[IC - MEXICO] Back at the Hotel

A decade ago, a band of occult investigators battled against the summoning of an ancient and monstrous evil. They failed. Now you must piece together the puzzle and finish what they could not. The stakes are high, and so is the price to pay. Can you do it?

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[IC - MEXICO] Back at the Hotel

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You say goodbye to Elena and join Clarence outside, waiting with Victor, then drive your cars back to the hotel. You periodically check for tails from your rear window, but no suspicious vehicles catches your attention. It's about mid-afternoon by the time you reach your destination. The sun is setting and the air is cooling to a pleasant temperature.

As soon as you enter the main hall, Christopher is surprised to see a familiar face, sitting at a table and drinking while lost in thought: Professor Jonathan Cornwell, from back in Boston.

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Christopher and Jonathan,Christopher left the name of [b]Janet Winston Rogers[/b] and her secretary, [b]Tomas Foster[/b], to a few selected friends and colleagues, in case they needed to contact him. Jonathan spoke to Tomas and offered his help, curious about the investigation. After a couple of days, in which Jonathan supposes a background check happened, he was told the name of the hotel in Mexico City the group was stayimg at, and immediately headed there. He arrived this afternoon and have been waiting for them for the last hour. Jonathan also received a letter from Tomas, to give to the other investigators as soon as he meets them.
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Re: [IC - MEXICO] Back at the Hotel

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Hello, there, Christopher! So good to see you again. Its been far too long.
The Professor gets up and shakes Christopher's hand firmly and looks around at the others in Fontana's group.
I'm afraid I'm at a disadvantage, madam and good gentlemen, as I don't believe we've ever met.
Please allow me to introduce myself. My name is Jonathan Cornwall, Associate Professor of Archaeology at the University of London.
It seems that my sabbatical from teaching this semester has left me with quite a bit of free time on my hands so I decided to look for a little excitement.
Please forgive me, Christopher, I heard you might be able to use a little help on this one. I hope you don't mind me coming down here unexpectedly.
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Re: [IC - MEXICO] Back at the Hotel

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"A pleasure to meet you," says Holly with a smile. "I'm Holly Chastain. I've actually been learning about archaeology recently, though I've only just scratched the surface compared to you. My field of expertise is psychoanalysis, but I'm also a medical doctor."
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Re: [IC - MEXICO] Back at the Hotel

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"I am Doctor Liu, doctor of medicine, specialises in Chinese Acupuncture. Pleasure to meet you, Professor Cornwell" Huang Yan Liu said, seeing a potential 'customer' to shamelessly advertise to, "And also, a master of an ancient Chinese art by the name of Suan Ming, an intricate method of reading and foretelling of your true destiny. For only $4.99 per session, you too, could control your destiny and place fate in your own hands with these ancient wisdoms passed down through generations upon generations of Taoist He Shangs as first created by the amazingly ancient and reverent Wu Dang Shan Zhu Shao-Lin-Si Ban Shi Chu Da Shen Fu Wang La Ma."

It sounded convincing, even to him. An 'amicable and friendly' smile played at his lips as rubbed his fingers together.
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Re: [IC - MEXICO] Back at the Hotel

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Christopher Fontana

"Well this is an unexpected pleasure!" Christopher says shaking Cornwell's hand warmly and claps the other academic on the back.
OOC:   After introductions ...  
"So, tell me how you ended up here Jonathan? I wasn't aware that anyone knew I would be in Mexico.
Spoiler:
Christopher isn't unduly suspicious - but he would like to know how Jonathan turned up here.
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Re: [IC - MEXICO] Back at the Hotel

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"Well, Christopher, it seems you've surrounded yourself with doctors. I do hope you're feeling well, old chap" says the Professor, grinning from ear to ear.

