Grendel History
Part 1: Hunter Rose
THE PRODIGY
Somewhere in the latter part of the twentieth century, in an ordinary midwestern
town, to a pair of very ordinary parents, there was born an extra-extraordinary child
whose true name is known to us now only as Eddie. A genius of immeasurable
depth, Eddie excelled at his every form of endeavor. At the tender age of four, he
had memorized his own local phone book as well as that of the surrounding
half-dozen counties. By six he could quote any line of Shakespeare, and by eight he
had written over a dozen plays and fifty short stories, and was working on drafts
for several different (apparently unfinished) novels at once.
Unfortunately for both Eddie and the world, neither his parents nor his pedestrian
teachers took much notice of his young achievements, and so the lad was nurtured
solely on boredom. Initially Eddie found release from his frustrations in the world
of competitive sports, but here, too, he overachieved and soon found himself
competing at an international level on the fencing strip. True to form, Eddie took
his zeal to the tournament finals, only to secretly throw the match in an agonizing
denial of how very easy it all had been. It was at this point that Eddie met the
woman who would be the most influential person in his young and tragically brutal
life.
Jocasta Rose was a trainer for the British fencing team; she found herself fascinated
with the daring young prodigy who, she was sure, had just deliberately relinquished
his claim to the world championship. A hot-blooded iconoclast herself, Jackie
confronted Eddie after the match and swept him off his tired and lonely feet into a
world of glorious sensation and romance. Over the space of the next year- which
would prove to be the rest of Jocasta Rose's life - she and Eddie never parted
company again. A terminal illness killed her less than thirteen months after they first
met.
THE ASSASSIN
The death of his lover devastated the young genius, but her fiery spirit lingered in
his soul, her will to fight and achieve was twisted by twisted his grief into a
monstrous and insatiable ideal. Returning incognito to the States, he adopted the
name of Hunter Rose and soon wrote several best sellers, taking the literary world
by storm at the age of seventeen. But, still, there remained an empty fury in Hunter
Rose's heart. The need to achieve became the lust to control, and so another alias
to an already fractured personality was born. The crime families of Manhattan were
soon confronted with a presence even deadlier and more ,heartless than their own.
The name of the masked assassin Grendel was spoken only in whispers, and many
a seasoned killer prayed to avoid running afoul of whoever held Grendel's
contractual reins of the moment. In less than two years, Grendel had moved into a
position of power over one of the major families, and he soon consolidated his
realm to include most of the criminal activities within the entire metropolitan area.
Once again, he had won easily over seemingly insurmountable odds. But where was
the challenge that would unseat him, the battle he could never win, the heart of fire
that would rival his own?
THE CHILD AND THE WOLF
In fact, it was early in his nefarious career that Grendel first encountered the two
lives that would ultimately prove to be the undoing of his own. The adopted niece
of a crooked real-estate mogul, Stacy Palumbo captured what little empathy still
existed in Hunter Rose's icy heart by her unnatural resemblance to his first love.
Following the death of her uncle at Grendel's hand, Stacy came to live with Hunter
as his legal ward. Ironically, the only other friend to this lonely child was Grendel's
greatest enemy, Argent, the mysterious wolf. In Stacy, Hunter saw the potential
and innocence that might have been his own lot, and, in Argent, he found the fury
and power that were indeed his fate. This pathetic triangle was destined for tragedy,
of course, and Stacy's discovery of her mentor's true identity precipitated the
climax. Grendel and Argent met in a final, ferocious battle that left the wolf broken
and withdrawn, and proved to be the ultimate doom for the man the world had
known as Hunter Rose.
THE LEGACY
Stacy Palumbo spent the rest of her days in an institution. She was briefly released
around the age of twenty-five to marry her analyst, but, here again, tragedy clouded
her young, hopeless life. The wedding night became a rape/suicide, the result of
which was the birth of Stacy's only daughter, Christine, who was soon given up for
adoption. Following this, the tortured stepdaughter of Grendel lapsed into a stupor
that lasted the rest of her days. Christine would never know her real mother until,
years later, she interviewed Stacy for a book she was writing on the life of Grendel:
Devil by the Deed.
The Wolf went into seclusion and was rarely seen in public again.
