The Boston Tunnel Affair - Up And Running

Part 3
The Boston Tunnel Affair: Beneath the City, the Tunnels are Alive!

(Frontispiece to the 1831 Edition of Frankenstein)

Bridgette’s Dairy
Tuesday, 13 January 1925

Dear Diary, I feel I must write this tonight, regardless of how tired I become. I doubt that I will get much sleep anyway. Therefore, I’ll record the day’s events in case I should not get the chance later.

            Keira O’Reilly and I arrived at the Boundaries of Science Conference quite safely. The conference is being held at The Grand Plaza Hotel in Boston, Massachusetts. We had barely finished our registration before being approached by a tall, slender man in a dark blue suit who proceeded to introduce himself to us as Mr. Walter Smith from the United States’ Bureau of Investigation. Mr. Smith then continued on to introduce us to Miss. Belle Devereaux, who is apparently a pilot – a flamboyant one, and Mr. Leonard Rasicci, a private investigator from Chicago, Illinios.

            We’re to puzzle out what has caused the disappearance of five people in five months from this particular hotel. Three men working in the janitorial department have disappeared from the boiler room while maids have disappeared from the 3^rd and 7^th floor, respectively. Their disappearances were apparently without any trace remaining. There were no clues that we knew left behind.

We moved aside to a small alcove where we could converse without being easily overheard. I believe the word for what Mr. Smith proceeded to do was “brief” us on the situation we had been asked to help investigate. A significant number of people had been disappearing from the hotel over the past few months. While foul play was suspected, it wasn’t the foul play one normally thinks of happening in America, such as the “mob”. Mr. Smith’s superiors believed there was something more sinister and possibly of a supernatural source at work here in Boston. Our jobs were to find out exactly what was happening and, if at all possible, put a stop to it.

The current suggestion was to keep our eyes and ears open and hope we noticed something amiss that would help unearth the root of the puzzle.

            Miss. O’Reilly and I scurried off to get settled into our room and then decided which lectures and presentations to attend during the rest of the afternoon. Mr. Rasicci wandered off to question various hotel staff and to poke around in interesting looking corners. Mr. Smith seemed to float about here and there, questioning people. He also poked in corners, and popped in to the occasional presentation. Miss. Devereaux apparently followed the same agenda as did Miss. O’Reilly and myself, as we noticed her presence in at least one of our presentations.

            During the very late afternoon, around tea time, we were in attendance at the presentation by one Robert Oppenheimer on the work of a Dr. Braumbauer concerning the reanimation of dead tissue using electrical impulses. It seemed extremely fantastic to me that such a thing could be achieved. Dead tissue fully reanimated as living, healthy tissue? That certainly falls within the realm of extreme science indeed. However, a few points that Mr. Oppenheimer raised certainly suggest room for further investigation. While I found Dr. Braumbauer’s claims to be rather extreme and outlandish, the concept is fascinating in a rather morbid way, suggesting shades of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstine’s monster.

 

But I digress. Sometime during the lecture, Mr. Smith apparently noticed someone he knew and quickly left the conference behind them. Glancing back, I caught sight of an extremely beautiful woman dressed entirely in red. As he didn’t seem to indicate he wanted any assistance, I tried to apply my attention once more to the presentation before me.

We managed to attend a reception after Mr. Oppenheimer’s presentation. Miss. O’Reilly impressed Dr. Werner Heisenberg with her astute questions, prompting him to offer her his business card and an offer for further conversation at some point during the conference. In my new friend’s defense, she did ask some rather pointed, intelligent questions concerning Dr. Braumbauer’s line of investigation.

Our little group of adventurers was also lucky enough to be invited to dinner with this very talented group of men, giving us further opportunity to ask questions of not only them but also others in attendance. While I very much doubt any of them have been haunting this Boston hotel for the past few months, perhaps a further line of inquiry into our mysterious disappearance will be suggested by some comment or the other. One never knows from which direction inspiration will appear.

