The Mind's Eye.P3 Conclusion

Jack (Ray), Carson (Leslie), Carmen (Andrew)

9pm Monday, April 24^th: Having tossed Duncan’s house, they returned to Carson’s car and found a letter from “Lucifer”. They tried calling out to Professor Duncan whom they suspected of leaving the note, yet no-one came forward other than neighbors disturbed from their sleep. As they finally drove away, Carmen apologized, “I’m so sick of being frightened by this. Even scared of my own heartbeat. I promise to be braver…I’ve faced barn animals before.” Jack pointed out, “These aren’t barn animals with tentacles. You’ve a right to be scared.”

They sat at a late-night Diner to discuss tomorrow’s plans. Carmen offered, “We need to get the lights switched off. Maybe they have opened a rift that needs to heal and close. Perhaps we could talk to councilman Ash Southcott who was the lone “Nay” voter at the City Council meeting that approved the new lights.” Carson spoke with a mouthful of waffles, “Maybe this is my last meal, but yes, we need to take down this nutcase Duncan and stop whatever he’s started. I’m going to pull an all-nighter composing my finest article about these lights and the mental and physical damage they have caused. Untested technology that is treating the poor people of Walnut Street as guinea pigs being caved up for slaughter like barn animals as Carmen referenced. I’ll seal the article at my desk with strict orders not to open unless I’m killed or missing. We can use the threat of publishing the article as leverage against Southcott or even Mayor Peabody.”

11pm: As Carson drove and dropped them off at their houses, Jack added, “First thing in the morning I need to get my car left on Walnut Street. I can then get supplies as you two go talk to Southcott.” [CONsave] Carson kept a steady supply of coffee as he pounded the keys of his typewriter. He had to occasionally stand to wake his legs and walk to clear his mind, “No, can’t get too detailed in describing the victims’ deaths. Can’t mention the tentacles or anything unworldly else my readers think I’m the nutcase. Need to keep it believable but factual best I can.”

Tuesday morning: All were on edge as Carson turned onto Walnut Street. Jack’s car was still there; otherwise, the street was empty of kids playing in the street or people outside. Well, except for the city maintenance crews at the far end of the street with scaffolding erected around a few light-poles. The crews were hard at work replacing the lights shot out yesterday. Before Jack drove off to a supply store, “I’ll pick up camping and fishing gear and climbing gear so we can camp near the mountain cave Duncan mentioned in his diary. Maybe even a slingshot to shoot out the lights myself. Yes Carmen, I’ll discretely ask about purchasing dynamite.”

Carson and Carmen climbed the steps of City Hall and found Southcott’s name on the directory board. [Persuade] Carson tried to convince his secretary, “No, we do not live in his district and thus not his constituents. I’m a reporter trying to find out why he was the lone vote against the lights on Walnut that has become frontpage news with all the deaths.” Perceiving her boss’s name about to be smeared in an article, “I’m sorry sir but the councilman already has a full schedule today. Perhaps I can get you an appointment…say next week.” Carmen stepped forward with a new approach, “I think you misunderstood our intent. We’re well aware of Mr. Southcott’s solid voting record for the real issues that plague our fine city. We noticed him the lone opposing vote and want to get his reasoning. Obviously, HE was the only one to see the fallacy of rushing these untested lights into production. He is to be cheered a muffled- hero.”

Council Southcott lit a fresh cigar as he listened to their introduction then explained, “Yes, I objected, not to the lights but their location. I’ve read how the ungrateful locals are shooting out the lights. How gangsters themselves are using the area as a turf-war, killing opposing Italian mobsters without care that an innocent blindman was caught in the crossfire. Had the lights been installed in my more influential district, my constituents would have been grateful. As for being untested, you’ll have to take that up with the city engineer Endicott who brought the idea forward. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m behind on my scheduled appointments.” Carmen’s parting words, “You may not realize you and your constituents dodged a bullet.”

