A lamp, firmly attached to the ceiling, flickered on and off, briefly illuminating the room. It was, at first blush, an office of some important person. There was a large, wooden desk in the center of the room, with a huge, cushy chair behind it. Bookshelves lined the walls, each stacked to the brim with large tomes and accolades. Several potted plants filled in the gaps, though all of them were plastic. The floor was covered in a red plush carpet. Even the chairs for guests looked like you could sink into them comfortably.

However, something was clearly wrong. The walls themselves were bare of any decorations. No photographs or paintings… nothing of the sort. In fact, on closer inspection, a thick, foamy material could be seen popping out of the cracks. There looked to be a window in the back of the room that was now either covered up or replaced by a thick metal panel. Similar foam could be seen around the edges. And, as the light sporadically illuminated the room, a thing layer of dust sat on every surface.

It was completely empty. Whoever should have occupied this office was nowhere to be found. In fact, save for the lamp, not a single sound could be heard. No footsteps or voices from elsewhere in the building, no gentle hum of a fan or heater, not even anything from outside of the building at all. Just deathly silence…

There were no clues to any foul deed in the room. There weren't any bloodstains, not even any hidden by the carpet. Everything was upright and in the perfect place, meaning no struggle had taken place. That there was dust meant that nobody had been in here for some time, yet they had somehow failed to turn off the light before they last left.

And yet, on the desk, there laid a note: a list of names.

Candidate List

1. Matias Albrecht (he/they) – Ultimate Strategist (submitted by recklesz)

2. Matoi Aisaki (he/him) – Ultimate Mercenary (submitted by ErintheStorymaker)

3. Felix Evans (xey/xem) – Ultimate Stage Magician (submitted by Spyrorocks389)

4. Aella Flyaros (she/her) – Ultimate Voice Actress (submitted by Magami Kent)

5. Amanda Fuentes (she/her) – Ultimate Mixologist (submitted by RoseOfInk)

6. Green (?) (he/him) – Ultimate Vagrant (submitted by emberblitz321)

7. Marie Grimm (she/her) – Ultimate Storyteller (submitted by WolfieRed23)

8. Christopher Hathcock (he/him) – Ultimate Sniper (submitted by NSPunny)

9. Ayame Kinjo (she/her) – Ultimate Urban Explorer (submitted by Lupus Overkill)

10. Sephtis Laurier (he/him) – Ultimate Mortician (submitted by tacocat1215)

11. Aziza Messaoudi (she/her) – Ultimate Conversationalist (submitted by Prince PokePersona)

12. Rei Myeong (she/her) – Ultimate Ghostwriter (submitted by LynnRowe)

13. Malosi Olioli (he/him) – Ultimate Cultural Affairs Coordinator (submitted by CandleFire45)

14. Markus Star (he/him) – Ultimate Goldsmith (submitted by Rocknex7)

15. Amo Thoumeaux (he/him) – Ultimate Debt Collector (submitted by VividIsSleeping)

16. Daichi Yanagi (he/him) – Ultimate Archer (submitted by ExtraMeme)

It had no rips or tears. No intended information was obscured, only missing in totality. Whatever these people were candidates for would remain a mystery. With one final flicker from the lamp, the room was plunged into total darkness. The truth, it seemed, would be obscured for a long time.

A/N: Hey folks! So sorry about how long it took me to put together a cast list. I had, like, seven characters that were left over in the "maybe" pile. There were a lot of very quality submissions, especially from those who submitted multiple characters. Unfortunately, some of them just didn't work for what I had planned or in tandem with characters I was definitely accepting. Thank you so much to everyone for the interest in the story.

You might have noticed that there isn't a stated protagonist. I have some things that I want to do with that, but, at least for the start, you can expect to be following Daichi Yanagi (unless that changes while I'm writing stuff). I should hopefully have formal introductions to the whole cast out relatively soon. After that, chapters might take a bit longer. I want to make sure I can get through the chapter's trial before posting any more. That way, there aren't any unintended cliffhangers, and things are easier for me to plan. That being said, I hope you all have a good rest of your day, and please take care of yourselves.