Part 2: Christine Spar
A MOTHER IN PAIN
The daughter of Hunter Rose's adopted ward Stacy, Christine Powell spent her
entire life trying to shake off the ugly vestiges of a legacy she never really knew.
Even the untimely death of her husband, war correspondent Peter Spar, served
only to remind her of the bloody heritage thrust upon her not only by the world at
large but, indeed, by her very lineage. Finally, Christine decided to exorcise these
inner demons by undertaking an in-depth examination of the man whom her mother
had actually succeeded in killing. This investigation served instead to awaken in her
an even deeper fascination for the man known as Grendel, and the result was the
now infamous book Devil by the Deed. It was shortly after the advent of her
newfound notoriety as an author that Christine and her young son Anson attended a
kabuki theater performance at Radio City Music Hall. At first, Christine found
herself entranced with the star dancer, Tujiro XIV, but in a subsequent backstage
meeting she was soon repulsed by his boldly lascivious manner. As she tucked
Anson into bed later that night, little did Christine suspect that this would be the last
time she would ever see her only son alive.
A NIGHTMARE IN DISGUISE
When police investigations yielded nothing on Anson's disappearance, Christine
took up the chase herself and soon made a startling discovery: a trail of
disappearances, all of young boys and all coinciding with the nationwide tour
schedule of Tujiro's kabuki troupe. Grief-stricken, but focused with a cold and
unreasoning hatred, Christine set about the task either of rescuing or of revenging
her missing child. Knowing this would take her into a realm outside the law,
Christine resolved to disguise herself behind a persona that literally embodied the
contemptuous emotions in which she was slowly drowning. Stealing the original
mask and fork of Hunter Rose, she set off for the west coast�and the spirit of
Grendel was thus born again. In San Francisco, she eventually caught up with the
traveling show and began a cover espionage of her suspect, which soon revealed
even more shocking facts. Tujiro was, in fact, a vampire who not only displayed a
marked taste for young boys but also doubled as the head of an international
slavery ring. It was here that Christine Spar's trail of vengeance hit an unexpected
snag. Throughout her intricate hunt for the monster, Tujiro, she had, found herself
becoming involved with the stage manager of the kabuki theater's latest venue,
Brian Li Sung. When Christine discovered that Tujiro intended to kidnap Brian to
serve as the latest slave in his insidious schemes, her rage finally exploded and the
stage was set for the final confrontation.
After a fierce and bloody battle that failed to bag her intended prey but did succeed
in breaking the vampire's ring of power, Christine was forced to flee both the city
on the bay and the gentle young man she had so quickly come to love.
A MONSTER IN HIDING
Although she did her best to leave both the persona and her actions as Grendel
behind, Christine soon found herself swept along in the hatred and fear that had
marked the life of her predecessor. Back in New York, she was immediately
hounded by both the police and Grendel's original nemesis, Argent the wolf. When
Brian Li Sung followed her back to the east coast, he soon fell victim to this police
brutality, and Christine finally gave herself over to the overwhelming anger of
Grendel. In a battle that seemed written by the cruel hand of destiny, she finally
met her end at the hands of the vicious Argent, but not before she succeeded in
killing the monstrous wolf as well. The legacy of Grendel, it seems, had at last seen
its end. or had it?
Part 3: Brian Li Sung
INNOCENCE ADRIFT
The death of Christine Spar left another, all-but-unnoticed casualty in its bloody
wake�the bruised and tortured spirit of her young lover, Brian. Firm in his blind
ambition to steer Chris from her seemingly fated path, Brian had no idea how this
vortex of violence would eventually prove too much for his own fragile soul as well.
His tragic catharsis first began at the very moment of Christine's death as Grendel.
It was only later that Brian began to realize the full extent of her isolated madness, a
lonely certainty that she passed onto him in the form of Grendel's logs. These
copious journals, which included not only those volumes stolen by her mother,
Stacy, from the original fiend, Hunter Rose, but also Christine's own account of her
life as Grendel, were secretly buried by their jealous owner in the unmarked wilds
of Central Park. Nestled under the pillows of the same bed in which he and Chris
had shared their last moments together, Brian discovered both a map and the key to
this strongbox containing the festering memoirs of demons. Unable to leave these
infamous relics behind, Brian was also quite sure the encroaching eyes of the police
would never allow him to smuggle the journals out of New York either. He soon
found himself taking a low-paying job off-Broadway as well as making do with
dreadful living conditions, all to ensure that he might spend his evenings slowly
drowning in the lives of two people possessed by violence.
