The Between - Threat - The Whateley Camera [PDF]

Zitiervorschau

The Whateley Camera The Hargrave House library contains research on the so-called Whateley Camera, one of the first wet plate-type cameras ever produced. People who are photographed by the camera have been known to disappear without a trace. An American scientist and philosopher, Atticus Whateley, studied the camera for a number of years and proposed that it was some sort of entity—a demon, or even a god—and that the people who went missing had been transported to another dimension. Whateley advanced an idea called the “fragrant void,” a sort-of proto-Earth that existed in near-total darkness, and that was home to powerful entities who were banished by God on the first day of Creation. He believed some of those entities could still operate in our world, hidden from view, perhaps through common objects, like the camera. While his research couldn’t prove the existence of the fragrant void, he did manage to show how the camera caused people to be whisked away to another dimension; unfortunately, before he could present his work for review, he was killed, his notes were destroyed, and the camera went missing. One week ago, a beautiful actress, Penelope Levy, disappeared. She was last seen at the Society Obscura, an exclusive and secretive club for wealthy photography enthusiasts located in a converted townhouse in Kensington. A missing actress wouldn’t merit attention from Hargrave House if not for the fact her lover, Burt Broadswell, sent the hunters one of the pictures taken of her at the Society Obscura. Pose the following to a hunter who has the Cosmic Passage marked (or whoever you wish if no one has it marked): Something unusual about the photo unmistakably confirms it was taken with the Whateley Camera? What is it?

Questions & Opportunities

Side Characters

WHAT CIRCUMSTANCES WILL CAUSE SOMEONE PHOTOGRAPHED BY THE

BURT BROADSWELL, A LOVER

CAMERA TO DISAPPEAR? (Complexity: 8)

Lantern jaw. Fulsome eyelashes. Trim physique. Burt is highly distraught about Penelope’s disappearance. He disagreed with Penelope’s decision to model for the Society Obscura. He views the Society as decadent, lecherous elites. He doesn’t know much about the details of her time with them, but he will happily give the hunters access to her personal effects.

Resolve the Threat by reversing the process and bringing Penelope Levy back to this world. Use the camera to transport yourself to the fragrant void and make contact with the entity there. Doing so gives you access to the custom move Voidwalker (see below). Note: Both Opportunities unlock when the Question is answered and both can be pursued.

Quote: “Penelope and I met on the stage. She was playing Rosalind, and I the bumpkin William. She was radiant, I tell you. I never got the lead in that production, but I did manage to become her Orlando in life. And now she’s gone, without a trace… as if she were never more than a sweet waking dream.”

CUSTOM MOVE – VOIDWALKER

PORTIA ABERNATHY, AN ENTHUSIAST

When you have the Cosmic Passage marked and use an object of power to attune to the fragrant void, roll with Sensitivity. On a hit, you travel to the fragrant void and gain keen insight into a Threat of your choice; the Keeper reveals two Clues. On a 10+, no entity from the void will disturb you. On a miss, unmark the Cosmic Passage and then cross it off your sheet.

Semi-sheer black caftan. Hair braided to look like a crown. Small, tight mouth. Portia is the founder of the Society Obscura. The camera tells her things in her dreams, including how to make it so the subject disappears after the picture is taken, but the precise details have already faded from her memory.

The Camera Is possessed by a monstrous entity from another dimension (see Dangers). This entity’s motivations are entirely alien—to try to understand them is a pointless exercise. IF HARGRAVE HOUSE IGNORES THE SITUATION…

More people will go missing and the camera itself may fall into the Mastermind’s hands.

Moments The bang of flash powder immediately followed by a brief sensation of floating. The smell of cigarette smoke and sweat as members of the Society Obscura enjoy each other’s bodies. Penelope Levy briefly appears in a mirror, terrified, and is then violently yanked away into a silvery void behind her. A Side Character is seen floating in the air, held aloft by an unseen force. The color drains from a room, leaving only sepia tones behind. A picture can be moved around to see the parts of the scene that weren’t in frame; any people depicted have inky black voids where their eyes should be.

