Under the Library - A Call of Cthulhu Actual-Play

On this Episode of Under the Library:   Cully questions the confused and unresponsive Richard to no avail. Rutherford notices that Richard has wet himself. He also has redness and broken capillaries in the corner of his left eye. Richard asks to go home because he's very tired.   As Rutherford and Cully examine Richard, Franny notices a man sitting on a bench about 200 feet down the street, staring at them while frantically scribbling. Rutherford approaches him and discovers that he's Willard Palmer, an artist. Rutherford purchases his sketchbook, including sketches of them examining Richard, as well as Richard being dropped after his abduction, and even a picture of the mysterious facility. After this encounter, the four head back to Richard's house.   At the facility, Bello, Boone, and Jo have arrived for Bello's meeting with Paula Bradford in food service. They argue about how to best provide a distraction for the others as they rescue Richard. Jo wants to set a small fire in an unused area of the complex, while Bello prefers to have a big chicken sale. Boone starts preparing to cook chicken as Bello heads into the complex.   Bello hears discussion about beef supply from inside an office and knocks to enter. He meets Stan, who hints for a bribe to help Bello out. Bello eventually sells Stan on an investment in greaseless chicken and they shake on a 30% deal. Bello then heads to the restroom.   At the same time, out in the chicken mobile, Boone sees smoke billowing from a part of the facility that's under construction. Remembering the previous conversation, he realizes that Jo must've set the fire. Jo returns and explains that she wanted a big distraction so that Cully would be safe. Boone returns to his chicken prep. A few minutes later, there's a knock at the door of the chicken mobile, and two stone faced military men banish Boone & Jo from the premises.    Blaring sirens warn everyone to leave the building. Bello waits for silence and then sneaks out to search Stan's office. He makes a call to Wagoneer Farms, Stan's current supplier, and says their contract is over (crushing a child's dreams of a new bike). He also explores the director's office and takes some ledgers and information about deliveries.   Back at Richard's house, Franny and Cully clean him up and change his clothes. Franny notices a needle mark on his arm. Rutherford realizes he's been under anesthesia. Franny examines his eye and realizes someone may have accessed his brain by entering between the nasal cavity and the eyeball.    Finally, at the facility, Jo feels guilt for the size and severity of the fire. She worries about Bello, realizing he should have come out of the burning facility by now.   ------------------------   Bloodstone is an original Call of Cthulhu sandbox, designed by Under the Library's Keeper, and features weekly actual play / live play / real play sessions. Call of Cthulhu is a Horror Tabletop Roleplaying Game (TTRPG) similar to Dungeons & Dragons, which focuses on narrative development, gore, portals from beyond and servitors of the outer gods. If you're interested in becoming a cultist, you can join us at underthelibrary.com or patreon.com/underthelibrary.    Background art on YouTube courtesy of the brilliant artist Andrii Shafetov.   https://www.artstation.com/andriishafetov & AzDimension Virtual Technology from their game The Last Dead End available on Steam.

On this Episode of Under the Library:   In Richard's house, Franny and Rutherford continue to plan for their entry into the science facility. Franny sketches rough copies of the blueprints, and Rutherford memorizes them. They realize the train runs in and out of the building in question, and they want to ask Boone if he saw any clues in his travels.   At the same time, Jo shares a tragic story from her past with Cully and explains why the journal is so important. She shares her story with Boone, who promises not to talk as an adult. Boone had heard of a bunch of murders in Abiquiu, and also knew of a hallucinogenic popular there.   Jo passes Boone the book, and he sees a vision that is probably the inside of Jo's house. He's overwhelmed by the feeling of death in that space and drops the book.    Together Cully, Boone, and Jo decide that Richard might know Hans (the book's former owner), and they should find him to better understand the journal. They decide to rejoin the search for Richard despite hard feelings towards Rutherford and Franny. They will not share Jo's story and instead will pretend that everything is fine.   They return to the house, meeting Bello along the way. He offers to help by distracting the staff during his meeting, and Jo agrees to help.   Franny and Rutherford ask Boone about his experience on the train. He shares some information with them, including an unusual level of security and some strange, unidentifiable sounds from the front of the train.   Finally, Franny, Rutherford, and Cully head out in Richard's car, while Jo and Boone accompany Bello in his "Bello La Barca". As the first car passes through town, Cully spots a disheveled Richard stumbling down the street. Cully speaks to him, and he is clearly not himself!    ------------------------   Bloodstone is an original Call of Cthulhu sandbox, designed by Under the Library's Keeper, and features weekly actual play / live play / real play sessions. Call of Cthulhu is a Horror Tabletop Roleplaying Game (TTRPG) similar to Dungeons & Dragons, which focuses on narrative development, gore, portals from beyond and servitors of the outer gods. If you're interested in becoming a cultist, you can join us at underthelibrary.com or patreon.com/underthelibrary.    Background art on YouTube courtesy of the brilliant artist Andrii Shafetov.   https://www.artstation.com/andriishafetov & AzDimension Virtual Technology from their game The Last Dead End available on Steam.

On this Episode of Under the Library:   After everyone else leaves the theater and heads to Richard's house, Jo returns home and opens her mysterious book. Cursive writing appears in front of her eyes; a male author describing a successful ritual. That night, Jo's dreams include disturbing visions from the journal. The next morning she stops by the theater, finds it abandoned, and heads to Richard's house.    In the meantime, Cully, Bello, and Franny have separate breeakfasts at Richard's while Rutherford prepares for their laboratory excursion. Then Franny unrolls the paintings that Boone left on the kitchen table, and she also discovers the 7 stories of blueprints. It seems to have a couple stories above ground and the rest below.   Joe finally arrives at the house and tells everyone about the journal. She shares it with the group, and realizes both Franny and Rutherford know the author, Hans Bekker. They examine it and, knowing Hans is a notorious joker, dismiss Jo's claims and insult her. She grabs the journal and runs out, followed by Cully and Bello. Franny and Rutherford remain inside, making plans to enter the facility.   ------------------------   Bloodstone is an original Call of Cthulhu sandbox, designed by Under the Library's Keeper, and features weekly actual play / live play / real play sessions. Call of Cthulhu is a Horror Tabletop Roleplaying Game (TTRPG) similar to Dungeons & Dragons, which focuses on narrative development, gore, portals from beyond and servitors of the outer gods. If you're interested in becoming a cultist, you can join us at underthelibrary.com or patreon.com/underthelibrary.    Background art on YouTube courtesy of the brilliant artist Andrii Shafetov.   https://www.artstation.com/andriishafetov & AzDimension Virtual Technology from their game The Last Dead End available on Steam.

On this Episode of Under the Library:   Bello still seems to be in pain and Boone wants to help. He peels off the upper half of the chicken costume and applies first aid to Bello's broken arm, leaving it in a sling.   After much discussion, the group decides to return to DIck's house to look for clues. Cully looks for aspirin for Bello in the medicine cabinet, and notices that Dick's heart meds are gone, as well as his favorite hair pomade. In addition, it looks like his bedroom has been searched.    Rutherford looks for Dick's research notes, but only finds a note on his desk saying that he's been called away on urgent business. Dick apologizes for his abrupt departure and offers his house for the party to use. Rutherford is sure this is Dick's handwriting, scrawled in haste. He finds a code within the letter that produces the single word "abducted."   Looking around the house, Boone notices three paintings with a familiar symbol which translates to "here is the place." At the same time, Rutherford finds Dick's Colt .38, and Franny confirms that there are no signs of forced entry.   The group deliberates on how best to find Dick, and Franny offers to explore the facility even though she would put herself in danger. Rutherford wants to join, posing as a visiting researcher with Cully as his assistant. Bello has a meeting at the facility the next day, and plans a chicken-related distraction.   The group decides to sleep at Dick's. although Bello parks his mobile chicken kitchen in the driveway and sleeps there. After everyone falls asleep, Boone examines the three marked paintings and finds blueprints of a 7 story building on the back. He decides to sleep on the paintings to protect them.   ------------------------   Bloodstone is an original Call of Cthulhu sandbox, designed by Under the Library's Keeper, and features weekly actual play / live play / real play sessions. Call of Cthulhu is a Horror Tabletop Roleplaying Game (TTRPG) similar to Dungeons & Dragons, which focuses on narrative development, gore, portals from beyond and servitors of the outer gods. If you're interested in becoming a cultist, you can join us at underthelibrary.com or patreon.com/underthelibrary.    Background art on YouTube courtesy of the brilliant artist Andrii Shafetov.   https://www.artstation.com/andriishafetov & AzDimension Virtual Technology from their game The Last Dead End available on Steam.

On this Episode of Under the Library:   Having arrived at the theater, Dr. Gardener approaches her patient, Bello Poulet. It quickly becomes clear that she's reluctant to care for the seemingly insane chicken man, but eventually she relents. Franny offers to stay behind and assist the doctor as Levine orders everyone else out of the theater lobby. In the confusion, Jo slips back into the theater.   As the doctor prepares a syringe and hands it to Franny, Bello babbles at her, attempting to sell her on a chicken franchise. Dr. Gardener motions to Franny to administer the shot as she distracts Bello by applying a tongue depressor. Bello is blurry but conscious, experiencing visions of his father enacting violence on the chicken coop.   The doctor steps out to retrieve a large apparatus to draw Bello's blood. The apparatus is labeled "The Rumsford," and Franny draws a connection between the company and her great uncle Harold Rumsford. Impressed by Franny's lineage, Dr. Gardener invites her to talk more later.   Finished with Bello, the doctor begins to leave but is waylaid by Cully. He points out that she never actually treated Bello's broken arm. Dr. Gardener unconvincingly claims that she's merely retrieving supplies to tend to the arm later.    Rutherford and Boone approach Cully to discuss Dick and the suspected government abduction. Rutherford remembers that Dick designed his building to prevent escape, and wonders if Dick is being held in one of his own creations.   During the events in the lobby, Jo navigates the theater and slips backstage. She overhears Lana Peret and Caspar arguing - Lana is unhappy with the way she is treated and feels under appreciated. Jo continues around the house left side of the theater and finds a pipe that may feed the purple mist through the relief work. She sneaks back out of the theater, but stops on stage to steal a deck of cards as a souvenir.   ------------------------   Bloodstone is an original Call of Cthulhu sandbox, designed by Under the Library's Keeper, and features weekly actual play / live play / real play sessions. Call of Cthulhu is a Horror Tabletop Roleplaying Game (TTRPG) similar to Dungeons & Dragons, which focuses on narrative development, gore, portals from beyond and servitors of the outer gods. If you're interested in becoming a cultist, you can join us at underthelibrary.com or patreon.com/underthelibrary.    Background art on YouTube courtesy of the brilliant artist Andrii Shafetov.   https://www.artstation.com/andriishafetov & AzDimension Virtual Technology from their game The Last Dead End available on Steam.

On this Episode of Under the Library:   In the lobby of the theater, Jo is approached by a couple from Abeline, Texas. Betty Lou claims to be able to read minds and provides facts about both Jo and Cully, and Jimmy Dale seems to be a little slow. Betty Lou gives Jo a quarter from 1892 and leaves to get ice cream, saying that she will see Jo later.   Worried about Bello's health, Franny calls Dr. Eveline Gardener. She speaks to a receptionist who warns that the doctor is busy but will come as soon as possible. Dr. Gardener has a penchant for picking up stray dogs and keeps a kennel behind her clinic. She also volunteers as a grave digger to stay motivated.   Boone has cleaned up in the bathroom and joins Rutherford in looking for Dick. Since they can't find him, they instead head out to look for evidence of the wild dogs. As they wander around the theater, the sky lights up with a flash of fuchsia and green. This is probably the unique "Los Alamos Boreales" that is familiar to town residents.   Rutherford and Boone return to the front of the theater to look for Dick. In the distance they see two men shove a third man into a generic looking black car with an illegible license plate. Although they couldn't identify the kidnapped man, Rutherford is convinced that the government has taken Dick.     The session ends as Dr. Gardener enters the theater.     ------------------------   Bloodstone is an original Call of Cthulhu sandbox, designed by Under the Library's Keeper, and features weekly actual play / live play / real play sessions. Call of Cthulhu is a Horror Tabletop Roleplaying Game (TTRPG) similar to Dungeons & Dragons, which focuses on narrative development, gore, portals from beyond and servitors of the outer gods. If you're interested in becoming a cultist, you can join us at underthelibrary.com or patreon.com/underthelibrary.    Background art on YouTube courtesy of the brilliant artist Andrii Shafetov.   https://www.artstation.com/andriishafetov & AzDimension Virtual Technology from their game The Last Dead End available on Steam.

On this Episode of Under the Library:   In the theater, Franny has just asked the spirits "how did my great uncle die?" Everyone else in the theater sees a moving image in the mist depicting a burial. In a cinematic western style, a group of mourners throw dirt on a grave. At the same, Franny hears a voice say "Jack Crabbe, you're gonna meet your maker!", and she sees a black appendage drag a man across the floor. The man says "Millie, it was all my fault" as large teeth snap and a corpse falls to the ground.   As the mist coalesces again into a face, Franny sees her great uncle. Beau asks a question about cats eating a corpse, and the face relates a story of Lloyd and his general store. Franny, in shock, faints.   Caspar thanks the spirits and dismisses them, and ends his show by disappearing in a flourish. Rutherford leaps onstage to investigate but is thrown off by the two door guards. While the guards are distracted, Jo checks a side door but it's locked. However, she notices a strange purple mist emanating from pinprick holes in the relief work near the floor.   Boone begins to feel the effects of the pocket chicken, squats behind a row of seats, and lets loose. The noxious smell wakes Franny and also begins a stampede out of the theater. Bello is trampled and left with a concussion and a broken wing. Jo and Franny help Bello out into the lobby and leave him on a bench.   Over the hubbub of the panicked crowd, Levine announces that the theater is in lockdown due to another pack of wild dogs. Residents of the town know that every 3-6 weeks, authorities move from door to door warning of wolves or rabid dogs. The town has generally been compliant and stayed indoors during these times. However, none of us have seen the creatures firsthand.   Boone and Culligan discuss the show and the appearance of the spirits, and they decide to talk to Dick. Dick is convinced that everything was mere illusion, but Jo avers that the spirits are from another realm and therefore dangerous.   Finally, Levine announces that the animals have been contained and our lockdown is finished.     ------------------------   Bloodstone is an original Call of Cthulhu sandbox, designed by Under the Library's Keeper, and features weekly actual play / live play / real play sessions. Call of Cthulhu is a Horror Tabletop Roleplaying Game (TTRPG) similar to Dungeons & Dragons, which focuses on narrative development, gore, portals from beyond and servitors of the outer gods. If you're interested in becoming a cultist, you can join us at underthelibrary.com or patreon.com/underthelibrary.    Background art on YouTube courtesy of the brilliant artist Andrii Shafetov.   https://www.artstation.com/andriishafetov & AzDimension Virtual Technology from their game The Last Dead End available on Steam.

