# Nocturnum - Chapter I



## Majin (May 16, 2006)

OoC: Alright guys, as a first off, I'd like you all to post your characters as if it was any particularly normal day and they were going about their normal routine. I will then respond to each in turn with hooks to get you involved in the first adventure. I'm doing this because I'd like to give each of you a chance to show how you perceive your characters in their normal environment. After that's taken care of we will go from there. Enjoy these relatively harmless opening scenes, they will be your first... and your last.


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## Velmont (May 16, 2006)

"Watch out!"

Steven hears the shout from above him. He looks in direction to see a wood plank falling from the third floor. He dives on the side and trip on a tool that lay at his feet and fall on the ground. He hears a noise, some wood that crack under the weight.

"Bill!"

He hears the sound of something heavy that hit the ground. And then the silence. All the tools has gone quiet. It is not usual for a construction site. Steven stands up and remove some dust that have fallen on him. As he turns around to take back his hammer that have fallen at his feet, he sees that Bill is laying dead on the floor. He has fallen two floor. As usual, he didn't put his harness and it have been fatal to him. Steven stares at him. He didn't knew him much, he was new on the construction site, but Bill was a good man. He has started to knew him all Friday night, when all the men go to the bar a few streets down here. He was a father, he had two kids he was proud of them. One was a nice hokey player and the other had better grade than Bill could hope. He said prodly that he had a futur doctor in his family, someone who would get out of the misery they lived in. Steven stared at the lifeless body, hypnotized by the blood that was slowly flowing on the ground.

"Steven... Steven."

"Hmmm... what?"

"You were sleeping in the course. It is finish. Is it ok? You looks strange."

"No, I'm fine. Just dream of the accident that has happen last year."

"The man who died in front of you? That suck! He must be clumsy to have made that fall."

"No, just reckless. He was a good man. It was fun to talk about sport with him."

"Talking about it, we have a practice."

"Oh, yes. Let's go."

