"No problem. So ya know what's all this is about? Seems like the lead fellow there was expecting quite a few more people, personally didn't think Niagara was all that haunted to need all of em."
"Don't worry. I'm sure that my partner will explain everything once he is ready," half of the being says, using the same tone for 'partner' as someone else would use for mailman or bus driver.
"Okay. I think I have it set up now," the presenter exclaims to no one in particular as he adjusts his glasses and does one final check. Turning around to face the uninterested attendees he claps his hands and declares,
"Alright. If everyone would take a seat we can finally begin the orientation session. I apologize for the delay and will try to go through everything as quick as I can. Let's begin with introductions. I am Gord MacDonald, the leader of this enterprise. My partner here is-"The duochromatic being stands up and gives everyone a deep bow, cutting off Gord's words with a wave of his hand so that he can introduce himself. Given that the two halves of his body don't always speak in unison his words are difficult to follow if you aren't paying close attention. Sometimes one half will interject with a comment while the other keeps on speaking, or talk over the over with their own choice of words.
"Greetings. You may call me Syzygy, Demon of Lunar Eclipses, Argbed of Mare Humorum, Secretary of the Privy Drawer, and so on and so forth." "I wouldn't be surprised if you haven't heard of me. I am much more popular in the moon after all." "My-" "-Liege-" "-Boss-" "Lady Marzaja, Demon of the Winter Solstice, Hetman-" "-Hetwoman?-" "-of the Borealis, etc, etc-" "I won't bore you with all of the details." "We'd be here all day if I tried to list all of her titles." "-wishes to thank you all for arriving and your interest in this once-in-a-lifetime employment opportunity. I can assure you that, despite all you might hear against demons and Hell, that you don't have to worry about your soul being corrupted or anything of that nonsense by participating, as my partner can do doubt attest." "Yes, of course. This is all perfectly safe and legal," Gord replies, taking this as his cue to start the presentation. The slides that accompany his words are surprisingly professional looking, mostly because he used a template that came with PowerPoint. In the interest of time he skips over several slides before starting his pitch.
"You see, every being in the world has a soul. When a person dies, their soul is meant to go to Limbo to be judged and sent to their place in the afterlife. But not every soul goes to Limbo. Up to 20% will stay in the world, held back by concerns and problems which afflicted them during their life. If they linger too long in the world then they forget how to find their way to Limbo by themselves and become ghosts." Smiling apologetically he confesses,
"For political reasons I have no entirely grasped, it's impossible for demons and angels to directly collect these souls. It's due to spheres of influence or some similar concept. So instead they hire humans in their place, to collect ghosts and send them to the afterlife where they belong. Doing so is not an easy task but it is a very important one, to bring closure to those who had died and prevent them from harming those who are still living. A couple of years ago these ghost hunters would have been working in secret, part of the various government agencies responsible for the supernatural. But the return of magic to the world has brought new opportunities for everyone, such as the creation of private ghost hunting organizations like the one I am trying to create." Gord pauses for a moment and squints down at his notes until he finds his place again.
"Oh yes. With the generous help of Syzygy, I am attempting to start my own group to hunt ghosts and other spirits. The risks are obvious but I believe the rewards are worth it. This is where you come in. I will need enthusiastic and intelligent people to assist me in this organization. Your duties will involve travelling to foreign and exotic locations, communicating with ghosts and convincing them to make the journey to Limbo. In return you will be paid handsomely depending on the danger of the job and the number of souls which we save. You save. Uh... I believe that the minimum which you'll earn in a week is at least one thousand dollars." Half of Syzygy flashes everyone in the room a smile while the other half comments,
"For our international guests, that's equal to 974 US dollars, 11921 Pesos or 746 Euros. Per week. Minimum." "I can assure you that Lady Marzaja is sparing no expense when it comes to saving these poor, poor people." Gord nods in agreement and continues,
"Now if you'd give me a moment, I'd like to show a video from those ghost hunters previously contracted by Syzygy." After a few moments of fiddling with the computer, Gord manages to get the video running. It's surprisingly slick looking and professional, probably due to the fact that it was made by the demon. A year ago and the video would have been dismissed as a fake. But now it seems all too believable, with many of the organizations and people featuring in it recognizable from news reports and the like. While the video is rather light on the specific details on what being a ghost hunter involves, besides the obvious ones, it does much to lend an air of credibility to the entire proceedings. Gord might be in over his head but this is obviously not the first time that Syzygy has conducted such business.
Once the video ends, Gord stands up and turns to face everyone.
"I believe that that is it for the presentation. I will now be accepting any questions which you might have and will try to answer them to the best of my ability. If you are not interested in this enterprise I thank you for your interest. If you are interested in joining this organization, please stay sitted. After I'm done answering questions we have some forms for you to sign and an orientation session to sit through. It's very important for you all to know the rules and regulations before you start work." Gord looks around nervously at the small crowd, waiting for the first person to ask him anything.
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Topic: RotMG: Ghost Hunters (IC Thread) First Hunt (Read 32068 times)