On this Episode of Under the Library:   Having left Dick's house, everyone is killing time before the show. At the General Store, John Boone meets Jo's boss Belinda. She overcharges him for 3 cans of beans and some gum for Culligan. Jo feels bad and steals an extra can of beans for Boone.   Culligan, Boone, and Jo arrive at The Classic and hear an animated conversation in the foyer. One voice belongs to John Levine, the theater owner, and the other voice wants to sell him fried chicken. Bello Poulet, dressed in pants with suspenders over a chicken costume, has patented the first greaseless fried chicken.   As Culligan, Boone, and Jo loiter outside of the theater eating fried chicken, they are joined by Franny, Dick, and Rutherford. The group heads into the theater, maneuvering around Bello in his chicken suit. Rutherford immediately breaks off from the group to investigate. He attempts to talk his way past a couple of burly guards to get backstage but is rebuffed.    The rest of the group settles into their front row seats as Levine walks onstage to introduce the opening act, singer Lana Peret, who looks like a brunette Dolly Parton in a long black dress with tattoo sleeves of abstract symbols. Her deep, rich voice is breathtaking, and as she finishes the theater erupts into applause.   Finally Caspar Muscovane takes the stage with his assistant Ms. Sara Banner. Jo volunteers to assist with a card trick and watches as he creates an elaborate tower taller than his head. With the wave of a hand, the tower disappears without a trace, ending Act 1. During this final trick Franny may have glimpsed the glint of a mirror from the side of the stage.   During Act 2 there is a crash in the back of the theater, followed by screams. Caspar says "don't be alarmed. These are spirits from around the world. I have summoned them." He demands that the audience ask the spirits questions, and Culligan, Boone, and Franny oblige. Next week we will learn the outcome of Franny's question: "how did my uncle die?'   ------------------------   Bloodstone is an original Call of Cthulhu sandbox, designed by Under the Library's Keeper, and features weekly actual play / live play / real play sessions. Call of Cthulhu is a Horror Tabletop Roleplaying Game (TTRPG) similar to Dungeons & Dragons, which focuses on narrative development, gore, portals from beyond and servitors of the outer gods. If you're interested in becoming a cultist, you can join us at underthelibrary.com or patreon.com/underthelibrary.    Background art on YouTube courtesy of the brilliant artist Andrii Shafetov.   https://www.artstation.com/andriishafetov & AzDimension Virtual Technology from their game The Last Dead End available on Steam.

On this Episode of Under the Library:   After wrapping up the scenario "A Mother's Love," the Under the Library crew embarks on Season 2; a new adventure in 1942 Los Alamos, NM. If you want major spoilers for A Mother's Love, start from the beginning of the episode. If you're looking for Season 2, then start after our mid-show break at 29:25.   In this ahistorical version of Los Alamos, NM, the town and government facilities have already existed for a decade. We meet a host of local residents and scientists:   Dick Feimer: An eccentric architect, Dick dresses in fashionable, well tailored, very snug attire. He's clearly undergone surgery to look younger. Many residents of the town find him odd and avoid him. He designed many of the government laboratories in Los Alamos.   Franny Rumsford: A grad student with low level clearance, Franny works in one of the labs that Dick designed and considers him a friend. She carries on the research that her great great grandfather began.   Rutherford Frengel: A scientist and egghead, Rutherford was Dick's grad school roommate (and Dick was perhaps his only friend). He worked at a midwestern university but is now more of a beatnik, and settled in Los Alamos.   Culligan McGillicuddy: Culligan is a 15 year old aspiring writer who wants nothing more than to leave the small town of Los Alamos. He records any interesting story he comes across in his notebook. Dick Feimer is a role model and they have a great rapport.   Jo Barnes: Jo is 16 years old and works in the local general store. She lives in a small room above the store and has a contentious relationship with her employer/landlord. She's from Abiquiu, NM, but refuses to reveal more about her past. Culligan is a close friend.   Franny, Rutherford, and Culligan (with Jo in tow), have gathered at Dick's house for lemonade and conversation. As they talk a man toils nearby in the heat, working on Dick's landscaping. Franny invites John Boone to join us. He seems a bit uncomfortable, but eventually settles in and shares his past experiences with the circus, and mentions knowing the magicians Rigatoni and Bologni.    Dick invites his five guests to attend a performance in the local theater by renowned magician Caspar Muscovane. In particular, Dick would like Franny and Rutherford to apply their scientific minds and explain to him the magician's process of illusion.   ------------------------   Bloodstone is an original Call of Cthulhu sandbox, designed by Under the Library's Keeper, and features weekly actual play / live play / real play sessions. Call of Cthulhu is a Horror Tabletop Roleplaying Game (TTRPG) similar to Dungeons & Dragons, which focuses on narrative development, gore, portals from beyond and servitors of the outer gods. If you're interested in becoming a cultist, you can join us at underthelibrary.com or patreon.com/underthelibrary.    Background art on YouTube courtesy of the brilliant artist Andrii Shafetov.   https://www.artstation.com/andriishafetov & AzDimension Virtual Technology from their game The Last Dead End available on Steam.

On this Episode of Under the Library:   On the 3rd floor of the hotel, the creatures have escaped down the fire escape and the agents decide to head down to find Lanny and Beau. There's no sign of them in the lobby, but they left a note explaining that they were suddenly called back to Ipswich.    Based on the clues in the Pirate Hideout Map it seems that Grace Decker knows more than she let on, so the agents (along with Blue and Bubba) head back to her house. This time, Grace greets them much more politely and invites the whole party inside for a strangely fishy and salty tea (her grandmother's special recipe). She describes a secret hideout in Warehouse 52 where she and Sisk played as kids.   Across town, Aloysius leaves the gas station and suddenly gets a flat tire. He discovers that his spare has been slashed so he wanders off on foot to find his friends, follows tracks to Grace's house, and reunites with the group. Together, the five investigators head for Warehouse 52.   The front door is chained, but they enter through a grate on the side of the building. Out of nowhere, Bubba starts to choke and sputter as his mouth fills with liquid. Water pours from his mouth and eyes. He screams and collapses, apparently drowning in the dry warehouse.   At the sound of a gunshot from the balcony, the remaining investigators rush upstairs, cornering the gunman in an office. Merrick is shot while entering, and Chambers follows, taking out the gunman. She calls Aloysius to care for Merrick, but it's too late for him. At the same time, Chambers hears heavy breathing from the corner and finds a panicked pregnant woman who was kidnapped at the bank. She calls Aloysius her hero, and he takes her out to the car for safekeeping. Instead of returning to help Chambers, he hops in the driver's seat and heads to Ipswich.   Chambers, still inside, descends into the basement. She hears two voices, one watery, speaking an unfamiliar language. She rounds the corner and shoots, and takes down a fishy creature. The man, Sisk, screams "mother!", clutches his wrist, and speaks an unfamiliar word. Chambers feels a great pain pass through her body and she becomes rigid and falls to the ground. Then everything goes black.   ------------------------   Bloodstone is an original Call of Cthulhu sandbox, designed by Under the Library's Keeper, and features weekly actual play / live play / real play sessions. Call of Cthulhu is a Horror Tabletop Roleplaying Game (TTRPG) similar to Dungeons & Dragons, which focuses on narrative development, gore, portals from beyond and servitors of the outer gods. If you're interested in becoming a cultist, you can join us at underthelibrary.com or patreon.com/underthelibrary.    Background art on YouTube courtesy of the brilliant artist Andrii Shafetov.   https://www.artstation.com/andriishafetov & AzDimension Virtual Technology from their game The Last Dead End available on Steam.

On this Episode of Under the Library:   The Special Agents and Blue head to the 3rd floor to investigate. The carpet is more weathered and damp than the rest of the hotel, and there's a strong odor of fish. Chambers knocks, but there's no response and the door is locked. She picks the lock but the door is still held by a deadbolt. Trying to kick the door open, she instead kicks through the door up to mid-thigh.   Downstairs, Bubba sees the desk clerk making a call. He hears "I need you here quickly" before the man runs upstairs. In the meantime, Merrick shoots through the door and hears a slappy scurrying followed by a door closing. The clerk then arrives to investigate the shot. He threatens to call the police and ignores Merrick's orders to leave.   Outside of the hotel, Aloysius checks on his car. He finds a gas station, fills up, and heads out of town toward Ipswich with two bodies in the trunk.   Bubba continues to explore the outside of the hotel and finds a wooden fire escape. He climbs to the 2nd floor and sees a face with bulbous eyes, scales, a wide mouth, and a fin on top. He crawls through the open window to follow the creature, which has slipped down the fire escape.    At the same time, Blue and Merrick have removed Chambers' leg from the door. Blue tries to open it, but Bubba bangs on the other side and they're momentarily stuck. Finally shouldering their way into the room, Merrick and Blue find scales on the bed and a bucket with a fish tail sitting in shallow water.   ------------------------   Bloodstone is an original Call of Cthulhu sandbox, designed by Under the Library's Keeper, and features weekly actual play / live play / real play sessions. Call of Cthulhu is a Horror Tabletop Roleplaying Game (TTRPG) similar to Dungeons & Dragons, which focuses on narrative development, gore, portals from beyond and servitors of the outer gods. If you're interested in becoming a cultist, you can join us at underthelibrary.com or patreon.com/underthelibrary.    Background art on YouTube courtesy of the brilliant artist Andrii Shafetov.   https://www.artstation.com/andriishafetov & AzDimension Virtual Technology from their game The Last Dead End available on Steam.

On this Episode of Under the Library:   Bubba is still unconscious from the horse tranquilizers. Aloysius fears he may have given Bubba too much, so to counteract the effects he doses him with amphetamines.    While searching Wynne's body, Blue notices a strange residue on the belt. As he runs his fingers along it, the sharpened edges slice off the tip of his non-dominant pointer. Aloysius is able to sew it closed. At the same time Bubba wakes, frothing at the mouth, crazy and babbling. He runs around, grabbing bills and stuffing them wherever he can.   The Special Agents return to the Sisk house to investigate. Upstairs in a dresser, Merrick finds a child's drawing of a family labeled "daddy, me, and mommy" depicting a human man, child, and a very fishy looking woman. As Merrick slams the drawer closed an amber bottle falls and breaks, revealing a map labeled "Pirate Hideout" that mentions Grace, Sisk, and a Tommy H.   A very high Bubba insists on staying at the house, but the rest of the party returns to the Martin-Gilman house for the night. Although many of the locks in the rooms are broken, everyone innovates methods of securing their rooms and the night passes quietly. The only exception is that a little after 2am Blue hears a "slappy" noise from the floor below. With an ear to the floor, he also hears someone speak as if through a mouthful of water.   Back at the Sisk house, Bubba is wide awake at 4:30am and spots a figure in the street with a slouchy gait and a flappy walk. He finds prints and tries to cover them to preserve them. He then mistakes a nearby branch for the creature and fires. One of his bullets ricochets off a nearby sign and grazes his cheek. He finally returns to the house, but never sleeps.   In the morning his meth wears off and he starts to crash. He can find no sign of the tracks or his attempts to preserve them. ------------------------ Bloodstone is an original Call of Cthulhu sandbox, designed by Under the Library's Keeper, and features weekly actual play / live play / real play sessions. Call of Cthulhu is a Horror Tabletop Roleplaying Game (TTRPG) similar to Dungeons & Dragons, which focuses on narrative development, gore, portals from beyond and servitors of the outer gods. If you're interested in becoming a cultist, you can join us at underthelibrary.com or patreon.com/underthelibrary.    Background art on YouTube courtesy of the brilliant artist Andrii Shafetov.   https://www.artstation.com/andriishafetov & AzDimension Virtual Technology from their game The Last Dead End available on Steam.

