The Disappearance
Steve Hatherley

	A pretty woman approaches a Private Investigator to track down 
her missing husband. She gives the investigator a thorough description 
of her husband, Phillip Wainwright, and a key to his study. She has 
contacted the police, but after their initial interest they do not 
seem to be very cooperative.
	Phillip vanished during the night after working late in his 
study a week ago. She found him missing in the morning and he has not 
been seen since.

	His study reveals little. There is evidence that Phillip was 
engaged in much research - lots of cryptic references and what appears 
to be several attempts to crack a code. However, there is nothing 
concrete to follow up.
	At his place of work, the library, his colleagues display no 
surprise. A policeman was snooping around several days ago. Phillip 
had been spending much too much time in the Restricted Access reading 
room. A check of its contents reveals that one of the books is 
missing.

Possibilities
1       The missing book was the original Al-Azif by Abd al-Azrad. 
This same copy is possessed by the soul of the author and Phillip, 
through deciphering sections best left alone, opened his mind to the 
ancient arab.
	Currently Phillip, under the influence of Abd al-Azrad, is 
working his way towards The City Without A Name in the Arabian 
peninsula in search of the arab's last remains.

2       Phillip managed to decode a spell to summon Nodens, the Outer 
God, from the book (an ancient sorcerer's diary). He foolishly decided 
to cast the spell and after a few moments Nodens appeared. Phillip 
bargained badly and the God dropped him and the diary upon Yuggoth 
where the Mi-Go have preserved his brain.

3       The book is a hypnotist's workbook and has been taken from his 
study by the police as possible evidence. They will return it soon, 
when the case is closed. When Phillip decoded and recited the chants 
he fainted. Upon returning to consciousness he found his memory had 
vanished. He wandered out of the house, into the streets and onto the 
knife of a murderer. His corpse has yet to be discovered.

Copyright (c) 1990 Steve Hatherley
steve@flar.demon.co.uk