Dunwich Museum - Dunwich, England 11:50 AM - Thursday, September 5, 1985
The door opened, and a bell overhead tinkled. Elizabeth, Lucius, and Brook entered. The visitors entered a vestibule that opened up into a larger interior area. Within, they could see a counter along the exterior wall with a cash register. Shelves behind it stocked postcards, books, and various other items that might be found in a museum gift shop, including disposable cameras. In the room were a number of displays, the ones nearest the entrance depicting Dunwich's origins as a Roman fort. The style looked vaguely familiar to Lucius, but the exhibits didn't look entirely so. Further inside, they saw a woman of about average height and around fifty years old, only a few wrinkles decorating her face. She was talking with three men near some of the exhibits.
"Excuse me," said the woman. She walked away from the men, towards the new visitors. "Welcome to the Dunwich Museum. I'm Amelia Cressy, the curator."
Lucius Verres,[b]Lucius[/b] recognized the men. He had seen them in the large chariot when he had been waiting outside the museum.
Salem Shields,[b]Salem[/b] recognized the new arrivals. They had been waiting outside the museum earlier. There had been another man with them, but there was no sign of him now.
Lucius reached up and rang the entrance bell once with his finger, smiling at the simplicity of it. Then he stepped over to the image of a Roman fort as the woman approached. When she spoke, he turned away from the image and nodded. "How do you do, Amelia Cressy. I am Lucius Verres, a simple patron," he said with a wink. "We have come to explore the rich history of your beloved town. I trust we have come to the right place?"
His eyes darted over to the three men that he recognized from outside earlier and he wondered if the men were sent there to confront them. He expected trouble, he just didn't know from whence it would come.
"You certainly have, sir," said Amelia, beaming. "Admission is free, but we do suggest a donation of one pound each. This museum is run on a purely volunteer basis and depends entirely on donations. I myself draw no salary."
Raymond nodded as Amelia went off to help the new customers and turned to Chad and Salem. "Strange town here, with so much history you would think the city would be doing better, especially if one person owns a good chunk of it - I mean if only one person owns the place you would think he'd take care of it." He continued to poke around the various Roman displays - he always admired the ability of the Romans to adapt to and assimilate other cultures and people as some sort of imperial machine. "I think I might have to visit Dr. Strong again and ask some more direct questions. But most importantly we have to figure out what happened to Valerie Kirby."
Brook blushes a little, since she'd just given Story all her money. "Uhm...could we come back and donate? We've just been travelling, and forgot to change our money back to the current...ah....currency..."
"Oh, of course, Miss," said Amelia. "That's no problem at all. Feel free to look around all you like, and if you want to make a donation later, you may."
CrackheadC. wrote:"I think I might have to visit Dr. Strong again and ask some more direct questions. But most importantly we have to figure out what happened to Valerie Kirby."
Chad nods slowly. "Should we head there now or let the others know before doing so?"
Lucius smiled politely and nodded to the woman and promised, "Thank you, Amelia. History is very dear to me... so I will make it a point to return with a donation."
Leaning in towards the group as Salem faces the new patrons that have walked in, Salem briefly comments, "we can also follow Valerie's footsteps and head down to the beach to meet Mr.Baker. I think we've stayed here long enough, we should head back to our hotel to check with the rest of our team of our new leads. But before we head out, I'd like to pick up a few things at the giftshop", with a big grin across Salem's face.
OOC,Handy: can I get a time check on how long we have been out of the Inn. I tend to lose track of time in this game fairly often. I think it's only been about 30 minutes. So far.
Others: Just so we can get our heads on straight lets keep track of our leads for a second. Dr. Strong to talk about treating the diseased folks. Mr. Baker to follow up on Valerie. Maybe something on that receptionist for lying to us about Valerie leaving Dunwich. Anything else?
Invis. Castle down,Please feel free to roll on my behalf until we work out a nice, agreeable alternative.
Lucius picked up a familiar name. When the strangers in the museum mentioned Mr. Baker, the Roman looked directly at them. "Mr. Baker?" He walked closer to the other men he did not know fairly sure they weren't going to try anything in such a public place. "Zeke Baker?" he asked for clarification. "I'm afraid he and a friend of ours headed out to do some fishing. You probably won't him for a couple or three hours I'd imagine."
Raymond turned to the new arrival, "Oh is that so? That's too bad. We were hoping to talk to him about some of Dunwich's more recent history and if he had seen a friend of ours. Ms. Cressy here said he's the man to talk to."Raymond looks disappointed for a moment before shaking his head and extending his hand. "Where are my manners? My name is Raymond, nice to meet you mister....?"
