I return Dudko's handshake, wondering why our doctor felt the need to specify a lack of relation; the men looked nothing alike.
My store is actually right here in Los Angeles. I traveled back east to Rhode Island specifically for Mr. Winston's estate sale. He had...particular interests that are quite valuable to the right collector. That's how I made the acquaintance of his daughter and our mutual employer felt that I had something to offer towards this endeavor.
I appraise the man standing before me and then my eyes light up for a moment. You say you're an archeologist, correct? Have you come across any Roman-period martial aids or equatorial fertility idols? I'd be willing to pay a handsome finder's fee depending on the quality of the goods.
"Less hemming, Doctor. I am he, Amadeus Ra, seer and servant of the spirits, both those who have passed and those who never walked in mortal form." Amadeus bows deeply and theatrically, his turban staying atop his head seemingly through willpower alone. He is gaunt and tall, with piercing eyes and and a rakish smile. "I know not of your store, but I sense a kindred spirit, one who appreciates the souls that objects may gain. It is fortunate for us that you have arrived when you have. New blood, as it were, is exactly what we require."
Oh goodness! An arab! I speak slowly and clearly enough to be incredibly rude, though clearly unintentionally. I seem to think I'm doing the right thing, even though Mr. Ra just spoke to me in perfect English
Oh! Thank. You. For. The. KIND. Words. I I point to myself I. Am. LOOKING. forward to. WORK-ING. With. You I point to Amadeus.
I smile, satisfied with myself and how well I bridged our communication gap.
Amadeus sighs deeply and shakes his head, turning to Doctor Udko. "You have brought us some sort of mentally deranged person. I would think you could find someone a bit more stable, could you not?"
I shake my head at Amadeus, speaking a bit faster now that it's fully sunk in that his English is actually quite good for an Arab.
I assure you, Joseph here is just quiet. He's not at all deranged!
Udko sniffs.
"You're one to talk, Amadeus- you're a case study in megalomania and various pathologies...and... that sculpture certainly resembles the drawings in Henslowe's journal, doesn't it?"
The alienist is seemingly captivated by a hunk of rock half-wrapped in a tarp on the motel room desk. He approaches and peels back the obscuring tarp.
Please roll a stability test.
I walk around to look at the sculpture on the table.
Not any weirder than anything else I've seen, frankly.
Ralph looks over the statue. It's incredibly lifelike and made with a great deal of skill, but doesn't really fall in line with a specific style or movement. It could be Surrealist but the subject matter is more grotesque than what is considered typical and you'd be hard pressed to name the artist.
I return Dudko's handshake, wondering why our doctor felt the need to specify a lack of relation; the men looked nothing alike.
My store is actually right here in Los Angeles. I traveled back east to Rhode Island specifically for Mr. Winston's estate sale. He had...particular interests that are quite valuable to the right collector. That's how I made the acquaintance of his daughter and our mutual employer felt that I had something to offer towards this endeavor.
I appraise the man standing before me and then my eyes light up for a moment. You say you're an archeologist, correct? Have you come across any Roman-period martial aids or equatorial fertility idols? I'd be willing to pay a handsome finder's fee depending on the quality of the goods.
"I...well I uh... I do most of my investigative work under contract from the Orthodox church... who might... well frown on that type of artifact. But I'll keep you in mind.
Stability check
Anatoly glances out of the side of his eye at the artifact, but though the archeologist in him wishes to examine it, his strange sightings of mouths and tongues keeps him from getting to close.
"Put that thing away... it's ... well vulgar".
Amadeus knows exactly what the idol looks like and has no desire to fall under its sway again. He doesn't even look when it's out.
I turn it over in my hand. This is fascinating. Mr. Ra, you seem to be frightened of the statue. Does it have somewhat more mysterious origins?
Looking the statue over again, I mentally switch categories. The artistic background of the statue falls away and I appraise it as though I were selling it to one of my more...eccentric collectors.
In many texts the mouth is symbolically a pleasure area or a means of revealing inner truths. What this specific statue's meaning could be is anyone's guess- while it is somewhat discolored, it doesn't look particularly old in terms of craftsmanship.
Remarkable, really. You can't see even a glimpse of where chisel met stone, so smooth and organic it seems.
I tut Ugly, new and worthless to a serious collector. Where DID you find it?
Freddy chuckles at the exchange between Ralph and Amadeus, then extends a hand for introduction. "None of that Alfred business Udko. I'm Freddy, Freddy Elliot." Freddy is a tall and seems to be in great physical shape. He's got closely cropped white hair which is in contrast to a more youthful face.
