Bishop of the Lancea Sanctum

In his own words

"Good evening child, welcome to San Antonio. My name is Fernando de la Cruz, and I am Bishop of the Sanctified here in San Antonio de Valero. The Prince in the city is my old rival Karina Galen; she is a harsh ruler, and even more so since she returned from exile. I have much work to do so I would suggest you do not bother me with trivial matters. Of course, if you are hear to learn more about the teachings of Longinus, then I will make some time available for you - my Priest, Kimberly, will be only too happy to attend you. I trust you understand me, no? Excellent, then I shall bid you goodnight."

Known History

Fernando de la Cruz arrived in San Antonio very early on in its history - he was an ally of its original Prince, James Williams of England. However, he never really got on with Williams' Childe, Karina Galen. But even De la Cruz was shocked at her betrayal of Williams' values when she spurned the Lancea Sanctum and joined the Invictus after taking power. De la Cruz knew she had murdered his old friend, and suspected diablerie, but he could never prove it. He took to opposing Galen at every opportunity, but frustratingly for De la Cruz, the Sanctified were always seen as playing second fiddle to the First Estate.

De la Cruz took to mentoring neonates and newly-Embraced Kindred in the early 1900's. Most found him friendly and approachable, which was unusual for a Kindred of such age and potency. However, in 2006 an attack on the city by the sect VII exposed Karina Galen's treachery and De la Cruz was finally able to make his move. Galen's acceptance of guilt, and even her willingness to seek penance, swayed De la Cruz into merely exiling her, rather than execution. But his reign was short-lived. As it was, it was beset by troubles with unco-operative neonates, and Invictus loyalists. He struggled to make an impact on the mortal scene in the way Karina had. And in 2009 a new threat to the city, Mark Belial, almost led to a complete loss of control. Only the timely return of Karina Galen stopped Belial. She resumed the mantle of Princedom and De la Cruz bitterly returned to his cathedral. Since that day he has become even more of a recluse, appearing almost exclusively only to fellow Sanctified. He no longer mentors neonates, and some whisper that he sees his ill-fated rule as Prince as a major failure to his covenant.

Image

Fernando de la Cruz was a man who was raised in the Spanish clergy. His stature reflects this, as he is usually stood calmly, mostly unmoving. His clothing tastes have changed with the times, and his favoured attire is a white suit. He always wears a rosary, and sometimes will even dress in robes and a priest's collar when acting in an "official" capacity - although he has not done so now for some years.

A neonate's opinion

"Yeah I know the Bishop. Strange fellow - keeps himself to himself. My sire reckons he never used to be that way, before he was kicked out of the big chair. I wouldn't know, only Changed myself a couple of years ago. And I only saw the dude once - I was at the Jubilee watching Kim Ravana singing - De la Cruz was there too. Sat as still as a statue while she was on, very creepy. Then when she was done he went in the back with her, and that was the last I saw of him. And they always say it's the quiet ones you gotta watch out for, right?"