Play@YSDC

Posted: **Mon May 30, 2016 2:11 am**

8:12AM

The long winding road stretches out across the flat and grassy expanse to the lonely railway station surrounded by green grass, fringed with yellow within a few feet of the railway lines themselves. The two-storey red brick building with its blue-tiled roof and two chimneys seem cozy enough as you approach. There is no sign for the railway station, as would be expected, since all such signposts were taken down at the start of the war to confuse paratroopers, spies and fallen German airmen.

The bomber's moon shines brightly through the wispy grey clouds above you, heavy with the promise of more fighter planes coming in over the continent in the Battle of Britain. The white-lined windows, doors and platform stripe (designed to help people stand back from the edge of the platform in the night) seem softly luminescent in the moonlight. Naturally all of the windows are heavily blacked out and there isn't a chink of light.

The platform is narrow, crouched over by the stationhouse itself, and lined with Victorian lamps, converted to electricity only a decade or two ago, pressed against the station's brick walls and sitting unlit. Benches line those same walls, empty of fellow passengers, crowding more thickly beneath the blue awning that stretches before the station restaurant.

A dozen yards away from the spot where cars typically park, near an unpainted fence where a rusted bicycle leans crookedly, stands a large shed.

The Southern Railway runs this Appledown (Kent) station. Passenger trains run once every sixty minutes during the day in each direction, north to Ashford and south to Hastings and beyond to/from Brighton via Lewes and Eastbourne. The last passenger train for today should be leaving for Ashford at 8:30PM. Luckily you have come a few minutes early, just in case.

Places to Go:

Appledown Station Restaurant (locked).
Main Waiting Room (unlocked).
Shed (locked).

Posted: **Mon May 30, 2016 3:52 am**

"Cheers for the ride," Kate Lacey says to Ilona Aston. She opens her door and squeezes out of the car's cramped interior, unfolding her long legs at last. "Let me help you with your things. It's the least I can do." Ilona has an awful lot of luggage, which had nearly filled the car and barely left room for the two of them.

Posted: **Mon May 30, 2016 4:06 am**

Ilona gets out from the other door, already holding several items in her arms. "Oh! Err, thank... Thank you but I think I'll be fine." She says as she stacks on top more objects until she can almost no longer see over the top. "I think I have it - ooh!" She catches a small box before it fell. "Uh... quite covered."
She pauses. "Oh! The boot! Ms Lacey, could you please get my suitcase from the boot? It seems I do need help after all. I'm terribly sorry for the inconvenience!"

Posted: **Mon May 30, 2016 4:21 am**

"Here, let me help you with that, Miss Aston," says the driver, taking the heavier luggage more firmly from her hands, though he is in his early sixties himself, he would be appalled were his offer refused. "You two go and get yourselves warmed up inside and I'll just stack these here on the platform ready for the train. Place is quiet enough, can't think there'd be thieves." He'll scowl, but won't outright reprimand, either of them for taking up any of the other heavy luggage.

Posted: **Mon May 30, 2016 5:14 am**

"Thank you," Kate tells the driver, just as relieved that she doesn't have to carry anything. "Let's go inside, Miss Aston. There is a bit of a chill out."

Posted: **Mon May 30, 2016 5:40 am**

Countess Katherine Bathory shows up and looks around getting ready for the train. She clutched onto her hand bag and looked around to see who is there, though she wasn't very interested in talking she just wanted the train to hurry up before someone comes looking for her.

Posted: **Mon May 30, 2016 5:55 am**

A cab winds its way to the railway station and after a brief transaction Charlie hops out of the passenger side. Doing up his coat, he makes his way round to the boot of the taxi, pops it open and removes two brown leather suitcases, placing them on the ground next to him. He closes the boot and waves a goodbye to the cabbie before grabbing his suitcases and making his way to the platform. "Ladies." He smiles, nodding to those already gathered. "Heading to Ashford as well?"

Posted: **Mon May 30, 2016 5:58 am**

Ilona thanks the driver and continues to the waiting room with miss Lacey, looking absolutely torn having to leave her new interesting finds to sit out on the stations platform.

Posted: **Mon May 30, 2016 6:06 am**

The driver who is carrying out the gear seems to note Ilona's hesitation. "It's all right, miss. I woke for the auctioneer. I can take a look after them, for sixpence, so you can warm your toes and then stow them when the train arrives."

Posted: **Mon May 30, 2016 6:09 am**

Katherine steps out of an expensive car owned by the richest people in town who have volunteered it to her service to get her to the station. She looks to the man and smiles acknowledges him, she picks up her bags and walks over to him deciding to be social after all. "I am. I've heard that they are having an art gallery showing." Katherine said placing her bags down.

Posted: **Mon May 30, 2016 6:27 am**

Ilona doesn't seem to ease up at all but she politely smiles and agrees to the drivers offer.

Posted: **Mon May 30, 2016 6:36 am**

"Well it must be quite the affair to bring you out this time of night, you must be a woman of taste. Oh, I'm sorry, how rude of me not to introduce myself, name's Charlie Hagan." He looks down at the suitcases in either hand then nods his head towards the waiting room entrance. "Maybe we should get inside."

Posted: **Mon May 30, 2016 6:46 am**

"I'm Countess Katherine Bathory, lovely to meet you Mr. Hagan." Katherine takes his hand and formally shakes his hand. "Yes, well it is worth it I think. I love art, I even paint myself."

Posted: **Mon May 30, 2016 6:57 am**

Charlie hastily puts a bag down to shake Katherine's hand. "A countess? Wow, I didn't know nobility came so young and beautiful." He grins. "It's a shame we didn't meet sooner, I would have loved to see some of your work."

Posted: **Mon May 30, 2016 7:00 am**

The driver follows behind the countess, her two heavy bags in both hands while she carries her handbag and a lighter suitcase. He dares not interrupt the countess, merely following behind and placing her items beside where Ilona's driver has taken up a watchful stance. He then doffs his cap to both the countess (who may not even notice him) and the auctioneer's driver, then leans back against the wall to light a cigarette, clearly expecting to spend a bit of time watching them get on their way. He gives a nod to Miss Lacey, who knows him to be George Robertson, the manservant and driver to one of the wealthier families about town. It's quite intriguing that he would be transporting a countess to the train station and he seems quite puffed up at his good fortune. Miss Aston might also recognise him from the auction that was held at the estate, though he would've stood back and out of the way of everyone. Certainly the countess had been there looking over some of the more artistically inclined antiquities.

Posted: **Mon May 30, 2016 7:07 am**

Katherine nodded letting her hand fall by her side, frowns to herself. "I'm getting rather impatient. When is this train coming I have lots of stuff to do when I get to my destination."

Posted: **Mon May 30, 2016 7:11 am**

Anyone checking their watch or pocket watch will see that it is 8:15 and the bus isn't due for another fifteen minutes.

Posted: **Mon May 30, 2016 7:18 pm**

Jonathan gets out of the car, carrying his small suitcase with him. "Thank you again for the ride, Mister Abbott. Yes, I'm not forgetting anything. Sure, I will take care of myself in London. Will let you know if I come back down here. Thank you. Goodbye". Jonathan watches the car trudge along the road until it disappears from sight behind a small hill.

I guess this closes a chapter in my life, huh? So strange, that these moments are never quite as dramatic as we expect them to be.

He looks around the countryside for a few moments. He knows he will probably never come back here. Then he heads towards the platform, looking with curiosity at the yellow grass. These people, showing no respect for nature.

While he moves through the platform, Jonathan recognizes a view from a photo seen a couple of years ago. He remembers the station master being a renowned photographer, at least in the area, and Jonathan himself quite liked his work. He never had the chance to meet him in person, though, and this might be the last time he ever comes to the Appledown station. Perhaps the station master is in service right now. Moving along the platform, after a huge mountain of luggage and an old man watching over it, Jonathan looks around for the him.

Spoiler:

Posted: **Tue May 31, 2016 1:08 am**

At present there are only the two drivers standing atop the platform, one leaning against the wall and smoking a cigarette, while three women and a man head toward the railway station doors. Miss Aston enters first, opening the door and then parting the blackout curtain to enter. There's no sign of anyone in the station master's uniform out on the platform. Considering the temperature, that's hardly surprising. He must be inside.

