lent '97 - Session 22

22. The Codex and the Corpse


-- UNEXPECTED TENTACLE SESSION 22 --
--    THE CODEX AND THE CORPSE    --
--           (27.01.97)           --

	Dr Jones and Jeremiah made urgent enquires concerning the
Reverend's current location - gaining few leads. Apparently he had
suddenly come round, completely recovered and was eager to be discharged.
Clothing and funds were arranged with his guardian and he left several
days before we arrived. The earliest they could trace the paper weight was
to when he came round - coincidently about the time that the group was
involved in a minor accident aboard a transcontinental train.
	Apart from putting out a missing person's, they could do little
else; the Reverend having had the time and money to have left the country
if he'd wished.
	Guppy's tests continued with little results - the medical faculty
apparently baffled and treating him as a unqiue case completely apart from
standard theory. After arranging for the photographic evidence of
Allerton's slave trading to be shipped to Faraday (with several
contingancies planned in case of death, disappearance or acting more
insane than usual), we received news of a hideously deformed being washed
up on Portsmouth coast. Recognising the description as similar to certain
frog-like monstrosities we'd encountered before, we immediately traveled
down.
	Arranging to view the body, fearing that our poor 'deformed'
friend Rev. Peters had an accident while in his unusual state of mind, we
arranged to see the body, in order to identify it if necessary - yep,
that's a Cthulhoid horror if I've ever seen one.
	Much to everyone's disgust the thing was only partialy human,
showing characteristics extremely similar to the frog-things while still
human enough to pass for a freak. Thankfully, it bore no resemblance to
the Rev.
	We decided to split up, Guppy having more tests - now at no
charge due to 'recent discoveries' and the Prof. giving a series of public
lectures in London with a view to earning some money. The subject being
'My holiday in Morroco' - suitiably edited, full of annecdotes and
extremely few archaeologicial facts. Jarvis and Jeremiah traveled to
Prague, in order to view the Codex used to help transcribe the 'Lieber
Ritualis' - Jeremiah having a small break-through in deciphering his book.
Apparently one of the more tricky bit has a latin rhyme written backwards
and interleaved into part of the text. This was duely translated and
something approaching complete non-understanding occured.
	We received word that Faraday had arranged for Allerton's ship to
be intercepted and searched. Another, later, message told of two more
frog-like thing washing up in Boston - these far darker than the pale
creatures that we'd met before.
	The interesting parts of the Codex were also in cipher and since
we had neither the funds or time to commission a copy, we had to return
with little - a partial transciption of sanscrit annotations made in
the stranger parts of the book. The origins of which unknown.
	Passage was booked back to the US, having exhaused all the
possibilities in Europe and probably needed to testify at Allerton's trial
- should the case get that far (given our background, our sworen
testimonies would probably be laughed out of court without evidence.)

Previous

Next

Finished browsing records