Will need to look more carefully through that timeline and such at some point. Though on that note apparently the current name for the Crying Child is Dave.
Quite easy to compare Mannie and Vanny.
Also while looking I completely forgot that Dokie Dokie Literature Club does have a canon company who was behind it's creation. It's name was Metaverse Enterprise Solutions/Team Salvato. Main other thing I've come across is a Urban Legend with a Sinneslöschen corporation and a arcade machine called Polybius who did a limited release in Portland, Oregon. Could also refer to it as Sense-Deletion Corporation. TvTropes says the name is bad German.
Ah, of course. Look, until either we get a theory that I a hundred percent feel confident agreeing with or it's outright confirmed, I'm most confident just not assigning a name, not even an original, one.
Team Salvato appears to be the real world group behind DDLC, and I was unable to find any examples of them being mentioned in-game. However, I've made a note of MES. Also, the Urban Legend of Polybius has been added for consideration.
Jonathan and Jamie took a moment to look out the tinted windows, then, with a nod, both stepped out of the beat-up old 1990-model Buick LeSabre that the Halloways simply called 'the car' and into the swirling chaos of Glenwood cemetery. A picket of YCPD (Yazoo City Police Department) and YCSO (Yazoo County Sheriff's Office) officers in their dark grey-blue uniforms attempt (attempt very much being the operative word) to cordon off the site of the 'Witch's Grave' and keep out the gawking tourists, a large group of (mostly white) city residents and the disheveled preacher currently whipping them up into a fiery storm with a (slightly racism tinted) screed along the lines of "See now, how this vile Witch has returned!? Repent now for soon this city shall no doubt burn once more!", and a different, larger group of (much more multiracial) residents also seemingly lead by a different more put together looking priest, who is actively shouting condemnations back at the other crowd.
The pair quickly move towards then push past the arguing crowds, before being promptly stopped by a YCPD officer. "Area's closed. Move along." "But-" Jon is stopped by a wave of his mother's hand, who quickly whispers in his ear, "Let me handle this." She clears her throat, straightens out her back, before stepping up to the officer, opening her coat to show it's interior pocket and the paper sticking out of it, then slowly reaches towards and pulls out the paper from her jacket pocket. "Officer, we have been directly cleared by the Mayor to be here. This is the authorization to investigate, take a look." The officer rolls his eyes, clearly not believing it, but after a moment leans over to look at the unfurled paper, before his expression promptly changes. "Oh, you're the private eyes we were told about. Finally, been waiting days. So, is the ah, kid?" "My son, and yes, he's with me. He's also on the authorization."
The officer checks again before nodding. "Yep. All checks out. Head further into the cemetery until you see the overworked looking guy in the big raincoat." He proceeds to pause and motion in the general direction of what Jon knows to indeed be the site of the so-called 'Witch's Grave'. "That'd be the good detective. He'll have more to say than anyone else on the scene." Jamie nods at the cop as she walks past, saying "Thank you officer. You have a good one now, y'hear?" Jon quickly starts to follow up behind her, hearing "You as well, ma'am." as he passes by. However, he's stopped after just a few steps by someone from the crowds behind him calling out to him; "Young man, how is it you are being allowed in? What exactly is going on? Everything will be alright, right?" The man in question was the priest from the second group, and his continued questions were soon lost in the chaos of the twin shouting crowds.
Shaking his head, Jonathan dashed to catch up to his mom, which he did a few moments later. A bit more walking and they soon arrived at yet another chaotic scene, though this one of a more 'controlled' type of chaos; a couple of patrol officers, a few deputies, a CSI (Crime Scene Investigator), a crime scene photographer, and, sure enough, a man in a big navy blue raincoat, white dress shirt with a black neck tie, and black uniform pants, all swarm like a hive of bees over the site of the 'Witch's Grave', looking for any evidence of the theft or (presumably) anything else. He takes a moment to take it all in. "...Well, they're certainly busy. By the way mom, why did you-" "Yeah they certainly are trying to at least look busy. And son, I cut you off because you need to understand how to... how to move and talk around police, if you're going to do that. And you don't, not yet anyway. So until we get down to business, leave it to me, ok?" He nods. "Alright, now let's get to it."
She walks with purpose towards the man in the raincoat, and he quickly follows up behind her. Soon enough, introductions are being made. "I'm Jamie Fitzgerald, Private Investigator, nice to meet you, Detective...?" "Detective Alfred Wentworth, the detective in charge of this case." It is at that moment that Jonathan somehow hears a mutter amidst the controlled chaos; "Yeah, and also the only one the damn department even has..." He resists the urge to swing around and start looking for what/whom ever made that statement, leaving it hanging in the air and in his mind for now. He forcibly shakes his head to banish those thoughts and tries to put on a winning smile. "Hi. I'm Jonathan, P&PI! I'm here to help!" "Well, you're certainly enthusiastic, I'll give you that one, kid." "Oh nonono, you don't know the half of it, friend. But I promise that whatever Jonathan here might lack in experience, he makes up for it with that enthusiasm. And we will find a way to help you."
"So detective, what's the situation? What have you discovered so far, anything useful for us we should know?" The detective's face, particularly his lips, get all pursed up like he's sucking on a lemon. Eventually, he spits out "Not much, unfortunately." "Hey come on, it's okay, we're-" his mom places a hand on his shoulder signaling to him that he's misread the situation and needs to stop. After an awkward pause, the detective eventually motions around the muddy graveyard and continues, "It's been rough going. It's been raining all week and unusually for a theft case, the whole crime scene's outdoors. So the whole area has become a washed out, muddy nightmare. We've got... nothing. Well, almost nothing. There are a few things to go over, and we did find- that's none of your business." "Oh? Wait, what were you about to say? Come on, you can tell us." He pleads, trying to look as innocent as possible. The detective's eyes only harden in response. "None of your beeswax, kid."
Defeated, he reluctantly shrugs and gestures to the split-in-half gravestone. "Alright, fine then, in that-" As he gestured to the stone, a weak, soft cracking sound suddenly comes from the inside of his jacket. "The heck was that?" He quickly steps back from the grave, frowning as the cracking stops. "Is there the slightest chance of there being anything radioactive around here?" Alfred shook his head 'no' with a confused expression painting his features. "Ok, in that case that's nothing to worry about... right now. Anyway, before... whatever that was and before you cut yourself off, you were saying there were a few things? Things we do need to know, I'm guessing?"
"Ah, yes. Right. Well first thing of note isn't something we found, but rather what we didn't find. The chains are secured in place by a set of metal stakes. Obviously, we expected those to still be here, but... they weren't. It looks like whoever or whatever took the chain lifted it and the stakes out of the ground outright. They either must off had heavy equipment, which would have been loud, cumbersome, and left some kind of trace, or, they're freakishly strong. Second, all this rain and mud means there are some nice footprints, but the problem is only a small portion of them are actually viable since they get destroyed pretty quickly, and most off them definitely belong to irrelevant tourists. But, we did get one set of footprints that stood out; it was a few days ago when we first got to the scene and it was right here in front of the grave, a pair of prints that perfectly match up with a pair of size 25 extra extra wide hiking boots." "That's... big, right?" "That's huge."
