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A detective who knows more than he lets on.
Personality[]
Direct.
Loyal, Noel never told the King what he needed to know, even though it could have spared him some great trauma. [1]
Description[]
Nothing much is known about his appearance, other than that he wears a trench coat. He has a New York accent.[2]
Noel has implied that he looks younger than his actual age.[1]
History[]
Detective Noel was born Charlie Dowd. Charlie grew up in Harper's Hill, together with his best friend Noel Finley. They were both police officers, until World War One started. In the course of his military service, Noel Finley was presumed to have been killed in action, although his body was never found. Devastated, Charlie moved to Arkham, where he met Roland Cummings, whom he started a PI business with. After only dealing with 'normal' cases, they stumbled upon a case which touched into otherworldly magics. They became specialized in it.
A few months later, a mutual acquaintance of theirs heard of a very old and powerful artifact being unearthed in Egypt. Charlie went to Egypt to investigate, without Roland. In Egypt, Charlie joined an expeditionary team. Almost a year and half later, within the excavation of a great find, the team found a stone. At this point, Charlie was well established with the affairs there, so he knew that when he stole the box that carried the stone, he would be killed if they ever found him. This is partly why he took on the identity of Noel Finley.
He sent the stone to the office without touching or looking at it, but when he arrived there he found out that Roland had been missing and presumed dead for quite some time. That was when The King In Yellow started seeking Charlie out in his dreams, eventually bringing him to the Dreamlands. The King attempted to gain information on Roland's affairs, using manipulative tactics and torture methods as a means for what felt like years, even though he didn't age in the same way. The King would change the landscapes of the Dreamlands to reflect places of Charlie's memories, but Charlie did not budge. As he had been away, the recent affairs of Roland had been unknown to him as well. Even the things Charlie did know he kept to himself. The King would change his appearance to take on the physical presence of people from Charlie's past, eventually bringing out the spirit of Roland.
Charlie first assumed it was another guise, but came to the realization that this was the real Roland, trapped in the Dreamlands after his death in the real world. Because Roland would never tell him what he needed to know, the King turned to Charlie for answers. But because Charlie continued his silence, the King killed what existed of Roland in the Dreamlands. Afterwards, having given up, the King put Charlie in the prison pits to let him stew for an unknown amount of time. This is where he met the cana, Lorick.
Lorick told Charlie that he would meet a man without sight, holding the lighter of his partner, with a familiar voice in his head, and that he should help him. He escaped the Dreamlands two years prior to meeting Arthur, waiting all the time for when he would meet someone matching his description. In these two years, he took on the identity of Noel, and got a job as a detective in New York City.[1]
Detective Noel first meets Arthur at Lenox Hill Hospital after Daniel was shot by The Butcher (Dennis Collins). When Arthur identifies the Butcher in the room, Noel moves to sneak behind him and attack him. During the struggle, the Butcher is incapacitated by Oscar, and Noel takes him into custody. Afterwards, he meets Arthur in a diner called the Black Iris, where Arthur attempts to explain the cosmic and existential nature of what he's seen so far. Noel seems understanding of everything, and leaves his calling card with Arthur before leaving to book the Butcher and look into The Order of the Fallen Star.[2]
Noel meets Arthur at an unnamed diner to discuss what he's found on the Order when Arthur confesses about his blindness and John's presence in his head. He asks John about his experiences and feelings about being in Arthur's head before splitting up again. When they reunite after Arthur has gathered more information, Noel opens up about his past history and holding to his promise to Lorick to help see Arthur through.[1]
Noel accompanies Arthur to the Order's meeting place in an old granary, taking a mask with a bull on it. He is rattled when he sees Yellow manifest, losing some of his confidence that he and Arthur will survive. Arthur grounds him, reminding him to keep a clear head.
Noel is shot in the throat by Wallace Larson, and is then sent "to Spain, maybe" by Kayne.[3] Later, Kayne tells Arthur that Noel is alive and located "somewhere familiar" and "awfully close to home". Kayne also states that Noel is "standing at the threshold", although he don't clarify further. [4]
Known Abilities[]
Trivia[]
- When Noel says "Shuffled off this mortal coil. (...) C'mon, you sound smart. You never read Hamlet?"[2], it is the same phrasing as when The King In Yellow pretends to be Adam Fry to get information out of Arthur.[5]