TOPIC: Horror on the Orient Express - All Rotations

Round of applause to Sarge as well for running, cant wait to get back to it.

Cheers Jim

Loving your last write up of brother David’s final diary entry.

Just who is this author with initials HPL…

Pierre gets 1 automatic skill improvement

Welcome back aboard the luxurious Orient Express, we are en route to Trieste.

You are all doing fabulously, and are in possession of 3 segments of the hideous statue (only 3 more to go!) and the first scroll.

Things however certainly get interesting from this point onward...

Rotation 4– Begins 23rd June 2022

All ABOARD THE ORIENT EXPRESS FOR TRIESTE - JANUARY 1923

Ludwig von Brunveldt III...............Paul........German/Dutch. Prof. Psychology (Pompous. Teutonic.)
Hubert Black................................Tony.........English. Thespian (Orator. Tumultuous.)
Lettice Jayne Rose Henderson....Doug......English. “Letty”. Private Detective (Acrobat. Big-boned.)
Nicolas Cartwright........................Mel.........English. Stage Magician (Squeamish. Eccentric.)
Pierre Boudin-Noir........................Jim.........French. Art Dealer (Charismatic. Parisian.)
George Banks..............................Hugh.......English. Saville Row Tailor. (Cockney. Suave.)

Sedefkar Simulacrum
Pierre has suffered with pain and numbness to his arm since he was the first to touch the left arm of the simulacrum that we gained at Poissy in France. Hubert has had a bad chest and cough since acquiring the torso of the simulacrum at La Scala in Milan. Ludwig has had stiff and painful leg since he grabbed hold of the left leg of the simulacrum at the clock tower of the Palazzo Rezzoniani in Venice.

Sedefkar Scrolls
We possess just one of the five scrolls, the Scroll of the Head.



TRIESTE


Friday 25th January 1923

Trieste Central Station: Ludwig closed the Latin manuscript, the Devil’s Similare, after reading its content regards the strange events that took place against the backdrop of the Fourth Crusade. It was exactly 7.54 pm and the train was pulling in to the Stazione di Trieste Centrale on the Piazza della Libertà.

The Bora: Alighting to the platform, strong gusting winds were immediately apparent. People on the platforms held on to their hats, porters struggled to secure loose items against blowing over and the roof tiles rattled. This phenomena, we learned, is the Bora; the strong winds synonymous with city of Trieste at this season.

George Banks: Banks boarded the Orient Express at Venice. It was a pleasure to see a friendly face once more. He had received news from James Beddows, Smith’s man-servant. The Turks had tracked them down but Beddows arranged for him and Smith to move on again and were safe once more.

Hotel: We take rooms at the magnificent seafront Savoia Excelsior Palace, overlooking the Gulf of Trieste. We check in, deposit our passports and arrange for our luggage (containing three parts of the simulacrum) to be locked in a secure room for the duration of our stay. After an excellent meal, we discuss our plans over brandy and cigars. We know from Beddow’s notes that Napoleon’s troops entered Trieste in 1797 reputedly carrying a part of the simulacrum with them. Beddow’s notes also urged us to seek out Johan Winckemann at the museum in Trieste.



Saturday 26th January 1923

Bad Dreams: Cartwright and Hubert came to breakfast a little late. Both looking worse for wear. They had suffered terrible dreams last night – the same dream in fact. Nightmares of a large creature or creatures stirring in the darkness, and then there were swirling waters and the creature moved quickly towards them. And there the dream ended.

Museo di Storia e d’Arte: We take taxis to the museum, which is situated on the slope of a steep hill close to the city’s landmark castle and cathedral – the Cattedrale San Guisto and Castello di San Giusto. The Bora today seems stronger then yesterday. We witness citizens leaning into the wind to avoid being blown over and hanging on to the handrails that line the streets.
The museum has sizeable galleries devoted to Egyptian, Greek and Roman collections. Hubert asks a staff member if we can see Johan Winckelmann. The staff member gives Hubert a strange look and then informs us Winckelmann can be found in the adjacent gardens.

Giardino Lapidario: Entering the gardens, there is no sign of anyone here. The gardens are terraced and within there is a cenotaph in the form of a replica Roman temple and on a wall is a frieze of inestimable age, but like the replica temple, is probably not as old as its styled to look. The frieze depicts a puzzling scene in which humans, many of whom have arms and legs missing, are engaged in acts of worship, making offerings to reptilian figures. The cenotaph contains a stone sarcophagus. Reclining on the sarcophagus is a carved winged figure holding a medallion. The visible side of the medallion has a head in profile that looks like it belongs to a classical age. The sarcophagus has a simple Latin script that translates as - Johan Winkelmann, 8th June 1768.