Steven follow Polinsky to the gym.

~~~~~

The noise was filling the locker room. The coach enter it and everyone lower the tone, only whispers can be heard.

"It was a good practice everyone. Peterson, Harrison, Black and Polinsky, you won't play next games. Jefferson, here your chance, you've proven your worth and you will take the place of Black. Rogers, you'll replace Harrison. Harrison, you take care of your ankle. Don't do anything stupid. It should heal before we play against Chicago. I need you then. Peterson and Polinsky, I don't like that kind of attitude during the practice. If you want to fight, fight against the othe rteam. For your lack of discipline, Quinsey and Carter will take your places. Everyone, I want to see you tomorrow here. I want to do an extra practice. It will be more relax but we need to review some play if we want to win the next game. You're free to go now."

Steven finish to put his clothing and see Polinsky leaving the lockerroom. He try to catch him to speak to him about that fight on the field but the coach stop him. "I want to speak to you."

"Yes coach."

The coach leads the runner in his office. "I've got a feedback from your Finance teacher. You know teh condition to play in the team is to pass all the courses. Your grade have always been borderline but enough for you to continue, but with such grade you won't be able to find a job easily and it will be worse if you fail your course of Finance. And you know what it means a failure. you are out of the team. You are a fine runner, but just not good enough to enter the NFL. You'll have to think of another option, and it might worth it to put a little more effort in your courses."

"Yes, coach."

"Think about it."

"Yes coach."

"You can go."

Steven leaves the office and try to catch Polensky, but too late, he is gone. Steven look at the hour. Nothing interesting is happening tonight. Why not just go and fetch some food at the small snack bar on the way home and do a little roundabout in direction of Dunstand's place. Godo plan he think and just grabs his things and walk down the boulevard.


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## hippocrachus (May 16, 2006)

"Pretty interesting stuff, all in all. When I was in Vienna..." the Professor of The Study of Ancient Civilizations 1A was saying to his wholly uninterested students. The class was mainly an elective for most of them; the others were in Professor Silber's Anthropology class and only showed up because he gave out extra credit for it. It didn't help that the semester was ending.
"Were we going to do a review for the final?" one of the bubble-headed talkative types asked, not trying to hide her dislike for his anecdotes.
"Oh. I don't think it's really necessary, Jennifer. Just review the mid-term and quizzes," he replied, taking petty pleasure in her sudden apprehensive look. "The essay will be a choice of Macedonian Conquest or the Persian Resistance of Alexander. They're pretty open-ended, so I expect you to focus and elaborate on the key points."
It wasn't what an elective was supposed to be like. Professors weren't supposed to expect you to actually pay attention in a course that filled a slot and kept your schedule full-time.
The groans were music in the ears of the cynical young Historian.
_Take a damn gym credit next time; this isn't nap time, even if you have spent most of your time here sleeping,_ he thought to himself bitterly, the whole time keeping an outwardly unreadable expression.
"I don't remember you going over that!"
_That's probably because you were hung over._
"I'm positive I did, Jennifer. In fact, I can remember the color of my tie I wore the day I gave that lecture." Blue. It was always blue. Some shade or another. It was doubtful that the blonde was observational enough to notice, so Gabriel wasn't surprised when she didn't get the joke.
A bell tower sounded three somewhere on campus.
"Right. We won't be meeting next Wednesday," Gabriel talked over the sounds of scraping chairs and shuffling books. "Next Friday...the 13th - how lucky for you - at 9:00am sharp."
He waved to a few of the star students in his Anthropology course as they left smiling.
_Probably laughing at the whiners..._
"Remember: Friday the 13th at 9:00!"
The door shut as the last straggler left the lecture hall with a soft click.
_I need a martini._

[sblock]More to come when I get home from work  [/sblock]


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## hippocrachus (May 16, 2006)

Gabriel left the small lecture hall and headed towards the library after a quick stop in the men's room. He checked his pocket watch to get an estimate of how much time he had before his next lecture.
_Quarter after; she should be there by now._
The "she" was the newest part-time coed working at the library to make a few bucks between classes. She was a junior studying Communications and just transferred from California last semester. He had met her trying to find where a book on supernatural occurrences around Native American burial grounds without a code might fit into the Dewey Decimal System.
"That'd go in the 800's over in that isle," he said, pointing with a bemused expression behind a well-read book on Ancient Chinese Architecture that belonged in the 700's and not the 900's. She didn't seem to get the joke, so he set his book down and gave hers a quick look.
They tried for a few minutes to find a place for it among the labyrinth of shelves to no avail, and eventually agreed neither would tell on the other if they placed it in the Returns bin for some other unlucky librarian to figure out.
"I'm Gabrielle," she said and offered him a very lady-like handshake. After they got over the fact that their names were practically the same, they went to a little cafe not far from campus to have a cup of coffee.
Since then, the two had agreed to meet each other in the library when Gabrielle was working the shift. Gabrielle went and got the books he needed, and he got to watch. An arrangement that suited them just fine. She was getting paid and he was getting some work done on his book.
He wasn't really in a hurry to get into anything serious, but he was tossing about the idea of asking her out on a date for a few days now, and he thought today might as well be the day.
_Maybe I should bring flowers..._ he thought as he was coming up on a flowerbox outside of an abandoned classroom. He grabbed a handful of snapdragons, dusted the dirt off of them, and continued towards the library with a mischievous grin.


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## Majin (May 17, 2006)

OoC:Velmont - Your portion of the story coincides with Dhes of course, but right now he's having problems accessing the site. IE keeps crashing when he loads the forums. This problem of his isn't a new one and generally fixes itself in a day or two. If he doesn't have anything up by tommorrow I will create something for you specifically in the meantime.

~

~ Gabriel ~

Gabriel approached the library, thoughts of a pleasant evening with Gabrielle on his mind. When he approached the heavy wooden door of the library, his gaze naturally went to the shielded glass panel that gave a view of the main desk. Inside he saw Gabrielle as he had expected, but what he did not expect was who she was with. If this were a cartoon, he'd of expected the flowers in his hand to droop comically, and to some extent they did as he relaxed his grip on them. Standing next to her, chatting her up with obvious intentions from the look of it was what Gabriel could only describe as a 'Guy Clone'. He knew the type. Nondescript clothes, nondescript hair, nondescript face. Nothing unique or interesting about him in the least as far as he could tell. The worst part was that Gabrielle looked like she was enjoying the conversation. His heart skipped a beat as she slipped the guy a small scrap of paper and eagerly punched something into her cellphone at the guy's directions. 

What was it they saw in those types? he wondered, bitterly. Thankfully, he was ripped from his torture by the sudden ring of his own cellphone. Fishing it out of his jacket pocket he answered and put the small device to his ear. 

"Gabriel? Gabriel! It's Macy. I've found something!"

Macy Carbunkle. An annoying little man that taught Organic Chemistry down on the basement level of the chemistry buildingl. Gabriel only kept ties with him because of their like interest in the occult and all things paranormal. As hard as it was to believe, he had actually provided Gabriel with a significant entry that would go into his book once it was finished. A fact Macy was rather proud of though in all actuality, he had only gotten lucky with what he'd stumbled over. Most of the time, Macy's leads led nowhere. Would it be the same this time?

"You've got to come down here Gabriel. You've got to see it! Gabriel?"


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## hippocrachus (May 17, 2006)

Gabriel dropped the flowers to answer the phone; when he heard Macy on the other end he slid his free hand down his face and groaned inwardly.
_Here, let me just add a little salt to that..._
"How's it going, Macy," Gabriel stated rather than asked after the man stopped talking to catch his breath. "It better not be another one of your... No. Nevermind. I don't have anything better to do."
He turned on his heel and started for the Chemistry Building. He had perused the library there a few times. Nothing really of interest to him.


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## Insight (May 17, 2006)

Georgetown University was alive with activity, which was unusual for this time of the year.  These were not students scurrying to and fro, but visitors, attending the American Ink Conference, a tattooing and body art convention held for the first time on campus.

*Victor DeAngelis*, a high school student, waited patiently for the convention to start.  He and many other enthusiasts had high hopes for this event, as nothing of this sort had appeared the greater Washington DC area for some time.  Victor had found some classmates who congregated near one of the public restrooms.

"What's the deal?" Victor asked.  The others didn't see to have a clue.  "I thought this was supposed to start at 9am."

"Nah, man," one of his friends and classmates, a fellow named *Reggie Davidson*, replied.  "I heard they had some kind of problem with the facilities."

Worry flashed briefly through Victor's mind.  "What do you mean?"

Reggie stood up and started wandering around the open area.  "I heard two guys talking is all... said there was some kind of bomb threat."

A girl, *Jamie Headley*, spoke up.  "They were kidding I think."

Just then, sirens could be heard in the distance, and grew closer.  The classmates all stood and approached the doors leading into the event area.  Sure enough, three police cars arrived, and a fire engine could be seen in the distance.

"Great," Victor said.

A man in a blue windbreaker emerged from a pair of closed doors.  "Sorry for the delay, folks," he began.  "I'm afraid I have some bad news.  Due to safety concerns, we need to postpone today's seminars and the opening of the exhibit hall.  Hopefully, we can get the show on the road in a few hours, but it may be after six tonight before everything is checked out."

The group began to disperse.  Victor, Jamie, and Reggie left the event hall and made their way to the quad.  Many other small groups of disappointed would-be convention-goers were also found in the area.

"This sucks," Reggie declared.  "Been waiting for this for a while."

Jamie threw her arms around Reggie.  "Oh, you'll live," she said.  

Victor looked on, toward the fire engine, and the assembled police vehicles, which now included the police chief's car.  "This is big," Victor said.  "We better find something else to do today.

*****

It was decided that the three would head to *Amelia's Pizza*, a local teen hangout.  Located within a detached single story building in a large parking lot (a large auto repair shop used to occupy the lot), Amelia's was a favorite of teenagers in the area due to its proximity to the local high school.

Jamie ordered a pepperoni sub, and sat down with Reggie and Victor at a table away from the video game machines.  This routine had been in place for years - Victor, Reggie, and Jamie had been inseparable since middle school.  Things had turned sour a few years back when Reggie had a "thing" for Jamie, but that had since blown over.  None of the three ever mentioned the problems they had during this trying period.  It just wasn't talked about, a habit each had learned from their parents.

"Brings back memories," Reggie said, smiling.  "Hey, Jamie, did you ever get that spider tat?"

Jamie stood and raised her shirt, revealing a midriff bare of any artwork.  "See one?"

"You should do it," Victor recommended.  "Seriously, that is one nice tattoo."

Jamie smiled.  "I know," she replied.  "You designed it."

"Still thinking about it?" Victor asked.

Putting her shirt down, Jamie sat on the edge of the table.  "Dunno," she answered.  "I'd like to... would go well with a navel ring I've had my eye on."

"We should do it today," Reggie suggested.

"What, now?" Jamie asked.

"I have the equipment at my house," Victor added.  "We could do it if you want."

*****

After finishing their lunch, the three left Amelia's Pizza and drove to Victor's house in the hills.  Vic's dad was a professor at the university, but was often away on anthropological digs or attending seminars on anthropology or linguistics.  Today was such a day.  Mom was also gone, attending a workshop inside the beltway.

Victor opened the gate, and they drove inside.  Victor's car had been in the shop, and he really didn't want to drive it, so Reggie had driven today.  He parked the 1978 Lincoln Towncar in the driveway, and the three emerged, heading for the front door.

As Victor approached, he took notice of something unusual - the door was open.  "Quiet," he cautioned.  "There might be something wrong."  Sneaking closer, Victor heard voices from within the house.  These voices were not either his mom or dad.

He turned to his two friends.  "We have a problem."


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## Majin (May 17, 2006)

~ Vincent ~

As Vincent and his friends crept closer to investigate, the voices got louder and more comprehensible. Also an odd odor, something he just couldn't place, started to invade his nostrils the nearer he got to the door. 

"We've torn the place apart and it's nowhere to be found! I bet the old man keeps it with him," one voice said. 

"Forget it," said another. "The boy will be home soon. Trust me, he will suffice. It has targetted his mind and ability and is interested in obtaining it. We won't need that trinket at all," he went on. 

Vincent's heart began beating profusely, faster and faster as mention of him in the conversation came about. They were after him. And what was this 'trinket' of his father's they were talking about? He brought back things he had found on his digs numerous times. It could be almost anything. 

If his father was away, it could be weeks or even months before he returned. The frightening truth was apparent. They wanted him, and expected him home soon. Jamie spoke up just then, tugging at Vincent's sleeve, "Come on Vincent, we need to run. We need to get out of here," she whispered frantically. 

That much Vincent knew to be true. But where could he go? If there were people out looking specifically for him, and knew where he lived, where could he go that was actually _safe_? Such a place might not exist...


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## Majin (May 17, 2006)

~ Gabriel ~

Traversing the dark, dank corridors of the chemistry building's basement was always a task that made Gabriel apprehensive. Not because he was afraid something would jump out at him in the black abyss that surrounded him for most of the way (a safety hazard if ever there was one, he noted), it was more attributed to the odd smells and aromas coming from the mixtures of chemicals and other foriegn substances that pervaded the building. Not to mention visiting Macy himself. It wasn't that he hated the man, he rather admired his enthusiasm, but sometimes Macy could be a bit much. Especially when he felt that he was onto something, and to Gabriel it seemed a waste of time. If only he wasn't so quick to leap to conclusions.

Entering Macy's office/lab was a chore within itself. The man was a habitual packrat and lazy when it came to cleaning up after himself besides. As he navigated the perilous stacks of papers and lab tables filled with chemicals and 'paranormal' paraphernalia (according to Macy, though Gabriel would perhaps think otherwise) he worked his way to the back of the room where Macy sat, eyeing a particular wood carving with a magnifying glass. As he noticed the young professor he sat up and greeted him, pushing his glasses from the tip of his nose with his middle finger and scratching his rapidly thinning hair excitedly. His lab coat was slung over the table next to the carving and his blue dress shirt's sleeves were rolled up to the elbow. 

"Wait'll you see this Gabe, you'll love it!" he exclaims, seemingly just barely able to hold in a squeal of glee. 

Moving over to the chemist's side of the table in order to get a closer look at the thing, Gabriel takes in the image of a satyr carved out of the wood. Darkly stained, making the features hard to pick out, the statue does not appear to be very old to his trained eye. 

"So? What d'ya think? Isn't it great? Scary, huh?" Macy asks, obviously proud of the thing, but for what reason Gabriel could not fathom.


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## hippocrachus (May 17, 2006)

_Satire seems to be the theme of the day..._
"It's hardly scary, Macy," he said, not bothering to correct his name with the older professor. He laid his coat and hat on top of the chemist's and moved a stool closer to Macy's. "Where did you get it? Some pawn shop dealer claiming to sell you another artifact from the 'Age of Legends' or some other fantasy nickname for the 50's?"
Macy would believe a tube-sock was mystical if you painted a Celtic cross on it.


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## Velmont (May 17, 2006)

Steven enters the small snack bar. He looks at the menu.

"I'll take a steak kaiser with extra cheese and bacon."

Waiting for his meal, he garbs a journal that lay on the table next to him. He starts to scan hastly for the sport section but something catch his attention. The article told about the stry of the governement who listen to all phone communication. A bit farther, an article is telling how the canadian institution are employing american company to protect there knowledge and that with the Patriot act, the american governement could have access to all these informations, and that, without the canadian knowing it.

"That's just the top of the iceberg."

"What?" asks the cook, who doesn't have any idea of what Steven is talking about.

"I'm telling that recorded phone conversation story is just the top of the iceberg. The people just discovered that and they are going crazy about there privacy. What do you think they are doing with there spy satellite, the Internet, the many information organization. They are spying us as much as the people outside the country. The leaders of this country are control freaks. And they are manipulating us. They want us to lives in fear so we go to them like a small child jump into her mother's arm."

"What are you speaking about?" replies the cook, obviously not believing Steven.

"That" showing the news about the recorded phone conversation. "If you think it is the reporter who has found it, you are wrong. They wanted him to discover it. They have been doing that for a long time and must have found that it is no more so usefull, and they wanted to keep the fear atmosphere that inhabit this country since September 11th. I tell you, it's just the top of the iceberg."

"And I suppose they keep the cadaver of aliens in area 51?" the cook add with sarcasm.

"That's another thing, but it's not a mortuary, more a landing site."

"Ah! Here your meal. It's six dollars. And please, keep your mad theory outside my snack."

"Bah! Be a sheep if you like that."

As Steven get out of the snack bar, he hears the cook laughing. Steven shook his head and take back his walk to Dunstand's place, carrying his meal in a hand and the newpaper under his arm.


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## ae1vart0n (May 18, 2006)

*~Roger~*

7AM

Wake up.  Look around at his tiny studio apartment, go back to sleep.

8AM

Get up.

Review calendar.  Notice he has an apartment to visit today, to find out why a lady swears she saw her dead son in the  window.  Unlike her other delusions, she has a picture of this one that she's clinging to.  The doctors think this may  be the source of her other fantasies, and it may be the last fabrication to overcome before they'll be able to release  her.  As always they're short on space, so releases are important right now.

When he visited her in the sanitarium, he examined the photograph.  It appeared to be genuine which is why he's going  to her apartment, where the image is set, to see how it might have been taken.

Her sister has agreed to meet Roger there to let him in at lunch, around 1PM.  Nobody has been in there since this  lady was taken away.

A pretty low key case.  It would probably turn out to be a reflection of some kind, so the first thing he'd do is look  for other photographs of the boy.

Not being a very busy day he goes for a short jog around the block, comes back, stretches, showers, and puts on his  everyday clothes.

10AM

An egg, a piece of toast, a glass of grapefruit juice, and to the closet to make sure his equipment was charged, he  had film, and everything was generally working.  Then he put everything in a duffle bag, left, locked the door, and  headed down the stairs (there was no elevator in his building).

Every morning he went through this routine.  Loaded up his car.  Drove to the library, where he checked his email  account.  His email had been provided as a convenience by one of the local sanitariums, in exchange, he didn't charge  them as much as he did others.

10:30AM

At the library, he got on the public computer and logged in.  They had provided him with a diskette with a program he used to check his account, that didn't use the normal protocol.  At  least that's what they told him; he didn't understand what it meant.

There was one email about a patient in the DC area, that he jotting down the information on a notepad he kept in his  briefcase.  A couple from various subscriptions he had to paranormal activity bulletins.  Most of it was garbage, as  was the nature of the thing, but he browsed them anyway looking for something interesting.  And about twenty from a  patient he was going to need to see later tonight.

This particular patient was a bit paranoid.  Every few months she came by with a different problem, and he talk to her  as seriously as a doctor was required to do.  If you were to read her file though, the diagnosis was Munchausen.  A  hypochondriac of psychiatric disorders.  Nobody could go insane in so many different ways in a lifetime.  From asylums  to psychiatric wards, she was banned from them all.  Sometimes he considered it as good practice.  Other times it was  just annoying.  In any case she was pretty good at faking it, and she paid.  He received one email from another  patient.  This one afraid of human interaction.  Any interaction with him was therefore via email, but he paid his bills too so Roger didn't mind.

These were the sort of patients he dealt with, the ones nobody else really wanted.  The delusional ones like the one whose dead son he would attend to at lunch were mundane by comparison.  He typed up a response to the sociophobe, and a few others, browsed  some of the subscriptions and logged out, taking his diskette.


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## Insight (May 18, 2006)

Majin said:
			
		

> Vincent's heart began beating profusely, faster and faster as mention of him in the conversation came about. They were after him. And what was this 'trinket' of his father's they were talking about? He brought back things he had found on his digs numerous times. It could be almost anything.
> 
> If his father was away, it could be weeks or even months before he returned. The frightening truth was apparent. They wanted him, and expected him home soon. Jamie spoke up just then, tugging at Vincent's sleeve, "Come on Vincent, we need to run. We need to get out of here," she whispered frantically.
> 
> That much Vincent knew to be true. But where could he go? If there were people out looking specifically for him, and knew where he lived, where could he go that was actually _safe_? Such a place might not exist...




_"I have no idea what these men want... and I can't endanger my friends trying to find out."_ Vincent thought.  He took Jamie and Reggie aside.  "Listen guys," he began, both friends in rapt attention.  "Someone is inside the house... they're looking for me."

Jamie continued to tug at Vincent's arm.  "What are you doing?" she asked, hushed.  "We need to be LEAVING."

Reggie peeked inside a window.  "This got anything to do with that stuff you were telling me the other night... your weird senses?"

Vincent hushed Reggie, looking at Jamie, whose interest was now aroused.  "Later, man."

"Wait, _what_ now?" Jamie asked.

"Nothing, nothing," Vincent replied.  "You're right; we need to get going - now!"

"Yeah, let's roll," Reggie added, scurrying carefully towards his Lincoln Towncar.  Jamie and Vincent soon followed.

The car started, and Reggie peeled out of the driveway.  Men emerged briefly from the house, but neither Vincent nor any of his friends could make out any details.

_"What trinket do they want... and why do they want it?"_ Vincent wondered.


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## Majin (May 20, 2006)

~ Gabriel ~

Macy gives Gabriel a half-serious reproving look before looking back to his statue. "Of course not Gabe. This came from the Paradise Theater a few blocks away off campus. They have statues like this and wood carvings throughout the theater, by the baclonies and such. They're renovating the place right now, planning on a grand reopening it seems. A lot of history there; it's over a century old! 

He takes out a folded piece of paper from his front shirt pocket. After unfolding it he hands it to Gabriel. "It's a flyer for their reopening. They gave me one when I picked up this statue. I hear it's haunted, though when I asked the owner about it she looked at me funny," he frowns. 

"Old buildings are your thing though aren't they? This one may be young considering your normal fare, but you might wanna check it out. Cause of the haunting and all too, ya know..." he adds, meekly. 

~ Vincent ~

A few days passed as Vincent took turns hiding out between Reggie and Jamie's house. He hadn't heard anything from his parents in this time, but was beginning to feel that the heat may have been off for the moment. 

"Hey Vincent," Jamie called, as they were hanging out one day. "I know you're still worried about those men that were after you, but you know you can't hide away forever."

"Yeah man," Reggie jumped in. "You really need to get out for awhile. We're volunteering up at the Paradise Theater today, helping them renovate for the big re-opening. They're giving us free tickets to any show we want! Why don't you head down there with us? It's a really old building. They've got all sorts of creepy stuff on the walls for decorations and what not. Real old, arty stuff. Maybe you could get some ideas for you next painting or tattoo or somethin'? How about it?" he asks.

~ Roger ~

As lunchtime came, Roger quickly made his way over to the apartment he was scheduled to investigate. Knocking on the door, a woman he figured to be the 'sister' allowed him into the apartment.

"What are you going to do here anyway?" she asks suspiciously. "I don't quite see what all of these silly devices of yours are supposed to tell us about my sister's illness."

~ Steven ~

Planning on eating in Dunstand's dorm, Steven makes his way there only to receive no knock on the door when he arrives. Either Dunstand was out (unlikely), or he was sleeping in again and refused to get up. Finding a place to sit down, Steven begins to eat his meal and flip through the newspaper. During his reading he comes across a flyer for the grand reopening of the Paradise Theater. Something about it struck a familiar chord in the uni student. Oh, that's right. Both him and Dunstand had an art history report due soon. The professor had wanted everyone to focus on local history. The flyer claimed the building was over a century old, and from the pictures printed on the piece of paper it appeared it might be just the thing. He knew for a fact that Dunstand wouldn't have had it finished by now (he always blew off his general credit classes). Perhaps they could do the paper together? That is, if Dunstand ever woke up...


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## ae1vart0n (May 20, 2006)

"I'll probably only need the video camera.  I'm not here to look for a ghost ma'am.  Most of these tools are used for collecting evidence.  My goal is to prove to your sister that she didn't see what she believes she did.  Her doctor thinks it will help."

