Vanishing Point - Wake of the Plague - The Story So Far

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== Session 1: Meet the boss ==
=== Past is Prologue ===
Our story begins with four strangers in the London area:
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Albrecht Degurechaff has struggled to keep his small antiques store open, his love of antiques and re-enactment has led him into a financial hole for which he turned to Vinny the Shark, a person who he was able to arrange a substantial loan with, but whom he has been unable to keep up repayments to. 
A lone customer enters. Doris, a regular who enjoys looking at vases, but who never has the funds to buy anything.
"I had a dream about you last night Mr Degurechaff. You were screaming... there was this terrible woman with golden eyes in a forest of mushrooms." He politely acknowledged that this was strange and let her examine vases until she grew bored and wandered out. Only to be replaced by Vinny the Shark, who marched him outside and bundled him in a car. 
---
Andrew had a simple life, little more than a thug for one of the smaller London Firms that extorted business owners and provided goods that were not easily acquired elsewhere. But along the line he found that he had a rather inconvenient conscience. So he began informing on the Firm in exchange for being able to get out with a clean record at the end of it. 
He would often meet his police contact John, who would make a show of sending officers around to harass and investigate him. A fairly common occurrence in his line of work anyway. Then out of prying eyes, he would help the police. But today when the police came, they weren't taking him to the station, but deeper into the heart of London. 
---
Amelia was on the phone with a rather batty friend calling from Bermuda. He was a conspiracy theorist who was searching for a magical island that lay at the heart of the Triangle. Amelia was polite and supportive, but her recent investments weighed heavy on her mind. She had tried to short Game Stop last year. Which was certainly doomed as digital sales eclipsed physical ones. Unfortunately for her, a group of Redditors decided to stage a one of a kind intervention and through rampant investment artificially boosted the stock price to the moon. This had been such an obvious and sure fire bet, that Amelia had borrowed from unsavoury types to finance it and now she couldn't pay the short position she had taken out. A knock at the door interrupted her call and she hung up. 
At the door was a tall blonde woman in a white trench coat with her hair tied back tightly against her head. In her hand she held what looked like a large sharpened clock hand. She insisted that Amelia needed to speak to her boss about this debt. 
--- 
Across the city Firuz Mithrakani was packing a grab bag. He had pissed off the wrong people by moving people into the country and then tipping off the authorities so that they would be picked up by the legal system instead of being picked up by the gangs that normally handle such things. He packed a precious text and looked out the window. The thugs were already there. 
So he took out the back of the house, running down the street until he found an ajar door. Ducking inside he begged for help from the middle aged woman whose house this was. She looked out and saw the skin-heads following him. "Upstairs, don't touch anything, I'll let you know when they are gone." 
He climbed the stairs and went through the first door he found. Inside was an older gentleman. The room had thick layers of padded foam around all of the fittings and the man wore large padded gloves. He reacted in delight. "Oh, it's you again. I wasn't expecting you so soon.", Firuz was a little taken aback by the unexpected greeting, but was soon called back downstairs by the woman who said the coast was clear. He walked out the back alley but unfortunately as he reached the end a black panel van opened up and bundled him inside. 
---
=== Meet the Boss ===
In the Leister Square Hippodrome there is a Casino and that Casino has some back rooms. It is in one of these back rooms, the four people find themselves. 
In the corner of the room a BBC news report plays on an old TV:
* A Government minister talks about the immigration crisis of small boats, 
* There is a rise in missing persons over the last year and the police need more funding.
* A bomb was discovered and safely disposed of in the London Underground over the weekend and a section of the Elizabeth line was shut down for 24 hours as a result, nobody has claimed credit for the attack. 
* The government promises to be "tough on crime" by extending prison sentences for repeat offenders.
* Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has warned that Britain's multi-ethnic, multi-faith democracy is being "deliberately undermined" by "forces here at home trying to tear us apart".
They said hello to each other but not much beyond that whilst waiting and were finally called into the Boss's office. 
Andrew knew tales of him. David “Tall Dave” Barnesby, was the big head of all the London Firms. His reputation is creepy, it's said that he doesn't sleep and is ruthless. He’s famously involved in organ harvesting and people trafficking as well as the drug trade and protection, but he’s never been positively identified by the police. People who cross him have a habit of slitting their own throats inside prison cells whilst under protective custody.
