An Author's Retreat

* We have a nice travel montage of the group returning to New Arkham.
	+ We stop in Bangor, ME to debrief with August Meyer and get paid.
* Three weeks later. . .
	+ Martha has mended her ripped dress, and bought several new parasols for various occasions. Her new pet raven, Edgar has been taught some tricks, and she’s been trying to learn her letters. She’s keeping this more on the downlow and she’s improving.
	+ William drinks a lot of “tea” in front of the fire, and visits James to tell him the creature has been destroyed.
	+ Alec works on cultivating their mind and body by taking long walks around the manor grounds. They invite the others to accompany them as well. They also spend a lot of time reading in the library and doing research. She also has reading circles with Martha and Wila to help cultivate their mind.
	+ Cyrus moves into the house and gets to know the team. He is ultra vigilant and inspects/studies the manor grounds for possible security risks. He is pretty paranoid.
	+ Signe works on making a space for herself at Covencrest, finding an unused room for an office. She explores New Arkham more, and does some shopping.
	+ Everyone spends time with Wila in some manner. Cyrus does archery with her, Martha takes her shopping, and Signe just exists with her in a comforting way.
	+ We all also share what info we have (or lack thereof) about the Men of Letters.
* One morning, Niles comes into the lounge with a note.
* It’s a letter from a gentleman calling himself Mr. Sommerland.
	+ He’s requesting our aid in finding a few people who have disappeared on Fisher’s Island, NY. He is concerned more mystical forces are at play because this is the third person missing in a short time.
* Martha is very excited to be traveling again and going on a boat. She needs ferry clothes for the occasion.
* People start disbursing to get ready, William is nonplussed.
* Cyrus looks deeply disturbed by the idea of going to this place. The others have left but Signe notices his state.
	+ She asks him about it and Cyrus explains how he was involved in a Vaesen attack at sea, and many people died. Because of this he refuses to travel on open water. He is worried whatever it was will try to finish the job.
	+ Signe tries to comfort him.
* Meanwhile Alec is doing some research on the Island and this Sommerland fellow. They find nothing except for a random footnote in a Men of Letters journal about helping the Sommerland family approx 40 years ago with their “hobbs problem”.
* Signe joins Alec in the library to tell them about Cyrus’s concerns, and with the help of Martha they are able to figure out “hobbs” is a term for sprite, fairy, tomten, etc.
	+ They find this info in the Libro.
	+ Signe is familiar with these beings of legend as helpful, yet mischievous sprites that help protect one’s home. They can be troublesome if offerings aren’t made, but are generally considered helpful beings.
* Martha convinces Wila to come along and is very excited.
* Trying to discern any truth to his fears, Cyrus performs a seance. . .
	+ He feels a strong sense of unrequited love on land, far away from water.
	+ At the back of this feeling he senses resentment, anger, bitterness, a love gone sour.
	+ He gets the feeling these are not just disappearances, but are just like what happened to Geoff.
	+ He also feels safety in crossing the open water.
* The group travel to Mystic, CT to board the ferry that will take them to Fisher’s Island

The letter:

*Most Highly Regarded Order,*

*I am writing to you as a tragedy is unfolding in these moments and your assistance is most strongly required. At the time of writing, a young man has disappeared from my refugium on Fishers Island, and this is the third such disappearance in a short time. I can no longer attribute these disappearances to mere natural events but believe that far more mysterious forces are at work. It is urgent that the tragic events do not worsen. I have allowed myself to enclose tickets for the train and ferry, so you can arrive in a hurry.*

*With the utmost respect,*

*Mr. Sommerland*