Posted: **Tue May 31, 2016 4:35 am**

"It should be here in a few minutes, why don't we continue this conversation inside?" Charlie grabs his bags and briefly pauses, looking up. "Someone's committed to vandalism." He enters through the blackout curtain.

Posted: **Tue May 31, 2016 4:58 am**

Artemis peddled fast, and glanced down at his watch, it's black hands on the golden face only prompted him to pedal the old bicycle faster. He had returned from the auction in town, not finding anything other than a few books that he could send back home for the library he hoped to return to when the war was over. Though the sounds of the German bombers increased his concern that the terror that was Hitler's Germany had only begun to spread across the world. When he got back, he asked about the bike. His land lady directed him to her neighbor for that needed form of transport. His land lady's neighbor let him borrow the ancient thing, but it took a bit longer to part from its owner and then a bit to readjust his traveling case and brief case on the rack above the back tire. He headed off in a hurry, already later than he wanted to be.

As he pedaled frantically, he was passed by two vehicles heading over the hill and down to the station. He pressed on, peddling faster as he crested the hill. Nearly 8:10, he sighed and peddled faster as he headed down to the old station. The same vehicles passed him as he had crested the hill, now going in the alternate direction. He stopped peddling and coasted towards the platform. The red brick building had a blue tiled roof and black out windows, now standard to nearly every building and home in southern England. When he came towards the platform, he could see some figures on the station.

He glanced at his watch and realized it was a nearly 8:15, he had to hurry. He parked the bike against a tree and rushed in getting his briefcase and traveling case. With both hands full he dashed to the platform.

"Oh, thank heavens, I haven't missed it." Artemis took a deep breath as he took his fedora off and fanned his face. He took another and calmed his breathing. Then opened the door to the waiting room where he heard voices inside.

Posted: **Tue May 31, 2016 5:17 am**

Kate slips through the blackout curtain, being careful not to let any light escape.

Posted: **Thu Jun 02, 2016 2:10 am**

8:22AM

The long winding road stretches out across the flat and grassy expanse to the lonely railway station surrounded by green grass, fringed with yellow within a few feet of the railway lines themselves. The two-storey red brick building with its blue-tiled roof and two chimneys seem cozy enough as you approach. There is no sign for the railway station, as would be expected, since all such signposts were taken down at the start of the war to confuse paratroopers, spies and fallen German airmen.

The bomber's moon shines brightly through the wispy grey clouds above you, heavy with the promise of more fighter planes coming in over the continent in the Battle of Britain. The white-lined windows, doors and platform stripe (designed to help people stand back from the edge of the platform in the night) seem softly luminescent in the moonlight. Naturally all of the windows are heavily blacked out and there isn't a chink of light.

The platform is narrow, crouched over by the stationhouse itself, and lined with Victorian lamps, converted to electricity only a decade or two ago, pressed against the station's brick walls and sitting unlit. Benches line those same walls, empty of fellow passengers, crowding more thickly beneath the blue awning that stretches before the station restaurant.

A dozen yards away from the spot where cars typically park, near an unpainted fence where a rusted bicycle leans crookedly, stands a large shed.

The Southern Railway runs this Appledown (Kent) station. Passenger trains run once every sixty minutes during the day in each direction, north to Ashford and south to Hastings and beyond to/from Brighton via Lewes and Eastbourne. The last passenger train for today should be leaving for Ashford at 8:30PM. Luckily you have come a few minutes early, just in case.

Places to Go:

Appledown Station Restaurant (locked).
Main Waiting Room (unlocked).
Shed (locked).
Cars (accessible).

NEW DETAILS: There are two piles of cases on the platform, one consisting of two large cases (the countess) and one of a variety of differently shaped and mismatched cases (Miss Ilona Aston's). There is no sign of the two men who had been set to guard them, though their cars remain.

Posted: **Thu Jun 02, 2016 7:09 am**

Frank Durant had arrived about three hours ago on an earlier train. He had immediately obtained a ticket for the last train of the night so he wouldn't have to hurry later, and since then he had been spending time talking with the station master, Declan O'Donoghue, about their common interest of photography. Frank's normal subjects differed greatly from O'Donoghue's haunting photos, but Frank found them to be mesmerizing and hoped to pick up some tips that would help him in his side career.

Whenever a train was due in, or the station master seemed to have pressing responsibilities, Durant made himself scarce. But when things died down again he would find the station master and engage him in some additional small talk, trying to turn the conversation back to photography or the unique architecture O'Donoghue liked to capture. His train was due shortly, so Frank figured he better head outside for one last cigarette in the open air before boarding a potentially packed train to head toward his final destination. He shook O'Donoghue's hand, thanked him for the conversation, wished him luck in the future, and headed outside.

Once outside, he stayed close to the station and paid attention for any sign of the approaching train (ready to race back in) while enjoying the peace and quiet of the countryside.

Posted: **Thu Jun 02, 2016 7:15 am**

While he went for his stroll, three vehicles had arrived - one disgorging a tremendous amount of additional baggage that would certainly require some special baggage fees. The first left immediately, but the other two drivers hung around for about five minutes in quiet conversation with each other, having a cigarette, before finally turning and hurrying off. Rather than return to their cars, they simply hustled quickly back up the dirt road in the direction of town and caught a car that sat about a mile off without a backward glance at their abandoned vehicles. Strange behaviour indeed. But it's cold and it's dark, and the last train should be due soon. Perhaps it's time for Frank Durant to return inside to where those three women and three men had entered. Perhaps he could pick up some last minute tips before the train arrived.

Posted: **Thu Jun 02, 2016 5:14 pm**

Strange behavior indeed....

His mind started wandering as to why anyone would drive a car down, then scurry off to meet a waiting car up the road instead of having the car drive down to get them. Yes, rationing is in place, but that seemed a bit over the top.

He absent-mindedly looked at his watch and realized it was later than he thought. He crushed his cigarette and quickly headed back inside to make sure he wouldn't miss the train.

Posted: **Fri Jun 03, 2016 12:04 am**

Ilona shivers as she steps outside, she looks around and sighs. "Oh honestly." She mutters, walking over to check her bags. "Driver?" She calls out as she looks around the platform, trying the locked doors.
She steps back over to her bags, and crosses her arms with a huff.

Posted: **Sun Jun 05, 2016 11:27 pm**

A cute little sparrow lands on some of the cases, and hops about, tilting its head from one side to the other.

Posted: **Sun Jun 05, 2016 11:53 pm**

"You find those interesting ey? You should see what's inside those cases." She says in amusement as she watches the bird hop about.

Posted: **Sun Jun 05, 2016 11:59 pm**

The bird squawks, a hoarse and painful sound, then flies straight up into the awning. With a thock, it rebounds and hits the ground. Only to hop up again, tweet a bit, then fling itself skyward once more to hit the awning. Again it falls, landing with rapidly beating heart upon the concrete station floor.

Posted: **Mon Jun 06, 2016 12:24 am**

Ilona jumps back in shock, her hand covering her mouth. As the bird falls the floor a second time, she walks over and kneels beside it. She takes off her coat and wraps the bird in it.
"Oh you poor silly thing. I hope you're happy, I'm awfully cold now."

Posted: **Mon Jun 06, 2016 1:36 am**

As she kneels beside it to offer it her coat, a larger bird - a crow - slams into the wall inches by her head. It wobbles awkwardly on its talons, one wing out for balances, and utters an awful hoarse cry.

Posted: **Mon Jun 06, 2016 2:04 am**

Ilona shrieks and falls backwards in surprise as the second bird flies into the wall. She sits there in stunned shock, wide-eyed, watching the crow.
What are the chances that two birds would just fly into this station wall just now?
She can’t help but wonder if she broke something in her shop that were actually cursed for all this recent bad luck to happen. She’s clumsy but not forgetful, she can’t think of a time where she had... What is with these birds?

Posted: **Mon Jun 06, 2016 2:11 am**

The crow flings itself against the wall again and again, not bothering to fly up to do it, just flying headlong into it. Battering its head against it until its skull cracks.

