By Nils Apelmeier
Nils is a student at Universität Bielefeld. When not thinking about historical or imaginary settings, he runs Pen and Paper campaigns, does live action roleplay or plays improvisational theatre. Despite all this, he still has a fair grip on reality… At least he hopes so.
Content Warning: Implied Violence
[Editor’s note: This is a work of satire, not meant to be taken seriously!]
Okay, you have convinced me, I will tell you everything. Sit down, grab a beer, tea, coffee or whatever poison you prefer. This is gonna take a while. But be warned, that I take no responsibility for what might happen to you or your studies. The rectorate doesn’t take kindly to anyone who knows the truth and bad grades or exmatriculation are beneath the harmless things, that could happen to you. Alas, you will not listen. Your thirst for knowledge has been awakened by half-baked rumours or silly Jodel posts. And who am I to quench that thirst? I myself fell victim to it a long time ago and made it my responsibility to guard that secret. Make sure, that at least someone who is uninvolved knows the truth, even though there is nothing I can do to stop it. No one in their right mind would believe even half of what I am about to tell you. But once the rector finds out that you are aware, that you know, he will stop at nothing to silence you. I know not why I am allowed to keep my knowledge. By all accounts, they should have found me a long time ago, but maybe they haven’t been searching in the right places or need me for something, that even I can’t imagine. Enough words of warning. You will not listen anyways, so here is the one and only truth about this university, that you will ever hear.
Nobody knows, when it all began. All information has been lost in the annals of time, but it has been around for at least a hundred years. During the second world war, there was a special research division stationed right here, where we sit, but from what little I can gather from old records, they already found it like this and only intensified experiments left behind by another party. After the end of the war, the few surviving scientists together with the support of influential politicians were able to keep this site a secret and prevent the allies from finding out about it. Who knows, what they would have done with it during the cold war. Only after the German republic was firmly established, they thought about continuing their work, knowing that the discovery could not only shake the newly formed state in its entirety, but that this would raise a plethora of ethical and moral concerns. Most likely this place would have been destroyed then, for the good of our entire civilization. Sadly, these morally ambiguous scientists waited long enough, leveraged political influence and secured funds through shady business deals, so they could finally restart their operation in secrecy. Only this time, they hid in plain sight. Can you already guess what I am getting at? The entire University Bielefeld is the cover up. Not only to conceal what they are doing, but also to further their cause.
The conspiracy around our city was just one of many ploys to veil the truth. Put the focus on Bielefeld as a whole, not just one building. Have you never wondered why the university has been built so fast? Using asbestos and shoddy quality would have never been feasible for such a big building if they were not in a rush. And now? The renovations take an eternity, because the rectorate needs to make sure nothing is uncovered. The risk of a security breach is so much bigger now, but leaving all the students at home would raise even more suspicions. The “stairs into nothing” are just another way to draw our attention away from what is below our feet. Mind you, not everyone working in this building is involved. Most professors, lecturers and other staff members have no idea what is going on beneath us, but some do. Hidden between their colleagues, they just fit in, when not working on the secret project. One exception is the rectorate, which, together with some deans, is always informed. The other one are the security guards. Have you ever wondered why there are so many of them? It is not just to stop petty thieves, but to keep us from traversing too deep into the university and keep at bay what lurks beneath. Speaking of it, I can see it in your eyes. I have stepped around the topic for too long. You finally want to know what I have been teasing. Which rumours are true. What stories were correct. You want answers. And you will get them.
Deep below our feet, underneath the lecturing rooms, the great hall, the swimming pool and even the delivery street, there is a gigantic glass tank. I have no idea how deep that thing is. I only know that the material it is built from, is stronger than steel and most other known alloys. The entire container is filled to the brink with salt water, like an endless aquarium. On top, there is a giant hatch, that opens every night, exactly at midnight. Who built this thing will be a mystery forever, I guess. Around the tank, the scientists and security staff have built a multitude of laboratories, security posts and other facilities to aid their research and defend them against what is in the tank. The reason all this is happening: Alaska Seelachs. Laugh at me, call me a fool or hate me for wasting your time, but do it silently, since I am not finished. We are not talking about regular fish here. They are hybrids. Human and Seelachs DNA crossed in the most devilish genetic outcome. From what I have heard and sadly even seen, they come in different shapes and sizes, but all show an innate aggression to humans and have supernatural speed, strength and constitution. That’s why they are experimenting on them. To find out how we can ascend to these powers, how we unlock the next, maybe even the final stage in our evolution. For that, they continuously try to catch some of them, while the tank opens at midnight. Mostly that works, but sometimes the creatures escape and roam around the university until security finally takes them out.
Have you never wondered why there are random puddles of water all around the main building? They are silent proof of who has been there at night. Let’s be honest here, whoever believes, that there are just unfixable leaks in the roof of the main building is a dreamer. Another thing is the endless supply of Alaska Seelachs the canteen seems to have. This is how they get rid of hybrid corpses without anyone noticing, since the meat is the same as that of a regular Seelachs. Sadly, not even vegans are safe from consuming the beasts. Their crystallized bones are ground to a salt-like substance, while their transparent blood is transformed into an oily liquid. Both are the base of pretty much every single menu in the canteen. Don’t feel too much pity for these creatures though. They are nothing more than predators and will kill you when they get the chance. It does not happen often, but sometimes the creatures find lonely students or small groups who are around after midnight. These poor souls are never seen again. Whoever survives the attack will most likely be used in some form of experiment. Maybe they are even transformed into another bestial Seelachs hybrid. Just being dumped into the Seelachs tank after the experiments are finished. Sadly, the odd survivor is not enough to satiate the scientists’ endless hunger for human test subjects. What better place to get some more than the university itself? Shortly after the founding it began with an occasional long-term student disappearing, but with time they developed multiple systems to obtain more organic material. Since it would be too obvious, when seminars would wind up empty after a while, they just lower the NC and let everyone repeat exams how many times they want, so there are always enough students. Naturally, everyone who disappeared has been exmatriculated with all documents being in order, but they are never seen again.
The rectorate has also intensified its search for people who know about the tank and take them to the laboratories. Pray to your gods, that they don’t find you. The experiments they do on you after you have been found are a fate far worse than death. Whatever keeps me safe, it will not apply to you. The rector does not take kindly to snitches. Even some members of the project have disappeared lately and new research personnel took over. Maybe there was a conflict and the more radical elements won. This would explain why we got an entirely new medical faculty. They not only brought most of the fresh staff but also have an abundance of scientific equipment and research facilities. They now even have a legal way to get human corpses and living animals onto the university grounds. Whatever they plan to do with it, I can only imagine the worst. Let’s hope, there is someone with a sense of morale left in the operation or this tank could spill doom on our entire species. Alas, this is all I know. At least all I want to tell without endangering your more than I already have. But I guess you want proof. My words can only get you this far and without certainty, something will always gnaw in the back of your mind, screaming for answers. Hide in the great hall after the sun sets. Be careful, that the guards don’t see you. At exactly midnight you will hear the tank open. It is a slow creaking sound for just a few seconds and afterwards you can listen to the saltwater waves crashing against the class wall. This should be enough to make you see the truth, but whenever you can also make out fast splashing footsteps in the distance, run away as fast as you can, because then they have escaped and you are their prey.
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