Smiling Jack

Smiling Jack is the quintessential Anarch  Elder, which is to say that almost the entire Anarch Movement venerates his name, and he just doesn't give a damn. Politickers and warmongers amongst the Invictus cannot deny that the Invictus' tentative toehold on the former Carthian Free States throughout California and Oregon would have long ago come to fruition were it not for the machinations of this single Kindred and his almost childlike love of foiling the Invictus' best laid plans for subtle domination.

Born into a Life of Slavery
Smiling Jack, as he would later be known was born to an English indentured servant in 1652, as Johnathan Edward Drummond. His mother, Mary O'Connor, an Irish citizen captured by Oliver Cromwell's men during his campaign in Ireland and sent to harvest sugarcane in Barbados. Unlike his mother, Jack's father, Walter Drummond, had actually done something worth the punishment of his situation. He was responsible for enticing a minor rebellion against the crown during King Charles' reign. Him along with his co-conspirators were charged with a fate akin to execution being forced into slavery in a foreign land. Coming from a Redleg heritage Johnathan Drummond as he was known then, would naturally be bound a life of slavery aswell due to his parentage. His mother was spared the rod due to her pregnancy, but his father was not afforded such leniency. On Master Ainsworth's Plantation slaves philandering and fraternizing was forbidden and for this hewas castrated to be made an example of. To show his "compassion" Ainsworth spared the infant and instead branded the child with the letter P on his forearm, a marking that all slaves of Ainsworth had, which stood for "property".

Growing Up Shackled
Lil' Johnny grew up in subaverage conditions as expected, but he learned to subplant the thought of the unfair conditions with dreams of rebellious ideal his father talked about. His father still holding the ideals that got him imprisoned and subsequently sold in the first place, would unknowingly lead his son down a similar path latter down his life. John idolized his eunich father who had more "balls" that msot of the men on the plantation figuratively speaking. He would often play with the children of the plantation owner without his knowledge. He formed a friendship with the young master, whom didn't shared his fathers views as a child, and would often be found in the slave quarters much to his fathers contempt. John grew up with great contempt for the authority figure that was Master Ainsworth and his villianous slavedrivers, a trait that he would harbour well into adulthood.

Escape from Bridgetown
He lived on the plantation, harvesting sugarcane, up until the time of his 14th birthday. Around this time in his life is when his desire for revenge and hate for the man began to become a fixation upon his life. Little did he know, that this animosity would soon reach it's breaking point. When his father's quarters were raided while searching for stolen property belonging to the plantation house, along with the rifle and other miscellaneous item that were stolen,a plan for enticing and leading a rebellion were found in a journal of his. He was subsequently hanged for these trasonous writings. Boiling with anger and equal amounts of fear, Lil John did not know what to do, on the eve of his fathers hanging the young Milton Ainsworth came to see him. Sympathizing with John, he gave him a skeleton key to the plantation house. That night John said goodbye to his mother, promising to return back for her in the coming months, and snuck out of the plantations perimeter. He somehow made his way onto the docks of Bridgetown and stowedaway on a merchant ship, named Lady Elizabeth.

Life at Sea in the Carribean
Upon the first night of his excursion, the ship he was aboard was bombarded and attacked by a pirate vessel. As the pirate emerged victorious and boarded teh ship, tehy foudn the young boy in hull. Unsure what to do with the lad, Captain Henry Morgan of took the innocent with him as a cabin boy and sent the crew of the Lady Elizabeth of the to the brig, stole the valuble merchandise, and sent the ship to the depths. Jack as the pirate renamed him grew upon the crew, as they raped and pillaged, port after port. Jack grew to idolize these rebels, who jsutified their acts behind the notion of freedom. Jack lived this life, and at 17 was inducted as a part of the crew. He amde a name for himself being a fierce swordsman and fearsome in battle, aswell.

Return to Bridgetown
At the age of 17, sometime in the summer nights of 1668, the crew of the HMS Oxford made port in Bridgetown. This was Jack's opportunity to make good on his promise he kept to his mother so long ago. While his crewmates made port, he took the opportunity to visit the Ainsworth Plantation. That night he took five of his crewmates, convincing them the home housed various treasures, which it did. He disguesed himself as a injured woman, in order to disract the occupants as the pirates stormed the back taking the homeowners by surprise. They bound the family and made them watch as he castrated the middle-aged, Master Herbert Ainsworth.

