Post by Tillian Panthesis on Oct 28, 2016 6:57:05 GMT 1
October 15th, 1981
London, England, United Kingdom.
There was a long string of Yiddish cursing coming from Cipher, as a wet orange leaf flew straight into his face. He was walking in the streets of London along with his co-worker, discussing about a cold case he was itching to work on for a very long time, when that blasted wind lifted the leaves from a nearby puddle and smacked at him. It seems like that he’s even not safe in the UK, with the whole universe still manage to find a way to turn him into a walking punchline.
“Oh god, what did I do this time?” Cipher asked, while trying to brush away the leaf that stuck to his unusually long nose.
“I don’t know. Maybe it’s for not giving enough clearances for this month,” His co-worker replied.
Cipher huffed in annoyance, as he toss the leaf aside. He adjusted his grey woolen scarf, so it can cover his nose and mouth. He then pulled his paperboy cap downwards and continue to walk. There was dim orange glow emitting from the palm of his hands, he was casting a small fire orb, a mage’s answer to the regular hand warmer packages that the regular folk used. Like those hand warmers, the orbs are disposable. However, unlike the packages, they disappear into thin air after a while. Cipher prefer to cast one of these, as not only he can choose the amount of heat, but also they are environmentally friendly. He liked to think that he played his part in keeping Mother Nature happy. Cipher then clutched the orbs in his hands and shoves them into his long coat pocket, shielding himself further from the elements of the cool autumn afternoon of England.
After a while, Cipher’s unusually large greenish hazel eyes peaked above from his scarf, shooting a glare at his co-worker. “Why didn’t you tell me earlier that the clearance thing is now a ritual practice? I could have prepare the latke batter beforehand, Gortner!”
Gortner snickered, “You’re half right. It might not help the clearances, but it sure does put our boss in a jolly mood after scoffing down a couple of those pancakes.”
“Yep. Should have known better.”
“We’re getting sidetracked here. So, tell me more about the latest case you’re working on.”
Cipher yelped in excitement. His eyes brighten at the mere thought of putting his skills to the test onto this unsolvable case. During his years as a detective, he cracked a lot of cases in his time with them. Some of the cases he was assigned were from the cold case archives, where they haven’t been touched for years. This workmanship have made the Jewish mage proud. So when he found this case that was cold but still active, Cipher couldn’t resist the opportunity to work on it. He was looking forward to seeing the case was finally reach a satisfying finale by his own hands. Especially when first saw this case a few years back, it pique his curiosity and interest, to the point that it caused him to quit the NYPD and join the Regulators. A mage guild full of private detectives, all working on the cases relating to all supernatural causes, both with a hot steaming trail and those with cold dead end leads.
Cipher gleefully rubbed his hands and cleared his throat, “I’ve found a new lead recently.”
“Oh? For which case?” Gortner asked.
“Well you know the Lord of Altona Dunes case? Where an unidentified man was found dead at Altona Beach a few decades back?”
“Altona Beach? You mean that one case in Australia, where that neither our men or the Victorian Police Force could close that case shut?”
“Yep!” Cipher exclaimed.
“Bloody hell. You’re acting like a schoolboy that is high on sugar sometimes,” Gortner remarked, showing his amusement.
“I don’t know. I just like making a good break on mysteries.”
“You certainly do, lad. Please, continue.”
Cipher cleared his throat, “You see. The Altona man was poisoned.”
“Of course. The coroner reports stated that on the papers, clear as day.”
“Yes, but you see. There’s was a connection to another case. A case that was infamous at the time.”
Gortner stares at him in astonishment, “Really? And what case is that?”
“The Tamam Shud case.”
They both stop dead in their tracks. Gortner looked at him, this time no longer with intrigue curiosity, but cautious and uneasy.
“What?” Gortner blurted.
“I’ve found the connection between the two,” Cipher replied.
“How?”
“Well, I’ve found book in the archives the other day, along with the files.”
“What book?”
“Well, the Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam of course. Same book that the Somerton Man possessed at the time. You know, where the page that contains the namesake case comes from?”
“That’s impossible! I thought the book was destroyed 20 years ago.”
“Uh no. It managed to slipped through the cracks and landed into our archives.”
“Still, it doesn’t prove the connection with the Somerton Man and the John Doe in Altona.”
“If you don’t use magic. But I did. I’ve found a magical residue connection between the Altona man and the Tamam Shud case. Now, if we could solve the Lord of the Altona Dune case first, then it could pave a way to the Somerton Man’s identity and closure for everyone-”
Then without warning, his co-worker stopped him. Cipher looked up and gulp. He saw Gortner’s lips twisted in a severe frown, the pupils of his ice blue eyes were shrunk down. Now it’s Gortner turn to shoot a death glare.
“Cipher, drop the cases. Now.”
“What? Why?” Cipher asked.
“The Tamam Shud case is already closed,” Gortner replied..
“So who solved it and what happened?”
“Some buckethead cracked it and the rest is classified.”
Cipher was confused. Buckethead? An agent from the Silver Banner? Wasn’t that the guild that the Regulators were not having an eye to eye? If so, then why did his guild allow them to intervene? Something is not quite right there.
“Wait. How did the Silver Banner get involved with this?” Cipher asked.
Gortner gave Cipher an uneasy look, “Cipher, if you value your life, drop it. No glory or sated curiosity is worth it when dealing with these wankers. Trust me on this.”
