A Key of Three Summary

March 2020

STNO - Strange Things in New Orleans

The majority of the Cafe and Diner travel to Felix’s hometown of New Orleans to find the Olympian Antekey. Though strangely, none of the Cafe actually recall traveling to New Orleans. Instead, they awoke in Blackwood Manor having receipts already dated up to the 18th of March. These receipts would be classified as “Sequence II” and depict an alternate doomed timeline where Leviathan opened the Black Tide and unleashed a swarm of Elders on New Orleans. Additionally, the Cafe already had the Olympian Antekey—the Pearl of Poseidon—in their possession upon waking up. In a hidden receipt, Nick reveals that he was the one to cause Leviathan to unseal the Black Tide after stealing the Pearl of Poseidon from him. Nick notes a strange sigil carved into the floorboards of Blackwood Manor, which might be the cause of their temporal displacement. Unsure what exactly happened, Nick, made plans to speak with the only other person he suspects remembers the last 18 days, the half-Elder Shaka. Getting caught up in the strange affairs of New Orleans, the Cafe loses track of time and realizes that this month has a Friday the 13th, meaning the Boogieman Friday is likely to strike at them in revenge for stealing on his many eyes. Jericho is chosen to keep Friday busy while the rest of the Cafe takes the day off outdoors where Friday cannot reach them. Once all the other business in New Orleans is settled, the Cafe decides to split up, with Felix, Jean-Marc, and Jericho staying behind to deal with the mysterious portrait Friday was after. Meanwhile, Jennifer, Nick, and Nikki are sent to follow the Pearl to the next third of the Olympian Antekey hidden in Taos, New Mexico. And everyone else returns to the Open Doors Church to attempt to return to business as usual.

FRI - Friday

Jericho fended off the Boogieman Friday, and the captured Grunches escaped in the chaos. Interestingly enough, Friday, this time around, changed his usual nursery rhyme to include lines about fire and brimstone and panting with blood and fear, akin to the warning the Char Man sent to the Cafe two months ago. Additionally, Jericho felt less like he was being chased by Friday as he was chasing Friday. It would seem that Friday was preoccupied with looking for something hidden in Blackwood Manor, specifically a painting. Friday was unsuccessful, though, and returned to the Otherside until the next Friday, the 13th, in November.

GRM - Grim Grunches

Utilizing knowledge of what happened in the mysterious doomed timeline, the Cafe is already expecting to encounter the Grunches of Grunch Road. Though they also know that Shaka, for unknown reasons, deals with the Grunches himself every thirteen years they show up. Though in the doomed timeline’s receipts, they alluded to needing the Grunches to stick around, so the Cafe now has to attempt to keep them away from Shaka. Nick has his meeting with Shaka though their conversation is heavily obscured by codewords and secret phrases. Shaka reveals to Nick that the one who rolled back the timeline was the Greek God Dolos, son of Nyx. He did so to pay back a debt owed to Lucifer made sometime before her death in 2019. Shaka also hints that Nyx, and subsequently the Otherworld itself, is as old as the current Universe. Felix is able to capture the Grunches and hide them in the “Teal Room” of Blackwood Manor, which allegedly has powers stronger than that of Shaka. Upon further research, Jericho discovered that the Grunches, which are the animated testicles of the Sunkenman, are Hauntaurskaldian in nature despite the Sunkenman’s ties to Mayda because the Sunkenman made a deal with Satan, turning him into a Maydaian Boogieman. Felix confirms Jericho’s findings and has a conversation of sorts with the Grunches, who also speaks of coming fire and brimstone and blood that pays blood alone. The Grunches claim that thirteen regents will come as one the break the bonds which the Cafe has spun. After the Grunches escaped the Teal Room on Friday the 13th, they were slain again by Shaka of Zulu. It turns out the longer the Grunches are Flipside, the stronger they become exponentially, perhaps giving a reason as to why Shaka feels the need to cut them down every thirteen years before they become Elder-like.

