Servire

Servires are the aides-de-camp of the archons. It is an informal title and though the servires possess no actual authority, the archons themselves are often chosen from the servires who have proven their value.

A servire is simply an archon's assistant—sometimes seen as an "Archon's Archon". Just as the justicars require agents to go where they cannot and handle tasks to which they can't devote their immediate attention, so too do archons often feel the need for assistants. Servires can be anyone—Kindred, ghoul, or even mere kine, though this last is uncommon—and are chosen for a variety of skills and needs. Ghouls serve frequently as servires, and are particularly useful due to the loyalty enforced by the blood bond.

An archon investigating the Prince of an unfamiliar city might recruit a local coterie as servires so that they can guide him around the area, pass along inside info and, if necessary, watch his back in a firefight. A Nosferatu who is a talented hacker might be "deputized" to assist the archon breaking into the local Giovanni's encrypted files. Becoming a servire doesn't bestow any particular rights or privileges, though some degree of status is implicit with the responsibility, and most servires serve only for the duration of a specific endeavor.

Some archons use the same servires regularly, however, building up a set of skilled agents over the course of time. These servires are watched closely, by the archon herself and, eventually, by her justicar superior. Many new archons are chosen from those who have proven their value over the years as servires.