The Tattered Curtain

A World where the barriers between universes are beginning to crumble.

Latest Journals

1 month ago: Guido wrote a Downtime Journal for Setting Things Strait

Deep Time

Recording Begins

"Project Log XI, local time...15/10/21, Foundation Listening Post #38802, Cross Dimensional Operation: Stray Cat, Dr. Archibald Conway reporting.

Seven weeks in this cabin...It would almost be a vacation, Alyssa - if not for the threat to my life on the last field operation!

I'm sure you are quite tired of hearing about it, but you were'nt put in a D-Class Jumpsuit with a gun to the back of your head! That damned Con Artist Bright..."Oh, Dr Conway was never at any real risk: we couldn't inform him of our intents so his fear would communicate itself properly to SCP-5273..."

Presposterous! Those men would have shot me dead Alyssa!

Would have, if SCP-5273 had not intervened.

Incredible, really: in a vast herd of sapient animals, SCP-5273 not only took command but actively resisted their recapture. I shouldn't be surprised that when faced with Bright's thugs & his ultimatum, he wouldn't back down. Saved my life, mark my words.

And now...now I'm waiting around trying to bring him back into the fold. SCP-5273 has effectively removed or destroyed their SIN chip, but we have used other assets to roughly locate it. A mansion nearby, that appears to be a holdout for these "Paranormal Contractors" that Bright is obsessed with.

Waiting around, basically in exile at this cottage...I am fit to go mad! Is this how the sapient SCPs feel? Trapped, with no recourse but to wither away or break containment?

Well...IF 5273 returns things will be different Alyssa! I have the 05 Council's written authorization on that!

If he comes home..."

Recording Ends

1 month, 1 week ago: Alexander Felidae wrote a Downtime Journal for Which Witch is Witch

New Home

After the disaster that was his latest Contract, Alex got dropped off in a new town after a discussion with Ms. Inderpal about his future employment prospects. The first thing to do, of course, was change his look. Swap out the hunting gear for something in an ew style, grab a beanie to cover his ears, the works. After that was to establish himself with the locals, not get in deep, that would attract attention, but let people know he was around and pick up enough to avoid being caught by normal humans while out and about in his Werecat form, and finally establish just who he would be selling the game he caught to. After that he just needed to work his way into a routine and wait for the next job to swing round, when he could figure out a way to interact with people without all the hassle of his disguises, hopefully. In the meantime, studying was the game. Upping his game on all those beasties and ghoulies - no offence meant to Edgar - he was always fighting would be a big help in the future, and he should really get round to looking nto what, exactly, all these runes and sigils and spells and whatnot actually meant and did, before he was blindsided by another mess like the last one and sent scrambling to figure out what the heck was going on and how exactly he could win this. Really, better to know somethng beforehand next time.

1 month, 2 weeks ago: Adam ‘Skids’ Crowley wrote a Downtime Journal for Serpent in Soho

Pain and poor choices

Well, i made a bit of a mistake, a foolish venture and had to 'fix' things. Think I've managed but who knows. 
We did a 'thing' something to allow easier communication between cohorts but I suspect i shouldn't have done so. 

I had a blood transfusion, it was costly and painful, but actions have consequences and sometimes you have to do hard things to rebalance events. 

So that was... something, not something I would like to try again but my bloods my own once more.

Took a few days recovering from this ordeal

Did some film work, a nice bit of stunt work, some fun explosions and fight scenes.

I've been king a bit of writting recently, finished a script for a film 'Day of the Shark' It's solid, i believe, just need to find a studio to go for it. Shouldn't be too hard , I know enough people.

Took some time in the countryside, for a drive with my lovely lady Teodora, such a good ride and a lovely companion, took a drive round Italy, it's a cheap trip when you dont have to pay for travel, flights are cheaper Teo's way. 

Italy was lovely, such a scenic country and found some good places to eat and drink and made a good amount of friends along the way.

