WEEK SEVEN

[lockdownmods]

[Week seven is here. Surely the course is drawing to a close soon? There are more places to explore, and there can't be that much more going on but...

The wall is actually very ominous now, like something has been awakened. The field is almost impossible to be near, that's how oppressive the wall is around it. There are also physical signs of darkness dotting the wall.

Welcome, you're almost near the end.]

LOCATIONS | PROFILES | HAN OFFICE HOURS | MEGUMI OFFICE HOURS

SUNDAY | MONDAY | TUESDAY | WEDNESDAY | THURSDAY

Comments

[sendintheclown]

[He hums in thought.]

Alright. How about one featuring a tortured salaryman?

[blackcatintheruemorgue]

A mundane profession... but one ripe with the potential for corruption.

[He hums to himself in thought.]

Writing a story of someone's fall from grace is always entertaining.

[sendintheclown]

Have you ever worked an office job? They're soul crushing.

[and boy does he sound happy about it.]

[blackcatintheruemorgue]

I... have in a sense.

[Who exactly do you think handled most of The Guild's paperwork before Alcott joined??? It sure as hell wasn't Fitzgerald.]

It's one of the most repetitive and boring experiences known to man.

[sendintheclown]

Exactly! It wears down a man's humanity, reducing him to nothing but a cog in a machine, ready to be exploited!

[There's a gleeful malice to his words.]

Isn't that the perfect kind of setting for a horror story?

[blackcatintheruemorgue]

While I feel other authors have already well tread that ground.... I can't deny the appeal of a man being slowly worn down until he snaps.

[Writing a believable descent into insanity is always a fun task.]

[sendintheclown]

And what better an inspiration for such a tale than...

[From his pockets come a pair of glasses, and a black wig, and there they go onto Gogol's face.]

Our friend, Mr. Golyadkin?

[blackcatintheruemorgue]

Oh? Do elaborate.

[He's listening.]

[sendintheclown]

Picture this! A meek, timid man, downtrodden and abused by all his higher ups - so faceless and insignificant, he's never referred to by name!

[He tucks his hair underneath the wig to really get into it.]

Imagine all the resentment, all the anger that builds up within him! The spite and hatred towards those on the higher rungs of the social ladder!

[blackcatintheruemorgue]

That kind of spite... is the kind that leads to one fantasizing about burning the office building down while all your higher ups are inside.

[A wicked smile forms and his eyes sparkle with glee at the potential of this idea.]

I love it.

[sendintheclown]

Now! Consider the faceless Golyadkin. He is no one, and nothing, just a piece in a machine. His anger, therefore, is nothing to these people.

[Gogol's grinning, enjoying Poe's enthusiasm for his idea.]

So, in his anger, he stops being Golyadkin. He becomes someone else.

[blackcatintheruemorgue]

He becomes a hollow shell only interested in vengeance. A cog in the machine who wants to break it violently.

[This is a fun idea.]

[sendintheclown]

Now we're onto something!

[blackcatintheruemorgue]

We certainly are Muse.

[He hums to himself in thought.]

Now... while him burning the office building down with everyone who wronged him inside is appealing.... It needs something more.

[sendintheclown]

How about some internal conflict?

[Maybe Poe will appreciate something more psychologically focused this time.]

A battle between his two halves.

[blackcatintheruemorgue]

Hmm.... perhaps he lets himself be consumed by the blaze in the end out of guilt.

[Internal conflicts are always fun to write.]

[sendintheclown]

He goes up in the blaze like a phoenix.

[Wonderful]

[blackcatintheruemorgue]

Exactly.

[He grins and his eyes glimmer in glee at how this idea is turning out.]

[sendintheclown]

Now, is that a happy ending for him or not?

[blackcatintheruemorgue]

I think I'll leave that up to the reader to decide.

[He narrows his eyes in thought.]

It... could be seen either way. He's a tragic figure and you could look at death as redeeming him. However, it could also be seen as him avoiding having to face the consequences of his actions and loosing any chance at doing enough good to one day truly redeem himself.

[It's never too late to change.]

[sendintheclown]

Ambiguous. I like that.

[Because, of course he does.]