Auction of Mystery
Sep. 11th, 2004 04:00 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
terryclothLast night we had another session of the 1980s GURPS game. We did some individual stuff, then were invited to an auction where magical items were sold for dirt-cheap prices, and bore witness to a fight between two factions from another world. Well, except that we couldn't actually see them or anything.
It took JR a week to heal from his wounds, partly because he was too proud to go to Charlie for more healing. Or perhaps too *smart*, since Charlie would have charged him. In that week, Don made a deal with the priest who'd blessed them before the trip into the mine, Mr. Albion, and Charlie was inducted into a secret society that existed for the protection of all mankind -- they collected dangerous magical power for their own use, so that no BAD people could get it.
Mr. Albion and JR were invited to an auction in Petersburg, West Virginia, of the estate of an eccentric collector, and each was allowed to bring one guest -- they chose Don and Charlie, respectively. Charlie in particular wanted to go because a thief he knew had sold him a highly magical item from the estate -- here was his chance to get more, directly from the source! And he even had money, thanks to the mine gig.
JR also asked Charlie about the unnatural pet-like creature that had attached itself to him, refusing to go more than a FOOT from him. Charlie could tell that it was a mana enhancer, and so strongly linked to JR's spirit that it seemed to share his soul, but that didn't really help as far as getting rid of it went... at least, it didn't present any *good* or *safe* ideas. Besides, it was a mana enhancer -- not the sort of thing to get rid of casually. JR decided to wear a large bag to hide the cat-sized beast in when he went out in public, so it could stay close to him but still out of sight.
Then off they went to Petersburg, in JR's car. Whumpa whumpa whumpa. The auction was being held in an auction house near the docks, where the merchandise itself was stored in a big warehouse. There was a lot of crap, most of it being sold in huge lots. Animal furs, kitchenware, a selection of sacrificial daggers, a car, a glider, and several tons of old, possibly valuable books.
Every last item, save for maybe three or four newer looking ones, was enchanted. Badly. Some leaked magical energy, others had multiple spirits grafted onto them -- one walking stick had a spirit physically wrapped around the outside of it, and a hideous tentacle beast trapped inside, but with two tentacles waving free.
But there were many items that seemed like they'd be valuable even if their enchantments didn't work, as long as they weren't actively malicious. So, the party came up with a list of things to bid on.
The auction itself went as you'd expect. Charlie had brought along the soul jar he'd bought earlier, looking to see whose soul was bought in it, assuming they'd be at the auction. The signature he was looking for was indeed present -- a man sitting in the front row, anxiously examining each item, as if waiting for something special. Aha! He decided to approach him after the auction and offer to sell the jar -- he could probably get back what he paid for it and more, and it wouldn't *really* be blackmail.
So, they bid on various things, occasionally frustrated by an old lady with the habit of always bidding one dollar higher than the last bid. A habit Don shared. Fortunately, they never ended up bidding against each other. They got a bunch of stuff, including the books, knives, kitchenware, and wine -- too much for them to carry back in their car. Or even in two cars -- Mr. Albion bought a car.
When the valuable gems were brought out to be bid on, though, the strange man in the front row struck. He stood up, walked up to the stage, and started shoveling the gems into his pockets... and no one noticed, except for Don, who just watched.
After a few seconds, another pair of people that no one else seemed to notice ran in, shooting crossbows at the man, who threw a grenade at them and ran off. No one noticed the grenade either, even after it exploded in their midst. One of the assailants, who'd been wounded, ran up on stage and started casting protection and warning spells, while the other, who'd avoided harm, ran off after the thief. Don followed.
And found him dead in the hallway, ignored by everyone, and seemingly killed by large claws. Don followed the sounds of commotion to the stables, where he was able to see a griffon and rider, with four tails between them, flying off into the moonlight. "Huh," he thought, and headed back to the auction.
Charlie was able to see spirits, and some of the spells the person on stage cast bound spirits as part of their workings, so he summoned one of them over (not seeing the caster, just the spells) and asked who'd cast it, from where, and why. "The Marquis. Right over there! He's looking for people from the other world."
Nothing else exciting happened during the auction, but as they left, Charlie was able to see the dead body in the hallway, which everyone else was ignoring and walking around. Worse, when he knelt down to check to see if the guy was alive, the sight of 'a doctor examining a body' was normal enough that suddenly EVERYONE could see it, and panicked! The auction-authorities contacted the police, and told Charlie to stay for questioning.