On this Episode of Under the Library:   Separated from the others at the checkpoint, Bubba heads to the nameless local Innsmouth bar. All eyes are on him as he enters, and the patrons ignore his offer to buy a round. The bartender refuses to serve him and only redirects him to the Martin-Gilman House. Bubba asks about Sisk and is told "you're digging up the wrong pole". Bubba leaves with one parting question: "anyone know where I can find a good fish fry?"   The agents are focused on getting to the Sisk house and speed by Bubba on the street, but Lanny and Aloysious stop to fill him in. Once again a strange sound fills the air ("tiki-li-li-li"), and Bubba goes crazy. He imagines the corpse in his truck bed rises to slap his back window, and then is lost in a flashback of a dentist tearing out his teeth with pliers. Overcome with pain, he careens into a fire hydrant.   In the meantime, Lanny bet Aloysious $5 to shoot out a street light. Aloysius takes his shot but the bullet goes wild and he hears the sound of breaking glass. Lanny pulls a U turn and heads for Bubba and the hydrant geyser, worried only about the reward for the body. Aloysius secretly doses Bubba with a horse tranquilizer and they head for the Sisk house.   The agents are already at the house, and Merrick puts his foot through the front door attempting to gain entrance. Chambers finds an open door in the back and unlocks the front from the inside. While searching the house, Merrick is shot in the arm and a figure runs downstairs and out the back. Chambers pursues and grazes him with a shot. Money flies everywhere and Chambers frantically tries to collect the bills for evidence.   Lanny's car arrives and immediately pursues the fleeing figure. Aloysius shoots from the window and the figure's head explodes. Merrick examines the body and discovers it's Teddy Wynne, a gang member. The features are purely human and not froglike.   ------------------------   Bloodstone is an original Call of Cthulhu sandbox, designed by Under the Library's Keeper, and features weekly actual play / live play / real play sessions. Call of Cthulhu is a Horror Tabletop Roleplaying Game (TTRPG) similar to Dungeons & Dragons, which focuses on narrative development, gore, portals from beyond and servitors of the outer gods. If you're interested in becoming a cultist, you can join us at underthelibrary.com or patreon.com/underthelibrary.    Background art on YouTube courtesy of the brilliant artist Andrii Shafetov.   https://www.artstation.com/andriishafetov & AzDimension Virtual Technology from their game The Last Dead End available on Steam.

On this Episode of Under the Library:   Outside of the Constabulary, Clue the dog is a mess. Aloysius, a vet, provides some sedatives and a treat and after about 15 minutes Clue calms and falls asleep.   Inside, Special Agent Merrick and Chief Constable Martin argue. Martin refuses to share the home address for Tobias "Frog" Sisk's ex girlfriend, and Merrick calls it obstruction and threatens to call in reinforcements. Lanny punches Martin in the head and guns are drawn, but Martin diffuses the situation and chastises Merrick for disturbing the town.    Merrick leaves and Constable Birch follows, offering quietly to show the way to Grace Decker's house. Agent Chambers, still in the Constabulary, tries to smooth things over with Martin. He agrees to share information and warns to beware of the ocean.   They stop at the Martin-Gilman House to use a phone and drop off Clue before heading to meet Grace. The man behind the desk is very hard of hearing, but eventually provides Blue with a room on the fourth floor with "the band". Blue decides not to leave the sleeping Clue in his room because the door won't lock. At the same time, Merrick calls Malone and learns that the Constabulary is involved in the plot and the State Police are at his disposal.   Departing from the Martin-Gilman House, the investigators hear a strange sound in the storm ("tekeli-li"). They arrive and speak to Grace but she is very standoffish and offers no information except to check out Sisk's house.   ------------------------   Bloodstone is an original Call of Cthulhu sandbox, designed by Under the Library's Keeper, and features weekly actual play / live play / real play sessions. Call of Cthulhu is a Horror Tabletop Roleplaying Game (TTRPG) similar to Dungeons & Dragons, which focuses on narrative development, gore, portals from beyond and servitors of the outer gods. If you're interested in becoming a cultist, you can join us at underthelibrary.com or patreon.com/underthelibrary.    Background art on YouTube courtesy of the brilliant artist Andrii Shafetov.   https://www.artstation.com/andriishafetov & AzDimension Virtual Technology from their game The Last Dead End available on Steam.

On this Episode of Under the Library:   En route to Innsmouth, Merrick spots an abandoned car and sees a shadowy figure walking down the road, holding what seems to be a gas can. We pull up to the figure and meet Aloysius Tumble.    Behind us, Bubba stops to inspect the abandoned car and Lanny discovers it's out of gas. He takes a can from Bubba's truck and refills the tank. They continue, Bubba in his truck and Lanny driving the car. Lanny picks up Aloysius and discovers he got lost on the way to Ipswich. They compare flasks and guns, and eventually make a bet that if Aloysius shoots the first sign he sees, Lanny will pay him $5.   The 3 vehicles continue towards Innsmouth, surrounded by a pervading salty, fishy smell, and encounter a police checkpoint at the edge of town. Seeing a sign for Innsmouth right behind the checkpoint, Aloysius shoots! Police return fire and break the windshield, injuring Lanny.    Agents Merrick and Chambers, with Blue and Clue, follow in the next car, pass through the checkpoint, and question the police. The police know very little and haven't seen anyone pass in a vehicle or on foot. Clue, overwhelmed by the horrible smell from outside the car, bites Blue.    Continuing to the constabulary, the agents talk to Chief Constable Andrew Martin, where they learn about Tobias "Frog" Sisk and his lengthy criminal history. We get his address and Martin offers Constable Birch as our guide.    Lanny and Aloysius arrive at the constabulary and Lanny catches up with Martin. He slips and calls the gang "frog folk," and it becomes clear to the agents that there's some underlying tension between the two policemen.     ------------------------   Bloodstone is an original Call of Cthulhu sandbox, designed by Under the Library's Keeper, and features weekly actual play / live play / real play sessions. Call of Cthulhu is a Horror Tabletop Roleplaying Game (TTRPG) similar to Dungeons & Dragons, which focuses on narrative development, gore, portals from beyond and servitors of the outer gods. If you're interested in becoming a cultist, you can join us at underthelibrary.com or patreon.com/underthelibrary.    Background art on YouTube courtesy of the brilliant artist Andrii Shafetov.   https://www.artstation.com/andriishafetov & AzDimension Virtual Technology from their game The Last Dead End available on Steam.

On this Episode of Under the Library:   Ipswich, MA April 3, 1927   A bank has been robbed by members of the infamous Frog Gang.   Special Agent Malone of the Bureau of Investigation (BOI) dispatches Agent Merrick and Agent (in training) Chambers to the scene. Steve Blue, reporter, accompanies them along with his dog, Clue.   At the scene a local policeman, Lanny O'Paddy, gives the BOI agents details of the crime. He wasn't present for everything, but was called to the scene and shot at the getaway vehicle, hitting one gang member.   The agents interview a bank teller and the manager, Mr. Stroganoff. Stroganoff admits that he opened the safe to protect his staff and patrons. He said there were 3 men and one woman, and they all had "the look" of Innsmouth. This strange frog-like shape to their features is supposedly caused by a virus. They stole about $7,000 and were heard saying "we'll be safe when we get back to Innsmouth."   As the BOI agents conducted interviews, Blue inspected the ledgers. Everything looks above-board, and it seems that Stroganoff was attempting to record the losses from the robbery.   The investigators head to Innsmouth, O'Paddy's car in front with the agents and Blue following. The terrain becomes marshier and wilder, and Merrick notices that we have a tail. At this moment, O'Paddy's car veers wildly to the right, off the road, and into the marsh. He sees another trunk sticking out of the marsh ahead - the same car that he shot at!    The truck that was tailing us pulls over and we meet Bubba Frett, a bounty hunter with a wanted poster for the leader of the Frog Gang.    O'Paddy wades into the swamp to investigate a body floating about 30ft out. It's the man he shot in the fleeing car. As he investigates, he feels a horrible sharp pain in his calf and sees a creature like a trilobite with lobster claws. He blasts it off with his .38 and drags the corpse to shore.    The body is the notorious Abe Duncan and has a $300 reward, so Bubba tries to bribe Paddy for possession of the corpse. As they argue, another strange lobster creature latches onto Bubba, severing his Achilles tendon.   The BOI agents receive a message from the home office - lodging has been arranged in Innsmouth and it's time to head out. Leaving O'Paddy's car in the marsh, we depart for Innsmouth.   ------------------------   Bloodstone is an original Call of Cthulhu sandbox, designed by Under the Library's Keeper, and features weekly actual play / live play / real play sessions. Call of Cthulhu is a Horror Tabletop Roleplaying Game (TTRPG) similar to Dungeons & Dragons, which focuses on narrative development, gore, portals from beyond and servitors of the outer gods. If you're interested in becoming a cultist, you can join us at underthelibrary.com or patreon.com/underthelibrary.    Background art on YouTube courtesy of the brilliant artist Andrii Shafetov.   https://www.artstation.com/andriishafetov & AzDimension Virtual Technology from their game The Last Dead End available on Steam.

On this episode of Under the Library:   The group continues to discuss what they should do about Philip's disappearance. Harold crawls about 10 feet into the tunnel and shines his special torch, illuminating a cave-in that completely blocks the tunnel. He shimmies out and shows a blob of butter mixed with sand, prompting Jaker to vomit and fall to the ground. As Oak Tree tries to administer first aid, he listens at Jaker's chest. The chest explodes, knocking Oak Tree back.    Jaker has tentacles writhing out of his chest, although he feels no pain. His legs and remaining arm fall off as more tentacles emerge. Beau, Harold, Oak Tree, and Florence face a giant black orb with at least 10 tentacles, and Jaker's head protrudes from the top. Jaker sounds like himself and speaks to the group, begging for an explanation. He tries to control his new body but seemingly can't.    Harold and Oak Tree point guns at Jaker, and Florence throws herself in front, yelling that he's still Jaker! Too late to stop himself, Oak Tree pulls the trigger and shoots Florence. She falls backwards into the gaping maw that has opened amid the tentacles in the center of the black orb.    Harold shoots Jaker in the head, but the creature is unaffected. Beau shoots Florence to put her out of her misery as she is devoured. A moment later, Beau's chest also explodes. Like Jaker, he has no control over his new orb-like body, but he screams at Oak Tree and Harold, seeing them both as incarnations of Jack Crabbe.    Engaged with two horrific creatures, Harold and Oak Tree put up a valiant fight but are both killed, taking the Jaker-monster down with them.    At the same time, in the camp on the other side of the plateau, men in cowboy hats are drawn to Philip's screams. He pulls himself together, stands, and claims he was sent by Pete the Poet. The men seem to accept his story and call the (very inebriated) camp doctor to tend to his broken leg.   Philip passes out from the pain and awakens days later in a tent, sweating and feverish, with the foul odor of gangrene surrounding him. He leaves the tent and convinces one of the men to accompany him to the other side of the plateau to track down the rest of the party (and some of Jaker's pills). As they hike up the side of the plateau, the man turns, holds a gun to Philip's head, and asks "When Pete sent you, what did he tell you to tell me?" Philip attacks, but the man shoots him in the head and he falls down the side of the plateau.   ------------------------   Bloodstone is an original Call of Cthulhu sandbox, designed by Under the Library's Keeper, and features weekly actual play / live play / real play sessions. Call of Cthulhu is a Horror Tabletop Roleplaying Game (TTRPG) similar to Dungeons & Dragons, which focuses on narrative development, gore, portals from beyond and servitors of the outer gods. If you're interested in becoming a cultist, you can join us at underthelibrary.com or patreon.com/underthelibrary.    Background art on YouTube courtesy of the brilliant artist Andrii Shafetov.   https://www.artstation.com/andriishafetov & AzDimension Virtual Technology from their game The Last Dead End available on Steam.

On this Episode of Under the Library: After Beau's showdown with Jack Crabbe, he takes 4 of Jaker's pills and rests in the wagon. In the meantime, Jaker has awakened. He is no longer bleeding and now able to stand. Using the remaining three horses, the group follows Jack Crabbe's tracks through the bear trap field and onto a path. It eventually intersects with the original path, and they are once again headed towards the presumed camp of women and children.   Philip scans the area with binoculars and sees some small caves in the distance. At the same time, Harold notices a split in the trail. It turns out to be a detour that avoids some bear traps, and it seems that the trail has been intentionally booby trapped.    They ride toward the caves and reach the base of the plateau. Since the wagon can't make the steep journey, Philip and Oak Tree check out the caves while the others wait below. The first cave is small yet well used, and Oak Tree finds a small tunnel in the back.    Philip enters the tunnel but gets stuck. He grabs butter from his pack in the wagon to lubricate himself, strips down, and prepares for a second attempt. This time he slips right through, crawls up a gradual incline, and arrives at the other end of the tunnel. He's on the other side of the plateau, looking out onto a camp below. A moment later, the roof of the tunnel behind him collapses.   Two kids come up the trail towards Philip. Seeing his face sticking out of the hillside, they scream. One trips and falls off the side, landing on a tent, and the other starts to run. Philip pursues, but also trips and falls down the hill, landing in a pile of hay and breaking his leg.    In the meantime, the rest of the party has made their way up to the cave, and Oak Tree updates them on Phil's disappearance. As the session ends, we discuss what to do about Philip's predicament. ------------------------ Bloodstone is an original Call of Cthulhu sandbox, designed by Under the Library's Keeper, and features weekly actual play / live play / real play sessions. Call of Cthulhu is a Horror Tabletop Roleplaying Game (TTRPG) similar to Dungeons & Dragons, which focuses on narrative development, gore, portals from beyond and servitors of the outer gods. If you're interested in becoming a cultist, you can join us at underthelibrary.com or patreon.com/underthelibrary.  Background art on YouTube courtesy of the brilliant artist Andrii Shafetov. https://www.artstation.com/andriishafetov & AzDimension Virtual Technology from their game The Last Dead End available on Steam.

This week Under the Library plays another one-off, this time a module called The Derelict from Sandy Peterson's book Peterson's Abominations: 5 Tales of Modern Horror. We hope you enjoy this little foray into the Arctic, and next week we look forward to our return to Bloodstone!   Bloodstone is an original Call of Cthulhu sandbox, designed by Under the Library's Keeper, and features weekly actual play / live play / real play sessions. Call of Cthulhu is a Horror Tabletop Roleplaying Game (TTRPG) similar to Dungeons & Dragons, which focuses on narrative development, gore, portals from beyond and servitors of the outer gods. If you're interested in becoming a cultist, you can join us at underthelibrary.com or patreon.com/underthelibrary.    Background art on YouTube courtesy of the brilliant artist Andrii Shafetov.   https://www.artstation.com/andriishafetov & AzDimension Virtual Technology from their game The Last Dead End available on Steam.