His lieutenant is Wskazówka (pronounced “Ska-zuvka”) Zegara, a pale angry woman. Amelia noticed that the shiv she carried was a sharpened clock hand and that she still had it with her, running it through her fingers. 
Along with Tall Dave and his Lieutenant, there were some thugs wearing long coats and a nervous man who looked like he was from IT.
Tall Dave explained that he was angry with all of them, for treachery, crossing him or the debts they did not repay. He knew they couldn't make up for this, but he thankfully had a job that he didn't want to risk his own people on. 
The Russian Mob have a piece of artwork that he wants. He is willing to do a trade for this, but relations with the Russians have been sketchy and previous deals have ended in bloodshed. So Tall Dave wants them to make the exchange and bring him the art work. 
They have until this evening, about 6 hours to meet and make the trade.
The Russian boss, Andre Skobel, a black market arms dealer. He's currently aboard a seized Oligarch’s yacht called the Royal Huisman Phi a 58.5 m (192 ft) superyacht moored in Canary Wharf. 
Police presence around that area is tight, so it’s inadvisable to bring firearms through there. 
His lieutenant left and the IT guy came in with the case and some ankle monitors that he attached to them all. Andrew volunteered to take the case and had it handcuffed to his wrist. The Russians, he reassured them, had the key to both the briefcase and the cuffs as they had been sent ahead. 
Tall Dave made it clear that they would be watched the entire time and any failure or double crossing from their part would end in their painful deaths, but if they succeeded, he would let them leave London and never return, as long as they never crossed his path or talked about him ever again. He even gave them £50 spending money for transport. 
He specifically wanted Albrecht as he's an antiquities dealer and would be able to verify the authenticity of the artwork. The art was a Van Braun kinetic sculpture from the late 19th Century, contained inside a wooden box, about the size of a standard office cardboard box.
With that, the guards showed them out to the Casino floor where Amelia particularly felt the call of the roulette wheels, but decided against it.
They each went home and most packed a go-back.
* Albrecht got a sword from his antiques shop and wrote a will. 
* Amelia just packed up her things, getting a martial arts gi to wear under her normal clothes.
* Firuz got a beard trim and a nice meal before the inevitable.
* Andrew, expecting trouble, got a set of golf clubs, a reasonable weapon that could be carried in public without too much trouble.
Meeting up an hour before the deadline at Canary Wharf, Firuz was able to allay suspicions of the police by acting as a hapless tourist. and they reached the ship. 
It was docked outside the Goodman Steakhouse restaurant, with a commercial team in blue branded polo shirts doing cleaning and maintenance. 
They approached one of the workers who asked if they were from "Head Office". When they said they were she directed them down into the lower deck of the yacht, where Russian mobsters frisked them as they entered.
Andre was sat there confident. He asked to see the merchandise. Albrecht asked to see the artwork first and Andre had the box bought out. 
One of his guards came over and unlocked the cuff from Andrew's wrist. Then opened the case. He exclaimed something in Russian. Whilst nobody could understand him, it felt like "This doesn't look like 20Kg of high value drugs." inside the case was the sharpened clock-hand. 
Andrew protested that they were just the couriers and didn't know what was in the case. The Mobster took out the clock hand to check for something concealed beneath. 
Then something strange happened. In English the mobster searching the case said "Die Andre" and threw the clock-hand knife at him, where it buried in his shoulder. The other thugs confused and alarmed by this attacked the treacherous thug. Andre for his part, pulled the blade from his wound and began to attack his own henchmen indiscriminately. 
In the confusion Andrew grabbed the case and ran outside. Albrecht confirmed that the case did contain the kinetic sculpture they were after and they fled onto the docks. 
With their strange collection of gear, even though they had avoided any blood splatter they did attract the attention of a police officer. Albrecht explained they were scouting the area for a re-enactment event and gave the name of a contact. The police officer was furious about this and called it in, demanding that they take their various implements and get out of the square mile immediately whilst he looked into this.
Thankfully Albrecht also knew of the nearby pub where the upstairs was almost always empty, where they could check that the sculpture wasn't damaged in transit.
