Academy of Thought

“I know you're nervous, but just be good, be polite, and do what your teachers tell you.”

Jo's mum let go of their hand and neatened their uniform, gently ushering them forward. Jo climbed up the steps and pushed open the looming wooden doors.

Jo walked along the corridor that stretches out forever and ever; branching, twisting, turning. Mysterious doors hiding rooms that were not for Jo to enter. The corridor was teeming with older, taller students, whom Jo had to dodge around to avoid being knocked over. Teachers patrolled, giving orders: bastions of order, authority and knowledge.

Finally arriving at their classroom, Jo sat down at their desk.

It was Jo's first day of school, and they had so much to learn.

Jo's first day of school.

The Academy of Thought is an authority that doesn’t so much perpetuate ideas as they do control them. One of their key tools is the press, issuing official statements on the goings-on in Dream on a weekly basis. They are hailed as the most impartial and reliable source of news in the Dream, and therefore: their word is fact.

Of course there will be rogues out there who go against this proposed fact, and that’s where you come in. Inquisitives working for the Academy are tasked with keeping the peace within Dream, ensuring knowledge is retained and the proper order is followed.

The Academy is one of the earliest institutions within Dream, having formed in Jo's childhood to maintain some semblance of order in a period where Jo was constantly experiencing new ideas and was swimming in creativity.

As Jo grew older, the need for the Academy in the form as it was then was lessened, and therefore the Academy changed. It set up a publishing house that ran a weekly newspaper which formed the first kind of written, mass distributed form of news within Dream. Who had built the next grand monument? What had Jo been up to, and which Muses were next moving up in their influence of Dream? Aptly named Just the Facts, this newspaper brought a distinct and easy-to-read document, allowing all Muses to agree upon written fact rather than rumoured tales.

The Academy continues to maintain order; some Muses began to cause trouble, either through emotional violence towards other Muses or by corrupting Jo's mind at the expense of society. Inquisitives became the force that would help calm the masses, giving them the impartial facts on the cases that arose in Dream and assuring the public that it would be safe. Many Academy Inquisitives exist in deep cover, associating with Muses undertaking these illegal ideas and waiting for the opportune time to expose them, allowing rightful Censorship to be placed upon their powers. Others patrol in plain sight, ensuring that Muses are not entertaining thoughts that could threaten the peace of Dream. What exactly these thoughts contain are confidential to those within the Academy. It is known that the Academy significantly favours the influence of older, more established Vignettes and themes; there are exceptions to this rule, and to outsiders this can feel somewhat arbitrary.

Inconveniently, the Academy of Thought is the name of both the institution and the building in which it resides. To most Muses, the two story building is unassuming, albeit incomprehensibly large. However Inquisitives, who are the only Muses permitted to enter, report that the building is a foreboding labyrinth of corridors, with extraordinarily tall ceilings, and many locked doors. Many rooms are shut off to those of the lower ranks, including many of its numerous libraries. It is said that when inside the Academy, Inquisitives of a higher rank seem to appear to be significantly taller, with an authoritative stature.

The Academy maintains many of its ancient formalities, with a deeply entrenched hierarchy which can only be traversed with promotion (and for some unfortunate Muses, demotion). When in formal uniform, all Inquisitives are required to respect and obey those of a higher rank, and address them formally. However this requirement is dropped outside of uniform, and is not expected of other Muses.

While all members of the Academy are regularly referred to as an 'Inquisitive', there are actually six ranks, which all come with their respective authority and secrets, and all bar the lowest are indicated by the badges affixed to the lapels of their uniform.

1. Principal Inquisitive
2. Master Inquisitive
3. Inquisitive Praefectus
4. Inquisitive

To support them in their work, all Principal Inquisitives have at least one Master Inquisitive as an assistant, and likewise each Master Inquisitive has an Inquisitive Praefectus. Commonly, these assistants are the primary mechanism of communication with the higher ranks.

There exist various rebel groups that criticise the work of the Academy of Thought for stifling creativity. Some even suggest that they have strayed from their initial ideals of preservation and order. These rebel groups would tell you they are all power-hungry, secret-hoarding, 'holier than thous' who flex their authority by undermining others. It is rumoured that Inquisitives will often attempt to undo changes to Vignettes that they oppose; that they seek to Censor Muses who actively reject the narrative published in Just the Facts, and are keeping them prisoner while they brainwash them to relinquish their more 'creative' thoughts.

