Valdr Galga - By Anders Olausson & Jonas Hedkvist, (C) 1996

This scenario lets the players see a possible connection between the Norse mythology and the Cthulhu Mythos. It contains a few clues that the players probably will never understand or even investigate, but it is meant to be that way - it would be a boring game where everything was explained at the end. Perhaps the keeper can develop other scenarios dealing with what´s left. In this game, the players will face a small cult who is about to spread a lethal virus on the world, on the orders of their god Odin. If the investigators are experienced enough, they should be able to see the connection between the Mythos and the Norse mythology that is considered here.

Keepers information

The truth
In the Norse mythology, Odin is regarded as lord over the Aesir, the gods that rule over man. The Aesir are known today as mostly good beings that the men on earth worshipped and feared. But there are some older writings that suggest that this is maybe not the whole truth and that Odin, especially, wasn't the nice, bearded god who held parties at Valhalla. In the really old stories it is told of Odin as "the god of the hung men" and "the dark warrior god". These stories, however, have gradually become more and more distorted during the progress of Christianity, and he is now known as a wise old man with a big grey beard who led a somewhat carefree life in Asgard. People knew better in the old times. Odin is in fact another aspect of Nodens, and he is working for the destruction of mankind and everything living on earth.

According to Norse mythology, gods and giants will fight a terrible battle that will end the world in what is known as Ragnarok. Even if the Aesir are looked upon as gods, the giants are actually superior in power. If this is connected with the Cthulhu mythology, similarities between the Aesir and the Great Old Ones and the giants and Outer Gods are obvious. 
But in this scenario, one of the Elder Gods have infiltrated the world of the Aesir. It is Nodens who, known as Odin, have guided and in some extent controlled the Aesir. This in order to ensure Ragnarok, in which The Great Old Ones will be driven off by the Outer Gods, both to whom Nodens is a rival. That humanity will also be killed off is only a minor detail to him, and nothing he bothers to think about.

The plot
In the 1950s, a small group of Aesir-worshippers came in contact with Odin (Nodens) through a magic ritual. Odin said that they had been chosen to help start Ragnarok.
According to the myths, Ragnarok starts with the Fimbulwinter. When this comes, snow will drift from every direction. There will be hard frost, biting winds and there will be no sunshine. There will come three winters in a row without any summer in-between. During this time, there will be great battles across the world. Brothers will kill each other in pure envy, parents will kill their children out of hate and children will kill their parents out of disgust. 
In the myths it is said that the Fimbulwinter will begin as a result of human actions. The way the cultists interpret this, it means that the success in starting up the Fimbulwinter is evidence that they finally have matured enough to achieve the higher existence as gods beside Odin.
The worshippers were shown visions of a pale sun in a thick and cloudridden sky, the sun getting dimmer and the ground getting colder. Beneath the sky people were clinging to each other in fear, just to pass sickness and disease around among those who didn´t die fighting. Everything was caused by a microorganism of some undefined species. It devoured its victims, emitting a faint orange light and producing vapours rich with ozone. The diseased were often driven to commit suicide or to kill each other by cruel hallucinations, and the ozone that was steaming upwards from every corner of the world blotted out the sun and causing winter to become permanent.
The mission of these men was to develop this microorganism.

The cult of the Einherjer
It was Wednesday (in Scandinavia "Onsdag", meaning "day of Odin"), the 9th of September (the 9th month) 1953 (1000 years after the death of the viking Erik Bloodaxe). The four men in the small cult, Helion Lewis, Victor Grimm, Isaac Johnson and Jebediah Inworth, started their work. In 1963 Helion decided that he could not trust the other three, and disposed of them, faking his own death at the same time. He then got a new identity for himself and organized a small cult with a clear hierarchy, the ranking of the cultists showing on tattoos on their left arms. Since he had no education at the start, it has taken him forty years, but now he is very close to the finished virus.
At current, the cult consists of fifteen people. Helion has established the cult headquarter in Skinsea, a very small rural community in Maine where he also lives. He is the undisputable leader. Under him are four men around the US that also know the full extents of the plan. They are all employees of a big Swedish transnational company in the pharmaceutical industry, Astra Inc., that is in itself completely innocent (at least of these plans). The cult members just use the facilities their job offers them. Finally, a number of ten “minor” cultists, the more thug-type kind of guys, completes the cult.
When the adventure begins, the cult considers the completed virus no more than a year away. Still, the virus would cause a tremendous disaster even if released unto the world in its still incomplete version (at this point it still has a 91 % death efficiency). The reason to why the cult doesn't release the virus at this stage is because they have no efficient vaccine to protect themselves. The vaccine that they have managed to create at this point only has a 65 % efficiency. The cult carries on, which means cult ceremonies regularly and one big ceremony to which Odin attends once a year in September. This ceremony is soon to be held, and arrangements are being made.

The connection to the investigators
One high-ranked member in the cult, Pietr Ross from Washington DC., has a genuine version of Voluspá (see the notes on Norse mythology), one that will give a bonus when trying to contact Odin. He is also currently seeing a young Icelandic girl who is an exchange student named Kaja Hrafnarsdottir (both the word Kaja and the word Hrafnar means Raven, in Swedish and Icelandic respectively). Ross plans to sacrifice her in a small meeting with Helion, when they are planning the big September meeting that seems to be the last before fulfilment of their plan. 
Unfortunately for the cult, one of the investigators has a young male relative (a brother or nephew perhaps), that is currently on a joyride with a friend of his. They have been on the road for some two weeks, and recently arrived in Washington DC. On a night downtown they met three girls: Jenny Martens, Mary Harris and Kaja Hrafnarsdottir. All the girls are students, and since they share a rather central apartment and the boys had nowhere particular to sleep, it was decided that the boys might as well stay with them while in Washington.
The next day Kaja invites everyone to a party at her new boyfriend´s place. They arrive early, before the boyfriend (Pietr Ross) has arrived. The investigator´s relative has played some Call of Cthulhu, and the apartment seems to contain some odd stuff that, he thinks, might make sense in a game like that. While waiting, he picks up a book with strange symbols on, symbols that, as far he knows his CoC, resemble Elder Signs. Soon, Pietr comes home. He gets furious that there's a bunch of strangers in his home and tells Kaja to get them to leave. The relative considers Pietrs behaviour rather rude, and he sneaks away the book to read some more. He figures that he can return it to Kaja later, and the wierd guy won´t miss it, and all things considered he deserves no better having scored Kaja and all.
However, the next day, Kaja calls the girls and lets them know that she and Pietr are going away for a while. She sounds short and apologetic over the phone and says not much more. Now the relative cannot return the book, but since he has read a bit in it and it didn’t make sense to him, he decides that he doesn't want to read anymore right now (he wants to be with the girls). He decides to send it to his (brother/uncle, whatever) that he knows is into strange stuff. But right after he has sent the book, some cultists break into the apartment to retrieve the book,  and a fight ensues. The girls are not there at the moment and the relative manages to escape, albeit with some toes missing. His friend is not so lucky. The cultists take him to a warehouse, question him of where the book is; he tells them the address of the investigator it was sent to and then they kill him. They return him to the apartment to show the relative that they are to be taken serious. They also bring  a cat that is infected with a rather weak version of the deadly virus to "keep guard". The relative, and the two girls when they return, seek shelter in an apartment on the other side of the street (that belongs to a classmate of Mary´s who is currently in Kenya). They dare not go outside, in case the apartment is being watched. They only hope that the investigator who they sent the book to will understand that something is wrong when the relative is unreachable, and perhaps come to some sort of solution on how to solve this mess. Meanwhile, Pietr and Kaja stay in his apartment for a few days of “fun” before leaving for Skinsea and the meeting with Helion,  where they will prepare for the big ceremony that is to be held on the 9th of September. Two of the lower-rank cultists are sent to the investigator's address to find the book, but unfortunately for them, the mail has not done its duty and so it hasn't arrived yet. This is where the game starts...

