Case 2: A Bunch of Nobodies: Difference between revisions
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More than likely, anyway. | More than likely, anyway. | ||
Do you really think the Daggers of all people would work with Behemoth? No. But would the Daggers steal one of Behemoth's freshly born nightmares? Oh absolutely. Still—I'd rather deal with some errant boogieman than an asset of the Order of the Obscure | Do you really think the Daggers of all people would work with Behemoth? No. But would the Daggers steal one of Behemoth's freshly born nightmares? Oh absolutely. Still—I'd rather deal with some errant boogieman than an asset of the Order of the Obscure Obeleus if I got to choose. | ||
For now, we won't know more unless a stronger narrative thread can be found. The last thing we should do is attempt contact with these "eccentrics." | For now, we won't know more unless a stronger narrative thread can be found. The last thing we should do is attempt contact with these "eccentrics." | ||
Revision as of 09:24, 4 May 2026
BARISTA: THE AUDITOR
CAFE: NONE
DATE: LATE SEPTEMBER
RECEIPT ID: NBY-01
I wasn't expecting to be sent to Tesseract so soon. Then again, with Tesseract, the very concept of "soon" is rather relative, I suppose. As I understand it, they have been racing against the proverbial clock to unravel a mystery without much of a name. They are looking for some sort of "first secret" located within three strange devices that arrived on their doorstep. While that doesn't seem too urgent on the surface, there is the looming, glaring, glinting issue of the Daggers led by Ms. Cassiopeia. To say that the Daggers are a danger to the Coffee Trade might be the understatement of the century, eon, or whatever measure of time best suits The Cafe and Diner: Tesseract of Anchorage, Alaska.
As for what has triggered an audit of this strange and far off Cafe, it seems that a ship has been sighted off Kodiak Island. Not too strange, until one realizes that the ship in question was only seen by one eye. If reports of such a ship are accurate, it is a large-scale order for Tesseract of up to potentially 309 customers. To me, and to Jack, that seems like… a lot. Which is why a proper audit of the situation is required. If Tesseract has suddenly gained 309 customers overnight we might need to start pulling resources from other Cafes to accommodate.
Of course, things are never what they seem at Tesseract and its enigmatic owner, John Doe, isn't quite sold on the full reemergence of this one-eyed ship. As he put it to me, it's likely nothing more than a fleeting vision—an "obsessive" hiccup. Though he is hardly short on time, he is short on focus and even hiccups should be fully checked out. John would have his second in command, Solomon, check it out, but it seems Solomon too is busy aiding Bloodglass in their affairs, leaving William in charge—and William is… well, his actions may require the careful eye of an auditor. He has been known to act rather recklessly and impatiently for a man who can stop time.
BARISTA: XANDER CASEY
CAFE: TESSERACT
DATE: LATE SEPTEMBER
RECEIPT ID: C-NBY-02
Doe's way off. The USS Cyclops isn't a mere Obsessor, some drift of traumatic psychic residue. If it were, it would have manifested on the other side of the country, would it not have? In any case, Alaska is hardly where the vessel was last seen. Furthermore, the USS Cyclops is a rather unique disappearance even among her sisters. It could not be an Obsessor because it did not sink. Proteus and Nereus also disappeared at sea and it is presumed they sank due to a fatal flaw in the design of the Proteus-class colliers. It would be easy, perhaps foolish even, to assume the exact same fate befell the Cyclops. No. The USS Cyclops did not sink—it blinked.
I have been studying ships longer than I have been a member of Tesseract. Even prior to having access to the Library of Trianon, I could have told you that The Cyclops was different from her sisters. Having perused much of the Library's contents on ships, I can say now with absolute certainty that it blinked out of time. On March 14, 1918, a day after it would have been expected in Baltimore, the USS Cyclops was blinked out of time and out of place just off the tip of the Bermudian tip of the Triangle.