Charlie ran off, not wanting to try to explain why a body appeared right under him (as far as anyone else could tell) -- it was obvious that he hadn't killed the guy (he was killed by a bear or a wolf or something), but no one liked Indians. He had his familiar Agamemnon flit around in spirit form and keep an eye out for the police, and managed to avoid being seen while he arranged for transportation for the things he'd bought, and sold some less interesting items from the lots he'd bid on to more interested parties.
last week | next week
It took JR a week to heal from his wounds, partly because he was too proud to go to Charlie for more healing. Or perhaps too *smart*, since Charlie would have charged him. In that week, Don made a deal with the priest who'd blessed them before the trip into the mine, Mr. Albion, and Charlie was inducted into a secret society that existed for the protection of all mankind -- they collected dangerous magical power for their own use, so that no BAD people could get it.
Mr. Albion and JR were invited to an auction in Petersburg, West Virginia, of the estate of an eccentric collector, and each was allowed to bring one guest -- they chose Don and Charlie, respectively. Charlie in particular wanted to go because a thief he knew had sold him a highly magical item from the estate -- here was his chance to get more, directly from the source! And he even had money, thanks to the mine gig.
JR also asked Charlie about the unnatural pet-like creature that had attached itself to him, refusing to go more than a FOOT from him. Charlie could tell that it was a mana enhancer, and so strongly linked to JR's spirit that it seemed to share his soul, but that didn't really help as far as getting rid of it went... at least, it didn't present any *good* or *safe* ideas. Besides, it was a mana enhancer -- not the sort of thing to get rid of casually. JR decided to wear a large bag to hide the cat-sized beast in when he went out in public, so it could stay close to him but still out of sight.
Then off they went to Petersburg, in JR's car. Whumpa whumpa whumpa. The auction was being held in an auction house near the docks, where the merchandise itself was stored in a big warehouse. There was a lot of crap, most of it being sold in huge lots. Animal furs, kitchenware, a selection of sacrificial daggers, a car, a glider, and several tons of old, possibly valuable books.
Every last item, save for maybe three or four newer looking ones, was enchanted. Badly. Some leaked magical energy, others had multiple spirits grafted onto them -- one walking stick had a spirit physically wrapped around the outside of it, and a hideous tentacle beast trapped inside, but with two tentacles waving free.
But there were many items that seemed like they'd be valuable even if their enchantments didn't work, as long as they weren't actively malicious. So, the party came up with a list of things to bid on.
The auction itself went as you'd expect. Charlie had brought along the soul jar he'd bought earlier, looking to see whose soul was bought in it, assuming they'd be at the auction. The signature he was looking for was indeed present -- a man sitting in the front row, anxiously examining each item, as if waiting for something special. Aha! He decided to approach him after the auction and offer to sell the jar -- he could probably get back what he paid for it and more, and it wouldn't *really* be blackmail.
So, they bid on various things, occasionally frustrated by an old lady with the habit of always bidding one dollar higher than the last bid. A habit Don shared. Fortunately, they never ended up bidding against each other. They got a bunch of stuff, including the books, knives, kitchenware, and wine -- too much for them to carry back in their car. Or even in two cars -- Mr. Albion bought a car.
When the valuable gems were brought out to be bid on, though, the strange man in the front row struck. He stood up, walked up to the stage, and started shoveling the gems into his pockets... and no one noticed, except for Don, who just watched.
After a few seconds, another pair of people that no one else seemed to notice ran in, shooting crossbows at the man, who threw a grenade at them and ran off. No one noticed the grenade either, even after it exploded in their midst. One of the assailants, who'd been wounded, ran up on stage and started casting protection and warning spells, while the other, who'd avoided harm, ran off after the thief. Don followed.
And found him dead in the hallway, ignored by everyone, and seemingly killed by large claws. Don followed the sounds of commotion to the stables, where he was able to see a griffon and rider, with four tails between them, flying off into the moonlight. "Huh," he thought, and headed back to the auction.
Charlie was able to see spirits, and some of the spells the person on stage cast bound spirits as part of their workings, so he summoned one of them over (not seeing the caster, just the spells) and asked who'd cast it, from where, and why. "The Marquis. Right over there! He's looking for people from the other world."
Nothing else exciting happened during the auction, but as they left, Charlie was able to see the dead body in the hallway, which everyone else was ignoring and walking around. Worse, when he knelt down to check to see if the guy was alive, the sight of 'a doctor examining a body' was normal enough that suddenly EVERYONE could see it, and panicked! The auction-authorities contacted the police, and told Charlie to stay for questioning.
Charlie ran off, not wanting to try to explain why a body appeared right under him (as far as anyone else could tell) -- it was obvious that he hadn't killed the guy (he was killed by a bear or a wolf or something), but no one liked Indians. He had his familiar Agamemnon flit around in spirit form and keep an eye out for the police, and managed to avoid being seen while he arranged for transportation for the things he'd bought, and sold some less interesting items from the lots he'd bid on to more interested parties.
last week | next week