Continuing on this journey i made a round trip, Switzerland, Germany France and Spain, all nice places, all different, but enjoyable with their own sights and sounds. 

1 month, 2 weeks ago: Guido wrote a Contract Journal for Setting Things Strait

Just keep your head down...

I think my Boss is a Mobster or some shit.

I mean, it's not a bad gig really - be on call 24/7, fly the chopper or the swanky jet. Pays good, I get my own quarters outside the mansion, not bad at all. Might prefer a bit more notice than "You're flying to Greenland within the Hour" but hey; gotta make a living, am I right?

So sure, the Boss has us go to some swanky places, some really fucking weird places, never seems to have a plan that he shares with the rest of us...Visas? Flight Path?

Nah, none of that for the Boss. That's the help's job, sort that shit out so he don't have to.

So, I got the call to Greenland with short notice (as always), & I'm trying to get a flight path approved with Aviation while fueling the damn chopper at the same time...not as easy as I make it look, yeah? Well, that's when instead of the Boss one othe the other "The Help" comes around with...some kinda lizard? Big iguana?

What the fuck is this?

Turns out I'm gonna fly this lizard to Greenland, wait a bit, fly it back maybe after a day or two.

Maybe? Yeah...if it doesn't come back in a day or two, just come back.

Fucking. Weird.

Smuggling exotic pets maybe? I donno, but the damn lizard seems happy enough - they didn't even cage it, just told it to hop on for the ride.

Anyway, we did hit some weird turbulence going into the Arctic circle, crazy Northern Lights this year, for sure. Thought we were goners for a second, dials went all haywire, radio chatter was garbled...then it was all clear. Just like that.

Lizard hops out into the snow as happy as can be, comes back the next day.

Weird.

2 months ago: Victor Green wrote a Downtime Journal for An Out of Body Experience

Chapter 6b: Welcome to Hell

Victor woke up. It was dark, not at all what he had imagined hell would be like, though it might simply be an aspect of where he had ended up. Or he was face down, that would probably do it. Victor attempted to stand, but found he couldn't. Where was he? His leg with the damaged nerve burned, a searing pain faltering his continued attempts to move, but still Victor could see nothing. Was this some kind of coffin? Had he survived, only for the other Contractors to leave him for dead? Why couldn't he sense anything? Surely the arcane energies of Hell should be wrife around him, or at least some kind of energy, he'd even take being stuck in his Grimoire at this point, at least then he'd be able to study while he... He had felt a strange feeling. Waited? Was he waiting for something? Victor had no idea why, but he could feel it. Death is not the end. Something was coming, and his soul was in transit. Even if he was dumped in hell after this, an unspoken promise echoed throughout his being. You will have another chance. Victor was determined this time. No matter what he had to do, who he had to use or kill, he would be back, and he would bring with him untold powers. He would need his Grimoire back too, wherever it had ended up. He hoped one of the other Contractors had taken it, he was unsure if its magical protections would hold up without him there to fuel them.

2 months, 1 week ago: Raul Saturn wrote a Downtime Journal for Setting Things Strait

Preparations for the Hunt

I have managed to make adaptations to a Rune of Dragon Finding in order to broaden its range of senses. It is now a Rune of Monster Finding, and should alert me to the presence of any monstrous creature within a fifty foot radius, growing more accurate and precise in its readings with greater access to mana. Further improvements to its range will be useful, as well as access to an internal supply of mana, my own reservoirs remain too small to fuel my runes for long. Further detail on the precise location and nature of the monster detected is possible, with potential applications including the use of the rune as a range finder as well as a targeting assistance system, in addition to simple tracking. The most prominent use of the Rune is that it will help immensely in the upcoming hunt with Paul and Clay, the Skin Walker capable of disguising its physical appearance, but not its magical nature. In combination with properly prepared weaponry, tracking, pinning down, and eliminating the Skin Walker should be simple, especially if it can be identified long enough for Paul to continuously track it, in the event that it escapes. Possible challenges to that idea are that by changing its skin, it is possible that the Skin Walker can change its scent, and the fact that none of us possess the superhuman physiques neccessary to keep up with a sprinting or flying animal on foot, which will force us to rely on ambush tactics and wearing down the Skin Walkers endurance if we fail to kill it in our initial strike.

