Pulp 006

January 22, 2021

[7:09 PM] Theo: So! You had spent an hour or so driving to the Cape, and you find yourself outside of an old manor. Your job here is to find and bring back an object here that 'doesn't belong'.

[7:10 PM] Sandy: "...ok, how about this?"

[7:10 PM] Sandy: "Joseph, you and I go knock in case there's someone friendly inside.  Ke, you sneak around and prepare to invade from the back in case not."

[7:10 PM] Joseph: Sounds like a plan!

[7:10 PM] Sandy: ((Is August with us too?))

[7:11 PM] Theo: Remember, there's also a small cabin that does have lights on.

[7:11 PM] Joseph: Though we could also ask at the... what is it, a guest house?

[7:11 PM] Theo: (And yes, August is there.))

[7:12 PM] Sandy: "...you want to ask the house?"

[7:12 PM] Theo: August:  Presumably he wants to see if the groundskeeper is in or something.

[7:13 PM] Ke: We could at least see who is on the grounds

[7:13 PM] Joseph: Yes. Exactly.

[7:14 PM] Sandy: "...hm.  Ok.  Makes sense."

[7:14 PM] Sandy: "...so...we knock there?"

[7:14 PM] Joseph: nods.

[7:15 PM] Joseph: Should we have a cover story, just in case?

[7:15 PM] Ke: Do you have one in mind?

[7:15 PM] Joseph: Fraternity brother's initiation was to go investigate the house.

[7:16 PM] Joseph: It's been an hour and he's not back yet, we're going to go and see if he fainted out of fear or accidentally locked himself in a bathroom.

[7:16 PM] Joseph: Sandy's his brother, I'm the dissipated aristocrat frat brother and Ke is... will they believe a bodyguard?(edited)

[7:17 PM] Sandy: "And August is the chaffeur."

[7:17 PM] Theo: August:  It's not far off.

[7:17 PM] Ke: Some of us could stayt out of sight just in case things go wrong

[7:18 PM] Joseph: True. It's odd having to come up with excuses for multiple people.

[7:18 PM] Joseph: ... which would you prefer, Ke? Out of sight or with the rest of us?

[7:19 PM] Ke: out of sight

[7:20 PM] Sandy: "August?  You have a preference?"

[7:21 PM] Sandy: "I'd rather go in.  I'm not good at hiding or at a distance."

[7:21 PM] Theo: August:   It's probably better to see if anyone's home.

[7:23 PM] Sandy: "...so...just knock...that works for me."

[7:23 PM] Theo: August:  Less chance of a weird old guy coming out at us with a shotgun.

[7:23 PM] Joseph: A lot less. All right. Chauffeur it is, then, I suppose.

[7:24 PM] Sandy: "...ok.  Ke, feel free to hang back.  Having an ace in the hole could still be helpful."

[7:24 PM] Joseph: Right.

[7:24 PM] Joseph: heads for the cottage.

[7:25 PM] Sandy: follows

[7:25 PM] Ke: will follow at a distance trying to avoid notice

[7:30 PM] Sandy: will knock on the cottage door

[7:33 PM] Theo: You hear music! A scratchy record is playing -- Joe, you think it's Finnish.

[7:34 PM] Joseph: ... is that ... that's odd.

[7:34 PM] Joseph: knocks again.

[7:34 PM] Sandy: "Is it?"

[7:34 PM] Joseph: That sounds like Finnish to me.

[7:35 PM] Theo: You hear someone inside singing along with the music, faintly.

[7:35 PM] Sandy: "Well, they have music in Finland."

[7:36 PM] Joseph: Yes, they certainly do. A lot of it's rather depressing. I think they honestly don't get enough sunlight.

[7:36 PM] Theo: Ke, I assume you're kind of lingering behind. Go ahead and roll Perception+Awareness.

[7:37 PM] Ke: ((two sucesses))

[7:40 PM] Theo: So, the manor house itself, being an old house on Cape Cod, has a widows walk. You think you spot someone up there. It's dark so it's hard to tell. Also, I must add, it is fucking cold and snowing a bit.(edited)

[7:41 PM] Joseph: No one's answering, which... is a bit odd.

[7:41 PM] Sandy: will look for a window she can peer in through.

[7:41 PM] Joseph: knocks again, and calls out in Finnish," Hello? Excuse me?"

[7:45 PM] Theo: The windows are all curtained. But on the second knock, the singing stops and you hear some shuffling around. An old man in a bathrobe opens the door. "C'n I hilp you?"

[7:45 PM] Joseph: Yes!

[7:46 PM] Ke: will keep watching the others and also try and keep an eye on the person she may have seen on the house

[7:46 PM] Joseph: I'm so sorry to be bothering you at this time of night but duty calls and a brother never lets a brother be dishonored! Or trapped in a locked room. Or whatever's gone on.