SUBSISTENT RAGE
Lost not only in the past, but also in the harsh, day-to-day existence of New York,
Brian soon found himself victim to all the pent-up anger and frustration revealed in
the pages of his newly sacred texts. A recovered alcoholic, Brian desperately began
drinking again. He experienced memory losses as well as outbursts of temper and
even started keeping secret journals himself. Eventually, he became convinced he
had actually encountered Christine's ghost in the seedy confines of the theater he
managed. In an effort to once again call forth his lover's spirit, he finally donned a
crude Grendel mask which he had fashioned to act as a talisman. Although the
apparition never materialized, its presence was felt when Brian, still masked,
viciously battered a security guard who had interrupted the ritual. Although
outwardly sickened by this startling change in his demeanor, internally Brian
continued to nurture his growing rage.The evolution of Brian's violence finally
peaked with the killing of a would-be assailant in Central Park. In his obsessive zeal
to know and understand Grendel he had in fact become the fiend. continually
hounded by the flamboyant Captain Wiggins of the New York Police, Brian then
began to perceive his condition as an actual possession. The spirit of Grendel had
somehow burrowed its way into his soul and there it gestated, a diabolic
consciousness that cared naught for anyone, most especially the hapless host body
it so viciously toyed with.
TERMINAL EVICTION
The final stage in Brian's madness came when his delusions focused on the person
of Captain Wiggins. Convinced that Wiggins was keen to the truth of his masked
excursions, "Grendel" next decided to stalk and eliminate the troublesome cop. Here
Brian's tragic downslide reached its conclusion, but not without a final moment of
redemption. Bound by the demon's desires to hunt down his persecutor, Brian
nevertheless strove to break what he saw as Grendel's control over his body and
mind. Unable to resist, he trailed the detective over the course of an evening until
his path eventually led to Central Park and the site of Brian's one and only act of
murder. In these last moments of confrontation, Brian fought an internal battle for
the sake of his very soul. His defiance finally triumphed, as Brian barely managed
to stay his own attack by a crucial fraction of a second, all the time necessary for
Captain Wiggins to turn and shot this latest Grendel dead.
Part 4: The Incubation Years
A PERSONAL NIGHTMARE
With the death of Brian Li Sung, the force he had perceived as a conscious,
aggressive entity went into an extended period of apparent remission. It was to be
almost five hundred years before another singular incarnation of Grendel would
walk the earth again. This is not to say that Grendel had no effect during this time.
Far from it. In fact, human civilization continued to feel the weight of Grendel's
rage -- but in a far more subtle and, in the long run, insidious manner.
As the one surviving person to have been directly involved with the succession of
criminals known as Grendel, Captain Albert Wiggins suddenly found himself having
an unexpected celebrity status. Eventually, he left COP (Confederacy of Police) to
retire in the tropics and spin out a series of best-selling tales about Hunter Rose, the
only Grendel Wiggins had never actually met. With this success came all the
trappings of luxury as well as all the pressures of wealth. It was later in life and new
career that Albert Wiggins finally began to go mad. Spurred on by an apparent
malfunction in his prosthetic eye, Wiggins began seeing the world around him as
distorted and grotesque. Fans, publishers, agents, even his doctor took on a hideous
demeanor behind the waves of Wiggins' dementia. Finally, his sense of reality lost,
Wiggins succumbed to his own inner rage and stabbed his nagging young wife to
death. Grendel, it seemed, had managed to strike again.