            Fortunately, Mr. Smith reappeared near the end of dinner. I was starting to get worried about his absence, although he does seem more than capable of extricating himself from troubling situations. He gave the rest of us what I supposed would be called a “knowing look”, suggesting we all make our exits and regroup together once more. Shortly after, we do just that, although I must admit some reluctance on my part. The company was stimulating and fascinating, awaking in me an interest in science once more that has taken me a bit by surprise. However, I am sure those who sent me here, while understanding, had an entirely different intent in mind. I pull myself away from our esteemed company with a hope that our paths will cross again during the conference.

            We gathered together bit by bit in the lobby at the same location as our initial meeting and discussion. A Mr. Aiden Long has joined our group, apparently as a latecomer. I’m not sure what to make of him with his darker skin and long black hair. Native American perhaps? He certainly seems quite foreign and exotic. And then he opened his mouth to talk and sounded more American than anything else.

Mr. Smith informed the rest of us that the woman he had followed out of the lecture hall had in actuality been a vampire. I mean, really? A vampire – vile creature of literature as well as of folklore? And here I was thinking him such a competent man.

            While I’m swallowing down my shock at his seeming superstitions claim, he continued telling us about these so-called vampires. Apparently these vampires are made of a strange metal. They are quite evil, taking the skins of we humans to wear as a disguise, enabling them to pass as human while walking amongst us. I knew this conference was all about the fringes of science, but this has most definitely moved firmly into the realm of science fiction or, perhaps, outright fantasy.

 

I’m not at all sure what to make of this turn in events, but I shall try to keep an open mind. Surely there is some explanation that will make sense without violating the very laws of nature. I realize this stance may not make sense to those who know me and know of what I can do, such as those within the Society itself, but really, there are boundaries and then there are, well, scary stories to tell in the dark. We shall see.

To get back to the story, Mr. Smith had followed this vampire, Labana, to the laundry room, where she disappeared on him. He did find an opening in the floor which led to the sewer system running beneath much of Boston. Apparently she slipped down the entrance to the tunnels directly beneath the hotel. He then suggested we all regroup in the laundry room on the ground floor of the hotel in a few minutes’ time. It was agreed and we all scurried off to change and gather our electric torches as well as whatever other supplies we thought prudent. I’m grateful for the foresight involved in packing a pair of trousers for this trip.

Once we had met up again in the laundry room, Mr. Smith led us back behind the large, commercial washing apparatus full of scrubbing boards and giant wringers to a spot on the floor where the faint outlines of a trap door could just be seen in the dim light. With deft fingers he opened a pocket knife and used the largest blade to pry up the edge of the door. The opening revealed was approximately 2 by 3 feet, easily big enough for a person to let themselves down into the tunnel. The fumes wafting up through the space was definitely on the vile side, but not really what you would expect. This was supposed to be an opening into the sewer, but it didn’t have the stench of raw sewage or even of vile, stagnant water. In all honestly, it was so out of context that it took me several minutes of being in the tunnel to place it. What we were smelling was stomach acid! Why the sewer tunnels below the hotel would reek of stomach acid was beyond me, at least at the time.  Unfortunately, the reason would prove hard to believe if one wasn’t actually present when we discovered the answer.

Blog Link! - A 1920s Speakeasy

It's a double-post day!

I stumbled across this link on Facebook and just had to share. Messy Nessy Chic offers some details AND photos of a 1920s speakeasy in D.C. It was a very bohemian business, complete with a treehouse in the back yard!

 

 

It's a short article, but still interesting. And the photos are wonderful, circa 1921.



