Call of Cthulhu: Ghost Light (Part 1: Horror on Hallowsay Island)

Back by popular demand from this blog's readership, another serialised mystery adventure, this time using Call of Cthulhu 7th edition. I wanted to give CoC 7.0 a try as this is now the 'official' version of the rules from Chaosium. This adventure is 'Ghost Light' by Gary Sumpter, which appeared in Terrors From Beyond (Chaosium, 2009).

SPOILER ALERT: I made some small changes to the adventure, but it is largely as written. You have been warned.

The year is 1927. We are on board the Helios, a small tender that sails up and down the Scottish coastline, servicing the many manned lighthouses that dot the bleak and desolate coasts of the Western Isles and the Orkney archipelago. The Helios is currently en route to Hallowsay Island on the northern tip of the Orkneys, where the lighthouse has mysteriously gone dark. The alert has gone out because with no light the risk of a ship wrecking on Hallowsay has gone up. A couple of days have already passed. Time is of the essence to save lives...

Who are the protagonists?

• Archie Finlay, a recent recruit to the Northern Lighthouse Board, originally from Kilmarnock in Ayrshire, he is to take over from Peter Scott, one of the trio of men currently manning Hallowsay lighthouse (Ben)
• Angus Milne, second mate of the Helios, has volunteered to lead a shore party to investigate why the light has gone dark (Manoj)
• 'Wee' Willie Ross, one of the sailors on the Helios, has been 'volunteered' to accompany the shore party (Ash)
• Jock Paterson, another sailor, originally from Roseneath, in Dunbarton, also assigned to accompany the shore party (Kelvin).

The Helios had weighed anchor in relatively heavy seas off the south-east corner of the island. The weather was poor, but could be worse. It was early afternoon and the skies were lowering. Second Mate Milne and his landing party were rowed ashore and deposited on the jetty at the landing point. Milne's companions mulled over the rumours they had heard of Hallowsay, although none had been ashore on the island before. For fresh-faced Archie Finlay, this was his first assignment with the Northern Lighthouse Board, so he was particularly excited.

There were legends of ghosts associated with the island and its lighthouse, including the spectre of a white woman known to stalk the walkway of the lighthouse late at night, of a coven of witches thought to have used it as a meeting place, and of a ruined Roman fort somewhere on the island. Paterson had even heard a tale that a Spanish galleon had been wrecked on its rocky coast and that treasure had been buried on Hallowsay by the survivors.

Arriving on the landing stage, the sailors checked out the small shed situated there, which was found to still contain the requisite supply of ropes and life belts. There were also some life jackets, and a small crane for winching heavy supplies out of boats. Progressing inland along the trail they noticed a small rock outcrop covered with carvings of cups and cup-and-ring marks. One cup had rays linking it to a single ring. The sailors were at a loss as to what they could be - one theory was that they had been carved by witches, or possibly by the Spanish sailors wrecked here in 1588. Paterson became a little more optimistic about the prospects of treasure on the island.

Finlay stops for a quick smoke...

It was starting to rain, so the men hurried along the trail towards the lighthouse, which soon hove into view around a bend. There was no sign of any light in the tower. Off to their left they saw some ruined huts, but decided not to explore these and made for the tower itself. Reaching it, Milne knocked on the door, but there was no answer. The sturdy iron door was unlocked, so they proceeded inside.

The door opened into a storage room which was found to contain several paraffin tanks for keeping the light refuelled. A crowbar rested near the door, which Milne took, "just in case." Further calls were not answered. Everything was deathly quiet, so the men proceeded upstairs into the living area which contained the pantry, the living room and the kitchen used by the lighthouse keepers.

Here they found a meal set for three men in the kitchen, to which a greedy Finlay helped himself. A shotgun, its breech open, was lying on the floor next to some used shell casings. Paterson took this but there was no sign of any further ammo. There was evidence of damage to the walls nearby from shotgun pellets however. Paterson searched the pantry and found a box of shells, but while doing this trod on some black pellets which seemed to be scattered on the floor. They looked like pills of some kind. Upon closer examination it was decided they were not mass-produced. Paterson put them in his pocket.

Moving upstairs, the group investigated the bedrooms of the three keepers. There was still no sign of them. In the bedroom of Dr Neil Fordyce, there were a number of books on Scottish history. Fordyce was known to be a widower of 57, from Stromness, with an interest in poetry. He had previously taught Scottish Literature at the University of Edinburgh. Among the books the group found a letter to Fordyce from J. Luther Hardy, the special collections librarian at the Huntingdon Library in Pasadena, California.

The letter was in response to a request from Fordyce for a typed copy of "the essential matters." Fordyce seemed to have been working on a book about the life and works of Ludwig Prynn. Ross remembered that Prynn was the author of the banned esoteric work, De Vermiis Mysteriis, aka the Mysteries of the Worm. Prinn was burned at the stake in Brussels in the early 16th century having been accused of witchcraft. Under Fordyce's bed, a chest was uncovered, which contained a portable chemistry lab.

In another room, belonging to Peter Scott, the assistant lighthouse keeper, the men found a live canary which was still able to chirp at them weakly. Finlay decided to return to the pantry to see if he could find it some water and food. On his way down, he heard a low moan and a cold wind suddenly gusted down the stairwell to the first floor, terrifying him. He called out, but the moan had ceased. He headed down to the pantry, retrieved some food for the canary and returned. All the men could now hear an irregular, metallic creaking coming from higher up in the lighthouse.

Willem Dafoe as Second Mate Angus Milne

At this point the party decided to split up, with Finlay returning downstairs while the rest explored the upper storey. The next floor up was the watch room, which contained fuel and other supplies, including barrels of paraffin. There were several kerosene lanterns, which all three men armed themselves with. A grimy deck of playing cards was stacked on a small table. There were some red flags and an unloaded flare gun with some flares. Ross took the flare gun and the flares. Outside it was getting dark and the men saw a sea mist of some kind had arisen. Visibility was down to less than 15 yards - it was a real 'pea souper' by the looks of it.

A strange cry was suddenly heard. It seemed distant and mournful, and could have been mistaken for a sea bird. The creaking noise was louder here as well, coming from above. A ladder led up from this room to a trap door in the ceiling. Milne cautiously led the men up and onto the walkway around the light itself, which was darkened. All around them was thick fog. The creaking seemed to be coming from the metal fittings of the gantry around the light, shifting in the wind. It was almost night. While the men could hear the sea they could not see it. Again they heard the strange cry - it seemed closer now.

Downstairs, Finlay decided to start a fire. Among the ashes of the peat fire, he found the burned remains of a typed manuscript in Latin. It was on paper using the same typeface as that of the Huntingdon Library letter to Fordyce. It made reference to the drawing of a 'Pnakotic pentagon' and the making of other 'cabalistic signs of protection', but little detail had survived the flames. Shrugging to himself, Finlay lit a pipe and started the fire, putting his feet up to warm his chilly toes. He failed to notice the strange, blue glow at the tiny window behind him...

Next time - we find out what happened to the missing lighthouse keepers. Follow this blog to make sure you don't miss out on the next exciting instalment of Ghost Light!