3701 Spruce Street - Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 7:04 PM - Thursday, July 17, 1969
Maxine let Barney off in front of his studio and home after giving him a lift. They had had an interesting and successful time at the library, having found some information about Dr. Gregory Anderson, and Maxine had also seen that strange old man they had first encountered at Lenny's Bar at the library. Had he been following them, or had he been there for some other reason? Max's friend Kathleen had never turned up, and Barney had spent the rest of the afternoon helping Max look for her before giving up and having dinner. In Barney's opinion, Kathleen was probably off shagging someone, but Maxine had seemed a little worried.
OOC,Here are some links to posts that you should read in another thread that cover what happened in the library. Please do not read the other posts in that thread:
[url=http://www.callofcthulhu.org.uk/viewtopic.php?p=112591#p112591]Conversation with [b]Maxine[/b][/url]
[url=http://www.callofcthulhu.org.uk/viewtopic.php?p=112754#p112754]Research results[/url]
You may also make a Medicine roll to see what you understood from the medical texts.
Medicine Roll - Failed,[url=http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/3523864/]Medicine (5%) (1d100=59)[/url]
"Listen Maxine, I wouldn't worry too much about Kathleen. She seemed to move like the wind - flowing to what ever caught her fancy. I'm sure she'll show up soon," Barney said with as much a comforting smile as he could muster. "If not tonight, I bet she'll show up at that research place in the morning." He shrugged and said, "I'm just not sure what I'm going to do with myself tomorrow."
"You're probably right," said Maxine. "She'll turn up sooner or later. She always does. The experiment doesn't start until eight at night, so we'll have plenty of time to look into things further before then. I'll pick you up in the morning. Is nine okay?"
"See you later, alligator," said Maxine. She drove off as Barney went to the front door of his studio and unlocked it.
Barney entered the vestibule and locked the door behind him. A flight of stairs went up to his apartment above the studio, and a door led into the studio itself.
Barney took a few steps in and paused when he thought he heard something out of the ordinary. He tilted his head to try to get a better vantage point so as to hear it better.
Barney had been about to head upstairs when he heard a faint sound coming from somewhere deep within the studio. It sounded like footsteps followed by a door opening. Nobody was supposed to be back there.
OOC,I haven't recorded equipment on character sheets, but [b]Barney[/b] isn't carrying anything special. You can assume he has his clothes, his wallet, and the usual things he'd keep in his pockets. He does have a lot of equipment kept here at the studio (audio and video equipment and musical instruments, primarily). He also owns a ranch outside of town (I just reviewed the character creation notes of his original player), though there's an apartment above the studio where he can stay when he's in town.
Barney grabbed the coat rack standing in the vestibule, which was bare since he didn't wear a coat in the hot summer weather. It was big and unwieldy, but it could cause a lot of damage if he managed to hit anyone with it. He entered the studio itself, most of which was taken up by a large soundstage. This part of the studio was deserted, but a hallway on the left side led back and around a corner to some storage rooms. It was from this direction that he heard the footsteps.
Barney continued towards the storage area as quietly as he could hoping to catch the would-be thief red-handed before he bludgeoned the poor sap with the coat rack.
Barney made his way around the corner, where he saw the stretch of hall leading to three storage rooms and the studio's back door. The storage rooms' doors were open, and the footsteps were coming from the nearest one, where he kept his audio equipment and his synthesizer. He gripped the coat rack in both hands as he moved to the doorway, blocking it. Inside the room he saw the old man he had first seen at Lenny's Bar looking around the room!
Bill had found nothing of note during his search when he heard approaching footsteps in the hall. However, he only had time to turn before Barney arrived and filled the doorway.
"I'd offer you a warm beverage, but I don't tend to do that to people who break into my studio," Barney said coolly, his eyes narrowed at the burglar that he now recognized. "What are you looking for, man? If it's a beating from a coat rack, I think I can probably help you find it."
Bill started - he'd not heard Barney's approach. "Easy," he said, "I'm a cop - and you can put that down for starters." He held out one hand to keep Barney at bay and reached for his badge with the other.
"Funny... I don't think being a cop gives you free reign to everyone's house. You have some sort of writ giving you permission for this home intrusion?" Barney asked, as he looked at the badge to see if it looked genuine.
Barney set his coat rack down and nodded, "You're looking at him." He'd done nothing wrong, so he didn't know why the coppers would be seeking him out. It was curious.
"You're Braithwaite?" asked Bill, one eyebrow raised. He'd not picked up on Braithewaite's accent so the identity of the man before him had caught him by surprise.
He pulled himself together. "I'm looking for Brian Anderson. Do you know where he is?"
Barney blinked a few times, the gears rolling about in his tiny mind. He tilted his head and asked, "I'm afraid I have no idea. Would you like some tea, officer?" Barney smelled a rat. He knew Brian Anderson was taken to the police station, under arrest. This cop... if that's what he truly was... should have known that as well. He wanted to delay the man long enough to get some real police to his pad and straighten things out.