[7:46 PM] Theo: Once you turn away from the house, the figure is gone when you look back.

[7:48 PM] Joseph: You see, I belong to a fraternity and our pledge, that's somebody trying to get in, you understand, took a dare to go and investigate the creepy old house up there, you know, that sort of thing, only it's been two hours and he hasn't come back, so I was wondering if you could erm, let us go in and just have a look around, see if we can find him.

[7:48 PM] Theo: The old man blinks. "Ain't been no one tonight but you."

[7:48 PM] Joseph: I don't think he chickened out and ran away before he got here but I can't really be sure.

[7:48 PM] Joseph: Well, I doubt he'd've been polite enough to come and ask to get in.

[7:49 PM] Ke: will look for a door to the house I can access while still watching the others

[7:49 PM] Joseph: I'm so very sorry.

[7:49 PM] Theo: Go ahead and roll manipulation+subterfuge, Joe.

[7:49 PM] Theo: Ke, you mean the main house, or the groundskeeper's cottage?

[7:50 PM] Joseph: ((What counts as a success?))

[7:50 PM] Theo: ((7 or higher.)

[7:50 PM] Joseph: ((3 successes, then!))

[7:50 PM] Theo: He looks at Joe for a long moment. "Let me get my bouts oon."

[7:51 PM] Theo: He closes his door and you hear more shuffling around.

[7:51 PM] Joseph: Capital! Thank you so much.

[7:51 PM] Sandy: "...think he's in the society?"

[7:51 PM] Ke: ((Main house ))

[7:51 PM] Joseph: Interesting question! I have no idea.

[7:52 PM] Theo: The main house is not close to the cottage, you'd have to go aways away from the rest of them to investigate the main house.

[7:54 PM] Ke: will swing around from the rest of the group and see if there is another door or how big the cottage is.

[7:58 PM] Sandy: "...lotta questions left unanswered."

[7:58 PM] Joseph: ... I don't think he is. He's irritated that we're here.

[7:59 PM] Joseph: ... the problem with pretending to be a rich idiot is that people then think you're a rich idiot, really.

[7:59 PM] Theo: The cottage isn't big.

[7:59 PM] Theo: The manor is big and has several entrances.(edited)

[7:59 PM] Sandy: checks for Ke

[8:00 PM] Ke: will head back to the main house.

[8:02 PM] Sandy: ((We're at the cottage))

[8:02 PM] Joseph: waits for the groundskeeper.

[8:02 PM] Theo: Ke has wandered off, apparently moving closer to the main house.

[8:03 PM] Sandy: "...there goes our back up."

[8:04 PM] Joseph: Mice and men, Sandy. Mice and men.

[8:04 PM] Sandy: "I never liked Steinbeck."

[8:05 PM] Joseph: ((That won't be published for 2 years.))

[8:06 PM] Sandy: ((Oh, dammit!))

[8:06 PM] Theo: The door opens! The groundskeeper is standing there in snowboots and a bathrobe. "All right.  Come on, let us find brother.

[8:06 PM] Joseph: ((He's talking about the poem by Robert Burns. ))

[8:07 PM] Joseph: Marvellous! I'm so sorry about all this. Listen, I was going to buy him a bottle of old scotch but considering he's got himself stuck somewhere or just run off, I don't see why he should have it. Here.

[8:07 PM] Joseph: hands him a $20 bill, which would be pretty princely for this time period.

[8:08 PM] Theo: The man blinks, and looks at the twenty like it's Moon Bucks. "Well.  Merry Christmas to Ahti then."

[8:09 PM] Theo: August gets out of the car, stopping after a moment to grab something out of the back.

[8:10 PM] Joseph: Jolly good.

[8:10 PM] Sandy: "...I guess he's Ahti."

[8:10 PM] Joseph: Indeed!

[8:11 PM] Joseph: will wait to get brought up to the house, or however they're doing this.

[8:11 PM] Theo: Ahti walks very slowly. "Is haunted, house.  Woman killed husband.  Something like that."

[8:12 PM] Joseph: It is haunted? That's terribly sad. People shouldn't go around killing their spouses, it just isn't done. Why'd she do it?

[8:15 PM] Theo: Ahti:  Husband found out she was witch, I believe. Dark arts. Kissing devil's bottom. All that.

[8:15 PM] Sandy: "Gross."

[8:16 PM] Joseph: Poor husband! And poor wife as well. Did she poison him, or just magick him to death?

[8:16 PM] Theo: Ahti:  Pushed out high window.

[8:16 PM] Theo: Ahti:  Is still broken!

[8:17 PM] Theo: You approach the house! Ke, where are you during all of this?

