The Case of Darwin - History
Synopsis
Calendar of Events
<eventCalendar> namespace = Event aspectratio = 1.3 defaultmonth = 1925-06-01 </eventCalendar>
Log of Events
Travel to Australia
May 29, 1925 thru June 6, 1925
Left Shanghai on May 29. Arrive in Darwin, Australia on 6/6/1925.
Darwin, Australia
June 6, 1925
We decide to stay at the Darwin Hotel (as opposed to the Victoria Hotel). The local watering hole is named Bertram's Bar, which women go to as well. We meet Gurumarra and Edith Jackson while getting drinks. Charles had reached out to Edith before our arrival, and Gurumarra is looking for trade. Gurumarra knew another aboriginal that, on his walkabout, said he saw the Bat God and said it was the worst thing he ever laid eyes on. He's also aware of the stories of the Rainbow Serpent and that corpses have been found like described by Anthony Cowles. Lloyd overhears[1] an aboriginal relating to a friend about shading dealings at Randolph Shipping Company that are concerning him. Edith attempts to approach them and flash some money, but he sits up rail straight and says he doesn't know anythingfailed check[2]. Gurumarra tries[3], but also fails.
Edith knows that Toddy Randolph, a man in his mid-40s known to frequent Bertram's Bar, is the owner of Randolph Shipping Company. Chun Li gets charming with them[4] and learns that Randolph lives at his office.
We go back to the hotel to sleep.
Skill Checks
June 7, 1925
After breakfast, we go to the docks to the Randolph Shipping Company. It's Sunday and the place is pretty empty. Randolph eventually comes to the door, and after a confusing conversation, Edith mentions strange things and he denies it and shuts the door. Looking around, Lloyd sees boxes on the dock matching the description of the other investigators.
We head to the dockmaster. Chun Li charms[1] the man working for the names of the last 3 ships that come into Randolph Shipping Company - the Poseidon (from Kolkata, India), Speckled Magpie (from Shanghai), and the Keeper's Discretion (from Cape of New Hope). Lloyd spots[2] in the manifest that the next shipment coming in to Randolph Shipping Company from Ho Fong Imports in Shanghai is listed as mining equipment on the Margret en route to Cuncudgerie.
Charles talks to other dockworkers and learns that Cuncudgerie is a gold mining town. Seems like things come into Randolph Shipping Company, go to Port Hedland by sea from there, and make their way inland to Cuncudgerie by rail from there. The other bar in town is the Outback Inn.
Lloyd visits the local constabulary saying he's new in town and asks about the strange murders. Constabulary says that local aboriginals are talking about a cult that has awoken, but don't know that they believe that. Seems like victims were hit with club with hook or spike on it repeatedly puncturing them. Victims come from all walks of life. Charles intimidates[3] someone into revealing that they've heard a white madman is leading the new cult.
Chun Li, Edith, and Gurumarra canvas the non-white section of the city. They hear that there's a great city buried in the desert. Buddai, a great old man, sleeps with his head in his arms and snores beneath it. One day, Buddai will arise and devour the world.
That evening, we rent a boat and row it toward the Randolph Shipping Company dock. We find crates marked with the sign of the Sand Bat that came from the Penhew Foundation. Opening one, we find a wooden statue of the great Cthulhu about 3' tall[4]. Gurumarra opens another crate (loudly), from Ho Fong Imports in Shanghai. This one contains engine pistons. We move to the doors and Edith [5] gets us in. Unfortunately, there's no partitions within the warehouse, and we wake Randolph. Gurumarra throws a spear at him and then stabs him, killing him. Lloyd plays lookout[2], and announces that it doesn't seem anyone is near. Gurumarra finds a key on the body that opens the desk, along with a flask that he pours out over the body. Inside the desk is a ledger for 1925. The ledger mentions multiple shipments to Mortimer Wycroft in Cuncudgerie that are also marked with the sign of the Sand Bat, scheduled to go by boat to Port Hedland and then by rail. Other shipments marked with the sign of the Sand Bat are for Ahja Singh in Mombsa, Kenya. Additional shipments to Ho Fong Imports in Shanghai also have the sign of the Sand Bat, and earlier in the year, some shipments routed to the Penhew Foundations in London. In a newer looking, unmarked crate, Charles finds a 2' tall, 1' wide strange device made of rods, wheels, and mirrors. Edith and Lloyd check it out, and Edith comments[6] that to examine this further a laboratory is needed. Gurumarra drags the Cthulhu statue inside so it burns too. The group sets the building on fire, takes the device to the boat, and sails away.
