Orientation

It's your first day and even with the map in your head, the sheer scope of the campus threatens to disorient you. Fortunately you manage to catch up with a small group of freshman, evidenced by the fact that they're carrying suitcases and being herded somewhere by the scattered groups of upperclassmen, some of whom look at you wistfully. Seniors perhaps, wishing it could be them taking their first walk across the grounds, or maybe sophmores, fondly remembering their first days, and probably their first trance too.

Before long you reach the main auditorium, grabbing a couple of sandwiches and a bottle of juice on the way in. Everything is probably anyway so you figure there's no sense in trying to dodge it. For the first time that you can remember you're going to be put under by a complete stranger, and you're more than a little frightened by the thought.

You push the fear away as you stuff your dufflebag under your seat, glad Uncle Robert made you travel light, and arranged to have the rest of your things shipped to your dorm. Instead of succumbing to the fear, you make a game of it, trying to see how many hypnodevices you can find.

The refreshments are probably . One.

You glance to one side to see air vents and speakers. Gas and subliminals make two and three.

There's a large screen behind the podium. Four.

Abnormal number of lights. Five

Possible strobe. Six

Boring speech from the dean. Seven.

Laptop on your desk with who knows what on it. Eight.

Your game is disrupted when the dean, a tall slender asian woman, steps to the podium. "Greetings freshmen, and welcome to MTU!" Knowing what's coming you relax and nibble on your sandwich, which you note has a slightly acidic taste to it. The tainted juice, on the other hand, is exceptionally sweet. You finish both rapidly needing one to balance out the other, and feel a warm loginess wash over you as the dean drones on, only half listening. You perk up somewhat when she announces a simple demonstration of what you'll be learning.

The auditorium locks snap shut with an audible click as a soft hissing noise from the vents causes you to ever so slowly turn your head. A bright blue gas is rolling from the vents as a few students try to escape, while others either from shock, inevetablility, or food flop drowsily in their chairs.

The main lights dim and and a variety of multicolor strobes flash giving the auditorium a club like feel as a large twirling spiral is projected on the screen behind the dean. Unable to find any single focus point in the room, you manage to find the energy to flip open your laptop which has a CGI Metronome inside ticking away. You stare at it for a long while, listening to the plesant music as the world fades away and you sink into a trance.

Before long the entire freshman class is deeply entranced and sitting before their laptops, so the Dean continues, albeit through a gasmask.

"Very well freshman, welcome to MTU. I hope you're enjoying your first college trance experience. You will all have a one month 'hands off' period during which there will be no hypnotic horseplay from each other, or the upperclassmen. At the end of that month, however you'll be fair game. But then, so wil they. Now, there's a questionaire on your laptop I want you to fill out to help us place you here at MTU. Simply enter your full name to begin. This will also secure your new laptop which is yours to keep. Our little gift to you... in fact, you've all always had your laptops and think there's nothing strange about them. You may begin..."

You wake up in a soft bed and stretch. A quick look around shows that your bags are in your room with you, so you assume you're in a dorm. You dig in your duffle bag and pull out your cell. A quick call to Uncle Robert puts everyone's mind at ease, then you step outside and follow the sound of voices to the kitchen.

"And then there's this game called hypnotag. Usually every man for himself, but occasionally there are teams." The speaker is a dark skinned latina girl, sipping a cup of herbal tea.

"You're awefully smart." The petite redhead leaning against the counter says sipping from her own cup. "Where'd you learn all this stuff, Carmen?"

"From my mom. She's the one who applied for me."

"Excuse me." You say tenatively from the door.

"Buenos tardes, sleeping beauty. I'm Carmen Rosarita Fortunado, Carmen to my amiga's. Am I using too much Spanish for you?"

"No no... I took four years in high school."

"Cool, cool." She says pushing a mug of tea your way. "Don't worry, it's clean. They're really strict about that one month hands off thing."

"Hey Carmen, what's this hypnotag thing." The redhead asked. "I'm Robin, by the way. Robin Rakes, but my friends call me Red Robin."

"Because of your hair?" You ask.

"That, and these." Robin pulls up her shirt to reveal that her nipples and aerolae have been dyed bright red with tattoo ink."Everyone called me that growing up. Figured I ought to give them a reason. So Carmen-"

"Aye chica, chill for a second and I tell you. Everybody picks a name out of a hat, then they got to catch that person and trance em. They usually leave some harmless post hypnotic suggestion to prove they did it, and take that person's target. You get caught, you're eliminated. Anyway, what style is everybody studying first? I'm taking mechanical myself."

"Traditional here. What about you...." Robin asked arching an eyebrow.

You introduce yourself politely and think a while. You and Uncle Robert never actually chose an area, so you're quite surprised when your mouth opens and you say.....