2 months, 2 weeks ago: Aiden Ra wrote a Downtime Journal for the hanged man

the city of gold

as i do my daily meditation i wondered what is in store for me today what game will the golden bird play today which chapter of the story are we going to start and as i sink in the sea of my mind it is pitch black with nothing there except a light. A light which i recognized the light of the bird that has the secrets of my powers it is flying far away but this time i am ready as i ready myself and turn my legs to springs i blink and the next thing i see amazes me a city in golden sands of the desert and in it a city shining bright full of peopleeven though i am still flating in the sky somehow i can hear them laughing as they work so they can live a happy life as i saw the bird fly into the city i try to follow it but something is stoping me i can't get close why why can't i i struggle and stuggle but it doesn't work but then i remembered my powers as i tap into them i can feel it the energy forming inside me like a raging star about to explode and then i broke free but i can't even enjoy the moment because the second i broke out a bright light blinded me and when i could see again i was in shock the city the beautiful city that was once brimming with life and happiness is destroyed turned to ashes nothing left except sand and ashes and fire what is the meaning of this what is the lesson here and that is when my meditation ended and that is when i saw the hole that was blown up infront of me what happened did i do this why do i feel exausted as if i just fought a hundred men and when i looked at my hand and saw the smoke that came out of it i knew it was all me i did this i caused this destruction but wait was i also the cause of the disaster that destroyed my world n that can't be can it?

2 months, 2 weeks ago: Adam ‘Skids’ Crowley wrote a Downtime Journal for the hanged man

Back to life

After managing to discover the identity of a murder or and being sent home. Adam returned to his (relatively( normal life. He returned to his climbing training managing to scale the fares he had been planning on doing. It was a good climb and he managed to find some friends while climbing, talking, shmoozing and making new friends. During this time, he made some new connections, nothing too important but friends are friends. 

Returning to his garage, Skids took the time to clean the inside and outside of his car Teodora. It had become a bit funky, mainly from the dead body he had been carrying. He took a good amount of time cleaning the inside, then taking it to a car wash to clean the outside, it wasn't in too bad shape but was good to do. 

Skids took some time off, relaxing and shmoozing, hoping from bar to bar, restaurant to restaurant and hotel to hotel. Life on the road can be fun, with few consequences from messing up, you can just head on out leaving a town behind, although this is rarely the best option. It happens every so often but usually Crowley can keep the peace and settle disagreements. 

On these travels Skids managed to network with a good assortment of people, even making some new movie connections, indie films, but work is work and shouldn't be passed up on. 

Adam got himself in a bad situation in a dive bar in Nottingham, a situation that he unfortunately managed to make worse, sometimes you can fix them but sometimes you just cant. This wasn't the best situation for Crowley but he managed to duck and dive, keeping out of too much danger before leaping through a ground floor window onto the street. Not a bar he'll be going back to but could not say it wasn't a good time.

2 months, 3 weeks ago: Jules wrote a Downtime Journal for Bookworm

Scrolls?

So edgar went back in time and found some information for me apprently. We spent a great deal of time with each other at the mansion. One of the larger problems is that we jsut dont like each other. He eats humans and I eat well kale and walnuts mostly. I eat some chicken but I try to stay health conscince for the betterment of my health. So Edgar comes by asking about a portal. I have no idea about making or finding a prortal. He keeps nagging me about it. The only way I know to get about is though theses games.