We return to the hotel to sleep... as much as we can.
Skill Checks
June 8, 1925
Spend the day setting up a laboratory in Edith's hanger. Rumors around town are that Toddy Randolph got drunk, knocked over a lantern, and died in the resulting fire. Edith and the others also prep the plane.
June 9, 1925
Working together, Edith and Lloyd get the device working. Lloyd announces that it appears to be some sort of mechanical telescope, and looks through the aperture. He sees a flash of light and then nothing.
The others gather provisions for the trip (gin and cigarettes, of course) and we prep the plane.
Port Hedland, Australia
June 10, 1925
Edith flies us half way to Derby and we refuel in the bay, then fly to Derby, refuel, and then from there fly to Port Hedland. We arrive in the afternoon. The aboriginal peoples of the area are the Kariyarra and Nyamal people. They give the name as “Marapikurrinya" which translates to "Place of Good Water." In the town there is a small hospital, the closest asylum is in Perth, there are no libraries or newspapers. The local bar is Chuck's. People in the town are talking about the time a few years back "that crazy American man came through with 2 dozen (mostly white) men and headed to Cuncudgerie". They describe the man as older, unsettled, and throwing money around. They recommend talking to Robert Mackenzie about going to Cuncudgerie. They also mention dead bodies with punctures all over them being found. A few days back someone said they thought they saw a really big bear. They give us Mackenzie's address.
We go to Robert Mackenzie's house. He's a stout man with a bowler hat and old but fairly nice clothes. We tell him we're looking to go on a mining expedition. He says Cuncudgerie is very dangerous; there's been a lot of strange sightings and weird goings on. Arty said he saw a giant city come out of nowhere in the great sandy desert. He'd found some old weird stones that led him to an old city, and he took pictures using photographic plates. The pictures didn't look like they could be faked. A Mr. Huston came looking for him 2-3 years ago, and he hasn't seen him since. He believes MacWhirr's diary is with a friend, Dr. Dodge, in Sydney. Since we asked, he provides the exact longitude and latitude, 22°3’14” South by 125°0’39” East. We'll need to be well provisioned if we want to go there - good possibility of running out of water. We ask Robert Mackenzie to give us details about what we'll need to supply. He explains the provisions we'll need. He expects that it will be 4 days of travel to reach our destination, and we decide on 10 days of supplies. He recommends Mortimer Wycroft in Cuncudgerie as a guide. Gurumarra buys a case of dynamite. Chun Li attempts to charm him into selling us more, but he's already earmarked it and is unwilling to part with it. He helps us rent a truck to transport our supplies. We ensure we have supplies to repair the truck as well as significant extra fuel. (The group learns about rectal rehydration.) Charles acquires bloodletting equipment, a drum, and stone carving equipment to perform the ritual. Chun Li also picks up mirrors and binoculars and picks and shovels.
Cuncudgerie, Australia
June 11, 1925
We leave Port Hedland and head to Cuncudgerie. The trip happens without incident except that we see some very large birds in the distance. Gurumarra suggests that they might be bats based on his knowledge of Australia. Lloyd agrees. We arrive in the evening, and we get a room at the saloon. There's one shop in town with a sign that says, "Wycrofts." Gurumarra notes that the large birds/bats are still flying around at night by observing stars winking in and out. There are camels (dromedaries) in the town.
