Name: Archibald (Archie) Brown
Age (Appearance): 35
Age (actual): 88
Gender: Male
Alignment: Chaotic Neutral
Sexuality: Bisexual, homoromantic
Species: Vampire
Clan: Malkavian
Affiliation: Anarch (massively distrusts Camarilla), deathly loyal to the Malkavian clan
Quote: "If you don't know about the lizard people, then why am I even talking to you?": Salt and pepper, cut short. Relatively neat, but small clumps of matted hair can be seen when closely observed. Constant grey five o’ clock shadow.
Eyes: light grey, almost giving the appearance that he has no iris, just a pupil
Frame: tall and lean with minimal muscle mass
Tattoo/Distinguishing Features: none
Personality: While to the average passerby he appears normal and well adjusted, any time spent around Archie leaves everyone with a sense of something being off. They may feel that their lover is cheating on them, that their friends are gossiping behind their back, or that their boss is waiting for an excuse to fire them. Most can barely stand this feeling for more than a second before having to move in the opposite direction of Archie.
A conversation with Archie usually starts pleasantly and coherently until something snaps in him and the conversation turns to the lizard people running Rome and the Catholic Church or the Illuminati conspiracy to ruin pop music and enslave our impressionable youth. In these moments he talks fast and his eyes appear even less grey with his pupils dilating to twice the normal size.
Due to these factors, very very few could claim to know Archie’s true personality. Only those of his clan and a select few “friends” know that while insanity grips him like all of his bloodline, he’s an intelligent man with a gift at seeing the connections between people and their actions. He is loyal to his clan to a fault, willing to lay down his immortal life for another member of his clan. Archie is incredibly impatient, especially when someone questions his idea of the “truths” of the world.
He finds humans boring, their uses only for food and sexual expression. He believes them unable to see the “truth” of the world they live in due to the vast amounts of sedatives in the drinking water that allows the governments of the world to control them. However, he will be quick to say that these drugs can’t be transferred by blood which is why he can drink humans without concern.
History: Archie was born in London during the summer of 1925. His parents, Timothy and Elizabeth, ran a small watch making and repair shop that they’d inherited from Elizabeth’s parents after their deaths. While never wealthy, they lived a comfortable life, giving Archie a quiet, tranquil childhood. His parents routinely joked about the different theories he came up with to explain even the most mundane aspects of the world. Archie once spent a whole afternoon trying to convince his father that all the birds in the city were actually spies of the king, meant to watch out for anarchists and foreign spies. Every night, they would fly back to Buckingham Palace and whisper in his ear all the dark secrets they’d seen that day. While Elizabeth worried that there was an underlying condition causing these flights of fantastical thinking, Timothy chalked it up to childhood imagination.
In 1940, Archie’s parents feared the war with Germany would soon reach London, leaving them no choice but to send Archie to New York to live with his one and only extended family member, Uncle Francis. Archie begged them to come with him, arguing that there was no reason for them to stay. They promised they’d follow him to America once they were able to close down the shop. Once this was done, they’d all start a new life together on a new continent. But they couldn’t risk keeping him here if anything were to happen. Archie has recurring nightmares about this night, wishing he had begged his parents to join him now. That the shop was not worth more than their lives. The nightmare always ends with watching his parents fade from his vision as the boat pulled further from the docks. And the sight of two fat pigeons staring directly at his parents...
Francis, like his sister, ran a watch shop in the middle of what would later be known as the West Village. He was an eccentric man, prone to flights of fantasy that made even Archie wonder if the man wasn’t all there. But despite these idiosyncrasies, Archie came to love his uncle, and while he was never affectionate with the boy, it was clear Francis felt the same towards his nephew. Using his new position as Archie’s guardian, Francis made him his apprentice. Archie took to watch repair quickly, finding that while his mind might race from idea to idea at mach 3, his hands were steady, deliberate instruments with which to do his work.
It was during this time that Archie discovered one of the “truth’s of the universe”, as he calls them. He realized that the workings of the universe were like a watch. Most people only cared to see the time, the “output” of the thing. But they gave little thought to the complicated motors and gears inside the watch that allowed it to tell time in the first place. He believed the workings of the universe were the same. The vast majority of humans only cared about the output of the universe, the very existence of their life. They neglected the outside forces slowly working together to change the shape of their lives, rendering it barely their own. These outside forces were the governments of the world, led by a organization he called the Shadow Order, looking to subjugate the rest of humankind to keep them happy and complicient as they amassed more and more power and wealth for themselves. Archie began to fill journal after journal with theories about the different tactics these shadow organizations were using and how to combat them.
