Overdue Book: (Dead Boarder)

From the Beginning: https://wjr5oakley.blogspot.com/2023/01/amidst-ancient-treesp1.html

Therapy Sessions: no-one has picked up on the 3-Stooges referenced Doctor names…

Phillip sat in the doctor’s chair, following the swinging watch as Dr. Turner suggested “You are getting sleepy, sleepy.” With the therapist’s help, the frightful images of Gla’aki and his undead followers soon turned into happy childhood memories of bullfrogs and pollywogs along the creek bed. His own last images were him plucking a few pollywogs to add to his witch’s cauldron he stirred, ignoring the bat wing that rose to the surface.

Peter stirred the embers in his office fireplace, as he burned the files on his parents' murder case, officially closing that dark chapter in his life. He therapist Dr. Head was pleased to hear about the act in their next session, “You are making great progress.” Peter relaxed on the couch as a wave of kindness overwhelmed him. Peace at last. Well, for a little while anyway.

Essie skipped an appointment with Dr. Anikoff. Instead, still unsure of the fiery drive that led her to pick up that gun, she returned to the one place that always brought her solace... Richard's grave. She settled beside the headstone and told their recent adventures, then finished with the thought of moving on. She could hardly bring herself to love another while tethered to the past. She stood to lay a white rose on the headstone & shed a tear. Her once heavy heart began to lighten as she caught his image in her peripheral. She felt his presence and knew the love they shared can never be replaced. But it's time to move on.

Essie Vance [Whitney]: suffers from Ablutomania (compulsion to washing/cleanliness) and Taphephobia (fear of being buried alive or of cemeteries). She recently picked up Insane Constitution (spend 10 Luck to gain a CON bonus die).

Peter Graves [Jordan]: suffers Onomatomania (irresistible desire to repeat certain words). He got over his psychosis (seeing his dead parents) but, in the process, now suffers Agathomania (pathological kindness).

Phillip Vance [Aaron]: suffers from Arachnophobia (fear of spiders) and frayed nerves that require Liquid Courage (suffers penalties when his flask of alcohol runs dry). Then there is recently acquired, Geotomania: (obsession with witches and witchcraft).

Intro: Friday, Dec 22^nd, 1922 (Winter Solstice). Stanley Hendriks read about your detective skills. Not that he needs that kind of expertise. “I slipped on the ice days ago and busted my hip. Otherwise, I’d do it myself. Anyway, I own a reputable Bookstore. I loaned a few books to one of my friends. Four books over the year to be exact. I wasn’t so concerned about the Greek primer book. But another rare book he was supposed to return… well, I forgot all about it till yesterday when a buyer came asking about it. James Gardiner isn’t answering his phone. Can you please get the book for me today? The buyer wants it by midnight tonight.” You can tell by his whiny voice he must have been a pushover for Gardiner to keep stalling on book returns.

• Myths and Legends of Ancient Greece and Rome, by E.M. Berens.
• The Interpretation of Dreams, by Sigmund Freud.
• The Dreamer’s Dictionary, a rare 1815 first edition.
• A Primer in Greek Vocabulary. Loaned a year ago.

Ma Shank’s Boarding: After picking up Essie from the MU Historical Society building, they parked in front of James Gardiner’s resident.  Peter rushed around to help Essie out of the car to then rush up the steps to aid the woman shoving the stoop. “Oh my, thank you young man. If only my tenants were so kind.” Essie used that as opportunity, “We’ve actually come to meet one of your tenants… Mr. Gardiner has an overdue book.” Esther gazed at the trio, “Three of you for one book?! It must be something expensive, and to think the man months behind on his rent. Well, if you’ll follow me, he lives on the 3^rd floor.” Peter offered his arm to support Esther climbing the stairs, “All that snow outside and on your shoes, I wouldn’t want you to slip.”

No answers to her knock before she put the master key in the lock, “I hope you’re decent because we’re coming in.” That PI feeling had Peter move Esther to the side before he opened the door. And yet Esther still saw enough over his shoulder as she screamed at the top of her lungs at the grisly scene inside. Soon sound of footsteps running up the stairs announced other tenants drawn to the scene. Peter let Essie and Phillip inside before he pulled the door shut to guard, “Sorry folks, this is now an active crime scene.” A little boy also arrived from just down the hall. Esther whimpered, “Tommy, go get the police!” Peter called the boy over, “But first go to my car outside. I need you to get a metal box from the back seat. Can you bring that please?”

The Bouncer: (Greek accent) 23yo Anikke insisted she be let in, “Did something happen to my boyfriend? JAMES, are you OK?! Esther, I heard your screams; is he OK?” Jimmy had his own reasons for arriving, “Police? Someone dead? James was balancing my books and I need to get them before the police arrive and lockdown everything.” Peter ignored them as he wanted to give his team time to search.

Pack it All Up: Essie and Phillip avoided the body on the tarp and went for the bookcase, “The sooner we can find our assigned books, the sooner we can let the police do their job. Damn, I left my gloves at work. Careful you don’t leave fingerprints.” Essie cared less about the ornate bookcase carvings as she quickly scanned the book spines, “Here’s two of our books, Myths and Legends, and Freud’s Interpretation of Dreams.” Essie grabbed the pillowcase and began loading with those books and more to include the two flute-playing cherub bookends. She skipped the finance and banking books but grabbed others.

