Victor Renquist

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Victor Renquist is a fictional vampire (though he himself uses the term nosferatu) created by Mick Farren. He has appeared in a series of books known as 'the Renquist Quartet'.

[edit] Profile

He was born in the 12th century, the bastard son of a nobleman, and grew up to become a sword for hire. When he was in his forties, he worked for a breakaway Christian sect known as the Cathars. During their hopeless last stand against the forces of Pope Innocent III, he was mortally wounded. To save his life, the Cathars called upon an entity known as Lamia the Great Vampire. He has not seen her since then.

During the intervening centuries, Renquist survived not only on blood, but also by accepting jobs for various political and intelligence agencies. He has reputedly worked for the Duke of Wellington, Nicholas II of Russia, and the NSA. Along the way, he has evaded capture by the Spanish Inquisition, the Knights of Sebastopol and the Gestapo.

As a vampire, he is faster, stronger and hardier than a human. He also has certain psychic abilities in mind-reading, brain-washing, and hypnotism. However, he is also vulnerable to radioactivity, both from natural sources (the Sun) and unnatural sources (such as nuclear devices). He currently lives with at least four other vampires in a 'colony' of nosferatu in an isolated residence in California, of which he is the leader.

Through the series, we are told of how vampires evolved from a warrior class created by an alien race called the Nephilim. The Nephilim conquered Earth millennia ago, and tinkered with the primitive humans to create a warrior class (Nosferatu) and an administrator class (Urshuu). However, the Nephilim left Earth in antiquity, leaving their creations behind.

Over the course of the books, Renquist has clashed with, variously, the demon Cthulhu, the nosferatu Clan Fenrior, members of his own colony, a Nazi society living in caverns under the ground (in an environment which is supposed to be the basis of the Hollow Earth), the mythic magician Merlin, a cult known as The Apogee, and the Dhrakuh, an ancient race of sentient reptiles (who it is implied are the basis of dragon legends).

In a broader sense, the Renquist Quartet is a continuation of a recent trend of revisionist vampire lore, which includes Anne Rice's Vampire novels, the Buffy the Vampire Slayer milieu, the 'Vampire: The Masquerade' roleplaying game, and the Darren Shan and Anita Blake novels.