Blackwater Creek - Game Thread

[Suzuki Stumpy]

 

Alexander Summers

Standing, Alex addresses the professor, "Well then sir, with your leave, I'll get directly to checking Dr. Roades' office." Turning to Charles he continues, "I can show you where on campus those two students live too if you like, unless you want to make your own way there - it's not too far."

 

 

[hakootoko]

Charles Avebury

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HP: 12/12 SAN: 73/80

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"If you could show me the way there, that would be most kind," Charles says, following Alex out of the office.

"You say you've been on a dig with Roades before. What is he like in the field? I have only personally met him in his office or at dinner parties, and he may have quite a different demeanor in the wild, as it were."

 

---

OOC:

[Suzuki Stumpy]

 

Alexander Summers

Alex engages Charles in smalltalk as they walk through the corridors of the University's Archaeology department. When he asks about Henry's personality in the field, Alex begins to fill in the blanks somewhat.

"Out on a dig? Well, he's possibly one of the most focussed people I've ever seen. Remarkable eye for detail and a very steady hand. Indeed, it's strange, usually when Archaeologists get to the level that Henry's at, they tend to leave the messy rooting around in the dirt to students and their subordinates - but not Henry - he'll be one of the first in there, down on hands and knees, trowel and brush out picking over the minutia. Especially when working locally here in the Valley. Honestly, I'm surprised that Abigail puts up with his obsessions sometimes because he's so focussed, but heck, they're almost like two peas in a pod.

"His main focus is on early colonial settlements here in the region - trying to discover what effect they had on the native tribal population, and going further back into exactly what tribal customs there were when the first settlers came into this region. That's why I was asking Professor McTavish whether this dig is related to Cade's Rest. I'm not too clued up on its history myself - it's not really my specialist area - but Henry has some bee in his bonnet over it."

As they came to the entrance to the Archaeology department, Alex paused in the shadow of the imposing, gothic entrance and pointed out across the quadrangle.

"Right, I'll leave you here - sadly, I'm not attired for this rain, so I'll let you go interview the other students. You see that building over there in the Southwestern corner of the quad? That's the undergraduate halls for our particular faculty, so you'll find the pair somewhere in there most likely. There should be a reception desk just inside the lobby and whomever is on duty today should be able to direct you to their rooms, or at least tell you their study timetables in case they're in lectures."

"I'll go up to Henry's office and start having a dig through his papers - see if I can't turn up anything there. Shall I meet you and Lucas in the Refectory for lunch perhaps, and we can compare notes then?"

 

Show text removed from original post...

Turning to address Lucas, he continues, "Lucas, I'm sorry, you've been awfully quiet so far, but I appreciate this isn't your usual wheelhouse. Do you want to accompany Charles to interview the students, or come have a dig through Henry's office with me? Unless, of course you have your own leads you want to follow up on?"

 

[Blanket_Thunder]

As the others leave, Lucas continues with the professor. "I was wondering: has anyone bothered to go check on his house? Maybe there's something there that could lead to his whereabouts? I'd be happy to take a look around and report back if I see anything suspicious."

[Omnis]

McTavish purses his lips in thought for a long moment, "I believe they have family taking care of the house. Excuse me for a moment..." He calls for his secretary as he walks out of the office. A few minutes pass as Lucas hears McTavish and his secretary on the other side of the door. Coming back in McTavish hands Lucas a slip of paper with an address on it.

"I just got off the phone with Winston Matthews. He confirmed that he's had a maid tidying the house for the past couple months but he hasn't checked the house for anything related to their absence. He said he would swing by the house in the next," He checks his pocket watch, "thirty minutes, to let you in, if you want to check it out."

[hakootoko]

Charles Avebury

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HP: 12/12 SAN: 73/80

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"Yes, we should meet at the cafeteria for lunch to compare notes, and then follow up other leads in the afternoon. We had best be thorough here before leaving town. Though it would pain me to say we have all the time in the world, the truth of the matter is that a whole month has passed and things are not likely to get worse for the Roades if we spend another couple of days." Charles says as he takes his leave of Alex.

