Episode 33 – They Came, Skinsaw, They Conquered

The curtain opens with Barnaby staring at the sallow shell of his BFF in the whole wide world, Aldern Foxglove. Covered in ashen skin and dressed in the tattered remains of a noble outfit, Aldern has fallen off the proverbial wagon into some dire circumstances. As Barnaby rushes up to embrace his friend, it is clear that Aldern’s body is succumbing to a dreadful disease that the party is entirely familiar with: ghoul fever. In the advanced state of the illness, recovery seems doubtful.

Over Barnaby’s shoulder, Aldern notices the half-headed remains of his wife, Iesha. He breaks down a bit, and apologizes over and over again for what happened between them. Theo presses the issue, inquiring as to the nature of their relationship. Aldern explains that he had caught Iesha cavorting with a local carpenter and had killed both of them in a jealous rage. In truth, Iesha and the carpenter had been pursuing a book together in the library when Aldern walked in, but Aldern insisted that there was something more to their dichotomy.

Aldern’s attention turns back towards the party and reiterates the importance that they leave the Manor before ‘they’ return. Two other men were the cause of his deranged state, and they would certainly attack the party if they returned to find them in Aldern’s company. The heir to the Foxglove estate begins to describe his involvement with the Brothers of the Seven but doubles over in pain before he can divulge much useful information. When the convulsions cease, Aldern stands, but his voice is deeper and a bit more wild.

After referring to himself as ‘The Hurter’, it is obvious that Aldern’s decaying body is accompanied by mental suffering and anguish that has tainted his mind. He charges at Barnaby, swinging wildly with a long razor before being struck with a return blow from the swashbuckler. Upon being hit, Aldern’s normal voice takes over, begging for forgiveness and pleading for the party to help him. His moment of sanity is not long-lived, however, as a third voice enters the arena. This voice is dripping with a sinister charisma, and tells ‘His Lordship’ and ‘The Hurter’ that their services are no longer required.

This is the Skinsaw Man.

“I wonder how your deaths shall affect your friends. What things might you have done that will go unfinished? What will those broken promises spawn? How will your murders shape the world?”

He puts on a mask that shifts his appearance to look like a scarred version of Barnaby and begins his quick and ruthless assault. The party, strongly believing that Aldern is still inside this psychotic maniac, tries to inflict only non-lethal blows to the ghast. This tactic is quickly dismissed by Fobias and Theo, who never knew the real Aldern in life, but Krask is the last to cling to the hope that his hunting partner might snap out of his delirium.

He does not.

The battle rages on and Barnaby becomes paralyzed, forced to helplessly watch his friends fight for their lives. Although Krask can’t reliably connect with his crossbow, Theo methodically hexes the Skinsaw Man until the ghast is reduced to a worthless husk who is naught but a bona fide punching bag. Fobias is able to dish out some sizable damage with his sword, but Richard is the unlikely hero of the battle, viciously tearing the Skinsaw Man open and staining the wolf’s pristine fur with muddy brown blood.

Iesha crawls through the aftermath towards her husband and stares at the lifeless corpse. With a terrifying shriek, she plunges her hand into his chest cavity and pulls out a messy handful of rotting organs, holding them aloft. The light leaves her eyes, and she slumps over Aldern’s body, breathing her last.

Who are the Brothers of the Seven and how many are there? Was Iesha seeking revenge for her husband’s thoughtless crime? Will Barnaby take the other half of his BFF friendship bracelet?