He carefully wound the clockwork mechanism and as it started, the motion of the arms of the device seemed to swing strangely, seeming to move solid steel through itself. 
Then they realised that it was actually moving in more than the normal 4 dimensions. There was a terrible twisting sensation as their minds struggled to comprehend what they were seeing. 
Then they felt themselves being sucked inside out in a dizzying and nauseating feeling of being sucked through a straw backwards.
=== Immigration processing ===
They found themselves falling on to a slatted wooden floor in a gaslit room. Overhead was a vast stone monolith but no doors.
The floor suddenly started moving to the side and a wall slid down once they were out from under the monolith. Then 6 doors opened on one side of the room and a voice came over a tannoy system. "Please enter for processing" 
They went into the small individual rooms, where the voice asked them to disrobe and deposit everything into a chute. Once they had done that, their clothes and everything except the sword was returned along with a number on a lacquer tile. Although they quickly noticed that all of their electronics were dead, but Firuz's wind-up watch was fine. 
Once they were dressed again, the doors opened on the opposite side and opened into a large waiting room with green leather seating and looked much like an old bank, with a row of windows at the far end. Only one of which seemed to be occupied. 
There was a copy of the New London Gazette (Dated 7th March 2024). The headlines include: 
* A Government minister rallies against the immigration crisis caused by people from Earth crossing over to their world. 
* The Rebellion has blown up the Wellington train line causing delays, 
* There’s been a recent rise in missing persons, believed linked to the Pandemic.
* The government promising to be tough on crime by extending the death penalty to an additional 12 offences including pick pocketing, trespass and giving aid or shelter to the Rebellion.
* Deputy Prime Minister Lord Barton Barbary-Harrington, has warned that baseless speculation on the health of Lady Hortense Brook-Williams, the current Prime Minister is an unfounded attempt to undermine the government and that the leader of the opposition (Lady Birtie Mills-Singh of the Whigs) is trying to tear us apart with unfounded accusations. To which Lady Mills-Singh replied that the Deputy Prime Minister owed parliament answers. 
One by one, the person at the screen called people up and asked them some questions. Although it was quite disquieting as the person there had no visible face. She was dressed in a bowler hat, white shirt, black jacket and a black tie, asking each in turn:
* How did you arrive? Do you already know anybody in the Vanishing Point who can be contacted?
* What is your profession?
* What are your most useful skills?
Firuz exclaimed that he must have accidentally been sent to some strange form of British Hell and that he didn't belong here. 
Albrecht got a receipt for his sword, but was told that he couldn't have it back until he had proof of gainful employment. 
Andrew saw the blank empty face and broke down in fear and confusion, fleeing them. But Amelia was able to answer on his behalf.
Finally once they had all answered, the teller said that their applications were denied and that they could retry in 6 months. A door opened, leading to a long corridor. In an alcove, half-way along the corridor's length was an alcove in which stood a tall monochrome figure in a plague mask. They silently observed them but did not otherwise move and they stepped out into a large public square in some sort of subterranean cavern. 
(6 exp to everybody) 
== Session 2: A city of desperation and dead-ends ==
As they stepped out into the light of the Square outside, Andrew was greeted by five smiling faces, each covered, dripping in blood that ran in rivulettes down their arms. Their teeth were sharp and triangular like those of a shark. They were so unnerving that Andrew threw a wild punch at him and burst into a fresh round of screams and continued running. This seemed to delight them and they pressed a silver sixpence into Albrecht’s hand in thanks for Andrew’s behaviour. 
Albrecht asked them where they were and they confirmed that this was New London, a City in the Vanishing Point. 
Amelia, whilst she was able to cope with the Faceless, also drew the line at blood soaked people with sharp teeth and she fled with Andrew into the centre of the square where they saw a number of things to investigate. 
Amelia investigated a work auction. Here a busy crowd sat around waiting for the monochrome auctioneer to offer work, largely to people requiring work visas. In this instance, three people were needed to haul cargo down at the docks. There was pushing shouting and shoving to get through past the clockwork automatons. 
Amelia met a human man in the back of the crowd who said he had a class E work permit, so was eligible for little jobs like cargo hauling. He warned her about the mine jobs. He explained that they didn't require work permits most of the time, but they would always be back for more due to the injuries and fatalities the job carried with it. But there were so many desperate people that they could always find more. Her work in a city bank would not help her here unless she was skilled at using a mechanical typewriter for 12 hours at a time. 