Bill studied Braithwaite carefully. The younger man seemed tense and Bill thought it would be a good idea to keep him in sight so followed him to the kitchen.
Barney noticed the man following behind and went to his cupboards, pulling out a tea pot. He filled it about half-full of water from the tap and and set it on the stove top, lighting it with a match. "Won't be but a couple minutes."
He got back into the cupboard and got out the tea and a couple cups, placing them down at the table. "So tell me, officer... you were at the bar, right? I mean... you were there when ... well, when Brian got there and all the excitement happened?"
"You're not with the programme, are you?" said Bill abruptly, "His lawyer got him bail. He's out and he's playing games with us. So you're saying you haven't seen him since the night in the bar?"
"We went to the police station to see if we could get some answers from him. I was only helping, mind you. But there are some genuinely curious people wondering what is going on with Brian ... and this sleep study thing," Barney confides. "I haven't seen him since then. Didn't know he was out from the clink." The tea pot whistles. "Ah... water's ready." He poured the water into two tea cups and brought the tea and all the condiments over to the table. "There is something strange going on, and we are a curious lot. Is there anything I can do to help you with finding Brian?"
Bill studied Barney carefully, wondering how much he could trust the Englishman. "Perhaps you could start by telling me how you know Brian Anderson, he said.
Barney shook his head, "None, really. Well... I mean aside from just helping some chaps with their interests. Like I said, this whole sleep experiment, and the drugs that Brian had, it just doesn't sit right, man. Something distinctly non-groovy with it." He set up Bill's tea to the man's liking and put some sugar in his own, before sitting down and enjoying the tea. "Look man, I don't know why you'd think Brian came here. At the station, I passed off that I was an agent looking for his talent, it was how we all got in to see him. But he wanted nothing to do with me or the ruse. Downright ungrateful about it if you ask me." He lifted his eyebrow and looked like he was caught with his hand in the cookie jar for a moment. "What a downer man. I think I said too much." He shrugged. "I suck at lying." He shrugged and half-smiled, "You'd probably had seen through it all eventually anyway once you went back through the reports that the other officers undoubtedly made after we left. You seem like you're with it."
Bill let that one slide. He took a sip of tea and remembered why the Brits drank it with milk instead of cream. He set his cup down and tapped his fingers on the table.
"I don't get it," he said to Barney. "Who is it you're working for and why are you interested in Brian - and the sleep experiments? Whoever it was is playing a risky game. My lieutenant finds out that someone's messing him around and he'll be down on them like a ton of bricks."
"My business is entertainment, friend. I'd say my part in this is nothing more than a passing fancy. What does your Lieutenant have to do with the sleep experiments that he'd be so shagged out about some people just trying to look into it?" Barney returned to the copper.
"Because there's obviously something going down and we're not being told the truth," snapped Bill. "Now who are these 'chaps'" - he mimicked Braithwaite's British accent - "And what are the drugs they are interested in?"
Barney lifted an eyebrow and said, "You've got it all wrong, man. It's the institute you need to be checking on. Dr. Gregory Anderson - that's the brain man you need to look into. Of course with his background, you probably won't get anywhere with that. He is a highly decorated war vet with contacts in the CIA. But man... I couldn't make heads nor tails of all that thesis, biology mumbo-jumbo I found in the library." He leaned back and took another sip of his tea and said, "Only thing I know about drugs involved is the stuff that Brian brought to the bar - that Morpheus shit, man. Supposed to be something they used in the lab for the sleep studies. And that Brian was arrested on trumped up charges. So if I were you, officer... I'd be asking if I'm working on the right side of this investigation. I'll bet there are interested parties out there that have offices in DC, if you dig what I mean."
ooc,Honestly - I personally have no idea why Barney would have been so inclined to go to the police station with the others when he did. I've no idea what is so suspicious about these sleep studies or the Morpheus drug. I'm clueless to Barney's motivation - so hopefully someone can clear me up on what it is exactly that Barney knows. There was some stuff that Bill overheard Barney and a woman (probably Maxine) at a library where she said "All of this stuff is just too weird. I know this Professor Anderson is up to something shady. What we've found out points in that direction, but we can't prove anything. And even if we could, he's bound to have connections." - I don't know what she was talking about specifically.
Bill sat back and studied Barney. CIA conspiracies were commonplace where - or rather when - he came from but he really couldn't recall how the Agency were viewed back in the 60s. What Barney was telling him though sounded more than plausible. He needed to talk to Yeager and see if he could make sense of what was going on.
He wanted one more bit of information before he went though. "Tell me about the Morpheus drug," he said to Barney, "What does Brian say it does?"