"So... super strong, big feet? Anything else?" Alfred promptly returned to the lemon-in-mouth expression. "That's all we got. No DNA evidence, no fingerprints, not that there was a lot of opportunity for that to get left behind admittedly, no witness testimony, and Glenwood doesn't have a CCTV system or even an antique alternative security camera system, so no security footage. Good luck you two, you're going to need it. We'll continue to keep the site clear for the rest of the day, but past that? Glenwood is opening back up to the public, Chief's orders, not mine. And we'll all head back to our normal jobs. Including the deputies the Sheriff was so kind as to provide us." As he said that, he glanced meaningfully towards one of said deputies examining the leaves on a tree for no apparent reason.
1d20(6) - 1 (No Esprit de Corps skill) + 1 (Basic Integrated Computer) = 6, Failure
There's probably some deeper meaning behind that glance, but if so, it escapes Jonathan's understanding. "So, I suppose if you have any further questions, I'll be around for today. You'd best get to it, I imagine."
Jonathan shares a glance with Jamie as the detective steps away, before taking a step towards the Witch's Grave and once more hearing a distinct light 'cracking' or 'clicking' sound. He promptly reaches into his jacket pocket, causing every officer nearby to suddenly tense up, only for the tension to be defused and replaced with confusion when he pulls out an unholy abomination; a bulky old tan-colored geiger counter, with two thin prongs lined with diodes and a strange device attached to the counter's probe. Jonathan carefully pops the probe out of it's open housing unit.
- [Free Tutorial Action]Examine Witch's Grave with Prototype PK/EMF Meter & iodized salt.
And proceeds to wave the black tube with the strange, blinking green device attached to it first over the gravestone, then over the area the chains would have been. As he moves it over the stone there's a slight uptick in the 'clicking' compared to before, probably just the fact that the probe is out of it's housing and facing the right direction, but once he's waves it in front of the stone, where the chains should be, the 'clicking' intensifies and the prongs extend upwards and begin very slowly flashing their first two diodes out of ten. The meter on the geiger counter also begins fluctuating rapidly between what the device's notes indicated would equate to between 'level 1' and 'level 2' PK energy... whatever that means, given that said documents also indicate that anything less than a 'level 3' reading probably is a sign of 'something', but not a ghost, unless it's a very weak one.
Quickly thinking of something else to try, he pulls out a fistful (around 20 or so) of salt packets and carefully creates a small patterned ring of salt around the exact point that sees to be generating the strongest PK energy. He then steps back to watch and see what happens. Nothing does. He's disappointed and so is mom, who quickly calls for the nearest officer and (after confirming they had combed the area he had just salted so thoroughly there is zero chance they missed anything) requests them to fetch a bag and a brush or broom. One quick cleaning later, and they're left to brainstorm their next moves...
You are at the beginning of an 'active' quest or investigation. You have no fatigue. Thus, the turn shall represent 6 hours of time and you have 4 AP to spend however you see fit. You have one companion who will spending 2 AP, however you have no control over where those AP get spent, other than a guarantee that if you spend AP on something, they will not. Please vote by plan.
[]Examine an object, landmark, or location.
-[]The Witch's Grave (pick any 2) --[]with experimental UV flashlight
--[]with Prototype PK/EMF Meter
--[]with iodized Salt
--[]with Gold Crucifix
--[]with holy water (needs 1 oz.)
-[]The rest of Glenwood Cemetery --[]with experimental UV flashlight
--[]with Prototype PK/EMF Meter
--[]with iodized Salt
--[]with Gold Crucifix --[]with holy water
-[](Write-in)
[]Investigate a landmark, location, organization, or POI (person of interest) -[]The Witch's Grave
-[]The rest of Glenwood Cemetery
-[]B. S. Ricks Memorial Library --[]The library itself [Your non-zero common sense tells you this would be a waste of time]
--[]Go in looking for information on something
---[]Write-in (specify what)
-[]Yazoo City Police Department --[]The physical building of the Police Department (HQ) [Non-zero common sense, waste of time.] --[]The organization [Your non-zero common sense tells you this is a horrible idea & a waste of time.]
--[]Go in looking for something or information on something
---[]Write-in (specify what)
-[]22 YZ 557 (Lake George site, Holly Bluff site, or "The Mound Place") (2 ap needed due to hour plus round trip) [Suggested by Inland Empire skill]
-[]Local Area shoe stores and cobblers (4 ap needed, due to all the driving and different stores visited)
-[](Write-in)
[]Interview/Interrogate a person of interest [You have no POI's yet]
[]Get the lay of the land (will provide a list of sometimes relevant, sometimes not landmarks and locations nearby)
[]Conduct divination (Skill check: Inland Empire, requires incense, candles, a source of fire (i.e. matches, lighter, firestriker and knife, flint and steel, etc.), and a sacrificial animal to perform Haruspicy, or it to be night time, to perform Astrology.
[X] Plan: Faith and premonition.
-[X]Examine an object, landmark, or location.
--[X]The Witch's Grave (pick any 2)
---[X]with Gold Crucifix
---[X]with holy water (needs 1 oz.)
--[X]The rest of Glenwood Cemetery
---[X]with Prototype PK/EMF Meter
-[X]Investigate a landmark, location, organization, or POI (person of interest)
--[X]22 YZ 557 (Lake George site, Holly Bluff site, or "The Mound Place") (2 ap needed due to hour plus round trip) [Suggested by Inland Empire skill]
Since this is a witch's grave, it is necessary to check the reaction to holiness. Prototype PK/EMF has already proven its value so it is possible to explore the rest of the cemetery searching for its natural impact.
It is also worth checking the place that our premonition showed, usually it does not appear just like that.
Ol' Tin Knight Have you thought about making remnant look like the supernatural powers of Cofd?
I mean, spend one remnant point and raise one of the stats, or quickly heal wounds but at the same time reveal your true appearance for a short time?
[X] Plan: Faith and premonition.
-[X]Examine an object, landmark, or location.
--[X]The Witch's Grave (pick any 2)
---[X]with Gold Crucifix
---[X]with holy water (needs 1 oz.)
--[X]The rest of Glenwood Cemetery
---[X]with Prototype PK/EMF Meter
-[X]Investigate a landmark, location, organization, or POI (person of interest)
--[X]22 YZ 557 (Lake George site, Holly Bluff site, or "The Mound Place") (2 ap needed due to hour plus round trip) [Suggested by Inland Empire skill]
Since this is a witch's grave, it is necessary to check the reaction to holiness. Prototype PK/EMF has already proven its value so it is possible to explore the rest of the cemetery searching for its natural impact.