Posted: **Mon Jun 06, 2016 2:35 am**

Ilona watches in horror, not able to bring herself to move until the bird stops, presumably dead. She stands up slowly, takes a deep breath, forgetting her jacket and forgetting how cold she is, and heads inside.

Posted: **Mon Jun 06, 2016 2:47 am**

Posted: **Thu Jun 23, 2016 3:40 am**

The fog is thick and dense around you, cold tendrils snaking into your clothing and tickling your skin almost as though it were a live thing. The bright roundness of the moon can still be somehow glimpsed through the cloud which surrounds you though you can barely make out more than a few yards ahead of you. You can primarily see the concrete platform and the stripe of paint declaring how far you should stand back to avoid being sucked under the train's wheels, and the red brick building behind you with its white-lined windows and Victorian lamps pressed against the station's brick walls and sitting unlit. Benches line those same walls, empty of fellow passengers, crowding more thickly beneath the blue awning that stretches before the station restaurant. You can smell the smoke slowly dissipating from the train itself and see it mainly by its dark silhouette, somehow darker than the space behind it. You can hear the sounds of its engine slowly, ever so slowly cooling, as though the train were parked here to stay. Perhaps with a flashlight you could see further, as it is, you have to walk and look about.

Places to Go:

Posted: **Thu Jun 23, 2016 5:37 pm**

Well, this is just getting better and better, uh?, Jonathan thinks, looking around at the creepy station. He then rushes towards the door, trying to remove the chains.

Posted: **Thu Jun 23, 2016 11:54 pm**

There are five chains, four of which are bolted to the corner wall by the door with quite large bolts, and a fifth chain looped through the middle. All chains are also bolted somewhere upon the door. There's no way these could be removed by hand. The chain rings are thicker than your thumb and the bolts are almost as thick. Large tools would be required to cut through these chains. There seems to be some kind of odd stain to them, and a chemical smell, but it's impossible to see what it is without playing a light across it.

Posted: **Sat Jun 25, 2016 9:50 am**

"Damn, I'll never get this thing open by myself!"

Jonathan runs back under the window and tells Artemis: "I don't know how to open the door... I'd need tools and... there's no one around here, not a soul. It's better if you all exit through the window. I don't see any other way".

Posted: **Sun Jun 26, 2016 1:28 am**

"Alright, let me go tell folks what you have found out, is the train no longer even there?" Artemis answered while standing with his head out the window.

Posted: **Sun Jun 26, 2016 8:00 am**

Jonathan answers back: "The train is still here, and for the moment doesn't look like it's going anywhere".

Posted: **Sun Jun 26, 2016 10:45 pm**

"Ok Jonathan, I am going to share this with the others and we can figure out how to get folks out of this place," Artemis responded back to Jonathan. Then he turned and walked away from the window.

Posted: **Tue Jun 28, 2016 6:25 pm**

Until a few moments ago, Jonathan desperately wanted to be out of the building. Now, alone on the platform, he almost wishes he had stayed inside. The others will come out soon, he tries to reassure himself, looking nervously up and down the paltform.

Posted: **Tue Jun 28, 2016 9:28 pm**

The silence draws on.

The first minute passes.

No sign of anyone yet.

Posted: **Thu Jun 30, 2016 1:16 am**

Another minute passes.

And then footsteps from that room.

And then ... two ladies shoes are flung out the window, one after another, hitting the ground not far from him. One barely misses his face.

Then Aston's voice calls out, "Sorry!"

Posted: **Fri Jul 01, 2016 5:09 pm**

Jonbathan ducks to avoid a flying shoe.

What the...!

He gets ready to help anyone descending from the window.

Posted: **Sat Jul 02, 2016 6:20 am**

"Ok... I'm coming down now!" says Ilona Aston, awkwardly coming down the makeshift rope line.

The fog is thick and dense around you, cold tendrils snaking into your clothing and tickling your skin almost as though it were a live thing. The bright roundness of the moon can still be somehow glimpsed through the cloud which surrounds you though you can barely make out more than a few yards ahead of you. You can primarily see the concrete platform and the stripe of paint declaring how far you should stand back to avoid being sucked under the train's wheels, and the red brick building behind you with its white-lined windows and Victorian lamps pressed against the station's brick walls and sitting unlit. Benches line those same walls, empty of fellow passengers, crowding more thickly beneath the blue awning that stretches before the station restaurant. You can smell the smoke slowly dissipating from the train itself and see it mainly by its dark silhouette, somehow darker than the space behind it. You can hear the sounds of its engine slowly, ever so slowly cooling, as though the train were parked here to stay. Perhaps with a flashlight you could see further, as it is, you have to walk and look about.

Places to Go:

Appledown Station Restaurant (locked).
Main Waiting Room (covered in chains).
Upstairs Bedroom Window (cloth rope dangling down from it).
Shed (locked).

Posted: **Sun Jul 03, 2016 12:08 am**

Once getting into the platform, Ilona quickly grabs her shoes near Jonathan and slides them on. "I'm not sure how long the others will be, they're still messing around downstairs."She says shivering. "It's so warm in that room, I forgot how cold it was out here!"

Posted: **Sun Jul 03, 2016 8:27 am**

"Messing... around? What for? The fastest we get away from this damned station, the better", he looks at the building with disgust. "Dis you bring the flashlight, perhaps?"

Posted: **Mon Jul 04, 2016 12:30 am**

"No, unfortunately I didn't take the flashlight." Ilona says as she starts to wander around. "I need to find my coat, I left it out here earlier when a bird flew into the wall. I wrapped it in my coat to help the poor thing but more birds came and started just flying into things! I ran inside to take cover and moments later the doors were locked and chained... It has to be around here somewhere..."

Posted: **Mon Jul 04, 2016 2:43 am**

The coat lies on the ground where she left it. She can hear something fluttering inside, desperate, weakly. The flutter-beating of wings of something small desperate to escape. What's odd is that Jonathon hadn't heard it until now. Though he might have just stepped over the coat in the darkness quite easily without noticing it makes less sense that he wouldn't have heard it. Has it somehow noticed her arrival?

Posted: **Tue Jul 05, 2016 2:34 am**

"Oh! Here it is." Ilona says, bending down to pick it up. "I hope the poor thing is alright." Ilona pouts for a moment. "Well I guess I won't be getting my coat back soon. Perhaps it will be warmer on the train? We could ask why it's stayed so long."

Posted: **Tue Jul 05, 2016 3:44 am**

The coat is warm and wet in patches. The bird within is frail within the wrappings. She can feel it moving, shuddering as she picks up the coat that surrounds it. Perhaps she should open it and check to see how it's going? Or perhaps not? It might escape.

Posted: **Tue Jul 05, 2016 5:38 am**

She holds the bundled coat in her arms and opens it up so she can peer inside to see how the bird is doing.
Doubt it will fly away,it would have by now it it were able.

Posted: **Tue Jul 05, 2016 6:39 am**

It struggles hard as she peels open the coat, uttering a terrible squawking sound, but in the gloom she can hardly see the reason. Is the cloth stuck to the bird? It seems to be, but easily enough peeled aside. The shape within is a quivering mound of darkness. The shape of a bird, yet, can just make out the beak, surrounded by a deeper darkness. Is it all right? Why is it making that noise? If only she had a light? Perhaps she could reach in, touch it, see if it's all right?

Then a window above her shatters, raining down glass on them and though she doubtless crouches protectively over the bird, she cannot protect herself from the pitter-patter of tiny shards of glass that rain down on her hat. Nor can Jonathon. Luckily beyond a few minor scratches, neither of them are harmed. A woman screams, somewhere above.

Posted: **Tue Jul 05, 2016 7:07 pm**

Jonathan tries to shield himself, but he realizes it won't be much help as he is taken completely by surprise and reacting too slowly. Luckily, it's just a couple of minor cuts and a ruined coat. "Are you alright, Miss Aston?", he asks, before turning his attention to the broken window. "What happened up there? Artemis, can you hear me?"

Posted: **Wed Jul 06, 2016 12:43 am**

"Yes, I'm alright, just a few cuts. I'm more worried about those still inside. They're not going to last long if they don't hurry along! That's if they're all still in one piece..." Ilona says as she tries to inspect the bird again. "...I think it's bleeding, it's sticking to my coat."

