Expedition Stage 2: The Mountains of Madness pt 1

-----Everyone--------
The Agents went to look at the odd pattern of flashing lights, visible in the dim light of the low summer sun of Antarctica.  The lights were flashing high up on the black rock peaks of the mountains at impossible heights and positions that no human would be able to attain, and their pattern had an odd repetition to it.  At first Jack thought prime numbers were the key, then another series of flashes seemed to indicate a deeper cipher.   Now that Thorne had stopped making noise, the dogs quieted down.
"It's repeating," Thorne said suddenly.  "Left, far out, left of that, left, right, far out twice, and right, then three of those, then five of those.  It just started up, maybe a few seconds before I yelled.  I scan the horizon every sixty seconds.  It's a beacon."
"For the Elder Things ?" Ben asked.
"They can fly, so how else you gonna get the lights up that high?  And why ?"  Thorne sounded pretty sure of it.
"There is difference to the colour." Fritz said, looking through the binoculars. "Red, yellow red, yellow, bright yellow.  We are maybe 90 miles away."
With teamwork, the Agents were able to write down the repeating pattern, along with the colours depicted.  A few minutes later, the flashes stopped.
"Time, 1:42 am." Thorne referenced his wristwatch as Precious leaned on his leg and chirped at him, then yawned.
Spider's study of physics had included enough of the wavelengths of light to know that the colours had relevance, but also there might be light involved that was beyond the scope of human eyes to determine.
It took Jack hours, but he identified the pattern as a mixture of numbers and ratios that indicated the Golden Spiral, with a place marker that indicated Third Planet from the Single Sun  at 0.676767 in the Orion Arm.  He got to bed as Ben headed out to stand the last watch.    All was quiet for the rest of the 'night' - the flashing had stopped.

The extreme weather and the travelling conditions had already taken a toll on the Agents.  Nolan remained asleep, but seemed to respond to the oxygen.  No more of the dogs died, and the two injured ones were well enough to move around a little, but unable to pull in harness.  Precious seemed to have adopted Thorne as her personal servant and had a lot to say in yips, chirps and yowls.   The trip to the edge of the Mountains would take at least two more days, given the rough terrain; from Camp Two, the Agents would travel into the Mountains of Madness.  Thorne was paying for his climbing trip with a great deal of sore and stiff muscles the next day, and it was apparent from the grey in his beard that he was the oldest one in the camp.   Fritz went to harness up Bruno and mush the Hellhound's sled, while Thorne was stuffed into a sled with Precious, with Spider mushing, taking the first lead.  Nolan was in Jack's sled at the second position, with Ben mushing the third sled alone.  The fourth and last sled was always Bruno, who kicked up too much ice and snow to make it comfortable to follow.

The going was rougher than the relatively level ice flats; the sheets of ice had collided over time and created jagged ridges and gaps that slowed the Agents down.  Overhead, thin cirrus clouds swept past, their ice crystals shining in the full spectrum, the wind from the Mountains driving them along.  The same wind whistled at the Agents, its eerie piping sound grating on their nerves.  Only a lone albatross soared in the sky, its wings rarely dipping, sliding along the winds without effort, with the black basalt mountains as a threatening background.

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GM:  Actions, please, for the rest of the night and the next day, please respond by Saturday 16 April, next post Sunday.  Hope you are all well and life is beginning to approximate normalcy.
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Jack is pleased with himself for working out the math of the signals, but then realizes its unknown meaning represents another unknown factor. “Are they guiding reinforcements here from… out there?” he mutters to himself.
He is a bit concerned for Thorne’s well-being, and makes sure the Southerner gets enough hot food and some aspirin (or whatever painkillers the have) for his soreness, capped off with some fortifying brandy.
“We’re out of mint leaves, or I’d muddle you a mint julep,” he jokes.