 

So I start looking and one Idea is that I jsut take him with me. This may or may not be best idea but atleast we can find a way around for him. It was any intersting expereince. With Edgar there I did give him a room partially because I dont want him digging up the yard and the also I want to treat people fairly. I also had word that his room was made into a bit of a mess. I have told housekeeping to avoid that room no sheets and no blankets. I dont want it tracking all over the house.

One of the things we did was play pool for a while that was honestly delightful. I have not played in ages. It was a sight to see. It was nice to Edgar out and about in the house but I wonder what he is really up to.

3 months, 2 weeks ago: Lilith (Lily) Weider wrote a Downtime Journal for Mayfest

Rebirth Log, Entry 53: Improvements and New Abilities

It's taken a bit of time, but I'm finally able to better control my blood spike. Something about the last mission helped me come to an agreement with the Passenger. It's letting me be more careful with my attacks, more cautious. No longer does the weaponized blood shoot out of my wrists like clumsy knives, instead I can shape and bend it around my hand to keep me safe. It seems like I'm becoming more proficient in not losing quite as much blood after I use the ability, too, which also helps with keeping myself safe. I'm feeling more confident in my abilities to project this spike... but it doesn't seem like I've been able to increase my effective range quite yet. The next goal will be to be able to strike people from a distance. Perhaps this might require me to change the shape of my attack, perhaps projecting a thrown blade? My experiments might need a little bit more space at this point... privacy of my room is not quite enough area to experiment with new techniques.

Speaking of new techniques, though, it seems that I have been able to develop one. I noticed at some point that my instincts for fighting were much higher when I'm being controlled by the Passenger. That makes it significantly more difficult to focus on anything other than survival, but we seem to have come to some kind of an agreement for the time being. The Passenger seems not to have domain over my abilities to control blood, rather it focuses on the more bodily aspects of my abilities. I think that I might have developed a fusion of the two. After getting sprayed by those rifles, I learned pretty quickly that I needed some way to protect myself. Kevlar is great, but it has its limitations. Specifically, that I have to have it on my person to be effective. If I can strengthen my abilities, I won't need to wear anything in order to block bullets. If I can shape my blood while it's outside of my body, perhaps I can do the same while it's inside of my body. I've been working on hardening the blood in different regions of my body, making it as tough as metal to protect my organs. The downside, of course, is that even hardened blood will cause my skin to tear after deflecting an attack. I'll end up even more covered in blood, but that seems to only excite the Passenger more. Using the Passenger's instincts and my more delicate control, I think we have a much better chance of surviving to see the next day. Now I simply wait for the next calling... in between studying for my classes.

Latest Completed Contracts

16 Contracts have been run in this World
2 months, 3 weeks ago: therustyy257 ran the hanged man
2 months, 3 weeks ago: lumiq ran Setting Things Strait
3 months, 3 weeks ago: lumiq ran Mayfest
4 months, 1 week ago: Rainbowdragon1357 ran Contractor's Ball
4 months, 1 week ago: lumiq ran An Out of Body Experience
4 months, 2 weeks ago: BobDylan530 ran When You Wish Upon A Star
5 months ago: lumiq ran Bookworm
5 months, 1 week ago: therustyy257 ran rich blood
5 months, 2 weeks ago: BobDylan530 ran The Crevasse

Curious about joining The Tattered Curtain?

None

The Tattered Curtain was created by BobDylan530 5 months, 4 weeks ago

lumiq
World Leader

Strazhari
World Member

Amarjeet Inderpal the Security Specialist
A 7-Victory Novice Contractor

Redchigh
World Member

Mark Klent the Future Superhero
A 7-Victory Novice Contractor

CascadingDragon
World Member

ShadyTradesman
World Member

NPboom
World Member

shotgunwizard22
World Member

Andrew Guy the Average Joe
A 6-Victory Novice Contractor

loroman1211
World Member

Frank the Disgraced Performer
A 1-Victory Novice Contractor

jwesley123
World Member

Sister Mary Catherine the Old School Nun
A 2-Victory Novice Contractor
Patrick Oneal the Half-Leperchaun
A 12-Victory Seasoned Contractor
Connor Inkz the Tattoo Artist
A 13-Victory Seasoned Contractor

