#howard strand
Mystery: Thomas Warren / DaivaCorp / Luciternica Resources
Updated 8/16/16
SPOILERS THROUGH 2x12
1. Daiva Corporation, a major international energy corporation, funds research into the paranormal. (2x09) Its CEO is Thomas Warren. Warren is on the Fortune 500 list. He is also described by Alex as “Sexy James Bond.” (2x01) Regularly scheduled to speak at conferences, Warren is reclusive and often cancels. (2x07) He splits his time between San Francisco, London, and Seattle, and travels frequently. (2x02)
2. For some reason, Thomas Warren contacts Alex under then name Carl Jenkins to set up a meeting, insisting Strand be there. He doesn’t say much of anything, but he does steal Strand’s coffee cup. (1x11)
3. DaivaCorp was behind the not-for-profit company bankrolling Strand’s speaking engagements in Seattle. (2x02)
4. Warren was involved in an archaeological dig in Hillah, Iraq. Strand believes this may have had something to do with Tiamat, and that Warren may have found the Horn of Tiamat. (2x03) For more information, see The Cult of Tiamat.
5. Because he is a lawyer, Strand believes Warren to be “the Advocate.” Strand also believes that Warren and Coralee are connected in some way, and that Warren “had something” on Coralee. (2x03)
6. Warren may have been present at the exorcisms of both Jessica Wheldon and “John” (false name). At John’s exorcism, men in business suits explained that there was a “new way” to fight Satan, but symbols relating to opening demonic portals (including the upside down face) were present there. At John’s exorcism, these strange men used a machine to “cure” John of the outward signs of his possession. (2x07)
7. Simon Reese tells Alex to focus on finding Thomas Warren’s machine. “Find the machine, and you’ll find the man behind it.” (2x09)
8. Before her disappearance, Sammie the Hacker transmitted information to the TBT team in the form of a fax sound, which one of Nic’s friends (presumably MK) decoded. It included a handful of incorporation documents, research grants, and board of director lists. (2x09)
9. A subsidiary of DaivaCorp is Luciternica Resources, a robotics lab. Thomas Warren sits on the board of directors. They very likely produced the machine used on “John.” The machines were delivered to Warren under the guise of being Pachinko machines. (2x10)
10. The machines produced by Luciternica Resources feature symbols connected to the Cult of Tiamat. A small plate that looks like a serial number plate above the door to the back of the machine features the same symbol from cave paintings and Coralee’s ring. (2x10) The symbol also appears over a tomb in Cairo where, in 1955, a disputed page reported to be from the Gospel of Truth was unearthed. (2x11) For more information, see The Cult of Tiamat.
11. In 2x11, Thomas Warren attempted to set a meeting with Nic and Alex. After some clarification, Strand is allowed to come to the meeting, but no recording devices are allowed. As they are about to go in, they see a big security team heading their way, armed with guns. Just before the security team closes on them, Coralee shows up and (ostensibly) rescues them, saying “get into the van if you want to live.”
12. Continuing from 2x12, Coralee delivers Alex and Strand to a safehouse, where it is revealed that during their marriage, Coralee had been working for an organization run by the Advocate through Thomas Warren. As Warren’s agent, she was tasked with reporting Strand’s whereabouts and protecting him, confirming that the Advocate had been closely watching Strand. She warns him against Daiva Corporation, stating that they believe Strand’s family hold a “genetic key” crucial to their ends, and says she believes that they may be working in conjunction with the Order of the Cenophus. (2x12) For more on this, see The Disappearance of Coralee Strand.
