History and Philosophy   Origins of the Order The Draconi are one of the many secret but integral Orders within the Tremere, although they have had a dangerously chequered history. The Order is generally believed to have been founded some time in the 13th century, by unknown hierarchs of House Tremere, who had travelled throughout Asia Minor and the Holy Lands of the Near East during and after the time of the Third Crusade. (There are old and secret stories that the Order is more ancient than this, predating the Tremere by millenia. It may even in fact be the remnants of an old bloodline that the Tremere came to absorb and replace.) The founders deeply studied and eventually embraced many Eastern arts and philosophies, and in helping to counter the threat of the heretic Moslem hordes, eventually came to embrace these beliefs. They may even have come into some contact with the mysterious Kindred of the East, and taken on their own version of an Eastern world view. Philosophy of The Dragon Foremost amongst these adopted beliefs was that of the Great Dragon, the true father of vampires and source of all blood magick, whom western Kindred had embodied in Christian mythology as Caine, as Satan, as the serpent, as the Wyrm. The Dragon sleeps within the earth, its veins are the lines of power which run throughout the world; the mountains are the ridged spines of its back, great steaming fissures are its breath, and movements of the earth are the dragon shifting restlessly in its boiling sleep. Founding of the Order The Order of Draconis was therefore founded to study and to worship the Great Dragon, to draw power from this vast untapped source of power beneath the Earth. This power flows in the form of dragon-lines, the "veins of the dragon", which run throughout the earth but only approach the surface in certain places. Places where dragon-lines cross are great nodes of power called dragon-sites, falsely called Caerns and used by lupines and filthy human sorcerors. Throughout the ages their power has been acknowledged by mortal and immortal alike, and throughout the world humans and others have erected burial monuments, temples, churches and other places of worship on them, by which they can be recognised. All Elders of the Order aspire to gain control of a dragon-site for the use of themselves and their order, and all have their havens upon a dragon-line, where possible. For this reason, in the Dark Times the Draco Elders often controlled important areas of the Church and Ecclesium, for their own ends, because important Churches, cathedrals and monasteries were often built on these powerful sites. The Great Grand Master The greatest Grand Master of the Order was Don Guido Alvarez, a name spoken with fear throughout the nights of 15th century Europe - fearfully called Black William by the court of the Prince of London. Alvarez, with his coterie made up of promising family members and acolytes who obsequiously took his name, rose enormously in power to become Prince of Madrid at the height of the Spanish Empire, and was so powerful that he even challenged the might of the Inquisition. He was said to have once forced the Grand Inquisitor of Toledo to kneel before him in supplication, before slitting his throat and draining his very soul. After his two centuries of terrible iron rule as Prince and Grand Master, the Order held a strong position within the Tremere Pyramid. Guido was widely rumoured to be engaged in gruesome human experimentation, and evidence of this was crucial in a plot to overthrow him, led by a treacherous member of his coterie. Rallying the might of the Inquisition and Guido's enemies within the Council of Seven (at least two of which despised and feared his influence), the Tremere Justicar declared in the 1595 Madrid Conclave that Guido had endangered and broken the fragile new Masquerade, by loosing his foul semi-human creations to run unfettered within the daylight city. In his pride and arrogance he was also denounced as having broken the Code of Tremere, by endangering the Clan and murdering opponents within the clan. It was also suggested that as Grand Master of the Order he was sympathetic with the old-guarde Tzimisce, and may have been a supporter of the Sabbat schism. Worst of all, there were whispers that within their secret temples the blasphemous Draconi had turned away from God and Christ, even from Tremere, and had embraced the worship of Sett. In an overwhelming vote of the Conclave a blood-hunt was unleashed upon him, but during the declaration, he stunned history by vanishing from the full view of the assembled Kindred. He has never been found or seen again. Even soul-hunters engaged by the Council have in the following centuries failed to find a trace. After Black William's demise, rumours of Sett-worship and other horrors led to the first Purges. Known Order-members were thrown out of Chantries into the wilds, and the Order Houses and libraries burned. Many of their rituals, created by the former Grand Master, were banned, and copies of his many books and the vast library of works he had collated were destroyed. In 1744, the Tremere declared the entire Thaumaturgicum Draconi - the master work of Draconi practice and lore - outlawed, and copies of it were hunted down and burned. In the following centuries the Order slipped into almost total secrecy. Though the Order had not been officially outlawed, acknowledging membership of it was very dangerous. However, through careful accumulation of influence, the order has once again risen in strength, and though small, is today a vital wheel within the workings of the Great World Pyramid that is the House and Clan Tremere. Today it is in a perilous position. Winds of change carry the smell of Gehenna, and Tremere once more wish to purge all those of secret Orders from their ranks. The terror is on the wind, and it is blowing ever stronger into a howling gale... The Mythology of the Dragon There are many versions of this story, which is taught to all Draconi initiants and childer: of times in the dawn of creation, when the Dragons fought for dominance of the world. (It may be interesting to compare this with another piece of more traditional Genesis scholarship, The Elohim Fragment.) Draconi legend has it roots in Near-Eastern myth, very different to tradition stories of Adam, Eve and Caine, but there are some deep parallels about the creation of the world.   "In the beginning, when the universe was spun from the hair of Chaos and the Dragons swam the black seas of the heavens, the Great Dragon, the Oldest of His kind, breathed out a plume of fire from which he formed the world, and made his Children to worship and comfort him. "In time the earth cooled, but the Dragon's blood made the people strong and the earth fertile; the warmth of his belly brought the crops to fruition, the sparkling of his jewelled eyes lit their way in the warm blanket of the eternal night, and his great wisdom gave the children law and peace. "An age passed then until the Fire Serpent came to burn the Earth with its fire. A great War was fought between them - in which one half of the day burned with fire, and the other half covered the world with ashes. The Children were greatly afraid, and built altars and offered sacrifices to the Serpent who streaked across the once perfect blackness of the heavens, filling it with burning fire. "The Dragons waged a terrible struggle, long and bitter which scorched the Earth and set the skies ablaze. "During his battles, the Fire Serpent looked down upon the worship and sacrifice that the Children made unto him. He fell to Earth in a blaze of fire and sulphur, and made them his own people. "Together, with guile and treachery, they tricked the Great World Dragon into receiving a mortal wound, and together they drove Him deep into the Earth. There He fell into a deep and troubled sleep, which will last ten thousand years. "The Dragon now sleeps, breathing out the fire of His eternal rage, turning fitfully in slumber beneath the Earth as His old wounds heal, gathering His strength for the final battle. And when at last He wakes, He will tear the Earth asunder, to destroy His treacherous Children - who once betrayed him - and wreak a terrible vengeance upon the Earth and Sky." This is the Prophecy of the dragon, alluded to by Caine in the 'Chronicle of Secrets' in the Book of Nod. In the Book, Caine prophesies that the Dragon will arise, signaling the Gehenna. But the Dragon's own Children of the Night - those in our Order who have stayed true to Him and worshiped him - will vanquish their enemies and arise to rule supreme.   Whispers These are many rumours which may or may not be true, whispered about the Order, though many are contradictory. - By murdering his brother, Caine became the first human Disciple of the Dragon. Both Caine and Abel were sons of those who had betrayed the Dragon in ancient times and caused his great sleep. By turning his back on the Sky Snake, Caine was rewarded with Gifts of dark power, and given the task of plaguing the "Children of the Sky Snake" - mortals - until the time of Gehenna. Then the World Dragon will awake, and take his Vengeance. However, the Order believe that Caine may have abdicated this duty in ancient times, and is being punished for it. - the bizarre transformation of Tremere into a worm is part of a plan of the Order, in which Tremere will eventually arise as the embodiment of the Great Dragon Himself, in the role that Caine has abdicated - bringing about the Gehenna. - the Order is secretly trying to convert the remainder of the Tremere clan to its way of thinking, and may be succeeding. - Vlad Drac (or Dracula) and his Tzimisce Order of Dracul have long been joined with the Draconi. Hence the Order must be secretly in league with members of the old-clan Tzimisce, against the Sabbat. Many Elders of the old clan Tzimisce who were members of the Dracul have been brought into the Order, under protection of the current Grand Master, and are plotting their revenge upon the Sabbat. - The Dragon God which the Order worships is, in fact, Sett. The Dracomancy discipline was originally formulated by the Settites, and the Order is secretly controlled by them. - The Snake God which the Settites worship is, in fact, the Dragon. The Serpentis discipline was originally created by the Draconi. The Order controls the Settites and is using them in their own diabolic plans to plague humanity and destroy the world. - the Great Master Guido Alvarez is not dead, but has transferred himself into the body of a powerful Elder. He secretly still runs the Order, from behind the scenes, awaiting the day when he can unleash the Gehenna. The Dragon God is, in fact, Satan. The Order have all sold their souls to their demonic master, in hope of saving themselves on the day of Gehenna. - the Great Grand Master successfully diabolised an ancient Malkavian Methuselah, but the spirit of the Malkavian remained living inside him, and drove him mad. (This is in fact true. Poor Guido!) This is the reason for the Order's peculiar beliefs, which are in fact just a very elaborate Malkavian hoax, specially designed to worry and upset the Council of Seven. (This might or might not be true!) - the Order are secretly working with the Settites and the Sabbat to destroy the Tremere leadership, awaiting the day when they can exert their influence to topple the Pyramid and place themselves in control. - the Order does not in fact exist at all, but was invented by a talented young politics graduate living in Brighton, England(!).   "Order of Draco", (c) Robert D How, 1998