DISCLAIMER: The characters of Rex Buckland and Hannah Webster are the property of Spelling Productions and were created by Constance M. Burge. The characters of Randolph Carter and all Cthulhu Mythos characters are the property of the estate of H.P. Lovecraft.
THE PLACE: ARKHAM, MASSACHUSETTS
THE TIME: MAY 22nd, 2018
"There we go, Staci," Hannah Webster said. She and her friend, Staci Clarke, were in Hannah's home office, located on the second floor of the home that she and her husband, Rex Buckland, lived in, a few miles outside of Arkham. "These are all the cases I've reviewed over the past year."
"You know, Hannah, I still find this amazing," Staci said as she began to examine the files. Over the past few months, Staci had more or less become Hannah's de facto assistant as the continued to work on uncovering Arkham's dark secrets. This, Hannah hoped, would uncover a lead as to how the Old Ones could be brought back to Earth.
"Yeah, Staci, I guess it would be for a novice such as yourself."
"I mean I've been part of the Inner Circle for a while now, yet there is still much I never knew about my home town," Staci replied.
"Well, I just hope it helps us find out what Johanna Martense and Herbert West are up to. We haven't seen a trace of them in ages," Hannah said grimly.
"I can't believe that anyone would want to release the Old Ones," Staci said, shaking her head. "I mean, from what you and Rex have told me, it sounds like they don't have humanity's best interests at heart."
"No, Staci, they don't. However, Johanna Martense and Herbert West believe they do, or rather they want to believe it, which makes them just as dangerous. And I feel like we're running out of time."
"Well, then we better get back to work," Staci said and resumed reading the files.
OOOOOOOO
At that same time, Rex Buckland was downstairs in his study, reading an account from the records of the Inner Circle. The account was that of an expedition led by a man named Peter Lake, who believed that an ancient city, called Yoh-Vombis, existed somewhere in the interior of Greenland. It was there that Lake had led his expedition in 1883. Whether or not Lake ever found the city was a question that was never answered, as neither Lake, nor anyone in his expedition, were ever heard from again. I don't know about any lost city, but the Greenland interior is one of the locations of a Mi-go habitat. I'm guessing that this Lake chap and those with him found it, much to their misfortune, Rex thought to himself. He was about to resume reading, when his computer beeped, indicated that someone was calling him on Skype. Rex quickly opened a Skype window and found the Dean of Miskatonic University, Richard Pickman, on the screen. "Dean Pickman, how can I help you?" Rex asked.
"Rex, something has come up, something that I think runs up your alley," Pickman said.
"I see. Is this university business or Circle business?"
"A bit of both, I think," Pickman replied. "Are you familiar with Professor Nathan Howell?"
"I've seen his name on the staff roster at Miskatonic, but I've never actually met him." Rex replied.
"Not surprising, considering that he's been working on a special project in England these past few years."
"And how does this involve the Inner Circle? Is he a member?" Rex asked.
"No, but he does know about us," Pickman said. "That is why I'm contacting you about this. You see, two weeks ago, we lost all contact with Professor Howell and David Abbott, the graduate student who was working with him. All attempts to contact either one of them have gone unanswered."
"Why not contact the local constabulary, or the American Embassy about this?" Rex asked.
"It's because of the nature of the project he was working on," Pickman replied.
"Tell me more," Rex said.
OOOOOOOO
Hannah and Staci were still working, when Rex came into Hannah's office. "Rex, what is it?" Hannah asked.
"I just got some interesting information from Dean Pickman," Rex replied. "Hannah, can you put your journalistic skills to use and see what you can find on William Delapore and Exham Priory? The Priory is located in the west of England. "
"Sure, no problem," Hannah said and turned to her computer.
"You two make a good team," Staci said.
"Yes, I suppose we do," Rex said. "I handle the ancient texts and scrolls."
"And I handle the modern side of things," Hannah said, still at the computer. Ten minutes later, she had the results of her search. "Here is what I found." Hannah pointed to the computer screen. "According to this account, in 1923, William Delapore, the last descendant of the De la Poer family, moved from the United States to his ancestral estate in England, after his son, Alfred, was killed in the First World War. He restored the estate, called Exham Priory, that his family had owned since the 13th Century, and moved in. Not long after, Delapore claimed that he and his cat frequently heard the sounds of rats scurrying behind the walls."
"Yikes! Must have been a lot of rats," Staci said, wincing.
