Play@YSDC

2pm Friday 12th March 2010, African Studies Centre, Oxford

Over nineteen hours since Regina Balfour was abducted.

Jocelyn calls Giles Munro, 'Jocelyn darling, I'm afraid Africa's not really our area. All we have is what we got from SIS. I suppose the Foreign Office might know more about this Red Trumpet but I'm not sure how you'd go about finding out. Are you sure this is relevant to your investigation?'

OOC,Jocelyn can do a Credit Rating roll to see if she has any contacts in the Foreign Office.

-----

Simon thinks he might know somebody who can help give them more information on the Red Trumpet. Professor Annabelle Brock, formerly of the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) in London, she has recently taken up a chair at the newly created African Studies Centre in the University of Oxford. She is a social anthropologist by background, rather than a historian, but her knowledge of East Africa is unparalleled, and Simon knows her quite well.

They take Simon's car, with the notorious Oxford traffic it takes about an hour for Simon and Jocelyn to arrive at the African Studies Centre in North Oxford. After quite a few minutes struggling to find a roadside parking space they get out the car into the chilly air. The sun briefly breaks through the dappled cloud cover and warms the skin.

They identify the centre among the tall Victorian houses that line the street. They buzz on the door and are let in, Simon has called ahead and they are expected. They are greeted by a thin middle aged woman dressed all in black, with unruly curly hair and large glasses. Her voice is deep, almost manly.

'Simon old man, what brings you out here? You sounded quite...eh, enthused on the phone.'

She takes them up narrow stairs to a small office that is in a state of some disarray with papers and books scattered over the desk and various wooden sculptures and other curios crammed into every nook and cranny.

Unfortunately, Jocelyn doesn't know anyone in the Foreign Office. "I won't know if it's relevant or not until I find out more about it," replies Jocelyn to Giles. "It may speak to the kidnappers' motivation, in that they believe that they're trying to protect Regina Balfour from her parents' apocalyptic cult that seems to be derived from Red Trumpet. I think it's a lead worth pursuing. It could help with hostage negotiation."

OOC,Credit Rating roll (20% skill) to have a contact in the Foreign Office: [dice]0[/dice]

"Thank you, Professor," says Jocelyn when she enters the office, holding out her hand. "I'm Jocelyn Leigh."

"Hello Annabelle," Simon sniffs. "I'd thank you to remember that I'm not even 40 yet." His age appeared to be a bit of a touchy subject.

Once they settle in, he regains his professionalism. "Ah, quite. Have you been following that girl that went missing yesterday, Regina Balfour? I'm assisting the police on bringing her home; Jocelyn here is also assisting in the investigation." He's not sure if she wants to reveal who she works for yet so omits it.

"The short of it is the girl's father, John Balfour, is the reverend of an extremist church that has triggered a few keywords. He believes the world is due to end next Tuesday. He apparently traveled to Kenya frequently and has some sort of connection with a group called Red Trumpet. This is apparently the reason for his flagging, but no one is sure precisely why. Would you be able to tell us anything about them??"

'Wow, okay, that's more serious than I was expecting. What have you got yourself mixed up in?' says Professor Brock. 'So, what do I know about the Red Trumpet? Not a lot to be honest. I've heard the name, they're from Western Kenya if I'm not mistaken. The name is quite similar to the Cult of the Bloody Tongue, more of a legend than a real religious group but the stories come from the same area, associated with the Nandi people, they might be connected.'

"Balfour's Church of the Passover Angel may be derived from their beliefs," says Jocelyn. "I'm not sure on the connection between those and the Passover Angel, which was in Egypt. That's a bit away from Kenya. Perhaps Balfour is clothing another figure from this Bloody Tongue cult as the Passover Angel, to make it more appealing to Christians and Jews."

Simon frowns, somewhat dismayed-- and frustrated-- by the lack of information.

