SchreckNet Data File
- Real/Birth Name: Lisa Sarah Polarine
- Known Identity/Mortal Alias: Lisa Polarine
- Place of Origin: Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA
- Height: 5'4" (163 cm)
- Occupation: Hotel owner / Financial Investor / Professor
- Apparent Age: Early-30s
- Embraced: 1982
- Kindred Status: Neonate
- Sire: Neil Boruff (deceased)
- Clan: Ventrue
- Clan Status: Non-peer
- Sect: Anarch Movement
- Sect Status: Herald
- Player/Type: NPC
Appearance
Lisa is simultaneously attractive and eye-catching, yet easy to overlook. She is quite short but her posture, clothing and tendency to wear heels give her the impression of being taller than she actually is. She is a natural dark brunette, although it is common for her to dye it in subtle ways - especially the root beer style which involves a brunette base with subtle auburn, root beer-esque streaks throughout, which warmth and dimension and is flattering to her skin tones. Her hair-styles vary depending on the occasion but is usually kept as a medium-bob in the summer and long-bob in the winter. Casually, it is often kept straight or in short pigtails, and may be styled more elegantly or wavy when trying to be fashionable. Make-up is usually kept light and natural-looking for most casual and business situations, typically with light eye shadow and some lip gloss or complementary lipstick colour, getting a little more glamorous and obvious for special occasions, but not overly so.
Lisa has green eyes with a splash of brown around the pupils and although not blatantly muscular, is in good physical shape and well-toned due to an active lifestyle during her mortal days. She is of obviously mixed heritage, giving her the strange distinction of being typically considered to look Asian by Caucasians, yet considered to look Caucasian by Asians. Although she acknowledges her Asian heritage, she rarely styles herself or her clothing in ways to draw attention to this - she claims to be her own person and not defined by her heritage and prefers to use what works for her, regardless of cultural heritage. She is fond of wearing business suits whilst working - looking smart and professional though, in typical Ventrue fashion, not trendsetting or obviously attention-grabbing, as high-flying New York lawyers might appear. She favours skirted suits over trousers, believing it more traditional and complementary to her appearance, but on occasion wears suited trousers. Earthy and dark colours such as browns, greens, greys and blacks are her favoured - often with lighter-coloured shirts and blouses to add highlight, favouring cream, white or other pastel colours. For more glamorous occasions, she favours dresses but has no identifiable signature style - they can vary in style and colour dramatically depending on the event and situation, from bright and colourful (especially in the summer) to more subtle ones, and from casual or conservative, to quite revealing and sexy. Typically, however, they would compliment her without being Avant-Garde or risque. Casually, anything goes. She can vary between leather miniskirts and jackets, to casual dresses, to jeans and loose jumpers or hoodies. Most of her clothing is of branded makes that are modern, though not necessarily in-Vogue. Overall, it is fair to say that although she is not a fashion icon or trendsetter, she has a good sense of "what works" to make her look both appropriate and appealing. As many have pointed out - despite her defiant proclamation to not be a typical Ventrue, her styles very much represent Ventrue sensibilities.
Background
Prelude
Lisa's mother was a Hoa, an ethnic and racially Han Chinese person, born and raised in Vietnam. her family moved to Oklahoma City, Oklahoma in 1946, seeking to distance themselves from the growing instability as the Viet Minh guerilla war with the French occupiers increased. Shortly after moving there she married an American of German, Irish and English descent, leading to Lisa's birth. The marriage didn't last long, however, ending in divorce when Lisa was just 2. Lisa's mother remarried a USAF member shortly after, which resulted in Lisa and the family moving around a lot, but being raised principally on Yokota Air Base near Tachikawa in Tokyo, Japan, where her stepfather was stationed. During these formative years Lisa both learnt how to speak Japanese and was introduced to Karate by her stepfather - who had been exposed to it as part of the USAF training and cultural outreach - as she and her brothers were forced by their stepfather to learn Karate. Lisa's mother and stepfather divorced when she was 14, by which point she had become a black belt in Karate. After the divorce, the family moved back to Oklahoma, where Lisa finished her junior and senior high school years at Putnam City North High School.
