Eldritch Guidance

(Author note: Haven't done a music recommendation for a while. So, here is something I suggest you listen to while reading. It really adds to the atmosphere: https://youtu.be/Qz6XLzLOPD4?si=dn83fHYn6qn7rM_P )

 

In a subdivision in the northeast of Graheel, outside of the Nighthound territory and relatively close to the university, Joe pulled his vehicle up to the front of a solitary two-story house.

By the time they had arrived here, there was a heavy overcast that looked like it was about to rain.

The house was older in its design and showed some signs of minor degradation caused by time, but it still appeared to be in somewhat relatively good condition and livable. It had a large raised patio in the front with stairs and possibly a front door that was obscured by the heavy shadows caused by the overcast.

The plot of land the house sat on was around 4,000 square feet (370 square meters), with a small lawn in the front. The lawn was neatly clipped. The windows were all dark at the moment. There was no light coming from the house, a sign that no one was home. A single window on the second floor was open, letting the wind blow in and making the curtains flutter.

The general atmosphere, combined with the heavy overcast, made it feel almost like nighttime, giving the house a very ominous feeling.

 

 

Joe stepped out of his vehicle and quickly assessed the situation. He let out a deep sigh.

Joe: “Again? That is the second time this month that I’m investigating a haunted-ass-looking place.”

Rell also stepped out of the vehicle and stood right beside Joe.

Rell: “You make it sound like you have a habit of investigating ominous-looking places.”

Joe: “Not really.”

Dan: “Joe, y-you didn’t say anything about searching another h-haunted house,” he said to Joe as he exited the vehicle.

Rell looked back at Joe with an infuriating smirk from feeling vindicated by Dan’s comment. Joe could only sigh and rub his temples to relieve stress.

Jafar and Alan also got out of the vehicle to look at the gloomy home.

Alan: “This place really does look haunted.”

Jafar: “Are we searching that place? Is that what I heard?”

Joe: “We’re not searching anything, and it’s not haunted. This is where Larry is supposed to live. It just looks a little creepy because of the overcast.”

Rell: “I must also concur with our unit’s leader. There is no strangeness in the surrounding aether to suggest it’s haunted.”

Joe: “You can detect that?”

Rell: “Of course. I’m from the Grayscale College. I specialized in dark magic countermeasures. It is easy for me to tell if there’s black magic involved.”

Joe: “So, what is it about the aether that tells you it’s not haunted then?”

Rell: “The aether in a haunted place should feel like there is a spell constantly being cast, because in a way it is. The magic that keeps the soul bound to this world constantly has to exert itself, causing aether fluctuations that are not too difficult to feel if trained for.”

Joe: “OK. I see.”

Rell: “Also, if there is a possibility I’m wrong and there is a soul bound here, I have special binding magic that can restrict the spirit’s actions against us.”

Alan: “You can use spirit binding magic!” he yelled out in anger at Rell.

Alan jumped to conclusions as soon as he heard the words "spirit" and "binding" in the same sentence. He accused his enforcer leader of using that forbidden magic. Alan's dislike for Rell was causing him to act somewhat irrationally in the moment.

Rell's expression did not change as he just looked at Alan.

Rell: “What are you talking about? No, I can’t. The magic I know is only to prevent a ghost from harming the living. Pulling souls out of people's bodies and forcing them to remain in this world is beyond me,” he said while adjusting his glasses.

Joe could read the atmosphere and sense some sort of hostility between those two, which he didn’t understand. Fulfilling his role as leader, he stepped between the two of them and tried to mediate the conflict.

Joe: “Let’s focus on the task at hand. No fighting.”

Alan glared at Rell for a few seconds before turning back to face Larry’s house. Rell didn’t seem to care or notice the hostility of Alan and went back to conversing with Joe.

Rell: “The task appears pointless at this time. Larry doesn't look to be home, or he may have fled like you suggested earlier.”

Joe: “Nah, look at the grass. It was recently cut. You’re not going to worry about cutting your lawn when fleeing a city. He’s probably still in Graheel, maybe just went out for a bit."

