Rats & Wolves
Gaia's Last Hope
The city is not friendly to shapeshifters. Only some have adapted to the urban heartlands of the Weaver and Wyrm. Some borrow powers from Grandmother Spider, others seek out the wildest, Wyldest, parts still left in the city. They are Bone Gnawers, Glass Walkers, and the Ratkin. Other lycanthropes may as individuals make their home in the city, but these three groups are by far the hardiest and best adapted. And in Kansas City, their organizations are the most powerful.
Rules
Like their rural counterparts, these shapeshifters also observe the Litany as conservatively as they must. For them, the Veil is even more fundamental: they are in the midst of humanity, and secrecy must be maintained. Some Ratkin still break the Veil rampantly, but even they do not go unpunished by the Knifers of their own tribe. Indeed, their King is a Knife Skulker, and cares little for wanton breaches of Ratkin law.
Sept of Memory Lane
While most of the Garou in the region flock to the Sept of the Moon Lake, a fair number actually dwell within the city. While some are those tired of the intrigue of Moon Lake, most are the original creators (or at least their descendants) of the Sept of Memory Lane. While the Sept of the Moon Lake maintain spiritual aspects of the region, the Sept of Memory Lane is content with protecting what elements of the Wyld still remain in the city. This includes city parks and many of the fountains, manmade as they may be.
Location
This Sept is found on the Missouri half of the city, east of the Big Blue River that serves as a border between Kansas and Missouri and cuts the city in two parts. The caern is found in a downtrodden neighborhood to the more southerly portion of the city where rumors of “rabid dogs” keep others out of the vicinity. It centers in the Summer Heat Junkyard, which is privately owned.
Bawn
The bawn extends from the junkyard for three city blocks, encompassing a large neighborhood of low income housing and a poor but charitable church. The Garou of Memory Lane protect only the junkyard from intruders, but often patrol the neighborhoods. Drug pushers and other criminals are often chased off, less out of concern for the citizenry and more out of desire to keep the bawn free of human-borne Wyrm elements. (But the ‘Hood Camp of the Bone Gnawers is quite active in the Sept of Memory Lane.)
Caern
Hidden within a quonset hut in the back of the junkyard, beyond plenty piles of rubble, discarded tires, and smashed automobiles, is a site of unusual interest. The sparsely-grassed ground is covered with all kinds of loot and junk filched over the years and given to the caern’s Totem, Pack Rat. In the middle of it all is a podium made of bone (human, some claim) upon which rests the Pathstone. This is a Level 1 Caern of Streetwise. The top of the hut was cut away, allowing the Garou to peer out at the night-sky during moots.
Other Landmarks
The quonset hut marks the Caern Center. There is not a formal Cemetery, but most of the Sept’s fallen are buried behind the quonset, between its wall and the tall stone wall that seals off the junkyard from the rest of the city. Small tombstones often mark their graves. Another point of interest in the junkyard is the Tower of Babel, as it’s known. A stack of flattened automobiles some amazing fifty feet high, it’s almost a work of modern art. But for the Garou, this solid “tower” has earned a place as both a watchtower…and an excellent sniper’s vantage. (There’s plenty of ammunition stored up there.) And finally, outside of the junkyard and down three blocks at a street corner (at the fringe of the bawn), there is a locally famous spot for street musicians -- mostly jazz and blues -- to congregate, entertain the public, and earn pocket change. The Garou refer to this little site as Jive Corner and many Galliards frequent this section.
Tribal Structure
Bone Gnawers dominate Sept leadership. Several other Tribes can be found within, however. Fianna and Children of Gaia are also common. A few Glass Walkers, particularly younger and more rebellious members, may be found. And it’s not unlikely to find just about any other Tribe represented here. (The Glass Walkers maintain their own small organization in the upper echelon of the city, but they do not have a caern.)
Guardians
The Sept keeps several Garou on as regular Guardians. (There is almost always someone manning the Tower of Babel.) In addition, a large and rabid pack of Junkyard Dog-spirits keep the area fairly free of Wyrm corruption and Weaver expansion in the Penumbra.
Board of Jeremiah Industries
Based entirely on a powerful, wealthy, successful, and influential corporation, this small Sept of Glass Walkers calls itself the Board of Jeremiah Industries. With connections to the LCN, government, and all leagues of commerce and production, these Glass Walkers are a force with which to be reckoned by all their rivals, human or otherwise. And for raw muscle (if their Wise Guys aren’t sufficient), the Board maintains friendly relations with both the Sept of the Moon Lake and Memory Lane. In this resourceful Sept, the Glass Walkers focus on increasing their influence in human affairs, lining their pockets deeper, and investigating and researching technology, science, and the spiritual powers that can connect them all. Their specialty is electronics and computers, and most of its members are skilled at one if not both skills.
Location
The Board holds its moots in the board room office on the top floor of the Jeremiah Industries Center, a towering structure in the affluent uptown district of Kansas City. There are countless offices and corporate amenities, mostly manned by humans oblivious to their werewolf employers’ true natures. Some are Kinfolk. There are also laboratories, testing facilities, and research offices at the JIC.
The one thing that the Board of Jeremiah Industries does not have, however, is a caern. They’re forced to acquire Gnosis by bargaining with spirits, which many of them become skilled at doing. Those who do not instead cut deals with their Bone Gnawer neighbors downtown, and visit the Caern of Memory Lane instead.
