For a solid week, Cassius drifted between the various extra holding areas in Los Angeles.
But this week was brutal.
His average daily pay came out to about thirty bucks—barely enough to keep him fed.
Because he was working on tiny, low-budget sets, the attribute orbs dropping were all Grey quality.
And they were all scrap attributes: [Thuggishness], [Debauchery], and so on.
Cassius opened his panel:
[Acting Attribute Panel]
Dialogue: Lv0 (4/100)
Physicality: Lv0 (8/100)
Expression: Lv0 (1/100)
Gaze/Eyes: Lv0 (1/100)
Emotion: Lv0 (8/100)
Rhythm: Lv0 (1/100)
Presence: Lv0 (6/100)
...
That evening, Cassius wrapped work and headed home as usual.
Just as he reached his door, his phone screen lit up.
It was Rob!
Rob: Tomorrow morning, 6:00 AM. Burbank, Warner Bros. Studio 7. The PA will have a pass for you. It's a horror flick. "Insidious"! We need a paranormal investigator's assistant. A few lines. Need an Asian guy who looks smart but bookish. Three days, $200 a day. Don't be late!
---
Insidious!
Cassius's heart skipped a beat.
He had heard of this project. It was the new film from James Wan, the Asian director famous for Saw.
Rumor had it the budget wasn't huge.
But working on a set that was destined to leave a mark on the horror genre? That meant way more than the $200 a day.
Plus, the actors on a production like this would be far more professional than the ones in the no-name movies he'd been doing.
That meant a higher chance of dropping rare attribute orbs.
Just thinking about it got him excited.
---
The next day.
Cassius arrived at the Warner Bros. lot thirty minutes early.
Standing next to the massive soundstages made him feel incredibly small.
He checked in at the gate, got his temporary pass, and was whisked into Stage 7 by a frantic PA.
The inside was a world away from the chaotic street shoots he was used to.
The set was meticulously built to look like the interior of a typical middle-class American home. The walls were a slightly dull color, and the corners were filled with odd-looking antique furniture.
The lighting was strictly controlled to cast a sickly, yellowish hue, creating an instant sense of unease.
Cassius noticed the camera department seemed to favor wide-angle lenses.
He remembered reading about Director Wan's style—using wide angles to enhance the realism of the space while distorting it just enough to lay the visual groundwork for a haunted house story.
"Cass?"
A deep voice called out.
Cassius turned.
It was Rob, the Assistant Director. He was standing next to a white man with long hair and a slightly moody vibe.
Rob pointed at Cassius.
"Leigh Whannell, the screenwriter. He thinks we can add a little weight to your role."
Cassius's heart thumped.
Leigh Whannell!
The writer of the Saw franchise. He wrote the script for Insidious too. He looked even thinner in person than in the magazines.
Whannell looked Cassius up and down.
"In the script, you only have one line: 'The instrument is reacting.'"
"Later, when Patrick Wilson and Rose Byrne question you, try to show a kind of tension. Like you know the truth, but you're too scared to say it all. A hesitation. Got it?"
"I understand, Mr. Whannell."
Cassius suppressed his excitement and nodded calmly.
He subconsciously tapped into his accumulated [Gravitas], projecting an air of reliability.
In the center of the set, Patrick Wilson (playing the father, Josh) and Rose Byrne (playing the mother, Renai) were blocking the scene.
Wilson wore a plain shirt, his brow furrowed, perfectly embodying an anxious father plagued by supernatural events. Byrne looked exhausted and terrified, fitting the image of a mother guarding her comatose son.
Their acting was very internal—relying more on eyes and subtle body language—completely different from the hammy performances Cassius had seen before.
"All departments ready! Insidious, Scene 38, Take 1!"
The slate clapped.
Cassius's character appeared in the scene where the paranormal investigator, Elise, brings her team and equipment to the protagonist's house.
He was wearing a slightly oversized white lab coat, holding a weird contraption that was supposed to detect spiritual energy. In reality, it was just a modified old radio.
The leads' performance unfolded around him.
Wilson demanded in a voice suppressed with anger and fear, "What exactly did you find on my son?"
Byrne gripped her own arm, her eyes full of pleading.
Cassius delivered his line according to the script: "The instrument... is reacting."
It came out dry.
Having picked up only junk attributes for days, his acting hadn't actually improved much.
Now that he was on a big league set, he realized just how green he really was.
"Cut!"
The execution director yelled.
He wasn't looking at the stars; he was looking at Cassius.
"Asian assistant! Your reaction is too wooden! You are scared! Scared of what you know! Again!"
Take two.
Cassius tried to widen his eyes to show fear.
"Cut! Too much! You're not seeing a ghost right now!"
Five or six takes later, he still hadn't passed.
Cassius's back was starting to sweat. He could feel the impatience radiating from the crew.
Just then!
Lin Shaye, the veteran actress playing Elise, walked past him to get to her mark.
The seasoned pro just glanced casually at the set. Her eyes were steady and certain, as if she already knew every secret in the script.
A green orb dropped from her feet!
[Emotional Acting Attribute: Conviction +2]
Cassius subtly extended his leg and touched the orb.
A strange sensation washed over him.
In an instant, he had a deeper understanding of his identity as a "paranormal researcher."
It wasn't about exaggerated performance. It was about an internal confidence—the bedrock of the character.
Next take.
"Action!"
Wilson pressed him again: "Tell me the truth!"
Cassius looked up.
This time, he didn't force his eyes wide.
He pursed his lips slightly. His eyes met Wilson's for a split second, then quickly darted away to fix on a point in empty space, as if sensing something invisible.
His voice carried a barely perceptible tremor, but the tone was terrifyingly certain: "The instrument... has a strong reaction."
He paused for half a second, adding a tiny improvisation, whispering:
"...In this room."
"Cut! Good! That's the one!"
The execution director sounded satisfied. "Nice addition. Keep it."
Cassius let out a breath, feeling his undershirt soaked with sweat.
He stole a glance at Director James Wan behind the monitor. The director seemed to nod slightly.
While they reset the lights for the next setup, Cassius drifted around the edge of the set like a ghost.
He kept picking up attribute orbs dropped by the cast and crew.
[Emotion Attribute: Focus +1]
[Rhythm Attribute: Musicality +1]
[Physicality Attribute: Strength +1]
...
The biggest harvest came from Patrick Wilson.
During a scene where he was alone in a hallway feeling watched, Wilson didn't do much.
He just stood with his back to the camera.
But the sudden tensing of his shoulder muscles and the subtle stiffness in his neck perfectly conveyed the character's creeping horror.
A blue orb dropped.
[Physicality Attribute: Acting with Your Back +3] (Blue/Rare)
A Rare Attribute!
Cassius grabbed it like it was gold and absorbed it immediately.
This wasn't just a technique.
It was an understanding of a character's psychological state that went all the way down to the muscle fibers.