As all in the Trade should know, the Triangle is one of the last remaining ancient geometrics that is still accessible. Any reasonably powerful entity—a Prince or higher—could use the Triangle to perform any number of powerful rituals. Typically Leviathan keeps watch over the Triangle, as it is roughly in his Flipside domain, but one cannot be in two places at once. From the Libraries tomes, it is clear that some entity used the Triangle to blink the USS Cyclops out of time when Leviathan was not looking and now the ship and perhaps even her crew have been blinked back in, here, on our shores.
What entity could do such a thing?
Well, if it glints it Gleams.
BARISTA: ANNE SCRIVEN
CAFE: TESSERACT
DATE: LATE SEPTEMBER
RECEIPT ID: C-NBY-03
Xander is correct though I suspect so is John. The USS Cyclops did certainly blink out of time in 1918 and it is likely to be an Obsessor as well. Contradictory, I know. An Obsessor, for those not quite aware, is a classification of ghosts from the Achegloom in the depths of Terminus. Obsessors, as so named, are the obsessions over untimely or otherwise unfair deaths. Any properly defined noun holds the potential to become an Obsessor following the three general requirements: 1) removal from corporal existence, 2) traumatically unfair removal from corporal existence, 3) sufficient definition of conception. Notice how Xander refers to ships as women? Ships tend to gain sufficient definition of conception by virtue of tradition.
In any case, we often deal the most with Obsessors in our line of work. Unlike more common ghosts, Obsessors tend to feel and act out of time, stuck in the moment of their sudden demise. Thus, it can, to the untrained eye, appear to be a chronal anomaly as opposed to a phantasmagorical one. The ship is likely an Obsessor due to being blinked out of time. I do not put forth this proposition baselessly. I did the due diligence of scanning the out of place ship with my CaDCom to get its B-Reading. As expected, it is brimming in Terminal energy.
So, the question becomes—are there indeed two ships? An Obsessor and the original ship removed from time. If so, which is which and where is what? Who removed the ship? Was it Gleam, as suggested by Xander? Or could it have been Lord Behemoth? There is much to this story we do not yet know and thus I see no other way… one of us will have to hook into the narrative flow. I cannot say how long it will take to find the answers we are seeking but I suspect they can be found within The Riddle of the Sands by Erskine Childers.
BARISTA: SAMUEL GREEN
CAFE: TESSERACT
DATE: LATE OCTOBER
RECEIPT ID: CD-NBY-04
I have scowled The Riddle of the Sands to understand what transpired back in March of 1918. I limited myself only to the first chapter and largely to intact phrases to expedite the process. As such, the past is foggier than it may need be, but I still believe the message—the revlation—is clear. I did expand my reach to the entirety of the text for the final, most crucial line. I will discuss the what was, but first here is what I pieced back together:
Each deserted the sinking ship.
Each except for I.
Else, a funereal wire to all in this season of truth was sent. Upset at the arrangement between myself and the horrid None, what other choice did I have? In fact, the case infinitely had centred in my mind but I little suspected the cleverest party had yet suffered the worst of it all.
It truly was my triumphant début.
It was in some such situation, in a most prosaic way, at this unearthly time and unearthly place I reckoned with the Dark God of the Midway. He cast me languidly down voie douloureuse. In a sense, I could not recall the functions that drifted from my mind obscuring the truth of the Middle Path. He left me, badly, a part he had the results cast into like irons in flames. He seemed to know all these evils which oppressed me, Father All Naught.
You’re in town, at the sea, but never with Him.
To join them was to offer myself to the ever dwindling decline. In the light there were river excursions of my martyrdom, my entry into the men of eccentric nonentity. Ghastly splendour!
Having ordered the gun, never go anywhere without a knife.
Rather haunting indeed. To be clear, this is not a stable story. There is no clean vector to this time and place, so, please, do not use this as an Egg. It will not hold.