Lisa showed incredible intellectual potential from a young age. She read substantially faster than most people, enabling her to cram more studying in shorter periods or read required texts much faster. But even more beneficially, numbers came easy to her; her logical mind handling them with ease and her quick mind processing them quickly. Added to a strong drive to excel (picked up being raised in similar-mentality Japan), Lisa would frequently work until she literally dropped from exhaustion - more than once falling asleep at a desk with an open textbook as a pillow. She was one of those rare teens who's mother would tell her she needed to get out more and work less, rather than the common reverse. She had relatively little social life in high school, especially coming in almost at the end, and so preferred to focus on her studies over making friends that would be gone soon anyhow. It was little surprise that she graduated valedictorian from high school, then went on to get a BA in Economics from the University of California-Berkley, minoring in journalism and politics, following which she got a Doctorate in Economics from Duke University (South Carolina).
During her time at UCB she was introduced to surfing by some friends from the nascent UC Berkeley Karate Club, which became one of her favourite pastimes to help her destress. Having fallen in love with California during her UCB years, she decided to return there after finishing at Duke University and managed to achieve employment as a Financial reporter for a minor news station in Los Angeles and, although it was an exhausting struggle to balance her commitments, achieved a second PhD, in Political Economy. Although she could have gotten far more lucrative employment as an analyst at Goldman Sachs or other Fortune-500 company, she enjoyed what she did at the news company, which gave her enough for personal projects, such as making investments on the stock market. Soon, her income, investments and shares were doing well enough to pay off her rather horrendous accumulation of University debts. Between her career success and obtaining a second PhD, she received an invitation to apply for an ideal job opportunity at the KASH-TV station in Ashford, which she applied for.
Embrace & Unlife
Unfortunately for Lisa, her own success had brought her to the attention of a Ventrue who had used his influence to create the "job interview" just to lure Lisa to Ashford and test her as a potential recruit. Seeing potential, though lamentably rough around the edges, he Embraced her, forced her out of retirement from the mortal world, taught her the basics of being Kindred, took her out for The Choice, then almost literally locked her in his mansion for the better part of a decade, with incessant lessons and tests she needed to pass before he could present her to The Board (the Ventrue Clan's internal structure/hierarchy - all Ventrue not outcasts or considered failures are members of this peerage, and Clan status is based on promotion within The Board). This would never come to pass. Her sire was neither as powerful or influential as he believed himself to be and had made rivals amongst The Board. Having decided a lesson in humility was deserved, her sire found his financial and political influence come crashing down around him in short order. In what The Board would consider a disgraceful breach of Dignitas (honour/status), at a low point and learning of more failure, her sire frenzied from frustration, which resulted in his breaking the Masquerade. Although Lisa managed to contain and preserve the Masquerade as best she could, she made the naive mistake of reporting the breach to the Sheriff instead of the The Board, which led to her sire's execution.
The Prince declared her actions just as regards the domain laws, as did The Board who cared little for her sire's plight because if he was unable to cope and frenzied, breaking the Masquerade, he had no Dignitas and deserved his fate. As reward for upholding the First Tradition of the Camarilla, her status as independent of her sire was acknowledged and she was allowed to reside in the Domain. But privately, in the eyes of The Board, by going to the Sheriff instead of them Lisa had proved herself unsuitable for peerage. They called for her blood to be returned (execution) but, although the Ventrue Prince agreed in principle, he was still bound by Camarilla laws and could not order the execution of an already-presented Neonate who had proven loyal and obedient to the Camarilla's Traditions. Therefore he decreed that she would be allowed to live - although made no decree that Lisa had to be treated fairly. Thereafter, Lisa was treated with nothing but scorn and resentment by her own clan who seemed to enjoy the game of striking Lisa down hard as they had her sire, and ensure she always remained there.
But Lisa was stubborn and had fought hard all her life to get where she was, and the same determination would not let her give up. She still had her financial investments - which she had to wrangle around and rely on brokers and investments outside the reach of Ashford's Ventrue, but any endeavour or investment she made was met with technical, legal or political problems that made the following decade a struggle to survive and prosper financially - but little by little, she did. Using up most of her savings, she took advantage of an opportunity that arose and purchased the Padre Hotel for $1 million in 2002, a once-iconic landmark popular from the 1920s to the 1940s, but fallen on bad times in the 1950s and 60s until the death of its previous owner in 1999, after which it was in a legal quagmire for a while until eventually going on the market for that low price - which Lisa took advantage of. The building had great potential, although at present only the lower 2 of its 8 floors were legally habitable (although squatters, human and vermin, frequented the other floors) as well as the bar on the ground floor. Lisa intended to renovate them as condominiums, knowing that it would prosper, but pressure from the Board prevented her being able to renovate. Legal problems from The Board's influence in City Hall caused various legal delays, as well as their influence in construction causing botched asbestos removal, and other problems. For every two steps forward she took, The Board pushed her one back (and occasionally, one more). Although she managed to convert the bottom two floors into basic, condominiums for rental, the delays and legal battles whittled away most of her income, savings and forcing her to sell some remaining investments and constantly having to spend time regaining finances lost to each consecutive problem The Board threw her way. But still, she was defiant and, slowly, her untouchable finances (and contacts) grew - though it would be decades at least before she could get enough financial clout to be able to properly win all the legal battles thrown her way and employ outside contractors to be able to properly renovate the Padre Hotel. Until then, Lisa eked a living and survived using her lower two floors, with the third and higher floors effectively slums used by squatters and the odd minor gang or drug addicts. The situation could have gotten worse, but the Hotel's reputation of being haunted possibly helped keep away even worse elements that may have been harder to eventually dislodge.