London, England, United Kingdom.
There was a long string of Yiddish cursing coming from Cipher, as a wet orange leaf flew straight into his face. He was walking in the streets of London along with his co-worker, discussing about a cold case he was itching to work on for a very long time, when that blasted wind lifted the leaves from a nearby puddle and smacked at him. It seems like that he’s even not safe in the UK, with the whole universe still manage to find a way to turn him into a walking punchline.
“Oh god, what did I do this time?” Cipher asked, while trying to brush away the leaf that stuck to his unusually long nose.
“I don’t know. Maybe it’s for not giving enough clearances for this month,” His co-worker replied.
Cipher huffed in annoyance, as he toss the leaf aside. He adjusted his grey woolen scarf, so it can cover his nose and mouth. He then pulled his paperboy cap downwards and continue to walk. There was dim orange glow emitting from the palm of his hands, he was casting a small fire orb, a mage’s answer to the regular hand warmer packages that the regular folk used. Like those hand warmers, the orbs are disposable. However, unlike the packages, they disappear into thin air after a while. Cipher prefer to cast one of these, as not only he can choose the amount of heat, but also they are environmentally friendly. He liked to think that he played his part in keeping Mother Nature happy. Cipher then clutched the orbs in his hands and shoves them into his long coat pocket, shielding himself further from the elements of the cool autumn afternoon of England.
After a while, Cipher’s unusually large greenish hazel eyes peaked above from his scarf, shooting a glare at his co-worker. “Why didn’t you tell me earlier that the clearance thing is now a ritual practice? I could have prepare the latke batter beforehand, Gortner!”
Gortner snickered, “You’re half right. It might not help the clearances, but it sure does put our boss in a jolly mood after scoffing down a couple of those pancakes.”
“Yep. Should have known better.”
“We’re getting sidetracked here. So, tell me more about the latest case you’re working on.”
Cipher yelped in excitement. His eyes brighten at the mere thought of putting his skills to the test onto this unsolvable case. During his years as a detective, he cracked a lot of cases in his time with them. Some of the cases he was assigned were from the cold case archives, where they haven’t been touched for years. This workmanship have made the Jewish mage proud. So when he found this case that was cold but still active, Cipher couldn’t resist the opportunity to work on it. He was looking forward to seeing the case was finally reach a satisfying finale by his own hands. Especially when first saw this case a few years back, it pique his curiosity and interest, to the point that it caused him to quit the NYPD and join the Regulators. A mage guild full of private detectives, all working on the cases relating to all supernatural causes, both with a hot steaming trail and those with cold dead end leads.
Cipher gleefully rubbed his hands and cleared his throat, “I’ve found a new lead recently.”
“Oh? For which case?” Gortner asked.
“Well you know the Lord of Altona Dunes case? Where an unidentified man was found dead at Altona Beach a few decades back?”
“Altona Beach? You mean that one case in Australia, where that neither our men or the Victorian Police Force could close that case shut?”
“Yep!” Cipher exclaimed.
“Bloody hell. You’re acting like a schoolboy that is high on sugar sometimes,” Gortner remarked, showing his amusement.
“I don’t know. I just like making a good break on mysteries.”
“You certainly do, lad. Please, continue.”
Cipher cleared his throat, “You see. The Altona man was poisoned.”
“Of course. The coroner reports stated that on the papers, clear as day.”
“Yes, but you see. There’s was a connection to another case. A case that was infamous at the time.”
Gortner stares at him in astonishment, “Really? And what case is that?”
“The Tamam Shud case.”
They both stop dead in their tracks. Gortner looked at him, this time no longer with intrigue curiosity, but cautious and uneasy.
“What?” Gortner blurted.
“I’ve found the connection between the two,” Cipher replied.
“How?”
“Well, I’ve found book in the archives the other day, along with the files.”
“What book?”
“Well, the Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam of course. Same book that the Somerton Man possessed at the time. You know, where the page that contains the namesake case comes from?”
“That’s impossible! I thought the book was destroyed 20 years ago.”
“Uh no. It managed to slipped through the cracks and landed into our archives.”
“Still, it doesn’t prove the connection with the Somerton Man and the John Doe in Altona.”
“If you don’t use magic. But I did. I’ve found a magical residue connection between the Altona man and the Tamam Shud case. Now, if we could solve the Lord of the Altona Dune case first, then it could pave a way to the Somerton Man’s identity and closure for everyone-”
Then without warning, his co-worker stopped him. Cipher looked up and gulp. He saw Gortner’s lips twisted in a severe frown, the pupils of his ice blue eyes were shrunk down. Now it’s Gortner turn to shoot a death glare.
“Cipher, drop the cases. Now.”
“What? Why?” Cipher asked.
“The Tamam Shud case is already closed,” Gortner replied..
“So who solved it and what happened?”
“Some buckethead cracked it and the rest is classified.”
Cipher was confused. Buckethead? An agent from the Silver Banner? Wasn’t that the guild that the Regulators were not having an eye to eye? If so, then why did his guild allow them to intervene? Something is not quite right there.
“Wait. How did the Silver Banner get involved with this?” Cipher asked.
Gortner gave Cipher an uneasy look, “Cipher, if you value your life, drop it. No glory or sated curiosity is worth it when dealing with these wankers. Trust me on this.”