cairo

Session 33: The Mother of All Cities

On the 12 day journey to Cairo, Arthur and Harley became friends with a fellow shipmate - Yan Niang Lee, a former Monk and ex cop from Shanghai who had come to England and was now en route to Cairo tracking shipments that had been made to the elusive Order of the Bloated Woman (a secret society that had massacred the other Monks at the Temple he had grown up in/trained at). They decided to work together since many of the same players seemed to be involved. Looking over their past research - Lee was able to identify the harbor in the blurry photo they found at Jackson Elias' apartment as Shanghai along the Whangpoo River.

 

The trio arrived at Port Said early evening and took a train to Cairo. When they arrived they were bombarded by dragomen and hotel representatives. One who was dressed very Western and spoke with perfect English, identified himself as Ibi Moussa from the Hotel du Sud. Before they could protest, one of Ibi's assistants snatched Arthur's bag and the 3 started to disappear into the crowd. Arthur and Lee gave chase with Lee deftly subduing and handcuffing all 3 derelicts to a cart. After some pleading and threatening police force against them, Ibi took them to the Hotel du Sud where they met its proprietor, Madam Patenaude. Patenaude and Ibi tried to bargan with Lee but he would not be denied justice. He went in search of a policeman and enlisted the help of young Mahmoud to help translate. With the du Sud gang arrested, Mahmoud led Arthur and Lee to their hotel where Harley had been waiting.

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Session 34: The Drunk Dutchman

Arthur and Lee met Harley at the Hotel Cairo and checked into their rooms. They decided to sleep in shifts using only one of the rooms. The next morning Mahmoud took Arthur and Harley to the American Consulate where they tried to find information about expeditions and Lee to the Chinese where he made a call to his friend Solon Han (the Chief Counsel of Diplomacy) back in China. Solon gave him the name of Nigel Wassif - the owner and chief editor of The Cairo Bulletin as a potential contact.

 

After they finished at the Consulates, Mahmoud led them to The Egyptian Museum where they hired Saleem Naziz to act as a private docent. Saleem introduced them to Dr. Ali Kafour, a respected Egyptian scholar who specializes in the more occult side of Egyptian history. He told them that the majority of the Museums collection was kept in a vault below the Museum. They only show a fraction of the collection at any one time. He is also familiar with Sir Aubry Penhew and The Penhew Foundation - and spoke with Sir Penhew on several occasions. Since his death there have been at least 10 other expeditions that have been organized by the Penhew Foundation. Lee did some research into the donors at the Museum and found that Omar al-Shakti was a prominent donor. Saleem introduced them to the museum's research library and they spent the rest of they day there going through books looking for information about The Black Pharaoh or The Brotherhood. Arthur was able to find enough to piece together a small timeline:
 

At the end of the Third Dynasty, a man known as Nephren-Ka came to Egypt. Nephren-Ka was a powerful sorcerer; he brought madness and death to his enemies at the flick of a finger. The stories say that he came from an ancient city in the deserts of Arabia, whose name was Irem, the City of Pillars. Nephren-Ka revived the worship of an old, foul god: the Black Pharaoh. Soon Nephren-Ka and that god were interchangeable in the minds of the people, and the sorcerer became known as the Black Pharaoh. Now, no one can distinguish between their deeds and legends. For many years, the Black Pharaoh fought with Zoser’s successors of the Third Dynasty for control of the land; so great was the power of the Black Pharaoh that no record of them now remains. For a time, Nephren-Ka ruled theNile and its peoples. At last Sneferu rose and founded the Fourth Dynasty and, with the aid of the goddess Isis, thwarted the evil magic and slew Nephren-Ka. Upon his triumph, Sneferu ordered all traces of the Black Pharaoh stricken from the land.

 

As the Museum was closing, Mahmoud took them to meet Nigel Wassif at The Cairo Bulletin (it is located very near their hotel). Lee pitched Nigel a possible story involving Omar al-Shakti and international smuggling. Nigel was intrigued but warned them that al-Shakti was a well respected, prominent businessman who owned a large private cotton plantation just outside the city. He also told them about recent events happening with The Clive Expedition - an ongoing expedition organized by The Penhew Foundation. The Clive party was excavating at Giza, where they recently unearthed the mummy of an unknown female from a secret chamber in Mycerinus Pyramid; the smallest of the three Great Pyramids. Several authorities speculated that it was Queen Nitocris, a mysterious figure of the Sixth Dynasty. However, before tests could be carried out or the mummy unwrapped, the sarcophagus and its contents disappeared, much to the bewilderment of all concerned. The site was well guarded and only one entrance to the secret chamber existed. Besides the loss of the mummy, Wassif has heard rumors that the expedition’s Dutch archaeologist was fired for incompetence, among other things. He had heard that Janwillem Van Heuvelen couldn’t afford a return ticket to Europe and was still holed up somewhere in Cairo - possibly around the Street of Moths (Cairo's ultra-poor section).

 

The next day the group asked Mahmoud to help them find Van Heuvelen. He led them to the Street of Moths and after asking the locals, was able to find someone who had seen a 'drunk Dutchman'. Eventually they located his meager room in the back of old Tailor's shop. He was passed out in a drunken stupor when they found him. They roused him enough for him to ask them repeatedly to have drinks with him at a local bar to talk about whatever business they wanted to talk about.