The Boston Tunnel Affair - The First Crossing

Part 2
The Boston Tunnel Affair: Beneath the City, the Tunnels are Alive



Bridgette's Diary

Monday, 12 January, 1925

We survived the crossing with little trouble although it was terribly cold. I’d completely forgotten just how cold it can get along the coast. It was already terribly cold as we departed Liverpool on the 6^th, but that was as nothing compared to the frigid temperatures of actually being on the Atlantic. Promenading on the deck seems to be a quick and stimulating affair, but I do like at least a short walk once or twice daily to keep the brain awake and alert.

Miss. O’Reilly – Keira – proved to be a stimulating travel companion, as well as a decent bridge partner. She may have managed to make me a better player, if that was possible. I’m a passable player under the best of times and yet we managed to win several matches with fellow travelers during the crossing. There may be hope for me yet, especially if she continues to partner me at some matches during the conference.

Miss. O’Reilly is a stimulating conversationalist as well. I enjoy listening to her talk about life in her village. Some of it is indeed familiar, since I have done much work in Ireland over the last few years. However it always proves interesting to hear descriptions from the perspective of “one on the inside”. Since she has served as midwife and unofficial healer to her village for a number of years – and worked at her grandmother’s side before that – she has some truly enlightening stories to tell. It is quite obvious that she loves her work and would rather be at it than just about anything else. It is also quite clear that she loved and respected her late grandmother dearly.

As for the conference itself, I’m very much looking forward to attending some of the lectures. Hopefully we will be able to fit in time for a few of them. The nature of the conference is to bring together scientists from many different fields in an exploration of the extremes and fringes of their fields. Unfortunately, I do not have an official programme as yet. All that the London Society’s offices were able to provide was a detailed advertisement for the event. Still, it does note that Dr. Robert Oppenhiemer will be presenting the research of a fellow German scientist, a Dr. Braumbauer. I’m not familiar with the name, although that shouldn’t be too surprising. While I do come across the odd article here and there which serves to catch my fancy, especially in the field of forensics, I really have little to do in following research science, even in my old field of medicine. Unless, of course, it is in my field of archaeology. I do try to be good and keep caught up in my field. I just don’t feel quite ready to read too far back into the realm of medicine. At least the forensics might be usable in my current field if I come across any human remains.

 



Gee, I certainly went off on a bit of a tangent there. Perhaps that’s a sign that I should just call it a night and get some much needed sleep – the ocean air is both invigorating and soporific. Tomorrow we make landfall in Boston where we will then need to figure out the travel rituals for America. I already know that they drive on the wrong side of the road, which makes me wonder what other differences exist. Fortunately, I also know that they do indeed have taxis, which is how we will be getting from the docks to our hotel. It will be exciting to finally have a full programme to look over. It will also be exciting to meet our fellow investigators for this little adventure.

Oh hell, it will just be plain exciting. I’ve never been to America before and I’m very much looking forward to it.

The Boston Tunnel Affair - The Adventures Begin

Part 1
The Boston Tunnel Affair: Beneath the City, the Tunnels are Alive!

 

Bridgette’s Dairy
Tuesday, 6 January 1925

It has been an exciting few days! I would never have dreamed when I first joined the Millennium Society that they would one day be sending me off on an adventure for them, but here I am, on my way to America doing just that. The Millennium Society has sent a fellow member and I off to the Colonies. All I know so far is that several folks have disappeared from a hotel in the city of Boston. We are meeting up with some American members to investigate the cause of those disappearances. Phillip has assured me that our Society contact in America should know more about the case. (I guess I can call it a case. Next thing you know, I’ll be striding around in a deer stalker peering through a magnifying lens.)

Needless to say, I’m a little excited by the prospect but there are also nerves involved. I mean, I’m an archaeologist for goodness sakes. Yes, I do have skills I no longer use which may prove helpful in our investigation, but people are disappearing and no one really knows why. Hopefully I’m up to the task placed before me.

 I will also have a companion on the trip over. I shall meet Miss. Keira O’Reilly at the port just before we depart. Apparently she is a midwife from Ireland, not that her profession has any bearing on our being chosen for this trip. It is our occult knowledge for which we are assistance is necessary.