He walks across the muddy quad to residence hall, leaves his umbrella in the rack on the porch, and casually walks inside. "Excuse me, Madam. My name is Charles Avebury." he says to the woman at the desk. "Professor McTavish has sent me to speak with Agnes Soames and Clarence Welliver. Might I inquire where I would be most likely to locate them?"

 

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OOC:

[Suzuki Stumpy]

 

Alexander Summers

Charles' comment about not rushing to where Dr. Roades' was last known to be is logical, although that still doesn't deter Alex from wanting to rush off and find him ASAP. But, instead of saying this, he merely nods and responds, "Well, good luck with those students. I'll see you at lunch then." before turning and heading back into the bowels of the Archeology department.

Trotting up a narrow, little-used flight of stairs towards the rear of the building, Alex arrives at the first floor and smartly turns out into the corridor only a few metres away from the door to Henry's office. Outside the door he pauses a moment, looking at the name stencilled into the frosted glass of the entrance and uttering a silent prayer that Henry and Abigail are both safe and well, wherever they happen to be, before inserting the key into the lock and turning it.

The lock opens with a quiet *snick* and Alex opens the door, before stepping into the cramped confines of Henry's office and inner sanctum.

For a University Professor, Henry's office is surprisingly well-ordered - obviously a sign of Abigail's influence - as most other offices Alex has seen are, more often than not, veritable deathtraps with papers and books stacked one atop another, threatening to overbalance at the slightest provocation. Henry's by comparison was more akin to that found in the smartest of banks.

A large wooden desk was the main focus of the place, behind which was Henry's comfortable wingback chair. Two smaller chairs in front of it for whoever happened to be visiting. A flippable chalkboard took up one, dusty, corner and a few artefacts were visible upon various plinths and flat surfaces. Every other flat surface was covered with books and papers that were the typical academic's stock in trade. But all neatly stacked or filed.

Around the walls Henry's various certificates and qualifications hung along with some framed journal pages within which he'd featured over the course of his career.

 

Stepping smartly around the desk, Alex sits in the comfortable wingback and survey's the desktop. The papers and things atop it seem as good a place as any to begin searching - then, he figures, he'll check the desk's drawers before going over the rest of the office. After all, Henry's most pressing work will, most likely, be kept somewhere near to hand.

Sighing, he leans forward and begins methodically working his way through the contents of the desk. This was going to be a long morning ...

 

[Omnis]

@Suzuki Stumpy go ahead and make a Library Use check.

[Omnis]

CHARLES @hakootoko

The wind claws at the windows of Miskatonic's student housing office, rain pummeling the leaded glass with relentless drumming. Inside, Sarah hunches behind the ancient oak desk, a damp chill seeping through her thin sweater. The gaslight casts long, wavering shadows on the walls, dancing with the rhythm of the storm. Papers rustle beneath her tired fingers, her brow furrowed in concentration as she tries to decipher Ms. Thorn's meticulous, spidery handwriting.

Sarah's reflection stares back from the polished surface of the nameplate – "Resident Assistant Sarah Miller." Sarah, with her chipped nail polish and tired ponytail, was just another student swept up in the relentless tide of campus life. A sudden gust rattles the windows, scattering loose papers across the desk. Sarah sighs, gathering them with a muttered curse.

At Alex's question, Sarah looks up, opening her mouth to speak...and is cut off by a woman in her late 60s...tall and gaunt, with a ramrod-straight posture. Her hair is snow-white, pulled back in a tight bun. She wears wire-rimmed spectacles that perch precariously on the bridge of her nose, constantly threatening to topple forward. Her attire is the picture of 1920s primness: a high-collared, starched blouse tucked into a long, dark skirt that swishes softly as she moves. A cameo brooch hangs at the neckline, depicting a stern-faced woman with an unnerving resemblance to herself.

"Mister...Avebury, is it?" She looks him up and down dismissively as she comes out of her office to the front desk. "I am Eudora Thorn, Headmistress of Student Housing. We are not in the habit of giving out the addresses of our students to strange...men...especially not those of our female members." She purses her lips. "What did you say your business was with them?"

