In reply to Imran Singh (msg #9):

Darlington stationed himself by the rear door, keeping a watch.

The lift was on the Ground floor. It was of a conventional freight type, with a platform and gate, and could be called. It did seem rather odd to him that there was no stairs directly connecting the basement to the main floor. A quick check of the floor plans confirmed this.

Fulty went over to the crates and examined them in the light of his own torch. "Some are empty, some aren't. Oh, hey, here's one from the Limehouse address of the warehouse the Penhouse Institute now owns."


Keeper's Note: I think the plans I posted before were too small to easily use. I am re-posting them at larger size to make them easier to use.
This message was last edited by the GM at 05:11, Thu 05 Apr 2012.

He swept the torch light over the crawl space and checked the dust for foot prints. It looked unlikely the space was used for anything other then storage.

He moved back to Mr Singh

"Nothing, do we risk the elevator ?

In reply to Count Sigismund Bathony (msg #11):

Fulty checked out the crates, noting the addresses. Darlington kept a watch at the rear door, lest they be caught inside the basement.

When the Count swept his torch into the cluttered crawlspace, he noticed two things: there was a small stairwell in the SE corner allowing access to the first floor, and the northern wall was a lot closer than it seemed in the plans.
This message was last edited by the GM at 11:53, Sun 08 Apr 2012.

Cynthia holds up a finger for silence. She pauses a few moments to listen, then writes down on her pad, "Someone is inside this wall". She points to the wall separating the coal chute from the crawl space.

The Count paced out the wall on their side and then with an estimate of the same wall in the crawl space he said to the group;

"I believe we have a hidden space behind the northern wall. There is also a set of stairs in the crawlspace. From the amount of clutter along the walls I would say it is not accessed from here, though we can check as we move to the stairs."
This message was last edited by the player at 21:21, Sun 08 Apr 2012.

Singh whsipers, "Perhaps we could go up in the elevator and find that stair from above rather than putting ourselves at a disadvantage in the cramped crawlspace."

"I think the noise would alert whoever is in the hidden space. It is not that low, though I shall be removing my hat. Also I was not able to get a good look at the northern wall it may have some sort of door in it."

In reply to Count Sigismund Bathony (msg #14):

Due to the amount of clutter inside the crawlspace, the Count need to actually go inside to pace out the rear wall accurately. He determined the new wall (that is, not on the plans) was located about two thirds up the crawlspace, around where the low wall into the coal bin was located.

Once he had undertaken his quick building assessment the Count moved closer to the wall and began checking for a concealed entrance or anything else unusual. He kept the torch at his feet looking for any tracks as he moved to the wall.

In reply to Count Sigismund Bathony (msg #18):

The Count determined it was unlikely that there was a concealed door anywhere in the basement, or if there were, it was constructed with great skill. No tracks seemed to disappear into any walls or make unexpected diversions. The usual traffic routes seemed to be from outside, the lift, and the stairs in the crawlspace directly to the furnace and coalbin, for obvious reasons. (A few faint tracks seemed to be around the crates but this would be indicative of moving them in and out.)

For her part, Cynthia noted there seemed to be an electrical conduit leading into what appeared to be the secret room comprising the NE corner of the basement, as well as a duct leading there directly from the furnace.


This message was last edited by the GM at 05:13, Wed 11 Apr 2012.

Cynthia shares what she found, then writes, If there is entrance here, it may be on the upper floor. But if we use the lift, we'll certainly alert whomever is hiding there. We'll need a quieter route.

"I expect that they are already aware of our presence," whispers Singh, "Using the elevator may make them think they are undetected. Perhaps Darlington and Fulty should stay behind and watch to see if they emerge after the lift goes up."

"I will ascend using the stairs. It may give us the opportunity to check whether anyone is lying in wait.

With that he begins to climb the stairs.

While the Count is ascending, Cynthia takes a moment to better examine the duct into the secret room, checking if it's large enough for a person to climb into it (and if she could do so quietly), as well as further listening to the sounds of whoever is in that room.

Inside

Darlington didn't look particularly convinced by the suggested use of reverse psychology and shook his head, but didn't want to argue aloud.

Reading Cynthia's note, Fulty nodded his head in agreement. Looking at the sketch of the floorplan and figuring out which rooms were above the secret chamber he took out his fountain pen. he wrote underneath her note, "Yes - in Gavigan's office or storage room" in neat script.

The ducting was to conduct hot air, and was made of galvanised tin. It wasn't nearly big enough to fit inside, and if it was anyone crawling through such ductwork would make an impressive racket!