Posted: **Wed Jul 06, 2016 2:15 am**

It looks like the bird's feathered skin has somehow become attached to the coat! It's impossible to say how, or why, without more light and investigation from someone skilled in Forensics. The poor thing shudders, close to expiring.

Jonathan can vaguely make out a returned shouted phrase, male, from the upstairs floor but can't make out the words.

Posted: **Sun Jul 10, 2016 11:17 am**

Ilona kneels down and places her coat on the floor. She carefully unwraps the bird from the coat and reached in to see if it's bleeding.

Posted: **Sun Jul 10, 2016 1:14 pm**

Her finger touches naked flesh, wet and trembling. There are feathers but they're splayed open around the quivering mess.

Who ... what could do this? Or is this why the creature were sick? If she knew something of medicine, or forensics, perhaps she could discover the reason why.

Posted: **Mon Jul 11, 2016 10:57 pm**

A face appears in the window above, shrouded by the gloom. Gawd, it's getting cold out here. It has to be around five degrees Celsius out here (41 degrees fahrenheit) and the cold has a nasty way of creeping in under your collar to chill your spine.

Posted: **Tue Jul 12, 2016 12:47 am**

Ilona gasps and puts a hand over her mouth. She steps away from the bird and towards Jonathan, crossing her free arm across her torso for warmth and to comfort herself. "W-we need to leave... it's not enough to get out of the station, we need to get away from it all together. This isn't right! Nothing has been right since we got here!" She looks up to the window and sees someone there. "Hey!" She calls out. "You ask need to get out right now! We have to leave! Hurry!"

Posted: **Tue Jul 12, 2016 5:36 am**

"Jonathan, is that you down there? Who are you with?" Artemis yelled towards the shapes in the mist moments before Ilona calls out, then: "Is the Countess down with you and Jonathan? We are trying to get everyone to get out, but the station master hasn't come to yet." Artemis yelled back down to her.

Posted: **Tue Jul 12, 2016 10:42 am**

"That man is NOT the station master. Artemis, can you year me? He's not the station master! Get out of that building!", Jonathan is screaming now, the weirdness of the situation, and the cold, finally getting to him.

He takes Ilona's hand and says: "Let's see if we can find a car or something like that. It's getting too cold outside. Perhaps the train...", he looks at it, somewhat uncertain. Despite the situation, he is reluctant at the idea of just walking away. There's a part of him that is curious to know how this crazy situation will evolve, he realizes with some surprise. And then there's the appointed meeting with his agent in London...

Posted: **Tue Jul 12, 2016 11:46 am**

Ilona's hands are ice cold, being outside for so long without a coat or gloves is getting to her, her teeth almost chattering as she speaks.
"We don't have the keys for the car and the driver is gone! Maybe we should get on the train, you never know, they could just be waiting for us. Either way I need to get somewhere warmer."

Posted: **Tue Jul 12, 2016 3:40 pm**

Jonathan will look around for a car, or even a bicycle. If he won't find any, he'll inspect the train, checking for anything strange, and if it's possible to head inside.

Posted: **Wed Jul 13, 2016 12:32 am**

The cold mist is too heavy and thick to make anything out that's too far away. There were cars parked not far from the station and he recalls the vague direction, and he's pretty sure there was a bicycle near there, though he can't remember the condition it was in. He doesn't recall seeing any doors open on this sleek black and gold edged train but that doesn't mean they're locked. Perhaps if he tried one of the doors he could be more certain? There is light spilling out from around the shuttered carriage windows so perhaps there is life inside. He's sure he can hear faint traces of music coming from one of the rear cars. Alternatively he could head towards the parking area or back toward the chained front door. The cold is so numbing it's making it hard to think.
A female voice calls out from the waiting room, muffled by brick walls.

Posted: **Wed Jul 13, 2016 7:43 am**

Jonathan can see his breath becoming white mist in the cold, freezing, air.Jesus Christ, he thinks.

"Music... the music...", he mumbles, heading towards the train car where the music is coming from (always keeping Ilona's hand, unless she breaks contact herself). Once he gets to that car, Jonathan will try to open the door.

Posted: **Tue Jul 19, 2016 6:27 am**

The door opens.

And the music stops.

Posted: **Wed Jul 20, 2016 9:31 am**

As soon as Jonathan opens the door, Ilona steps through onto the train.

Posted: **Wed Jul 20, 2016 10:01 pm**

The fog is thick and dense around you, cold tendrils snaking into your clothing and tickling your skin almost as though it were a live thing. The bright roundness of the moon can still be somehow glimpsed through the cloud which surrounds you though you can barely make out more than a few yards ahead of you. You can primarily see the concrete platform and the stripe of paint declaring how far you should stand back to avoid being sucked under the train's wheels, and the red brick building behind you with its white-lined windows and Victorian lamps pressed against the station's brick walls and sitting unlit. Benches line those same walls, empty of fellow passengers, crowding more thickly beneath the blue awning that stretches before the station restaurant. You can smell the smoke slowly dissipating from the train itself and see it mainly by its dark silhouette, somehow darker than the space behind it. You can hear the sounds of its engine slowly, ever so slowly cooling, as though the train were parked here to stay. Perhaps with a flashlight you could see further, as it is, you have to walk and look about.

There's nobody on the platform that they can see, but there is Ilona's coat that she lost awhile back when she came out to wait for the train. It's hard to make out in the gloom, but there appears to be some sort of movement from within the coat. Movement and a dark stain....

Places to Go:

Appledown Station Restaurant (locked).
Main Waiting Room (covered in chains).
Upstairs Bedroom Window (cloth rope dangling down from it).
Shed (locked).

Posted: **Fri Jul 22, 2016 8:18 am**

Kate gasps and puts a hand to her chest when she sees the stained coat. Is that...blood? she thinks. She takes out her hooded flashlight, designed to be used in the blackout without revealing too much light, and shines it on the coat, which confirms her fears. "Miss Aston?" she calls, her voice cracking. "Wh-where are you?"

Posted: **Fri Jul 22, 2016 1:00 pm**

There's no sign of movement on the platform. There are muffled voices coming from the open window above.

Posted: **Sun Jul 24, 2016 5:07 am**

"I found Miss Aston's coat!" Kate shouts back up to the window. "It's all bloody! She's not in it, but there's something moving under it!" Afraid to get too close to the coat, she goes over to the station's doors to examine the lock.

Posted: **Sun Jul 24, 2016 12:58 pm**

There are five chains, four of which are bolted to the corner wall by the door with quite large bolts, and a fifth chain looped through the middle. All chains are also bolted somewhere upon the door. There's no way these could be removed by hand. The chain rings are thicker than your thumb and the bolts are almost as thick. Large tools would be required to cut through these chains. There seems to be some kind of odd stain to them, and a chemical smell, but it's impossible to see what it is without playing a light across it.

Posted: **Sun Jul 24, 2016 10:37 pm**

Kate plays her light across the chains. One whiff and she hastily backs away. "The chains across the door are coated with sulphuric acid!" she calls up to the window. "It's not enough to dissolve the metal, but it would sure hurt whoever touched them! We might be able to get them off with big tools if we were careful not to touch them with our bare hands, but there aren't any out here! There's a shed, but it's locked! Maybe there are some inside that you could use to remove the door from its hinges, but you'd have to be careful when ducking under the chains! Otherwise, you'll have to find some other way to get the Station Master outside! The only other way out is through the restaurant, but there's someone hostile in there!"

Posted: **Mon Jul 25, 2016 6:46 am**

Charlie climbs down and approaches Kate, his head turning to take in his surroundings and his hands tucked into his coat to stay warm. "We should go take a look at that shed then, if you could bring the flashlight?"

Posted: **Tue Jul 26, 2016 5:38 am**

"Of course," says Kate. She leads the way to the shed, shining her light on the lock. Then she removes a pin from her hair, which she shakes loose so that it falls about her shoulders, and holds it out to Charlie. "You can borrow this if you need it."