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Session 35: The Priestess of Bast

Arthur, Harley and Lee accompanied Janwillem to his local watering hole where he told them about his time with the Clive Expedition. He attached himself to them when they arrived in Cairo, staying with them during their work at Giza. He was there when the tomb with the unidentified female mummy was discovered - whom he believes to be Queen Nitocris. The night after its discovery, the mummy and its guards vanished. Only some ancient scrolls that had been found in the tomb remained. He was fired abruptly just before the company packed up and left for Memphis due to his excessive drinking. He mentioned Johanna Specht - the expedition's German Nazi-affiliated archeologist who is a whiz with hieroglyphics and Martin Winfield - a young British archeologist who turned him on to his magnum opus: The Black Rites of Luveh-Keraphf. Winfield gave him directions to a small underground temple deep in the Old City where he found the rites bundled up and hidden in the base of a statue. He has been translating them into Dutch from their original hieroglyphics and will be finished in a week. He then plans to sell the originals to the highest bidder to make a name and fortune for himself. Arthur offered for him to join the team and work for them as a translator for some of the tomes they had found - and stay with them at their hotel. Janwillem agreed and collected his things form his room and accompanied them back to the hotel.

 

When they arrived at the hotel they were given a telegram from Carlton Ramsey that informed them that another friend of Jackson Elias had turned up in Cairo: Ted Dibnah. He was part of a failed expedition and finds himself stranded without prospects. Arthur and Harley went to meet Ted at his hotel. They talked about Jackson and the predicament they are in and Ted agreed to help with the mission to finish Jackon's investigation.

 

Back at the hotel, Ted met Janwillem and Lee - but Janwillem was deep into his translation of the Black Rites. Arthur decided to show Ted the African mask and what it did as a sort of initiation. This time when he placed the mask on he saw a cosmic vision of other worlds and creatures all connected in floating spheres. As his own memories played out in one, Arthur went a little mad, developing an irrational fear of spheres but also the ability of Insane Stealth. Ted decided not to try out the mask for himself.

 

The group went out to an early diner at a restaurant not too far off from their hotel. While they were getting ready to order Arthur, Harley and Lee noticed a figure in black watching them from the crowds - and Harley saw it was a young Egyptian woman. She turned and fled so Lee gave pursuit, chasing her down an alley way where she made a supernaturally high jump onto the rooftops. Lee climbed up after her, She told him that she was Neris, a high-priestess of Bast and that Janwillem had stolen their sacred rites from her temple. He was now plagued with a curse of cats (which explained the high number of felines around them lately) - and she would meet them in that alley tonight at midnight to retrieve the rites. Lee returned to the group and promptly handcuffed himself to Janwillem - telling them all what had happened and that Janwillem would be returning the rites that evening.

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Session 36: The History of The Black Pharaoh

Janwillem convinced Arthur, Harley, Lee and Ted to release him from the handcuffs by agreeing to meet with Neris that night. He also made the point that the team hadn't aquired all of their artifacts in the most straightforward way either. They retired to the hotel where Janwillem went back to translating while Lee called Nigel Wassif at The Cairo Bulletin to see if he would photograph The Black Rites so that Janwillem could finish his translation after the scrolls were turned over. While he was on the phone, Haryley noticed Janwillem stealithly collect his notes and the scrolls and lock himself in the bathroom. Lee circled around the building to see in crawling up to the roof while the others burst into the empty bathroom. Lee quickly caught Janwillem, knocked him out and handcuffed him to a fixture on the roof until they returned from their meeting with Nigel. 

 

Nigel was able to photograph the scrolls without damaging them and promised to have the film developed by the next afternoon. The team waited until it was time to meet with Neris and took the scrolls and Janwillem to the appointed alleyway. At midnight they saw a large black panther approaching in the darkness - which transformed into Neris as she approached. This sent Arthur into a spiral of insanity and tried to sneak up on her - but she saw him and demanded that they turn over the scrolls. When she had them, she left telling them that they had earned Bast's blessing - and the next morning they all (aside from Janwillem) found a token of Bast's regard on their pillows apparently having been delivered by some feline in the night.

 

The group decided to revisit Dr. Ali Kafour at The Egyptian Museum and do some additional research. Dr. Kafour proved to be a wealth of information - and a fellow student of the magical arts. He explained that the tokens they received ensured affection from all felines and protected them form cat demons. He also expanded on the information they had discovered about Nephren-Ka saying that a pyramid was built at Meidum, by Sneferu’s command, to contain the sorcerer’s body with the idea that it would insulate Egypt from the still-potent magic within the corpse; however, the Meidum pyramid collapsed and a second, which was already under construction, was hurriedly repurposed. This second pyramid is now known as the Bent Pyramid at Dashur. Records imply that Nephren-Ka’s corpse was removed from Meidum and placed within the Bent Pyramid, but exploration of the site has discovered no trace, despite rumors of a hidden chamber within. Another pyramid at Dahshur, the Red Pyramid, is also attributed to Sneferu; this pyramid is said to guard Dahshur, lest Nephren-Ka rise from the dead. In the Sixth Dynasty, the cruel Queen Nitocris was thought to be in league with a new cult of the BlackPharaoh; though the proof of this is subjective - and he believes that she was the mummy found by the Clive Expedition in Giza. He knows of Omar al-Shakti but has never met him. He is also aware of the Brotherhood and is now worried that they may be working to bring about an old prophecy that implies that the Black Pharaoh will arise “fingers and toes after the Great Good One,” a reference which many have taken to mean 20 centuries after Jesus. A new age then begins, destined to end the dominance of mankind, and bringing “freedom” and “stark truth” to the Black Pharaoh’s followers. He also suspects that worship of the Black Pharaoh is growing in other parts of Africa. He has heard of a cult, called the Bloody Tongue, in Kenya that worships a monstrous god, which he believes is another aspect of the Black Pharaoh. He has heard stories of the worship of many different aspects of The Black Pharaoh throughout all corners of the Earth. He also explains that Nyarlathotep is only one of a pantheon of entities known as The Outter Gods who lie dormant in the forgotten places of the Earth and beyond. Nyarlathotep is known as the Crawling Chaos and the bringer of the way for the other Outter Gods, meant to shepherd them back into our plane.

