Contractors Make a Splash

• Contractors are no joke. The Gifts they stand to gain by participating in Contracts are significant. Even Novice Contractors can become overnight celebrities by displaying proof of their powers, and more seasoned Contractors have a chance to truly change the status quo. Of course, no one makes a splash without getting some unwanted attention, and no one can change the world without making powerful enemies. . .

Terms commonly used in by those who speak English in the Illumination.

These Illuminations represent a small selection (but not all) of the most influential validated evidence of the supernatural. All but the most remote / removed humans know about these events, and the evidence (video and otherwise) is readily availble. 

The Werewolf of Montgumery High

One of the earliest validated illuminations occured in 2004 at Montgumery high. A high school senior named Nate Klienman was on a date with his girlfriend Kelly Whethers. They drove to the limestone quarry outside of town, a popular "makeout point" with the local teens. For some reason, Nate decided to film the encounter on his flip phone. In doing so, he achieved several "world's first" titles, including "first person to record a werewolf's transformation" and "first person to be mauled to death by a werewolf on camera." Security footage from the quarry was cross-referenced with the footage from his phone, allowing the encounter to be confirmed beyond a reasonable doubt. Since then, several werewolves and other varieties of lycanthrope have been captured and studied, though scienfitic findings are slim.

Kelly Whethers herself did not attend school the next day and has not been seen since the event. Her current whereabouts are the subject of much debate online. 

The Sanger Family's Comeuppance

Dr. Yamazaki's Conquest

Mass-distributed evidence of supernatural phenomena are called “Illuminations.” When a video of something supernatural goes viral online, what happens?

Anyone who cares about the phenomena (be they an individual or an organization), must assess its validity. Government organizations may offer official evaluations on what is proven, but these are rarely trusted outright. 

Evidence of supernatural phenomena fall into one of three categories: Validated, Debated, or Phoney.

Complicating Factors

• Gen-Wyld is a highly-successful company that offers extreme body mods, transgenic alterations, advanced surgical tattoos, giving odd-looking supernatural entities more plausible deniability if witnessed / recorded. 
• The COVID-19 epidemic has led to social acceptance of mass mask-wearing, making it difficult to identify individuals caught on film wielding supernatural powers. 
• Many bystanders and witnesses fear any involvement whatsoever and so run instead of filming the event. Others are stunned, and in many parts of the world, cell phones are not 100% common. Some evidence is destroyed or concealed before it is posted. 
• Censorship by some governments is not uncommon. Despite its many issues, the United States has some of the best freedom-of-speech laws of any country. Totalitarian governments exert much stronger control over the media and their citizens' access to CryptoLeak. 

Any Illumination that is validated or debated has some degree of fallout. The details of what happens next depends on many factors, especially the nature of the supernatural phenomena that has been illuminated. 

Dangerous, grand, and terrifying  phenomena may cause a large reaction. Some phenomena are seen more as curiosities than anything else and may not prompt a significant response. Phenomena that stick around an observable area always prompt a greater reaction than a mere sighting or bizarre evidence.  

Gold Rush

• Those who want to potentially profit off of the discovery. 

Defense

• Governments always show force around Illuminations but, in general, will only take overt action if the phenomena poses a clear and present danger. 
• However, private citizens, populist groups, and militias almost ALWAYS appear. They are driven by fear and may be armed and violent. They may be manipulated by fear-mongering individuals and organizations, especially politicians, charlatans, and religious leaders, but really anyone who is looking to gather a following or catalyze action. 
• “Monster Hunters” arrive as well, looking to make a quick buck off of those locals who are especially scared. 

Policy

• Destructive or terrifying phenomena often prompt policy changes. These often take the form of security theater like enhanced TSA screening or mandated blood tests for certain actions / positions. 

Scientists (called unnaturologists) across the world have been given access to various supernatural artifacts and creatures. The results of their research are all over the map. In most cases, scientists have only successfully quantified the unexplainability of supernatural phenomena. For example, they may be able to tell you how much mass a werewolf gains during their transformation, but not where the matter comes from. No means of detecting “magic” in a general sense has been developed yet.

However, science is occasionally successful at replicating and harnessing the supernatural. Several companies and governments now manufacture ultra-high-end products and technologies that are not yet available to the general public.