June 12, 1925
Chun Li notices[1] that two women are paying attention to our group. They are blonde with highlights from the sun, pretty, blue-eyed. Gurumarra notes that this area is so dry that tracks persist for indefinite amounts of time. Chun Li approaches the women and notices[1] that one of them has a Father of all Bats tatoo. One of them, a woman in her early 20s, introduces herself as Shula Wycroft, the daughter of Mortimer Wycroft, and recommends him as the only qualified guide in Cuncudgerie. She says that her sisters are Gertie Wycroft, older, and Janice Wycroft, younger, making Shula the middle child. She tries to get Chun Li to reveal information about what we're doing. Chun Li attempts to reveal little, though she does say we've talked about "craziness in the desert" and that Lloyd and Charles are in charge of the group. Then she shifts the subject to Shanghai and talks about that.
Gurumarra talks to the local aborigines. They say that, long ago (like 3-5 years ago), there was a mining disaster against the white men that came, and dozens of the white people died. They all came from Wycrofts. Everyone died, but the mining continued. They've also seen the giant birds on the horizon, but they know nothing more about them.
Charles decides to stay with the truck. While he waits, Janice Wycroft approaches and asks what we're doing. Charles says we're here prospecting and going to talk to Mortimer Wycroft about where to go. She indicates that there are golden reefs in the west, basically opposite of where we're planning to go. Charles gets the sense that she's just trying to be impressive about the town, but it's not true. She's also trying to direct the expedition's wealth through her father.
Lloyd heads to Wycrofts. Chun Li catches him along the way, introduces him to Shula. After they all chat for a bit, Lloyd and Chun Li head to Wycrofts together. Mortimer Wycroft has deep set eyes and looks unwell, like he doesn't sleep. We get the sense that he is off, mentally. Lloyd negotiates for supplies and to have Mortimer lead us into the desert the next morning.
Gurumarra prepares a traditional meal for the aboriginal people in the area. He remembers that he needs to tell the white folks to beware the dangerous plants and animals in Australia.
We get back together and compare notes. Gurumarra tries to check out the back of Wycroft's shop. Janice comes up and talks to him, and in the conversation she convinces him to go East with her, and they walk into the desert together. We only have 7 sticks of dynamite because Gurumarra carried 3 into the desert with him.
The rest of us realize that Gurumarra has gone missing. Charles and Lloyd go to look for him while Chun Li watches the truck. Shula finds Charles and Lloyd and mentions that her sister and Gurumarra headed to the east earlier. She offers to take us to the east as well and promises to find treasure. Lloyd realizes[2] that she is lying and untrustworthy. Charles attempts to question her about the disappearance, and eventually Lloyd cuts that conversation off and says that, if they return, to let us know.
Skill Checks
Outback, Australia
June 13, 1925
Gurumarra ditches Janice in the desert overnight[1] and heads to Mt. MacPherson.
In the morning, we're all still alive. Charles and Chun Li meet Gertie and Shula midtown and get them to follow them to Wycrofts to help carry supplies. They keep them in the store looking over supplies while Lloyd works on disabling the other truck in town[2]. Lloyd grabs his friends, they load the truck, tell the cultists something to get them away momentarily, and then drive off with Chun Li at the wheel.
We look over the supplies loaded in the truck and determine we have enough for about 6 weeks. Chun Li drives us north first and then turns to the east. As we're driving, we happen upon Gurumarra near Dingo Falls around noon. We aim to drive about 10 hours per day, making about 150 miles of distance per day. We make it to Mitchell River, and we find 2 aboriginal people, Yarran, male, and Jarrah, female. Gurumarra talks to them, as they don't speak English. They tell us to avoid the place we're headed to as Ngunung Ngunnut has returned in the form of a white man. They tell us to beware their servants who use the bat symbol (which they draw in the sand). They also tell us to beware the footprints of bats, drawing 5 circles in the sand. We share a meal with them and sleep.