 

After speaking with Kafour, Arthur did some research about Bast in the museum's library - finding out that there is usually one High Priest or Priestess at a time and reading a vague description of a ritual they use to commune with Bast called the Opening of the Mouth that involves the sacrifice of a snake - the cats mortal enemy. Yan did some meditation and Ted and Harley wandered the exhibits - with Ted reading about some of the human sacrifices that were performed in the past as offerings to some of the more demanding gods that involved throwing sacrifices into large pits filled with leeches.

 

As afternoon rolled around, the team went to the Bulletin to pick up the photos that Nigel had made for them. Then they hunkered down and talked about how to proceed with their investigation, going through some of the items that had led them to Cairo. Looking at the letter from Warren Besart they had aquired form Jackson Elias's room back in New York, they noted that they needed to find both Warren Bessart and Faraz Najjir if they were still around. Janwillem told them that he could send a word to Dr. Clive at the dig site at Memphis and set up a meeting. He told them a little about the Clive Expedition members: Dr Henry Clive being the leader, Martin Winfield - a young archeologist who had turned him onto The Black Rites, James Gardner - a more established archeologist with odd ideas of finding evidence of vast stretching tunnels underneath the Sphinx, Johanna Specht - a German Nazi archeologist who is a whiz with Heiroglyphics and Agatha Broadmoor - a psychic who seemed very out of place to him.

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Session 37: The Discarded Pawns

After retrieving the photos taken of The Black Rites from Nigel Wassif at The Cairo Bulletin, he called a contact at the French Consulate and found Warren Besart's registered address as The Red Door in the Street of Scorpions/Red Alley. Arthur, Harley, Lee and Ted decided to try and speak with Faraz Najjir at his shop in the bazaars of the Street of Jackals as mentioned in the letter from Warren Besart. Mahmoud led them to the street and began to ask locals about the location of the shop. When he finally found someone who recognized the name, they gave the ward of the evil eye and told him that the shop had been burnt down by a demon about 5 years back. Najir had been injured in the fire but survived and reopened somewhere in the Street of Potters. When the group ventured to look at the site of the old shop, they found that the building had not been rebuilt and locals kept a wide berth when cross the street. Ted examined the debris and determined that the fire burnt much hotter than a normal fire (melting some of the metal in the foundation) and thought it very odd that the surrounding buildings had not been affected. As the afternoon waned on, Mahmoud took them to the Street of Potters where they eventually found Najir's shop. Najir  was very closed lipped at first, seeming to only want to peddle his low rent wares but Arthur convinced him to meet them after the store had closed to speak. Najir met them at the al-Hussein Mosque and took them to a private room to talk while afternoon prayers were starting. 

According to Najjir, Roger Carlyle sought information about the Black Pharaoh and had hired Warren Besart to obtain any artifacts he could find. Najjar had come into possession of a number of items related to the Black Pharaoh, which he admitted to having stolen from Omar al-Shockti. Amongst the items he sold to Besart were an ancient scroll detailing the entrance to a hidden room in an unnamed pyramid, within which the Black Pharaoh was supposedly entombed; a bust of the Black Pharaoh; a small drum (a tambour) bearing odd symbols supposedly of mystical power; and a strange circlet set with a large zircon, which was said to be the crown of the Black Pharaoh and the key to his triumph over death. Even though he’d done work for Besart many times before then, he has not spoken to the Frenchman since he handed over the artifacts, and does not know where he can be found. It wasn’t until later that he discovered al-Shakti was also high priest of the Brotherhood of the Black Pharaoh in Egypt. He’d heard of the cult but never believed in such nonsense until they came after him. Najjir also suggested that they should seek out an old wise woman called Nuri who lives in the town of El Wasta, around 7 miles  southeast of the pyramid at Meidum. Her son also worked for the Carlyle Expedition during their time in the region. Ted had noticed an amulet that Najjir wore and he explained that he had sought it out after the attack. It is the Amulet of Night Beasts and is meant to give protection from the Cult. He didnt know if there was another one around but gave them the name of the man whom he'd purchased it from.

 

Though it was starting to become evening, the group pushed on and Mahmoud took them to the Red Alley to find Warren Besart. When they found him, he was in a drug induced stupor. The promise of money for more hashish got him talking - telling them about his time with the Carlyle Expedition and how all the members (except Jack "Brass" Brady) had vanished while inside the Red Pyramid at Dashur - only to reappear a day later changed somehow and talking about a great discovery. He met the mother of one of the diggers who told him the expedition members had consorted with an ancient evil and if he needed proof to hide himself away and at the Collapsed Pyramid at Meidum that night. He and Brady hid themselves away and saw the other expedition members hold a cult ceremony where about 50 diggers were murdered and fed to a monstrosity that drove Besart insane. The woman woman found him in the desert and took him to her hut nursed him back to health for the next 2 years. Finally he returned to Cairo but needed the drugs to keep the horrible dreams away.

 

As it was getting late, Mahmoud led the group back to their hotel - with Lee scaring a group of robbers away who tried to ambush them. The next morning Janwillem got a reply from Dr. Clive inviting him to bring the group by to meet with him later that afternoon. As it would take most of the morning and early afternoon to travel to Giza where they could rent some camels to walk them south to the Clive's dig site at Memphis they decided to leave first thing. Before leaving, Arthur finally figured out the secret of the Headdress of Eyes that they had found at Edward Gavigan's house in England - but unlocking that secret came with a new found phobia of eyes. He also found that a voice inside his head began to talk him into possibly questionable decisions. He began to learn a spell from one of their many tomes since he now had a plethora of magical power to draw from.