1. Strangers in the Night

The game starts on a warm Saturday night, the 31st of August 1996. The investigators all know each other well, maybe they have been on some daring adventure earlier or maybe they are just good friends. They are gathered at one of the investigators (the one that the book was sent to) home, preferably in some kind of secluded room far from the front door of the house. They sit and talk about something, enjoying a cup of coffee or tea and generally enjoying themselves. It gets late.
Pick out one investigator or have the investigators pick a number on a D6 and roll to see who gets selected. Whoever it is feels that he has to go to the bathroom. On his way there, he passes near the front door or a window close to the front door. Let him make a Spot Hidden or Listen roll (keepers choice). If he makes the roll he will see or hear two persons outside. If he looks he will see that both are dressed in dark blue jeans and a sweater with a monk's frock over their heads. They seem to be approaching the front door. It is not possible to make out their features, since their faces are covered by shadows. They seem to be walking really carefully, trying not to make any noise. Since the time is around half past one in the middle of the night, this is an unusual time for visitors. If no one tries to prevent them, the two figures will pick the lock (if the door is locked) and step inside. Make a Spot Hidden and a Listen roll for both figures (stats are found below). If they are successful, any investigator who is trying to hide or sneak must make his roll at -20 %. If no investigator tries to move or talk at all, they can not be discovered, no matter how successful the intruders rolls were. If the intruders fail to see or hear anyone, they will start searching the house until they come to where the owner of the house keeps most of his books. There they start to tear down books from the bookshelf, making quite a lot of noise. If left alone, they will continue to search the rest of the house after a while. If the investigators try to attack the intruders in any way or if the intruders enter a room where there is an investigator, they will begin fighting. They'll fight without making a sound, using their knives at first, then their fists. They will fight until they or the investigators are dead. They will not flee. They will not fall unconscious, however badly injured they become, until zero hit points, due to a special drug that they have taken (more later).
When the investigators have (hopefully) finished off the intruders, they can investigate. If any guns have been used, the police will come to the scene within ten minutes, alarmed by some scared neighbour. The investigators have only defended themselves and their home, so there shouldn't be anymore than an trip to the station and answer questions, unless they don’t have any licence for any guns used.

Things to discover: The two men that attacked the investigators are both in their mid thirties, blond and with a pale complexion. They are not very big, but they seem to be quite athletic. They are quite skinny as well. They are dressed in dark-blue jeans, a black sweater with a monk's frock, gloves and light running shoes. If the investigators remove the sweater they will find a clumsy tattoo when they look on the upper left arm. The tattoo consists of a word in capital letters, in the middle of a strange patterned band that goes around the entire arm. The pattern resembles that of a snake eating its own tail, a symbolic meaning of the Midgardsserpent.
The word written on the inside of the arm is "EINHERJER".
A close look will also reveal marks on the arm from hypodermic syringes. Other things to discover are a small set of lock picks, a Zippo lighter and a key to a small motel not very far from where they are now, in the pockets of one of the intruders. Otherwise there is nothing special.

The key - It has a small tag attached to it that says: "Ray-Day Motel, Room nr 9". It leads to a small motel about three miles from where the investigators are right now

Lock picks - Nothing special about them.

The tattoo - There is nothing strange about the pattern, they can learn this if they ask any tattooist, it's fairly common with serpents in tattoos. The word EINHERJER is however indeed of importance. It almost sounds like German, but it isn't. Anyone who has Other Language: Icelandic or makes a successful History roll can identify the word. The word Ein translates to One and Herjer translates to Fighter (that is, they all fought as one). It was the common name of the Vikings who fought and feasted at Odins court in Valhalla, Odins army. They were the Vikings who were chosen by the Valkyrians to die in battle and fly with them to Valhalla.
The tattoo itself seems old, about 10 years, and not very professionally done.

The needle marks - The cultists are on a drug that enables them to fight frantically without virtually any pain (no shock or CON rolls). Vikings sometimes used to eat poisonous mushroom to get this effect, and that’s the story behind the expression "go berserk".

Einherjer 1					Einherjer 2 - Has lock picks 								and key

Dex: 13		Sneak: 75			Dex: 13	Sneak: 50
Siz: 14		Hide: 75			Siz: 14	Hide: 80
Hp: 14		Knife: 60 1D6 damage	Hp: 12	Knife: 40 1D6 damage
Dodge: 40			Has two knives	Dodge: 60		Has two knives
Spot Hidden: 50	Fist: 70			Spot Hidden: 40	
Listen: 40						Listen: 60	Fist: 80

2. An Empty Room

If the investigators decide to go to the motel right after the fight, it is probably the best time. At daytime there might be too many people around, and one never knows if there are more Einherjers around that might want to see to it that the investigators never gets to the motel.

The motel - on the outside, everything is still and calm. No lights are on in any window, and no movement can be detected behind the closed curtains.
Room nr 9 is locked, silent and dark. The investigators can easily enter the small room and discover that it is almost empty. There are two beds, none is used. There is no sign of any luggage anywhere, the wardrobes are empty, and everything is cleaned. On the table lies a pair of keys to a VW Golf. There is such a car standing on the parking lot outside. Next to the keys is a map of the area, including both the motel and the investigators house. There are also two syringes that the cultists used to inject the drug and a spoon in which they “cooked” it. In the wastebasket lies a yellow shrivelled Post-It note and a small glass bottle. Written on the note is the complete address of the investigator in whose house the break-in occurred. The small bottle has no label, but some white residue can be detected on the bottom. If the investigators taste it they will not feel anything. There is no taste and no effect; the dose is too small. There is nothing else of importance in the room

The VW Golf - it is blue and very dirty. It has a lot of mosquitoes squashed against the front, indicating it has travelled some distance. Inside it is clean and nothing that indicates who could be the owner of the car. In the glove compartment, however, they can find a small awl and nine leather straps. The straps are about four inches long and quite thin. However, if an investigator manages to make a Spot Hidden roll, they will see the word "VARTARE" on each and every strap. Anyone making a History or Icelandic roll knows that Vartare is the name of the leather strap that the midget Brok used to sew Loki's lips together at one time. He used an awl to make the holes and then sewed the lips together, but that didn't last long, because Loki broke the straps and his mouth became free to talk again. All this according to Norse mythology.

3. A Letter and a Book

The very next Monday the investigator whose house was burglarised will receive a large envelope addressed to him. There is no return address. Inside he will find an old book and a note from the young relative to the investigator.

The Book - is fairly thin, seems old (about 250 years), and is written in old-fashioned English (requires a successful English roll and about thirty efficient hours to read).
The cover is in dark leather with gold lettering. On the front is the word "VOLUSPÁ" and a big strange sign surrounded by eight smaller signs. On the inside cover is a text handwritten in ink, although it seems to have been done quite some time ago, but not as long ago as the rest of the book. It is written in common English but only the two first words seem to belong to each other, the rest just don't make any sense. The first words are "Croaking ravens...". It is probably some kind of code, but how it's structured is hard to say.

Keepers Info:
The book is regarded as a true version of the Voluspá, the telling of the past and the future. It was written by an unknown author some 250 years ago. The information that it contains is summarised below. On the cover is a symbol similar to that of an upside down pentagram with some kind of symbol inside it. If a successful Cthulhu Mythos roll is made, the investigators will see that it resembles the shape of a Elder Sign. There is one big sign like this in the middle of the cover and eight other small ones spread around the cover. A History roll will see that it also resembles the shape of an old figure known as Hrugners Heart, a sign for a giant that Thor killed in a duel.
The book will add +5 to Cthulhu Mythos, Spell Multiplier *3, San Loss 1D2/1D4.

Information from reading the book:
After 5 hours 	It is about a vision of the final days of mankind, written by  				someone who's had visions as an occupation. It's about 					something that according to the writer is the whole, 					uncensored vision. Obviously there exist many distorted 					versions, changed due to political reasons ever since the 					11th century.

After 10 hours	There are two levels of "Gods"; "Aesir" and "Giants". It seems to 			be a mix of the Norse mythology and the Cthulhu Mythos (only  				recognisable if the investigators have some knowledge of 					Cthulhu Mythos). But no names can be recognised from either of 				them.