"Yeah, it must have been," Hannah replied and then continued. "Upon investigating further, Delapore apparently learned that his family maintained an underground city for centuries, which was located in the catacombs beneath Exham Priory. There they had raised generations of "human cattle" to supply their taste for human flesh. This was stopped when Delapore's ancestor, Walter De la Poer, killed his entire family in their sleep and then fled to the New World, in the late 1600's. Exham Priory was abandoned from that point, until William Delapore decided to reclaim it in 1923."
"And, at some point after that, the spelling of the family name was changed from De la Poer to Delapore," Rex said, nodding his head.
"Human cattle!?" Staci said with disgust on her face. "What the hell was going on with that family?"
"Believe me, Staci, Hannah and I have heard worse," Rex said. "Still, it sounds like Walter De la Poer did a good thing when he finally put a stop to his family's activities."
"Yeah, he sure did," Hannah said and then continued her narration. "Anyway, according to the account, Delapore, a friend named Edward Norrys, and a few other men, found the way into the underground city, beneath Exham Priory, and started to explore it. However, things did not end well. Apparently maddened by the revelations of his family's past and his anger over his son's death, Delapore attacked Norrys in the underground city and killed him. Delapore then began eating him while rambling in a mixture of Middle English, Latin, and Gaelic. Delapore was subsequently subdued by the other men in the group. Soon after, Exham Priory was blown up by the locals. As for Delapore, he was placed in a mental institution, where he remained for the rest of his life."
"Well, that was a grim story," Staci said. "This guy blamed his friend for his son's death. Why did he do that?"
"According to Delapore, Edward Norrys had befriended his son, Alfred, when Alfred went over to fight in the war. Delapore seemingly had lingering anger over the fact that Norrys lived, while Alfred died." Hannah paused, and then continued. "Bear in mind, this account comes from William Delapore's own testimony, after he was locked up. So no one believed him about the underground city."
"Someone must have," Rex pointed out. "They went through the trouble of blowing up Exham Priory, after all."
"According to the locals, the place had a sinister reputation," Hannah replied. "None of the locals were too thrilled when Delapore showed up, restored it, and moved in. They felt that the place was better off left alone."
"They might have been right, if even half of what you just told us is true," Staci said, wrapping her arms about herself.
"So, what is this all about, Rex?" Hannah asked.
"According to Dean Pickman, a Professor named Nathan Howell and a graduate student, named David Abbott, were excavating the remains of Exham Priory, when both of them apparently disappeared, a couple of weeks ago. Given the background of Exham Priory, Dean Pickman felt that we should look into it."
"Sure, I'm up for it," Hannah said.
"Jolly good. A private plane has been chartered for us, and Mister Carter will be accompanying us."
"I'm coming too," Staci said with determination.
"Staci..." Hannah began.
"Hannah, I know what you're going to say. However, I am part of the Inner Circle now, and I'll have to get my hands dirty sooner or later."
"Staci, this could be dangerous," Rex said.
"I know, but I'm still coming. I don't run out on my friends, friend who have saved my life on a couple of occasions."
"Well, Staci, since you put it that way, okay," Hannah said.
"I have no problem with you coming either, Staci," Rex said. "We better start packing. We leave first thing in the morning."
OOOOOOOO
BRITAIN
MAY 24th
After having been flown over to Britain, and given a day to rest up, Rex, Hannah, Randolph Carter, and Staci were now headed to the ruins of Exham Priory in a rented car. "So, Rex, how does it feel to be back in your home country?" Hannah asked.
"I don't know, Hannah," Rex replied. "Usually, I'm only here now on adventures. I've never had the time to take it easy and look around."
"Well, perhaps when this is over," Hannah said.
"Perhaps," Rex said.
"How long until we arrive at Exham Priory?" Randolph asked from the back seat, where he and Staci were riding.
"About forty minutes now," Rex replied.
"I wonder what we'll find when we get there?" Staci asked. "Do you think that this Professor Howell guy and..." she searched for the name.
"David Abbott," Hannah said.
"Yeah, David Abbott. Do you think they're okay?"
"I don't know, Staci," Rex said. "I suppose we'll find out soon enough."
"I've done my own digging into Professor Howell," Randolph said. "Apparently, he was interested in the story of the Delapore family for years. He badgered the university for ages, to give him a grant so he could go and investigate Exham Priory. I think they finally did it just to shut him up."
"Why didn't he ask other members of that family for information?" Staci asked.