[8:17 PM] Joseph: Shocking! Which window is it? And what happened to her, was she hanged?

[8:19 PM] Sandy: "Is it a window by the widow's walk?"

[8:20 PM] Ke: will stay out of sight and find a side door to access the house.

[8:20 PM] Theo: Ahti:  no, is back of house, near cliff overlooking beach.

[8:21 PM] Theo: Roll Dex+Stealth, Ke.

[8:21 PM] Joseph: Ghastly! You know, I never thought America had much history to speak of, but you've packed an awful lot of it into 200 years!

[8:21 PM] Ke: ((3 successes))

[8:22 PM] Theo: Ahti stops, looking off to the side. "Is woman skulking friend?"

[8:23 PM] Joseph: Bother, she said she was going to stay in the car. Yes, Ke's around somewhere. She's a... friend... of his. You know how people are.

[8:23 PM] Theo: Ahti:  Not really.

[8:24 PM] Sandy: is rubbing her temples.

[8:24 PM] Theo: Ahti:  Tell her be careful.

[8:24 PM] Joseph: You know, they worry, and all that. And you're quite right, I certainly shall!

[8:25 PM] Theo: He pulls out a keyring with a hilarious number of keys and starts going through them, one by one, struggling a bit in the darkness standing in front of the house.

[8:26 PM] Sandy: "...each room has a different key?"

[8:26 PM] Joseph: uses a lighter to try to make it a bit easier.

[8:26 PM] Theo: Ahti:  Front door does. Other keys are for other things.

[8:28 PM] Joseph: ... listen, we don't want to bother you. If you want to head back to your nice warm cottage and get back to what you were doing, go ahead. We'll just do a quick search and make sure he hasn't fallen asleep in a closet or something.

[8:29 PM] Theo: Ahti stares at Joseph. "Nothing for stealing, you know.  Place long empty.  Not even furniture."

[8:29 PM] Sandy: "We're not thieves!"

[8:30 PM] Joseph: Well, I wouldn't go that far, Sandy. I have been known to steal hearts, from time to time! But the only pretty girls here are the ones we brought ourselves, I'm afraid.

[8:30 PM] Theo: Ahti:  Just saying. Let me know if you find friend dead. I'll call police.

[8:31 PM] Joseph: ... good lord, do you think that's likely? I hope not. Bunky might be a bit of an idiot but he's not a bad sort of idiot.

[8:31 PM] Theo: Ahti:  Many unstable floors and walls.

[8:31 PM] Theo: Ahti:  Several fires over years.

[8:31 PM] Theo: Ahti:  Water damage.

[8:32 PM] Theo: Ahti:  Also murderous ghost witch.

[8:32 PM] Joseph: ... in that case, we'll be careful. And we'll certainly tell you if we find anything... untoward. Lord I hope he isn't here.

[8:32 PM] Theo: Ahti:  I am going to listen to records and drink.

[8:32 PM] Theo: He leaves!

[8:32 PM] Sandy: "Have fun."

[8:32 PM] Sandy: "...ok, let's go find Ke."

[8:33 PM] Joseph: Yes.

[8:33 PM] Theo: August:  He reminds me of my uncle.

[8:33 PM] Joseph: He seemed like a good sort, really. Conscientious. If we find anything unusual or dangerous we shall certainly tell him, it's the least we can do.

[8:34 PM] Sandy: goes into the house. "Ke!  It's just us!  You can come out now."

[8:35 PM] Joseph: It's a shame about the fire. This house is a hundred and fifty years old if I'm a judge of it. It deserves a lot better. Then again, so did the deceased persons in question. Do you think we're meant to reckon with the ghosts?

[8:36 PM] Sandy: "We're supposed to find the thing that doesn't belong.  But if it's a haunted house, don't ghosts belong here?"

[8:37 PM] Joseph: I would think they were meant to move on.

[8:38 PM] Theo: It's pretty creepy! Big and empty. But you can tell it was a beautiful house at one point.

[8:38 PM] Joseph: ... but they did say we're supposed to bring something back.

[8:38 PM] Ke: will join up with the rest of the group

[8:38 PM] Joseph: So if we are meant to deal with the ghosts there must be an object they're attached to that isn't the house.

[8:39 PM] Ke: Ghosts?

[8:40 PM] Sandy: "Groundskeeper said there was a witch ghost living here who murdered her husband by pushing him out a window.  Which means the broken window is a good starting place."

[8:40 PM] Joseph: Yes.

[8:40 PM] Sandy: "Also, Ke, the groundskeeper saw you."

[8:40 PM] Ke: I saw someone at the top of the house

[8:40 PM] Joseph: ... really? That's ... unfortunately consistent with what we already know.