Albrecht and Andrew meanwhile investigated teaching hospital. It was a solemn place filled with the injured, but not the sick. One of the plague masks loomed by the door, screening them as they came in. Inside human nurses gave some minimal comfort to the waiting people, who seemed to have been waiting for a while. Sips of water and fresh bandages were about all they had. At the far end was a gaunt figure behind a counter who took admissions. As they were not injured, she asked if they had come to volunteer for elective surgery. The young masters need to practice, which was the purpose of the hospital first and foremost, with care of patients a distant second. 
Firez investigated a nearby military recruitment checkpoint. Here a human sergeant extoled the virtues of the military, who would pay a schilling per day with room and board included. You would get a shiny uniform, a shiny gun and have the opportunity to battle rebels and monsters out in the distant corners of the Vanishing Point. Behind him was a Sanguine who was able to lend Firez a map of the New London Underground, although he didn't have a map of the whole Vanishing Point. There was also a Gaunt and a clockwork Automaton manning an aptitude testing facility. It appears that they didn't need work visas either. 
Albrecht went over to the general store. He wouldn't be able to retrieve his beloved sword until he had a work visa, which did not seem forthcoming. (Andrew came with him, but immediately left once he saw the Faceless inside.) He tried to sell sword receipt, but the general store owner of Smith and Sons was more in the business of selling fork handles, sealing wax and preservatives than potential weapons. He was however able to point them to an antiquarian just outside the city. 
On the steps of the Navigators guild they saw a monochrome Gaunt governess escorting six young children with golden orbs for eyes, and their clockwork bodyguard to a waiting coach, which then pulled away pulled by steam-driven horses. 
Firez visited the solicitors on the other side of the square with Andrew and the human secretary there told them that she was unable to help unless they were paying customers, although she sympathised with their plight. 
Finally they regrouped and shared what they had learned about their fairly dismal situation. However there were still some interesting options to explore. So together they went into Vanessa's vanities. The eccentrically dressed owner, Vanessa had wild white-blue hair and moved with alarmingly fast jerking motions. Her skin and hair constantly tingled with small electrical discharges that ran across her skin. 
Speaking with a hurried and manic tone she explained that she sold equipment that could be used to transit too and from Earth, but you could only return there temporarily. They saw and recognised a kinetic sculpture similar to the one that they took from the Russians and she did recognise the name of Van Braun as a famous inventor of what she called "Vanities". She tried to explain some of the other oddities she had in her shop, but their function was less clear, including some dial-like devices called Node Hounds and a large leather "Scapecoat". But without context it wasn't easy to follow her rapid torrent of words. 
Heading out, Andrew thought he was being sized up by the gang. They had been watching him more than others since he arrived. They wore yellow scarves and arm bands and seemed to be doing very little but standing by the fountain. 
They decided not to approach the gang or the punch and Judy show. Nor did they meet what appeared to be an ambulatory pile of trash moving around the square. 
As they were about to leave, they were given a nod and a smile by a man on his lunch who advised them to get out of the city if they didn't have a work permit, as it's much easier to survive out in the wilds. Whilst there are monsters out there, this close to civilisation they are mostly limited to smaller creatures these days. He recommended an old camp ground not too far outside the city limits. They thanked him, but found him a bit suspiciously eager to help. 
But they left Navigator square anyways. Albrecht found the antique store that he knew and sold his sword for probably much more than it was worth and Firez’s jewels at a more modest rate at the antique store, manned by a very sour and unfriendly monochrome gaunt gentleman. With about 27 Schillings in hand, they left and got a cheap meal at a local soup kitchen near a local factory to see what people knew and about the rebellion. The rebellion were always recruiting, but they weren't the sort you could just approach, they were after all a terrorist group, but if you went to the right meetings you could get an introduction. 
They also found an old miner who told them about the Victorians, the rules of this world who were once human, but who did "Something terrible in the twistings over a hundred years ago" and their eyes changed to golden orbs, making them quite distinct from humans. 
