I have a plan...

So, I have a plan guys.

Since we know exactly where Flynn is going to be at 6.30pm on the 30th, I think that's the best time for me to try and get to him and rescue him.

But, I need your help.

I really don't need all of the Numerologica Corporation waiting for me when I turn up. I mean, I'm good, but I'm not that good, and besides, who wouldn't want to even the odds a little? So, I have a plan that will hopefully help me out a bit.

We know that Numerologica want the Lapis Tempestas. We know what they probably don't know what it looks like, since we have the notebook with the picture in, and they don't. So, what I want you guys to do... make something. Anything. Anything that could be the Lapis Tempestas. Maybe it looks like the picture, maybe it doesn't... that doesn't matter, since Numerologica don't know what the thing looks like anyway, do they? Then once you've made something that could concievably be the Lapis Tempestas, take a picture of it and email it to Five and tell him that you have it, and that you'd like to request a meeting with one of the Corporation, to verify your finding. And, oh, you'd like it to be Monday 30th November, at 6.30pm. Preferably some place that's a long way from Stoke-on-Trent.

You'll need to make your pictures look convincing enough for Five to agree to send some people out to "meet" you. But with everything you'd managed so far, I'm sure that you can do it! Oh, and it's probably best if you don't send them all on the same day... you know, to make it more convincing.

Meanwhile, I'm going to see if I can sneak out of here and get up to this location you've pointed me to, to do a bit of scouting around. A bit of advanced recognisance work is never a bad thing...

Good luck everyone!

So...?

You have a solution? A place and a time?

Tell me, tell me!

And the rain came down...

Charlene, I hope you know what kind of country you've sent me to. I've never seen so much miserable rain. There's been talk on the news of entire villages flooded in the north of the country. I hope Flynn is safe, wherever they're keeping him.

It's been a while since I wrote anything on here, but I haven't had anything to write in particular. I went and had a look around the British Museum again, and the Tate, but didn't find anything that lept out at me as being part of our quest for this mysterious relic or for Flynn. Still, I learnt a lot, and maybe some of that will come in handy later.

In good news, it appears that some of you have managed to get your hands on some numerologica communications that will tell you where and when Flynn is being moved soon. If these instructions are precise enough, I'm eager to think I might be able to get there when Flynn is and perhaps effect a rescue of sorts? Let's keep our fingers crossed.

Keep me up to date with what's going on, won't you? And do keep sending your emails, even about the most mundane stuff... sat here in my room watching the rain, it's always nice to hear from you.

It's oh so quiet...

Anyone out there?

I haven't heard from any of you this weekend, and well... I'm just worried I've scared you all off or something. Have any of you tried to get in contact with this Five person? What did he/she say to you?

Knowing that they have Flynn and that I can't do anything about it is just killing me... Please, someone out there let me know you're still working on this?

Darcy

Some more information

I spoke to Charlene today, on the phone. It was actually really helpful, and calmed me down a lot, just hearing her voice... I mean, sure, she was plenty mad at me. But they're not firing me just yet, which is definitely a bonus. I think her words were something like "you got him into this mess, so now you have to get him out of it".

Which is a bit harsh, really, since I didn't make him take an early plane and get captured.

But whatever.

She also had some interesting information about these Numerologica people. Apparently, the Numerologica Corporation are a rather secretive, shadowy bunch. They're the people you go to when you want something at all costs, and want someone who can get it for you... if you're not too fussy about how they get it. All they ask is that you don't ask questions... and that you have a lot of cash to stump up for their services.

It's a group shrowded in secrecy; they have no proper website or anything, and they're always changing their email addresses and stuff... so it's not like we're going to stumble upon their company mainframe or anything. Which is a shame. But, and here's something interesting... because of their immense cloak and dagger stuff, each operative (they're all named after numbers, apparently, like the Five guy who contacted me) only knows maybe two or three other operatives. Helps them keep their secrets, that way.

Which makes me wonder... maybe some of you could somehow manage to convince Five that you're other members of the organisation? Nine or Twenty Seven or something... I don't know. I'm no good at pretending to be something I'm not, as you'll probably have figured out by now. I'm just Darcy Collingwood, and you get what you see. But you guys... could you do it? Maybe they'd release some information to you if they thought you were one of them.