[8:40 PM] Sandy: "....yeah....eerily consistent."

[8:41 PM] Sandy: "Around where did you see them?"

[8:41 PM] Theo: Everyone roll Perception+Awareness.

[8:42 PM] Joseph: ((10, 3.))

[8:42 PM] Sandy: ((Critical Fail))

[8:42 PM] Ke: ((2 successes))

[8:42 PM] Ke: Around the widows walk

[8:43 PM] Theo: You guys all hear someone yell from upstairs.

[8:44 PM] Theo: You think it's a male voice.

[8:44 PM] Sandy: charges towards the noise

[8:45 PM] Joseph: follows her.

[8:45 PM] Ke: will follow Sandy

[8:45 PM] Joseph: Wait! Be careful!

[8:45 PM] Theo: All of you, go ahead and roll me Dex+Athletics.

[8:46 PM] Sandy: ((1 success))

[8:46 PM] Joseph: ((2 successes.))

[8:47 PM] Ke: ((3 successes))

[8:48 PM] Theo: The stairs creek, but you get up to the second floor. Sandy's first?

[8:48 PM] Sandy: ((I guess so))

[8:48 PM] Joseph: ... the floor might not be stable, there's been fires here.

[8:49 PM] Sandy: "I'm watching my step"

[8:49 PM] Theo: Roll straight Dex, Sandy.

[8:50 PM] Joseph: I know, but I'm quite a bit heavier than you are.

[8:51 PM] Sandy: ((1 success))

[8:53 PM] Sandy: ((Also a nat 1, but you said those only count if I don't get a success))

[8:54 PM] Theo: ((Yep.))

[8:54 PM] Joseph: ... maybe I should stay back.

[8:54 PM] Theo: You're all up the stairs.

[8:54 PM] Theo: But as you're talking, Sandy gets up first, and gets smacked in the face by a piece of moulding.

[8:55 PM] Theo: 1 health level of damage.

[8:55 PM] Sandy: "Oof!"

[8:55 PM] Theo: It just kinda.... flies at her face from an unknown source.

[8:55 PM] Joseph: What was that?

[8:55 PM] Theo: Also, it is very dark in here, I should mention. How are you providing light?

[8:56 PM] Sandy: pulls a flashlight out.

[8:58 PM] Joseph: Are you all right?

[9:00 PM] Sandy: "Oooof.  Little dizzy.  Otherwise, fine I think."

[9:01 PM] Joseph: What happened?

[9:01 PM] Joseph: Is there something hanging from the ceiling, or?

[9:01 PM] Sandy: points the light up.

[9:02 PM] Theo: You can see the piece at Sandy's feet, just a chunk of rotted moulding. There's a lot of debris all around.

[9:02 PM] Sandy: "...guess I wasn't being as careful as I thought I was."

[9:05 PM] Joseph: Apparently not. It's all right, just... be careful.

[9:05 PM] Joseph: ... I should go last, as I'm most likely to break the floor.

[9:05 PM] Sandy: "You're not that fat."

[9:05 PM] Theo: The floor seems a bit sturdier up there --it was the stairs that were a bit iffy.

[9:06 PM] Ke: Don’t see anything that doesn’t belong yet.

[9:07 PM] Sandy: "We heard a voice.  ...a scream.  ...someone's probably still here."

[9:07 PM] Theo: There is an old chandelier up above that you wouldn't want to walk under, but there's nothing else precarious up there.

[9:08 PM] Joseph: I'm not fat at all, but muscle is very dense. I'm heavier than either of you.

[9:08 PM] Joseph: And to be totally fair, we don't belong here.

[9:08 PM] Theo: August:   I suppose it's too much to hope that the answer was literally the friends we made along the way.

[9:09 PM] Sandy: "That doesn't make any sense, August.  The friends we made along the way doesn't belong here?"

[9:10 PM] Theo: August:  Joe's right, though, we're the most out of place thing here.

[9:10 PM] Ke: I don’t think the society would accept that answer

[9:11 PM] Joseph: They might.

[9:11 PM] Joseph: We'll keep looking, though. If there's an intruder living here, or if the place is haunted, maybe we can help.

[9:12 PM] Ke: We have a scream and maybe someone seen at the top of the house

[9:12 PM] Ke: So further up I say

[9:14 PM] Theo: So where do you go?

[9:14 PM] Sandy: "Further up is good.  Ke, you mind taking point?  You have a better sense of movement than any of us."

[9:15 PM] Ke: will look for a way further up

[9:18 PM] Theo: You can find some stairs up to the third floor.

[9:18 PM] Sandy: tries to keep a look out...but perception's not her thing.

[9:19 PM] Ke: will head up the stairs

[9:20 PM] Sandy: follows

[9:25 PM] Joseph: brings up the rear, quietly.

