Work Text:
[Grian]
Statement of Zedaph Plays, regarding his time living with Tango Tek. Statement given August 24, 2020. Audio recording by Grian Moon, head archivist of the HC Institute. Statement begins.
[Grian, statement]
My roommate's in a cult!
I'm sorry, that was very blunt. But can you blame me for being shocked?! I'd been living with this guy for the past year, having casual conversations with him, and he was like, sacrificing shit in our house! You'd think I'm exaggerating, but-
Oh, right, you want the whole story. On it.
So it started all the way back in September of 2018. I had been accepted into the best architecture college in the world. Fully paid scholarship. You can imagine the excitement radiating off of me the whole drive over, and it didn't stop after meeting my roommate.
His name was Tango Tek, and he was also there on scholarship. We shared in the excitement, which I never knew someone could have more energy than me, and basically became best friend in an hour. That friendship carried on throughout the entire first school year. Though it didn't stay that way.
Start of year 2, Tango became kind of distant. He didn't talk to me as much, and he never had as much energy as he usually did. He was also out most nights.
Things started to get weird a month into year 2. I would occasionally walk into large gatherings in our room, up to fifteen people including Tango, even though parties were explicitly prohibited on school grounds. You could even get expelled if caught enough times!
Tango didn't seem like the kind of guy to risk his scholarship for something he could do outside of the campus, but he was my friend, what was I supposed to do? Report him to the headmaster? Of course not!
It was harmless enough, and worse comes to worst, he gets caught, I feign ignorance. So long as I'm not in the room during these parties I can't get in trouble for them.
But then came the burning.
Late at night, I'd smell a strong smell of something burning. It was rancid, but I didn't want to intrude. I guess I just told myself it was something harmless or something Tango would rather not talk about, so I tried my best to sleep through it. But just before winter break...
Ugh, I shudder just thinking about it.
I was packing my things to visit my family, when I heard the door shut. Obviously it was Tango, so I go out to wish him happy holidays and say goodbye, but when I looked at him, I literally gagged.
His face was... melting. I mean that literally, like it was just wax. He saw me looking and smiled.
"Hello Zed! Where are you off to?" he asked warmly. I was just trying not to vomit, at this point.
I mumbled a reply about going to see my parents and said a quick bye.
"See you soon!" Tango waved and I swear to you, he pushed his left cheek- which was hanging halfway down his neck, back into its place.
I ran outside and threw up in a bush. I didn't even realize I left without my coat.
I said "forget it" and just went into my car, turning the heating all the way up.
I returned to school just two days before the break was up. Tango was just... siting, staring at a candle he had lit. I assumed he hadn't heard me come in until, upon shutting the door, his head snapped up towards me. His face was damp, as though he had been sweating, and it was weirdly shiny.
He smiled, and asked how my trip was. I said it was good and made up some dumb excuse about needing to sleep, and rushed into my room despite it only being just past 7 at night.
The next couple of months were fairly normal, more parties, weird smells, staring into candles, that sort of thing. But when March rolled around.
It was around the end of the month, and my last class of the day had been cancelled. I can't quite remember why, but that doesn't matter to the story. Knowing that professor, he probably just didn't feel like showing up.
I headed back home early. Tango finished a couple hours earlier than me, so I thought I'd surprise him with coffee from the coffee shop on campus. I grabbed our coffees and headed to our room. When I got closer, I could hear... chanting? I placed my coffee on the ground so I could open the door, and after gently nudging it open, I went to pick up my coffee. But I knocked it over instead out of pure shock.
Ten people were standing in a circle around a large burning mass. The distinct smell of burning flesh- something I remember from a bad accident I was in as a kid- hit me in a wave, as well as the heat. I felt as though if it were just a little hotter, it would burn me.
I screamed, and all eyes turned to me. The person closest to me was undeniably my roommate, Tango.
They moved enough for me to see what they were surrounding- a body. I didn't recognize but I wasn't really focused on that.
Before I knew it, Tango was standing in front of me, backed up by the other cultists- by this point I had kinda come to the conclusion that he was in a cult.
He started going on and on about a "lightless flame" and even invited me to join, going through the steps. Supposedly you have to set yourself on fire?!
I backed up into the opposite door- I guess whoever lived there was out or something- and Tango was an inch away from my face. I didn't know what to do, I panicked and splashed him with my coffee. He sizzled and his face started melting again. He let out this feral yell and lunged at me. By now the other cultists were also chasing me, and I just ran down the hall. One of them managed to get ahold of my ankle after tripping over Tango and my entire leg felt as though it suddenly burst into flame.
I began to cry, but I kept running. Because I knew that if I stayed there, if they caught me, I would be their next sacrifice.
I made it into the reception area before I realized they had stopped following me. I collapsed and threw up from the agonizing pain in my leg, and I could hardly hear the sound of one of the other students there running up to me and calling 911.
I woke up in the hospital with my leg being treated for severe second degree burns. The burns ended up going halfway up the left side of my torso, and covering my entire left leg. It took a long time to fully recover, and now I'm dealing with the physical and mental trauma that my old roommate, and friend, was in some weird fire cult.
Thank you for listening to my story. It might've been better to tell the cops but I already did.
[Grian]
Statement ends. We tried to contact Mr. Plays for further updates, but he was unwilling. He seems to be doing better now, though. Mr. Tek dropped out and went missing right after the attack on Mr. Plays. Speaking of Mr. Plays, he no longer even lives in the area the attack took place in, having graduated and gotten a job. He has had no more interactions with this... "lightless flame".
Recording ends.