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FieryCold

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Year 1965.

Welcome to Waldendorf, a sprawling urban paradise where vintage antiquity meets modern technologies. With its age old buildings, cobbled streets, technology, and top-of-the-cream elite, life in this city is never dull. It is heralded as one of the most affluent cities in New America—a place that most people could only dream of living in.

Among the city’s pioneering residents is a powerful family known to most as the Vampires of Waldendorf. They are nothing like the mythical creatures, but their nickname has been well-earned. Don’t let appearances fool you; underneath those perfectly rehearsed smiles, the Vampires are ruthless businessmen, cold and trechearous as ice. Owning ninety percent of the enterprises within Waldendorf, they more or less own the entire city itself.

Despite their elite status, however, they seem just like any other ordinary family. After all, their record is spotless clean. They might have been into one or two scandals in the past, but they were instantly filed away and soon forgotten. As far as society is concerned, the Vampires are perfect. Powerful. Untouchable. Nothing could possibly besmirch their good reputation.


But underneath all the glitz and glamour surrounding their lives, there is one sordid truth just waiting to be unearthed.

Fifteen years ago, wanting to ascend the social ladder and triumph over competing families and firms, the Vampires formed an alliance with yet another family: the Winthrops. While not as influential nor as sophisticated as the Vampires, the Winthrops were powerful in their own unique way. They ran a secret organisation and were involved in numerous illegal activities. Like spiders, they weaved their underground social web, gathering the deepest and darkest secrets of Waldendorf's elite which they then sold for a good hefty price. The Vampires exploited the Winthrops' ability to gather information. In exchange for information on their rivals, the Vampires provided them with money and privilege. But forming an alliance with the Spiders was like striking a deal with the devil, and it turned out that the Winthrops had an ulterior motive in mind. In their heads a terrible scheme was created, for what these Spiders wanted most of all was influence—influence that no other family aside from the Vampires could ever hope to achieve.

The Winthrops strived hard to achieve their goal. They tried to earn the Vampires' trust, tried to uncover secrets, tried to stage scandals and spread lies in an effort to taint their name. But easily the Vampires caught on, and all of a sudden the tables were turned. The Vampires made it so that the Winthrops' illegal involvements were brought to justice. Those who managed to evade imprisonment only did so by the skin of their teeth, and even then they had no assets left to live a comfortable life.

The Spiders learned their lesson, but it was too late to make amends; the Winthrop name had already been smeared from high society.

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Diederich
WALDENDORF

Diederich Waldendorf believes that everything has a price in this world. With the motto 'Life is a game of chess' it pretty much sums up his mentality and attitude towards everything and anything. Diederich Waldendorf junior believes that everything can be replaced with just the snap of his fingers, and that the world is his board, the people his pawns.

It is a mentality much alike to his father, Diederich Waldendorf senior. As his only legitimate son the junior has inherited many of the habits and traits of the father, as he has been groomed to become the Waldendorf heir since birth. It is why he is either viewed as the biggest threat, or the smallest sheep, depending on how one views the situation and from what side. Diederich Waldendorf junior is known the be the biggest loyalist to the Waldendorf enterprise and its vision, but also a man without a personality of his own. A carbon copy of the man whose seed he came from.

As Diederich Waldendorf senior is a man of many pleasures, there is no surprise that his father has had many mistresses in his life. Some of them with whom he had children with as well. And as senior was the man he has always been he had his children fight for his attention and love. It brewed a toxic relationship between Diederich junior and his half-siblings, as they were all aiming for the ultimate price in the inheritance.

Whether it was the coaxing of their mothers, or their own choice didn't matter. The half-siblings of the senior Waldendorf fought to receive their recognition and position. A fight that has destroyed any hope for an amiable relationship between the siblings, but benefited Waldendorf enterprise in many ways. From the outside the family seems to be in harmony, with Diederich Waldendorf junior as the presumed heir of the whole business. However, within there is a war going on based on their pure greed and lust for power.

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Edith 'Jillian' Gerhardt
Edith 'Jillian' Gerhardt is another one of the many children Diederich Waldendorf senior has fathered with his mistresses. A fact her mother never hid from the world, and thus putting Edith in the public eye early on in her life. A place she will never quite escape from.

As the head of Waldendorf pharmaceutics Edith is one of the many competing for the inheritance of Waldendorf enterprise. Amongst colleagues she is known as an iron-hard businessperson, difficult to negotiate with outside of her terms, and unwilling to settle for anything less than the best. She is often described as bossy and controlling, but it is exactly that attitude that has made her so successful in everything she does when striking deals. Decisive and stubborn Edith rarely backs down from what she wants and believes. Amongst underlings she has a more positive image, as they often feel listened to. However, ultimately even these underneath her find her energy intimidating, resulting in an unapproachable figure.

Within the enterprise and to the media, Edith is known as a politician. An excellent spokesperson that knows exactly how to respond and what to say in every situation. The female is aware of the many faces that one needs to wear when facing the public, or an individual. Her very public upbringing has helped her recognise such and learn tactics on how to move around difficult questions from the press, but also to prevent problems from getting out of hand. It is often why Edith gets called when a potentially explosive case needs to be dealt with in silence.

While Edith has a positive public image and seems like an impeccable figure without scandal following her around, there is a cold heart beating in her chest. Edith knows how to tap into the public understanding, and how to groom herself for public appearances. However, she holds little sympathy and emotion within her heart. A fault that is pronounced from the wicked upbringing she received. Edith's mindset is set to find the path that benefits her the most. It is a reason why she doesn't engage in relationship that doesn't profit her, and why she is so easy in discarding anything once it had its use. It is one of the reasons why she is always suspicious of the intent of others, assuming that the world is just a place where everyone uses and abuses each other.

Towards her family Edith's attitude doesn't change much, except from worse. Knowing that there is little to no love within the Waldendorf family Edith is known to be just as cutthroat as the rest of her half-siblings, making it no secret that she views them as rivals rather than as intimate relations. She is aware that it is her father pitching her up against her half-siblings, but ignores the fact in favour of her own position. While absolutely disgusted with her father's behaviour, and her mother's attention-seeking, Edith has made little effort in trying to push for a change within. Instead she decides that she will play along with the act to snatch everything away.
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