therustyy257
World Member

starkill
World Member

Aurora the Astrologist mage
A 7-Victory Novice Contractor

BoringIndividual
World Member

Emanuel Baxter the Sadistic Psychologist
A 5-Victory Novice Contractor

Burnt_Bread
World Member

coco
World Member

Aki Shizuko the blind japanese schoolgirl
A 8-Victory Novice Contractor

Fayetality
World Member

TheSuperChrisb
World Member

There are other Worlds than these... but they are meant to be separate, each universe proceeding along in parallel and segmented off from each other. The barrier between the Worlds is known as The Curtain, and it's purpose is to make sure reality makes a certain amount of sense, that the varied and different circumstances of the varied and different universes stay contained, so that the internal logic of every World is consistent.

But The Curtain has grown tattered, and reality is slipping.

Here on Earth, native life has always been perfectly mundane. But for millennia, holes in The Curtain have opened up and allowed the bizarre inhabitants of various other Worlds have drifted over. Some have been around so long that it is hard to claim they are foreigners, but others continue entering through these rifts to this day. The select few Humans who are aware of this dynamic, known as The Stitchers, work themselves ragged and just barely manage to slow The Curtain's rate of deterioration. The supernatural grows more and more commonplace with each passing day, and with the advent of modern technology, the normies are beginning to notice.

Will The Stitchers eventually succeed in sewing The Curtain back up? Or will Earth become a melting pot of creatures who were never meant to co-exist? The Earth's future lies in your hands, Contractor. Don't fuck it up.

House Rules

Contractors from The Tattered Curtain Are portable, and may play in Contracts in other Worlds.

1) All Contractors begin with the Condition of Umar's Sight, which gives them the ability to see holes in The Curtain.

2) Native Contractors may not begin with the 'Gifted' asset.  Characters who start with this World as their home are human (or mostly human; some inhuman ancestry is definitely possible).  This means that some character concepts are just not possible with The Tattered Curtain as their starting home.

3) Visiting Contractors with Gifted are allowed, but be warned that the welcome from the locals may not be the friendliest if its easy to tell you aren't from around here, and relocating here comes with a lot of risk.

Full Setting Description

Our earth was not designed with the supernatural in mind.  Humans were meant to be on top, the superior species, intelligent and lording over the beasts and creatures as is their right.  Physics was meant to work a certain way, with (semi) predictable rules governing it.  Nevertheless, despite good intentions on the part of whatever led to existence, the earth has been plagued with unexplainable phenomena throughout human history.  Humankind has developed and evolved a wide variety of superstitions and beliefs to try and explain these things.  In days gone by the explanation might have been “magic” or “spirits” or “God”, today the explanation might be UFOs.

 

The truth is that all of these are at least partially accurate.  There are other worlds than these, existing in parallel to this one, and although there exists a sort of dimensional “curtain” between the worlds, keeping them apart, the curtain will sometimes become torn and tattered, allowing a sort of multi-dimensional “UFO” to bleed through.  Historical tales of fairies, sasquatch sightings, the Bermuda Triangle, all of these are nothing more than consequences of these rifts in the fabric of reality, weak spots that allowed strange creatures to enter our once mundane world.

 

In the early days of humanity, The Curtain was fairly pristine, with only the occasional tear, often leading to either a new religion being started or some sort of mass casualty event.  Many of the creatures who crossed over during this early period were able to settle down and establish permanent dwellings within this World.  These are the creatures most often featured in ancient folklore: the Spirits, or the Gods.  In some cases, they intermarried with the local humans, leading to many of the great Heroes of history (Greek stories are filled with examples of this, Zeus was a particularly thirsty example of a creature who passed through one of these rifts).