Or, if you have any other good ideas... I'm keen to hear those too.

Charlene wanted me to pass on her thanks too. For helping me out... she says "tell them I knew I could count on them". Which I hope isn't a dig at me.

Coming clean

Er, so, this is a bit of an awkward message... Charlene, I'm really sorry. Honestly. So sorry. I don't know how all this happened so quickly and... please don't fire me.

Really, please don't. I'm sure I can fix this.

Flynn is missing. He's been gone like a week, and I don't know where he is, but I think he might be being held by some group calling themselves the Numerologica Corporation. They sent me an email, demanding I sent them something called the Lapis Tempestas if I want him returned...

Now, I'm not even sure what this Lapis thing is. A couple of those people you told me about have some different ideas... someone suggested a whetstone from the Sutton Hoo burials, another suggested that it might be the thing I have a picture of from that notebook memory stick...

But whatever it is, I don't have it. And I don't know how to get it.

Help?

Going Underground...

See, another morning I wake up and you've figured something out! Some of you noticed that the coloured letters are likely to stand for Underground stations on the London underground network.

I can't help feeling that maybe you're supposed to do something with these six stations once you've figured them out, but nevertheless I'm eager for something to do, so I'm going to head down to London to check it out. One daysaver ticket for the London Underground, coming right up...

I'll let you know if I find anything in particular. Meanwhile, you all keep looking at this puzzle, see if you can find me a destination that everything points to.

Finally got the camera working...

So, here's the picture of the sheet I found at Sutton Hoo. It's just a normal sheet of paper, but kind of glossy, which is just as well really because it was outside pinned up to a fence, and I don't think that it would have survived in one piece if it hadn't been a bit waterproof.

Let me know what you think of it.

Letters?

Well, I'm back from Sutton Hoo. The weather has been miserable today, but you'll be glad to know that I didn't come back empty handed!

l found a sheet of paper with some letters and numbers on. l'll upload a picture as soon as l can, but for now here's a description;

CT P HPC F W A
1939, 10-10, 93 : R41

That's what it said. There were some colours too, but you'll see them when I upload the picture... if you gyys haven't figured out the clue already by then of course!

Good luck...

Sutton who?

So, with thanks to you all for some more amazing detective work, I set off for Sutton Hoo this morning. The visitor centre won't be open until Saturday it seems (National Trust and all), but at least I can have a scout around the general location.

I'll keep you up to date with what I find...

When the minutes seem like hours...

It's been a quiet weekend. All I seem to have done is waited. I really don't like waiting... it makes me feel kind of powerless, like I'm just... at the whim of someone else.

When I imagined the life of a glamorous adventurer, a mythical explorer... this wasn't exactly what I had in mind; sat in a hotel room staring at the computer screen, waiting. Maybe I had the whole idea wrong... I don't know.

If anyone has anything I can do to pass the time, let me know. I don't mind what, really. Tell me jokes. Send me off on research trips. Send me a knitting pattern. Anything.

Well, ok, maybe not the knitting pattern. I havent the first clue what to do with a pair of knitting needles. But you get the point. Simple origami, maybe. That might be a better plan.

Tate London?

I've had an email from one of you, Daniel, who suggested that I go down to London to the Tate next. Something about some of the images I sent you being from there? I assume you mean the ones I picked up in Birmingham.

What do you all think? Should I head for London tomorrow? And should I be looking for anything specific when I get there?

Darcy

Back to the waiting game...

So, I know I've emailed some of you about my adventure with buses in Stoke. It's long and a bit complicated and I'm sure you're not interested in my bus-spotting escapades, Charlene, so I won't post it here. If anyone's interested though and they haven't already had my email, just drop me a line to darcycollingwood@googlemail.com and I'll explain all for you. :)

For lack of knowing where to go or what to do today, I'm looking over all the evidence again. I'm really looking forward to figuring out exactly what it is that Flynn is looking for... even knowing what it looks like would be a good start. Answers on a virtual postcard?