OOC,I'm off on my hols. Back Thursday. I may post while I'm away but can't guarantee it! ;)
Barney thought back to the incident in the bar. He said, "They called Brian Anderson Candyman. He came in and offered drugs to one of the guys at the bar... had some Mary Jane, some LSD, and something he claimed would blow his mind like he wouldn't believe. Brian said it was called Morpheus, it was rare, and very expensive - but claimed it was well worth the price of admission. " He shook his head, "That's when two undercover boys put him under arrest. And then you stumbled out of the bathroom, looking a bit disoriented, claiming that Brian tried to kill you, and stole your suit. You was seeming a bit out of place... saying about your suit cost $80, and saying that wasn't very expensive but you'd like it back anyway. Seems to me, if I paid $80 for a suit, I'd be wanting it back too. That's a lot of money to be putting down on clothes, you know?" He shook his head and stated, "Brian never went in the bathroom. Why did you say he went in there, attacked you and then took your suit?"
He drank some more of his tea, then said "I don't know anything more about the drug. I have been clean for a long time. But Maxine was the one who pointed out that Morpheus is the god of dreams from Greek mythology. We soon made the relationship between Brian Anderson and his father who is doing the sleep research that they're paying students $50 to participate in this weekend. It's over a three night period. Maxine was suggesting it was some sort of CIA experiment, but I never really saw any hard evidence to support that, personally."
Barney Brainstorm,You may want to edit your post, as you misunderstood some things in the bar scene. The Morpheus wasn't in blotters, that was LSD. [b]Bill[/b] was the old man who had come out of the bathroom (which is one of the odd things that had first drawn his player into investigating further, I think).
It was [b]Maxine[/b] in the library with you, and you were discussing the research you came up with on [b]Dr. Gregory Anderson[/b] that I provided to you, and [b]Maxine[/b]'s statements were informed by her anti-Establishment views. She has come to the conclusion that the CIA is conducting experiments using students as guinea pigs. This is why she and [b]Kathleen[/b] have decided to infiltrate the experiment as test subjects and get proof.
ooc,Sorry... edited. I made the assumption about the Morpheus being in blotter paper because when you mentioned Morpheus, you posted the picture. Just made the connection unofficially. As for Bill being the old man that stumbled out of the bathroom - his name was never mentioned in the bar scene, so I didn't know. You might have mentioned it at the cop station, but I didn't review that part for this post.
Bill Johns,[b]Bill[/b] knew that the CIA had conducted secret illegal experiments on American and Canadian citizens in the 1950s and 60s involving drugs (primarily LSD), mind control, and hypnosis. These experiments as a group were known as MK-ULTRA, and the test subjects often did not know what they were ingesting. They sometimes even resulted in deaths. Universities were a common place for the experiments to be done. These experiments were exposed in the mid-1970s.
Bill rubbed his hand over his brow. He knew what had happened with Brian in the bathroom - the explosion was vivid when he closed his eyes - but he couldn't account for what other people had seen, nor for him being here back in the 60s.
He remember reading the findings of the Church Committee - the Government's investigation into the CIA's illegal testing of drugs and torture techniques. They had tested drugs through a number of universities - Bill couldn't recall which ones, but he knew some of the test subjects had died.
He looked at the younger man sat across the table. Barney had said that the Morpheus tests could be a CIA experiment. Mary could be in danger! "Do you think your friend Maxine might talk to me about what she knows? I know someone who's planning to take part in the study!"
Barney nodded, "She might... but I'm not inclined to bring her into trouble with you. You haven't given me anything to trust you with, Officer." He crossed his arms and looked at Bill, who had so far not answered a single question thrown his way.
"You broke into my house, searched it without permission, and sent a man in to jail under false pretenses ..." Barney pointed out, arms still crossed about his chest defensively. "I don't even know who's side you're on, man. I've already incriminated myself. I won't take anyone else down with me. Especially to a dirty cop."
"I'm not a dirty cop!" snapped Bill, angrily jabbing his finger at Barney to underline his point. "You said Anderson's a drug dealer - are you telling me he shouldn't be in jail?!"
Bill realised he was breathing heavily and be had lost control of the situation. He sighed and sat back on his chair, appearing to crumple in upon himself. He cupped his hands around the cup of tea and stared at it, trying to make sense of everything. After a few moments he looked up. "You asked me about the bar," he said quietly. "Truth is, I'm not really sure what did happen. I know Brian Anderson tried to kill me but......." He paused, not sure how to begin to explain, "but...... what I know happened to me, is at odds to what other people are saying......"
"Brian deserves to be in jail... but he never attacked you," Barney said. "He never went into the bathroom, and he never stole your suit. Someone probably dropped some drugs in your drink or something." He released his arms from in front of his chest and relaxed a little taking a breath. "Look... why don't you tell me what you remember happening? Maybe it'll be good to get off your chest. Seems you are embarrassed about it maybe."
"Embarrassed?" said Bill and he laughed drily. "No, I'm not embarrassed. I just don't know how to explain what happened - what I think happened - I don't know," he said.
He took a drink and without looking up said, "I got a phone call, telling me to go to the bar. I'd knew Lenny's but I'd not been there for some... ... time." Bill glanced up to see if Barney was following him. "I went into the gents and Anderson came in. He said his life was messed up and it was my fault." Bill took another drink and continued, "He threatened me with a gun and then... and then threw a grenade..." Bill leaned forward. "I never saw him before, the grenade went off and everything went black. I came round, staggered into the bar to find that everything had changed and find that Anderson's being arrested..." Bill's voice tailed off, aware of how implausible his story seemed.