[9:25 PM] Sandy: "...well, I feel fully out of my element."

[9:26 PM] Joseph: ... there are two others here. They're not.... I think they might be actually ghosts.

[9:26 PM] Ke: Well that’s something

[9:26 PM] Ke: They probably belong here though

[9:28 PM] Joseph: No one belongs on earth once they've died.

[9:28 PM] Joseph: And they're not really... people.

[9:28 PM] Sandy: "...you...sense them?"

[9:29 PM] Joseph: ... yes.

[9:29 PM] Joseph: They're more like... remnants.

[9:29 PM] Sandy: "...so...they don't belong."

[9:31 PM] Joseph: Possible, but we're also not bringing them back. They might be attached to an artifact of some sort, though.

[9:32 PM] Theo: So you go up the stairs. There's a big plate window overlooking the beach on the third floor -- shattered. The glass is still at your feet. Most of the glass has moved with time and age and the elements, but there are still big pieces of glass.

[9:32 PM] Sandy: will inspect a piece.

[9:32 PM] Sandy: "What binds a spirit here?"

[9:33 PM] Joseph: Folklorically, usually unfinished business.

[9:33 PM] Ke: Not my area of expertise

[9:33 PM] Ke: So we have to find what is keeping them here?

[9:33 PM] Sandy: freezes.

[9:33 PM] Sandy: "....guys....remain calm...but we're not alone."

[9:34 PM] Sandy: looks behind her

[9:34 PM] Ke: looks where Sandy is looking

[9:34 PM] Joseph: turns around, but slowly, and carefully.

[9:35 PM] Theo: There is no one but you guys around you.

[9:36 PM] Joseph: ... if you want to tell us something, please do. We're trying to help you.

[9:36 PM] Sandy: "...she's in the glass then, maybe."

[9:36 PM] Theo: Someone roll a d4.

[9:36 PM] Ke: will look around the room for anything that stands out

[9:36 PM] Ke: ((2))

[9:39 PM] Theo: August is kind of carefully inspecting the window. Joe and Ke, you notice Sandy kind of twist her face in an angry way and rush toward him, hand's outstretched. You both have a chance to respond before she pushes him out of the window.

[9:41 PM] Joseph: Sandy, STOP!

[9:41 PM] Sandy: tries to resist

[9:41 PM] Ke:  will try and trip her

[9:41 PM] Joseph: is gonna do the Command Voice.

[9:42 PM] Theo: I will say that you're able to between you stop her.

[9:42 PM] Joseph: ((3 successes, but I'm guessing you have more than 3 dots in Wits.))

[9:42 PM] Theo: Sandy, you're not sure why you did that.

[9:43 PM] Sandy: ((I have exactly 3 in wits))

[9:43 PM] Sandy: "August?  I...I'm sorry.  I didn't...be careful around the glass."

[9:43 PM] Theo: August:  .... what happened?

[9:43 PM] Joseph: ((Oh, then it would have worked.))

[9:44 PM] Joseph: ((But you could've spent 1 willpower point to not do it.))

[9:44 PM] Sandy: "I think the ghost possessed me.  Trying to recreate the murder."

[9:44 PM] Joseph: We still really don't know what happened here. But yes, that could be.

[9:44 PM] Joseph: What did it feel like?

[9:44 PM] Theo: Roll Perception+Awareness, everyone.

[9:45 PM] Sandy: ((1 success))

[9:45 PM] Ke: ((1 success))

[9:45 PM] Joseph: ((7, 8.))

[9:47 PM] Theo: The pieces of glass on the floor now spell out two words:  Get out.

[9:47 PM] Ke: They can communicate

[9:48 PM] Joseph: No. We're not going to do that. You're going to need to tell us what happened somehow. I know there's not much of you left but you're going to have to try.

[9:48 PM] Sandy: looks for an out of place item.

[9:49 PM] Joseph: Let's search around. Maybe we can find something they missed.

[9:50 PM] Theo: STaying by the window?

[9:50 PM] Sandy: will move away from it.

[9:51 PM] Theo: There are two hallways, one on either side of the landing, both going into darkness. Which way do you go?

[9:51 PM] Sandy: "...it wasn't just murderous...it was...self-destructive.  ...I think she might've gone over with her husband."

[9:51 PM] Sandy: will go left.

[9:52 PM] Joseph: That might explain it. If it was the husband who was killed.

[9:52 PM] Joseph: follows her.

[9:53 PM] Ke: follows them to the left

[9:53 PM] Sandy: "So, what would keep her here?  A wedding ring?  Something...important?"

[9:53 PM] Sandy: "Ugh!  This is so not my thing."