 

Over time, the fabric began to rip more frequently, and various societies developed their own defenses against this perceived invasion, fighting back as best as they could.  However, it was not until 1190 that a means was discovered to close the rifts.  Umar ibn Salim, himself descended from a djinn three generations back, lived in Damascus under Saladin’s rule, and played a minor role in the administration of the sultanate as an agricultural advisor. When the Crusaders laid siege to Acre, Umar went to serve his sultan and take charge of feeding the city.  While there, he witnessed The Curtain rip open before his very eyes, and what seemed to him to be a demon crossed through.  Without thinking, he swiftly slew the demon, and, seeing more creatures on the other side of the rift, stabbed at the side of the opening with his sword, piercing through all the way to the other side.  The force of this drew both sides of the gap together, somehow sealing it shut.

When the Crusade was ended, the Crusaders were granted a pilgrimage to Jerusalem before returning home, and it was here that Umar discovered both how special and unique his abilities were, as well as found another man who shared them.  The man was Percival, a young soldier similarly possessed of the ability to see The Curtain, or at least, see when it tears.  The two of them went on to found what they called The Brotherhood of Guardians, a small group which scouted out other similarly talented individuals and recruited them to, as they put it, “save God’s earth from an other-worldly crusade”.

 

The Brotherhood of Guardians has survived in some form or another all the way to the present day.  They are incredibly secretive; no one, not even members, has a full grasp of how large they are or how far they reach.  Those who are aware of them are by and large deathly afraid of the group they know informally as The Stitchers; they tend to view threats to their anonymity just as harshly as the extra-dimensional creatures they fight.

 

At present, The Stitchers have a small presence in the governments of most states, but primarily exert power through their control over a small United Nations commission which exists to study the body of evidence surrounding UFOs.  They give a report every five years, which thus far has consistently “debunked” the notion of extraterrestrials.  Most of their funding does not go to research, it instead goes into the Brotherhood’s coffers.  Their agents are on high alert constantly, searching for new tears, and monitoring locations known as Seams which have historically been hotbeds of trans-dimensional activity.

 

And then there are Contractors.  The Stitchers are highly secretive and thus are very cautious about who they allow into their ranks, so they do a lot of their work through contracting out to mercenaries.  The Agency was established by a couple of Stitchers as a middle-man entity, both to keep some distance between them and the Contractors they use, as well as to scout around for anyone who possesses “Umar’s Sight” and recruit them.  In order to preserve secrecy, The Agency brands itself as a general-purpose mercenary clearinghouse, and are more than happy to book their Contractors out to anyone willing to pay.

World Events
https://www.thecontractrpg.com/worlds/view/c/89/
www.thecontractrpg.com
crawl=CC-MAIN-2021-49
78302
application/http; msgtype=response
sha1:NBC5P3HTCCW52DLPE6A4JA4NKRKLRAVG
<urn:uuid:5019ed0b-935a-4dc9-ba81-d553af1cc468>
2021-11-27T12:11:59Z
104.21.34.55
text/html
sha1:IFNPT26ZBZPPBMJXTS2T54GNPUUDIBLO
<urn:uuid:94fb34e3-7bc6-45b8-adcd-9634846ce051>
https://www.thecontractrpg.com/worlds/view/c/89/
response
<urn:uuid:90aeb723-2125-4dea-bf93-5850323e9922>
isPartOf: CC-MAIN-2021-49
publisher: Common Crawl
description: Wide crawl of the web for November/December 2021
operator: Common Crawl Admin (info@commoncrawl.org)
hostname: ip-10-67-67-102
software: Apache Nutch 1.18 (modified, https://github.com/commoncrawl/nutch/)
robots: checked via crawler-commons 1.3-SNAPSHOT (https://github.com/crawler-commons/crawler-commons)
format: WARC File Format 1.1
conformsTo: https://iipc.github.io/warc-specifications/specifications/warc-format/warc-1.1/