A Powerful Patronage
Although Lisa is proud of her personal achievements and despises the mentality that women can only succeed in the shadow of men they were romantically involved with, the irony is that the situation would persist until she ended up romantically involved with a new resident, a charming, friendly tattoo artist and neonate Toreador who was more articulate and intelligent than his background or occupation would indicate. Morally low, Lisa was vulnerable to the attention and charm of another intelligent, articulate kindred who showed only kindness and respect for her, instead of avoidance or derision like most, and their love affair ended with her becoming blood bonded to him. Time would reveal the neonate to in fact be the Senya Primogen Braxton Donahoe in one of his various aliases, undertaking Anarch-Sabbat related investigations - and Lisa was... an unexpected distraction. Although Braxton would soon return to his long-time paramour after she got tired of his indiscretion and seduced him back via their mutual blood bond, a bond of respect had formed between Lisa and Braxton, and he was suddenly known as her "Sugar Daddy." Although Lisa resented the term, or the implication that her success was only due to him, she found that under Braxton's patronage (perceived or otherwise) the Board suddenly backed off. Causing issues for a nobody neonate mostly for entertainment was one thing, but causing them to a powerful Primogen they traded with and could bring a powerful clan's resources to bear against them, was quite another. The fun was over. At least, sufficiently for Lisa to finally have a level playing field.
Without active interference from The Board, she soon recovered financially - often by working for Braxton as a financial consultant, helping him make a nice sum by investing in the stock market and helping him acquire ailing hotels to re-open as a chain of "Emerald Inn" hotels around Ashford, and reinvesting finances gained from her commission on the stock market. In time, she was able to resolve all the legal issues and obtain all the permits she needed to restart renovation. When she was financially sound enough, Lisa's trading company Polarine Enterprises LLC made a business agreement with the Donahoe Group of Companies to form the Padre Brothers LP with Lisa as the majority owner, and Braxton as a [mostly] silent partner, with the aim of renovating the Padre back into a luxury hotel - something that interested Braxton and both knew was lacking in Ashford. Braxton's capital investment and Lisa's own assets allowed Padre Brothers to begin the renovations of the hotel, along with successfully looking to the City of Ashford to treat the Padre Hotel as a historic site and secure a $1.8 million federal loan to help finish renovations. In February 2010, the Padre Hotel reopened as an 8-storey boutique hotel with 112 rooms and suites, and various restaurants and dining facilities including the Farmacy café, Prospect nightclub lounge, Belvedere upscale dining room, Prairie Fire outdoor lounge, and Brimstone tavern; as well as various conference facilities for businesses - which are often used by the Donahoe Group of Companies and their subsidiaries. The renovated Padre Hotel quickly received a 4-diamond AAA rating, the only hotel in Ashford to achieve this and the Padre Hotel, and Lisa, have prospered since then - much to the chagrin of The Board.
The Sabbat Crusade
Lisa is one of the few Ventrue to have actually technically prospered due to the 2016 Sabbat Crusade. As a non-peer, she was not considered important as a strategic target for the Sabbat who, in fact, made an attempt to recruit her by playing on her issues with the Board. During the Crusade Lisa hired extra security for the Padre Hotel (from Braxton's private security group, meaning she effectively had trained mercs guarding the hotel) and essentially boarded herself up there. However, she also gave sanctuary to various Anarch and Camarilla neonates (and an ancilla or two) during the Crusade and the Padre Hotel hosted the conference that led to the formation of Ashford's new Council of Primogen. In acknowledgement of her proven loyalty to the city and its kindred, the new Prince has recently named her as the city's new Herald. A move that has greatly displeased the remaining members of the traditional Board, although they remain silent as, officially, a Ventrue is the Herald and thus of benefit to the Clan. Most of the new Board members are fairly neutral towards Lisa, with some even seemingly attempting to build bridges. The question, however, is whether Lisa will be interested in crossing that Bridge now that she no longer needs it.
