Part One - The Dead of Winter

[Mr. Handy]

"I'm sorry, Patrick," says Diana, blushing. "I didn't mean..." But he has already walked away. Aippaq is not going to be happy about being left out again, she thinks. Well, I did try.

[Cearlan]

OOC:   Oi, that is my secondary character you're all trying to put into play!!! I'm not even dead yet

OOC:   Sorry, although she is an Inuit guide, I was a bit quick off the mark there, expecting your response to Mr Handy's post if you didn't want her to go - simply remove her from the list, it's not a problem.

[Papa Gateau]

Jesse collects his pack, rifle and gear before returning to the team heading out. He says little but a small smile plays across his lips at Fraser's mention of an unknown inuit tribe. He sets about helping get the dog sleds prepared, happier working with the hounds than talking to his colleagues.

[ghill]

Patrick Lewis acknowledges Jesse's arrival in the storage shed with a nod towards rapidly growing pile of gear accumulating on the storage sheds floor. It all needs to go out, and the load split among the sleds.

[andyw666]

With rather naval efficiency, Fraser barrels inside and quickly attacks his packing. Roll of archaeological tools, torch, more whisky, tobacco, matches, notebooks and pencils, measuring tape, all into his backpack. Cold weather clothes and emergency kit. What else might I need? Magnifying glass, some spare ammunition... Fraser also tops up his tobacco pouch and hip flask. With a sigh, next Fraser straps his holstered revolver to his belt, the last line of polar bear defence.

Finally, he takes a quick visit to the 'head'. Last time above 30 Fahrenheit for a while. Might need to start eating less cheese too.

Donning his duffle coat, scarf and beanie, grabbing his backpack and collecting a double barrelled shotgun and shells, Fraser is back out to Lewis and the sleds in short order.

"Has anyone moved those poor frozen Inuit gents yet?"

OOC:   If not, Fraser will enlist the aid of a guide or two and manoeuvre the sled and/or deceased into a storeroom where they can start to thaw.

[dustakr]

Conroe finishes its note taking..moves out to see most of the lot has already gathered on ..'Where is Dr. Hamilton?..is he joining expedition or not?'

OOC,I don't know if I missed it, but where can I read about Dr Cornelius Brand and Jason Decker or they are NPCs?.

[Cearlan]

Once everyone is assembled and ready to go the party head out to the location that Poo-Yet-Tah and Chris had marked with a small cairn to help them find it again which they do with little difficulty, despite the falling snow and preternatural night. About five miles out from the camp a strong wind start to blow into your faces driving the snow, making it freeze on your clothing and nearly blinding you.

You enter the area where the cairn was raised, you observe that it is in a small depression so remains sheltered from the worst of the winds though a covering of snow does lies on the ground blanketing everything. On the Western edge of the depression is a small cliff face, standing about fifteen feet tall with the depression so the East of the cliff face. The cairn lies close to the cliff and the depression is about thirty to forty feet across.

OOC:   Spot hidden rolls please and tell me where you are searching - North 12 o'clock, east 3 etc.

dustakr,Here is a link for you bud and yes they are NPC's. [url]http://www.callofcthulhu.org.uk/pbp/viewtopic.php?f=332&t=5424[/url]

[ghill]

Patrick Lewis walks along the edge of the cliff face being careful he then starts working from the centre of the site spiralling outwards all the looking for sign.

Skills,Patricks Spot Hidden 45: [dice]0[/dice] Patrick Track 50 [dice]1[/dice].

[drone232]

Seeing how Lewis has already began searching the middle of the crater, Professor Richard Harding begins examinging the Northern rim of the crater edge. He uses his gloved hand to wipe away any snow that looks to be concealing something while examining every inch of ground through his cloth mask.

Spot Hidden skill 45 and I roll
[dice]0[/dice]

Ultimately, he finds nothing and looks towards the others to see if they show signs of having found something.