Skill Checks
June 14, 1925
We depart and head slightly south through the hills. Around noon we come across the body of a woman, fairly young, skinny, with torn and ruined clothes. Gurumarra determines[1] that she's actually still alive, and we stop and set up a tent to provide some shade and treat her. Charles determines[2][3] that she doesn't seem to have bat bites or anything, but her hands look distressed like she's been doing hard physical work. He begins treating her, and in about an hour, he's convinced that we can move her to the back of the truck and continue treating her while we continue to travel. Lloyd examines the material from her hands and fingernails and realizes[4] that this is subterranean material from a canyon or a mine.
We continue on to Lake Dora, where we camp for the evening. The woman wakes up around 10pm and is worried when she sees Gurumarra. Lloyd tries to calm her down, and Charles joins them. Chun Li gets her calmed enough that she collapses back down. She says her name is Allison Lee, and she doesn't remember what she's fleeing from. Gurumarra gets the sense[1] that there is something else she's shaking off besides dehydration, likely some ritual drug or substance[5]. We watch over her for the night and make sure she's comfortable while she rests. Gurumarra sees something in the sky in the moonlight in the distance, but can't make out what it is.
Skill Checks
June 15, 1925
Chun Li pushes Allison to tell us more in the morning. She remembers being in a mine with people mining around her. She remembers having a pick in her hand. She got confused and scared and ran and kept running and found herself in the desert. She's from Port Hedland and worked in the telegraph office there. She thinks it's April 3, 1925, as that's the last date she remembers. Chun Li believes she's telling the truth as she understands it[1]. Gurumarra remembers that there's an aboriginal camp about a day and a half south of us. She says that she would rather go with them than deal with the cultists, so we head south.
Skill Checks
- ↑ Psychology check
June 16, 1925
We arrive at the village north of Lake Disappointment around noon. It's a small encampment / community of about 10 people. The elder's name is Minjarra. He's happy to help Allison. He tells Gurumarra that the reason the tribe is small is that they sent a group of 8 of their best men to the east where we're headed about a month ago and they never returned. He talks of a camp of white people in the general area we're headed. We spend a couple hours exchanging information with them, and then head on our way.
Lloyd has the impression[1] that the coordinates they have don't correspond with the white folks camp, but they're close. Lloyd starts driving morning shifts and Chun Li takes afternoons.
Skill Checks
June 17, 1925
We follow the Canning Stock Route for about a day and a half.
In the evening of the 17th, while Chun Li is driving, Chun Li and Lloyd both notice[1] something ding off the front of the truck. Lloyd calls out to stop, and then the window shatters as we realize we're being shot at. Chun Li starts driving defensively. Lloyd notices[1] that there's a few tall rocks with at least one sniper present. Gurumarra points out[1] the sniper to Charles and he takes a shot, missing, but close enough to cause the sniper to take cover. Chun Li stops the truck broadside to the attackers. Lloyd rolls out of the door, fumbles for his revolver, and looks around but doesn't see anything. Chun Li takes a bullet in the shoulder from a second sniper. Charles spots the second sniper that hit Chun Li along with noticing that someone is on the ground ahead of us. Gurumarra, Chun Li, and Lloyd move forward to grab cover while Charles takes aim and explodes one of the sniper's heads with his rifle. Charles takes a bullet from the other sniper in response, and the concealed combatant on the ground takes aim at Lloyd, though Lloyd's careful doding[2] is enough to avoid the shot. Gurumarra throws a spear into the ground combatant, and Charles explodes the head of the other sniper. Chun Li lays down some suppressing fire and then Lloyd takes careful aim with his 9mm and kills the 3rd combatant. Gurumarra and Charles apply first aid to our wounded[3] and we check out their remains and collect their weapons. They were well stocked with water and supplies for a day or so. They don't have a truck, but there are tire tracks nearby indicating that they were probably dropped off. We collect 2 30-06 bolt action rifles (2d6+4 damage) and a .32 revolver (1d8 damage). No one loses sanity from seeing the bodies. They're white folks with sand bat tatoos. Lloyd assesses damage to the truck[4] and ensures it's running optimally. We believe it's likely that a rotation of guards will be by in the morning, so we want to get away from the area.