A CORPORATE WEAPON
A century passed before the presence of Grendel would be so directly felt again. In
that time, the power of civil government had dwindled. Mega-corporations now
controlled most everything, and the biggest of these was Omni Broadcasting and
Entertainment Systems (OBES). At the head of the board of directors sat Charles
Dore', a rather complacent executive who nonetheless saw Omni's bevy of Grendel
entertainment products as an effective tool for spreading into an even wider world
market. At the opposing end of Omni's management sat Harold White. While
Charles Dore' strove for constant expansion, Harold's schemes were entirely
directed towards eliminating competition. Harold deemed the world's civil
governments to be both obsolete and deserving of nothing less than absolute
destruction. In the end, this doubled-edged greed led from mistrust to
misconception to tragic global mishap. The result was the world's first extended
nuclear conflict, the near eradication of the mideastern OPEC nations, and the total
contamination of a major portion of the world's crude oil supply. From within the
very core of the system itself, Grendel had struck again.
A RITUAL PENANCE
The resulting social upheaval caused by this environmental tragedy affected life on
earth as had no other event in over a millennium. the world's major power supply
had been severely crippled, and, finally, the people of earth were forced to adopt
alternative sources of energy. Many methods were developed but none more
successfully than solar power. In a world now even more dependent on the sun, life
in the uppermost northern hemisphere soon became undesirable. In a mass exodus
unlike anything seen before or since, the world populace began slowly to situate
itself closer to the equator. In America, the United States now became the United
Californian Systems of America, and the already crumbling east-coast megapolis
soon became an immense ghost town of concrete and steel. A few savage
tribes/gangs continued to linger in the ruins, constantly fighting amongst themselves
for control of the few oil storage tanks that still retained some usable sludge in their
depths. One of these clans, the Forx, adopted the figure of Grendel as their totem.
They believed that the oil should be torched rather than be put to any use
whatsoever -- a nihilistic penance for what they saw as man's never-ending
aggression. Grendel, at last, had gained a welcome foothold in the psyche of a race
-- as opposed to that of an individual.
A SOCIETAL ARCHETYPE
Several hundred years passed before the world again took on some semblance of a
civilized structure. The rising new world order was mishmash of opportunistic
religion, obsessive personal indulgence, and the slogging advances of a technology
not yet sure of itself. The battle for control of the fading American Empire was
fought in the church pew as well as in the boardrooms, and, perhaps most
importantly, in the chemical-swilling minds of the public at large. Drugs were big
business in this world of the future, and corporations strove incessantly for that
elusive stimulant mixture that would provide the greatest euphoria with the fewest
side effects. It was these zealous experiments that culminated in a heinous accident,
which unleashed a new and dangerous drug on an already imbalanced populace.
This drug, whose laboratory designation was Arcana-Prime, ultimately became
known by the infamous term that the Church itself had even adopted to replace the
more antiquated name of "Satan". The kingdom of Grendel was at hand.
Part 5: Eppy Thatcher
THE CHURCH OF LIVING DECEPTION
Another period of darkness had settled over the globe. Following WWIII there
came the great migrations, as the world of men slowly divided itself into continents
by race. In the face of all this social upheaval, the Christian church once again
re-emerged as a powerful force in people's lives. Dominant but fractured, the
Church eventually also split into racial factions across the earth. This period came
to a peak under the American papacy of Innocent XLII. The latest in a long line of
despotic popes, Innocent was a media darling, a talented manipulator of
overwhelming charisma. Invoking antiquated laws of civic funding, Pope Innocent
had for years been financially pursuing the continued growth of an immense tower
in Denver, at the pinnacle of which sat Vatican Ouest. this outright purging of the
public welfare soon aroused the enmity of a civic-minded aristocrat, Orion Assante,
the son of a excommunicated family. Taking the matter before America's central
Board of Directors, Orion succeeded in being appointed head of a regulatory panel
known as the Tower Commission. Knowing full well the immense uphill struggle he
had accepted, even Orion had no way of guessing how twisted this adventure
would soon prove to be. As he settled down with his sisters/lovers to view the
televised ceremonies for the beginning of Lent, Orion was truly shocked to see the
devil himself walk the earth once again.