It is also worth checking the place that our premonition showed, usually it does not appear just like that.
Ol' Tin Knight Have you thought about making remnant look like the supernatural powers of Cofd?
I mean, spend one remnant point and raise one of the stats, or quickly heal wounds but at the same time reveal your true appearance for a short time?
I have actually given that some thought. I do want it to be able to do more than just act as a second nigh-invulnerable health pool, but I also don't want it to be either too overpowered, nor so limited that it never actually gets used.
I have actually given that some thought. I do want it to be able to do more than just act as a second nigh-invulnerable health pool, but I also don't want it to be either too overpowered, nor so limited that it never actually gets used.
It can be done so that if we use a lot of remnant, we are penalized for interacting with people for a while, as our inhuman essence becomes more and more obvious. And if we lower the remnant below a certain limit, then our body begins to weaken due to the lack of strength supporting it.
Thus, it will be used mainly in combat situations when we need a sharp increase in strength or to hide that we were mortally wounded from which we did not die.
But this will not be used too often, because after that we will need to communicate with people and if we use too much, the effect will be reversed.
Ok, so, first on the agenda: it seems I forgot to add Basic Integrated Computer to the skill checks. That has now been corrected; fortunately, that doesn't change anything, this time. But while I'll try to remember that from now on, please do let me know if you notice anything wonky; I'll be happy to either explain, or if it's an error, correct it.
Second topic on the docket for right now, and the one the update gets it's name from: the vote will close at 12:00 P.M. CDT, 09/26.
"In some ways, it's a good thing this quest isn't crazy active. Because I'm occasionally prone to losing track of time. Regardless, vote closed! Expect an update sometime tomorrow." - From previous vote closure attempt.
In the interests of full disclosure for those who maybe viewing this in the future, this post was actually put up the 'tomorrow' referred to by the above,but for reasons unknown to me, the vote didn't actually close even though I'm completely certain I hit the check mark next to Close Voting. Regardless, assuming it works this time, all should be good.
For those actively participating, the update should be up immediately following this one.
Scheduled vote count started by Ol' Tin Knight on Sep 23, 2024 at 4:05 PM, finished with 7 posts and 2 votes.
[X] Plan: Faith and premonition.
-[X]Examine an object, landmark, or location.
--[X]The Witch's Grave (pick any 2)
---[X]with Gold Crucifix
---[X]with holy water (needs 1 oz.)
--[X]The rest of Glenwood Cemetery
---[X]with Prototype PK/EMF Meter
-[X]Investigate a landmark, location, organization, or POI (person of interest)
--[X]22 YZ 557 (Lake George site, Holly Bluff site, or "The Mound Place") (2 ap needed due to hour plus round trip) [Suggested by Inland Empire skill]
"So, we're in agreement then? I'll take the car and handle a few things, you'll stay here and poke around? And you swear to me that you won't go anywhere else 'til I'm back?" He nodded as he replied, "Of course mom and don't even worry about it, I won't go anywhere else." Eventually, with some evident reluctance, she nods before handing him a small, amber glass bottle and a golden crucifix, both of which he casually takes and sets on the ground. "Be careful." "I will!" Her expression suddenly became deadly serious. "I mean it!" Jonathan turned to face his mom before responding with a serious expression of his own, "I do too. I will be, ok?" Finally, she nods one last time and, after collecting herself, walks off for 'the car'. Meanwhile, Jon turns his full attention back to the split in half gravestone in front of him. "Let's see if you're of a god fearing sort... or something else entirely, eh miss Witch?"
-Examine Witch's Grave with Gold Crucifix & holy water
Taking the bottle off the ground and into his hand, he opens it and carefully sprinkles some over both the gravestone and the grave itself, particularly over the area identified earlier by the meter. He continues this process until the bottle is about an eighth empty, then stops, stepping back and staring intensely, looking for any kind of reaction... nothing. Absolutely nothing. So, looking to test one last thing, he picked up the golden crucifix from the ground, squatted low, held it firmly with both hands over the grave, closed his eyes, and began to silently pray. It felt almost like no time had passed at all, yet before he knew it, the next sensation he felt was getting tapped on the shoulder. He looked up to see a deputy with a look of relief on his face. "Oh thank the good lord, I thought you'd passed out there!" "Huh? Why?" "You do realize you've been hunched over with that cross in your hands for the better part of an hour, right?" He wanted to slap himself. "I was not, sorry if I uh, worried anyone. Hmm..."
It makes him take a step back and realize just how ridiculous this all really is and makes him sympathize with Detective Wentworth; he and the other officers are being expected to tromp around a muddy cemetery, disturbing the rightful rest of the dead. It's at that moment something catches his eye; the headstone to the grave of one 'Willie Morris', the very man who, at least if Jon was remembering the notes City Hall had sent with the case description right, wrote a book that popularized the (previously pretty fringe) legend of the Witch in the first place. His body was buried just a few graves, heck forget that, just a few feet away from the supposed Witch! ...That's... what are the odds? Hmm. Something else is going on here. I can feel it in my gut. Something in this cemetery is... wrong. His mind made up, he decided that now was the time for a quick scan through with the meter.
-Examine Glenwood Cemetery with Prototype PK/EMF Meter
The trouble, he quickly realized, is that like with most really old or even just kind of old cemeteries and graveyards, Glenwood was massive! It was also, as the Detective had said, incredibly muddy at the moment, and certain parts of it where being seriously threatened with being reclaimed by nature (i.e where seriously overgrown), with the nearby patch of forest encroaching on it's outer edges. He could be here all day and still not manage to test every grave... so he'd just have to hope he'd be able to find what he was looking for. He decided to start with the graves closest to the 'Witch's Grave'.
4d6's (per AP spent), each die roll of 4 or higher is a success. No botches or crits (successes or fails) are possible. Looking for 2 successes.
4d6 (4, 4, 1, 1) = 2 successes.
He didn't find anything among his initial search targets, not the slightest hint of a click, save the errant one here or there when he was also pointing in the direction of the one he already knows has a reading. So, he moves on, looking for any other notable individual graves or concentrations of them, trying his hardest to get thorough readings while also showing respect to the dead. Eventually however, after a long while of searching, even wandering just past the same end of the police cordon they came in from, but amidst the graveyard rather on the dirt road leading in, it finally happens. As he approaches an area where the graves get notably sparser, but still creepily densely packed, he spots a collection of fourteen white near-uniform (different only in size) gravestones decorated with small confederate flags and flowers, with a gray stone block in front of them. Reading the stone block explains this grouping's purpose: it's the burial site for a number of Mississippi-native civil war Confederates. As he approaches, the counter begins firing off cracks at a considerably higher, albeit still slow, rate than earlier. Stopping to pull out the probe and properly scan the graves, the prongs extend and begin flashing 4 out of the ten diodes incredibly rapidly, and the meter goes ballistic for a split second, before settling into place at right around 'level four', with only slight twitching.