OOC,It's been about fifteen minutes since you left the inn. I timestamp every thread at the top of the initial post, so you can always look back.
Feel free to use Dark and Moody's dice roller, or any other online roller of your choice, or simply roll physical dice.
Idea Check Failed,http://darkandmoodyforums.com/cgi-bin/dm/YaBB.pl?action=logrolldisplay
At the mention of these people being interested in the history of the place, the Roman smiled. He knew now they were not locals. They might even be trusted after all. Lucius introduced himself, "Lucius Verras, and my companions Elizabeth and Brook. Just a stab in the dark here... but your friend's name, would it happen to be Valerie Soames?"
Salem quickly glanced at his friends to gauge their reaction to this new development. Scared yet strangely intrigued, he glanced back at the stranger Lucius to get a read off of him. Salem opens up, "why yes, we were to meet up with Valerie Soames at the Ship Inn but haven't heard from her since. Do you happen to know her whereabouts?"
OOC,Everyone may roll Psychology (or Insight for [b]Lucius[/b]). With Invisible Castle still down, you may use an alternate online dice roller such as Dark and Moody or physical dice, posting your results in an OOC comment like this one.
Lucius says, "She said something about going back to the Inn. She probably just missed you." He smiled knowing his little act must look like some sort of parlor trick. "She gave us a ride in her chariot earlier." He shot a glance to Brook and Elizabeth a second, then back to Salem, "We only parted with Mr. Baker a short while ago. If you hurry, you might catch him. But he could be at the docks by now."
Raymond grimaced as Salem mentioned Valerie Soames - the little old lady. These people weren't supposed to know that they knew each other. "Right, she will probably be there now."Raymond thinks for a second.... Did that man say 'chariot' when he meant car? Who talks like that?
"What about a Dr. Valerie Kirby? Do you know her?"Raymond asks.
Brook shakes her head. "No. The old lady was asking about her to. The writer guy thought maybe she'd gone diving. But there's quite big fish in the water around here. I hope she's allright." The teenage girl shrugs a little, with look to her friends.
Brook Davies,[spoiler]I rolled Psychology for you on Dark and Moody and got a 5, a critical success.[/spoiler]
[b]Brook[/b] got the sense that these three men were being secretive, as though they had something to hide. She could tell this because she herself had some of the same mannerisms, as she had her own secrets. They were acting kind of like secret agents whose cover was in danger of being blown. The one who was speaking to [b]Lucius[/b] seemed to recognize him, as well as [b]Brook[/b] and [b]Elizabeth[/b]. He also seemed as suspicious of the three of them as [b]Lucius[/b] was of the strangers.
"Diving? What for?"Raymond gave a small laugh at the big fish comment, "I'm sure the fish aren't big enough to keep her down there for days. It's been some time since we heard from her." He turned his attention towards Ms. Cressy, "Is there some place in town that our friend could have gotten diving equipment, for rent or otherwise? I don't think she brought her own with her."
"Looked big enough to me," Brook says, looking at them with rising suspiscion. She looks to Elisabeth, and moves closer to her, leaning in to whisper in her hear:"There's definitely something fishy about them...."
Lucius looked over his shoulder at the museum curator and guided the men away from her as he spoke more softly, "I can tell you three aren't locals. Be careful of them. Something is not right in this town, and I suspect we are all in danger if we overstay our welcome or ask too many questions. There is something unusual in the waters here, something not fish nor human... something that can walk out of the water and haul away something very heavy. We haven't seen it yet, but we've seen evidence of it." He straightened and smiled saying a little louder now, "Perhaps we should meet up again later and compare notes on what we find about the history of this fair town? It is rather fascinating."
"Why, yes," said Amelia to Raymond. "There's a chap name of Horsham a bit south of here, on the beach. He rents boats and diving equipment. There aren't any actual docks in Dunwich, not any more. When it was a major city, it had a harbor that saw a lot of traffic, but that harbor is under water now. The local fishermen just take their boats to the beach and launch them."
Elizabeth Young,[b]Elizabeth[/b] got the sense that these three men were being secretive, as though they had something to hide. She could tell this because she had some of the same mannerisms, as she had her own secrets.
"Yes I agree," whispers Elizabeth to Brook. She nods her head towards their companion. "Well we'll see how they respond to Lucius. Looks as though he is trying to break the ice."