Posted: **Tue Jul 26, 2016 6:03 am**

It's a disturbing trek down the concrete platform, their steps echoing dully back up to them, and the blacked out windows - tall and narrow - running along the walls to the left. Particularly since they must pass the restaurant on their way forward and who knows what might be listening in to their steps as they move through the cold. They pass that bloodstained coat as they go, something rustling and moving within it, as well as the twin pyramid's of Aston's and the countesses luggage. Finally they come down the concrete steps off the platform and make their way over the withered and yellowing grass. There's a faint smell of smoke to the air, and the creak of something metal swinging back and forth, as though unsettled by some unfelt wind.

They reach the shed which stands twice their height and is at least a dozen paces wide and easily twice that in length, though they can't get a true estimate of it's size due to the fog whose tendrils wrap around it. A rusty bicycle leans up against an old fence, while a car can vaguely be made out sitting in its park and shrouded by fog. Other than the metallic creak and their own footsteps and breathing, there are no other sounds audible in the fog. It's as though they are truly alone in the cold.

The shed has a pair of red double doors and the handles and lock are quite rusty. It would be difficult to pick (1pt), but easier to break (Athletics roll). Of course busting it open would be very loud.

Posted: **Tue Jul 26, 2016 7:46 am**

Charlie follows, nervously staring at the blood-stained coat as he passes it. Kneeling down to inspect the lock, he muses, "Looks rusted enough I could just break the lock, would be loud though. Then again I doubt we could get the chains off quietly." He turns back to Kate shielding his eyes with a hand, "You're the smart one of the bunch, which method do you reckon, quiet or loud?"

Posted: **Wed Jul 27, 2016 4:11 am**

"Thank you," says Kate, blushing a little. "I think we're best off keeping quiet as long as we can. I realise I made plenty of noise calling up to the window earlier, but there's no sense drawing more attention to ourselves if we don't have to. Let's try picking the lock. If we have to make noise to remove the chains later, then we have to, but that'll be later. Once we get the station doors open, we can evacuate everyone in a hurry."

Posted: **Wed Jul 27, 2016 9:06 am**

"Yes ma'am." Charlie says in a deliberately deepened voice, giving her a small salute with a ridiculous smile plastered across face. "Can you keep a secret?" He slides a leather pouch out of a pants pocket, opening it up to reveal a lockpicking set. Selecting a torsion wrench and pick with a practiced eye he sets to work picking the lock.

[spend a point]

Posted: **Thu Jul 28, 2016 3:30 am**

The door opens with a disturbing creak of rusted steel.

Posted: **Thu Jul 28, 2016 4:28 am**

"Nicely done," says Kate, quirking an eyebrow. She replaces her hairpin in her hair, but she leaves it down. "I've not signed the Official Secrets Act, but yes, I can keep a secret. Obviously I can't give you examples of secrets I've kept."

Posted: **Thu Jul 28, 2016 10:00 am**

"Of course not." Charlie says, straightening up and sliding the pouch back into his pocket. "I'll grab the tools if you light the way." He slowly pulls the shed door completely open and steps inside.

Posted: **Sun Aug 14, 2016 3:28 pm**

Following Kate back to the chianed doors, Charlie says, "Here, let me," reaching to take the the bolt cutter from her. "Cut them where they're chained to the wall?"

Posted: **Sun Aug 14, 2016 4:44 pm**

Kate hands Charlie the bolt cutters and nods, shining her light on the chains. "Just be careful not to actually touch the chains," she warns him. "They're coated in acid."

Posted: **Mon Aug 15, 2016 8:31 am**

"Gotcha." Charlie positions the bolt cutters to close around a link near where the chain is bolted down and squeezes.

Posted: **Mon Aug 15, 2016 11:56 pm**

The chains come apart with some effort at snipping those thick and heavy links, but with some time and a whole lot of arm tension he manages to make the first chain drop to the ground. As it rattles and clatters against the concrete platform, they can hear something smack against the restaurant door which leads out onto the platform. Once.... Twice....

Posted: **Tue Aug 16, 2016 5:10 am**

"... That's locked, right?" Charlie says a bit nervously before making his way to the next chain.

Posted: **Tue Aug 16, 2016 5:13 am**

"I hope so," replies Kate, shuddering and clutching her collar. "Hurry, before whoever's in there busts out."

Posted: **Thu Aug 18, 2016 2:21 am**

The battering continues, growing more and more insistent. It seems certain that the door will soon be blown off its hinges.

The next chain is snipped in twain and falls rattling to the floor.

Posted: **Thu Aug 18, 2016 3:45 am**

"Just two more," says Kate, knowing that only the four bolted ones need to be cut loose. Then the one looped through them will just fall off. She glances nervously at the restaurant door. "Um, do you need me here? Maybe I should climb back up to the window."

Posted: **Thu Aug 18, 2016 4:46 am**

Charlie looks at the chains, grits his teeth and, holding the bolt cutters in one hand, he uses the other to place a finger against his lips then grab Kate's hand and silently lead her around the side of the building.

OOC: spend a point on stealth

[dice]0[/dice]

Posted: **Thu Aug 18, 2016 5:01 am**

Kate nods and silently goes with Charlie.

Posted: **Thu Aug 18, 2016 6:26 am**

Posted: **Fri Aug 19, 2016 3:18 am**

Posted: **Fri Aug 19, 2016 7:06 am**

The weight continues to batter against the door from the other side, but it doesn't increase in frequency as they quietly and carefully make their way along.

Posted: **Sat Aug 20, 2016 5:40 am**

"I have a plan," whispers Kate. "I can climb back up to the window and then go downstairs to the waiting room. Then I'll pound on the restaurant door and make noise to attract his attention so that he moves away from the exterior door. That'll give you time to cut the rest of the chains off - hopefully before he bashes down the interior door and gets me."

Posted: **Sun Aug 21, 2016 7:23 am**

"Okay," Charlie whispers back, "just don't take any unnecessary risks."

Posted: **Sun Aug 21, 2016 8:18 pm**

Kate nods. "I'll be careful," she whispers. "Wait near the chained door, and you'll hear the commotion in the waiting room. Once he moves away from the exterior door, you'll have your chance to get the other chains off." She creeps back to the makeshift rope to climb back up to the upstairs window.

Posted: **Mon Aug 22, 2016 9:00 am**

Charlie watches her climb up, ears straining to hear if who- or what-ever is trapped in the restaurant has made it through or tapered off its assault.

Posted: **Mon Aug 22, 2016 9:48 am**

The assault is tapering off ... somewhat.

Posted: **Mon Aug 22, 2016 3:53 pm**

Charlie walks back to the bolted entrance, trying to stay alert despite the chilling fog.

Posted: **Thu Aug 25, 2016 1:58 am**

The battering has subsided somewhat over the past minute, but it's not exactly gone away. At the moment it sounds like the sort of sullen thumping one might hear before some noise sets it off in earnest. The air is cold and the fog seems to swirl around him like a cloak, protecting him from sight and dampening the sound of his footfalls, but also making the shapes in the darkness and swirls of fog appear almost like faces looming out of the fog. Damn it's creepy out here.

Posted: **Thu Aug 25, 2016 11:29 am**

Charlie pulls his coat closer around him as leans back against building, waiting and trying not to dwell on what he's seen.

Posted: **Sun Aug 28, 2016 12:54 am**

The battering subsides for a long moment....

Posted: **Sun Aug 28, 2016 8:01 am**

Counting out what seems like the longest 5 seconds in his life, Charlie puts the bolt cutters back into place, then squeezes.

Posted: **Sun Aug 28, 2016 8:42 am**

It takes a long moment of squeezing to nip one side, than the other. If only he could grip the chain, steady it before it falls but that acid would wreck his hand even if it all did was hurt like hell. Once the second one is clipped, the chain clatters to the ground and the reaction inside the restaurant is immediate as something charges into the door, slamming it back on its hinges. One more good hit like that and the door will definitely be down....

Posted: **Mon Aug 29, 2016 12:40 pm**

"Shit-shit-shit..." Charlie swears repeatedly, struggling to get the last chain off.

