The Ward's Ascension

[Trillian]

In The Beginning
It started with Conner Iessan, a Tremere vampire with an idea to create a police force out of supernatural beings, so that supernaturals would police supernaturals with understanding, compassion and possessing enough force to take down the strongest of criminals. At first it remained a small idea and a small unit, for the Mimic Demons were the guardians of the Oligarchy and the Ward didn't have much attention or nurturing - certainly not enough resources or enough of a budget to get them. The Oligarchy had its own protection and their denizens needed nothing at all.

It all changed when the Mimics left the Earthly plane and the head Oligarch (the Luminary) at the time, Kerr Galvin, was pronounced dead. Fearing retribution for the punishments they handed out whilst in charge, the other Oligarchs felt vulnerable and fled to different parts of the city. They divided it up between themselves so that if one fell, the rest of the city was not plunged into anarchy. But nobody attacked and the ex-Oligarchs, now calling themselves District Leaders, enjoyed the power and loftiness that came with their territory and instead of working together as they once were forced to, they squabbled among themselves and grabbed territory as they saw fit. Some left for others to take up the mantle of District Leader, others inherited by the graciousness of others. Every move they made was designed not to look after their constituents, but themselves.

The First Step
Some could say that the Ward's path to ascension began with the young vampire named Ben Samson, who inherited his sire's immense fortune (none other than the ex-Luminary, Kerr Galvin) and donated a hefty amount to the Ward. Conner Iessan accepted the windfall and immediately put the money to work. He was still hammering out the details when he mysteriously vanished, leaving Ben abandoned in his wake. Before disappearing, Conner managed to hire an extremely competent, righteous and egalitarian dark imp, Xiamara Hadar, as the Ward's Captain. With her ideals strongly bound by her personal morals and ethical code, Captain Hadar is a worthy rival of any criminal mind.

The Second Step
Ben Samson played yet another part when Conner Iessan disappeared. He continued to heavily fund the Ward, expanding their budget to a point where they could hire and train enough officers to patrol areas with the highest crime and be available at quick notice for those areas who saw less trouble. The budget remained constant for six months when the ex-Luminary returned 'from the dead' (he'd entered another plane, severing his blood tie with his fledglings), and resumed his relationship with his progeny, Ben Samson. The Ward were looking for bigger offices to hold their growing numbers and a floor at the old Oligarchy Chambers (the building now rebranded to be called 'The Luminary) suited them perfectly. Provided rent free from the owners of the building - Ben and Kerr - the Ward could put their funding elsewhere.

Not long after, Ben Samson, frustrated with the lack of leadership demonstrated by all so-called District Leaders, challenged the City Central District Leader Jake McCloud to a democratic election, one that would see its supernatural citizens voting for their preferred candidate. Forced into a corner, his challenge was accepted and the campaigns began. After three months of promises and negotiations from Ben (mirrored and extravagantly compounded upon by Jake), City Central was officially designated to Jake McCloud by the voters. A small margin, but a win was a win.

Time passed and none of Jake's promises were fulfilled. He retired to his own private enterprises as he had before and barely anyone saw him around after the win. Ben, disgusted that the District Leaders were using their constituents for power and treating them like fools, sought to empower the Ward as was his original plan, but he expanded on it. He injected time and money into the Ward, ordering them vehicles and the latest weaponry from around the globe that could help them not only protect the innocent, but to keep the guilty in line and afraid of the justice that would rain down upon them should they step out of line.

The Captain's Part
Even though Ben Samson wasn't asking for favours, having one source of income felt dangerous for both of them. With her ears ringing with the potential accusation of corruption and ownership, Captain Hadar sought out funding from the many District Leaders. They agreed to a percentage and so an amount was secured that would be collected on an annual basis. There were also donations from multiple private parties, capped only after Samson's final head-spinning amount of funding.

Captain Hadar's next move was to purchase a building on behalf of the Ward that would become the Ward's new headquarters. She then sought out to recruit the amount of officers required. The first people she approached were the minions of the District Leaders themselves - initially her conversations with all of them were innocent, she sought out those who were seeking work in the field they were currently employed in, with multiple benefits, promotion plans, excellent pay and a chance to be placed into developing, specialised units. Interest was piqued and soon there was a flood of sign-ups. Many of the new recruits required minimal training because they'd come from the employ of the District Leaders themselves. Captain Hadar had unwittingly head-hunted most of them with her enthusiasm for the job and the excellent options available to those who were bored by being little more than personal security and never having any potential for moving up ranks.

The Turning Point
There were three huge moves from independent groups that shifted the balance of power from the District Leaders to the Ward. The first was when the District Leader of the East, Charon of the Sacrament Et Res, renounced his title and acquiesced to Ward Law. Shortly after, he disappeared, rumours declaring that he had used a strange book to enter a different dimension. Some of his family moved away after their founder disappeared but others stayed on. All of their mortal spies were instructed to report directly to the Ward, though they remained on the Sacrament's payroll. every now and then there will be a conflict of interest in the reporting. The Ward had taken over the Sacrament's district and had control of the East.