I am wondering what specific talents my travelling companion possesses on top of her occult skills. It seems a safe assumption that she is also “inspired” with supernatural abilities. Perhaps I may be wrong, but it seems that most members of the Millennium Society possess such talents.

 I suspect my prior background in forensic science was also in the Society’s minds when they asked me to take this trip. I hope I’m up to it, since I’ve practiced so little medicine since the end of the war. The thought leaves me nauseous.

However, let us not dwell on the unpleasant past. I am excited about the crossing. I’ve never been to America before. Hopefully we shall be able to take in the sights some before having to return home. If I recall correctly, Boston Harbor has historical significance between our two nations. It shall be interesting to stroll through areas so important to our past. Seeing my first really bustling American city shall be exhilarating. I’ve also heard they have delicious seafood along their eastern seaboard. Playing tourist shall be a grand adventure for this gal. I spend far too much time in the field, poking around old fields and lithic monuments.

Well, I’ve spent far too much time chattering away here when I should have been packing. I must catch the 4:15 train to the coast unless I wish to make the trip ridiculously early in the morning. Our steamer departs for Boston at 9:55 in the am.

Let us hope that the winter crossing is not too tumultuous and that the weather holds. I have heard some horror stories.

 

Getting the Party Started

 



Beginning early tomorrow, I'm going to start posting what I've got written of our earliest adventures. I'm excited to do this, since the game lends itself well to a storytelling medium. And to be honest, we've had a doozy of a time. The hardest part has been trying to decide how to tell the stories. This November I settled on a diary format told from the point of view of my character, Bridgette. There are also some character sketches tossed in here and there.



The game system we've been playing in is called Adventure! Tales from the Aeon Society, which was published by White Wolf and follows a Storytelling format. Unfortunately, the game is now out of print and physical copies go for a pretty penny online. The premise is that of 30s and 40s pulps. There are "super" humans in the world - all people who have been affected by some sort of energy from an explosion during the Hammersmith Experiment. These fun abilites, or knacks, take many forms and fall into three broad categories. My character is a Dynamic and can do things like heal quickly. She also has extremely heightened senses, which she is able to filter through, allowing her to focus on, and seek out, one thing in particular. She is also a doctor, scientist, and a scholar. As well as a veteran of the Great War.



Our setting is usually Chicago in the mid-1920s, although, as you'll see from the first story, we tend to wander far afield from there. We actually started in Boston. And Dr. Bridgette McCleary is from Great Britain.

These stories were mainly written as a gift for my gaming companions, but I hope the rest of you following along enjoy them as well. And if you'd like more information on the 1920s, check out the sidebar to the right. I've posted a series of links that we've found useful for getting into character in the time period.

The Flapper's Dictionary - OOC

Not sure just how much Bridgette would use these terms, but I have a feeling some of them are starting to sneak into her everyday vocabulary, with thanks to Belle!

http://bookflaps.blogspot.com/2011/04/flappers-dictionary.html

OOC - History of Pulps Article Series

By wonderful chance, I happened to stumble across the beginnings of this article series on IO9, written by a historian and tracing the development of pulp magazines from their early beginnngs onward. The focus is on how the genre of science fiction developed, but at least the first article deals with other genres as well. There are currently only two articles in the series, but they are proving an intersting and enjoyable read.

Where Did Science Fiction Come From? A Primer on the Pulps (Part 1)
and
The Golden Age of Science Fiction: A Pulp Primer, Part 2

Also, our wonderful Storyteller (Game Master) discovered an interactive map of the US in 1926. It's at a site that sells maps, but the image lets you zoom in on different areas of the country. Very cool.

Okay, that's it for now. Hopefully Bridgette will have something more to share wtih everyone soon. There is so much happening right now that's keeping her busy, she pretty much spends all of her free time - what she can find!- in her lab working.

Melinda