Though, if what was written is what was, it paints a clear picture of a sinking ship and man who made a deal to escape his certain death. The entity he made such a deal with is unmistakably Behemoth, Prince of Destruction. The "Horrid None," "Dark God of the Midway," the "Middle Path," and the "Father All Naught." It is quite clear that Behemoth had a hand in this Obsessor's creation—or, well, "destruction," as it is. But the story does not end with Behemoth. It ends with the most damning of lines:
"Having ordered the gun, never go anywhere without a knife."
Ordered. Rededro. Red Order. A Knife. A Dagger.
It seems to me that this remaining crew member, whoever it was, made a deal with Behemoth for continued existence and he was not the only one. Together, these… "men of eccentric nonentity" have seemingly allied themselves to the Daggers.
To the Order of the Obscure Obeleus.
To our greatest foe.
BARISTA: THE AUDITOR
CAFE: NONE
DATE: LATE OCTOBER
RECEIPT ID: NBY-05
Shit. Sorry for swearing. Shit!
Well… much has happened in a very short time. I wouldn't expect anything else from Tesseract. While Samuel was hooking into the narrative thread of the past I left Tesseract to aid Testament in a… mm… let's call it a "gross misappropriation of funds." A case for a different time. But now we know for certain that the one-eyed ship isn't just a machination of Behram but also Ms. Cassiopeia's deadly crimson dagger organization.
As this is a Diner Receipt I can't get into every little detail—and I likely wouldn't want to—but Ms. Cassiopeia and her Daggers are, for my measure, one of the most dangerous antagonists to not only the Cafe and Diner but the Coffee Trade as a whole. Like Tesseract they largely deal with well-timed service, food prep and late-late nights. However, unlike Tesseract who stick to serving adjacent localities, the Daggers harbor a complete disregard to causality and serve not only adjacent localities, but prime real estate, and… even places no longer looking for a cup of coffee. We still don't know how they manage to travel to such far reaching places. Places far, far out of bounds.
Tesseract once went head-to-head with the Daggers in an all out war in an adjacent locality known in the Trade as "Indigo." These "Indigo Wars" led to the annihilation of multiple localities. One hundred twelve localities, in fact. And that was without the help of the very simulacrum of endless, meaningless, crushing destruction, Behram. Since the end of the Indigo Wars, Tesseract and the Daggers have been in a sort of "cold war," with mutually assured destruction being the only thing holding Ms. Cassiopeia back.
SHIT!
Right, okay, I've got to get back to Tesseract, and fast. This is the EXACT type of situation Jack wanted audited and I can't trust John Doe's judgement on this. He already let one trolley loose, no need to give him control of another lever.
BARISTA: ESTER HAWKINS
CAFE: TESSERACT
DATE: EARLY NOVEMBER
RECEIPT ID: C-NBY-06
We have a ship out of time and out of place, but we have yet to uncover what I consider to be the most crucial piece of information: who is helming the ship? Furthermore, is the ship crewed, or is it sailing by the power of the unknown deal-maker? To recap the narrative thread in perhaps simpler terms:
The USS Cyclops began to sink, presumably for the same structural flaw that sank its sister ships. All fled the sinking ship except for one unknown man. This man did not want to make a deal with Behemoth but was left with little other choice. Behemoth did, as Behemoth does, and destroyed the soul of this unknown lingering mortal and reformed them into some sort of "ghastly splendour." Then, at some point, this unknown man met with and potentially allied himself to the Daggers. But, this man is not alone, we know that much, as the narrative thread of the past revealed he joined a group we currently only know as the "men of eccentric nonentity."
Hm. Well, we must assume the other men of nonentity are not, or were not, part of the USS Cyclops' crew as all abandoned the ship as it sank. Furthermore, why the ship was blinked out of time along with this man of nonentity and into our present is… unknown. Though I must assume that the ones who used the Triangle to perform the chronal removal were in fact the Nova Elders, Gleam, Patina, Shiver, Murmur and Snow. It fits well enough with their M.O.
As I understand the mystery thus far: the ship was sinking, a man made a deal with Behemoth to avoid death, before the man could be turned over into the service of Behemoth the Daggers blinked him and his ship out of time.