13. Strand finally meets with Thomas Warren in the season 2 finale, and Warren offers him a job on their team as they work on some “altruistic” project. As payment, Warren offers to fund The Strand Institute, whose coffers have dwindled over the years. Warren also reveals that Howard Strand did not, in fact, die in an accident, but was murdered. He gave Richard one of Howard’s journals, saying that Howard had worked for Daiva Corporation for seven years, and was in fact working there when he was murdered. (2x12)
Mystery: The Order of the Cenophus / The Brothers of Mount
Updated: 8/16/16
SPOILERS THROUGH 2x12
1. The Order of the Cenophus were once a part of the Benedictine order. Per Dr. Rufus Carmichael in 1x11, the Order was founded by St. Benedict of Nursia in the 6th century. In the 13th century, a monk named Herman committed a sin so grave, he was to be executed by being walled up within the monastery of Podlažice in the Czech Republic. To escape death, he swore that he would reproduce the Bible within one year, which was impossible to do by hand. The night before the deadline, he is said to have sold his soul to Satan, and the work was completed. The finished book was the Codex Gigas, which has a large illustration of the Devil in it, and is as such called “The Devil’s Bible.” It became the Abbott’s favorite book, though it is not a complete Bible– it is a selection of books from the Latin Bible, along with several historical texts, and a listing of the monks at Podlažice. (1x11)
At some point, a list of rules of the order were torn from the Codex. Herman’s apprentice, Soběslav, may have done so to endanger the sale of the Codex. After the sale of the Codex, Soběslav set about reproducing the Codex from memory. The result was a new book, The Cenophus, of which there is no recorded copy. (1x11)
2. One of the main bases of the Order of the Cenophus is Glushka monastery in Bulgaria. They are sometimes called “pale robes,” owing to the strange nature of their light grey robes. In 1792, a monk named Ivan, rumored to have sold his soul to the devil, committed suicide by jumping from a window in Glushka. (1x10)
3. In 1983, an American psychic, Clara Simone, conducted a séance within the walls of Glushka. The spirit she contacted said it was neither the monk, Ivan, nor the children, Nicholas and Sasha. She came to believe it was a very dangerous demon. The monks declined to let her exorcise it, preferring it to be left to them. Clara believes it is because they wanted to know the name of the demon. Simone may also have drawn a tall shadow during her automatic writing. Simone later tells Alex not to speak the demon’s name, as demons love to hear their names, and speaking them may attract the demons. (1x10) [Ed note: This is further proven by the creepy bookseller doing her best to get Alex to speak demons’ names in 2x02. Therefore, if the Order of the Cenophus wanted the demon’s name, it was probably to encourage it into the world.]
4. Regarding the demon board from 1x08, Strand says, “Divaldi had some cult in Eastern Europe perform a dark ceremony over each board, some say it involved the blood of Christians.” It is possible, given the pentagram in two circles and numbers sequence found on the bottom of the board, that the cult could be a reference to the Order of the Cenophus.
5. Percival Black is a member of the Order of the Cenophus, and resides at their Saransk Abbey in Mordovia, Russia. (1x09) He has taken a vow of silence. (1x10)
6. After Amalia begins to look into the disappearance of Keith Dabic in Russia, she finds a note slid under her door that strongly discourages her from looking into the matter further. It is unclear if this is related to Dabic or another case she is working on. (1x10)
7. Edward Lewis, kidnapper of Sebastian Torres, is a member of the Brothers of the Mount. He took Sebastian to a creepy cabin in Portola Redwood State Park, and tells Strand that Sebastian and Simon Reese have gifts. He refers to the cabin as having a “devil’s door.” (1x12) Additionally, Strand says that the cabin in which Lewis kept Sebastian is covered in symbols that made him believe that someone was trying to summon a demon. (1x07)
8. In 1985, a chapter of the Brothers of the Mount were found living in a cave in Colville National Forest, on the Washington/Idaho border. After eviction, the monks that escaped capture were said to be seen heading towards the Pandore River Basin. This is the same river where Sarah Benning’s body was found, and the same year that the Festival of the Upside-Down face was begun in Charlesworth. (1x12)
9. An unknown poacher who had recently been living in a cave in Colville National Forest took his life after engaging in a stand-off with police. (2x02) He possessed a book, under 100 pages, that is later described as a grimoire by Brenda Miller. One of her contacts in Poland said that passages from the book are similar to the Song of Omphalos, which is in turn allegedly based on the Seikilos Epitaph, the earliest recorded fragment of song. The Polish friend furthermore suggests that the book could be a Satanic hymnal of sorts, and the Song of Omphalos may specifically be about ushering in the apocalypse and an age of demonic rule. (2x04) The hunter who initially reported the poacher videoed what looked to be a two-legged deer nearby. (2x02)
10. Geotagging of a photo confirms that Keith Dabic was present at Glushka. (2x05) It is later revealed that it might not have been “exactly” Keith (2x11, see below).
11. Simon Reese says that the blood on the walls initially thought to be Maddie Franks’ belonged to the Order of the Cenophus, after explaining that Maddie was one of those who “prepared the children.” (2x06)
12. As they discuss the spread of hysteria in the E. Hausdorff case in 2x08, Alex and Nic have the following conversation:
Alex: What if… what if something’s spreading? Like… a virus. And it’s been happening for decades, maybe more than that… What if Simon and Hausdorff are just the tip of the iceberg? Like, what if there’s more of them?
