Once upon a time, in a World of Darkness...

   There were Forces of Nature; neither Saintly nor Malevolant ... they simply "were". But as humanity expanded to encompass the globe and push back boundaries of ignorance, the definitions of "Good" and "Evil" arose. In olden memory, one of these Forces was The Autumn Man. Ancient even by the reckoning of the Celts, this being drew sustenance from Innocence, Imagination and Ideas. Becomming known as "Thought Eater", "The Rotting One" and "Child-Bane", its force walked primordial Europe like a decayed and festering shadow, casting its darkness wherever it went.

   In a world of magick, shadow and the brutal realities of life, The Autumn Man became the basis for many legends; most notably The Boogey-Man. It was in 1572, after centuries of the creature's wandering and dark freedom, two brothers brought about the being's end. Enlightened practioners of the scholarly Art of Hermetic Magick, Garamund and Julio DeMarco tracked down the ancient beast to gain insight into the roots of legend and perhaps lay claim to its arcane power. Despite foretellings of Dark Destiny should they proceed, the two brothers set forth on their quest; first gathering information, then seeking and finally confronting The Autumn Man.

   Battling not only their own fears, but those of millenia of victims, the two brothers faced the prospect of certain doom. It was only after the crafting of a powerful Spiritual Fetish was Garamund able to drain the strength from The Autumn Man and imprison him beneath a stone in the countyside of England. However, for the brothers DeMarco, it was too late. Julio had given his life in the battle to leave Garmund alone to finish their task. The Autumn Man had been stopped and his evil imprisoned, but at a great cost.

   Years passed. Garamund, bereft and cursing his arrogance thrust himself into increasingly dangerous practices. A decade elapsed before he, in a moment of dark despair, agreed to pass beyond mortal ken and become a member of Clan Tremere ... a Vampire. In the lonely centuries that followed, Garamund learned the dark arts of Thaumaturgy from those who would teach them, eventually leaving Europe completely for the frontiers of the New World. Settling in a river trade city along the Mississippi River, the Kindred guarded the Fetish that had drained The Autumn Man until, eventually, both he and it passed from Kindred knowledge and into the darkness of obscurity.

   But this was not the end. The Autumn Man still dwelled in the dark recesses beneath his imprisoned stone. The Magick of the brothers DeMarco kept him bound, but his mind still roamed the world at night; seeking freedom from his cell without windows. The Autumn Man watched and learned, following Garamund and seeking out all information that may help or hinder his efforts. Both Garamund and the Fetish were still a threat to him - but this could be remedied. The world was gradually tilting towards Science over The Arcane, slowly depriving him of the fears and superstitions upon which he lived. This too, was a challenge that could be met. Even Julio DeMarco was a potential threat, entombed as a Wraith deep in the Dark Umbra. But, like the other elements standing in his way, this could be solved. For more than Four Hundred Years he has waited and schemed - plotted and planned; and now, with hoarded power, The Autumn Man has begun his steps towards vengeance and freedom...

   In the first story, an ancient vampire; one of the two brothers who had originally entombed the Autumn Man; is the target. This Kindred's own politics are the Autumn Man's goal; to hoist him on his own pitard. The second story, details the Autumn Man's attempts to destroy the ancient fetish that sapped his strength, leaving him open to binding in the first place. This item has gone bad over the years and become Wyrm-tainted. It is now a Bane-fetish, but held on an ancient, Native American burial site. In the third part, the ambitions of the Autumn Man know few bounds, as he attempts to turn back the clock of human belief and fear, by manipulating events to demonstrate that magick -especially the dark magick of the ancient world- is alive and well. Against him is the force of the Technocracy, as it proceeds with it's work to bring humanity into a future of controlled precision. In the fourth story, the Autumn Man targets the spirit of the other brother who had imprisioned him ... Julio DeMarco. This ancient, mad wraith now dwells -static- on the boundary between Corpus and Oblivion; but it's a state of balance that has existed for long enough. The Autumn Man wants him gone; either Transcended or Oblivionized. He's made a bargain with Julio's Shadow ... and taken steps -should that fail- to enlighten and aide the 'poor spirit'. Finally, in the fifth story, the Autumn Man seeks freedom and power. Only the sacrifice of innocence -defined as the innocence of the Fae- can feul his hunger and break his bonds. Trapped beneath the Glamourous memory of The White Tower, the ancient spirit weaves it's spells to manipulate and bring to it young changelings and children to devour so that it may walk again...