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Session 38: The Clive Expedition

Arthur, Harley, Lee, Ted and Janwillem traveled to Giza via the Cairo tram and secured camels to take them down to the City of the Dead at Memphis to make have their meeting with Dr. Henry Clive and the other members of The Clive Expedition. Martin Winfield met them and took them past the highly guarded perimeter of the dig site and into the Mess tent where they were introduced to Dr. Clive and James Gardner. Not long after, Johanna Specht also joined them for lunch. While Janwillem spoke with Dr. Clive the group chatted with the other expedition members. Gardner seemed perturbed at having to leave the site at Giza - explaining that his whole reason for coming to Cairo was to look into the many rumors of a hidden system of tunnels that lie beneath The Great Sphinx and the Giza Pyramids. Specht talked with Arthur about her interest in occult items. Arthur showed her the gold from Peru that he had inlaid into his sword cane but resisted the nagging urge to show her the African mask. They also showed her the token of Bast's regard that they had received and relayed the story of meeting Neris. Dr. Clive concluded his chat with Janwillem saying that he didnt see a way for his expedition to join forces with Janwillem's any time soon, at least. The group questioned him about the disappearance of the mummy from Giza - which apparently vanished while under full police guard (the guards are also missing). They were also unable to convince him to give them tour of the current dig site or a look at any of their findings. 

 

As lunch was winding down, Lee stepped outside and found Agatha Broadmoor dozing by her tent. She sensed that he was far from home and looking for something that would help him avenge a wrong from his past - and told him that she was a psychic but specialized in communicating with the dead. Agatha joined Lee as he went back into the tent to find the other Clive Expedition members heading back to work - Janwillem excused himself to speak to Winfield before they left. Agatha told the group that she had sought out Dr. Clive in London because she was having horrible nightmares of some force resurrecting the long dead Queen Nitocris in Egypt. She wanted to warn Dr. Clive that the expedition's actions may lead to this horrible event. They didnt seem to take much heed but offered her a position on the team as one had become available at the last minute - so she joined up to keep a watch on them. She sensed great evil in both Dr. Clive and Martin Winfield. She said that now that the mummy had been stolen, she is sure dreams were prophetic. The only thing that gave her hope is that in order to resurrect the Queen, the thieves would also need to have found The Crown of Nitocris, The Girdle of Nitocris and the Necklace of Nitocris - 3 magical artifacts that have never reportedly been found.

 

Agatha offered to run a seance for the team to speak with Jackson Elias - Harley and Ted decided to sit it out and keep a watch on the tent from outside. Agatha entered a trance and seemed to become possessed by the spirit of Jackson - though he seemed confused and not sure of where he was or whom he was speaking to most of the time. He warned them to be careful as the cults reach was felt worldwide. He also warned them not to let the baby be born at the Black Wind. And left them with a final cryptic message saying "That which bends can break the mind but reveal the truth. The white way leads to darkness, illumination, and temptation." After the sitting, Agatha was very tired and excused herself but not before the team warned her that she might not be safe - they noticed that most of the workers at the camp wore a version of the Brotherhood's inverted ankh. They set up a code word (Mushu) that they could send to each other by telegram if they were in need of help.

 

As they were so close, the team decided to travel further south to Dashur where they found a way into the boarded up western entrance into the Bent Pyramid - and set up camp for the night. Before exploring that pyramid, though, they decided to scale the Red Pyramid as dawn broke and found their way into what appeared to be false funeral chamber without any exits or signs of being disturbed. Lee scaled the pyramid to its tip to see if there was a hidden entrance into other parts of the pyramid. While he didnt find one, he did find a section of the pyramid at the very top that looked like it had been vandalized - a section of the side of the rock showed evidence of being chiselled away. A section that would have looked directly at the Bent Pyramid across the way.

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Session 39: The Black Pharaoh

After thoroughly exploring the outside of the Red Pyramid, Arthur, Harley, Lee, Ted and Janwillem decided to move their attentions to the inside of the Bent Pyramid. They discovered an almost identical faux funerary chamber - the only difference were 2 alabaster columns that ran floor to ceiling. While going over the room Lee found traces of foot prints that seem to vanish, Harley found an inexplicable mound of sand and Ted discovered that the columns seemed to run into/through the floor. Arthur was able to find a part of the column that caused it to open, revealing 20 stairs leading up to a series of ramps going further into the Pyramid. Eventually they found themselves passing through an asymmetrical archway into a room containing an onyx throne and 6 columns with odd green gems attached at the top. The walls of the room were etched with a map with a triangle of rubies that seemed to be placed somewhere off the Chinese coastline, Australia and mid-costal Africa, a plot of our solar system, a larger star chart of our universe and a drawing of people worshiping at the feet of someone standing in front of a mountain holding up an infant with accompanying hieroglyphics. Arthur studied the star charts and ruby map - recognizing it as our solar system he was able to pinpoint the date that stars would be aligned to match their placement as January 14, 1926. He remembered that this was to be the date of another Solar eclipse - and realized the markings on the ruby map showed the path of the eclipse. 