Mountains of Madness pt 2

-----Everyone----------
That the Mountains were broadcasting some kind of coded message, visible to creatures of the Mythos, was unsettling to say the least.
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Jack noticed that Thorne did not appreciate being reminded of his age, though as a Southerner, the man would never express any complaints.   "Never was partial to Juleps, always preferred a good Bourbon," Thorne said, but he also cordially thanked Jack and accepted two aspirin from their medical supplies.  Precious was again sprawled across his lap, snoozing.  Fritz had noted the exchange and only went back to checking his rifle when Jack glanced his way.
"Good with the maths on that one," Ben complimented Jack, after coming in from the last watch, to Spider's breakfast spread.  The men ate and headed out onto the ice.
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The day was another long one, but the reward was evident, as the second permanent Camp was made, late in the day.  Camp Two was within a day's travel into the Mountains, and the way forward was made easier by the Radio Tracking device that had been delivered to them.    The Mountains loomed now, with the lowered sun again sparking the rhythm of lights in their universal pattern.
"Coleridge," was all that Thorne said about the albatross, watching it swirl in long, lazy circles, wings holding it aloft on the wind.  Bruno leaned on his left leg and Princess on his right leg.  Inside the tent Fritz and Spider were setting up the cots and the stove.  Ben was walking around the tent area, looking at the Radio Tracker and fiddling with the settings.   The machine beeped a few times.  "Camp Two is now locked into this thing," their Boss said.  "We can probably make the Mountains the day after tomorrow."
"Any idea of what might be there when we do ?"  Thorne asked casually.
Ben considered this, poker face blank of expression, but Thorne was his equal.
"Rumor.  Speculation.  Stuff I read in a book written by a madman twelve centuries ago."   Ben spoke slowly, but looked Thorne and Jack in the eye.  "I'll tell you what I know, or what I think might be there, when we're all inside and settled for the night.  We have been running hard for days and we need to rest."
"All right then," Thorne said, and addressed the two animals.  "Bruno, go watch the pack, they need you.  Princess, watch Bruno."  They trotted away, and Ben also was as good as his word.  After dinner, with the lamps bright and the world as safe as could be, given their location, with the eerie piping of the winds across the mountains a constant reminder of danger, Ben told them what he knew.

"The book is called the Necronomicon.  The one I read is in the Special Collection at Orne Library - a Greek translation of the original Arabic, of a book called Al Azif, written by Abdul Alhazred, translated by Theodorus Philetas in the 10th century.  The copy is second generation, written on vellum, and Faulkner keeps it locked in a safe - he claims it was brought from Salem during the Witch Trials.  There are other copies....some more complete than others.  Studying it is dangerous.   I read it very slowly and only after I had completed a warding circle.  In it, there is mention of the Elder Things, and the Shoggoth, giant shapeshifting creatures.   We have already seen an Elder Thing, but I'm willing to bet it wasn't at its full strength.  The Shoggoths are their servants, but there was an uprising, a rebellion.  The Shoggoths built the city we are going into and they apparently defeated the Elder Things, but in what way they may still be around, or if there are any more Elder Things around, I don't know."
Thorne, unsurprisingly, spoke first.
"Shapeshifting, how, exactly ?"
"You remember Doan," Ben said. "He - or it - isn't the same man as Captain Doan, but they look the same, at least until dawn, when it must refresh its appearance.  And yes, I know, it was dishonourable to have hired Doan.  I was told that if I didn't, then the future was endangered.   If the message had not come from my eldest son, I would not have heeded the warning.   Like it or not, the time travellers are helping us do something that needs to be done."
Thorne considered this, sipping his coffee. "Anything else ?"  he said, eventually.
"I will do everything in my power to ensure that you survive and return to DC."  Ben said.  "Someone has to save the world in 1937."
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GM:  Please respond with actions, etc, for the next few hours of game time by Saturday, 23 April, next post Sunday.
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Spider finally said, "So what are we doing here, Ben?  I mean, most of these Mythos beasties I am more than happy to try to get rid of them.  But if these things mostly keep themselves down here, do we want to consider leaving them be for now?  Is this recon?  Or are we going in to wipe them out?  If so, how?  We barely took out an injured Elder Thing, and these shoggoths beat them.  I'm just worried we don't know exactly what our purpose is here."

Jack chimes in also: “Didn't you say we’re looking for some type of alien technology to affect the ocurse of the coming world-wide war in our favor? What exactly should we be looking for? Was it described to you by your son, too?”