After this, he went to the slave Cabins in search of his mother, through inquisition of the slaves that had been there long enough to know, he asked of the whereabout of his mother. The slaves told them of her condition as some years ago she ahd gotten pregnant and that MasterAinsworth had her killed. Rumours amongst the slaves said that Mary spoke of her rape at the hands of Ainsworth, and that she feared that he and the lady of the house would find out shortly. OF course, as not to arouse suspicion Ainsworth claimed he had done so because he had caught her stealing from the plantation house as not to arouse suspicions from his wife.

The crewmates held the family captive as he made the discovery, and ahs he returned the family would make theirs. He proceeded to have sex with Ainsworth's wife before his eyes, bleeding profusely watching in horror. His children screaming from the other room, his son struggling to get free. Jack then slit Ainsworth throat jsut before his teenage son ran in to discover the murder. Being the just man that he was he left the family unharmed, after all, this was retibution nor monstrosity.

The Birth of Smiling Jack
For this his crewmates anmed him "Smiling Jack" due to his pleasure and downright happiness that night. He couldn't keep a straightface as he sought his revenge. He then freed the slaves on the plantation. Taking the men that would come onto teh ship in service as pirate if they so chose. A large portion did indeed, and Morgan was surprised and impressed by Jacks recruitment of these men. In the comng years Jack would hold a favoured position with the captain and the crew sailing with them until 1671, when Morgan was arrested.

One of Morgan's officers, John Morris, later assembled a crew letting Jack take part. They left Port Royal in the HMS Assitance. Jack, climbed threw the ranks, making it to First Mate after the former died at sea in 1683. They sailed up and down the Spanish Main and through the Caribbean Jack making quite a name for himself.

Meanwhile, the nearly orphaned son of Ainsworth, Milton grew to hate Jack and v owed to get revenge upon him. with his family's fortune he purchase 2 ships, the makings of his own privateering armada. He convinced his younger brother Albert to captain the lesser of the two, HMS Seaford, while he captained the flagship deemed HMS Scarborough. In 1676, the armada made way and began to serve the Royal Navy as privateers, the young Milton Ainsworth only 24 and his brother only a year and a few month his senior.

Meeting MaMa Lion
One night, John Morris and his crew made port Dominica, this is where Jack met the one woman who would change his life for the many nights to come. He had heard rumours of a obeah priestess, only known as Mama Lion, who could offer men strength and near-immortality in exchange for a sacrifice. Later, he would find out that she was offering ghouldom in exchange for kine.

He journeyed deep into the swamplands with two other pirates in hopes to find this woman, but she found them. She descended upon the one of the men from the trees, plucking him from them as tehy made their trek. Tempted though he was to turn back,he did not. The two remaining men hauled the goat they had brouth along with a few items for trading. They came upon a house were a few plump alligators suurounded the swamphouse as if guarding it. They seemed well-fed and surprisingly dangerous, even ghouled perhaps.

At first, his crewmate nearly ran away in fear, but he raised this cowards morale by ,mmentioning perhaps they ahd brought enough to trade for two doses of her potion. They had heard rumors ranging from a magic potion to her feeding them blood. She was coy and seductive but also had a bestial nature to her. The unfortunate crewmate holding the bag of valuable items nearly pissed himself when she pointed in the man's direction asking if that was her payment, Jack nodded thinking she was pointing to the bag. She took her payment to her back room, the man did not exit with her, he was now part of her herd.

Jack grew impatient with the woman and demanded she return his crewman. She caught a glimpse of his passion. She told him to return every day once a month, no payment needed. In exchange she would ask for his service, she was mum on exactly what that was the passing months. It wasn't long before Jack was blood bound to Mama Lion. Their relationship was that of devotee to the devoted for sometime, but soon MaMa began to feel love, as much as any vampire could, for Jack. Jack felt a conflicting love for both Mama and sailing the sea but could only act on one as he felt it in his very blood, so to speak.

After a few years after getting to know Jack she Embraced him in 1688. As the Vincilium began to fade, and Jack felt the sea calling. He somehow seizd control of a ship after blood binding the former captain who had come to see the mysterious MaMa Lion. Either way the former captain now First Mate - Edward Thatch, was under Jack's control. He said fairwell to he beloved promising to return someday, in 1696 never to return again.

A Sea of Blood
Jack spent the next decade years out at sea. Somehow he managed to convince his crew that he had some kind of disease which caused his skin to blister under sunlight. At any rate they were not quick to argue, lest they mysteriously disappear from the ship like many prisoners in hte brig.

