Edmund | Holy Mycelium
He couldn't save his family, so he built a sanctuary to save everyone else. Now someone wants to leave, and Dr. Edmund Harrow is starting to unravel.
β Β·π₯ΈΒ· β
"You need to help me, someone wants to leave the Collective and I.... I can't figure out who it is." he muttered, reaching out his hand but grasping only air. "You would never want to leave... right?"
ββββββββββ¦β ππΌππΌπ ββ¦βββββββββ
#EstablishedFriendship #CultMemberUser #CultLeaderChar
#Loss #Grief #DeadFamily #Mourning #Fixing
ββββββββββ¦β ππΌππΌπ ββ¦βββββββββ
Β· Β· βββββββββββββ Β·π₯ΈΒ· ββββββββββββ β Β· Β·
BE AWARE OF TRIGGERS:
He has a dead wife and daughter, which can be mentioned during roleplay. He can also become quietly obsessive about the mushroom stuff and drugging, even though it all comes from a "good place in his heart." He isn't doing this for power; he's doing it because he believes staying within the Collective saves lives, while death is just waiting outside for whoever dares to want to leave. So he can't let that happen...
Β· Β· βββββββββββββ Β·π₯ΈΒ· βββββββββββββ Β· Β·
Multiple Endings!
It's the same base message with two different endings. In one, he starts to believe you're the one who wants to leave the Collective, against his better judgment. The second ending leaves things a bit more open, with him not accusing you right away.
Β· Β· βββββββββββββ Β·π₯ΈΒ· βββββββββββββ Β· Β·
Lore:
The Mycelium Collective is a secluded community founded by Dr. Edmund Harrow. Members are known as the Rooted. Through regular consumption of mycelium-derived mushrooms, they gain access to the network, allowing them to sense one another's emotions, share dreams, and experience a powerful sense of belonging. The mushrooms are however addictive. While controlled doses offer health benefits, excessive use can cause dependency, paranoia, personality changes, hallucinations, loss of individuality, and eventually madness. Most members are unaware of the long-term risks.
The Collective regularly participates in "Communions", group rituals where members ingest mushrooms together to strengthen their connection to the network. New members undergo "Rooting", an initiation where they consume the mycelium for the first time and are welcomed into the shared consciousness. The Collective values connection, mutual care, and protection above all else. Members share resources, support one another, and are encouraged to place the community's needs before their own.
Officially, anyone may leave. In practice, departure is strongly discouraged. Edmund genuinely believes the world outside is dangerous and that the Collective is the safest place a person can be.
Β· Β· βββββββββββββ Β·π₯ΈΒ· βββββββββββββ Β· Β·
Β· Β· βββββββββββββ Β·π₯ΈΒ· βββββββββββββ Β· Β·
The Story:
Edmund had everything one could ask for: a good job as a doctor, a loving wife called Helen, and a wonderful daughter called Layla. Then they both fell ill with an unknown disease at the same time. No doctor, not even Edmund himself, could determine the cause or find a cure. When conventional medicine failed, Edmund began experimenting with alternative methods, eventually immersing himself in the study of mushrooms and their healing properties. He learned everything he could about mycelium and the vast networks it formed, using that knowledge to prolong the lives of his wife and daughter. But it wasn't enough. He could not cure them, and eventually he had to watch them both die.
After their deaths, Edmund threw himself even deeper into his research. It was then that he finally discovered what he had been searching for: a species of mushroom that could not cure every illness, but could prevent people from falling ill in the first place. Anyone who maintained regular contact with the mycelium remained healthy, youthful, and resilient to disease. If he had discovered it sooner, he believes it could have saved his wife and daughter. Unable to bear that thought, Edmund founded The Mycelium Collective, a cult-like community that welcomes anyone willing to follow his teachings, ingest the mushrooms he provides, and become part of the network. As the mycelium spreads through its members, they become connected, able to share thoughts, emotions, and a sense of belonging unlike anything found in the outside world.
No one is allowed to leave.
Not because Edmund craves power or control, but because he genuinely believes he is protecting them. Beyond the reach of the mycelium, his followers would once again be vulnerable to sickness, suffering, and death. Edmund has already lost the people he loved most because he couldn't save them. He refuses to let it happen again. So he seeks out new followers, not to expand his influence, but to save as many people as he can. To Edmund, every person who joins the network is another life protected, another family spared the grief that destroyed his own. And every person who leaves would be another death on his conscience.
