Assignment Report - CoOA-25521 (Emperor's Totem)

Assignment ID: CoOA-25521 Report Date: November 16th, 1907

Lightkeeper: Quinten Daalmans Circle Of: Obscurantist Actors

Report Filled By: Trigg Boodle

Assigned Circle Members

'Ol one Eyed Pete	Sebri Ploephonk	Trigg Boodle
Corleone Waters

Did you contain or destroy a source of Bleed? Yes: [X] No: [ ]

Did you provide comfort or support for those affected by a phenomenon?   Yes: [ ] No: [X]

Did you bring something of importance back for Candela Obscura to protect or study?   Yes: [X] No: [ ]

Assignment Summary

Sebri brought back, with breakfast, a story of her previous evening at my alma mater. An old language, the language of the lost empire, was spoken at the fundraising event: “Man yatlub maerifati? man yurid quti? man yakhudh hadayay?” which translates roughly to: “Who seeks my knowledge? Who wants my power? Who will take my gifts?”

After Sebri sent notes to all of the archeologists that were at the past night’s fundraising event, we headed back to the college to try and talk to who we can find on campus. Dr. May Dean, an archaeologist focused on the studies on the lost empire’s currency, set back a note to accompany them for afternoon tea.

Separately, we headed to the campus – Sebri in her carriage, Pete arriving early in the morning under the effective guise as a facility technician, and Corleone in the back of my pedicab as I peddled easier than normal with only one person in the seat.

When we arrived through the main hall, we saw the archeologist arguing at the end of the room. Upon listening to them and approaching them for conversation, we learned that the Lost Empire Emperor’s totem had gone missing. Prof. Yelda Coorloan told us about her hypothesis that a fungus had infiltrated the Lost Empire somehow so deeply that it caused the fall of the empire itself. She believed that the totem itself held samples of the aforementioned fungus due to its material makeup.

We headed to Dr. May Dean’s office to meet with her for afternoon tea. Across the floor, there are dozens of maps sprawled out. We learned that wood was the most imported resource for the Lost Empire. Dr. Dean provided me with a coin so that we could review it further, and they advised as well that they did not have any idea about the appearance of the entity. While Pete was fixing up some maintenance request, he saw flickering lights across the courtyard.

We left Dean’s classroom and moved across the campus building with my compass reacting up until the moment we arrived to the room in question. Pete was able to unlock the room with his facility keys, and we entered the room. The compass stopped prior to us arriving, but once we arrived to the room it began move fervently again. I reviewed the books on the shelves and found one titled “Rituals of Seals” that was signed on pages by Dr. Lucas Mayweather. Nothing else in the room alerted my compass, so we headed down the hall to Prof. Theodore Racklin’s office. 

Racklin mentioned a new interest in rituals, and we discovered he “burned” himself on some coffee. Corleone began to help and investigated the bandage, and Racklin was not pleased. He attempted to cast a spell on Pete, but Pete was able to dodge away before I punched him in the throat and held him down with my boot.

A tome fell to the ground and we saw purple eyes and a figure appear, arms crossed, and wind began swirling around the room. Sebri attempted to obtain the tome and the golden rod, and the lightning from inside the figure’s swirling presence attacked her. Racklin, from under me, moved to strike Sebri, and I crushed him under my feet, killing him immediately. Pete cast a spell on the entity that appeared behind/next to Racklin. We quickly pulled ourselves together, removed the body carefully, and returned to Quinten with the book and body.

Injuries (If Yes, Explain Below) Yes: [ ] No: [X]

Notes of Importance

Trigg will not be attempting a relationship with any future suggestions from Sebri.

Items and/or People Recovered

Theodore Racklin's body and totem of the lost empire turned over to Candela Obscura.

Lightkeeper's Notes

This is extremely upsetting news to hear artifacts from the Lost Empire are making their way to Newfaire. Why hasn't the Circle of Hapless Wanderers sent a report about this expedition to the Saren Desert? Are there even more underway we don't know about? Why didn't the Circle of the Bronzed Brass intercept the vessels before they made it all the way here? More importantly, and personally, why didn't Opal tell me about this?

Has my relationship with the Briarbank College really deteriorated so much I don't merit, at the very least, a warning about a potentially dangerous artifact. Based on the state of things I doubt any of the other Circles were given any heads up by their contacts. We are very lucky Ms. Ploephonk was invited, and attended, the initial event. Otherwise this could have gotten out of hand very quickly.

This might merit a message to the Council of Lightkeepers. I hesitate only because of my previous false alarms. But if there is even the slightest chance Sally has escaped the Saren Desert we must act. It would be disastrous if she makes it back to Newfaire once again.

Museo Egizio, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Royal_cubit_rod_of_Kha.jpg

Prof. Mortel, Exhibit Hall in the Egyptian Museum, Cairo, Coloration by Michael DeBondt, CC BY 2.0