"I see. I was hoping you'd know more, honestly. There has to be a reason this group got Balfour on the naughty list. We'll have to do some more research on this Cult of the Bloody Tongue. Red Trumpet would not be the first group to take their inspiration from myth. Do you know anything about the legends behind them, or suggestions as to where to look?"

Annabelle looks rather nonplussed at Simon's comments. 'Well we can't all be experts on everything Simon, you know that.' She sits back in her chair for a few seconds, staring out of the window, seemingly thinking deeply. Then she sits back up sharply and says 'I can't help you with any more on the Red Trumpet but I think there's something about the Bloody Tongue in Blackwell's "Africa's Dark Sects". The man was an inveterate colonialist if course, but there could be something useful there. I might have a copy somewhere...'

She starts searching among the piles of papers and books.

OOC,Someone roll Luck

"Of course," Simon responds with what he hopes is smoothness. "It was more dismay on my end; you're the most knowledgeable woman I know about these particular issues, so if you don't have any leads we are truly at a dead end."

Luck 50%,Since Mr.Handy's is only 1 point higher than mine, I'll go ahead and roll. If we get a 51 I am truly sorry. [dice]0[/dice]

Annabelle continues to search her office, eventually she disappears under the desk and emerges a few seconds later clutching a book.

'Aha, I knew I had a copy. From the turn of the last century, Nigel Blackwell's "Africa's Dark Sects"'.

She starts leafing through the book, 'Here we go, that's what I remembered, "The worshippers of the Bloody Tongue hold their most important rituals at the Mountain of the Black Wind, situated in the Aberdare Range. Every five years, a great ceremony is held at the mountain during which they believe the Bloody Tongue appears and sends out great storms to ravage the nearby lands.".

Blackwell gives an acount of a cult ritual he witnessed while hiding in a tree, describing orgiastic rites which frankly seem more to do with by his particular preoccupation with African sexuality than any religious practices I've ever heard of'.

"Every five years," says Jocelyn. "Did he say which year this happened, and what time of year? I wonder if it's scheduled to happen again on Tuesday, and if the previous failed predictions of the end of the world line up with when this ceremony was scheduled to take place."

'Um, well, I'm not sure. Let's see, it was published in 1921 but it looks like he conducted his fieldwork in, hmm, in 1915 and 1916. So I suppose conceivably, if it was 1915 then 2010 could be a year of the ritual. He doesn't say when he visited East Africa so I'm afraid I can't help you with the time of year.'

Annabelle pauses.

'We haven't really proved a connection between the Red Trumpet and the Bloody Tongue, apart from the name. There's a lot of very specific stuff here about ritual knives and masks, feather robes, have you seen any evidence of these? I'm just...well it doesn't sound like anything a Christian minister would be connected with and the rather lurid details supplied by Blackwell don't exactly add to his credibility.'

She flicks through the book a little more.

'It does talk about human sacrifice and the belief that the god who inhabits the mountain will unleash a black wind which brings pestilence, famine, and death in its wake. I suppose that does have some Biblical resonance. But, ah yes, this doesn't quite fit. It seems it was 1916 when he made his trip to observe the ritual in what is now Kenya. So the five year cycle wouldn't be until next year.'

OOC,The previous predictions from the Church of the Passover Angel are for the world to end two years ago and five years ago

"Thank you, Professor,' says Jocelyn. "Balfour is the connection to Red Trumpet. He spent a good deal of time in Kenya and was no doubt influenced, but he clearly included other concepts as well when he founded his cult."

"I read through Balfour's text before it unfortunately got damaged. Rather interesting stuff, and I've already ordered a few copies-- both due to come after the end of the world unfortunately." He remarks dryly. "One thing that stood out is they were word for word reprints of Genesis and Exodus, with the exception of Exodus 11:6, 'And there shall be a great cry throughout all the land of Egypt, such as there was none like it, nor shall be like it any more'. Balfour believes another plague will consume the world.That could be the connection between these myths and his faith. He cites a few papers for support of the theory, by a Siro Igino Trevisanato and J.S. Marr and C.D. Malloy. I don't suppose you're familiar with either?"

