Meanwhile, Back at West Side Base: The Experiment
Now that they were beginning to boil, the fluid in the three round bottomed flasks were all similar colors. Not exactly the same, of course. Each of the three contained a different level of demonic essence in them, which resulted in hues ranging from a purple-black, in the case of Zylas’ sample; through the purple-red of Laura’s sample, which had an undertone of blood to it; and into the swirling, cloudy mixture that resulted from the sample of Nova.

John released the valves on each, pleased to see that the lutum sapientiae had properly sealed the flasks.

The suspension he created for the Nova was precipitating out the additives that were necessary to lace the ichor with street drugs. Even so, he made sure that the gasses he needed for the experiment passed through three buffer solutions before coming into contact with the alchemical salts that would bind with the demonic essence and render it sufficiently inert before off gassing up a waiting chimney and through the blotting paper that would capture its pattern—a kind of alchemical fingerprint akin to the spectrum lines astronomers used to determine the chemical composition of stars and exoplanets’ atmospheres.

It’s paper would be blotted last.

Astronomers.

He sighed at the parallel before looking back to Laura’s flask. It only needed to pass through a single buffer solution, although it was of a different sort. The base solution in the round bottomed flask would precipitate out any of the iron associated with human blood. The buffer, which contained a saturated bit of mummy wrapping, would capture whatever undead essence slipped past the first.

It would come out second.

The first—Zylas’ sample, served both as a control and as a sample. Already, the solution had begun to condense within the cooling coil and was starting to drip onto the salts. John also expected that blot to be the clearest, meaning he would place it behind the other sheets when holding them up to the light to determine if they were a match.

Having Mimi scan each would let him and others compare the three on screen and perhaps conduct a more detailed analysis. That said, the light test worked well up until the period of the American Civil War. It would be enough to be certain they were all from the same demonic source.

Perhaps he should look into those experiments more closely. The use of photographic paper, with its trace elements of silver, could in principle work. Too many charlatans had been involved at that time for him to trust that approach right now. Most had peddled to those seeking Spiritualists-associated confirmation of the ongoing presence of their loved ones. The ones he might consider trying to replicate were by those who were attempting to find patrons within the secret world he inhabited.

Better for now, he thought as he watched the mottled haze billow up out of the salts, to use the method that was certain. He could indulge his desire to expand the frontiers of knowledge later. For now, he needed results.

And now, it would not be long before he had those results.

Spoiler: John and His Alchemy Set — Knowledge: Occult
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John and his Alchemy Set: 1d12o12+2 5 1d6o6+2 6
6+2 with the lab = 8 — John succeeds with a raise.


A mixture of activated charcoal, rice powder, and thiosulfate salt fixed the images on the blotting paper. He carefully labeled each with a Z, an L, and an N in turn.

One by one, John inspected them—holding each up to the light and having Mimi capture their images before beginning to overlap each in order to see if they perfectly aligned, which would indicate all of the samples could trace their origins to Zylas, of if they presented evidence of a second greater demon at large in the city.