AWNO - A Werewolf in New Orleans

Having already dealt with the Rougarou once before, Katherine sets out to deal with the Esterskaldian Boogieman once more, this time with more confidence. Katherine, a practicing catholic, plans to once again break her Lenten vows to attract the werewolf-like beast. Later, a strange man appears outside the window to Katherine’s room in the manor. He calls himself the Mysterious Benefactor, who claims to be in a more generous mood than he has been for centuries. He also claims that Katherine has the blood of Asmodeus inside her. The Mysterious Benefactor claims to have knowledge of Katherine’s condition and would help her learn more about it if she gave him a tour of Blackwood Manor. Before leaving, the Mysterious Benefactor bids Katherine farewell, referring to her as “Dingane.” After Friday the 13th passes along with Friday the Boogieman, Julius and Katherine prepare to deal with the Rougarou similarly to how they handled it in the doomed timeline. Though this time around, things don’t go as well, Katherine is gravely injured, and Julius is forced to kill the Rougarou outright, paying its tab in full.

TLD - The Living Dead

Mikey watches Katherine’s unconscious body after her fight with the Rougarou. In her unconscious state, Mikey observed her conversing with an unknown entity, presumably the Mysterious Benefactor. Katherine speaks out loud a coded message intended for Nick, using the Guy Hottel Memo as a book cipher to say, “She needs blood.” Mikey also notices while watching Katherine that certain fluctuations indicate that Leviathan has come Flipside and is now in New Orleans. Later, Katherine miraculously awakes from her comatose state, presumably after receiving blood from Nick off the record. Katherine confirms her link to blood after licking up a dried splotch of the Rougarou’s blood on her hand, which gave her the Rougarou’s feelings instead of its memories. Wanting to put Katherine’s new powers to the test, Felix supplies her with four blood samples, three from Cafe and Diner employees and one from a Fin Folk. The first sample of blood fills Katherine with feelings of dread at the potential to lose someone dear. The second sample of blood fills Katherine with feelings of fear that they will become the monster they fear. The third blood sample fills Katherine with the inescapable feeling that they shouldn’t be here and that something is wrong. Lastly, the same of the Fin Folk’s blood reveals a split between the Fin Folk, where half worship Despoina and the other half worship the Sunkenman.

TFF - The Finny Folk

Joy reveals that everyone back home also experiences the strange rollback of time though she still has one of her prophecies from the doomed timeline. The prophecy warns of creatures with blood black and cold as death who have or had the Pearl of Poseidon and who worship Despoina, the daughter of Demeter and Poseidon. The Cafe is uncertain whether or not the Fin Folk of the prophecy are truly Elders or not as they seem to be killable. Seth suggests acquiring a Blood sample to be sure. The Cafe plans to infiltrate the Fin Folk’s lair underneath Le Petit Theatre stretching out to Black Bay. Amber describes with great pleasure how they “smashed them fishes.” In the apparent chaos of the operation, it is revealed that the Sunkenman and Despoina are siblings. The body of the Sunkenman, a Maydaian Boogieman, was possessed by an Olympian Demi-God related to Despoina. It’s also revealed that the Sunkenman stole Despoina’s ring, causing unrest between the Fin Folk, but Despoina was able to retrieve the ring from the Sunkenman’s guts by stabbing him. Though the conflict between Despoina and the Sunkenman was cut short by the arrival of Leviathan, who in this timeline did not break open the entire Black Tide, but did bring with him three powerful Elders, Mosi’vego, Zehhurozzm, and Jutax, leading to a massive clash between the Elders and the Cafe.

