Part 10: Gabriel Knight vs. Magentia Moonbeam
Chapter 10: Gabriel Knight vs. Magentia Moonbeam
On Dr. John's advice, Gabriel heads straight on over to the amazing home of Magentia Moonbeam.
My goodness, how did she ever figure that out?
Magentia Moonbeam (Nancy Lenehan, who seems to mostly appear on sitcoms, recently My Name Is Earl and Worst Week) floats about her hellish, dark-lit home, speaks in a breezy self-absorbed tone and fills every sentence with vague pseudo-meaning. Basically, she comes across as the worst kind of spiritual hack.
Anytime you walk in, the two sit down in their respective chairs. You can't send Gabriel rifling through her things without her objecting.
Whew, that's one mystery solved.
Haight Street is located in San Francisco, and is primarily known for an influx of hippies in the late '60s, who never really left.
She keeps a snake in a bird cage, is it really a surprise she doesn't keep it clean?
Magentia's in-game sprite is especially lacking in detail. I'm always surprised by how (relatively) normal she looks in the conversation screens.
Let's see if we can get any info from her.
New personal topic: "Gris Gris" (see video)
Wow, she didn't say a single word about the spiritual and religious meaning behind Voodoo. She just went straight to the trinkets.
Maybe she has some sort of insight about the killings!
"Badness," huh? Don't overwhelm us with detail, lady.
Well, that's true enough; that is following in the grand Marie Laveau tradition.
That pretty much sums up the whole experience of talking with Magentia Moonbeam. She says something interesting, Gabriel asks for more details, and she immediately backs up off the topic.
She says this with a little nervous chuckle and a bit of stammering. Definitely need to find out what the hell is up with that phrase.
Finally! This is the only topic where we get any useful information out of her, however scant.
New global topic: "Animal Masks"
Dammit. She's crawled back into her shell.
Gabriel decides to show her the assorted Voodoo-looking things he's encountered on his journey. First, the patterns found by the bodies.
Holy shit, we might actually be onto something!
"What."
Well, it's circular and mysterious. I guess that's enough for her to call it "deep magic."
Gabriel, starting to get irritated, bumps the photo of the victim up on the list.
"Geez, settle down, lady. No one's accusin' you."
Finally, in one desperate last-ditch effort, Gabriel offers the markings he found on the tomb.
Despite being burned so many times in the last few minutes, Gabriel lets a bit of cautious optimism creep back in. This is the least vague thing she's said all day.
I suppose she'd be the leading expert on that.
Gabriel scribbles down Moonbeam's transliteration, happy that this trip wasn't wasted after all.
Doesn't prove it's Voodoo-related, but it seems somebody out there thinks it is. Excellent.
There's nothing else for us here right now.
Sure thing, crazy lady.
After the assault of dim lighting, historical facts and pseudo-Voodoo patronizing, Gabriel decides to get a breath of fresh air and take another stroll around Jackson Square.
He's immediately greeted by this odd sight. Looks like the kid could tap-dance all day and not come close to getting a Lucky Dog.
Looks like the mime is taking the day off.
Up on the north end of the park, Gabriel spots someone making a technical drawing of the cathedral.
Seconds after Gabriel gets near, the wind knocks the drawing free of the artist's sketchbook and into the next area of the park.
The artist chases helplessly as the paper flies off in the wind.
He tries desperately to grab the paper, but he just can't reach.
The artist storms back to his easel to start all over again.
This situation gives Gabriel a really good idea. Motivated by equal parts opportunity and pity, he decides to get the drawing back and hope for the best.
How hard can it be?
Pretty damn hard, apparently. Maybe the kid will help?
The money's a definite no go, but possibly we can worm up some food. There's a vendor two steps away, after all.
"Are you fucking kidding me?"
Appealing to his common decency didn't even begin to work. After taking another look at the novel the guy's buried his face in, Gabriel realizes how he can play this out to his advantage.
That got his attention.
Excellent! Gabriel now has a plump and juicy hot dog in his ... trenchcoat. Let's just pretend that didn't happen. Anyway, this situation's dominoes are finally beginning to fall.
Gabriel hands over the hot dog and the kid munches away hungrily.
Fortunately, the kid fits easily through the bars and grabs the drawing in no time.
The kid hands the drawing to Gabriel. He returns to his tap-dancing spot while Gabriel takes the drawing back.
Why, as a matter of fact, you can. Gabriel hands over the copy of the patterns he
Gabriel hands the partial pattern he found at the crime scene to the artist.
That's all we have to do at Jackson Square today!
Feeling thrilled with himself, Gabriel decides it's high time to head back to the crime scene and see if he missed anything.
Next time:
Gabriel thoroughly combs the crime scene in Chapter 11: Gabriel Knight vs. Snake Research!
Videos!
17. Tim Curry attempts to say "gris gris." (Dailymotion) (Youtube)
18. Tell me about yourself, Magentia Mooooonbeeeaaam. (Dailymotion) (Youtube)