We drive about an hour off the beaten path to make camp for the evening.
Skill Checks
June 18, 1925
We agree to head to the coordinates rather than the camp and spend the day driving.
June 19, 1925
After 2 days of travel, we arrive where we think we're headed and find a hillock to park behind. Looking down, we see a small camp. There's 3 vehicles (a red, blue, and brown truck). There are barrels in the back of brown and blue trucks. There is a shack. There's also something covered with a green tarp. There are weird-looking blocks all around it that clearly don't belong in this landscape. We see a fair amount of people milling about, maybe 10. Most seem to go into the shack and come out. Sometimes they bring a barrel into the shack. Gurumarra and Chun Li sneak[1] closer to survey the area at Charles' suggestion[2]. They notice[3][4] some of the truck tracks head off in an unexpected direction. Gurumarra realizes[2] that the shack isn't big enough to hold the number of people going into it and is likely some kind of entrance to a subterranean area. Gurumarra, Chun Li, and Charles hear[5] engine noises (whirring putt putt noises) coming from the shack. Gurumarra describes the stones to Lloyd who says it sounds like the stones are pitted with age and covered with carvings. Chun Li hears[5] a high-pitched sound from above, and when Lloyd notices it, he quickly gets everyone into the truck to evacuate the area. Chun Li drives us an hour away, and we camp for the night.
Skill Checks
June 20, 1925
We drive around the camp in the morning and start following the tire marks to the north. About 5 to 10 klicks north, Chun Li sees[1][2] a cave with no one around it, but it does have some stone monoliths. Lloyd remarks that the stones are over 10,000 years old and not naturally formed[3]; rather, built architecturally. He comments that he believes that this is another entrance to the city. We hide the truck as best we can, bury the bloodletting equipment, stone knapping equipment, and drums in another location, gather supplies, and head into the cave. The deeper we get, the less natural the cave gets, and we find ourselves in a worked passageway of alien nature. We come to a deep 15' square hole that blocks our way. Looking down it, there doesn't seem to be a bottom. Gurumarra throws a rock down, but it seems to drop forever. Gurumarra notices[1] a panel of some type to the right. Lloyd easily activates the panel and causes a wall to quietly come down and form a bridge. As the group crosses, there is the awful high-pitched sound from last night from below, followed by some banging and sucking noises. Lloyd ushers everyone across quickly and the bridge seems to hold. We continue onward and come to a crossroads. We approached this crossroad from the southeast, and we could go northeast or west. We go northeast.
We walk down a long corridor for about a mile that ends in a yawning chasm. Far in the distance, we see an electric lightbulb and the sound of a generator. From below, we hear a chorus of the shrill whining. Gurumarra drops to his stomach and inches to the edge and looks over the edge. He sees many enormous flying creatures with dangling tentacles, many eyes, many mouths, and amorphous forms[4]. Looking closely[1], he sees a gigantic black city below. We head back the way we came from.
Back at the crossroads, we go to the west this time. After another mile long corridor, we come to a T intersection running north and south. There's a line of electric lights hanging from the ceiling that go either direction. From the north, we can see an electric generator running and powering the lights along with rubble behind the generator that would be difficult to climb.