He also explained that COVID recently tore through the purely human population as they had no access to vaccines. Killing off or incapacitating most of the workforce. Mysteriously immigration from Earth also increased after this and the factories were once again filled, mostly with vaccinated people stolen from Earth. But that once demand slowed down, the number of incoming people has been slow to drop off. leading to a lack of work visas for new arrivals. He also said that when the Plague came through with the Fantasts, it changed and started affecting the other genera of people in the Vanishing Point. The Victorians had a variant that they call "The Red Death". He concluded that there was relatively little opportunity in the city. 
So with that, they made their way to the outskirts and into the wilderness. 
(4 exp to everybody) 
== Session 3: Coutrycide ==
After a good night's rest they move to the outskirts of New London. They pass a number of buildings and vehicles showing an unusual angular symbol as they go past; factories, warehouses, slum housing and elegant town-houses. There are even some libraries and parks, but they seem to have blue coated police officers lurking close by eager to dissuade any "miscreants" from approaching. Although its significance isn't immediately obvious, it's clear that it's the symbol of an established power in this place. 
As they reach the edge of the caverns, roads feel more like blood vessels moving at strange angles and directions. When the gas lamps stop, they start being replaced by a glowing moss on the cave walls and ceilings. 
As they leave the city proper and travel into a cobbled road entering one of the larger tunnels, they are passed by a carriage carrying a strange angular woman made of sharpened black metal objects. She rides in a carriage adorned with the same symbol. One that Andrew recognises as being part of a ring worn by the lesser heads of the London firm crime families, coming directly from Tall Dave. It's going too fast to meaningfully interact with, so they let it pass. 
Following shortly behind in both senses of the words is a small female figure, bowed low under the weight of a vast load of assorted furniture on her back. 
Firuz greets her and in a childish tone she introduces herself as Anasthesia, a Scrounger. 
She offers them "Swapsies" and didn't really seem to grasp the concept of money or particularly large numbers, but was delighted to exchange an ankle monitor for a pan and a handkerchief for a few spoons. Carrying a frankly implausible amount of weight on her hunched shoulders. Once her trade is done she continued on, but wished them well and warned them "Watch out for the Chainey Man". 
Further outside the city they came to a signpost with a few options: 
* New London (1 mile) - back the way they came.
* New Brighton (120 miles) and Hammerton (20 miles) - on a path that curves upward.
* “Corpus Callosum” (20 miles) and Thornton Briar (10 miles) - On a path moving downward. 
Deciding to follow the directions of the man on the steps, they travelled down towards the Corpus Callosum. 
After a full day of travel they search around for some sort of respite. A sign pointed to a nearby cavern farm off the main road. Travelling through a smaller tunnel they came to a small cottage and a cavern full of plants. A heavily pregnant woman answered the door. She was a human native of the Vanishing Point called Amanda Lichby. She asked them to help call her husband, James Lichby, over. They were sympathetic to the plight of the group, James having immigrated 10 years ago, after stumbling upon a vanity in a hidden camp whilst playing paintball. 
So the farmers agreed that they could offer them some food and clothes and a sheltered bed for the night, as James would benefit from the additional help around the farm for a day. But as it was late they said they would sit down for a meal first. They served up beggars meat and fried burgerworm slices. The texture was a bit rubbery and the flavour more peppery and mushroomy rather than bread-like, but it was filling enough. The next day several tasks needed to be done: 
* Amelia fed the burger worms. Long millipede-like creatures with only a few legs, but long sausage-like bodies. 
* Andrew cut down some giant mushrooms for firewood
* Firuz went out and spread mulch on the Beggars meat field. These were bun-like mushrooms with a high nutritional value. 
* Albrecht helped James with repairing some fences around the farm.
Through the day, James came to supervise and assist, advising about the best fungi to gather out in the wilds and the ones that they should be aware of for their dangerous or weird properties.
They met up at the end of the day for another nights sleep. Firuz was able to persuade them to part with an old rusty breadknife, a map of the Vanishing Point and a small whetstone, as well as a packed lunch before they set off. 
Travelling several miles further into the interior they came to a large open cavern filled with giant mushrooms on the floor and ceiling and illuminated by glowing fungi. with strange floating manta rays flying through the air. 
Albrecht spotted a hunting party of two Victorian women riding Iron Horses and carrying rifles. They were accompanied by a pack of hunting hounds. 