Obviously, this is a strong reading; not just strong enough to be meaningful compared to the absolute zero he had mostly gotten so far, but stronger than the readings off of the 'Witch's Grave'. And maybe even strong enough to imply the presence (or former presence) of a spirit. But he doesn't have long to consider that, as his mom pulls up with the car. Running up to her, the two quickly embrace before getting right down business. "Find anything?" "One thing, just now actually, not sure if it's relevant though. You?" "Oh, I was meeting some old friends from back down this way I hadn't seen in ages. But I did manage to sneak a visit to the library in while I was up there and I checked this out:" she holds up a book entitled 'Good Old Boy: A Delta Boyhood'. "This here is the book that really made the legend take locally, supposedly. Not sure if that's useful to us or not, but I figured, you know, might as well. I also fact checked the history in documents they sent us by going over the library's old newspaper archives. Nothing interesting mostly, just confirmed they weren't lying to us, but some more recent papers had some interesting things to say about an 'outlaw' motorcycle gang called the 'Sons of Silence' or something equally silly like that, being unusually active these past few months. Not sure if it's relevant or not, but there. Got any plans for what to do next?"
"Yeah, actually. Ever since this case started, I've had this weird gut feeling-" "What's wrong!? Are you sick, do you need to go to the-" "Mom, no, not that sort of gut feeling. You're... not usually like this." "And what is that supposed to mean, young man!?" "Umm, nothing. P-pretend I didn't say anything." He nervously chuckles as she lets out a deep sigh. "No you're right. I'm sor-" Suddenly he doubles over, gripping his head as if in pain as he's visited by... something strange.
A man hunts a man. Another man hunts a man. A wolf hunts a man. The quarry is in fact the same man, yet also not. Related events, connected tenuously even as they hurtle unknowingly through the endless kaleidoscopic spectrum of ever-branching timelines, by a singular point in space. The wolf bites down, it's claws rend, the flesh is torn; it's enemy is wounded. The hunter pursues his man, a bow in hand. To be the third, the boy becoming a man must seek the builders of the mounds... but they are already gone, so their relics most do instead.
What the hell!? ...What was that!? ...Well, suddenly I feel my gut instinct's probably right. "Are you alright!? Did you lie to me!? Your not ok are-" "I'm fine!" There's a brief moment of shock that passes between them... before Jamie promptly reaches out and swings her left fist right at him, 'pulling' the hit at the last second, transforming it into a grab that firmly secures the hair atop his head, before pulling him down to just below eye level. After a brief moment of looking him over, she simply says "Yeah, you seem fine. Do not raise your voice at me, do you understand?" "I'm sorry, I-I, I didn't mean to! ...I understand." With this, she releases him. "Now, what was that?" "Oh you know *leans in close and gets quiet* just a weird voice in my head. But I'm totally sane, promise. ...I think. *Stands back up* Anyway, as I was saying, you mind driving me to... that archeological dig with the big mounds? Or that used to have the big mounds, anyway?" "You mean the Lake George site? That's the closest one off the top of my head." "Yeah, that one!" "Why?" "I... don't know. Wait, well, ...gut instinct. And also what just happened." She initially looks unimpressed, but then stops to think about it, then shrugs. "No, I can't. I have somewhere I need to be. But I can walk, so tell you what... you there! Officer!"
A bit of talking and searching later has them once more in front of the detective, sitting this time on folding chairs. "So, let me get this straight... you want one of the officers here, my officers right now, to essentially clock out early but without reporting back to the station, leaving a, still active may I remind you, crime scene, so they can drive your son to go stare at some farmland and woods that used to be Native mounds for who knows how long?" She coughs into her hand and his brutal summary of things thus far. "Correct, with one caveat!" "Oh? This had better be good." "The officer would be driving him there so he can follow up on a hunch, investigate, not gawk like a tourist." "Hmm. Fair enough... I guess. Still though-" "How about this, I'll make you deal. If anything goes wrong and/or Jon doesn't find anything, I'll take the blame myself. Say that I... I don't know, but I'll figure it out, point is, I'll take the blame, your chosen officer and you won't have to." "I see... you really believe that much in your kid's hunch, huh?" "Absolutely. But obviously if he does find something and nothing goes wrong, then and only then will it be your job to explain things." "...I don't know why, but I trust you. And I know I shouldn't but... I feel like a betting man today. Kaplan!" An officer with a strong jawline walks over. "Time?" "That'd be... 2:30 sir." "Head back into town and fetch me and these two lunch and bring me the duty roster for today." The officer blanches, until Wentworth gets an evil look on his face and starts slowly opening his mouth. "R-Right away... sir." "Thank you." Alfred glances over at the two of them staring in confusion and quickly explains, "That one owes me, big time. Not going to say why, because keeping it secret is part of it... I will say that's not all of it, though."
I'm sorry for the considerable delay between updates; things happen, you know? But, assuming I haven't lost everybody, I can assure everyone that this quest isn't dead yet! The next part will be finished and posted either today or tomorrow.
About a half an hour later, and between mouthfuls of cheap coffee, bar ordered coconut shrimp, and donuts, the good detective barks out "So! [Insert Eating Noises here] Loorks lake- *swallows* Pardon me. It looks like" he jabs a finger at the sheet of paper in his off hand, "Jenkins's shift is technically already supposed to be over, so he'll be the one to drive you over there, kid." After glancing up at and taking in Jon and his mom's slightly confused expressions, he quickly adds on "James Jenkins, part of the early morning shift, you might have met him coming in?" Jonathan thinks about it, but simply shakes his head. "Ah, fair enough. Don't worry, you'll meet him real soon. Kaplan!" The officers audibly groans, sighs, and only then turns and answers "Yes sir?" "Be a pal and fetch Jenkins, would you? Make sure to brief him on the situation too, while you're at it!" "You got it, sir." Kaplan stands up from his chair and somewhat lazily salutes the detective, then walks off to find the other officer.
"Trust me kid, you're gonna like James. He's a nice guy." It was fine at first, but now it's definitely starting to annoy him. "Detective, with all due respect, can you please stop calling me 'kid'!?" Alfred is surprised by that or at least seems to be, given he nearly chokes on his donut. "...*Coughs*... Sorry. Look, I don't know how other people mean it, but in my case, I don't mean any disrespect when I say that. I mean, I didn't really think about it, but now that I am, I can tell you it's a term of... recognition, maybe?" "...Recognition?" "Yeah! Let's... go with that..." Jonathan could only pointedly stare as Alfred took a long sip of his coffee. "Ack, yep, tastes like sludge, as usual." He glances at the still staring Jonathan.
