Vincent found the Koran to be in Arabic, as he had likely suspected.

As Vincent's flashlight uncovers the various figurines one by one, they all note the various figurines that are present there seem to be somehow familiar from various texts they had read on the Egyptology craze. Names like Ra, Anubis, and Bast seemed to come to mind, and others looked familiar too, but none of them had studied in the field enough to make positive identifications. Still, they all seemed of a set, and none was markedly out of place.

15:13, Today: The Keeper, on behalf of Millicent O'Connor, rolled 35 using 1d100 with rolls of 35.  Knowledge (55).
15:13, Today: The Keeper, on behalf of Thomas Cotton, rolled 29 using 1d100 with rolls of 29.  Knowledge (65).
15:12, Today: The Keeper, on behalf of Vincent Moretti, rolled 25 using 1d100 with rolls of 25.  Knowledge (80).

Lingering downstairs for a moment Tommy took another look at the area behind the counter for anything Vincent might have missed. He examined the ledgers carefully, taking a moment to scribble the names of the most frequently seen suppliers or customers, with a special eye out for the Blue Pyramid. Flicking toward the oldest entries, he wondered absently if there were any mentions of one Jackson Elias...

When he was done Tommy crept upstairs with the others. Milly seemed to be examining herself in that mirror (after all, why not?) and Vincent had moved to some strange statues. That led Tommy to the desk.
Carefully he tried to slide it open and peek at what lay inside.

Millicent examined the mirror, finding it to be a large, asymmetric grey-white metal mirror held in a gold frame. The front surface of the mirror was extremely smooth and highly polished, while the reverse bore a series of markings hammered into the surface. Several sections of the inscription had been damaged, likely intentionally due to the precision of the chiseling. The gold frame was made up of warped or possibly melted inhuman faces. These faces appeared to be misshapen, elongated, and sometimes demonic. While the work appeared to be of a high quality the faces had an unsettling, almost shifting, quality that left a most unwholesome impression.

Millicent strangely recalled an obscure fact that she had learned as she looked at the marking and characters inscribed along the frame. They appeared to be in Cuneiform, an ancient system of writing developed in Mesopotamia some three thousand years or more before the birth of Christ.


Tommy attempted to examine the ledgers below, but in the absence of Vincent's flashlight, an impenetrable darkness hung on the room like a cloak, and Tommy could make out neither head or tail of anything he was looking at.

He did much better in the room above, as the light from the flashlight did offer some residual illumination even where it was not directly pointed. His attempts to roll back the top of the desk failed, as it seemed to be locked.

OOC:

08:12, Today: The Keeper, on behalf of Millicent O'Connor, rolled 38 using 1d100 with rolls of 38.  Knowledge (55).

Silently offering his flashlight to either Cotton or O'Connor, Moretti retrieved his memo book and pen from his overcoat. Striving to work as quickly as possible without sacrificing accuracy, he reproduced the the markings on the back of the mirror on paper, hoping that Rosalie or one of her contacts might be able to translate the characters. Being no artist, he did not attempt to sketch the faces, simply doing his best to commit their unsettling qualities to memory.

  Millicent blinked in surprise. What in the world did she just see; her eyes had to be playing tricks on her in this dimness, right? Between that and those odd faces, this strange mirror unnerved her more that she liked and she quickly moved away from the thing. Did she did recognize the strange writing though even though she had no ides what it said. Cuneiform, damn this thing was old if it had that ancient scribble on it.

  As Vincent approached with notebook in hand; Millicent took the flashlight from him and held it up so he could copy down the ancient writing. "God this thing gives me the heebie jeebies," she whispered;  "what in the world would a spice merchant be doing with it?" 

Moretti shook his head. Responding in a thin whisper, he said, "I don't know. Everything in this room fits what you'd expect in a household like this, except for this mirror. Since we know the owner is tied to the Brotherhood somehow, I suspect this sinister looking thing is as well."

He nodded at O'Connor as soon as he finished transcribing the ancient characters. Putting his memo book and pen back in his pocket, he returned his attention to the desk. Glancing behind him to ensure there was no movement or sound from the short hallway, he knelt in front of it and gently tried to open the lock with his remaining picks, working as quietly as possible.

11:41, Today: Vincent Moretti rolled 1 using 1d100 with rolls of 1.  Locksmith - Locksmith 70%

Tommy looked up from the desk, confused as Milly studied the ornate wall piece.
"What's up? Its just a mirror right?".
He moved closer to examine it, leaving Vincent room to what he did best with the desk lock, examining the strange carvings in its frame.

Remembering the other door he looked around for something reassuringly heavy to palm and crept toward the as yet unopened portal. A kitchen or bedroom would surely lie beyond and they still didn't know for sure that no one was home...

18:52, Today: Thomas Cotton rolled 59 using 1d100 with rolls of 59.  A listen by the door vs 65
18:52, Today: Thomas Cotton rolled 72 using 1d100 with rolls of 72.  Sneak to be extra quiet vs 50.