[9:54 PM] Theo: August:  That's probably the point.

[9:54 PM] Joseph: It could be anything. People find all kinds of things important.

[9:55 PM] Theo: Some of the doors are closed, some are open, some are just missing. Every room is empty on a cursory glance.

[9:56 PM] Ke: ((Are any of the doors locked?))

[9:56 PM] Theo: A door at the end of the hall is locked.

[9:57 PM] Sandy: will inspect the lock.

[9:57 PM] Theo: It's an old lock, probably easy to pick.

[9:57 PM] Ke: will try and pick the lock

[9:58 PM] Ke: ((5 successes on legerdemain))

[9:58 PM] Theo: It's easy.

[9:59 PM] Joseph: You have an unusual skill set.

[9:59 PM] Sandy: points the light in.

[9:59 PM] Ke: will open the door and look in.

[10:00 PM] Ke: Don’t we all?

[10:00 PM] Theo: It's a big room -- you'd bet a master bedroom suite.

[10:01 PM] Sandy: ((Anything left?))

[10:01 PM] Theo: It looks charred. There's a lot of old fire damage, and exposure to the elements over the years as worn it down even more.

[10:02 PM] Sandy: "...why's this room so burned in particular?  Likely the starting point of the fire."

[10:02 PM] Joseph: Could be.

[10:03 PM] Joseph: starts searching things, but is attentive to the condition of the floor.

[10:03 PM] Theo: There's funiture in here, or at least the remains of it.

[10:03 PM] Sandy: ((Is there anyway I could analyze the burns to discover the nature of the fire?))

[10:04 PM] Theo: Go ahead and roll Perception+Investigation. But as far as the nature of the fire, it's been too long and the damage is so worn that you can't really tell.

[10:05 PM] Sandy: ((2 successes))

[10:05 PM] Joseph: ((1 success.))

[10:09 PM] Theo: Ke? Investigation?

[10:10 PM] Ke: ((2 successes))

[10:12 PM] Theo: The most interesting thing you find is the closet. It's locked, and the door seems somewhat reinforced and heavy.

[10:13 PM] Joseph: ... a closet. Or a safe room.

[10:13 PM] Ke: will try and pick that lock

[10:13 PM] Theo: Roll Legerdermain!

[10:14 PM] Ke: ((5 successes))

[10:14 PM] Theo: This door is a bit trickier.

[10:14 PM] Theo: But, it does click open. because of the heavier, reinforced door, it looks like the interier of the closet was spared the worst of the fire.

[10:15 PM] Sandy: "...why isn't there a ghost here?  If this is the item, why isn't she here?"

[10:15 PM] Joseph: I think they have a larger range than that.

[10:15 PM] Joseph: starts looking through the closet.

[10:15 PM] Ke: looks in the closet as well

[10:15 PM] Sandy: does so too

[10:15 PM] Theo: The closet is mostly empty, mind you.

[10:16 PM] Theo: There are, however, arcane symbols carved into the wood on the interior.

[10:16 PM] Sandy: "...that's...interesting."

[10:16 PM] Sandy: will rub her hand on the symbols.

[10:17 PM] Theo: They're warm to the touch.

[10:17 PM] Joseph: ... I wonder what it means.

[10:17 PM] Sandy: "...it's warm."

[10:17 PM] Sandy: looks for a panel or loose floorboard.

[10:18 PM] Joseph: Considering this place burned, I'm not sure that's a good sign.

[10:19 PM] Theo: More investigation rolls.

[10:19 PM] Sandy: "If this is the cause, though, why is this the one place untouched by it?"(edited)

[10:19 PM] Sandy: ((1 success))

[10:21 PM] Ke: ((2 successes))

[10:21 PM] Joseph: ((1, 6, 4.))

[10:24 PM] Joseph: ... I'm not certain, but I think this is a protection charm.

[10:25 PM] Theo: Ke, you find a lever, that, when pulls, pulls aside a panel.(edited)

[10:25 PM] Ke: looks at whatever the panel revealed

[10:26 PM] Sandy: does too

[10:26 PM] Ke: Protecting what?

[10:26 PM] Theo: A passage! A stone spiral passage leading down.

[10:26 PM] Joseph: I don't kno... possibly that passageway. ... it's made of stone, is it stable, do you think?

[10:26 PM] Ke: heads down the spiral

[10:27 PM] Ke: One way to find out

[10:27 PM] Sandy: ".....guess there's our answer."

[10:27 PM] Theo: It's all cobbles. Likely built when the house was first built, unlike a lot of the woodwork, which was likely redone a few times over the house's lifetime.

[10:27 PM] Sandy: follows

[10:28 PM] Joseph: goes last.

[10:29 PM] Joseph: ... it wasn't exactly dark magic, you know.