Possibly.
More than likely, anyway.
Do you really think the Daggers of all people would work with Behemoth? No. But would the Daggers steal one of Behemoth's freshly born nightmares? Oh absolutely. Still—I'd rather deal with some errant boogieman than an asset of the Order of the Obscure Obeleus if I got to choose.
For now, we won't know more unless a stronger narrative thread can be found. The last thing we should do is attempt contact with these "eccentrics."
BARISTA: WILLIAM MYERSCOUGH
CAFE: TESSERACT
DATE: EARLY NOVEMBER
RECEIPT ID: CD-NBY-07
No point in faffing about. I'm going to go get some answers.
BARISTA: ANTHONY SCRIVEN
CAFE: TESSERACT
DATE: EARLY NOVEMBER
RECEIPT ID: C-NBY-08
Should've expected William to run off without any authorization… or a plan. And somehow he's still the more rational of the Myerscoughs. I fear that Ouroborian Signet of his makes him feel rather invulnerable. Though he did make it out alive and our presence wouldn't be unknown from Dagger operatives in any case. And we at least know who we are dealing with now, a set of three—or, potentially more—witches of Lord Behemoth who have been taken by the Daggers and assigned to a group known as "Outis." The men of non-entity. Men who slipped out of time.
The good news, if there is any in this scenario, is that this hardly confirms collusion between Behemoth and the Daggers. Behemoth cares little for what becomes of his witches and he often views them as free agents of further chaos in the Flipside. Now, if they were full boogeymen of Behemoth that would change things. It is possible the Daggers asked Behemoth to convert these men in the moments before their death into witches, but I think it far more likely the Daggers just found the right people at the right time and recruited them. It is possible that Behemoth may come to collect on his witches' debts which could disrupt the investment the Daggers have made into this new "Outis," branch.
That's where the good news ends. The Outis operate outside of the Dagger's usual rank and file. They are extremely dangerous, and while they might have had more humanity before they fell down the Middle Path, they are now presumed to be agents of destruction above all else. While I am thankful William was unhurt, we have to assume if we cross paths again it will be do or die. As for what the Daggers are having Outis do… I can't say and neither can William. Though it is little coincidence that they reappeared on the Alaskan coast just as we begin to unlock the secrets of the Three CaDComs.
BARISTA: THE AUDITOR
CAFE: NONE
DATE: MID NOVEMBER
RECEIPT ID: CAD-03
Behram indirectly has his hands in a bit of everything it seems. He allowed Mr. Fenimore to bring Ms. Sandiego illicit goods in New Orleans, he allowed Ursula Langley to wreck havoc with his lower residents, and now he has either been making sandwiches for the Daggers or the Daggers have been stealing his sandwiches all the same. Unfortunately Behram is a force of nature, one we cannot be so simply rid of. Though it worries me greatly that his influence is seeping out unbeknownst to the others Cafes, especially the more fledgling Cafes of Testament and Sunshine.
I just paid a visit to Testament and nothing immediately stood out as being overtly "destructive." However, I would perhaps argue that Testament itself is a force of untamable chaos that is always worth keeping a very close eye on. I have not yet had the chance to visit Sunshine (mostly to avoid Lucy's simmering rage over her daughter's near-death experience) but I feel like I should pop in just to make sure there is nothing particularly "Terminal" about their affairs. So, that will be where I am headed next.
As for the other cafes… at the moment the original branch in Long Beach is still working out a way to end the Storm which has been surrounding them for quite some time—a Storm that has also been causing Behram trouble as well. Bloodglass is still searching for their missing stones along with Solomon's help. Midnight is still tangled up in the Mangrove Syndicate which has been moving around the southeast—to our collective knowledge the Syndicate has no ties to Behram (but don't hold your breath). Requiem is where I last left them, working out a way to stop the return of Ms. Sandiego. Silenus has been kept busy trying to pacify their temperamental Sponsor, Beez. And… Testament. They are… as they are, "Big Bong" and all.