"The last two world ending predictions were two and five years ago, I believe. But consistency is never any of these types strong suit. Thank you for your assistance, Annabelle, I owe you a favour. There seems to be some evidence to suggest a connection, but it's hard to determine for sure. Oh, I almost forgot-- the book of the Passover Angel Balfour sells seems to have a coded message. Studying the typesetting of the text showed a sequence of twenty six numbers hidden in variant characters, though I was not able to piece it together before my text was ruined by an errant raindrop. I also had the feeling Balfour was trying to communicate something to the perceptive reader, but it proved frustratingly difficult to comprehend. Could just be the rantings of a madman, I suppose. But I intend to study the text further when I get the chance."

OOC,Prof. Brock Know roll 80% [dice]0[/dice]

'Trevisanato and Marr and Malloy, I've heard of them, stuff about scientific explanations of the Biblical plagues' says Prof Brock

OOC,Roll Occult or Know (EDU) to know about these books

"Yes, I think I've heard of them too," says Jocelyn.

OOC,Know roll (70% stat) about the books: [dice]0[/dice]

'What I suppose is interesting there is that these books, speculative nonsense as they are, still take a decidedly material and non-supernatural approach to the plagues of Egypt.' says Prof Brock

Anyone passing Occult/Know,Both these books are in the genre of speculative attempts to give a scientific explanation for Biblical stories, the plagues of Egypt in this case. You can't recall the details but it's things like a volcano triggering a cascade of plagues or stuff about algal blooms dyeing the waterways red and then poisoning things.

Occult 75%,[dice]0[/dice]

"Interesting. Not what I'd expect from a so called 'man of God.'" Simon offers, pondering the information.

"Yes, the authors tried to present a scientific rationale for the events surrounding the plagues of Egypt rather than a supernatural one,' says Jocelyn. "They were merely speculating, of course, as there's no way they could know what had actually happened. They believed that a volcano could have caused some of the plagues, and that algae blooms could have turned the waters red. Of course, Balfour isn't truly a man of God. He may have been reading those books because he was looking for a scientific way to reproduce the plagues of Egypt, in order to gull his followers. Perhaps the phenomena we've observed that seem to mimic the plagues were actually his doing somehow. He could have gathered and unleashed insects in the local area, for instance. The rashes and the animal illnesses we've seen may be a low-grade chemical or biological weapon."

Simon's face goes pale as he listens to Jocelyn. "That makes a disconcerting amount of sense. It's also possible Balfour is a true believer, though one who believes he has to 'help' God's plan along and spread a plague. I don't want to believe it, but what are the chances that one verse is missing from his translation of the bible and the small scale outbreaks we've seen? Lewiston and his cat could have been exposed to it!"

He struggles to calm down. "Still, we cannot get ahead of ourselves. We must be calm and gather evidence lest we seem as mad as Lewiston did. Hopefully Detective Sapru will find something we can use as well. And of course, none of this gets us any closer to locating Reginia Balfour, but if her father is planning something along the lines of a bio attack..." He trails off, unable to even finish the thought.

"Thank you Annabelle, once again. This is a rather deep rabbit hole we've fallen down, I am afraid. As soon as I receive a copy of Balfour's manifesto I will mail it to you; I suspect you'll want to take a look at it as well."

'Did Simon tell you we were graduate students together, here in Oxford?' asks Annabelle.

'I sometimes wonder whether it shouldn't be you here Simon, with a professorial chair back at your alma mater. Maybe if you spent a bit more time doing proper research and a bit less playing Robbie Coltrane in Cracker...'