Nic: What if it’s not spreading like a virus, but more like a meme? What if there are people going around spreading this strange apocalyptic gospel? Maybe the same group that’s been teaching scary songs to children… Whether you wanna call them the Order of the Cenophus or the Brothers of the Mount, or whatever, couldn’t some group be spreading this message to… a captive audience?
13. Edward Lewis is found hanging dead in his cell in Los Gatos, CA. In one frame, he is sitting, reading. Then the surveillance camera flickers and goes out. When it comes back, Lewis is hanging in his cell. Only 12 frames are missing from the camera: roughly ½ a second. Strand notices a shadow in the cell with him. Present at the scene of his death: a pentagram in a double circle, and numbers. (2x09)
14. At roughly the same time as Lewis’s death, 8 members of what is assumed to be the Brothers of the Mount apparently commit suicide in West Waddell Creek State Wilderness, CA. They had been investigated for building illegal fortifications in an area meant for a one-week stay. The deaths appear ritualistic– they are arranged in a circle, and reports say that they died from wine laced with poison. Present at the scene of the death: a pentagram within a double circle, and numbers. (2x09)
15. Simon Reese does not take direct responsibility for the deaths of Lewis and the other Brothers (Carl, John, Peter, George, Douglas, Shawn, Frederick, and Martin). He says they “had it coming.” He names the Brothers who died, and said, “they killed themselves when they started down the path. They were trying to raise a chorus of voices. Childrens’ voices. My voice.” When Alex asks him if it was about getting revenge, he says, “it’s not revenge I’m seeking. It’s balance.” (2x09) [Ed note: It is also interesting to note that in Lewis’s death, the surveillance camera going out is very similar to what happened with Trent in 2x06.]
16. Amalia sends a photo to Alex that appears to show that Keith Dabic has committed suicide by jumping from the tower at Glushka. His family is unreachable for comment. Later, a sound file from a Bulgarian user called “Hastur” is emailed to the Strand Institute. Its purpose and specific origin are as-yet undiscovered. (2x09)
17. There is much speculation about the Brothers in 2x10. Alex wonders if Percival Black was sent to the US to check in with or be initiated by an American chapter of the Order of the Cenophus and/or the Brothers of the Mount. (2x10)
18. Howard Strand’s personal correspondence may make reference to Mt. Ararat, the highest point in Turkey, and one possible location of the Axis Mundi. (2x10) It is possible that the Brothers of the Mount are so named after Ararat, or possibly the Himalayan temple that Alexander Scriabin wanted to play his world-ending concert atop. (1x09)
19. Strand states that there is no way that a symphony could be played atop Mt. Ararat, which was also the mythic site upon which Noah’s Ark came to rest after the great flood. He says that the site furthermore has significance in pre-Christian, Armenian myth. He says that the 17,000 ft elevation would make it nearly impossible to carry instruments to the top without mountaineering gear. (2x11)
20. Nic and Alex receive yet another mysterious sound file from “Hastur.” It is titled “Code ED [redacted].” Nic posits it may be a code for the longitude/latitude of Chattahoochee National Forest, 2 hours northeast of Atlanta. Nic wonders if this might be the location of another chapter of monks in hiding. (2x11)
21. Amalia contacts PNWS and says that the body found at Glushka in 2x09 was not “exactly” Keith Dabic, and is believed to be that of a homeless man, a former monk. DNA tests are pending. In doing more investigation on the identity of the body, Nic and Alex match up a picture of Keith taken with Hastur Rising against the photo they received of “Keith” in 2x05. They discover that his eyes have changed color, and there is a seam by his hairline in the later photo. They surmise that someone has sewed Keith’s face to his own. (2x11) [Ed note: it thereby stands to reason that every contact from Keith post-2x05 could have been from faux!Keith.]
22. Coralee Strand believes that Thomas Warren, through Daiva Corporation, has been working with the Order of the Cenophus. They have taken an interest in Richard Strand, believing that he possesses a “genetic key” that will help them achieve their ends. (2x12)
Mystery: The Pilori and Watchers
Updated: 8/16/16
SPOILERS THROUGH 2x12
1. Strand says he found “watchers” similar to the “Pilori” in the photos found at Riverview Mental Hospital in Coquihalla, BC. He says the Pilori are similar to fairy folkorpixies, and can be extremely malevolent, sometimes murdering children and feeding them to their parents. Per Strand, a Pilori would have to “stay with the child, protecting and guiding them until they grew up. Until they were old enough to… make the sacrifice.” They then “bleed the children on the altar, to the old god.” Also referred to as “blacklings, imps,satyrs.” (2x08).