Expedition Stage 2: The Mountains of Madness pt 3

--------everyone------------

Ben took in a breath.   "And I was specifically told not to divulge this.  Donald - you know him, about this tall, almost five years old -" he held up his hand to indicate the relative height of his eldest son, "-decided that the best course of action was to scare the living daylights out of me and tell me about the worst possible futures.  He was, he said, fifty-seven last week, but the timelines he was in charge of were showing abnormal divergence.   We have to find something in that alien city that will help prevent the end of the world in 1937."

"So, we're robbing a tomb.  Treasure hunting.   If we see a shoggoth, or an Elder Thing, or whatever else, we have options.  My offensive magic is pretty effective.  Our weaponry is specially designed to take out mythos creatures.  My plan is to go in, take whatever we think looks useful, anything that relates to the rising of a greater threat in 1937 - the reawakening of a Great Old One, Cthulhu.   In the South Pacific there is an interdimensional rift that reaches into R'yleh, a part of the multiverse that acts as a prison for It and other dangerous entities.  Donald said in 1937 he would have to fight Cthulhu and win, and we had to go into the City to facilitate this.  Most annoyingly, he told me I'd know what it was when I saw it."
Thorne grinned, an avaricious light in his eyes.  "That means you'll be there to see it, so therefore, to accompany you into the city is the best path to victory."
Fritz stifled a long-suffering sigh. "I will pack all the explosives we have."
"We leave tomorrow," Ben said, shaking his head slightly.  "So we had better get as much sleep as possible, because I don't think we'll get much rest inside the city.  If you have any ideas, concerns, or plans, we'll discuss them and decide the best course of action together."

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GM:  Actions, etc, for the next few hours of game time, please respond by Saturday, 30 April, next post is Sunday.
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Spider says, "I'll cook anything that needs  it now, so we can just heat and eat.  If we have time to heat, that is.  I'm betting we'll mostly eat cold dishes.  Also, everyone should carry some flares.  In a place this cold, I'd bet that most things don't like being burned."  He stood and moved towards the makeshift galley, muttering, "This one could probably have used an immortal Roman gladiator...where is he these days?..."

Jack listens attentively when Ben is speaking. He can’t help but chuckle slightly at the irony of Ben’s frustration at Donald’s cryptic instructions. He doesn’t have much to add.
When Spider mentions fire, Jack nods. “I agree. I packed extra flare guns and flares, if anyone wants some.”
Other than usual gear maintenance, Jack will spend his time meditating at his small shrine to Athena. He continues to pray for aid in their quest to stave off cataclysm from all humanity, and particularly for strength to use the wand without being consumed by it.

Expedition Stage 2; pt 3

"He's in Jackson County, Missouri, on a security detail," Ben replied almost absent-mindedly, as Spider mentioned the immortal Casca.  "We play chess by mail."

The Agents settled in as Spider baked biscuits and packed up tins of beans.  It would not be a great feast, but it was certainly better than going without.  Fritz went out to watch the horizon, reporting that the lights were flashing again, at about the same time.  Thorne slept, Ben slept, as Jack observed his small shrine and Spider went out to keep watch.  They got as much rest as they could, and repacked the sleds with only the essentials - taking weapons, ammunition, flares, explosives, food, rope, axes, medical supplies, one small tent, the radio tracker and its beacon.  As Thorne secured the last items in their sleds, Ben had to make a decision.   "If we take Nolan with us, we'll be taking him into unknown danger.  We can leave him here, and that is no promise that he will not be attacked in our absence, and he's still alive, with that oxygen feed.  He has not woken up.  I believe it is safer to leave him here, and go forward with the mission as planned.  I'll leave him written instructions; he has food, water, shelter, and the radio transmitter we brought from DC.  We'll also leave the injured dog with him, Kiska, with food and water for him.  They'll have to look after each other."
"I'm bringing enough food for the dogs for ten days," Fritz added.  "We should take them into the mountains as far as we can, because after that we will have to pull sleds ourselves.  We will need some way to take out what we find."
"We might have to leave the dogs at some point, though we should take Bruno with us," Thorne said, "And Princess.  They can sense Elder Things before we can."
"Bruno weighs more than two hundred pounds," Fritz objected, "What if we have to rappel him down a cliff ?"
"I'd rather have Bruno with me in an ancient city of eldritch horrors, thanks," Thorne said, as he laced up his boots in preparation to leave.  "But I'll ask him if he wants to go or not."