Posted: **Tue Aug 30, 2016 2:48 am**

His hands tremble as he snips off one link, than the other, before finally the whole damn thing slithers free and slams to the platform with an echoing rattle that sets his very bones on edge. There's a terrible crashing sound as that creature - that thing - slams itself one final time against the door. A door that stands not so very far away from him. He glimpses it in outline. Somewhat like a person, yet tall, so very tall, with bunched up shoulders and swinging fists as it juts outs its bovine head first one way and then ... and then.... The fog obscures it. Obscures everything. What is he to do? What can he do?
The sight of it, and the smell of it, sticky with sweat, musky, yet malodorous like old dry blood, sends his mind reeling (lose 3 Stability).

Posted: **Tue Aug 30, 2016 4:05 pm**

In a blind panic Charlie runs across to the train, hoping for an open door.

Posted: **Wed Aug 31, 2016 12:49 am**

There's the sound and fury of movement behind him as something rushes up behind him and tries to slam him against the train. He can smell the stink of it, and feel the force of its blow....

[dice]0[/dice] (attack)
[dice]1[/dice] (damage, if necessary)

Posted: **Wed Aug 31, 2016 12:49 am**

...as it misses him and slams against the train carriage. Charlie reaches the train and flings open the door, ducking inside and slamming it shut behind him. As he spun to slam it, he glimpses the creature staggering back and shaking its meaty head.

Posted: **Thu Sep 01, 2016 3:44 am**

The cold mist is too heavy and thick to make anything out that's too far away. There were cars parked not far from the station and he recalls the vague direction, and he's pretty sure there was a bicycle near there, though he can't remember the condition it was in. You don't recall seeing any doors open on this sleek black and gold edged train but that doesn't mean they're locked. Perhaps if you tried one of the doors you could be more certain? There is light spilling out from around the shuttered carriage windows so perhaps there is life inside. He's sure he can hear faint traces of music coming from one of the rear cars. Alternatively he could head towards the parking area or back toward the chained front door. The cold is so numbing it's making it hard to think.
Places to Go:

Left Train Carriage
Right Train Carriage
Hotel Room 2 Window
Appledown Station Restaurant (burst open door).
Main Waiting Room (unlocked).
Shed

Posted: **Tue Oct 18, 2016 4:38 am**

He can feel the fabric bite into the palms of his hands as he climbs down, the weight of his body pulling at his forearms, though being able to brace his feet against the wall does help his downward journey. The world is gloomy out here, thick with swirling fog and shadows, and the train lies steaming and chuffing quietly behind him, its engines slowly cooling. Those above can see him reach the platform below rather safely before....

[dice]0[/dice]

Posted: **Tue Oct 18, 2016 4:39 am**

....something flies past his cheek to clatter hard against the platform behind him, skidding several feet away.

Posted: **Wed Oct 19, 2016 5:44 am**

Artemis turned when he heard the clattering behind him. He glanced up and then turned back to see what had went by him.

Posted: **Wed Oct 19, 2016 10:51 pm**

Something bloody ... something white.... It lies shrouded in the fog and gloom, hard to make out. The rope rises up beside him, pulled up through the window. Shuffling steps behind him, something drawing nearer. He can hear the wet, heavy breathing that sounds wrong. Then Jonathon's voice, coming from the train behind him: "ARTEMIS! CAN YOU HEAR ME? ANYONE?" Looking back, he can't see anyone through the gloom, but he can hear something race across the platform to slam against the train.

Posted: **Thu Oct 20, 2016 2:47 am**

Artemis grabbed his walking stick as the rope ascended and paused to listen. He stood still and listened. He controlled his breathing like when he was back in the trenches. And listened for the sound of something slamming into the train. He fingered about in his pockets and pulled out the silver star pendant, and also a few coins. He listened. Separating the silver pendant from the coins, Artemis shifted the pendant into his left hand and cupped it while holding the knob of his well traveled walking stick. He listened. He readied the few coins in his right hand, got his bearings to have a sense of the building's exterior, and then paused. He was ready to toss the coins far away from him and what ever it was that ran at the train, could chase after the coins. Or, at least that is what he told himself as he listened.

Posted: **Thu Oct 20, 2016 10:41 pm**

The panicked screaming starts moments before the rope descends with the walking stick, giving him precious moments to untie the walking stick and pulling out the silver star pendant and handful of coins.

Posted: **Sat Oct 22, 2016 2:57 am**

Artemis focused on the rope and Ms. Kate's descendancy. As she came closer to the platform, he tried to steady himself so she could grab onto him if the need arose. He listened to the fog ready to toss the coins far away from where they were at.

"Miss Kate - quietly" Artemis whispered back up the rope.

Posted: **Sun Oct 23, 2016 5:25 am**

There's a whuffing sound of heavy breathing in the fog, and the slapping sound of skin on concrete as something moves along the concrete. Then, moments after Artemis finishes whispering, the sound of the creature seems to stop entirely. No sound of heavy breathing. No sound of movement. It's still there though, right? Waiting for them in the gloom and the fog? Miss Kate manages to get to the platform without too much trouble, and can see the countess' pale worried face in the window above, barely visible in the gloom.

Posted: **Sun Oct 23, 2016 7:11 am**

Artemis raised his left hand to his lips, the walking stick hanging down in front of him, and made it clear to Ms. Kate to be quiet. He pulls back his right arm and fligns the coins as far away from him and Ms. Kate as possible.
[Spoiler-Button] Toss - Athletics? No points [dice]0[/dice][/Spoiler-Button]

Posted: **Mon Oct 31, 2016 9:18 pm**

As the change goes flying about, Artemis looked back at Kate and then up at the window with his face betraying his concern as to whether the Countess would in fact climb down and out of the building.

Posted: **Tue Nov 01, 2016 4:14 am**

There is no reaction from the gloomy depths of the platform to the sound of the coin rattling across the platform. No sign of the countess, either....

Posted: **Tue Nov 01, 2016 5:11 am**

Kate nods, remaining silent. She beckons to the Countess to indicate that she should descend.

Posted: **Tue Nov 01, 2016 7:35 am**

There's no sign of anyone in the gloomy window above.

Posted: **Wed Nov 02, 2016 5:45 am**

"Oh, I shouldn't have left her up there alone," whispers Kate. "I came down before her because I heard that scream and thought someone might need medical help. It came from the direction of the train. I don't know what to do about the Countess now."

Posted: **Wed Nov 02, 2016 6:13 am**

"I don't think we can go back up there and there is no way she would agree to us tying her into the rope and lowering her down." He whispered back to Ms. Kate and then sighed heavily shaking his head. "Maybe we find the others and then get some help to search that place?"

Posted: **Wed Nov 02, 2016 9:52 pm**

"All right," whispers Kate. "She knows to get out of there, and maybe she will on her own. She can look after herself for a while, but whoever was screaming needs help now. Let's make our way over in that direction, quietly. From now on, no more splitting up."

Posted: **Thu Nov 03, 2016 3:32 am**

"Agreed, Miss Kate. Agreed." Artemis whispered in reply and then turned heading towards the train very carefully listening for any change in sounds within the mist.

Posted: **Sat Nov 12, 2016 1:41 am**

He moved a few steps further, paused, and looked back up at the window to see where the Countess may be now. He dropped his gaze and looked at Ms. Kate as well, then turned back and inched forward again.

Posted: **Tue Nov 15, 2016 5:41 am**

They cross to the first accessible train car without much difficulty. The platform is only several feet across, after all. Everything is so silent now but for the mournful wail of that far off air raid siren. It's almost more disturbing.

Posted: **Thu Nov 17, 2016 4:45 am**

Artemis continued to move quitely along the train car looking for a door to enter into the car. He looked back over his shoulder to see where Ms. Kate and the Countess were in relationship to the train car.

Posted: **Thu Nov 17, 2016 5:14 am**

Posted: **Fri Nov 18, 2016 6:52 am**

Artemis looked back and saw a hand waving at him from the car's opening, he moved towards it and into the car.