2. He furthermore says that “The Pilori believed that symbols and sounds had power. They held that there were certain sigils that could summon or bind. They carried thin iron rods which they would strike to create harmful sounds.” (2x09)
3. Strand says that Rumpelstiltskin was a member of the Pilori, “a watcher of the highest order.” Folklore indicates that if you learned his name, you’d be granted power over him, but Strand found that it was his sigil, not his name that grants this power. (2x09)
4. The sigil that Strand speaks of in conjunction to Rumpelstiltskin was found in a journal written by Strand’s father Howard, found in a safety deposit box, as well as on the inside of Coralee’s ring. (2x09) It may also be the same sigil on the outside of the machines created by Luciternica Resources & Daiva Corporation. (2x10) Strand says that the symbol can either summon or bind a member of the Pilori. (2x09)
5. Various human women are described in similar terms to the Pilori. Simon Reese said, “I was chosen. I don’t remember exactly how, but I have memories, long memories, of when I was an infant. I was just a baby, and a woman came to me and talked, whispered, names, incantations. She opened a door, and it never closed for me… There are mechanisms greater than you. Greater than me. And they’ve been at work for thousands of years. I was to be a cog in that, I was called to play my part.” He also says that his mother was the one who “opened the door” for him, and was one of “them,” likening her to Maddie Franks– those who “prepared the children.” He also said that some of these women are “nurses.” [Ed note: possibly a connection to Riverview Hospital?] (2x06) Likewise, Jessica Wheldon reports having a similar babysitter. (2x07)
6. We also hear the term “watchers” in 1x05, in relation to the exorcism of Jessica Wheldon. During this encounter, Father Vincent says he encountered “the Grigori,” an arch-demon, who is “watching.” Also describes the Grigori as “the elemental.” (1x05) [Ed note: interestingly, in Christian theology, the Grigori are collectively, a class of angels, also called “watchers,” who fell from Heaven with Satan.]
7. On the doctor’s recording found at Riverview, it is stated that a patients within the hospital are reporting nightly visitations by “dark, ghostly women.” (2x08)
8. As they discuss the spread of hysteria in the E. Hausdorff case, Alex and Nic have the following conversation:
Alex: What if… what if something’s spreading? Like… a virus. And it’s been happening for decades, maybe more than that… What if Simon and Hausdorff are just the tip of the iceberg? Like, what if there’s more of them?
Nic: What if it’s not spreading like a virus, but more like a meme? What if there are people going around spreading this strange apocalyptic gospel? Maybe the same group that’s been teaching scary songs to children… Whether you wanna call them the Order of the Cenophus or the Brothers of the Mount, or whatever, couldn’t some group be spreading this message to… a captive audience?
10. Richard Strand describes Coralee’s role within the Advocate’s organization as a “watcher.” He says, “she was tasked with reporting my whereabouts, and most importantly, keeping me safe.” (2x12)
The Cult of Tiamat & Sumerian / Babylonian Myth
Updated: 8/16/16
SPOILERS THROUGH 2x12
1. The Sumerian/Babylonian myth of Tiamat is binary. One part regards a creatrix, the other a “monstrous embodiment of primordial chaos.” Strand links the myth of Tiamat to aquatic monsters like “Ctulhu or Cthulhu,Leviathan, the Kraken,” and says the myth concerns “The battle between some cultures’ hero and a chthonic monster.” The battle between the hero and the monster is sometimes called “Chaoskampf,” and the monster is sometimes depicted as a dragon. (2x03) [Ed note: though Strand defines “chthonic” as “aquatic,” this is not correct. “Chthonic” refers to things pertaining to the underworld, and things that dwell beneath the earth. “Chaoskampf,” however, does pertain to the battle between a cultural hero and a “chaos monster,” which often takes the form of a snake-like serpent, a sea serpent, or a dragon.]