A year after Archie came to New York, Francis received a letter from the king. It was a bland, form letter, stating flatly that Timothy and Elizabeth’s shop had been hit during the Blitz, killing them both. Archie began to scream at his uncle, saying that this was the king sending him a message that he knew about Archie’s discovery of the “truth” and had his parents killed as a warning to what happens to people who try to go against the Shadow Order. Half of him expected his Uncle to laugh like his parents used to at his outlandish theories, but his uncle just nodded and led him down to the basement of the shop that Archie had yet to see. When he walked inside, Archie found the walls covered with newspapers, journal entries, ripped book pages, pieces of advertising, and other odds and ends, all tied together with different color string. Francis explained that he agreed 100% with Archie’s assessment of what happened in London and how it fit into the other things he had discovered. They spent days in the basement going over different pieces of the puzzle, only stopping to turn away customers when they’d bang loudly on the shop door.
Over the next five years, Archie learned more and more from his uncle, both in watch making and tracking government conspiracies. They took routine trips to government facilities, keeping detailed notes of the comings and goings and creating wild speculations as to what the government was using the facilities for. They hosted secret meetings in the basement of the shop for other like minded individuals who understood the “truth” and were looking to do something about it. Over time, they began to amass weapons and explosives, planning to break in to one of these facilities and finally reveal the truth to the rest of the world. Archie and Francis believed that they could finally take down the Shadow Order and allow the human race to finally be free of tyranny.
A few nights before they were to set their plan in motion, Francis said he was going to meet a prospective new member of their group. The man said he had information that could help them enter the facility undetected and with minimal casualties on both sides. Archie argued that this might be a set up. They both assumed the Shadow Order must have gotten word of their plans and were trying to manipulate events to stop it from happening. But Francis wouldn’t budge. The information was too important and they couldn’t lose this chance to gain an edge on their opponents.
Days passed and Archie heard nothing from Francis. He knew that the Shadow Order had taken him and were brainwashing him to be a “productive member of society”. He feared the day his uncle would stride back into his shop, declaring that all their ideas and plans were simply a delusion and needed to end. Archie spent the next 15 years planning for this day, amassing more and more information on the Shadow Order and their plans for the new world order. He tried desperately, and in vain, to find where the Order had taken his uncle and what he could do to get him back. In doing so, he cut himself off from the rest of society, only briefly engaging with clients who came to the store and other truthers who helped him gain the information he needed. His distrust of the outside world grew and grew until he was convinced that every stranger was his enemy, a spy of the Order waiting for the moment to strike. He was arrested a few times for attacking random passersby whose only crime was trying to speak to the sad, insane man babbling to himself on the street.
And truth be told, Archie was content to live out the rest of his life in this manner. To do otherwise would be to admitting that the beliefs he’d held onto for so long were false and giving up on his uncle. So it came as a shock when his uncle finally stepped through the doors of the Brown Watch Shop in the summer of 1960. It was late at night and Archie was listening to a police radio as he meticulously rebuilt a watch an idiot client had stepped on when they were visiting the store. When Archie laid eyes on his uncle, his mouth went agape. Despite the 25 years since disappearing, Francis looked to not have aged a day since 1945. Archie quickly went for the gun hidden under the desk, but Francis moved with inhuman speed over to him and held his hand down. Francis looked at him sadly, remarking how time had not been kind to his dear nephew. He apologized for his disappearance and for never getting in contact again. The man he’d met that night so many years ago had been legitimate and had provided knowledge that Francis could not believe at the time. That the organization manipulating the world was not comprised of humans, but rather monsters of the night; vampires, demons, fae, and all other manner of mythical creatures. Francis said that they manipulated the world to their own ends in order to have a steady food supply of human on which to feast.
Archie, having heard and believed many insane theories over the decades, was not convinced. Francis’ story didn’t explain how he still looked so young. Or why these monsters could have stopped him from returning to Archie and telling him this long ago. Francis opened his mouth to show pearly white fangs jutting from his gums. Archie recoiled in fear, screaming at the top of his lungs. But his uncle quickly calmed him down, telling him it was alright. Though he was now a vampire, he was not with the Order. He said that the man had explained that one of the main goals of the Order was to subjugate the true vampire bloodline, the ones called Malkavian. Francis explained that their ability to see the truth frightened the other clans, declaring the clan to be insane and unworthy of leadership. And that Francis had been inducted into this clan as a fellow searcher of truth by the man he met. Francis then grabbed Archie by the shoulders and begged him to forgive him for leaving him behind. His sire, a man only known as the Researcher, told Francis he couldn’t reach out to his nephew in fear that the other clans would try and kill him before he had the chance to be inducted.