The dogs were put back in harness, and Camp Two was secured, as much as it could be.  High above them in the whistling wind, the lone albatross circled.   The Mountains loomed, sunlight sparking off the swirls of snow that blew past their darkness.   The Agents set off across the high plateau, pummeled by the driving winds, heading towards the Mountains.  With every mile, the Mountains seem larger and more threatening.  It is well into the day when the plateau begins to show ridges and cracks, where the ice beneath is less stable.  One of the sleds begins to slip sideways...and the ice falls away....
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GM:  Please make Spot Hidden rolls (d100), and roll on your Move Rate (d100), to determine what happens next and how fast you can react to it.  You'll only have a minute or two in game time to react.  Please respond by Saturday, 11 May, next post is Sunday.

GM:  Please roll for Spider. Considering what you have written, I would have Spider first try to steer his sled to safety, or try to leap with an ice axe out, while holding onto part of it (rope, harness, whatever) just to keep it from plummeting, taking people and/or dogs with it.

OOC:
And the GM rolled a 16.  Really, a 16%.  The Dice Love You.
This message was last edited by the GM at 20:57, Thu 05 May 2022.

OOC: I sent a set of two rolls, but could not see if they went through. Then I sent a single roll prematurely. If you didn’t get them, please just roll fro me.
IC: Same thoughts as Spider! Also quick prayer to Athena!

OK, the rolls.
Ben rolled 1%, a super critical success.
Fritz rolled a 6%, also a critical success.
Thorne rolled a 38%, not much success.
Spider rolled a 16%, a very good success.
Jack rolled a 20%, a very good success.

Yes, the Dice Love You All.

For the amusement of the GM, who now has to deal with pulp hero PCs whom the dice love, I rolled again for me, and I got 81%, which is a failure. *Sigh*

So back to resolve our scheduled cliffhanger;

The ice cracked and fell away with a thunderous racket, sending tons of frozen death into a crevasse that had appeared so suddenly.   The next thing they heard was a scream, as Thorne's sled went sideways and Bruno's footing slipped.   Fritz had been in the lead and was looking back towards Thorne as the sled began to slip towards an icy death off to the right.   As Spider looked back, being in the sled closest to Thorne's sled, he saw the mad scramble of Bruno trying to regain control and Thorne trying to lean away from the gap, putting more weight on the sled runner that still had contact with the ice.   Ben grabbed the harness lines as Fritz bailed out of the first sled and Jack managed to steer past them.

Thorne's sled began to twist and fall, but the Southerner held on and shouted to Bruno, "HAW !"  Spider leapt from his sled, rope in one hand, ice axe in the other, and slammed the axe down hard to stabilise himself as he threw the rope towards Thorne.  Jack invoked Athena and ordered his dogs to "Whoa !"

There was a rush to get to the falling sled, as Bruno strained to keep it from going into the chasm that had opened up and Thorne to keep a hold on it.  Fritz threw himself flat on the ice and reached for Thorne, grabbing the rope the Southerner had gotten hold of.   Spider further anchored them and Jack ran towards them, Ben following.  As Jack looked back, there was a loop of rope around a spear driven deep into the ice - a primitive spear they had not brought with them, about two meters long with an iron shank, with Ben leaning on it to help brace them.   With a lot of sweat and swearing, the Agents managed to reclaim the Thorne and the sled - Bruno hauled it along free from the chasm and collapsed, panting, a safe distance away.

"Okay, okay, stop it," Thorne said to a frantic Fritz, though he was favouring the arm that had been wrapped in rope.  "I'm fine.  Nothing lost."
"We better keep moving, in case more of this falls away," Ben told them.  After the near accident their progress was slower, but safer.  In the lee of a glacier they made a camp, setting up one large tent and some wind breaks for the dogs.  Bruno had been made much of and was chewing on pemmican cakes with the rest of the huskies.  Thorne seemed to have suffered only a sprain of his left arm, which Fritz insisted on healing with a spell.  At midnight, Ben again set up the Candle spell and waited, but there was no response from Mikaela.  The tent wasn't big and comfortable, but the lantern lights gave off a warm yellow glow, and they were warm enough for now.  Outside, there were loud cracks now and then, as the glacier shifted and ice fell, fortunately far enough away that they were safe.  As they went closer to the Mountains, more peril awaited.