_Everyone asks that_, he thought.  He had recited that speech so many times he could hear it in his sleep.  This case didn't deserve that sort of attention.

He switched focus immediately to the apartment.  The sister was on her lunch break after all, and he'd rather go through convincing her to let him stay without her if he didn't need to.

The apartment was cozy, a comfortable looking sofa.  Fake fruit and paintings along every wall.  Some flowers which looked like they had been kept up, he guessed by this sister.  The living room was separated from the kitchen by a half a wall.  From the entrance the kitchen was ahead with the opening to the kitchen on the right.  To the left was a wall with a window, but not the one her sister had seen this ghost in.  In the doorway to the kitchen hung some shiny silver pans.

_This would make a good reflection_

He was getting a little distracted.  Most of his clients lived in shambles, their insanities didn't afford them the capacity to clean.  The only exception was OCs.  Obsessive compulsive disorder would sometimes lead to an exceptionally ordered house.

He had given this sort of speech so many times, he could say it in his sleep.  He looked around for the window.

"You could help.  Did your sister have any routines that would place her near that window at an unusual time?  And do you know where she may have kept..."

Roger walked straight toward a large portrait on a wall perpendicular to the window.  It looked exactly like the image in her photo, only the image in the window was slightly distorted.

"... this is the source of the image."

On the wall in the livingroom was hung a large picture of her son that looked alot like the picture he had seen, he hadn't noticed it right away because it hung on the same wall as the entrance, so he needed to walk in and turn around to see it.

Now it was obvious how the image had been cast.

A good reflection would probably be seen at night, but a ghostly one was likely to be dawn or dusk.  The photo and the duration of her sighting didn't support that.  In her case Roger had thought it was a passing cloud obscuring the sunlight, and the change in ambience had contributed to the imagery.  He was half right.

He went to look out the glass sliding door in her livingroom.

A good reflection also required some light on this photo.  It would come in from this window and shine on the portrait.  Then the image in the portrait would reflect off the large shiny frying pan causing an image to be projected on the kitchen window.  After being distorted by the frying pan and window it probably would look like a ghost.  But one thing was missing.

He was looking out this window to see if he could find the light source.  It would need to be rather bright to make this happen.

_Ow._  He covered his eyes for a second.  There was a newish building across the street with glass walls.  The sun was being reflected directly into her livingroom.  _Such buildings_, he thought, _should not be built near people's apartments._

"She liked to stand by her stove and think sometimes."

Roger moved into the kitchen and stood at the spot where this photograph was taken.  Right by the oven and got out his camera.  He looked out the window.  It was the fire escape, and people had hung old rugs out there to decorate.  That gave this window some shade.  And he saw it.  The rugs blowing in the wind even made the image wave a little, giving the appearance the boy was alive.  It was a little eerie.

"We can be done quickly, if you could do me a favor."

He got out his camera and started recording the image, trying to get both the image and the frying pan in sight.

"I need you to move that frying pan on the wall there for me, and then put it back exactly where it was.  It's casting a reflection on this window you can see from where I'm standing and I need to prove to your sister that it was a reflection."

The lady had seen a ghost in broad daylight.  A moving image of her dead son, in a room with no pictures of him.  He needed to frying pan to explain to his client that the image was connected to that pan.  He'd then take the camera to the frying pan, and her sons' portrait, and the window to show the connection.


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## hippocrachus (May 20, 2006)

"I'm surprised I never heard of it," he returned, only a touch more interested. "I suppose it wouldn't hurt to give it a once-over."
He eyed the wooden satyr with new respect and gently grabbed it from Macy. He turned it over in his hands to see if there were any markings like "Made in China" or "Property of the Paradise Theatre."
"It makes perfect sense that a satyr would be amongst the decor of a theater, of course,"  he began in a suddenly lecturing tone. "The Ancient Greeks held plays in which the participants would dress up like satyrs to honor the fertility gods. They were usually very comical..."
Gabriel coughed politely to let Macy know he could speak again if wanted.


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## Insight (May 20, 2006)

Reggie drove his Lincoln Towncar around the corner and stopped.  "OK, Vince," he said, "Start talking."

Vincent squirmed a bit, looking at Jamie, who said nothing but returned a _"What?"_ look on her face.  "Well, uh... I thought maybe it was a temporary thing," he began.  "I realize now that's it not... so I guess I should come clean about the whole thing."  He turned to Jamie.  "This is what I told Reg the other night, and it's really all that I know."

"Oooooo... kay..." Jamie replied, cautious and curious.  

"See, for the past couple of weeks, a month maybe, I've been _seeing things_.  I thought maybe it was hallucinations after that bad x we took, but it's not.  I'm seeing strange things that are real to me, but no one else can see them.  Not scary things, not all the time anyway, but things nonetheless.  I really don't know what to do with all of this."

Jamie smirked, now finally in on what's been going on with Vincent.  "What sort of things?  Why didn't you tell me?"

Vincent closed his eyes.  "I didn't want to scare you... or have you think any less of me."

"That's ridiculous," Jamie shot back.  "It's not possible for me to think any less of you."  She smiled, and Reggie laughed.

Vincent smiled.  "It's hard to describe what I see," he explained.  "It just sort of happens... I am sitting somewhere, or walking in the neighborhood... visions appear.  I have no control over it, and I don't know what it all means.  I might see the image of a dead person over what is a real person walking past me, or a halo above someone's head.  Sometimes, things glow in certain colors.  It's nothing specific enough that I can describe any better than that."

"Maybe you just need to be on Paxil or something," Reggie suggested.

"Maybe not," Jamie countered.  "Maybe it's what I thought all along... Vince here is _special_."  She smiled, but this was not intended as a joke.

_"She feels something for me..."_ Vincent learned.  He tried hard not to let that feeling, whatever it was, cloud his mind.  Vincent feared that these special senses would overwhelm him, and distort what reality he had left.  He still didn't know whether he could believe these senses.

"So what now?" Reggie asked.  They had yet to address the problem with the people in Vincent's house, and why they wanted Vincent.

"I have no idea," Vincent replied.  "Those men... they said they want me for something.  They can't possibly know... can they?"

Jamie was agape.  "You think they are after you for your _abilities?_" she asked.  "I don't understand how anyone could know.  You just told me, and I'm your best friend."

"I thought _I_ was your best friend," Reggie interjected.

Vincent frowned in frustration.  "Maybe this is from watching the entire run of The X-Files," he said.  "But what if they can somehow _detect_ people like me?  What if it's the government?"

Throwing her arms around Vincent's chest from the backseat, Jamie offered, "We'll protect you."

"Seriously, though," Reggie suggested.  "We have two options: run far, far away... or stay here and find out what they want."  He then looked to Vincent for a decision.

"We stay then," Vincent decided.


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## Majin (May 22, 2006)

~ Gabriel ~

Gabriel's inspection of the statue does not reveal any sign of its make. Macy looks distraught as he picks it up and his face does not calm until the statue is safely down on the table once again. 

"Ahh..." is all the man says, nodding his head and looking on expectantly.

Gabriel looks down at the flyer again. _*Paradise is coming!*_ it states in big bold letters.

~ Roger ~

The woman's sister hesitates at the odd request a moment before obeying Roger's request. "If you say it will go a ways towards helping my sister," she nods.

After Roger does his thing, the woman thanks him and shows him the way out, seemingly in a rush. "I must be returning to work soon," she states nervously. Quite odd, someone in such a hurry to return to a task of manual labor, he thinks, but he is interrupted by an incoming call on his cellphone. Answering it he hears a female voice on the other end.

"Hello, is this Roger Evans, Para... Parapsychologist?" she asks, hesitant over that last part. After receiving a confirmation she goes on, "Hi, I'm Sara Landry, head of the Metro Arts organization. We've recently purchased the Paradise Theater and are in the process of renovating for a grand re-opening," she explains. 

"Now this might sound silly, but maybe not to you, but there have been rumors circulating that this old theater is _haunted_. Now I don't believe in that sort of thing, but there are those that are superstitious enough that it may affect business when we re-open early next week. Could you... come by and check if the place is alright? It might ease some minds around here if you could confirm that there's nothing to worry about."

~ Vincent ~

"So we stay then," Reggie parroted. "If that's what we're gonna do then we obviously can't continue to live in fear the rest of our lives. We need to keep some semblance of a normal life. Which reminds me..." he adds wryly, "Are you coming with us to the theater or not? We'll drop you off somewhere if you want, but me an' Jamie want those tickets. Come on," he urges, "You might even enjoy yourself!"


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## Insight (May 22, 2006)

[OOC: Woah, sorry I missed your first post about the days passing and stuff.  My post didn't make much sense in context; I had planned for it to occur just after the escape.]



			
				Majin said:
			
		

> ~ Vincent ~
> 
> "So we stay then," Reggie parroted. "If that's what we're gonna do then we obviously can't continue to live in fear the rest of our lives. We need to keep some semblance of a normal life. Which reminds me..." he adds wryly, "Are you coming with us to the theater or not? We'll drop you off somewhere if you want, but me an' Jamie want those tickets. Come on," he urges, "You might even enjoy yourself!"




"Um, yeah, why not?" Vincent replied.  "I need to get out of here anyway.  Reg, your house - it's all gray."

Reggie and Jamie looked around the living room, not sure what to make of Vincent's comment.  "Gray, my man?" Reggie asked.

Vincent smiled.  "Well, sorta.  It's the 'color' I see around here.  Gray.  Not sure what it means."

"Death, maybe?" Jamie inquired.

Reggie frowned.  "We need to get going if we're gonna get in on those free tickets," he cautioned, standing from the couch, grabbing his keys, and half-opening the door.

Vincent stood half-heartedly.  "Yes," he replied, but to Jamie's question.  "Death.  That makes sense.  Reg, did someone die here recently?  If so, you've never told me about it."

Standing now in the door frame, waiting, Reggie looked at his watch.  "My family and I have lived here for more than 10 years," he replied.  "I think I would know if anyone had died here _recently_.  Can we get going now?"

Jamie stood and joined Vincent.  "Reg is right," she suggested.  "Let's get going before all the good jobs are taken."

But Vincent somehow knew his good friend Reggie wasn't being entire sincere.  _"Someone has died here recently,"_ he realized.  _"Reg knows, but he doesn't want to say.  He is... orange..."_  Vincent decided that now wasn't the time for this particular discussion.  "All right," he agreed.  "Let's go."

The trio piled into Reggie's Lincoln Towncar.  As they did, Vincent took one last look at the house.  Overlayed upon the image of the real-life 1980 stucco building was the image of a dirty, shambly, smashed mortar building which was not a house at all.  Vincent didn't know what to make of this, but took mental note to investigate this further at the next opportunity.

"Can we swing by my house so I can get my car - if it's still there?" Vincent asked as they drove off.


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## Majin (May 22, 2006)

OoC: Perfectly alright; I just figured you wanted to get a little more RP with your friends in before heading to the theater.  When everyone gets to the theater (something I'd like to happen relatively around the same time), I will start a "Time of day" convention, and have the day of the week and month included as well so we can keep track of more time sensitive things in-game. 

~

~ Vincent ~

"You sure you wanna do that man?" Reggie asks as he slowed for a stop sign. At Vincent's insistance Reggie sighs. "Alright man, but if the Cigarette Smoking Man is waiting there to take you away, I don't know you," he jokes nervously. 

"Don't scare him anymore than he already is Reggie!" scolded Jamie from the backseat, though Vincent could tell Reggie's words had succeeded in making her more scared.

As the group of friends reached Vincent's house everything seemed to be normal. The door was closed and there was no sign of a break-in anywhere to be seen. Vincent's jeep sat where he had last parked it, seemingly untouched. 

"So, whatta ya wanna do? Follow us there? I sure don't feel comfortable leaving my car here, _that's_ for sure..."


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## ae1vart0n (May 22, 2006)

So they were going to pay for him for his hobby, and he might even get a line in a paper.  That would be good for business.  Maybe he'd even cancel his appointment tonight.

"No problem.  I have some free time tonight in fact, would that be ok?  We can talk about payment when I get there."

He was sitting in his wagon, on the street.  It wasn't exactly how he liked to introduce himself to customers, but at least they hadn't called while he was working, so it wasn't the worst time for it.


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## hippocrachus (May 22, 2006)

_I don't really like honey,_ he thought to himself as he read the flyer.
"I'll go check it out, Macy. I have to go check in with my Anthropology class to make sure they know what they need to do today for lab, and then I'll do a little background check on this Paradise Theater," the professor said after standing and grabbing his things off of Macy's. "I'll see you around. Maybe we can do lunch next week."
After Gabriel made his goodbyes, he headed to the lecture hall his class was held in and briefed the students on their next assignment.
"I've got plans for today, so I'm cutting out early. If any of you have any questions, just e-mail me if they can't wait until the next time we meet." He left them to split up in groups for the project and headed over to the library.
He checked his pocket watch before going in, to make sure Gabrielle wasn't on shift anymore.
_That would've been awkward..._ he thought as he checked the library's electronic database for anything on the Paradise Theater.

[sblock]Research +10[/sblock]


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## Majin (May 22, 2006)

~ Gabriel ~

Gabriel has luck searching through the library's vast collection of newspaper clippings on their electronic microfiche database and the internet, finding the following information:

_The original builder of the Paradise was Robert Allen, a wealthy man who developed and owned much of the neighborhood at the time. Built in 1928, the Paradise Theater was a showplace for stage acts, the finest venue in town. It seated 350 people, and the walls were a glorious riot of bas-relief and gilt. When the attractions of vaudeville began to fade in favor of those of the silver screen, the Allens decided to convert the Paradise into a movie theater. From 1928 on, the Paradise showed film after film for generations of entertainment-hungry citizens. 

The Paradise closed in 1974. The costs of renovating the aging structure and the single yellowing screen conspired to make it unprofitable. Already in considerable disrepair, the ensuing years of neglect left the Paradise in ruins. The theater's one-hundreth anniversary came and went with little fanfare besides a maudlin editorial in the local paper a few years back. But a year ago, hope emerged; A local arts group bought the theater from the Allen Foundation and began a slow process of volunteer renovation and improvement, in the hopes of restoring the Paradise to its former glory as a home to performing arts and cinema. That new hope is close to realization, as the theater reopens in just a few days.

The Allen Foundation itself was founded by Robert Allen's children and grandchildren in 1953 to manage the family's substantial assets and donate money to various charity groups, primarily childcare-related. The last member of the Allen family was Jessica Allen, who died in 1983 at the age of seventy-two. No living heirs exist. The Paradise is now owned by Metro Arts, a nonprofit group that produces performances, art exhibitions, and film events. The group has a full-time staff of six and hundreds of donating members and supporters. Although it appears to have a small office, the Paradise is the group's first permanent event and exhibit space. The head of Metro Arts since 1981, is Sara Landry. Funding for the Metro Arts and the Paradise Theater was provided by a Richard Jacobs, a local philanthropist._

Gabriel finds a recent news article on the internet about a Mary Green, an art student and frequent volunteer at the Paradise, who was recently injured in an accident there. According to published reports, she was painting a ceiling in the main theater space one evening and fell from the scaffolding. She broke her left leg, arm and pelvic bone, and suffered a mild concussion. Metro's insurance is covering her care, and she is in stable condition at Johns Hopkins Hospital. However, she is said to be undergoing psychological evaluation, possibly related to the concussion. An unnamed friend told the local paper, "Mary says the Paradise is haunted or something." Her family -- both parents are her brother -- have declined comment and refused media requests for interviews with Mary. According to the paper this isn't the first time for a ghost sighting. Harry Samson, a janitor at the Paradise from 1952-1974, told the reporter, "I used to hear strange things there all the time, like something moving around in the walls and floors. The Allens always said it was rats. Musta been some _big_ rats."

Gabriel manages to find one more piece of information about the Paradise, almost missing it buried within the microfiche data. It seems that the Paradise used to house a speakeasy in its basement back in the day. It was a private key club, meaning that members had to have a key to get in. The bar was known as the Sound and Light Club, and it ran for most of the 1930s. In 1936 police raided the club on suspicion of kidnapping. A man named Arnold Langtree, the guest of a club member, told police he met a woman at the club and they hit it off. After a few drinks, she began telling him that the club had "private parties" sometimes, and invited him to accompany her to one. Then two doormen escorted her into another room behind the bar. When Langtree questioned them a few minutes later, they denied ever seeing the woman, whose name he did not know. The police raid found nothing, and apparetnly the club was back in business a few weeks later. Arnold Langtree died a month later, the victim of a hit-and-run driver.


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## hippocrachus (May 22, 2006)

Not one to settle for the simple summation of a history, Gabriel continued to search through the database for hits on Robert Allen, the Allen Foundation, and the Sound and Light Club. He also made an attempt at looking for anything on the investigation of Arnold Langtree's murder.
The haunting could be a complete hoax, but he felt it was best to know everything a domestic terrorist might to make their possible sabotage of the Paradise Theater that much more realistic.

[sblock]Research +10[/sblock]


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## Insight (May 22, 2006)

Majin said:
			
		

> ~ Vincent ~
> 
> "You sure you wanna do that man?" Reggie asks as he slowed for a stop sign. At Vincent's insistance Reggie sighs. "Alright man, but if the Cigarette Smoking Man is waiting there to take you away, I don't know you," he jokes nervously.
> 
> ...




"Nah, just drop me off and I'll follow you to the theater," Vincent suggested.  Fishing in his jacket pocket, Vincent found his car keys.  "Good.  I thought I might have left them inside the house."

"OK, man," Reggie replied.  "Jamie, you coming with me?"

Jamie looked at Vincent.  "Uhh... Vince might not know the way."

It was decided then.  Reggie drove to Vincent's house, but stopped a few blocks away, just to be on the safe side.  Jamie and Vincent got out and calmly walked down the block to Vincent's Jeep.  Reggie waited a moment, then drove off.

"I thought we were gonna follow him," Vincent said, surprised.

"It's all right," Jamie countered.  "I'm glad he's not here."

If Vincent's abilities worked like an alarm, a red alert would have been sounding in his head right about now.  "Umm..." is all he could manage as Jamie planted a deep kiss on Vincent's lips, pushing him against a stiff hedge wall.

"Woah," Vincent remarked, pulling away.  "What was that?"

Jamie smiled.  "What?"

His emotions swirling, and a strange lavender haze showing all over Jamie's body, Vincent withdrew a bit more.  "Let's just get to the theater."

"I thought this is what you wanted," Jamie said.  She took a step closer.  "Don't you want me, Vince?"

He backed up.  Something wasn't right.  He ran through the hedge, scratching the hell out of his face and arms, ripping the jacket from his body.  His heart pounded.  He turned - Jamie wasn't following.  He stopped and turned toward his house.  Jamie was in the doorway.

"Take me upstairs and **** me," Jamie suggested, starting to remove her shirt.  There were oozing sores all over her arms, chest, and face.  Her body started to bloat.  "C'mon, Vince.  I want you."  As she said that, black gunk dripped from her mouth.  She rubbed it on her chest.

"No," Vincent said, withdrawing.  "This isn't happening."  He retreated, but found that he could no longer penetrate the hedge.   He was trapped in the yard, and the only way out was through Jamie as she was closing in.

Jamie's hair turned to slimy tentacles, and her arms, body, and legs were plump and sore.  She shambled towards Vincent, calling in some unknown language.

Vincent awoke, in Reggie's car, his head cradled on Jamie's lap.

"Wake up, sleepyhead," Jamie said, stroking her hand across Vincent's forehead.

"I was... asleep... ?" Vincent queried, slowly.

"Yeah, dude," Reggie answered.  "We're almost to your house.  It's showtime."

The car stopped, prompting Vincent to get out of the car.  Jamie got in the front seat of Reggie's car.

"I thought..." Vincent began, but cut himself off mid-sentence.  "Never mind."

Jamie smiled.  "Reggie's gonna swing by my place so I can freshen up.  See you at the theatre."

Reggie and Jamie sped off, leaving Vincent alone at his house, wondering what exactly has transpired in his absence.  Vincent made for his Jeep, car keys in hand.

_"What was that business with Jamie?"_ Vincent wondered.  _"I wonder if that means something?  Should I stay away from her?"_

The question remained, unanswered, as Vincent climbed into his car and drove off.


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## Velmont (May 22, 2006)

Steven knock at the door a bit harder as he sees his firends doesn't answer. "Dunstand, I know you're sleeping." he shouts. No answers. "Damn, he must be gone byuing some of his stuff for his computers. He must spend half his wage on all that electronic." he tells aloud to himself.

He walk down the street to a small park where he find an empty bench. He grabs his kaiser and take a mouthfull of it. Once he finish to chew it, he open the newspaper. He look to see if there is no more information about all that information control story. As he find nothing, he starts to think to look at the list of movies. Looking in teh art section he start to think.

_Nothing look great. Since the Lord of the Ring, it seems there is no good movies. All the sword movies dunnot reach teh elevel of the return of the king. Legolas is so damn impressive with his bow, and Gimly, he is just too ridiculous. Dwarf tossing, Aragorn is teh first to have done dwarf tossing in the middle earth. What coming up soon? Da Vinci code. Damn, another suspence with complicated intrigue... X-Men 3 is only next week. Sure I won't see that movie on September 11th and the fourth plane. That's must be propaganda paid by the state to raise the proudness of the population toward there own country. Hey? What's that? Paradise Theatre Grand Opening. What's that? a ciname threatre? Hey, damn, I was forgetting that work. I should remind Dunstand. He better show up his face soon, or I'll be stuck to do it myself. He knows I'm not good with that. Not talking he write ten time faster than me with those computers, and he do half the mistake I do._

Steven looks at the address. He decide to take a look by himself and see on place what show are cmoing. He could maybe buy two tickets for him and Dunstand and go see something there and do teh report after. It should be ok. He quickly finish his meal and grabs the art section of the newpaper to keep the address and walk down the street toward the theatre.


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## Majin (May 23, 2006)

~ Gabriel ~

Looking deeper, Gabriel finds the following additional information:

_*Robert Allen/The Allen Foundation*

Robert Allen's grandson, George, started the foundation in 1953 to manage the family's real estate assets and use their revenue to fund charitable organizations. George died in 1968 leaving a daughter Jessica, who managed the foundation until her death in 1983. Today the trustee of the Allen Foundation is Richard Jacobs. In a newspaper article, he says the title is mostly ceremonial, and that the long-time staff of the foundation do most of the work.

The Allen Foundation had an earlier incarnation of sorts as the Allen Home for Children, a small private orphanage started by Robert Allen in 1892. In 1937, it ceased operations and the staff and children were transferred to the much larger St. Matthew's Orphanage, a Catholic home for orphans that still exists today and is a widely respected institution.

*The Sound and Light Club*

The Sound and Light Club existed before and after prohibition, and that its tenancy in the basement of the Paradise was only temporary. The SLC began as a social club for Freemasons in 1900, but soon evolved beyond its Masonic roots into a private club for businessmen and politicians. In the 1940s, the Sound and Light Club sponsored an annual carnival to raise money for children's charities. The group shut down in 1953, its popularity among the city's moneyed classes usurped by the Rotary Club and the steady loss of early members to old age. During its lifetime, the group was based in a variety of locations throughout downtown. 

All the addresses the club had were within six blocks of the paradise.

A 1985 newspaper article about the history of charitable groups in the city makes brief mention of the SLC's short-lived carnival fundraisers of the 1940s. A surviving SLC member, Frank Long is quoted in the article._

Unfortunately, nothing further could be found about Arnold Langtree.

~ Roger ~

"Certainly," Sara replies and hangs up shortly after giving Roger directions if he needs them.

~ Vincent ~~Steven~

Steven and Vincent approach from opposite ends of the street. It's daylight, nearing to evening, but the sun has been absent, shrouded in clouds. The Paradise stands on a dirty street. Across the road sits a car with no tires, cryptic orange graffiti scrawled on the back window, probably just a police marker that the car needs to be towed, but its hard to tell. As you walk up to the Paradise, the baroque facade is darkened with grime, but the marquee is clean, the neon crisp and alight, letters placed to form a message: PARADISE IS COMING BACK. 

A woman on a ladder holds a piece of plastic formed into the the word THE, and she carefully places it above the other words. She sees you both and calls a hello, then climbs down the ladder to greet you. She's a compact woman with deep-set green eyes, freckles, and long brown hair, wearing blue jeans and a flannel shirt with the sleeves pushed up to the elbows. She introduces herself as Sara Landry, head of Metro Arts.


