The Ambrosini brothers were born in Sardinia during the fifteenth century. Though their mother died in labor due to complications of birthing two healthy boys, they never felt her loss. Indeed, whilst growing up, Luciano and Alessandro were never left wanting for the finer things in life. What they lacked was any sort of compassion, affection, or long-term affection from what family they did have. Due to this, they turned to the one person they knew they could always count on, always trust – each other.
As they grew, their relationship deepened, and it was suspected that it crossed lines. It was not until the whispered rumors of the Ambrosini household spilled out onto the streets and became the gossip of the rabbles that the patriarch of the family decided to finally do something. The boys were fourteen, and they were separated, for the first time in their lives. Under cover of night, the younger of the two, Alessandro, was spirited away, sent to live with a relative in Spain.
It took the first day for Luciano to realize that Alessandro wasn’t on the grounds, playing a new game that Luciano had yet to learn. Disbelief settled in at first, when he realized that his beloved brother was gone. After learning that their father had sent Alessandro away, Luciano went into a rage. For days he would attack anyone who dared come near him, and demand to have his brother returned to him. Things grew so bad that he was locked in his room, his comings and going limited to meals and basic needs.
After a fortnight, he began begging, promising his father anything for Alessandro’s return. But Stefano would not budge on the matter – not for any price. Melancholy settled in as he realized he was no longer whole; a piece of him was missing, never to return. He went through a period of mourning, and he no longer fought the servants or his family, and he took to the tasks his father set before him obediently, no longer sure what to make of his life.
As the first-born son, Luciano was slated to inherit the family legacy, and his father was determined that his heir buckle down and start acting like an heir ought.
Four the next four years, Luciano complied with his father’s wishes. His evenings being free, he would find ways to take out his anguish over his brother’s loss. At first, it was simply writing in his journal. As time wore on, however, this did little to numb the pain, and the nights were very lonely without Alessandro.
Alas, there was little he could do to escape his fate, so he begrudgingly accepted it. He resented his father, for presenting this choice on him, and he resented his bride-to-be for taking his beloved’s place.
So he planned, and bade his time. On the eve of his twenty-third birthday, he was wed. He gave lip service to matrimonial vows, whilst making more honest vows in the darker recesses of his mind. Once the guests had gone, he turned to Serafina, and simply smiled, beckoning his new love to follow. It was expected for them to copulate, and he did not intend to disappoint – too bad for her it would be the first night of many that pent up aggression and frustration would be released during sessions of what could only be described as rough intimacy.
In the months that followed, he showed no outward signs to anyone that anything was wrong – his marriage to Serafina was as perfect as either of their families could have hoped. He was benevolent towards her just to believability, his dark side coming out only during the evening hours when he desired the sins of the flesh.
It didn’t take long for Serafina to become heavy with child, and her movements restricted to the bedroom. It was during this time that he left her well alone, and kept to himself, assuring her he was merely tending to business. It wasn’t exactly a lie. One eve, he found himself at his father’s home – it was here he would have his vengeance, at long last.
The servants were long asleep, and not a sound had been uttered by the time the last breath of life had left Stefano’s body, Luciano’s hands tight around the older man’s meaty throat. Breathing heavily as he strained, still strangling, still trying to release all the anger and hatred at his core. Stefano was dead now, however, and no further joy could be wrought from depriving the man of his life; and then, a sound.
The unseen gentleman clapped slowly, a sly smile crossing his features before he flashed a toothy grin, and congratulated Luciano on handling the one who’d wronged him by his own hand. He introduced himself as Vicente, and vowed to tell no one of what had transpired, if Luciano would only talk with him. Figuring he had nothing left to lose, he agreed. They spoke long into the night.
Luciano awoke the next morning, unable to recall how he had gotten home, however he went about his usual routine, unperturbed by what had happened. News of his father’s death came. One of his father’s longtime servants had been accused of the crime of murder, and would be put to death for the act – a fact which did not escape Luciano, but did not trouble him one bit, either.
The first phase of his plan complete, he set out to execute the next phase: break Serafina. He could kill her easily, but it wasn’t enough for him. She had taken the place by his side that rightfully belonged to Alessandro, and he wanted her to suffer greatly for that slight. So he began with her family.
A vacation to the seaside interrupted by a pirate raid, where her sister was taken to be sold into slavery. Her father’s dwindling wealth without a clue as to why driving him slowly mad, until his encroaching pennilessness caused him to push his wife down a flight of stairs in a fit of anger. Destitute and widowed, Luciano put on the good husband face, and graciously allowed his father-in-law to move in – it was just too bad that he died not long after, raving madly due to a slow death by poison.
She finally broke when she came back to find that their son had smothered while he lay asleep, though Luciano had naught to do with that, but counted it a blessing, as she had finally cracked, and begged God to release her from this torment. It was too bad for her that Luciano was not done toying with her yet, keeping her around to flay and torture and rape as he saw fit. Eventually, she managed to take her own life.
Community support poured in – Serafina had been well liked, and her loss was grieved by many. Well meaning people began to grate on Luciano. It was his turn to be grateful when they stopped coming, due in no small part to Vicente’s influence. They spoke again, long into the night, and by morning Luciano had left his villa for a new adventure. Flitting about from one new thing to the next, he finally took up sailing – becoming a sailor on a ship, and then later, a pirate.
It was a life he could relish, and he found great amusement in attacking the ships of his business rivals. It was during one such raid that a peculiar thing happened – he came face-to-face with himself.
Each brother stared at the other, swords crossed unflinching, disbelief crossing their features. A sly grin from Alessandro broke the moment and they returned the fray – side by side this time, cutting down anyone in their path. They were together again, and nothing was going to get in their way.
Sardinia being closer, they returned there to settle Luciano’s affairs and loose ends before leaving their childhood home for good. Vicente was there to greet them. There was some confusion amongst the brothers, as curiosity arose as to how the other already knew Vicente. Neither of them dwelt on it overlong, however, as Vicente had a proposal for the both of them. Become his vassals, and he promised a world and eternity of opportunity and power they had never dreamt of.
Cautiously, they agreed, on the condition they never be separated. It was provision Vicente did not mind, after all he was quite curious as to how the two would work together, but he also did not wish to be on the receiving end should he try and separate the pair.
They were but a year past the quarter century mark when they became Vicente’s vassals. Together they outshone his other servants and further proved themselves worthy of the Embrace, though he’d never once informed them they were candidates for such a thing.
At the onset of the Renaissance, the pair were brought over fully, and began their unlives as prominent Lasombra. They, and their subsequent pack, were typically tasked with hunting down antitribu for the slaughter, and they were efficient at it – even reveling in it at times.
Smart investments and chances taken improved upon their skills and wealth, and in modern nights they find themselves running with a newer pack, in control of Salem, Massachusetts with the rest of their pack, Luciano serving as the Bishop of Industry. Additionally, Luciano serves as the pack Ductus.