From: thanatos@interaccess.com (Timothy Toner)
Subject: The Caine Files (5 of 6)

	Three of the speakers are finished, and but one is
left.  I fear, however, that he shall be my downfall.
	I knew the moment I took on this task that I would run
the risk of offending those especially sensitive to any
violation of the Masquerade.  What would happen, they argue,
if a mortal were to gain access to such a tome, and let all
the secrets be laid bared. They reason that vampires were
immortal for a purpose, to store knowledge far from prying
kine eyes.
	I knew of these dangers.  I knew of the election of
Trennart, Justicar of Clan Brujah, who executed two Brujah in
Brussels for discussing the Paradox of Form in relation to
Protean, while sitting in an abandoned cafe.  And still I am
unafraid, for I know my work cannot be complete until one
more speaker is heard; and from his lips must flow the wisdom
of things that perhaps died with the final true beatings of
our hearts.  To gain the final clue to the nature of vampiric
existence, I must talk to a mortal.  To see the past of our
kind, I must look to its future.  I must talk to Nietzsche.
	Frederick is not an easy man to approach by any means. 
He is a dark and brooding fellow, often reminding me of a
Tremere as he slides into his black secretive moods.  He was
noticed some time ago as a student at university.  His
accelerated advancement to professor at the University of
Basel at only 24 made many sit up and take note.  Prodigies
are relished by the vampiric set because their inner flame,
set at such a young age, burns so brightly, compared to our
waning light.
	Although he was approached with the greatest of
cautions, Nietzsche quickly deduced the supernatural
qualities of his questioner, although the precise nature
seemed to elude him.  Who was this dark figure, who toyed so
readily and freely, taking, and never giving?  Osgood, the
one who was sent, was so blustered, that he almost gave the
game away right there.
	It was decided to bring Frederick into the fold, and
Embrace him as quickly as possible.  When approached, he was
strangely fascinated, but at the same time hesitant.  It
would seem that he was of all things, intensely curious about
whether or not he was correct in his assumptions on God, and
resisted the thought of never meeting the Divine.  As I
stated, Nietzsche was a hard one to understand at times.
	Still, he was a skilled thinker.  He integrated much of
that which we had held as gospel into his own ideology which
he had developed, and produced something strangely familiar,
and yet wholly original.  It is best to let him say it in his
own words.
	However, one note must be stressed.  After suitable
deliberation, and after watching his idol, Wagner, return to
Christianity, Nietzsche had decided to accept the Embrace.
However, a contingent of Malkavians came forth, claiming that
his deep seated madness made him a more likely candidate for
_their_ brood.  One even produced a breed boon, guaranteeing
them first choice in new acquisitions.  The Prince gave
permission for Nietzsche to be Embraced; he did not specify
who would do it.  We Brujah are of the opinion that this is
yet another one of the Malkavians' bizarre attempts to
befuddle all in their convoluted world view.  They do not
intend to Embrace him, merely throw some granted power
around.
	So he waits, and ages, sitting before me, his cough
growing deeper as the chill night air sets in.  We must wait,
until the Malkavians decide to turn their lunacy to another
target.  And while we wait, we talk.  We talk of the past,
and of the future.

	"So, you desire our existence?  Why?"
	"At first, I refused your Gift, seeing that many who
had crossed over somehow lost that unique quality so
necessary to the philosopher, that which turns the primal
rage into something useful and ultimately potent.  Then, as
the aches grew in my body, and I fully explored the depths of
your kind, I came to realize what a base mockery _my_
existence had.  You are right in calling us kine. For too
long, we were sheep.  There is no way to reconcile the frail
human form to the dream of the Overman.  No way, that is,
except through your blood.
	"You admit, then, that your reasons for accepting the
Embrace is fear..."
	"Yes, yes, yes.  I know where this line of rhetoric
leads.  It is one that I have dwelt upon for many, many
months.  One cannot gain Enlightenment through fear, but
rather the repudiation of fear.  I fear death, and thus the
Gift will not truly free me. Understand, however, I seek the
Gift for more than mere survival. The Embrace allows certain
opportunities to manifest themselves."
	"Such as...?"
	"Realize for a moment, Wilhelm, that the mere action of
the Embrace does not elevate the soul in any way.  Anyone,
regardless of education, upbringing, or stature, can be
Transformed, which is perhaps for the best.  As I have seen,
often those least deserving the Embrace are those who make
the most of it.
