With Nemesis season approaching, SAINTcorp™ put out a bold notice to the Lakelands that all Nemesi found practicing in Capital City and Coldwater would be detained and dealt with for disrupting peaceful society. Thus, Mourning Glory-- relatively free from SAINTcorp™’s influence-- became a reluctant refuge for nearby Nemesi looking to escape persecution.
In retaliation for what they saw as religious persecution, the local Nemesis group Rogue’s Gallery kidnapped C.O.O. Sloane’s wife, Tiffany, leaving Sloane desperate for help from Mourners. The trade started with a not-so-simple question: would locals help these frightening figures, or turn them in to meet an uncertain fate?
Friday night began with a group of Capital City refugees looking to move through Mourning Glory. A few stealthy citizens helped them find their checkpoint, hopefully misleading the nearby Venerated, 13, into believing that these refugees were not escaping Nemesi. Representatives from SAINTcorp™ later came out to hear product pitches from locals for their Rising Stars competition, with a winning pitch from Idakno.
Meanwhile, it was quite a night for feral Sempers. Flora, a friendly young person from Skyler’s Home for Wayward Sempers, was attacked and killed by Thrill Kills. Later, a couple of the mysterious Skyler’s friends brought in a feral ward for an exam, revealing the cause of some of their recent troubles– the pod systems seem to have been corrupted with Gravelung disease.
The night was highlighted by a visit from Lord Bane, offering an opportunity for a clue about Tiffany’s whereabouts. After many all out, bare knuckles, bloody brawls, two winners emerged- and were then beaten into bleed out by Lord Bane. They got their clue though, and awaited the next day for more death games and more clues.
Saturday began with a visit from Devoted Dead during Saturday Morning Cartoons. At first they seemed peaceful and performed a strange TV-like ritual, but quickly turned violent. Then it was time for a different TV ritual- the Rogue’s Gallery’s death games. First was “A Lesson in Unionization,” hosted by a clown named The Host. Players had to outbid each other to do ridiculous stunts– from giving up equipment to eating spicy bugs. The losing team was a lone clown, who took their death with pride. Together, the town received another clue about Tiffany.
The next game was “A Pound of Flesh,” with Catcrow as the host. To make up for the death of a harmless Nemesis, all participants were prompted to give up parts of themselves. The players were clever enough to ask Catcrow to donate the most lethal parts required, which they willingly gave, alongside a clue.
Hemlock led the next game, “Higher Learning,” which ended in an unfortunate accident. Three poor souls were poisoned after mistakenly eating Hemlock’s heart in an attempt to find the antidote. But, this did lead to the revelation that Tiffany had been taking a prescribed medicine at the behest of her wife– which some players found suspicious.
During the day, more Nemesi came to town looking for refuge, including a group of depressed Voorhees, a Ghost Ship sailor, a team of wrestling heels, and a dangerous follower of Carrie and Firestarter. Some were met with helping hands, while others met the Gravemind.
The final death game arrived in the form of a gaggle of Tiffanies- different Goonion members dressed as Tiffany, with the real one hidden among them. Townsfolk were tasked with using the clues they’d gathered so far to track down and choose the correct Tiffany out of the bunch. But of course, nothing Rogue’s Gallery does is so safe and simple. In this game of “Hide and Shriek,” the hunters themselves were also being hunted by Rogue’s Gallery cast members whose bomb collars would trigger at close proximity, taking them down alongside their prey. Thankfully, town quickly sussed out who the real Tiffany was. After some heartfelt hesitation about whether it was the right thing to do, they returned her safely to Sloane.
Later, what became of poor Father Maxwell was revealed. He’d been “promoted” to a Venerated, and now goes by “Twenty”, spelled as XX. After a brief departure from town that night, he returned with Rogue Prime’s green veined head. For better or worse, it seemed Rogue Prime was dead, and never coming back.
While Sundays in Mourning Glory are usually a day for relaxing, this trade’s end a final bout of drama with it. Mustang Ford revealed he was a part of the Rogue’s Gallery since his time with them after the Mal, and that he’d even helped kidnap Vic last year. He declared that he would take his father Maximillion’s head, and then disappeared, leaving his family shocked and distraught.
Now the town faces another holiday, but with a much different faith. What will the trade hold for them, as the veil between life and death thins? Silent be your night!