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## ae1vart0n (May 23, 2006)

As soon as he hung up the phone he went to call the lady he had planned to meet tonight to tell her they would need to put off their appointment.  It didn't quite go as planned and for the sake of brevity, he ended up calling her back and holding the session over the phone.  After hours and hours of hearing her complain about her fear that girl scouts were really a secret organization that took children out in the woods to brainwash them, Roger decided to get lunch.

It was a late lunch, and a bit rushed.  Taco Bell wasn't exactly his favorite, but it was on the way to the sanitarium, where he'd upload the video he'd taken onto their computers, play it back and explain it to the lady's doctors before heading off to the Paradise Theater.

"If only our patients were as observent," one of the doctors said.

"They'd just come up with more convincing fantasies," Roger replied cynically.

Deep down he wasn't convinced they were all fantasies though.  After all, he had a drawerful of cases back at his apartment under lock and key, that he couldn't disprove.  And he had to be objective, if you have evidence for something, and none against, you must acknowledge it.  That and he was beginning to see patterns in those cases.

And with that he set off for the theater to meet Sarah and ask her about the hauntings.


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## Velmont (May 23, 2006)

_She has lovely eyes, and a good looking a..._ 

As the girl climb down, he remark that the woman was saluting him.

"Hmmm, oh! Hi, my name is Steven Terence... I... well" Steven hesitate. He didn't expect to talk to someone alreday. He tought to only look at the poster and at the place, to know a little bit more. After a moment of hesitation he asks "I was here just to take a look... I had see that publicity in the papers, you know." Showing the newpaper he had in his hand. "I have a work for the university to do with a friend of mine. It's in my art history course. I thought that maybe it could do a nice subject, your... nice old theatre."


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## hippocrachus (May 23, 2006)

Satisfied with the information, Gabriel left the library and started heading towards the theater a few blocks from campus.


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## Dhes (May 25, 2006)

Dunstand turned over in his bed to glance at the alarm clock, groaning to himself. Dan …That’s the last time I stay up late “fixing” a pay-pal account for some girl.” 

Getting unsteadily to his feet, Dunstand walks naked to the small doomroom’s kitchen for his breakfast. Dropping a coffee pad into his senseo, Dunstand rinses out a cup as he waits for the water to boil.

With coffee in hand, Dunstand takes his accustomed place behind the array of screens in his computer room. _Ahh, I see my all downloads are completed. I still don’t get why people pay for games and movies. Well I’m glad they do, dad can pay for my yearly allowance because there are people that do pay for “Movies”._
Dragging Outlook to his main screen, Dunstands sees that there is just one E-mail, from professor Susan Isaacs.  

*From:* sisaacs@towson.ede *To:* Dunstand@Gmail.cum
*Subject:* Art History project.

    Dear Mr. Tybalt
    This is your last warning; please hand in a completed paper on
    local art history by the end of next week. I you don’t hand in a
    passing paper I will be forced to fail you for my class. 
    Sincerely,

    Professor S. Isaacs​
_Dan, Dan, Dan …Well I’m sure that I can pull some bull s hit from the internet and hand that in._
Deleting the E-mail, Dunstand starts up skype and punches in Steve’s mobile number.  Letting the phone ring, _I should probably take a shower and throw on some clothe before I head out._


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## Majin (May 26, 2006)

Monday, May 15 2006 - 4:30 PM

~ Dunstand ~

Getting directions to the theater from Steve, Dunstand begins to head on over to the theater. 

~ Everyone Else ~

Everyone arrives at the theater around the same time, within the span of introductions by Sara Landry. 

After introductions are complete, Sara looks up at the marquee and nods, "It's a sign," she says with a grin. She leads you through the front doors and into the lobby. 

Upon entering the building you can see that the Paradise lobby is two stories high, with plush red carpeting and turn-of-the-century decor. Four circular sofas are here, being reupholstered by what you imagine must be Metro volunteers. Grand staircases flank the walls and lead upstairs. The walls and staircase are carved with fanciful images of nymphs and satyrs. Three large double doors appear to lead into the theater proper, while restrooms flank the wall on opposite sides to the north. Underneath each staircase is a door as well.

Reggie and Jamie wave to Vincent as they go deeper into the theater, their tasks already laid out apparently. 

"It is great to have you all here," Sara exclaims. "Though you'll have to excuse me, I have something rather important that I need to do at the moment. Please, feel free to look around. And don't fall off anything!" she calls as she walks off and enters a small room to the west, underneath the leftmost grand staircase.


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## ae1vart0n (May 26, 2006)

He had expected to be here alone to investigate the hauntings.  All these people were going to get in the way.

Trying to remember anything he could about the place on his own, he started walking down the isles, looking at the artwork, the windows, the sound system and anything else that might be useful in explaining away whatever had happened.

"I had hoped to ask Sara what the hauntings were all about.  Guess we're on our own for the time being.  Anybody happen to know of any specific incidents?"

Roger was hoping for something small he could spend a little time on while he waited for Sara, but he also figured whatever these folks had heard was going to be the gossip he needed to focus his research around.


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## Velmont (May 26, 2006)

~Steven~

His phone ring in his pocket. He takes his phone and look at the number shown. "Unknown... not blocked, unknown... it must be Dunstand who have done something with his phone. It is his kind." He press talk. "Hi... Dun... Yeah, I know. I was thinking the same. You know, the Paradise Theeatre is reopening... I thought it could be the subject... What? ... I'm already there... and I'm talking with one of the staff, nice girl by the way... come join me. Yeah, here the direction." He tells Dunastand the direction and close his phone. He returns his attention to Sara. "Sorry, I know it's impolite to answer phone. What? What sign... you mean what you've been working on?" he looks at the marquee. "The Paradise is coming back... sound funny like that. Sounds like we would be in hell presently. Well, Baltimore is not such a hell."

Steven look a moment at the others. He then follow Sara inside. He stare at the entrance. "Wow, that's nice. Not like the Paramount downtown." He looks at his watch. "Well, I'll wait for Dun." He walk up to one of the sofa and sits down.


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## Insight (May 26, 2006)

ae1vart0n said:
			
		

> "I had hoped to ask Sara what the hauntings were all about.  Guess we're on our own for the time being.  Anybody happen to know of any specific incidents?"




Vincent cringed, retreating slowing from Roger.  "What hauntings?  Here in the theatre?" he asked, softly.  Mindful of his own visions, Vincent didn't mention anything further, though he had not yet seen anything to suggest something unusual was afoot here in the theatre.  "Where did you hear about this?"


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## Velmont (May 26, 2006)

Steven looks at Rogers and Vincent who are speaking as he sits on the sofa.

"Haunting?" he says to himself. "What he was talking about? I must tell form the outside, it is the type of theatre that look haunted. Could be cool to see a ghost. Does a ghost drain life like in D&D. Would be bad to get killed because I got touch be a ghost."


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## ae1vart0n (May 26, 2006)

Realizing he'd said more than he should, Roger tried to lighten the mood.

"No," he said laughiing between his words, "not real hauntings.  Your right though, the place does have the look for it.  I'm looking for rumors.  Storys people have made up.  My job is to restore this theatre's reputation by clearing the air of them.  I suppose if you haven't heard any then my job won't be too hard."

The place did indeed look like it could be haunted, but nine times out of ten it was just some rumor gone astray or a joke taken too seriously.


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## Dhes (May 27, 2006)

_Nice girl, maybe this won’t be so bad._ 

Packing his camera and laptop into his backpack, Dunstnad heads down to the “Paradise Theater”. Out side of the old theater, Dunstand takes his time to take some pictures from the outside of the building before going in.  

Stepping inside he sees Steven sitting on a overly stuffed and probably ancient sofa. ”Hi Steve, so where is she and what’s her name.”


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## Velmont (May 27, 2006)

"Hey, Dun." salutes Steven "She's not here, she told us she had some things to do and ask us to wait... her names is Sara Landry and she is the head of Metro Arts. And the other guys you see here... I don't know them, they all arrived at the same time than me. Hope it won't prevent us to do our work. If I fail that course, it is my football that goes." As Dunstand come near him. "And one spoke of ghost. Do you think this place is haunted?"


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## Majin (May 28, 2006)

Monday, May 15 2006 - 4:50 PM

Having arrived at the theater Dunstand meets with Steven in the lobby.

Roger cannot recall anything specific about the theater, having never been open in his lifetime nor having any notable stories about it to his knowledge. Anyone following him into the screen-room proper takes in the following:

The large theater area is still a bit rickety and threadbare. It is apparent that Metro has not as of yet had the seats reupholstered, but they have repaired the broken ones and given everything a good gleaning. It also appears that a massive job of cleaning and repainting the ornately carved ceiling is nearly complete. The last patch of work is to the left, where a scaffolding stands, where a woman stands atop, working. An older gentlemen down the aisle is vacuuming.


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## hippocrachus (May 29, 2006)

Gabriel didn't have any intention of hanging out with highschool and college students after just coming from work, so he headed into the theater behind Roger. The man seemed to have a good head on his shoulders.
"An art student volunteering here fell from some scaffolding while working very recently. She reported the place was haunted," Gabriel said to the man's back, making conversation the man might be interested in.


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## Dhes (May 29, 2006)

”Hunted? Maybe just with bad taste.” setting his camera for the lighting, ”So can we just look around or do we need to wait for the hot chick to show us around?”


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## ae1vart0n (Jun 2, 2006)

One of them had done their homework, but it seemed more like something he read out of a book than a rumor.  That was a double edged sword.  The more rumors, the more Roger needed to disprove, but the fewer rumors, the less he could say to back up his assessment that the place wasn't haunted.

"Thanks, um... Gabriel was it?  That would make for a good story.  People tend to believe whatever an incapacitated person says."

Roger stopped and faced Gabriel, hoping he might know more.

"Do you know what she said the nature of the haunting was?"

[sblock]Assuming Roger knows Gabriel's name from the introductions.  Let me know if he doesn't and I'll fix it.[/sblock]


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## hippocrachus (Jun 2, 2006)

"Oh, sorry. Gabriel, yeah..." the young professor stumbled over a formal introduction and offered a handshake. "Roger, right? Roger, Roger."
Gabriel gave the woman working on the scaffolding a significant look and looked around for anybody else that might be working in the shadows of the theater.
"I don't wanna sound like an expert on the place, I just heard about it today from a friend, but apparently it wasn't the first report of a haunting. One of the janitors working here back when the original owner was still breathing said he heard some things. I don't know what the girl said about the haunting; she's in the psych-ward in Johns Hopkins, and her parents aren't saying much to the media. Not that I blame them." Gabriel couldn't stand the media. Be it radio, television, or newspapers, Gabriel would rather read a book.


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## ae1vart0n (Jun 2, 2006)

"Roger Evans actually," the "Roger, Roger" joke had gotten old years ago.

Roger took out a notepad from his briefcase, sat down in one of the seats and jotted down a note in pencil:

Witness, Type, Nature
Art Student, Unknown, Unknown
Janitor, Auditory, Unknown

"So I guess we ought to talk to some of the employees here.  I'd rather get Sara's permission to do so first though."

He remembered past experiences, one in particular at a restaurant.  The manager did not appreciate the questioning of waiters when they were working, and Roger had been asked to leave before he got paid.  The theatre could be similar.  They were working on a deadline after all, and by the feel of the seat they had a ways to go.


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## Velmont (Jun 2, 2006)

"I suppose we can take a look around. Anyway, the others who have entered at the same time as me are doing the same." Steven stands up and look around. "What do we look for? Oh, have you brought your digital camera. I think if we could place a few pictures in the work, it will look good, not even counting teh place it take, that will do a bit less to write down."


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## Insight (Jun 2, 2006)

Vincent's curiosity was baited.  "Umm... what are you guys talking about?


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## ae1vart0n (Jun 2, 2006)

Realizing Sara wasn't coming back anytime soon, he decided to look around a bit more.  She fell huh.  Where would she have fallen from?

"Maybe that girl heard something and it made her fall?  I got some recording equipment in my car, if we can figure out where she fell from we could set up a microphone.  Better than just standing around here."

Roger walked back toward the lobby, toward his car to get his bag of equipment.  He had planned to have a long conversation with Sara first, to learn about this place, but things hadn't worked out.  Consequently, he had left his equipment in his station wagon.


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## hippocrachus (Jun 3, 2006)

Gabriel cocked an eyebrow at the man he had just met.
"Uh, listen, buddy, I'm just here to check out the architecture. My co-worker said the place was rumored to be haunted and I thought it sounded interesting..." he said, a little confused by Roger's sudden commandeering of Gabriel's time. Investigating a haunting sounded interesting, but there were too many nut-jobs out there doing it for Gabriel to write this guy off as sane.
"Have fun with that," Gabriel said, clicking his gums and shooting Roger the "Gun."


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## ae1vart0n (Jun 4, 2006)

Somewhat dissappointed at Gabriels lack of interest, Roger stopped to address Vincent before continuing to his car:

"I'm going to try to figure out why this girl thinks this place is haunted.  I have some recording equipment in my van.  If you're interested, it would be helpful to figure out where she fell from.  If not that's fine too, but I'm getting paid so forgive me for not waiting around."

Looking back at Gabriel.  "I've got many different types of recording equipment, including an infared camera, a film camera with various lenses and a tripod.  If you could use anything let me know."

With that Roger continued toward his car.


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## Majin (Jun 5, 2006)

Roger returns quickly from his vehicle with his equipment. By the time he returns the elderly gentleman has finished vacuuming and has left the room. The woman is still working up on the scaffolding.


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## Dhes (Jun 5, 2006)

Taking his camera, Dunstand wanders to the double doors leading to the main theater with Steve in tow, trying to find anything interesting to photograph. ”We should try and find the hot chick; she probably knows some stuff we could use in our paper.”


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## hippocrachus (Jun 5, 2006)

Something about having untrained volunteers working on scaffolding didn't seem OSHA safe to Gabriel. It was a wonder why Metro's insurance would cover the other girl's medical bills with as fickle as the insurance companies were these days.
Gabriel went exploring around the edge of the theater room, looking for any other lost artifacts of the silver-screen similar to what Macy had found. Maybe Gabriel would get lucky and be able to sneak one out unnoticed. According to Macy, the place was full of them; he doubted they'd miss one more.


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## Majin (Jun 5, 2006)

Gabriel makes his way around the edges of the theater examining things as he goes. His search leads him backstage, where he sees a few of the statues lined up in a row on top of some old boxes. Since it is nearly pitch dark back here, he can only barely see these through the light flooding in from behind him. That is until a soft flickering light catches his attention in a doorway behind the curtains. Drawing closer, he sees a dim image; a dark space walled by more curtains. Beyond the curtains, is a flickering light that seeps in at the edges, like that of an old movie.


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## Velmont (Jun 5, 2006)

"Good idea. I've been waiting for half an hour now. I don't want to spend the night on that work. She has entered this door. Let's see if we can disturb her for a moment." Steven walk up to the door under the western stairs and knock on it. "Miss? Can we talk with you a moment?"


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## Majin (Jun 5, 2006)

Monday, May 15 2006 - 5:00 PM

After a few moments the door opens and Sara pokes her head out, a phone receiver to her ear and a hand over the other end. "Is something wrong?" she asks in a hush, eyeing the two college students.


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## Velmont (Jun 5, 2006)

"Sorry, we don't want to distrub you. There is nothing wrong... well, we would just like to talk with you. If you can gives us five minutes... when you finish yur call..." Steven hesitate a moment, not sure what they will asks for questions. Steven thinks that Dunstand should have a better idea on what to asks, he always seems to know about what he talks about.


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## Majin (Jun 5, 2006)

"Certainly," Sara smiles in response. "I'm going over some donation material with our main benefactor at the moment. It will most likely take about another half hour I suppose," she explains. "Please, feel free to look around if you like. I'll find you when I've finished."


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## Velmont (Jun 5, 2006)

"Hmmm... ok." He turns to Dunstand. "Another thirty minutes to wait it seems. I think I'll have to spend my night on that work after all. Is there anything usefull we can do?"


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## ae1vart0n (Jun 5, 2006)

One of the volunteers already left, and Sara still not back?  Well, Roger needed to know where to look, so he was going to need to risk approaching the lady still on the scaffolding.  As he approached he noticed Gabriel had left the room, and it didn't look like

"Excuse me miss, could I bother you for a moment?  I was wondering... there was a girl fell from scaffolding a while back.  I was wondering if you might know where?"

He looked toward her hopefully.

[sblock]I'm losing track of who's in what room.  To my account:
Behind curtains: Gabriel
Theatre: Roger, Vincent
Sara's room: Steven
Lobby: Everyone else
[/sblock]


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## Velmont (Jun 5, 2006)

ae1vart0n said:
			
		

> [sblock]I'm losing track of who's in what room.  To my account:
> Behind curtains: Gabriel
> Theatre: Roger, Vincent
> Sara's room: Steven
> ...




[SBLOCK=OOC]Steven and Dunstand are in the lobby, talking with Sara who is in her room. in othe rwords, we are talking through the door.[/SBLOCK]


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## Majin (Jun 5, 2006)

[sblock]You've pretty much got the jist of it I'd say, though Steven technically would have never left the lobby, as Sara came halfway out of the room to speak with him. Either way, he is back in the lobby with Dunstand.[/sblock]

The female on the scaffolding notices Roger and climbs carefully down to meet him. Rubbing paint on her coveralls and extending a hand to him she introduces herself as Kris Nichols. 

"Right up there where I was painting just now," she answers. "She was in here working with Robert, but he was cleaning up down here when it happened. Mary did use to complain about a humming noise she heard occasionally up there that was rather distracting. She said it made her feel dizzy. I hear it sometimes too but no one knows what's causing it. It comes and goes in a cycle, like an air conditioning system we figure, but there's nothing in the theater that should really make that sound."

The elderly gentleman who was vacuuming returns for a moment to wheel the device out of the theater and adds, jokingly, "It sounds almost like breathing to me," he laughs. "Prolly just old building noises, you know the sort. I'm Jack by the way," he adds, shaking hands with Roger before returning to his business.


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## Velmont (Jun 5, 2006)

Steven,  not very far from there, overhear Sara and Roger. "Hey, Dun... have you heard that? Looks like something happen here. A girl who fall, stange noise. That muust be what they speak of when they say this place is haunted... maybe we could ask that man about what he knows about that place. What do you think?"


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## Dhes (Jun 5, 2006)

”Don’t worry about it, will just go and take some pictures first.  We can type up the report when we get back at my dorm room.” Dragging Steve away from the door, ”Let’s start in the main theater.” pushing open the big double doors, ”we should also get some pictures of Sara,” grinning to himself. ”Maybe I should give her my fathers card.”


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## Dhes (Jun 5, 2006)

Velmont said:
			
		

> Steven,  not very far from there, overhear Sara and Roger. "Hey, Dun... have you heard that? Looks like something happen here. A girl who fall, stange noise. That muust be what they speak of when they say this place is haunted... maybe we could ask that man about what he knows about that place. What do you think?"




”Some girl falling isn’t that mysterious, just bad safety precautions. But maybe that Kris chick can tell us more about the building, I’m sure she knows more about art than we do.”
”Let’s just wait till the old guy leaves, I really need to start taking pictures.”


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## Velmont (Jun 5, 2006)

"Fine" answers Steven, following Dunstand to the main room. He takes a look at the theatre. "It would be fun to meet that ghost, if it exists. Haunted... well, I don't think Isaacs is the kind of person who like to read about ghost story. We should take some picture of the projection room. Do you think we can have access to it?"


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## hippocrachus (Jun 5, 2006)

Gabriel checked over his shoulder to make sure no one was watching him before he creeped slowly to the silhouetted curtains.
_Nobody said I couldn't come back here..._ he thought as he closed in and moved to pull the curtains aside.


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## Majin (Jun 5, 2006)

Gabriel moved to pull the curtain aside and recoiled quickly as his hand met hard resistance. Looking closer now he realizes that he had bumped into what appears to be a mirror. The curtains are actually the ones behind him in the mirror's reflection. Now the light beyond the curtains is steady, and Gabriel is looking at his reflection. He could swear he hadn't seen himself until he had physically touched the mirror...


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## hippocrachus (Jun 5, 2006)

_The hell...?_ he thought in exasperation. He looked at the mirror closer and rationalized his own human inadaquacies as the cause of the reflection's illusion. The lighting _was_ bad after all.
That didn't stop him from hurrying out from behind the curtains into the much brighter by comparison theater room. He hid his apprehension by glancing up at the projector room and wondering how he could get up there. He remembered the stairs in the front lobby and figured that was as good a place as any to begin his search.


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## ae1vart0n (Jun 5, 2006)

"Roger, nice to meet you," he turned back to the lady.

Probably electrical noises, a short or something, maybe in the thermostat to make it regular.  In any case Roger would want a recording.

"Would you mind if I left a live microphone up there?  I'd like to get a recording of the noise."

He began to take a fresh tape out, and label it with the time and "Paradise Theatre, Scaffolding Accident Site".  He took out a wireless mic, and a his recorder.

"Of course I can wait for you to finish first if it bothers you," he said as he glanced around looking for an outlet in a safe place.

"How often does it happen?... and do you know where might I find 'Robert'?"


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## Majin (Jun 6, 2006)

"Sure, go ahead," Kris motions towards the scaffolding. "Just be careful," she adds. "The frequency of it happening hasn't really been determined. It's just something everyone notices from time to time. Robert is generally around doing this or that. I don't have his phone number or anything if that's what you mean," she explains as Roger gets set to climb the scaffolding. 

Gabriel walks out into the lobby and up one of the grand staircases to the landing. As he ascends the stairs, he can make out the very faint playing of music somewhere. He recognizes it he believes, that it sounds like an orchestra playing the popular classical tune, "Carmina Burana," familiar from the soundtracks of numerous movies, including Excalibur. 

As Gabriel gets to the top of the landing he notices a row of doors against the north wall. Two sets of double doors which look to lead out to the balcony of the theater, two doors labelled 'Storage' and a single door in the center with a window that looks to be the projection room.


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## hippocrachus (Jun 6, 2006)

Gabriel wasn't one for movies, including Excalibur, which as he would recall was a horrible rendition of the Arthurian myths that he loved so much. He did however recognize the piece of music, considering O Fortuna one of the most popular if not the best modern choir pieces. Modern compared to Mozart.
Gabriel went out onto the balcony first to enjoy the view.


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## ae1vart0n (Jun 6, 2006)

"I was more hoping he was around somewhere now.  Thanks for letting me do this."

Roger set the recorder to start recording and began to climb the scaffolding with the wireless mic held sideways in his mouth for easy access.  He also wanted both hands on the scaffolding.  If what this girl heard made her fall, it could have messed with her vestibular system.  If that was the case Roger could start feeling dizzy at any time.

When he got near the top he started looking for a safe place to set the mic.  A ledge or a crevice would work well.


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## Majin (Jun 6, 2006)

Gabriel starts to heads to look over the balcony. Looking down he notices something peculiar. The pattern of the carpet below from this height resembles intertwined, naked bodies. Suddenly, without warning the lights flicker from what Gabriel imagines must be a power surge, and in the flashing light the bodies seem to writhe and shift. [sblock]Sanity check - Passed (0 Sanity Lost)[/sblock] The lights come back on full, and the carpet pattern just looks like ordinary carpet. From another room, Gabriel hears another Metro volunteer call out: "Hey, somebody get Robert to check the wiring again!"

