A puzzling headline begins a front-page article found in the Times of London. Three men, all identical in identification, were found dead in the same room of the Chelsea Arms Hotel. Then the home of a valued friend burns to the ground, severely injuring him in the process. It is the beginning of "Horror On The Orient Express" a European campaign set in the winter between January and March of 1923. Over the course of the campaign, the investigators are trying to collect the various pieces of an ancient statue called the Sedefkar Simulacrum. Night falls early then, and each night is long and cold. The campaign is made up of 11 scenarios, taking place in seven nations, the United Kingdom, France, Switzerland, Italy, The Kingdom of Serbs Croats and Slovenes, Bulgaria, and Turkey. All are stops on the path of the Simplon-Orient Express.
Archie chuckles darkly at Clarence's admonition. "That's the plan, mate..." Then when there is no obvious energy emanating from it, he lowers his hand the rest of the way and picks it up using his jacket.
After all of the weird bollocks that Archie has seen since the ride on the bizarre train, Archie is genuinely stunned that there doesn't appear to be any immediate and catastrophic injury to himself or his arm. He lifts it closer to his eyes so he can see the design covering the surface.
"It's awfully light," he said as he gently lifted in the air, like a butcher or postal clerk might as they attempted to guess something's weight. "And there is a design that you can't see until you're right up on it."
"Take a look," he said, holding it out so the others can see.
Last edited by SaintMeerkat on Wed Oct 19, 2022 9:14 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Seen up close, the material of the piece is made of rock. The surface of the arm is slightly uneven. The stone has been finely decorated with tiny repeating forms of a human body. They cover the entire surface and can only be identified by observing the piece very close under the flashlight beam. It changes color according to the strength of the light bathing it, from opalescent pastels to rich blues to inky blacks in full light. There are lugs and corresponding slots for the piece to fit with something else, most likely, the torso piece.
After taking the simulacrum's arm, Archie feels a tingle in his left arm. It is only mildly annoying, but persistent.
The human form does not resemble anything previously found in history and in known ancient or modern religions. The style of the human silhouette vaguely recalls the art of the Arab peoples before Islam.
The decorations in the pattern are tiny, almost microscopic. The tiny human figures that are repeated on the surface are identical to each other. There is no artist who could do such precise work manually. On the other hand, as far as Felicity knows, there is no technical means that is also capable of this.
After a while, Christian Lorien appears. He is shocked by what he sees here underground. He is determined to inform the authorities to give a proper burial to all these bodies. He affirms that his english guests shouldn't feel obligated to take care of that unless they want to. Archie will continue to feel piece as extremely light . However, when the stone arm is placed inside a bag and one of the other investigators picks up that bag, he will feel the weight of a very heavy block of stone inside the bag.
OOC: Everybody recovers 1 point of Stability. The collection has begun. Before you board again on the Orient Express, let me know about your next destination....
"How was this even made?" asks Felicity. "Nobody has the ability to handcraft it with such precision. Even with modern machine tools, it would be impossible. And yet this thing is centuries old!"
'This form doesn't resemble anything I've seen before,' says Andrew. 'Although it does have vague echoes of pre-Islamic art. Whatever this is, it is something very alien.'
Clarence nods,
“Let’s collect our dunnage and get going.” As they leave He turns to M. Lorien,
“I have hopes you’ll be able to turn this horrible find into something more positive for your family. At the very least, I think Madame Lorien might improve her health.”
'Thank you for your hospitality Monsieur Lorien, and I apologise deeply for the inconvenience we have caused you,'Andrew gestures to the bodies. 'We have rather urgent business in Verona and the authorities will be able to send word to us there if they need any further information about this grisly find.'
He shakes the man's hand firmly. 'And do not worry, we have not forgotten our promise to call on Mr Wellington in Lausanne. We will have plenty of time on our return journey.'
OOC: Obviously Andrew is trying to leave a false trail should anyone try to follow them. He will check the mail at the station in Verona though. He doesn't want to evade the authorities.