OOC,If you're finished here where would you like to go? You haven't had any lunch by the way

"I didn't know that," says Jocelyn. "I see him more as Robson Green in Wire in the Blood. It's been a pleasure talking to you, Professor." She turns to Simon. "It's interesting, but in Exodus, Pharaoh had his magicians try to replicate the plagues. They managed to do it with a few of them, but others they couldn't mimic. Shall we grab some lunch while we're in Oxford? I'm sure you know all the best places to eat here. We can give DC Sapru a call on the way and see if he's had any luck."

"Annabelle and I also briefly dated, before deciding we enjoy antagonizing one another too much to make a happy couple." Simon tells Jocelyn. "And who do I see myself as? Sherlock, of course! I always did have a rather big ego. And being frank, half the enjoyment is the thrill of the chase, unraveling the mental puzzles behind some of the most heinous crimes in the nation. Perhaps in a time I will be happy to settle down behind a desk and with a dusty old bookshelf, but for now, this life appeals to me more."

"Lunch sounds excellent," He tells Jocelyn. "I know this great Indian place if you are in the mood for curry."

After a short walk to the Marston area of Oxford, Simon takes Jocelyn to the students' favourite, Jamal's Indian Restaurant. The food is pretty decent and cheap and there are quite a few groups of young people enjoying themselves. Mostly sports teams from the look of it.

On the way Jocelyn calls Kris to see how he's getting on in Aylesbury. She receives an automatic response saying his phone is busy and he will call her back.

Kris dialled Jocelyn’s number and waited for her to pick up.

Jocelyn answers the phone. "Thanks for getting back to me," she says. "Have you had any luck with the emails?"

Kris glanced around, making sure he wasn’t being overheard. ”Nothing in the emails per se,” he replied. “But I’ve got the IP addresses of where she last accessed her account so that might give us a lead on where she is.”

“How are you getting on?”

"Excellent," says Jocelyn. "If she accessed it from wherever she's hiding, then we might be able to track her down. Simon and I spoke to Professor Annabelle Brock. She had a book from about a century ago called Africa's Dark Sects, by Nigel Blackwell. That's S-E-C-T-S, so it's not what you're thinking. Well, maybe it is. Blackwell seemed to have it on his mind when he was describing the rituals he witnessed in Kenya. There's something called the cult of the Bloody Tongue that may or may not be linked to Red Trumpet. They did a great ritual at the Mountain of the Black Wind every five years, but he saw the ritual in 1916, so this isn't a ritual year. And Simon mentioned that Balfour in his book referenced a theory by scholars who were trying to explain the plagues of Egypt scientifically. It occurred to me that Balfour may have been interested in their work because he wanted to find a scientific way to duplicate the plagues. That could explain the plague phenomena that we've witnessed, like the animal illnesses and the rashes. I speculated that they could be caused by a low-grade chemical or biological weapon used by Balfour. There's no proof of this yet, but it's something to keep in mind. I'm just concerned he may have gotten his hands on something even more dangerous for when he claims the world will end next Tuesday. It's not so far-fetched. In 1995, Aum Shinri Kyo carried out a sarin gas attack on the Tokyo underground. I think I should alert MI5 to the possibility."

"Excellent idea," Simon offers. "Though I'm not sure how seriously they'll take it. We don't have any hard proof at the moment, and public pressure is on to find Regina. But if they seem dismissive, perhaps we could offer an anonymous tip to our friends at GNS. I'm sure they'd love to run with it, and it might spook Balfour enough to delay it yet again. This is the third time he's declared the world would end, after all. He seems most flexible."

”You think Balfour’s messing around with chemical weapons?!” Kris said, trying to keep his voice down. “Hang on...”

He stepped out of the office into an adjacent corridor where he wasn’t going to be overheard, and continued. “Is Balfour a chemist?”

"I've no idea if he is or not," says Jocelyn, "though one or more of his followers could be. Anyway, there's no proof of any of this yet. It's just speculation on my part, but it would explain what we've seen with the animals and the rashes. If it is a weapon, it's not a deadly one - though there's no telling what will happen on Tuesday."

