originally published Weird Tales November 1937
Our Narrator this time is a writer - albeit it not a successful one - who's gone to New Orleans either for inspiration or partying while trying to write stories about ancient Egypt. He decides to go hang with the partyers (it being Mardi Gras time, of course), and finds himself inexplicably surprised to run into a dude dressed as an ancient Egyptian priest. It turns out said dude knows ON's writings and immediately invites him to his place where he's giving a party - there'll be some real occultists there...
Since this is the sort of Lovecraftian character who'd be more drawn to a party with "real occultists" than "real hot and horny chicks", he of course accepts.
Most of the partygoers are just partygoers, but the priest-dressed fellow introduces ON to his real guests, a bunch of dedicated occultists (including one Etienne De Marigny, who is also name-dropped in Lovecraft/Price's "Through the Gates of the Silver Key" and later becomes the (proud?) papa of Henri-Laurent De Marigny, who will grow up to be a full-time doormat for insufferable occult hero Titus Crow before marrying the Queen of the Forest and going off to live happily ever after in some Disneyesque paradise. Pretty good for a character who never speaks, does anything, or has any discernible personality!).
Among the things they have to share with ON is a copy of Mysteries of the Worm, and a mummy case containing the mummy of a priest of Sebek, a nasty Egyptian crocodile god.
It seems Sebek's priests mummies were said to be guarded by monsters with the bodies of men and the heads of crocodiles, and indeed, ON has seen someone dressed in Egyptian garb and a croc mask at the party. Said croc-masked dude now shows up and bites out the host's neck. ON flees the scene when he realizes croc-head isn't wearing a mask.
Very minor Bloch without much HPL in it.
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