Meanwhile, Bathony quietly ascended the stairs to the east Visitor's Lounge. There was no door at the top of the stairs, but there was only minor creaking which he hoped wasn't noticed. When he got almost to the top, he peeked out at what was marked on the floor plans one of the work/lounge areas for visiting scholars. Sturdy shelves filled with leather-bound books lined the walls and there were two lines of mahogany desks, plus chesterfields and coffee tables closest to the entrance.

The lounge was open to the foyer and front door where the front desk sat. The lounge's lights where he was were turned down, leaving this corner of the building in shadow. Bathony heard the clicking of shoe leather as someone slowly climbed the stairs by the front desk to the second floor, seemingly unawares.

Outside

All was quiet on the foggy London streets. Passers-by were non-existent. True to Darlington's word, the cabbie that drove Lampton's taxi didn't ask many questions. As a rough-looking sort with an impenetrable Cockney accent smoking a cheap pipe with even cheaper tobacco, he probably (and correctly) assumed there was some kind of a crime or burglary in progress.

Taking out his flask of tea (not offering any to Lampton) he began pouring himself a mug. Stopping abruptly, he asked Howeard, "oi, Guv, do yer droive? A ve-hicle, loike?"

Keeper's Note: Technically, Bathony is on the Ground floor and the "Second Floor" would be called the First Floor. There is no door to the stairs, and no door to the entry foyer. The front desk has a single light, he has no LOS to the closest stairs where the unseen person is climbing.

Of course, I'll also be making all your Sneak and Hide rolls so you won't know if you've been spotted or heard, and call for you to make Spot Hidden or Listen checks as appropriate.
This message was last edited by the GM at 21:08, Wed 11 Apr 2012.

"I have some familiarity with motor cars," Howard replies, "Though I rarely exercise them."

The thuggish-looking cabbie nodded to himself.

"Roight, then. Oi gots me a pub t' be in while me Taxi is stolen by some naow-account 'oodlum, yeah? Keys are in th' ignition. Darlington'll knoaw whaar' t' leave 'er. Oi didn't see nar 'ear nuffink. Top o' the evenin'."

Without further ado, the driver poured the tea back in the flask, opened the door, and got out. Touching his cap, he began walking off into the darkness.

The Count turned to whoever was behind him and said in a low whisper;

"Someone is going upstairs."

Once the person on the stairs was on or near to the second floor the Count moved towards the rear of the building and the storage room. He tried Gavigan's office door as he past it on his way to the other room.

If the door to the storage room was unlocked he would enter and close the door. If it was locked and Gavigan's office was open he would enter it.
This message was last edited by the player at 00:30, Thu 12 Apr 2012.

In reply to The Keeper (msg #26):

Somewhat nonplussed, Howard nevertheless climbs behind the wheel of the auto, checking the fuel level and adjusting the mirrors.

Singh stands near to Miss Cynthia, giving her a slim smile.

Darlington and Ralph accompanied the Count as the moved down the corridor on the main floor to the rear of the building. They went one at a time to minimise any noise. The rest of the party remained in the basement.

Gavigan's office door was unlocked, but they didn't enter it.

The rear store-room door was unlocked. It opened into a room full of what their torches revealed as wooden shelves holding office supplies: pencils, paper, ink pots, pens, file folders, paperclips, etc.

There were also stacks of boxes and cases, as well as old office furniure. Lying a  few feet away from the rear (east) wall was an Egyptian sarcophagus of poor quality, possibly a forgery or fake, or poorly-maintained mummy case belonging to a later dynasty.

The Count closed the door to the storage room and waited listening for any sound. He examined the boxes first then moved to the mummy's case. He thought it was an odd place to store it even if it was a fake.

He had recently started to take an interest in the history and archaeology of Egypt and had spent many hours in the wonderful collections of London.

As he examined the piece he tried to decipher any inscriptions.

Singh steps over to the crates. He tries the lids to see whether any is loose and looks for a prybar or other tool to remove the lids.

In reply to Count Sigismund Bathony (msg #31):

Fulty, the Egyptologist, studied the mummy case along with Bathony.

"Can't tell which dynasty, if any, that's supposed to be from. It's a forgery, not a very good one," he whispered.

With the door closed, he turned on the light, took a quick photo of the case, then turned the light off again.

In reply to Imran Singh (msg #32):

There are no loose lids on the closed crates.

Looking around, he could see no tool to open the lids of the sealed ones. He realised it would make a fair amount of racket, no matter how hard he tried.