Dan: “If he’s not home, are we going to wait for him to show up?”

Joe: “Let’s knock first, then decide what to do from there.”

Detective Joe walked slowly toward the house with the others in tow. He didn't feel as uneasy as he had with Mark's house; there was no obvious strangeness like there had been with the dying plants the previous time. It was easier to rationalize away any anxiety for him this time. The dark shadows and gloomy atmosphere created by the overcast easily explained any negative feelings he had about this place.

His confidence was also bolstered by the presence of Rell. Joe didn’t expect to have such an expert of dark magic with him, and he felt like he could be relied upon in a situation where black magic was at play. The knowledge of haunted places that was demonstrated by Rell impressed him.

“Maybe I should take Rell to Mark’s old home after this Jixi thing. See what he has to say about that place.” Joe thought to himself, already planning to make use of Rell for his own investigation later.

Approaching the ominous dwelling, he discerned its features more distinctly now. The oppressive shadows gradually receded as he drew nearer, lending a faint relief to the atmosphere.

He stepped upon the stairs and onto the patio, and from here he could finally clearly see the front door of the home. Joe briefly looked at his party and addressed them.

Joe: “Let me do the talking,” he said before turning back to the door.

Joe raised his hand and, with his knuckles, knocked. There was a wooden tapping like one would expect, but there was also a wet squishing sound. Joe jerked his hand away, and there was a long strand of slime sticking to it. The slime stretched from the officer's hand to the door. It looked like clear snot to Joe.

Joe: “What the?” he mumbled as he looked at the slime stuck to his hand.

Dan: “I-Is that e-ectoplasm!?” he said with a fearful stutter.

Rell adjusted his glasses again. Before turning towards Dan.

Rell: “That’s nonsense. Ghosts don’t leave ectoplasm. That's just an old wives tale from—” he said, as he trailed off into a complex explanation of ectoplasm.

Joe ignored the conversation going on behind him, concentrating on the slime on his hand. He toyed with it, massaging it between his fingers, trying to understand its consistency. It still looked and felt like snot to him. He then lifted it to his nose and sniffed it. No smell.

The senior detective reached into his jacket, pulled out a light, and shone it on the door. Now, with the light shining on it, everyone could see that the door was completely covered in slime. The substance was almost completely translucent and could only be seen by the sheen of the light that reflected off it.

Alan: “Um, that doesn't seem normal.”

Jafar: “You think.”

Joe grabbed the door handle and tried to open it. The locking bolt could be heard banging against the inside of the door frame. The door didn’t budge.

Joe: “Hmm, locked.”

Joe pulled his hand away, his palm now covered in slime. The senior officer gave a disgusted expression before wiping the slime from his hand on a nearby wall. He brought his other hand close to the lock and made a twisting motion. The lock then clicked with a loud sound.

Everyone from the enforcer side was curious about what Joe did. As a null mage born with a special kind of magic, Joe did not need to chant to cast his magic. It made it difficult to identify what spell was being used. And, Joe had yet to tell the people from the university he was a null mage born with magnetic magic.

Detective Joe then used his vectromancy again and created a magnetic field that pushed the metal parts of the door away from him, causing the door to swing open without him having to touch it.

The door opened, with more stands of slime that formed between the door’s edge and its frame before being stretched thin enough to break. The interior was dark. It was a standard foyer—nothing out of the ordinary. In front of the group were two other doors that led somewhere else, and stairs leading up.

Rell: “Are we just going to head inside? Isn’t this against proto-call?”

Joe: “Don’t worry about it. Better to ask forgiveness than permission.”

Rell: “Mr Joe. This is breaking and entering.”

Joe: “I said not to worry about it.”

Rell: “This is highly unethical and against the law.”

Joe: “Well, you can wait out here if you want. But, a door covered in slime on the home of one of our suspects warrants investigating.”

Rell: “We don't even know what slime on a door means.”

Joe: “That’s why we’re taking a look.”

Joe stepped inside Larry’s home with an audible squishing sound. He looked down with light in hand and saw that he had stepped in the same translucent slime from the door. It was all over the floor, creating a trail that went upstairs.

