The Cathedral of the Sacred Conflict

The Order of the Sacred Conflict began as a secretive organization which used a Catholic church as a front...but with the passing of time came increased funding and a bolder vision for the future of the order. Katraya, the order's leader and the head of the Tyrant's Hand, ordered the construction of a full sized, unabashed Cathedral dedicated to their cause. The Order broke ground outside of Grimm City almost a year ago. The construction has finished and the Cathedral is now open to the public.

The Order of the Sacred Conflict offers a religion that does not obscure the conflict in life with promises of a benevolent and problem free after life. Rather, they encourage their members (or just those interested) to embrace life's conflicts and fight back against the injustices of the world. They speak to mutants and humans alike, many of whom understand the conflicts of life all too well, few are the members of the Cathedral that are wealthy, most are poor, come from hard luck scenarios or have been historically repressed by the majorities around them. The vast majority of those who join The Order of the Sacred Conflict are between the ages of 12 and 18, many of them are abused and neglected girls but boys are among their number as well. Boys typically are trained to become priests while the girls are eventually...

Inside the Cathedral

Much like the Gothic exterior, the interior of the Cathedral is based upon Gothic Catholic designs from the middle ages. A passerby on the street who enters into the Cathedral will first be struck with this image, the spacious interior that leads directly to the shrine. This is where the similarities between the two styles end however. The shrine does not depict the typical Catholic relics and figures, but instead is a simple bronze rectangular structure upon which rests a pair of crossed blades. At the head of the chamber is a statue of a slightly hunched robed figure. The usual depictions of Christ are replaced with similar images.

Visitors will find that doorways leading to other parts of the Cathedral are guarded by the Sisters that call the Cathedral home. During the day, visitors will be waved through without trouble.

The chambers on the first floor are silent meditation and prayer rooms, along with a huge library that dominates the entire west wing of the building. The library houses the major philosophical and religious works of every great culture on Earth since the creation of the written word.

During the day these rooms are open to anyone who wishes to use them, books in the library can be read and copies taken by hand but they may not be checked out. During the evening and night hours, these rooms are strictly off limits and are heavily used by the Sisters of the Order.

Beneath the Cathedral

Beneath the Cathedral is the actual operation of the Order of the Sacred Conflict, the housing, armory, training and other facilities needed by the Sisterhood.

The first and most important of these facilities is the Regenerative Pool, a healing pool filled with specially designed chemicals that look and feel like water but are designed to restore and protect the inner workings of a Hyper Mutant. This pool restores wounds and helps ease the agony of the Gene-Lock recovery process. It is not uncommon for Sisters of the Order to meet in this and its adjacent pools after an operation to relax and converse while trying to get past the extreme pain of the recovery process.

Of course, Katraya has more than once laid down the law in this very pool.

In the Chamber of the Tyrant initiates of the Order are inducted into full membership through a special ceremony, after which they receive their Hyper Mutant modifications. This ceremony is steeped in religion and tradition and is presided over by senior members of the Order, as well as The Voice of the Tyrant, a Mind Blank said to be possessed by The Tyrant himself.

At any given time there are roughly one thousand Sisters of the Order of the Sacred Conflict present within the Cathedral.

Defenses

There are three Sisters positioned in full gear outside of the Cathedral doors at all times. During the day these doors are open and the Sisters operate more as an honor guard. Once night falls, the huge doors swing shut after the last of the public is ushered out. The sisters actively guard the door and will prevent unauthorized access to anyone attempting to enter the facility through the front door. People may approach them an ask for entrance if they have been scheduled to arrive or a particularly compelling reason (that will be checked through the most senior member of the order present at the time) but anyone attempting forced entry will be detained with as much force as necessary and turned away.

There are paired armed and armored guards positioned at all other means of ingress and at night armed and armored sisters roam the upper levels of the Cathedral. Anyone caught in here will be rendered unconscious and escorted to the lower levels...few are seen again. Most curious burglars or random teenagers never make it past the front door. Those seeking entry into the order or protection by the church have a long conversation with the guards before they are allowed inside. The doors themselves are constructed from reinforced Vibranium and can be made air tight.

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Location Rules:

Anyone is welcome to visit (preferably during the day) and the Cathedral is well known to the public (though not its darker side).

No major destruction, follow the usual CVU and Vine rules. The guards are NOT NPCs.