Archie was shocked by the idea of becoming a vampire and in some way joining the Shadow Order. But Francis assured him that immortality and being in the Order itself would allow both of them the chance to truly take on the Shadow Order and bring about a new age of humanity. Over the next year, Francis brought Archie to multiple meetings of members of the Malkavian clan, showing him that these vampires were kind and good people who wanted the same thing they did; truth and freedom for all. Eventually, Archie agreed to be turned by his uncle and officially join the Malkavian clan.
For the next few decades Archie worked diligently for the Malkavian clan and became close friends with the charismatic Professor Grostark. Over time he made a name for himself among the clan as someone to turn to whenever they were in need, no matter the circumstance. Which routinely got Archie into trouble with the Camarilla of New York, eventually leading to his excommunication for harboring a Malkavian fledgling who had broken the masquerade and fed on a man harassing her in the street. He has since moved to the city, setting up a small watch repair shop in the North-west district. He’s made his presence known only to the fellow Malkavians of the city. However, Archie feels it’s time to take a more prominent role in order to stop the Shadow Order and whatever plans they have for the people of the city.
Awareness of Supernaturals: General understanding of most supernatural creatures, although most knowledge is tainted by his paranoia, believing that all but Malkavian vampires are in some way in league with the Shadow Order, even if they don’t realize it.
Occupation/Job: Watch Maker and shop owner
Domicile: Basement apartment hidden inside his watch shop
Interesting Facts/ Quirks: Goes to ground with a tinfoil hat on as to stop anyone from reading his mind while he sleeps.
Smokes cigarettes with tobacco he’s grown himself. He believes that store bought cigarettes are pumped with chemicals that dull the senses and stop people from questioning the world around them.
Won’t drink from humans who are intoxicated as it means putting drugs in his body which are used by the government to make people into compliant addicts.
Carries a large gold pocket watch on a chain with an inscription of the date his parents were killed.
Hobby/Hobbies: Watch making and repair, gardening, creating conspiracy theories, and listening to anything by Alex Jones.
Likes: watches, Malkavians, conspiracy theories
Dislikes: Camrilla, other vampires clans, any kind of government, being called crazy
Strengths: loyal to his fellow clan, will shelter any who need shelter, intelligent to a fault, able to see connections in things that most would be unable to spot
Weaknesses: his loyalty blinds him to the faults of his clan and its individuals while his paranoia makes him distrust even the kindest of strangers. He’s very disconnected from emotions, causing them to erupt in fits of nervous babbling about his conspiracies and fears.
Vampirc Disciplines:AuspexHeightened Senses: The vampire’s senses sharpen to a preternatural degree, giving them the ability to see in pitch darkness, hear ultrasonic frequencies and smell the fear of cowering prey.
Premonition: The vampire experiences flashes of insight. These may take the form of raised hackles, sudden inspiration or even vivid visions. While never too precise, these visions can nudge the vampire out of harm’s way or reveal a truth previously overlooked.
Scry the Soul: By focusing on a person, the vampire can perceive the state of that person’s psyche as a shifting aura of colors. Auras reveal little precise information, but do provide clues regarding many subjects, e.g., emotional state, Resonance, and supernatural traits.
Dementation:Passion: Increase the current emotionally intensity of a target. Anger becomes toxic rage. Love becomes obsession. Sadness becomes depression. Etc.
The Haunting:[/i] Plants small bits of insanity in a victim, burdening them with haunting visions and unrest. This power can be cured with magic and can be resisted by older vampires. Due to Archie's own affliction, this manifests in paranoid thoughts.
Eyes of Chaos (Requires Auspex): By combining the power of second sight with the vampire's natural insanity, the Kindred can see patterns in seemingly chaotic elements, often knowing things that simply can't be known. The visions often come out in riddles, or poems. The Malkavian's brain sometimes struggles to know what it is telling itself.
Confusion: This ability allows the Kindred to leave a target in a state of confusion, similar to hypnosis. A mind wipe, trance and defensive technique all in one.