Bill sat for a long time without replying as he considered what to say. "I can't," he said eventually. "I tell you what I think has changed and your first call will be to the nuthouse."
Barny stood up and laughed, "You ever work with musicians officer... say, what is your name anyway?" He grabbed up his empty cup and walked it over to the sink. "I deal with crazy on a daily basis. If I called the nuthouse every time someone acted a bit strange, suffice to say they'd stop taking my calls within only a few days. Besides, if you want my help, you're going to have to trust me."
He turned about at the sink and crossed his arms again looking back expectantly at Bill.
"A time traveller, outta sight man," Barney responded apparently buying it. "Yeah, no wonder you were all weirded out at the pub. Tell me though..." Barney leaned in closer as he asked "You all got flying cars in 2009?"
Re: IC-Chapter 1-Comfortably Numrb(Barney Brainstorm/Bill Jo
Posted: Sat Jun 16, 2012 3:39 pm
by Philulhu
[sub][/sub]"Yeah, it's like the frigging Jetson's!" replied Bill sarcastically. He sighed and held up his hands by way of apology. "Sorry, it's been a bitch to deal with. Look, cars are pretty much the same, just more streamlined and fuel efficient. Terrorists have replaced communists as the new enemy that everyone fears and oh, we've got a black president. What else do you want to know?" He sat and looked at Barney, unsure what the younger man's response would be.
There was a few moments of silence as Barney contemplates everything he's just been told... then he smiles and laughs, tilting his head, "Ah... you almost got me. A black president. That's funny, man..."
Bill feels the colour rise in his face. "It's not a joke!" he snaps. "Where I come from......" He tails off, not sure what's going to convince Barney he's telling the truth.
"Ok, smartass," he says, "Ask me a question about the future. Something big. Who's alive, who's dead? Musicians -that's your sorta thing."
Barney thought for a moment, then nodded, "Ok... 2009. What happened to the Rolling Stones? Or the Beatles for that matter?" He shrugged, "I really don't see where this is going. You could make anything up and I won't be able to verify it."
He ran his tough across his teeth, then said, "For the sake of argument, I'll say you're from the future. What does time travel have to do with sleep research?"
"The 'Stones go global in the 80s. They're like the biggest band in the world for a while. Brian Jones drowns but they carry on with some guy from The Faces - you know the band with Rod Stewart? The Beatles split up after John Lennon shacks up with Yoko Ono, then he gets shot in New York by Mark Chapman in 1980. Shoots him dead in the street!" Bill's breathing heavily, desperate for Barney to believe him. "Hendrix. Joplin. Morrison. Bonham. All gone to drink and drugs."
Bill sat back suddenly. "Sorry," he says, running his hands through his hair, "You've got no idea what it's been like." He pulled the cup towards him and took a long drink. "I don't know what any of this has to do with the experiment, other than I know one of the students taking part."
Barney suggests, "Maybe we should see about this experiment, maybe volunteer ourselves. I mean... it's only supposed to be open for students, but it couldn't hurt to try. Once we get inside, we could sneak around, overhear conversations, find important papers... that sort of thing. Or... skip the volunteering and just go with the intrigue man."
Barney stops a moment ... and clarifies, "You saying the Stones are still together, man? They got to be like 80 or something then." Barney was no good with math, but he knew when a rocker should be retired... he'd never seen a rocker do well past their prime.
Barney suggests, "Maybe we should see about this experiment, maybe volunteer ourselves. I mean... it's only supposed to be open for students, but it couldn't hurt to try. Once we get inside, we could sneak around, overhear conversations, find important papers... that sort of thing. Or... skip the volunteering and just go with the intrigue man."
"Where I come from," replied Bill, "I'm a history professor. Here, I'm a cop - go figure!" He shook his head. "I don't know why I didn't come back as my younger self - or even why I've come back at all - but I've got a badge and a gun, so I guess that means I've got the law on my side."
"Yeah..." Barney says absorbing the details and trying to make sense of it. "So ... what you're telling me is the trip you took is all mental, man... right? You are ... for lack of a better word, borrowing this body." He lifted an eyebrow and asked, "Have you considered the possibility that this is just some sort of dementia and you really do need help?" He laughed and said, "I knew this one cat... man dropped some bad acid... thought he was a dog for a whole week."
He shrugged and said, "Doesn't really matter to me one way or another, as long as I have some help with this whole sleep experiment thing. You could be Abraham Gandhi and I'd be cool with that."
Bill shakes his head. He considers trying to explain to Barney about how he's still in the same body, just in a different job and a different time, but decides it's not worth the headache.
"Right, so you're going to do the experiment," he says, "So what do you need from us?"