Whilst Albrecht was first to spot them, he was caught out in the open. One of them who introduced herself as Lady Rosemary Rothschild III suggested they play tennis instead which her hunting companion Lady Annabeth Smedlington-Fitzgerald agreed to. 
However this left the group rather confused as there were no rackets, nets or markings for a court of any kind. 
Instead lady Rosemary pointed out that there was a path on the ceiling as well, with a similar forest of mushrooms growing there. This drew the attention of everybody except Firez and they realised with horror that they were on the ceiling and plummeted to the new "downwards". 
Her partner explained that the ladies themselves were firmly on the floor, and so it should be obvious that their orientation was the correct one, causing them to plummet again, although this time Albrecht and Andrew caught each other and their opposing perspectives allowed for a relatively safe landing this time. The game of persuasion continued for a while with even Albrecht attempting to play with his fellows. 
However as Lady Rosemary was half-way up a wall on her Iron Horse, there was a loud crack from a hidden position and she clutched her chest which was stained blue with blood. 
Lady Annabeth attempted to find the source but was unable to see where it came from. A second shot rang out and Lady Rosemary pulled up the hood of her coat and then once she did so, the coat collapsed to the ground, leaving only her iron horse and steam hounds behind. 
At this Lady Annabeth whistled for the horse and steamhounds and fled back away from the tunnels. 
Firez was paying attention to where the shots originated from and approached. 
There they found a man in a ghillie suit who introduced himself as Major John McBeth. Although strangely his hands are handcuffed and his rifle was hanging in mid-air. 
He explained that he's a psychic operative from the US CEPSET based out of Texas. The US Government is well aware of this place and sent him through as a scout to assess and scout the Vanishing Point. He identified the Victorians as a threat which is why he intervened. 
He offered the group his foraging skills and was able to supply them with a significant amount of safe to eat food and water. He also mentioned that he could get them home temporarily. Although such an act would be only temporary. He did however ask for a favour in exchange. He has a friend deeper in, who is a bit touchy and he wanted them to bring his friend a care package. The group readily agreed and set off deeper into the Twistings. 
After several miles of moving through caves they came to a set of vast ruins that were reminiscent of a cathedral. 
A hunched figure was crouched with his back to the altar. His face was covered in modern protective masks and he wore a bandolier of hand sanitiser bottles. He warned them to stay back, as they were all of them likely infected. There was some careful negotiation, where they managed to persuade him that they weren't a threat and weren't infected and he carefully inched out to collect the bundle, devouring its contents greedily but as he did, he rose up not with his arms and legs, but propelled upwards by 8 vast chains that seemed to be tipped with vicious spikes and emerged from the man's back. 
He seemed disturbed, but calm enough until Albrecht asked him how he got his cool chains. Something that caused him immense distress. He immediately lashed out with the chain causing terrible injury. Firez also mentioned Victorians which earned a similarly violent response. However upon seeing the blood that now coated the sharp tips of his chains, he became distraught and fled, trying to keep the two blood-soaked chains away from him as much as possible. Leaving the group to lick their wounds and recover. 
(6 exp to everybody) 
== Episode 4: The Plague Doctors ==
Still deep in the Twistings they rested up and Albrecht instructed Andrew on how to help him patch up Albrecht's wounds. 
They searched around the area and there was nothing but useless debris in the ruins. However Andrew did find a large stone mural. In the wall was a solid iron javelin that had been embedded nearly 40cm into the rock, apparently having been propelled at excessive speed. Although he wasn't able to remove it. 
Albrecht identified the historical ruins as having elements of Victorian, Chin era China, Roman, Bronze age Greek, Bronze age Egyptian and several other older civilisations. Although they were carved into the caverns and in some cases were at odd orientations to the rest of the structures. 
Thankfully Andrew's experience with navigating cramped alleyways in London served him well and they were able to retrace their steps. 
On the way they were ambushed by a terrible creature, like a brown fur-covered frog about the size of an average dog. It leapt down and tried to eat Andrew's head, but Albrecht fended it off, Amelia blocked it and they finished it off together. Although they weren't certain if it was edible. So carried the corpse on to the cavern where they first me Major McBeth. 
