The Fens

Along the banks of the slow moving and aptly named Muddy River, just south of Fenway Park, there’s an expanse of low, boggy parkland that gives the Fenway its name. Essentially used as green space by the city, the character of the fens changes dramatically when the sun goes down.

The more elevated sections of the fens, just off Boylston Street, are devoted to dozens of large community garden plots, and summer weekends find a swarm of eager gardeners descending on the area to nurture, prune and tend to their small garden plots. Once the first frost hits, usually by late October, the community gardens become lonely places until spring.

Farther down the bank, between the community gardens and the banks of the Muddy River, is a wide swath of land that is neither solid land nor river but rather a muddy bog. Several acres of thick rushes, twice the height of a tall man, rise up from the marshy ground, and, at night, lonely men come to the fens and navigate the maze of rushes to find others for companionship. From late evening until dawn, particularly during the summer, dozens of men can be seen prowling the manicured paths between the community gardens and the maze of rushes. Several times that number can be found deep in the labyrinth getting what they came here for.

Cruising the fens, whatever else it may be, is a dangerous pastime. Not only are muggings and bashings commonplace here, but there have been wholesale disappearances. That comes as no surprise to Boston’s mages; the fens are known to be a popular feeding ground for vampires. Any mage looking for sacrificial victims can find one here, but he might have to compete with other predators, including serial killers and the undead.

Most of the Awakened community is at least vaguely aware of the place’s reputation, but the occasional mage still gives in to the temptation of the fens.

Shadow Realm: The Bog Locus

A spirit locus exists in the fens, deep in the thick rushes and marshy ground frequented by night visitors. The spirits here are drawn to the fens’ resonance of lust and muggy sweat, although some are attracted to the violence of the muggings.

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