Pausing in his ascent up the scaffolding during the power surge, Roger continues again once the lighting has righted itself and reaches the top a few moments later. Finding a suitable spot for his microphone he sets it up, taking the time to examine the carvings in the ceiling. He notices that they are similar to those in the lobby, figures from fantasy and mythology, however, the ones here are much less pleasant. The faces are leering and unpleasant. Some scenes suggest the aftermath of rape and torture, but never clearly enough to be definite. 

It is then that he also notices that he can hear the hum that Kris spoke about as well. It does indeed sound like breathing and it's very faint. It seems to be coming from beyond the ceiling in a general sort of way. Perhaps the ceiling itself has the source among it, he wonders.


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## Velmont (Jun 6, 2006)

"Hey, what happening?" tells Steven as the light flickered. "How do you want to see a movie if the electricity isn't good. That could have stop the movie... bah, it's not my rpobblem. I'll go take a look at the projection room. I've always wanted to see those big roll for teh projection." On that, Steven leave Dun as he finish to take the picture and go into the projection room.


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## hippocrachus (Jun 6, 2006)

_This place needs a professional electrician in here..._ he thought to himself, giving the carpet and lights a wary look. Gabriel never really got into lighting design in school, but he was sure no lawful inspector would pass this place in its current state, and was pretty certain getting this Robert fellow to "check the wiring" again wasn't going to fix the problem. _I wonder how much Metro is willing to spend on this insurance nightmare._
Gabriel glanced one final time at the floor below and shook his head. If the pattern was intentional, someone took the mythical sex-god theme too far for a public building. He left the balcony for the projector room and came across one of the students from before. _Steven?_
"How's it going?" Gabriel asked politely, noticing the kid's athletic build and easily placing him as a football goon.


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## Velmont (Jun 6, 2006)

"Fine." replies Steven.

_Is he working here? Maybe he could answer some questions for my work._

"I was looking for the projection room. My friend and I have a paper to write for our art history course. We thought to do it on the Paradise Theatre... Are you familiar with the building or his history?"


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## Insight (Jun 6, 2006)

ae1vart0n said:
			
		

> Somewhat dissappointed at Gabriels lack of interest, Roger stopped to address Vincent before continuing to his car:
> 
> "I'm going to try to figure out why this girl thinks this place is haunted.  I have some recording equipment in my van.  If you're interested, it would be helpful to figure out where she fell from.  If not that's fine too, but I'm getting paid so forgive me for not waiting around."
> 
> ...




Vincent follows.  "So, haunted, huh?" he asks as they go.  "I've lived in this area for most of my life, and I haven't heard of this.  Wouldn't surprise me though.  This place is... strange."


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## Insight (Jun 6, 2006)

Majin said:
			
		

> The female on the scaffolding notices Roger and climbs carefully down to meet him. Rubbing paint on her coveralls and extending a hand to him she introduces herself as Kris Nichols.
> 
> "Right up there where I was painting just now," she answers. "She was in here working with Robert, but he was cleaning up down here when it happened. Mary did use to complain about a humming noise she heard occasionally up there that was rather distracting. She said it made her feel dizzy. I hear it sometimes too but no one knows what's causing it. It comes and goes in a cycle, like an air conditioning system we figure, but there's nothing in the theater that should really make that sound."
> 
> The elderly gentleman who was vacuuming returns for a moment to wheel the device out of the theater and adds, jokingly, "It sounds almost like breathing to me," he laughs. "Prolly just old building noises, you know the sort. I'm Jack by the way," he adds, shaking hands with Roger before returning to his business.




Vincent looks at Roger, but says nothing initially.  He examines the upper area carefully, looking for any signs of weakness, an empty space where something might have fallen, or anything else out of the ordinary.

After Roger has made his ascent, Vincent speaks up.  "Anything i can do to help?" he asks.


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## ae1vart0n (Jun 6, 2006)

Looking up at the ceiling it is no surprise this girl thought something strange was going on.  Seeing the lights flicker, he was glad his tape recorder, like his alarm clock had batteries as well as an electrical plug.

If the noise was coming from the ceiling, it probably wasn't electricity.  Maybe wind?  It could be an echo off of something too.  In the shape this theatre was in, Roger doubted that the walls would dampen echos.



> "Anything i can do to help?"




Looking down at Vincent.  "Sure, there's a digital camera in the bag there.  It's wrapped in the yellow towel.  Could you get a picture of this ceiling for me?  I'm not surprised this girl thought this place was haunted."  Roger had had trouble finding items in a pinch before, so the towels he used for padding were different colors.

From the scaffolding, he started to look around for other images.  Getting a good look at the theatre, and noting anything on the ceiling and any odd artwork before going back down and changing his note on the girl to add "Breathing sound from ceiling" to the Nature column.  Then he'd have to investigate the ceiling.

Before going back down he asks of Kris, "Is there an attic to this place, or is that coming from the roof?"


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## Insight (Jun 6, 2006)

ae1vart0n said:
			
		

> Looking down at Vincent.  "Sure, there's a digital camera in the bag there.  It's wrapped in the yellow towel.  Could you get a picture of this ceiling for me?  I'm not surprised this girl thought this place was haunted."  Roger had had trouble finding items in a pinch before, so the towels he used for padding were different colors.




Vincent fishes around in the bag before locating the yellow towel, and the digital camera within.  Being an artist, Vincent was quite familiar with the workings of digital cameras and as such, didn't need to ask how it worked.

Stepping back, Vincent looks through the camera to get a good shot.  He takes a few shots of the area requested, and waits for further instructions.


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## hippocrachus (Jun 6, 2006)

"Art History, huh? Who's your professor? I'm the Anthropology teacher at College Park," Gabriel replied with sudden interest. "I've done a little research on the place; I'm no expert, but I'm sure I could help you with your paper. Sorry. Gabriel Silber. We met downstairs, but I don't think anybody was really paying attention to introductions."  He offered Steven a handshake.


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## Velmont (Jun 6, 2006)

"Isaacs. That is my teacher's name. And mine is Steven Terence." replies Steven, waiting for a reaction from the man. Everyone know him, as one of the best player of the team... well, should know.  "Anthropology... what that is suppose to talk about? I am not familiar with that subject."


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## hippocrachus (Jun 7, 2006)

The only recognition in Gabriel's eyes was for that of Professor Isaacs. College football was the drunken drop-out's equivalent to muscle-brained Anglo-Saxons grunting and running into each other at full force for fun. Gabriel liked sports with a bit more history, like lacrosse.
"Oh, yes, I've spoken with him several times on..." He looked at Steven sharply when he realized what was said. "You don't know what anthropology is?"
_You'd think Towson's standards were a little higher..._ He rolled his eyes and tried to come up with something else to talk about. The project was a good start. _He probably waited till the last minute..._
"What kind of paper is it? You're cutting it close to the end of the semester, don't you think? A field study is sure to get you an 'A' with Isaacs though..."


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## Velmont (Jun 7, 2006)

"The session work. We must do it on something that have marked the city or the country. Paradise Theatre is an old theatre. With his opening, I thought it could be a good subject. I am not sure I will get an 'A' out of that, Isaacs like only his student in art. I am studying in finance."

Steven opens the door of the projection room. "Do you know when that theatre was first open. I wouldn't be surprise to hear that it was the first theatre in Baltimore." He then take a look inside before daring entering the room, not sure if he is allowed to enter there.


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## hippocrachus (Jun 8, 2006)

Gabriel followed the finance student into the projector room with only half the concern he had before going backstage. You could come in here with a tank of gasoline and a Zippo, burn the place down, and he doubted anybody here would try and stop you.
"I believe the cornerstone out front said 1928. It was originally a stage theater...for plays and the like." Gabriel felt he needed to clarify for Steven. "The owner, 'Something' Allen, later turned it into a movie theater. The place closed down in the early 70's."


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## Velmont (Jun 8, 2006)

"Yeah?" Steven starts to search through his pcoket. He get a pen but doens't find a paper, so he take the newspaper he still have with him and note what Gabriel told him. "1928... Allen... 70s. It will help to do some research I suppose. Thanks. And what bring you here?"


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## hippocrachus (Jun 9, 2006)

"Well, I consider myself a historian and I'm most interested in architecture. A colleague of mine told me about the theater and I figured I'd give it a look. I'm kind of disappointed that the Historical Society has allowed a relic like this to fall into such disrepair..." Gabriel walked over to where Steven was looking at the projector and the film roll meandering around the machine. He looked on either side of the contraption and flicked the "on" switch when he found it.


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## Majin (Jun 9, 2006)

Monday, May 15 2006 - 5:10 PM

~Roger~~Vincent~

"No attic that I know of," Kris answers simply. "I'm just a volunteer though, so I don't know too terribly much about the place," she adds dismissively as she gives a short wave and leaves the theater through the double doors. 

Vincent looks about with the camera, employing the zoom lense liberally as he looks about the ceiling. As he examines the ceiling, he zooms in on a nearby scene of a Bacchanalia and notices that a small section of it appears hinged, as if from a trapdoor. Zooming in further, he notices within the face of what appears to be a dead nymph's eye socket, is a switch of some kind.

~Gabriel~~Steven~

Pushing the switch on the large projector results in a dusty click and what sounds like the mechanism trying to start up, but the projector does not move.

Both Gabriel and Steven can hear the distant music now.


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## Velmont (Jun 9, 2006)

Steven looks at the projector and then looks through teh glass at the large screen. "They hope to open a movie theatre that can only play the soundtrack of the movie. I don't remember to have heard that music in any preview. Is it a soundtrack... or is it something related of that haunting story?"


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## ae1vart0n (Jun 9, 2006)

"Must be from the roof then.  I'll check that with Sara."

Roger decended from the platform.

"Thank you for allowing me to place that microphone.  Hopefully it'll record something useful."

He turned toward Vincent, and noticed he was focusing on spot.

"If you want to keep a picture of the artwork I'll send you a copy.  It looks like you've found something you're interested in."

He paused for a moment, and then decided to ask.

"May I see?"


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## Insight (Jun 9, 2006)

ae1vart0n said:
			
		

> "Must be from the roof then.  I'll check that with Sara."
> 
> Roger decended from the platform.
> 
> ...




Vincent hands back the camera.  "Yeah, I saw something," he says, indicating the spot with the switch.  "See that?  I thought it might be a secret lever or something.  Is that what you are trying to find here?"


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## Watus (Jun 9, 2006)

_Typical_, Pete thinks ruefully, staring at the slice of tomato and bits of shredded lettuce scattered across in his lap.  _That's just typical_.  He leans over the passenger seat of the parked car and sullenly grabs the paper fast food bag, tossing the remains of his burger into it.  He gingerly peels the tomato off his thigh and grimaces at the spectacle of the perfect circle of yellow mustard now gracing his pantleg.  He wets the corner of a paper napkin with his tongue, and attempts to daub some of it up, succeeding primarily in smearing it around and permanently embedding it into the fabric.  _That's great_, he sighs.  _There goes thirty bucks._

He wavers for a moment, briefly considering a trip back to his apartment for a fresh pair of pants before it dawns on him that he is wearing the last clean pair.  With a shrug, he resigns himself to his fate and climbs out of the car.  Jogging across the late afternoon traffic, he tosses the paper bag into a trash can outside the theater and pushes open the doors to the lobby.  He pauses to take in the grand old space and all of that plush red carpet.  It smells different in here: like a combination of dust, old cabbage, and furniture polish.  It reminds of him of his grandmother.  A moment later and it finally registers that there are people in the room - presumably volunteers - reupholstering the couches.

"Uh," he says, taking a few steps into the room.  "Excuse me.  I, uh... I don't mean to interrupt, but I need to talk to a... uh..." he pauses and pulls a notebook of out a pocket inside his winbreaker.  He flips a few pages.  "A, uh... Sara Landry."  He looks up, flashing a nervous grin.  "I don't suppose she's around?"


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## ae1vart0n (Jun 10, 2006)

Accepting the camera from Vincent, Roger went to look for the door.  After a couple seconds he found it.

"Yeh, that's probably where the sounds are coming from.  Good work."

Vincent had showed interest, followed instructions and found something useful.  Roger was considering offering him the same sort of haunting hunting internship he had had back in college.

Roger took a picture, then bit his lip and scowled at the ceiling, as if to think.

"So now we need to figure out how to get up there.  Oh wait.  Can't forget to update my notes."

The type of both was auditory, and the nature was a breathing noise coming from a ceiling [Recording #1].  Additionally he noted a door in the ceiling indicating a possible attic, and the artwork that had probably contributed to the fantasy.

"Its important to keep good notes when you need to write an article later.  Not good to leave out details, now back to getting up there.  If there's a door there must be a way."  He glanced at Kris, but then realized she hadn't known there was an attic in the first place.  "Maybe Sara knows.  Lets go find her."

This was becoming fun for Roger, so he was getting a little more energetic than he probably should have been.


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## Insight (Jun 11, 2006)

Before Roger leaves to find Sara, Vincent suggests, "Should I go up and have a closer look at the switch... or whatever it is?"

He starts halfway up the scaffolding before Roger can answer.


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## hippocrachus (Jun 12, 2006)

Gabriel didn't really think much about the haunting, so he just shrugged his shoulders at Steven's question. A place like this, rich in history, was bound to have a few creaky floor boards and skeletons in the closet.


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## ae1vart0n (Jun 12, 2006)

"If that's ok with Kris.  I don't know how much more you're going to see though, I didn't even notice it when I was up there.  I'm going to look for another way up in the meantime."

Roger continues to look and think about ways to get closer to the switch.  Maybe there's a way to get up there from the stage, or the lobby.  He decides to check the stage first, since it's closer.


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## Dhes (Jun 12, 2006)

Turning off his camera, Dunstand notes the dorky old guy and some kid talking. The teenager seemed to have found something of interest on the seiling. Scrolling through the pictures on his camera, Dunstand finds the picture showing the restoration work on the mural, but can't find anything of interest. 

Walking up to the scaffolding, as the older guy walks off, "Hi... I'm Dunstand, I'm taking some pictures for a college paper. Did you find any thing interesting up there?"


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## Majin (Jun 12, 2006)

Monday, May 15 2006 - 5:20 PM

~Pete~

The volunteer points to the door that Sara went through earlier, giving the nervous man a smile for good measure.

~Roger~

Roger turns up nothing in the way of alternate entrances to the above the ceiling. It appears that the hinged door is the only way...


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## ae1vart0n (Jun 13, 2006)

Turning to address Dunstand.  "A door in the ceiling."  He looked up to find the spot, but couldn't see it from the ground, so he decided pointing in the general direction would be good enough.

"I'm going to go join Vincent up there and see if we can't get it open.  I'd invite you up but I'm not sure how much weight that thing will support."

He looked up nervously as he began to climb the scaffolding.  He muttered under his breath, "Hopefully it's at least two."


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## Majin (Jun 13, 2006)

Monday, May 15 2006 - 5:22 PM

~Vincent~~Roger~

Roger joins Vincent up on the scaffolding and tries to get a closer look at the ceiling with the teenager. After being directed to it by Vincent, he sees the hinged door in question and realizes that in order to reach it, someone will have to hold on to him as he leans out over the row of theater seats directly blow the trapdoor.

Both hear music, seemingly far off in the distance in another part of the theater...


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## Insight (Jun 14, 2006)

Majin said:
			
		

> Monday, May 15 2006 - 5:22 PM
> 
> ~Vincent~~Roger~
> 
> ...




Vincent looks at Roger, his elder by several years.  "Maybe I should get it," he suggests.  "No offense, but I think I might be better able to reach it."


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## hippocrachus (Jun 14, 2006)

Gabriel spotted Roger and the teenager from earlier crouching atop the scaffolding through the projector room window. If he didn't know any better, they looked as if they were going to take turns jumping off from on high.
"I don't know much detail about the haunting," Gabriel replied absently to Steven's question.
"As to the piece of music: it's probably one of the most famous composed in Nazi Germany,"  Gabriel's matter-of-fact tone didn't leave much room for further conversation on the matter, probably because he didn't know enough about it to hold a conversation. He majored in architecture after all, not music.


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## Velmont (Jun 14, 2006)

Steven exit the projection room and sees Dunstand. "So, you've taken some good picture. You should take some of the projection room... hey what are they doing?" he asks, seeing Rogers and Vincent climbing the scaffholding.


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## ae1vart0n (Jun 14, 2006)

"Go for it."  He steps back and grabs a piece of scaffolding to brace himself, and then offers his right hand to Vincent.  "But I'm a little out of shape, so if I tell you to stop, please don't push it."


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## Dhes (Jun 14, 2006)

Dunstand waits with interest and camera at the ready as the two try and open the concealed trap door.  Looking at Steve, “I will hold on, I think we found a “Secret” door, probably just a maintenance door but who knows.”


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## Insight (Jun 14, 2006)

ae1vart0n said:
			
		

> "Go for it."  He steps back and grabs a piece of scaffolding to brace himself, and then offers his right hand to Vincent.  "But I'm a little out of shape, so if I tell you to stop, please don't push it."




Vincent smiles, taking Roger's hand.  "Don't worry," he says.  "I'm not a hero."

Vincent reaches out for the switch, stretching to his limits.


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## Majin (Jun 14, 2006)

Monday, May 15 2006 - 5:25 PM

Vincent stretches the best that he can, getting a bit more reach from Roger's help. Eventually he manages to reach into the dead nymph's eye, in which the switch is contained and flicks it in one quick motion. The panel in the ceiling drops open. 

Looking up into the panel, Vincent realizes to his surprise that he is somehow looking down at the theater below. It's as if the panel held a mirror, or there were a second Paradise built upside down on top of this one. But this is no reflection. The Paradise that Vincent sees through the doorway is full of people. The seats are covered with writhing bodies issuing a howling scream, illuminated by the flickering light of a film projector. Ghastly music plays, music that everyone can hear. Those that originally thought it was the "Carmina Burana" realize quite quickly that it is not. The music is strange and alien, deep and resonant, and only the barest melodies have any resemblance to what they thought they heard the first time they came across it.

The movie screen is a jumble of shadows and light, amorphous shapes that suggest tentacles, mouths, and eyes, but never resolving into anything definite. As the crowd screams, the floor begins to sink into a vortex and the entire theater collapses into an abyss. The shapes on screen emerge from the abyss, swallowing up the audience. Vincent cannot believe his eyes. [sblock]Vincent - Sanity check passed - Sanity lost = 5[/sblock]

It is then with abject terror that Vincent feels the forces within the door trying to pull him into the mass of chaos. Roger feels the tug as well but because he cannot see what Vincent does he has no explanation for the odd phenomana. He pulls with all his might but Vincent's now sweaty hand eventually escapes his and the teenager appears to fall _up_ through the doorway and the panel slams shut behind him.

There's a distant scream, and then a slam a moment later as Vincent appears bent across the theater seats below. [sblock]Vincent - 1 damage[/sblock] The boy is covered in a viscous slime and despite a bump on the head, does not appear to be too badly damaged.


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## Velmont (Jun 14, 2006)

"What was that. What happen?" asks Steven, hearing something strange up there.


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## hippocrachus (Jun 14, 2006)

Gabriel looked through the projector window in abject horror as the boy seemed to actually jump up from the scaffolding and land in the seats below. He slammed his hand over his mouth and fought his first thoughts of panic.
_Oh, this is bad..._ he thought, using his other hand to grab his cell-phone. He tried calling Emergency Dispatch.


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## Majin (Jun 14, 2006)

Monday, May 15 2006 - 5:25 PM

~Gabriel~

The phone rings only once as it is automatically picked up on the other line.

"9-1-1, what is your emergency?" comes a near-squawking tone from the other end of the line.


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## hippocrachus (Jun 15, 2006)

"Uh. Yeah, hi. I'm down at the Paradise Theater and I just witnessed a boy in his mid-teens take a pretty nasty fall," Gabriel explained to the emergency operator. He rushed down the stairs from the projector room, past a disheartened looking man in a shabby suit, and into the theater below. "I'm not sure of his condition at the moment, but it can't be good..."
As he walked towards the others gathered around Vincent, he called out to them. "Is he alright?"
Gabriel didn't get too close before he saw the slime covering the boy. He took a step back. "What in the name Hades... Hello, operator? He seems to be covered in mucus or something; I'm not sure where it came from."


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## Majin (Jun 15, 2006)

Monday, May 15 2006 - 5:26 PM

After confirming that the boy was indeed still breathing but still quite rattled, the operator advises Gabriel to not allow him to move until the paramedics arrive. 

"The paramedics are on their way sir. Do you want me to stay on the line with you until they arrive?"


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## Insight (Jun 15, 2006)

Vincent awakens, groggy.

"What -- what happened?" the boy says, rubbing the back of his neck.

[sblock]
OOC: Majin, did Vincent notice anything additional due to his Second Sight, or was what he saw _because_ of his Second Sight? 
[/sblock]


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## Majin (Jun 15, 2006)

[sblock]Insight - No nothing out of the ordinary, besides everything he saw.  But he felt or saw nothing familiar with regards to his psychic abilities.[/sblock]


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## hippocrachus (Jun 15, 2006)

"No, thank you. I'll make sure he doesn't strain himself," Gabriel replied to the operator. 
Gabriel looked again at the slime covering Vincent after hanging up his phone. _Coolant?_ he thought, looking up at the ceiling. It could be possible that the HVAC ran above where Vincent had fallen, but Gabriel was having trouble identifying the goo covering the kid as mechanical waste.
"Are you alright?" Gabriel asked, kneeling down a stride away from Vincent. "Don't move around too much; the paramedics are on their way..."


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## ae1vart0n (Jun 15, 2006)

The scaffolding was high, but Roger climbed down so quickly it felt like a stepping stool.  He would definitely need to know what was in that room.  As he approached Vincent he saw the slime.  More he couldn't explain, but the boy had to come first.



> "Don't move around too much; the paramedics are on their way..."




He knew too well that not moving wasn't an option when you were positioned so uncomfortably over a chair, so he hurried over to Vincent.



> "What -- what happened?" the boy says, rubbing the back of his neck.




"So your neck hurts?  Where else?  And don't turn your head."

Hearing Vincent speak made him hopeful.  His consciousness was yet a third thing Roger couldn't explain, but least this one he could chalk up to youth, luck, and possibly shock.  He began to look Vincent over to see if he could do anything in the way of first aide or if it was at least safe to get him to the isles where he could lay down.


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## Velmont (Jun 15, 2006)

Steven follow the group into the room and look at Vincent. "Whoa! That's is impressive. You are all right? What is the trick? Hey! You think the girl who fall form the scaffolding did the same thing than him?"


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## Watus (Jun 15, 2006)

Pete stands in the back of the theater, rubbing his unshaven jaw, wondering the exact same thing.

_I can't believe they sent another volunteer up there with any safety equipment_," he thinks, incredulous.  Then he starts to get a little angry.  _Where is this Sara Landry, anyway?_ He spins on his heel and stalks back into the lobby, looking to give her a piece of his mind.


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## Majin (Jun 15, 2006)

Monday, May 15 2006 - 5:28 PM

Pete returns to the lobby and heads towards the door that he had previously learned held Sara Landry. Half way across the lobby floor the door opens and Sara exits, regarding him with a slight smile, the expression fading quickly on her face as she notices the commotion by the theater doors. She looks at Pete, "What has happened? Please do not say it's happened again," she says urgently, shaking her head as she rushes to him, closing the short distance between them.


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## Watus (Jun 15, 2006)

Pete pulls up short, the wind somewhat taken out of his sails.