11am rejoin: Carmen was disappointed Jack was emptyhanded regarding dynamite, “Do you have any electrical experience to maybe shutdown the lights? Say, short-out the substation that powers the neighborhood? But then, a surge might make the lights glow even brighter and make things worse. Carson, do you have any criminal world contacts? Perhaps we could enlist their aid at eliminating the lights.”

Noon: Carson knew the password to get them into the Sycamore Speakeasy on Garrison Street. They purposefully talked loud enough to be overheard as they discussed dynamite and the lights. Enough said to get Carson invited alone into the back room to talk to the boss, Mordecai “the Hammer” O’Leary. “Why should I be interested in lights in such a poor neighborhood. Not like anything of value there to… become missing.” Carson explained, “I’m sure you’ve read about the deaths… not blaming you although the cops are. But what if these new lights catch on and become widely incorporated throughout the city? Wouldn’t that shine a bright light on your operations? Wouldn’t it be in your best interest to discredit the lights now to terminate any future installations?” Carson left with the understanding the lights might accidentally go out as long as he wrote an article directing the blame elsewhere.

Miskatonic Chemistry Department: Carson pulled out the envelope and handed it over to a professor, “If you could please get this white powder analyzed. Be careful not to touch it with your bare hands as it seems to cause hallucinations and other disorders.” As they stood in the front office, Carmen argued, “We’re wasting our time trying to analyze it. We already know it does nasty things. We should be asking them to make a batch of explosives for us. I mean, how else are we going to blow up this mountain?!” Carson tried to explain, “We need to know if this is something natural that others could stumble onto. Is it a rare compound and thus maybe limited supply? Would blowing up the mountain solve the issue or could there be underground pockets of more of it.”

And that’s when the chemistry student interrupted, “Is there someone here named Webster? You have a phone call.” Carson picked up the receiver, “Hello, Carson Webster here.” After a short silence, in a wild, almost hysterical scream, “WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN? I’VE BEEN CALLING FOR HOURS! Tonight, it must be tonight. The horrible thing has been eating all too well. I know that now. I think it’s almost ready. Meet me outside the Municipal Works Warehouse at seven tonight.” Silence except for a clicking sound that prompted another outburst, “Wait, why were you calling out my name last night in front of my house? Didn’t you read that spies are everywhere! I think they are listening in on our conversation. WAIT! Are you working for them too? Oh God, what have I done! I must accelerate my plans.” Carson, tried to calm him, suggesting it was only the switchboard operator but, “CLICK.”

Long, wasted minutes explaining the short phone call to the others before they thought to look around. “He’s been watching us to know we came on campus.” Looking out the window, they only saw students walking to or from classes. Carson thought to call the operator, “Yes, where did that that call come from? You can’t trace it? Oh, your board only lights up and you connect to the desired office. OK, so you can at least confirm the call came from outside this building.” Carmen wondered, “Where would he hold up? Feel safe? He wouldn’t go back to his Engineering office.” Carson wrote a quick note to explain they were still supportive of Duncan and his plan and put it on the front seat of his car, “If he’s still watching, maybe he’ll come back to retrieve this bait. Let’s go have a snack at the cafeteria.”

1:30pm, MU cafeteria: [Idea roll] Jack realized, “We don’t know anything about this mountain or warehouse. Besides, I’m full from lunch at the Diner. How about Carmen and I go to the Orne Library while you (Carson) go watch your car in case Duncan visits again.”

MU Orne Library: Jack and Carmen started by searching for Sudbury area maps. “Here’s an 1872 Essex County map. Pull out Duncan’s hand-drawn map to compare. OK, there’s Wayland but there are multiple towns named Sudbury (Center and North) and multiple hills around.” Excuse me Ms. Parker (librarian), do you have a more recent map to compare?” The librarian retrieved a current McNally road atlas (started in 1904). Carmen locked onto Willis Hill to the north-northwest of Sudbury Center. It wasn’t till 2:30 when Carsen arrived and looked over their shoulders, then studied the maps, “Duncan never showed. Did you notice this town of Crawford Rise to the east of Sudbury Center isn’t listed on the newer map?”