Tribal Structure
Glass Walkers only member this sept. Though it is uncommon, prominient Kinfolk may be rewarded full membership status. The Board is divided into two sections. The mainstream sept, which CEO Helena May Jeremiah runs assertively, makes its base entirely at the JIC. The Benitulli Family, a mafia organization that Glass Walker Wise Guys and their Kinfolk dominate, make up the other half. Self-autonomous, the Benitullis defer to CEO Jeremiah only on matters of Tribal importance. They keep their own books and pursue their own activities (which Helena prefers, since her business is otherwise entirely legitimate). The Benitullis meet in private residences or favorite ristorantes, like old school mafiosos tend to do.
Guardians
The Board of Jeremiah Industries keeps a highly trained and highly motivated (and mostly Kinfolk-membered) security team around the clock at the JIC. High-clearance security on doors, elevators, and computer systems helps keep infiltrators out. And on the other side of the Gauntlet, rare Elementals – Electricity-spirits mostly – lurk, watching for trespassers. The Benitullis don’t keep any standard defenses, save their own bad-ass attitudes and firearms.
Warren of Scattered Bones
Beneath Kansas City lies a vast network of sewer systems. Slender sluices, broad tunnels, and spacious drainage chambers all help fight potential flooding in the plainsland city. City sewer workers begrudgingly keep the sewers as clean and free and functional as possible. But there’s a lot of filth down there, and as rumors fly, giant man-eating rats!
Of course the Ratkin dwell in Kansas City. There are few cities anywhere in the world in which a nest of wererats does not exist. The Ratkin formed the Warren of Shattered Bones, so named after their brutal campaign waged against trespassing leeches (the vampires’ bones were tossed to the four corners of the city as a symbolic gesture and warning), years ago. Today, the Shattered Bones continue to police their sewer homes and the few buildings and hovels above ground they call their own, purging intruders of any sort. Only the Bone Gnawers of the Sept of Memory Lane resemble anything close to this mean-spirited colony’s friends.
Location
The Ratkin claim all of the sewers as their own territory. But in reality, they can claim safely only “downtown” sewer systems. Through those labyrinthe tunnels, wererats run wild, forming deceits and families in the rubble, offal, and trash that the city has forgotten. On the surface, a few hovels among the projects and urban trailer parkers are retained by Ratkin. Though they have a centralized authority, this warren is so spread out that it hardly appears that way. The Rat King rules from a huge hollowed out cavern (called the Throne Room) that is not part of the original sewer system, but instead bores beneath downtown’s East Side.
Nest
Getting into the King’s Throne Room is no mean feat. The passages linking to this chamber, manmade or rat-gnawed, are intentionally collapsed down to restrict entrance to all but rat-sized guests. In this sprawling chamber, a throne made from human skulls sits on a stony dais. Dampness drips everywhere, and the floor literally moves with piles of rats. A tunnel behind the Throne Room leads to a smaller, adjacent chamber where languishes the tribe’s Rat Mother and her recent offspring. Graffiti sigils are painted on the walls, bearing marks of urban spiritual might. Though no colony has a patron Totem as Garou caerns do, the Rat King and his deceit honor their own Totem, whose avatar often resides in the Throne Room with the King. That Totem is, unsurprisingly, Rat Himself. (OOC: This Warren is considered a *** Colony.)
Tribal Structure
The vast majority of the Ratkin in the Warren of Scattered Bones belong to the Rat Race. The Rat King himself often goes off on rampaging rants from the Rat God about “the threat from above and below”, whatever that means! Most just take it to mean he refers to the Weaver and Wyrm. A few other wererats have linked up to this tribe. But the warren has taken a very cautious perspective in regards to Freaks. A few years ago, a handful of delirious Twitchers maimed relations with the Nezumi immigrants in Little Asia. Freaks in Kansas City must watch their backs if they think themselves above the King’s fundamental interpretations of the Litany.
Guardians
Aside from Ratkin guardians planted at key intersections in the sewers (most of whom are dedicated metises), the Rat King has demanded that his courtly Shadow Seers acquire the aid of an unstated number of allied spirits. This would presumably be Rat-spirits, but rumor has it that the shamans also brought in the ghosts of sewer gators and other frightening spirits.
Special Events
Special events are annual (or more frequent) holidays or special ritual days that the main group or groups observe as a whole community. Attendance and participation is often expected of all members, and sometimes required.
Superbowl Sunday
This famous Bone Gnawer rite takes place whenever Superbowl Sunday’s date is declared. During this time, the Sept of Memory Lane gathers (mandatory) as a time to reconnect with each other socially. Kinfolk are also welcome. Gambling over the game is common. Plenty of chips and dip go around. Patriots fans are allowed but shamed. The Chiefs reign here.
Fancy Freedom
The Ratkin of the Warren of Scattered Bones are from the Rat Race plague. They take a dim view of their kin being held in laboratories or in suburban teenagers’ bedrooms. On a date randomly declared (occasionally the day of) by the current Rat King, all Ratkin spread out over the area, sneaking into homes and universities, whereupon they liberate as many kept rats as possible. This often provides an opportunity for the Birthing Plague to be spread, but mostly the freed rats can run wild as they were meant to do.
“There are all kinds of troubles in this town. But if we hold together as a family, everything will work out good - almost as good as Avery’s spaghetti carbonara, eh?”
-- Don Caesar Benitulli, Wise Guy of the Board of Jeremiah Industries