"You know," he says, he face a little flushed.  "You might consider investing in a safety harness."  He hands her his business card.  "This isn't going to look very good."

He takes a step toward the front door.  "The kid seems alright, but they've called an ambulance."  He points behind him, back into the theater.  "I guess you better go check on him.  We'll talk later.  I'm going to have some questions for you."

As she moves into the theater, Pete is already jogging back across the street, where he pops the trunk on his car and digs his expensive-looking camera out of its bag.


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## Majin (Jun 15, 2006)

Monday, May 15 2006 - 5:30 PM

Sara's eyes go wide as the truth is relayed to her and her features droop as she takes in the text on Pete's card. As the man makes a beeline for the streets Sara strides quickly into the seating area, worry lines across her face. 

"What has happened??" she asks the redundant question, already knowing the answer. Her eyes go wide again as she sees Vincent splayed across the theater seats. She rushes to him and balks as she takes in the slime covering the boy. "What on earth?" she asks, pulling away slightly.


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## Dhes (Jun 15, 2006)

Dunstand looks on in horror, as he sees Vincent being sucked it the trap door. The only thing he could see from his vantage point was a washed out reflection of the theater, but he could clearly hear the hellish music coming from the trapdoor 

Rushing over to Vincent,  ”Are you ok dude,” bending down to touch him on the shoulder, ”Dude your covered in slime.”
[sblock]Camera takes 3 pic’s a second on normal settings, Majin how much pictures would that be?[/sblock]


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## ae1vart0n (Jun 16, 2006)

"Let's give him some air," Roger says nonchalantly, noticing almost everyone was now standing over the poor kid.

He walks back over and changes his notes.  Type: Auditory, Visual and ... he pauses for a moment.  The breathing was auditory, the reappearance on the chair was visual, it had to be.  But to be pulled like that and end up covered in slime?  This place was quickly working it's way toward his "potentials" folder.  He satisfied himself with "Other", and continued to the Nature column to describe what had happened.  Standing on the scaffolding, falling upwards, breathing noises, horrid noises (music?), sweat, dissappearing, reappearing, slime.  And to top it all of _he_ was the observer.

Roger couldn't wait to make an entry for Vincent.  Fortunately he didn't look like he was physically hurt that badly, he'd probably be able to talk about it later.

Seeing Sara enter, he turns to her.  Loudly, so she can hear, "It looks like he'll be ok.  Took an unusual fall, but we'll figure it out.  Curiosity got the best of us.  Shouldn't have opened that door in the ceiling."  He pointed upward at the door they had opened in the ceiling.  He considered telling her there were pictures and an audio tape, but thought that it might make her more worried than she already looked to know there was evidence of the incident.


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## hippocrachus (Jun 16, 2006)

Gabriel glanced sideways at Roger and his apparent nonchalance. The historian stood and gave the door in the ceiling a look of calculation.
"What were you two doing up there? You could've gotten the kid killed. Did you scroll down 'gross negligence' under the 'cause' of the accident?"  he said, nodding at Roger's handy dandy notepad. He had a feeling Vincent was just trying to help, but the man really should've been more responsible than to let him.
_Water under the bridge now,_ he thought ruefully, just glad nobody was seriously hurt.


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## ae1vart0n (Jun 16, 2006)

It had in fact been Vincent that had climbed the scaffolding, and who wanted to open the door.  And he had just mentioned they were up there opening the door just a sentence before.  The guy had a bit of a superiority complex, probably got his way too much.  Pretty common problem for teachers, surrounded every day with people who had to do what they said for fear of a bad mark.

But Gabriel was half right.  Curiousity had gotten the better of him.

Not wanting to make a scene, Roger shrugged it off, giving a quick grimace to Gabriel's back, and then turned back to Sara.  "See?  My fault.  No liability," he said half jokingly.  "And no haunting either if that's what you're thinking.  We have pictures and a tape recording."  He was only hoping they had enough to explain what happened.  In his own mind he wasn't sure.


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## hippocrachus (Jun 16, 2006)

"What were you doing up there?" Gabriel asked Vincent, since Roger was too busy trying to cover up his mistake. "Opening the door" lacked a great deal of detail in the historian's precise mind.


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## Majin (Jun 18, 2006)

Monday, May 15 2006 - 5:35 PM

Sara listens to Roger's words but still looks distraught as she replies, "I'm not so sure the insurance inspector will see it that way," she shakes her head. It was just so bizarre. It was just like Mary. The only difference was this foriegn substance that had covered the boy. Mary had nothing like that on her when she was found. 

A rattling sound was heard from the lobby, as a few moments later two EMTs rushed through the door, one pushing a stretcher behind him. While one attended Vincent the other got information from everyone present and then turned to assist his partner lift the boy onto the stretcher. Determing that the boy did not appear badly hurt, they could not immediately identify the substance on his body and decided it would be prudent that he be checked at a hospital just to be on the safe side. They left just as quickly with him. 

"They'll be taking him to Johns Hopkins," Sara stated quietly. "I'm sure you'll all want to go see him. I'll be coming with you if that's alright. I've been meaning to go see Mary there. This would seem to be a better time than any to do so..."


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## Watus (Jun 19, 2006)

Pete takes a few quick shots of the accident scene - focusing particularly on the scaffolding - then tucks away his camera.

"I'll drive you.  We can talk on the way."  He turns to the others.  "I can fit two or three others, depending on how friendly you are."


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## hippocrachus (Jun 19, 2006)

The newcomer had the look of a cop about him and Gabriel had taken the Metro to get to Baltimore, so the historian didn't have a problem driving with him.


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## ae1vart0n (Jun 19, 2006)

"I'd rather take my wagon, but thanks," Roger said politely as he packed away his own camera, notes, and replaced the tape in the tape recorder. "My recording equipment will be safe here, right?"  He nodded toward the tape recorder, which he intended to leave running.

After dealing with his equipment he took his bag and walked out toward the street with the others.  The tape he had just removed remained in his hand.  He would replay the strange part on the way to the hospital.


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## Dhes (Jun 19, 2006)

”Steve, your with me right? If anyone ells want a ride I have room for three more.” Dunstand says directing a smirk at Roger, ”Just make sure you keep you door locked when we drive there, I don’t feel like getting my car jacked.”


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## Velmont (Jun 19, 2006)

Steven nods at Dunstand and wait for everyone to be ready to follow the group.


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## Majin (Jun 22, 2006)

After confirming that Roger's equipment would indeed be safe, everyone leaves for the hospital. The trip is uneventful but tense. Those driving follow the amulance as best they can and break off from it as they drive into the parking area. Eventually assembling in a waiting room near where Vincent will be placed after being checked by doctors, Sara looks to the group and says, "Mary is on this floor too. They won't let us in to see Vincent for a bit now. If you'd like to come with me to see Mary, feel free."


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## Velmont (Jun 22, 2006)

"Mary... that's the girl who fall too?" asks Steven a bit confused. "I had the idea that accident happen long time ago. I must have misunderstood something here."


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## Majin (Jun 22, 2006)

Sara looks at Steven a bit perplexed herself. "No..." she says slowly. "It happened only last week. It was in some of the local papers," she explains.

[sblock]Velmont - You probably misunderstood because of the info Gabriel found while doing research through the newspapers and such. Most were old, but there were still updated newspapers available for him to search through as well.  [/sblock]


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## Dhes (Jun 22, 2006)

”So did this Mary really fall from the scaffolding, or did she too; get sucked into the ceiling and then get spit out  coved in mucus?” switching of his mobile phone, ”I’ll go, it will be interesting to hear her story.”


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## Velmont (Jun 22, 2006)

[SBLOCK=OOC]







			
				Majin said:
			
		

> [sblock]Velmont - You probably misunderstood because of the info Gabriel found while doing research through the newspapers and such. Most were old, but there were still updated newspapers available for him to search through as well.  [/sblock]




I have been confuse for a time until I understood, so when it came I decide to play Steven as he was still confused... hey, he is only intelligence 8. He is not dumb, just a bit slow  [/SBLOCK]


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## ae1vart0n (Jun 23, 2006)

> get sucked into the ceiling and then get spit out covered in mucus?




So it wasn't just me, he thought, still not ruling out some sort of heavy gas from the attic causing vertigo.  Next to Vincent and Roger, Dunstand probably got the best look, but he was also close enough that the fumes from the attic could have reached him.

His current hypothesis was that gas from the attic had made both Roger and Vincent lose their balance, and possibly hallucinate.  Thus the pulling motion was really just Vincent trying to get his balance, and Roger thought it was upward because he too had lost his bearings.  When Vincent passed by the door on his way to the ground the flow of gas had condensed on his skin into a mucus.  Vincent had been exposed to much more of this gas than any of the others.

The door had then snapped shut on a spring hinge.  Dunstand probably thought Vincent had fallen upward as part of the effect of the gas.

That being the case, Roger had brought a small test tube in which to collect some mucus.  He hoped some of his friends at the nuthouses could get it identified for him.

"I'd like to hear her story too, if she doesn't mind talking about it."

[sblock]I take it that Roger didn't hear anything interesting on the tape on the way to the hospital then?[/sblock]


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## hippocrachus (Jun 23, 2006)

Gabriel didn't really have anything to talk to Mary about; he didn't know her and, as far as he was concerned, her fall was due to the lack of safety procedures implemented by Metro and therefore nothing to interrogate the poor girl about.
"If it's all the same, I'll wait to hear from Vincent," Gabriel said, taking a seat in the waiting room. He began opening his briefcase and pulling out his laptop, hoping he might get some work on his book done in the mean time.


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## Majin (Jun 25, 2006)

Monday, May 15 2006 - 6:15 PM

Those that decide to go see Mary leave Gabriel and any others that stay with him in the waiting room as they follow Sara down the hall to Mary's room. 

Upon entering the room, you see Mary lying in bed, watching television, her body connected to a traction apparatus to help her pelvic bone set properly. Her arm and leg are in casts, and there are bandages on her head. Her eyes are bruised. She's in a room with another patient, an emaciated old man whose eyes are closed and whose breathing is raspy. He's attached to a pulse monitor and other medical instruments that constantly beep and whir. He appears to be either asleep or unconscious.

Sara has tears in her eyes as she approaches Mary's bedside. She quietly makes introductions to all present and hands Mary a box of chocolates she'd brought along as a present, which she places on a side table. Small talk is made between Mary and Sara for awhile, though it's clear that Mary is more interested in staring at you than her talk with Sara.

"You're from the Paradise, aren't you?" she asks eventually, prompting Sara to nervously explain further your reasons for being here.


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## Velmont (Jun 25, 2006)

Not sure himself what he is doing here (after all, he wanted to do his Art History project, not on health and security at work), Steven decide to stay silent. He just node at the girl and let the other talks.


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## ae1vart0n (Jun 27, 2006)

Taking a seat, he spoke in a relaxed voice, "I guess you must have found that door too."

No need to ask her about details, or talk about theories.  Give someone like this an explanation and they'd cling to it.  Better to just give her something to start with and see what she says.


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## Watus (Jun 27, 2006)

Pete sidles into the room and leans against the wall in the back, looking friendly and concerned.  _I can do the interview later,_ he thinks.  _When we won't have an audience_.

In the meantime, he figures he'll just see how she reacts to the others.


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## Majin (Jun 28, 2006)

Mary's eyes widen at Roger's mention of the door. She nods her head nervously. "The doctor's keep telling me that my injuries were a result of falling. That I agree with, but I did not fall down from the scaffolding..." she pauses for a moment before continuing, "I fell _up_," she swallows.


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## Velmont (Jun 28, 2006)

"Up? How can you fall up?" whisperss Steven to Dunstand. "If it is true, do you think it means that theatre is hunted... not sure it would be a good thing to mention that in our work."


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## Watus (Jun 28, 2006)

Pete narrows his eyes and wonders what kind of pain meds this poor woman is on.  Probably something pretty strong, he figures.  She's obviously pretty out of it.

It will probably be weeks before he can get a reliable statement out of her about what happened.


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## ae1vart0n (Jul 3, 2006)

Pulled upwards.  A gas would probably make you lose your balance, but two people being "pulled" in the same direction was odd.  Still, it could be coincidence.  He needed more information.

"I'm sure you didn't fall upwards any more than my friend did, though that's also how it felt to me when I was standing up there." Roger began to explain.  Explaining away hallicinations was commonplace for Roger, and if he wanted to do anything to help the theater's reputation, it was important to convince this girl.  Don't contradict anything, just add explanation to experience.

"You didn't see what was behind that door by chance?  Or smell anything odd?  I was a few feet away this time so I didn't get a good look."

He was hoping she could help identify the gas, or at least substantiate the theory a bit.


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## Majin (Jul 4, 2006)

"I blacked out and don't remember anything that specific," Mary answers with a frown. 

Suddenly, the beeping from the machines increases and a buzzer sounds. The man in the other bed cries out briefly and then his face goes slack. Sara yelps and runs out of the room to get a nurse; The noise from the machines is terrible, a cacophony of electronic sounds that make no sense. Two nurses and a doctor rush in, followed by Sara. The staff begins emergency procedures and goes straight to defibrillation. As they use the paddles to jolt electricity into the old man's body, the lights in the room go out with each burst. Sara watches the scene, aghast. Mary continues staring at you. Then she nods at the television on the wall behind you.

As the lights go up and down and the man's body spasms, the television is shorting out. Images of a ballet dissolve into static, and the sound of a film projector comes through. Then the screen shows the hospital room, as if a camera were mounted inside the television. You see yourselves around the bed, and the pulsing lights, and Mary staring. A blurry figure stands next to Mary, with indistinct hands stroking her face. Then the screen explodes in a burst of electricity, sending fragments of glass blowing into the room. A nurse screams.

The old man is dead. The doctor calls the time of death. He gestures at the television and tells a nurse, "Get Robert to fix that damned thing," he says, frustrated. 

[sblock]Sorry for the delay all, I haven't been feeling that well lately.[/sblock]


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## Insight (Jul 5, 2006)

OOC: I have returned from my vacation!


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## Majin (Jul 6, 2006)

OoC: Just in time too it seems. Vincent will be returning to the fray shortly! Sorry for the wait


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## ae1vart0n (Jul 8, 2006)

"We should probably leave the doctors to their work in here and get ourselves checked out.  At least I'm going to.  I want to make sure what I think just happened isn't a symptom of something."

Had Mary become the source of this... maybe it was a disease instead of a gas?  If so they had probably contracted it, and it was spreading alarmingly fast.


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## Dhes (Jul 10, 2006)

Velmont said:
			
		

> "Up? How can you fall up?" whisperss Steven to Dunstand. "If it is true, do you think it means that theatre is hunted... not sure it would be a good thing to mention that in our work."



Leaning over to Steve, ”Dud, stop thinking about the work. We just saw a guy get sucked up and spit out. In my book that’s way more interesting.” 



			
				Majin said:
			
		

> "I blacked out and don't remember anything that specific," Mary answers with a frown. Suddenly, the beeping from the machines increases and a buzzer sou...... bla bla bla TV goos Nova.



After the TV explodes, Dunstand drops to the floor, seeing that he’s the only one flat on the ground and that it probably was to late any way he gets back on his feet and dusts himself of. Muttering to himself, ”dam ghosts and there exploding TV’s.”



			
				ae1vart0n said:
			
		

> "We should probably leave the doctors to their work in here and get ourselves checked out.  At least I'm going to.  I want to make sure what I think just happened isn't a symptom of something."
> Had Mary become the source of this... maybe it was a disease instead of a gas?  If so they had probably contracted it, and it was spreading alarmingly fast.



”Are you for real? That guy is dead, I don’t think there is a lot the doctor can do for him, he’s not God even if most of them think they are. “ Looking back at the remainder of the TV, ”Don’t anyone tell me they didn’t see some weird  in the TV before it exploded. TV’s don’t explode from power surges this isn’t Hollywood.


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## Velmont (Jul 10, 2006)

"Maybe it interest you more, but if I want to play next session, I must..." Steven doesn't have time to finish his sentence when the man next to them die and all the troop of doectors and nurse come to his rescue without much result.

But Steven is fascinated by the TV. As it explose, he instinctively protect his face and then look back. The TV is finished. "Cool... I never thought I would witness that."  

Rogers suggest to leave, but Dunstand seems to prefer to stay, and Steven nods, not wanting to miss anything wierd that is happening. "I am no expert, but I thought ghost where confine to a place to hunt? Would that be a ghost from here or one of the theatre who has followed?"


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## hippocrachus (Jul 11, 2006)

When a bunch of nurses and a doctor ran into the room the others went into, Gabriel looked over with concern, but chalked the sudden bustle up to coincidence and regular hospital occurrence.
When the sounds of a small explosion, shattering glass, and the panicked screams of nurses reached the studious historian, Gabriel shot a worried glance at the receptionist and began putting his things away in a hurry. Afterwards, he directed all of his attention towards Mary's room.
_Coincidence only goes so far..._


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## Watus (Jul 11, 2006)

Pete steps out into the hall for a moment to catch his breath and to give the professionals some room to get the old man out of there.  He crouches down against the wall, his heart running a couple of gears too high.  He wonders for a moment whether he's hyperventilating.

He's pretty sure that before the TV exploded that he saw... something. He's not really sure anymore what it was, but it wasn't natural.  The rationalist in him searches desperately for an explanation, turning things upside down and inside out.

Maybe there was a gas leak in the room... nitrous oxide, maybe.  Do they even use that in hospitals?  He shakes his head.  He didn't smell anything.  And he sure as hell didn't feel like laughing....

Looking up, he catches the concerned look of the professor-type down the hall.  He shrugs and shakes his head, pushing himself back up into a standing position.  He has no idea what to do with himself in this type of situation...

Sticking his hand into his pocket, he starts walking briskly down the hallway toward the waiting room, digging a handful of change out of his pocket.  _Coffee_, he thinks to himself, standing in front of the vending machine and counting out the amount.  _Coffee will definately make everything better._


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## ae1vart0n (Jul 11, 2006)

"I can't deny the TV exploding was unusual, though not difficult to explain away.  The fact that it coincides at least with this gentleman's death seems strange at first, but they could have a related cause, such as a sudden change in air pressure.

The doctors will need to take care of the cadaver, and someone will need to clean up the glass.  Not to mention, this poor young lady is probably frightened.  I can't force you, but personally I'm going to step out in the hallway where I'll be out of the way.

Giving up a theory was never something he liked to do too early, but air pressure he thought was about the only thing he could think of that would cause both events.

Before leaving he turned toward Mary.

"I'm sorry you had to go through this.  I hope we'll be able to speak again soon."

In the back of his mind he was considering staying and consoling the girl further, but first things first.  This hospital room was getting crowded.  Roger calmly stepped out in the hallway.


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## Velmont (Jul 11, 2006)

"I am not quite knowledgeable in science, but I don't think air pressure have a relation with what we have seen at the TV... are have you miss the program before it explode?"

_And if that whole world was hunted, the governement had been hiding it and it is now going out of control from them? How many ghost are hding like that?_


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## hippocrachus (Jul 11, 2006)

The ride to the hospital had been eerily quiet, but Gabriel still recognized the driver from earlier. If it were possible for the man to look any more wretched than usual, Gabriel didn't believe it until he saw him counting change in front of the coffee vender. The historian pulled out a one dollar bill and strode up next to him.
"Here," Gabriel said, offering him the bill.


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## Majin (Jul 11, 2006)

Monday, May 15 2006 - 6:25 PM

After making his selection on the machine Pete watches hazily as a cup is dropped from the machine and the mixture of coffee begins filling the container. After a few short moments he removes the cup of coffee and turns to face a concerned looking Gabriel. 

Mary's room being cleared except for hospital staff, the door is closed after the body of the old man is wheeled away. The desk nurse catches the eye of one of you and explains that Vincent has been set up in a nearby room and could accept visitors anytime. "Room 422," she adds, pointing the group of you down the hall. 

~Vincent~

Vincent comes to groggily and the first thing he feels is a splitting headache. Moving a hand up to his forehead the boy feels a nasty lump near his temple. 

"Any closer and you might have been in serious trouble young man," the voice of what appears to be his doctor invades his eardrums.


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## hippocrachus (Jul 12, 2006)

Gabriel nodded at Pete and moved off down the hall to Vincent's room. He gave a sharp rap on the door before entering and greeted the boy half-heartedly. He took a seat in the corner, waiting for the doctor to finish up with his patient.


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## ae1vart0n (Jul 13, 2006)

He'd hoped they wouldn't notice.  The air pressure thing was of course not an explanation, he hadn't felt his ears pop after all.

Lacking a better explanation, he decided to consider that the place might actually be haunted, but he'd give it a night.  No need to jump to conclusions.  There had to be some explanation, even a far-fetched one.

Maybe the girl was orchestrating the whole thing?


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## Insight (Jul 13, 2006)

Majin said:
			
		

> Monday, May 15 2006 - 6:25 PM
> 
> ~Vincent~
> 
> ...




Vincent struggles to open his eyes.  "Where... ?"  He looks around, gathering in the surroundings.  "Hospital..."

Instinctively, Vincent tries to sit up, but finds tubes in his elbows and immediately lays back down.  "My head... Doctor... what happened?"

Before the Doc can answer:



			
				hippocrachus said:
			
		

> Gabriel nodded at Pete and moved off down the hall to Vincent's room. He gave a sharp rap on the door before entering and greeted the boy half-heartedly. He took a seat in the corner, waiting for the doctor to finish up with his patient.




"Gabriel," Vincent replies.  "What happened?  I fell, that's about all I can remember."


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## hippocrachus (Jul 14, 2006)

_Guess that bump was worse than it looked..._ he thought, giving the doctor an appraising look. Neither the paramedics nor the professionals at the hospital seemed to think the boy took much damage.
"You took a dive," Gabriel responded to the boy with half a smirk, "and it's probably best if that's all you remember. You're alright now; that's what's important."
He still wanted to know why, but Gabriel wasn't going to press Vincent in his sickbed and Roger wasn't going to give a straight answer.


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## Majin (Jul 18, 2006)

Monday, May 15 2006 - 6:27 PM

The doctor looks to Gabriel as he answers Vincent and then back to the boy. "Can you remember anything else? How did you feel before you fell?" Then looking at Gabriel, "If you or anyone else that was nearby could give us an account, filling in the bits Vincent doesn't remember it could be helpful as well," he says, expectantly.


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## Insight (Jul 18, 2006)

Majin said:
			
		

> Monday, May 15 2006 - 6:27 PM
> 
> The doctor looks to Gabriel as he answers Vincent and then back to the boy. "Can you remember anything else? How did you feel before you fell?" Then looking at Gabriel, "If you or anyone else that was nearby could give us an account, filling in the bits Vincent doesn't remember it could be helpful as well," he says, expectantly.




Vincent struggles to remember.  "No... nothing specific," he says.  Vincent could remember climbing atop the latticework, reaching for the hidden lever, but nothing much beyond.  "Wish I could be of more help."


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## hippocrachus (Jul 18, 2006)

Gabriel raised his hands in a warding gesture towards the doctor.
"I really can't say; I wasn't in the room. All I saw was Vincent and a gentleman about my age climbing atop the scaffolding, looking at something on the ceiling, and then Vincent jumping off of the scaffolding. I can't say what put it in your mind to do a thing like that..." He gave Vincent a concerned look.
Gabriel was sure Roger didn't push him. Even at the distance he witnessed the incident, he could say confidently that Roger seemed to have tried to prevent Vincent's jumping.


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## Majin (Jul 18, 2006)