Posted: **Tue Mar 21, 2017 11:44 pm**

The fog is thick and dense around you, cold tendrils snaking into your clothing and tickling your skin almost as though it were a live thing. The bright roundness of the moon can still be somehow glimpsed through the cloud which surrounds you though you can barely make out more than a few yards ahead of you. You can primarily see the concrete platform and the stripe of paint declaring how far you should stand back to avoid being sucked under the train's wheels, and the red brick building behind you with its white-lined windows and Victorian lamps pressed against the station's brick walls and sitting unlit. Benches line those same walls, empty of fellow passengers, crowding more thickly beneath the blue awning that stretches before the station restaurant. You can smell the smoke slowly dissipating from the train itself and see it mainly by its dark silhouette, somehow darker than the space behind it. You can hear the sounds of its engine slowly, ever so slowly cooling, as though the train were parked here to stay. Perhaps with a flashlight you could see further, as it is, you have to walk and look about.

There's nobody on the platform that they can see, but there is Ilona's coat that she lost awhile back when she came out to wait for the train. It's hard to make out in the gloom, but there appears to be some sort of movement from within the coat. Movement and a dark stain....

Places to Go:

Posted: **Tue Mar 28, 2017 2:24 am**

He steps out into the fog-shrouded darkness. The air raid sirens seem so far away now, still wailing mournfully even though they should have died down into silence long ago. He is alone. Utterly alone. The world is dark but for the sliver of gloom-streaked light in the windows of the railway station waiting room. The ground is dirt and rocks beneath his feet. The air smells of train smoke and gunpowder. The engine of the locomotive ticking further ahead, not so far now, as the metal cools. No one is shoveling coal into its furnace now. He could walk toward the platform or he could attempt to walk away. Just walk and keep on walking.... Yet out there is darkness and there is something comforting about that light coming from the waiting room windows.

Posted: **Sat Apr 01, 2017 6:04 pm**

Jonathan thinks for a second of just running in the dark. But it's still cold outside, and he could easily get lost. The station, while weird in its own right, seemed at least safe. Safe enough to wait there until the morning. Making sure there's no monster in sight, Jonathan heads for the station, as silently as he can.

Posted: **Fri Apr 07, 2017 1:17 am**

The air has a chill to it that brings a shudder crawling across his skin. The fog he moves through seems more alive than it should be, tendrils creeping past in the gloom rather than a mere haze of cloud, yet still so thick that it is hard to make out much at a distance. The world behind is darkness. Even the train seems like a dead thing, a mass of darkness seething to his right as he makes his way to the platform ahead. His right foot bumps brick before he quite realises he's there, depth perception warped in the foggy darkness. Groping along, he finds something thick and wet and moist on the top of the platform, more phlegm-like than blood-like yet still with a peculiar iron scent. Two more steps and he finds the short flight of stairs that will lead you up onto the platform itself.

Posted: **Sat Apr 08, 2017 9:42 pm**

Jonathan walks up the stairs and on the platform as silently as he can, still headed for the station.

Posted: **Mon Apr 10, 2017 1:13 am**

Kate emerges from the train and onto the platform.

Posted: **Mon Apr 10, 2017 5:21 am**

There are shapes in the fog ahead, the click-click-click of heels, both ladies and men's boots. Jonathon freezes and is easily hidden in the darkness and fog of the platform until or unless he once more intends to move.

As for the others, the fog is too thick to easily make out the rope chain or the doors, but they are as they were left.

Posted: **Mon Apr 10, 2017 6:15 pm**

Kate stands where she is and looks around nervously while she waits for the men to catch up with her.

Posted: **Mon Apr 10, 2017 8:48 pm**

Artemis stepped down off of the train and behind Ms. Kate. He looked about the mist veiled platform.

Posted: **Mon Apr 10, 2017 9:32 pm**

Jonathan freezes for now, unsure about what to do.

Posted: **Tue Apr 11, 2017 5:59 am**

Charlie steps out of the train and softly murmurs "The siren's still going." Pulling his coat closer, he peers into the fog surrounding them, hesitant to move beyond the relative safety of the train's open door.

Posted: **Tue Apr 11, 2017 6:18 pm**

"Let's sneak back to the station," whispers Kate. "That maniac is still out there, so we don't want to draw his attention. We should be able to get in through the restaurant now that he's busted out. Otherwise, we'll have to climb the rope up to the window."

Posted: **Sat Apr 15, 2017 2:56 am**

"Right, let's do this and quickly." Artemis lifted his cane and listened. He held the cane more like a sword and listened. I can just move slowly, don't need to worry about the leg if I move slowly, he thought to himself. He stilled his breath and listened, trying to get a sense of what was still out amidst the fog.

Posted: **Mon Apr 17, 2017 9:52 pm**

All is silent, absolutely still, out on the platform. No sign of ... whatever that was ... now. Perhaps they can make it through the doors before the stillness breaks and *something* out there strikes? There is a most disconcerting feeling of being watched.

Posted: **Tue Apr 18, 2017 4:50 am**

Kate takes a deep breath, then proceeds carefully and silently towards the station.

Posted: **Tue Apr 18, 2017 5:34 am**

The fog is thick and dense around you, cold tendrils snaking into your clothing and tickling your skin almost as though it were a live thing. The bright roundness of the moon can still be somehow glimpsed through the cloud which surrounds you though you can barely make out more than a few yards ahead of you. You can primarily see the concrete platform and the stripe of paint declaring how far you should stand back to avoid being sucked under the train's wheels, and the red brick building behind you with its white-lined windows and Victorian lamps pressed against the station's brick walls and sitting unlit. Benches line those same walls, empty of fellow passengers, crowding more thickly beneath the blue awning that stretches before the station restaurant. You can smell the smoke slowly dissipating from the train itself and see it mainly by its dark silhouette, somehow darker than the space behind it. You can hear the sounds of its engine slowly, ever so slowly cooling, as though the train were parked here to stay. Perhaps with a flashlight you could see further, as it is, you have to walk and look about.

There's nobody on the platform that they can see, but there is Ilona's coat that she lost awhile back when she came out to wait for the train. It's hard to make out in the gloom, but there appears to be some sort of dark stain....

Places to Go:

Posted: **Tue Apr 18, 2017 8:26 am**

As silently as he can, Jonathan resumes walking towards the station's waiting room.

Posted: **Tue Apr 18, 2017 1:36 pm**

Charlie keeps pace with the others but as they draw closer to the entrance something he sees gives him pause and he whispers "what if it's waiting inside?"

Posted: **Tue Apr 18, 2017 9:56 pm**

Artemis followed the others picking each of his steps carefully as he held his walking stick aloft in his right hand. He heard Charlie's whispered question and whispered back, "We find a safe place and hold up there.'"

He looked down at the flashlight on the coat and in doing so caught a clearer picture of the stain. "it's blood. He whispered.

Posted: **Wed Apr 19, 2017 4:38 am**

"I know," Kate whispers back. "I saw it earlier. There had been something moving under the coat, but I was too afraid to look. Probably just a rat, but I still didn't want to see it."

Posted: **Thu Apr 20, 2017 5:53 am**

Nothing prevents their entry to the waiting room. As the door opens, light spills out onto the platform, competing with the tendrils of fog that lay heavy upon the ground. It doesn't pierce as far as it should -- leaving those hiding in the gloom still in shadow. Those who open the door, however, are briefly illuminated to be who they appear to be.

Posted: **Thu Apr 20, 2017 8:36 am**

A look of relief quickly spreads over Jonathan's face, and he finds himself almost crying from joy as he recognizes the others. "God... thank you... thank God it's you...", he babbles.

Posted: **Thu Apr 20, 2017 5:54 pm**

Kate is startled at first, but she relaxes when she sees who it is. "Yes, thank God," she says. "Do you know what happened to the others? I think Miss Aston may be hurt. We found her coat, but it's all bloody."

Posted: **Thu Apr 20, 2017 7:12 pm**

"I think God needs to turn His eye here, but yes thankfully we have found you. Have you stayed here all this time. " Artemis responded to Jonathan as he returned to the Depot where the nightmare started.

He eased the walking stick back to its normal position and leaned onto it. He sighed as he shifted his weight a bit. "Old war wound decides to ache tonight, must be the damned fog."

