Chapter 6: Who is Claude Owen?

[innsmouth]

Henry Glynn

Henry asks Harrison to take tbe ladies outside for a moment. He then dispatches the hound with several blows to the head with a blunt instrument.

[Starspawn338]

Henry Glynn

Henry asks Harrison to take tbe ladies outside for a moment. He then dispatches the hound with several blows to the head with a blunt instrument.

Harrison dutifully complies, happy to get out of there. "I can see why he's not well liked."

[HoneyDog]

Henry’s brutal act of kindness has the desired effect. The dog’s limbs cease to twitch and its heart stops. He drops the lamp he used as a club and covers the dog with the cage cover.

[Mr. Handy]

"I'd be very surprised if he's not the killer," says Alice. "I'm thinking he probably murdered his parents and grandparents too. 'To lose one parent, Mr. Matthews, may be regarded as a misfortune. To lose both looks like carelessness.'" she adds, referencing The Importance of Being Earnest. "To lose both of his grandparents on top of that looks like foul play."

[evil_scientist]

Isadora Carmichael

Isadora is slowly regaining control over herself.

"How... how could it be still alive, after being opened up in such a manner? For how long has the poor creature suffered? It couldn't last long in this state, right?"

If only Dr. Balzac was here to provide helpful medical commentary!

[innsmouth]

Henry Glynn

"It's at peace now." says Henry wiping some blood from his shirt.

[Starspawn338]

"Is anyone a locksmith? After having seen the dog, I'd like to make sure there's nothing suffering in that locked cabinet." Harrison says once he's gained control of himself. He will also peruse the papers and books lying around to see if there is any central unifying theme.

[Mr. Handy]

"The janitor might be able to get it open," says Alice. "If he doesn't have the key, his tools might do the trick. We'll also need to go through the books and papers. They ought to be able to shed some light on this."

[evil_scientist]

Isadora Carmichael

Isadora joins the others in the investigation of the papers and books.

She expects to find medical textbooks (as this is the room of a medical student), so she is looking for anything outside the realm of standard clinical treatises.

[HoneyDog]

The janitor is again sent for, in the hopes that he can gain entry to the cupboard.

In the meantime, the companions busy themselves with looking through the books and papers. The sheer amount and the haphazard way in which they are located signifies that there is a lot of work ahead. This will take some time.

OOC,There will be one hour of game time played while waiting for the janitor. All players apart from Isadora need a successful English roll to try to make sense of the notes.

Isadora,Isadora begins to gather the books together. It seems that apart from the odd book on botany or local geography, the texts are all related to medicine or anatomy. There is nothing unsual.

[evil_scientist]

Isadora Carmichael

Isadora checks the botany and geography books. Anything on... fungi and Chapochaug?..

[Starspawn338]

OOC,English 85 [dice]0[/dice]

Harrison begins to scan the open books and notes looking for any mention of experiments to reanimate dead creatures.

[Mr. Handy]

Alice looks for any clues about where Owen may have gone.

OOC,Own Language: English roll (80% base skill) looking through the papers and books: [dice]0[/dice]

[HoneyDog]

Isadora,There is one book on fungi, but of course it has no reference to the new species. Some of the histories are local, and mention Chapochaug, but any local history would do so, so it is not necessarily significant.

The notes are haphazard, and large portions appear to be missing. While some will be undecipherable to the layman, others are more in the style of observations or journal entries. It takes a long time to sort through.

Harrison and Alice find something of interest though which they share with the others. It seems that in early march of last year Owen had been rooting around in the basement of the School of Medicine library when he came across some notes from another student. They were concerned with the science of reanimation, and the possibility of reversing the process of death through the use of chemicals. Although skeptical, the notes awoke something in Owen, and he decided to transcribe their salient points, not daring to remove them.

Just then the grumbling janitor re-arrives and sets about unlocking the cupboard. As the doors open, the noxious reek of chemicals grows much stronger. The janitor retreats in protest, complaining about the smell.

“I hope someone’s gonna clear this up, ‘cause I ain’t” he says moodily, before leaving.

Inside are bottles of liquid, unmarked for the most part, although one bears the legend ‘Formaldehyde’.

OOC,You can keep rolling English to further examine the notes, although it will take some time. You’re free to make other rolls if you wish, although even if you roll successfully, it will not necessarily lead to anything.

[Mr. Handy]

"These must be the Medical School's missing chemicals," says Alice. "We can let them know, and they can remove them safely. We should probably gather all of the papers and books and study them someplace else. It's probably not healthy being exposed to these fumes for any length of time." Once they are somewhere with clearer air, Alice resumes her study of the notes.

OOC,Own Language: English roll (80% base skill) looking through the papers and books some more: [dice]0[/dice]

[HoneyDog]

OOC,There is a spare empty dorm where you can do this. But does everyone else want to accompany Alice?

[HoneyDog]

OOC,I’ll continue with Alice’s plan then.

Relocating the notes to a new room takes time, but the companions are able to enlist the help of the student monitor, who regards Owens’ room with awe.

As the afternoon draws on, Alice manages to make another discovery.

Owen has learned the name of the author of the notes, and it confirms the rumours he’s heard – Herbert West. Owen has been inspired to take up the mantle – he will attempt to duplicate West’s experiments.

[Starspawn338]

OOC,English 85 [dice]0[/dice]

"How did Owen manage to get Herbert West's notes?" Harrison wonders out loud.

[HoneyDog]

Starspawn338,It’s explained in the post above about the first of Owen’s notes.

Harrison finds a third note pertaining to West. Apparently, West had a farmhouse located north of the town in which he carried out his research, but which later burned down. Owen found it last summer, and found that the basement was still in good enough condition to be used as a clandestine laboratory. The rest of the note describes some of the preparations (cleaning, appropriation of equipment etc.) that Owen undertook.

[Mr. Handy]

"He may have gone to that lab," says Alice. "He's likely to be using it. Even if he's not there, it's something we should still see. It's getting a little late, so we might want to head out there first thing in the morning, which would give us time to prepare too."