Satrina

When the ship approached the equator, I stopped going out on deck in the daytime. The sun burned like a flame. The days had shortened and night came swiftly. One moment it was light, the next it was dark. The sun did not set but fell into the water like a meteor. Late in the evening, when I went out briefly, a hot wind slapped my face. From the ocean came a roar of passions that seemed to have broken through all barriers: ‘We must procreate and multiply! We must exhaust all the powers of lust!’ The waves glowed like lava, and I imagined I could see multitudes of living beings—algae, whales, sea monsters—reveling in an orgy, from the surface to the bottom of the sea. Immortality was the law here. The whole planet raged with animation. At times, I heard my name in the clamor: the spirit of the abyss calling me to join them in their nocturnal dance.
—Isaac Bashevis Singer, “Hanka”

The Satrina

A sizeable yacht based out of Long Island, the Satrina is operated by a crew of mortal retainers under the supervision of “Commodore” Theodore Doyle, a former cruise director from Castaways Travel now enghouled to London Rain. The Satrina is used for literal pleasure cruises, hosting parties of swingers who cavort and frolic under the glow of the Manhattan skyline. While certainly hosting its share of events sponsored by Club Byzantium, the yacht is available for charter by the general public, and has been used for fetish balls, lifestyle weddings, and miniature Hedo cruises. During such parties the “crew” may be expanded by the addition of several Daeva, but killing is forbidden, and Commodore Doyle insists that human guests disembark healthy and happy—if perhaps a touch short of blood.

Sabbat Cruises
Obviously, such restrictions do not apply when the yacht is used for private Sabbat parties, and the Satrina has witnessed some of the worst excesses of Cainite debauchery. Sister Lilith herself booked the Satrina for a Saturnalia in 1998, and no human who stepped aboard that evening made it back to shore alive. Indeed, the Satrina had to be put out of commission for weeks to wash away the blood and reupholster the furniture.

Blackout of 2003
Ever since the “Battle of Howland Hook” in 1986, the Camarilla and Sabbat have grudgingly tolerated each other’s casual presence on the waterways around New York. But during the Blackout of 2003, the Satrina encountered the Prince’s personal yacht Myrddin cruising around Ellis Island. The Satrina was hosting a “blackout orgy” of Byzantium regulars, while the Myrddin was occupied by a circle of Tremere conducting a magic ritual. Drifting too close to each other in the sweltering dark, the distracted vampires failed to notice their magical spheres overlapping, and an arcane wave of destructive interference surged across both vessels. The result was an orgy transformed into horror as the guests fused into a single writhing mass; while the Tremere sorcerers succumbed to a sexual frenzy of cannibalism and diablerie. Having summoned an unnamable abomination, the possessed sorcerers were forced to sacrifice one of their own, delivering the True Death to one of St. James’ own fledglings before finally banishing the demon.

Fortunately for the humans on the Satrina, once the spell had dissipated, they reverted to their own separate bodies—more or less. All in all, the experience caused one fatal heart attack, two future miscarriages, and several nervous breakdowns. Many Byzantium regulars canceled their memberships, even more sought therapy, and one couple committed suicide at the Statue of Liberty. The Tremere never recovered, creating a power vacuum in St. James inner circle quickly filled by Midori Satsujin and her associates. Even today, both sects speak of the terrible event only in hushed tones, referring to it only as “the blackout.”

Lupanaria of Byzantium
Club Byzantium | Viriconium | Siddim | The Hippodrome | Zoara Bela | Cabaret Tannhäuser | Empusa Theatre | Hellfire Club | Satrina

Sources & Notes

The core of the Gotham Sabbat was first uploaded on 31 October 2000, but the Byzantium Coven was extensively revised during the August-October 2018 update. The illustration of the orgy is by Portuguese artist Ricardo Bessa.

Author: Great Quail
Original Upload: 31 October 2000
Last Modified: 6 October 2018
Email: quail (at) shipwrecklibrary (dot) com
PDF Version: [Coming Soon]