And as several seconds pass and Jonathan just... keeps staring, Alfred can't shake the impression that there's something... well... wrong, with him. In a creepy way. Particularly his eyes and well his... proportions, which he swears there's just something... unnatural about. And then Jon leans over and stretches his eyelids open as wide as they'll go and just bores into the detective with what has to be the most cartoonishly exaggerated stare he has ever seen. Right up until Jon did that, he'd been getting increasingly uncomfortable, but now, he can't help but let out a loud, throaty laugh. As said laugh finally starts to trail off, he finally regains the ability to speak. "Heh, heh, ah... oh that was a good one, kid. Careful, though! Don't want any flies gettin' in your eyes! Wahhah hah heh hah!" He continued laughing like that for a bit longer, apparently really finding his 'intimidation' attempt incredibly funny.
Finally, at long last, he stops. And right on time, as Kaplan returns with a brownish skin-toned officer with a pair of stark, crystal-blue eyes, a pair of pronounced 'bags' underneath those, and a tired but satisfied looking grin all decorating his face, which came to about the same height as Jon's. Following another lazy salute from Kaplan, the unfamiliar officer approaches the trio. "I'm here, detective. I'd like a note to be made somewhere that this is highly unusual, and that I observed as much." "i'm aware Jenkins. Do you have any other objections, and will that prevent you from taking the kid?" "No and no, detective." "Very good. This here's *points to Jamie* the mother and I assume the one actually in charge of this mess overall. She'll walk the both off you back to their car." He then pauses, looks over at Kaplan for a moment, and then lets out a groan when Kaplan shakes his head.
"Damn it Kaplan... alright. James, listen, cause I'm only going to go over this once. When you're done, assuming nothing happens that forces this plan to change, here is what I want you to do, listen well: return to Glenwood. Drop off the car and the kid. Take your cruiser back to the station. From there, standard procedure except don't bother clockin' out. Kaplan and the desk sergeant already handled it for you when he went to get the duty roster about a half-hour ago." 'James' seems to recoil a little at what he's being told. "But detective, my overtime-" "I'll cover any overtime pay you may have been owed, alright? Just focus on getting the kid there, making sure there's no trouble, then getting him back, ok?" "I got this detective, don't you worry." He'll cover any overtime he's missing out on by doing this? Why? He's not getting any money out of this bet to cover something like that... is he? No, no he definitely isn't. So what is his game here?...
He... actually doesn't have an angle or a game? Huh. He seems to... actually care? At the very least about his fellow cops. That doesn't quite match up with what dad said... then again, it matches perfectly with what mom's taught me. ...And he did say there's always exceptions... Jon is quickly shaken from his thoughts by his mother and joins her as they head back to the car, now with Officer Jenkins, apparently, in tow. A minute or so, a big emotion-filled hug, and an exchange of two "goodbye, just for now"s later, and he's sitting in the passenger seat across from said individual. There's an awkwardness as he waits patiently for 'James' to figure out exactly how to operate the 4-speed manual transmission 'the car' had been modded to have. Heh. I remember I used to think all cars were supposed to be manual thanks to this clunker's predecessor having an old three speed transmission. Janus, the old man, simply refused to drive automatic apparently.
From there, it was just a long car trip. Potters Field Road out off the cemetery right up until turning onto Mike Espy Dr., which became a one way road after the crossing with Webster Ave., all the way to where it terminated at a small store with a big yellow and red sign out front and second white and green sign on the side of the building itself, both off which proudly announced that this was "Gilbert Lumber & Home Center". Here, they turn onto N. (North) Main Street and drive south down it. After being quiet until now, James suddenly speaks just as they pass between a larger building on the left and 2 smaller buildings on the right, one clearly a house of some kind the other having white text boldly declaring "loans & taxes" up on it's window. "I don't know if you care, but my brother was always a bit off a history fanatic." "...Oh? Really?" "Yeah, really. Anyways, if you look to your left just now, the big building over there is, apparently, the Triangle Cultural Center. Lil' Bro wouldn't shut up about his trip..."
New Location added to list
Before he could properly formulate his next statement, traffic began to really pickup and with it (and a second or so to remember how the clutch works) the car had returned to being in motion once more. "Now, how's about you, aaahhh... Jonathan, right?" "Correct. How's about what, though?" "Where did you grow up, what was your favorite place, eh?" "I... I... hmm." "Is there... something wrong?" "No, it's nothing. Just... foggy memories. My mom and dad moved around a lot, for work and for other reasons, but I guess I mainly grew up in... I guess it'd be two places, actually, the first is where the office is-" "The office?" "Yeah. Mom and Dad are both Private investigators, albeit of different types, so they created a whole agency, and that required an office to operate out off. That was probably my favorite place, actually. They had a house around there too, at one point, but... Can I continue?" "Sure kid, go ahead. Didn't mean to cut you off." "The second would be right around here, actually. Well, not right around here, but close. Mom has family down in Vicksburg." James nods his head at that, just as he makes a turn off of N. Main Street and onto Mississippi Highway 16.
From there, is was a mostly straight road (albeit still with several turns) over several smaller rivers and creeks until at long last they crossed over the Will M. Whittington Auxiliary channel and immediately there after, turned onto W Levee Rd. A road they followed until it merged then later split from Satartia Rd., where upon the resplit, they stayed on Satartia. From there, it was a simple as following the road until it branched gain, then picking the correct branch to head northwards once more, all in all good for another ten minutes or so of continuous driving on the narrow county roads. ...Interrupted by a handful of massive bales of white cotton contained in distinctive yellow wrapping laying neatly off on the sides of the leg of Satartia headed north towards Holly Bluff. "Hey, uh, Officer Jenkins, isn't it a bit early for cotton?" "Well, it is July, so... maybe a little bit? Honestly, I'm no farmer and none of my family ever was, least not in living memory, so I don't know." "Hmm."
But not long after, they at long last arrived... to a whole lot off the same. "Are you sure this is the place, officer?" James chuckled as he pulled 'the car' to a stop over by the side off the road before responding "I'm pretty sure this is it. Then again, maybe I'm misremembering? I suppose that's possible but I- you remember me mentioning my lil' brother?" "Why do you ask?" "Cause I remember him tellin me, more like rantin' at me really, about how hard it is to actually find some off these places." "'These places'? What do you mean?" "You know... mound sites. State used to have a lot off em, heck used to have tourist types come through once in a blue moon to look at em. But, if I remember his rant right, most of them look just like this one now; virtually indistinguishable from everything else around it. Oh and mostly now private property. Supposedly there's some project or something to do something about it or... I don't know, I stopped paying attention." Sure enough, looking every direction, there was nothing but overgrown nature (in the form of grass, weeds, and trees), farmland, and Satartia Road.