"Because the line ended with Alfred Delapore, and William had no more children," Hannah replied. "At least none that I could find a trace of. Mind you, I had little time to do the research, and the older records leave much to be desired. Hopefully, we'll find the answers when we get to Exham Priory."
OOOOOOOO
Forty minutes later, the little group arrived at the ruins of Exham Priory. The four of them slowly got out of the car and approached the camp site, that had been set up next to the ruins. "Everything looks in order here," Rex said as they began to poke through the campsite.
"Hey, I found something!" Staci said as she held up a Blackberry. "Looks like this belonged to that David Abbott guy. Here is the last recording." Staci activated the Blackberry and the face of a young man appeared on it.
"Jackpot!" the young man said. "The Professor just told me that he's found something big. This may be just what we're looking for." The recording ended.
"And that's it," Staci said. "There are no more entries."
"When was that entry recorded?" Hannah asked.
"Two weeks ago," Staci replied as she checked the date on the recording.
"Just before they disappeared," Randolph said.
"So, it would seem," Rex said. He slowly walked towards the ruins and soon spotted what appeared to be an entrance to a cavern. "Hello, what's this?"
"This must be where whatever they found was located," Hannah said. "I guess that they went in there to confirm the find."
"Then that is where we go," Rex said and turned to the group. "Right, flashlights everyone." They all produced the flashlights that they had brought along.
"Once more into the breach," Hannah said as the group proceeded into the cave.
OOOOOOOO
The cave was very dark, and the flashlights only partly lit the way in front of them. However, as they walked, the group did notice something. "We seem to be travelling downwards," Randolph said.
"I noticed that too," Staci replied.
"I wonder how long this tunnel has been here," Hannah said.
"Hard to tell," Rex said as he examined the wall. "This rock looks very smooth, so it could have been here for decades, centuries even." With that, he led them onwards.
OOOOOOOO
It was a city, that is the only way what the group found, in the vast cavern at the end of the tunnel could be described. It was a city, vastly old, and abandoned for centuries. "Whoa!" Hannah said as she pulled out her digital camera and began snapping pictures. For our records, she thought.
"Wow, look at this place," Staci said. "It must have been built centuries ago."
"So, it's all true," Hannah said grimly. "The underground city that the Delapore family kept people down here in and ate them."
"Actually, it was more than just them," Rex said. He pointed to part of the ruins. "Those bits look Norman." He pointed to another part. "Saxon." Another part. "Roman." And finally. "And the rest looks Ancient Celtic or Druidic."
"So, one group would just come here and build on top of the buildings left over from a previous group?" Hannah asked.
"Yes, Hannah, it would seem so."
"But that means that whatever was going on here..." Hannah trailed off.
"Had been going on for a very long time," Rex finished. "The Delapore family just picked up where the previous inhabitants had left off. Or..."
"Or?"
"Or they were always here, only they just hadn't adopted the Delapore, or should I say, De la Poer name yet," Rex said. "The farther back one goes, the more scant the records become. Yes, it is possible that the family was here long before the 13th Century, when they officially took ownership of this place."
Is this spooky or what? Staci thought as she shined her flashlight around the ruins. And where are those two guys we came here to find?
"Although I'm reluctant to suggest this, it would seem that the best way we can search these ruins is to split up," Rex said. "Hannah and I will go that way," he indicated a direction. "Randolph, you and Staci go that way," he indicated another direction. "If either of you see anything, give us a yell," Rex went on. He took out a piece of chalk and marked their position. "We meet back here in an hour. Any questions?" Randolph and Staci shook their heads. "Right, let's move out."
OOOOOOOO
"You know, Rex, I'm puzzled," Hannah said as she and Rex explored part of the ruins.
"What about, Hannah?" Rex asked.
"All this," she indicated the ruins around them. "I mean how could it go on for so long? Surely someone, at some point, must have noticed something."
"Someone possible did," Rex said. "However, in the old days, it was much easier to bribe those in Officialdom to look the other way. And, the farther back you go, the more scattered the human settlements become. At one point, no one in authority would have any idea of what was happening here, because it was so far away."
"So, I guess..." Hannah began, but broke off and gasped.
"What is it, Hannah?" Rex asked.
"There, a body. I think it's the graduate student, David Abbott." Hannah pointed her flashlight to an alcove, to the right of the two former Warlocks, and a dead body was revealed.
"You're right, Hannah," Rex said as he went over and examined the body. "I'm no expect, but I'd say this poor chap has been dead for possibly a week, or ten days."