	"In any event, my time spent musing on this future
state causes me to consider certain realities.  One could
spend his time in quiet appreciation of the ebb and flow of
the Mensch.  However, spending a large portion of my time
observing the German people leads me to believe that this is
a fool's course.  People change, cultures change, and the
humors of the immortal must be too kind to allow them their
frailties, without growing impatient and extincting the lot.
	"It is immediately apparent that after the Change, if
one is to be True, one must embrace his new nature.  This, I
believe, is the source of the expression.  You embrace the
Kine each night to feed.  Is this tantamount to the Gift? 
No.  It is the vulgar aspect of the Creation, the taking of
that which is wholly mortal, and thus worthless in terms of
eternity, and replacing it, giving, with that which is
immortal.  The Embrace does not speak to the physical act,
but the spiritual act of acceptance.
	"Thus, it is not enough to take that small bit of blood
that starts the mundane process.  If the spirit does not
accept the gift, then the Gift is not received.  Is it not
true that not all who are Embraced become vampires?"
	"Yes, there are stories of those for whom the Embrace
did not take, but..."
	"But nothing.  The legend is the bastard child of fact. 
This is why my Embrace will not stem from fear.  If I am
truly unworthy, if I fear death that much, then the blood
will destroy me, and send me into the void."
	"So you say that we must ignore that which is human and
humane?"
	"Ultimately, yes.  It is a bitter pill, but one that
must be faced.  What has the illusion of humanity rendered
unto us?  Pain and suffering.  A wolf cannot dwell with
sheep, and this belief in a humane society only mixes the
animalistic members of our society with the more trusting.
They need shepherds.  They need vampires, lest they rip
themselves apart."
	"I can see that your belief is that the vampiric state
is not intrinsically evil, just unhuman."
	"Not 'unhuman.'  _A-human,_ would be more precise.  Do
we consider ourselves animals?  Of course not.  Darwin would
say yes. Once we resembled animals in form and mind.  The
body has not changed all that much.  We retain the same
organs, the same humors, the same appendages.  It is only the
spirit which has changed.  I, however, wager that not a few
are still animals inhabiting human shells."
	"You know your beliefs, the repudiation of human
values, smacks of our enemy, the Sabbat.  Many would fault
you for this."
	"You've been reading too much of Hegel and Marx, and
their damnable dialectic.  Enemies!  Grudges are not for the
immortal, only for those who need to cram meaningless
existences with slights and scuffles.  Conflict serves but
one purpose:  to weed out the stupid from the race.  As for
the Sabbat, I must reassure you that they fit perfectly into
my schema.  The majority suffer from three fatal flaws. 
First, in their haste to deny their human side, they flee in
quite the opposite direction, to the animalistic, to the
bestial.  They are unworthy of the gift, and should be hunted
down
	"The second group wallow in the immortal past denied
them. They clutch at that which has happened, ignorant of
what will happen.  This blindness ultimately destroys them,
which is right.
	"The third group is quite clever.  They seem to make
the most of their vampiric abilities, using their newfound
gifts with relish, to heighten the experience.  However, the
predilection to torture the Kine, or to make war on the
Camarilla reveals their true face.  They seek only to fight,
to rebel, to consume themselves in anything but that which
they truly are.  This stupidity is not necessarily beyond
redemption.  We should seek a common ground."
	"You seem to speak from a great deal of experience..."
	"I have been approached by them."
	"What?"
	"Have no fear.  I still breathe, don't I?  We merely
had an enlightened discussion."
	"About?"
	"Very strange.  I have heard rumors that a few of your
kind possess a form of prescience.  One of these individuals
approached me, and wanted to discuss my musings on the
Overman.  He told me that I should remain on my side of the
fence, and that I would soon be pleased with my work, and its
fruits.  What did he say, "Nietzsche, you above all mortals
will create the greatest impact on the future.  Choose your
words well; they will be with you forever."  I didn't
understand him then, and I do not now.  He left me exhausted,
after a lengthy discussion on what precisely I meant by the
Overman.  I tried to present my musing, but he would only
laugh, shake his head, and tell me to try again, that I was
getting it wrong.  He kept on spouting off about blond hair
and blue eyes. I seldom feel terrified in the company of
Kindred, and for the first moment that I can remember, I
longed to be a vampire, to defend myself from this creature.