We go north. Checking out the generator, Lloyd says[5] that it's low on fuel and will need to be filled soon. Gurumarra listens[6] and hears a squeaky noise. Looking over the rubble, he sees a repairman replacing broken bulbs. The repairman sees him too, and Gurumarra hits him with a spear. The rest of us scramble to the top of the rubble pile, and the cultist produces what looks like a brownie kodak camera and presses buttons on both sides. What seems like a bolt of lightning leaps from the "camera" and strikes Gurumarra in the chest for serious electric damage. The group dives for cover. Chun Li charges at the repairman. Lloyd misses him, and the guy misses Chun Li with a lightning blast. Gurumarra grazes him with another spear. Charles pulls his coin sword and advances on the repairman, striking him down. Lloyd grabs the lightning gun and notes a sign of the sand bat tattooed on the man's arm. Charles takes the cultist's red robes before too much blood gets on them, and he and Chun Li wash the blood out quickly. Lloyd determines[3] that the collapse was due to natural causes. We move the body next to the generator, put some gas in the generator (about 2 hours worth), and then head the opposite direction (to the south). As we proceed, Gurumarra hears chanting from the south. We attempt to sneak south[7], though none of us are successful. We come to a gigantic expansive room with a continuous blue glow emanating from the floor. There are many cultists having some type of ritual in the middle of the room. They are chanting in a language none of us recognize.
We turn around and head back to the north. We come to the Y, and it looks like the lights end just a bit past the turn to the left. We head left. It's dark (we turn on our lights) and a very long passageway. We see lights start again after travelling a long way. We attempt to approach cautiously again, but continue to fail to do so. It seems that they boarded up a section of the hallway into a wooden shack. Gurumarra listens at the door, but hears nothing. Charles opens the door and sees lights, mining equipment, oil-style drums, and carts. There's another door across the way in another built wooden wall, forming a 10'x10' room. There are stairs leading up. Gurumarra sneaks up the stairway[7] to the next level and sees 7 iron cages with people in them, mostly aboriginal with some white folks, and more stairs leading up. Charles searches the ground floor and finds a locker with 24 sticks of dynamite along with all the accoutrements including the manufacturer's manual. Chun Li finds another lightning gun, and Lloyd grabs it. Gurumarra finds keys[1] and we all go up and begin unlocking cages. Chun Li goes up another level and finds correspondence from Edward Gavigan to Dr. Huston by a typewriter on a desk. She also finds[1] a loaded .45 revolver and the 11th chapter of a manuscript. On the other side of the room, she also sees a helmet with wires coming out of it. She grabs a marine chronometer and tosses it in her bag. Continuing up, she discovers that the stairs are unfinished and there's excavated space above. She comes back down. We have 7 people accompanying us now. They've all lost their memory similar to the woman we encountered in the outback. Lloyd goes upstairs and determines[8] that the helmet erases memories. The pile of scrolls are odds and ends, nothing relevant, written in Yithian. Gurumarra comes up and looks through the books, finding subjects like ancient Egypt and medicine, but nothing additionally relevant. Charles explains to the white captives how to get back to the entrance we used, and we send them on their way.
On the other side of the next door, there are passages going northwest, west, south, and southeast. All passages have lights. The passage to the west has an additional heavy duty power cable running along the ground. We follow it and go west. The passage then angles southwest and comes to another Y with a generator at the junction. We go southeast at the Y and come to a door made of the strange materials the wall is. There are markings on it, which Lloyd seems to recognize. He says it seems safe and opens the door. Lloyd recognizes advanced materials from Earth along with extremely advanced alien technology. Gurumarra takes a couple gears that seem strong and light for throwing. The power cable continues to another room, and Lloyd opens the door to an even larger room where the power cable runs to a large control panel. A panel has been removed and it seems someone was working on it. Lloyd understands that this is a computer and begins using it. Most systems are offline, but there's a space/time machine that seems to be online. It was last activated a year ago and set to 3 million years in the future. Lloyd knows that's when the Yithian race conquers Earth[9]. He also finds that there are two floor lighting systems active, a blue floor and red floor, along with a purple dome. The others notice restraints and another memory wipe helmet in the room, along with a door in an archway. Gurumarra starts paying attention to the door and notices his hair stands on end near it. Lloyd finds that a forcefield is also online nearby. He attempts to open the nearby door, but it's offline. He repairs the panel[8] and it slides open, an electrical buzz preceding a blue glow. Gurumarra is greeted with the sight[4] of an enormous iridescent cone creature with four flexible cylindrical things with claws at the ends, four red trumpet-like things, and and yellowish globe. Lloyd immediately runs back to the control panel and lowers the forcefield, freeing Kakakatak, the Yithian. The group has a conversation in which Lloyd seems to do all the speaking for Kakakatak. He explains that Dr. Huston has brought them here against their will, tortured and enslaved them, and forced them to give technology to the cultists. Kakakatak expects that Dr. Huston is working with an entity called Nyarlathotep and gained enough knowledge from that entity to use the technology in this ship to bring them here.