Mortal Society
Lisa is known as a talented and successful financial wizard who has gone from virtual poverty to being wealthy in a little over a decade. She trades under her registered business of Plarine Enterprises LLC, which is co-owner and senior partner of Padre Brothers LP. Although much of her wealth is invested in the Padre Hotel, which has also been her recognised Domain since 2017, she has substantial other assets, stocks and investments, which are gaining momentum.
The Sabbat Crusade left The Board weakened and the pro-Anarch Brujah Thomas Wingfield as the Prince, which weakens them further as there is a traditional rivalry between the Ventrue and Brujah clans (and Prince Wingfield is one of those scholarly Brujah Idealists elders who will "Remember Carthage"). During the latter days of Prince Kratus' reign, Lisa's dilapidated hotel was a prime location for Anarchs to hide as it had 120 or so rooms, and many squatters - making it easy to hide a few Anarchs and hard for anything but a large force doing a floor-by-floor search to uncover them, which could endanger the Masquerade by drawing too much kine attention. Lisa did what she could to help hide and aid Anarchs in hiding, and give them warning whenever the Sheriff or Scourge did a sweep. As the now-Prince led a double-life as both the Brujah Primogen, and one of the leaders of the Anarchs in Ashford, Lisa inevitably dealt with him on many occasions - although always in his Anarch leader guise. But through their interaction, Prince Wingfield came to respect the brave young neonate's intelligence and determination and impressed by how quickly she remade her fortune once the Ventrue clan backed off. As such, after he became Prince, and no longer having to worry about the repercussions of angering The Board, of which he claimed no knowledge (or as some claim, specifically to anger them, fully aware of their secret-society-like hierarchy but new lack of power), he invited Lisa to become an adjunct faculty member at California State University-Ashford, which was his personal domain. She is now a professor in the Department of Economics, under which Lisa now does twice-weekly classes in Economics and Political Economy, modules proving to be both popular with students as well as successful. Prince Wingfield also granted recognition of the Padre Hotel as Lisa's personal Domain, a move which also angered some members of The Board as it gave a non-peer Ventrue a larger and more prestigious domain than many of their peers. As a domain, it now gave Lisa some protection under the second and fifth Traditions, which limited what actions The Board could take that affected or interfered with another kindred's recognised domain.
The Padre Hotel
History
Possibly Ashford's most iconic building, the Spanish Colonial revival Padre Hotel was originally built in 1928 with chic lodgings and public parking spaces offering a gussied-up tribute to Ashford's past, starting with the lobby's 15-ft high mural of a well-coiffed cowgirl, colourful farm animals and wall adornments of cowboy hats, farm implements and oil derricks, gargoyles protruding from the exterior, and their famous twin neon signs on the roof.
The hotel was highly successful from the 1920s to the end of the 1940s, but the 1950s took a tragic turn. A fire on the 7th floor in 1952 resulted in the death of a family in room 704, which included several children. An Earthquake later the same year also resulted in more deaths as several people were trapped in the basement, which included more children. Because the original owners were rumoured to have run a Speakeasy and had mob connections, it is believed that several murders occurred on the premises. Perhaps because of this past, the hotel is an apparent magnet for suicides, renown for the many suicides over the years from the rooftop terrace, or higher-floor windows such as a cowboy who allegedly jumped to his death from an upper-floor room window. This past has led to the local belief that the hotel is haunted, especially the seventh floor. Even during it's worst era, the seventh floor was notably devoid of squatters or vermin. Renovators reported needed tools going missing and dark shadows floating in the hallway. Guests of the hotel have reported sounds of spurs, and one claimed to awaken to this sound to see a translucent cowboy leaning over him and stroking his face, who then jumped out the window when the guest reacted in alarm - but no body was found. Guests on the 7th floor frequently report the sounds of children laughing, running, singing and playing in the corridors and rooms - one woman even reported feeling a little body jump on the bed and a cold hand stroke her hair and forehead, terrifying her into fleeing the room. In room 704 guests frequently report things being moved, curtains shuffled, lights turned on and similar; a female guest once reported a rustling noise whenever she entered her room and, when she went to bed, looked up to see a sinister-looking face peering down at her from the roof, smiling crookedly as it bore into her soul with pitch-black eyes. This reputation has led to mediums, "ghost hunters" and others with interest in such phenomena to frequent the Padre Hotel, both during its dilapidated years and, especially, since its reopening.
