Derek Hawthorne's Team

*“Now, there are some other issues we need to deal with before we go into combat. I don’t want you rescuing me.”*
*“Given the other two participants in this mission are my sister and my uncle, I’m not sure this is the best strategy for arguing we should put the mission first.”*
*“Another reason why this is probably not the best team to go.”*
*“It could also be the best one. I’m going to try and make sure everyone gets home alive. No one gets left behind.”*— Shannon O'Reily and Derek Hawthorne, *Esoterrorism*
**Derek Hawthorne's Team** was an unofficial group of members of the Red Room and White Room of the House, representing the agents that Derek most trusted in the job. It was led by Derek himself, an experienced agent of the Red Room and eventual member of The Committee. The group was formed to protect the House's interests as well as the world's, focusing on keeping the supernatural under wraps while also protecting humans and supernaturals along the way. This put them in world-defining conflicts against organizations that both sought to destroy the House as well as those who wanted to destroy either humankind or supernatural life alike.

In 2008, the Fall of the House ended with Derek's death putting Balor back to sleep, leaving the group obsolete. With no one to work for, the group disbanded.

## Members

### Former Members

#### Derek Hawthorne

Derek was a longtime member of the Red Room, having been raised by his father Nathan to be the best agent possible. He had the nickname "The Angel of Death", as all three of his previous partners died for one reason or another. By the present day, his decades of experience in the Red Room and on the field made him one of Division One's most infamous agents, simultaneously known and respected for his success rate and hated by those who have to deal with his pop culture references; however, he remained a very capable agent and leader who cared about supernatural and human life. He ascended to the Committee as part of the plan to defeat The Wazir and bonded with Bloody Mary after his encounter with Dracula, giving him even more leadership and power over Division One, but he tended to resort to the same people he knew and trusted to get the job done. Derek would ultimately die during the Fall of the House after expending all of his life force to put Balor back to sleep, but he became a demon and allied with Bloody Mary to further pursue her redeemed agenda.

#### Shannon O'Reily

Shannon was Derek's last partner in the House, having originally been assigned to Division Two but transferring over to Division One due to the Wazir's manipulations. As a lilin, Shannon used her powers in the field in whichever ways were convenient, whether that was seducing a target for assassination or changing to her demon form for a raw power boost in particularly difficult fights. Shannon proved crucial to Derek's victories several times, with the two ultimately becoming lovers. Unfortunately, their relationship was scuttled due to her guilt over Nathan Hawthorne's plan succeeding and they broke up before Derek's death. After the Fall of the House, she quit the game, began a relationship with Talbot, and began watching over Penny, Lucy, and Victory.

#### Penny Hawthorne

Penny was Derek's twin sister who previously worked in the Black Room to teach new trainees; however, after several of her trainees were killed in the field, she requested a transfer to the field and became Derek's partner for the stakeout that led them to the Wazir. Penny was one of the strongest witches in the world and was armed with the Staff of Hiawatha to channel it, making her the team's mystical expert and powerhouse. Penny was dating and later married Lucy Danvers, which when combined with her former status as a Black Room instructor, gave her a grounded perspective on the House and let her remind Derek that their fellow agents were people they knew and loved. After Derek's death, Penny and Lucy adopted Victory and lived a comfortable family life she had previously rejected.

#### Lucy Danvers

Lucy Danvers (later Danvers-Hawthorne) was the team's magitech expert, having created her first piece of magitech when she was only sixteen. A member of the White Room, Lucy specialized in weapons and "gadgets", arming the field agents with the best technology out there to give her an edge in the field. Derek referred to her as the only genuinely good person he ever met in the job, reflecting how Lucy's pure motives helped guide the group through its darkest periods. After dating Penny for a while, the two married after the Wazir's death, and after Derek's death, they both retired from the spy game and raised Victory together.

#### Ben Talbot

Ben, despite his monstrous appearance, had one of the strongest moral codes of any Red Room agent out there. He was the creation of a scientist named Jonathon Talbot, became the inspiration for Frankenstein's monster, and became one of the premier monster hunters in the world before the House finally let him in. Ben was frequently partnered up with Nathan Hawthorne for their missions, turning him into an honorary uncle for Derek and Penny. After a long and prosperous career filled with missions that may or may not have actually happened, Ben retired to a quiet life, but Derek came to him for help with the final assault against the Wazir, bringing him back into the game. After Derek's death, he retired with everyone else and began a relationship with Shannon.

#### Bloody Mary

Bloody Mary, otherwise known as Discord and the Horseman of War, was one of the oldest demonic spirits in existence. After clawing her way out of Hell by killing any demon in her way, Mary became the primary spirit of conflict and followed humanity through centuries of war. Along the way, she possessed the Bloodsword and became partnered with Dracula in his rise to power. Eventually, she was led to Derek and became enamored with his warrior past, choosing to partner with him instead of staying with the Bloodsword. Mary's alliance with the group not only gave Derek the power he needed to kill Dracula and Balor, but it also served to help redeem Mary, turning her into a heroic entity who simultaneously sought more power for herself without causing needless conflict in the process. After Derek's death, she helped turn him into a demonic spirit himself, and continued her crusade to gather more power and become the new ruler of Hell.

## Relationships

### Allies

* The House
	+ Red Room
	+ White Room
	+ The Professor
	+ Alex Timmons
	+ Lucien Drake
	+ Ashley Morgan, Jr
	+ The Committee - Situational allies
* Nathan Hawthorne - Situational ally
* Christopher Hang
* Ashley Morgan, Sr
* Malcolm
* Song Hawthorne

### Enemies

* The Emerald Eye
	+ The Wazir
	+ Dr. Edward Strickland
* Pantheon Corp
	+ Cassandra Cassidy
	+ Roland Cassidy
	+ Tommy Moretti
	+ Sons of Mars
	+ The Gunmage
* The Vampire Nation
	+ Vlad Dracula
	+ Annabelle Jones
	+ Elizabeth Cambridge
	+ The Blackguard
	+ John Ruthford
* Protocol Zero
	+ Rebecca Hawthorne
* The Committee
	+ The Chairman
	+ Yuri
* Nathan Hawthorne
* Stephen Hawthorne
* Balor

## Appearances

* *Esoterrorism*
* *Eldritch Ops*
* *The Fall of the House*