The following morning they looked out towards the South, where an opening could be seen in the wall of ice, a pass leading into the mountains themselves.  There was an odd symmetry to it, suggesting more than the work of nature.  Breakfast was warmed on a brazier and the Agents ate, considering their options.  "We'll be seeing rock mixed with ice, scree from the mountains, when we get closer," Ben said, proving that while he might be poor at climbing rocks, he knew about their formations.  "And we will take turns walking ahead of the sleds to make sure we don't have another sinkhole."   The 'tester' would be tethered to the nearest sled by a rope, just in case.  This slowed their progress, and also undeniably made it safer.  More than once they skirted an unstable area without trouble, and Thorne made sure to map it out and mark the trail.  They stopped for the night within reach of the gap, just as the light show began on the mountain peaks, the repeating pattern of flashes and colours, as unsetting sun lowered in the sky.
Now, it was accompanied by a faint and distant hooting, clattering sound, coming from the mountains, as if several animals were calling.  In the shadows near the mountain pass, something was moving in the snow.  By best guess, they were a mile away.

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GM: Actions, etc, for the next hour of game time, please respond by Saturday 15 May, next post is Sunday.
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Spider uses the rifle scope in an attempt to get a better look.

Jack will accompany Spider outside, and use a pair of binoculars to see what he can see. He will also look around for the albatross or any other birds. Back inside, he will pray once more to Athena, asking her to place her Aegis between the Raiders and their enemies, to shield them from harm and detection if it suits her will.

Expedition Stage 2: The Mountains of Madness pt 4

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The Agents picked up various items that enabled a better view.  Thorne had his spyglass, Fritz his rifle scope, Spider with Matilda's scope, and Jack and Ben with binoculars.  Something white was moving among the drifts of snow near the pass into the Mountains.  They watched for a while, and were puzzled by the way the white things were moving - just sort of blundering around, and that hooting and clattering sound continued.  Whatever it was, they were about the size of a man, pure white like the snow, and moving incoherently.  The sound they were making came up on the wind and faded as the wind abated.   Jack saw no albatross, but did see the shadow of one pass by him, a quick shape of darkness on the snow.

"No idea," Ben said after a while.
"Some kind of - pinguin ?"  Fritz asked.
"Maybe.  No, maybe ?" Thorne asked.  "Do they get that big ?  I'm just guessing on the size."
Spider checked his scope again, looking at the closest one.  It was a bipedal shape, not moving with any purpose, and had a strange shuffling gait.  Then the creatures seemed to be moving back through the pass, lurching around, and disappeared from sight.
"That looks like a way in though, if they came out," Fritz said, shouldering the rifle.  "Not a shoggoth ?"
"I don't think so," Ben said. "A shoggoth would have tried to eat us already."
"Not comforting," Thorne complained.
"Just telling you the truth."
"We keep watch there, to see if they come out again." Fritz said, looking towards the gap with a suspicious look.
"Fine by me, you have first watch.  Someone wake me for my watch." Thorne went into the tent.  The night was quiet, apart from the eerie piping on the wind, and there was no sign of the strange white creatures.
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Next morning the Agents prepared to go into the pass.  The plan was to go look at the pass and determine where to put a camp, provided nothing jumped out at them and tried to eviscerate them, and then proceed as far as possible with the sleds and dogs, depending on what they found.  Nerves were on edge.

The pass led to a shaped stone tunnel into the Mountains, and there were signs of the snow being disturbed by big paddle-shaped feet.  Etched in the wind-worn stone were a series of dots in a pattern, with some symbols on the theme of five-sided shapes.   Ben painstakingly wrote them down, while Fritz scouted inside a little ways with Bruno padding ahead of him.  There was a hooting sound, and a gruff bark from Bruno.