After 15 hours	Aesir have direct contact with earth, only a few giants seem to			care about it. But actually, the giants seem more powerful. The 			end of everything will come when the giants for some reason 			start to be interested in earth and thus come in conflict with the 			Aesir. The powerful Yggr Valdr Galga seems to be a key 				person, with black flying creatures as constant companions. 

After 20 hours	Yggr Valdr Galga is originally a giant, but have for some 				reason had the same position as the Aesir to the people on the 			earth. He will be the one who will start the end of the world 			when the time is right, with the help of his faithful followers.
			The first sign of the end is the Fimbulwinter, created by 				humans. It will be followed by worried times with battles all 			across the world. After that, the sun will be eaten by a wolf, and 			another wolf will swallow the moon. The stars will disappear, 			the earth will tremble. The Fenris Wolf will break loose, the sea 			crashes in over the world. The Midgardsserpent twists in anger, 			dead peoples armies will rummage the earth in unions.

After 25 hours	A spell called Blessing of Yggr, describing how to call Yggr 			Valdr Galga, requiring nine hung victims. Another spell called 
			The Well of Wisdom, describing how to see through another 			persons eyes.

After 30 hours	The Fimbulwinter is the act of humans as a sign that they have 			acknowledged Yggr as their Lord. After they have learned to 			create such a change themselves, they are mature enough to join 			a higher existence, and can erase everything that they have left 			behind.

Spells in the book:
The first spell, Blessing of Yggr, is the same as Contact Nodens from the rulebook (CoC 5th ed.), only here it is said that they need nine hung victims. That isn't true, but everyone in the cult believes it's so.
The second spell, The Well of Wisdom, is used to see through another persons eyes. This is accomplished by sacrificing one eye, putting it in an enchanted cup of some sort and mixing it with some piece of flesh, blood or other body part from the person through whose eyes one wishes to see. One then sacrifices ten MP and says a short chant. Then one will see as if through the victims eyes for five minute. Since the spell demands the sacrifice of an eye, only a madman with no SAN would try this.

The text on the first page is indeed in code. The key to solving it is by the first two words, "Croaking ravens". If a successful History roll at -50% is made, the investigators will know of a famous poem that exists from the days of the Vikings that starts with the words "Croaking ravens". If this is known, only a successful INT*6 is needed to completely solve the text. If this is not known, a Successful INT*3 is needed to solve it. Anyhow, it will take some ten hours to get the finished version. The text is printed in full below. 

"Croaking ravens
from where does Ye come, say

with bloody beaks
at the beginning of day

Meat strings at claws
corpse stench from mouth
Tonight Ye sat down
nearby corpse harvest
At nightgaunts nest

Battle-edged path
Trodden by brothers
To strive and fall
In the pay of Truth

Year 1000 after the fall of Erik Bloodaxe
That month in year that is the lord's
That day in the month that is the lord's
That day in the week that is the lord's

Evening in Autumn
Legend shall become truth
Bloody the burden
Brothers bear
Manpower and labour
to nothing disintegrate

Helion Lewis
Victor Grimm
Isaac Johnson
Jebediah Inworth
Skinsea" 

The original poem is exactly like the first part of this one, only it ends right after the line: "nearby corpse harvest". The rest is someone else's own writing.
The four names at the end of the page are the four that came in contact with Odin and were given the orders to start creating a virus in the fifties. All of them officially died in an accident ten years later. This was in fact arranged by Helion Lewis who alone continued the work, assuming a new identity. The word Skinsea is actually a place, a very small place that the investigators can locate with a successful Library Use when searching for it. There are three Skinsea in the USA but it is the one located in Maine, right next to a railroad, that is the important one in this game. The other two are located in Connecticut and in New Jersey. The investigators should be unsure of which place it might be, at least until later. They can only find this information if they consider that Skinsea might be a place, otherwise they find nothing. More about Skinsea in a special section later in the scenario.

If another Library Use roll is made concerning Erik Bloodaxe, they will learn that he was a great Viking warrior who died in a battle sometime around the year 950 BC One thousand years later ("Year 1000 after the fall of Erik Bloodaxe") was the date when the quartet was contacted by Odin and ordered to create the virus. Now, some fifty years later, their work is almost done - this meaning that Legend shall Become Truth sometime very soon. If the investigators  realise that the poem (that month in year...) reveals the very day the additions were made (they can check out which years in the fifties that fit in the ninth of September on a Wednesday), they can check local papers published around Skinsea at the time. The keeper can make up articles as he pleases that give clues to the cult's whereabouts, but if the investigators are stubborn and search the newspaper clippings ten years after the writing in the book, there is definitely an article on the "accident" when the four founders of the cult is said to have plunged through the ice while skiing. This article can also be found later in the scenario.

The book is also a search-device and an alarm. Helion and Pietr will send out three nightgaunts to retrieve the book after the Einherjer have failed. The nightgaunts can use the book as some sort of sonar. They receive a signal of some sort from the book that gets stronger the closer they get, and stronger the more the nightgaunts actually focus on it and try to tune it in. That's why they can find the investigators, even if they have gone into hiding (assuming that they bring the book wherever they go), reasonably quickly. But the book can also help the investigators to sense that the nightgaunts are coming closer and/or are focusing on the book. The book gets colder as the signals get stronger, and it gets warmer when the book is moved and the nightgaunts lose their contact temporarily. The first time this happens, the investigators will probably be very confused and not have a clue as to why the book suddenly gets cold. Then the nightgaunts attack. The next time, it will probably be a scary moment when the book starts to get cold, cause now they should believe that soon a nightgaunt will come (but it needn't be attacking - it could just be watching from a distance or tuning in on the investigators). Stats for the nightgaunts can be found at the end of the adventure.

The letter
The letter, written by a relative to one of the investigators is done in a hurried style with an ordinary pencil.

"Hi !
I'm sending you a book that I've sort of 'loaned' from a guy here in DC. Me and a friend of mine, Johnny, met some girls here a few days ago. We got sort of friendly with them and they invited us to stay at their place for the weekend. Of course we didn't object. One of the girls - Kaja, had a boyfriend called Pietr. We were invited by Kaja to come and see them at his place. When we got there only Kaja was waiting for us. She said Pietr would come in later. In his apartment there were lots and lots of cool stuff. I saw books that I wasn't even sure existed, pentagrams and other occult symbols everywhere. I saw a book lying on the table with some kind of strange sign on it and I (of course) started to look in it. Then Pietr came back. He seemed upset when he saw that there were a bunch of people there, so Kaja said it might be best if we left. She said Pietr wasn't feeling well. Anyway, I sort of borrowed the book so I could look in it some more. I was planning on leaving it to Kaja so she could return it the very next day, but then she called and said that she and Pietr were going away for some time. So there I was with this cool book, but with no time to read it (the girls you know !), so I decided to send it to you and your peculiar friends. You might find something interesting in it, I don't know. All I do know is that it came from a strange guys place and has a strange sign on the front and that accounts for something, doesn't it ?!  Check it out !
I'm currently living on Lumber St 299 with phone [phone number]." 

If the investigators tries to call, no one answers it. If they call the phone company they can learn that the owner of that number is Jenny Martens.
Hopefully, the investigators will realise that they will have to go to Washington to find out more. Otherwise, the keeper can let them be hunted by other Einherjer and/or nightgaunts until they leave for Washington.