Barney shrugged... "A gun would be cool, man. And one of them walkie-talkies... but I imagine that'd be hard to hide under a hospital gown. Still... they'd have to give us a locker or some place that we can secure our belongings. It'd be nice to know I had something I could get to in the event things get ... weird ... -er." He considered for a moment and then added, "I should probably take a camera too... snap some evidence while I can."
Bill had reservations about the gear that Barney was asking for - the guy seemed to think he was Jason Bourne - or James Bond.
"Some of that stuff might be difficult to hide," he replied, "Let me talk to my boss and see what we can do." Bill thought for a moment. "Are you licensed to carry a gun?" he asked.
"Jeez, I dunno," said Bill. "Things have changed..." He glanced at his watch. "Look, I need to speak to my LT, though I don't know whether he'll still be at the station. Have you got a number I can reach you on?"
OOC,time check please.
Sorry about the confusion over gun laws. Even a quick scoot round the internet didn't seem to help... :(
OOC,It's currently about 7:20 PM.
The Gun Control Act of 1968 recently went into effect. I'm not completely clear on the state of gun laws in 1969 either. Most people can still own guns with no problem, but you would need a permit to legally carry one concealed. However, a foreign national like [b]Barney[/b] most likely would not be allowed to have one.
ooc,- a Brit with a gun ... that's almost unheard of today.
Barney nodded and led the man to the front door, "Ok, Bill. Hey... don't be a stranger, but next time... make sure I'm home first." He smiled and winked. "Talk to you tomorrow. I'll get hold of Maxine first thing in the morning."
OOC,Who's [b]Melissa[/b]? Do you mean [b]Maxine[/b]?
[b]Bill[/b], if you're leaving, please let me know where you're going next. Then I can direct you to a new thread.
OOC,[b]Bill[/b] is returning to the thread linked below. Please stop reading the current thread at this point. [b]Barney[/b] remains in the current thread.
Barney turned on the set, which took about thirty seconds to warm up, so he poured the milk while it did. The dial was set to CBS, and the friendly face of anchor Walter Cronkite appeared on the screen.
Cronkite was giving a progress report on the Apollo 11 mission, which was well on its way to the moon now and was expected to arrive there in a few days. The news program played audio recordings sent by astronauts Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin, and Michael Collins from the Apollo 11 capsule earlier in the day. Cronkite also mentioned other news of the day. Casualties continued to mount in the Vietnam War. The so-called Soccer War, though Barney knew the game better as football, between Honduras and El Salvador, was still underway after three days. The Organization of American States was pushing for a cease-fire, but so far El Salvador had rejected it. Still, there was hope for a breakthrough in the talks soon. By the time the news report ended, it was 8:00 PM.
OOC,What time do you want to go to sleep, and is there anything else you want to do tonight?
ooc,Nothing else to do tonight except wait and sleep. Barney will be retiring early so he can wake up early, get a quick shower, some breakfast, and head on down to meet Maxine - barring other incidents.
Barney enjoyed the rest of his milk, turned off the TV, rinsed out the cup, and headed into the bathroom. There, he washed his face, brushed his teeth, and got undressed for bed.
In the bedroom, he hopped under the covers, grabbed up a book he had been reading titled "The Godfather" and read a couple chapters thinking that it would make a great movie.
Barney sat up and stretched. He looked toward the window, squinting at the sunlight streaming in. It was time to get busy. There was a lot to do. So the first thing he did was get out of bed, put a robe on, and get a tea kettle on the stove. Tea would get him moving right along. Once that was getting hot, he headed into the bathroom to brush his teeth, gargle, and shave.
OOC,Shoot... you're probably waiting on me to post something, huh? I was wondering why it was so quiet.
Barney downed his tea hastefully , burning his throat in the process. Then out the door he went. He had to meet back up with Maxine before she made her way to the university.
Barney headed outside shortly before 9:00, remembering that Maxine had said she would pick him up at that time. She spun by right on time and stopped beside him. Kathleen sat in the shotgun seat, so she had to have been all right after all. "Morning," said Maxine. "Hop in."
"Remember that old guy from the bathroom at the bar? The one who fingered Brian?" Barney looked out the window as he said, "That's the guy." Quickly, Barney ran through the encounter the night prior and briefed Maxine on the situation. A couple minutes later, he was summing up sharing everything except the bit about time travel "Anyway, he says he works with the cops and he's offering to help. I'm going to try to get in with you two on this dream research. I don't know if they'll let me... but might as well try."
"Yeah, he was in the library when we were there too," said Maxine. "He just keeps popping up everywhere."
"I should have known he was a pig," said Kathleen. "You really want to work with them?"
"We'll still do things our own way, Kathy. We'll be careful about what we tell him, and we'll get whatever information out of him we can. If the cops are investigating Professor Anderson just like us, then we should take full advantage of that. It's not like we're going to be narcing." She nodded to Barney. "Kathleen and I are already in, so if you can get into the experiment too, that would be cool. It might be hard on short notice, but it's worth a shot. Want me to spin you down to Anderson's building on campus? It's only a few blocks away."