She paused at another single bookend: some sort of human-like squid creature. As she picked it up to examine, books with occultist themed titles fell over. But Essie didn’t notice as her hands tingled with a weird sensation as her mind flooded with visions of an underwater scene where indistinct and gigantic dark forms provoked a sense of dread. She quickly shoved it and the occult books into the pillowcase.

Phillip didn’t notice her experience as he focused on the bookcase’s carvings, and found a button hidden in the scrollwork that released a secret long drawer on the bottom frame. He handed Essie 2 large accounting ledgers and an obsidian knife. 

He gentle pulled out a rectangular bundle wrapped in silk cloth and exposed another fragile looking old book, “I can’t read the name (written in Greek) nor recognize this symbol. Mean anything to you? No?” Phillip’s witch-mania kicked in as he kept the book for himself and shoved it in his own backpack.

Peter had his hands full in the hallway. Jimmy was pressing to get in and pushed Peter’s hand off his shoulder, “Show me your police badge or get the hell out of my way. I’ve just as much right…” His words swallowed when Peter flashed his shoulder holsters under his winter coat which also revealed the sawed-off shotgun. But Jimmy regrouped as he stepped forward, “Ester, you saw that. He probably killed James and wants to remove evidence. We should get inside to make certain.” Meanwhile, Anikke tried to use the tussle as distraction as she tried to slip in. Peter caught her by her hair. “OW!” “I said everyone stay out. Yeah, let us all wait for the police to arrive.” And that’s when Tommy arrived with the metal box and saw the fight. And dropped the box and ran per Esther’s repeat, “Get the police!”

5 Minutes Folks: Esther led a crying Anikke down the stairs to her room as Jimmy backed up and left, “You won’t get away with this!” With the hallway empty, Peter slipped into the room and locked the door from the inside. He found Essie behind the body, opening the window as she held a bundle tied to her whip. 

Phillip was beside her, looking at a bloody piece of paper surrounded by smoldering candles, “I can’t read the writing. Looks like the same language as the book I found.”

Peter rushed to the bed’s nightstand to add to the search, “We’ve got 5 minutes before the cops arrive.” Phillip joined him to search more of the bookcase. Essie leaned out the window as she dangled her bundle tied to the end of her whip and aimed for the snow-covered bush 3-stories below. “Crash!” So much for aiming.

Peter easily found the Primer in Greek Vocabulary on the nightstand. He opened the drawers to find a Gideon’s Bible in the top drawer. The lower drawer had a thin journal atop another book. As he pulled out the small book, he exposed the title of another book beneath. “Bingo! I found The Dreamer’s Dictionary. Let’s get the hell out of here.”

Jumping Jack Flash: Peter was knocked sideways as Phillip backed into him as he screamed in a girlish fright. Peter followed Phillip’s line of sight and he too saw the hand-sized spider crawling out from under the bloody paper still on the tarp. “Essie, look out!” The spider mis-jumped and landed on the wall beside her. [Arachnophobia] Phillip cowered behind the case while Peter stepped up on it to lunge toward the spider with his nightstick. Miss. [damn fast spider DEX110] Peter grabbed the paper and shoved it in his pocket. Essie stabbed at it with her knife…but it jumped onto her arm and sunk its fangs into the backside of her exposed wrist. [CONsave to avoid poison]

Phillip gulped a swig of alcohol from his flask [Liquid Courage] to fight off his fear then repeated Peter’s leap over the bookcase. He swatted the spider off Essie’s arm. By now the spider had grown the size of a chair seat! Peter hit it then followed as it jumped further away. Essie used the separation to twang an arrow at the thing, but it easily dodged for cover [losing its next attack]. Phillip rushed forward to try to stomp it but it jumped out of the way. Peter hit it again, easier with it getting larger by the seconds… the size of a chair! Which gave Essie the chance to stab it with her knife, pinning it to the floor. Its legs limp as purplish goo leaked from his bulbous body. “Can we get out of here now?!”

The Entity Arrives: [Listen] Phillip was the only one positioned to see and hear the tarp rustle, and see the body rise behind his companions. He saw the spiral cuts on the facial skin, as the skin fell away like apple peelings. “Lookout!” [Sanity 1/1d6] Essie lost it as she fully comprehended what rose behind her [-6 Sanity, passed INTcheck, Bout-Of-Madness: Alter Ego] Suddenly Essie sprung into action, grabbing Peter’s sawed-off shotgun from under his coat where she knew he kept it. She pumped both barrels into the thing, “Boom! Boom!” Point-blank range! But they all gasped when the shirtless hulk still stood unharmed as spiral carvings (where it was hit) glowed with a pale-blue light.