The doctor gives Vincent a concerned look. "Have you been depressed lately? Have you ever contemplated suicide?"


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## ae1vart0n (Jul 19, 2006)

It was a tense situation.  On one hand he wanted to talk to Vincent, to apologize, to explain.  But Roger had no explanation.  Mary felt a pull, and so had Roger through Vincent.  The goo, the TV, these weren't run-of-the-mill delusions.

He began to move toward Vincent's room.  To face the music.  As he got close he thought he had heard something about suicide, and decided to enter the room.  He stopped momentarily in the doorway, to be polite.

"Sorry to interrupt.  May I join you?"

It was as calm as was possible, but he still wasn't sure he hadn't stuttered.


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## Insight (Jul 19, 2006)

Majin said:
			
		

> The doctor gives Vincent a concerned look. "Have you been depressed lately? Have you ever contemplated suicide?"




"Pfft, no," Vincent replies indignantly.  "Suicide is for quitters."


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## hippocrachus (Jul 19, 2006)

Gabriel couldn't help but laugh at Vincent's bon mot.


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## Velmont (Jul 19, 2006)

Steven, starting to being bored after what happened in Mary's room, decide to go back to see what the other are doing with Vincent. He walk down the corridor and take a look inside the room. He enter but stay behind a moment, until Vincent take a look at him. "Hey, you're all right?"


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## ae1vart0n (Jul 20, 2006)

Vincent's response had calmed Roger's nerves.  With an attitude like that it didn't look like any serious damage had been done.

Steven having just walked passed Roger into the room, and Dunstand sure to be along in a moment following his friend, Roger decided to make his stay short.

"Excuse me doctor, could I speak with you for a moment?  Just take a sec."

He knew he had no authority in this hospital, but Roger was intrested... well curious about any bloodwork that might indicate a hallucinogen.  At least that would explain part of their experiences.  And hopefully a sample of the goo.


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## Majin (Jul 20, 2006)

Monday, May 15 2006 - 6:29 PM

The doctor waves the newcomers in as he stares down at his chart. At Vincent's response to his query about suicide the doctor smiles, "Well that's a good way to look at it."

Looking again at his chart the doctor adds, "Your preliminary bloodwork came back fine. I've ordered a full blood chem which will take a few days to complete, but if you feel well enough to leave, we won't keep you. If there are any other questions?" the doctor asks, regarding Roger as he speaks up.


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## ae1vart0n (Jul 20, 2006)

"Well, first i ought to apologize to Vincent, that I was unable to prevent his fall.  I was up on the scaffolding with him and lost my balance as well."

Then, returning to the doctor:

"But what I meant to talk with you about, and I didn't want to bother everyone, but when he came here he was covered in an unusual substance.  You wouldn't have had it sent for analysis as well?  I was going to collect some myself, but Vincent's well-being came first.", he said eagerly.

If this was something paranormal, it was an opportunity of a lifetime.  True, Roger had seen his share of unexplainable cases, but he'd actually witnessed this one.  He wanted something tangible to put in his file.  The audio tape had proved less than satisfying in that regard.

Of course it would probably be better for the theater if that substance mysteriously disappeared, both from the hospital and from the theater's attic.  Even if it wasn't a haunting, he couldn't imagine a substance like that being present in their attic bringing any positive reviews.


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## Majin (Jul 20, 2006)

Monday, May 15 2006 - 6:30 PM

The doctor looks puzzled as Roger mentions the goo. He double checks his chart, flipping through the numerous pages attached to it before looking back up at Roger. "What substance?" he asks, looking back and forth between him and Vincent. "There was nothing covering him when he arrived here at the hospital."


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## Velmont (Jul 20, 2006)

"It must had dried." suggest Steven. "I've seen it too, some kind of goo."


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## ae1vart0n (Jul 24, 2006)

"I guess i'll need to go back to the theater and figure out how to collect some.  Taking more precautions this time of course." he said, trying to reassure himself.

He looked at his watch, and realized it was getting late.  "6:30... Anyone feel like getting dinner?"


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## hippocrachus (Jul 24, 2006)

"If Vincent can get out of bed," Gabriel replied. Dinner sounded like a good idea.


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## Watus (Jul 24, 2006)

Out in the waiting room, Pete presses his back flat against the wall and rubs eyes.

_I'm just tired,_ he figures.  _Over-tired and seeing things._.

Somewhat reassured, he gulps down the rest of his too-hot coffee and moves down the hall toward Vincent's room.

_I need to start going to bed earlier..._


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## Velmont (Jul 24, 2006)

"I ate just before going to the theatre, so I am not hungry yet." tells Steven.


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## Majin (Jul 24, 2006)

"If Vincent feels up to it," the doctor says, looking expectantly towards the teenager.


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## Insight (Jul 30, 2006)

Majin said:
			
		

> "If Vincent feels up to it," the doctor says, looking expectantly towards the teenager.




"I suppose so," Vincent replies.  He looks at the gathering of mostly strangers in the room.  "Where are we going?"


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## ae1vart0n (Jul 30, 2006)

"I'm flexible," he said, almost automatically.

It took a second to realize Pete wasn't with them.  Being with an insurance company he was bound to want to ask Roger and the others questions about the accident, but then, Roger wanted to ask about the previous incidents in the theater too.  The insurance company had to have some record of it.

"Just let me know.  I'm going to go see if Pete wants to come."

And off Roger went to find him.


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## Majin (Aug 10, 2006)

OoC: Sorry my recent disappearance guys. It looks as if there's been a lull anyway in my absence from posting, but let's see if we can get things started up again.

Beyond the Sea Diner
Monday, May 15 2006 - 7:30 PM

The lot of you have agreed to regroup at a local diner. Those not caring to eat anything are along to discuss the situation with those who are. At the moment, the hope is that everyone can start making some sense of the day's events. The theater would be closed at this point, all the volunteers having gone home for the night, so the situation is currently slightly relaxed. There is plenty of time to talk things out before returning to possibly investigate more the next day.


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## Velmont (Aug 10, 2006)

Steven eats his half chicken with extra fries and a big soft drink. As he eats, he explain his theory. "You know, I am quite sure ghost exist. I mean, have you seen all these picture. Fine, many of them are tricked or have been manipulated, but a few can't be explain. Anyway, I wouldn't be surprise to see the governement destroying some of them just to make people think all is safe. The truth is there is a danger... ok, it is not like night of living death, but ghost can be dangerous. We don't know what they want. Some tells they have something to complete, other tells they are here to avenge something or someone... I would be curious to know what the one of the theatre want."


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## hippocrachus (Aug 10, 2006)

Gabriel listened to the college jock over his shrimp with half an ear. Somehow, ghosts and governmental cover-ups made five fried jumbo shrimp seem like a four course meal, and not for any lack of cuisine.
"Maybe they just want to be left alone," he said, entertaining the student's haunting theory. Gabriel hadn't seen anything that suggested a haunting. A little evaporating goo isn't a call for the Ghostbusters.


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## Velmont (Aug 10, 2006)

"Left alone? So we should simply not reopen the theatre? Maybe... but why it would have followed us up to the hopsital. I mean, you've see the TV, right?" tells Steven before taking a long sip of Coca.


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## hippocrachus (Aug 10, 2006)

"What TV?" Gabriel asked. He had been in the waiting room until the doctor said Vincent was allowed to have visitors. "I've never heard of ghosts following people..." He wasn't necessarily the man to go to when it came to poltergeists though.


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## Velmont (Aug 10, 2006)

"What? Oh yeah, you werern't there when the man died. The TV of the girl exploded at the same time they give shock to the man... you could prentend it was a... power surge?"  Steven look at Dunstand a moment "But that's good only for Hollywood... anyway, the wierdest thing wasn't that, it was a moment before, we saw ourselves on TV, just like a camera was hidden behind the TV screen and was filming us."


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## Dhes (Aug 10, 2006)

Velmont said:
			
		

> "You know, I am quite sure ghost exist. I mean, have you seen all these picture. Fine, many of them are tricked or have been manipulated, but a few can't be explain. Anyway, I wouldn't be surprise to see the governement destroying some of them just to make people think all is safe. The truth is there is a danger... ok, it is not like night of living death, but ghost can be dangerous. We don't know what they want. Some tells they have something to complete, other tells they are here to avenge something or someone... I would be curious to know what the one of the theatre want."




Only ordering a coffee, Dunstand sits there and smokes a cigarette in silence. Not really paying attention to the rest of the party, but taking the time to flip through the photos he made in the theater.  

”They can’t be explained because some people are better at Photoshop then others. Ok I’ll give you the “Ghosts exist” bit, I'f seen enough stuff today to believe in “something” call it ghosts if you want. But I really doubt the government has any kind of cover-up/ghost assassination department. Are we talking, Ghostbusters meets Splinter-cell, I know lets call it Ghost Recon.”

Taking a sip of coffee, ”Lets just start with the theater and work our way up from there. If we ever do get to the White House to kill Zombie Bush, you can tell me “told you so”.

"For now, let's just have another look at the theater and see if this ghost has any other hobbies besides blowing up TV’s" 
[sblock]Do I see anything of interest in the photo’s, I’m only looking at a small low res screen on the camera but I am able see the histogram of the picture.[/sblock]


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## Majin (Aug 13, 2006)

Dunstand scans through the pictures he'd taken recently in the theater. Much to his surprise, they appear entirely normal, with any "evidence" that may have been there not present. The photos with and without Vincent show the ceiling as perfectly normal; no hatch, or any out of the ordinairy sights can be seen.


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## ae1vart0n (Aug 14, 2006)

Putting down his hamburger so he could get a word in, Roger stopped to wipe his mouth.  His 'Crazy Crouton' burger was becoming a bit hard to manage, and he was wondering what they wouldn't put on a sandwich.

"I'm not ruling out hallucination, or smoke-and-mirrors either.  If we're going to do this we need to be methodical and skeptical about it," he glances around at the highschoolers "And we probably should keep this to ourselves.  Aside from paranormal research, I work with the mentally disabled, and alot of them are in there for things they can't prove they saw."


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## Velmont (Aug 14, 2006)

"Hallucination? Smoke and mirror?" repeat Steven with his mouth half full of fries. He takes the time to finish to eat his mouthful before continuing. "It can't be an hallucination, as we all have seen the same thing. Someone can hallucinate, but a group hallucinate the same thing? I don't think it is possible. And for smoke and mirror... fine, maybe some freak would try to do something at the theatre for some reason I can't understand for now... but you would tell me he would had time to prepare a trick at the hospital and synchronize it with the heart attack? I think you negate the obvious, we are facing something that can't be explain with science..." Steven take a large piece of chicken, dip it in his BBQ sauce before eating it.


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## hippocrachus (Aug 14, 2006)

"People have been saying that since the first pages of history were written; I'm sure there's a perfectly logical explanation for the nature of these...occurrences," the historian said, thinking Roger had the right idea. Claiming the world was round when everyone else believed it to be flat was more likely to get you excommunicated than revered for an academician genius.


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## Velmont (Aug 14, 2006)

"Bah!" is the only answers of Steven, knowing that he couldn't make up without some material proof... the problem with these things, there is generally nothing material. It's like trying to proove with science that God exist... Wathever he came with, his idea would be just push aside with some explanation he doubt he could fully understand, just as Dunstand like to do.


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## ae1vart0n (Aug 14, 2006)

Mass hallucination, groupthink, and it wasn't far-fetched to think something about the incident in the hospital _caused_ the heart attack.  Steven couldn't be expected to be familiar with all of this, and Roger was appreciative of Gabriel's defense, but Roger held some reverence for science, and couldn't completely overlook the affront.

Calmly, but in a serious tone, "If we can't approach this scientifically, then how would you propose to study it?" Then looking back at his food, he returned to his usual relaxed state.  "Besides, we don't have anything to explain yet.  First, we need to do is prove we weren't seeing things."  He looked toward Dunstand.  "Unless Dunstand has something in those photos?  There wasn't much on the tape."


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## Watus (Aug 14, 2006)

Pete absently listens to the conversation, mechanically shoving french fries into his mouth, not really tasting them.  

_Maybe it _was_ some sort of hallucination_, he thinks.  _I guess that does happen._

He looks up at the mention of photographs.  "You have pictures," he asks.  "Of what, exactly?"


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## Dhes (Aug 14, 2006)

ae1vart0n said:
			
		

> "I'm not ruling out hallucination, or smoke-and-mirrors either.  If we're going to do this we need to be methodical and skeptical about it," he glances around at the highschoolers "And we probably should keep this to ourselves.  Aside from paranormal research, I work with the mentally disabled, and alot of them are in there for things they can't prove they saw."




”I doubt that the hospital would kill someone, just so they could fool us. So if it’s not “smoke and mirrors”, that means we are all “Mentally disabled”. But no matter what it is, it can always be explained. You just have to look hard enough.”[/colro 

Looking back down at his camera, ”But maybe you are correct and we are all severing from some mental deficiency. As fare as my camera is concerned, there was no trap door and Vincent never got sucked in. Maybe someone should just take a raking ball and demolish the theater. I find that taking something apart is always the best way to figure out what’s wrong with it. Plus, it would really suck if you sitting there watching a movie and just when the movie starts to get good. You get sucked out of you chair and spit out covert in mucus”


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## hippocrachus (Aug 16, 2006)

Gabriel was still unsure what the rest of them were talking about. All he saw was Vincent jump off the scaffolding. For all he knew, the goo was just something the kid had in his pocket and exploded on impact.
_Their story sounds crazy to me, and I was_ there! he thought to himself cynically. But that was just it: if they weren't crazy, it was a story of a lifetime. _The least I can do is help dissuade them of their delusions..._ It reminded him of the time when he had to convince a student that his dog didn't eat his homework and that it was him, the student, that ate his assignment while tripping on acid.


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## Majin (Aug 19, 2006)

Tuesday, May 16 2006 - 11:00 AM

The night had passed and the unlikely group all went their seperate ways. At this time of the day Gabriel is somewhere at his respective university. Likewise for Steven and Dunstand, in their dorm. Roger, being technically self-employed, can dictate his own schedule around his clients. Pete, working his current case would most likely be on his way to check out the theater again. Where Vincent is, is anyone's guess. 

[sblock]Insight, you still with us? [/sblock]


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## Velmont (Aug 19, 2006)

Steven wakes up early, before 7am. He wake up and go to the university's gym where he train for a two hours training. His mind is remembering what happen the day before. He can't explain anything... all the evnts where outside his comprehension, and it seems they were for all the other two, but the other was thinking it was more a pranks than something unatural. As the clock arrive show 8h45, Steven quickly hit the shower before running to his macro econmic course. He sits down and listen, not understanding what happen during the crash of 1929 and the cause of that... As the course finish, he leaves and walk in the hall

_Damn, I think I'll have some study to do... I just need to pass the test if I want to continue to play football... Our art history work! That too need to be done, and we did nothing yestrday._

Steven quickly walk to the football team's room and grab the phone and call Dunstand.


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## ae1vart0n (Aug 26, 2006)

Roger got up, as was usual, to a modest breakfast and a quick scan of his calendar, making note of the days obligations.  The night before he had added "Visit Theatre" to the list, as if he could forget what happened or his plans to return.  He had finished his notes, including their stay at the hospital and created a new file in the potentials side of the cabinet before drifting off to sleep.  Sleep had come easily as he had found himself to be exhausted after yesterdays antics.

Checking his phone for messages, and his equipment to ensure they would continue their daily tasks unimpaired, he set off for the library.  This morning he would not only check his email, but would stay a while longer to find out as much as he could about the theatre, and any airborne toxins which could cause the peculiar brand of hallucination they had experienced the night before.  It was still the best theory he had going.


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## Dhes (Aug 28, 2006)

Woken by the nagging sound of a incoming call on his mobile, Dunstand jumps out of bed and walk over to his computer. Not undocking his mobile from his computer, Dunstand glances at one of the screens showing him the somewhat puzzled but smiling face of Steven.  Hitting  a key on his Key board, Dunstand picks up the call. ”Hey Steve, Don’t tell me, It’s late and we still have a paper to write.  What time is it any whey, did you finish football practice?”
[sblock]Sorry For letting the phone ring for more than a week Velmont, I won’t give you any bull story, I was lazy and every time I wanted to pick it up, it slipped my mind. Too much 
“shiny” stuff on the internet. [/sblock]


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## Velmont (Aug 28, 2006)

"About time you answer... it is pass eleven. You were still sleeping? Didn't you had a course this morning... what I am asking, you skip half your course and you always find a way to pass your course. It must be me who is too dumb... Yeah, I am calling you because we did nothing yesterday. These ghost might have bring some distaction, but if I have a D in that course, it won't be enough for me to continue to play football. So what do you suggest, we try to find back that girl and interview her? Or maybe you have a great news like you have already finish the work. I jut got out of my macro economic course... and that's another course where I have a D in horizon. Things aren't good for me now." tells Steven


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## hippocrachus (Aug 29, 2006)

Tuesday morning Gabriel stood in front of his American History class, anticipating its end. There were some questions he wanted answered about last night, and droning on about one of the United States' two billion wars wasn't getting the job done.
An hour before lunch, Gabriel found himself in the university library.

[sblock=OOC]Research +10
Topics of Interest:
Hauntings similar to the supposed one at the Paradise.
Reasons a television might explode.
Evaporating mucus.
He'll also be refreshing his memory on all of the things he researched yesterday. Before, he considered most of the information just a bunch of rubbish, but now that murder is looking more interesting. Among other things...
Take 20 if it's allowed. He'll skip lunch if he has to; nevermind his hypoglycemia.[/sblock]


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## Majin (Sep 1, 2006)

[sblock]Well I think I've given everyone ample time to respond. If the others would still like to be in the game, post anytime you like and we will re-intergrate you.[/sblock]

Tuesday, May 16 2006 - 12:30 AM

Gabriel's search turns up not much more than he already knew. The plethora of supposed hauntings on the internet is gigantic. Narrowing down his search to just theaters in the area, nearly all the older ones have some such report or another from an "eye-witness", but the descriptions he reads are anything but extraordinary when it comes to haunting accounts. Nothing can be found that links the Paradise to any other hauntings. 

Likewise, every account of a television exploding that he can come up with only relates mundane reasons. His findings on mucus evaporation is a bit curious though; obviously any water-based substance will evaporate with time, but generally will leave some sort of residue behind of the non-H2O elements. From what he could tell from the hospital visit, Vincent did not have any on him, or at least the doctor did not mention any.

Roger has just as much luck as Gabriel. He does at least learn more about the Paradise and it's history, though nothing extra from what Gabriel may or may not have told the group. On the matter of toxins in the air that could cause hallucinations, the list is long and mostly unpronoucable. Any official way of telling if anything was leaking or airborne in the Paradise would require a atmospheric chemical test of some kind.


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## Dhes (Sep 3, 2006)

”I’ll get some historical facts on the theater from the net, I’m sure that that will be enough to just copy past into a paper. pausing for a bit, ”I do think that we should get back to the theater, I really didn’t get any good pictures where we were there. We just need to make sure that we don’t poke around too much.  Don’t fancy ending up in the hospital like that other kid. Swing by my room after your classes, I’m sure that I’ll have most of the paper done by then. 
After hanging up, Dunstand get behind his computer and try’s to find any articles or references’ that they can use in the Art History paper. 
[sblock]+7 Computer use, +4 Gather information[/sblock]


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## Velmont (Sep 3, 2006)

"Fine." and Steven hang out. He looks at the hour... his day of course is finish, but he has an afternoon to work. His studies won't pay themselves. He quickly go to the construction site where he is employed and work the four hours he was schedule. After that, he will go directly to Dunstand place.


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## Insight (Sep 5, 2006)

Vincent, still reeling a bit from his fall, spends the balance of the day at home, unsure of what to think of the break-in the day prior.  His thoughts naturally turned to the whereabouts of his parents, and his friends.

Checking his cell phone occasionally to see if he had missed any calls during periods when he dozed off, Vincent surprisingly finds that no one has called.  All of a sudden, Vincent starts to feel alone in the world.


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## Majin (Sep 6, 2006)

Tuesday, May 16 2006 - 12:30 PM

Dunstand manages to find some more ordinary articles for the Paradise to pad out his paper, as well as the more peculiar bits of information the others had found. Not soon after a knock comes at his door, most likely Steven.

As Vincent wallows in his own self-pity, a flash hits him and in his mind there is nothing but fire and the stench of for some reason he knew could only be burning flesh. What he thinks looks like melting film reel streaks his vision as the horror plays out. Then another flash, a group of men, all wearing non-descript white masks, staring at him. That flash is gone almost as soon as it came, and the fire vision goes with it. Never having had such a detailed vision before, Vincent collapses to one knee. What was wrong with him? Was the incident yesterday responsible for this? He had no idea. He thought he could still smell the lingering scent of the burning flesh. Was it there or was he going crazy? The answers he could get might only be found back at the Paradise.

[sblock]Loss of 1 sanity point for Vincent. [/sblock]


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## ae1vart0n (Sep 13, 2006)

_Knew I should have tried the court records instead_ Roger thinks.  He sends out emails to the appropriate clients and looks at his watch.  It was still early, so there was time to finish up with some business before returning to the theatre.

After an hour of stopping at various psychiatric institutions looking for new cases (and possible hauntings), he decides to return to the hospital Vincent had been taken to to speak with the girl again, and see if they still had the TV.


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## Majin (Sep 14, 2006)

At Roger's attempt to visit Mary, he learns that her family has had her moved to a private room and they are accepting no visitors.


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## DrZombie (Sep 17, 2006)

*Enter the ignorant*

_Another day, another hotel_ 

Louis sighs as he puts down his suitcase and looks around his hotelroom. The same mindless, tasteless, bland room. 
_Whats the picture gonna be? Horses or a waterfall. Mmmh. Must be my lucky day. Both._

Some unpacking and a brief shower later he feels a little better. 
Taken full advantage of the facts that the bosses can't expect him to move around the underground scene in the standard ,_boring_ suit, he dresses sharply in a dark purple-and-black suit, tailored to hide his shoulder holster as much as possible. His FBI badge is tucked away safely.
His dreadlocks are smooth and cut off in at shoulder length, and kept safe by a wooden clasp in the form of a snake. A golden ring at the right little finger with a skull with a top hat subtly engraved in it complete the persona he's trying to create.
His stomach growls, and he checks his watch. Three hours 'till the meeting. Time enough to check out the local diner and get a feel of the town.

The sharply dressed agent saunters down the street. His curious eyes look around, observing, noticing.

At the nearest not too seady looking diner he takes a seat at the window, and as he waits to be served he checks his mobile for missed calls or messages.


OOC: I'd thought I'd jump right in, feel free to let whoever you want contact me in whatever way you wish, even if you just want to fastforward me right to th e breefing at the office.


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## Velmont (Sep 17, 2006)

