Jessy’s Story – Reflections

Wow. It’s done.

Back in 2018, I had only just started playing KULT: Divinity Lost, and I was mesmerized by it. The deranged yet cohesive setting, the fiction-first gameplay, and the art oh my god the art, it all seeped into my mind and every pore of my body until I could think of nothing else. I had moved from Sweden to Canada just a year earlier and was cooped up in a 25th floor penthouse apartment in Toronto, unaware that the world was about to be plunged into pandemic darkness. I was reading and re-reading the KULT book, becoming comfortable with the tarot cards, and engaging in non-stop online discourse with the likes of Grönn-Kule, Chrystal, Gabe, Ryan, Frost, and so many more. It had been a while since I’d been so rabidly excited for a roleplaying game.

I ran a scenario for my wife, called Paul’s Story. It was about a family man whose wife was becoming possessed, all while he was dealing with strange happenings at his work. It was the first thing I did in KULT, and it went… okay! Both me and the wife had fun, played the game until we reached a climactic ending, and knew that we wanted more. She suggested then to me that she make a character designed explicitly for the purpose of being curious about the world of KULT. While Paul had been a figure resistant to the terrors around him, this new character would be put at the center of them. I loved this idea, and very soon, Jessy Button was born.

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Jessy’s Story – The Gallery

When me and my wife started Jessy’s Story, we had a pretty solid idea of what we wanted to do: I write the story, she makes the art. At least one piece per session. Though it was hard, we stuck to it, and now that Jessy’s Story is done I can collect all this art into a huge gallery. It is an awesome feeling. Before we get to the art: a few words from the artist.

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Session 20 – Finale

This is a session recap for a Kult: Divinity Lost roleplaying campaign. Jessy Button is played by my wife, who also does the art, and I am the game master.

This post contains visual nudity.

The ground is far, far below her. Jessy falls from the top of reality, rushing towards its bottom, but in the moments between she experiences a lifetime. The wind never stops beating at her, the pull of gravity is strong as ever, yet Jessy feels still as she takes in the grotesque, infernal world around her. The ruined city beneath the black behemoth citadel opens itself to her. She walked its tattered streets, all gore and gloom, but only now could she see its true splendor. Past, present, and lost future unravels, the rise of Dehu and Mil and their countless temples and feverish celebrations. The city was built as a monument to the Twins, to the euphoria of power and control. Its inhabitants were followers and leaders at once, vying for love and glory amongst themselves. Ruthless might raised their city from dust and brought forth an age of sacred conflict to the love of their twin gods. Uncountable years passed, dynasties rose and fell, love begat war and war begat yet more love. Spears and cudgels gave way to swords and bows, replaced again by automatic gunfire and sleek drones. The city lived and died beneath the distant monolith dominating earth and endless sky, and the Twins’ chosen who had once been so many were now all gone. Well, all but the man falling ahead of Jessy, robe beating in the wind. She knows that if Tan lives, his devotion to the Twins will grant him good will and new opportunities to conquer and succeed. Below them is not just the dead and hellish city they are escaping, but every other city as well. Roads not decorated with mutilated corpses, where streetlights flicker and people hide from power rather than seek it. In some way, they all live with the rapidly encroaching shadow of the surreal structure in the distance. The ground still approaches, but Jessy’s vision warps until the empty, ruined city is smudged away, and gone.

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Session 19 – Love and Inhumanity

This is a session recap for a Kult: Divinity Lost roleplaying campaign. Jessy Button is played by my wife, who also does the art, and I am the game master.

Marie Ericson-Buckle, Jessy Button’s mother, is a shadow of her former self. She is on her knees, back twisted out of shape and legs bent in ways legs should not bed. The clothes she was buried in are rags, slashed and stained garments. Marie has cuts all over her body, infected wounds with dried blood and pus filling them. Long strips of skin and flesh have been cut from her arms, she’s bruised in blue and yellow, and exposed reddish bone sticks out of the wounds on her hand. Jessy’s eyes fill with tears as she runs through the filthy basement, overwhelmed by the sight of her mother. She was dead, never to be seen again. Jessy lost the only person she could trust when her mother died, leaving her life confusing and directionless. The left side of Marie’s head is caved in, exposed bone and hair tangled up with blood and brain. In Marie’s remaining right eye, Jessy still recognizes her mother’s green luster. It really is her. Jessy reaches down to hug her mother, whose outstretched arms wrap gingerly around her daughter despite the obvious agony. Why is Jessy there? Her mother speaks in fragmented, confused sentences, shuddering from pain but refusing to let go even as her ribs shift under Jessy’s embrace. Their conversation is slow, interrupted by long periods of wordless sobbing. Jessy was brought there by her grandmother, she admits, and Marie fills with dread. So she has gotten to Jessy too. They both know Angela well, better than either would like to. Jessy cannot explain half of what has happened to her, but in mentioning the ring Marie stops her with babbled interruptions. Why use the ring? Her disappointment and outright fear makes Jessy’s stomach sink. She thought her mother wanted her to have it. Marie swears, cursing out her own mother with a twitching kick to the ground that ends with a sad, wet thud. Jessy should have remembered what Honey told her after he had stolen the ring. Her mom didn’t put it in the will. She never wanted this. The realization is nauseating. Her mother hates the ring. Through broken teeth Marie spits out a rant about how it makes people bad, it ruins them and turns them into something so much worse than they were. Jessy’s grandmother wasn’t always how she is. Marie’s voice cracks. The cruel voice in her head is what the ring made of Angela, and it will do the same to Jessy.