[dustakr]

Conroe starts walking towards cliff face opposite to cairn..keeping track of other people around him..not disturbing anyone..he starts to scrape rock near cliff face with pocket knife and eventually starts using rock hammer to collect samples for later studies..

spot hidden,[dice]0[/dice]

[andyw666]

Fraser is a bit leery of giant killer polar bears so unslings his shotgun and carries it resting across his right arm (pheasant shootin' style), with his torch in his left. North and west of the cairn seem currently covered so Fraser heads to the south of the depression and starts searching from the cairn to the edge of the depression.

Spot Hidden,[color=#FF0000]Fraser's Spot Hidden skill is 60% and he rolls... [dice]0[/dice][/color]

[Cearlan]

Chris shows the group where the bodies were found while Poo-Yet-Tah stood watch on the top of the cliff, eyes alert for anything untoward.

Patrick,You see about twenty feet to the South West of the location of where the cairn was lain, a slightly raised hummock. Clearing the snow off he can see the butt of a rifle. Any tracks that there were, are now completely covered with snow.

Richard,You are about ten foot away from the cairn to the North when you step on something that gives way under your foot, slightly twisting your ankle. As you sit rubbing the sore ankle, you look at the area you had stood on you see the broken runner of a sledge. Scraping the snow away along it's length, you see, forlornly that it is embedded in something. Clearing more snow away you see that it is in fact skewering a husky's head, a head that is not attached to a body anymore.

[ghill]

Patrick Lewis

Patrick makes it clear to everyone that he has found something then clears away the snow from around the rifle. Making sure its safe first he picks it up.

OOC:   Taking a look at it what state is the rifle in - loaded/fired/made safe etc? Does it look as though its been dropped or thrown at this location?

[Cearlan]

Patrick Lewis

OOC:   Taking a look at it what state is the rifle in - loaded/fired/made safe etc? Does it look as though its been dropped or thrown at this location?

Patrick,The rifle butt belongs to a smashed 30.06 bolt action rifle. It is broken into several pieces but from what you can see, there is only one round remaining. A severed finger is frozen to the trigger indicating that it was wrenched from the bearer with some force. This also shows that whoever was wielding this weapon managed to get at least a few shots off before meeting their grisly end. As well, you can see, under parts of the rifle, a pair of dogs rear legs that looks as though the dog had been torn in two.

[ghill]

Patrick Lewis

Placing the gun and dogs legs carefully on top of the snow for everyone to see. "Whatever it was they put up a fight"

[Cearlan]

After spending about an hour searching, the party will have discovered the remains of a two man sled, a pair of smashed lightweight kayaks, the remains of a dismembered seal and a pair of dogs, sans one foreleg and a torso. it seemed they were on the way back to their camp following a successful hunting expedition. The debris was spread over quite a wide area ... and as Chris had described, it did indeed look as though a shell had struck and struck hard. Whatever had caused this had obviously found the Inuit, their dogs and equipment to be excellent playthings, as it proves to be spread over a large radius, exceeding the 'boundaries' of the depression.

[drone232]

"This is all quite disturbing" states Professor Harding. Whatever killed this hunting party seems to have destroyed them all with unnerving ease. Moreover, it seems that most of the bodies are intact indicating that whatever did this did not kill them for food. It may have killed them for territorial reasons, or possibly some purpose which I cannot currently fathom. What I do know is that I now have a slight fear of this creature should we find it"

[Cearlan]

OOC:   Having exhaustively searched the area, what next?

[ghill]

Patrick Lewis,

Patrick is worried, whatever attacked the men clearly also attacked the dogs and the evidence seems to indicate that it made no effort to eat either men nor dogs. A polar bear is the apex predator in the North, it will confidently stalk and kill men, but it does so because it see's everything else as food, it does not kill for sport. Patrick looks to the top of the cliff wondering wether it might provide a good view point to survey the area.

OOC:   Is it possible to make it to the top of the cliff by moving east or west, so Patrick can ascend without climbing the cliff?

[Cearlan]

As Patrick looks to the top of the cliff, such as it is, he can plainly see the shape of Poo-Yet-Tah standing guard and looking out to the west, rifle slung across his shoulder.

Patrick,The cliff stands about fifteen feet or so high at the centre and it gently slopes down on either side should you choose to join the guide in his vigil