Phillip raised his own shotgun and fired both barrels [extreme- 41 points] Every spiral carving on the things body flared yet it still stood. [Sanity check for all at seeing it withstand such hit] And that’s when all of them covered their ears as the throat-orifice of the thing sounded a strange piping [Song of Lost Dreams- causes dazed condition] that filled their eardrums. It grabbed for Phillip’s backpack but somehow missed. Peter rushed to unlock the door, “I’ve cover your exit!”

Called Shots: [INTcheck] Finally it dawned on Phillip, “Notice how the carvings glow? As if absorbing the hits. But there are no carvings on its head. Its facial skin fallen away!” Essie grabbed Phillip’s 45 from his hip holster and fired [called shot] …miss. Phillip quickly reloaded one shell to fire his shotgun [penalty from dazed, penalty fast reload, penalty called shot, bonus point-blank]; he missed. And once again the thing grabbed at Phillip but missed. Peter drew his pistol and fired 3 rounds: two hits that cracked some skull bones. Essie fired 3 rounds from the 45: all misses. She moved towards Peter in the doorway for more shotgun shells. And Phillip tried another quick reload shot without success.

And that’s when the thing cut the straps of the backpack and removed it from Phillip. It jumped toward and perched in the open window ready to exit.

Peter rushed forward to grapple the backpack away but failed. Essie closed to stab it but missed. Phillip closed into melee to also stab…a hit. And that’s when the thing leapt: providing an Attack-Of-Opportunity from the trio. Peter wacked it with his nightstick [penalty called shot: 02, 02- extreme max damage]

They all watched the thing leap out the window. But realized it more a fall, as it splatted in the ally 3 stories below. No blood left in James’ body to paint the snowy alley. Victory laughter till they watched it slowly dissolve. “Time to Go!”

EPILOGUE

While driving away from Ma’s Boarding, the blood-soaked paper works its way out of Peter’s pocket and a ‘Man of Leng’ materialized in their car front seat! Obviously surprised, Peter jerked the steering wheel and crashed into a curb. Meanwhile, his associates fought the thing and eventually killed it. Peter jumped out of the car to quickly burn the paper!

Once Gardiner’s door was locked from the inside, Jimmy McBride had returned to the hallway to listen. He found the dropped metal box and kept it for himself, “Only $25?” He heard the gunshots from within the room and saw the bullet holes appear in Gardiner’s door and walls. He quickly realized the extra ammo within the box useful as blackmail against the trio who wouldn’t let them in.

After the police arrived and found the empty room, void of reported body but with shoe prints all over the bloody tarp, they began their investigation. Esther and Anikke cooperated. Jimmy couldn’t be found.

Days later, Esther advertised two rooms open in her boarding house, “Christmas special!”

Days later, Anikke pawned the items she had collected from James’ room, after slipping past the police tape. “Payment for all those Greek translations Mr. Gardiner. I’m sure you don’t mind.”

Days later, the paper reported a body found in the river, “Failed to swim with concrete shoes.” Jimmy McBride. Payment for his stealing from the mafia. Gambling debts lead to him skimming from the mob.

Essie documented her finds in the MU Historical records. As she studied the obsidian dagger, it suddenly dawned on her. “This was one of a pair my deceased Richard found in our Texas dig! That damn Henry Jones must have stolen them! How did James Gardiner get ahold of them?” [Jimmy McBride: shady associate who “acquired” the 2 obsidian knives (from Henry Jones—Richard Vance killer-- who stole them from the Texas dig) for James in exchange for him “cooking” 2 account ledgers as Jimmy skimming from the mob.]

Peter propped his feet on the office desk as he read James’ Gardiner’s journal:

BEHIND THE SCREEN

James Gardiner was a dreamer and a frequent visitor to the Dreamlands. For some reason, he lost his ability to travel to the realm of dreams and, in his despair, he turned from a recluse into a madman. Desperate for any clue that would lead him back to the world of dream, he sought out all manner of occult and mystical knowledge.

Thus, he eventually found The Book of Dream Memories (a disjointed record of a Greek monk’s nighttime adventures, written sometime in the 9th century).

Thru a year of translation (via Greek-English book and help from Anikke) he was eventually able to decipher a ritual that he believed would allow him to transfer his consciousness to the Dreamlands on a permanent basis.

 Over the past year, Gardiner has been performing an associated ritual from the book that requires him to scar his skin with certain arcane patterns, as well as carrying out what the tome calls “meditation” to prepare his mind for its alleged journey.

Unfortunately for Gardiner, the book is cursed. Instead of transporting his consciousness, it actually acts as a gateway for an otherworldly creature to materialize in our world using Gardiner’s body as a vessel.

The Entity from Beyond:

The will of an ancient sorcerer, long banished from this world for his wicked deeds. In times past, he wrote the entries that, in later years, formed the basis of The Book of Dream Memories, including a diabolical trap.

2 days ago, James performed the ritual’s last step (to “free thy mind from thy fleshy prison”).

Involves a particularly gruesome self-sacrifice: carving strange geometric scars while meditating.

Gardiner, in his madness and desperation, got it wrong and performed the ritual too early. The Entity may only cross between dimensions at evening on the Winter Solstice—which just so happens to be today.

The Spider of Leng (Dreamland): an added bonus to address Phillip's phobia. You're welcome.

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