The Child-Murders of Farrel's Faire

by Warpmind de InzanE

**KEEPER INFORMATION**

Farrel's Faire is a small town west of Dublin. It is cozy, self-sufficient, and the population has had little cause for fear over the past years. Until now...

The "mysterious symbol" carved into the bodies are in truth a crude carving of the Yellow Sign. However, there is no cult involved; it is only one of the locals, who, after reading The King In Yellow, has gone quite insane, and has decided that killing these children is the only way to protect them from the evils in this world. However, he acts like a perfectly sane person in daily life, except lately, people might say that he has become a tad obsessive about protecting the local children; be it from the dangers of alcohol abuse, narcotics, or any form of crime, and he is all the more respected in the community for his almost flammable enthusiasm on the subject.

**PLAYER INFORMATION**

One of the investigators receive an anonymous envelope. Within is a small news clipping. (Handout 1)

FARREL'S FAIRE

Farrel's Faire is a cozy little town in the Irish countryside. Aside from the local residences, there are few locations to be concerned with here. There's the local Police Station, the Doctor's Office (the doctor's rarely there, however, he's usually at the pub or on a house call), the Grocer's, the local Church, Draig's Pub, the Town Hall, the School and the O'Shea place.

POLICE STATION

The local police consists of no more than a single sergeant, namely Pat Finnegan, called Sarge by his friends, which pretty much is everyone in town. Sarge is a short, chubby man with a tendency to get exhausted by merely walking uphill, but once he sets his mind to something, he'll never give up.

The office is spartan, with nothing more advanced than a 1982-model IBM typewriter and a coffee maker (and a cooler for the storage of whiskey, cream and some brown sugar - he KNOWS how to mix Irish Coffee) as the reminders that this is the 20th century. The furniture is on the verge of antique; the chair and desk both appear to be at least 130 years old. The filing system, however, is quite accurate - an old archive shelf with a few folders on it; mostly old DUI cases, and the occasional suicide - the only recent folder is the one on the serial murders.

DOCTOR'S OFFICE

Doc Tim O'Leary is a strong, albeit slightly graying man; never seen without his bag, whether he is holding it, or it is resting beneath his bar stool. He is fond of drink, and can at most hours be found at Draig's Pub, most likely into his fourth or fifth glass for the day.

His office is equipped, surprisingly, with both the most modern diagnosis equipment and some medical reference books of many ages that are as likely to prescribe leeches for any ailment as to provide accurate, up-to-date information on symptoms and probable afflictions. On the entire west wall is a collection of baby teeth; his collection is so far complete for the past fifty-two years; he has the first baby tooth from each child he has delivered, and over the years, there have been quite a few birthings. He himself participated in the autopsies of the children, and is able to make a rough drawing of the symbol that was etched on the bodies - the Yellow Sign.

GROCER'S

Jim Farrell is the local grocer, and while he may not have everything desirable, he can in most cases provide the required items. Thanks to some beneficial deals he has with various wholesalers, he is able to offer a 20% discount on large purchases (more than three boxes of each type) of ammunition for hunting rifles and shotguns - locally, there's lots of game, and he'll make but one request: that if the investigators bag anything, they bring him a sample or two.

CHURCH

The local church is a small, cozy chapel, though there is something almost ominous about the altar. If the investigators decide to approach the altar, there's a 52% chance they will feel a slight headache, as though there is something pressing against the temples. If one of the investigators manages to examine the altar, he will (on a Spot Hidden roll) find a small catch at the base: this is in truth a switch that will make the altar move away to reveal a hidden staircase. Underneath the church is a chamber with another small altar, where a rectangular dustless patch indicates the former location of a book. Standing by the altar is a zombie and two skeletons, who will attack as soon as the investigators have entered the chamber. The room is about 30X30 feet, and the altar is directly opposite the door that separates the chamber from the stairs down. If the undead are defeated, a message can be read in the dust next to the dust free patch: "Tom O'Shea was here!"

When the investigators come up from the secret chamber, Father O'Lachlan will be standing there, waiting, scolding the investigators for going places where they had no business being. However, if the investigators can confirm that they've killed the undead, the priest will be in a much better mood - it has been his job to ensure that they've been trapped down there with some evil book for the years he's been the priest there. When hearing that the book is gone, he will be appalled, and go see for himself. When he returns, he says that Tom O'Shea can only be Thomas, the phys. ed. teacher at the school. Sanity Loss for encountering the undead is 1/1D10.

DRAIG'S PUB

A hospitable pub, with accommodations for up to eight guests upstairs. Most of the town's residents will be in here sometime during the day. Liam, the pub owner, is not particularly intelligent, but he's everybody's friend, because he knows how to serve alcohol, and he operates on an uncommonly narrow profit margin, ensuring a happy clientele. (Here, a successful Archaeology or Occult roll might reveal that "Draig" means "Dragon" in Celtic.)

TOWN HALL

The Town Hall is a small building where most town records are kept - a successful Library Use roll might reveal that Thomas O'Shea (if the investigators have come across his name already, that is) served in the armed forces for two years, and excelled there.

SCHOOL

Everyone at the school will speak fondly of Thomas O'Shea - lately, he's been more and more active in any arrangement that has had the purpose of trying to keep the children away from the grasp of drugs or alcohol, and anything hazardous in general. Some might say it's on the verge of creepy, but they'll all agree that his added zeal is most likely caused by the recent murders.

THE O'SHEA PLACE

Thomas O'Shea is rarely at home these days - he's usually out in the woods, hunting, when he's not at a meeting about how to best protect the children. His house is a simple one-floor house, and it is simply furnished. There are only three things really interesting here - a copy of The King In Yellow that lies on his nightstand, a stained fighting knife hidden under the kitchen sink; a sample analysis at the lab (Biology/Chemistry roll) will reveal it to be human blood, and burnt loose pages from Thomas O'Shea's diary (Handout 2) that can be found in the fireplace. Stealing either the book or the knife will make Thomas O'Shea hunt down the investigators, only armed with a fighting knife. If this happens, a witness will appear, testifying that O'Shea attacked first. Afterwards, a brief investigation led by Sarge will conclude that O'Shea was suffering from some sort of delusion, and killed the children, believing he was protecting them from the evils they would surely encounter later in life.

Thomas O'Shea

Phys.ed. teacher, male, age 32.

STR: 9 DEX: 11 INT: 11 Idea: 55

CON: 14 APP: 8 POW: 4 Luck: 20

SIZ: 10 SAN: 20 EDU: 11 Know: 55

99-CM: 94 DamageBonus: None

SP: 20 MP: 4 HP: 12

Skills: Climb 60%, Credit Rating 35%, Cthulhu Mythos 5%, Dodge 52%, Jump 55%, Martial Arts 20%, Medicine 15%, Other Language English 40%, Own Language Irish 55%, Ride 30%, Sneak 50%, Swim 55%, Throw 55%, Fighting Knife 55%

UNDEAD UNDER CHURCH