ACEDIA
At Pfeilheim, the past does not sleep. It watches, it waits, and it punishes.
Dossier No. 96-V
Vienna, 1996. A city dressed in old grandeur and newer silences.
Twenty-three-year-old Swedish exchange student Patrick Silver arrives at the Vienna University of Economics and Business hoping to outrun the future. Instead, he finds Pfeilheim, a student residence whispered to be haunted by Torquemada — a self-styled reincarnation of the Grand Inquisitor who punishes the building's sinful inhabitants.
When fires break out, anonymous letters invoke moral purification, and a withdrawn medical student named Marco is found dead beneath Patrick's window, the police call it suicide. Patrick calls it a door he cannot close. His search through archives, church records, and wartime correspondence leads to Horst Moser, an Austrian SS officer who looted Jewish-owned art across occupied Poland — and to a missing Raphael painting hidden somewhere in Austria since 1945.
Subject: Pfeilheim Exterior
Date: 14 Oct 1996
Personnel of Interest
The Exchange Student
Patrick Silver
From Umeå University to Vienna, Patrick carries a backpack full of books and a persistent fear that he does not belong. He searches carefully for words in German, but speaks with conviction when a clue falls into place. Curiosity and a need for justice draw him into Pfeilheim’s past — even as the investigation begins to consume his studies and friendships.
The Medical Student
Marco
Pale, dark-haired, and quietly observant, Marco notices more than he says. His rare remarks hint at the unease spreading through Pfeilheim. After his death, a hidden journal gives Patrick a glimpse of his growing isolation — and cryptic observations about Torquemada and the fires that make the official explanation harder to accept.
The Collector
Horst Moser
An engineer turned Austrian SS officer, Moser brings technical precision to the concealment of a criminal past. Behind his rigid bearing and measured words lies a consuming fear of exposure. Stolen art, forged identities, and loyal wartime connections leave a trail that Patrick must follow through the respectable surfaces of another life. Horst manages to escape justice by fleeing Austria under the assumed identity of Wolfgang Reiss.
The Photographer
Torun
A Norwegian exchange student with a passion for history, Torun combines quiet curiosity with a gift for connecting scattered clues. Fluent in German and English, she moves resourcefully through archives and asks questions that open rather than close conversations. Her warmth steadies Patrick’s self-doubt; her analytical instincts make her an essential partner in the investigation.
The Optimist
Fredrik
Raised in a small Swedish town above the rhythms of his family’s bakery, Fredrik brings practical ingenuity and irrepressible warmth to Pfeilheim. Tousled-haired and quick with a joke, he eases the group’s anxiety without abandoning the search. His knack for winning people over, gathering information, and working under pressure makes his loyalty more than a comfort to Patrick.
The Analyst
Johnny
Grounded in statistics and economics, Johnny sees patterns where others see only confusion. A Swedish upbringing in a family-run business has made him practical, resourceful, and quietly responsible. His measured voice defuses arguments, while his keen observation and calm advice help Patrick distinguish a promising lead from an obsession.
The Historian
Christoph
Patrick’s roommate knows Pfeilheim through years of archival research, old blueprints, and accounts others have forgotten. Articulate on academic matters, Christoph becomes evasive when questions stray too close to the building’s past. Sleepless nights and nervous gestures betray a private burden, leaving Patrick caught between reliance on his knowledge and suspicion of what he will not say.
The Caretaker
Jolly Bob
Stocky and weathered, in his late fifties, Jolly Bob patrols Pfeilheim in a pressed uniform with polished boots and a heavy ring of keys. Clipped commands and meticulous inspections keep the students under watch. Yet questions about the residence provoke more than ordinary irritation: beneath his discipline lies a fierce loyalty to a family legacy he cannot bear to see exposed.
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