Birmingham, land of awkward Wi-Fi

Well, I'm pretty much done here in Birmingham. Done some fun sightseeing and all. You'll see from the pic that I found that fountain you were all talking about! The inscription is written around the lip on the top of the fountain, and there were tons of people sitting on it. The building behind, with the poppies on, is the Council House... though if you go around the other side it's Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery.

Finding Wi-Fi to post this was a right pain... what's the point of free wifi if you can't get the log in to work?!

Oh well, got there eventually. Guess I'll be off to Stoke now...

Birmingham, Stoke and Hoards, oh my!

Well, I have to admit; Charlene was right to get me to ask you guys, wasn't she? I've had this clue a week and haven't even been able to figure out the first bit, and you've all had it one night and cracked the lot. I'm in awe!

So, according to you clever lot, the first part of the inscription takes you to Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery, specifically to a fountain outside of it called the River, or more popularly 'The Floozie in the Jacuzzi'. Why someone would call a fountain that, I've no idea!

Anyway, Caterpillar and Lisa figured out that using the letters in the third part of the clue with the TS Eliot text on the fountain spelt out 'Potteries Museum'. That's a museum up in Stoke-on-Trent, which isn't too far from here, all things considered.

I've also had a couple of you suggest that the item Flynn is looking for might just have something to do with the Staffordshire Hoard. The largest collection of Anglo Saxon gold ever found? Sounds promising to me. Of course, there's no way that Flynn would be after the whole thing, so it must be some one part of it... 1500 objects. I don't want to have to sift through all of those looking for items of particular magical or mythical importance, don't know about you guys!

So, today, HISTORY ROADTRIP.

I'm going to head to Birmingham first. Maybe there will be some other clue there that'll help us (ok, most likely you) to figure out what part of the hoard we're looking for. Then I'll drive up the M6 to Stoke. Not looking forward to the M6 part - I know it's been a long time since I was in England's green and pleasant land, but I can remember enough to have bad memories about that particular road way.

Wish me luck!

One of those days like you wouldn't believe.

No internet signal, some stupid warning light coming up on the dash of the hire car, having to wait for like sixty hours for a replacement, batteries dead in the camera, howling wind and rain the like of which I'd forgotten existed...

...but it's all ok, because there are some amazing people out there. The kindness of strangers is not dead, which is a big bonus to me, not to mention a relief. Thank you, Charlene, for sending me those addresses, and thank you, all you wonderful people, for offering to help. You've no idea how stuck I would be without you. Like... treacle stuck. Seriously.

Frankley, my dear...

...has good coffee. No, seriously.

And since when did British service stations have branches of Marks and Spencers?

Must. Resist. Temptation. To. Stock. Fridge.

Your fridge is the other side of the Atlantic, Darcy. Grow up. Most of this would not make it through customs.

Still, the salads are amazing.

Back on the road now.... *sigh*

Already?!?

An early flight? He caught an early flight?

Flynn, I'm going to kill you...

Guess I won't be making that relaxing night in the hotel after all... Mind you, I've seen it now, and that's no great loss.

M5 here I come...

Don't believe the clock on the wall

I just typed out this massive long reply, and then when I clicked on "publish" it moaned something about conflicting edits. WHAT.

This is why I prefer old stuff to technology. Seriously.

Anyway, I was just checking in, Charlene. And moaning about the weather. Which, by the way, is pretty flippin freezing. I need to buy another jumper. Or six.

Decided to do some sightseeing today, since certain people aren't getting into the country til tomorrow. Found a pile of rocks off the A303, and man the traffic was bad. Stupid gawking tourists.

I'm supposed to be stopping somewhere near... somewhere called Gordano tonight. Geeze, hope that's better than it sounds. I know what you're like, Charlene, always watching those receipts.

Alright, better get back on the road.

Ciao for now!

Arriving in the rain

Should have known that getting back to England was going to be something I'd do in the middle of practically a force ten gale. Not to mention the rain; I'd forgotten just how viscious mizzle could be; ten seconds outside and I'm soaked through.

I should have remembered, really, and packed a better waterproof. But absence makes you forgetful...

I'm settling into the new job nicely, in case anyone cares. First field assignment out here in the wilds of the United Kingdom.

At least there will be good internet signal here. Expect updates. :)