2. A glyph that Strand says is connected to Marduk, a Babylonian god, is found in the room of Simon Reese. [Ed note: Marduk defeated Tiamat in battle. Very interesting.] Additionally, a symbol to bind the Sumerian go, Anzû. is drawn on the south wall to his room, which Strand posits is an attempt to create a “devil’s door.” Of Simon, Strand says: “Those symbols are very specific. Someone’s knowledge of ancient Sumeria, and this type of script in particular, is fairly comprehensive. It’s clear whoever drew those symbols had dug quite deeply into sacred geometry and ancient occultism. And for some reason, Simon Reese is upset with Trent’s conversion to Christianity… It’s not really my field of study. But I did recognize some of those equations. The symbols are adapted from ancient Sumerian, but the equations are from the middle ages. Dark alchemy, a form of what you might call devil worship.” (1x06)
3. The demon board used in the University of Washington experiment in 1993 is linked to Pazuzu, the Babylonian ruler of Demons, and Richard Strand immediately recognizes it from his father’s work. The underside of the board features a pentagram within two circles as well as a number sequence. (1x08)
4. Strand’s father was heavily interested in the Cult of Tiamat and wrote an unpublished paper on the topic. (2x03)
5. Strand believes that Thomas Warren found the Horn of Tiamat during his dig in Hillah, Iraq. (2x03)
6. A symbol linked to the Cult of Tiamat and the Pilori has been found in/on: Coralee’s ring (2x09), Howard Strand’s journals (2x09), a cave painting (2x09) [Ed note: though Alex did find an upside-down face at Urraca Mesa in 1x12, I can’t find an instance of anyone mentioning a Tiamat-related symbol there], and a Luciternica Resources “exorcism machine.” (2x10). Strand says this symbol can be used to summon or bind a member of the Pilori. (2x09) See notes below for elaboration/discussion on this point.
7. Richard Strand suspects he has been stalked by people looking for artifacts and information that were once in his father’s possession. (2x05) Potentially related: be was recorded by Alex Reagan when speaking to Amalia, inquiring after a tall, striking blond woman who won an auction in Russia. Though she confirmed that the woman spoke fluent Russian, she was unable to confirm if the woman was from Malta. (2x06)
8. Alex Reagan found old letters (from the 70’s or 80’s), in Howard Strand’s former house, hidden behind a picture that reminds her of the creepy painting in Strand’s honeymoon suite, where they found Coralee’s coded message. This particular picture features a squid beast attacking a boat and being speared by men, a clear link to Leviathan/The Kraken/Tiamat. In these letters, which are typed, unsigned, and undated, though probably from the 70’s or 80s, Richard Strand is discussed. It sounds very much as though he is being prepped to assume a position within the cult of Tiamat called “the mantle of the dragon.” The correspondence had a Tiamat stamp, and was postmarked from Istanbul, Turkey.
It also includes a 14-digit number code which Nic splits into two 7-digit codes in order to point to Mt. Ararat, the highest peak in Turkey. Nic posits that Mt. Ararat may be the location of the Axis Mundi, where Percival Black will play his Mysterium in an attempt to end the world. (2x10). Strand states that there is no way that a symphony could be played atop Mt. Ararat, which was also the mythic site upon which Noah’s Ark came to rest after the great flood. He says that the site furthermore has significance in pre-Christian, Armenian myth. He says that the 17,000 ft elevation would make it nearly impossible to carry instruments to the top without mountaineering gear. (2x11) It is later revealed that the Axis Mundi may in fact be the PNWS station. (2x12)
9. In 2x11, there is discussion of the Gnostic Gospels (previously mentioned in 1x03 in reference to The Unsound), ancient texts written between the 2nd and 4th centuries AD, making some of them older than the New Testament, However, due to their content and provenance, they are not considered Biblical canon, and are thus considered New Testament Apocrypha. “Gnostic” comes from the Greek “gnosis,” which means knowledge. Per Strand, “gnosis” is a “popular term in Greek philosophy. The Christian Gnostics believed that salvation lay not in Christ, but rather in psychic, or pneumatic souls freeing themselves from the material world via the book of Revelation.” Nic mentions that Tiamat is also referenced in Revelation as a dragon.
They discuss a section of the Gospel of Thomas, one of the Gnostic Gospels, that Nic forwarded to Strand. The Gospel begins, roughly translated, “these are the hidden words that the living Jesus spoke: Didymos Judas Thomas wrote them down.“ However, Strand says, many scholars believe that it wasn’t Thomas who wrote the Gospel, but an unknown. One possibility is a mystery apostle.
In this Gospel, Greek philosophy, specifically that of Plato, is discussed. There are also references to the Gospel of Truth, a parable involving math. Strand says, it “describes Jesus being sent down to remove ignorance. It claims that Jesus was a teacher, and describes how it is knowledge, rather than faith, that grants salvation, which constitutes eternal rest, describing ignorance as a nightmare.”