They spend the next 2 hours digging up more research material. Jack focused on books about Sudbury, “Hey, here’s a book entry about the so-called ‘Sudbury Disappearance’ regarding the small farming community of Crawford Rise. April of 1880 when the entire population disappeared.” 

That book led to another book (1912 Mythology and Religion of Massachusetts Indians). “Listen to this: periodic awakening of certain unclean spirits of light. Men and women would begin to go missing — taken by the spirits as food for some greater entity. Once this greater being had consumed enough, he would wake from his great slumber and threaten the tribe. Only through the ritual chants handed down from the elders, that the tribe could be saved.”

4:30pm: Carmen pointed out, “The town disappeared 42 years ago. Maybe there is someone still living who knows the unwritten story of what happened. I mean the Anthropology professor (Edgar Jamison) who wrote the mythology book might still be alive. If we hustle, maybe we can catch him in his office, if he hasn’t retired yet.” Jack coughed a few times loudly as he offered to put the books away. [Sleight-of-Hand] No one heard the tear of paper as Jack removed the key pages and pocketed the McNally map. They had to walk across campus to the Science Hall where they learned Jamison had moved on to Boston University.

Jamison was but a phone call away. “Yes, I remember that summer in 1910 when I stayed with the local tribe and recorded their legends of some great old one. How the god would return several decades apart and how they had to circle the mouth of a cave and chant for hours. They were adamant in their beliefs and taught me the chant. I think I wrote it in my book published years later. I talked to some of the locals in Sudbury who also knew and believed. There was one man (Jed Ashcroft) who called the hill with the cave Eye Bone Hill. Now that I think about it, Aybon (or was that Eibon) was part of the chant.”

As they walked back to the cars, Carson thought they should shop for fishing supplies, “The mythology story mentioned them casting a net. Maybe not literal but we shouldn’t take a chance. Wouldn’t hurt.” So, it was 5:30 already when they reflected back on Duncan’s phone-call, “We don’t have time to drive to Sudbury and the cave and get back before Duncan’s 7pm schedule. Maybe we should drive around the warehouse now and get a lay of the land.”

5:30pm: They decided to take both cars with the plan to leave Jack’s behind near the warehouse, just in case. With Carmen as passenger, Carson led the caravan onto the West Street bridge over the Miskatonic River enroute to the Municipal Works Warehouse on High Lane Avenue. Suddenly, Carson had to swerve to avoid hitting or being hit by the large truck that precariously turned south onto West Street. Pedestrians scattered as the truck took out the corner newspaper stand and jumped the curb. [Drive- fail, Spot- extreme] Carson slammed on his brakes to avoid the truck and people but still managed to dent his bumpers. Carmen recognized the tin-hatted driver with the frantic look (from the picture on his desk), “That’s Professor Duncan!” At least Jack didn’t slam into their rear bumper as he came to a stop.

Chase: That momentary indecision- ‘U’ turn or turn west to take the Aylesbury Street bridge? Carson thought he knew Duncan’s destination but couldn’t take the chance. He ‘U’ turned while laying on his horn while flashing his PI badge out the driver window, “POLICE business. Clear the streets!” Pedestrians and stopped traffic alike cursed the driver. And cursed Jack who was close behind (didn’t see the truck driver but could only assume). Carson passed Water Street and just gained the bridge when he spotted the truck already exiting the bridge and turning west. He had to weave through bridge traffic that was forced to the side by the reckless truck driver.

Carson screamed at Carmen, “I lost sight of him! Too many trees lining the river edge. Can you see him?!” Carmen could only guess, “I think he’s going to blow up the hill!” Luck was on their side as the intersection light was green in their favor. But as they turned west, the truck was nowhere in sight as they approached the ‘Y’ intersection of Aylesbury Street (going west) and River Street (going northwest following the river). Carmen screamed “Left on Aylesbury!” as she spotted trashcans spinning in the street and mailboxes destroyed on the curbs.