ENO - Elders in New Orleans

Jericho, Nikki, Katherine, and Rachel are tasked with dealing with Mosi'vego the Gimcrack Angel. Mosi'vego reveals to Jericho that they are the child of Raguel, the Angel of Justice, who is still deliberating on the fate of Jericho, Joy, Julius, and Nikki for destroying the Enochian Bible to keep it from Umbra and the Dark. Jericho questions why Mosi'vego would ally themself with Zehhurozzm and Leviathan, to which Mosi'vego claims that things are in motion and that the scales of balance are in danger of tipping should the Sunkenman gather all three pieces of the Olympian Antekey. Mosi'vego reveals to Jericho that the Olympian Antekey is not just the Pearl of Poseidon but also the Thunderbolt of Zeus, guarded by Dolos, and the Helm of Hades, guarded by Nyx, and that each piece can find the next. Nikki was weirded out by Mosi'vego's strange angelic form of a half-bobcat half-scorpion made out of crystals, and Katherine was very excited to meet a real Angel. Rachel also taps into Fate to reveal information about the next piece of the Olympian Antekey, claiming that it is hidden in a maze. Meanwhile, Julius, Seth, Travis, and Zach deal with Zehhurozzm, the Primordial Ape. Julius already crossed paths with the Ape back in 2018 when he was recruited by Umbra as a member of the Dark. He speculates that the only reason the Ape would work with Leviathan is if he had some sort of prize that the Ape wanted. Seth and Zehhurozzm go head-to-head as they both have the power to warp, though Zehhurozzm outclasses Seth in this regard. Travis was pleased to have met another Elder, as he considers himself somewhat of an expert on them. And Zach mused about how the only thing stopping Zehhurozzm from killing any of them was his apathy towards them. Elsewhere, Jennifer, Felix, and Nick dealt with Jut'tax, the living Alkahest. Though this team remained hidden and only witnessed what occurred. Leviathan demanded the Pearl from the Sunkenman, who did not have it, then Leviathan proceeded to unleash the Alkahest onto the Sunkenman, killing him almost instantly. Though the Sunkenman's body was destroyed, the Demi-God Agenor who was possessing the Sunkenman presumably escaped. Felix discovers that the secret to activating the Antekeys lies in the blood of Myths, specifically, the Myths tied to each Antekey. And Nick went on to recap what the Cafe knows about the Elders Leviathan was able to gather. While all this was going down, Jackie, Amber, and Jenny snuck off to Mayda to find either information or the prize promised to the Ape. What they found was a little black notebook which no one was able to open.

SON - Son of Neptune

In a hidden receipt, Jean-Marc reveals that he partially has his memories back after they were stolen by Mammon and Belphegor in the doomed timeline. He recovered them thanks to Nick, Katherine, and the Mysterious Benefactor, though he claims to have lost all of his memories of the prior universe. Jean-Marc also reveals that he was working with Leviathan and Despoina behind the scenes to secure the Pearl. Leviathan, believing Jean-Marc had lost his memories, executed the plan to unleash Elders to take the Pearl from the Sunkenman, but it turns out this was unnecessary as Jean-Marc had the Pearl from the start. Leviathan assures Jean-Marc that Mosi'vego resealed the Alkahest, and he was able to throw the Ape into the Black Tide, though the Tide won't hold him for long due to his warping powers. Leviathan also remarks on the notebook stolen from his plane though he claims it is not his, and he doesn't care where it is as long as it's in safe hands. Despoina then uses her Otherworldly blood to activate the Pearl, allowing it to point the way toward the next piece of the Olympian Antekey. Jean-Marc also hints that Belphegor is pleased with their progress in finding the Antekeys and implies that Mammon is pleased as well, assuming he will be given the Antekeys once they are all found. In the end, it is unclear if the Sunkenman was truly killed, though the Cafe assumes so, considering his gruesome demise. Agenor is assumed to have escaped and might cause further trouble for the Cafe, though his dispute was with his sister Despoina.

