The Faceless

**The Faceless** was the eleventh episode of Series I of Blyth and the first episode that introduces the Sin Rosto.

## Plot

Danny and company are waiting for Baldric and Welty-- fearing that they may have to head back to Mirladris without them since he's made Sebastian Vicovar wait long enough as it is (Danny had told Vicovar that he would help escort Professor Ross to be tried in Trillic.) Bernard retrieves Officer Brown's daughter from the editor and starts getting the group on the train to Mirladris.

Welty and Baldric arrive just before the group is departing, along with Ergo, Erwin and Ben. Ergo deciding to take the ride all the way to Trillic to keep his promise made to Amos and Erwin deciding that his developing sorcery skill will only grow if he follows the party. Erwin says goodbye to his his sister Leta who stays in Aphelion. Ben also sticks with Baldric and Welty-- though Wilton expresses he doesn't trust the card shark.

Most of the party stay in their respective rooms, though Erwin, Baldric, Danny, Welty and Wilton decide to stretch their legs and go to the drinking cart. It doesn't take long for the four to notice how quiet the train is-- lacking any real passengers besides a piano player and bartender in the lounge. Baldric decides to investigate other carts while the other three enjoy spirits.

Navigating to the passenger cart, Baldric notices that there are no passengers. Investigating the dust on the windows, abandoned newspapers and an old briefcase-- the Detective instantly know something has gone wrong. Baldric asks Wilton if he saw any other passengers get on the train, and claims he only remember the conductor. The two rush back to the others.

In the lounge, Erwin and Welty are enjoying cocktails when Danny realizes that the piano is playing itself. After getting a tap on the shoulder the lounge "workers" face splits open in a mechanical fashion, revealing clockwork mechanisms and sharp-contraptions coming out of their face. Danny immediately gets up and readies for combat. Welty waste no time in firing his cross bow-- though his bolts seem to have little effect on the clockwork men. Danny manages to use the environment to his advantage using chairs and whatever he can find to slow the machines down. Erwin, remembering his experience in Pinet Tremont, leaps over the bar to start making Molotov cocktails. Baldric and Wilton get back in time to help dispatch the last of the Clockwork men before Erwin had to result in throwing his bottled flame. The group tells the rest of the party to stay put and lock their doors while they investigate; though Ben decides to accompany them.

Baldric, Danny and Wilton decide to interrogate Doctor Ross and see if he knows anything about the clockwork men. Ross informs them that the life he creates have real organs, almost mocking their efforts and offering very little help to the three. He does speak in riddles to try and help the Detective, Crooner and Apprentice figure out the mystery-- however it is interrupted by a thud on the roof.

Erwin, Welty and Ben are investigating the front cart to make sure the driver is intact. Once arriving, they find a man wearing black leather armor and a mannequin styled helmet controlling the train. He throws a smoke stick down and attacks Ben while concealed. When the smoke clears up-- Welty and Erwin are left with a beat-up Ben. Lacking a driver Welty tells Ben to drive. Ben panics as he looks at all the buttons on the console. Welty starts reading manuals to Ben as he starts pushing buttons while Erwin runs back to check on the others.

Baldric and Danny head to the roof of the train to see what's happening while Wilton watches Doctor Ross. As the rain hits the roof of the train-- Baldric and Danny are met with a group of mannequin masked people similar to the one Welty and Erwin ran into. One Mannequin man has a pure white mask with a black crack beneath the eye. His armor more ornate. He greets Baldric as "Detective Dewurt" and claims to be a man named Synder, speaking through some sort of voice changer. Synder commands his men to attack the two. Baldric fires his crossbow trying to give Danny a window to get close while the two dodge crossbow fire. The fight is interrupted by an explosion in Ross' containment cart. Mannequin men hand a bound Ross over to Synder who then releases a parachute and drifts away with Ross in his grasp. Baldric, Danny and eventually Erwin easily best the henchmen-- though they leave one alive for questioning.

Wilton reveals that he was ambushed, feeling ashamed for being knocked out while trying to guard Ross. Through Baldric's intimidation, Erwin's diplomacy and Danny's charm-- the three manage to figure out that the group is called "The Sin Rosto." Wilton and Danny pocket masks and plan to investigate the group more once they are in Mirladris as they learn about a potential hideout/rendezvous point. Invested in the plot of the mysterious group that freed Ross, they had forgotten about the clockwork men. After fighting a group of them to get to the storage carts at the back of the train-- the group discovers a man with artificial flesh covering half his face-- the other half to be more intricate clock-work mechanisms. Without question Erwin throws a Molotov cocktail and burns the Clockwork man and the cart he is in.

Danny detaches the cart from the rest of the train. Baldric and Wilton manage to use Wilton's crossbow to make a makeshift grappling hook allowing the group to climb horizontally across. Erwin goes first and hope to help others get across, but is grappled by the torso of a Clockwork man. Though in a scuffle, he manage to throw the torso off the cart and onto the track-- getting crushed by the fiery carts his party is trying to escape. Baldric and Wilton make it across. Danny's foot gets grabbed by the flesh covered Clockwork man, but he uses a quick shot from his gun to shoot its hand off. The Grappling hook's line breaks, leaving Danny to jump back to the rest of the train. The four all sit in the cart's hallway as the train continues down the track.