IC - 16 - Day 3 - Simon and Jocelyn

[Mephistophilis]

OOC,I'll use that Persuade

There is silence, and then a long sigh, 'Okay, I'll tell you what I know. But then you need to forget it and forget me.' He continues in his soft East African accent, 'Let us start with the official story, with the Nandi people of the Rift Valley. At the time of the British occupation Nandi male society was divided into ibinwek, age-sets, and when an age-set reached maturity and took over the warrior-role there was a formal ceremony and handing over of this status from one generation to the next. This was called the saget ap eito, the 'sacrifice of the ox', and is variously reported to have occurred every five years, every seven years, or even every fifteen, but the general consensus is that there wasn't a fixed interval. Anyway, by 1923 the Nandi had grown restless again under British rule, having already fought a war against them less than twenty years previously. This is known as the Nandi Uprising and there was either an armed insurrection planned for that year's scheduled saget ap eito, or at least the British thought there was going to be trouble. The British suppressed the saget ap eito and imprisoned the orkoiyot, a kind of spiritual or religious chief.'

He pauses for a moment, 'None of this is particularly surprising in the annals of colonialism of course. But what interested me is that the saget ap eito has never been held since and the last orkoiyot remained in prison until the 1960s. The name 'Red Trumpet' is sometimes used to refer to the movement behind the 1923 uprising and there have been a few episodes of ethnic violence where the name comes up again. Officially the government denies any knowledge of any such activity.'

He sighs, long and deep. 'I'm an academic, it doesn't matter in what field, but I'm also something of an amateur historian and ethnographer. Although I grew up in Nairobi my family are ethnically Nandi and I thought I'd make a little project of going back to learn a little bit about the Red Trumpet. I took a sabbatical and headed out into Nandi country. It was to be an entertaining holiday and reconnect me with my heritage. Well the Nandi themselves were very close lipped, they told me the Red Trumpet were just a story told to frighten children. They didn't revive the saget ap eito because they had no need to, they continued the age-set transitions without it. And they told me that the orkoiyot had never been loved, maintaining their position with threats. So that was that, I thought and I headed home.'

He sighs again. 'If only I had left it there. But on my way back to Nairobi I talked to the Nandi's neighbours, particularly the Kikuyu, and I heard a very different story. They talked of the Red Trumpet as a secret organisation, forged in the Nandi Uprising of 1923 but dating back even further to a mythical cult known as the 'Bloody Tongue'. They told me the Red Trumpet seeks to revive the saget ap eito and restore the orkoiyot, but not for benign reasons of culture but because they have been taken over by ponik, 'witches', who wish to use the ceremony to bring down some kind of pestilent 'black wind' to smite their enemies.'

He continues, 'So I came back to Nairobi, planning to write up my findings. Obviously I didn't put any store in such stories but I thought it would make an entertaining little monograph. After producing a first draft I wanted to get back in contact with my informants to check I'd told their story accurately, and to get their views on my interpretation of the Red Trumpet myth. I say I wanted to contact them, I tried, but I couldn't get hold of anyone. Not surprising for the tribes of the hill country I thought, so I took a week to return to the area and find my contacts among the Kikuyu. But no-one would talk to me, I would go as far as to say they shunned me. Eventually after a few days of fruitlessly asking after my contacts I was taken aside, told they were all dead, and to stop asking questions about the Red Trumpet if I knew what was good for me.'

'And that is all I know. So if you know what is good for you I would leave the Red Trumpet alone.' The phone clicks as he hangs up, followed by the tone.

[Silver Priest]

"Just one more question please," Simon tries to interject. "Have you heard the phrase 'Narlato wagh'nagl iszkur boret?"

Upon receiving an answer or a dial tone, he frowns, thinking about the information he has received. This case got odder and odder. At least the call confirmed the group had an interest in chemical warfare and replicating plagues.

[Mephistophilis]

Simon's question goes unanswered as he hears nothing but the dial tone.

