Patchwork Universe

Dr. William T. Odom · Good Joined: 01 Dec 2003 Posts: 145 Location: The Museum

[OOC: Continued from The Museum: "Bad News for Zookeepers"]

Dr. Odom stopped just across the mist and shoved his pointed stick with the fluttering bit of purple cloth into the ground to the right of the door. Striking a match with trembling hands he lit his cigarette, shook out the match and tossed it aside, and waited for Dr. Jewel to come out and reassure him that they had not, in fact, come out to the west of her excavation site again.

Dr Jewel · Posted: Tue Apr 20, 2004 9:07 pm Post subject:

Dr Jewel stepped through and looked around.

"Well, it's not Maypole Hill." She said cautiously. "But it looks quite similar. As though it were still England somewhere."

She turned to Dr Odom.

"There are a couple of trees that we might be able to tie the rope to." She said. "Or we could investigate a little first."

Dr. William T. Odom · Good Joined: 01 Dec 2003 Posts: 145 Location: The Museum

"Did you notice the. . . ah. . . arrow? Sort of articulated brass thingie near the door? Pointing south? Kind of lends credibility to your earlier suggestion."

Trubshawe · Good Joined: 19 Mar 2004 Posts: 111 Location: The Zoo

Trubshawe appeared out of the mist, clutching the rope whose end he had attached to the Museum doorhandle. He looked around, sniffing the air which bore no trace of the musty odours of the place they'd come from, and his face fell. It didn't smell anything like the Zoo either.

"Aha! Capital idea, Odom!" he cried as he caught sight of the pointed stick the Doctor had thrust into the ground. Crossing the distance between him and it in a few quick strides, he brought the rope taut and deftly secured it just beneath the makeshift purple flag with a series of complicated knots.

"Our ball of twine to guide us through the labyrinth," he pronounced, stepping back to survey his handiwork.

Dr Jewel · Posted: Wed Apr 21, 2004 12:07 pm Post subject:

"Oh." Dr Jewel stared at the stick planted in the ground with some embarrassment. "Sorry, Dr Odom, I didn't realise."

She turned and stared back into the mist.

"Excuse me." She said. "I'll be back in just a moment."

Dr Jewel stepped back through the mist.

[OOC: Dr Jewel goes back to The Museum : Sign Checking]

Dr Jewel · Posted: Wed Apr 21, 2004 12:13 pm Post subject:

[OOC : Dr Jewel returns from Museum : Sign Checking]

"Yes, that sign does look like the one from Maypole Hill." She said. "And, it is pointing towards the inn."

Dr Jewel glanced around the area.

"I can't see one here." She said. "But then I don't think we're in a particularly prominent place. All the same, perhaps we can keep our eyes peeled for more."

Dr. William T. Odom · Good Joined: 01 Dec 2003 Posts: 145 Location: The Museum

"I don't see any wayward archaeologists wandering down from the north," Dr. Odom commented. "Otherwise it seems very much the same to me."

Dr. Odom studied Trubshawe for a moment. He wondered what the man's next demand would be.

"Now what?" he asked Dr. Jewel. "Do we range outward a bit into this unknown region, return to your semi-known public house and possible answers, or see what's to the north that had Misters Quickgrip and Liason in such a blasted hurry? I had hoped -- very, very slightly hoped -- that the city might have returned. That not being the case, I'm willing to consider any reasonable suggestion. As you say this is similar to the neighboorhood of your village, do you think you might find answers here?"

Dr Jewel · Posted: Wed Apr 21, 2004 4:39 pm Post subject:

"I don't really know what to suggest for the best." Dr Jewel replied. "All of those places sound interesting for different reasons. Thinking about it, perhaps a complete circuit of the Museum would be the most helpful because we would always have somewhere to return to that we knew.

We could move on first to the north, because I'm curious to know what's there. That has the advantage of meaning that we would finish by the inn. We could then go in and ask questions after we anchored the final rope."

Trubshawe · Good Joined: 19 Mar 2004 Posts: 111 Location: The Zoo

Trubshawe was sniffing the air, a look that was half recognition and half suspicion in his eyes.

"I'm all for making a full circuit of the Museum - I'm sure we have enough rope to anchor it to the north, south, east and west. However, if you don't object, I'd like to see what lies deeper in this area first. I can smell something out there. Not a zoo, but zoo-like. Definitely zoo-like."

Dr. William T. Odom · Good Joined: 01 Dec 2003 Posts: 145 Location: The Museum

Dr. Odom shrugged and looked Dr. Jewel's way. It didn't seem like an unreasonable suggestion.

"We can always get more rope as long as we're in the vicinity of the loading docks, too. This should reach one of those trees and we can take the stick and the rope from the cloakroom when we check the north. In the mean time, shall we follow Mr. Trubshawe's nose?"

Dr Jewel · Posted: Wed Apr 21, 2004 5:58 pm Post subject:

Dr Jewel nodded.

"Agreed". She said. "Zoo-like should be well worth a look. East I assume?"

Miss Mercury

Ahead of the visitors, a small village, and a little way away, to North and South, two larger buildings.

A few country roads traverse the landscape.

Along one of these, a stout figure on a bicycle can be seen, cycling from the north towards the village.

Trubshawe · Good Joined: 19 Mar 2004 Posts: 111 Location: The Zoo

Before turning his full attention to the new surroundings, Trubshawe had been inspecting his experiment, measuring out the unused length of rope with his hands.

"Hrrrm," he announced. "The rope suggests an objective distance of twenty or thirty feet separating the Museum from here, under cover of mist, which I believe tallies with what we experienced subjectively. So far so uncontroversial."

He caught sight of the cyclist and hissed a warning to the others.

"Look there! Some kind of... wheeled sentry... patrols this area."

Dr Jewel · Posted: Thu Apr 22, 2004 12:10 pm Post subject:

Jewel Hart turned to look.

"It's a woman on a bicycle." Dr Jewel was surprised. "This really could be somewhere else in England. Suppose we stop her and ask her where we are."

"Hello!" She shouted, waving at the cyclist.

Dr Jewel · Posted: Mon Apr 26, 2004 12:06 pm Post subject:

The stout figure continued to cycle and Dr Jewel saw them disappear into the village.

"Couldn't have seen us." She said.

She took a few paces forwards, then stared at the village itself. She looked from the name-sign to the row of houses with cars outside.

"Well," Dr Jewel looked up and down the street, "this looks very familiar. Not specifically, you understand, but in general. Car types, road signs, bicycles, it's all very England."

She looked at her two companions.

"This village doesn't look very big, there may be something beyond it." She said. "Do you want to take a further look?"