The second move was when Chtazus'aak vanished without trace. He did not leave behind enough instruction to keep his demonic followers aligned and soon they became a bickering mess, much like the District Leaders themselves. Because they were no longer being looked after or paid, most of them transitioned directly into the Ward as new recruits, and flourished there. The ambitious ones are already in charge of their own units, moving up swiftly through the ranks. There is some corruption amongst the demon uniforms but it is hard to weed out and currently the corruption is minor. When they joined they became and continue to be the Ward officers who are most likely to use excessive force in the field.

The third and most shocking move was when Jake McCloud's Anarchs joined forces with the Ward, though it had to be on their terms. Disillusioned with Jake's initial system of government, much like the Camarilla (to the point of calling himself Prince) and then watching him parade democracy in front of the city central citizens before running a few local voting campaigns for judges and the like before he withdrew into a more private life with his new lover/potential fledge and artefact (the Amethyst Ring), it was too much for the Anarchs to take. However, they would not be wearing a uniform either. A compromise was reached - they formed their own Ward division with no inner rankings and only a spokesperson to report to the Captain. They called themselves the Ward Rounders (mostly called 'Rounders') and they ride motorcycles through the streets by way of patrolling. They are usually called in to end fights, commit raids and search for troublemakers from The List. There is still a connection with them to Jake McCloud but it is a shadowy one and kept very much on the down-low. Favours can range from small to large but only on the rare occasion.

The Domino Effect
Once the Ward was so strong and effective in the East, Central and West, it had a thick line of ownership through the city that others began to subtly bend to. The Ward no longer reported to any District Leader and had never been much of a force in the north. After Sabrina fared badly in a magic battle, the Ward had taken over on her behalf and never gave leadership back upon her return. They were not abusive in their power and sought justice, so their retention of the South didn't irritate too much. The north and north-west were the last to let go and it was done quietly. The Ward simply started patrolling there (once they had enough people and resources to) and the supernatural public began answering to them. The Ward were the ones who kept the peace and helped those in need. They were trusted with citizen problems. Saraekiel and Zoheret became the names of District Leaders who used to be in charge and that was that. Still, there are no dark angels on the Ward's forces, and even though officially there is no rule to say that dark angels cannot join, any that attempt to do so will find they are told to try again later, when another group of trainees are going for the entry test and told they will be called. They are never called back.

The Ward As It Is Now
First Responders' Unit
After Ben Samson's initial meeting with the city's human Mayor, Edward Figueroa, the next introduction was with Captain Hadar. She dealt with Mayor Figueroa's proxy and the two of them negotiated and developed a First Responder's Unit with Ward people who could pass for human. Using old District Leader records, mortal emergency callouts to domiciles that were marked as supernatural dwellings or places of business would attract the F.R.U. instead of mortal police who would be susceptible to hostile supernatural creatures. So far, the F.R.U. division has been working very smoothly and they have been trained up with all kinds of mortal specializations (SWAT, Riot Policing, Sniping and Weaponry) as well as possessing their own species-specific advantages.

The Ward Rounders
A predominantly night-time motorcycle gang of anarch vampires called 'the Rounders' are on the Ward's payroll. They patrol the entirety of the city's streets, mostly to find bail-jumpers and other beings on the Ward's List of Felons, to commit raids on illegal businesses and homes and to break up public disturbances.

The Specialists
There are specialist divisions made up of same species sent to specific disturbances; otherwise squads and teams have a mix of species for better coverage. Specialists could include such people as 'Interrogators' (older vampires with vast telepathic skills who take the information they need out of criminal heads) or 'Defenders' (fae who cast protective spells on people, places or things as required) and others too many to name.

Resources
BUILDING: (Ward Headquarters) The Ward now have their own building in the middle of the city that they purchased for their own use. In this building are the offices on ground floor, specialty offices above, storage, training, temporary sleeping quarters and other floors for different necessities as required. Some floors are empty.

WEAPONS: The Ward have outfitted all of their recruits with the appropriate weapons for subduing, arresting and transporting suspects. They have weapons that can take lives and they are allowed to use their own judgement when to use them. So far there has only been one reported meaningless death and the circumstances were ambiguous.

TRANSPORT: Half of the Ward are able to drive around in their bullet-proof, rune-protected, security cars, vans and trucks, all marked with the 'W' logo of the Ward. If a foot patrol makes an arrest and require transport, a vehicle is usually a quick radio away and comes by in approximately five minutes (in the city) to ten minutes (in the burbs).

PRISON: (Fort Muna) There used to be an old human prison in the outer northern suburbs that was left to ruin. After negotiations with the Mayor, the Ward now control it; they have fixed it up, have their Ward officers on a roster to work there, and are starting to throw suspects who are found guilty (or refuse to concede) into cells.

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