[Silver Priest]

Simon curses, but tries to be understanding-- the man was obviously spooked.

Still, he wants to know what the phrase meant. It was very likely nonsense that his dream conjured, but perhaps he had heard it somewhere. He needed to confirm.

He looks up Kenyan speakers and tries to find one he can pay to translate the phrase for him.

[Mephistophilis]

Since it is only a short phrase he wants translated, Simon is able to make contact with an interpreter fairly easily. He knows the principal language of Kenya is Swahili and a quick conversation with a Swahili interpreter confirms this phrase is not Swahili or likely to be from any other Bantu language, including the Gikuyu language of the Kikuyu.

The first interpreter is able to put him in touch with a Kalenjin speaker who tells him he does not recognise the phrase either and does not think it is from the Nilotic languages of Kenya, definitely not the Kalenjin language of the Nandi or the Maasai language.

[Mr. Handy]

"There are also translation websites, like Babelfish, if you can't find anyone to translate," says Jocelyn, "though you'll get a better translation from a human."

[Mephistophilis]

OOC,I think Babel Fish was defunct by 2010 but feel free to put the phrase into Google translate and see what comes out!

[Silver Priest]

"The issue with this is I only have a phonetic spelling of the phrase," Simon explains. "And I'm sure I'll butcher the spelling. One reason I wanted to speak with someone who knew the language." Nonetheless, he puts it into google translate and sees if anything comes up.

OOC:   When I did this it identified the words as German, but still made no sense, unfortunately. Maybe Simon is brighter than myself.

[Mephistophilis]

Simon can't identify the phrase searching online, in fact he can't identify the constituent words either. Perhaps he transliterated them incorrectly, or perhaps they were just nonsense generated in a dream.

[Mr. Handy]

"Let's check in with DS Bates and see if there are any new leads," says Jocelyn. "God knows we're not getting any further with just the old ones."

[Mephistophilis]

Jocelyn calls DS Bates, 'Where are you two? With Sapru off the case we're going to have to work double hard to find Regina. And you're reporting straight to me now. But first, tell me what the fuck happened at the Balfour house?'

[Mr. Handy]

"We're at the hotel and on our way in," says Jocelyn. She tells her what happened in the Balfour house. "Simon and I both tried to talk DC Sapru down, but he was like a bulldog that has its teeth sunk into a chunk of meat and wouldn't let go of it. He was convinced Balfour was withholding information. Are there any new breaks in the case? Was there any reply to the emails we sent to Lindsay Peale?"

[Mephistophilis]

'I don't know what's got into Kris, this case seems to have really got under his skin, well, I guess it has for all of us. Still, a real lousy move on his part, that's going to cost us time we don't have' she says, a hint of exasperation in her voice.

'No reply from the emails, but we do have a lead. Lindsay's white Astra was clamped and eventually reported as abandoned this morning. It's in the Hyatt Place hotel carpark at Heathrow Airport. We're getting the CCTV now and I've got officers from British Transport Police on the scene.'

'Have you three got any leads?'

[Mr. Handy]

"That's more than we've got," says Jocelyn. "It's good we found the Astra. Now we need to trace her rental via CCTV. She must have switched vehicles at Heathrow. If we can retrace her route, we may be able to find out where she went. We haven't gotten any leads of our own on Regina's whereabouts, just some information about Red Trumpet and Balfour's background. Also, either I'm sleepwalking or someone was in my hotel room last night while I was asleep. They left the window open and the Gideon Bible on my bed, with the ribbon pointing to Exodus 11-12."

[Mephistophilis]

There's a brief pause, '...Really, that's er, worrying...' Jocelyn can hear the scepticism in Bates's voice. 'Anything you need me to do?'

[Mr. Handy]

"If you're worried, imagine how I feel," says Jocelyn. "I could have been killed if the intruder had been so inclined. I don't know if you have resources to spare to have forensics go over my room, so I'll leave that decision up to you. Shall we come in and assist with reviewing the CCTV footage?"