4. An Empty Nest

When the investigators go to Washington to check out the address that was written on the letter that came with the book, they will find that it's an apartment on the second floor. In the hall outside the apartment there is another, smaller door, leading to a small cleaning closet. If they make a Spot Hidden roll when they look inside the closet they will see some dried blood on the floor with a footprint in it.
The door to the apartment is unlocked. When opened, a terrible smell floats out of the hall. The air is warm and thick and the lights are turned off. There is no sound coming from the inside. There is some mail gathered on the floor, although nothing of interest. If the investigators checks out the backside of the door, they will find a fine line of something dark-brown (dried blood) about one foot above the floor. There is no similar line on the floor, but there is a deep splinter in the floor about one yard in from the door, right in front of the bathroom. There are four rooms, a kitchen and a bathroom in this apartment. The first room on the left is the bathroom. If the toilet is checked, there are signs that whoever was here last didn't quite have time to flush. 
The first room on the right is a small room, belonging to one of the girls (Jenny Martens). From the ceiling hangs the body of a man, nailed to the ceiling with spikes in his hands and a small leather strap used to tie his lips together. He is quite dead. A SAN roll is of course needed here. SAN 1/1D6 for seeing the dead man. One strange thing is that his feet and the lower parts of his jeans are ripped to pieces. It looks like someone used a small knife to cut and rip the body after it was dead, because there is hardly any blood on the legs. In fact, there is no blood at all beneath the body, despite the wounds. It seems like he was moved after he was killed. There is a wallet in his back pocket that identifies him as Johnny Stevens, the friend of the investigator's relative. When the investigators move from this room to go and check the rest, one of them is suddenly attacked by something black and furry. It's a cat. It's an insane cat. It gets one free round of attacking before the victim has the chance to react (see stats below). When killed, the investigators can look at it up close. It is very skinny and ragged. The eyes are running with some fluid, the throat is swollen and its paws are filled with sores. The cat smells slightly burned, just like it smells when you are welding (the smell of ozone). When you look really close, you can see that the suppurations and the sores are slightly fluorescent in an orange colour.

If they examine the room where the dead man hangs, they will see a sewing-machine, some cloth, clothes, an old mannequin that serves like a model. It has the word KIMBO written on its forehead (that's what Jenny calls her dummy, after a member of Sonic Youth). On the wall is a huge poster of Smashing Pumpkins (Mellon Collie & The Infinite Sadness album cover). There are a lot of books here that suggest that she is studying English. There are also quite a lot of home-sewn clothes in the wardrobe. 
Nothing else is of interest.

Next to the bathroom is a kitchen. It is undisturbed and contains nothing of interest. There is still lots of fairly fresh food in the refrigerator and freezer (depending on when the investigators arrive).

Opposite the kitchen and next to Jenny's room is Mary Harris' room. It is filled with plants and flowers and on one wall hangs a big piece of cloth from Kenya. Some CD's are lying on the desk and indicate that she is listening a lot to ambient mood music. In one corner stands a Gibson Les Paul electric guitar. Books on the bookshelf implies that she studies ethnology. She also has a VCR and a TV next to her bed. Some videos are placed next to it. Titles such as Casablanca, Stop Making Sense and Pretty Woman can be found here. Otherwise there is nothing that can be of interest to the investigators.

At the far end of the hall is Kaja's room. The door is closed but not locked. When the investigators open it, a faint scent of smoke rushes out towards them. In the room is a bed, a desk, a bookshelf and a stereo. The bed is made up and not disturbed. The CD currently in the stereo is Broken by Nine Inch Nails. Other CD's lying around are from bands like Cure, Nirvana and Joy Division. On one wall is a photograph of Isadora Duncan. Some photos from Iceland (in black and white) are also present here and there, and also a colour photo of her and Trent Reznor from the Lollapalooza tour. On the bookshelf the investigators can find course books for English and French. There is also a photo album. In the album one can see how she has changed from a somewhat chubby young girl in Iceland to a more slender woman with more charisma. She has a tattoo of a bumble-bee on her right shoulder. On the desk is a pair of glasses (pretty thick).
If the investigators manages to succeed with a Spot Hidden roll while searching the room, they will find Kaja's diary under the mattress. One hour to read through to get all the important details. In it she reveals that she is very flattered by Pietr's style. There is not much in it except that it states that they recently met each other, that Pietr seems to be quite rich and experienced in the ways of the world, and that Kaja is worried that she won't be able to fill his desires of 'The woman in his life'. The last entry is like this:
"Warehouse St., 'Freki' on the door, but he won't tell me where it comes from...
If I am a nice Icelandic girl and not ask too much I will follow him to Skinsea and one can wonder if that would be an experience. Although he smiles like Mickey Rourke when he says it..."
Anyone who makes an History roll will know that Freki is the name of one of Odins wolves...
No other information in this room.

CAT- black and infected
Dex: 19	2 Claws + Bite / round
HP: 6		Claw: 40 % 1D2+Pot 19
Dodge: 70	Bite: 40 % 1D3+Pot 19
Hide: 70	

The cat will jump onto its victim and cling on. If a wound is made, the victim must make a CON roll against the Pot. If the victim gets the infection, he will experience cramps around the wounded area within ten minutes. Then the infection starts to spread. Every second day the victim will make a roll against his CON*2. Failure results in a loss of 1 pt CON. Success indicates that the investigator has overcome the infection and will start to recover, regaining his CON 1 pt a week. He will constantly get reminded of the infection though, since he will have recurring pains in the mornings during this time. There is a horrible possibility of curing the investigator at the end of the scenario. Keepers are advised not to fill the players in on the game-technical details of the disease. Just deliver the damage in as ominious a way as possible, and let the investigators have some angst-ridden nights pondering on the chances to survive.

5. A Relative

When the investigators leave the apartment they will notice that someone is following them if they make a Spot Hidden roll. The pursuer is a blond woman dressed in a long summer dress and sunglasses. It is hard to see her facial features from a distance. After a while, she will approach the investigators. It is Jenny, disguising her red plaits with a wig she found at the other apartment. She talks a short time with the investigators, trying to make sure of who they are, and if she can identify them reasonably from the description the investigator's relative has given her, she identifies herself and leads them to a small apartment across the street from where the old apartment is located. Waiting in that new apartment are the investigator's relative and Mary. 
The new apartment is bare and without any furniture except a kitchen table, two small chairs and two mattresses and quilts. They have some pasta and rice, a newspaper from Friday and some Absolut Vodka, but the telephone is not connected since no-one is supposed to live here for a while. Here the relative can tell his story.
He says that he and Johnny Stevens were at the apartment (the old one) while the two girls that were left (Kaja had gone away with Pietr) were out shopping some alcohol for the evening. The relative was in the bathroom when he heard someone coming in. Obviously there were two men, and they started a violent fight with Johnny in the kitchen. The relative became scared and ran out of the bathroom (without flushing), aiming for the front door. One of the intruders discovered him, and threw himself after the relative with an axe. The man tried to hit the relative in the leg but only got a piece of the foot - hence the mark on the floor and the bloodstain on the door. The relative ran out of the apartment and slammed the door behind him. He was too much in pain to run, so he decided to hide in the cleaning closet. As a false lead, he tore off his bloody shoe, with two of his toes still inside, and threw it down the stairs. The men took Johnny away without finding the relative. The relative decided to wait until the girls returned.
After an hour, the men came back with Johnny. They went into the apartment and after a while they walked out, this time without Johnny. The men left the building and soon after that, the girls came back. The relative got out of his hiding place and told them what had happened. They decided to hide in a friend's abandoned apartment just across the street. They didn’t find the relative’s shoe and don’t know why the strangers or anybody else would take it. They haven't dared to go outside until now, and they have taken care of the relative's foot using the vodka as a disinfection. Their primary hope was that the investigators would come to look for the relative, and they watched the old apartment 24 hours a day. Then the relative recognised the investigators going into the apartment and Jenny went out to see that it really was them. They don't have any idea of who the men were and why they wanted to kill Johnny. They are just scared that the men are waiting for them somewhere around this place so they dare not go out. The girls are afraid the Pietr might be involved and therefore they are afraid that Kaja is in great danger. The relative will insist on following the investigators wherever they are going. He wants revenge - both for Johnny Stevens and for his toes.