More than once a scientist has been corrupted by their work. Infection, obsession, and insanity are not uncommon. Several scientists have stolen their subjects and gone off to become wizards, free agents, or monsters themselves.

Due to a subtle advancement of productivity from the supernatural, technology in the Illumination is slightly more advanced than our own. 

• In general, all end-user consumer devices are one "generation" (3-5 years) ahead of where they are in the real world. 
  • While this enables better cameras and higher-speed internet, connectivity at the edge (ie reception in rural / remote areas) is about as limited as it is today, and satallite phones are still only capable of low-quality voice calls and messages (no data). 
• A company known as Gen-Wyld (pronnounced "jen-wild") offers advanced cosmetic surgery and body modifications. While cosmetic surgeries are mostly limited to improved versions of existing procedures, their body mods are more outlandish and include features like pointed ears, altered skin tones, altered eyes, drastically enlongated tongues, and even tails. 
  • More extreme Gen-Wyld body modifications are rare and almost as uncommon as sub-dermal implants, full-body tattoos, or other extreme body mods in real life.

The increase in interest in the supernatural and overall unknowableness of the world has led to a resurgence of services that claim to be supernatural. Everything from palm reading to televangelism is more common than ever. The vast majority of witches, psychics, magicians, hypnotists, cures, potions, faith healers, and clairvoyants are complete fakes, yet they have experienced surprising success in recent years.

Most people scoff at most supernatural services, but those same people often buy into at least one personal “supernatural” aid.

Monster hunters and exorcists are one amusing form of charlatan. The vast majority have never encountered anything supernatural and do absolutely nothing besides burn sage and carry a gun with silver bullets. Even so, they see surprising success calming the nerves of people and communities that believe they are haunted by paranormal phenomena.

Just a theory

Conspiracy theories in the real world range from completely unhinged brain rot, to plausible, but lacking in hard evidence. In a world that has gone through the Illumination, we can crank this up way past ten.

From seemingly impossible microchip technologies, to literal ghosts and ghouls, everything that could go bump in the dark in the Illuminated setting could be a much more plausible answer for people’s day to day woes.

Subjects

Anyone with even a moderately sized social footprint can have a conspiracy weaved about them these days, but here are some of the bigger ones.

• Prometheus Ventures (and linked agencies)
  • Only the real gumshoes can even see the outline of this organization. The Shredded Veil Pod talks about the connection between a number of CEOs, but few public members know much more than that.
  • Offr
    • A Gig-Economy TaskRabbit type app. People use it as a side hustle, some make it their whole job, but there are whispers of offers that have broke bad. A not insignificant number of users have gone missing and people are asking questions.
      • Prometheus Connected through leadership
• City Government and "The Ritual Committee"
  • Primarily a push from Stoughton and acolytes, no proof of existence of any such committee.

Amplifiers

Whether it's an individual shouting on a street corner, or a couple folks talking into a microphone there will always be individuals or groups . Here is an incomplete list of the most interesting ones.

• Stoughton
  • A user on anonymous message boards that claims to be at a seat of power in the "Ritual Commission" within city government. Claims to have direct access to the word of God through their access to this commission.
    • There is no other verification that this commission even exists. That said, sometimes big predictions line up, and Pope has developed a rabid following.
• Sons of Stoughton
  • A militia of rabid followers of Stoughton. Located primarily in Vallejo, but love to venture into the bay to cause trouble.
• The Shredded Veil Podcast
  • Hosted by Ben Blau and Lena Kowalski
  • Both Bay Area natives with deep ties to the underground music scene. Ben spent a significant amount of time on the streets while he struggled with addiction and has had up close and personal experiences with the worst this city has to offer. Lena is a bit more straight laced with significant interest in the financial dealings of city politicians, and the connections between tech firms. They tend towards hyperbole, and jump to conclusions, but where they land is a lot closer to the reality than many of the more popular outlets.
• Jessica Parsons
  • A homeless woman struggling to get by who lives around the Tenderloin. A white woman with matted brown hair who would probably be tall if she weren't completely hunched over. Her skin is incredibly damaged both due to years of exposure and
  • Jessica was a 'catch and release' from the Prometheus linked firm "Offr".
  • Offr has been experimenting with memory erasing tech to reduce the number of people they need to disappear that could potentially be linked to the firm.
  • The magic and ritual based tech used on her has left a deep sympathetic link with the going-ons on the Offr campus. She feels a numb pain and receives shadowy visions when rituals and sacrifices are committed in the bowels of that place.

