Sonkurra-Taichou was uneasy. With all the murders going on, he was finding it hard to trust anyone. Sat in his dwelling, where it was safe, he thought over the possibilities.

“Well, it could be...no, that wouldn’t make sense,” he thought out loud. “How about...? No, I was with them yesterday. Ugh, I wish the killers would just reveal themselves and make all this worry go away.”

Little did Sonkurra know, his wish would soon be granted, albeit in a different way to his meaning. Outside, a shadowy figure approached Sonkurra’s dwelling.

Sonkurra had another sip of water. It was thirsty work, all this figuring things out. There was a knock at the door.

Fearful, he made no sound. The knock came again, this time, more urgent.

“Hey Sonkurra, let me in! I need to talk to you about something!” came the voice from outside.

The voice was vaguely familiar. Hadn’t he spoken to them yesterday? Cautiously, he answered the door.

The figure at the door fired two shots into Sonkurra’s chest. He gasped and fell over backwards onto the ground. The killer ran off into the dark of the lair.

Sonkurra sat up and scratched his head. He inspected the area he had been shot in and noticed that while his robes had been torn from the bullets, there were no marks on his body. He was alive!

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There wasn’t a lot to do for fun down here. However, there was a weekly poker night that served as most of the amusement for the cult. Haven-Gal was raking in the chips, as per usual. She always seemed to strike lucky on poker night for some reason, but she wasn’t complaining. Ending the night with a Royal Flush, Haven left the small building with a big grin on her face. She left ahead of her grumbling fellow members, as she didn’t want to hear them whine about the unfairness of it all again.

She opted for a long walk home tonight, as her win had left her with a lot of energy and she wanted to use it all before trying to get to sleep. Haven made her way to the subterranean lake, which was practically on the way back to her dwelling anyway.

She stared at the vast body of water while the reflection of her candle barely glistened and danced about on its surface.

“Hey you!” a voice behind her shouted.

“Oh boy, here’s another one wanting to complain about my winnings,” she said to herself, rolling her eyes. “They really need to either stop playing or get over it...”

She heard the footsteps getting louder and she turned to face the person.

“Look, it’s just a game anyway, so stop your complain-“ she began. “Wha- what are you doing with- No! Don’t!”

The cult found her floating face down in the lake the next day, beaten to a pulp.

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Insomnesiac was overworked most of the time. Today was no exception. She had to manage the cult’s finances since otherwise they would run out of supplies. She thought of the brave cultists on the surface, working an “honest” living and spending their wages on food and other essential supplies to secretly donate to the cult. That said, there was a lot of work to be done down here.

She was hard at work when there was a knock at her dwelling door. Grumbling, Insom went to the door and opened it. Several of the burly sacrificial managers were standing in her doorway. Without a word, they grabbed her and bound her hands and feet, then carried her to the sacrificial temple.

“Why would you want to sacrifice me? Without me, you’ll all starve!” Insom lamented, to no avail.

She was placed on the pedestal and awaited the elders.

“As you may know, the sacrificial knife shattered yesterday, so we are having to resort to more...archaic manners of completing the ritual,” said the elder ominously.

Insom watched as two of the burly cultists carried out a frightening device. It looked a little bit like a guillotine, though it was clear this was meant for use on the whole body, not just the neck. The underside was loaded with spikes, all of which were laden with the cult’s insignia.

It was fitted above her and she watched in complete terror as the elder placed his hand on the lever.

“Do not worry child, your essence will go on to aid the Dark Ones in their glorious resurrection.”

The elder pulled the lever and the spikes dropped.

Insom screamed momentarily, though after a short while, she re-opened her eyes. The spikes had shattered against her skin, leaving her unharmed.

The elder sighed. “A second time in a row? We are going to have to ask our Spirit Watchers to be more careful.”

He motioned to the trio standing behind him. Once again, they began to chant.

The portal appeared above Insom and the thin tendril shot out once again. Insom let out a bloodcurdling scream as the tendril pierced her midriff. It was to be the last sound she ever made.

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Meanwhile, in the sacrificial afterlife...

Hattie had taken up trying to meditate and understand what was going on here. He floated in a cross-legged sitting pose with his eyes closed. At any rate, it was more interesting than floating around waiting for something to happen.

Occasionally, Buzz would float by, still consumed by his rant. Sometimes, Hattie would catch the odd piece from it.

“...and when I catch you I’m going to...oh you bet it’s not going to be...I still can’t believe you would KILL ME...”

The familiar flash and pop indicated that a new arrival had, well, arrived. Hattie opened his eyes and saw a thin, rat-like man floating before him.

“I can’t believe they would...do this to me...” he said. “After all I’ve done...I was the one who...warned them of the agents...in the first place...”

“Well, you’re here now, might as well get used to it,” Hattie said, in his best attempt to reassure the man.

“...oh there is going to be BLOOD! On the walls, on the floor, on the...” Buzz said, as he floated by.

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Sonkurra-Taichou survived a close encounter with Mongoose!

Haven-Gal’s luck ran out!

Insomnesiac was sacrificed!

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