April 2020

TLH - The Labyrinth Hotel

Seth warped Jenni, Nick, and Nikki to Taos, New Mexico, to search for the next piece of the Olympian Antekey, which is supposed to be hidden in some sort of maze. Nikki ponders if it’s a puzzle of some sort involving the spiral labyrinth petroglyphs in the area. The trio discovers a mysterious hotel near the Taos Pueblo named La Sonim Hotel (Minos backward). Convinced that this is Dolos’ labyrinth, thanks to the logo resembling the sigil of Dolos found in Blackwood manor last month, they decide to book a room in the strange hotel. Upon entering the hotel, Nick notices immediately that the interior is non-euclidean, confirming that there is a lot more to the hotel than what appears on the outside. There is also only one employee in the entire hotel, the Loveland Frogman, Ranoma L. Boyd. For whatever reason, he is playing the part of the entire hotel staff, and while he recognizes his former coworker, Nikki, she seems unable to remember who he is. Later, Nikki runs into the Norse god, Odin, at the continental breakfast. While it seems like only a day has passed, weeks have gone by for the trio trapped inside the hotel. Nick can confirm the identity of another guest staying at the Hotel, Princess Takiyasha. Julius, having realized the identity of the hotel’s bellhop, attempted to travel to the hotel with Seth to speak with Loveland. However, it seemed as if the hotel no longer existed. Nikki then discovered the identity of the final hotel guest, Umbra the Hat Man. Nick devises a plan to find the Thunderbolt piece of the Olympian Antekey using the hotel’s randomized elevator and Loveland to relay information on which door goes where. The plan works though it releases a dangerous Minotaur in the process, which, in hindsight, everyone should have seen coming. Loveland reached out to Julius, who came to kill the Minotaur. Once the Thunderbolt was in the Cafe’s possession, Odin and Princess Takiyasha mysteriously lost all interest in acquiring it. It turns out that Umbra wasn’t there for the Antekey in the first place. He claims the hotel did not have what the Morbid King was looking for and cautions the Cafe against interfering with the Morbid King’s plans.

LBN - Little Black Notebook

The rest of the Cafe and Diner employees begin looking into the strange black notebook Jackie and her team stole from Mayda. Jenny reveals that the notebook had to have belonged to Satan, the Prince of Wrath, notorious notebook haver. Though Jenny confirms that this is not the same notebook as his Boogieman book nor his Anathema book. Though, seeing as Satan was imprisoned by the Cafe and Diner in 1997, there is a possibility that the little black notebook stolen from Mayda cannot be opened. During some hands-on experimentation, Zach notices that the notebook gives off a strong sulfurous odor akin to brimstone. He also described how some of the pages in the notebook seemed to have been burnt and that, upon listening very closely, a faint crackling sound could be heard. Mikey attempts to pull Satan’s Blood signature from the notebook but discovers eleven unique signatures tied to the notebook, ten of which are unknown, one of which belongs to the Char Man. Mikey sets up the Cafe and Diner’s tracking system, known as the Ice Machine, to alert the Cafe if any of the eleven signatures show up near the Cafe. Meanwhile, Amber tries everything she can to open the notebook, including putting it in a microwave. She concludes that only a Prince can probably open it. After the Cafe and Diner permanently ended the Char Man, the burning smell on the notebook got noticeably stronger, and the book became hot to the touch as if the pages inside were burning away. As the Char Man revealed before he died, his mission is to bring back Satan from his imprisonment using the blood of the Anathemas from the first Cafe. Joy later used the notebook to attempt a psychic reading on the remaining ten Blood signatures, though she got thirteen. Three signatures were very clear, the Sunkenman, the Rougarou, and the Char Man. Six were vague but still distinguishable, one with an obscured face, one with a sack, one who is wriggling mass, one who slips through cracks and crevices, and one who has a friendly face but conceals a killer. The rest were vague, revealing only a demon who waits across a bridge, a child made of moss and twig, the feeling of gear, a dark shadow, and the first and last. Joy speculates that these must be the thirteen regents the Grunches in New Orleans foretold. The notebook must be Satan’s Book of Regents, a group of boogiemen entrusted with freeing Satan.