 

As they were discussing what it could all mean, the 6 gems burst into green flames and The Black Pharaoh materialized on the throne in a shimmer of air. Ted hide behind the throne but Arthur brazenly accused The Black Pharaoh of murdering Jackson Elias and so many others and brandished his sword cane. The group found themselves frozen in place as The Black Pharaoh demanded an apology for his disrespect but also challenged him to make good on his threat with the sword cane. When they found they could move again, Arthur thrust his sword into the neck of god. Instantly the Black Pharaoh's skin fell away - splitting his body in 2 where the sword has pierced him - and from it emerged the terrifying form of The Bloody Tongue. Seeing this incarnation of the god cracked Arthur's mind - and in his insanity he saw the Hound of Tindalos that had been hunting him since that fateful night in London when he saw it summoned. The Hound/The Bloody Tongue crushed his form - killing Arthur. The Bloody Tongue shimmered out of existence while 2 large winged snake-like beings shimmered into the room and attacked the team. They were eventually dealt with by Harley's shotgun and Lee wielding Arthur's sword cane. In the aftermath of the fight, the voice of The Black Pharaoh boomed in their ears telling them that while the physical form he chose to appear in could be harmed - he was immortal. He advised them to give up their futile pursuits as they could not be 3 places at once and to live out what little time they had left safe in their homes. The wall turned into a vision of The Carlyle Expedition on hiatus in Kenya and they watched as all of the members and their workers were ripped to shreds by similar flying snake-like creatures.

 

When the gods voice stopped echoing in their ears - the archway appeared again and Janwillem fled. The others helped bring Arthur's body out down the series of ramps and to the main area of the Pyramid. When they had exited, the white column closed - but when they searched they could not find a way to reopen it or the 2nd column. Upon exiting the Pyramid, they were met with the guards Janwillem had fetched for help. While they assessed the situation, Lee snuck over to the North entrance only to find a touristy version of another faux funerary room. The group was taken into custody and moved back to Cairo. After statements were given and some hefty fines were paid, Harley and Ted were released while Lee and Janwillen were sent to the asylum at the Mosque of Ibn Tulun.

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Session 40: The Mosque of Ibn Tulun

Lee and Janwillem were both admitted into the asylum at Mosque of Ibn Tulun under the care of Dr. Alil Hussain. After speaking with Dr. Hussain, they were shown to the dormitory where they would sleep. Lee met Barty, a mostly catatonic patient whom hadn't spoken since being admitted. He also noticed several holy men, the Ulama, who would come into the Asylum to talk and pray with the patients. He was told that they lived on the grounds and used to be the caretakers of the Mosque when it still functioned as a religious site. That night he was awoken by Barty staring out the window at the building where the Ulama stayed and muttering "the black diamond, the red star, the emerald creature" over and over. When he tried to talk to him Barty started to rave loudly claiming that "the ageless man would wake her! They have the diamond, they have the creature. The ageless man will send for the star and he will wake her. The crawling chaos, the maker of the way comes! They will wake Azathoth form its slumber and the world will burn!" until he was sedated an removed by nurse staff.

 

Meanwhile, Harley and Ted were released from police custody after Carlton Ramsey wired the sum of their fines. They returned to the hotel and hid Arthur's stash of occult and mythos items. The next day Harley was surprised to see Jack Marquette waiting for him in the lobby. Jack had finished his business in London and had made plans to come to Egypt. While Harley caught Jack up on what had been happening, Ted retrieved 2 telegrams and a hand written note from the front desk. Both telegrams were from Agatha Broadmoor. The first was from the day after they had met her and said "Red Mushu". The second was sent 2 hours after the first and said "Ignore last message. My mistake. The heat is getting to me. Decided to return to England. Good Luck with your work." The hand written note was from Dr. Ali Kafour explaining that he had heard of their bad luck at Dashur and wanted them to come see him at the Cairo Museum as he had a colleague that might be able to help. The trio decided to meet the colleague and had Mahmoud lead them to the museum where Dr. Kafour introduced them to Sayed al-Ameen, his protegee. Dr. Kafour gave Sayed permission to accompany the group as they tried to free Lee and Janwillem from the asylum.

 

Sayed procured a car and the group drove out to Ibn Tulun and met with Dr. Hussain. Though it took some convincing, Sayed and the group was able to get Dr. Hussain to agree to release Lee and Janwillem into their care. It would take a day to arrange the proper paperwork with the local government and embassy, but they were allowed to visit with them in the common room. While en route, Ted recognized Barty - as he was the man who had hired him to join his expedition and paid his way to Cairo from London before going missing. Ted was told that Barty had been found in his current state wandering around the desert near the Pyramids at Giza about a month ago and hadn't spoken a word until his outburst last night. The group continued to the Common Room and updated Lee on the situation. Lee told them what Barty had said the night before and Sayed recognized that he was referring to The Crown of Nitocris (said to feature a black diamond), The Girdle of Nitocris (said to feature a Ruby star stone) and The Necklace of Nitocris (said to feature an emerald representation of The Great Sphinx). When Barty was brought into the Common Room, he immediately moved to the window and started to stare at the Ulama's building again. Sayed got Dr. Hussain's permission to take Lee across the courtyard to visit with the Nazir (who oversees the Ulama).

 

At first Ahmed al-Dhahabi, the Nazir, seemed too busy to talk to the group until Sayed mentioned The Black Pharoah - then he made time for them. They told him some of what had happened and that they think The Brotherhood was planning to try and steal The Girdle (or whatever the Ulama were guarding). al-Dhahabi assured them that the item was safe and that a theft had already been attempted and had failed. He brought Nessim Efti in from an underground chamber beneath his office to continue the talk. Efti wielded an infamous scimitar known as The Sword of Akmallah. It's legendary stories tell of numerous battles against impossible foes. The group managed to convince Efti and al-Dhahabi that The Brotherhood would most likely try again and that the best way to prevent them was to destroy the item. However, Efti said that they had tried many times over the years but it seemed indestructible. Sayed thought that Dr. Kafour might be able to help as he has a massive library of knowledge in the vault beneath the Museum that might lead to an answer. Efti said the Ulama would hold onto the item and continue to protect it with the Sword of Akmallah but would gladly assist if they were able to figure out a way to destroy it.