Bloodstone is an original Call of Cthulhu sandbox, designed by Under the Library's Keeper, and features weekly actual play / live play / real play sessions. Call of Cthulhu is a Horror Tabletop Roleplaying Game (TTRPG) similar to Dungeons & Dragons, which focuses on narrative development, gore, portals from beyond and servitors of the outer gods. If you're interested in becoming a cultist, you can join us at underthelibrary.com or patreon.com/underthelibrary.    Background art on YouTube courtesy of the brilliant artist Andrii Shafetov.   https://www.artstation.com/andriishafetov & AzDimension Virtual Technology from their game The Last Dead End available on Steam.

On this episode of Under the Library: Jaker jumps down from the wagon to calm Whinnie the cart horse, who was caught in a bear trap, but she kicks him in the face. He flies into a trap stump first and it closes with a sickening crack. As he loses consciousness, he manages to take one more pill.   The formerly mounted members of the party, Oak Tree, Harold, Philip, and Florence, are all forced to shoot their suffering horses. In the ensuing calm they all converge on Jaker. Beau is still in the wagon and thinks he hallucinated the cracks, shrieks, and general sounds of carnage. Philip offers medical assistance to Jaker, but first asks for a harmonica.    As Oak Tree wedges the bear trap open, Florence pulls Jaker out. Philip prods and pries at the wounds with a knife and then shoves the harmonica in a wound. Oak Tree pulls Philip off and he and Florence shield Jaker with their bodies. At this point, Harold approaches, gun in hand, and wants to "switch Jaker off" for his own good. Oak Tree and Florence convince Harold to wait for morning, and Oak Tree feeds Jaker 7 more pills.   In the distance we hear a voice yell "Hey there, strangers! Y'all all right?"   Beau immediately recognizes the voice as that of his nemeis, Jack Crabbe. He struggles to his feet and shambles towards Jack, screaming. Oak Tree intervenes, but then, siding with Beau, slugs Jack in the face and then jumps on him as he falls. Jack's gun discharges into Oak Tree's leg as Beau attacks his gun hand, tearing at the wrist with his teeth. Philip, excited by the spectacle, dives on Jack's head and devours an eye.    Beau grabs Jack's gun, and as Oak Tree holds him immobile, he admits to knowing Beau. Beau asks Jack for any last words, but before he can speak, Beau puts a bullet through his now empty eye socket.   ----------------------------------- Bloodstone is an original Call of Cthulhu sandbox, designed by Under the Library's Keeper, and features weekly actual play / live play / real play sessions. Call of Cthulhu is a Horror Tabletop Roleplaying Game (TTRPG) similar to Dungeons & Dragons, which focuses on narrative development, gore, portals from beyond and servitors of the outer gods. If you're interested in becoming a cultist, you can join us at underthelibrary.com or patreon.com/underthelibrary. Background art on YouTube courtesy of the brilliant artist Andrii Shafetov. https://www.artstation.com/andriishafetov & AzDimension Virtual Technology from their game The Last Dead End available on Steam.

Bloodstone is an original Call of Cthulhu sandbox, designed by Under the Library's Keeper, and features weekly actual play / live play / real play sessions. Call of Cthulhu is a Horror Tabletop Roleplaying Game (TTRPG) similar to Dungeons & Dragons, which focuses on narrative development, gore, portals from beyond and servitors of the outer gods. If you're interested in becoming a cultist, you can join us at underthelibrary.com or patreon.com/underthelibrary.    Background art on YouTube courtesy of the brilliant artist Andrii Shafetov.   https://www.artstation.com/andriishafetov & AzDimension Virtual Technology from their game The Last Dead End available on Steam.

On this episode of Under the Library:   As we begin, the planning discussion continues; should they retrieve Rose from the asylum in Deadwood or first deal with pressing issues closer to home?   Having reached a consensus to release Philip from the closet, Beau unlocks the door and unties his hands as Florence offers him water. As with Quentin, Florence prefers to lead the questioning "from a position of control" as Oak Tree oversees the situation. Philip agrees to "do his best" to avoid further cannibalism, and agrees to eat salt tack whenever he has bad thoughts. He also shares more details from his harrowing experience in the portal and the visions of his wife and daughter.   Eventually, the group decides to leave Rose for now and instead try to find the boy who was stolen by the flying creatures. The plan is to ride along the train track and find the unique tree that marks the place the women and children disembarked. Then they'll follow their trail and try to find the camp, or where the birds' path intersects the trail, whichever comes first. We bring horses as well as a wagon from Seraphim Falls, and during the ride Harold fashions a sling contraption that should allow Jaker to fire his shotgun one-handed.   After about 3 hours the group arrives at the tree and Beau spots a well traveled trail of foot, hoof, and cart tracks. As we end, Florence has spotted a strange mound near the trail that resembles a grave.   Bloodstone is an original Call of Cthulhu sandbox, designed by Under the Library's Keeper, and features weekly actual play / live play / real play sessions. Call of Cthulhu is a Horror Tabletop Roleplaying Game (TTRPG) similar to Dungeons & Dragons, which focuses on narrative development, gore, portals from beyond and servitors of the outer gods. If you're interested in becoming a cultist, you can join us at underthelibrary.com or patreon.com/underthelibrary.    Background art on YouTube courtesy of the brilliant artist Andrii Shafetov.   https://www.artstation.com/andriishafetov & AzDimension Virtual Technology from their game The Last Dead End available on Steam.

On this episode of Under the Library: Day 4 begins with another issue of the Bloodstone Exposé. The articles detailed the situation at Gerald's house, the missing Sheriff Stone, and the return of the mysterious wasting disease, with a mention of a snake infestation. Beau, Jaker, and Oak Tree begin the morning at Seraphim Falls with an unconscious Philip. Jaker feels strangely well and his wound seems impossibly well healed. As they leave, Beau spots a rattlesnake on the porch. They head for Potter's place, where they lock the still unresponsive Philip in Florence's storage room. Florence wants to ask Sage for help with Caspar, so she, Harold, and Jaker depart, leaving Oak Tree and Beau with Philip. They ride across town to Sage's house and after a thorough description of the situation, she agrees to help.    Back at Potter's Place, Sage examines Caspar and decides he needs round the clock care. Harold, Beau, and Jaker go out to retrieve additional items from Sage's house while Florence and Oak Tree help her with Caspar. Sage instructs Oak Tree to continue ministering to Caspar while she speaks to Florence in the kitchen. Florence tells Sage about her strange experience with Rose, and then Florence has a vision of Rose that leaves her vomiting and trembling, and finally passing out. Sage uses herbs to try to wake Florence but she doesn't come out of it.    Florence finally wakes as Harold, Beau, and Jaker return with supplies. The session comes to a close as everyone argues the merits and dangers of returning to Deadwood to retrieve Rose.   Bloodstone is an original Call of Cthulhu sandbox, designed by Under the Library's Keeper, and features weekly actual play / live play / real play sessions. Call of Cthulhu is a Horror Tabletop Roleplaying Game (TTRPG) similar to Dungeons & Dragons, which focuses on narrative development, gore, portals from beyond and servitors of the outer gods. If you're interested in becoming a cultist, you can join us at underthelibrary.com or patreon.com/underthelibrary.    Background art on YouTube courtesy of the brilliant artist Andrii Shafetov.   https://www.artstation.com/andriishafetov & AzDimension Virtual Technology from their game The Last Dead End available on Steam.

On this episode of Under the Library:   In Potter's place, Harold examines the two pendants under a microscope. Florence's necklace has a broken clasp and the clasp of the other necklace has clearly been repaired. Otherwise the two are entirely identical (other than alterations necessary to hold the purple-filled glass).   After Philip's ministrations Caspar still has a weak pulse. Florence asks what she can do and Philip suggests a blood transfusion. Although Florence is wary, she agrees to let Philip test her blood for compatibility. After combining drops of each blood in a jar and observing no clotting, they conclude the blood is probably compatible.   While Harold, Beau, and Florence discuss Philip's state of mind after his experience in the portal and the trip home, Philip surreptitiously drinks the blood from the jar. This, combined with the fact that Beau witnessed him eating chunks of Gerald, pushes Florence over the edge. She accuses Philip of being a vampire, points her gun at him, and convinces Harold, Beau, and Oak Tree to subdue him.   As Beau approaches, Philip shoves a couple fingers down his throat and projectile vomits on Beau. Beau and Florence also throw up, but Oak Tree is fine and takes control of Philip, walking him outside to get him some water. Philip surrenders his weapon and sits on the porch.   Oak Tree and Beau take Philip to Jaker's for the night, and Harold stays behind to help Florence clean up her shop.  Bloodstone is an original Call of Cthulhu sandbox, designed by Under the Library's Keeper, and features weekly actual play / live play / real play sessions. Call of Cthulhu is a Horror Tabletop Roleplaying Game (TTRPG) similar to Dungeons & Dragons, which focuses on narrative development, gore, portals from beyond and servitors of the outer gods. If you're interested in becoming a cultist, you can join us at underthelibrary.com or patreon.com/underthelibrary.  Background art on YouTube courtesy of the brilliant artist Andrii Shafetov. https://www.artstation.com/andriishafetov & AzDimension Virtual Technology from their game The Last Dead End available on Steam.

On this episode of Under the Library:   At Gerald's house, Beau and Harold attempt to transport Philip out of the basement. Harold devises a complex pulley system using the bedframe while Beau pushes from below. Philip mutters his wife and daughter's names under his breath in an unending litany.    Beau returns to the basement to place dynamite and a fuse, hoping to destroy the gate. He hears the voice of Jack Crabbe taunting him from the gate but shakes off the compulsion to enter, singing and plugging his ears. He lights the fuse and runs for his life as the remains of the house collapse behind him.   Harold and Beau leave the ruin formerly known as Gerald's house with Philip and the feverishly moaning Caspar/Jeremy strapped to horses. They head back to town.   It's dusk on the train from Deadwood. Jaker sleeps and Florence is silent, processing her experience with Rose. Oak Tree keeps watch as they return to Bloodstone.    Upon their return, Florence and Oak Tree bring Jaker to Seraphim Falls and his Uncle Jeb. Jeb is drunk, and shows Florence a nearly empty whiskey bottle with a small lomava pellet in the bottom. He says it came from a secret part of Lloyd's General Store, and agrees to let her take the bottle with her. Florence also keeps Jaker's pills with her since it seems unwise to leave them with drunk Uncle Jeb.   The group reconvenes at Potter's Place (minus Jaker). Harold and Beau relate the events at Gerald's place to Florence, who tunes them out, fixated on the strangely familiar face of Caspar. He looks eerily like her sister Rose. Florence tries to wake him. and Oak Tree attempts first aid, but both fail. Florence slaps Philip out of his muttering trance and orders him to care for Caspar.    At the same time, Harold shows Florence Caspar's pendant and she compares it to her own - other than the purple liquid-filled glass set into Caspar's pendant, the two are nearly identical.   Bloodstone is an original Call of Cthulhu sandbox, designed by Under the Library's Keeper, and features weekly actual play / live play / real play sessions. Call of Cthulhu is a Horror Tabletop Roleplaying Game (TTRPG) similar to Dungeons & Dragons, which focuses on narrative development, gore, portals from beyond and servitors of the outer gods. If you're interested in becoming a cultist, you can join us at underthelibrary.com or patreon.com/underthelibrary    Background art on YouTube courtesy of the brilliant artist Andrii Shafetov  https://www.artstation.com/andriishafetov & AzDimension Virtual Technology from their game The Last Dead End available on Steam

On this episode of Under the Library: Oak Tree carries Jaker as they leave the hospital with Florence and sprint towards the station to catch the train home. Florence ducks into an alley as 4 people on horseback approach. They're led by Sheriff Bullock, who agrees to have "just missed" Oak Tree in thanks for him dealing with Worthington earlier.    The three make their train, but Florence realizes she left Jaker's shotgun at the hospital.    Back at Gerald's house Philip cleans Caspar's gun wound, packs it with fabric, and cauterizes it to stop the bleeding as Caspar mutters in his sleep about the great fire. Philip notices a bulge under Caspar's glove and pockets a strange ring with a luminescent stone and familiar language of symbols engraved on the band.    Beau looks at Caspar and he seems familiar. When they read the name Jeremy Potter on his license, Beau immediately realizes that he looks a lot like Florence, but also notices that the man on the ground isn't the man pictured on the license. Beau suggests pushing the man back through the gate and never telling Florence. Harold and Philip convince Beau they should bring the man back to town.   Philip is determined to go through the gate himself. He ties a rope around his waist and gives the other end to Beau, and then extends the pinky of his non dominant hand into the void. Philip is immediately pulled in, and the rope is yanked from Beau's hands.   Philip sees his wife, Ella, in the void, and they speak. He admits to her the true events surrounding her death and is forced to see her and his daughter Emma die over and over in a seemingly endless loop. Through an attempted self-sacrifice the loop is broken and Philip is thrown from the portal, lying unconscious yet inconsolably sobbing.    ------------------------- Bloodstone is an original Call of Cthulhu sandbox, designed by Under the Library's Keeper, and features weekly actual play / live play / real play sessions. Call of Cthulhu is a Horror Tabletop Roleplaying Game (TTRPG) similar to Dungeons & Dragons, which focuses on narrative development, gore, portals from beyond and servitors of the outer gods. If you're interested in becoming a cultist, you can join us at underthelibrary.com or patreon.com/underthelibrary Background art on YouTube courtesy of the brilliant artist Andrii Shafetov https://www.artstation.com/andriishafetov & AzDimension Virtual Technology from their game The Last Dead End available on Steam https://store.steampowered.com/app/843250/The_Last_DeadEnd/