6. Welcome to the Wolf

The investigator's relative or the girls can describe more exactly were Pietr lives. It is an apartment on the top floor (four storeys). On the door is a small sign that says "Freki", written by hand with an ordinary filt pen. If they check with the post office, there is no delivery to this address. If they check with the company that rents out this apartment, they will be told that Astra Inc. rents it (see the section named "the cult of the Einherjer"). The door is locked and will be very hard to break through or lockpick. The best way to enter the apartment is to go on the outside, via the roof and through one of the windows. Since there isn't many people living in this house there shouldn't be any problem. There is a small staircase that leads up to the roof and once out there, it's as easy as a stroll in the park. No climb roll is needed since there is a broad ledge that the investigators can walk on. This ledge goes right beneath two windows that lead into Pietr's apartment. Both lead into the living room. If the investigators looks into the room they will see: a glass table and some fancy futuristic furniture, a Bang & Olufsen stereo and a Power-Mac in a "work corner". A stuffed grizzly bear is standing close to the open door leading into the hall. A big gallow is mounted on the wall and some masks hangs around it. 
When the investigators enter the room a big raven will attack with the same furiousness as the cat in the girls apartment.

RAVEN - black, big, mad and infected
Dex: 16			
Hp: 7				
1 beak + 2 claws/round
Beak: 60 %	1D4+Pot 19	The raven will go for the face on its victim. If a wound
Claw: 25 %	1D3+Pot 19	is made, the victim must make a CON roll against the Pot. 				The effects are discussed in detail in the section "An 				Empty Nest".

Next to the computer is a Pepsi can. It is almost full and still half-cold. If anyone starts up the computer they will see that Pietr has gotten mail recently. If they check the mail program they find two messages from someone with the e-mail address: 'Yggr@astra.com'. If they try to 'finger' this address (see who this address belongs to) they will find that it is not possible. The first message was sent the day before the investigators was attacked by the Einherjers. It says: "If you've got the address then send someone to get it back. Now! Yggr". The second was sent just a couple of hours before the investigators entered the apartment. It says: "Come. Yggr". Nothing else can be found in the computer that has anything to do with this adventure.
Next to the huge gallow of wood that hangs on the wall are five masks. They are made out of papir-maiche and painted in realistic colours. They depict two wolfs, two ravens and one horse. They are big enough for anyone to wear. If someone should try any of them on, they will lose SAN, 1/1D3. If they wear a mask they will see the image of a young girl (not Kaja) lying on a bed, being raped by others in similar masks. This effect will last only a few seconds but is nerve-shattering enough. 
Below the gallow is a couple of photos. Most of them show some beautiful landscape, but one is strangely dark. If anyone tries to look at it they will see a beautiful grove. However, a successful Spot Hidden and an Idea Roll indicates that the darker the light is, the more the picture seems to reveal. If they for instance lock themselves in a closet, they will see everything. First five men will appear at the bottom of the picture. All of them will be wearing the masks that are hanging on the same wall as the photograph. After that, nine people will appear, hung from the trees in the grove. There are five women and four men. All are naked. Finally a huge man will appear on the photo. He will stand between the men in front and the hung people in the grove. He is big, has a scar over one of his eyes, a big grey beard and is smiling an evil smile. SAN-loss is 1D4/1D10. There is nothing more on the photograph.

In the bedroom the investigators can see a video camera over the bed. If they remove the tape from the recorder and look at it in the video they will see girls - very young girls - being raped and often killed by one to four men in the masks found in the living room. The last girl on the tape is obviously Kaja, drugged and almost unconscious. Three men abuse her - all wearing the masks. All of the men raping her has Einherjer tattoos on their left arm, one with even more fancy lines - some kind of higher rank it would seem. Under the bed are also three pairs of handcuffs. In a cupboard the investigators can find some glass bottles with some kind of white powder in it. Some contain cocaine, (and traces of this can be found on the glass table in the living room as well), some contain the berserk drug discussed in the section "Strangers in the Night".
On the bookshelves the investigators can find books about Norse Mythology, serial killers, occult, a fake Necronomicon (Simon) and one fragile, old and very authentic "The King and The Yellow". It is indeed a Mythos book. No spells, adds +5 to Cthulhu Mythos (see the rulebook CoC 5th ed.). 

On a table near a phone are some Post-It papers and a pen. If the investigators succeeds with a Spot Hidden they will see that there are some imprints on the top paper. It can be made visible if they carefully draw lines across the paper with a pencil. The lines will reveal that the words "EIKL0911182" were written on a paper on top of this. A successful Idea-roll makes the investigators realise that it is a code for a train reservation. It is reserved in the name of Kaja Hrafnarsdottir and it departs for Skinsea, Maine the following morning, which the investigators can find out if they call the train station and ask about the code. The departure is two hours from whenever the investigators finds the note and arrival at Skinsea is estimated at 8.55 p.m. The investigators can either book a ticket for themselves or go there in some other kind of vehicle. 
There is nothing else of interest in this apartment.

7. Rendezvous at Skinsea

Skinsea is a very small community with approximately 75 people spread around at different farms. The train does actually pass and stop here, but only for about a month more or so. After that, a new route will be taken in use. The station is a small wooden building with a waiting room and a toilet. The landscape here is that of farmland with an occasional forest in-between. The roads are gravel or plain earth and there is not much traffic here (none at night). 
If the investigators are travelling on the same train as Pietr and Kaja, they must be careful when they get off or risk being spotted (no one except Pietr and Kaja gets off in Skinsea). A black Ford from the sixties with tinted windows is standing at the station with the engine off. When Pietr and Kaja get off, they immediately go to the car, open the door and jump in. Kaja seems to be drunk or something, and Pietr is leading her by the arm. She is naturally drugged to stop from causing any problem. The car then drives away to the north. If the investigators don't have any car to follow them, they will have to walk. Fortunately for them, the car drives only for about 5 km and then takes the first turn to the left at a mailbox with the name "Johnson" on it. If the investigators take this turn as well, they will soon see a small farm consisting of a mill, a barn and a house. If they can see when the car arrives at the farm, they will see that Pietr gets out and opens one of the doors to the barn and then the car drives in. After a short while, a small old man with a big grey beard (it's Helion Lewis) comes out of the garage together with Pietr. They lock the barn carefully and walk to the house.

The farm: consists of three buildings; a mill with a horizontal mill-wheel on one of the short ends (next to a small stream), a barn and a house.

The mill hasn't been used recently. It seems to consist of two stories, one halfway into the ground. The main entrance to the mill leads to the top level of the mill and is facing the main house.
The lower level: there is a metal door on the back of the mill that leads to the lower level. It is locked with a big padlock on the outside. If someone makes a listen roll next to the door, they will hear some faint kind of sound from the inside that is similar to that of water splashing on the walls. This door is located left of the mill-wheel, and the investigators are able to see that the small stream is flowing past the mill, and not through whatever rooms could be behind the door. A spot hidden on the piece of rock in front of the door reveals traces of blood. This comes from the deers that the cult use to feed the Formless Spawn of  Tsathoggua that is kept within.
The lock can be picked with a successful Lockpick and the right tools. If it is opened, nothing will happen for a short while, and then a Formless Spawn will ooze out through the doorway and attack the investigators nearby. Stats are given at the end of the game. 

The upper level: If the investigators wants to enter the mill, they will have to go in through the door on the front, clearly visible from the house. Inside are four rooms: three small ones to the left of the entrance and a big one that includes the millstone located in the middle. It is into this room they will enter. None of the rooms have any windows. All rooms share the same saddle-back roof, and the roof-trusses are open. The walls also have openings under the ridge at both gables. This is to allow free access for the nightgaunts in the area. 
The big room is of no further interest and the investigators should go to the smaller ones instead. 

The small room to the right is not locked, and it contains a generator, a diesel engine, some cans with diesel and toolbox. The engine is running and supplying the electricity to the other rooms. Nothing special here. 