[10:30 PM] Ke: You can tell the difference between types of magic now?

[10:30 PM] Joseph: Just a hodgepodge of hieroglyphs--and some hieratic, which is odd--and Norse runes.

[10:31 PM] Joseph: No, but I can identify symbols from a script traditionally associated with angels.

[10:31 PM] Theo: You'd guess that this tunnel is taking you down past the first floor as you go down. There are wall sconces for torches, but any torches are long gone.

[10:32 PM] Joseph: It's a script you wouldn't use if you were doing something you felt was wicked. ... at least I wouldn't.

[10:33 PM] Sandy: "So, maybe the ghost isn't a witch."

[10:34 PM] Joseph: There are two ghosts. One could still be the witch, but it might be a white witch, or the other alternative. The "one who walks the grey path."

[10:34 PM] Theo: You end up in an old, dirt floor basement. I cannot overstate how fucking cold it is down here.

[10:34 PM] Joseph: shivers.

[10:34 PM] Ke: Bad time of year to be doing this.

[10:34 PM] Joseph: It'd be this way anyway, probably.

[10:35 PM] Sandy: "I wish I'd brought a heater."

[10:35 PM] Ke: Let’s try and finish this quickly

[10:36 PM] Joseph: starts searching for more clues.

[10:36 PM] Theo: You find an altar down here, or what can only be described as an altar. A big chunk of granite or maybe even basalt.

[10:37 PM] Theo: Old candle holders, the wax long since burned away. Old bones of some animal -- you'd guess a goat?

[10:37 PM] Joseph: Ruminant.

[10:37 PM] Joseph: ... not human.

[10:38 PM] Joseph: .... my first doctorate was in folklore.

[10:38 PM] Ke: It shows

[10:39 PM] Theo: You also find wedding rings. Two of them, on the altar, linked together, one looped through the other in a way that should be impossible.

[10:39 PM] Joseph: ... well. That's ... different.

[10:40 PM] Sandy: "...this seems significant."

[10:40 PM] Sandy: tries to unlatch them. Not hard. Just testing.

[10:40 PM] Ke: Those rings could be what we are looking for

[10:40 PM] Theo: Seems impossible!

[10:40 PM] Theo: Sandy, roll.... hmm. Willpower.

[10:42 PM] Joseph: I'm still not sure what happened here. Who was the victim? Who was the aggressor? Was there a third party?

[10:43 PM] Sandy: ((1 success))

[10:43 PM] Theo: The rings are hot to the touch. LIke, they feel white hot.

[10:43 PM] Sandy: drops them.

[10:44 PM] Sandy: "The rings are burning hot."

[10:45 PM] Joseph: ... one of them is trying to tell us.

[10:45 PM] Joseph: But it's impossible to tell right now which one was really the witch, if it was both, and who pushed both out the window.

[10:46 PM] Theo: August:  Did we have a time limit?

[10:46 PM] Theo: August:  ... why shouldn't we go and find out about this place in town?

[10:47 PM] Joseph: We could, but I don't think we could get the keeper to let us in again with the same excuse.

[10:47 PM] Ke: We would have to wait for a more normal time of day to get answers.

[10:47 PM] Theo: August shrugs.

[10:48 PM] Ke: Or we could try and take the rings and  bring those back with us

[10:49 PM] Sandy: "Ok, when I said burning, I mean it.  I can't hold them for more than a second."

[10:49 PM] Ke: will hold her hand just above the rings

[10:50 PM] Joseph: ... we're trying to help you, but we need more information.

10:50 PM] Sandy: "...what are you doing, Ke?"

[10:51 PM] Theo: You don't really feel anything.

[10:53 PM] Ke: I Don’t feel any heat coming off them.

[10:53 PM] Joseph: _examines the cellar floor, thoughtfully.__(edited)

[10:53 PM] Sandy: "Yeah, then touch it."

[10:54 PM] Ke: will pick up the rings

[10:54 PM] Theo: Roll Willpower, Ke.

[10:55 PM] Ke: ((4 successes))

[10:55 PM] Joseph: I'm not sure that's a good idea.

[10:56 PM] Ke: You have a better one?

[10:57 PM] Theo: You pick the rings up, overcoming an impulse to drop them again. There's a weird magnetism between the rings and the altar.

[10:57 PM] Joseph: I really don't.

[10:57 PM] Ke: They seem to want to be on the altar

[10:58 PM] Joseph: Damnation, we should have bloody well brought the librarian.

[10:58 PM] Ke: Wouldn’t have been much of a test then

[10:59 PM] Ke: So what do we want to do

[10:59 PM] Ke: will walk away from the altar while holding the rings

[10:59 PM] Theo: Taking them back up the passage?