Many Muses roll their eyes at these extremist notions and insist that the Academy of Thought exists to prevent ideas from Memeifying within Jo's head, provide accurate news and instil a status quo amongst Muse society. This all allows Jo's brain to run like a well-oiled machine, preventing them from falling into yet another existential crisis.

Whispers are told of a dissenting group within the Academy itself, looking to find the ancient secrets it holds. Perhaps their goal is self-gain, or perhaps they intend to enlighten the denizens of the Dream; either way it can be sure that if such a group existed, the Inquisitives would be hunting them down with all the resources they have.

Tickets enable Impressions to travel between Vignettes without the direct assistance of a Muse, and can even be incorporated into a prop for a more natural transition. While any Muse can make these tickets, it is a laborious and monotonous task. To ensure tickets are created as required, the Academy has honed an industrial technique to produce them en masse.

The Ticket Office is the most well known of the Academy's restricted sub-departments; headed up by Principal Inquistive Morta Lipwig, one must be at least a Head Inquistive to even enter the Office. While Morta only gets directly involved in the most high-profile of tickets, you can rest assured that her crack team of Master Inquisitives supervise, approve and sign off every ticket created in the Office, before they are logged in the Library's records.

Less well known to Muses outside of the Academy, the Library is another of the Academy's important sub-departments. Although technically under the control of the Principal Inquisatives, in practice it is ran by Master Inquisitive Erin Glasco.

The Library's key function is to keep track of the progression of Dream. All Inquisitives are expected to submit a report to the Library after every field mission, and all tickets issued by the Ticket Office are numbered and logged within the Library's records.

• Principal Inquisitive Orwell: He is the Public face of Academy, but almost a personification of it. Always extruding a strong yet calm demeanor.
• Principal Inquistive Morta Lipwig: Conductor of the Ticket Office. She is infamous for her cold demeanour, and will only consider it to be worth her time to even listen to you if you are simultaneously of a high enough rank and important enough in her own eyes.
• Principal Inquisitive Jay Jamie Jadeson: Editor in Chief of Just the Facts. Seemingly one of the most stressed Muses within the Academy, they spend their time demanding interesting and important stories for their newspaper. While it's been many years since they actually wrote anything, they do have an important role in shaping the publication. It is often joked by junior Inquisitives that the often-throbbing vein on Jay's forehead sustains the rank of Master Inquisitive in its own right.

• Master Inquisitive Wynkyn Caxton: Primary Editor of Just the Facts. Often described as eerily calm, even without considering he has to has to deal with Jay, he feels it's his personal mission to ensure just the facts are published in Just the Facts. He doesn't always get his way, depends immensely on his team of editors and field journalists to get his story, and is known to be overruled by Jay not infrequently.
• Master Inquisitive Erin Glasco: The Librarian. She's stern, strict, hates noise, and is a stickler for the rules (no matter how big or small). Within a few days of joining, almost all Academy recruits hear the rumour that she has never left the Library.
• Master Inquisitive Paul Francis: Operational Lead of the Beat. He manages the day-to-day patrols and non-extraordinary missions. He has a reputation of being a friendly chap who is easy to get along with, and outside of official business is known for socialising with Muses (and Impressions) from all walks of Dream, including Inquisitives of any rank.
• Master Inquisitive Hugo Bryn: Field Commander of one of the most famous (within Academy, at least) High Fantasy/Deep Dream field squads. Embodying the style of a '70s cop, he is very egotistical. However, this lends him to being strongly outgoing and very social within the Academy.

• Head Inquisitive Ursa Moss: Prime Deputy to the Librarian. Very plucky, and always willing to help, they have a reputation for being rather easily distracted.

• All players will begin the game as an Inquisitive, unless they have taken the Sergeant Pepper Quirk.

The Academy stems from Jo's feelings on their first day of school: the intimidating older pupils, the sense of complex systems that you don't yet understand, and the secrets that are embedded within the institution that will one day be learnt.

As such, when on duty Inquistives tend to wear something reminiscent of a school uniform: perhaps a jumper or blazer with the Academy's crest sewn on, with dark bottoms and black shoes. Despite this underlying theme, all Inquisitives have their own take on the matter, as befits their Ideal and personality.

• Want the opportunity to learn the secrets of the history of Dream and Muse Society.
• Want an opportunity to antagonise other players and be a 'villain' to their ideas or plans in downtime, and thus enjoy PvP.
• Enjoy navigating and twisting a bureaucracy to achieve your own goals.
• Want to play a lone-wolf, someone stealthy, or a mercenary or cop sort of character.
• Want your character to believe in 'knowledge is power'.