"Je vous remercie pour votre hospitalité, mon ami"
And with that, the Frenchman drew his revolver, and shot his host in the back of the head. He turned and walked through the door of that accursed cabin in the woods, never to return again to the site of horrors that even a hardened Chasseur Alpins could scarce bear.
Alois was a well-built man of average height, with a short, well-kept beard covering his rounded chin. A scar reached from below his left eye across his cheek to the back of his jaw, earned during a bloody charge on a German trench during the Great War. He had followed his father and become one of the elite Chasseurs Alpins since 1903, when he was a mere 19 years old, inheriting his father's old Chassepot rifle. In combat, he had proved himself as a cold and calculated fighter. He was a born leader of men, with a cunning mind for almost-suicidal tactics, executed with minute detail which resulted in devastating attacks, both in terms of physical enemy casualties as well as heavy tolls on their morale. By the end of the war, he'd reached the rank of Capitaine in the Chasseurs, and was renowned for his quick wit and even quicker blade.
Because he couldn't bear to see his homeland so badly decimated by war, Alois left his beloved France in 1921. Catching a ship to America with Boston in his sights, he had arranged to meet an American friend he had met during the war, by the name of Frankie Greenberg. However, upon reaching the address he'd been given through written communication, he found little but charred rubble. After enquiring at the local police station, he was woe to learn that just a week prior there had been a terrible fire at the building, which had regrettably claimed the life of his poor friend Mr. Greenberg. Explaining that Frankie's apartment had been the only place he could stay, the officer at the desk simply apologised but said that there was nothing he could do to help.
By 1925, Alois was a man down on his luck, living in the seedy part of Boston, and finding work where he could. Although not particularly tall, his otherwise-imposing frame lent itself well to petty gang-land activities, and he quickly gained the trust of several small-time gangs, as well as one of the Mafia families, The Saliaros, operating illegal liquor operations in and around Boston. He steadily took on more jobs for the Saliaro family, however as the Boston Police Department began to crack down more aggressively on bootlegging the work available to him steadily decreased.
It was the 15th of October, 1925, when Alois was almost arrested in a large-scale raid on the Saliaros' main distillery, orchestrated by the Boston PD working in tandem with federal agents from the US Department of Justice Bureau of Prohibition. Many of the Saliaro family members were killed, including the Don's brother and son, Agostino and Dino respectively. Posing as an undercover federal agent, he lead a small group of officers into a disused part of the distillery before suggesting he split up to search an area, and promptly making good his escape. Knowing he would be easily recognised, he left Boston and travelled to Arkham in an attempt to escape the law.
3 months later, Alois was captured by agents from the Federal Bureau of Investigation and spent the next few weeks - in a cell, in an undisclosed building, in an undisclosed location - being interrogated for information pertaining to the Saliaro family. Only Alois and his interrogators know what was said and done in that room, but at the end of it, he was given a simple choice; take on work for the Bureau, or spend the rest of the Century in Boston High Security Prison.
It's now the middle of 1926, and already Alois has worked on several cases and taken part in multiple raids. Even though he's usually only contacted when the Bureau needs expendable field agents, he has quickly earned the trust of fellow agents, especially those in similar situations as himself. Lastly, although the Bureau isn't usually prone to accept refusals from their agents, they have wisely avoided employing Alois on cases related to the Saliaro family, as they are well aware he remains in regular contact with certain members. Perhaps they're just waiting for a better opportunity to take them on, and don't wish to burn any possible bridges they may later wish to make use of.
But wherever the Chasseur steps, trusty Chassepot bayonet in hand, crime and law alike shudders at the number of lives that sixty year-old blade has ended, because no matter who Alois works for, his only real loyalty is to France herself.
Well, I was a little bored and had some time on my hands, so I thought I'd combine two of my favourite pastimes - descriptive writing and creating characters. Alois is a character I thought up a few days ago, and have since idly expanded him and his background into what you see here. I was considering creating the appropriate Call of Cthulhu character to fit his background as, despite my great affection for the eclectic and eccentric Englishman, Lt. Tiddles, he's the only CoC character I have ever played as, and I'm considering introducing a new character into the group. (Well, another new one, we already have one new member to the group and someone else has started playing again, replacing a couple of regular players who are taking a break from roleplaying for a while.)
I hope this was an interesting read, and perhaps if the mood takes me I'll do more, or possibly expand a little more on Alois' life and history. But until then, happy gaming!
-Mike
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