IC-Ep 2-Beneath the Surface(Leonek/Salem)

[Mr. Handy]

Dunwich Beach - Dunwich, England
12:50 PM - Thursday, September 5, 1985

Leonek Novak and Salem Shields walked south along the beach. Occasionally they passed a tourist or two, sitting on blankets on the beach having a picnic or swimming in the surf. Cliffs towered above them to their right, gradually approaching the shoreline. As they continued, they reached a largely deserted area of the beach. It ended at a point a short distance ahead where the cliffs met the sea. The only other thing here was a large shack with a sign above its door that said "Horsham's." A few boats rested to its side, upended.

Spoiler:

Leonek and Salem, please roll Spot Hidden.

[DetectiveSocks]

Salem softly hummed to himself as he walked along the beach with Leonek, the song Mr. Blue Sky replayed in his mind over and over again. The calm weather and the soothing sound of the tides, left Salem preoccupied with his own thoughts.

[Mr. Handy]

Leonek looked around, but he didn't notice anything unusual. Salem had seen that the drag marks under the water had led in this direction, but he could no longer make them out.

[DrPeterson]

Leonek looked at the shack and at Salem and shrugged.

Might I suggest we go inside, sjir?

[DetectiveSocks]

Salem nods at Leonek and takes the lead towards the shack.

[Mr. Handy]

Salem opened the door, revealing the interior of a shop. A thirtyish man in a gray fisherman's mackintosh and a matching hat that partially obscured his face stood behind the counter. Behind him was a door leading further inside. An old-fashioned cash register and telephone stood atop the counter. Fishing rods hung on display on the walls, and a sign indicated that he sold live bait. There was also diving equipment, all the way from snorkels and flippers to full SCUBA suits with oxygen tanks.

"Good day, chaps," said the man with a rasping voice. "I'm Horsham, and welcome to my shop. Can I interest you in anything?"

Spoiler:

Leonek and Salem, please roll Spot Hidden.

[DrPeterson]

"Hjello..."

Leonek's voice trails off as his attention is drawn to all the fantastic diving gear.

Spoiler:

http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/4169614/

[Mr. Handy]

"Ah, are you gentlemen interested in doing some diving?" inquired Horsham.

[DrPeterson]

"Ah yes, diving...", Leonek answers almost reluctantly, "We're looking to do some diving, yes. We'd like to go look at the ruins of the old town."
He looks at Salem and then back at the man.
"Just the two of us, please."

He tries to put on his innocent/charming smile, the extra effort bleeding through in his accent.

"Do you gjet a lot of pjeople hjere?"

[Mr. Handy]

"We do," said Horsham, "though most of them just come in for the fishing. We sell bait, and we rent fishing boats, rods, and other gear. Every so often we get folks like you come to dive. If you're not going too deep or staying under too long, snorkels and flippers will do. If you're going to spend a long time down there, you'll want to rent full diving suits and air tanks. You will need to leave a deposit, of course."

[DrPeterson]

Leonek nods vigorously.
Yes, we'd like to stay down for a bit and look around. Is there much too see? I mean, is the visibility good?

[Mr. Handy]

"No, it's rather murky down there," said Horsham. "We do have SCUBA suits with attached electric torches designed to work underwater, but you still can't see very far with them. I trust you gentlemen know what you're doing. Diving is quite dangerous, as I'm sure you know. I can rent you each suit for five quid a day, with a deposit of a hundred quid. You'll get that back when you return the suit."

Between the two of them, they barely had enough cash to cover the rental and deposits.

[DrPeterson]

Although not entirely familiar with diving, Leonek had confidence in his wits and military training to see him through this alive. He nodded at Horsham and consented to the fees. While making the deposit, Leonek tries to "casually" ask:
"I look forward to this. A friend of mine said she'd meet us here for diving, you wouldn't happen to have seen her, would you, a very pretty intelligent woman, very inquisitive and passionate, Valerie Kirby?"

Leonek's voice and manner emboldened when he spoke about Dr Kirby.

[DetectiveSocks]

Browsing through the displays of bait and fishing rods, Salem was engrossed by the many colours and ornaments. Salem looked over to see Leonek interviewing Horsham. Although Salem was uninterested in diving, he was more interested in meeting Zeke Baker. Unfortunately, Salem didn't take into account of how little money they had.

Salem interjected into the conversation, "what's the fee of just borrowing a boat?

Spoiler:

49%

[Mr. Handy]

"No, I haven't seen her," Horsham told Leonek. "Don't get many women here." He turned to Salem. "A small, two-man boat will run you four pounds a day, plus an eighty pound deposit. The boats are out front. You must have seen them on your way in."

Spoiler:

When Salem got a closer look at Horsham's hands, he noticed that he had slightly scaly skin and webbed fingers.

Spoiler:

If you want to rent a boat, you can still afford to rent one diving suit, but not two.

Both of you may roll Psychology.

[DrPeterson]

Spoiler:

http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/4172627/

Leonek doesn't seem to have a clue.


He looks at Salem and then back at the boatsman.

We'll take one suit and a boat then.

[DetectiveSocks]

"Can you excuse us for a few seconds?" Salem takes Leonek aside and whispers into his ear, "I didn't know you had scuba training, was there something down there you wanted to checkout?"

Spoiler:

77%

Spoiler:

Mr. Handy can you update my inventory on the Cast of Character page when I bought those items from the giftshop? Thanks

[DrPeterson]

Leonek furrows his brow and whispers back, heavily accented because of the sudden question:

Maybe you all spoke to fjast, but I was under thje imprjessjon that ve vould see if ve could not find vhjere the track lead to.

He shrugs and sighs unhappily.

I know about as much about djiving as I do about pilotjing a wessle.

[Mr. Handy]

Spoiler:

I've updated the character sheet with the gift shop items. Please let me know if I missed anything.

[DetectiveSocks]

"It might be wise if we stay dry. We don't know what we're up against and whatever it is, it probably shits bigger than both of us together. Curiosity killed the cat, and we don't have the proper training to go diving into murky waters."

Spoiler:

I also bought a lighter, a mug, a few postcards, a notebook and a pen. The lighter can be added to the list, but my postcards and notebook I intend to use as 'dead drops' later on during the investigation.