"Was there anything else in her files?" Simon inquires. "That was our main realization on our end, and as you can see, it remains a hypothesis. Albeit I believe a good one. "

”Not a thing,” said Kris. “If she had notes about the Balfour case, they were very well hidden. I did get the IP addresses where she’s accessed her account so we have an idea where she’s gone. I just need to check those out.”

"All right," says Jocelyn. "I'll alert MI5 to the possible danger while you work on that."

Jocelyn calls Giles at MI5.

Kris,I moved your last post back to the Social Services thread

Giles answers, his tone is a little sharper than usual, 'Jocelyn, always a pleasure of course my dear, but I didn't expect to hear from you quite so soon.'

"I've come across some new information, Boss," says Jocelyn. "It has led me to a new hypothesis, and while there's no proof of it as of yet, I felt it best to warn MI5. Balfour, in his book, cited some sources he had consulted that claimed that there were scientific explanations of the plagues of Egypt and detailed those explanations. We've noticed several phenomena similar to the plagues of Egypt: rashes, animal illnesses, flies, lice, and the like. My speculation is that Balfour or some other member or members of his doomsday cult, may be using low-grade chemical or biological weapons to mimic some of the plagues. So far they haven't been very harmful, but he may be saving something worse for his predicted end of the world on Tuesday. I think it's worth keeping an eye on him and his group, just in case. Maybe it's nothing, but if I had kept my peace and something did happen, I'd have been remiss."

'Quite, quite' mutters Giles. 'You're worried the good Reverend Balfour is actually plotting some kind of terrorist attack using an as yet unidentified biological agent?' he continues, his voice rising in pitch, 'And you feel that he may already be starting with this plan through using chemical agents to mimic the Biblical plagues of Egypt. Have I got that right?' His tone becomes harsher and a little sarcastic, 'And, am I to take it that you don't actually have any substantive evidence to support these conjectures? Or how they have any connection with the disappearance of little Regina Balfour?' He sighs deeply, 'Thank you Officer Leigh, I will of course give your concerns the consideration they deserve' and he ends the call.

"Their reaction is unsurprising," Simon tells Jocelyn if she informs him of the phone conversation. "We do have no hard information, and no one wants to accuse a reverend of plotting a terrorist attack, even a fringe one-- the papers would have a field day.

"We could pass it down the chain to GNS to at least get the story out there and hopefully put Balfour under enough scrutiny he won't try anything, but you'd likely fall under suspicion of causing the leak, which could be detrimental to your job, so It's up to you."

"No, we won't be telling GNS or any other media outlet," says Jocelyn. "If Balfour's fanatical enough to try this, I doubt a mention of it in a tabloid would dissuade him. People who read about it would either not believe it or panic, neither of which would be helpful. I did my duty by reporting it to my boss. If an attack does happen, then he'll be the one in trouble for not listening to me when I specifically warned him. In the meantime, it's up to us to prevent it. Let's catch up to DC Sapru and see what he's been able to learn by the time we reach him. If he gets a location, we'll all need to be there."

Simon looks dissapointed but nods. "Very well. I ask that you keep it on the table, however, especially if we find more evidence and your employers prove stubborn. I am beginning to think something is very off about all this." He gets up and follows her.

Jocelyn makes a quick call to Kris to update him on their plans. He tells them that he has finished in Aylesbury and is heading back to High Wycombe to visit the Happy Cafe.

OOC,It's going to take about an hour for Simon to drive you back to Wycombe in the rush hour traffic. Kris is likely to get there around 30mins before you. If you want to try an alternative route or do a bit of weaving and speeding to get there sooner let me know your strategy and roll Drive Auto. For future reference, I'm assuming everyone wears a seatbelt as this is the UK, unless you tell me otherwise.

Jocelyn uses her GPS to plan out alternate routes on lesser-used roads that would get her to her destination faster.

OOC,Drive Auto roll (50% skill) to get there faster: [dice]0[/dice]