Edited January 15 by Omnis (see edit history)

[Omnis]

ALEX @Suzuki Stumpy

 

The leather of the wingback chair sighs as Alex perches on it, its creak a spectral welcome in the quiet office. The scent of ink and aged paper hangs heavy, a familiar comfort that now feels laced with unease. Henry's absence, so sudden and uncharacteristic, was a gaping hole in the usual rhythm of academic life. He starts with the most visible pile on the desk, a jumble of handwritten notes and newspaper clippings, each meticulously labeled in Henry's precise script. He sifts through the clippings, a name jumping out – Oliver Stansfield. He vaguely recalls Henry mentioning the name...an eccentric historian, obsessed with the darker corners of Massachusetts lore. A folder titled "From Myth and Legends of Old Massachusetts: Stansfield Collection" sits tucked beneath a pile of books.

 

Stansfield's handwriting, spidery and manic, fills the pages with tales of forgotten gods, whispered cults, and ancient rituals veiled in myth. Then Alex finds a reference to Cade's Rest and a small handwritten note.
 

From Myth and Legends of Old Massachusetts: The Miskatonic Valley

One less sinister and undoubtedly less puzzling mystery of the Miskatonic Valley is the fate of the settlement known as Cade’s Rest.

Historical record shows that following the hanging of Mary Dyer on Boston Common in 1660, a group of Quakers left Boston, fearing persecution at the hands of the Puritans. This group was led by the tailor Ezekiel Cade, and included as many as ten other families. After some months of travel, they settled by the banks of the Miskatonic River, not far from the spot that would one day become Dunwich.

While records from this point are scant, the folk story holds that the settlement thrived once Cade and his followers made contact with a local Indian tribe known as the People of the Black Earth.

Where the tale turns to folklore is in the demise of the settlement. Some stories have the earth opening and swallowing the settlers’ whole. Others tell of them being snatched away by the Devil himself. Even the more mundane details are contradictory, with some describing the discovery of empty homes on the site, and others saying that even the buildings had vanished.

 

Given that there are mentions of Cade being spotted in Boston a few years later, the most likely explanation is that the settlers simply moved again, possibly spreading the rumours of their disappearance themselves to secure their privacy. Alternatively, they may have come into conflict with the Black Earth tribe and been killed. Regardless of the truth, the legend is a minor one at best.

Handwritten Note (Henry Roades hand)

Cade's Rest...near Dunwich...west up the Miskatonic River.

Could it be near the village of Blackwater Creek?

Who where the "People of the Black Earth"?

 

[Suzuki Stumpy]

 

Alexander Summers

Alex pulls out a small notebook and his pen and begins to take notes - definitely some things to follow up on - a potential destination, someone to go talk to and some historical research to try and unearth.

Placing Henry's papers and the folder from Stansfield safely to one side, he continues to cast about the desk to see if there are any more clues as to not only Henry's whereabouts, but also his motive and driver for this particular expedition. He figures there must be some personal journal or diary at least somewhere around here.

When he exhausts the desktop itself, he begins to try the drawers in the desk searching for something, anything that may give some further insight...

 

[Blanket_Thunder]

Lucas nods and reaches out to shake Professor McTavish's hand. "Glad to be of help, sir. I'll let you know as soon as I find something out."

With his business there concluded, Lucas grabs his umbrella, forces it into submission before stepping out of the office & building and into the rain. Lucas would have felt better having a firearm or some kind of weapon on him, but he knows he can handle himself in a fist fight if something happens at the house.

Wondering why he always expects violence in these situations, Lucas makes it to the house in enough time to examine the exterior of the home and search for anything out of the ordinary, or any signs of intrusion, besides the normal egress of any maids or visitors.

 

Rolls

Spot Hidden (Fail) to look for anything out of the ordinary

Track (Hard Success) to look for any signs of forced entry, people skulking around the place, etc.

