Scenario 1
Hartwood examines the Bell on his way to the Vermont Buyer
Somewhere else, in a hostile near Hartford Connecticut, Hartwood examines his plunder in a dark quiet room, the bell. Genuine! And, it appears to be, much, much older than anyone would have guessed . . . difficult to judge it’s exact age without the assistance of an archeologist or someone with more specific expertise in that field - - but, given its absolutely extraordinary age, Hartwood realizes the piece could fetch upwards of $250,000 dollars (given the right buyer of course). He does notice one unique feature on the metal - - engravings . . . windmills? Is that typical of Tibetan artifacts?
Elated and enthusiastic about his valuation but, outwardly calm, as per his usual demeanor, Hartwood makes some calls to his usual dealers and contacts (though more often dealing in books, he’s familiar with a few that might know of where to find an appropriate buyer for an antiquity like this).
After making a few calls, one of Hartwood’s dealer/brokers relate they’ve received several inquiries from a potential buyer in Bennington Vermont, someone who’s claimed to have lots of cash and has lately been looking for bells believe it or not and, some other occult types of artifacts generally falling into two specific categories (1) bells (2) medieval plate armor and/or swords - - really anything that seems associated with metal pieces from that era, crowns, for example. Hartwood curses himself for not finding a way to grab the plate armor as well.
Hartwood jots down the name, phone number and address of the potential buyer in Bennington. However, every time he tries a call, strangely, the phone sounds as though it rings once or twice before the call drops. Hartwood decides to get some rest (a nap perhaps) and then make plans to get to Bennington, a train will likely get him close, he can hitchhike from there.
What Orrin learns of The Oscillates at the New York Public Library
Hull finds his way to the public library and hits the card catalogue . . . ‘Oscillates.’ After some digging, Hull does get to some information about a religious sect known as the Oscillates:
Several hundred years ago (fifteenth and sixteenth centuries), there was, in certain parts of eastern Europe and the Caucasus a religious sect that identified themselves as the Oscillates. They were understood, at that time, to be a reemergence of a much older cultural people that hadn’t been seen for fifteen hundred or two thousand years previously that may have had connections with the ancient Phoenicians. There was a prejudice against the Oscillates, primarily, in the sixteenth century, that led to their persecution in the societies they lived in.
After the sixteenth century, they appear to fade into obscurity in the historical texts. It is not clear if it was a mere pejorative or, if it was genuine but, there are indications the Oscillates had an idol, a creature with horns, like a minotaur they worshipped.
The texts are then silent on them for nearly all of the seventeenth through twentieth centuries but then, in the modern era, references to them resurface where certain religious groups (that some assert are cults) claim to be the descendants of the Oscillates but it is not known if any of these groups are truly descendants of the Oscillates of the sixteenth century A.D. or, the earlier Oscillates of two thousand years ago or, if they are merely a contemporary phenomenon of people assuming the identity of a lost culture.
Hull is fascinated and then looks to see what he can find on the 433 W 88th Street address.
It does reveal it to be a Masonic Temple with the usual suspicions about The Masons . . . but nothing else notable. And, nothing indicating or creating a link between the Masons and the Oscillates.
Hull then looks to see what he can find out about Charles Fort’s Book of the Damned. In fact, there is a copy available in the library. Hull peruses it and finds its contents interesting, it mostly talks about falling objects, objects falling from the sky (such as rains of blood or flesh), that are supposedly, real data suggestive of the idea that conventional science is misleading, corrupting and inaccurate and presents a false picture of the world and reality. The copy in the library lacks however, the additional chapters that are referenced elsewhere (and that were supposedly included in the manuscript at auction) supposedly dealing with darker sides of the occult such as topics about human sacrifice and summoning demons are not in the mass published copies or the copy Hull finds himself examining in the library - - nevertheless, Hull checks out the book.