Kakakatak says they need to put their mind back together, and Gurumarra watches as they activate some equipment that plunges a spike into Lloyd's skull, sucks his brain out, and pipes it into the Yithian.[4] They explain that Lloyd, the human the group originally met, hasn't been with them since looking into the telescope device back in the hanger in Darwin. His mind was supplanted by a fragment of Kakakatak's mind in an attempt to find a way to free themselves, which was clearly successful. They want to work with the other investigators to seek vengeance on Dr. Huston and the cultists that have imprisoned and tortured them. They explain that they floating jellyfish creatures are an extremely dangerous race of beings known as flying polyps, and there's probably too many here to kill them all. Kakakatak hopes to find a way to seal them in or otherwise deal with them before returning to the future though. Kakakatak also warns that the lightning guns are extremely dangerous and advanced technology, and Gurumarra immediately takes one, accidentally activates it, and kills himself with it.
In a sudden flash of lightning, Dr. Victor Lester shows up with nothing a loincloth he's wearing. Everyone is confused and there's a brief standoff. Victor doesn't remember anything transpiring from when he disappeared on 4/22/1925 until now. Once everyone calms down, Kakakatak points out that there's a space/time device available, and they believe it has power for 10 uses. Chun Li slips off, worried about dealing with the alien creature and the mysterious appearing man. She makes her way to the red plaza and back, sneaking[7] along the way. While there, she noticed a foul smell, heard a generator, and had a sense of unease. The path was lighted along the way. Victor loots the bodies in the room and cobbles together an outfit and some equipment. Charles and Victor discuss possibilities with Kakakatak for using the space/time device. They decide on the following:
- Pull the iron chest that vanished from the investigators' hotel room in London from that moment to the present time and location
- Pull Father Quinn from his present location to this location
- Pull the Isoge Taro and the 15 submariners that vanished during the Assault on Grey Dragon Island from that moment to the present time and location
- Pull Jack Brady & 6 Firmies from their present location to this location
- Pull the bomb Dr. Huston has been preparing from its present location in the purple dome room to this location
At that point, Kakakatak spends a short time arming the bomb and preparing it to detonate. Then they continue operating the space/time device to:
- Send the bomb to 6/6/1925 to the room full of flying polyps where it will detonate, hopefully injuring many of them but primarily sealing off their ability to use that exit
- Send the newly reinforced party to 6/6/1925 moments after the bomb detonation so they can perform the ritual during the full moon before the cult can finalize their plans.
Skill Checks
June 6, 1925 (again)
The base is on high alert and in chaos after the explosion. Kakakatak leads the group back through Huston's headquarters and then takes them along the SE path, which leads to the purple dome room. They point out paths along the way not to go (the red plaza has a titan horror, and south from Hustan's is the nursery).