[11:00 PM] Sandy: "...the ghost didn't follow us here.  She stayed by the window."

[11:00 PM] Ke: will start walking up the passage.

[11:00 PM] Ke: Did she? Joe seems to be communicating with something(edited)

[11:01 PM] Theo: I mean, that's the only way out of here that you see, so. When you get to the top, the door is closed again.

[11:01 PM] Joseph: I don't think so. I'm not a medium or ... whatever. ... I don't know that I'd want to open myself up to that.

[11:02 PM] Sandy: "...ugh.  There's no deduction here.  No logic."

[11:02 PM] Ke: will look for a way to open the door

[11:02 PM] Theo: August:  There's not a lot of information here.

[11:03 PM] Theo: Roll investigation, KE.

[11:03 PM] Theo: August:  Just what the weird Groundskeeper told us, and even he didn't seem to remember it right.

[11:03 PM] Ke: ((2 successes))

[11:03 PM] Sandy: "No.  He didn't."

[11:04 PM] Joseph: rubs his forehead.

[11:04 PM] Joseph: I can try it if you want.

[11:05 PM] Sandy: "...it'd give us more to work off of."

[11:05 PM] Ke: ((Did the others follow or am I alone in the closet?))

[11:06 PM] Theo: ((I assume you all went.))

[11:06 PM] Joseph: would've gone if Sandy did; he mostly sticks with her.

[11:07 PM] Sandy: ((I'd followed.))

[11:08 PM] Theo: Ke, you find a latch that opens the door.

[11:08 PM] Theo: Joe, the symbols on the inside the closet have changed.

[11:08 PM] Joseph: blinks, and tries to read them.

[11:08 PM] Joseph: These are different now.

[11:09 PM] Sandy: "......do you know what they mean?"

[11:09 PM] Theo: Same idea in that they're a hodgepodge of origins, but now it seems to indicate 'home' 'safety' 'fear' 'ward'.

[11:10 PM] Joseph: ... now it's about home and safety. Someone was afraid.

[11:11 PM] Joseph: ... I can try the rings.

[11:11 PM] Sandy: "...Ke, can you give Joe the rings?"

[11:12 PM] Ke: walks into the bedroom and looks around.

[11:13 PM] Ke: Does this room look different to any of you?

[11:13 PM] Sandy: will check

[11:13 PM] Theo: It looks the same burned out husk of a room it was before.

[11:13 PM] Joseph: Or did we leave them downstairs?

[11:13 PM] Theo: ((Ke carried them out.))

[11:13 PM] Sandy: ((Ke should be carrying them))

[11:14 PM] Joseph: ((I know, but he's kind of distracted.))

[11:14 PM] Ke: The room isn’t burned anymore

[11:14 PM] Sandy: "....yeah, it is."

[11:15 PM] Joseph: It looks the same to me.

[11:15 PM] Sandy: "....Ke, give Joseph the rings."

[11:15 PM] Joseph: ... it must be because you have the rings. What do you see?

[11:15 PM] Sandy: "Yeah, a perception filter of some kind."

[11:17 PM] Ke: Books with symbols like what were  in the closet open on the bed

[11:17 PM] Sandy: How many?

[11:17 PM] Joseph: Any indication of whose they are? What's in them?

[11:19 PM] Ke: Four and can’t really tell other than more of those symbols

[11:20 PM] Ke: There is a couple reading the books

[11:20 PM] Joseph: A man and a woman? Are they wearing the rings?

[11:20 PM] Ke: Yes

[11:21 PM] Sandy: "They were both occultists."

[11:22 PM] Joseph: Clearly.

[11:22 PM] Joseph: So one killed the other and died doing it. For unknown reasons.

[11:22 PM] Sandy: "Possibly."

[11:23 PM] Sandy: "...that still doesn't feel right."

11:23 PM] Ke: We might be able to find out

[11:23 PM] Sandy: "Wait in here long enough for the image to show us?"

[11:23 PM] Ke: Or see if it works in the window room

[11:24 PM] Ke: It’s stopped here

[11:24 PM] Sandy: "...if we're going to the window room, you should definitely not be holding the rings."

[11:24 PM] Ke: Why not?

[11:25 PM] Joseph: You might go out the window.

[11:25 PM] Sandy: "You're our deadliest member.  When I interacted with an object the ghost had influence on, I was possessed and nearly leaped from the window with August.  Best case scenario, one of us gets possessed and you can't help cause you're in the past.  Worst case scenario, you become the host."

[11:26 PM] Sandy: "Also, Joseph has history with the symbols.  He has a better chance to recognize clues than you do."

[11:27 PM] Ke: If he can hold them

[11:28 PM] Joseph: And I am very easily beaten up.

Message #pulp-game