During his break, Steven looks at the news paper. Among the publicity, he see a letter of comment on the article about the theatre he had seen the day before. he read through it. Someone who seems happy the restoration of old place, an heritage of our ancerstor the people have decided to keep. Steven was wondering what they were keeping. All that science trying to explain what happen... no, it wasn't making sense. There was something weird in all that, and it wasn't science who would explain it, he was convinced. but how to convince Dunstand or those guys who speak with big words. He thought only time would prove them wrong. But for now, his break is finish, and he must finish those windows... there might be rain tonight, and it must not penetrate in teh walls, he has to finish to seal his windows.


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## ae1vart0n (Sep 18, 2006)

The theatre was coming into sight.  Today had been one dissappointing dead-end after another: the library, the hospital.  If there was no evidence to be found in books and interviews, then the scene would need to speak for itself.

As Roger pulled into an open parking space, he thought about what equipment to bring.  Cameras didn't seem to be working, and the tape had nothing of interest.  That alone was strange.  This time he'd bring a UV light and an infared camera. He'd do more leg work.  Neither device could record anything, but they might help him see something he had missed the day before.

Armed with his flashlight and camera, Roger entered the theatre.


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## hippocrachus (Sep 18, 2006)

Gabriel left the library no wiser than before and headed off to his one o'clock Ancient Civilizations class; a two hour lecture with his major in mind.
When he finished he went home to his uncle's, grabbed a quick snack, and borrowed the car to make the two hour (with Rush Hour traffic) drive up to Baltimore for the evening; it was his uncle's gas and it saved the professor on train fare.


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## Dhes (Sep 19, 2006)

After spending some considerable hours (although it feels more like weeks, ) on their art history paper. Dunstand prints out a copy for Steve to read trough. 
Packing his laptop and camera into his car, Dunstand drives down to construction yard to pick up Sevens.
Parking his car between a pallet laden with pieces of scaffolding and what seems to be blocks of cheap insulation.  He grabs his mobile and text messages Steve, < CAME 2 PICK U UP, GOT PAPER DOEN, SHOULD HEAD TO HUNTED TH 4 SOME MORE PICS. MAYBE WILL GET SOME ARTSY GOHSTS 4 IN THE PAPER LOL >


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## Velmont (Sep 19, 2006)

Steven is putting his tools in order and cleaning them as he recieves the text message. he quickly looks at it. He quickly put all on the table and punch before going in the parking, where he spots Dunstand. He enters the car. "I wonder if the events of yesterday will contniue, or if we will find out what was behind all that. I've been think about that all day. I must tell that all these scientific explanation you all want to find are just above my knowledge." his eyes fall on the copy of the work, he takes it. He read it through. "Dunstand, you are a savior. I'll owe you one... more."


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## Majin (Sep 19, 2006)

Tuesday, May 16 2006 - 1:30 PM

Everyone going to the theater arrives within a short time of each other. Sarah is sweeping up in the lobby when the first person, Roger arrives. "Hello," greets Sarah. "I hope the incident at the hospital didn't upset you," she says, worry in her eyes.

~Louis~

Louis' cellphone rang just as the waitress was about to approach his table. Seeing the agent reaching to see who it was, she rolled her eyes and changed direction, sauntering over to some other waiting customers. Looking at the message window he notices the number is blanked out with asterisks. Answering it, he hears a scratchy, slightly distorted voice on the other end. 

_"Hello Agent Duchamps. You must know that with what I am about to tell you that I have your best interests at heart. Everything else is irrelevant. Now listen. You are to proceed immediately to the nearby Paradise Theater. If you do not know where that is, *find* it. Once there you will find a loose group of people milling around checking about the place. You are to follow their investigation. Make up your own reasons for being there, but make it convincing. You have been chosen for this Agent Duchamps and you must not fail to *see*,"_ the voice says cryptically. _"Do not attempt to trace this call. I can assure you that your efforts will be futile and you will not want any more attention drawn to you then already is. All I can tell you is that you will soon know why. Do you understand?"_


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## DrZombie (Sep 20, 2006)

Louis puts own his phone, slightly puzzled. He sighs, and then puts on his most charming smile as the waitress approaches his table for the second time.
"Sorry 'bout that, miss. No rest for the wicked, I guess. Could you get me a cup of coffee, please, and that apple pie looks mighty fine as well."

As she brings his order, he pays immediatly, leaving a large tip.

"Say, you couldn't tell me where to find the Paradise Theater, now would you?"

_If she knows where it is :_ 

He leans forward a bit, and lowers his voice:
"My client wishes to purchase it, but he's a bit funny in the head. Allways looking for places where someting _weird_ has happened. What am I getting myself into this time?"


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## ae1vart0n (Sep 21, 2006)

Majin said:
			
		

> Tuesday, May 16 2006 - 1:30 PM
> 
> "Hello," greets Sarah. "I hope the incident at the hospital didn't upset you," she says, worry in her eyes.




"No not at all," Roger replies, enthusiastically.  "This is proving to be quite an interesting case, although I will admit, I'm having trouble finding explanations for everything.  It takes time though, and in some cases a little creativity if you know what I mean."

He paused for a moment.  it was apparent she didn't know what he meant, or at least wasn't interested.

"So I was wondering, has anyone else shown an interest in this theater, other than the crowd I was in here with yesterday?  I'm hoping someone might still be alive from when the theater was originally open, or might at least be able to shed some light on things we've ... observed.  Maybe a competitor?"


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## Majin (Sep 21, 2006)

Tuesday, May 16 2006 - 1:35 PM

~Louis~

The waitress smiles and gives Louis directions, the theater apparently only a few miles away. "I'm not sure how much luck your friend will have though. I've heard its already recently been funded enough to reopen. I've never heard of anything weird happening there either," she adds with a crooked smile. 

~Roger~

"Hmm," Sarah mutters, thinking to herself. "Well we're hoping to get a good showing for the grand reopening tommorrow night. There is one person that I know of that's still around from when the place was first opened. His name is Frank Long," she says as she turns and gestures Roger to follow. Entering her makeshift office, she fetches a small card from a filebox and hands it to Roger. "Here's his address," she smiles as she heads back to the lobby, where she greets the rest of you, who've just recently arrived. 

"Back to take another look around, or help out?" she asks no one in particular.


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## Velmont (Sep 21, 2006)

Majin said:
			
		

> "Back to take another look around, or help out?" she asks no one in particular.




Steven enter at that moment, followed by Dunstand. "Help? Well..." he take a quick look at Dunstand and whispers to him. "You take the picture, I'll help her." he tells with a grin, he turn back his attention to Sarah. "Yes... we are here to help."


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## Toptomcat (Sep 23, 2006)

"Ichi! Ni! San! Yon! Go! Roku! Nana! Haichi! Kyū! Jū!"
Benjiro lowers his shinai, smiling broadly at the class.
"Good!  You all seem to have achieved a better appreciation of the _men_ cut in just this session.  Now we'll apply it.  Take a five minute break, and put on your _bogu-_ we're sparring next."
A few students groan, a few grin, some just take it in stride: he notes the reaction of each as he begins putting on his sparring armor.
"Planning on giving me a few bruises, Sigmund?"
Sigmund Dunlevy is different from the teenagers and health-club types that are Benji's usual fare: an Ex-Marine with a huge frame, he takes the class to stay in trim.  He knows what he's doing, too, and gives Benjiro a very good workout when the time comes to spar with him.


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## Majin (Sep 26, 2006)

Tuesday, May 16 2006 - 1:40 PM

~The Paradise~

Sarah puts Steven to work carrying some of the larger pieces of scrap to the storeroom. She looks expectantly towards Dunstand and the others, possibly eyeing them up for chores if they don't get moving themselves.


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## ae1vart0n (Sep 26, 2006)

Dodging Sarah's eye, the paranormal investigator moves into the theatre.  It's obvious there's too much light for a blacklight to be valuable, so he pulls out his infared camera and starts looking around.  At the ceiiing, at the screen, the balcony, the floor.  He finds himself heading away from the lobby toward the far end of the theatre.


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## Majin (Sep 27, 2006)

Tuesday, May 16 2006 - 1:40 PM

~Benjiro~

The last of Benjiro's students left the dojo as he was just finishing cleaning up. He watched Sigmund leave and walk across the street towards a large theater that appeared to be reopening soon and turn before continuing down the sidewalk. He was about to turn off the lights and leave as well when he heard what sounded like footsteps underneath him, then a faint "whirring" sound. Listening harder, Bejiro manages to track the sound to one corner of the room, seemingly coming from underground, beneath one of his tatami mats.

~Roger~

Roger's scans with his camera do not pick up anything unusual or out of the ordinary. Once at the back of the theater nothing else seems to be out of place from how it was the last time he was here. Though he feels slightly claustrophobic in the darkened area for reasons he cannot explain.


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## Dhes (Sep 27, 2006)

Velmont said:
			
		

> "Yes... we are here to help."



”He’s the handy man, I’m just here to look pretty and take pretty pictures. Showing his camera as to indicate, _sorry got my hand full, I would really like to help but see I’m holding this camera and stuff, so I can’t really do any manual labor._
”Talking about pretty pictures, could we put some of you in our report with the theater as back drop.”


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## Velmont (Sep 27, 2006)

Steven takes another large piece. As he pass next to Sarah, he stops and look at her. "Is everythings going well? I know with what happen yestrday, it has slow down all, and I hope for you there won't be anything else like that..."


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## ae1vart0n (Sep 27, 2006)

Feeling somewhat unnerved, he steps back into the light and pulls out his blacklight.  Kicking himself for leaving the regular flashlight in the car, he proceeds cautiously back into the dark area to see if the blacklight illuminates anything of interest, or even a light switch.


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## Toptomcat (Sep 28, 2006)

_Huh.  That's odd._
As he cleans up from the day's lesson, Benjiro checks under the mats, expecting to find a lost cellphone set on vibrate or something equally mundane.  Once he's done, he packs his more portable supplies into a large gym bag and goes to the front desk of the health club he shares space with.
"I'm hearing some odd noises from the basement.  Would it be all right if I went down there to take a look on my way out?"


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## Majin (Sep 28, 2006)

Tuesday, May 16 2006 - 1:45 PM

~Benjiro~

Looking under the mats, Benjiro discovers a chipped piece of floorboard, possibly absently kicked open by one of his students recently. Doing his best to peer into the hole, he can make out what appears to be a flickering light, but that is all, still quite odd as it had never happened before. 

When he brings his concerns to the front desk, the girl that is working there gives him a puzzled look, but after confirming his shared space lease, allows him access to the basement after some convincing. Once down there, Benjiro follows the western wall until it leads him to the corner. Looking up to the ceiling, he portions out where his dojo's floor should be, but does not see the crack he had hoped to find. He does however hear the whirring sound again. Putting his ear up to the wall, it appears to be coming from behind it. There is no entrance further back that would lead him there that he can see out in the open.

~Roger~

First looking around with his blacklight, and coming up with nothing again, Roger finds a lightswitch and flips it on, illuminating the backroom behind the screen. He jumps as he sees grotesque and peculiar carvings surround him, stacking in orderly rows of all sorts of what must be mythical creatures.

~Steven~

Sarah smiles at Steven as he attempts to comfort her about the previous days' events. "I will be fine. It's not everyday you see things like that. I'm keeping my mind off it by keeping busy. Tommorrow night's the grand re-opening and theres still so much left to do. Thank you for helping out."

~Dunstand~

Sarah chuckles at Dunstand's obvious flattery and waves him away. "No, no, you go on and take pictures of whatever you like _besides_ me. I doubt I'd be of much help towards your paper. Though there are some interesting things in the basement you could take a look at. I believe there are still some really old movie posters back from when the theater was open last," she suggests.


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## DrZombie (Sep 28, 2006)

Louis gets out of the taxi and walks up to the old movie theater.  He stands to the side, observing the coming and goings, looking if he can see the group of investigators the contact mentioned.


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## Majin (Sep 28, 2006)

Tuesday, May 16 2006 - 1:50 PM

~Louis~

Louis spys a woman inside talking to a large group of people that looks like it could be a tour group of some sort. That would be Louis' best guess as to the people he was told about.


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## Toptomcat (Sep 28, 2006)

Puzzled, Benjiro raps on the wall and otherwise carefully examines it for some sort of inconspicuous maintinence enterence.  
(Search +1, taking 20.)
Failing that, he thinks carefully on the layout of the building and the neighborhood, trying to figure out just where he might find an entrence.
(Intelligence +1.)


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## Majin (Oct 4, 2006)

Tuesday, May 16 2006 - 2:00 PM

~Benjiro~

Benjiro examines each section of the back wall carefully. Once he reaches the back corner underneath his dojo he discovers a hidden catch, covered with cobwebs and dust. releasing it a door swings open leading into a cramped corridor. The whirring sound becomes louder and the flickering light is here. Looking up, Benjiro can easily find the hole in his floorboards. Looking further down the hall he sees ancient movie posters of horror movies pasted up along the walls at odd, overlapping angles. The images on them appearing to almost move in the flickering light. At the end of the corridor, about 100 feet away is the source of the light and noise, but Benjiro can't quite make it out from here.


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## DrZombie (Oct 4, 2006)

Louis casually approaches the group, waiting untill they have finished their conversation with the lady. He keeps a polite enough distance, but still tries to catch a sentence or two of what they're saying.


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## Velmont (Oct 4, 2006)

Steven continue to carry all the pieces in the storage room. He just seems at ease, so use to clean the construction sites after the work is done, that was just the same. After some time, he take a quick break to go to the bathroom.


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## Dhes (Oct 4, 2006)

Camera at the ready, Dunstand makes his way down to the basement. Taking the time to snap some pictures of anything of interest.


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## Toptomcat (Oct 5, 2006)

_This just keeps getting weirder and weirder._
Benjiro goes back to the front desk again, speaking as if he can't quite believe his own eyes.
"Apparantly there's some sort of secret door right underneath the space you've lent me.  Did you know anything about that?"
Assuming the answer is in the negative...
"I'm going to go check it out. Call the police if I'm not back by closing time, would you?"
Benjiro goes back to his rented space and mostly empties his gym bag into a corner, leaving his personal weapons in it.  That accomplished, he descends the stairs again and begins walking down the corridor.


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## ae1vart0n (Oct 5, 2006)

_Just a bunch of carvings_, Roger tries to convince himself as he looks at the eerie scene.  _Who would carve such a thing *behind* the screen._.  He decides to look for a way to raise the screen so it won't feel so cramped.

[sblock]Search +7, and he'll go look for a control room if he needs to.  If nothing happens on the way, Knowledge(religion) +7, Knowledge(occult) +7 to figure out what the carvings mean and who might have made them.[/sblock]


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## Majin (Oct 10, 2006)

Tuesday, May 16 2006 - 2:15 PM

~Roger~

Roger searches and finds a control that looks to raise the screen, but the switch is manipulated by a key-lock design and therefore he can find no way to raise the screen at this time. Looking closer at the statues he notices them as creatures of myth. Satyrs, centaurs and the like and also that they are portable and so not stationary to one spot. 

~Benjiro~

Benjiro walks cautiously down the tight, badly lit corridor, as he passes posters with frightening visages displayed on them or scenes of imposing architecure. Reaching the source of the light, he confirms that it is in fact an old film projector, one side of the film reels spinning a full complement of movie film on it, the loose end dangling and swaying back and forth as the circle of metal spins over and over. Behind the projector is a wall, seemingly a dead end, but Benjiro hears more sounds occasionally. A multitude of electronic beeps can be heard at irregular intervals and flashes of light emit from the outline of the wall.


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## ae1vart0n (Oct 10, 2006)

_Interesting._  Although it was a bit too much.  The theater was fitting the stereotype of a haunted building almost too well.

It was a shame the curtain was locked, but it made sense.  Sarah wouldn't want this to be in plain sight of her customers.  Fearing that another confrontation with Sarah to get the key might involve him in physical labor, Roger decides instead to continue to search the theatre for anything that might be a hidden room, or an entrance to an attic or basement apart from the one they found yesterday.


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## Toptomcat (Oct 10, 2006)

(So the projector isn't projecting anything?  Can it be fixed to do so?)


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## Majin (Oct 10, 2006)

OoC: Tom - The projector is just flickering light at the moment, but there is a full reel attached, but it has ran through all the way, hence the full circle of film that is spinning around.


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## Toptomcat (Oct 10, 2006)

Benjiro examines the film reel for a title.  If it's not anything all that unusual, he'll start examining the peculiar wall more closely: if it seems unusual, or if he can't find a title, he tries to get the projector to play the movie.


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## Toptomcat (Oct 16, 2006)

...am I the only person still interested in this?


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## Velmont (Oct 16, 2006)

OOC: I'm still there, but I roleplay Steven as he is, not very bright but godo hearted. I suppose moving all the pieces take some times, and thus, he can't do that much for now...


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## DrZombie (Oct 17, 2006)

OOC : no, still here. UNsure of where, approaching a group, but noone seems to react..


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## hippocrachus (Oct 17, 2006)

[sblock=OOC]My character should be in his car heading up by now :\
That's what I get for living in D.C. when the adventure is in Baltimore...[/sblock]


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## Toptomcat (Oct 19, 2006)

(...Majin?  Are you there?)


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## Velmont (Oct 19, 2006)

OOC: He is been inactive for 5 days. He didn't warned, but one thing is sure, even if his game had slow time, they always continue, so we'll haev just to wait a bit...


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## Majin (Oct 19, 2006)

OoC: Hey guys, sorry for the unannounced absence. It being mid-term is the reason I've not had time to give you guys an update. Things are just about cleared up and I can assure you that I'll get a post out for everyone tonight. That goes for any other games I run for those of you in those as well. Sorry again for not warning you guys. Things should be getting back to normal now.


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## Majin (Oct 19, 2006)

Tuesday, May 16 2006 - 2:30 PM

~Benjiro~

Benjiro examines the reel, unremarkable as it appears, a few letters are scribbled on a piece of tape that's half hanging off the metal roller. On it are the letters: S&L C

What sounds like muffled voices can now be heard through the wall and taking a closer look, Benjiro finds a hidden switch that when flipped swings the wall outwards, revealing a secret door. (Just like in the movies!)

Through the door, cast in dark red shadows is what appears to be a boiler room. Flashes abound as Benjiro's eyes adjust to the lighting and he sees a number of people standing around, one of them eagerly taking pictures.

[sblock]Ok guys, just a quick one to get you guys together. Anyone who wishes to be down in the basement is able. I'd expect Steven might still be helping upstairs but either way is fine.  Again, sorry for disappearing like that.[/sblock]


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## Velmont (Oct 19, 2006)

[SBLOCK=OOC]Easy for Steven to go into the basement, Dunstand was heading that way, and he might just call Steven for something.[/SBLOCK]


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## Toptomcat (Oct 19, 2006)

"Uh- _hello?_ Who's down here?  This is the old theater, right?"
Benjiro suddenly feels somewhat ackward, like a child caught exploring where he doesn't belong. 
"There, um, there's a hidden passage leading here from the health club next door.  It's very weird."


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## Toptomcat (Oct 25, 2006)

Is this an audience or an oil painting?


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## Majin (Oct 25, 2006)

OoC: Sorry bout this Tom. Welcome to the magic that is PbP. I was hoping interest hadn't waned this much. It's hard to move things forward if no one will respond, I know. I'll try to kick Dan(Dunstand) into posting. He's been rather busy lately but it should be enough to get things moving again.


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## Toptomcat (Oct 25, 2006)

I've been there.  I'm posting on three boards that are all better than this in terms of updating.
Two in particular are full of active players- the Wizards.community boards and a little mom-and-pop Proboards jobbie called K Man's Adventures.  If things don't pick up here, perhaps we could ressurect the game in one of those places?


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## Velmont (Oct 25, 2006)

[SBLOCK=OOC]If the game move, it would be without me. It wouldn't be a good thing for my heath to go on two PbP board... I would like to push things foward, but presently, if I want to stay IC, I see no reason to go down. Steven is more of the follower type and after everyone tried to tell him his theory was incorrect, he will not take any initiative until something else come to help him proof there is ghost and teh governement is hiding them to the public 

But I must confess this is a slow game compare to many other games on this board. But knowing Majin, it isn't him who will kill the game except with a godo reason. If we put a bit more effort, he will continue and hasten the post rate.

Come one Dhes, call Steven down there![/SBLOCK]


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## ae1vart0n (Oct 28, 2006)

In his search, Roger eventually comes across the opening to the passage Benjiro discovered and heads down to meet the rest of the group.

[sblock]Oil painting.  And I'm not getting my email notifications, which is throwing me off.  Was surprised to see posts when I came on.  Guess I'll have to start checking it manually.[/sblock]


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## Majin (Oct 30, 2006)

Tuesday, May 16 2006 - 2:32 PM

Roger comes down into the basement, taking in the scene as his eyes adjust to the foreboding lighting. Doing a quick mental head count, he notices a new face, staring almost as if at odds with the rest of the group of people he already knows, a movie projector running noisily behind him.

OoC: Hipp - Gabe should be pulling up to the theater just about now.


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## hippocrachus (Oct 30, 2006)

Gabriel found a spot only half a block down the street from the theater and thanked Tyche for his good fortune. Baltimore wasn't a city the young professor wanted to wander around alone in.
_One of the only cities that can match D.C.'s phenomenal homicide rate..._ he thought to himself as he crossed the street and checked to make sure the Paradise was open before entering. He spotted a new face almost immediately; it would've been hard to miss someone dressed like a pimp in this area. Maybe in New York or California that sort of thing was common place, but Gabriel couldn't help but let his imagination go wild. _Christ, I've been here for two minutes and my life is already in jeopardy._
Gabriel tipped his hat to the eccentrically-dressed stranger and passed out of the lobby into the theater room looking for and hoping to find Roger, who seemed astute if not a little nutty.


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## Velmont (Oct 30, 2006)

Steven take another piece of wood that lay in a corner as Gabriel enter. "Hi. You've come back too I see. If you want, you could gives an hand and put all that in the storeroom. Poor Sara have so much job. But if you wnat to do as they other, they seem to have found some interest into the basement, over there." On that, he takes a second piece of wood and carry his heavy burden easily up to the storeroom, handling it with ease and agility.


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## hippocrachus (Oct 30, 2006)

Gabriel nodded at the college linebacker and tried to think of a reason not to help that didn't make him seem lazy.
"You look to be doing a fine job; besides, it builds character or something," he said as he walked by Steven and turned his attention to the basement. Being slightly older had its advantages.


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## ae1vart0n (Oct 30, 2006)

"Nice to meet you.  Roger by the way.  What did I miss?", the psychologist replies while moving down to join the group.


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## Toptomcat (Nov 2, 2006)

Oh, I give up. I walk out of a secret door and nobody even acknowledges my existance, let alone says hello. 
I'm outta here.


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## hippocrachus (Nov 2, 2006)

[sblock=OOC]He has a good point, guys...
I'm thinking the game is dead in the water, Majin :\ [/sblock]


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## Majin (Nov 3, 2006)

Looks like it guys. I'm sorry about this for anyone that may have still been interested, but that appears to be the case. Most of all I'm sorry to Toptomcat. Being as new to the boards like this you should not of had such a bad experience, so I apologize.


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## Velmont (Nov 3, 2006)

It's happen... I don't think it is the fault of anyone here, it just died out as it seldom happen. Well, I still haev Lamentation with you Majin, and I wish that one will continue, I loved too much Sielwwodan.


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## Majin (Nov 3, 2006)

No chance of that one dying out Velmont. I'll play the thing through with 2 people if I have to.


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## Velmont (Nov 3, 2006)

You'll have at least one... as long as I have someone to dislike compliment, Sielwoodan will continue.


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