FAB - Fire and Brimstone

A bad fire breaks out in the Cafe and Diner, destroying the entire sacristy and burning Katherine alive. Luckily she cannot die, and with a bit of blood, she’ll be right as rain. As the fire was burning, Katherine noticed the brimstone smell, leading her to believe this was a targeted attack carried out by the Char Man, who threatened to burn the Cafe and Diner down in fire and brimstone at the start of the year. Travis later confirmed Katherine’s hunch as he saw the Char Man light the fire. Travis, enraged that someone tried to kill a Cafe employee, decides it’s time to kill the Char Man once and for all, pending managerial approval. In the meantime, Kyle preps the Cafe to be as fire-proof as possible and suggests perhaps they can trap the Char Man and force him to help the Cafe with the little black notebook. Julius ends up offering managerial approval to trap and then kill the Char Man with the help of Zach, Seth, and Travis. The group plans to pull this off on the 16th. On the 16th, everything went according to plan as they managed to trap the Char Man in a room with low enough oxygen that he couldn’t create a fire to escape. They managed to get the Char Man to reveal his intention to free Satan from his imprisonment, and then Travis killed him.

DDT - Double Daedalus Trouble

Victoria officially begins her work with the Espresso Affairs, an incredibly secretive group of the Cafe and Diner tasked with discovering the truth of the Otherworld. Victoria’s first theory is that there must be two Deadaluses. One, the demon Daedalus who created the Labyrinth of the Necropolis, trained Drosselmeyer and created the Icarian Folly used by the Third Cafe. But there must also be a myth of Daedalus in Olympus that has accomplishments more in line with that of the mythological Daedalus. With help from Seth, Julia and Victoria traveled to the Necropolis to meet with the demon Daedalus, a longtime ally of the Cafe and Diner. Daedalus discusses the current war that is raging in the Necropolis and then reveals that he feels Zeus, Nyx, and Hades are mythological figures, but King Minos is real. Daedalus then supposes that beings like the Gods and Titans of Greek mythology were probably entities that, at the time, mortals lacked the proper names for, such as Princes and Elders. He further insinuates that Asmodeus, the Prince of Lust, is most likely where the myth of Hades and the Underworld was born. Ultimately, Daedalus knows nothing about the Otherworld but theorizes that if there is an Otherworld version of himself, then the Otherworld itself is most likely a constructed realm and not a natural occurrence. To create life would take a significant amount of power, power only seen in that of the Cold Elders. Suppose there isn’t a counterpart to Daedalus. In that case, if it is a natural occurrence, it is most likely the Otherworld at one point existed and interacted with the Flipside shaping its mythologies before disappearing, similar to the fate of Eden.

POS - Portrait of Satan

Jean-Marc makes a very strange update, vaguely hinting at what he, Felix, and Jericho were up to for the month of April. In his strange report, he hid the password to a later hidden report by Jericho, which confirms Jericho’s initiation into the Darn Defiance. While Jericho doesn’t explicitly say what he was up to over the month, he implies that it was dangerous and resulted in his eyebrows getting burnt off. He’s also confused about why they’re making such a big fuss over Satan when Mammon and Belphegor are actively trying to take over the universe. Felix also hints that the three of them are lucky to still be alive after the ordeal they faced at Blackwood Manor retrieving the portrait which holds Satan. As for why Satan is trapped inside a portrait, Felix explains that Princes are the most difficult mortals to kill, likening them practically to Elders with how often to avoid death. So, it made more sense for the First Cafe to imprison Satan instead of killing him. Though it would seem one of Satan’s contingency plans has been triggered, and thirteen powerful Boogiemen are after the blood of Jean-Marc, Sahir Bali, Aelan Anaul, Jennifer Hepburn, Nicholas Langley, Alex Gálvez, Salenna Whitaker, Felix Blackwood, and Nicole Langley to unseal the portrait which has imprisoned Satan.