He offered to skin and cook the beast and share the meat if he was able to keep the fur. With his psychic powers he skinned it with ease. Whilst doing this he asked about their plans. Amelia wasn't sure, but Albrecht wanted medical treatment and to raid his shop for things to sell in the Vanishing Point. 
The Major offered to send them back, but said that if they spoke to some of his associates first, they might have something that could earn them work permits and potentially money and employment in the long-term. 
He explained that there's a Cavern village called Alberta a day or so away. In that village is a place called St Mark's Charitable Hospice, some of the people there need the help of people who will be visiting the real world. He offered to let them share his camp site and in the morning he was gone. 
They agreed to at least hear them out and travelled up to the Hospital whilst learning a bit about Navigation in the unusual 3-dimensional Vanishing Point navigation. 
Making their way up they spotted a strange cat that seemed to have several parallel after-images and passed a large fat dodo. 
They also came across a strange door in the wall of a cavern with a lock saying "vacant" and a symbol of a finger pressed against pursed lips. 
transported here. She listened to their story and how
Albrecht went inside and after about a minute a voice asked him if he was there to buy or sell. The voice explained at this was a confessional booth of the Whisperers and that for a fee they could buy or sell useful information that they did not already have. Albrecht thanked them and left but explained it to the others. Andrew went in next and offered to sell information about the attack on the Victorians. The voice was interested, but only in specific verifiable facts and Andrew was not willing to give up Major McBeth's name, so the declined to purchase. So he too left. 
They made their way up to Alberta, but as they approached they found walls with old painted signs on them that said "Quarantine", beside collapsed tunnels. When they got into the village it was very quiet with only a few houses inhabited. In the distance was a large ornate hospital building. 
Heading to the main entrance and knocking they were greeted by a trio of Faceless nurses who welcomed them inside and wanted to know who the patient was. This freaked Andrew out, he tried to punch one of the nurses but Amelia caught the punch and stopped him. He decided to wait outside after that and go looking for some drugs to score. 
Inside they treated Albrecht's wounds and cleaned him up with instructions to take it easy and change and wash the wound regularly. They explained that whilst the hospital was a charitable foundation and they would treat him for free, they would strongly request that he make a donation when and if he comes into money, so that they can continue to treat others. 
Once they were done, he mentioned that the Major sent them to help and the nurses called in a human doctor. 
 
She introduced them to some of the other doctors there: 
* Drs James and Jane Lundell - who appeared as a back to back pair of conjoined twins, except that their joints turned both ways. 
* Dr Watts - A Fetch crackling with electrical energy, just like Vanessa from Vanessa's Vanities. 
* They also introduced one of the Hospital's patrons, Lord Birtie Fitzsimons-Thorebourne, a young and well dressed victorian man with the same golden eyes as the Huntresses. 
She explained that this hospital and the surrounding caves were used to help address the plague that hit the Vanishing Point a few years ago. Whilst the Victorians and other elites had access to medicine from the mundane world, the rest of the population was left without any sort of vaccine. 
Instead the Victorian scientists developed a new genus, derived from the Gaunts called Plague Doctors. Where the Gaunt can detect imminent death, the Plague Doctors can detect sickness, although not the type or severity. 
They used the Plague doctors to weed out the sick and have them transported to caverns around Alberta to protect the rest of the population. When there was no progress on a cure, they simply sealed the caves shut with the sick inside and left them to suffocate. The army was even called in to enforce the quarantine and put down any riots. The Hospital however was kept intact, although officially abandoned, it was purchased by a charitable foundation, supported in part by Whig supporting philanthropists. It today acts as a charitable hospital, although direly under-funded, it provides genuine care and asks only for donations from the families of the sick. 
However this was not the end of the plague. When Fantasts, a type of lucid dreamer from the Mundane World slept and appeared in the Vanishing Point, those who were sick and facing fever dreams would manifest dreams of their plagues in the Vanishing Point. These dream plagues went on to infect the other genera of peoples who would normally be immune to COVID-19. 
Dr Wang showed the group four of their current patients:
* A Scrounger called Polyester dealing with a rotting varient of the disease called Drop Leg, which causes limbs and fingers to fall off over time. 