He goes on to say that the Gospel of Thomas also references the Parable of the Empty Jar, which is related to a disputed page of the Gospel of Truth dug up on an archaeological dig in Cairo in 1955. He says that if genuine, scholars place this disputed page in the Sahidic fragments, and that his father, Howard Strand, had done a lot of research on the topic.
Howard Strand had been convinced that the missing page of the Gospel of Truth contained details that are vital to the deciphering information about the opening of the Five Seals. “Let’s just say that the End of Days would be an extremely gentle way of putting it, should the seals be opened,” Richard says.
Nic then produces a photo taken on the 1955 dig that produced the disputed page. Above the opening to the tomb are both the symbol from Coralee’s ring and the symbol of Tiamat. (2x11)
10. In addition to ties to the Cult of Tiamat, Howard Strand also worked for Daiva Corporation, and had done so for seven years before his murder according to Thomas Warren, who was in possession of one of his journals. Daiva Corporation was also very interested in the Strand bloodline, believing it to be a “genetic key” to achieve their ends. (2x12) [Ed note: does this tie in with the “mantle of the dragon”?]
REGARDING THE VARIOUS SYMBOLS RELATED TO TIAMAT
In 2x09 and 2x10, it is made to sound very much like the symbol of Tiamat is the same as the one found inside of Coralee’s ring (linked somehow to the Pilori) and also the same as found on the Luciternica Resources machines.
See the transcript excerpts below:
2x09: Strand discusses the Pilori and Coralee’s ring.
Strand: Rumpelstiltskin was one of the Pilori. A watcher of the highest order. The folklore around this particular character indicates if you learned his name, you’d be granted power over him, but in reality, in the ancient legend involved a symbol, not a spoken name.
Alex: So what? If you discovered his symbol, you’d get some sort of power over him?
Strand: Yes. The word for name and symbol were lost or switched in translation at some point.
Alex: So, what does all this mean?
Strand: I found something in my father’s things. A symbol. It was clearly important to him– he had a safe deposit box here in Seattle. Inside were two journals and a few other items. One of these journals was dedicated to nothing but this symbol. I found the same symbol on the walls of that recent group of cave painting photos. I found the same symbol somewhere else as well.
Alex: Where?
Strand: Coralee had a ring she’d never take off. Never. While we were on vacation in Prague, she needed an emergency appendectomy. Just before her surgery, while she was out, they took off her ring. I saw it sitting in a plastic bag on a side table in her recovery room. I could see the inside of that ring. I could see the symbol. Coralee woke up, and before she said anything to me, she reached for that ring, and became agitated. She was very angry that someone had taken it off.
Alex: And… what do you think that was about?
Strand: I don’t know, but it comes back to this.
Alex: What?
Strand: This symbol.
Alex: Soooo….
Strand: It’s the sign of the Cult of Tiamat.
2x10: Alex describes photos taken from an advanced soldering website that appears to show the Luciternica Resources machines.
Alex: And there it was, the symbol. The same symbol from the latest batch of cave paintings. The same symbol that had been engraved into Coralee’s ring. It was stamped onto the back of a large machine. A large… exorcism machine. It was small, stamped into a plate similar to a serial number setup. It was located just above the door to the back of the machine. Where a technician was demonstrating an advanced soldering technique in a series of photographs. That symbol appearing on that machine was definitely interesting, but we’ve been unable to dig up anything else related to those machines. Of course, we’re going to keep digging.
HOWEVER in 2x11, we are told that they are two separate symbols. Discussing the site where the disputed page of the Gospel of Truth was found, Alex says, “And there it was. Above the entrance to an ancient tomb in Cairo, from an archaeological dig in 1955, the symbol from Coralee’s ring, right NEXT TO the familiar symbol of Tiamat.” She is clearly referencing two separate symbols.
This is pretty confusing, as prior to that point, they’d been seemingly discussing ONE symbol that linked the ring, the exorcism machine, and the Pilori to the Cult of Tiamat. Doubly so, since moments later, Alex says:
“I knew that Strand’s investigation into Coralee had stalled with Thomas Warren, and that the symbol on that machine, the same symbol that was carved into that Egyptian tomb, and the same symbol that had been engraved into Coralee’s ring pointed directly to Daiva Corporation.”
Is the symbol on Coralee’s ring the same as the symbol of Tiamat, or are we talking about two different, but related symbols? It’s currently unclear.
