Cybermancer wrote:The FBI are all over both crime scenes right now so access is more or less denied and will likely be highly contaminated after they're done.

Hey, I'm insulted. We don't contaminate scenes.

Grandpa and I talked to Jinx and did some digging, and this is what we found. There is a consistent trail of mound building and sun cults ending in violence. You can follow it from the Olmecs to the Mayans, to the Tiahuanaco. It peters out, then pops up again with the Aztecs, passes to the new-world Spanish, and moves on to Lousisiana. The Southern Cult manipulates spirits and sacrifices strangers to carry messages to the dead, but would often end up sacrificing its own members.

We also tracked down a name for the stormcrow: Bernard Lemercier, a French/Indian known to be active in the early 1700. The Nachez called him a witch, who demanded constant sacrifices trying to open a rift to the ancient mysteries.

I think there may be a connection between this cult and the mound where Victor Lazlo disappeared.

Sahra Kane wrote:
We also tracked down a name for the stormcrow: Bernard Lemercier, a French/Indian known to be active in the early 1700. The Nachez called him a witch, who demanded constant sacrifices trying to open a rift to the ancient mysteries.

I think there may be a connection between this cult and the mound where Victor Lazlo disappeared.

From what I recall from my childhood in Southern Ohio, the Mounds in that region are neolithic - pre Southern Mound building by at least a millennia. There is little to no actual evidence of blood sacrifice in the region, either in the "prehistoric" nor later tribal culture of the Shawnee. In fact, the Shawnee seemed to avoid them, sort of like the Druids and Stone Henge. They served ritual purposes, and line up with the ley lines and nexi of the region, that I know for sure. The city park built on the remains of a Mound in my Mother's home town will occasionally "get weird" to the point that it is the only municipal park closed at night.
There is a different "feel" to the places in the Ohio River valley than say the mounds in Aztec Arkansas (home of the bucolic little white clap board church Aztec Baptist - one of my favorite Church names ever). The Mounds in Ohio felt like "thin" places, while the energies in the Mounds in AK felt like a coiled spring, ready to be set lose. That was my, very limited, experience with the Mounds. If there is a connection, I would wager that it is a co-option of the older sites by a newer cultus.

I've never visited any of these places "Professionally" and have only been back to Portsmouth in the past few years for funerals, so i can't report what they are like at the moment.

Just because the site predates the cults using them doesn't make it less likely for things to go wrong.

we don't report it much, because it looks bad for the tourist trade, but we get a couple of groups every year sneaking into Canyon de chelly's* cliff dwellings for weird ceremonies, supposedly 'tribal magic' stuff. really, it tends to be a bunch of white folk and other other outsiders who think painting their faces and bodies, dressing up in feather bonnets, dancing around fires, and doing lots of illicit substances qualifies as "summoning the spirits of the ancients" or other such nonsense. one would think they'd at least do research into the culture of the people who's chindi they were trying to communicate with, instead of using the silly hollywood tripe, but there you go. the National Park service usually breaks the parties up and hands them over to us until the FBI or Arizona state police show up.

the cliff dwellings in the canyon are anaasází, and are thousands of years old. but that has not kept people of later times from trying to use them for their own purposes in more recent times.

* it is pronounced "de shay", by the way.

Hanna, I'm very sorry. I hope you are not completely alone in all this.

Lt. joe wrote:Just because the site predates the cults using them doesn't make it less likely for things to go wrong.

I didn't mean to imply that. In fact, I've seen just how wrong things can go when an object or place is disrupted (desecrated). Major fallout, for years. What I was trying to say is that Serpent Mound seems to be "asleep" but other mound sights not so much. If these nutters were to do the wrong thing at any of these places I tremble at the consequences.

I hear tell these people may be in DC, and that Mr Caliburn and Ms Darcy were looking into them. I am sitting here deep in the Suburbs of MD feeling useless.
I have a spare room and neighbors who have learned not to ask questions. If I or my self proclaimed "leg men" can help, tell me.

Thank you, Melissa, for filling in the gaps in my memory. Your quibbles are always enlightening.

Things here are as they always are. A few haunts, the occasional Buggie man. Things best left alone in the Smithsonian or the LIbrary of Congress coming out into the light of day and scaring the crud out of someone. Congressional aids trying to use Infernal Powers to get the upper hand in politics. You know, just what was meant when I was sent here for "A nice, quiet, uneventful recuperation and retirement."

Who would have thought Dan, my nice, quiet little Computer Geek, would branch out into weaponry. He's even found my old sword and his showing an alarmingly rapid progress, almost intuitive. The other two boys are doing well. Although Tyler is still not always sleeping through the night.


Back to the matter at hand:

These people seem to be very competent, and have adopted a set of symbols that are very telling, but also seem to have very little difficulty adopting what ever comes to hand. If we could get a handle on just how interconnected they are, or even a clearer picture of what their end game is I think we would be on more stable footing. (Yes I know, I am the Rev. Dr. Obviousman.) Are we even all that sure that they and the recent disappearances are connected, or is this yet another front that has opened?

Mel has the directions to my place if anyone needs a base near DC - easy drive and near the Greenbelt terminus of the Green line, and on the Camden line into DC and Baltimore. If she's not close by PM me. I'll also see if anyone has tried to bother any of the local Masonic/Occult/Native sites.

FriarJohn wrote:
I hear tell these people may be in DC, and that Mr Caliburn and Ms Darcy were looking into them. I am sitting here deep in the Suburbs of MD feeling useless.
I have a spare room and neighbors who have learned not to ask questions. If I or my self proclaimed "leg men" can help, tell me.

i understand that feeling. Mr. E and I have worked with Ron awhile back, when one of his cases took him to our area. It is hard to imagine a threat that he could not handle, and i wish i could do something to help find him to.

Well now, we are simply drowning in details and suppositions.

While I may not be the field agent I once was, I think that we may have to tak into account that this Foundation may be involved in Mr Caliburn and Cynthia's disappearance: While investigating a line of inquiry about the Darkling Cult they may have stumbled upon the "Foundation" or vice versa. I'm not just tossing this out to add to confusion, but it may be a possibility.

Now, I have my resources looking for events all over DC, the MD suburbs and NOVA. I have a few ties to the Feds, but I'll leave them alone, for now.

There are about as many references to a "Fallen Star" in the various Myths of the world to make it seem chosen to be vague. There are two Stellar deities in the Aztec mythology, but neither of them are "fallen." The most common reference in the West I can find is the ubiquitous references to Satan. Not exactly warming, but sort of par for the course.

So, lots of bad mojo going down.

I ain't gonna say much about it other than I'm doing what I can to stop some of it. Though if y'all think for a moment that I've forgiven Caliburn, start thinkin' somethin' else.