“You must pay the toll..”, echoed in a guttering growl.
“Coppers minted by the Freemen of Vermont Republic.”, the small bag of antique coins clinked as they landed in the sarcophagus, “Dead Money for those beyond the threshold.”, Madeleine weighed her options for escape and calculated the odds the specter would become hostile, all with a poker face of stone.
“Blood-blooood-Blood-blud-bloood…”, several distorted voices chanted discordantly off-chorus.
The Marra closed her eyes, not to brace from the pain of slicing open her wrist with her ritual dagger, but to hide the fact she was rolling her eyes at the request.
“An offering of blood, whatever good that could possibly do you”, Madeleine could not contain her snark, showing her cards a bit.
A breeze cast across the cemetery, leaves flittering and cascading in a delicate rush. An icy chill pierced shivered through body and soul, then a sudden pull towards the closest Mausoleum, which appeared to be nearer than it was in the last moment. Space bends and rips as a gateway to the Underworld tears the fabric of reality.
“Payment accepted…”, the growl hesitates, “You seem to have riled them up, and it has been centuries since they last fed. Hehehe…”, commentary on the Marra’s hasty action.
“A warning. Fair for a phantom.”, Madeleine thought as she beheld her morbid destination which was now becoming speckled with glowing eyes.
“Only those prepared to die will find eternal life.”
― Darvell, Byzantium
The Marra Lineage, named after the shapeshifting goddess and guide of the dead, is obsessed with the condition of death and undeath. Marra are seen as morbid, darkly studious, and may even be seen as creepy to other Nightborn. All Nightborn share the quality of being Undead creatures; the Marra are the lineage closest to death and furthest from the facsimile of life.
Marra Nightborn are often cold, aloof, and still, though don’t confuse this with being slow or lazy, as Marra are often deep in thought pondering the mysteries of death and are more than capable at moving at blinding speeds when it is time to move with purpose.
Marra are undertakers, necromancers, and prophets. Marra are known seeking out mysteries of esoteric knowledge, using magic do divine truth and speaking with ghosts to learn lost secrets. Marra situate themselves to be close to death, whether that’s near graveyards, hospitals, slaughterhouses, or hospice centers. Marra often work with others of their lineage to compare notes and exchange findings.
Marra Entitlements are Eternity, Power over Time and Nocturne, Power over Darkness.
The Eternity tree includes Preternatural Speed, Prophesy, Time Manipulation, and Necromancy Magic.
The Nocturne tree includes powers for Changing into the Form of a Beast, Control over Shadows, and Hexing Magic.
The Marra of the New Orleans Vampire Court unequivocally support the traditions of the Orthodoxy, who greatly value the secrets Marra uncover and their ability to reach into the beyond. When it makes it easy to continue their studies, some Marra side with the Establishment, but this usually only occurs in domains where the Orthodoxy has fallen out of favor. Marra make it clear that their work is more important than politics.
The Marra of New Orleans have an embarrassment of riches when it comes to domains of death and local hauntings. The plethora of cemeteries in and around New Orleans make the city a certifiable Necropolis and this opens opportunities not only to study death but to openly converse and even trade with the dead. The Orthodoxy employs many New Orleans Marra as ambassadors to the ghost lands.
Marra don’t often engage with other Nightborn unless to trade for information or other services. The Draugr share in the Marra’s affinity for upholding Orthodox law yet are often frustrated when Marra inevitably leave their posts to follow one of death’s mysteries.
Bruxo Nightborn are often seen as the Marra’s opposite, celebrating their ability to mimic life and learning magics which support the Libertine cause. If there is any lineage which can bring emotion to a Marra’s cold, dead face, it is the Bruxo, but that emotion is most likely anger or disgust.
The Marra Lineage symbol is a cracked hourglass, with sand spilling out.