Despite the early tragedies of the 1950s, the hotel really fell into disrepair in the late 1950s and 1960s under the ownership of Milton "Spartacus" Miller who bought it along with business associates in 1954. Rumoured to be connected to the Chicago Mob, Miller was a character with a chip against authority and refused to bring the hotel up to fire code standards demanded by City Hall, instead of erecting a 30-foot-tall sign with the words "Alamo Tombstone" above the hotel in protest. This refusal began a 45-year war with City Hall that lasted until his death in 1999. In a constant series of legal and well-publicised battles over a myriad of issues, Miller's antics were renown such as letting flocks of turkeys loose in City Council chambers and baking tombstone-shaped cookies for council members. But in 1966 the city shut down the third through eighth floors of the hotel to overnight visitors after Miller lost the legal battle over the fire safety issues. Over the years, the hotel deteriorated and squatters, transients, drug addicts and vermin began moving into the closed floors, and even the floors that were open began to fall into disrepair.
After Miller's death, there was a legal battle over ownership of the Padre Hotel between Lora Miller (his wife, who he married at his deathbed) and his two nephews, which was eventually settled in 2001, following which they placed it on the market and Lisa took advantage to purchase it for $1 million under the trading name of Polarine Enterprises LLC, finalizing the sale in 2002. Years of failed attempts to renovate as condominiums followed due to legal battles with the city and construction delays and issues, until Polarine Enterprises LLC and the Donahoe Group of Companies formed a partnership in 2008, forming the Padre Partners LP with Polarine Enterprises LLC the controlling partner, and began refurbishment along with an $18 million federal loan acquired from the city. The Padre Hotel reopened in 2010 as a sophisticated, 8-storey Boutique Hotel.
Facilities
The Padre Hotel currently boasts:
- The only 4-diamond AAA-rated hotel in Ashford.
- 112 rooms & suites: luxury rooms averaging:
- 32-60" flatscreen tv, free wifi & cable high-speed internet, safe, coffee machine & refrigerator.
- Lavishly decked out with chic furniture, leather-headboard beds with memory-foam mattresses, and sleek, glassed-in showers.
- The suites are far more spacious and additionally have a waterfall jacuzzi & separate living room.
- Room prices vary from $225 for standard guest rooms to $400+, although rooms on the seventh floor are discounted by $100 comparative to the same rooms on other floors.
- Several Dining areas: Dining areas usable by guests or non-guests of the hotel, with discounts, benefits and incentives for guest usage
- Prairie Fire Patio: Outdoor bar and cabana (second-floor rooftop)
- Belvedere Room: Stately 120-seat fine dining restaurant (inside ground floor)
- Brimstone Bar: 1927 saloon-style bar & grill (corner ground floor)
- Prospect Lounge: Speakeasy-style boutique bar (corner ground floor)
- Farmacy Café: Sandwiches, Salads, Pastries, & Coffee (corner ground floor)
- Event/Corporate areas: In addition to the Belvedere Room, the Padre Hotel has a few smaller rooms for weddings and large, special or executive dining and events (all on the second floor)
- The Board Room - 10 executive seats, private bar + flat screen
- The Stampede Room - 80 seats, full bar & meals + multimedia
- The Fox Room - 35-seat executive retreat. Can provide dining.
- The Fireside Room - 25-seat room. Can provide dining.
- The Fitness Studio - Daily Spa services and a guest-only 24-hour exercise room (second floor)
- Rooftop terrace with a spectacular view
- Air Conditioning: All rooms, suites, dining areas, event rooms, lobby and other public areas have air conditioning.
- Public parking (valet only, $10/day surcharge) & airport/area transportation (10 miles)
- Discounts on all prices for registered AAA members, large groups and select other organisations.
- Pet friendly ($50/pet surcharge; plus owners are liable for any damages caused by pets)
- 24-hour front desk, concierge and business centre
- Located in the heart of Old Downtown, overlooking the historic and famous Fox Theatre, and only 300 yards from City Hall.
The Prospect Lounge, Farmacy Café and Brimstone Bar are on the ground floor and form the hotel's corners, making them directly accessible to non-guest clients via the streets, or hotel guests via the hotel lobby. All the other dining areas and event rooms can be accessed via the hotel's lobby, with the event rooms and Prairie Fire lounge being accessible via the large, elegant staircase in the lobby.
