dormheads | (ROLE) CULT 4.0

cult.

On Monday at 10 PM, Otome, Byleth, Luxanna, and Dimitri receive an encrypted e-mail.

d4rkness@Wiwaldi.edu

Come to classroom 1304; see attached map.

No one is in the halls as they creep to the abandoned classroom circled on the map. The normally locked door opens, revealing the room inside.

There are no windows and the lights are off, leaving the room cast in near darkness. Only a handful of candles, in what's probably a fire hazard, keep it illuminated; the fog being emitted from a personal fog machine doesn't help with visibility. What was once the teacher's desk has been pushed to the center of the room, with chairs seated around it. For some reason, there are cat decorations everywhere, mixed in with various (garish) occult items and patterns.

As of Week 3, a lamp has been added to the room to give it some light.

There is a cat-shaped bulletin board hanging on the wall, which reads:

» This world is trying to assimilate all of you, who started this year, into its setting. If it succeeds, you'll remain trapped in this school, your souls drained until you cease to exist.

» Each week, this place will make active efforts on a few select students. Once the weekend hits, they'll all be beyond saving. However, if any one of them is killed before then, they'll all be freed from the link, at least for the remainder of the week.

» Death isn't necessarily permanent. Those who died can potentially be saved. However, no such option exists for the fully assimilated.

» At the start of the week you'll be informed if you may recruit one person to join the cult. Provide a list of 4-8 people you want to recruit and you'll be told which one of them is approved. If you extend an invitation and they accept, they will join the cult the following week.

» Preventing the assimilation aside, even the original cult was meant to be a secret, so it's important that word doesn't spread. If anyone else learns about your involvement in the cult or your task, whether from your mouth or another's, this world may enact consequences. No guarantee on who they might affect, so it's up to you to decide if risking harm upon another is worth it.

As of Week 3, more notes have been added.

A summary of what the others were told previously:

» This world is forced to act according to an internal logic. It isn't always aware of everything going on, and it can't break whatever rules it wishes. This would presumably be why you all arrived here with your minds intact, rather than already assimilated; it's possible that this defence mechanism has manifested in other ways as well, to try and correct things to how they should be.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[a pause, as he thinks.]

... No. In terms of what's released at trial, I don't think there's any way to alter them in our favour.

That will make things much more difficult... we'll have to get more creative.

[messier...

...]

Is there any way to hide our emotions? Something that can be purchased for that?

... You're worried about the current effect that's going on. [...] It probably won't be possible to negate something that seems to be a part of the setting. You'd just have to hide your emotions well.

["you" being the entire cult here.]

Though other kinds of negation may be possible, albeit likely not cheap.

[these emotional blonds.........]

I'll consider it.

We received a document from Annie yesterday that seemed to say those that have passed on are looking for a route back to us.

Will that help or harm them in terms of saving everyone...?

I think it can be taken as a positive sign. It's entirely possible that ultimately, the dead will be the ones to save themselves.

[...]

Then... is what we're doing affecting anything positively at all...?

Not really. [bluntly.] What we're doing is less about a positive and more preventing a worse negative.

...Fair enough.

[the cleanup crew.]

I've given myriad answers to myriad questions, but I think some people are very close.

... Thanks. [a beat, and a flash of guilt from emotionshare, before he explains:] I know it's landed you in a difficult position, and it puts a lot of things at risk including your own life, but—if there's one benefit at all to be gained from this, it's that the others might have more to work with, in terms of pursuing the truth.