My dear friend Gerricht,
Before I declare my findings I would ask that I could once again give my thanks for allowing me this opportunity. I have mentioned before that this is an occasion I have been hoping for for some time, albeit under slightly less unfortunate circumstances. Should you wish for anything in return I shall hereafter be indebted to you, if only for the discovery of one item, an outline of which I shall give in due course. This is an informal covering note containing that information which I believe to be of more interest; for a more in-depth analysis I refer you to the attached report.
With regards to business the actual house of Dr. Prendergast was largely empty and derelict. Whether through disuse or pilfering by the local youths is uncertain, but seemingly unimportant. I shall briefly outline the contents of the rooms in a separate correspondence. You shall be pleased to know that the couchant taxidermied arctic bear you remember was still beside the staircase, and my associates can have that sent to you within the week. The array of faience and earthenware was rather more astounding than that which you remember and yet is hardly in a salvageable state. Whilst the collections housed in the supraterraneous areas are of minor intrigue, the remainder of this letter shall be devoted to the contents of the basement, which I believe will be of most interest to you.
Having been sealed for such a time, within the first few minutes of entering the basement a select few of our party succumbed to the fumes of the room, volatile chemicals lying exposed in an infinitude of contorted glass vessels. It appears Dr. Prendergast had built a forge in the basement to manufacture the most bizarre shaped glass containers for the experiments and activities performed in the secrecy beneath the floorboards. The doctor's notes are largely unilluminating as to their specific purpose and yet each item seems tailor-made to a deliberate purpose. Many have been transported to your compound already and should you make any progress with their identification I shall be most interested to hear your findings.
Once our members recovered and the room was aired of the more unpleasant chemical and biological vapours, we allowed a more thorough examination of the room, rather rooms. The basement has been divided into sub-departments, corners and niches each of which has been assigned a different area of study. It seems to have been expanded from the initial form, that which you recollect. I have procured the services of one of the more artistic of our crew, Master Sandringham, to provide you with sketches of the facility for you interest. Despite the methodical, scientific mind you described to me this facility appears to have been designed and maintained by a mind possessed of little such order. The layout and organisation is chaotic at best, at least for a large portion of the compound.
We have ensured that the contents of the chemical areas have been sent to your laboratories, yet by their very nature I have little to relay of them, besides the scale of variety in both fluid and solid matter procured. I suggest some of the more bizarrely behaving chemicals be observed carefully as many seemed to possess properties which resisted attempts of removal from their containers, some actively opposing their new hosts. One of our men, Master Brimley, sustained not insignificant injuries when a certain chemical dissolved the glass of the vial we attempted to store it in. This property is interesting in itself, yet it is one we shall bestow upon your specialists.
Many other areas are of little, most artistic or literary in style. The works within are, shall we say, avant garde and so I leave their worth to your discretion. Etchings of celestial patterns, microscopic phenomena and mythical epics abound and are of relatively low quality. More intriguing perhaps are the strips of flexible acetate containing multiple framed pictures. Certain items of machinery appear to hold the cylinders in which these are contained, but a certain air of dereliction seems to have corroded and jarred any mechanism of which there are many. I am unsure as to your opinion on such advances in clockwork and items mechanical in nature, nevertheless I believe there to be a significant advantage in assigning some hands to study them.
By far the area of most interest is the biological section. A sophisticated, but seemingly unlawful, gas-lighting system has been set up to ensure this area is well lit at all times, according to her journal (also enclosed). It seems Dr. Prendergast was of the belief that life is aided in some way by the presence of light. Easily the flora inhabitants are grateful of the encouragement as a certain degree of steel persuasion was required to even enter the area.
Upon hacking into the subterranean jungle my eyes were drawn immediately to an organic mass on the far side, contained in a bed of burnt, reddened soil (but with no biological connection to it). The nature of this creature eludes me, as I have seen nothing in my experience that even approximates the look, structure or behaviour of this specimen. I am possessed with a certain timidity to classify the creature under any pre-existing family, or even kingdom. Be it plant or animal, I cannot say and would rather not be pushed to do so. I have, for the past few weeks, deputised the exploration of the remainder of the facility to Mr. Keplar whilst I have concentrated on the examination of this creature.