Joe: “Guess we follow the slime trail,” he said as he continued further inside.

Everyone else looked at each other before most of the group slowly followed behind Joe.

Rell was the last one to enter. He had his arms crossed and looked very disapproving of Joe’s actions. Eventually, he relented and followed behind everyone else.

The group ascended the stairs, careful with their steps as the stairs were coated in the same slimy, slippery material as the door, so as not to fall. The wooden steps, worn with age, protested with eerie groans under each cautious footfall. The air was humid inside.

The further everyone went, the darker it became. Jafar responded by starting to cast a simple light cantrip to help illuminate the area, so as not to solely rely on Joe’s flashlight. With a whispered incantation, a white ball of light formed in Jafar’s hand before floating above his head and following him along. The area was further brightened thanks to the magic.

Joe traced the trail of slime along the hallway of the second floor until it led him to a closed door. With Joe leading, he pushed open the door, revealing a bedroom beyond. Unlike the dark hallway, the bedroom was illuminated by ambient light coming in through a nearby open window. The wind blew inside the room from it, causing the nearby curtains to flutter.

The bedroom itself was normal. It had everything one might expect to see: a large dresser for clothing, a bed for sleeping, a simple desk to work at, and not much more than that. There was also another door in the room that looked like it led to a bathroom.

The senior officer remained focused on the trail of slime, his gaze fixed downward as he followed its path to the center of the room, where a pile of clothing lay. It was a complete set of clothing you would expect someone to wear. A long-sleeve shirt, pants, a pair of socks, underwear, and shoes. The garments were strewn haphazardly, seemingly abandoned in the middle of the floor.

As the light was directed towards the clothing, that familiar sheen could be seen. The fabric was completely covered and saturated in that slimy substance. Like the seasoned detective he was, Joe's first instinct was to inspect the pockets.

He reached down and felt around the clothing and through the viscous substance. He felt something and reached into the pocket to pull out what looked like a wallet. Joe then opened it up and started to look at the contents. It was full of money and had a bunch of different types of identification in it.

Joe: “Hmm. Well, if there was any doubt that this was Larry’s home, this wallet has his ID in it.”

Dan: “OK. But, where is he?”

Joe: “That’s what I want to know. A pile of clothing covered in slime with Larry’s wallet. What does that mean?”

Alan: “Did he turn into a slug monster? I mean, if he transformed into another creature, he would shed his clothing, and a slug creature would leave a trail of slime.”

All eyes turned to Alan, skepticism evident in the raised eyebrows of everyone, before shifting attention towards Rell, awaiting his confirmation or denial of such a theory.

Rell: “What? I’m not a walking encyclopedia. I don’t know everything involving black magic off the top of my head.”

Joe: “That idea is pretty out there, but not impossible. I understand some pretty advanced curses can transform people into monstrous-looking creatures.”

Rell: “You seem quite knowledgeable about that.”

Joe: “I did some recent research on the subject. But, that’s not likely what’s going on. In this line of work, the most boring explanation is often the correct one.”

Alan: “Then what’s the boring explanation for this?”

Joe: “Don’t know yet. We’ll find out if we keep searching.”

Jafar: “Larry is probably nearby if his wallet is still here. So should we be searching around like this if that’s the case?”

Joe: “Hmm, good point. LARRY ARE YA HERE!” he yelled out.

Joe’s voice echoed throughout the house. Ten seconds went by. No response was given to Joe’s yelling.

Everyone looked at Joe with mouths agape. Unable to believe that he just did that.

Joe: “Well, if he's home, he’s not responding. So, don’t worry about it,” he said as he started to look around.

Everyone commenced spitting off and scouring the room as per Joe's instructions.

Joe continued to focus on the pile of clothing again. Illuminating the area with his light, he discerned the shimmer of yet another trail of slime. Tracing it with his beam, he observed it guiding him into the bathroom.

Entering the bathroom, he found nothing noteworthy within. It appeared to be a typical bathroom, complete with a sink, toilet, and shower. Joe noted that the trail of slime he had been tracking led to the shower stall. Curious, he stepped closer and peered inside.