THE DISCIPLE OF HISTORIC MADNESS
As Innocent XLII began accepting the congregational tithes, the ceiling of St. Elvis
Cathedral exploded, and a ragged, spindly Grendel figure dropped onto the altar of
the church. There, in front of millions of viewers, this unknown devil callously
killed several worshippers before stealing the flying collection platter and dumping
the offerings into the throngs of the faithful, swarming through the streets
surrounding the Tower. What followed were a series of terrorist attacks, each more
random and bizarre than the last. This mysterious Grendel was effectively wearing
away at the public faith, and the man at the head of that trust was furious. Innocent
turned to the mercenary police squads of COP for assistance by striking an unholy
deal with their jaded leader, Pellon Cross. Thus, while Orion continued to attack
the Church in a legal sense, Grendel proved to be the greater thorn in Innocent's
side. Still, the grand Easter mass was approaching, and for this, Innocent turned to
his lackey Pellon Cross with an even greater request.
THE PROPHET OF TOTAL DESTRUCTION
Innocent, it was soon revealed, was actually building a very special gun high in the
upper recesses of the Tower's central spire -- a weapon for which the final
component was the forbidden element plutonium. Personally challenged by this
ultimate act of thievery, Pellon Cross succeeded in securing the necessary material
-- but at the cost of his very life. After delivering the nuclear core to his master,
Pellon discovered the fateful truth behind the papal robes: that Innocent XLII was,
in fact, centuries-old vampire Tujiro XIV -- and his gun, a device meant to
eradicate the sun!
Meanwhile, Orion's own activities had in turn driven him into self-imposed exile
and had cost the lives of his treasured sisters as well. His path eventually led him to
the discovery of this latest Grendel's true identity: an idiot/savant and societal victim
name Eppy Thatcher. It was while trying to confront this maniacal rebel that Orion
encountered the confused and newly vampire Pellon Cross. Finally realizing the
immensity of the situation, Orion led a mercenary armada in a desperate attack
against the Tower, as the Easter sun broke over the Rocky Mountains. As the day's
ceremony progressed, several forces converged on the Tower: Orion and his
troops; Pellon and steadily swelling army of vampires; and Grendel himself, seeking
personal battle with a persistent and ancient foe. The resultant battle was a
catastrophic, with Orion's forces just barely managing to dynamite the Tower as the
deadly Sun-Gun was being ignited. The monster/pope was incinerated by the full
force of the blast, which then carved a path of destruction across the face of the
city. Grendel, also caught by the powerful beam, blazed out of sight in a trail of
twisted glory. As Orion surveyed the carnage from his air-cruiser, a grim realization
came to this man who had tried for so long to fight by the rules: there are no rules
but the ones we make for ourselves. Orion could not see the many vampire
survivors far below, crawling from the wreckage to follow their leader Pellon off
into the twilight.
Part 6: Orion Assante
A RACIAL PLAGUE
Following the collapse of Vatical Tower there came a period of grand upheaval in
America. Not only was Chrisianity being abandoned by the masses, but now there
was an ancient and largely unknown plague to contend with. In the confusion
following the Sun-Gun catastrophy, Orion Assante emerged as a tireless leader in
the crusade to stem the tides of vampirism. As a result of this relentless pogrom, the
vampires went underground in the resort system of VEGAS. Eventually they were
contained in one of the massive casinos, which soon became a high-security prision
known as Grendel's Palace.
A SOCIETAL ICON
Shortly after his political rise to the top, Orion finally consummated his
long-standing relationship with Sherri Caniff. It was on one of her many missions of
foreighn diplomacy that Sherri met the Australian psychic, Manny McDoon. Manny
soon joined Orion's core group of advisors, his secret abilities often giving his
master the edge necessary to ensure victory in most political arenas. Orion's
ultimate goal was a solitary global government, and through the use of his "Orion's
Sword" military fraternity, he soon managed to unite the entire western hemisphere
under his increasingly imperial rule. Fearing both competition from Great Japan as
well as rumors concerning redeveloped nuclear technology, Orion sought to extend
his influence into the eastern half of the world as well.
A turning point was reached when a seemingly independent group of terrorists
kidnapped Sherri Caniff. With rughless efficiency, Orion managed to rescue his
mate as well as utterly destroy her captors. The message to the world was clear:
Orion Assante would stop at nothing to achive his goals. Only later did he learn that
the espionage was really masterminded by Great Japan. It as during this time that
Orion's growing legions of troops began to refer to themselves as Grendels (this
stemmed from an older nickname for Orion due to his role in the collapse of the
Church: "Grendel - the scourge of God").