Annoyed, Jonathan hopped out and began walking along the side off the road one way, then paced back the other, intensely staring out across what he somehow intellectually knew had once been a dig site containing multiple native American mounds but was now just more of the same Mississippi country side. After intensive examination, eventually, he does find one mound that's somewhat intact, though it too suffers from erosion and overgrowth, and he can just barely make out the edge of a truly ancient structure of some kind, probably a wall. He nearly jumps a little when Jenkins taps him on the shoulder and locks him with a stern look. "By the way, be careful. I was serious, most off this is private property, more specifically it's the HQ of a plantation or farm or... something to that effect. Don't exactly have a warrant and me? I'm a little out off my jurisdiction here. So careful, please." Jonathan answers him with a frustrated grunt and a nod. The two look around carefully for a while longer, in silence.
Eventually, as Jonathan is turning to walk back to 'the car', Jenkins speaks again, "Well, don't be too upset. It was a long shot-"
Only for Jonathan to reach a hand up and 'shush' him. Jenkins stares, dumbfounded, as Jon sniffs the air, almost like a bloodhound, while cupping a hand to one ear and listening out for seemingly nothing in particular. "You smell that? Hear that?" "Umm... no?" Now it's his turn to look at Jenkins like he's crazy. "How? You know what, forget it. There's a smell like... like..." Like dead rotting fish. "...And I think I heard a wolf howl... over there, maybe?" "Where do you think-" "Follow me, trust me." "...This had better be good." After walking (more so forcing their way) through some waist-high weeds off the opposite side of the road they had parked, hitting a thicket of trees only for Jon to complain the smell had gotten weaker, and finally doubling back the way they'd came, they found it. Maybe it was by the will of fate, the will of god, or maybe even just good old dumb luck, but regardless all off a sudden, as Jenkins went to take just one more step through underbrush, his foot hit something hidden by the weeds and grass; a huge boot.
"Well I'll be, that's somethin alright..." Then, Jonathan just barely hears him quietly mutter "oh god." "Jenkins, what is it!" "...Don't look in the boot." "The what?" "I gotta... call this in... dammit, left my radio in your car..." With that, he trudged off back through the growth, leaving Jonathan alone to quickly investigate. What he found was... less than pleasant. A huge brown leather hiking boot lay amidst the weeds and grass, absolutely slathered in a dark, blackish-red or perhaps redish-brown substance that was clearly the source of the dead fish smell. But what was pretty clearly a liberal coating of dried blood wasn't even the worst part; no, that honor went to the two massive canine-like bite marks on both sides of the boot, and the intact human foot still sitting inside. It was disgusting; so disgusting he almost missed the equally blood coated and badly element abused receipt. Crouching low, he carefully examined it. It was hard to read, given the blood and all, but it seemed to be a receipt for a custom fitting from a "Hibbett Sports".
You retrieved evidence: Missing foot?
Also, 'Local Area shoe stores and cobblers' removed from location list and replaced with 'Hibbett Sports, Yazoo City'.
After Jenkins finally makes his way to the car and radios in the... boot, it takes a little while for a pair of tired looking YCSO deputies to arrive at the scene. "What are we lookin at?" "Hiking boot, covered in blood. Still got a foot in it. There might be more somewhere out in the grass." The deputy who asked the question nods. "Ok, we'll take it from here." "Much obliged, gotta be headin on back." Jonathan, of course, has long since seen everything he needs to see so he's just waiting for Jenkins in the car. He greets him with a 'told you so' grin and friendly nod when Jenkins finally pulls the door open and sits down in the driver seat with a sigh. "Jesus..." He suddenly turns to Jon in the passenger seat and gives him a strained smile. "Well, you've apparently got one heck of a 'gut instinct', kid. ...Let's get on back."
One boring car ride back the way they came and a few minutes later...
6:00 P.M., Glenwood Cemetery.
Jon, Jamie, and Detective Alfred were once again sat on a cluster of folding chairs in the cemetery, though the tone was now considerably different. "Welp... looks like I'm gonna have some splainin to do... good goin, kid. Seriously, good going, I mean that. Impressive instincts, we probably never would have found that, not fore some animal made it unrecognizable, anyway. The sheriff's boys are going to be handling it from here, but I've already received some preliminary reports... I presume you both want to hear them?" Mom is quick to clear her throat and make her opinion clear; "Of course. Please detective." "Alright then, unless the kid has any objections?..." Jon only responded with a slightly surprised head shake. "I didn't figure you did. Ok hear I'll start. Ah hum yeah... composition seems to be leather, could have told you that by looking at it... thin coating off... *starts humming* Ah! Here, this might be useful. 'Object is covered in dried blood. Intial field testing suggests blood samples are perhaps no more than 48 hours old and no newer than 12 hours, and are approx. 80% human, 15% Canis Rufus,'... that's Red wolf, or just wolf really, if you didn't know, 'and 5% other/unknown, with a 5% margin of error'. According this, it seems most of the blood that's registering as wolf is on the sole of the boot, suggesting it was used to stomp or kick a creature that produced that blood."
"Anything else?" "Erm, let's see... *flips through pages of the report in his hands* Yes... maybe. They extracted the foot from the boot and they've shipping it off to the county Coroner for a lab analysis, just to see if they can get any DNA or anything. But it might be a little while before we get any kind of results from that. Oh yeah, right, they confirmed the size of the boot-" "25 extra extra wide, right?" "...Correct kid. A size match at least to the footprint here on the scene. We've forwarded a copy of the mold of the footprint that we took, but I haven't heard back if it's a match or not. Finally, they found a receipt. They tried, but they weren't able to lift any prints from it. But it did mention-" "I saw it, I know the address." "...Ok then. Nevermind. ...That's about it, really. They're searching high and low, but they haven't found anything else in the area yet." "So!" Jon was almost a little surprised by the sheer amount of energy and enthusiasm in his mom's voice. Only almost, because he had seen her like this before, and he knew full well that it's a little like she just didn't get tired when on a case. "What's the plan from here?"
You are in the middle of an 'active' quest or investigation, and it is evening. You have no fatigue. Thus, the turn shall represent 6 hours of time and you have 4 AP to spend however you see fit. The first two of these AP will face no issues, but the third ap spent shall occur at dusk and all further AP spent will take place at nighttime, with all the issues that implies. You have one companion who will spending 1 AP, however you have no control over where that AP gets spent, other than a guarantee that if you spend AP on something, they will not. Please vote by plan.
[]Examine an object, landmark, or location. -[]The Witch's Grave (pick any 2)
--[]with experimental UV flashlight
--[]with Prototype PK/EMF Meter
--[]with iodized Salt
--[]with Gold Crucifix
--[]with holy water (needs 1 oz.)