"About Bill though... I get the feeling it's something more personal with him though. He won't be able to get us weapons to protect ourselves, but we can count on him for information." He rubbed his chin thoughtfully "And I think we can count on him if things go bad... provided he knows."
"Well, you talk to him if you want," said Kathleen. "I don't want anything to do with him."
John Morgan Hall, School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania 9:05 AM - Friday, July 18, 1969
Maxine parked in front of John Morgan Hall, the building housing Penn's School of Medicine. "Okay, here we are," she said. "Kathy and I were here yesterday, but Dr. Anderson wasn't. We got to be interviewed by his assistant, Professor Nancy Remington. She's kind of cute. You'll need to go to Room 322. That's Anderson's office. If he's not there, Remington's in 325, just down the hall on the other side."
Barney nodded and opened the door, "Cheers. See you later if all goes well." He shut the door behind him and headed in the building, up two flights of stairs, and sought his way to room 322.
Barney easily found Room 322. The office door was closed, but he could see that a light was on inside. A piece of paper secured to the door with Scotch tape indicated that Dr. Anderson currently had office hours.
ooc,Not sure what that means exactly. Does that mean he's here in his office, or that he's busy in some other office? or that he has office hours in general - which I may or may not be attending at this particular point in time?
Figuring someone was inside, Barney knocked and listened carefully to what was going on inside.
OOC,This is his office, and the sign says that he currently has office hours here.
By the way, I edited the earlier post where you were watching the news broadcast to correct a mistake I had made. It was El Salvador, not Honduras, that was rejecting the cease-fire calls.
Barney could hear wood scraping, the sort of sound that would be made by a chair being pushed back from a desk. Then footsteps approached the door from within. The door was opened by a tall, confident man in his upper forties, his brown hair streaked with hints of gray. A full beard covered his chin, and he wore glasses. He pushed the glasses further up his nose and peered at Barney. "Yes?" he said. "How can I help you, young man?"
"How fortunate," Barney said as he saw the door open. "Dr. Anderson, I presume? I was hoping to catch you before the big experiment started. Is it too late to offer myself as a lab rat as well? I am British, and perhaps that will offer you a wider demographic for your study group."
"Yes, I'm Dr. Anderson," he said. He shook Barney's hand firmly and stood aside to allow Richard to enter. "Please, come in." The office looked standard, with sunlight streaming in through the window at the back. A desk occupied the center of the room, with a leather chair behind it and another, less expensive chair in front of the desk and facing it. The desktop contained a blotter, a typewriter, a telephone, a lamp, and baskets labeled "IN" and "OUT." The baskets contained various papers. A short filing cabinet stood at the rear of the room beneath the window, and the sides of the office were lined with bookshelves filled with numerous books. Dr. Anderson went around behind the desk and sat down, steepling his fingers. "We have had all of the slots filled, but it's possible that one of the volunteers won't be able to make it this weekend. If you qualify, I can put you on the waiting list. I'll call you if there's an opening, and if I don't call and you're still interested you can show up at the lab at 8:00 PM and see if someone doesn't show. We don't have any foreign students in our group, so it would be useful to include you. Please, have a seat and I'll interview you. First I'll need your name and major."
Barney tries to think back to his lengthy discussions with the girls to see if he recalled what either of their majors were before answering.
Spoiler:
Know?,Does this dice thingy work yet?[dice]1d100[/dice] Whoops. Guess not. doesn't matter much if you allow it or not. Know (70%) (1d100=98)
Not recalling if the subject ever came up with the girls, Barney said, "I am studying Art, music mostly. I think there's a big future in the entertainment business. The name is Barney... Barney Miller."
Dr. Anderson jotted down some notes. "Okay, Mr. Miller," he said. "Do you take drugs? It won't automatically disqualify you if you do, but you'll have to stay off of them from this point forward for the duration of the experiment. They might have interactions with what we're testing, and mind-altering drugs could throw off the results. If you're taking any medications, I'll need to know about those as well."
"it's all right if you've consumed alcohol recently, as long as it wasn't this morning," said Dr. Anderson. "Most people don't drink in the morning unless they have a problem, however. You will need to abstain until the experiment is over. Where did you hear about the experiment, and why do you want to participate in it?"
"There's people all over campus talking about this, doctor. I just thought it would be a groovy sort of thing to do... I like to sleep. And if I can get paid to sleep, even better," Barney said with a smile.
"I had no idea word had gotten around so much," said Dr. Anderson, writing again. "I'd like to know more about your sleep habits. Tell me, do you recall your dreams? Do you dream in color, or in black and white? Have you ever had a dream when you were aware that you were dreaming, or where you were able to take control of the dream world?"
"You know... I never really paid attention to whether I dream in color or black and white. But I figure it must be in color. Dreamt of the Yellow Submarine once. I'd have to know it was yellow somehow, right?" Barney tried to be as candid as he could about this subject, as he didn't see that it mattered if he told the truth or not. "I don't remember ever having power over my dream, but there was a couple times when I did realize I was dreaming. I'd wake up moments after that. I think I dream every night, I just can't remember them all... or I forget all the details as I'm awake. It's weird that the only times I really remembered my dreams is when I immedately told someone what I dreampt right after I woke up. Is that normal?" He looked to the doctor for an answer.