"Thanks Ms. Cressy, We'll have to talk to Horsham later."Raymond says, and turns to Lucius to respond. "That's uh..." He pauses for a few moments to collect his thoughts. "Yeah, we aren't locals. That's strange - giant walking fish? I find it hard to believe... but I suppose that isn't the only strange thing about this town."
He shifts on his feet, "I wouldn't mind comparing notes later - we have to run down a few more things today, but I wouldn't mind meeting up with you all later to see what you know about the town - any bit helps. Thank you, Mister.... Verras? Where were you all from?"
Mr Handy,Any relevant rolls I can make to recognize the sort of fish creature he is talking about?
"Rome," Lucius responded... "originally at any rate, before I was invited into grand adventure with my friends here." Lucius looked to the girls and asked, "Is there anything else you'd like to discuss with these nice gentlemen?"
Elizabeth grins at Brook's comment. "Yes what's your interest in Dunwich? History, tourism or something more intriguing? And, as you can probably tell, I'm Scottish." She smiles.
Raymond laughed, "MI6? Hah no, nothing quite so dramatic. I'm just a scientist - looking into what I hope is a localized anomaly." He awkwardly extends his hand to greet the two women. "A Roman, a Scot, and a Londoner walk into a museum... sounds like the set-up to a bad joke." He smiles, "I'm from the States myself, but I've lived in Oxford and London for the latter part of my life. I do miss it though, the wide open expanses, the untouched nature, and the people using whatever ingenuity they have and their own two hands to strike out or work the land. England, and even big cities in the States just never had the same feel to me."
He nods to Lucius, "I have to say, your English is quite good for being from Italy, but then again I suppose it would have to be if you're traveling so much that you end up in backwater cities like this..." He gives an apologetic look to Ms. Cressy, "No offense meant, ma'am."
"Your English. I mean to say you understand English really well."Raymond looks confused and embarrassed for a moment. "Oh... You only said you were from Rome, that doesn't mean you haven't lived anywhere else. I just assumed that Italian would be your first language."
"A scientist. And you're all looking for a Valerie. Who was also a scientist? Or something like that? The little old lady was no scientist. She said she was looking for relatives of her late husband. And yet, she was looking for Valerie to..." Brook muses.
"Stamus contra malum", hoping that Lucius would catch on to his subtle statement instead of a direct overture that seemed to upset Raymond. Salem gave pause to see Lucius caught his intention, he continued "you're pulling our leg to say Latin is your language!"
Salem recited a rhyme he remembered when he struggled learning Latin back in medical school.
"Latin is a language,
Dead as Dead Can Be,
First it Killed the Romans,
Now It's Killing Me."
Salem entertaining with the idea of Lucius wearing a Centurion helmet with the symbolic mohawk crest.
Raymond chuckled after Salem says Stamus contra malum, "Hah! That is one way to put what we do." His smile fades slightly, "Well, you've given us the third degree, care to tell us what brings you to Dunwich?"
Lucius nodded to the gentlemen and their statement, "I guess you could say it is the same for us." He looked at Brook and asked, "What does he mean Latin is a dead language?"
In response to their question, the Roman answered "Waiting for the Something Bad to happen," mostly to himself. "Something bad always happens shortly after we arrive."
Brook looks at Lucius and shrugs. "Latin's just not the talk of the town anymore, Lucius. Not unless you're a Catholic priest or a doctor, I guess. Not necessarily a catholic doctor. Just a regular one."
When he mumbles about the big bad happening, she frowns a little. Something already had.
"Sounds like you have a bit of Murphy's Law luck too. We've had our number of run-ins with it already so far." Raymond gives Chad and Salem a look with a slight grin before lowering his voice to a whisper for them and the newcomers to hear, "Listen guys you seem fairly on the up and up, if not being a strange sort. I have a bit of a proposition. We're here from a lab because one of our friends, and a top researcher, went missing here. She was investigating any environmental causes of a disease a recent... person of interest developed before he tragically ended his life."Raymond plows through not bothered by the contents of his discussion, "The disease made the man almost amphibious looking. Our friend was sent to Dunwich to look into it as reports stated it developed in the man after his visit here. However, our friend has stopped reporting in under rather suspicious circumstances if I say so myself, so we came to look for her."
Raymond continues, "We arrived just today and we have seen people in town who have very similar disfigurements as well. My main concern is that we are just scientists and security, I have a feeling it will be quite difficult to find anyone in a small town that doesn't want the person found." He glances at Chad and Salem before finishing, "What I'm saying is, a few friendly extra eyes wouldn't hurt. And maybe if you help us," he looks at Lucius, "when your something bad comes along, we might be able to help. Quid pro quo, you understand?"