- GM Note: most of the hotel's history and believed supernatural phenomena is real. The Padre Hotel exists in modern Bakersfield and its history repurposed for the game, with Lisa acquiring it under her company name, and Padre Partners LP changed to be a local company ran by Lisa and Braxton, rather than the real-world existing company of the same name, based in San Diego, which owns the real hotel. The hotel's dark history and believed haunting are likewise also adapted for use.
Personality
Although the term was not comon during her early youth, Lisa admits to being what these days is referred to as a Nerd. All her life she was highly focused on intellectual pursuits over social activities. Although she participated in surfing, karate and other sports and led an active lifestyle, mathematics, books, puzzles and intellectual pursuits were her main passions. She loves computers and technology, although doesn't really understand them very well beyond using the Internet and various productivity software common to businesses and economists, and admits that had she been born in a later age she may well have also become a geek and gone into computer science or electronics as a career. She occasionally jokes that perhaps she may pursue that as a third PhD. Although she is neither shy, not an introvert, and quite likes people (in a general sense) as well as pleasing company and social occasions, she admits to being a little socially inept - one of the reasons why she kept failing her sire's "tests." She is certainly capable of comporting herself adequately and most would think her social ability, etiquette and such to be of a high standard, but the exacting Ventrue (and many Toreadors) would refute that. Lisa tends to speak her mind, plainly and directly. She prides herself in being a straightforward, uncomplicated person with a strong moral and ethical code, comfortable with open plans and plain talking, and disapproving of underhanded tactics, lying and subterfuge, although she is neither naive nor foolish. Unfortunately, in kindred society - especially that of the Ventrue, Toreadors and those who frequent the halls of Elysium, this does make her seem like a simpleton.
She thinks it is a tragedy that the Ventrue took one naive mistake to wage a three-decade crusade against her out of spite as she feels she would have brought a lot to the clan, and vice-versa. But she is headstrong, and when the Crusade ended and The Board offered her the opportunity to formally apologise for her error, be forgiven, and be granted peerage, she instead pointed out that they were only making the offer because they had lost much of their power and now needed her more than she needed them, and that it was they who owed her the apology - and their actions were now their loss, and the Anarch Movement's gain. Just as The Board once saw keeping her struggling to be entertaining, she now finds their weakened state equally entertaining - and the race to fill the vacuums caused by the Crusade is officially on. Although this has only resulted in the continuing enmity of those loyal to The Board, it has garnered her more reputation amongst the Anarchs and traditional rivals of the Ventrue. She feels that if she could survive her entire first few kindred decades alone fighting The Board at it's strongest, that she is going to be able to continue to do so now that the board is weakened and she and Ashford's Anarchs are at an all-time high. The irony is that whilst The Board tried to break her for their amusement and spite, they instead turned her into a strong-willed and capable kindred, wiser and powerful beyond her years molded by decades of constant adversity from more experienced and powerful kindred.
Pride aside, Lisa is actually quite friendly - though this might not be apparent to the casual onlooker as she has a sharp wit, a fondness for subtle sarcasm, and is fond of berating others in a well-meaning way which, with her often-deadpan demeanour, can actually come across as stand-offish or rude. The fact that she is quick to point out flaws and errors made by others can make it hard to distinguish if she is being deliberately obtuse or friendly. She isn't particularly good at being able to read other's emotions or motivations, especially being so direct and forward, that she is quite likely to miss innuendos and subtle clues unless pointed out to her. Though some have wondered if she may be on the autism spectrum (which, she admits, may actually be possible but doesn't feel a need to be tested), she attributes her directness and forwardness to her being raised in Japan and being raised a nerd and Tomboy with two brothers. Those who can endure her apparent arrogance and take the time to know her usually find her to be a caring, thoughtful, witty and loyal friend and ally who loves academia, anything maths-related and more resourceful than would be expected for a neonate.
Other Notes
Some kindred have noticed that, on occasion, Sarah's hair has been a little longer than usual. Most would simply dismiss this as natural for kindred - many Ventrue and Toreadors were groomed or allowed to let their hair grow before being Embraced to give the most options to their appearance post-Embrace, and have personal or on-call hairdressers who style their hair nightly after it has returned to its tabula rasa state during the daysleep. Many kindred have even learned how to prevent modifications from reverting until they will it. As such most assume her hair was longer during the Embrace and she cuts it shorter whenever going out in public.