Entering the purple dome room, we see it is a perfect hemisphere with a gray metallic floor. There's a second smaller hemisphere in the center pulsing with a purple light. There are some small piles of sand, one with some bones, where the dome has slightly cracked over time. There's a 3' high stone block block on one side of the purple pulsing hemisphere. Behind that is a 20' tall statues of a black bat winged creature made of branches and bones held together by cloth and rope with blood as glue, clearly roughly fashioned. Around it are other statues, forms we've seen before but are difficult recognize. Father Quinn recognizes them[1] as Cthulhu, Azathoth, Yog-Sothoth, Cthugha, Shub-Niggurath. There are also smaller statues of obsidian that look like some alien hybrid of a frog and bat with scorpion tails as wingtips. They are the Father of all Bats' foot soldiers according to legend[1]. The group of statues gives off an uneasy feeling. Kakakatak notes that they are essentially batteries of magical energy. Father Quinn says that it's the devil's energy[1]. Jack Brady and the Firmies set up around the inner purple hemisphere for the ritual. Isoge Taro and the submariners set up on the north entrance with Chun Li. The rest of us set up on the south entrance. From the north, Kakakatak hears[2] the sounds of a flying polyp approaching and repositions there to deal with it. Chun Li shoots the flying polyp, causing it to scream in pain. Two of the frogbat statues come to life, and Victor moves to engage them. Jack attacks one, but misses. The flying polyp accordions, generating a blast of wind that injures most of the group to the north. Kakakatak responds with a blast of lightning, tossing the expended gun aside afterward. Huston calls from the south that we've meddled in his plans long enough. Charles shoots down the south corridor, hitting a cultist. Chun Li shoots at the flying polyp and misses. Father Quinn tosses a stick of dynamite down the south hall, but it falls short of hitting anything. Victor hits a frogbat with a blessed axe, hurting it. Isoge Taro hits the flying polyp. Huston shoots Charles with a lightning gun. Charles returns fire and hits him with a rifle blast. Chun Li lines up an expert shot and explodes the flying polyp. Father Quinn chucks another stick of dynamite down the hall, exploding Huston and 4 of the cultists in the ensuing blast. Another flying polyp appears from the north and then turns invisible. Chun Li and some of the submariners manage to hit it still. Charles and Father Quinn team up to take out another cultist. Victor and Jack finally manage to take one of the frogbats out. The flying polyp attempts to pull things toward it, but everyone resists. Kakakatak, not being able to locate the flying polyp, turns and blasts at a frogbat, but misses. Charles and Father Quinn miss a cultist. Chun Li lands another amazing shot, popping the second flying polyp. Victor and Jack both get a critical hit against the remaining frogbat, badly damaging it. Another flying polyp appears, and Kakakatak blasts it with lightning. Charles and Father Quinn miss again. Chun Li reloads her rifle. The submariners open fire and pop the flying polyp. The frogbat attacks Jack, but he skillfully dodges and then punches the statue, killing it. Chun Li begins offering first aid. Father Quinn punches and kills another cultist, leaving only 2 of them. The cultists look like they're about to flee. Kakakatak moves toward the south and blasts one with a lightning gun, completely incinerating him. Charles cuts the last one with his sword, and as the cultist attempts to run, Father Quinn clocks him, killing him. In the aftermath, the group tends to wounds and completes the ritual! Only one of the Firmies died. It seems a great deal of cultists in the area were directed to deal with the flying polyps.
After the ritual, the party regroups back in the workshop. Kakakatak modifies a Yithian status cube to naturally heal a single person by making weeks of time pass in an instant for them. Charles is elected to use it and emerges completely healed of his major injury. As the rest of the group waits and recovers, Father Quinn asks Brady about Hypatia Masters. Jack Brady is concerned about her most of all. He says Nyarlathotep was granting dreams. Roger thought his life would be a failure and wanted to be successful. Huston wanted to be a god. Penhew wanted to be Pharoah. Patty wanted a baby after her and Raoul's baby was "taken care of." Anastasia was a priestess of the Bloody Tongue. It was her influence and ideas that corrupted all of them.
Kakakatak sends Jack Brady, the Firmies, Isoge Taro, the submariners, and Chun Li back to Shanghai on 6/21/1925. They send the other 3 members of the group to Cairo, also on 6/21/1925. They return themselves to their proper location and place in time, leaving the device drained of power reserves and inoperable after their transportation.
Skill Checks