Re: The Glorious Championship! [S3G5] [Round Three: The Epigen Center]
12-19-2011, 02:06 AM
Originally posted on MSPA by veerserif.
But Brother Flynn moved to the elevator shaft, resuming his role as sentry.
The woman smiled at him, showing all her gleaming teeth. "Don't worry, acolyte. We'll begin your induction soon. But before we start, would you like to ask any questions?"
His thoughts raced to make themselves known, tripping over one another and damn near starting a rampage. Outwardly, he took a deep if shaky breath.
"First things first. Who the hell are you?"
She smiled enigmatically (dammit). "Good questions." (Double damn.) She sat up and made a grand, sweeping gesture. "We are, you might say, on break. Permanently." She sat back down again, dropping onto the beanbag with surprising grace. "Your guide is here. We do hope you will enjoy it here."
God-fucking-dammit. Gabe understood corporate America, but bizarre off-duty worker-cultists?
Gabe was pulled to his feet suddenly by a similarly-robed man, his hair sticking up in all directions. His robe looked like an adaptation of some kind of uniform; his nametag had been ripped out.
"Hello! Hello! You are new here, yes? Good! I suppose you'll be wanting a tour of the Room? Right this way." He shot off like an arrow. Stupified, Gabe followed.
"Well, really, this used to be a maintenance room, we've just opened it up a bit. Easy elevator access, there's a stairwell in the back. I wouldn't advise using it though! Nobody knows exactly where the exit is! But it's good exercise. You could lose whole hours on the thing."
"This is our food room. As you can see, we've got something of a small hydroponics operation going on. Brother Finck over there - hello brother! - has green thumbs alright." The man in question waved back. Gabe raised a hand weakly. "And this is the kitchen! We could always do with more help here." He nodded dutifully, casually grabbing a few things off the counter. Snacks never hurt a soul.
"This! This is my baby, my pride and joy. Well no, it's not just me. It's something of a collaborative effort." A mass of screens and wiring dominated the entire wall. Two or three workers were in the back, fixing something. It was hard to tell amidst the tangle of wires and electronic wizardry.
The screens were labelled with a set of coordinates, each one showing various scenes of office life. Gabe turned to his tour guide. "You did this?"
"Well, I say me..." He looked down, and began again, hesitantly. "In my... old... life, I worked with cameras. Security feeds. I wanted to help." Gabe noticed, belatedly, that he was wearing an ID lanyard as a wrist ornament. He brightened up again. "I'll tell you more once we're in the Sanctum."
The Sanctum was a small space, hidden by camouflage and curtains. He stepped inside.
In the middle was a single cubicle. Pens and pencils occupied a mug in one corner. Paper, paperclips and a row of post-it notes were neatly arrayed in the centre. A red stapler was tied to the leg of the table. It still had a faded sign on it:
His tour guide was now accompanied by an older woman. Her robes were neater, and she a necklace made of bits of frayed fabric. She was carrying a bundle of clothing.
"Welcome, acolyte. I am the Record Keeper, and I will guide you through the last parts of your ceremony. First, you must be un-named." She gestured towards his nametag.
"What, this?" The Record Keeper nodded, and handed him the bundle. He opened it up to find a nondescript uniform in olive drab. "You can change over there."
The clothes were a little too big. Gabe handed over his old outfit. The contents of his pockets formed a small pile at his feet.
She smiled. "We'll keep those for you." She led him out of the Sanctum, and back into the main lounge area. It was quite crowded; evidently the entire group had gathered to watch. She stood on a table, and began.
"Brothers and sisters! We are gathered to witness the induction of another into our fold!" A cheer. "To gain our trust, he must undergo... a Trial!" Another cheer. It really was astounding, how they could all pronounce capital letters.
With a flourish, an envelope was presented to him. Gabe was pushed to the elevator shaft by the crowd, and Brother Flynn stood aside to let him in.
CONGRATULATIONS! read the letter inside. TO EARN YOUR PLACE IN THE ESTEEMED BREAKROOM, FIRST YOU MUST COMPLETE A TASK FOR US.
EPIGEN CORPORATION IS HOME TO MANY WONDROUS ARTEFACTS. WE SEEK TO LIBERATE THEM. YOUR TASK IS TO LOCATE AND RETRIEVE ONE OF THE NEW ARRIVALS.
A fuzzy photograph of a small red orb was glued below. It was captioned with a catalogue number, and a timestamp.
GOOD LUCK. DON'T GET CAUGHT.
A handwritten note was scribbled near the bottom. "Spare janitors' uniforms, hallway C-II, fourth door on the right. Password is -... .-. -.- .-. -- Ask for Tech Xodarap."
The doors slid open, and he stepped back out to the fifty-fourth floor. No one paid him any attention.