Chad chuckles and smiles a little nervously at the mention of his piloting error, but at least he is able to laugh about it now... was that a bad thing? He runs his fingers subconsciously down the deep scars on his face, not necessarily trying to hide them (he'd long since gotten over the embarrassment for the deep mars on his flesh) and listens with no small amount of incredulity as Raymond goes into detail about their task at hand. But when the offer is made at the end, he nods and looks for a reply from the group.
"I think we'd be happy to help," says Elizabeth, looking to the others. "Yes? As I said we're chance visitors here, but we've noticed some very strange things since we arrived. And we are a little bit stuck here at the moment. Anything we could do to find out what is going on might help us as well."
Brook nods. "Yeah, I can think of better times to get stuck in. I mean stuck. Amphibious means some kind of water animal, right? Like frogs or fish? Or giant sea monsters that can haul things into the ocean?"
"You didn't see potentially non-existent monsters, but they took something of yours that you want back? What did they take and how do you know?"Raymond asks, "It could just as easily be some villagers looking to make a buck off of visitors."
"It's not easy to explain, but it, our transport mechanism, was dragged into the sea," says Elizabeth. "We left it parked on the beach. When we came back it was gone and there were grooves in the sand showing it had been dragged into the sea. It would have been far too heavy for villagers to move easily, even with a vehicle to drag it. And Lucius did see strange things in the sea."
Chad, slightly unnerved by all this talk, does the sensible thing and makes sure the museum curator is not listening to this rather strange conversation...
Noticing this, "Perhaps we should move this conversation elsewhere?" Chad tries to lead the group elsewhere. To Brook and Elizabeth, he adds conversationally, "Fancy a tea?"
"Perhaps we should take a quick tour of the museum first, now that we're here?" Brook looks to her friends. The museum wasn't her first choice, but sometimes when strange things occurred, it was good to do a little research of the place. "We could meet up for tea afterwards, at the Inn, for instance."
"Well, we have the tour to finish ourselves actually, so how about we stick it out and leave together." Raymond turns and gives Ms. Cressey a smile, trying to be non-nonchalant about their conversation, "if that is alright with you of course."
"Oh, of course," said Amelia, seeming a bit distracted. "Shall I start over with the Roman exhibits, for the sake of our new arrivals, or do you want me to pick up again where I left off?"
"Excuse me fellas, I think I'll head back to the Ship Inn". Salem leaned in towards Chad and Raymond so Amelia was out of an earshot, "our colleagues are still waiting at the Ship Inn so I'll keep in touch with them". Salem glanced at the newly found allies and thought to himself, 'what a strange ragtag bunch of misfits', he wasn't too sure what to judge these characters as they seemed more out of place than himself and his friends. 'Too convenient' Salem thought to himself.
"Amelia would you mind if I look at the giftshop for a moment? It'd only take a second of your time, I promise".
"Sure," said Amelia, turning to Elizabeth, Brook, and Lucius. "Excuse me. I'll be back in a bit to begin the tour." She led Salem over to the gift shop. "Is there something here that strikes your fancy?"
"Disposable camera, a lighter or matches, and do you happen to have a tacky coffee mug that says Dunwich across it or something?"Salem eyes lit up as he passed through the giftshop. "Oh! A few postcards, a pen and notebook would be terrific as well".
Lucius nodded politely to Salem as he departed and looked to the others when they suggested the Roman exhibit. "Ah... yes. That would be nice."
Museum question,Wasn't this a local museum housing historical artifacts relevant to the place at hand? Had no idea it was large enough to have a Roman exhibit.
"Our mugs are not tacky," said Amelia to Salem, "but we do have some." She gathered a disposable camera, a lighter, a mug with a picture of an anchor that said "Dunwich" on it, a selection of postcards, a notebook with an aerial picture of Dunwich on the cover, and a pen with nautical designs and "Dunwich" on it. She put all of these things into a gift bag with similar designs, which she placed on the counter. "That will be seven pounds fifty, please."
Elizabeth, Lucius, and Brook examined the Roman exhibits, which were closest to the door. There was a model of a Roman fort in a glass case. Lucius could see that the fortifications looked like standard Roman ones. Not far from the model was a tall display case containing a variety of Roman artifacts, including a small silver coin and a helmet. Lucius could not recognize the face of the man on the coin, but the inscription referred to him as Hadrian. The helmet was missing its crest. The artifacts did look vaguely familiar to Lucius, but there was something about their style that was indefinably different.