 

As the group left the Ulama's house and headed back across the patient filled courtyard, they all felt as if they were being watched. 

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Session 41: The Audacious theft

Sayed had noticed that a shadowy figure of someone dressed in the asylum's staff outfit watching the group as they walked back from the Ulama's quarters. Jack decided to sneak through the crowd of patients and into the building though when he got to the dormitory where Sayed had seen the figure no one was near the windows, though there were 2 attendants making beds. Lee convinced Dr. Alil Hussain to let him play his flute in the courtyard to help soothe the other patients - while Sayed "warned" him that they had overheard patients talking about making an escape. He said he would make sure the staff was extra vigilant. Sayed, Jack, Harley and Ted left Lee to return to The Egyptian Museum and speak with Dr. Ali Kafour about what they had discovered. Dr. Kafour agreed that time seemed to be of the essence and asked Sayed to accompany him to the Vaults where the 2 of them would pour over the ancient scrolls of Al Azif - the only surviving Arabic translation of The Necronomicon.

 

The others decided to return to the hotel and move their more occult related items into the Vault at the Museum, where it would be more protected. Upon arriving at the hotel though, they found that their rooms had been searched and some - but not all - of their items had been taken (the Headdress of Eyes, the scrolls they had found at the Penhew Fondation and the photos and notes of Janwillem's translation of The Black Rites). When they moved the items to the vault, Dr. Kafour was able to identify a few. The African mask he recognized as the Mask of Hayama and explained it was used by certain African cults to make contact with different gods. The Ornate Silver Daggers he recognized as tools in summoning a creature form another dimension and told them if they knew the ritual, they would be able to make one command of the creature once it was summoned. He also recognized the two Scepters and told them that when held crossed in front of the holder they would aid in the casting of magic and protect against magical attacks.

 

Harley, Ted and Jack decided to head back to the Mosque of Ibn Tulun and watch for any nefarious activity while Sayed and Dr. Kafour continued to read the scrolls of Al Azif. They arrived and placed themselves at strategic points on the wall outside the Ulama's building. Lee's day at the asylum was uneventful - but he noticed that Janwillem was nowhere to be seen - when he asked an attendant, they said he was being seen by the Dr. He did come across a patient that was drawing a representation of one of the flying dragon-like creatures that had attacked them in the Chamber of the Black Pharaoh. She said referred to it as the Hunting Horror of her dreams. That night he also noticed that Barty wasn't in the dorms and was told that they feared he might have another episode and was being put under observation. At some point in the night all of the patients seemed to wake up screaming simultaneously - causing a huge nearly uncontrollable mess in the dorms. Moments later, Ahmed al-Dhahabi burst out of the Ulama's building and was attacked by a Sand-Dweller. Lee snuck out of the chaos and muscled his way out into the courtyard, where Ted, Harley & Jack where also coming to his aid. With the creature dispatched, Ahmed led them all down to the chamber where the Ulama's were watching over the Girdle of Nitocris - but they were all in battle with Sand-Dwellers. As they fought, a Hunting Horror shimmered into the room, but before it could snag the girdle Harley and Lee brought it down. The Ulama spoke and agreed that the girdle might be safer in the team's hands - and Nessim Efti gave Lee the Sword of Akmallah to aid them - performing a consecration ritual that took most of the night.

 

Meanwhile, in the Vaults, Sayed found references to all the items needed by the Brotherhood to resurrect Nitocros - and how to destroy them:

 

• The Girdle of Nitocris: The artifact needs to be physically dissolved in “aqua regia”—a dangerous, fuming mixture of concentrated nitric and concentrated hydrochloric acid, known to alchemists for its ability to dissolve gold and platinum. The concoction must also contain at least two doses of Space Mead.

• The Crown of Nitocris: The best way to destroy the Crown is by using a ritual called Enchantment of the Living Flame.

• The Necklace of Nitocris: The Necklace can be destroyed only by cutting it up into tiny pieces with an enchanted blade made of pure silver that has been embued with the designs that match the Necklace’s pendant. Even the gemstones must be cut apart if the Necklace’s power is to be broken. 

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Session 43: The Enemy Strikes Back

Before leaving the Mosque of Ibn Tulun, Lee had Nessim Efti teach himself, Harley, Jack and Ted a spell that he could work with the Sword of Akmallah called the Elder Sign. They also checked in with Dr. Alil Hussain about Janwillem and was told that he had been released to 'his embassy' earlier that day. He also mentioned that Barty seemed to have gone missing during the uproar last night. They decided to leave and head to The Egyptian Museum to check up on how Dr. Ali Kafour and Sayed al-Ameen's research in the Al Azifhad gone. Sayed revealed the information he had found about the 3 adornments of Nitocris and another ritual which might be able to help called Summon The Living Fire. Dr. Kafour reached out to some contacts who said that they could make the auqa regia needed to destroy the Girdle of Nitocris in 3 days time - so the group decided to keep a watch over the Girdle and camp out in the Vault until it was ready. Lee did some research into the Sword while down there and came across a mention of a ritual called The Eye of Light and Darkness - which is meant to ward away powerful Elder beings - but could not find find mention of how the ritual was performed.

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After the first days watch, Saleem Naziz came looking for Dr. Kafour on some museum business. Harley sensed something was awry, so he and Jack accompanied Dr. Kaouf back to his office and narrowly stopped Saleem from slitting his throat by shooting him point blank with his rifle. The shot wounded Saleem badly but brought him out of whatever control his mind was under. Saleem was taken to the hospital and Jack and Harley were taken into custody. After several hours of questioning, Omar al-Shakti arrived in Harley's interrogation room asking for his item to be given to him. When Harley tried to play as if he didn't know what he was talking about and thwarted Omar's assault on his mind - Omar called in 2 cultists dressed in police uniform who knocked him out. Jack was released some time later to find that Harley was missing. A telegram was delivered to the group at the Museum saying "Mr. Shrimpton requests you bring the girdle to tea tomorrow. -Omar al-Shakti". Hoping for some extra protection, Dr. Kafour helped them gather the materials and perform a ritual to put them in contact with the goddess Bast. Sayeed became the point person for the exchange - and when Bast appeared in the form of a Lion he asked for protection for Harley.