The Contracts have been on pause for 500 years. 

Even among those “in the know,” direct knowledge of The Games is rare. Only ancient creatures or those with an advanced intelligence network tend to know about them. Of course, all it would take is a single Contractor interview on TV to change the situation dramatically. . .

After all these Illuminations, what do we know about specific supernatural entities and phenomena?

Psychics, Telepaths, Empaths

There are several well-documented cases of people who were either born with or developed psychic or intuitive mental powers. Because these powers are often discovered when the subject is young, it is postulated that a large percentage of the psychic population is known to others. If not in popular culture, at least by the government or the subjects’ families.

The United States government runs a special school for “gifted” children. Its official location is unknown, but many believe it is tucked away in the mountains of Marin, California.

Magic-wielders

Magic-wielders are not eager to demonstrate their abilities en-masse in public unless they are trying to gather a following. Most find private employment.

Charlatans exist in both circles, both private and public.

Supers

Certain individuals have demonstrated superhuman strength, speed, intellect, or other abilities. They are officially banned from participating in sports and the olympics.

China was sanctioned by the olympic committee for fielding an athlete with supernatural dexterity in gymnastics, though the claim is widely contested and the ruling criticized.

Ritual Magic and Alchemy
No ritual of power has been discovered. No ritual involving magic words, symbols, or actions has ever been shown to channel or harness any unnatural power on its own. Similarly, while certain magic-users have demonstrated an ability to imbue mixtures with supernatural effects, but no one has been able to outline a mixture method that is reproducible by mundane humans or at an industrial scale.

Magic-wielders may require ritual or alchemical preparation for using their supernatural abilities, but they themselves act as a locus for the effect, and others do not see any results from performing the same ritual. Magical books and other objects may also act as a locus, allowing anyone who performs the ritual and carries the object of power to wield its magic.

Rituals that have been validated to harness magic with a proper locus have been distributed en-masse online and performed by millions with no effect. Certain rituals seem to hold power when certain individuals with “potential” perform them.

Some wizards have posted rituals online and instructed anyone who can perform them and see results to contact them for additional training.

Prayers, Invocations, Miracles, and Divine Magic
There is evidence to suggest that on rare occasions, individuals have been successful at invoking the power of “greater beings” to create extraordinary effects dubbed “miracles”. Examples of these “miracles” include plague-like rains of blood, the creation of a wellspring oasis in the desert, and mass-scale mechanical failure (such as an opposing army’s guns all jamming).

The invocation itself is almost never caught on film. They are often performed unintentionally or privately with little hope of success. The effects themselves, however, are undeniable.

These “miracles” are not repeatable, and those who wield the magic can not do so on demand or even more than once. Many suggest that rather than a specific individual wielding divine powers, divine powers choose and work through normal individuals, leaving as quickly as they came.

A blanket term for a creature that exists as Some have been validated, others have been confirmed to be hoaxes.

Some are kept in public zoos, especially in the most powerful countries on earth.

Yes, though very little is known of them. At least one species has been confirmed. Other space ships and individuals have been spotted or found that did not conform to the discovered species.

Supernatural creatures and individuals who wield supernatural abilities lead many different sorts of lives. By and large, few choose to illuminate their powers. Most opt to keep their abilities private or semi-private either managing them like a condition or trying to capitalize on them without showing too much.

Those who choose to go public play a high-stakes game of public opinion. Living openly as a validated supernatural leads to fame, wealth, and power, but a single misstep may see them tied to a burning stake or locked in an underground science facility.

Most supernatural creatures choose to live privately, either hiding their abilities or revealing them to a select few.

Prometheus Ventures is a Palo Alto-based venture capital firm that obtains, studies, and finds business applications for supernatural artifacts. It is a small organization headed by a small circle of independently-wealthy individuals, all of whom have since become exceedingly rich and powerful due to the firm’s success.

Think of them as venture capital for Bond Villains.

LOSE: Locate Obtain Study Enterprise

LOSE is Prometheus Venture’s business strategy and general modus-operandi.

They Locate supernatural artifacts and phenomena using software, investigative contracting agencies, connections, and other less-well-known means. Once they confirm the existence of a supernatural entity, they Obtain it using a team of mercenaries or capital-c Contractors. They often operate in legally-grey areas and never involve authorities. (Mushroom hunt is a Prometheus Ventures contract, though their brand is underrepresented).

