Activity Log, January 8, 2001 It seems my worst fears have been allayed. Because of the negative tone of their last interaction with the Giovanni, I was concerned that the next time I was able to perceive the subjects would be as the Giovanni extracted a horrible revenge upon them. Naturally, it would be most interesting to watch, as we were unable to gather any data left at the scene of Barclay's investigations into the London coven; there wasn't much left of him, poor fellow. I feel that it is more important in the long term that I am able to watch them, however, as losing these subjects would leave me entirely dependent on Thomas's mysterious source, which he does not seem likely to share with me anytime soon. In any case, the subjects seem to have survived three nights on their own with little ill effect. Parker seems to have resurfaced. After meeting Nathaniel at Pitt's, the two of them nearly started a bar fight, but Pitt was able to regain control of the situation by forcing them to leave. The two of them spoke for some time, though I could not quite follow what they were discussing. Perhaps later context will make things clear. Cliff and Ethan also spoke about the clinic that the group has been discussing installing in their feeding grounds. (It is most fortunate that Elizabeth has been easily been able to penetrate his apartment and lay the groundwork for the ritual that allows me to watch him as well, though unfortunately the connection is far weaker than to the others.) In the meantime, the Tremere seemed to be obtaining and securing a motel room for a group meeting place. It is fortunate that one of them has begin to consider the abilities of the Nosferatu. While I have seen few Nosferatu following them (except the times they have met near Court, naturally), they cannot rely on being beneath the notice of the information-mongers. The group met at the motel, and it was almost immediately made clear to me why the Giovanni have not interfered with them in the past few days. It seems that Ari has spoken with them and promised future good behavior, or at least convinced them that the subjects are willing to negotiate. The Tremere seems, quite wisely, to think that the Giovanni have some arrangement with the Camarilla, or perhaps only individuals in it, for leaving each other alone; I imagine that this is why he seems to be the most willing of the group to come to terms with the Giovanni, as would be wisest. Unfortunately, Ethan and Parker did not seem amenable to this plan. They talked about the changes they wished to institute in their feeding grounds, including gaining control of the gangs and uniting them by giving them the common enemy of the Giovanni. The group argued for some time about how to use the gangs: Ari and Cliff seemed to be more interested in pacifying the Giovanni, while the others wanted to train the gangs as some sort of "street army". According to Ethan, the gangs were merely to threaten the Giovanni, and drain their resources, without engaging in full-scale conflict. Fortunately, Ari was able to convince him that such behavior would be quite risky and that they should attempt to control the gangs anonymously, if they were to do so at all. Cliff brought up the idea of the free medical clinic in their neighborhood, which found fair support among the group; Parker discussed the prospects of killing his sire, which did not. Ethan also received a phone call from Christine, asking them to meet with her. I must say that I am most intrigued to see what she has to say. She is certainly a most determined and impressive young woman, even if she is undead, and I am pleased to have a further chance to study her. As the group was leaving the motel to meet Christine, the receptionist rushed up the stairs and threw herself at Nathaniel's feet. She seemed to think that he was her savior and had come to take her to heaven. This managed to confuse the subjects quite a bit, though it quickly became clear to all of them that she was quite mad, and this was likely Vassily's doing. Ari was able to subdue her and persuade her that she had never seen Nathaniel, but he claimed to be unable to alter her insanity. It was most interesting to observe the effects of the madness that fell upon her; I shall have to have Elizabeth follow this up. Perhaps we can arrange to have her released into our custody? This altercation did not delay them too terribly, and when they reached the club where they had agreed to meet Christine, she was already there in a back room. She claimed that she was there on behalf of a coalition of elders who were interested in their plight, and that she would be happy to attempt to set up a meeting in return for a minor debt from the group. She seemed quite sophisticated and comfortable with such negotiations; to make the point that her protectors had something to offer, she publicly fed from a waiter in Oliver's domain and claimed she would suffer no repercussions. The subjects seemed rather impressed with this, though Ethan was concerned whether Oliver was one of their prospective patrons. Christine also pointed out some of the things the Giovanni could do to harm the group, such as making it very difficult for them to feed, or threatening mortal friends and family, or even setting their vampiric enemies against them. Perhaps it was her extraordinary persuasiveness, but even Nathaniel agreed that it might be better to settle the matter than go to war with the Giovanni. The group agreed that Christine would set up a meeting for them with these potential protectors, and they left the club. On their way out, the bouncer seemed to be suffering from the same malady as the receptionist in the motel. The group decided to take advantage of this and bring him to their feeding grounds to feed. Unfortunately, in the course of feeding, Parker drained the man of all his blood, rather effectively killing him. Nathaniel seemed quite angry over this second madman his sire had set in his path and shouted imprecations into the night, but to no avail. In the meantime, Ethan decided to speak with his contacts in the gangs. Truly, I was not aware one such as he would be able to maintain any, but my skepticism was refuted when he approached a group of adolescents standing in front of a liquor store. They drank some wine together that he brought out of a back room and seemed to be getting along quite well. Unfortunately, things deteriorated quite a bit when the rest of the group showed up. They decided to send the gang members on a mission of some sort, but ended up arguing rather publicly about what sort of mission, where, how, and other things. This show of disunity seemed to unsettle "Z", as they called the leader of the group, and when Nathaniel went so far as to offer them money for their service, the young men walked off into the night disgusted. Moments later, one of them returned at a run, seemingly also believing that Nathaniel was the savior. This inspired Nathaniel to search the area for his sire, but his hunt for Vassily was unsuccessful. The group took the afflicted boy to a hospital and returned to their respective homes only minutes before sun-up. I do hope they are more successful with their control of the mortal elements of their territory before long. They seem to see that they could gain some modicum of local power, and this would allow them to treat with their superiors from a more equal footing. I must revise my previous estimate of their abilities; while they are foolish and young, they do have some keen political sense, and I believe they are likely to survive as long as a year or two. How fortunate I am! Transcribed and maintained Elizabeth Kent