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GM: Anyone going in to have a look ?  Please respond with actions, etc, for the next few minutes of game time, by Saturday 21 May, next post is Sunday.
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Spider turned on his favorite miner's helmet with its trusty lamp and began to follow Fritz and Brun, flares in his belt and the rifle at the ready.  Seeing the footprints he mutters, "Just what we need.  Frozen Deep Ones, maybe?"

Like his companions, Jack is very curious about the shuffling white figures. He nods when Fritz mentions penguins.
“They don’t seem intelligent. Maybe local wildlife corrupted by the alien presence? Or possessed by ancient alien spirits? Probably best just to avoid them, if possible. And follow their tracks to get inside the mountain.“
When they encounter the markings, Jack joins Ben in taking copious notes, comparing their layout to the mathematical forms he derived from the flashing lights.
Other than that — onward, with shotgun, flare guns, and spells at the ready!

Expedition Stage 2: Mountains Of Madness pt 5

As Jack copies the dot patterns down, he again notices mathematical language.  The pattern is there, its meaning obscure so far.

The Agents ventured into the passageway, curiosity getting the better of them.  Up ahead the tunnel fanned out into a large anteroom, stone walls damp and thick with some reddish-green moss; at least a dozen huge albino penguins as tall as men were shuffling around, their eyes merely vestigial slits, their huge beaks open to allow purplish tentacles to roll forth and grasp at the moss.  Bruno and Fritz were standing there watching them, both looking puzzled.  A smaller penguin, possibly a young one, waddled over towards the big hellhound, chirruping; Bruno growled, and the creature jumped and squawked, prompting a round of hooting from the others.  With some flapping of their paddle-shaped wings and stamping of feet, the giant penguins eventually settled back down and slurped at the moss on the walls, cleaning it off.   The small one wandered back towards the larger ones and commenced eating moss, as if there was nothing to be concerned about.  While they were definitely weird, ugly creatures, they did not seem to be threatening.   Once they were done feeding, the giant albino penguins shuffled off further into the passageway, which had a slight phosphorescence in the ceiling, where some kind of strange lichen emitted a faint yellow glow.  Soon they were lost to view.    The Agents quietly talked.  "Don't look so mean," Thorne said softly. "But I wouldn't try to eat one even if I was starving."
"Then we avoid them, like Jack says," Fritz said softly.  "Easy enough; they are blind.  They rely on hearing, scent and memory."  The Agents slowly calmed down from high alert.

"Well then," Ben said, as the Raiders looked down the long corridor.  "While we might want to keep the sleds and dogs, I just don't want to get stuck in a place where we can't turn around quickly.  If we billet the dogs, and take the small sled by hand, or if Bruno will pull it, then we can make a sort of camp here.  Is it safe enough ?"
"We can block off the passageway with tent poles, though enough of those big penguins might knock anything down."  Thorne suggested.
"I will go and have a look in the passage," Fritz offered.
"No, we're not splitting up, so wait a minute," Thorne told him. "We'll set the dogs up in a pen, one they can get out of if they want to, with a good meal, then we'll go look in the tunnel of horror to find the monsters and steal their stuff.  Strategy."
"Commandeer their stuff.  This is a Department of Defense expedition, we don't steal," Ben said, but he was probably smiling when he said it.
"It's all in the paperwork." Thorne said, rummaging in the sleds for tent poles.
"Something moved down there," Fritz said, since he had been staring down the corridor.  There was a distance squawking sound, and the thumping of big flat feet, which quickly faded.   "It wasn't a bird."
"OK, we'll go carefully, with Bruno.  If it's an Elder Thing he'll know," Thorne said, ignoring the corridor as he tied together tent poles.  Bruno whined softly and backed up against Fritz' knee.
"That's not good," muttered the German, and looked through his scope to try to see better.  "Can't see it now.  We must be careful."
"Anyone have any great ideas, now's the time," Ben said, holding a tent support for Thorne to construct a shelter for the dogs.
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GM: Any thoughts on how to safely proceed into the Mountains ?  Please respond by Saturday, 4 June, next post Sunday.
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Jack speaks while keeping a wary eye on the corridor where Fritz perceived something besides a penguin: “If we come across a shoggoth, or one or more elder things, we’ll be physically outclassed and have to react fast. So we should go over some tactics before we get into the thick of it.
“As I see it, we can fight, retreat, or evade. We could easily lose a stand-up fight unless we expend a huge amount of firepower and magic, and even then we might take casualties. Retreat may not be possible given the slippery ice and the creatures’ home field advantage.
“So I propose we use stealth, as much as possible. If we have to fight, then we will, obviously. But can we make ourselves harder to perceive with a spell or ritual? Ben, we could contribute to it jointly, and I can use the wand. I feel that invoking Athena for protection is a pretty reasonable use of it.”