 

Meanwhile, Harley woke in a large cavernous stone cell with Janwillem, Barty, Agatha Broadmoor, James Gardner and 60 or so other prisoners. Agatha told him that Dr. Henry Clive had tricked she and James 4 or 5 days prior. They didn't know exactly where they were - only that stale bread and a bucket of water was provided for them daily. When one of the jailer's came to refill the water Harley was shocked to find it to be a half-man/half-bull creature. Agatha told him there were many breeds of the Children of the Sphinx down here. Harely thought he could break the bucket and use the metal strips along the side to open the locks on their cage. He half broke it off when he heard the Minotaur returning. As it started to open the locks of the gate and quiet the maker of the noise, the group in Cairo finished their communion with Bast and hundreds of cats ran to the creature and began to claw at it until it was dead.

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Session 43: The Tunnels Below

As Jack, Lee, Sayed, Ted and Dr. Ali Kafour cleaned up after the ritual they used to commune with Bast - the weight of the truths that he'd learned weighed on Sayed's mind until he blacked out. The group was able to track him down as he was being hauled away by the police for shouting about 'the gods' and disturbing the peace. Lee was able to persuade them to release him and they all returned to the Museum. Originally the plan was to try and summon the "Living Fire" from the ritual Sayed had come across in the Al Azif. Dr. Kafour suggested they might be able to use an item belonging to Harley to help the summoned creature find him, so Lee and Sayed went back to the apartment to collect the rest of their things. While they were there, they were attacked by some cultists. Lee did away with most of them - but they kept one to question, finding out that Omar al-Shackti keeps his prisoners in the tunnels below the pyramids a Giza. Leaving Dr Kafour to watch the Girdle of Nitocris in the Vault, the team ventured out to Giza. As it was mid morning by the time they arrived, they decided to try to find their own way into the tunnels and then summon the creature that night to help stop the oncoming ritual. They explored the Mycerinus Pyramid, where the mummy of Queen Nitocris had been found, and stumbled upon the entrance of a secret passage leading down to the tunnels.

 

Meanwhile, Harley freed himself and the group of captives from the cell they were locked in and began to follow the footprints that they mysterious cats left behind. It led to a very narrow area of the tunnels that dropped off about 20 feet before continuing. He and James Gardner coordinated a system to get the prisoners down, but an accident caused a minor cave in blocking the path to Agatha Broadmoor, Janwillem Van Heuvelen and a majority of the others. Harley led the group away from noxious odors and strange sounds and found themselves in a larger Main tunnel adorned with drawings depicting the Children of the Sphinx engaged in horrific acts of violence and depredation. It lead them to a side tunnel which emerged into a huge cavernous Chamber which contained a double onyx throne, an altar laid out with a mummy and the other 2 items necessary to resurrect the Queen: the Crown of Nitocris and the Necklace of Nitocris, a set of stairs leading into a smokey oblivion and a large pit. As they were headed out of the Chamber, they heard 2 men coming and backtracked. They ambushed one of the men as he entered the chamber and then left - following in the direction they had heard them men coming from. Eventually they met up with the rest of the team and gave Gardner directions to the exit. While they regrouped and prepared to head into the Chamber - they heard an uproar of animal sounds echoing down the pathway from that direction.

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Session 44: The Children of the Sphinx

Harley led Jack, Lee, Sayed and Ted through the tunnels to towards the Chamber he had traveled through earlier. They found 2 Crocodile-men guarding the entrance. Harley blew them away with this rifle but this drew the attention of the 20 other Children of the Sphinx that were now inside the chamber (a combination of Cheetah-men, Bull-men, Crocodile-men and Hippo-men). Lee stealthily made his way towards the altar where the mummy, the Crown of Nitocris and the Necklace of Nitocris were resting while the others battled the creatures rampaging towards the front of the chamber. One of the Bull-men collected the ritual items and tried to flee but Lee took it and the other Bull-men out. As the battle drew to a close, Lee recovered the items and, using the Sword of Akmallah, chopped the head off of the mummy and threw it into the pit. 

 

The group decided the best course of action was to retreat to the desert until nightfall and then try to summon Living Fire and instruct it to destroy the Crown. In doing so, they would need to leave behind Agatha Broadmoor and the other captives. The thought of what might happen to them drove Sayeed a little mad and he began absentmindedly smoking his pipe - which drew the attention of 2 more Children - an Ibis-man and Falcon-man this time. Once they were dispatched, the group rented a wagon (for wood) and retreated well into the desert away from prying eyes. That night Sayeed performed the ritual - bringing down the living fire like a shooting star. It destroyed the Crown and flew back into the skies - again Sayeed was thrown by the experience and went running off further into the desert. As his companions chased after him and as he collapsed onto the sand - he heard the sound of large leathery wings overhead.

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Session 45: The Attack From Above

Sayed looked up at the sound of the beating wings and saw a swarm of human-sized bird like creatures headed towards the group. Jack and Lee helped Sayed defend against the first wave - with all three almost being hauled into the sky. Harley took a defensive stance closer to Ted, who was inspecting the destroyed remains of the Crown of Nitocris. Several waves of the creatures came for them - but the group was able to hold them off and when the battle was over the sand was littered with their bodies. They decided to head back to Cairo to check on Dr. Ali Kafour. After making their way back to the Mena House Hotel, Harley was able to convince one of the late night bar patrons to drive them to The Egyptian Museum.