In the quiet of the home, Vincent found a new calm that he hadn't been able to summon while outside the establishment, and the locked roll-top desk unlocked with a click so soft that it seemed the proper key had been turned in the lock. A cursory search within it revealed only shop records, invoices, account books, paper, pens, and the like, but as he chanced to pull one of the books out to have a look he felt some resistance and heard an audible click.

A large hidden drawer opened lower down on the right side of the desk.

In the drawer were two red-brown sandstone vials with caps, a folded silk robe, a black inverted ankh on a metal chain, a crumbling papyrus scroll, a black skullcap embroidered with inverted ankhs, and a pair of scepters made out of a black metal. Each scepter was a foot long, with a crook at one end and an inverted ankh at the other.




OOC:

22:01, Today: The Keeper, on behalf of Vincent Moretti, rolled 67 using 1d100 with rolls of 67.  Luck (75).

Seeing himself in the mirror Tommy hesitated. Confused he waved his hand up and down slowly, watching its counterpart in the glass pane. His brow furrowed - something did seem off about it.

Resisting the temptation to examine it further he continued his original plan to head to the next door. They needed to know there was no-one else in the property.

ooc: Is there a key hole or anything by the next door to peer through? If its silent Tommy will glance back toward the others to check if they object to him trying the handle. For now hes protecting against the chance of someone erupting through there.

By the time Tommy reached the hallway door, he noticed there were two other doors which had been initially out of view, one to his left and one to his right, though he couldn't make out much more. Stopping to listen, he heard nothing.

---

OOC:

There's no keyhole on any of the doors that Tommy can make out, but without a light source of his own, he they wouldn't do him much good anyway.

"Cavolo," Moretti muttered under his breath as he studied the contents of the hidden drawer. His hand hovered over the inverted ankh on the chain, his mind returning to the details of Crompton's horrific memoir, recalling that the reversed ankh served as the sigil of the Brotherhood of the Black Pharaoh.

Zubaida was right. The cult was still roaming London, preying on the innocent. To all appearances, this home was the dwelling of a simple merchant, a devout Muslim. But just beneath the surface, cunningly hidden, was proof of who he truly was. Moretti took a slow, deliberate breath, pushing aside thoughts of the atrocities that this man and his ilk were responsible for.

Quietly, he collected the scroll and vials, carefully placing both in one of the inner pockets of his overcoat. He also took the necklace with the inverted ankh, folding the chain slowly to avoid noise, before slipping it into another pocket. Committing the appearance of the rest of the objects to memory, he gestured for Cotton and O'Connor to join him at the desk.

Pointing to the clothing and scepters, he whispered, "The symbol on these robes, and at the end of these scepters, it's the sigil of the Brotherhood of the Black Pharaoh. I'm guessing the man who lives here is a priest of some kind in the cult."

He glanced over his shoulder at the quiet hall. "I've collected a couple of things, but I think we should get out of here. My guess is that the owner is asleep in one of those other rooms. We shouldn't try to press our luck."

He looked at both of them with a frown. "Since we know who this man is, I think we might consider keeping watch on him. Track his movements for a little while. See if he leads us to other members."

Briefly turning his attention to the mirror, he shakes his head. "That thing is damned unsettling. I noticed that my reflection...it didn't match my movements. It moves...more slowly."

  Holding the light so Vincent could examine the desk, Millicent watched as he went through the items he had found. "Christ, well there's our proof. Shouldn't we take it all," she whispered asking. "I mean, if he doesn't have this stuff he can't perform any of whatever he does. Cults are usually sticklers for pomp and circumstance, right? And plus," she gave a smirk, "I really don't think he'll report them stolen to the Bobbies."


 She turned to look over at Tommy and the unexplored door then turned back. "I think you're right, it might be best not to press our luck, get these things back to the others to examine."

Moretti considered O'Connor's suggestion. His instinct had been only to collect those items that were a simple matter to pocket, but on reflection, he had to agree with her idea. It was probably best simply to take it all.

Tucking one of the scepters under his coat, he waited for Cotton and O'Connor to collect the other scepter and the garments before quietly sliding the drawer closed.

Pausing before he returned downstairs, Moretti regarded the mirror curiously. Stepping over to it, he gingerly touched the glass with the fingertips of his gloved hand.

  Seeing Vincent having his hands full, Millicent took the other scepter and garments, draping them over her shoulder to keep her other hand free for the light. She turned to go but paused when she saw Vincent touch the mirror. "Come on," she hissed, "don't mess with that thing. Let's get out of here."

Tommy hesitated.

Maybe Vincent was right - they shouldn't push their luck. But...
He swore under his breath, caught by indecision.

"This stuff proves Zubaida was right. Once we take these things, whatever this cult is will know we are on to them. Then what?".
He grimaced, hurrying to speak as the seconds ticked on.

