Sunday 16 February 2014

VII: Admiral Nelson and The Tynemouth Circle

After questioning the East African sailor and detouring for Brindleton to telegraph an old friend, Lieutenant Colonel Blanche, with some queries, you head off in the direction of the Tynemouth Circle. This is a gentleman's club of some distinction, like The Grey Society. Ordinarily only members may enter, though there is a reciprocal agreement with The Grey Society to allow visitors. One of the butlers shows you into a oak-panelled room with leather chairs inhabited by mostly frail old men swilling brandy.

The one called Admiral Nelson is in a booth on his own. He is old, bearded, and sure enough missing one arm and one eye. Somewhat perturbingly he does not have his empty socket covered - it is a black pit in his face, surrounded with vivid pink scars.

"Yes?" he says brusquely as the butler introduces you and recedes.

Wednesday 12 February 2014

VI: To Tynemouth

The next day dawns crisp and sharp and you meet at the station, heading towards Tynemouth along the banks of the Tyne. Tynemouth itself is quite a genteel, well-healed village that is on the very mouth of the river where it meets the North Sea. It has a ruined abbey and various monuments as well as traditional English seaside resort-type attractions.

On the train, with plenty of time to do it, Brindleton attempts to finagle the diary he found open. He manages to do so without breaking it. However the pages are filled with strange pencil scratchings - triangles and other geometric shapes, with dots and lines. It's clearly been written in code.

Any research conducted in the library at The Grey Society has not revealed a great deal about Kabbalah. However, it does reveal that there is way of representing the tree of life as having 11 Sephira rather than 10. The 11th Sephirot is "Da'at", which unites all the others and represents the "divine light". It is not often shown because it cannot be seen by everybody - only those it is revealed to through their self-giving qualities.

First, you stroll to the quays at North Shields, trying to look for Arabic-speaking sailors. Sure enough, there is exactly such a "rest home" as Brindleton postulated - a slightly ramshackle old church that has been converted into a flop house for sailors.


Monday 3 February 2014

V: The Group Comes Together

Everybody gathers together in the room with Catherine and the painting. The Baron seems resigned to the fact that he needs your help and expertise - although goodness knows why.

Brindleton is the only one who remains absent. "Where is your military friend?" the Baron asks. "I hope he has not become lost."