"It was no small feat to track you down. Our mutual acquaintance, Mr Harry Price said I could find you in Boston and gave me the name Janet Winston Rogers. I never got to meet the woman, but her butler said I could find you in this hotel, and strangely enough, gave me a letter to pass along."
The Professor pulls an envelope out of his coat pocket and hands it Mr Fontana.
"I have to say, Christopher, I'm intrigued already. This is all very cloak and dagger. What have you gotten yourself into?"
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Re: [IC - MEXICO] Back at the Hotel

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Christopher Fontana

"Yes.. quite well thank you." Christopher absently rubs his upper arm as he responds to his friend. "Oh I see, Harry passed on the details, I hope you won't regret following up his suggestion to get in touch." he adds as he takes the envelope.

Christopher looks around the foyer and reception area, "Not here, lets go up to my room and we can give you the 'low down'.."
Spoiler:
Once we're all upstairs and away from prying eyes and ears we can read the letter and bring Jonathan up to speed.
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“Yes. Yes. Let’s go do so. We are all so excited to dig deeper into the mystery afoot.” Huang Yan said, laughing somewhat jovially.
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Re: [IC - MEXICO] Back at the Hotel

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Holly nods. "Yes, let's head upstairs," she says.
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Re: [IC - MEXICO] Back at the Hotel

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You gather in one of the room upstairs and open the letter. It's not a long one, and it says:

I hope this letter finds you well, and more importantly, alive. By the time you read this, Professor Cornwall will already have introduced himself. I wouldn't normally have accepted any external offer of help in a matter as delicate ad this, but since he came as a friend of Professor Fontana, I decided to make an exception. We might need all the help we can get, after all. I have not told him anything yet, but feel free to share any information you might feel necessary.

The other news I must report is a troublesome one. Mr. Llanalor's son, Ethan, has fallen ill and is now recovered in hospital. I'm making sure he's getting the best care possible, and the situation doesn't look overly worrying, but I'll understand if Mr. Llanalor wishes to quit the job, at least temporarily, and return home.

This is all for now. I wish you the best of luck.

Yours sincerely,
Janet Winston-Rogers"


After reading the letter, Clarence makes a troubled face and lights himself a cigarette. Without saying anything, he walks next to the window, where he looks outside with pensive eyes.
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Re: [IC - MEXICO] Back at the Hotel

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"If you wish to go back to be with your son, Clarence," says Holly, "I'll understand. The team won't be shorthanded without you. That said, it's a pleasure working with you, and if you choose to stay, I'd welcome it."
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Clarence breathes out some smoke and says: "I don't like the idea of leaving now, as I feel things are about to get more dangerous than they've been so far... and these last days definitely haven't been a walk in the park. But I have to care for my family first. I'll take a flight tomorrow morning, but I hope to rejoin you soon. Now, let's get back to the case. We have a lot to explain to Professor Cornwall, and that bloody record to listen to".
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"Let's start by explaining the going-ons to the good professor. My information is all but second-hand, so I do not think that I could explain with accuracy, but I do suppose I'll make an attempt, correct me if I'm wrong." Huang Yan smiled. "Well, we are chasing a shadowy group of bad people. Mn. Very bad people. The crazed gang of drug traffickers and dabblers of the occult here in New Mexico has been hiding some sinister plot. Met this informant called Victor who talked about this crazed gang operating 'round this area. Creepy bunch of bad hombres, if you ask me. Oh yeah, and our lives might be in danger. Am I missing anything?"
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Re: [IC - MEXICO] Back at the Hotel

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"A good deal," says Holly, "but you didn't know everything yourself. Now's as good a time as any to bring you both up to speed." She summarizes what got them involved and their investigations so far.
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Re: [IC - MEXICO] Back at the Hotel

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Christopher Fontana

Christopher pats Clarence on the shoulder, "It's the right decision.. your family must come first and we can write to you.. keeping you up to date on what we have discovered."

---

Christopher helps add in a few details as Holly summarises the investigation so far.

---
"So, there you are, it's not too late to back out you know... the task we have undertaken is certainly dangerous..." Christopher is sure that Cornwell won't be backing out, if anything he looked raring to go, the story of the investigation to date seemed to have piqued his interest.

"Then lets get started listening to these damned recordings..." Christopher finishes.

