictatorship more severe than any other. On more than one occasion, executions were held on Elysium grounds yet none rose to challenge her reign. Fear and intimidation kept her minions in line - they knew better than to draw the powerful Elder's attention upon themselves. They also realized that Castle kept them safe, an ultimate goal for most of the undead. So an uneasy balance was struck.

A sort of peace fell over the city.

Vampires thrived in the environment and the Kindred population swelled. Many came, unmindful of the harsh Prince, happy only to be in a city where they could amass wealth, power, and reputation. The secretive Mekhet Prince had grabbed a large portion for herself but there was still enough left to go around. The Kindred flourished. When Elder Council members began disappearing, no one at first wanted to do anything about it. They looked the other way and reasoned that a little thinning of the herd couldn't hurt.

Yet, despite their best efforts, the peace ended.

With a collective sigh, the Kindred fled the city, choosing the terrors of uncharted land to the monster that ruled them. With so many unexplained disappearances and no proclamations about it from Castle, they left before becoming the next victim. As blind as they wanted to be, they saw what was happening. The exodus grew in momentum until only a handful remained.

Samantha Castle watched them go, unable to stop them, unwilling to admit that she was the cause. When next she hunted, her desire for vitae stronger with each passing night, she at last had to concede to her weakness. There were not enough Kindred left to feed from. Her nightclub, The Dungeon, closed its doors, windows and entrances boarded up, and employees given generous severance pay.

With no fanfare and no notice, the Prince of St Louis settled into voluntary torpor.
The city itself seemed to roll over and slumber.

Samantha Castle did not, however, leave her city to it's own devices. To her side she called Ash Damballa, a Daeva who had gained enough favor with the Prince to be granted her own territory within the Domain. Regent Danballa listened closely to her Prince's orders, nodding where appropriate and spilling blood when required. The Prince went to sleep secure in the knowledge that she'd left her city in good hands, but only Ash knew for certain where her own loyalties lay.

Regent Damballa owns and operates the riverfront nightclub, Ashland. It is a dark, smoky, steel and chrome high tech bar that in a better time or place would have been raided and closed down. Such is not the case in St Louis. Here the police turn a blind eye to what transpires within, and in fact, many of the boys and girls in blue frequent the club, drawn in by purposely-cultivated appetites.

Ashland caters to the youth of St Louis - but not just any particular subclass of teenaged angst. Those who think themselves to be vampires and those who find it sexy or romantic to consort with them are the regulars who lounge at the bar and do dirty deeds in darkened corners. They are the Anne Rice groupies and Angel loyalists, but they are more than that too. In shadowed booths and even at better-lit open tables, misguided teenagers take and share their blood with friends while Ash looks on approvingly and encouragingly.

Ash indulges these sad children, loving how it opens up her bar to an endless supply of willing blood dolls. So too might it be said that Ash adores how her club, her very lifestyle wavers on the cusp of the Masquerade. The Kindred smirk and take advantage of the foolish mortals. They speak openly of vampire life without technically breaking any of their own Laws. Many a Lestat wanna-be has gotten just what he asked for in Ashland.

Slowly, Kindred who once made St Louis their home are returning. The recently embraced are also venturing to St Louis - old and new hoping that the latest incarnation of the city will be bountiful for them. Through the Internet, cell phones, and word-of-mouth, they know to seek information at Ashland - that the Rules and Laws of the City can be obtained there. Ash is easily recognized. She wears little clothing, often just black mesh and high heels. Her beauty is striking - in her looks is the epitome of all the Daeva strive for. Raven haired with long streaks of crimson, her dark skin hints at Mediterranean origins while a pert nose and large slanted emerald eyes make her seem cat-like and inscrutable. Catch Ash in one type of lighting and she appears Asian, catch her under the strobe of Ashland's dance floor and Latin blood seems obvious. Many have driven themselves crazy trying to pinpoint anything of substance about her, and Ash laughs at the attempts. Her background is unknown and her exotic looks and to-kill-for body make her mysterious and irresistible.

Ash greets the newcomers with a seductive smile and a wink and informs them of the Rules and Laws as decreed by Prince Castle. If Ash is not available, one ghoul or another with the skills to determine friend from foe and pretender from the real deal will deliver the message for her. If asked, Ash will declare her loyalty to the missing Prince, but the words that she chooses to speak the declaration might very well be left open to interpretation.

Tonight the City of St Louis is without a Prince and the hole left by her absence is vast. The Regent of the riverfront at turns seems devout or indifferent, perhaps willing to align with the next Kindred who shows some promise or eat the heart from the traitor's chest. For now she serves as seductress, informant, devil. The City is ripe for Kindred picking.

Update: At the urging of new Kindred in the City, Ash Damballa has taken the throne uncontested. She is the new Prince of St Louis until or if Samantha Castle awakens. And so the Danse continues...

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