On this episode of Under the Library:  After leaving Rose, Florence stops by the kitchen to get some peppermint tea (and in reality check for signs of tampering/lomava additives that might relate to Rose's strange new memory). The surly cook refuses to help her and she leaves to avoid a fight. As Florence walks back to the hospital to check on Jaker she's knocked to the ground by Josiah Worthington, a man who claims to be rushing to meet the mayor. As they sort themselves out, Florence feels uneasy and tries to convince Worthington to accompany her to the hospital. Her unease is due to the watching gaze of a mysterious man with a scarred face who slowly makes his way across the square towards them.  The man cuts in, grabs Worthinton by the ankles, and shakes him upside down. Florence's necklace, a precious gift from Rose, falls to the ground. The scarred man dunks Worthington in a trough until he apologizes. He wants to punish him further, even kill him, but defers to Florence and allows Worthington to live. The scarred man introduces himself as Oak Tree Larson. He's slow to speak and slow to anger (and maybe just a little slow), but genuinely wants to do what's right. Florence has a good feeling about him and invites him to accompany her back to Bloodstone. Arriving at the hospital, Florence asks to see Dr. Goodfellow and is pleasantly surprised to meet Dr. Aaron Goodfellow, the personable twin of obnoxious Xavier. Jaker is out of surgery. They amputated his arm, but he's recovering well and ready to travel home. Back in Bloodstone, at Gerald's house, the man allegedly from 1941 introduces himself as Caspar Mascovane. Harold, Beau, and Philip question him at gunpoint, trying to prove that he's from the future. As Beau orders Caspar back through the strange gate, Philip sees his wife inside the gate and Harold sees Millie. Harold is drawn towards the gate and Beau tackles him as Philip lassoes them both with the meat sock. During the confusion, Caspar grabs a torch and escapes up the rope ladder to the main floor. As Philip chases Caspar upstairs into the light, he sees the man is dressed in full magician regalia complete with a billowing cape. As Caspar runs for the horses, Philip threatens him and then shoots him in the back. In the basement, Millie is still pressuring Harold to enter the gate. Beau tries talking directly to her but she won't see reason. However, Harold convinces her (and himself) to head upstairs, away from the gate. As Harold and Beau leave the house they find Philip kneeling over a body, using his finger to staunch blood flow from a chest wound.  Finally, at the hospital in Deadwood, Dr. Aaron and two burly orderlies bring Jaker out to the waiting area. The doctor gives Florence a 6 day supply of pills for Jaker, but Jaker sees a vision of liquid pouring out of the pill case.

On this episode of Under the Library: In the reception area of the hospital, Florence seeks medical care for an unconscious Jaker. Dr. Goodfellow, aloof and brusque, questions Jaker's ability to pay for his services, and Florence presses him to at least listen to Jaker's recent medical history. He speaks condescendingly about the quality of medical care in Bloodstone, giving Jaker a bad prognosis and advising Florence to pray. She departs for Goodwell House (the asylum) and feels uneasy as if someone is watching her.   Back at Gerald Morenson's house, Harold, Beau, and Philip flee the house as it shudders and begins to collapse. Once things settle they decide to go back in to rescue Quentin from the basement. Philip cuts small cube-shaped pieces from Gerald's corpse to bait the animals (calling the flesh "food" and pocketing some). Philip then makes a "meat sock", tying a rope of intestine to a flesh cube and lowering it down the hatch (with no response from below).   Beau calls down to Quentin and hears nothing in response, so he and Harold descend, leaving Philip upstairs to keep watch. The basement is filled with debris and the tunnel on the right is entirely blocked off. As Beau yells again, he hears a soft "hello" in response, but the voice is unfamiliar. At this point Philip joins them in the basement and they question the mystery voice, learning that he's disoriented, possibly in shock, and thinks it's 1941.    In the meantime, in Deadwood, Florence arrives at Goodwell House to visit her sister Rosemund. Rose is seated on the edge of the bed, gazing out the window, and doesn't turn when Florence enters. Florence learns that she's staring "at the stars" (although it's midday) and she claims she can't see Florence, but instead senses a darkness around her. Rose shares a vision of her grandmother giving her tea with lomava and chanting as she drank. She repeatedly asks Florence to wear the pendant she made her, and demands that Florence destroy books to banish the darkness.   Back at Gerald's house, Harold and Beau approach the stranger, who asks if they have flashlights. The hall opens into a cavernous room and they see a man shielding his face from their torchlight. Behind him is a giant hole in the wall. When Beau tells him the year is 1892, he shouts "By George, we've done it!".    Behind them, Philip hears an alluring sound that seems to call him into the room. He blocks out the noise, using flesh bits as ear plugs, but peers into the cavern and seems to see his family inside the giant hole.

On this episode of Under the Library:   Harold, Quentin, Beau, and Philip feel a tremor underfoot as Gerald's house, destabilized by the dynamite blast, shifts and trembles. Harold finds Gerald's corpse laying on the bed and shifts the bed over to reveal the trapdoor to the pitch black basement. Philip decides to autopsy the corpse.   In the other room, Quentin realizes that a note from Gerald couldn't possibly have reached Jonathan in the less than 24 hours separating their two visits. He searches Jonathan's body again and discovers a banking ledger in the same handwriting. This man wrote the note to himself, yet he's never met any of the investigators.   Having realized there may be animals loose in the basement, Quentin decides to bait them. Philip offers Gerald's arm (detached during autopsy), and when lowered down, it is promptly snatched away by an unseen creature. Philip also shares the results of the autopsy - Gerald is entirely human! Quentin realizes that Gerald must've been possessed as he once was.   Beau decides to fashion some torches to light the basement, and Harold designs an uber-torch that produces a hot, focused fire.   At the same time, Florence and Jaker are traveling by train to nearby Deadwood. Florence makes this trip every Thursday morning, so she's surprised and confused when the train begins to slow in the middle of the route. She leans over the bench to ask a woman behind her why the train is stopping. The woman, traveling with a small child, speaks of a "promised land" where all needs are met and all wants fulfilled. Her miner husband died, and now she's going to join countless other families in this idyllic place.   All the other people in our train car; women, children, and a few roughly dressed men, disembark at the direction of the man who threatened Florence, who now speaks clearly and calmly. The families are provided with horses and they ride off into the distance. Florence marks a particular grove of trees that will help her find the location again.   Back at Gerald's house, Quentin descends into the basement. He throws oil on the floor and lights it to dissuade animals from approaching. Harold and Beau start to follow him down, but quickly reverse when the house shudders and walls start to fall. As Beau, Harold, and Philip flee, Quentin remains in the basement, drawn in by a purple glow from the same hallway where he was possessed. He steps into the glow, feeling deeply that forward is the only way...   In the meantime, the train has finally arrived at the station in Deadwood. Jaker passes out and Florence flags down two strangers to help move him to the hospital. His arm now feels crunchy, scaly, and stiff.  

On this episode of Under the Library: We open with a new issue of the Bloodstone Expose, May 5, 1892 (Day 3 of our adventure!). The paper includes two articles; one on the winged creature attack and townspeople who were snatched, and the other about the murder of Jason Dudley.   Jaker's arm is really not feeling great and he turns to Philip for help. Philip finds and lances an abscess and also warns of the possibility of tetanus. Jaker decides to accompany Florence on the train to Deadwood and seek treatment at the hospital.   At the same time Beau, still intending to turn himself in to Sheriff Stone, meets Quentin outside of the sheriff's office. Quentin shares the suspicious wanted flyer for Bobby McGlinn and advises Beau not to turn himself in. Searching the sheriff's office, Beau discovers that much of the ammo is missing, and also Henry's horse is gone. Quentin then deputizes Beau, who in turn deputizes Philip.    Florence and Jaker hear the whistle of the arriving train. At this point Jaker looks pretty rough - sweaty, pale, and unsteady. They board the train and find seats near the front of the car. Florence notices the train is much busier than usual. She recognizes a past visitor from her shop, a handler from the mine, and goes to ask him about the situation. However, when she strikes up a conversation he's incredibly rude to the point of threatening violence, so she learns nothing. The man is accompanied by a group of women and children, and he doesn't allow Florence to speak directly to them.    After stopping by the general store to lock up and check the (empty) cat trap, Harold, Quentin, Philip, and Beau head back out to Gerald's house. They see horses tied outside and sneak up to peer in the side windows. Quentin calls to the people inside, claiming authority as deputy.   The familiar voice of Henry Stone (Bobby McGlinn?) tells Quentin to leave his weapons and approach the house. Quentin refuses and a gunshot from within the house hits his shoulder. He returns fire and hits the head peeking out the window. At the same time, Philip wants to blow up the house but Beau talks him down.   Another voice from within, this one cultured and "high falutin", says they assassinated a fine upstanding sheriff. At this, Beau gives Philip the go-ahead and Philip tosses a stick of dynamite into the house. Quentin charges in through the dust and debris to find a headless body as well as another well dressed man, probably killed in the explosion, against the far wall. He shoots the body.   The fancy man has a letter in his breast pocket from Gerald: "Dear Jonathan, please come. I'm being stalked. Bring the sheriff..." The letter describes Harold, Quentin, and Florence in great detail. Quentin pockets the letter.   Strangely, the body of Gerald is nowhere to be seen...

On this episode of Under the Library:  Florence, Harold, Beau, and Jaker are at Potter's place deciding on a plan for the  day. Quentin arrives and tells us about the corpse he discovered at the general store. Jaker immediately leaves to find the sheriff while Florence and Beau try to track down Philip.  Quentin and Harold return to the general store to find a crowd of gawkers and looters. They make their way back inside and examine the body. Harold is sure that it's Lloyd from the hair.   Jaker wakes Sheriff Henry Stone, a well respected man revered not just in Bloodstone but around the country. Henry asks Jaker about the shooting in the square last night. He says that Jason Dudley might not make it even after Jaker's blood transfusion (and at this point his arm looks pretty bad). They head for Lloyd's store.   Florence and Beau find Philip in the stables and they also head to Lloyd's. Philip threatens looters with a shot in the air and demands they stop stealing Lloyd's stuff. He ends up shooting a looter in the foot and Sheriff Henry praises his good work. Phil decides to bandage the injured man's foot.   Florence and Beau visit Red's Health Emporium to check on the status of injured Jason. They find Red passed out inside the door and carefully push him aside to enter. Horrible smells assail them and Jason is a bloody mess on the table - clearly dead.    Back at Lloyd's, Harold is unable to catch any cats to examine them so he heads home to build a cat trap. Jaker and Quentin explore the upstairs living area with the sheriff. Quentin convinces Sheriff Stone to give him a deputy badge and he takes over the case.   Philip enters the general store and examines the scene, finding clear evidence of a struggle. Lloyd had tried to fend off cats with a broom, launching at least one into the wall.    Quentin heads for the sheriff's office to pick up his badge but finds it empty. He finds a poster in the desk that says "WANTED Bobby McGlinn $100". Strangely, the picture looks a lot like Sheriff Henry Stone.

We begin with Beau in the square, having just heard a drunken voice slur "I'm your huckleberry." Is it Jack Crabbe?! Beau claims to be the ghost of Beau (since Jack thinks he killed Beau). Beau moves in and fires his shotgun, and the body flops to the ground [as Jaker, watching from a safe distance, thinks he hears a voice cry "don't shoot!"] Beau flips the body over and for a moment the face looks unfamiliar, but then looks like Jack Crabbe. However, Jaker runs over to the body and recognizes Jason Dudley, a man who works at the local stables. Jaker tries to speak reason to Beau, reminding him of his experience with the strange book, but Beau remembers nothing. Finally, the man seems to change form in front of Beau's eyes, and he realizes he shot a stranger.   Red Wellerton, the town physician and coroner, arrives with Jason's wife. Red is obviously drunk and belches whiskey fumes on the prone Jason. He and Jaker transport Jason to Red's Health Emporium. Together they treat Jason, first by removing buckshot with a device of Harold's, then cauterizing the wounds, and finally performing a blood transfusion from Jaker to Jason.    Jaker leads an unresponsive Beau back to Seraphim Falls and sits him in a corner, removing the book and his gun. Exhausted from the transfusion, Jaker leaves a note on the door to warn Florence/Harold/Quentin to return in the morning and goes to bed. Beau sleeps as well, dreaming of shooting Jack over and over - each time he has killed another innocent person.   After an uneventful trip back to town, Florence returns home and Quentin spends the night at Harold's place. Quentin dreams of Melville, battlefield medicine, tentacles, and flashes of the creature that had controlled his mind.    Before sleeping, Florence tries to break the code of the book language but fails. However, she does see some strange pictures of a device shooting lightning towards humanoid figures.   Beau, Jaker, and Harold gather at Florence's shop and discuss plans for the day. Harold wants to rescue the animals, Beau wants to search for the people that were snatched, and Florence realizes that it's Thursday, the day she always visits her sister.   Rather than joining the party at Florence's, Quentin heads to the general store to buy some supplies. It's only 5:30am and the place is dark and empty, emanating a spooky sensation. Peeking through the glass of the front door, Quentin sees a pile of 15+ cats writhing in a frenzy. He enters and shoos them away to find a body, clothes shredded, with massive chunks of flesh missing from the face. Quentin promptly loots the store, grabbing a satchel, aspirin, and some food.