 

Inside, they found the vault door dented in several places - but Dr. Kafour was alive and well inside. After hearing the story of their evening, Kafour suggested that the Sword of Akmallah might be powerful enough to destroy the Necklace of Nitocris - and Lee found that he was correct. The group got some much needed rest and healing and the late the next morning the batch of Aqua Regia arrived and they were able to dissolve the Girdle of Nitocris as well. Seeing how shaken Sayed was from the past few days, Dr. Kafour suggested that he travel North to the small town of El Wasta and seek out an old wise woman called Nuri. He said that she had much wisdom and was an excellent medicine woman and healer of the mind. Sayed procured a car and the group traveled to El Wasta. After several hours of searching they met a man named Ubaid who took them to meet his mother Nuri. Ubaid had been one of the diggers that worked for The Carlyle Expedition several years ago. They also discovered that Nuri was the one who had found and nursed Warren Besart from utter madness after his experience near the pyramids at Dashur. When Nuri, who seemed to have become horribly maimed in a fire (her jaw was missing), met the group she excitedly gave them a fragment of stone carving that showed a portion of a larger series of ancient Egyptian protection symbols. The coloring of the stone led them to the conclusion that it was part of the missing stone they found removed from the Red Pyramid. Ubaid didnt know much about it but said his mother had referred to it as the Eye of Light and Darkness. They spent several days with Sayed in Nuri's care - and when they left he was feeling much more in control of his mental faculties.

 

They took the stone back to Dr. Kafour. He had heard of the ritual but only by name and in the mention of a few of his rarest books and couldn't offer them more information. They decided to seek out Warren Besart - who told them that the last time he had seen something like that it was in the possession of Jack Brady. 

 

The group started to discuss moving on from Cairo, but Lee's sense of justice wouldn't let him leave without finishing the mission which had brought him to Cairo in the first place - the stolen artifacts he tracked from China to Omar al-Shakti's possession. 

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Session 46: The al-Shakti Plantation

Lee, Sayed and Ted brainstormed a plan to be able to get into the al-Shakti Mansion and look for the stolen art and artifacts that Lee had come for. It was decided that a telegram would be sent to Omar al-Shakti telling him to meet at a cafe near Faraz Najjir's destroyed shop and they would turn over the Girdle, Necklace and Crown. Jack would accompany Sayed into the desert outside of south Cairo where he would perform the ritual to bring down the Living Fire and command it kill al-Shakti. Meanwhile, Harley would accompany Lee and Ted to stake out the al-Shakti Plantation to be there and sneak in once al-Shakti left.

 

Sayed performed the ritual and deepened the magic by sacrificing some of his own blood into the spell. The ritual left him feeling an exuberance of bravado and he started chasing after the creature as it zipped away towards Cairo.

 

At the al-Shakti residence, the men saw the telegram arrive and al-Shakti leave but were altered to Dr. Henry Clive's presence at the estate. When nightfall hit, Harley stayed in sniper position while Ted and Lee snuck up to the house. The guards noticed Ted and while they were escorting him to an unknown location, Lee began to take out the 8 guards that surrounded the house. Once they'd been beheaded, he and Ted ventured into the house and found a large safe in the study. The study also contained an odd clock that they recognized as a marine chronometer. Ted made short work of the safe - finding shipping logs of items shipped to and from both Randolph Shipping Company in Australia but also Ho Fang Import/Export in Shanghai. As he was looking at the log, a handwritten Scarab Receipt fell out and Ted recognized that the handwriting matched the handwriting on the Blueprints of the reverse engineered parts that the group had found in England. Lee found a secret entrance into a mini gallery that contained several of the pieces he was looking for - the main being a statue that combined the likeness of the Black Pharaoh with that of an Asian woman hiding behind a see-through fan. The woman's face and neck (only seen through the fan) contained several chins with gaping mouths that sprouted tentacles. While they were searching the premises, they were attacked by both Dr. Clive and a hidden Martin Winfield. Lee was badly hurt but both men were subdued in the end.

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Session 47: The Cargo Hold

Sayed and Jack made their way to the Cafe where they had sent the Living Fire to meet Omar al-Shakti. They found the cafe had been destroyed and the authorities were cleaning up the area. Asking around, they heard that a man had been badly burned in a freak accident - but he had disappeared into the crowds before help could arrive. Fearing the worst, they decided to continue on to Port Said and arrived with several hours to spare. They took a hotel room near the docks and rested.

 

Meanwhile, Harley befriended the cat that Lee and Ted had discovered - and learned its name was Hetep. He decided to bring it with them as they left the plantation and drove to meet the others in Port Said. The driving was slow going and they arrived as the ship was boarding - meeting up with Sayed and Jack on the docks. Lee decided to bluff his way into the crew entrance while the others went through customs. Harley was stopped and was told that he needed to check his weapon and pay for a transfer license and was escorted (with Ted) down into the Cargo hold of the ship. Thinking this was odd, Lee followed. As they were filling out the necessary forms, the crewmember helping them transformed into al-Shakti. He planted a suggestion in Harley's mind to bring the whole group down to the hold that evening and then wiped any trace of their conversation from his mind. Lee arrived - after hearing a shot that Harley had gotten off at al-Shakti before he was overtaken but everything seemed fine. That night Harley brought the group to the Cargo Hold where al-Shakti (still very injured and badly burned from the night before) shot lightning from his hands at the group - injuring Lee and Sayed - but the group was easily able to finish him off in his weakened state. When he died he crumbled to dust and Hetet crumbled into a mummified corpse of a cat.