To this end the journals of Dr. Prendergast have proven invaluable. It seems my fascination with this creature is not isolated and, at least towards the end of the journal, nigh on all entries contain increasing mention of this creature, hereafter referred to as 'Io' the name bestowed upon it by the doctor (it is unclear whether the writings say Io or 10, but I consider the latter unlikely accounting for the absence of a mention of any previous number).
The journal makes mention that the doctor has been working for the best part of the current decade on the properties of life, or 'terrae' as the doctor calls it. It was the fixation of the doctor to obtain a way to isolate the essence of life which, as previously mentioned, she believed was contained within light. This may explain the acetate sheets seen previously, an attempt to capture the life-giving part of the light, although I speculate at this point. The doctor's studies appear to have initiated a fascination of all reaches of life, from the aforementioned flora to the over four score wire cages and fenced areas containing - that which I assume to have once been alive - animal specimens. In contrast to the disrepair of the rest of the facility this area seems to have been impeccably maintained, far more so than the habitable living areas in the mansion above. The animals' enclosures were immaculate with food mechanically dispensed at given intervals - a fact one of our team received quite a shock from, when the silence was burst apart by the clack of a spring mechanism. The animals were clean, free from parasites - besides, of course, the parasites themselves - and appear to have lived healthy existences up until the starvation of abandonment.
Returning to Io, due to it's clammy nature it is unclear whether this specimen was well maintained; judging by its living area it seems to have been plentifully cared for. The only reason we know it to be alive is the occasional throbbing on the surface of its flesh-like membrane. It seems the doctor devoted a fair deal of attention to the maintenance of this creature. This is supported by various earlier journal articles in which the doctor assumes affection for the creature. The doctor often referred to Io as 'the child' or 'the young Io' perhaps even possessing the delusion that the creature was a human child. I am in no position to make such judgements but it is my belief that the doctor incurred some sort of psychotic, perhaps predacious, attachment to the creature. It is possible for prolonged exposure to such a chemical haze as that which we entered to could induce mental trauma or psychosis. That said the air in the biological section seems significantly purer than that in the rest of the facility.
As for the biology of the Io specimen the records of its existence only stretch back so far as two weeks before the termination of the records. This implies tremendous growth the like of which astonishes me. Notable in growth as well is the speed at which the psychosis of the doctor takes hold. I transcribe the following passage from the journal with regards to the growth of the specimen (to be found on page 68).
"24th May: The child grows more, I am so pleased. After so long searching I have a scientific success, but more so the promise of a personal, neigh spiritual success. My own Io, a life of my doing, could one day repay me. I feel revitalised at Io's progress, as if spiritually invigorated more so than any celestial etching or chemical breakthrough can provide me with. A meaning that grows by the day, as if proportional to the weight of my dear Io."
This passage arises five days after the first mention of Io and seems to imply that Dr. Prendergast believed it to be her own creation. While I have nothing but respect for the doctor even I have to take such a statement with certain degree of disbelief. The journal details no specific measurements or weights which is unfortunate. The entries continue in roughly the same vein until the last entry which I believe to be of significant interest (to be found on page 74).
"[Presumed 2nd April]: That beast! My dear, arrogant beast! You continue to grow, you continue to feed. You absorb all I give you and have nothing, oh nothing to give back to me. I devote my whole to your very existence, I provide you with all I can barring my own flesh and bones, and all you can do is feed. Feed! Feed!" [Repetition omitted] "Then grow, grow all you want, I refuse to pour my all into your self-conceit for any longer".
I omit some of the more unsavoury passages in favour of those that illustrate the speed with which this psychosis takes hold. With respect to Io I have studied and have maintained it myself for the past fortnight, recorded measurements and, I like to think, maintained a more scientific approach than my predecessor in the study of the specimen. I would enclose copies of the measurements, alas I cannot imagine any elucidation arising from them. While the documents imply a rapid growth, it appears Io has hardly grown since the poor doctor's death. Io is currently under the supervision of your Dr. Taylor as of two days prior to my writing.
If you have any further queries regarding another area of the doctor's laboratory please address them to Dr. Keplar, and for any more issues on biology I would be supremely glad of your correspondence. I hope this letter, with all associated documents and relevant artefacts, find you with haste and that you are satisfied with the enclosed report. I trust I have done that which was expected of me and actively anticipate any further work you may pass my way.
Yours,
Dr. Nicholas P. Henderson.
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