The obtained supernatural object is Studied using a small in-house team of brilliant, well-paid scientists. Details of their scientific facility— including its location— are unknown, but it is extraordinarily successful at studying, replicating, and harnessing supernatural phenomena.

Once a market application of the supernatural artifact is found, it is time to Enterprise. They find and approach an existing 3rd-party company— usually a start-up— and offer a deal: they will share their supernatural technology for a controlling share of the company. No company has refused this offer to date, and all have found incredible market success, creating many multi-millionaires.

A handful of Prometheus Ventures partners now sit on the board of several of the fastest-growing and most-influential new companies. They have all become exceedingly wealthy, but their true goals are their own and go beyond mere currency…

Public Footprint

Despite their ubiquity, Prometheus Ventures is relatively unknown to the public. They have no public-facing webpage or ad presence. They are not prominently-listed in any company’s webpage.

The only overt mark that a company is Prometheus-funded is the presence of a particular flame in the company’s logo. Confirming their involvement would mean researching the company’s board and cross-referencing its members with other rising tech company board members.

The Partners

The Partners of Prometheus Ventures are all independently-wealthy, either "self-made" sharks, extraordinarily-lucky investor-gamblers, or heirs to vast fortunes. They are few in number: four are known to exist. Each one brought some special sauce for a letter of LOSE: some extraordinary competency to Locate, Obtain, Study, or Enterprise.

Each partner sees Prometheus Ventures as the means to their own, individual ends. They have their own goals, and occasionally their methodologies or contracts are colored by their hidden agendas.

Ralph Turlock

Ralph is a real American Psycho type. He is professional, sharp, and well-put-together. He builds trust and makes friends easily, but he is an absolute psychopath. He transfuses himself with the blood of children, as research has shown the procedure to increase the life expectancy of smaller mammals by as much as 20%.

Immortality certainly seems to be one of his primary objectives, though it is unlikely to be the limit of his aspirations.

His origin and rise to power has great unpublished chapters. When a company he founded as a young man made him a great deal of money, he started researching various international black markets, particularly the underground gold trade surrounding mines in Ghana. He made connections, hired investigators to do research, and hired mercenaries as security, all from his desktop and cell phone. Soon he was the head of a vast criminal organization of black market smuggling and distribution despite rarely visiting any of the countries in which they operate personally.

His network and capacity to “get things done” quietly and effectively allows him to Obtain almost any artifact Prometheus Ventures can locate. And it is whispered amongst the partners that he has an ace up his sleeve that allows him to transport the goods without the slightest chance of discovery.

CryptoLeak is less an organization than a technlogical entity that cannot be controlled or destroyed. Despite a near-universal condemnation by world leaders, most humans greatly appreciate CryptoLeak's status as a video streaming platform beyond the reach of governent and industry alike. It's the go-to platform for posting illuminations, whistleblowing evidence, and data leaks. 

In reality, CryptoLeak is a very simple and mundane technological service. It has no central backing corperation or organization. It utilizeds a distributed architecture that allows it to host content across the entire world, sharding and mirroring its petabytes of data accross millions of personal devices around the world. Content uploaded to CryptoLeak is immutable and cannot be doctored or redacted by any known means. 

For once, technology has put the power in the hands of the little guys. 

World Governments and powerful organizations can still censor or restrict access to CryptoLeak within their domains (mostly), and they do practice other sorts of misdirection and psy-ops utilizing the platform. However, for most people, CryptoLeak represents an ability to share any data with the wold without the fear of it being censored. 

Of course, simply uploading a video does not gaurentee it will be seen or gain traction, nor does it protect you from any consequences that may come along with pulling back the veil. . . 

Few organizations are as deadly or terrifying to Contractors as The Band of Blood. Its members can be identified by their rings: a simple red band that cannot be removed by any known means.

The Band of Blood is a fraternity of Contractors who have lost sight of their original ambitions but still participate in the Games as a way to give their lives meaning. As free agents without an home to return to, they allow the Harbingers to transport them from dimension to dimension as needed. Many are adrenaline junkies of the worst sort, chasing the thrill of risking their own lives. Each member is a cold and ruthless killer that will do whatever it takes to achieve their current objective.

