Session 5

Session Report - Played Monday 5th June, 2006

Tuesday 13th November

The private detective Walsh contacts Withers about Edwards and Lawrence Bacon. Edwards has long gone from the last known address, leaving no trace. Bacon has run his shop in Islington for several deacdes and is still there. He rarely if ever leaves and the shop is open by appointment only.

Nathaniel Browne visits Talbot Estus to return ‘Le Roi en Jeune’. Michael Gillen seems to have moved out, and Estus is dishevelled and his apartment is a mess. He has beens truggling to make any headway at all on his novel and seems unwell. A passionate discussion on The King in Yellow ensues, and Browne lends Estus his copy of ‘der Wanderer durch den See’. Estus reveals a dream he has had, of Cassilda’s palace surrounded by flocks of black flying creatures similar to the Springer Mound Monsters.

Wednesday 14th November

Withers hears from his private detective about Malcolm Quarrie. Quarrie left the Royal Society in 1926, apparently to go overseas. The current resident of his former address does not no where but holds some mail for him, including letters from Pembroke College, Oxford.

Withers asks Andrew Saunders if he can help, as he has a contact at Oxford, and Saunders calls his friend John Tolkien to ask if John can find out anything about Quarrie. Tolkien recalls Quarrie’s name – he was a fellow scholar of Anglo-Saxon who once corresponded with him, as they had a mutual acquaintance. Quarrie wrote a book called ‘British Gods’ which was a study of Anglo-Saxon deities in the West of England. Tolkien owns a copy and invites Saunders to dinner in Oxford on Saturday.

Saunders also contacts the Archaeology Department at Oxford and locates Professor Hudson, who was on the Springer Mound dig in 1907, as a graduate student. This dig was nothing more than a training dig organised by a now deceased Professor, and it found nothing of interest. However, when Hudson lists the students on the dig he mentions a ‘Charles Edwards’ who he is sure died at the Somme.

Thursday 15th November

Bartlett calls St Agnes Asylum to tell Dr. Charles Highsmith that he will be recommending that Alexander Roby be released. Highsmith asks Bartlett to attend the release hearing in Hereford on November 30th to speak on Roby's behalf. Bartlett agrees.

Friday 16th November

Once again everyone meets for dinner at Bartlett's house to discuss events.

Saturday 17th November

Andrew Saunders travels to Oxford to meet Professor Tolkien and discuss Malcolm Quarrie. Tolkien knows little, but is able to give Saunders a copy of 'British Gods'.

Sunday 18th November

The investigators have a quiet sunday, getting on with their lives. Saunders reads a good chunk of 'British Gods'.

Monday 19th November

Browne calls Talbot Estus to try to persuade him to see Doctor Bartlett, but Estus refuses.

Saunders attempts to trace Malcolm Quarrie via the Royal Society, but the best he can discover is that Quarrie is believed to have travelled to 'the continent'.

Tuesday 20th November

Doctor Bartlett receives a letter from someone called Gresty. In the letter, Gresty claims to have been a part of the same group as Alexander Roby, Lawrence Bacon, Malcolm Quarrie, Edwards and Coombes, and that the group has split up. He also asks their assistance in dealing with Bacon, who he says will go out on the night of the full moon (November 27th). Gresty says that he will prevent Coombes from being present, and that this will make Bacon easier to handle.

Bartlett and Withers discuss the letter. Bartlett phones Delia Morrison about Gresty, but she has never heard of him. He also tells Delia to contact Withers or himself if she thinks of anything that may be helpful.

Wednesday 21st November

Delia Morrison calls Withers, saying she has found something and would like him to visit at six that evening. Withers is suspicious of Delia's motives and invites Bartlett.

When they arrive they find that Peter Morrison is present and Delia has a black eye. Withers reacts with anger, and Morrison, who has been drinking, challenges him to a fist fight.

Withers and Morrison face off in the front garden, and Withers wins handily, his second and final blow smashing into Morrison's midriff and rupturing a kidney. Delia spits on her helpless husband and says 'if you ever lay a hand on me again, you are dead.' Morrison ends up hospitalised, but the police press no charges as Bartlett was witness to Morrison's starting the fight.

Delia apologises to Withers for using him this way - she has no more information about Roby. She bids 'adieu' to him with a gentle kiss.