OOC,[b]Elizabeth[/b] and [b]Brook[/b], please roll History. [b]Lucius[/b], I'm afraid this is after your time.
This is a local museum with artifacts that are historically relevant to Dunwich, but it was once a major city and center of commerce, and before that it was the site of a Roman fort. There are Viking exhibits here too.
OOC pass history roll,[url=http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/4037665/]Rolling History (stat 70%) on looking at the Roman exhibits in Dunwich museum (1d100=34)[/url]
Elizabeth Young,[b]Elizabeth[/b] of course recognized Hadrian as the name of a Roman Emperor in the early Second Century AD, known for the construction of Hadrian's Wall. The coin was a Roman denarius, minted during his reign. The helmet looked like a standard legionary's helmet. Normally the crest indicated the soldier's rank. A regular legionary would have a crest that went front to back like a mohawk, but a centurion would have a crest that went left and right instead. The fact that it was missing was not a surprise, as it would not have been likely to survive all this time, but it made it impossible to tell the soldier's rank.
"That's a second century Roman coin," says Elizabeth to the others. "Emperor Hadrian, he who built the wall to keep out us Scots!" She laughs. "Looks like a legionary's helmet. No crest though, so we can't tell the soldier's rank."
Lucius eyed the artifacts curiously. 2nd century... Lucius had come to realize with their travels that there was a defining point in time where they used as a 0 point, although he didn't really understand all the nuances behind this mysterious Jesus of Nazareth and why he should be a defining point. Surely, the defining point should have been the rise of the Roman culture since it was so influential across the lands. But it didn't matter much one way or another, he guessed. He did know that 2nd century must have been after his time. The Romans had managed to secure this area at some point, and from what he gathered over various conversations... Romans were quite a global power. He wondered where they failed and why they had been diminished to an almost forgotten culture with a dead language.
"These aren't like the ones I remember," Lucius said matter-of-factly looking at the helmet. "Similar, yet subtly different. I just can't put my finger on what is so different about them." He pointed to the coin and asked Elizabeth, "Was Hadrian an Emperor from the 2nd century as well?"
"Yes, in the first half of the second century AD," says Elizabeth. "So about 200 years after the time you're more familiar with. He travelled widely, and if I remember correctly he was a good emperor. He also favoured Greek fashions." She pauses to peer more closely at the coin, before continuing: "Look, you can almost make out the beard in his image on the coin."
Raymond simply followed along with the others until the tour caught up to their last point, but listened to the newcomers' discussion.
"Wow, I am quite impressed Ms. Elizabeth. You seem to really know your history. Never really picked up on it honest, sort of funny considering... but it was never my strong suit."
"You're quite welcome, sir," said Amelia, ringing up the sale and handing the gift bag to Salem. "Thank you, and please come again." She came out from behind the counter and joined the group around the Roman exhibits, smiling at Elizabeth. "You are quite the historian, Miss. It's always a pleasure to meet someone so knowledgeable. You could probably do my job if you wanted. Of course, it doesn't pay anything."
"I'm a schoolteacher, so used to low pay," laughs Elizabeth. "But yes, I'm a history teacher, and studied history and archaeology for my degree. So seeing all this is a real treat for me. But I'm sure there will be much still for me to learn. I only know a little about Dunwich already."
Lucius repeats, "Considering?" He looked to Raymond and asked leaning inward, "Considering what, exactly?" He was wondering if there weren't more of those little blue boxes roaming the timeline.
"Ah, well, you're in for a treat, then," Amelia told Elizabeth. "I'm sure you'll learn a lot, and your students will probably be interested to learn about Dunwich too. We have educational materials available that you might like. I can show them to you afterwards, but let's resume the tour now." She motioned to the model of the fort. "When the Romans arrived two thousand years ago, the shoreline was a mile further out, but it was already suffering from constant erosion. Dunwich had a bay in those days, and the Romans built a port there for the purpose of trading with the Continent. Many of their roads led to Dunwich then as well. It was an important center for commerce. They built a fort here that would have looked much like the one in the model." She gestured to the window. "Right outside is St. James's Street. Back then, Romans would have walked up and down it."
Insight - success!,[url=http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/4041592/]Insight(63%) (1d100=51)[/url]. Strange how the dice buttons are there in the message editor even if the forum isn't set up to use the code. :P
Lucius nodded, seemingly accepting Raymond's response, and then looked back at the fort with growing interest. "To think, my relatives could have been teaming in the streets. How interesting it would be to see the fort first hand. I wonder just how different the inside would be to what I am accustomed to." He asked Amelia, "Do you have a drawing of the rooms interior to the fort? The way it might have been? And do you think the fort remains intact under the seas?"