Quote: “The camera, first, sees us. Then it reveals us. Many people don’t like what they see in the image, because they know it is the truth. One cannot hide from the lens. No matter how hard one tries.” CYRUS ABERNATHY, AN ENTHUSIAST

A form-fitting, white bodysuit, tight in all the right places. Silver cords wrapped around his arms, legs, and neck. A distant gaze. Cyrus is Portia’s husband. He has a keen interest in the metaphysical. He believes in the existence of other worlds and dimensions. If the Man in the Sun Mask is a recurring Side Character, Cyrus will be at ease with Hargrave House. Quote: ““I like to imagine a photograph is like a little pocket dimension—a tiny world parallel to our own. You do believe in parallel worlds, don’t you? I believe in parallel worlds, parallel threads in time… for example, the primordial past of this world—the time before there was light—is still with us. It floats alongside us. And, someday, it may call out to us.” PERIWINKLE UNDERWOOD, A HOUSEBOY

Pretty. Never seen in the same revealing costume twice. Small, bejeweled feet. Peri is a houseboy and sexual plaything. He keeps the place tidy for the Abernathys and models for photographs when called upon. He was surly when Penelope was the Society’s new obsession, but now that she's gone, he’s back to his normal, cheerful self. Quote: “Can I get you a drink? Or a cigar, perhaps? I’m here to please… in any way you fancy.” VARIOUS MEMBERS OF THE SOCIETY OBSCURA

Members of the Society come from a variety of backgrounds. The thing that unites them is an almost spiritual fascination with photography. Some names, if you need them: Lurdes, Yulya, Seynabou, Brianna, Carolin, Milosh, Venkat, Pierre, Mads, Petr.

Dangers THE SOCIETY OBSCURA

If the hunters claim to be photography enthusiasts, the Society will welcome them warmly. If the hunters reveal they are searching for Penelope Levy, the Society will be more guarded. Members of the Society are largely harmless, but they will react violently if someone tries to take the Whateley Camera from them. THE ENTITY

The entity can psychically attack the hunters from anywhere in the Society’s townhouse; telekinetic blasts and pyrokinesis are its preferred weapons. The entity appears as a shadowy, tentacled monstrosity with a single glowing eye when confronted in the fragrant void. Any hunter who agrees to take the Condition Drawn to the Void will be allowed to leave the entity’s realm safely; the Condition can never be cleared. Hunters who refuse to take the Condition must do battle with the entity. In either case, they have access to the Voidwalker move upon their return.

Clues A sequence of numbers in an unusual place. A monocle, a magnifying glass, and a telescope—each with cracked lenses. A small pyramid, warm to the touch. A gray door, perfectly rendered in paint on a nearby wall. Evidence found in a (pick one: scroll/hieroglyph/painting/something else) that the Whateley Camera existed before there were even cameras. A complex mathematical equation in an unusual place. Four veils layered atop one another: white, silver, gold, and black. A copy of Dante’s Inferno, but the story is different than you remember. An orrery depicting the seven celestial realms. A centuries-old almanac detailing the phases of the Moon. The script for a play you’ve never heard of: Ecstasies of the Pythia.

Locations THE JUNGLE ROOM

A cinnabar pendant necklace, the clasp broken. Three small quartz rods found among a Side Character’s belongings.

A room in the Society’s townhouse used for artistic photography, decorated to look like an overgrown jungle. Paint the Scene: Do you find the decorations here surprisingly lifelike or hopelessly gaudy? Why?

The smell of warm spices in an unusual place.

THE AMERICAN WEST ROOM

A smudge of (pick one: silver/gold/black/something else) paint near the place where Penelope’s photograph was taken.

A room in the Society’s townhouse used for artistic photography, decorated to look like a western saloon. Paint the Scene: This room is not quite right. What feels off about it? THE MAHARAJA’S PALACE ROOM

A room in the Society’s townhouse used for artistic photography, decorated to look like a maharaja’s palace. Paint the Scene: This room is wildly colorful but the camera can never capture it. Describe something particularly vivid that people in the future will not be able to properly appreciate in black and white. THE OLYMPUS ROOM

A Side Character overheard speaking a dead language. An albino peacock in a crystal cage.

An animal is terrified of a particular room. Something unusual is resting at the bottom of a glass of water (pick one: egg yolk/mercury/eyeball/something else). A highly-detailed anatomy chart found among a Side Character’s belongings.

Rewards

A room in the Society’s townhouse used for artistic photography, decorated to look like a scene from Greek myth. Paint the Scene (only if at least one hunter has the Cosmic Passage marked): The Greek pantheon is actually watching you in this room right now. How do you know it?

The Whateley Camera. Add it to your Personal Quarters.

THE ASTRAL PLANE ROOM

A memento from the investigation; ask another hunter what it is and then add it to your Personal Quarters.

A strange room painted in dreamy grays and silvers. Paint the Scene: There are objects arranged all over that seem to be from another world or time. Describe one. THE FRAGRANT VOID

The realm the entity resides in is a place of mists and shadow, and the hunters can only traverse a small part of it. Vague outlines of titanic beasts and floating islands can be seen in the distance. Paint the Scene: In what ways are you not yourself while you are in this realm?

A moon mask. Add it to your Personal Quarters. A memento from the investigation; ask another hunter what it is and then add it to your Personal Quarters.

A memento from the investigation; ask another hunter what it is and then add it to your Personal Quarters.