Thursday 22nd November

At Saunders' urging Browne visits Malcolm Quarrie's former home and gains mail that was meant for him by posing as a relative. The letters include a couple from his mother in Tewkesbury, Gloucestershire which refer to a 'Hillary', who seems to be Quarrie's estranged wife and announce the death of Quarrie's father. In the second letter his mother effectively disowns his and says she is moving away to live with 'Aunt Tessie'. No addresses are included in the letters.

Saunders decides to seek Quarrie in European academia and starts sending off cables to various learned institutions.

Walsh, the private detective reports to Withers that there has been no movement of any interest at Lawrence Bacon's shop. In the light of the Gresty letter Withers ended Walsh's employ, deciding its time to take a personal interest.

Withers gives his sister Anna Delia Morrison's address and number and asks Anna to look after Delia.

Doctor Bartlett finds a disturbing note scribbled in a psychological journal that refers to The King in Yellow, but is unable to locate it a second time.

Friday 23rd November

The weekly dinner at Doctor Bartlett's house becomes a discussion about the situation with Lawrence Bacon and the Gresty letter. After much debate it is agreed that all four investigators will watch, and attempt to follow Bacon on the 27th, and that the police will not be informed in advance.

Saturday 24th November

In preparation for Tuesday night, Withers and Browne recce the area around Bacon's shop. Browne finds a good hiding place in the gardens of the Royal Fever Hospital, opposite the shop while Withers traces the route to the canal, as described in Vincent Tuck's report.

While wandering the canal area Withers is very disturbed to encounter drunken vagrant singing Cassilda's song from 'The King in Yellow'.

Sunday 25th November

A day spent in at church, with family or just quietly at home. Withers is invited to dine with his sister and finds himself awkardly dining opposite Delia Hartston (who no longer calls herself 'Morrison').

Monday 26th November

A day spent at work, or in reading, or writing is interrupted when Browne gets a phone call from a barely coherent Talbot Estus. Estus says 'I won't do it, I won't.' and asks Browne 'who are you, what do you want?'.

Concerned, Browne calls Bartlett and they meet at Estus's apartment building. While attempting to break down the door, for the bell brings no answer, a neighbour arrives. He has a spare key and lets them in. Estus is found hanging in his study, and apparent suicide.

A note is found. it says "Did I see my destiny, or did I make it? I know what I must do. Damn Roby and damn his book." Bartlett rings for an ambulance, while Browne, shaken by the entire experience, and realising that just like Dr. Lionel Trollope Estus apparently forsaw his own death while in possession of 'Der Wanderer durch den See' starts to rummage through Estus's papers. He finds endless discarded drafts of the start of Estus's novel, and keeps some sheets, locates the copy of 'Le Roi en Jeune', which he keeps, and finally locates the Roby book - in ashes in the fire grate.

Tuesday 27th November

Despite being shaken by events of the previous night, the investigators meet as planned at the 'Cripple' pub, a few doors down from Lawrence Bacon's shop. At closing time they take positions in the bushes across the street and in an alley at the corner, and wait.

Just before midnight a man leaves the shop. He answers the description of Bacon, except that he is clearly a good 20 years younger than they have been expecting. Nonetheless they follow him, and seem to manage to avoid detection.

Bacon, if this is indeed him, follows the same route that he did when followed by Vincent Tuck. Once near Regents Canal he starts looking in doorways and alleys. Withers is closest when he enters an alley, just off the canal path, and starts to chant. A hideous screeching cacophony fills the air, joining with the chant, and the horrific screaming of a human being comes from within.

As Withers fumbles for his gun the screeching a stops and a vagrant staggers from the alley and is grabbed from behind by Bacon. The vagrant screams for help. Withers fires a shot in the air. Bacon hurls his victim against a wall, where his body seems to break apart, and turns to face Withers.

Withers aims at Bacon as Bacon starts shouting 'Coombes, Coombes, where are you man, you're needed!'

The remaining investigators close the gap and find themselves behing Withers on the canal path as Bacon, realising Coombes is not there, starts to rush towards Withers, chanting the words "arggan colubra, arggan colubra!"

Withers fires - the shot seems to hit Bacon but deflect away, hardly slowing him. As he closes on Withers the moonlight clearly shows his raised hands twisting, morphing and turning into the heads of a pair of serpents!

--- To be continued ---