This is a session recap for a Kult: Divinity Lost roleplaying campaign. Jessy Button is played by my wife, who also does the art, and I am the game master.
This post contains visual nudity.
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Waking up in a daze, Jessy reaches for her phone to check her messages only to be reminded of what happened last night. Instead of letting herself spiral into another panic, she leaves her emails and DMs unread and uncared for, instead focusing on what’s important: the ritual. She’s staying at Tan’s place for now. She studies intently, and harasses Daisy whenever she spots the girl. It’s easy to make her angry, and Daisy already holds a grudge against Jessy for what happened with James. After lunch, she makes a call to Simon, her friendly and willing torture victim. There’s no doubt he saw Jessy’s episode on Instagram, and the fallout of it, but she believes that he if anyone wouldn’t judge her for it. Simon doesn’t pick up immediately, but calls back an hour later after hearing the message Jessy left. He voices some concern for her, asks if she’s okay and tells her Andi is really worried. There’s no way for Jessy to approach their common acquaintance again, to explain to her what’s really going on. Simon agrees – she wouldn’t ever be able to get it. Simon tells her with a small chuckle that everyone goes a little crazy sometimes, and that he understands Jessy’s actions, at least the parts that matter.
Simon thanks her, again, for what she did to him the first time they met. He is still healing, but what Jessy gave in return… She hears his shaky breathing. He knows much now. Speaking of which, Jessy tells him that she needs him. Artyom will be there too. Simon pauses, and the silence from the other end of the line speaks volumes – he is afraid it may be too much for his still wounded body. Jessy asks if she should find someone else, and Simon caves and tells her that he will do it. He wants to, of course. The reward is worth any risk. He wants to see her again so badly, speak with her. They are the same, he claims, and Simon has so many questions for Jessy. What has she seen? What does she know? Their paths cross, and his heart beats to explore that intersection. Jessy tells him sweetly that they’ll have time for all of that. She gives Simon the address of her Brampton home, and tells him to come there in three days time, at five in the evening. Bring something to eat.
| Days pass by, Jessy studying and slowly returning to the online world. She cannot go back to how things were. She spends some time emptying her inbox, deleting social media accounts, and generally going dark, but she also sifts through the garbage to find more… interesting responses to her breakdown. A couple of people have reached out to her, asking some very direct questions and taking an interest in the things Jessy posted when everything went south. New friends. Lounging on the second floor couch surrounded by erotic art, Jessy reaches out to them with a small smile on her face. What do they know about something called a mancipia?1 As it turns out, not much, but they are willing to help her. Ancient forum posts lead to dead .onion links, which take Jessy some time to understand. She’s taught how to use Tor and its dodgy search services, how to stay safe (as safe as can be), and how to really dig down deep into the internet’s underground labyrinth to find the information and people she needs. An anonymous man in Afghanistan who speaks very poor English becomes her friend, especially after she sends him a couple of pictures of herself, and through him she gets at least one lead. A series of images of indeterminable age, taken by a person yet unidentified and depicting the outcome of a ritual meant to summon a mancipia. There’s little context for the images, blandly named 1.jpg, 2.jpg and so on. Jessy analyzes the pictures2 with a rising sense of dread. |
1
Access to the Dark Web Partial Success 2 Keep It Together Partial Success
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Forty people, at least, are strewn across a dark stone chamber. All dead. She recognizes some of the markings on the disemboweled bodies, arcane symbols similar to those in Tan’s notes. Most of them lay in groups, naked and with gruesome wounds revealing their death in all too much detail. Whoever the photographer was, they found these mutilated corpses fascinating. While some must have run away, most of them remain in a formation close to what Jessy and Tan are planning. If it isn’t the same ritual exactly, it is uncannily close. Forcing herself through the gallery, each picture giving her another glimpse into what a summoning gone wrong looks like, Jessy stops and stares at the last image. While the form is human, Jessy could never have mistaken it for such. It lays alone, tall and decapitated, with its smooth silvery skin untouched by decay or violence. Even in death, its body is so beautiful that Jessy cannot help but feel envy. Perfect round breasts, a thick length between its legs, impossibly large and erect even in death, its stomach gorgeously toned. It is difficult to look at the picture and accept that the head is missing, because the thing laying on the cave floor is still irresistible. That is a mancipia, is no doubt about it. Somehow the ritual failed, but they did manage to call it there. Mesmerized by the last image for far too long, Jessy feels a twinge of regret that she must disrupt Tan’s ritual. The mancipia is agonizingly alluring, but Sol’s offer to her is worth it, must be. She can have more.