The small room in the middle has the same smell as the cat and the raven earlier on; the smell of ozone. The lighting here is done with fluorescent lamps. To one wall stands a small bookshelf with folders containing handwritten and computer printed papers about some kind of tests (more about these later). The handwriting is the work of Helion during the period 1953-1980. After this, he bought a computer and he has used it ever since. The folder that has the oldest information also includes four newspaper cuttings: 
	In 1949 three knives are stolen from a dig site of a Viking burial ground just 	outside of Trondheim, Norway and two archaeologists are killed during the 	crime. 
	In 1963 four men were killed in an accident when the ice that they was skiing 	on broke, just outside of Skinsea. The three men were Helion Lewis, Victor 	Grimm, Isaac Johnson and Jebediah Inworth. Their bodies were never found.
	In 1970, the conditions on a elderly care centre near Fort Worth are being 	investigated. A male nurse is fired and later hung himself.
	A local legend is retold in a article of haunts and unexplained events. It tells of 	two beings, Nightgaunt and Nightwater (which is actually the Formless 		Spawn that Helion keeps in the lower level of the mill). They are the black 	creatures of the sky and of the ground that are the last thing that lost wanderers 	in the wood see before they die.

Also in this room is some strange equipment that surround small pieces of orange fluorescent grainy matter. There is a blue light around these pieces that almost seems to be some kind of fence around the tray that they are lying on. More of the fluorescent matter is contained within a series of carefully sealed test tubes in a stack on the wall. There is also a microscope mounted to the tray with the blue lights, and if the investigators look in it they can see a very small black fluid puddle that seems to be attacking a fluorescent piece and devour it. This process isn't very fast, but it is obvious that this is what's happening. 
The black puddle is actually a piece of the Formless Spawn and the other matter is the deadly virus. The virus is harmless as long as the blue lights surround it. But if these lights were turned off, disaster is unleashed unto the world. This is the virus as far as the cult has managed to develop it so far. There is no way to simply switch off the safety system, and if the generator is destroyed the system has accumulated electricity for another three or four hours before it breaks down. But if the investigators go wild with explosives in the vicinity, it would surely wreck the safety system and release both the viruses on the tray as well as those in the test tubes.
There is nothing else in this room.

The small room to the left contains a well with a heavy stone lid on top of it. The stone lid can be lowered into the well and it fits perfectly, not leaving any space on the side. Next to the well is a metal plate with an old-looking, carefully crafted knife and some small remnants of a fluid black residue.
	The knife is one of the Viking knives mentioned in the articles kept in the middle room. The other two are carried by Helion. They are enchanted and give a +30% attack bonus and a +1D6 damage bonus when used against a Mythos creature.
	If the investigators try to manoeuvre the lid to the well, they find that two men are required to do that. It is actually a double lid, used to safely collect small quantities of the fluid matter that the Formless Spawn consists of. If the lids are lowered into the well, the nethermost of the two lids sinks into the Spawn's cavern while the lid above it still blocks the way. If the lids then are lifted up from the well, they can collect samples from the lower lid (still blocking) as soon as the upper lid is raised above the well. If both lids are raised, nothing will happen for a while. Then, suddenly, a Formless Spawn plunges up from the dark below and attacks every investigators nearby. The stats are given at the end of this scenario. 

The house has two stories but it is only the first that has any lights turned on. There is one window on the front, leading in to the livingroom/kitchen, one window on the gable wall, also leading into the livingroom/kitchen and finally two windows on the back, one leading into the livingroom/kitchen and one leading to the bedroom. Only six yards from the back of the house is a small forest. Therefore any investigator can hide in the forest and be quite hard to detect for anyone inside (especially if it's dark). There is a small porch leading up to the front door. 

The first room inside is the hallway. It is a worn down room with lots of dust and dirt on the floor and the walls. The wallpaper is on it's way down from the wall. A door leads to the left (into the livingroom/kitchen) and a stair to the right lead to the attic above.

In the attic there is nothing but dust and dirt, unless an investigator succeeds with a Spot Hidden, in which case they will see a number of body parts (hands and feet) lying in the corners, with some fingers and toes missing. SAN loss is 1/1D3. The walls have openings at the ridge, just like the mill. Here the cult feeds nightgaunts from time to time.

The livingroom also has a small area that functions as a kitchen, and this is where Helion and Pietr will be all night until it is time for a ceremony (that will happen at 1 a.m., when they will sacrifice Kaja in a small clearing in the forest behind the house. Pietr will also perform the Well of Wisdom spell around midnight to try and get some information about where the investigators are and where the book is). In the livingroom area of the room are a lot of books in a glassed-in bookcase. Almost all the books are on bacteriology and the process of viruses. Some books on Norse mythology are also present. In a special monter with glass covers is an old book. It is folded out and if someone reads what it is, they will see that it is called The New Book of Revelation (just mad ramblings about the coming of Ragnarok, no Cthulhu Mythos or Occult bonus) There are some photos of runestones of which one of them has an obvious Elder Sign in the middle. In one corner of the room is a stuffed raven on a wooden branch. 
There is a Pentium computer on a small table with a printer nearby. If anyone checks the computer, they will find that it is connected with Astra via a modem. The main thing in the computer seems to be some kind of program about the development of an organism. Over time the cult seems to keep records on it's ability to survive high/low temperatures, ability to survive "nightwater", about it's own efficiency (lethalness) and ozone production. If some time is spent considering this, the investigators get the following impression:
	The organism has grown more and more efficient in quite a steady pace. The 	last notation indicates that it is lethal in 91% of the cases.
	The organism is resistant to a wider and wider span of temperatures, 		currently from minus 120 C to plus 1800 C. 
	The organism is vulnerable to "nightwater". It seems as long as the quantities 	of "nightwater" are large enough, the organism will die.
	The organism seems to be a combination of bacteria, viruses and something 	that is called "nightwatertissue". 
	There is a program about the efforts to produce a vaccine (there seems to be 	about 65% efficiency at this moment). The active ingredient of this seems to 	be "nightwater".
	There seems to be a development towards a greater and greater production of 	ozone by the internal processes of the organism.

The facts behind the diagrams are that the organism is invulnerable to almost everything except some sort of overdose on living matter from the Formless Spawn of Tsathoggua (a matter that also is part of its own very constitution). This should offer the investigators some serious brooding. If the investigators realise the potential threat that the orange fluorescent stuff represents, they should give the destruction of it a high priority. Also, if the investigators suspect that they are carrying the stuff themselves, they should appreciate a way to get themselves rid of it. As it now appears, the only way to accomplish this seems to be to release another great threat (the Formless Spawn) unto themselves and, if not the world, so at least unto a considerable area...
...unless they manage to kill the creature, after it has done its (involuntary) work in the service of the good.
 
Also in the computer are some calculations dated from 1953-1980 (the same papers that can be found in the mill, the middle room). On another table is a railroad map and timetables (these are new), some dynamite and extra fuse wire. The cult is planning to use these in preparations for the great yearly ceremony on the 9th of September. On the railroad map is marked a passage where the railway is stretched along a steep slope some thirty meters above a river. The plan is to cause the train off its tracks here, to tumble into the water. They count on being able to collect nine survivors that can be hung in the great ceremony, and hopefully the missing passengers will be regarded as drowned and disappeared among other passengers.
Next to this is a wooden figure, carved by a master at his work. It is 12 inches high and depicts a crocked man with a long beard and spear. He is wearing a filthat, there is a raven on each of his shoulders, there is a scar over one of his eyes and he has a big smile on his lips. 

In the kitchen part of the room is a wooden stove with a large iron pot full with cut off hands currently boiling. SAN loss 1/1D4. There is nothing else here.

In the bedroom is a rickety bed with dirty and torn blankets. There is a cupboard with brown robes, a box with tattoo equipment, lots of knives with Norse symbols, vartare and a cup with runes. The cup is enchanted and can be used in the Well of Wisdom spell. There is nothing else of interest here. 

The barn is also the garage in which Helion parked the car. In the trunk of the car are a pair of broken men's-glasses, some earrings, traces of blood and a piece of cloth. In the glove compartment is the identification of Ernest Johnson together with the registration of the car. This is the man that Helion killed some thirty years ago and who's identity he overtook. 
There are also nine wooden boxes in the barn that resemble the shape of coffins. If the investigators open them, they will find that seven of the boxes are empty but one contains the body of a young girl, obviously shot through the head, and one contains the drugged Kaja. She can be awoken slightly, but she'll still need help to walk.