Spider helped put out food for the dogs, then a quick repast for the team, before they headed deeper into the tunnels under the mountains, keeping eyes peeled for ways that might lead up, or at least out to the other side of the ridge.

Expedition Stage 2: The Mountains of Madness pt 6
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Spider made sure everyone was fed and cared for; and noticed that Thorne was limping - and he was trying to hide it.  The dogs were secured, and though Bruno obeyed Thorne and heeled, Princess would not go any further into the corridor.  The Agents were now on foot, the small sled towed behind them with ropes, ready to load with whatever they might find.

"I vote for fighting," Fritz muttered, though it was clear that whatever lurked ahead, Bruno was afraid of it.  He brought his badge out, hanging it on a chain around his neck, the Elder Sign visible.
"Fighting costs resources.  We only have the ammo we came here with.  We also need to get into the city and this seems to be a way inside." Thorne said softly, leaning on the wall and considering the dark hallway.
"We're staying together - if we are attacked, it's the best chance for survival." Ben said quietly.  "We can cast the Barrier of Naach-Tith together, that will provide magical and physical defense.  You know this spell, I made sure of it.  It will hold for four hours, maybe longer - we may be able to cover a monster with the spell and imprison it, temporarily."
"So we sneak down there, cast it on whatever it is that's scaring Bruno, and then we'll deal with whatever comes after that."  Thorne offered in a hushed tone.
"Ah, dammit," Fritz muttered softly, as a dense fog came wafting down the corridor towards them, making whatever it was impossible to see.
"OK, backup plan - Prinn's Crux Ansata.  We can cast it on Jack's wand and it will ward against a shoggoth," Ben whispered, glaring down the corridor.  Nothing could be seen, just heavy swirls of fog, stained a dirty yellow from the eerie glowing moss in the ceiling of the passageway.   Ben fished in his pockets, bringing out a small porcelain ankh enamelled in a bright blue and handing it to Jack.  "Bind it to the wand with string or something.  The chant is easy - By the True name of whatever goddess you're worshipping now, thy will is bent to mine, thy influence avails thee not, thy strength is as nothing before Her, thou Shoggoth, dweller in the depths."
"How big are shoggoths ?"  Fritz asked quietly, as he considered which ammo to load into his rifle.
"Big," Ben whispered, as the thick fog bellied out towards the Agents.  Bruno actually tried to hide his muscular bulk behind Fritz, while the sniper calmly loaded a specially made clip of custom bullets.  Suddenly Ben doubled over with a yelp, wrapping his arm around his head as if something invisible had reached out of nothingness and belted him a sharp one.  That was enough for Fritz, who raised the rifle and fired dead centre down the corridor.    The shot echoed.  There was a gobbling sound, then a grunting, "Tekeli-Li !", from deep in the darkness.  Thorne sprawled across Ben's body to shield him, holding up his BPRD badge, the Elder Sign pointed towards the darkness.
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GM: Actions, etc, for the next few minutes of game time, please respond by 4 June, Saturday, next post Sunday.


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Spider decided they needed something they could focus on visually.  He ignited a flare and tossed it into the fog.  Something coming past it would alter the shadows in the fog, at a minimum...he hoped.  He raised Quatremain's old rifle to his shoulder and waited.

Jack moves quickly near to Ben and Thorne, binding the porcelain ankh to the wand with a strip of rawhide and speaking the words of Prinn's Crux Ansata. He wants to be sure Ben is protected above all. After the spell is up, he urgently asks, "Ben, what can I do to help you?"