Stepping away from her research, shaken by the sobering look at what could happen if she fails, Jessy heads to the kitchen to see who is cooking for her today. Daisy gives her a death glare as she passes by. Jessy only laughs, and complains to Daisy about the poor quality of the food lately. They inevitably begin to fight, again, about James and how Jessy broke him. Daisy is animated in this, she has not let it go and it seems she never will. Carolina is tired of the quarrel, of having it never progress. With a heavy hand on Jessy’s shoulder, and another on Daisy’s, she looks between the two girls and tells them to sit down. While Daisy drops into a chair with her arms crossed over her chest, Jessy comfortably drapes herself across a small couch and gives Daisy a smug smirk. Carolina tries to explore the girls’ wants, what they actually seek out of this conflict, what its purpose is. Jessy is dismissive, of course, thinking Daisy should just get over what happened already and saying there’s nothing she can do for her. Daisy, meanwhile, states blankly what she wants: for Jessy to hurt like James did.
The look on Carolina’s face tells them both that she liked that answer. She urges Daisy not to hold back her desire. If that is her goal, then it is best for her to follow goat-headed Mil’s guiding voice and act on it. She suggests they perform a ceremonial war, a way for Daisy and Jessy to confront each other and the love they feel for their disagreement. To truly perform conflict, to revel in it and struggle for supremacy, that is how Carolina wants the two girls to express themselves. They would both don their masks, be given a blade and a chance to live out their fight through action instead of the empty words they have been throwing at each other. Whether Daisy manages to enact her desires onto Jessy, or if Jessy ends their conflict with a decisive blow, the outcome matters little. It is the celebration of conflict that is important here. There is a glint in Jessy’s eye and she immediately agrees to this. Daisy, who had initially seemed ready for a fight, visibly hesitates at Jessy’s excitement. She agrees, though, if it means she can give Jessy what she deserves. Jessy does have one demand – Tan must be present. She will only do it under his watch. Carolina promises to speak with him about it, and the rest of the day passes with Daisy and Jessy not saying another word to one another.
Tan returns to the apartment come evening, but besides his usual flirting and kissing at all the people who surround him, he does not seem able to stay around for long. Instead of settling into his office or the lounge, he tells Jessy to come with him, that they have somewhere to be. She drops what she’s doing (nothing) in an instant and disappears to make herself presentable. Putting on makeup proves to be a challenge – every time Jessy meets her own gaze in the mirror, her eyes appear to her a golden brown. She’s not alone, never is, but for now Angela is silent. Tan, who has brought a sleek black suitcase with him, takes Jessy down to the garage and the two head out into the snail paced traffic of downtown Toronto. While stuck, the two discuss Jessy’s studies. Tan is eager to hear how she’s doing, making sure that she understands everything she’s reading. Jessy tells him about her deep net hunt for information, and the pictures she found. Tan is impressed with her, excited to see those pictures himself. Small talk fills the silence, Tan confirming that he’ll preside over Jessy’s ritual war against Daisy once they come back to the apartment. No use delaying it. Jessy asks him to make sure that nothing goes horribly wrong, to ensure the summoning can go ahead as planned. Tan does not promise anything, and remains silent. The conversation moves on without his response.
The comfortably heated car rolls up onto a driveway by a squat one-story house in southern Scarborough. The sky blue home doesn’t look like much. An empty lawn, blinds drawn, and a small set of wooden stairs leading up to a miniscule porch and dark brown door decorated with a mosaic window. This is James’ home, Tan informs Jessy with a small smile. They are here to visit him, though he is still in a rather bad state since the incident. Tan reminds Jessy that for the summoning to work, all members of Tan’s flock must be present. Jessy knows this. Well, James is in no state to attend. He gets shakes, suffers intense panic attacks, and his fear of Jessy would not do during a ceremony dedicated to love. He cannot attend, and yet he cannot NOT attend or the ritual would doubtlessly fail. Tan suggests the third option. When Jessy doesn’t catch on, he smirks and grabs the suitcase from the backseat. From it, he produces something she’s seen before: the syringe-like object she found in Tan’s bedroom, a handle in old copper with a two-inch needle in one end. He holds it carefully, and warns Jessy to sit still.
This thing, whatever it is, will let them take care of James in the same way they took care of Eduardo Sarmento. Jessy gives Tan a wide-eyed look, puzzling together what he just said. The way Eduardo died had been gruesome. She’d only just met Tan back then, she didn’t know what he was capable of, wouldn’t have even suspected it. Tan answers her questions, confirms that yes, this is the thing that killed Eduardo and yes, he did do it. There is not a hint of remorse in his calm smile, but he does want to see his sweet cook before he’s gone. Since Jessy was the one to put James in this situation, Tan thinks it only fair for her to also take care of this. He hands Jessy the syringe, and she takes it without further question. It goes into her small black purse, positioned carefully as not to stick her through the leather. With that, they leave the car and knock on James’ door.