"Rex, it is just me, or does he looked like he's been partially...eaten."
"No, Hannah, it's not you," Rex replied grimly. "It seems that whatever was going on here in the past may have started again."
"And Professor Howell and this guy, David Abbott, fell victim to it," Hannah said and began to look around. Damn, I was hoping his spirit would still be here, so we could question him, however, he must have crossed over. Looks like we're going to have to do this the hard way, she thought.
"Hannah, I think we better find Randolph and Staci," Rex said. "I'm getting a very bad feeling about all this."
"Me too," Hannah replied. "Let's go."
OOOOOOOO
"This part looks older than the rest of the ruins," Staci said as she and Randolph entered what appeared to be a temple of some kind.
"I agree," Randolph said. "I'm guessing that this is the original city, what's left of it, before the other cultures came and added to it." He paused and then asked. "How are you holding up, Staci?"
"Well, I have to admit, this is kind of scary," Staci said. "And you guys, the Inner Circle, do this all the time?"
"No, not all the time. Most of the time we just do research, and seek out old books and scrolls that mainstream Academia ignores."
"That's what Rex does," Staci said.
"I know, that is one of the reasons we wanted him in the Circle," Randolph. "He's been quite an asset to us since then."
"And Hannah too," Staci pointed out.
"Of course."
"I just hope that more women will join, since she and I were admitted," Staci said.
"I'm sure that..." Randolph paused and shined his flashlight ahead of them. "Well, this is interesting."
Staci shined her own flashlight in the same direction and saw what had attracted Randolph's attention. On an alter in front of them was a statue, a statue of a being that looked like a giant bipedal squid. "What on Earth is that?" Staci asked.
"That, Staci, is a statue of Cthulhu, the most powerful of the Old Ones," Randolph said grimly.
"The Old Ones? The same Old Ones that Rex and Hannah are worried about?"
"Yes, those Old Ones," Randolph said. "This is more serious than we thought."
"Magnificent, isn't it," a new voice uttered out of the shadows.
Randolph and Staci whirled around to see a middle aged man emerge from the darkness behind them. "You're Professor Howell!" Randolph said.
"I am," Howell replied. "And you two are?"
"I'm Staci Clarke," Staci replied and indicated Randolph. "This is Randolph Carter. We're part of a group that came here looking for you."
"A group? There are more of you?" Howell asked.
"Indeed there is," Rex said as he and Hannah arrived. "I'm Rex Buckland, and this is my wife, Hannah Webster."
"Well, at least one of them is alive," Hannah said.
"One of them?" Staci began. "You mean..."
"David Abbott, the graduate student. Yes, I'm afraid he's dead," Rex said. "Hannah and I found his body." Rex turned to Howell. "Do you know what happened to him?"
"I might, but that's not important," Howell said.
Not important? Hannah thought. This guy doesn't seem to care that his assistant is dead. What is going on here?
"There's more," Rex said. "Mr. Abbott was not only murdered, but he seemed to have been partially eaten as well."
"Eaten?" Staci said.
"Yes, just like what used to happen here, long ago," Hannah said grimly. "History has repeated itself."
Meanwhile, Howell had walked up to the statue of Cthulhu. "They worshipped the Old Ones, the original builders of this city," Howell said in a dreamy voice. "As others came to Britain over the centuries, the Romans, the Saxons, the Normans, there were always those among them that were willing to join the cult that flourished here."
"The cult that eventually became the De la Poer family," Rex said.
"Yes, that is correct," Howell said. "What a noble family they were."
"Noble!? They ATE people!" Staci said.
"Yes, but only those of the lowest class, those that would not be missed."
"And that justifies it?" Staci asked.
"You seem very invested in this, Professor Howell." Randolph pointed out.
"Yes, why is that?" Rex asked.
"What do all of you know about the De la Poer family?" Howell asked.
"I was the one that did the research," Hannah replied and proceeded to recite the grim history of the De la Poer family.
"You did well, Ms. Webster," Howell said, once Hannah had finished. "Yes, Walter De la Poer did flee to the New World, after slaughtering his family, where he started the line that became the Delapore one. However, before he started that branch, Walter sired an illegitimate son, and that child started a branch of his own. In time, a descendant of that illegitimate son began to get curious about his family background."
"And you're that descendant," Rex said, putting the pieces together.
"Correct," Howell said with triumph in is voice. "I am Nathan Howell De la Poer!"