* A Sanguine man named Adam Shelly suffering from Hakihari disease which causes the sick to violently cough up flowers, which cause damage and bleeding to the respiratory system in the process. 
* One of their own staff, Doctor Dexter, a Bladekin made entirely of surgical scalpels and other sharp medical instruments. The blades that made up his body were covered in reddish green pustules of rusk rising across the surface of the blades. Dr Wang described the disease as "The Rusting. 
* She mentioned that there were other variants for other genera: 
** The Shivers
** Shadow Consumption
** Bronze Disease
** Polymelia
** The Melting
** Sleeping Sickness 
** as well as others that they haven't yet seen. 
Whilst she was loathed to discuss it openly, she even suggested that a version called the Red Death might exist in Victorians, although it was only a rumour, kept quiet by the Government. 
She also explained about a drug called PGF (Psychological Governing Fluid) and how it could allow people to stay in the mundane world a little bit longer. The group mentioned the events that led them to the Vanishing Point. She assured them that Vanities should not be in the hands of random mobsters and that it was very strange that this would be the case. They mentioned Tall Dave, but she knew nothing about him and the fight with the Russians and the clock-hand blade that seemed to drive the Russians crazy. 
She took them into Dr Dexter's room and he mentioned through a terrible rusted sawing voice that when Bladekin such as himself transit to the Mundane world, they can't go as they are, but arrive there as a single blade. They can then possess people who pick them up, which would explain what they saw. But Dr Wang didn't want to stress Dr Dexter any further and so took them back out. 
The Hospital and its limited resources represents one of the best medical institutions in the Vanishing Point for treating such diseases, but they are horribly underfunded and lack the resources and expertise to even begin to investigate vaccines for the other genera. 
Dr Wang suggested that the Major may have directed them to her to help, but he might not have understood the magnitude of the problem. To properly treat these people she would need the help of an expert in immunology and vaccine design. She does get periodicals imported from Mundane Earth and there were two such individuals mentioned. The heads of the team responsible for the Oxford Astra-Zenica vaccine. With the help of one or both of them, she might be able to start work on such a cure, but even then it would be a difficult thing and would involve sentencing them both to a lifetime in the Vanishing Point. 
There were some alternatives, rare people are able to lucidly dream their way to the Vanishing Point, often just as phantoms, but if they came across a pool of Liquidream, they could form a body for themselves and communicate. It's sometimes possible to induce such Lucid dreaming, but certainly not easy, requiring either training, drugs or luck that they already have a knack for such things. The other problem is that seeing impossible things, like a person transiting to the Vanishing Point, will drag others along with them. So they can't show the immunologists too much proof or it might transport them to the Vanishing Point anyway. 
There are also the Insane, who are humans that exist in both worlds who could drop , but since their condition 100% coincides with mental illness, they are highly unreliable. 
With this in mind the group were doubtful that they would be able to help, especially as it would probably take about 2 hours to reach Oxford and they didn't know how long they might have in the Mundane world. Dr Wang said the hospital might be able to spare some PGF if they thought that they could help with the immunologists. 
If nothing else, they are in desperate need of certain modern drugs which are very rare in the Vanishing Point. She provided them with a long list.
* Sedatives like; Naproxen and Dihydrocodeine
* Antiarrhythmics like; Bisoprolol and Atenolol
* Advanced Antibiotics like; Clarithromycin, Ciprofloxacin and Trimethoprim
* Anticoagulants like; Warfarin and Rivaroxaban
* Anticonvulsants like; Sodium valproate and Phenytoin
* Antidepressants like; Citalopram. Fluoxetine and Amitriptyline
* Antiemetics like: Cyclizine, Ondansetron and Metoclopramide
* Antihypertensives like; Ramipril, Doxazosin and Candesartan
* Antihyperglycemics, particularly Insulin
* Bronchodilators; like Ipratropium and Tiotropium
* Diuretics like; Furosemide, Bumetanide and Spironolactone
* IV solutions like; Hartmann’s solution, Geloplasma / Plasmalyte (Although these are bulky)
* Sedatives like: Chlordiazepoxide and Temazepam
* Statins like; Simvastatin, Atorvastatin and Pravastatin
* Protein Pump Inhibitors like; Lansoprazole. Esomeprazole and Ranitidine
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