I am aware that the rain will make this difficult lol

 

Edited January 18 by Blanket_Thunder (see edit history)

[hakootoko]

Charles Avebury

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HP: 12/12 SAN: 73/80

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"How do you do, Ms Thorn," Charles replies pleasantly, looking Ms Thorn straight in the eye. "My name is Charles Avebury. Dean McTavish of the Archaeology department has asked me to look into the disappearance of Professor and Mrs Roades, and has provided me the names of Miss Somes and Mr Welliver as the last two members of the university to have seen them. I am certain that a quick call from yourself to the Dean would verify the truth of these statements."

"Would it be possible to arrange a meeting between myself, Miss Somes, Mr Welliver, and perhaps yourself as chaperone to ensure that decorum is observed? Of course, if either of the two students decline to speak with me, I will respect their wishes. But I expect that out of concern for their professor they will want to tell me anything they can that will assist me in locating him."

 

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OOC: Let me know if you want a Charm roll here. That's what Charles is good at.

[Omnis]

CHARLES @hakootoko

As Charles speaks Eudora Thorn's face softens the barest touch and at the mention of the Roades' she shakes her head slightly and Charles can hear the silent "tsk tsk" of disapproval of their disappearance. "Of course I will assist you." She says as if it were never a question. "Sarah go fetch Miss Somes and Mr. Welliver. Be sure to check the dining hall if they aren't at their rooms." As the girl hurries out into the rain, Thorn calls after her, "Bring them back here to my office."

A moment passes as she frowns at the girl's back and then she turns to Charles. "Mr. Avebury, please, wait in my office." As you step into her office, you're greeted by the scent of aged wood and polished brass. The door, adorned with a polished brass plaque inscribed with the title "Headmistress of Student Housing," swings open to reveal your sanctuary of order and authority.

Thorn's office is furnished with heavy, mahogany desks and bookcases, each meticulously arranged to convey an aura of scholarly refinement. Her desk, positioned at the center of the room, commands attention with its imposing presence, its surface adorned with neat stacks of paperwork and a gleaming brass lamp casting a warm glow over the polished wood. A row of tall windows, draped with heavy velvet curtains, allows filtered light to cascade into the room, casting long shadows across the hardwood floor. She leads Charles to one corner of the office, where a small sitting area invites visitors to linger, its plush armchairs and intricately woven rugs offering respite from the rigors of academic life.

OOC

I'll pause here in cased you want to do anything prior to Sarah returning.

 

Edited January 26 by Omnis (see edit history)

[Omnis]

LUCAS @Blanket_Thunder

 

14 Miskatonic Avenue. It isn't a long walk, and not difficult to find, even in the rain. Coming to the address, Lucas finds a tidy two-story Colonial house with white clapboard siding, green shutters, and a covered front porch. There is a small front yard with a low stone wall bordering the sidewalk. A gravel driveway leads to a detached garage at the rear of the property.

A search...as much as one can really do with the current weather...of the exterior of the house, the yard, driveway, and around the garage yields no indication that there was any abnormal entry into the property or its buildings.

Fairly drenched at this point, as Lucas finishing his investigation he hears the sound of a powerful vehicle pull smoothly into the drive way. A dark red Pierce-Arrow Model 66, which commands attention with its imposing size. Its long hood, sweeping fenders, and gracefully sloping roofline exude a sense of sophistication and opulence. Gleaming chrome accents adorn the car's exterior, from the radiator grille and hood ornaments to the door handles and trim pieces.

The car stops and out steps Winston Matthews, an imposing, barrel-chested man in his late 60s. His hair has turned steel gray and his bushy mustache is flecked with touches of white. He has piercing slate blue eyes and stands ramrod straight despite his age. He is, as always, dressed impeccably in a fine dark three-piece suit.

Holding an umbrella in one hand he strides up to Lucas and holds out a hand. "Lucas...good to see you again. I hope your last hunt went successfully." He pauses a moment, his eyes flickering toward his granddaughter's home. His voice pitches low. "I'm glad you're helping out on this. I told McTavish we needed someone with your expertise. Come...come."

 

Edited January 26 by Omnis (see edit history)