prognosticat
Really Experienced
- Joined
- Jan 15, 2007
- Posts
- 219
Sisters of the Mercy Fuck Network
According to Network lore, it all began late one Friday night in 1989 as two nursing students, “Amy” and “Jenni,” heard the sad tale of “Paul,” the brother of a friend of a friend, who went to another school. He had been in a serious depressive funk for months after a very hard breakup. The story was, he was a really good guy, but just couldn't get back in the game. In one version of events, there was a dare, in another it was a general consensus, and in another a bold declaration of self-confident bravado. But all versions agree that somewhere along the line, these words were spoken: “All he needs is a good fuck. Hell, I'd fuck him!”
The details now are obscured in legend, but as they're told, they usually include a late night road trip, a box of Daylight Donuts, a strip of condoms, and in some tellings a mask or a wig. The tale of staking out “Paul's” dorm is usually repeated, and all versions insist on the Saturday evening ambush, with "Jenni" sneaking into his room while he was away for supper. Stories of flashing or blowing the residence director for a key are considered apocryphal to most insiders – it seems too fantastic, sensational, and risky to be true, though there are those who insist on its veracity. In any case, no one seems to be able to provide any other detail about how entry to the room was made.
However it actually occurred, it is generally agreed that "Jenni" did the deed herself, while "Amy" hovered nearby in case there was need of a quick rescue and getaway, and that afterward, the mission was considered to be a success. “Intelligence reports” indicated that the subject soon broke out of his funk and “moved on” as they say. The friend of a friend was pleased, and it wasn't long before another case came along, and "Amy" got her chance to render an act of compassion.
Eventually, word got around that there were “angels” who could lend some aid to worthy recipients, but it was understood that you would have to go through proper channels, and that each case would be reviewed for its merits before any action was taken. Soon, a few more intrepid volunteers stepped forth to form a small corps, sworn to secrecy, anonymity, compassion, and a damn good fuck. The tales tell that the inner circle included students of psychology, psychiatry, and social work, and that elaborate criteria were developed to determine when someone needed the phone number of a suicide hotline, and when they just needed a right proper shag.
Over the years the vetting process was refined. Clever tactics were developed for subtly probing the nominated recipient's friends, relations, and colleagues without arousing suspicion. Much of the work was done through intermediaries who didn't even know about the network, let alone that their gossip was actually research on its behalf. The one thing that would immediately take a nominee out of the pool of deserving recipients was the slightest whiff of violence or real coercion. Guys like that didn't need a fuck. They could fuck themselves.
Another rule that was held to strictly was that no requests were permitted from prospective recipients themselves. If they even knew about the Network, they would not be considered for a Mercy Fuck operation. A client would only be considered if he were recommended by a friend, relative, or acquaintance who cared about the guy and thought he needed some fuckin' but couldn't be the one to provide the service him- or herself.
The early days of the Mercy Fuck Network were also the early days of computer networks, with an archipelago of multi-user systems on college campuses, linked by dial-up UUCP networks, or this new thing called the Internet. It wasn't long before one could send nominations to mercyf@chisolm.edu. Interestingly, the real student named Mercy Francis reputedly never took advantage of the account that was created for her on the campus UNIX system, yet strangely the email address received quite a bit of use, even several years after her graduation. Evidently, someone knew someone who worked in Computing Services.
Over time a handbook emerged, in the form of an encrypted text file passed from one to another on floppy disk: the collected notes and hard-won wisdom of the veterans. A strict protocol was established pertaining to the possession, use, and secrecy of the document. But for the most part, the standards, practices, and lore of the Network were passed by word of mouth, from agent to agent. It was from the outset a society of confidence, based on the trust of friendship, and a shared commitment to bettering the world through therapeutic sex.
Though whole new generations have been inducted into the Network, it is widely held that some of the founding members have continuing involvement despite being otherwise faithfully involved in their own family relationships. It is generally agreed that their role is now largely organizational -- as facilitators, orchestraters, inspirational leaders, and repositories of wisdom – but few would dispute that they still play, on occasion, a more active role. Now they have the freedom to select those specific nominees who they believe they themselves can offer special help.
The Network now includes a specially equipped corps of medically trained volunteers who handle some of the more extreme cases, such as clients with known STDs. In a very controversial move, the Network has also recently admitted a very small number of male volunteers, both gay and straight. Some long-standing members were concerned that doing so would disrupt the community of trust, and a few members even resigned over the decision. It is still too early to tell how this change will impact the Network in the long run, but by all appearances there have been no major problems yet, aside from the initial controversy.
These days, mercyfuck.org is a clearinghouse where nominations are made. But don't go looking for a web page. There is not one to be found there. It is only a domain name attached to a mail server. The Network does have coordination through various wiki pages and social networks, but it is dispersed, subtle, and hidden in plain sight. Messages are disguised in photos sent as email attachments or posted on Mybook. Code words in plain text carry special meaning to those who know. And old fashioned midnight phone calls move up and down the chain of agents.
Whispered conversations and text messages, tentative inquiries and an email address scratched on a restroom wall, confidences shared from friend to friend, all eventually make their way to the Sisters of the Mercy Fuck Network.
To the players:
You play the Sisters of the Mercy Fuck Network and the recipients of their generosity. Roleplay the encounter from beginning to end. The Sisters always go by pseudonyms. The prospective recipients should be presented in the beginning by a dossier such as the following:
Name:
Age:
Gender:
Orientation:
Occupation:
Recommended by:
Relationship of Recommender:
Reason for Recommendation:
Unusual Circumstances:
Living Arrangements:
House/Room-mates:
Known Medical Conditions:
Mental Health Notes:
Staff Investigation Notes:
Other Information:
This dossier should provide a starting point for the recipient's character. The player who plays a Sister should imagine similar information for her character, though it probably needn't be posted explicitly. Of particular interest is any reason you can imagine why the character is an agent of the Mercy Fuck Network. The Sisters are trained to remain in control of the situation at all times, though not necessarily taking on a dominant role. Their view is that they are administering a therapeutic service for humanitarian reasons. They are there to do a job, albeit a job that is intended to be enjoyable – even mutually so. But they consider themselves experts at what they do. This does not mean that they need to take a coldly clinical approach. They may be playful, warm, or friendly. After all, the aim in many cases is to increase their client's confidence, or provide some needed relief and human contact. But in the end, they are not there for long-term emotional involvement, though the hope may be that their intervention may lead the client to find that with someone else.
That being said, the Mercy Fuck Network is composed of real human beings, as imperfect as anyone else. There may be great roleplaying material in investigating a Mercy Fuck operation that goes awry in one way or another, though perhaps this possibility should be hinted at from the outset.
The Sisters, or agents, always introduce themselves something like this:
"Hi, I'm _______, and I'm a friend of a friend of a friend." They won't tell any other details of themselves, unless they are made-up details for role-play. "This isn't about me right now," or something like that.
So, let's have some good roleplaying. Make up your characters, and act out an encounter. What is it like for an agent to make herself available to this guy who is probably suffering and is almost certainly very surprised? And how is it for the guy, who may be a bit suspicious, but is confronted with an opportunity few would find easy to pass up?
prognosticat
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