"Yes, Mr. Miller, it's perfectly normal," said Dr. Anderson. "Only about one in six people dream in color, but it's not uncommon. Most people's memories of their dreams fade quickly after they awaken. That's why we will interview our subjects immediately after they awaken in the morning to get the details of their dreams before they're forgotten. Many people who wish to remember their dreams keep paper and pen by their bedside so they can write everything down quickly. Being aware that you're dreaming is called lucid dreaming, and it can happen occasionally. It is even possible for some people, once they're aware that they're dreaming, to be able to take control of the dream. Part of this experiement is to see if we can help you do that. You'll be suitable for the experiment. I can't guarantee you'll get in, but we'll see." He took a typewritten sheet of paper from his desk and passed it across to Barney, along with a ballpoint pen. "Please read and sign this waiver. It's required in order to participate, so we might as well get it out of the way now in case there is room for you. Is there a telephone number where I can reach you today? If I find out about a slot opening up before it's time for the experiment, I can let you know. Otherwise, you can show up and hope for the best. You'll be at the top of the waiting list. Everyone else who inquired didn't bother with the interview upon hearing that the experiment was full."
OOC,[b]Barney[/b], if you read the document, please roll Law.
Barney does read the thing he's signing, being in business he knows your name on the line is binding. Still, he doesn't know law well enough to know what it is exactly that he's signing. So he signs after a quick shrug. "It is hard to say where I might be today. Could I call you tonight instead? Or your assistant perhaps?"
"Professor Remington and I will be in and out of our offices today," said Professor Anderson, "but you're more likely to find her in hers than me in mine. I can give you our numbers. I'll be spending most of my time in the lab getting things set up for the experiment, and she'll join me there at 6:00. There is no telephone in the lab. We don't want the participants being awakened by it anyway. We've gone to some lengths to ensure that sound from outside the lab does not come in as well."
Barney nodded appreciatively grabbing a pen and some paper to jot down the numbers, "Ok... I'll try your offices between 5 and 6, and perhaps again around 8 to 9 tonight. Sound good? If I don't get lucky making contact, I'll just drive on down tomorrow morning regardlessly."
"Tomorrow morning?" said Dr. Anderson, confused. "But the experiment starts tonight at 8:00. I thought you knew that. You'd be required to sleep overnight in the lab for the next three nights, though you're free to keep your own schedule during the day. We'll be serving snacks in the evenings and breakfast in the mornings." He gave Barney his and Nancy's office phone numbers.
"Oh... tonight? Well, even better," Barney said enthusiastically. "If it'd be convenient, doctor, I could stick around today... you know... maybe help you get things prepared if you need a hand? I only had household chores to attend to. You know... shopping and the like? So it's no inconvenience to me just to hang around. That way, there won't be any chance of missing calls." He shrugged and added, "And even if you couldn't use a helping hand, I could go to the library and study up on my course material... or whatever. Chores can wait, they're a bit of a drag anyway." Barney pocketted the numbers regardless.
"Thank you," said Dr. Anderson, "but everything we need for the experiment has already been purchased. All that's left to do to set up for it is technical in nature. Besides, you shouldn't see the inner workings of the experiment. It might invalidate the results. I suggest that you get your chores and studying done. If you get into the experiment, you'll be spending a lot of time in the lab. You will be able to study there too for some of the time, of course, but you'd have to check books out of the library and bring them with you. How is it you've arranged your schedule without any Friday classes?"
"Just the usual things you'd bring on any overnight trip," said Dr. Anderson. "Nightshirt and toiletries are a good idea. Something to read too, perhaps. We will have a television, but not everyone will like what's on at any given time. Make sure you've already eaten dinner, but snacks and breakfast will be provided."
Barney nodded, and interjected a question, "Will eating just before sleep help or hinder the study, do you think? If I go to bed with a full stomach, I can have some really bizarre dreams." He laughed, "Why this one time, I recall being in this windowless room with these three women. Music playing, wavy lights shining on the walls, we started..." he laughed again and looked at the doctor then cleared his throat, "Well, nevermind all that."
"No, please go on," said Dr. Anderson, showing obvious interest. "I'd be eager to hear about your dreams. Yes, eating shortly before sleep may influence the results unduly, so we'll cut the snacks off at around 10:00 PM. Bedtime will be midnight."
Barney smiled, "Perhaps another time, doc. I'm sure you have a lot to take care of before tonight." He stood up and offered his hand to the man, "Thank you for considering me. I'm looking forward to this evening."
Anderson shook Barney's hand with a firm grip. "You're welcome, and I hope there's room for you. I'll be able to ask you more about your dreams this weekend if there is. Have a good day, Mr. Miller."