-[]The rest of Glenwood Cemetery --[]with experimental UV flashlight
--[]with Prototype PK/EMF Meter
--[]with iodized Salt
--[]with Gold Crucifix --[]with holy water
-[](Write-in)
[]Investigate a landmark, location, organization, or POI (person of interest) -[]The Witch's Grave
-[]The rest of Glenwood Cemetery
-[]B. S. Ricks Memorial Library --[]The library itself [Until there is a reason to do so, waste of time]
--[]Go in looking for information on something
---[]Write-in (specify what)
-[]Yazoo City Police Department --[]The physical building of the Police Department (HQ) [Until there is a reason to do so, waste of time] --[]The organization [Your non-zero common sense tells you this is a horrible idea & a waste of time.]
--[]Go in looking for something or information on something
---[]Write-in (specify what) -[]Triangle Cultural Center
--[]The location itself [Until there is a reason to do so, waste of time]
--[]Go in looking for information on something
---[]Write-in (specify what) {The center is closed til 8:00 tomorrow, and you don't have a good enough reason to go there outside of operating hours} -[]22 YZ 557 (Lake George site, Holly Bluff site, or "The Mound Place") (2 ap needed due to hour plus round trip)
-[]Hibbett Sports, Yazoo City.
-[](Write-in)
[]Interview/Interrogate a person of interest [You have no POI's yet]
-[]Whoever, if anyone, gets turned up by a visit to Hibbett Sports (must go to Hibbett Sports, may be a wasted action if you don't get a POI)
[]Get the lay of the land (will provide a list of sometimes relevant, sometimes not landmarks and locations nearby)
[]Conduct divination (Skill check: Inland Empire, requires incense, candles, a source of fire (i.e. matches, lighter, firestriker and knife, flint and steel, etc.), and a sacrificial animal to perform Haruspicy, or it to be night time, to perform Astrology. {This must be performed with the final two AP of the turn, and face the Severe Selenophobia Disadvantage}
[]Hit the hay early (Removes 4 fatigue, if you have any. Skips ahead through dusk, midnight, night, and dawn to morning of the next day)
[X] Plan: Final study
-[X]Investigate a landmark, location, organization, or POI (person of interest)
--[X]The rest of Glenwood Cemetery
-[X]Get the lay of the land (will provide a list of sometimes relevant, sometimes not landmarks and locations nearby)
-[X]Conduct divination (Skill check: Inland Empire, requires incense, candles, a source of fire (i.e. matches, lighter, firestriker and knife, flint and steel, etc.), and a sacrificial animal to perform Haruspicy, or it to be night time, to perform Astrology. {This must be performed with the final two AP of the turn, and face the Severe Selenophobia Disadvantage}
[X] Plan: Final study
-[X]Investigate a landmark, location, organization, or POI (person of interest)
--[X]The rest of Glenwood Cemetery
-[X]Get the lay of the land (will provide a list of sometimes relevant, sometimes not landmarks and locations nearby)
-[X]Conduct divination (Skill check: Inland Empire, requires incense, candles, a source of fire (i.e. matches, lighter, firestriker and knife, flint and steel, etc.), and a sacrificial animal to perform Haruspicy, or it to be night time, to perform Astrology. {This must be performed with the final two AP of the turn, and face the Severe Selenophobia Disadvantage}
"Well, I figured I'd take one more look around here, then me and you could just... drive around, take in the city, see what we're dealing with, you know? We haven't been out here in a while, I know I for one don't remember where everything is, so it feels like it couldn't hurt. After that... let's just head back for today." Mom can't keep the look of surprise off of her face. "I thought for sure you'd want to keep going til nightfall at least. Why so soon?" "I'd like to go ahead and ask for permission to get everything set up in their back yard for... well, you know." "...I don't?" "Well, they have that telescope back there. Not really needed but, uh, nice to have." "Ah. I see. Like father, like son... I still don't see how either of you believe in that non-" Jonathan was not having it, any of it. "And yet Were-" "*AHEM* Do you mind!" They both direct a pair of embarrassed stares down at the ground and after a moment mom clears her throat. "Sorry, detective. Just an... old family debate regarding the legitimacy of... certain practices." He glances skeptically at Jon, before shifting his gaze back to her. "I really don't care. I was just gonna tell you that we're all packin' up in about an hour, so if you want to take a look around in peace before all the yahoos and superstitious idjits start pouring on in, you might want to do that now."
"Well... I guess I'll go do that." "Alright. Tell you what, while you are doing that, I have a hunch of my own. I'm going to go shake whoever is on duty over at the police station and... see what comes loose." The detective lets out a low chuckle. "Try not to shake em too hard, alright? Especially the desk sergeant, poor ol guy's got a bad case of the, umm, arthritis, I think it was." "Of course detective. And I'll be right back. Jon, you behave, alright?" "Yes, mom." They both remain seated and watch her get up and walk off back to the car. A comparatively quiet moment passes as the two watch her drive away. Once again, Alfred chuckles, seemingly mostly to himself. "Some woman... I like to think I got a good eye for character and let me tell you... well, you are a real lucky kid, you know that, right?" "...One, of course I do. Two, you don't know us." That response only causes him laugh even louder and more deeply. "Ahhah, ahhah... hah... Yeah, you're right. I don't really know you folk. I just... got a feeling, ya know? ...Also, wat ya doin!? Aren't you supposed to be... umm, I don't know, taking a look around, or something?" "You are quite right, I had best get to that."
-Investigate Glenwood Cemetery
The Cemetery is much larger then he first realized, though that's not exactly a new revelation. But starting from the top, from the beginning, his cursory investigation reveals that Glenwood is mostly a fairly normal, typical example of this sort of location; that is to say, a single dirt road (Potters Field Road) both leads into the cemetery and wraps around most, though not all, off it's area. The majority of the area is taken up by what's practically a sea of individual grave markers and headstones that are so densely packed that it's almost hard to walk without accidentally stepping on one, only somewhat helped by a handful of narrow gravel footpaths. There are also however some 'private estates' (small collections of graves walled off from the rest and usually slightly better cared for), a handful of Mausoleums (hopefully self-explanatory), and three or four memorials and monuments, including the small collection of confederate graves he had observed earlier.
As it currently stood, the place was mostly well cared for but is severely overgrown on it's outer most edges and is an absolute nightmare of mud, due to several days of continuous downpour, though that had honestly started to dry by now, thanks in part to the baking summer heat. Jonathan also notes the conspicuous lack of any kind of visible security system whatsoever; it appears the detective was being truthful. There's far too many graves and far too many police (both sheriff's deputies and city police officers) moving around still to really pick anything much of interest out, and he doesn't notice anything peculiar; which makes sense, given that, more likely than not, the officers would have seen whatever he could have seen. He does occasionally get an inexplicable chill when passing near the confederate graves... and a certain other grave belonging to an 'Augustus J. Oakes'. He's not really sure what to make of that.
