C-NOTM06 (Oct 31, 1995)

C-NOTM06

Puzzle

“Entered the fray to save the day.”
See: C-NOTM05 | 2 Words

Clue

Hover over the clues if you require!
Clue 1: Who 'joined the fray' in C-NOTM05?

Answer and Explanation

Answer: Mr. Frederick
Explanation: C-NOTM05 says '#17 has also mentioned potentially having Mr. Frederick join the fray'.

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⚠️BEWARE: THIS IS DECLASSIFIED INFORMATION. WARY EYES ONLY. ENTER AT OWN RISK.⚠️

Summary of Receipt

Though the ritual takes place, 17, 44, 62, Mira Hamilton, and Mr. Frederick put a stop to it. Despite Mrs. Felt managing to briefly summon Dr. Crow, he wasn’t able to do much and was quickly sent back. What’s worrying is that he seems to have kept his memories and sense of self, even as a demon. When humans die and are reincarnated as demons in the Otherworld, they generally keep about 10% of their memories, and when demons die and are reincarnated in the Flipside again, they keep about 1% of the Otherside knowledge. This cycle is supposed to repeat until the soul achieves ‘ultimate truth’ and can pass on. The issue is that there are those who want to trick this system - and just as Dr. Crow, or Lyle Crow, was born on December 1, 1947, the infamous occultist Alister Crowley died. And now Dr. Crow has taken the moniker of ‘Al Crow’. While it’s possible Dr. Crow just took inspiration from Alister Crowley, his creations and knowledge hint at Prince-level knowledge, if not Elder.

Transcript

RECEIPT #006
FILED UNDER: CAFE-NOTM
DATE: 10/31/95
EMPLOYEE #17
Tab Paid for NOTM care of #62, #44, and #17

That will certainly be a Halloween to remember. The good news, of course, is that we were able to put a stop to the Melonheads' attempt to resurrect Dr. Crow. Well, that's not entirely accurate. They were trying to conjure the demon that Dr. Crow had become in his death. In fact, we were able to get a glimpse of the reviled Dr. in his new form when the boundary between Otherside and Flipside was at its thinnest. Strangest of all was that he seemed to have retained his memories and sense of self even in death. Most demons start off as more of a blank slate with faint memories of their life in the Flipside. But somehow, Dr. Crow was still very lucid. Not quite himself but closer than any demon should be.

I believe I've made the connection. Dr. Crow in an experiment in of himself. Born on December 1st, 1947, Lyle Crow was a strange child. Always drawn to the occult and supernatural by age 12, he was already creating such occult abominations as Mrs. Mill and Mrs. Armstrong. It was as if this child had the knowledge of an entire lifetime of the occult within him. Though that would be practically impossible. What we know of death and rebirth is that when a human dies, they typically are reborn as a demon with perhaps 10% of their former life and knowledge. Then when a demon dies, they are reborn as a human with less than 1% of their acquired knowledge intact. This continues until, eventually, that residual knowledge collects into the theoretical "ultimate truth," which allows a soul to fully pass on.

As you can imagine, there are those who wish to game this system. If knowledge over time is accumulated, then there would be a tremendous advantage to retaining knowledge in death and into new life. I believe Lyle Crow is the product of this, and his research continues this quest, not for immortality but for something far greater. Mastery of the universe itself. Elsewhere on December 1st, 1947, the infamous and controversial occultist, Alister Crowley, died. For what it's worth, Dr. Crow is no longer calling himself "Dr. Crow" as a demon. He's taken the moniker of Al Crow.

It's possible that Lyle Crow is not some vessel for the knowledge of Aleister Crowley and was merely inspired by his work. Though, Lyle Crow's accomplishments reflect a degree of knowledge typically only held by Elders and Princes. Especially this latest attempt at skirting death itself. It's worth looking into, though I suspect we have more pressing matters at the moment. The good news is that Mr. Frederick was able to thwart the Melonhead's ritual, and from the sounds of it, they've disrupted any future attempts for the foreseeable future. With the ritual stopped and Al Crow's control of the Melonheads severed, they have calmed down significantly. Mira Hamilton will be looking into rehoming them and doing what she can to stabilize the area.