This week, Under the Library: We open with Quentin alone in Gerald's basement, possessed by the voice in his head. His mind speeds backwards through time. He sees humans devolve into apes. Dinosaurs. Then just blackness. In the blackness, blue glowing figures on the horizon are at war with each other. Quentin realizes he can move his mind through space and time! He zooms forward in history to find himself sitting at a table across from his beloved Herman Melville, lit by a single candle. Quentin converses with Melville, and soon pulls out a compact copy of Moby Dick from his pocket. He describes the book, sharing passages, and Melville seems entirely unfamiliar with it. As Quentin tells the story, Melville takes notes.   At the same time, Florence sees a flash of light as she peers down into the basement. Soon she sees that Quentin is shining his light up into her face. [At this point, Quentin is clearly possessed because the Keeper has inhabited his character.   Florence questions Quentin, expressing her doubt and discomfort after he knocked out Gerald and held a gun to her head, and asks "how can we trust you"? Quentin offers her his revolver (claimed from the shoot out between Andy and Pete the Poet) and promises to do no harm. When Harold asks for something more specific, Quentin says he will do no harm to us "with these two hands". They go back and forth, but eventually Florence realizes she doesn't have any grounds to leave him stranded in the basement and lowers the ladder (even though in her mind something doesn't feel right).   At the table with Melville, Quentin feels time stretch like silly putty. His actions affect the Melvilles of several different versions of history.  It messes with his head.    As Quentin climbs the ladder and passes through the trapdoor onto the first floor, he is ripped from his conversation with Melville, and his formerly rational speech devolves into babbling about Moby Dick and Melville. Florence recognizes his rantings since she's read the book. He passes out.   When Quentin comes to, they realize he doesn't remember anything about his time in the basement, although he recognizes his companions. Hearing no more whistling from the living room, the three enter to find a figure - Gerald - standing behind a desk, gagging, attempting to remove an object from his throat with giant forceps. Quentin has also forgotten Gerald, so he tries to help him with the removal while Harold and Florence search for the book in which Gerald took notes about us earlier.    Inside the house, Quentin helps Gerald remove the obstruction from his throat. In all his nursing experience he's never experienced a patient remain so limp and unresponsive during such a painful procedure. Harold and Florence have located the book and leave the house, calling for Quentin to follow. On his way out, Harold grabs the small box from the forceps in Quentin's hand.   Alone with Gerald, Quentin's memories come flooding back and he remembers all his previous actions - knocking Gerald out, stuffing the box down his throat, and then delivering another crack to his skull when Harold and Florence were in the basement. He remembers his time in the basement and the voice in his head, and sees again the writhing tentacles on the wall. He then makes the connection that while he was speaking with Melville, the voice in his head (and presumably the creature inhabiting Gerald) had possessed him. For Quentin, Gerald represents all the evil in this house and in the town - Gerald is Quentin's white whale. Quentin snaps Gerald's neck.    Quentin bursts out of the house to join Harold and Florence. He boasts that he killed his white whale, and they question him, learning that he murdered Gerald. Florence returns to the living room to find Gerald lying unnaturally slumped on the table surrounded by dark liquid. His spine unnaturally protrudes from his neck. Florence realized that Quentin lied to her when he swore to do no harm.    Harold tries to remove any signs of our presence from the house, and vows to return later to free the caged animals. They head back to town.   Beau and Jaker are still in town looking for information about the people who were snatched. They find a group surrounding a woman who cries "Sammy! Little Sammy...". Jaker realizes this is not the first time creatures have snatched people from the town. He remembers local legends from a few years ago that at the time he ignored. Jaker also takes a sample of a strange sticky substance from a woman's shoulder.   After determining there's no connection between the two lost townsfolk, Jaker and Beau head back to Seraphim Falls. Beau shares with Jaker the blank book he found in Jack Wilde's saddlebag. He examines the book by holding a candle behind a blank page. The evil in the pages shoots through Beau and he experiences a strange bout of dacnomania. Beau draws his pistol with clear intent to kill and storms out of Seraphim Falls. He's yelling, raving, and clearly taken by madness. He hears from the distance a drunken "I'm your huckleberry..."

This week begins with Beau examining the body/boots of Jack Willis. Is it actually Jack Crabbe?! Beau almost cries with relief when he realizes these are not Crabbe's boots. However, they're good quality snakeskin with a yellow stripe running from top to heel, etched with the initials JW. Beau takes the boots but finds nothing else of value on the body. As he heads back towards town, he feels a shift in the air accompanied by a deep beating sound. Something large flies overhead. At the same time, Jaker has helped Philip onto the spare horse and they're heading slowly back to town with Priss in tow. Something large swoops through the air and though Phil leans out of the way, Jaker is knocked off his horse and falls to the ground. Phil describes "the biggest fucking bat he's ever seen" (approx. 15' long with 30' wingspan), which flies off towards the town.    Philip shoots and misses, and then busies himself building a makeshift noise maker/bomb out of a flour tin and bullets. At the same time, Jaker shoots and hits one, prompting it to dive, attempting to sink its talons into Philip's shoulder. When it misses, thrown off by the impact of the bullet, it banks and heads back towards town with an ear splitting screech. Philip and Jaker head back to town.   Harold, Quentin, and Florence are still in the basement of Gerald Morensen's house. Harold hangs back in the machinery room as Florence and Quentin explore the left passage. The passage splits in a Y; the right side is dark, and the left side emits a purple glow.   At this point Quentin, no longer in control of his own actions, raises his rifle and points it at Florence's forehead. A voice in his head tells him to leave. Quentin regains control and lowers the gun. Florence demands that he relinquish it to her and thankfully he agrees, pushing past her into the purple glowing hall. Harold joins Florence and she shares her harrowing experience and her distrust of Quentin.    The purple room is full of animal cages, each with a tube of purple glowing liquid dripping into the water supply. This liquid resembles the substance Harold experimented on (and also the drops Marisa added to Quentin's drink). As Florence keeps watch near the fork in the hall, Quentin discovers a small cylinder that produces light, pockets it, and then begins to detach the hoses feeding purple liquid to the animals. Harold taps on a couple animal cages, enraging a fox and scaring a bunny.    Quentin then leaves the purple room and passes Florence to explore the dark hallway, newfound light in hand. He sees a 5' tall metal object that entirely fills the hall in front of him. At the same time, Harold peeked through the doorway at the back of the purple room to find piles upon piles of bones. He selects a few small ones and begins rigging them to break open and release the caged animals.   Florence wants to go upstairs, and when Harold insists on accompanying her they head up together. Reaching the top of the stairs Florence, still suspicious of Quentin after he threatened her (and for that matter knocked out Gerald and forced a metal box down his throat), pulls the rope ladder up behind them. She explains that she won't abandon Quentin down there, but merely wants to control the situation while they have a talk. As Harold and Florence talk, they realize that Gerald is no longer laying on the bed, and instead they see light under the now closed door to the main room and hear the whistled strains of Amazing Grace.   Quentin returns from the dark hallway to find the ladder gone and decides to explore further. When he returns to the large metallic device, he again hears the voice in his head: "I already told you to leave...". Quentin speaks out loud to the voice and continues forward, discovering something organic. Then his body is no longer his own and he freezes in place, light pointing at the wall about 10' up, illuminating a mass of tentacly appendages. Now the voice decides that he can't leave because he's ruined everything. To kill him or to experiment on him? Or both...?   Outside of town, Beau has met up with Philip and Jaker. Beau offers Philip the boots he took from Jack as they share stories of the flying creatures. As they hear screaming from the direction of town, Jaker spots two creatures flying away with human legs dangling from them. Beau pursues, but horses are too slow.   They return to town and find a woman sobbing "they took him". She's both distraught and relieved that her drunken philandering husband has been snatched "by Satan". As we wrap up, Jaker checks on his Uncle Jeb (who's fine) and Philip heads to Bawdy Bills, as Beau tries to find out who else was grabbed.

We begin with Philip, walking a slow six hours back to town with his injured horse Priscilla ("Pris"). As he walks, he examines the melon-sized rock Cash gave him at the mine. About halfway home, Philip stops for lunch. A rider approaches and Philip hails him. The man introduces himself as Jack Willis from back east. Philip shares food and some Banshee Bitch and discovers that Jack is a mean drunk. He becomes progressively more antagonistic, insulting the hooch and calling Philip's blackened lips a mark of Satan.    Jack refuses to answer any of Philip's questions but instead asks pointed questions about new people in town. Philip awkwardly evades, but when Jack puts a gun to his head he offers up Quentin and Beau, using puns in lieu of their last names.   Finally, Jack takes his leave with the final words "I"ll keep an eye on you". Philip, offended, yells after him "No thank you?!" Jack draws and shoots a warning shot, and Philip returns fire with intent to hit. At the end of the fight a badly injured Jack is dragged off, hanging from his horse by a foot in a stirrup, and Philip has a leg wound.    At the same time, Florence, Harold, and Quentin continue to explore Gerald's house. Harold examines the strange blender-like electrical device in the kitchen and, distracted by Millie's scream, loses the tip of a finger. In the bedroom, Quentin and Florence slide the bed over and discover a rope ladder leading 15' down into the basement. Florence descends, and as she nears the bottom she hears a crack like the sound of a watermelon breaking. Quentin fails to draw Harold away from his ongoing whisper-fight with Millie and joins Florence in the basement.   Tunnels lead both right and left. At the end of the right tunnel they find a room full of mechanical devices connected to a main unit by a mass of wires running across the ceiling like spider legs. The main unit glows green and emits a continuous hum. Even Harold, who finally joined Quentin and Florence in the basement, can't fathom how it works.    On the other end of town, Beau and Jaker decided to leave most of their things at Seraphim Falls and pack for a night outdoors, hoping to track down Philip. By chance they come upon him in the wild outside of town, dazed and speaking oddly, with a marked limp.   Philip tells the story of his encounter with Jack Willis, who Beau suspects is actually the hated Jack Crabb. While Philip blathers on, unaware of Beau's growing frustration, Beau abruptly leaves to follow the blood trail of Jack and his horse. Philip and Jaker insist on accompanying him, but for Beau this is a personal matter and he rudely refuses, shooting a warning shot to make his point.    Beau leaves alone, follows the trail for an hour, and eventually finds a horse on the ground next to a body. The head is greatly disfigured and hard to identify. Beau hopes instead to identify the man by the boots that kicked him.

Last time we left Harold, Florence, and Quentin in the Morensen house and Quentin had just knocked Gerald Morensen out with the butt of his rifle. Florence and Quentin argue as Harold rolls a 99 while examining Gerald's head and becomes distracted talking to Millie. Florence and Harold drag Gerald away and then leave quietly while Quentin breaks open the locked door, entering the kitchen. He searches the kitchen and bedroom, finding a scrap of paper covered with strange shapes/forms - no recognizable language. However, the symbols are very different from those found in Florence's book.   Quentin takes a break from searching to shove the strange box from the gopher corpse down Gerald's throat.   Returning to his search, Quentin realizes that the notes Gerald took about our lomava research are in the same strange symbol script. He then searches the kitchen and bedroom for a hidden door, suspecting that Gerald has more experiments hidden somewhere. He finds a hollow sound in the bedroom floor, near the foot of a bed that had clearly been moved. He also notices an electricity line running to the basement.   At the same time, Florence feels guilty leaving Gerald unconscious and returns to check on him. Harold is still outside bickering with Millie, but eventually agrees to come back inside and help Florence, even though the house clearly unnerves him. Quentin throws an arm over Harold's shoulder and Millie shrieks!   Back in town, Beau has returned from the mines (leaving Philip to travel slowly with his injured horse), and he runs into Jaker.   Beau and Jaker decide to visit the miners' families' camp, but first stop by Lolita's Quick Draw to buy some ammo. Approaching, they hear a jaunty violin tune followed by a resounding screech. It was the store owner, Jane "squeaks" Dunn, a gruff, blunt old woman with a gravelly voice.    When Beau inquires about Jack Crabb, a man who roughed him up in CO, Jane immediately whips out a pair of guns and offers to kill him. She then asks about any special rocks Beau found in CO, and he describes the vein of pure gold that led to his altercation with Crabb. He carries a nugget of the gold with him, and sometimes it glows. Jane says "your rock's filled with the spirit, and when it glows you should pay attention."    Since the gold came from a site of great violence (and Indian massacre), Beau deduces that it glows to indicate tragedy/violence. Jaker suggests putting it on a chain to better see when it glows. (Maybe Florence can use Rose's old tools?)   As Beau and Jaker leave, the violin squeaks at the same spot in the phrase.   Finally, they head northeast to find the encampment. There is no path, no footprints, no wagon wheels... no sign of any regular passage. They do a wide sweep around the area to look for other tracks or any sign of the families, but they see nothing.

On this week's episode: Starting at Gerald Morensen's house... Harold hands the reins to Florence and begins to investigate the holes in the ground (remember, last week he rolled 100 looking for animal prints and discovered the holes). Three gophers leap out of the holes with maniacal looks in their eyes.  Gopher battle ensues! (In which Harold and Quentin attempt to shoot them while Florence wields a piece of wood like a baseball bat). Florence gets bitten on the arm, but eventually all three gophers are killed. Harold saves one to experiment on later, while Quentin examines another and finds a small metal box in the fur pile.   Approaching the house they see a figure inside, diligently working, seemingly unaware of the shots fired outside his house. They knock, and a blank faced man greets them, looking disheveled and unkempt. The three are invited into his workshop and find makeshift seats on crates, metal, and other supplies. Gerald seems unwilling to share any information about lomava experimentation, even making an awkward joke about the dead children.   The visitors try to wheedle some information out of Gerald, but instead share much of their own theories and experiences, as he asks questions and takes furious notes. Florence tries to stop Quentin from sharing so much information, but Gerald picks up on their exchange. To break a tense moment, Florence asks for supplies to clean her gopher wound, but as Gerald turns to retrieve them, Quentin whacks him with the butt of his rifle!   At the same time, Beau and Philip set off for the mines,because Philip has a burning hunger to help these miner families. Not long into the trip, Philip's overburdened horse steps in a hole and breaks its leg. Philip is able to splint the leg, but he must leave his horse behind and continue on foot. Beau hangs back to avoid being recognized, although the two decided on the safe word "pineapple" before parting ways.   Philip approaches a stooped man in front of a tent and offers medical attention and a swig of Banshee Bitch. He then asks "do you know where your wife and children are?" The man, Hank Fullerton, assures Philip that Mr. Mahoney is taking good care of his family in an encampment northeast of the town. He then directs Philip to Cash Mahoney. Philip knocks on his door and discovers that Mahoney is still angry about the last medical man to pass through his camp (Quentin, who stole his meteorite and jewels). However, Philip wins Mahoney over by expressing his God given duty to protect impoverished families, and by offering him some fine Banshee Bitch infused with herbs and juniper. Mahoney says the families are well cared for, but seems uneasy and eventually turns on Philip.    As he's being chased off at gunpoint, Philip offers a flask of Banshee Bitch in exchange for some of the substance they're mining. Mahoney agrees and sends young (old) Lenny into the mine. He gives Philip a strange, spherical rock. Mahoney banishes Philip from the mine, reminding him "I never forget a face". 