If you discount all the blue-skins running about, is there not something strangely... peaceful, here? In the pitiful imaginings of mankind, the graveyard is often seen as a terrifying place, the source and home of any number of evils and ills... and to a degree, that is true. But much more so, it is a prison for great evils, and a place of sanctity that repels, for a time, those that would disturb the dead's ever lasting rest. Yes... perhaps more than anything, a place of peace and of rest, both eternal and temporal. How confounding then... that despite, or rather because of the master they serve, the quarry has been here. Their 'smell' still lingers, even if no one can smell it, they made sound here, even if there was no one to hear it. The hunt goes on.
What in the everloving fudge is going on? What is that? Seriously, am I going crazy? Unfortunately, or perhaps fortunately, he doesn't have time to think about that, as shortly there after, his mom pulls back up with the car, signaling it's time to go.
I'm sorry to announce that there's been and is going to continue to be a delay until I can get back to this. However, hopefully once I'm able to return everything shall proceed quickly until the quest reaches the next turn, at the very least.
As they pull out from the graveyard, the sky is a gorgeous mix of oranges with hints of strange, almost arcane purples; the unique beauty of the final, dying hours of the day. It's like someone painted the approaching sunset across the canvas of the earth's atmosphere. They take the same path out that the officer had originally taken; this time though, Jonathan pays more attention to the trip itself, taking in the sights surrounding the nondescript strip of urban asphalt labeled N Main Street. Just as they turn on to it, he notices the first thing that he's not sure how he missed the first time; the Yazoo County Civil War Memorial. A stark pillar of white stone, the memorial stands proudly, marked on one side with black text reading:
1861 — 1865
As at Thermopylae, the greater
glory was to the vanquished
———
This monument is erected to
perpetuate the memory of the
noble courage, constancy and
self sacrificing devotion of the
women of the Confederacy, and
the patriotism and heroic valor
of the Confederate soldiers,
and all who fought on land or
sea for the country and
the cause they loved so well.
By
Jefferson Davis Chapter,
U.C.C.,No.216, Yazoo Camp, U.C.V. No. 176.
And the Sons of the Confederate
Veterans and People of Yazoo
County.
Dedicated July 8, 1909.
And on the opposite side, an engraving of a confederate flag in a laurel wreath with the simple Latin phrase Semper Fidelis underneath. While Jamie doesn't really have a strong opinion, or feel anything wrong, Jonathan very much does feel something... strange, emanating off of it. In many ways, this place, and so many others like it, are the stone ghosts of a retched past... an echo of the collective sins and sufferings of the people of the south. The embodiment of the blackest (multifacetedly so) mark on it's collective soul and song. But... in being a ghost and an embodiment of a vile stain on a collective's spirit, are they not like...? Jonathan forcefully clears his head by slamming it straight into his hands.
"You okay, Jon?" His mom looked at him with an expression of clear concern. "Yeah... yeah mom, I'm fine. It's just... there's something off about that." He pointed out the window at the tall white stone. "Hmm? ...You sure about that? Do you think it's related at all?" He mulled it over for just a moment but quickly shook his head. "No, it's not, uh, related, exactly. Not to the whole... witch's grave thing, anyway. It's probably not important." She continues glaring at him for a moment, before shrugging. "Ok, if you're sure. Then let's just focus on the ride again."
Two landmarks, one retroactively, added to evidence/notes for '???' mystery.
The rest of the ride down N Main Street was mostly uneventful; there were two more buildings that stood out to him, but he already knew of both of them. The Triangle Cultural Center, due to the ride with the officer to find the boot, of course, and further down the road where it splits the one-way W Powell and E Powell Streets, the B. S. Ricks memorial library, which had been included as a potential source of research materials in the documents the mayor's office had sent over with the case description. Further down the road, at the intersection with Madison Street, his mom made note of Jackson Memorial Hospital.
"If our suspect really did lose his foot, then we could maybe try checking hospitals in the area. Honestly, that's probably a long shot. But if they did go to a hospital, this one would've been the closest, and the closest ER would be... north of here, further into the city. Baptist Memorial Hospital. Other than here and there, it's mostly just a bunch of small doctor's offices not equipped to handle something like that. The next closest hospital would be over in Canton, and that'd be a good 50-ish miles from where they lost it. By car, not a problem, but it looks like they were, heh, 'on foot'... sorry. Point is, they probably would've bled out by then." Jon could only nod in slightly stunned wonder at his mother's... questionable sense of humor, accurate observation, and the way she made said observation sound like such an obvious one in hindsight.
Two New Locations added to list.
After making a note of this observation, they continued driving, passing by the decently impressive size and red brickwork of St. Mary's Catholic Church until eventually they reach the considerably heavier traffic of Broadway Street, or more properly, Mississippi highway 16. This time though, they turn the opposite direction Jon and Officer Jenkins originally did. In so doing, they immediately pass between two banks; one, white and modern, isn't really interesting in any way beyond it's function as a place of business. The other, built of old brown brick, however, has a slab of newer brick out in front with a blue sign built into it that bears white text proudly declaring it to be the Bank of Yazoo City. It takes all of five seconds traveling down MS-16 for Jonathan to spot a familiar looking green 'marker'. "This bank, built in 1876-" "Jon, what are you doing?" "Reading." "Out loud? Wait, reading what?" He points across the street at the green historical landmark sign.
She squinted hard, but couldn't make out any of the golden-yellow letters. "You can read that?" "Yeah!" "...Great. Either your eyes are sharper then I thought, or mine are starting to go..." "No, don't say that!" "It's just the tru- Oh goddamnitassholefuckyouIoughttoshovemyfootupyourassIhadrightofwayyouassyoualmostkilledus!!!!!" Because humans are humans and humans have no business trying to drive cars, some jerk had pulled out of the bank parking lot right into the flow of traffic directly in front of them, nearly side swiping them in the process. "*Coughs*... Mom... your road rage?" She sucks in practically all of the air in the car, then sighs it all back out in one go. ".....It's okay. I'm alright. It's okay." The rest of the ride was thankfully uneventful.
They did eventually head down S Monroe Street, which led to Jonathan noting down two more locations of interest, one of which also had one of the little green landmark signs; the Bethel A.M.E. Church and a large but mostly nondescript old house that the green marker informed them was 'The Oakes House'. Jonathan feels an itch at the back of his head at that last one, then, even though he's unsure of the relevance, makes a note of it. His mother meanwhile, reveals what she was really doing while he was looking over the graveyard; she was looking into what the police had on the two preachers leading the mobs that had been outside the graveyard when they had gotten there. "A hunch, if you will. And maybe a good one, maybe not; turns out the other one... the err... nicer-looking one? Turns out, he's an apprentice of sorts to the pastor here, at Bethel. Maybe he knows something, maybe he doesn't. Hard to say. But it's a potential lead. No criminal record or anything though, so again, maybe a stretch."
Two New Locations added to list.
Then, just as the last glimmers of the sun can just barely be seen slowly but surely retreating over the horizon, the two of them take the car out of Yazoo City and begin the drive back to their temporary accommodations in Vicksburg.