But some well-informed and discerning kindred have seen photographs of Lisa taken around the time of her Embrace, and have done the proverbial maths. Whilst kindred can learn to prevent the reversion of cut hair to their natural, longer form, kindred cannot actually lengthen their hair beyond what it was at the time of the Embrace - and Lisa's hair has been seen often longer than possible for the time of her Embrace. This leads those who are bored to speculate on the possibilities, leading to a few theories, most involving her connection with Braxton Donahoe:
- The prevailing theory: Braxton may have used his clan discipline of Apparitionem to lengthen her hair permanently, and she cuts it nightly as do other kindred.
- The secret relationship: it is quite well known by many kindred that Braxton and Lisa were lovers for a while, and are now business partners. Many believe Braxton simply lengthens and shortens her hair seasonally or when asked. As most Senya tend to seek boons or charge for this service to other Kindred, the question becomes if he does it as a business arrangement/charges, or as a favour. Since no kindred in their right mind, even a naive neonate, would rack up many minor boons from an Elder for something so frivolous, the frequency by which this occurs would imply that perhaps their relationship may once-again be closer than either admits.
- The Apparitionem Conspiracy: Another theory is that Braxton actually taught Lisa at least some level of his Clan's signature discipline, and that Lisa therefore does her own changes. This argument is hotly denied by members of the Clan, who are famous for refusing to teach outsiders their Clan discipline - taking it as seriously as the Tremere do one of their own teaching Thaumaturgy to non-Tremere. Proponents of this theory point out that Lisa was blood bound to Braxton for a time, and so perhaps she simply self-taught herself the basics, made possible because of his powerful elder blood and the bond.
- The Vicissitude Conspiracy: Some believe that Lisa isn't simply an Anarch - that she's secretly a Sabbat spy. Perhaps the original Lisa was killed and replaced with a doppelganger (a common Sabbat tactic) and that, even though the Crusade was lost, she is still in place as a spy. Or that in her struggle against the Ventrue she was turned by the Sabbat, who broke her bond with Braxton via their vile Vaulderie practice, and she has caught the "Vicissitude disease" or been taught it somehow as a result. Others point out that if she were a Sabbat spy she would be trying to ingratiate herself with the Ventrue, not openly defy them - but some still persist that she is a spy sent to find weaknesses in the Camarilla or Anarchs, or an an agent provocateur pitting the Anarchs and Camarilla against each other to weaken both factions.
- The Not-Lisa Conspiracy: Similar to some of the Vicissitude Conspiracy theories, some believe Lisa is not actually Lisa. Senya kindred are well known for having multiple identities and sleepers that masquerade as members of other Clans so as to infiltrate and spy on them (though the Clan, of course, denies doing this any more since they joined the Camarilla) - Braxton himself masqueraded principally as a Ventrue for centuries before the end of the Great Deception. Some believe Lisa is secretly a Senya in disguise. Perhaps her sire was actually secretly a Senya too? The most outlandish of the theories even go so far as to believe that Braxton's long-time lover, Clarissa Jade, was not actually killed in the Opera House Massacre as is claimed, and instead faked her death and is secretly Lisa. This would explain, they claim, why Braxton had a love affair with Lisa, despite being blood-bonded to Jade - it was simply the two continuing their relationship in their alternate personas, but after the secret of "Braxton's affair" got outed they simply carried on the deception. The possible reason for this: it was of interest to Braxton (and his clan) to keep the Ventrue somewhat occupied using their resources to keep "Lisa" struggling - both occupying their attention away from Braxton's own machinations, and exposing what influences the Ventrue have on mortal institutions so that Braxton knows best how to usurp or circumvent them. When asked about this theory, Senya (especially the "Children of the Dark" faction) often simply shrug and say "well... it's possible. It IS the kind of thing he'd do..."
Combat Style
Lisa tries to avoid combat, as do most non-militant kindred of the Ventrue, Toreador and Tremere clans. Not being a Brujah or Gangrel, and a neonate, the expectations of her combat prowess is usually a low bar. Whilst generally true from a kindred perspective (especially Brujah or Gangrels), Lisa is not the liability many would expect from a blue-blood.
Lisa learnt karate from almost as soon as she could walk until she finished University, achieving her black belt when she was 14. Between this and regular surfing, gym exercising and similar, she entered unlife in excellent physical shape. This means that, although she lacks real-world combat experience (other than the occasional fight), she is well-trained and more than capable of handling herself against kine threats. When her physicality is combined with apparently-reasonable levels of her clan's Fortitude Discipline and her demonstrated low-level Celerity, she is a well-trained, fairly quick, and highly-enduring martial artist.
