Clash of Cults

[orleanide]

[Tonight on Victorian London: Emerald edition, we bring you a normal everyday ritual.

For the most part.

Under an abandoned church - the remains of the Order of Dagon - a new group has set up their own gathering. Shrouded in dark hoods, at least twenty people have been separated into groups of three or so with an overseer for each.

In short: it's sort of like a classroom for cultists. Most of these people are new and trying to harness the energy from the rift that infamously goes through London. Surely their god will be pleased. But before they try the main event, they really need to get their newbies into shape. Just going through some basic summonings and magical exercises, nothing that should be too bad.

Enter a problem: See that weirdly shiny relic in the center of these destroyed, watery ruins? Another cult happens to believe that belongs to their God. That cult is currently waiting in the shadows for a moment to strike and attempt to steal it. So maybe they ruined this harmless practice session on purpose or maybe the rift in spacetime was too much for the newbies to handle. Either way, their summoning doesn't go...right. It gives cult number two over there a chance to run in, magic ready.

So where does this leave you?

Maybe you were just summoned in. Maybe you were spying. Maybe you were invited as a witness to the training session. Maybe you were passing by when fireworks started blasting out of the church ruins.

Either way you should probably get out of here. There are strangely spacious sewer exits against the right wall, definitely wide enough for people to go through. There are crumbling stairs and doors going to winding catacombs. Maybe you can follow some of the escaping cultists and hope they don't turn on you. Maybe someone will rescue you.

All of it is up to you.]

Comments

[dorca]

That would be a terrible idea, Haru.

[Though he realizes Haru can't ever really sympathize with sullying water, he knows Haru has to know how bad that would be too.]

Still this architecture doesn't really look Japanese, does it?

[He's looking at the stonework around them.]

[stripdown]

It'd work out just fine.

[ for the water. the rest of it didn't really matter.

he doesn't really contemplate makoto's next question too deeply, given that he's still not over the water thing. ]

It's a sewer.

[ meaning, would there really be different styles of architecture for sewers? they all kind of did the same thing (ruin water). ]

[dorca]

[Right Haru's stuck on the water thing. Makoto keeps walking, hoping one of these passages will look like an exit.]

[He tries explaining a different way;]

It doesn't look Japanese.

[stripdown]

[ there's a slight pause before he answers again. even if he didn't like it, makoto repeating the statement probably meant he was trying to point something out. ]

Doesn't it?

[ he glances around, deigning to take note of his surroundings in more detail beyond potential exits. mostly, he was looking for japanese text -- "caution" or "keep out" or something -- because there's no reason they shouldn't look japanese, even if they contracted a foreign company to construct it wow this is more thought than haruka ever wanted to put in sewers ever. ]

[dorca]

[There's no signs in Japanese for sure. It might be too dark to make out writing at this point though, but if there is any it sure is in English.]

[Makoto glances at the sewage, disgusted now that he's freaking out a little less.]

Should we follow the water? Or keep heading this way?

[stripdown]

[ he frowns at the english. granted, english is everywhere even in japan, but it's not really what he needs right now. ]

Follow the water. [ and then adding, as almost an afterthought: ] I was told it'd lead out, anyway.