Call of Cthulhu (1990s) IC Thread

[Saulk]

"Alright Wyatt Earp...let's calm down for a second, and think. Now I'm all for taking on the man, but...in this case the man is just that; a guy. I've got a few questions, and then you can run off with your gun. First, how do you know Drebber is our guy? Second, how are you going to find him? Third...what on earth are you going to do when you find him? You realize that we actually can't use 'starting a cult' as a reason to justify homicide? Maybe we could start with something like...surveillance? We're pretty good at surveillance. Right?"

With that Trent looked around to the rest of the team, hoping for agreement. Something to cool down the Doctor, and at the same time, he positioned himself between her and the door. At least she might think twice before shooting his way through him.

[TerrickTerran]

"Surveillance actually sounds like a good idea. After all, no need for any of us to get arrested for something silly. However, it's out of my field of expertise, so I'll provide moral support." David had noticed the doc take off in a flash and was now carrying a shotgun. While he occasionally had his own gun for protection, she seemed to be going a bit extreme at the moment.

[Ionbound]

Dr. Greene calms down, lowers her shotgun, and says, "Read the article," as she tosses the magazine down, opened to The Sorcerer's Way. "This is pretty blatant stuff. We have to stop him before something we can't deal with ends up here."

[Xsesiv]

Anyone that wishes to can now peruse the article: as Dr. Greene mentioned, it contains some information on how to contact cults, though it doesn't ask people to join Drebber himself explicitly, nor does it mention in clear terms any cult Drebber may be a part of. It speaks vaguely about what knowledge gives true power, and ways of acquiring that knowledge: by involving oneself with either those who have it, or with those things only one who has it knows about.

It doesn't offer any material on mummies, rituals or Drebber.

[Saulk]

"Alright, so how about this - we take a day or too, case his place. We set up a plan for bugging, surveying, monitoring everything about him. We learn everything we can about him, and that may lead us towards some other conclusions. I can get all the equipment we need scrounged together in...an afternoon? Does that sound good?"

[Xsesiv]

Drebber's place is only a few blocks from the Miskatonic River, which is currently swollen by rain. His building is on the corner of Lich and South Powder Mill, and is a late Victorian house, semi-detached, brick-fronted and squatting on subsiding ground. It is in the French Hill district, in a miserable, tumbledown neighbourhood. It has been broken up into apartments, one of which is occupied by Drebber. The shallow front yard has a few ragged, weeping willows bobbing in it. The cold hard rain continues to bucket down, almost looking as if it wants to wash the house away into the river.

The front door of the house is up on a small stoop, and is shut. Due to high walls encircling the house's back garden, there's no access to the back or sides of the house, except through the house or via the garbage access at the side, but today, the seven-foot high, smooth-faced gate is firmly shut.

Nobody appears to be in.

[Ionbound]

Dr. Greene folds the stock of her shotgun and slides it under her shirt and waistband as she whispers, "Alright...I'm not going to shoot him if he's not a cultist...But be ready for anything," before knocking on the door and calling out, "Mr. Drebber! I'd like to have a word about your recent article!"

Spoiler: OOC

Show

Here's what I'm figuring we do: Knock, and be all politely interested and try to find out what we can before we have to kill Drebber and run.

[TerrickTerran]

"So who wants to knock? In fact who's good at talking and getting into such places?"

[Xsesiv]

There's no reply to the knocking from inside the house, either from Drebber or from any occupants of the other apartments in the building. Maybe Drebber's not in, or if he is, he's not answering the door. The sound of the knocking is amplified by the acoustics of the building, audibly echoing around inside the house.

"Hell's goin' on out here?" Next door, a portly old man, in his late eighties or so, comes slowly out of the front door onto his front stoop, feeling his way along with his hands, and leans on the rail. He wears slacks and a wool sweater, but no shirt. His skin is almost as white as what wisps of hair he has left. He squints through huge glasses as thick as a paperback, and still seems to be having trouble seeing even with these spectacles. "Makin' all that racket." He blinks so slowly it appears to be effortful. "You the police?"

[Ecksdee]

"Yep. This is certainly the place someone who writes creepy occult articles lives." Laramie quipped, looking distastefully at her current surroundings. "What if he's not even home?" And then Alicia shouted out their presence, causing her to cringe. "Real subtle, boss." Though hopefully it'd get the job done.

She blinked when an old man started shouting in return, whirling to spy him off next door. Well, if anyone would possibly know something it would be a crotchety elderly person. Laramie put on her best smile and waved over at him. "Hi there! We're looking for a Mr. Drebber. Do you know if he's in?"

[Xsesiv]

The man squints feebly at Laramie's waving, trying to make out if it's a directed motion, then gives up and shrugs. "Missus Gladys Cooper's the lan'lady," says the man. "I couldn' say if no Drebber fella lived thar. There's some tall skinny geek as lives thar. Dunno his name. She lives on the ground floor thar, lets out the top floor t'the tall geek. Lets out the basement, too, but I don' think thar's no tenant in thar nowadays."

He sneezes, coughs, wheezes, expectorates, and continues. "You not the police, then? Can you call 'em for me? Only, thar wuz a lot of shoutin' an' screamin' last night, an' then a smashin' sort o' noise. I wanted t'phone the police, but I wuz too scared t'walk down t'whar the pay-phone is, over by Ernie's." At this he indicates in the broadest of waves a bar at the far corner of the intersection, its sign reading 'Ernie's' and a payphone mounted outside. "I don' see so good, y'know?"

[Saulk]

"Screaming, eh? Well...that certainly does sound like something interesting. What kind of screaming? Did the screaming abruptly stop or anything like that?"

[TerrickTerran]

David decides to let the others ask questions while he quietly eyes the surroundings noting if anything stands out. If not, he'll just wait until their next move.

[Xsesiv]

The man rolls his eyes, the motion enormously exaggerated by his glasses. "Thar wuz screamin'." He thinks back. "Lots o' yellin' an' screamin'. The screamin' stopped. Sorta petered out, from the sounds. Couldn' hear when it stopped prop'ly, cuz the shoutin' was still goin' on. Not long after, thar wuz an almighty smashin' noise, an' then the yellin' carried on up the street." The man produces a flask and has a swig, then clears his throat.

"Not gonna tell me if you're the police, then?

[Ionbound]

Dr. Greene nods at the man and says, "We work with the police. That's all you need to know right now."

[Xsesiv]

The man snorts and makes an expression intended to be disdainful. He takes another swig and feels his way to his front door, opening it and disappearing inside.

The sun dips in behind Mrs. Cooper's house, sending a shadow across the street and making the front garden suddenly much cooler.

[TerrickTerran]

"okay, that doesn't look right at all." David wasn't quite sure what that footprint was but it definitely did not belong there.