Posted: **Sun Apr 23, 2017 8:58 am**

Blood drains from Jonathan's face as he says: "So you didn't meet with her... oh God... she didn't make it then...", he shivers, mumbling: "I'm sorry, miss Aston..."

Posted: **Sun Apr 23, 2017 4:40 pm**

"Listen, we need to get inside until the siren stops, then we can get our bags and go find the fuzz and they can sort this mess out."

Posted: **Sun Apr 23, 2017 4:46 pm**

"Agreed, Charlie," Artemis nodded emphatically. "Wasn't there a telegraph in the station master's office?
We need to figure out how to get the word out that something is rather off here."

Posted: **Sun Apr 23, 2017 5:57 pm**

"Miss Aston made it aboard the train," says Kate. "Her coat has been on the platform for a while. I'm not sure what happened to her on the train, though. We know she went into the dining car and ran afoul of the conductor, but...they're cooking people in the kitchen! Where did you see her last, and how long ago?"

Posted: **Mon Apr 24, 2017 3:21 am**

It's eerie standing on the platform, surrounded by darkness and swirling fog, voices kept low yet somehow still so loud in the silence. The coat, Ilona's coat, lying upon the ground smeared with blood. The train filled with secrets behind them. The railway station itself rearing up above them. And the open spaces around these places where anything could lurk and linger, watching them and preparing to strike....

Posted: **Thu Apr 27, 2017 3:03 am**

Artemis looked about in the fog trying to figure out if the shadows were in fact shadows or something else. As he did so, his neck tightened and his left cheek twitched. "Let's get inside as quickly as possible."

He moved towards where he thought there should be a door back into the station.

Posted: **Thu Apr 27, 2017 4:47 am**

Kate follows him towards the entrance.

Posted: **Thu Apr 27, 2017 6:26 pm**

Jonathan follows the others, still shaken.

Posted: **Fri Apr 28, 2017 6:12 am**

They find themselves back where they started ... in the warm of the waiting room.

Posted: **Thu Jun 08, 2017 3:55 am**

Kate emerges onto the platform.

Posted: **Sat Jun 10, 2017 3:42 am**

Artemis followed behind Miss Kate and when they emerged back on the platform he was careful to bring his walking stick down gently to touch the platform. "Can't say I like being back out here, Miss Kate." Artemis whispered. He looked about trying to get a sense of any changes.

Posted: **Sat Jun 10, 2017 4:30 am**

"Nor I," says Kate, "but look on the bright side. At least we're not back on the train yet."

Posted: **Sat Jun 10, 2017 10:14 pm**

Artemis cicked his tongue and winked at Kate. "well, there is that. Ok, where was that shed?"

Posted: **Sun Jun 11, 2017 3:54 am**

"It's down that way," says Kate, pointing, "but is there any reason to go there? There was only the one pair of bolt cutters, and Mr. Hagan left that in the baggage car."

Posted: **Sun Jun 11, 2017 6:28 am**

'Right, right," Artemis face twitched when she mentioned the train. "Then to the rear of the train, quicly."

Posted: **Sun Jun 11, 2017 1:47 pm**

Jonathan joins the other two, looking around nervously. "Let's go", he says, then he heads towards the rear entrance of the train.

Posted: **Sun Jun 11, 2017 8:50 pm**

Kate also moves towards the train. "But how can we get into the baggage car without the bolt cutters?" asks Kate. "We'll have to enter the way we did before and go down the train's length, which means...going through the dining car."

Posted: **Mon Jun 12, 2017 8:23 pm**

OOC: I think we have to enter from the sleeping car, as we all did the first time. I think that's the rear of the train, right?

Posted: **Thu Jun 15, 2017 5:45 am**

The train stands obscured by the mist before you. All of the Sleeping Car doors are likely unlocked, which means at least they shouldn't have to trail through the entire series to reach their destination. Alternatively they could attempt to cut through the thick fabric joining each car to the next that allows people to walk from one to the next. Or, of course, they could always smash a window which would be dreadfully loud or pick the lock on one of the doors.

Posted: **Fri Jun 16, 2017 4:42 am**

"Maybe we can get into the baggage car by cutting through the fabric separating it from the next car," suggests Kate. "Anyone got a knife?"

Posted: **Fri Jun 16, 2017 5:49 am**

Artemis shook his head no and shrugged. ""I didn't think there was going to be a need to pack anything other that what I needed to see the museum in London."

Posted: **Fri Jun 16, 2017 8:12 am**

Jonathan shakes his head: "Let's just enter from the sleeping car. It's not safe to remain here in the open for too long".

Posted: **Sat Jun 17, 2017 5:37 am**

"What's not safe is going through the kitchen to get to the baggage car," says Kate. "They'll kill us and eat us! We need to find another way in."

Posted: **Wed Jun 21, 2017 12:19 am**

Posted: **Wed Jun 21, 2017 5:22 am**

"Hang about, I may have something in here," says Kate, rummaging through her kit.

Posted: **Thu Jun 22, 2017 4:06 am**

She finds a scalpel, but no sign of Charlie. He hasn't followed them onto the platform.

Posted: **Fri Jun 23, 2017 3:50 am**

Kate triumphantly holds up the scalpel and looks around. "Looks like it's just the three of us," she says, leading the way to the fabric connector leading to the baggage car. She starts trying to saw through it.

Posted: **Sat Jun 24, 2017 8:38 pm**

"Ok, let's do this and hopefully, we can end this nightmare," Artemis said as he followed the woman who had more pluck than any of the soldiers he had served with in the Great War so long ago - and he realized again that there was little Great about it, and it wasn't that long ago.

Posted: **Sun Jun 25, 2017 9:13 am**

Jonathan mutters to himself: "One way or the other...", then he follows the other two.

Posted: **Wed Jun 28, 2017 3:52 am**

It is a very slow process. The fabric is designed to withstand a person falling against it, or a tree smacking against it, or any number of troubles. An actual saw would do much better.... There was certainly a saw in that shed. Otherwise she might be here awhile and her scalpel will be very blunt by the end of it. Considering what they've glimpsed so far, they might want a weapon inside.

Posted: **Wed Jun 28, 2017 4:11 pm**

"So, at this rate, we may never cut through this," Arty said with a frustrating realization that they didn't have the time it would take for the scalpel to cut through the boot. "We are going to need something a bit stronger, anyone know where the tools might be kept for maintaining this building?
That might have something we could use, if we could find it."

Posted: **Thu Jun 29, 2017 1:28 am**

"I remember seeing a saw back in that shed I told you about," says Kate. "Let's go get it."

Posted: **Thu Jun 29, 2017 5:25 am**

"Oh, that would work, maybe there are a few other tools we can convert into a means of protecting ourselves and our missing colleagues?" Artemis nodded in agreement and had a bit of hope in his voice as he realized that all he had was his cane. It could be a formidable weapon, but everyone having something like it to use would be a lot better.

Posted: **Fri Jun 30, 2017 1:03 am**

The fog is so thick on the way toward the shed and the air feels thick with tension. Whatever warmth or comfort could be found in the waiting room is certainly absent on the platform. Here you feel exposed.... Somehow watched by things you can't see.... The tendrils of fog seem to reach toward you, wrap around your limbs, and there is a sense that there could be anything lurking atop the train, ready to reach for you at any time....

Posted: **Fri Jun 30, 2017 5:34 am**

Kate shivers, only partially because of the cold, and hurries to the shed.

Posted: **Fri Jun 30, 2017 2:38 pm**

As Arty followed Miss Kate, he kept finding himself looking over his shoulders ever few steps. There was something out there, something that was sentient and it was more than just the thick swirling fog. His eyes, when he was looking forward, scanned from side to side as they tried to locate the shed. They had to find some tools to make this easier.

"Where is the bloody damn shed?" He whispered.

Posted: **Sat Jul 01, 2017 6:26 am**

They step down off the other side of the platform and move across the gravel and weed-specked dirt that stands between the railway station and the storage shed. At least it's not too far away. They can easily make out the edges of it in the bobbing flashlight though the building which would have seemed so nondescript in the daytime is certainly looking rather more dismal and worrying in the gloom. Finally they arrive at the shed....

Posted: **Sun Jul 02, 2017 5:14 am**

Kate reenters the shed..

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