It wasn't long before he and his band developed a notorious reputation, especially the captain and his resilient First Mate. Always attacking by night and leavin noone who would raise a sword against them. It was the perfect lifestyle for a vampire when he didn't need to worry about leaving a trail of the dead in his wake.

Legends began to circulate that the Queens Vengance was led by a fearsome foe named Blackbeard. Weather that was atributed to refer to Jack, his First Mate - Edward Thatch, or some other pirate it is unknown. However, if it were the the figure would ahve to be an amalgamation of both Jack and Edward, on to attribute the nightly activitis of the man and one the daily.

His ghoul, Thatch, was known to set his beard ablaze after dousing it in kerosene to frghten his opponeants in a way to match his domitor in fearsomeness. Also, their ships were similarly named if not one in the same. It is however just a theory as the truth mixed with legend centuries ago.

Buried Under Stone
After years of eluding the efforts of Commodore Ainsworth, fate and retribution finally caught up with Jack in 1707. That night he had cornered them in a sea cave off the coast of Mexico. A cannon fight ensued, and in a freak accident a boulder fell upon Smiling Jack taking him and his vessel to the bottom of the sea. What survivors there were were quickly rounded up and sent to the brig, includin Thatch, who would later escape to forestall his judement.

It wouldn't be till 1823, that his undead shell would reanimate. Jack would soon find out that the Golden Age of Piracy had come to end. Torpor had did a number on him, reducing his blood potency a bit. Although, hat was even moreso damaging is that he had forgotten who he was. His name all but a mystery to him, as the Fog of Sleep had convoluted his dreams with his memories. He was like a lost cub that night after he pushed the boulder off of himself and floated up to greet the mother moon. After a few weeks all that came to his mind was that the name Smiling Jack. All that he knew for sure was that he had a life at sea as a buccaneer and a lover by the name of Mama Lion. Not to mention really fatal aversion to sunlight.

The next few years he wandered thouh Mexican taverns, getting acquainted with the strange but still somewhat familiar age. The 19th Century was bittersweet for Jack at that time, but he soon found his niche. He soon found himself in the company of men, who were much like himself. At first, Jack was hired for jobs on the frontier. Oddjobs that required little thinkin' only requiring him to bus t afew head when the time came.

Outlaw in the American West
It was as natural that in this new era Jack would become something akin to the pirates of nights passed. In those nights, in the eve of the industrial revolution, Jack would become somewhat of a legend in the American Midwest and Northern Mexico.

He soon found himself in familiar company, as he traveled from saloon to saloon, sparking stories of a man who would walk into a saloon at the brink of dusk and wasa never seen during daylight hours. A man who had the strength of 10, could take a revolver cylinder to the chest and still be alive to hold your throat in his hand as ripped ya to shredss.

They told stories of a White Devil, who would rob trains, leaving nothing but a trail of bodies in his wake. This was noneother than Jack himself, a unliving legend in his own time. Howeverr he could not keep this up for long, and som 50 odd years of stealing, robbing and killing one man finally caught up to him. A man, named Eduardo Sanchez who's father had been a victim of Jacks 30 years earlier. He heard the legends tracking it to the source, and with a gang, which was more like the size of a mob, he sought the White Devil Rider. Jack and his ghouls were no match for the mob as they rode towards Jack with conviction.

On a summer night in 1877, the finally cornered Jack at the treeline of a remot forest enxt to a town in Chihuahua. With only Jack left, tehy figured they had the "man" trapped and followed him in. At first a few men disappeared in those few hours of searching, then a few more. Believing that Jack could not be fought in this environment, he pulled out setting up a perimeter for days. Unfortunately, Jack never came out of hiding. For 30 years, there would be rumours of a wildman roaming the forest at night, and mothers would tell their children of the Devil Man living withing the woods in an effort to have them behave. After 1931 the stories were just that, as that was the last time Jack was spotted.

Unlife in the Mexican Wilderness
For 54 years Jack roamed the wood feeding on animals and any unfortunates who happedned to stumble upon his territory. It was during one for these nights at the turn of the century, that a pack of Dead Wolves came across Jack. The took an interest in him, and inducted Jack into their bloodline after a few years. The tutored him on the ways of the Dead Wolves, and Jack soon found out that he ahd mcuh in common with these Kindred morse than any other. They taught him of the Traditions and schooled him on the things of Kindred society. Surprisingly, even after his long unlife, Jack was not aware of the nature of other Kindred. He became a member of teh pack that would commune with local Uratha in the Northern Mexican forests.