Barney left the office, making a mental note to himself about his alias so he didn't botch it up later. He had some time to kill, so he thought he'd take some time tryng to look for officer Bill. He wasn't sure where the fellow might be, but he imagined the man wouldn't be too far away from the university, so he checked in the library, cafeteria, and any local diners. If he came up short, he would head home and start packing an overnight bag.
It occurred to Barney that Bill's duties for the police and his investigation of the situation could send him anywhere, not just to the university, and he'd be unlikely to find him even if he were on campus. The one place he knew that Bill would have to go at some point was police headquarters.
Police Headquarters, Franklin Square - Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 10:30 AM - Friday, July 18, 1969
After packing his bag, Barney made his way back into town to police headquarters, where he arrived in late morning. He entered the vestibule, where a different desk sergeant than the one he had met the night before last sat behind the window. "Can I help you, sir?" he asked.
"Top of the day to you, Officer. I was wondering if you could point me to a Detective Sergeant Johns," Barney stated. "First name, Bill. He should be expecting to see me, I'm just not too certain he'd be here. My name is Barney Brainstorm."
"Let me check and see if he's in," said the sergeant. He picked up the phone and dialed.
OOC,You're somewhat ahead of [b]Bill[/b], so we'll need to pause here and wait for him to catch up with you before I know whether he'll be there or not.
"Hello, this is the lobby," said the desk sergeant. "Is Sergeant Johns there?" He paused. "Okay, thank you." He looked back at Barney. "I'm sorry, but he's out in the field. Would you like to speak to his colleagues? Sergeant Charlie Rawlings and Detective Harry Sawyer are upstairs."
"Can I just leave a message for him if he returns here before I see him? He asked for me to check on something for him as a favor," Barney lied. "I'll probably see him later anyway, but I wanted to check in and bring him up to speed if I could."
"Sure, you can leave a message," said the desk sergeant, taking out a slip of paper and a pen. He poised the pen to start writing. "You might also want to leave a phone number and an address where you can be reached."
Barney says "He already knows where to find me. My phone number is..." he went on advising the desk sergeant of his phone number and that he would be at the university campus that evening. He gave a time one hour prior to the start of the sleep study experiment and identified a convenient pubkic place where he would be waiting (library or cafeteria).
"I'll let him know, sir," said the sergeant, writing down the information. "Have a good day."
OOC,That will put the meeting at 7:00 PM. You've got plenty of time before then if there's something you want to do. If you go to a library, you'll have enough time for two Library Use rolls to research topics of your choice.
Library checks - #1 succeed & #2 succeed,[url=http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/3876458/]Library Use #1 (55%) (1d100=46)[/url] ; [url=http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/3876462/]Library Use #2 (55%) (1d100=46)[/url] ... heh, what are the odds of rolling two 46's in a row? Like 1 in 10,000 I think. But there it is on the logs. I figure I would be researching something I haven't already spent time checking up on. Done research on Dr. Anderson already. I can't recall much about what I had already learned, sadly. Suppose I spend the first portion just learning about dream psychology. I could spend the rest of it researching Dr. Anderson's assistant.
Van Pelt Library, University of Pennsylvania - Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 11:00 AM - Friday, July 18, 1969
Barney went to the main library on campus and began researching the psychology of dreams. There was a lot of material out there, so without a specific subject he was only able to get a broad overview in the few hours he was spending. Psychologists had been analyzing dreams for decades to learn something about the psyches of their patients. Dream interpretation had been done since ancient times, though only relatively recently had it become a science. Sigmund Freud, regarded as the father of psychology, believed that the purpose of dreams was to achieve the unfulfilled desires of the dreamer and thus keep the dreamer asleep throughout the night. He termed dreams the "royal road to the unconscious." He theorized that these desires were often related to early childhood wishes or memories. He broke down dreams into what he termed manifest and latent content, with manifest content being merely what happens on the surface in a dream and latent content being the dream's true meaning, hidden by the manifest content. As was typical with Freud, at first he held that most latent content was sexual in nature, but in later works he backed away from this. Freud also looked at the influence that trauma and aggression could have on the content of dreams, and he even speculated about the possible supernatural origins of dreams in his lecture Dreams and Occultism.
Carl Jung had studied under Freud, but he rejected many of his mentor's theories. Jung held that dreams were messages from the dreamer's unconscious mind, and that you should pay attention to your dreams for your own benefit, as it could help to reveal and solve problems. He believed that recurring dreams were especially important, as they were repeating the message for emphasis. He also said that memories from one's experiences during the day often affect one's dreams that night, which he termed a "day residue."
OOC,The odds are 1 in 10,000, yes, but the odds of rolling the same number twice in a row on 1d100 is only 1 in 100 if it doesn't matter what that number is. I've seen it happen before. Right now you're almost done with your first Library Use roll. Please roll Spot Hidden at this time before I continue.
OOC,[b]Barney[/b] is moving to the thread linked below.
You've also completed Chapter 1! At this point, you may roll for skill increases. I'll post instructions in the OOC thread.