"So that's why you badgered the university to give you a grant to investigate this place," Randolph said. "You knew the whole time what was here."
"And why not?" Howell said. "I mean I had every right to come back and reclaimed my heritage."
"Your heritage?" Rex said. I don't like the sound of this, he thought.
"Yes, my heritage!" Howell said, a glint of madness coming into his eyes. "For thousands of years, my ancestors worshipped the Old Ones. No one could stop them, not the Romans, not the Saxons, and not the Normans. No, it only took one traitor, within the family, to end a glorious legacy."
"If you ask me, Walter De la Poer did a good thing," Hannah said. "Your ancestors were sick and demented."
"Nobody asked you, you brazen hussy!" Howell said as he pulled a long knife out of his pocket.
"It was you. You killed David Abbott, didn't you," Rex said.
"He wanted to stop me from reclaiming what is rightfully mine," Howell said, his voice getting louder. "And he made a tasty snack afterwards."
"A tasty snack?" Staci asked, her face going a little green.
"Yes, Staci," Hannah said grimly. "Professor Howell here is the one that ate the remains of his own assistant." .
"Bah! What is the life of one worthless human, when it comes to the Old Ones," Howell said and turned to the statue of Cthulhu. "The Old Ones be praised!"
"So, you're one of those fools that think the Old Ones will be beneficial to humanity," Rex said, shaking his head. "I don't know whether to loathe you or pity you."
"Save your pity," Howell said. "The Old Ones can teach us things that we'd never learn on our own. Human science could leap ahead hundreds, if not thousands, of years!"
"Yes, I've heard this speech before," Rex said. "And I'd tell you that you are wrong, that the Old Ones do not want to help us, but want to conquer and destroy us. However, I'd be wasting my time, right."
"Correct," Howell said.
Was he this mad the whole time, or did discovering his true family background drive him that way. Was madness always the curse of the De la Poer line? Well, if the Old Ones are involved, I guess the answer is yes, Rex thought.
"Of course, I can't let any of you leave here," Howell said. "Not after all that you have seen. Can't repeat the mistakes of the past."
"And I suppose we'll become your dinner," Randolph said.
"Some of you will," Howell said, and then eyed up Hannah and Staci. "However, the females will have another purpose. Which of you ladies will do me the honour of becoming the mother of a new branch of the De la Poer family?"
"You have got to be kidding!" Staci said.
"I'm afraid he isn't, Staci," Hannah said. "He needs a woman to have a child with, and looks like we're in the running."
"Well, forget it, buster," Staci said to Howell. "I wouldn't have a child with you if you were the last man on Earth!"
"Well, that's too bad," Howell said and turned to Hannah. "And how about you?"
"Well, first of all, I'm happily married," Hannah said and smiled at Rex. "Second of all, even if I wasn't, my position in regards to you is the same as Staci's. Third of all, I'd like to show you a little trick." With that, Hannah morphed into a huge lion and pounced on Howell, before Howell had a chance to react. Within seconds, it was over.
"Is he..." Randolph began.
"No, he's just knocked out," Hannah replied as she reverted to human form.
"Then I suggest we find a rope and tie Professor Nathan Howell De la Poer up," Rex suggested.
"I'm on it," Randolph said as he pulled a rope out of his back pack and began to tie the unconscious Howell up.
Meanwhile, Staci was staring at Hannah. "Hannah... You..."
"Turned into a lion? Yeah, I can turn into any member of the cat family," Hannah replied. "I was eventually going to tell you, Staci, but not like this."
"I hope you're not scared, Staci," Rex said.
"No, in fact, I think it's cool," Staci said. "What a power!"
If only other people were so accepting, Rex thought. The history of magic might be a lot less bloody.
"That should hold him," Randolph said as he finished tying Howell up.
"Well, now what?" Staci asked.
"Well, first of all, we turn this demented chap over to the proper authorities," Rex replied, indicating the unconscious Howell. "Then we make arrangements for the remains the unfortunate David Abbott to be returned to his family for burial. Finally, we make sure that the entrance to this underground city is permanently sealed."
"The Inner Circle will see to that," Randolph said. "No one else will ever be able to find this place again."
"And then we go home," Hannah said. "Go home and relax, for now at least."
"Yes, for now at least," Rex said as he looked at the little group. Because I get a strong feeling that the we're on the brink of entering the final end game against the Old Ones.
REX AND HANNAH WILL RETURN!