Helion Lewis and Skinsea

Helion is the main villain in this scenario. He has organised this cult completely after his own head, and his word is still unquestioned among his followers. Only a few clues to the history of Helion and the cult of the Einherjer are provided in this scenario, since the investigators should feel that their schedule is stuffed enough anyway, rescuing relatives and innocent girls. Still, if the investigators pry deep enough and/or if the keeper wishes to trampolene from Valdr Galga headlong into further scenarios, there are lots of issues to expand upon.
Helion and the three co-founders of the cult started small-time in Jackson, Mississippi, where they all were farmers in the late 1940's. When Nodens decided that he could use them, he told them to move to Skinsea, an old centre of pagan beliefs There he informed them on the full extent of his plans, and the Brothers signed the contract in the Voluspá. In 1963 Helion had the impression, true or false, that Odin wished him to continue without the three others. He arranged an accident where they all disappeared, and then he murdered a lonely farmer to assume his identity. He then bought back the old place, pointed out to them by Nodens, in his new name. 
Skinsea is a very small community, and the only reason the railway passes here is that the steam trains once filled up water in the lake. It has no post office, no stores, no church since the old wooden chapel somehow burned down in 1959. Approximately 75 people live here, spread among 22 farms over a large area with little interaction. In this scenario, only the Johnson farm is of interest.
It is true, however, that the area has a certain uneasiness about it in older stories. Nodens was once worshipped here in the grove behind the Johnson house, and nightgaunts have been around in the forests as long as there has been people to pass the tales. Also, Nodens helped his worshippers to imprison a Formless Spawn of Tsathoggua, that is an important part of the evil scheme.

Helion Lewis - main maniac and devoted worshipper of Odin
A thin and small man that looks to be about 90 years old. Hunched back, a grey beard and a soothing voice; the investigators will perhaps initially believe that he’s actually Odin in his human shape, due to his similarity to every picture of Odin. He’s not. By the way he looks, he's quite the opposite of what one might expect from a cult leader. But that's what he is, and he's a devil in disguise, because this man knows how to be evil...

Str:  7		Dex: 8		Int: 18
Con: 13	App: 5	Pow: 20
Siz: 10	San: 0		Edu: 11
HP: 12

Skills: Anthropology 40%, Cthulhu Mythos (unknowingly) 20%,  Norse Mythology 85%, Persuade 80%, History 75%, Icelandic 40%, Spot Hidden 66%, Think Clear Thoughts 5%

Weapons: Magic Ceremonial Dagger 50%, 1D4 damage (+ 30% attack bonus and +1D6 damage to Mythos creatures)
Helion always carries 2 daggers. 

Spells: Well of Wisdom, Blessing of Yggr, Summon Nightgaunt, Shrivel

Events during the night 
When the investigators arrive at the farm, the keeper has an interesting situation to deal with. Simultaneously as the investigators sneak around trying to get the picture, the keeper has two unpredictable, cunning and exceedingly insane cultists to manoeuvre. They are free to act, they probably don't know of the investigators just yet, the investigators are likely to have some respect for them, and they should be used to help this become the climax of the scenario as long as they are still alive. On top of this, there are nightgaunts in the dark woods surrounding the  investigators. If the investigators have brought the book, the nightgaunts will tune it in automatically in about five or six hours (since they don't expect the book to be here), or in ten minutes when they are told to focus on it. Otherwise they will not interact unprovoked. They consider attacks on Helion or Pietr a provocation, however, and will engage in the number the keeper wishes.
The two cultists will, among other things at the keepers discretion, do as follows until they reach obstacles:
They will discuss the missing-book issue, and finally conclude that they need to consult the well of wisdom. At about midnight, Pietr will take the cup from the bedroom. He will bring two of the investigators relative's toes (which were cut off at the fight in the apartment) and a magic knife that he borrows from Helion. Then he will go outside, follow an almost overgrown path through the forest behind the house until he comes to a clearing. This is the clearing that appeared on the photograph in Pietr's apartment. In the middle of this clearing is a stone altar with runes, an Elder Sign and other pictures carved in the base. He will then proceed with the spell Well of Wisdom by sacrificing one of his own eyes, put it into the chalisk together with the relative's toes. Then he will mouth the spell for a minute or two and then he will be able to see from the relatives eyes just like as if he was the relative. If the relative is with the investigators at this point, it could develop into a tense situation. Pietr will immediately summon some nightgaunts to take care of the investigators, and since the nightgaunts are already in the neighbourhood, this process will not take long time. 
Kaja is to be sacrificed later on (though neither she nor the investigators can know this), to amuse the lunatics on impulse. The rest of the cult is not to arrive until the 8th of September, to prepare for the Great Ceremony. The stage is set, and it is now up to the investigators.

The End

There are many ways this scenario might end. That is why there is no written “ultimate goal”. It is completely up to the investigators to do as they want. Some examples of different endings are given here:

* They can save Kaja and escape. This would mean that within one year, the cult will have the finished virus and antidote to protect themselves. They will unleash it upon the world (including the investigators) and everyone will die...
* They can save Kaja and kill Helion and Pietr. This would mean that the other “high members” in the cult that will arrive on the 8th of September will continue their work and release the virus within one year. And everyone will die...
* They can save Kaja and blow up the mill. This means that the virus will spread in its current form - with a 91 % mortality...
* They can free the Formless Spawn and let it kill the virus in the barn. Then there is only the question of how to kill the Formless Spawn...
* If any investigator has become infected with the virus (by the cat or the raven or any other way), they can be cured if they let the Formless Spawn rap itself around them. It will enter the body through any orifices and kill the virus. If it also kills the investigator is another question...

If they manage to save Kaja and the relative from irreparable harm, they will get 1D10+2 SAN, and if they manage to destroy both the virus/the cult and the Formless Spawn they will receive another 3D6. If they do not, considerable danger rests to pop up when the investigators least expect it...

Stats:
Kaja Hrafnarsdottir
A cute and kind girl with a foolish trust for other people. She loves Pietr but when the investigators meets her she will probably be completely confuse to what has happened and where she is. She has black hair and is quite beautiful. 

Str:  10	Dex: 14	Int: 12
Con:  9	App: 14	Pow: 13
Siz:  12	San: 52	Edu: 16
HP: 6

Skills: History 55%, English 45%, Icelandic 70%, French 55%, Persuade 40%, Spot Hidden 60%, Listen 66%, Giggle 60%

Pietr Ross (Freki)
A man close to 30 years. Has the "yuppie"-kind of look to him. Handsome, manipulative and totally crazy. He's quite unpredictable. Impressive but dangerous.

Str:  16	Dex: 14	Int: 14
Con: 12	App: 17	Pow: 12
Siz:  15	San: 0		Edu: 18
HP: 14

Skills: Archeology 40%, Cthulhu Mythos (unknowingly) 15%, Fast Talk 60%, Persuade 70%, History 55%, Icelandic 30%, Sneak 40%, Listen 75%

Weapons: Knife 60%,  .38 Automatic 40%
Spells: Well of Wisdom, Blessing of Yggr, Summon Nightgaunt

Nightgaunts, Lesser Servitor Race  (page 115 in CoC 5th ed.)
Nightgaunts	Str	Con	Siz	Dex	Int	Pow
Nr 1:		 12	 14	 15	 11	 4	 10
Nr 2:		 14	 11	  9	  9	 2	 11
Nr 3:		 10	  9	 20	 15	 6	  8
Nr 4:		  7	 15	 13	 16	 5	 14
Nr 5.		 11	 10	  8	 10	 3	  9
Move: 6/12 Flying	SAN: 0/1D6
Weapon: Grapple 30%
	    Tickle 30% Immobilised 1D6+1 rounds
Armour: 2 points skin
Skills: Hide 90%  Sneak 90%

Formless Spawn (Nightwater), Lesser Servitor Race (page 102 in CoC 5th ed.)
Str: 20		Int: 14
Con: 14	Pow: 12
Siz: 26	Dex: 21
Move: 12	SAN: 1/1D10
Weapons:  Whip 90%  1D6
	     Tentacle 60% DB
	     Bludgeon 20%  2D6
	     Bite 30 %  special 
Armour: Immune to all physical weapons, even most enchanted ones. Spells may affect them as may the special knives in this scenario, fire, chemicals, or other forces.