	"The next night, he returned, and told all about his
kind, the Sabbat.  I chastised him for his faults and
cruelties, and he only laughed and said, "Don't believe what
you hear.  You above all should take that to heart."  I have
been moved by his words in a terrible way, and now know that
no feint of strength or magic can quite equal the brutality
of the mind."
	"Once again, I ask you to avoid the company of
such...creatures.  It is politically unwise."
	"Since when have political concerns ever swayed me?"
	"In the past, you had the protection of us to aid you.
Against these creatures, none will assist."
	"I cannot believe beings who hold personal and
intellectual freedom so highly would chain themselves to such
a childlike notion!  If you do not approve of my 'friends,'
then you throw me to the wolves!"
	"Please, Frederick.  Understand that you have not met
the Sabbat in their true light:  a sword at your _throat!_"
	"You forget.  I am a child of war and conflict.  My
hands once soaked in the blood of fallen heroes.  I know what
it is to have a man, across a field, lust for my blood simply
because I wore a different uniform.  It is no different. 
Time to put childish things aside.  Time to grow up, my
Overman."
	"It's just _not_that_simple!_  They _hate_ us!
Unreasoningly!"
	"You claim to be a child of philosophy, of the mind and
how it works to explain itself.  Analyze.  Take it apart. 
Why do they hate?"
	"Fear.  Fear of the Antediluvians.  Fear of the Bonds."
	"And why do you hate them?"
	"They are animals..."
	"_Please!_  That is the animal in you speaking,
reacting to them on their fear level.  Get _beyond_ that!"
	"I do not like to be talked down to, as if I were a
child."
	"How can I interpret your words otherwise?  You...all
of you...you squander what you have been given in petty
rivalries best left in the mortal world.  You react as
children with the power of the gods.  Tell me, when the
Sabbat last sieged, how many Kindred perished?"
	"It is not an exact science.  We believe ten."
	"And how many of the kine perished?"
	"We disguised it as a riot.  I believe the papers last
said over a hundred."
	"Over a hundred.  OVER A HUNDRED!  If a warrior took to
the field, and slew only his foe's sheep, would he be
considered grand? Noble?  Or a child, lashing out at
innocents?"
	"It is not the way we fight.  We fight in the shadows. 
We fight a war of strategy, of positions and posturings and
politics."
	"You fight a war of wholesale _slaughter!_  When Caesar
took to the field in the Gallic Wars, he spit on those who
attacked the supply lines over true combat."
	"It is effective."
	"It is butchery.  Please, I will stop the censure.  Let
me turn to my true topic, and the reason why you have called
me here. Let me talk of Caine.
	"To parrot myself, Caine is dead, and we have killed
him. From the expression on your face, I see a bit of
explanation is necessary.  Very well.
	"The human race is currently locked into a state of
evolution, with survival of the fittest dictating who will
surpass. Unfortunately, there are those who believe mere
physicality will determine superiority.  They are sadly
mistaken.  We have left brute force as a determinant long
ago, and must factor in many other influences.
	"The first, and most important, is intellect. 
Intellect separates us from the animalistic side which uses
physicality to select.  If we can outwit the animal, we are
beyond it.  Humans were selected over their ape ancestors for
precisely that reason.
	However, for man to continue to evolve, he must refine
his current state.  It is not enough to become the best
physically, or mentally.  One must find a means to become
spiritually superior. Christ, whoever he may be, was on the
right road.  One must get the mensch behind oneself to allow
the spiritual dogma to take hold; otherwise, it is rich seed
falling upon a salted plain.
	Christ's message, as I indicated, was flawed from
inception. In telling it, he betrayed physical evolution.  We
cannot turn back, and embrace those who are obviously
inferior.  I will make no claims as to whom that is,
(although any cursory examination of my letters will show I
have proved the Germans to be a morally and mentally bankrupt
people, undeserving of evolution), but any notion to embrace
all races as equal is ultimately flawed.  If they were indeed
equal, then why races in the first place?  Nature seldom does
things for no reason.
	"Ultimately, to choose this spiritual evolution, it
becomes necessary to look beyond science, or _our_ science,
useful only in quantifying physical and mental evolution. 
The world of the supernature has always been present,
following us, harassing us, exploiting us.  Our present
science has all but ignored its existence, why, I am not
sure.  We must look to you, to those who have made a leap
beyond the physical and beyond the mental.
	"Still, you are not the guides we expected.  You have
taken your obvious superiority, and squandered it in lesser
things.  You have allowed your empowerment to wane and
crumble, as the lesser of you exploit the greater of you in
domestic squabbles."