"Maybe we leave everything where we found it and watch this guy day in day out, to find the rest of the cult.".
Anxiously Tommy rubbed the back of his neck, trying to think straight.
"Better, we set him up some how. Plant something...do something to give the cops an excuse to raid this place and find something incriminating. Problem is, I aint got no idea what we can do that will stick.". Sure they could fake some dodgy book keeping, even plant a weapon, but nothing that would send the man to jail for life.

As the mirror watched them, their reflections seemed languid, distant, off. The strange glass reminded Tommy of things he didn't understand...and brought with it darker memories of New York. The reporter didn't want to say it, but at last he looked Vincent in the eye, his voice a dangerous whisper.
"Or...maybe we have to bring this place burning down. You remember the Juju house.".

OOC:

Vincent, please make a Luck roll.

Not today.

07:02, Today: Vincent Moretti rolled 97 using 1d100 with rolls of 97.  Luck - Luck 75%

Is this mirror like a certain pair of goggles I'm remembering? ;)

As they examined the mirror, all three of them could hear through the floor and the walls the familiar creaking and thudding of a heavy door being opened and closed somewhere on the floor below them towards the front of the building.
This message was last edited by the GM at 14:28, Tue 09 Aug 2016.

Moretti blinked, pulling his hand away from the mirror as though he had just touched a hot stove. Reflexively, he reached up to touch his own face, his fingers seeking reassurance that the features there remained familiar to him.

He was drawn from his brief trance by the noises from downstairs. Glancing at Cotton and O'Connor, he reached down and opened the hidden drawer, leaving its emptiness visible to others that entered the living area. Leaning close to the others, he whispered, "There's a fire escape at the rear of the building. We should make a try for it. See if we can get out without being seen." Even as he spoke, his right hand went into his coat pocket, finding the brass knuckles that were concealed within it.

Moving as hastily as quiet would allow, Moretti moved to the short hallway and approached the doorway at the end of it. Gingerly, he tried the knob and, provided it was not locked, gently pushed it open.

OOC: Wasn't sure if you needed any rolls at this point, Keeper.

OOC:

Both of you give me a Sneak roll please.

Done.

10:39, Today: Vincent Moretti rolled 93 using 1d100 with rolls of 93.  Sneak - Sneak 71%

I was very tempted to add some additiona narration to this (and still can, if needed). I was thinking of something along the lines of:

"Suddenly, all of the alcohol that Moretti had consumed earlier in the evening hit him, his vision abruptly going double. He staggered drunkenly through the living area, bumping small objects from shelves and knocking furniture askew. Lurching down the short hallway, he scowled at the door at the end of the corridor, making three attempts to reach for the knob before he was finally able to grasp it. Muttering incomprehensibly, he turned it, falling forward into the next room when the door swung open."

Or something to that effect. :)

With a swift nod Tommy moved to follow Vincent.

ooc: 18:29, Today: Thomas Cotton rolled 87 using 1d100 with rolls of 87.  Sneak to be extra quiet (vs 50).

  Millicent gulped when she heard the noises downstairs, that wasn't good they needed to get out of there, like now. Moving after the others, Milly sheltered the light to make it as unnoticeable as possible, or at least try to. They still needed some to see their way around this place.


15:22, Today: Millicent O'Connor rolled 59 using 1d100 with rolls of 59.  sneak 40%.
We are a noisy bunch, I think the place needs burned down. :P

Vincent's hand found an unlocked door, and as he turned to push it open something must have startled him - likely the sound of Tommy and Millicent attempting to hurry to join him but making far too much sound in the process - and he stumbled, knocking over something in the darkness of the room as his flashlight momentarily spun out of control.

By the time he righted it, and the three of them had found quiet purchase again, the flashlight's beam spilled onto a window directly in front of him. They were in a small room with a luxurious feather bed, a chest with clothing bulging out of the drawers, and little else.

There was calm and quiet for a moment that seemed almost unnatural in the wake of the ruckus the three of them had briefly made, but it didn't last long. It was quickly followed by the sound of footsteps rushing through the house and up the stairs!

---

OOC:

Well, at least it wasn't a critical fail. What do you do now?

Moretti bit back a curse at the noise he made, silently angered at his own clumsiness. Taking a quick survey of the small bedroom, he motioned Cotton and O'Connor inside. Scowling at the sound of footsteps below, he quietly pushed the bedroom door closed.

Pointing to the bed, he whispered, "Someone grab a blanket or sheet. Be ready to throw it over him." His gaze went to the chest of drawers. "Check and see if there's something that can be used as a weapon." He paused. "If he goes for another room first, we can try the window. Maybe we can all make it out quickly."

Moretti flexed his fingers in the brass knuckles, making a fist around the weapon to ensure that his grip was firm. He stepped over to the side of the door, positioning himself so that he would be behind it when it swung open. Rolling his neck and shoulders, he listened for the sound of the newcomer's approach.

OOC: In case I wasn't terribly clear regarding Moretti's position, this is what I intended (apologies for my limited drawing/mapping skills):