Nodens (Odin), Elder God (page 115 in CoC 5th ed.)
Str: 42		Dex: 21	Int: 70
Con: 45	App: 21	Pow: 100
Siz: 15
DB: +3D6

Weapons: Staff* 100%  4D6+db	* Ignores all armour
Armour: Can gain armour by expending MP at his own will where one MP equals one armour point.

Spells: For each MP spent, Nodens can summon 1D10 nightgaunts. Any other servant races can be summoned by spending one MP for one being. Nodens can also heal 1 HP for every spent MP. Other spells as keeper wishes.

The Norse Mythology In Short
This part of the background is meant to be a source for the keeper when (and if) the investigators starts to study the Norse mythology. The information below can be handed out to the players at the keeper's discretion when they search in books or make successful History rolls. A good way to make the game more exciting is to get some books about the Norse Mythology and let the players search through them to get the information their characters will find.
The world started with a giant named Ymir. It was from him that man was created, being sweated out of his armpits. A giant woman named Bestla married one of these men and gave birth to Odin, Vili and Ve. These three killed Ymir and used his body to create earth with all the mountains, rivers, oceans, rocks and so on. The other giants settled down in Jotunheim, near the sea, and Odin and his brothers built a great fortress for man called Midgard. After that, they built a fortress for themselves called Asgard. A road leads from Midgard to Asgard, known to the gods as Bifrost, while man call it a rainbow. It is much stronger than any mortal believes. In Asgard lies Valhalla. It is there that the brave warriors are taken by the Valkyries, female gods that were sent by Odin to every battle to decide who were to fall. They ride over water and earth and showed the way to the great party that awaited the dead warriors in Valhalla. In Valhalla there are parties all night long and in the daytime the warriors gladly fight each other. The number of warriors in Valhalla can be calculated from the fact that Valhalla has 540 doors and that each and everyone of these doors are planned to be filled by a warrior group of 800 men.

But everything is doomed to end. In the book "Voluspá" - the fortune-teller Volva's book (more later), a great battle between the gods and giants is described. The giants are constantly trying to destroy the organised world of Midgard, and constantly the gods are defeating them and thus maintains the balance between order and chaos. 
This will continue until unexplained forces takes part in the battle, demanding the end of the whole old world. This came to be known as Ragnarok. The word means both 'fate of the gods' and 'darkness of the gods'.

The whole Norse mythology is preserved in two main pieces. First there is "Greater Eddan", which is written sometime around the 12th century. It is divided into different parts, stories of  gods and stories of  heroes. The stories of gods includes myths about all the gods adventures that they experienced, rules about how to live a good life, the knowledge of how to write runes, and about the creation of everything and the destruction of everything. Stories about heroes are just that; stories about heroes. 
There is no certain way to determine when these legends and myths came to be, but it is likely that most of them were described as early as around 700 BC
Then there is 'The Edda of Snorre', that was written by Snorre Sturlason in the 13th century. This is a more poetic and aesthetic book that - just as the Greater Eddan - collects myths and legends about heroes and gods. This version is more like a fairy tale in its description of the gods of Asgard, probably because Snorre was a Christian, and thought that these stories were just that, stories and fairy tales. As a source, one can say that the Greater Eddan has been used extensively, although it has quite a few stories of its own. It is Snorre's version of the gods that has come to be known and accepted.

Voluspá - Volvan's fortune telling
This part exists in Greater Eddan and it is more than just a fortune telling, it is a way to look at life and the world, in its form, mythical with ethical spirit.
Volvan, the old, wise fortune-teller that was raised by the giants from beyond time, looks both backward and forward. She sees the forming of the world, the building of Asgard and the first humans. She sees the end of the world, she sees disintegration and collapse during the final days. She sees the battle between the giants and the gods and she sees how the sun turns black, stars falling from the sky, the old earth sinking in the waters and how high flames rises towards the black sky.
One turn is ended but Volvan sees further into the future and sees a new beginning, a young and beautiful world that are ruled by better gods. The old gods, Aesir, will once again gather and talk about the old adventures during Odins reign.
The fortune of Volvan is not a clear and easily understandable poem. Many of its components are somewhat dubiously interpreted, and the right order of the lines are not always certain.

Aesir - The Gods
A short description of the most influential gods is given here:

Odin - lord of the gods, half human, half giant (his mother was a giant woman), that had many different shapes. The most common was that of an old, thin man with a big grey beard. He usually dresses in long grey coats and a big filthat. Then he was also known as the lord of battles, the one who used strategy, deceit and wits to defeat his opponents. His favourite weapon was his spear Gungnir, a symbol of right and royal power. The two ravens Hugin and Munin (thought and memory) were his constant followers, and they whisper all the news in his ear. He sends them out at dawn and they return at breakfast with news from all around the world. He also had two wolves by his side, Freki and Geri, and the eight-legged horse Sleipnir that was the quickest in the whole world.
That is the commonly known picture of Odin. The older tales tells of Odin as a darker, grimmer god, known then as the devil is today. He was the god of the hung men, and the poets of these times refer to Odin both as "Hangagud" (the god of the hung) and "Valdr Galga" (the lord of the gallow). Another of Odin's names was "Yggr" (the terrible). As an example that he wasn't that nice friendly wise god, a priest once wrote that there was a massive sacrificial feast held every nine years in Uppsala, Sweden. There they took nine of every male dog, cat, goat, horse and man and hung them in a small grove. Then the others present then received Odin's blessing. He is known as a great magician and sorcerer who has gotten extra wisdom by sacrificing his eye in the well of Mimir, the wisest of the giants. He is also connected to the magical number nine in some way.   

Thor - the next to Odin in power and fame. He is the strongest among men and gods. He has two goats that pull the wagon that Thor sometimes drives across the sky.
He also owns three valuable things: The hammer Mjolner that always returns to Thor's hand after he has thrown it away; The belt of strength that makes his strength grow to twice his usual strength; and finally a pair of iron gloves. 
He has a big red beard and is known as the lord of thunder. It says in Snorres Edda that "no man is so wise that they can tell of all Thor's adventures".

Tyr - is named as the third most powerful god after Odin and Thor. According to Snorres Edda, Tyr is "the boldest and bravest and he has a big influence on the victory in a battle. He is also very wise.".
Tyr is known for two things: He doesn't quite really unite people (in fact, he often causes them to fight instead) and he only has one hand. He lost the other hand when the gods tied down the Fenris Wolf. Tyr put his hand in the mouth of the wolf as a show of trust while the other ones tied it down. The wolf became so angry when he couldn't get loose that he bit off Tyr's hand.

Loki - is the son of a giant and a ordinary woman. He is known as "the slanderer of gods, the father of falseness, all gods and men's shame and harm". He is beautiful to watch, wicked and very changing in his nature. He was more cunning than the others and had an ability to perform, no matter what was happening. He often played evil pranks against the gods and placed them in embarrassing situations. Loki also helped the gods with his superior intelligence whenever he so wished.
Despite all cunning offers that he tempted the gods with, they let him be, because of the fact that Odin had joined a brotherhood with him and they had mixed blood with each other. No one knows when, where or why this was done, but now they are forced to tolerate him.
Finally, they run out of patience and they catch Loki and ties him to three stones with the intestines of his brother. After that, they place a poisonous snake above his head that drips its poison on him. His wife, Sigyn, stands and catches the poison in a bowl, but when this is full and she goes away to empty it, the poison drips on Loki who flip and twitch in pain, and this is why earthquakes happen. Here Loki will be tied until Ragnarok, when he and his children - The Midgardsserpent and The Fenris Wolf - will break their chains and clash with the gods in a great and terrible battle, and everyone will die.