[Silver Priest]

Simon debates, but eventually decides he must speak up.

"DC Sapru, Jocelyn, and myself also seem to have developed a nasty rash that is worsening with time. We think we received it at Lewiston's home; he had late stage cancer I seem to recall, and his cat was in similarly awful shape. Seems a rather large coincidence we all got it after visiting there, though we're not yet sure about the other officers. I was able to do some digging into Red Trumpet,and evidently the group wishes to bring about a "black wind" of pestilence to punish their enemies. The point being that while Reginiashould be our top priority, I'm starting to believe there's something to all these tales. I don't know if Balfour's gotten his hands on some chemical weapons or what, but he may have poisoned Lewiston or the man thought he was and he decided to kidnap his daughter in revenge. I believe there's something very dangerous about Reverend Balfour, though I'm also aware we must tread carefully given how the media is framing the story. I did disprove of DC Sapru's aggressive interrogation style yesterday, I should note. My own hope is we can rescue the girl and use that to earn Balfour's trust and dig a little deeper into what's going on."

[Mephistophilis]

'A planned chemical weapons attack in High Wycombe, masterminded by a priest, whose daughter has been mysteriously abducted by an ex-police officer and a social worker in order to prevent the attack? You know, it doesn't sound any less crazy when I say it out loud.'

'We don't have time for your half baked conspiracy theories, as far as I'm concerned we don't know why Lindsay Peale has kidnapped this child but the suicide of George Lewiston suggests they could pose her some serious harm. The Balfours might be annoying but you've not shown me any evidence that suggests they're anything but your run of the mill religious nuts, not terrorists. And given the shit storm Kris has already caused I wouldn't go around repeating your theories.' It doesn't take an experienced interrogator or a psychologist to tell that DS Bates is not buying their theories.

'I believe you about Lewiston and the cat though, there's been an outbreak in forensics and Dr Sanderson says it looks like something nasty, maybe scabies. You might want to get that looked at.'

'I'll send a crime scene investigator to have a poke around your hotel room Jocelyn. See what we can dig up. Meanwhile, you two come over to the station and we'll take a look at the CCTV when it comes in.'

She sounds like she is about to ring off, then she starts talking again, 'What were you scanning over to MI5 last night? One of the guys said it took you an hour, must have been important.' Although it is difficult to determine over the phone, it sounds to Jocelyn like Bates feels they are keeping something back from her.

[Mr. Handy]

"We scanned a copy of Balfour's book," says Jocelyn. "There were coded notes written in it. We'll be in to review the CCTV footage ASAP. Is there anything else you need to tell us?"

[Silver Priest]

Perhaps unfortunately, Simon's temper flares.

"With all due respect DS Bates, would you tell me how many years of psychological education you have? Because I have well over a decade. And if you're afraid I'm lacking in real world practical experience, I suggest you review the Thorndike affair from last year, or the rave reviews your colleagues had for me in helping to solve it. And it's not just me who feels something is off with Balfour; Lewiston's record at Special branch was spotless and the only complaints Peale ever had at her career as a social worker concerned this family. I don't know DC Sapru's record in any detail but I'm given to think he mustn't have much of a trail of trouble either; otherwise I suspect he would have been terminated entirely. I don't wish to put words in Jocelyn's mouth but I presume she shares my misgivings. In other words,we are up to at least 5 unconnected individuals with no history of erratic behavior who believe that the Balfour's are at the very least a potential danger. I encourage you to realize that is unlikely to be a coincidence. And if you think 'religious nuts' are harmless you're clearly underestimating how certain dogma can turn even the most unassuming people into terrorists.

"However, as I have said our main goal now remains finding Regina Balfour; regardless of the activities of her parents she is an innocent and will die if we don't recover her soon We;ll be back to the station shortly to go over the CCTV footage. "