Biblioteca Civica: We cross the city to the library in order to research Johan Winckelmann. We discover facts about his life under the names Johan and Joachim. Winckelmann was born at Stendal in Prussia, 9th December 1717. The most interesting facts to us were his murder and the distribution of his belongings.

The Fate of Johan Winckelmann: Winckelmann wrote to friends before his death to the effect that a melancholy was upon him. He and a travelling companion, an art dealer named Cavaceppi, parted ways. Cavaceppi headed for Vienna whilst Winckelmann headed for Trieste. At Trieste he met a man named Francesco Arcangeli, a thief, cook and pimp. During what was reportedly an attempt of robbery, Arcangeli strangled and stabbed Winckelmann. Arcangeli was arrested and executed for the crime. He was broken on a wheel outside the hotel where the murder was committed. Winckelmann was buried in the Cattedrale San Giusto churchyard. This was later moved to the Giardino Lapidario. A cenotaph was erected to Winckelmann in the gardens several years after his death.

Winckelmann’s Belongings: Winckelmann left most of his possessions to a waiter at the Locanda Grande hotel at which he stayed. His medallions eventually went to the Museo di Storia a d’Arte while his papers, including a personal diary, were sold at auction to an historian named Giovanni Termona.

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Sunday 27th January 1923

A Day of Rest: Again, Cartwright is plagued by bad dreams in the night and Pierre too this time. It’s Sunday, nothing is open. The Bora is blowing. We spend the day in rest and recuperation in our hotel.


Monday 28th January 1923

Worrying Development: At breakfast we spy a suspicious looking man in the hotel restaurant, reading a newspaper and wearing a fez. As a precaution, Hubert stays behind to keep an eye on our belongings while the rest of us split up between visiting the library and museum again.

At the Library: Letty and Ludwig researched the history of Napoleon’s troops entering Trieste in 1797 and look up Giovanni Termona. Staff assistance was necessary to translate from Italian. Researching Termona drew a blank, but we discovered an interesting article regarding the deaths of two French soldiers in 1797.

Article, 1797: On 9th Sept. 1797, Sergent André Legrand and Soldat Jules Héron went drinking with two other soldiers, Marcel Lasnière and Louis Cochefer, at the Drunken Goat (Il Capro Ubriaco). There they fell in with a civilian named Marchetti. It was common knowledge that Sergent Legrand had acquired a valuable item in Paris that he kept in his kit bag. When Legrand’s body was later found in a nearby alley, his kit bag was missing. Héron, Lasnière and Cochefer went looking for Marchetti who they believed to be responsible for murder and robbery.

Next day, 10th Sept., they found Marchetti drinking at The Lizard’s Cave tavern (Cavera Dei Rettili). After a beating Marchetti confessed to taking the bag and passing it to his master. He refused to reveal anything more. The facts of what happened next are unclear. Authorities report finding Lasnière and Cochefer dazed and bloodied, and the dead bodies of Héron and Marchetti. Lasnière, in a statement, claimed that Marchetti had the body of a monster and that Marchetti strangled Héron before a crazed Cochefer then beat Marchetti to death with a wooden billet. Cochefer was unable to provide a statement, his mind broken. A tribunal found Legrand was murdered by Marchetti in the course of robbery. Héron was killed by person or persons unknown. The death of Marchetti, the body so badly beaten no features were left recognisable, was unconfirmed.

The Strange Reader: At a reading table in the library, a man with his arms tucked inside his coat reads a book: The History of Trieste. However, he requires librarians to turn the pages for him; his arms (if he has them) evidently useless to him. Ludwig attempted to engage with the man, but he just stared awkwardly at Ludwig. Evidently the man either would not or could not talk.

At the museum: Cartwright, Pierre and Banks went to the museum. Winckelman’s medallions were displayed in a glass case. There were seven medallions, though the inlaid box clearly once contained eight. The curator confirmed that the museum acquired the medallions in 1910 from a Marcus Termoni. There were only seven medallions left to the museum. Marcus’ son, Antonio Termoni, is a present day citizen of Trieste.


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2 great posts Paul, have 1 automatic skill increase mate