The session begins with sanity rolls for those who viewed the strange symbol language last week and then tried to sleep. Although Florence passes without incident, Jaker dreams of parasitic yellow worms burrowing into his brain while Quentin dreams of a whispered language that he can't quite place, only understanding "hold me; take me with you". In the morning, over scones at Potter's Place, Florence, Beau, and Quentin read a newspaper article about yesterday's shootout in the square.    At the same time, Harold awakes and checks on his lomava-ed plant. It looks normal. He then runs another test, announcing his intent to drop a sharp object on the lomava to see if it will move. He drops it but there is no response. Tonight, Harold will also run experiments on Quentin's chunk of meteorite.   After finding Philip at the stable, the group splits up. Florence, Quentin, and Herold leave to visit Gerald Morenson, while Jaker and Beau head to Bawdy Bill's. Beau talks to (itchy?) Wanda to track down Mr. Mahoney and hopefully find out where the miner's families are kept. At the same time, Philip visited Lloyd's general store for supplies. Lloyd invites himself along, evidencing some hero worship for Philip, but Philip convinces him to stay behind and spy on Pete the Poet. (Also, we learn that Lloyd's gun shares a name with Philip's dead wife, and Philip demands that he change it).   Exiting the shop, Philip notices a strange symbol above the Bawdy Bill's sign at the same time that he realizes he feels strangely weak and tired. Beau doesn't see the symbol, and when Philip tries to sketch it, his hand acts independently and perfectly reproduces the symbol... but only Philip can see it.   At this point Beau leads Jaker and Philip towards the mines, but then hides to avoid being recognized. They continue alone.   Herald, Quentin, and Florence have arrived at the Morenson property. We remember that Gerald's wife went west of town to pick herbs a couple years ago and was found beaten nearly to death. She died soon after. As we approach his small secluded house, surrounded by fields and woods, Harold rolled a 100 looking for animal prints.

In this episode of Under the Library:  As we begin, Philip is "off with the ponies" (i.e. Rick lost power and will join later). It's late in the evening and Harold decides to head home and run some experiments on his lomava sample. Beau and Quentin decide they would feel safer sleeping on the floor of Potter's Place than staying at The Lighthouse. Jaker joins Florence/Beau/Quentin briefly to do research before heading home. Back at Potter's Place, Florence examines a book called Chemical Elements of the Natural World. Although there's no mention of lomava, it lists properties of mercury as well as other elements that can't be classified as solids or liquids.   A scrap of paper fell from the pages, covered with cramped handwriting. It discusses an unnamed element with strange metaphysical properties, wine-like, and seemingly melted. The writer consumed it and had visions of a strange entity, which he described by its smell (citrus) and sound (heavenly frequency) rather than its form. He took detailed notes about the timeline and quantities of consumption, and the handwriting becomes harder to read over time.   Thinking about mercury and the man's gradual descent into madness, Florence shares information about her sister, a former jewelry maker, who is now institutionalized in nearby Deadwood. Florence always assumed it was the mercury that Rosemund worked with in her craft that drove her to madness, but the others suggest that she might have instead worked with lomava.   Next, Jaker and Florence examine a Latin book called Terra Arcana. Although the language is very complex and hard to translate, there are many illustrations of tiny humans by large obelisks. One of the stones has an arrow pointing to some handwritten marginalia in an exotic text of letters and symbols.    Both Jaker and Florence recognize this strange language. Jaker once saw it tattooed on a corpse that passed through his funeral home. The woman was named Yolene Everburg, and he recalled that Philomena refused to bury her near the church. Florence remembered an evening 3 years ago when a young boy came to her door after hours, nervous, and offered to sell her books. He said he needed to buy supplies for his sick mother. She purchased the aforementioned Chemical Elements of the Natural World from him as well as a leatherbound journal filled with this strange text.   Beau and Quentin examine a geology book with detailed plates of each rock. Quentin hopes to find information about the weirdly heavy rock he stole from the mine overseer's shack. They discover that the rock has cylindrical structures and rounded edges as if it had been melted. Beau makes a connection to a piece of a fallen meteor he keeps in his pocket, and the book confirms this.   At the same time, Harold has been running some tests on his lomava sample. He had previously prepared an extreme protection contraption with an enclosure and a heat source to pull fumes outside through a vent. He ran three tests.   1) He mixed a drop of lomava with water and poured it on a small plant. He'll check on the plant later (with an Int roll extreme success and a Nat World fail).   2) Heating the lomava in a test tube was mesmerizing. It crawled up the sides of the tube and the glass turned the color of lomava. Then the bottom of the tube dissolved and lomava dripped into the lantern he used for heat. Purple, iridescent fumes were released outside through the vent.   3) As Harold applied pressure to the lomava with pliers, it came out the sides but refused to drip, instead hanging onto the sides of the pliers.   Harold thinks this is a very odd substance, and even wonders if it might be an organic life form?   While the rest of the party researched, Philip waited outside of Bawdy Bill's to speak to Marisa. He made a small fire (in the middle of the square?!) and ate some beans. When she left work at 1:30am he approached her and was rejected: "Stay away or your stain will be on me too!"   Philip goes to the barn to retrieve his boots and decides to sleep there. As he sits, thinking and absentmindedly twirling a scalpel, he catches a glimpse of his reflection. There's a strange black circle on his lips and tongue, outlining the area where a certain gun barrel pressed against him. He tries to clean it to no avail, and then scrapes at it with the scalpel. He even excises a small piece of flesh and cauterizes the wound, only to see the circle continue, unbroken, over the cauterized area. (He stored the piece of flesh in a vial of banshee bitch to check on it later.)

This week, on Under the Library: Harold/Jacker/Florence head off to visit Tonata (and we send Philip to wash and change) As we pass the general store Lloyd runs out and asks Harold to build him a cat urine collector.   The 3 arrive at Tonata's and listen at the door, hearing loud hammering. Jaker yells and Tonata comes to the door. She has dark hair, braided and pulled back, with goggles pushed up on her head and a heavy leather apron. Short sleeves reveal arms covered with tattoos of ideas, schematics, and inventions. (Harold definitely has a crush!) She speaks loudly because she's wearing ear plugs.   We learn that she has a history with Gerald (main town inventor), and that as his interest in lomava grew, he began to shut her out, assigning her to other projects while he studied lomava in secret. He kept a journal about his lomava research, and she knows he tried feeding it to animals (wolf, badger, dog, others... their urine glowed), and also tried using it as fuel. He even wanted to use it in Tonata's tattoo gun (one of her inventions), but she wouldn't let him.   Tonata has some lomava and offered to experiment on it for us, but because of the possible danger to her we declined.    Heading back to Bawdy Bills, Harold/Jacker/Florence meet a now clean Philip, who finally tells us about his experience in the brothel with Pete the Poet. Philip thinks lomava might somehow be the cause. As we head into Bawdy Bill's, Philip refuses to come. He opts to stay outside and check on the horses, and suggests the safe word "pancake time" (but we agreed on "pineapple").   Before entering the bar we run into Beau and Quentin. They share stories from the mining camp and we relate our conversation with Tonata. Inside Bawdy Bill's, we find a raucous scene and a very intoxicated Alfred Rose. Jaker takes the lead because they're good friends. Jaker has little luck though; Alfred is uncommunicative and grumpy. Jaker tries to intimidate him but ends up just laying on some Jewish guilt.   Finally Alfred shares that he delivers lomava but never actually touches it. However, he helps load the containers. He takes at least 4-5 barrels a day to the train. He looks pretty healthy, albeit drunk. He says "shit happens down in the mine".   During this conversation Marisa approaches Quentin and whispers "y'all shouldn't be here." Quentin determines that she doesn't know the Becker family (from the journal list of names). He then shares her warning with the group and we decide to leave and meet at Potter's Place to brainstorm.   BUT   As we head out, drunk Alfred insults Jaker's height and Jaker punches him in the face! They exchange blows and Quentin restrains Alfred while Florence drags Jaker out of the bar by his ear and scolds him like a child.   On the way out, Beau notices Marisa looking nervously biting a nail and Wanda pacing "with a shady look in her eye."   Harold sees Philip's boots by the horse barn (but no Philip?). Jaker steps in a pile of shit.    And...scene.  

Under the Library is a weekly recorded RPG/TTRPG game utilizing the Call of Cthulhu rule set. It is set on a fictitious earth (at least until the aliens arrive) where cosmic horror is steeped in mystery and slathered with self-deprecating humor. Our current campaign is Blood on the Rocks, an original weird west sandbox created by our Keeper and mispronouncer Michael Frank. Each week, Michael leads his friends (a motley crew of opera singers, DMs, puppet makers and serial killers) as they brave the mysteries and try not to die. The investigators of Bloodstone are Florence Potter, bookstore owner (Emily Mills-Woodruff), Beau Clermont, traveler and hunter (Chris Hogan), Quentin Berry, veteran and medic (Wayne Holt), Jaker VonHusher, coffin maker (Scott Stamper), Harold Rumsford, tinkerer/inventor (Arthur Rothfuss III), and Philip Awn Donner, mountainman (Rick Duthersford).   The members of Under The Library believe heartily in the narrative, improv and character building of roleplaying. Sometimes we stick our heads in front of trains because thats what our character would do, and when we look under the bed even the Keeper may not be sure what we'll find. We believe we're crafting a story, which creates flawed characters, suspenseful events, and fulfilling revelations. At it's heart, Call of Cthulhu is a horror TTRPG. Most people go insane or die horribly graphic deaths. It's for mature audiences, but don't expect us to act that way. Please join us Under the Library, as we explore, go insane, and make fun of each other because we're a great group of friends who love to tell amazing stories. 

Under the Library is a weekly recorded RPG/TTRPG game utilizing the Call of Cthulhu rule set. It is set on a fictitious earth (at least until the aliens arrive) where cosmic horror is steeped in mystery and slathered with self-deprecating humor. Our current campaign is Blood on the Rocks, an original weird west sandbox created by our Keeper and mispronouncer Michael Frank. Each week, Michael leads his friends (a motley crew of opera singers, DMs, puppet makers and serial killers) as they brave the mysteries and try not to die. The investigators of Bloodstone are Florence Potter, bookstore owner (Emily Mills-Woodruff), Beau Clermont, traveler and hunter (Chris Hogan), Quentin Berry, veteran and medic (Wayne Holt), Jaker VonHusher, coffin maker (Scott Stamper), Harold Rumsford, tinkerer/inventor (Arthur Rothfuss III), and Philip Awn Donner, mountainman (Rick Duthersford).   The members of Under The Library believe heartily in the narrative, improv and character building of roleplaying. Sometimes we stick our heads in front of trains because thats what our character would do, and when we look under the bed even the Keeper may not be sure what we'll find. We believe we're crafting a story, which creates flawed characters, suspenseful events, and fulfilling revelations. At it's heart, Call of Cthulhu is a horror TTRPG. Most people go insane or die horribly graphic deaths. It's for mature audiences, but don't expect us to act that way. Please join us Under the Library, as we explore, go insane, and make fun of each other because we're a great group of friends who love to tell amazing stories. 

Under the Library is a weekly recorded RPG/TTRPG game utilizing the Call of Cthulhu rule set. It is set on a fictitious earth (at least until the aliens arrive) where cosmic horror is steeped in mystery and slathered with self-deprecating humor. Our current campaign is Blood on the Rocks, an original weird west sandbox created by our Keeper and mispronouncer Michael Frank. Each week, Michael leads his friends (a motley crew of opera singers, DMs, puppet makers and serial killers) as they brave the mysteries and try not to die. The investigators of Bloodstone are Florence Potter, bookstore owner (Emily Mills-Woodruff), Beau Clermont, traveler and hunter (Chris Hogan), Quentin Berry, veteran and medic (Wayne Holt), Jaker VonHusher, coffin maker (Scott Stamper), Harold Rumsford, tinkerer/inventor (Arthur Rothfuss III), and Philip Awn Donner, mountainman (Rick Duthersford).   The members of Under The Library believe heartily in the narrative, improv and character building of roleplaying. Sometimes we stick our heads in front of trains because thats what our character would do, and when we look under the bed even the Keeper may not be sure what we'll find. We believe we're crafting a story, which creates flawed characters, suspenseful events, and fulfilling revelations. At it's heart, Call of Cthulhu is a horror TTRPG. Most people go insane or die horribly graphic deaths. It's for mature audiences, but don't expect us to act that way. Please join us Under the Library, as we explore, go insane, and make fun of each other because we're a great group of friends who love to tell amazing stories. 