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Session 18 – Mancipia

This is a session recap for a Kult: Divinity Lost roleplaying campaign. Jessy Button is played by my wife, who also does the art, and I am the game master.

This post contains visual nudity.

All morning, Jessy feels blood trickling from her neck onto her clothes. Nothing there. She hurriedly packs all her most expensive things into two duffel bags and dumps the blood-stained tarps from upstairs in the garbage bins out front. It’s a dark day out, thick gray clouds covering the sky and making noon seem like twilight. The Mississauga and Toronto city centers are barely visible, just muddy shapes in the distance. Jessy calls an Uber to get to Tan’s place, watching empty stretches of highway and sad apartment buildings where people stand by their windows, staring out at the streets with empty eyes. Jessy has never seen Toronto quite like this, so broken and dismal. Color has drained from the prominent graffiti and senseless advertisements, marketing products she’s never heard of. It is a surreal experience, made worse by the only exception to this dullness. Each police car they pass gleams in proud white and black, a vivid display in the otherwise washed out surroundings. They’re not after her right now, she knows that, but their everpresence still discomforts her. At least Tan’s condo welcomes her with warmth and bright decor. She takes a brief moment to soak in it, but with some dismay realizes she has much to do still. Online, she builds her contact network and starts laying out some backup plans. What happens if she needs to flee? Where can she stay? The ritual is in two days. She has so much to do. Jessy spends most of her time agonizing over what is to come. When should she place Sol’s golden coins? What will she do about the last one? How should she attack Sol?

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Session 17 – Inferno

This is a session recap for a Kult: Divinity Lost roleplaying campaign. Jessy Button is played by my wife, who also does the art, and I am the game master.

This post contains sexual violence and torture.

By the time Jessy and Tan return to the condo Carolina and Daisy are waiting, having a quiet conversation in the massive first floor lounge. Jessy spots a hint of worry in Daisy’s eyes. Is she getting nervous? Tan instructs Jessy and Daisy to go to separate rooms and remain there until he and Carolina have the rite fully prepared for them. Jessy lounges in her bedroom, comfortable and honestly eager for the ceremonial warfare she’s been promised. She doesn’t fear her opponent, some dumb teenager who couldn’t possibly understand what she’s gotten herself into. She spends her time going back over the research notes, puzzling together how the ceremony will change without James and amusing herself with personal details from Daisy’s home life. When Tan finally enters and tells her that they are to begin, Jessy easily slips out of her lounging clothes as instructed and fastens the goat mask of black stone to her face. She is effectively blinded and the leather strap digs in unpleasantly close to her still healing wound. The pain eggs her on, and Tan guides her through the apartment and up the stairs. On the second floor, Daisy is given the same treatment by Carolina. It is a quiet atmosphere, just simple instructions to alert the blind combatants of what comes next. In the third floor ceremony room, Jessy steps into the center where linen sheets have been laid out to cover the floor. They expect some bloodshed.

The girls are told that they stand in front of one other, and to reach out and make sure of this. Jessy’s hand first goes to Daisy’s mask before finding a shoulder, while Daisy fumbles against Jessy’s chest and down to her waist. They each take two steps back, and wait for the word. Somewhere beside them, Carolina begins to sing a wordless hymn, a somber hum while Tan speaks. He begins with praise to the Twins, assuring that this ceremony of blood and love is in their honor, and that the participants’ conflict will now bloom and live in full. Dehu and Mil are introduced to the issue at hand with Daisy’s desire to bring the same fate to Jessy as was brought on James. Tan speaks at some length of James, reminding everyone in the room and beyond it of his love for the flock and his sharp mind, diligent work ethic, and full-hearted worship. Sweet words which ring hollow to Jessy. Not hours earlier Tan had asked her to kill the same man. Daisy’s grievance with her, from bringing that man down to his knees and breaking his mind and soul, is pointless now that James is dead. Jessy shifts her weight from one foot to the other, ready to show Daisy just how bad an idea it was for her to agree to this. As the sermon finishes, both Tan and Carolina come forward to give Daisy and Jessy one embrace each. A knife is placed in Jessy’s hand, and presumably also Daisy’s. Judging by the weight, it’s a rather large weapon. May Dehu and Mil guide their blades, though the will to come out victorious lies in each of them. With Daisy right in front of her, somewhere she can’t see, Jessy steels herself and focuses on the only thing that matters – defeating her opponent.

