Event:1925/04/20 Following Leads
In the morning, we wake and have a discussion about our leads over breakfast. We feel that Ho Fong, the Shanghai Courier, and Magenta Joy are our best leads. We spend some time mapping the "stars" in Victor's dream to a world map.
Jack and Victor head to the hospital to find Magenta Joy. Victor performs psychoanalysis[1], which manages to give her some clarity. She describes a creature that exactly resembles what attacked Jack on the boat (a Hunting Horror - same as the creatures that attacked at Misr House and the creatures from the dream they all shared at the Carlyle estate).
Elise and Quinn head to the Shanghai Courier. Elise looks up info on Pao Wu-kung (Ho Fong's driver), but there's nothing on him. Quinn follows up on newspaper articles referenced by the crowd at docks yesterday[2]. In doing so, he gains the attention of Anthony Chang, an editor who is interested in the research and offers to assist. Quinn gets the sense that he is more than just an editor[3]. We go back to his office for a discussion and notice he has a diploma from Oxford University[4]. We ask him to look into Pao Wu-kung and The Dark Mistress, leaving our hotel information for him to contact. Then we head back to the Astor House Hotel for lunch.
Jack goes to talk to his adopted father, the Bishop Charles Perry Scott, at the Holy Trinity Church in the International Settlement. He gives a confessional first. Inquiring about some disappeared religious folks mentioned in the paper, the Father tells him that Fukien Pirates operating on Whang Poo River may be responsible for taking the bishop and other religious people. He believes the church will do what they need to do to get them home safely. After their reunion, Jack asks about the Firm Action Faction. His father believes the Firm Action Faction is associated with the New China Movement. They're campaigning against corrupt Shanghai organizations, and that they have 4-5 affirmations: Firm Study, Firm Belief, Firm Action, and maybe others.
Quinn goes to the Royal Asiatic Society to research the Firm Action Faction. He finds they are a well armed terrorist organization, presumably bankrolled by one or more rich radicals. Their 4 affirmations are Firm Study, Firm Belief, Firm Practice, and Firm Action. There are a variety of factions within New China that particularly believe in one of these tenants. Firm Action are the ones most dedicated to violence, training, and carrying out anti-colonialism terrorist actions. They are definitely a group of radicals. Sometimes they seem hired out to local gangs / warlords, possibly for training purposes. They are a serious group - not amateurs - they are professionals (or as professional as they can be given their resources).
Victor and Elise go to Chin-Ling Road to look into the fire at the Garden of the Purple Clouds of Autumn. They enter a garden and are greeted by a Buddhist priest. He says that Liu Chen-dai was the witness interviewed by the paper. The fire was on March 20. He tells them where to find Liu Chen-dai, and they head to his place. Liu Chen-dai describes the European sighted at the fire as similar to Jack Brady. He remembers him talking to some of the monks, and then the fire came and killed the monks and Jack escaped. Victor notes that he is very embarrassed by the story and feels the story is crazy and he shouldn't have said anything[3].
Back at Astor House Hotel, Elise feels that someone's been through her room[4]. Once the rest of us are alerted, we realize that someone's gone through all of our rooms, paying very close attention to all the books we have. Hotel staff apologizes, but nothing is missing. Victor spends time translating the medallion before bed and discovers it belongs to the Esoteric Order of Dagon[5]. We sleep.
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