"I regret the past. I regret the present even more."
—Harmad Bulov, apocryphal.
For many years, the Levantine Inquisition was the most feared arm of the Goddess Tower. Even those suspicious of the Guardians' power and secrecy have usually seen them as essentially benign, offering protection from the dread mists of Mourclesis. But the Inquisition did not offer protection from monsters: it sought to protect the people from themselves. In doing so, hundreds were persecuted and undisclosed numbers were executed.
The Inquisition was meant to purge all magic use from the Dreaming City. Yet since the guilds were founded by Sargon 300 years ago, it seemed a bit of an anachronism, given the necessary use of enchanted equipment for surviving in Asherah's Labyrinth. It became increasingly clear that the Inquisition, without its original focus, had started preying on non-humans and other minority groups in order to remain relevant. The very day Irminric Ward was named Patriarch, the Levantine Inquisition was disbanded. Most of its Guardians were cast out of the order, save Grand Inquisitor Harmad Bulov, who repented and was installed as Grand Executor Eiridan's aide.
Many now regard Ward's actions as a mistake, however - not because the Inquisition should have been allowed to go on, but because his heavy-handed approach left many former Guardians without a job or a place in Ascelian society. Not long after the Inquisition's fall, an organization called Levanter in clear reference to the Levantines began aggressively recruiting these displaced souls.
Levanter now wields considerable clout as one of the few underworld organizations that operates outside of Nightscape's jurisdiction. It is primarily a Human supremacist group whose main activity is racketeering that targets Ascelian Humans with offers of "protection" against the city's nonhuman citizens. Of course, Levanter is more dangerous to those who refuse this generous offer than they are to the other races themselves.
Streetwise 25: In the wake of the events Iskander's death, Levanter is actively waging a campaign to blame the city's Elves instead of the shadowy and undefined "terrorists" that the Goddess Tower deems responsible. After all, Iskander was a hero, and Dalavesta was an Elf. He was obviously betrayed.
Streetwise 30: It's rumored that Levanter has repeatedly targeted Executor Bulov with assassination attempts for "selling them out."