Taking the Blood Oath offers certain benefits but comes at a horrible price. When The Band of Blood spots a Contractor they may like to recruit, they go to work separating that Contractor from their world. This involves murdering the potential recruit's friends and family, undermining their ambition, and pushing a nihilistic philosophy onto them. Mental and emotional conditioning are not out of the question. Any recruits who still refuse are killed or abandoned.

(INT OFFICE - DAY: Somber music, man in mid thirties in an office setting looks at a clock ticking away)

Time, it sure is fleeting these days.

(Brief images of teenagers looking at phones, elderly people struggling, then back to the man in the office)
Maybe your kids are growing up, maybe your parents are looking a bit older than they used to, or maybe you yourself are in your absolute prime, and you just want to enjoy yourself…

(Stressful office montage, boss yelling, stacks of papers, annoying coworkers, then a slow zoom on our main character not paying attention to any of it)
But you can't right? Bills, rent, mortgage, your manager yelling at you, coworkers trying to get you to come in on your day off. Missed Recitals, missed dinners, missed life. During these uncertain times, nothing is more important than those meaningful moments…

(EXT SUBURBAN YARD - AFTERNOON: Music swells and turns hopeful, Suddenly he's with his parents, his kids are interested in the conversation, his wife by his side)
That's where we step in. We want to give you that time back. We just ask you one question:

What do you have to Offr?

—Offr 2021 Superbowl commercial

We swear to secure our people against the wickedness and evil of the invisible world.
We swear to aid the afflicted.
We swear to stay ever vigilant and seek out the abominable witchcrafts committed in this country.
We humbly pray to be blessed by God to hold all those who consort with the Devil accountable. Amen

—Opening and closing prayer for Sons of Stoughton meetings. Paraphrased from a letter about the Trials written by Increase Mather on June 15th, 1692.

While it may seem like a blessing to some, any rational parent should be terrified to discover that their child possessed psychic or telekinetic powers. Given the uncertain and fearful culture that surrounds the supernatural (not to mention the immaturity and extraordinary power of the child), the most likely outcome is disaster. Luckily, the US Government has established Casa Verde. 

Casa Verde is a compound in the Northern California where children and young adults with psychic powers (and sometimes other supernatural traits) are rasied under the watch of the United States government. Tucked away in a secluded ocean-facing section of Mount Tamalpais in Marin County, Casa Verde houses a dozen or so children and has an unknown number of staff. 

For obvious reasons, the compound is under heavy guard. However, primary caregivers may still communicate with and visit their children, and the residents are given opprotunities to socialize with society via covert and carefully-managed field trips. Visitors report pleasantly landscaped grounds and a large, green victorian-era home that acts as the main residential building. 

Unless the child in question has committed violent crimes, residency at Casa Verde is entirely at the will of the parents. 

Some conspiracy theorists speculate that the government is performing experiments on the children or that they are being groomed as covert CIA and FBI agents.

-Minor: Unpleasant questions are asked, PCs might be detained by police, will be profiled as “Troublemakers”

-Moderate: PCs are accused of serious felony crimes, possibly locked up with a bail set. They’re assets will be seized as “evidence” & they may be told not to leave the area

-Major: Warrants are out for there arrest both locally & abroad, possibly bringing in FBI or Federal Marshalls - PCs are outed as Dangerous Fugitives & Outlaws, will be placed on a list for immediate arrest at airports - they may be wanted “Dead or Alive”

When an individual discovers a supernatural object or phenomena, they would be wise to keep it to themselves (but often are not).

Those who go public with the discovery are immediately famous. However, no insurance company is going to insure a priceless, sought-after artifact in the hands of just some "regular joe" who has no way of securing it.

The objects are often stolen or "reclaimed" through legal / political muscle. The discoverers are often left empty-handed.

Those who do keep it to themselves are rarely in a position to capitalize on the discovery, but may privately seek out people who are for partnerships. These under-the-table arrangements are fraught with danger from greed and betrayal.

To be "outed" is death for many pre-existing supernatural communities or organizations. Organizations of supernatural entities are extremely distrusted, and likely to be subject to unofficial action, violence, populist movements, etc.

Cabals must keep under the radar or be destroyed by those who are eyeing their positions of powers.

Some supernatural orgs may have faked their own extinction and moved into to replace themselves, leaving the public none the wiser.