Mystery of Hyde Manor, Part II

**Mystery of Hyde Manor, Part II: Jackal and Hyde** is the tenth episode of *Violent Hearts: A Western Epic* season two, the fourth part of the El Camino Chapter, and the twentieth episode overall.

## Summary

Terminus XXII. The group has reconvened in the manor's trophy room, intent on returning here if anything goes awry. While the group loots desired valuables, Leonora and Roso head to the library as per Gwen's instructions. While travelling, Nora sees the reflection of something moving in a nearby suit of armor, but nothing seems amiss. The others in the trophy room then split up to continue exploration of the manor. Gwen, Frankie, and Dorian head to join Nora and Roso. Adam, Kinta, and Koda reunite and head back upstairs to finish their exploration.

### The Library

Gwen, Frankie, and Dorian find Roso guarding the library's door. Inside, Nora is searching for a book on demon pacts. Gwen and Frankie then begin searching the library for books that have any information on the Confederate States of Amadea or the War Between the States. The group's interest in books wear on Roso's patience, and he storms off with Clementine to the foyer.

After Roso's departure, the group decides to finish up in the library and head down the Left Hall. After investigating several unopened doors with no incident, Gwen leads the group to a door at the end of the hall. Upon opening it, the room is revealed to be the manor's conservatory. The group explores the room of long-dead plant life. Nora finds a strange berry and pockets it. While investigating, Gwen sees movement in the conservatory's window reflections, and is spooked. In response, she hastily leads the group out and through the doors of the dining room. There the four see that a chandelier has collapsed onto the dining table. As they begin to explore the room, Frankie feels a strong grip on his shoulder, and is abruptly pulled backwards and dragged down the hall. Though he grips the doorframe, it is no match for the unseen entity. The group hears the doorframe break and turn, just in time to see Frankie being dragged around the corner back down the Hall. The group run after him.

### The Storage Closet

Adam, Kinta, and Koda decide to investigate a door they had not previously. Adam attempts to open the door, but something on the other side is barricading it shut. Kinta reflexively casts 'Eldritch Blast' at the door, and instantly disintegrates it. As the smoke clears, Adam enters the closet but hits his toe on seemingly the object barricading the door -- an old chest. Adam attempts to open it, but fails. He resorts to bashing the chest with the butt of his rifle, but it remains locked. Suddenly, Roso and Clementine appear from behind the group, causing Koda to jump back in fear.

Kinta, bent on opening the chest, casts yet another 'Eldritch Blast'. Just as the blast is about to strike the object, it suddenly is reflected back and strikes Kinta in the center of the chest -- sending her flying back several feet, knocked down. Roso, seemingly believing that the three are incompetent, attempts to pick the chest's lock. He fails. Adam and Kinta begin exploring the rest of the closet while Roso fiddles with the chest, and the two find a chained coffin beneath a stack of crates. While the group is fiddling in the closet, Koda sees a ghost, and promptly points it out to the group. Looking up, Kinta and Roso catch a glimpse of the Ghost of Hyde Manor moving towards unopened double doors. Roso, fed up with the chest, lifts it despite its weight, and chucks it down into the foyer. Unexpectedly, the chest breaks through the floorboards of the first floor and crashes into the wine cellar -- still intact. Meanwhile, Adam and Kinta drag the coffin out from the closet and into the hall. Seemingly bothered by the movement, an unknown entity from within begins banging on the inside and moving about. As the four decide what they wish to do with the coffin, they see Frankie fly across the foyer and land near the hole that the chest made. Soon thereafter, the group on the first floor follow suit, prompting those upstairs to reconvene in the foyer.

### The Chandelier

The group gathers around the prone Frankie except for Nora, who is attempting to search for the unknown entity that dragged Frankie through the hall. As everyone besides her crowd around Frankie, a snap is heard and the large glass chandelier hanging over the foyer falls. The group scatters, with Frankie miraculously being the first to spring out of the falling chandelier's path. Koda, however, trips in the chaos, and the chandelier crashes down directly on top of him, plunging him through the floorboards. With Koda pinned beneath it, the chandelier shatters on the floor of the wine cellar. As the dust settles, the group sees what has happened. Frankie and Gwen scramble down the hole created by the crash, and desperately work to free Koda from the mountain of glass shards and twisted metal covering his body.