But Brother Flynn moved to the elevator shaft, resuming his role as sentry.
The woman smiled at him, showing all her gleaming teeth. "Don't worry, acolyte. We'll begin your induction soon. But before we start, would you like to ask any questions?"
His thoughts raced to make themselves known, tripping over one another and damn near starting a rampage. Outwardly, he took a deep if shaky breath.
"First things first. Who the hell are you?"
She smiled enigmatically (dammit). "Good questions." (Double damn.) She sat up and made a grand, sweeping gesture. "We are, you might say, on break. Permanently." She sat back down again, dropping onto the beanbag with surprising grace. "Your guide is here. We do hope you will enjoy it here."
God-fucking-dammit. Gabe understood corporate America, but bizarre off-duty worker-cultists?
Gabe was pulled to his feet suddenly by a similarly-robed man, his hair sticking up in all directions. His robe looked like an adaptation of some kind of uniform; his nametag had been ripped out.
"Hello! Hello! You are new here, yes? Good! I suppose you'll be wanting a tour of the Room? Right this way." He shot off like an arrow. Stupified, Gabe followed.
"Well, really, this used to be a maintenance room, we've just opened it up a bit. Easy elevator access, there's a stairwell in the back. I wouldn't advise using it though! Nobody knows exactly where the exit is! But it's good exercise. You could lose whole hours on the thing."
"This is our food room. As you can see, we've got something of a small hydroponics operation going on. Brother Finck over there - hello brother! - has green thumbs alright." The man in question waved back. Gabe raised a hand weakly. "And this is the kitchen! We could always do with more help here." He nodded dutifully, casually grabbing a few things off the counter. Snacks never hurt a soul.
"This! This is my baby, my pride and joy. Well no, it's not just me. It's something of a collaborative effort." A mass of screens and wiring dominated the entire wall. Two or three workers were in the back, fixing something. It was hard to tell amidst the tangle of wires and electronic wizardry.
The screens were labelled with a set of coordinates, each one showing various scenes of office life. Gabe turned to his tour guide. "You did this?"
"Well, I say me..." He looked down, and began again, hesitantly. "In my... old... life, I worked with cameras. Security feeds. I wanted to help." Gabe noticed, belatedly, that he was wearing an ID lanyard as a wrist ornament. He brightened up again. "I'll tell you more once we're in the Sanctum."
The Sanctum was a small space, hidden by camouflage and curtains. He stepped inside.
In the middle was a single cubicle. Pens and pencils occupied a mug in one corner. Paper, paperclips and a row of post-it notes were neatly arrayed in the centre. A red stapler was tied to the leg of the table. It still had a faded sign on it:
PROPERTY OF H. H. HUNG
The entire setup was lit by a lone, dim lightbulb, strung up overhead. Everything else was immaculately clean. Gabe ducked under the curtain, blinking.His tour guide was now accompanied by an older woman. Her robes were neater, and she a necklace made of bits of frayed fabric. She was carrying a bundle of clothing.
"Welcome, acolyte. I am the Record Keeper, and I will guide you through the last parts of your ceremony. First, you must be un-named." She gestured towards his nametag.
"What, this?" The Record Keeper nodded, and handed him the bundle. He opened it up to find a nondescript uniform in olive drab. "You can change over there."
The clothes were a little too big. Gabe handed over his old outfit. The contents of his pockets formed a small pile at his feet.
She smiled. "We'll keep those for you." She led him out of the Sanctum, and back into the main lounge area. It was quite crowded; evidently the entire group had gathered to watch. She stood on a table, and began.
"Brothers and sisters! We are gathered to witness the induction of another into our fold!" A cheer. "To gain our trust, he must undergo... a Trial!" Another cheer. It really was astounding, how they could all pronounce capital letters.
With a flourish, an envelope was presented to him. Gabe was pushed to the elevator shaft by the crowd, and Brother Flynn stood aside to let him in.
CONGRATULATIONS! read the letter inside. TO EARN YOUR PLACE IN THE ESTEEMED BREAKROOM, FIRST YOU MUST COMPLETE A TASK FOR US.
EPIGEN CORPORATION IS HOME TO MANY WONDROUS ARTEFACTS. WE SEEK TO LIBERATE THEM. YOUR TASK IS TO LOCATE AND RETRIEVE ONE OF THE NEW ARRIVALS.
A fuzzy photograph of a small red orb was glued below. It was captioned with a catalogue number, and a timestamp.
GOOD LUCK. DON'T GET CAUGHT.
A handwritten note was scribbled near the bottom. "Spare janitors' uniforms, hallway C-II, fourth door on the right. Password is -... .-. -.- .-. -- Ask for Tech Xodarap."
The doors slid open, and he stepped back out to the fifty-fourth floor. No one paid him any attention.