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Session 16 – Loose Ends

This is a session recap for a Kult: Divinity Lost roleplaying campaign. Jessy Button is played by my wife, who also does the art, and I am the game master.

This post contains visual nudity.

Waking up in a daze, Jessy reaches for her phone to check her messages only to be reminded of what happened last night. Instead of letting herself spiral into another panic, she leaves her emails and DMs unread and uncared for, instead focusing on what’s important: the ritual. She’s staying at Tan’s place for now. She studies intently, and harasses Daisy whenever she spots the girl. It’s easy to make her angry, and Daisy already holds a grudge against Jessy for what happened with James. After lunch, she makes a call to Simon, her friendly and willing torture victim. There’s no doubt he saw Jessy’s episode on Instagram, and the fallout of it, but she believes that he if anyone wouldn’t judge her for it. Simon doesn’t pick up immediately, but calls back an hour later after hearing the message Jessy left. He voices some concern for her, asks if she’s okay and tells her Andi is really worried. There’s no way for Jessy to approach their common acquaintance again, to explain to her what’s really going on. Simon agrees – she wouldn’t ever be able to get it. Simon tells her with a small chuckle that everyone goes a little crazy sometimes, and that he understands Jessy’s actions, at least the parts that matter.

Simon thanks her, again, for what she did to him the first time they met. He is still healing, but what Jessy gave in return… She hears his shaky breathing. He knows much now. Speaking of which, Jessy tells him that she needs him. Artyom will be there too. Simon pauses, and the silence from the other end of the line speaks volumes – he is afraid it may be too much for his still wounded body. Jessy asks if she should find someone else, and Simon caves and tells her that he will do it. He wants to, of course. The reward is worth any risk. He wants to see her again so badly, speak with her. They are the same, he claims, and Simon has so many questions for Jessy. What has she seen? What does she know? Their paths cross, and his heart beats to explore that intersection. Jessy tells him sweetly that they’ll have time for all of that. She gives Simon the address of her Brampton home, and tells him to come there in three days time, at five in the evening. Bring something to eat.

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Session 15 – Life and death unraveled

This is a session recap for a Kult: Divinity Lost roleplaying campaign. Jessy Button is played by my wife, who also does the art, and I am the game master.

The ring burns like fire when Jessy places it on her finger and a burning sensation spreads through her entire body. She cannot hope to control the power flowing from the ring, and the raw sensation of it incapacitates her in an instant. Jessy collapses onto the floor beside the bleeding, dying old hag possessed by her grandmother. Angela watches from her eyes, delighted as Jessy is forced to recognize a suffering unlike anything she’s felt before, or even imagined. Through the ring, her mind is invaded by another, something once a woman but now barely human.¹ In a few fleeting moments, Jessy relives a lifetime of hurt. Nothing could have prepared her for it. Lashes, burns, restraints and darkness, punishments so surreal that her own soul feels torn to bits, each piece wound and bound like silver thread then tortured again. Vomit rises in her throat and chokes her, a half century of unrelenting agony taking over every thought and emotion. That suffering lives in the ring, but Jessy can sense that the woman who knew it is still out there somewhere, alive. The pain has eroded her thoughts, her name, her entire soul, yet somehow she lives on.

¹ Keep It Together
Failure

-2 Stability

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Jessy’s Story – Recap of Arc 2

Hello again, Kultists. Over the past several years, I’ve shared Jessy’s Story with the internet, and after a long (long) hiatus the time has come to finish this. Whether you’re a returning reader or someone just joining, I want to offer a quick summary of the story so far and some of its principal characters. One week from now, May 5th 2024, Session 15 will go live, and each session will thereafter be posted in three week intervals until the story concludes in August. I hope you will enjoy the ride. All hell is about to break loose.

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Jessy returns

It’s been a while, hasn’t it? The Illusion swaddles us all, pulls us away from the beckoning of Truth and fills our minds with idle nonsense and pacifying pastimes. It makes us forget.

But I have not forgotten! Not yet. There are six more session recaps of Jessy’s Story, and they are nearly ready for release. They will all be made available before the end of the year, but before we get there, I would like to provide a short summary of the story so far, to refresh the minds of those who haven’t read Jessy’s Story in a while… which might be everyone. Look forward to that, links will be posted on the KULT – Elysium Discord as always.

Art by f0nk