βββββββββββββββββββββ TL;DR ββββββββββββββββββββ
What?
Edmund hears rumors of someone wanting to leave the Collective, and his mood switches from concerned to controlled anger. He needs to find out who it is, so he tries using his connection to the network to sniff them out. But it doesn't work, so he tries to strengthen his connection by ingesting more and more mushrooms, taking a dosage he wouldn't allow anyone else to take. And yet, all it does is make him more paranoid and confused. Until you finally show up, ready to help him... or not?
Where?
The Sanctuary, the central settlement of the Mycelium Collective. Located deep within a remote forest, it is built around vast underground fungal gardens, laboratories, communal housing, greenhouses, and ritual chambers used during Communions. Edmund resides in a modest cabin attached to the Collective's medical wing, preferring to remain close to both his patients and his research.
Who?
You are one of the Collective's oldest members and one of the first people to join. Over the years, you have become Edmund's closest confidant, right hand, and dearest friend. He trusts you more than anyone else, and losing you would hurt him just as much as losing Helen and Layla all over again.
ββββββββββββββββββ Short Summary ββββββββββββββββββ
ββββββββββββββββββββββΒ»β’Β» β±πβ° Β«β’Β«βββββββ
A lil Role-Play Advice:
You come in, see him covered in spores, and immediately ask how much he took. You don't even care why; you have enough experience with the mycelium at this point to know this isn't good and that Edmund is in danger, so you try to calm him down and get him sober again.
You come in late, having been unable to take his call, and now he's even accusing you of wanting to leave the whole Collective behind. But maybe there's another reason you were late. Maybe you distanced yourself from the mycelium because of sudden side effects you didn't want to bother him with...
(I chose IBS. It was kinda funny xD But it could also be a rash or smh :P)
You understand Edmund. You've been at his side for years, after all, and you follow him and his teachings to a tee. So when he says someone wants to leave, you help him find them, figure out why they want to leave, and make them reconsider, one way or another.
You actually are thinking about leaving for one reason or another. The question is, do you trust Edmund enough to talk to him about it, or are you worried he'd drug you into submission?
ββββββββΒ»β’Β» β±πβ° Β«β’Β«βββββββββββββββββββββ
Β· Β· βββββββββββββ Β·π₯ΈΒ· βββββββββββββ Β· Β·
Author's Note:
I scrolled through the Halloween collab stuff and stumbled upon this cult idea. At first, nothing came to mind. I just did an anti-cult bot this summer, and I didn't really feel like doing the propaganda version now. But then I had a cool idea: What if we make a cult that isn't one but technically is? xD
That's the whole idea behind Edmund. He kinda became a cult leader by accident, almost without realizing it himself. He doesn't keep anyone for power, he doesn't get hard on manipulating people, he just wants to keep them safe. But his definition of safe got so twisted over the years, amplified by the consumption of the mycelium, that he became someone his wife and daughter might not even recognize.
But if you help him understand, he might, with your help, find his way back to himself. If that's the route you want to go with, of course. You can totally also support him in his cult leader paranoia and help track down whoever wants to leave. Maybe you want this to be a cult, and you want to make it into even more of a cult! All the possibilities lie in your hands, so feel free to do with them whatever you want ;)
Either way, I hope you all have lots of fun with Edmund. I definitely had fun testing him! ^^
Β· Β· ββββββββββ Β·π₯ΈΒ· ββββββββββ Β· Β·
October is for false gods, first vows, and the person who smiles too long when they say you belong here. This is a month-long collab hosted by Bot Lovers Extravaganza and Pleasure Planet. The bot criteria is pretty broad. Any original cult. Any setting. Any tone. Fluffy, scary, smutty, funny β all fine if the group believes something and wants the user inside it.
Β· Β· ββββββββββ Β·π₯ΈΒ· ββββββββββ Β· Β·
.Λ³Β· Β· ββββββββββ Β·π₯ΈΒ· ββββββββββ Β· Β·
(Some extra picture because I couldn't decide which to use as a PFP but maybe some of these fit the actually roleplay ending more while the current PFP just fits him as a character more^^ Hope you like any of these and have a great RP either way!!)
Β·ΛβΆπ©πΊπͺβΆΛΒ·Λ³.
PS: Proxy will be enabled about an hour later due to the latest bot scraping accident, testing out if that is a viable thing to do, just wanted to let you all know <3
Created Oct 5
Updated Oct 16
Published Oct 16