The bottom of the stall was covered in the same translucent slime that he had been following.

“A trail of slime ran from the front door to a pile of clothing. Then from the clothing to the shower. What does it mean?” Joe wondered to himself.

A yellowish glimmer in the basin of the shower caught the corner of Joe’s eye. He reached down near the drain and picked up a small, golden object. It was a tooth made of gold.

“A tooth? Why’s it here?”

Examining the tooth closely, he pondered whether it served as an unusual accessory. Yet, despite thorough inspection, he found no hole through which it could be strung onto a necklace or bracelet.

“This isn't an actual gold-molded tooth from someone's mouth, is it?”

He continued to examine it for another few seconds. Failing to come up with a plausible explanation for why he found a tooth in the shower, he stowed it away in his pocket and resumed his search of the bathroom. Five minutes passed, yet Joe's efforts yielded no further discoveries; aside from the gold tooth, nothing else unusual caught his attention.

Joe then exited the bathroom back into the bedroom, seeing that his group was still looking around.

Joe: “Did anyone find anything?”

Rell was the first person to stop looking around and approach the senior detective.

Rell: “I found a record of the things he’s sold,” he said while handing Joe a small book. “I skimmed through it. I didn’t see anything suspicious.”

Joe: “Good work.”

Alan was the next person to approach Joe.

Alan: “I found a lid to a container for something,” he said as he held up a lid that looked like it was from a tote bin.

Joe: “A container for what?”

Alan: “I don’t know. I just found it under the bed, but I didn’t see the container it goes to.”

Joe: “And you,” he said while turning to Jafar.

Jafar was still searching around but stopped and addressed Joe.

Jafar: “Um, I didn’t find anything.”

Joe: “I see. Hm, when you were going through his records, were there any names of people in them? Like Sorin’s?” he said while turning back to Rell.

Rell: “No. His records weren't that detailed. Just what he sold and how many supplies he ordered.”

Joe: “Was it a lot?”

Rell: “I believe so.”

Joe: “I think I have an idea of what’s going on here.”

Everyone straightened their poster and turned to face Joe, eager to hear his explanation.

Joe: “I think what happened was that Larry had some sort of material delivered to the house. Right to the front door. He went out to bring it inside, but he must have spilled whatever he ordered on himself. He then stumbled through his house into this room, stripped himself, and headed into the shower to wash himself off.

Dan: “I don’t know. There is a lot of slime between here and the front door.”

Joe: “Based on the lid found, it was probably one of those big tote bins. So it would be a lot.”

Alan: “If it was a chemical for spell crafting, does that mean it’s dangerous? Something like acid?”

Joe: “I don’t think so. It didn’t burn my hand when I touched it. It also didn’t have any acrid smell to it. Also, something acidic would dissolve clothing as well, but his clothing is perfectly fine. If he did have anything really dangerous, he would need a license to handle that material. Larry didn’t have anything like that. He can only handle mundane materials.”

Rell: “Hmm. If you’re right about that, I think the slime is literally mucus. Specifically, from a Delva-spitting lizard’s mouth and nose. It’s not restricted and doesn't require a license like other materials to get a hold of. That would make the most sense.”

Everyone had a look of disgust at Rell’s explanation of the slime.

Jafar: “Ew. Why would he have lizard snot?”

Rell: “It hardens under special conditions like concrete. It has a variety of uses in different types of arcane construction.”

Joe nodded along with Rell’s explanation.

Joe: “Yup. And, that is the boring explanation of what happened. Someone who spilled a bunch of expensive gunk on himself.”

Alan: “But I only found the lid.”

Joe: “That’s also a good point. Where would he put the rest of the tote?”

Rell: “It’s probably downstairs in his basement. The records I read said he stores a lot of that stuff there.”

Joe: “Huh, good to know. Let’s check that out next.”

Rell: “Must we?”

Joe: “If you’re worried about breaking and entering, we’ve already crossed that bridge. Might as well go the whole way and do a thorough investigation,” he said to Rell before walking out of the bedroom.