Only when they were out of town did Carson chance speeding up. “There he is! Stay close in case he turns but don’t let him know we are following. We might spook him worse and cause his crash and death.” It was another 30-minute race through small towns and even Wayland before Duncan turned northwest toward Sudbury and then northern roads that lead closer to Round Hill (Eye Bone Hill). Carson slowed and pulled to the side when he saw Duncan come to a stop. Carson and Carmen watched as Duncan retrieved a box from the truck bed and began walking down an animal trail to the northeast. Jack finally appeared beside their car, “I couldn’t see anything but your taillights. What’s going on?”

6pm: Duncan continued along the animal trail through the marshy landscape filled with low brush. They kept their distance (about 100 yards) till he reached the hill and began to slowly climb. He dropped something. As they reached the spot, Carmen picked up the burnt-orange stick and recognized it as dynamite without a fuse. She smiled at confirmation of Duncan’s intent. Maybe that’s what distracted her and caused her to stumble and fall, making noise. No one thought to hide in case Duncan turned at the noise. Carson turned to help Carmen up. [failed Listen] At least Jack at the rear had sight of Duncan who never turned around.

CLIMAX

The hill slope angled higher as Duncan climbed then suddenly stopped and reached for a stick of dynamite as he dropped the rest of the box. They were close enough (50 yards) to see his panicked actions as if something confronted him. He lit the fuse and threw the stick. No one thought to take cover as they continued forward. In fact, Jack sped up to pass the others. Till the deafening blast shook the hill and caused a landslide. They all dodged the larger rocks that came to a stop nearby. But they lost sight of Duncan consumed by a white cloud. And the realization jellyfish floated around the hill. At least they heard Duncan’s painful screams.

Jack rushed to aid Duncan, till he saw the horror that approached. [Sanity- pass] The Render he witnessed attack and consume Jack Calton just last night in the Walnut alley… yeah, THAT tentacled horror! In fact, Carsen and Carmen saw the same. They began to chant the phrase they had studied in the mythology book.

M’buchthu yltol th’nalek-Xoth

Eibon p’gothoth N’kai chgollng ftagn

[Sanity- fail, 2-point loss] Carson chanted as he continued to slowly climb closer. [Sanity- fail, 6-point loss, INTsave pass, Bout-of-Madness: Alter Ego] Carmen continued to chant even though she remembered Professor Jamison describing the ritual took hours and only at night when the moon was at its fullest. She accentuated each syllable of the chant as she stabbed at the jellyfish surrounding her.

Jack stood frozen as he watched (in horror) a tentacle extracted Duncan from the rubble and pulled him inside the now visible inside of the Render that began to carve into his skull. Jack instinctively reached for the dropped box and found a stick of dynamite also fused. He lit it and threw it toward the Render and ducked for cover, “Fire in the hole!” Seconds passed till "KABLOOM!"

Carson… close enough to see everything. His new Mind’s Eye saw everything. In fact, he saw through the Render and noticed exposed sticks of dynamite already planted around the cave just up the hill. All connected with a long fuse. Duncan had been here multiple times! “Jack, you’re closest and fastest. Go light that fuse!”

As Jack took off running up the hill, circumventing the horror, Carson reached the box of dynamite and lit his own stick. He threw it at the horror before it could threaten Jack. “Fire in the hole too.” Jack and Carsen dove for cover. Further down the hill, Carmen continued to chant and stab ay jellyfish. “KABOOM!”

As if time slowed… everything became SOOO clear. Jack saw the visible ethereal parts of the Render projected everywhere. As for Duncan… a sacrifice that had to be made. He was dead anyway. Jack clicked his lighter and ignited the long fuse. 

And that’s when he saw the true horror of the Massachusetts Indain lore: the Great Old One Sleeper that came slowly crawling out of the cave towards the mouth entrance. Pulled forward on its long tentacles that clutched the earth to pull the voluminous body forward. [Sanity- fail, 1d20 = 3] Jack screamed as he ran down the hill, “RUN!!” A simple word that embodied all that was needed for survival. From the pending explosion if not the true horror itself.