I look away from the idol Well gentlemen. Ms. Winston didn't hire me to gape at ugly statues. Dr. Udko briefed me during our trip. I think that Professor Ayers may be our best lead. He's no longer...with us, but we may wish to pay a visit to Ms. Clarendon and see what she can offer us? This "Nectar" lead may also be worthwhile...and I would love to gain access to this farmhouse. Where should we begin?
Anatoly sees the young man standing a bit awkwardly, and walks forward to grasp his hand, noticing the lack of callouses and the fine cut of his clothes.
"Names Anatoly. Are you some kin to Janet"?
"What do you guys think about maybe posing as some official inspectors looking for gas leaks or something like that. Maybe try to score some fake id's and work orders or something, and work our way in? Never know how we might leave a window unlocked or something similar, and it might give us an idea of the layout inside".
The Fisher from Outside craves sensation; its worship is orgiastic, violent and bloody. Drinking of the "blood-mead of Gol-Goroth" was thought to transmit the sensation unto the God and transmit the lore of the Outside to its priests. As you read further into his papers, you get the sense that Ayers came to consider Gol-Goroth something of an intergalactic buffoon; an inhuman, all-powerful and unknowable buffoon, but nonetheless a petty creature concerned with sensation and flattery.
Amadeus harumphs. "Your greatest virtue may be that no one knows your face. The lot we're dealing with seems to be aware of us more so than we are of them. How do you feel about pretending to be a common laborer?"
To meet the movie starlet, it occurs to you all that you'll have to spend some time asking around the lots in Hollywood and then somehow secure a few minutes of her time . Alternately, the Westmore family may have contacts in the upper crust of Los Angeles that rub elbows with Miss Clarendon on a regular basis. A personal introduction from a friend of a friend would put Joseph on the same social footing as the movie star.
A few moments later, there is a light rapping at the door. Once it opens, a familiar, raven-haired woman with a fair complexion steps into the room. She is quite beautiful, though the bags under her eyes suggest that she has missed out on a good deal of sleep. In the presence of faces old and new, her smile is both pleasant and nervous.
"Hello," she says to everyone, before turning to Freddy and the others she was familiar with.
"I'd like to apologize for running out on you before. Janet had not emphasized how dangerous this task might be, but regardless, it was wrong of me to quit so hastily. It will not happen again."
She then turns to address the new faces in the room. "For those of you who I have not met before, I am Dr. Evelyn Malley. I look forward to working with you all."
"It's really good to have you back Doc. I missed our conversations. We were just discussing a plan to disguise ourselves as... oh I don't know maybe city gas leak inspectors or some such nonsense, get some fake credentials, and sneak into the house. After that we were going to leave a way to enter, then try to come in all sneaky like at night, and snoop around a bit. That sound dangerous enough"?
Evelyn lets out a low chuckle. "Well, I am not much good for skullduggery, but I will do what I can to help. Just please, try not to get stabbed this time. Or shot."
Amadeus nods. "Alright then, gas inspector it is."
Resolved in your plans for tomorrow, you all retire to your hotel rooms or drive home, in the case of Mr. Haas, who owns a shop in LA.
You awaken slowly, uncertain where you are at first.
After your morning coffee, you split up into two teams of three: Amadeus, Anatoly and Freddie to gather disguises and credentials to do recon on the Trammel Mansion, Ralph, Joseph and Evelyn to inquire with Olivia Clarendon about how she knew George Ayers.
Amadeus, Anatoly and Freddy hit a hardware store on the drive to Pasadena to acquire workwear and tool belts for the deception. A visit to City Hall (right when it opens for business for the day) is needed to get the proper credentials. Anatoly navigates the desk, with Amadeus leaning over his shoulder, occasionally berating his incompetence for having put this off for so long. "We needed those permits last week, you vodka-pickled swine! Now we have to pay the rush fee! There's a rush fee, isn't there? Five dollars, is that enough?"
After an hour of hemming and hawing, filling out paperwork and getting it quickly stamped, you find that the three of you have credentials for "Rogers and Sons Gas and Electric". While the clerk was distracted, Freddy swiped some work orders from the hanging file folders to forge legitimate seeming paperwork for inspecting the Trammel residence.
It's just before noon when you park the car in Trammel's neighborhood and walk toward the grand entry, feeling quite exposed on the walk up the driveway. You ring the doorbell, paperwork in hand and wait a few minutes.
The door opens, revealing a broad-shouldered man in a precisely ironed suit, right down to his perfectly folded pocket square.
"Can I help you?", he says.
Ralph, Evelyn and Joseph meanwhile dispatch to Hollywood, at the Capitol Pictures lot. A film crew unloads equipment from a box truck near the street, cracking jokes at each other. It's a clear day without a cloud in the sky and somewhere on one of those sound stages is a very famous woman that might know something about George Ayers and his religious practices in 1924.