The group descended to the main floor, scattering to explore the different rooms of the house. They ventured into various rooms adorned with simple furniture and faded wallpaper. Amidst the exploration, it was Alan, who wandered into the kitchen towards the back of the house. There he found the door leading to the basement, its door slightly ajar, inviting him into the unknown depths below.

Alan informed Joe, and the group regathered and descended below together. Once they reached the bottom of the steps, they flipped a nearby light switch and looked around; the basement was packed full of shelves with boxes and various containers of different materials. Glancing briefly at a label on one of the containers, Joe could see that it was another type of supply for spell crafting. The senior detective then instructed everyone to scatter and look around for anything strange.

The space was crammed with shelves, each one full of an assortment of peculiar objects. Things like dried herbs and containers of liquid of every color were placed on the shelves, their origin and purpose unknown.

The former Lionheart student separated from everyone and walked between a row of shelves. In the aisle where he found himself, he saw all manner of alchemical supplies. Glass vials filled with shimmering liquids lined the walls, their hues ranging from vivid blues to deep purples. There were also pieces of equipment, like a bunsen burner and complex-looking glass apparatus, whose purpose was lost on Alan.

“This guy sure has a lot of stuff down here.” Alan thought to himself.

Alan continued to walk along, but stopped to inspect a peculiar glass jar. It was full of a strange-looking black liquid. It drew his attention. As he leaned in for a closer examination, a form emerged from the black substance—an object floating eerily in the viscous fluid. Drawing nearer, he brought his face level with the jar. He could see what sort of looked like a skull. A human one.

Suddenly, the eye holes in the skull started to glow a malicious orange. This surprised Alan and caused him to stumble backward.

 

 

Alan: “Ahh! U-um, guys!” he yelled out as he bumped into the shelf behind him, causing some glass bottles to rattle.

Everyone heard Alan call, prompting everyone to stop what they were doing and run toward his location. Their footsteps reverberated against the concrete floor as they hurried to join him; their expressions were a mixture of curiosity and apprehension.

Joe: “What’s up? Oh! Good job, kid. You found something really interesting,” he said while patting Alan's shoulder.

Alan: “W-what is that? Is it alive?”

Rell: “It depends on what you constitute as alive. That thing is undead. Specifically, a ghoul seed. Very difficult to make, as I understand.”

Alan: “A ghoul seed? So, what. You plant this in the ground, and a ghoul grows out of it,” he said facetiously.

Rell: “Basically.”

Alan: “Wait, really?” he said, surprised there was some truth to his joke.

Rell: “Yeah. You bury this in grave soil, and a ghoul will form out of it. Black mages use these things to clear out graveyards, as ghouls will dig up the dead and eat them.”

Jafar: “I think I've heard of ghoul seeds, but I don’t recall it having glowing eyes.”

Rell: “The glowing eyes means it’s primed. There are a few things you have to do before you bury the ghoul seed, but it looks like all those steps were already done. All you need is some grave soil at this stage, and we’re going to have a ghoul on our hands.”

Hearing that, both Alan and Jafar took a step away from the jar with the skull in it. Nervous that it will suddenly turn into a full ghoul monster before them.

Joe: “Regardless, the main thing is that ghoul seeds are super illegal. Larry shouldn’t have this.”

Dan: “If he has this, that might mean Larry could be a black market dealer.”

Joe: “That’s what I'm thinking. If he’s moving illegal shit like this, he probably had some idea of what Sorin was doing. Heck, I bet Sorin was coming to this guy to get a hold of a bunch of other illegal stuff without the university's knowledge.”

Alan started to look more attentive once he heard that there was a possibility that Larry was involved in supplying Sorin with the materials used to transform his friend into an undead.

Rell: “I don’t think I saw anything in his records about selling anything illegal.”

Joe: “No one in their right mind would write down selling something like a ghoul seed. Why risk people like us finding that record? Anyway, if he has this, there’s probably more illegal shit around. Let’s keep looking."

Joe’s team continued searching around and eventually uncovered more illegal goods, along with the bin matching the lid they found upstairs, which was empty. Throughout the entire search, they found no signs of Larry anywhere.