Jack passed Carsen who had just begun to run. They almost floated/slid down the hill on the loose gravel and rock deposited by the earlier explosions. Carmen finally snapped out of her daze and started her own retreat. Not as fast nor soonest. She was closest to the cave when the detonation occurred. “KABLOOIE!”

The sky was filled with large boulders and rocks propelled outward. Carmen was pummeled by larger rocks (10 damage) before the concussive wave (2 damage) also bowled her over into a tumbling human ball. Carson faired a little better (4+1) as he was knocked off his feet. Furthest from the blast, Jack was unlucky enough to be hit by a large rock (6+1). The setting sun was temporarily blotted by the huge white cloud of powder blown out of the cave.

EPILOGUE

Jack was worse off than Carson yet still tried to stoically help him along as Jack carried the unconscious Carmen over his shoulder as they walked back to the cars. Along the way, he instructed, “I’m going home to Boston. Lose my name and number.”

Carson opened the sealed envelope and edited his article about the lights. Yes, that night all the remaining lights had mysteriously been shot out. Carson attributed it to the locals. Yes, they had suffered the worst, but such a slight twist of the news was in their best interest. He made certain to praise councilman Southcott for his lone opposition to the lights. Carson focused on the untested aspect of the lights and the headaches and hallucinations even the beat cops complained about. Yeah, Carson wanted to be more accusatory of the mayor’s push for the lights, but Carson’s father knew enough not to piss off higher authority. It was an election year which could affect more than just the mayor.

Carmen had plenty of time to sketch and hang paintings in her room. Strange how they kept disappearing. Why did the orderlies keep removing them every night? Even sanitoriums need decorations. 

Relaxed Hypnosis

Bergonic chair

Electroconvulsive therapy

Oh well, at least her artwork took her mind off the experimental treatments she was receiving. “Bite down on this before we throw the switch.”

BACKGROUND

Half-remembered tales recall that aeons long ago the Great Old Ones came down from the heavens to occupy our planet. These stories tell of hundreds of such creatures descending upon our globe, each a horribly individual and unique entity. Yet in the Mythos lore known only by a few, a mere handful of such entities is thought to exist on the Earth. Could it be that the reason for this discrepancy lies not in the disappearance of these deathless things, but in the narrowness of our perceptual faculties? Could the remainder of these eldritch things be in some way invisible to our sensibilities, surviving in imperceptible slumber in long-forgotten places?

Beneath a small hill in the gently rolling landscape west of Arkham lies a shrine that is invisible to all humanity’s senses. Within this place sleeps an antediluvian horror, a lesser power among the ranks of those who descended with Cthulhu from the hideously living star Xoth. Being a lesser entity of its kind, the mystical bonds that prevent its existence during certain cosmic phases are weaker. This, coupled with the imminence of the stellar configuration which will free all members of its race, means the time is ripe for this being’s awakening. For this to occur, however, the Great Old One must be fed curious occult sustenance and exposed to the non-electromagnetic radiation emitted by the star it once came from. To arrange such conditions, an avatar of Nyarlathotep, in the form of a dark-skinned merchant, lures Professor Graham Duncan into his web. Duncan is shown how to construct cheaper electric lamps that emit a brighter light. Unknown to Duncan, the special powder coating (think Powder of Ibn-Ghazi) used on the bulbs affect the human pineal gland within the brain, thus providing a ’second sight’.

Those with a stronger POW are affected fastest. Or those who bath in the greenish-hued light longer. Stimulation of the pineal gland in turn produces chemicals necessary for the awakening of the entity beneath the hill, called ‘The Sleeper’. Its attending helpers (the Jelly Things and Renders) comfort and protect the Sleeper. And when the time is ready, harvest activated human pineal glands to feed their master so he might fully awaken and walk the Earth again!