	"How are you so certain we are the watchmen of your
grand evolution."
	"Simple.  You have always been with us, no?  Not you in
particular, but you as a race, as an entity.  The vampire
haunts man's steps, lurking in the shadows at the greatest
moments, and feeding on the fallen, history's unfortunates. 
We have feared you, and that is an irrational thing.  The
fear stems from loss, and the threat of loss that you embody. 
If you ate hair, or toenails, or excrement, you would be like
the hare that dines on the lettuce in the garden:  an
annoyance, but not a threat.  Instead, you feast on blood. 
The majority know not what it does, only that it is vital to
their existence.  If they knew that the daily surfeit you
require would not kill them, and that the ecstacy they would
receive in return far surpasses any act they could do on
their own, then perhaps they would not fear.  Perhaps.
	"But they are, after all, only human.  They sense you
take something more than the physical blood, the mental
moment glutted in passion.  You take a part of their spirit,
and they fear you for that alone."
	"What is your assertion?  Do you feel that we are
higher evolved spiritually?  That doesn't make much sense in
itself, since all evidence indicates we have been around just
as long as humanity.  If we are the next step up, then why
bother with humanity in general?"
	"As I said, you are guides.  The Embrace allows new
insights to manifest.  Humanity is a people walking in a land
of darkness. You possess the ability to grant light, to grant
insight.  Used correctly, vampires indeed become spiritually
evolved.  However, they do not advance if they wallow in lost
humanity, in abandoned bestiality.  Accept the new form in
all its manifest bliss.  Become something wholly new.  Become
_alive._"
	"Alive?"
	"Would you consider a tree to be alive?"
	"No."
	"Why?"
	"It does not think, feel, express."
	"And yet it is efficient.  It does not waste, it does
not war, and it lives as long as a human.  The step in
spiritual evolution I call for would make the ape like a
tree, we humans like the ape, and you...you and your kind
would seem alive."
	"Bold words.  But what does this have to do with
Caine?"
	"Perception.  The first step toward the Enlightened
state is to realize the nature of that state.  The one thing
vampires have a monopoly on is time.  But how can that be
properly applied?  It is one thing to have a thousand marks,
and quite something else to know how to spend it.
	"First, one must retire old concepts, and Caine is a
prime example of that.  Eternity is not one directional.  To
imply that it is would be to underuse it.
	"Now the small mind thinks of beginnings.  After all,
how could one be here, if one did not start somewhere?  The
belief in Caine is just another example of this reversion,
this need some vampires have to hold on to their humanity. 
At some point, one vampire turned to another, and asked why
things were.  Being enlightened creatures, and aware of the
hierarchical construct, they reasoned there was a primary
vampire, even though all indications show that there might
have been one, and then again, there might have not been one.
	"But this is a fallacy.  The only testament we have
that there is indeed a First Generation vampire is the word
of the Third Generation, in whose best interest such notions
of hierarchy serve. If you accept this as true, however, I
then ask you this.
	"I have heard from certain Nosferatu that the ultimate
extension of their gift to conceal themselves is to wipe
their existence from the annals of man.  Now say for a moment
that _you_ are such a vampire, with that degree of power. 
Growing tired of this aspect of eternity, you wipe your name
from the annals of human and vampiric history.  As far as
anyone knew, you would not have existed at all, and none
would be the wiser.
	"However, the questing mind would note the hole in
history, the deliberate absence of...something.  How to
explain this hole? Take what is known, and explain from
there, of course.  We can see that this power is within the
grasp of the third generation.  The Second were revered as
gods, so it is easy to see that it lay within their grasp as
well.  Subsequently, it would have been a trifle for the
First to do it.
	"But what of beyond that?  Let's carry this analogy
further. If this power were to be properly applied, then not
only would mankind not know of their existence, but also the
_concept_ of such an existence would be held in doubt.  Caine
may as well be of the Second Generation, or the Third, or the
Thirteenth, for all we know.  Those who came before, and are
now forgotten, could be of _any_ number.  All we _do_ know is
that there are those of the Third generation, who point to
abstract documents about a progenitor, and claim to be of the
Third.