Other than her fists (and feet), she has learnt how to use some weapons associated with karate training (kendo and kobujutsu), though this training is minimal - having stopped learning them after leaving Japan and never really gotten around to picking it back up (partly to lack of availability of tutors in America during her high school and university years, and partly due to a lack of time and interest) although, now that her life is finally stable with the Ventrue forced to back off their oppression, some have noted that in the wake of the Sabbat Crusade Lisa appears to be taking physical training more seriously and has been training with Maxim Lundgren in his Ashford Budo dojo, so her ability with weapons may soon increase. For now, however, it is extremely rare to see Lisa carry or employ any melee weapons unless the situation demands it and there is something on-hand (typically improvised) that she can employ.
As she was raised on a USAF base by a military father, it is little surprise that in addition to forcing her to learn Karate, Lisa's stepfather taught her how to use and maintain firearms. Although she didn't touch another firearm for decades after her mother divorced him, she began carrying a firearm again after her Embrace during the time that she ran the Padre Hotel as a condominium, to protect her from Ventrue-provoked threats, as well as natural kine risks. She isn't a very experienced shot but has good natural hand-eye coordination and, like Karate, has been seen since the Sabbat Crusade occasionally going to the gun range and practicing. It is common to see her take her HK pistol with her, typically in a purse or pocket, as it is small enough to be easily concealable.
Overall, Lisa is of limited help in a fight but can give limited fire support and is capable of defending herself in melee against low-mid level threats due to her skill and durability - but a serious threat such as a reasonably powerful Brujah, Gangrel, or a common Lupine would be a grave threat to her.
Social Style
Lisa has a very honest and straightforward personality. Naturally friendly and nearly a decade's worth of Dignitas training ramed into her, she is easy to converse with - almost always impeccably polite, respectful, civil and friendly, unless she is upset, in which case her smile turns to a scowl and her underlying true nature comes to the fore. Lisa hates deception, manipulation and underhanded tactics - although she has had to learn to be manipulative and employ subterfuge to survive, resist kine problems thrown her way by the Ventrue clan, preserve the Masquerade, hunt, and grow her power and influences as all kindred do. It is unsurprising then to find that she prefers similarly-minded company. She isn't naive, but she is inexperienced in kindred politics and self-admittedly not very socially aware, which means crafty kindred will probably be successful in manipulating her - but this will quickly earn her enmity (and quite possibly, a literal punch in the face). She is so used to the Ventrue throwing trouble her way (typically from kine institutions, dominated/entranced kine or other indirect means) that she has a natural disposition to a healthy level of paranoia and distrust. Getting polite conversation or dealing with her is quite easy - getting her actual trust is a slow process that usually requires proving through actions (many, many times) rather than words or promises. Even though she has a good business relationship with Braxton she still believes that, ultimately, he was an elder who knew he could not get bound to her, pretending to get mutually bound to her and bonding her to him - not accepting that he was preserving his cover identity as an excuse. Although his benevolent regnancy, patronage and allowing the bond to naturally dissipate reduced the sting and animosity she held towards him over the incident for a while (even as she benefitted from his patronage), she has never forgotten the simple fact that she was naive enough to trust another and, as a result, for a time she was in blood thrall to another.
As such, trust is very hard for her and she is naturally defensive, so patience is required for kindred who want to gain her long-term trust and get close to her and, in the short term, plain-speaking and honest-dealing with her are the best ways to get respectful, civil and beneficial relations. She prefers to be told that something is a bad deal, but it is what it is, than someone attempt to convince her that it's actually a good deal for her. She understands economics of supply and demand, and knows that good and bad deals are relative to need and provision - this she can deal with. Underhanded methods, she deals with badly.
Signature Equipment
- Smart suit.
- HK P2000 SK subcompact pistol (.40 S&W)
- 2018 INFINITI Q50 3.0T AWD Luxe.
Signature Quotes
- "Unless there's a rally in the next 90 minutes, The Dow's gonna close down about 2.5%, S&P and NASDAQ will close down 2.3%. Let me tell you why."
- "I'm socially inept, but even I know that."
- "The greater fool is someone with the perfect blend of self-delusion and ego to think he can succeed where others have failed. This whole town was made by greater fools."
- "I fought The Board and... I won"
- "I remember my first tube. I took off on a wave, went down the side, popped out the other end, and went, shit, I’m still alive!"