Brook wanders deeper into the museum, grimacing a bit when she thinks of that time in Rome. She stops at the first monter she comes to, waiting for the others to catch up.
Lucius Verres,[b]Raymond[/b] had been a little too quick to try to explain what he had meant about not knowing much about history, "considering." There seemed to be some other explanation for what he had really meant.
"Well, Roman forts were fairly standard," said Amelia. "One looks much like another. While we don't know what the inside of this particular fort looked like, we have a pretty good idea from all of the Roman forts that are not submerged. If you walk around to the other side of the model, you can see a cutaway view." She led Lucius behind the model fort, where he could see that the rear wall had been cut short so that he could see inside. Tiny pieces of furniture and interior doors were visible. "As you can see, this is the fort commander's room. The main barracks are over there, and while they're larger overall, each individual soldier had far less room. I don't know what if anything remains intact of the actual fort under the water, but any wood would have rotted by now. Still, there may be metal artifacts intact down there."
Brook walked over to the Saxon exhbiits, where she saw a stained glass panel. A placard indicated that it was a portrait of St. Felix, the first Bishop of Dunwich.
Salem stepped outside and headed east down St. James's Street. He reached the Ship Inn a few doors down, at the intersection, and the beach was visible off to the east.
Salem Shields,[b]Salem[/b] spotted [b]Leonek[/b], [b]Tobias[/b], [b]Valerie[/b], and [b]Elliot[/b] out on the beach near the shoreline. They were clustered around a square depression in the sand where something heavy had apparently once stood. A furrow was gouged in the sand leading from the impression to the sea. In the sand were footprints. One set looked normal, and led across the beach from one end to the other. Another set was a bit too large to be human, leading to and from the water's edge. The furrow seemed to have eliminated most traces of them, but he was just able to make them out. The tide had come in somewhat since they had arrived, but it still hadn't reached the spot. The tracks were vaguely foot-shaped, though they seemed to be clawed, as if they were left by an animal. This was belied by the fact that they were bipedal. Whatever had left them had walked upright.
[b]Tobias[/b] turned and waved to him.
"Are you ready to follow me to the exhibits on Saxon times?" Amelia asked Lucius. "It looks like your friends are already over there."
Lucius took one last look at the Roman exhibits and then to the museum guide and said, "Certainly Amelia." Although... there was something obviously sad in his eyes, a look of regretting to leave the familiarity. "I am given to understand that over time, coral can affix and grow on submerged boats. Is it not possible that the wooden beams could have been encased and thus kept the integrity of the interior of the fort?"
Brook reads the plaque about bishop Felix, then looks to Elizabeth. "Weren't Robin Hood a Saxon? We should go visit sometime. Merry men seems a lot more fun than scary mermen."
Raymond followed along with the others, "I've heard that Robin Hood was something of a moniker given to outlaws during the time - it's possible that the story of Robin Hood is an amalgamation of many outlaws' stories."Raymond was more interested in the new arrivals than the museum at the moment, but the closer they got to the more contemporary history of Dunwich the more it interested him again.
"I suppose it's possible," Amelia told Lucius, "but I'm not sure if coral grows around here." She led him over to the Saxon exhibits where the others were gathered. "I've also heard that Robin Hood was a composite," she said to Raymond, nodding. "In any case, this was still before his time. After the Roman Empire declined and the Romans withdrew from Britain, the Angles and Saxons began plundering the east coast and eventually settled down. Like the Romans before them, the Saxons recognized the area's potential for commerce. It became a great centre for trade with the Continent. In the seventh century A.D., the Saxon king of East Anglia decided to convert to Christianity, and he brought his friend, a monk named Felix, to Dunwich from his native Burgundy to convert the people. He became known as Saint Felix, and he was the first bishop of Dunwich. Here is a portrait of him." She indicated the panel of stained glass. "It was from that point that Dunwich became a centre for religion as well as commerce, and the construction of churches for which the town became famous began. Aethilwald was the last bishop of Dunwich, in the ninth century, and his seal can be found in the British Museum in London, but we have a replica of it here." She pointed it out.
"Dunwich must have been quite populous to have had a bishop between the seventh and ninth centuries," muses Elizabeth. "Do you know how many people lived here roughly then, even at a guess?" she asks Amelia.