On this episode of Under the Library:Cully leads Rutherford to the darkroom, located in the basement. On the way, two pictures catch Rutherford's attention. The first shows a young Richard arriving at university, obviously thrilled to be there. Cully, noticing the object of Rutherford's attention, shares that Richard hung this photo to encourage him to attend university. The second picture is of Richard and Cully together. Rutherford becomes emotional and promises to help Cully attend college however he can.Entering the darkroom, Rutherford examines the film and realizes that it's hand cut. Rutherford wonders why Richard had such specialized technology, in Rutherford's own wheelhouse, and never mentioned it to him. Upstairs, Franny wants to examine the filaments in a lab, She knows of a small lab that she could access after hours, but it's often used by a very difficult colleague. She and Bello decide to drive by the facility and see if the lab is available, and if not, pay a visit to Dr. Gardener (the vet who repaired Bello's arm).At the same time, Jo realizes that she doesn't know how Bello got his injuries and inquires, at first casually, but with growing intensity as she realizes she is being lied to. As the grilling of Bello continues in the kitchen, Rutherford continues to work in the darkroom and sees a face in the film.---------------------------------Under the Library, an actual-play Call of Cthulhu podcast, where cosmic horror is steeped in mystery and slathered with self-deprecating humor. Our main storyline, a sandbox created by our Keeper (Michael), is set in (a fictions) 1942 Los Alamos NM and follows the misadventures of Boone (Chris), Jo (Emily), Culligan (Scott), Bello (Rick), Rutherford (Wayne), and Franny (Artur). We focus on narrative, improv, and character building. We may stick our heads in front of a train because that's what our character would do, and when we look under the bed even the Keeper may not know what we'll find. We're crafting a story, creating flawed characters, suspenseful events, and fulfilling revelations. Call of Cthulhu is a horror TTRPG; characters die horribly graphic deaths. It's for mature audiences, but played by immature people.Background art on YouTube courtesy of the brilliant artist Andrii Shafetov.https://www.artstation.com/andriishafetov & AzDimension Virtual Technology from their game The Last Dead End available on Steam.

On this episode of Under the Library: Cully thought of Richard like a father and sobs, inconsolable, as he processes his death. Jo tries to comfort him with optimism and also a passage from her book, which brings him some calm and peace. They head back into the house, avoiding the worst of the carnage.Rutherford, searching the body, finds something sewn into the breast of Richard's jacket. It seems to be a small camera, probably with just one exposure, and Rutherford suspects the picture might hold a clue.Franny is still examining the filaments, and it's clear the sample in the jar is degrading faster than the filaments still connected to the body. Franny takes another sample, this one attached to a chunk of flesh.During the recent drama at the house, Boone has been in the Straits, disposing of the chicken-mobile. He then hitchhikes to Santa Fe with medical equipment salesman Fred Durskin, and takes a train from Santa Fe, headed towards Albuquerque. In the middle of the route he jumps off the train and sets off through the country to his family home.He asks his brother Duke to help him fix up the old family car, so he can give it to Bello in return for the one he torched. Duke isn't mobile, so Boone helps him sneak out of his window and uses a wagon to move him to the barn. Duke is a talented mechanic and in just a few hours has the car running again.Boone is triggered by his history and being back home, and he promises Duke he'll return in a few weeks for the Pie Festival. The engine starts loudly and wakes their mother, and Boone hops in and speeds away, leaving Duke to push himself back to the house in the wagon. Boone's guilt feels overwhelming.Finally, back at the house, Rutherford finds Cully and asks him to locate the darkroom. Cully says he'll only help if they will find the people who killed Richard. Jo supports him, and Rutherford agrees to this goal, but it's unclear whether everyone is really on the same page.Franny joines them, hearing a mention of clues, and says "I have a clue right here" as she holds the filament jar aloft.----------------------------------------Under the Library, an actual-play Call of Cthulhu podcast, where cosmic horror is steeped in mystery and slathered with self-deprecating humor. Our main storyline, a sandbox created by our Keeper (Michael), is set in (a fictions) 1942 Los Alamos NM and follows the misadventures of Boone (Chris), Jo (Emily), Culligan (Scott), Bello (Rick), Rutherford (Wayne), and Franny (Artur). We focus on narrative, improv, and character building. We may stick our heads in front of a train because that's what our character would do, and when we look under the bed even the Keeper may not know what we'll find. We're crafting a story, creating flawed characters, suspenseful events, and fulfilling revelations. Call of Cthulhu is a horror TTRPG; characters die horribly graphic deaths. It's for mature audiences, but played by immature people.Background art on YouTube courtesy of the brilliant artist Andrii Shafetov.https://www.artstation.com/andriishafetov & AzDimension Virtual Technology from their game The Last Dead End available on Steam.

On this Episode of Under the Library:   Rutherford puts Richard to bed after plying him with valium laced alcohol, and asks "who pushed you into the car?" Richard struggles to speak, eyes bulging, and his head explodes! Rutherford is covered in gore and his own eyes sting horribly. Bello, Jo, and Franny run in to see a headless Richard and blood covered Rutherford.    Rutherford runs to the bathroom to rinse his burning eyes while Franny investigates, finding strange veiny structures within Richard's brain matter. In the bathroom, Rutherford rubs at his eyes and scratches his cornea with a rogue bone fragment. He writhes on the floor in pain and experiences visions.    Back in the room Jo was hiding under the bed, but Bello coaxes her out and leads her from the room. She prevents Cully from seeing the carnage and instead brings him out to the patio.   Franny further examines the body, finding strange filaments where the spine would've come up; 3-4 threads still attached. She takes a sample. Rutherford examines the filaments and determines that they're not native to the body. He takes a blood sample. Bello finds all of this fascinating.    Outside on the patio, Jo opens her mysterious book to a random page. She reads "The idea is to give people something else to think about. Imagine a better world. Move beyond. Seek other realms." Lost in the storytelling, Jo daydreams that she's sitting in Georgia O'Keefe's studio, painting a human skull.   ------------------------   Bloodstone is an original Call of Cthulhu sandbox, designed by Under the Library's Keeper, and features weekly actual play / live play / real play sessions. Call of Cthulhu is a Horror Tabletop Roleplaying Game (TTRPG) similar to Dungeons & Dragons, which focuses on narrative development, gore, portals from beyond and servitors of the outer gods. If you're interested in becoming a cultist, you can join us at underthelibrary.com or patreon.com/underthelibrary.    Background art on YouTube courtesy of the brilliant artist Andrii Shafetov.   https://www.artstation.com/andriishafetov & AzDimension Virtual Technology from their game The Last Dead End available on Steam.

On this Episode of Under the Library:Boone takes Bello into the kitchen for an ear reattachment surgery. Jo and Cully check on Richard, who is sitting up and seems lucid. He provides an alternative explanation for his abduction, claiming that things got out of hand with some old college buddies. They were supposedly drinking at Arlene's, a local bar, so Franny calls to check out the story. Rutherford continues to question Richard, asking questions to catch him in lies or inconsistencies. Eventually Richard leaves the study and is shocked by the messy state of the house and the bloody kitchen. As he turns to leave, Jo follows him and asks questions about Hans Becker. Boone, realizing that the chicken-mobile conspicuously links them to the crime at the facility, drives it to the Straits and lights it on fire. Franny takes Jo aside to discuss the tension between them and they agree to move past it. They also agree that the best next step for the party is a trip to Abiquiu. Richard seems to be in significant pain, so Cully and Rutherford take him to bed. Rutherford asks "who pushed you into the car?"------------------------Bloodstone is an original Call of Cthulhu sandbox, designed by Under the Library's Keeper, and features weekly actual play / live play / real play sessions. Call of Cthulhu is a Horror Tabletop Roleplaying Game (TTRPG) similar to Dungeons & Dragons, which focuses on narrative development, gore, portals from beyond and servitors of the outer gods. If you're interested in becoming a cultist, you can join us at underthelibrary.com or patreon.com/underthelibrary. Background art on YouTube courtesy of the brilliant artist Andrii Shafetov.https://www.artstation.com/andriishafetov & AzDimension Virtual Technology from their game The Last Dead End available on Steam.

On this Episode of Under the Library:   Outside of the gate to the facility, Jo and Boone start advertising chicken using the megaphone. From inside, Bello can hear them. He heads towards a group of people in the parking lot and starts to make innocent conversation, asking what happened. A woman responds, asking him what department he's from. She seems to know people in food service, and immediately knew he was lying when he claimed to be a new hire.   Bello discovers that he's speaking to Paula Bradford, the woman he was supposed to meet with earlier. Aware of his lie and afraid he might be connected to the fire, Paula starts yelling for help. Bello punches her in the throat and she passes out. In response, 3 or 4 bystanders throw themselves on Bello and tackle him to the ground.   Jo and Boone, still outside in the chicken-mobile, drive around to find a less populated entrance since there's clearly a lot going on at the main gate. (They don't realize that Bello is in the middle of the commotion.)   Back at the house Cully cares for Richard as he sleeps, taking copious notes. He also searches the bedroom. Dreaming, Richard mumbles "but why? You know I've never said a word. It's not necessary!"    Cully finds a compartment containing a sealed envelope with a wax seal. He, Franny, and Rutherford open the envelope to find a very average looking key. Cully knows that Richard leaves town often, and Rutherford has received letters postmarked Abiquiu, so they conclude that the key relates to a property there.   At the facility, a giant boom causes a stampede, further injuring Bello and trampling Paula Bradford. Bello can't find a pulse. He limps out and rejoins Jo and Boone.   At the same time, Franny and Rutherford search the rest of Richard's house. Rutherford notices a painting in the foyer with a massive 2500 pictured, and Franny finds "Modern St" written inside the envelope with the key. Now they have an address!   The chicken-mobile returns to the house and Jo and Cully reunite. Everyone heads inside to debrief.   ------------------------   Bloodstone is an original Call of Cthulhu sandbox, designed by Under the Library's Keeper, and features weekly actual play / live play / real play sessions. Call of Cthulhu is a Horror Tabletop Roleplaying Game (TTRPG) similar to Dungeons & Dragons, which focuses on narrative development, gore, portals from beyond and servitors of the outer gods. If you're interested in becoming a cultist, you can join us at underthelibrary.com or patreon.com/underthelibrary.    Background art on YouTube courtesy of the brilliant artist Andrii Shafetov.   https://www.artstation.com/andriishafetov & AzDimension Virtual Technology from their game The Last Dead End available on Steam.

On this Episode of Under the Library:Outside of town, Franny wakes in the back of the truck and wants to talk to Sam. She knows she may be contaminated with the same thing that killed Richard, and she senses that Sam plans to do something about it. She says she can't let him do it, asks for his gun, and asks him to leave her alone. Franny sends Sam off with an envelope and a promise to deliver it to Jo. As he drives away, he hears a gunshot.At the house, Boone tells Cully he plans to leave. He doesn't trust himself now that he's drinking again, and he wants the kids to be safe. He gives Cully a polished stone as a memento and then walks off in the direction of the train station.Sam gives Joe the letter. On the outside, Franny has written a note explaining she had to act for everyone's safety, and that Sam is a good man. Jo shares the note with Cully, who tells her that it's become too much for him and he has to leave. Before he goes, Carly suggests they look in Richard's safe. Inside the safe is an unmarked, sealed envelope, laying on some files, film, and other things. The letter, addressed to F & R, includes explanations, apologies, and instructions to be carried out after his death. There's also a deed signing his Los Alamos house over to Cully. As we close our second season, Cully leaves for Los Alamos to take care of the house, Sam leaves contact information and returns to his family, and Jo decides to stay with Carly and Stephanie for a while in Abiquiu.------------------------Under the Library, an actual-play Call of Cthulhu podcast, where cosmic horror is steeped in mystery and slathered with self-deprecating humor. Our main storyline, a sandbox created by our Keeper (Michael), is set in (a fictions) 1942 Los Alamos NM and follows the misadventures of Boone (Chris), Jo (Emily), Culligan (Scott), Bello (Rick), Rutherford (Wayne), and Franny (Artur). We focus on narrative, improv, and character building. We may stick our heads in front of a train because that's what our character would do, and when we look under the bed even the Keeper may not know what we'll find. We're crafting a story, creating flawed characters, suspenseful events, and fulfilling revelations. Call of Cthulhu is a horror TTRPG; characters die horribly graphic deaths. It's for mature audiences, but played by immature people.Background art on YouTube courtesy of the brilliant artist Andrii Shafetov.https://www.artstation.com/andriishafetov & AzDimension Virtual Technology from their game The Last Dead End available on Steam.

On this Episode of Under the Library:Jo, Cully, and Franny enter the kitchen to talk to Boone. Still quite drunk, Boone speaks freely about exploding heads, and although Jo tries to cover Cully's ears, Boone's words still anger him. Cully storms out, Joe following, and when they encounter Rutherford in the hall Jo encourages him to offer Franny medical care.As Rutherford attempts to help Franny, the piercing head pain returns and his eye bursts, spraying her with gore. The kids help Franny to the bathroom to wash herself while Boone helps Rutherford to the garage.Boone and Rutherford encounter Sam in the garage, and Rutherford refuses Sam's offer of medical assistance. Rutherford is afraid he might be contagious and doesn't want to spread the malady. He asks Sam to move his truck so Rutherford can leave in the car (with two bodies in the trunk) and take the blame on himself. Rutherford drives erratically out of town and hears sirens behind him. When he pulls over, Mulvaney approaches his window and as they talk. It goes poorly.Back at the house, Jo, Cully, and Sam decide that Franny needs more medical care. Jo describes the route to the local doctor she knew 6 years ago, and Sam agrees to drive. He orders the kids to stay in the house for safety, and leaves with Franny in the back of the truck. Instead of driving to the doctor Sam heads out of town, pulls over by the Barbasol billboard, and…------------------------Under the Library, an actual-play Call of Cthulhu podcast, where cosmic horror is steeped in mystery and slathered with self-deprecating humor. Our main storyline, a sandbox created by our Keeper (Michael), is set in (a fictions) 1942 Los Alamos NM and follows the misadventures of Boone (Chris), Jo (Emily), Culligan (Scott), Bello (Rick), Rutherford (Wayne), and Franny (Artur). We focus on narrative, improv, and character building. We may stick our heads in front of a train because that's what our character would do, and when we look under the bed even the Keeper may not know what we'll find. We're crafting a story, creating flawed characters, suspenseful events, and fulfilling revelations. Call of Cthulhu is a horror TTRPG; characters die horribly graphic deaths. It's for mature audiences, but played by immature people.Background art on YouTube courtesy of the brilliant artist Andrii Shafetov.https://www.artstation.com/andriishafetov & AzDimension Virtual Technology from their game The Last Dead End available on Steam.