A GLOBAL EMPIRE
Worldwide unity was neither an easy nor inevitable goal. With various forces
opposing his efforts, Orion battled fiercely over the next decade to secure the
beginnings of his world empire. As war between the east andwest became
imminent, Orion found himself besieged on all sides. He zealously struggled to
maintain control of the ground already gained. It was during this period of
incalculable stress that Sherri Caniff lost her life to cancer. Bereft at his loss and
disgusted with public life, Orion seemingly abandoned his goals and went into
seclusion along with the semiretired Manny. Finally, Orion found the source of his
meditative cure. He convinced Manny to use the last of his mental powers to help
the troubled leader locate the person who had once embodied the madness Orion
felt consuming him now - Eppy Thatcher.
Returning to public life, Orion again took up the helm of leadership as war with
Japan was just beginning. With the development of improved solar
superconductors, he was able to ensure victory at last with the creation of the
incredible Sun Disc. This flying device sooned proved the the ultimate weapon as it
leveled a path of solar destruction across the Japanese archipelago. As his last
enemies sank into the sea, Orion declared himself ruler of the globe and assumed
the mantle of the first Grendel-Khan.
Unfortunately, with all his battles now won, the fight seemed suddenly to go out of
Orion. He lay down a code of ethics for his worldwide legions of troops, but
otherwise left the daily tasks of ruling to a battery of aides. In a vain effort to
produce an heir to his lonely throne, he eventually married on of his young
assistants, Laurel Kennedy. The union proved to be fruitless and, finally, Orion
made only two further contributions to world politics in his waning years. The first
was to reinstate the long dormant pogroms against all vampires. soon driving them
and their sacred-cow leader, Pellon Cross, into exile. The other was to miraculously
fulfill the purpose of his unhappy marriage by both carrying and the bearing an heir,
himself, from a surgically-constructed male womb. Leaving the government in the
hands of his wife, Orion went into selcusion to raise his son and died quietly in his
sleep on October 17, 2588.
Part 7: War Child
The Unknown Paladin
With Orion now gone, the scene was ripe for Laurel Kennedy Assante to seize the
reins of power. Assuming the role of Imperial Regent, she cloistered both Orion's
son Jupiter as well as her won daughter Crystal within the confines of the secret
Dakota complex - until such time as the heir was ready to assume the throne.
Although she claimed the Regency, Laurel's position was tenuous, and she soon
became secretly known as the Dowager-Khan. After several years of shaky rule,
the Dowager-Khan was ill-prepared for the emergency alert that summoned her to
the chilly Dakotas early one spring morning.
During the night, a solitary Grendel had broken into the complex, bypassing the
most sophisticated security alarms, and had kidnapped the heir! Laurel was furious
when her Prime Minister, Abner Heath, advised her of the escape. Summoning a
troop of her elite Red Devils, Laurel began a relentless pursuit of the mysterious
rogue Grendel - one that would end in vain and lead her down the path to madness.
Following a report of the fugitives' apparent demise in the Louisiana swamps,
Laurel's grasp on reality quickly began to unravel.
The Underground Worlds
After years of virtual incarceration, Crystal Kennedy was ripe for rebellion. Her
mother's distant nature only seemed to harden after the abduction of Crystal's
stepbrother. Finally, confused and emotionally abandoned, the Dowager's daughter
fell into the arms and bed of her bodyguard, a young Grendel named Susan
Veraghen. Together, they planned an escape.
Meanwhile, having thrown off the scent of their pursuers, Jupiter and the nameless
Grendel continued their flight through the wild plains of Africa. Unknown to them,
Minister Heath had taken up the chase in place of the demented ruler. With the
Imperial dogs at their hells once again, Grendel and his charge had no choice but to
flee through the radioactive hot zones of the mideast. Here, they nearly fell prey to
nuclear mutants butwere ultimately saved by a search party from a small rebel
alliance.
The leader of the alliance, Azif A Barouk, soon discovered this Grendel's secret as
well his purpose - that he was, in fact, a solar-powered cyborg, programmed by the
Great Khan to act as his son's paladin. During the course of this interrogation,
Jupiter was t