Spoiler:
We can keep Clarence as an outside resource? We could keep in touch and ask him to do research (or send things to him for 'safe-keeping').
Good idea?
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Re: [IC - MEXICO] Back at the Hotel

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Professor Jonathan Cornwall says,
"Well, I didn't fly all the way down to Mexico just to hand off a letter.... Besides, what else does an archaeologist on sabbatical do to keep busy?
As to the danger, I've been in plenty of third-world shit-holes in my day. Let's get on with it then."

While others are setting up the record for playing, the professor quietly turns to Clarence and offers some words of sympathy.
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Re: [IC - MEXICO] Back at the Hotel

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"There is a dig site that may be relevant we're planning to look at after we're done in Mexico City," says Holly. "You should feel right at home there. There was also an expedition in Ethiopia that we'll probably have to look into eventually too."
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Re: [IC - MEXICO] Back at the Hotel

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You prepare the playing device and Victor nervously set up the record: "The song is called Caricia de los Labios... Caress of the Lips. It is the last song Leticia recorded at the studio. I have to admit, I never listened to it. As I've told you, her songs made me uncomfortable, so I had someone else do the job of recording this one". Then the song starts, and he falls silent, sitting on one of the beds.

It is a strange song, with a very slow pace, almost languid. While you can hear a guitar and a violin, clearly the core instrument here is some kind of flute. It produces a strange sound, different from any kind of pipe you are familiar with, yet it is clearly a wind instrument, and you find it altogether pleasant. It harmonizes with De la Luz's voice, resembling a passionate kiss as suggested by the name of the song. The music is soothing, and you feel like closing your eyes to feel it more deeply.
Ian,You feel a strong sexual arousal, similar to the one induced by the Nectar, although not nearly as strong - it does not threaten to make you lose control of your actions. Still, the song has some kind of effect on your brain, on you, as you can clearly feel a tongue slowly caressing your body. It is pleasant and heals any pain you might have been feeling from your recent wounds. Yet, it is too close to another hallucination for you to be happy about it. [ooc]You lose 1 Stability point.[/ooc]
OOC:   For everyone except Ian, you can decide to "surrender" to the song or resist it by making a Stability roll (difficulty 3).  
Resist the song with success,Nothing particular happens. You find the song pleasant and very interesting, somewhat different from anything you have ever heard. It's easy to see that [b]Letizia de la Luz[/b] has a great talent and a charismatic voice. This song would probably not meet everyone's tastes, but in the right "alternative" circles, it would be a huge hit.
Surrender to the song or fail to resist,You close your eyes and fall deeper into the song. Immediately, you start to feel a tongue moving along your body, gently caressing your skin and your muscles. It is a pleasant sensation, definitely sexual in nature. You find yourself smiling, as your brain is overwhelmed by the pleasure. Any kind of physical pain you might have been feeling, including the pain from your recent wounds (for those that suffered any), is greatly diminished. You feel yourself floating in this cloud of dumb pleasantness until the song ends, when you return abruptly to the real world. [ooc]You lose 1 Stability point.[/ooc]
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Re: [IC - MEXICO] Back at the Hotel

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Her senses already on alert, Holly resists the seductive pull of the song. As much as she wants to let it carry her away, she is barely able to keep her wits.
OOC,Stability roll (difficulty 3) resisting the song: [dice]0[/dice]
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Re: [IC - MEXICO] Back at the Hotel

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DC 3 Stability roll,[dice]0[/dice] Stability remaining: [b]11[/b]
Huang Yan closed his eyes and fell deeper into the song as he struggled to not immerse himself in the sexual pleasures derived from this song. Immediately, he started to feel a tongue moving along his body, gently caressing his skin and his muscles. It was a pleasant sensation, like acupuncture, but sexual, so he thought of needle-play. Playing with pins and needles. Not in a weird way, though. He found himself smiling, as his brain was overwhelmed by pleasure, oh yeah, and oooh the needles. He didn't even remember when he had placed his hands inside his pants until it was too late.
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