	"Now postulate for a moment you are of the Third
Generation. Vampires who came before you, and were not as
wily, fell into the all too human trap of assuming there was
a single progenitor, this "Caine."  If you were trying to
establish a hierarchy, with you at the top, it would be in
your best interest to use this as proof of your legitimacy, a
divine right, as it were.  Saying you were of the second
generation would be dangerous, since it implied intimate
contact with the First.  The best bet would be then Third,
while eliminating the Second in your story, since only they
could _prove_ that this Caine was the First.  Besides, three
is a good number, to be sure.
	"As you can see, by repudiating the power of the Third
Generation, as true guardians of 'Caine's' legacy, we ease
the Sabbat's anger.  This hierarchical dissension has brought
the Church low, and it will inevitably bring the Camarilla
low.
	"As further proof, I present Caine.  If this is indeed
the First Murderer, brother of Abel, and Lord of Nod, one
would suppose the infamy would be a bit much to deal with. 
If it lay within your power to wipe the crime from the annals
of human record, from the minds of humanity, would you not do
it?  Why continue?  Why?
	"Thus, it can be seen that just as early man saw
murder, and wondered if there was an origin, and lo!
discovered one, Caine is the early vampire's origin tale, to
help them understand their underlying nature.  "Am I my
brother's keeper?"  The unspoken answer is "_Yes!_"  Just as
Abel was keeper over his flocks, Caine and his progeny would
be keepers over his brother's progeny.  A good story, and one
that fills the hole nicely, but a story, nonetheless.
	"Once we discuss the fact that Caine is not the First,
then all things are possible.  Eternity finally has true
meaning to the vampire, not only as a limitless future, but
an unearthed past, rich with possibility.  It is not good to
dwell solely with the past, but any man who ignores it is
doomed to repeat past failures.
	"Vampiric history then is a line that stretches on into
eternity, past and present.  You were correct in saying there
seems to have been no vampires before people, and that there
seems to be an origin to humanity.  But this is measuring
with the tools of science.  This spiritual manifestation to
vampirism has always been, and will always be.  The only way
the legend of Caine is useful is to understand that vampires
are the dark brothers of humanity, just as Cain was the dark
brother of Abel.  One loses meaning without the other.  Why
did Abel die?  Cain.  Why did Cain kill?  Abel."
	"So we have moved beyond the dogma of Caine?"
	"We have moved beyond the dogma of _beginnings._  As an
animal, your concerns are for the day.  Once you have
dominated your physical environment with physical means, you
become aware of yesterday and tomorrow, while remaining
permanently rooted in the Now, the point at which all things
flow from.  Later, we move that point of origin, to an
arbitrary othertime.  A useful feint at first, it ultimately
becomes a handicap, as you forget _why_ you shifted the point
of origin in the first place.
	"To answer your question, 'If there was once a Caine,
we have no need for him now, and he might as well not have
existed at all.' If vampires can grasp this concept of an
existence freed from the burden of time, if they can grasp
the scope of an existence not right of or left of, or in
front of humanity, but _above_ it, completely alien to how
they have ever felt as humans, then there may be hope for us
Menschen, as you lead us into Enlightenment."
	"My time now is short--"
	"So is mine."  He shared a weak smile.  His tirade
obviously took its toll on his health.
	"What will you do, once you are embraced?"
	"Travel.  Travel the world, seeing the places this
frail form denies me.  Talk to those who I have heard of only
in passing, and see this world as it actually is.  Once I am
done, then I shall be ready."
	"For what."
	"For whatever happens next."  He smiled once more, and
wrapped himself against the bitter chill.  Rising, he bid me
good evening, and left.

[Compiler's Note:  Fredrick Nietzche died in January 1900, a
man. The Malkavians never Embraced him.  They took him to a
sanitarium, as it was their right, and they watched over him,
day and night, waiting for him to die, alone and afraid. 
After his body was shown to all, truly dead, their leader
came forth, and stated it was for the best.  "You cannot
understand what we know.  It is best this way.  It is best
that he die here, alone and unloved."  He and four of his
companions were found beheaded the next morning.
	The entire Brujah clan, it is said, has declared a
Shadow war on the Malkavians, for allowing such a noble mind
to die.  THey claim this is all the proof necessary to show
the Malkavians are too dangerous, too reckless, too chaotic
to be suffered any longer.
	All I know is that a man died yesterday.  Never knowing
the Hunger, he shared it with you.  Never tasting the Vitae,
he relished in its bliss.  As a human, he was the greatest
Kindred I have ever met.  I shall miss you, Frederick.  And I
fear humanity, both sides, will miss you as well.]

thanatos@interaccess.com