Tan wants to see James, speak with him, but when the tired looking man dressed in joggers and a dirty t-shirt sees Jessy he stumbles away from the twice-unlocked door and stammers out a demand for explanation. Jessy greets him with a small smile, and Tan diverts James’ attention with kind words and a caress of his cheek. The fear doesn’t subside, James keeping his distance from Jessy as she saunters into his unclean home. Dust everywhere, clothes discarded on every piece of furniture, dirty dishes on the kitchen counter and the small dining table. She listens in on Tan and James talking, but says little. The men have an intimate conversation about how James is feeling, if he has been able to find his love for the Twins once more. James struggles to love at all after what happened to him. As the conversation unfolds, Tan instructs James to undress, and the taller man obliges without a moment’s hesitation. He would do near enough anything for Tan. To no one’s surprise, Tan did not come to only talk. Through sex, he hopes to coax James into expressing his worship of Dehu and Mil once more. Whispered prayers or cried out in pleasure, the two men enjoying each other bores Jessy. She rolls her eyes and wanders the sad looking home instead, on her phone and sipping on water from the only clean glass she could find in the kitchen. Deep moans, flesh hitting flesh and praise to the Twins becomes a pervasive soundscape. Jessy has no option but to wait until Tan is done getting everything he can out of his loyal, broken lover.
Some time passes, Jessy cannot say how long. She watches as Tan finally steps away from James, bound with satin ropes to an armchair. Tan calmly dresses himself and turns to Jessy with a smile. All hers now, if there was anything she wanted from James before they leave. She looks the naked, bound man up and down. He’s in a complete daze, head lolled slightly to the side and mouth open. His eyes follow Tan, but there’s no focus. The sigil that Jessy carved into his flesh is there. It looks black and dead, like the skin on Artyom’s head. Tan’s ropes have been pulled taut across it, hiding some of her sacrilegious handiwork. Disappointing. She walks up to James, and the man stirs a little when he realizes his demon approaches. There is fear in his eyes, but he has neither strength nor will to resist her. She sits down gingerly on his lap, tugging at the ropes to get a better look at his festering wound, feel it with the tip of her fingers. He hasn’t taken very good care of it, she mocks. Leaning in close, her lips brush against James’ ear as she whispers to him: What did you see?
| James cannot resist responding. Whatever Tan did to him, James is now so docile that even face to face with the person he fears most, he can’t do anything but obey. With a shaky voice, he recalls the dark hallways of concrete he was dragged through. Large hooks, humans stored like they were meat, except they were still alive, screaming. They held him still, burned him and cut him open. James tries to get Tan’s attention, and he has it. Tan has to believe him, the horrors were so real. He was forced to see his own organs displayed in front of him by the man in the white mask, the Russian3… He tries to keep talking, but Jessy places a hand over his mouth and looks over her shoulder to Tan. She asks him to fetch her purse,4 and while Tan does so she gives James a sweet smile and shushes him until his rambling and pleading stops. Out of James’ sight, Jessy takes the syringe-like artifact from her purse. The needle enters his arm with no resistance, is buried in his flesh, and pulled out again. It’s so easy, so quick, and from James’ dull expression it doesn’t seem like he even felt it. Jessy kisses the corner of his mouth. This is only happening because you’re too weak, she informs James with a smirk and distances herself without further explanation. |
3
Liar Hold spent 4 Influence Other Partial Success |
After this, Tan and her quickly wrap up their visit. Tan frees James from bondage, collects the few belongings he had brought for the visit, and gives James one last, deep kiss. There’s some sadness there, Jessy can see that, but no regrets. They leave James to his fate, and the car ride is quiet for a few minutes as they drive away. Jessy eventually asks Tan what Eduardo had done to incur such a fate. It wasn’t so much what he did, but what he had, Tan responds. Carefree as usual, he explains that after Eduardo’s tragic passing he was able to become a majority stockholder in Cliq, and the streaming service is taking off in a big way. Jessy nods, plainly understanding the man’s priorities. Tan asks, to disrupt the settling silence, if Jessy has a problem with what they did. He can’t imagine she would, and she easily answers that she doesn’t. The killing felt like nothing to her, truth be told, but she doesn’t tell that to Tan. An injection and leaving? There was no fun in that, nothing to engage with or enjoy. Jessy looks forward to the night, to her fight with Daisy. She daydreams of tomorrow, too, when she finally gets to see Artyom again. It has been too long, and seeing James’ infected scars one last time before his body is destroyed makes her giddy to do the same to Simon. She smiles and looks out the window at the passing cars, ignoring the golden glow in the reflection of her eyes.
Beyond Elysium 