"Good mornin' sir. We're from the Municipal Power and Gas company. There has been a report of a gas leak in the area and we need to verify pipes all along the grid to ensure no further leaks are present. May we come in to access the piping?"
"Good mornin' sir. We're from the Municipal Power and Gas company. There has been a report of a gas leak in the area and we need to verify pipes all along the grid to ensure no further leaks are present. May we come in to access the piping?"
"Do you have identification? A work order?", he asks. You present your paperwork and the man is silent for a minute while he looks it over.
He hands the documents back to you.
"This appears to be in order. Follow me, but wipe your feet before you come in."
The man leads you through the two story grand entrance you've seen from the blueprints, behind which is a grand ballroom that's been converted into a living area with overstuffed chairs and divans. He turns right after the staircase, into a formal dining room with a chandelier. A Mexican man in a suit is standing near the kitchen doors; the white man leading you through the house motions for him to follow along.
You pass through a kitchen where two women in uniforms are preparing lunch. The glance at you as you enter, then return their attentions to the meal they're preparing. A servant's entrance leads out behind the house and there's a staircase leading upstairs from the kitchen with another door set below it.
"The pipes are downstairs. Gilbert will show you.", he says before departing the kitchen.
Gilbert, the Mexican man, motions for you to follow him. He opens the door underneath the staircase and pulls a chain to start the light. You follow him downstairs. For a basement, it's well kept, though it is a bit musty as you would expect. The basement is a fat L shaped room with one door in the upper right corner and another at the end of the L leading into other rooms below the house. A network of water, gas and electrical pipes lead from here to a hot water heater. Various nonperishable cooking items and cleaning supplies are stored here.
Gilbert motions to the pipes.
"There you go.", he says. He remains standing by the stairs.
Amadeus nods to the others and turns to Gilbert. "Sir, it might be best to stay back. Exposure to gas can cause detrimental effects on you and your possible offspring, sir."
Amadeus nods to the others and turns to Gilbert. "Sir, it might be best to stay back. Exposure to gas can cause detrimental effects on you and your possible offspring, sir."
[dice=Lying?]1d6
Amadeus nods to the others and turns to Gilbert. "Sir, it might be best to stay back. Exposure to gas can cause detrimental effects on you and your possible offspring, sir."
Gilbert doesn't seem convinced until you start putting breathing masks on.
"Alright. I be upstairs in the kitchen, you just come back up when you done.", he says, marching back up the stairs. He shuts the door and you're alone in the basement.
Joseph confidently strides towards the famous actor, and flashes his best smile Hello. I have a lunch set with Mrs.Claredon?
The man with the clipboard chuckles without looking up.
"Sure, buddy, and I got a bridge I want to sell you. Now why don't..."He trails off once he notices how impeccably dressed Joseph is, sarcasm melting from his demeanor..
"Oh! Beg your pardon, sir. You're Mr. Westmore and... guests? The limo is waiting by soundstage 4. I'll take you there, follow me."
He ushers you through the lot, shielding you from the inquisitive and envious glances of Capitol employees. At the soundstage is a white limousine parked near the rear entrance. After a short wait, the ravishing Ms. Clarendon steps out followed by an entourage of sycophants and hangers-on.
"Joseph, darling, I've heard so many good things! And who are your companions here? Let's chat in the car, I'm famished. Make-up had me in a chair at 6 this morning."
Her handler holds open the door for her and she slides into the rear of the limo. You follow, to the envy of everyone else present.
There was once a time when Evelyn would relish an opportunity to meet such a famous actress in person. She would go out shopping for a dress to wear just for the occasion, and would perhaps even drag her husband along. But those days were long past. Of course, Evelyn did not really have much time to spare for movies these days.
In lieu of such fanciful clothing, the doctor wears one of her several dress suits, this one made of tweed. Professional, but perhaps out of place given their current setting. And save for her handbag, the lack of stylish accessories did not exactly help.
"Yes. Evelyn Malley," she says after climbing into the car, smiling pleasantly at the actress. "It is a pleasure to meet you. I must confess, I did not believe Joseph here when he first said he knew you personally."
Well played". Anatoly raises an eyebrow in appreciation of Amadeus's quick wit.
"Now let's check this place out, and see what we can find. In particular look for another entrance, preferable one to the grounds, and let's see if we can jimmy it open. Also, look for any secret rooms or passages. I don't know how much time we have so let's make haste".
"Perhaps if we don't find anything here one of us can feign sickness from the gas leak, and ask for a bathroom. Perhaps there we can find egress as well".