Believing this to be the work of the Ghost of Hyde Manor, Dorian calls out for the Ghost to explain itself. As if responding, suddenly an ethereal visage of a man appears at the top of the grand staircase. The Ghost wears what appears to be a Confederate uniform. It appears to then direct the group towards an unexplored room on the second floor. Meanwhile, Frankie and Gwen manage to free Koda and bring him back up to the first floor. Koda's arm is broken, and he is covered in various cuts. He has a particularly nasty puncture wound, though most of the damage is mitigated by the thickness of his winter coat.

The group follows Dorian upstairs, while Frankie stays with an unconscious Koda in the damaged foyer. Dorian opens the double doors that the Ghost of Hyde Manor passed through, revealing the master bedroom. Those upstairs, besides Roso and Clementine, then enter the bedroom and investigate. Nora finds an old revolver under the bed, while Gwen finds several items -- most notably a strange, black mirror shard; the Deed to Hyde Manor; a photograph of Elijah Hyde III and Cordelia Hyde; and a book named *Die Geheimnisse*. Gwen comments on how the Ghost has a very similar appearance to Elijah Hyde in the photo. Downstairs, Koda comes to, but is notably less talkative and reactive than normal.

The group reunites afterwards, back on the second floor. There, the group decides what to do next. Adam, Roso, Nora, Kinta, Frankie, and Koda will explore the rest of the second floor. Gwen, however, departs from the main group to do something. Dorian, suspicious, decides to go with her. The two then head back down into the foyer, and turn into the Right Hall.

### The Coffin

The main group opens the door to the male servants' quarters. Adam finds a single consecrated revolver round in a crate, and Roso finds a rather dapper cavalier hat. Heading back into the main area of the second floor, they, besides Nora, decide what to do next. Still in the room, Nora looks into a mirror hanging on the wall, and sees a large slender creature looking at her from a corner. She turns, and sees nothing standing where she saw it in the reflection. She looks back, and sees nothing in the reflection. Unnerved, Nora quickly rejoins the group. Roso causes the coffin to fall down the staircase, then expresses interest in going back to the main room. The rest of the group, however, crowds around the coffin wishing to open it. This prompts Roso to reluctantly stay and see the coffin through.

After all agreeing that it should be opened, Adam takes aim and breaks the chain. The chain then quickly unravels over the coffin's lid. Suddenly, the lid flies off and a decrepit vampire crawls out and hisses. The vampire, unbeknownst to the group, is Elijah Hyde I. Expecting the creature within to attack, Roso fires his gun at the unholy monster. The bullet, however, misses, and the creature leaps at Kinta. At the same time, Frankie leads Koda around the corner into the Left Hall, and remains in a defense position in case the vampire comes for his wounded friend. Kinta sustains a grievous slash as the vampire claws at her and grabs her. Roso rushes over and grapples the vampire, freeing Kinta from its undead grip. Clementine runs over and begins to violently bite at the vampire.

Kinta, while clutching at her wounds, uses magic to heat the metal framing of the vampire's amulet, causing it to burn its pale flesh. Adam, not wanting to accidentally shoot Roso, then runs up and begins slashing the vampire with a hunting knife. The vampire attempts to free itself, but Roso's size and strength are too much for it. He then slams the vampire to the ground and places a knee on its back to keep it pinned. Clementine savagely bites one of the vampire's legs. Weakening from the constant onslaught, the vampire fails to break free of the pergrando's hold. Knowing this is his chance, Roso lifts his machete into the air, and decapitates the creature of the night in one chop. The head rolls through the hole in the floor. Roso rises off the cadaver, and throws the body down into the wine cellar -- impaling it on the twisted metal of the chandelier.

Nora searches the inside of the coffin, and finds a key. The group immediately realizes it could be the key to the chest, and Nora descends into the wine cellar to unlock it. Roso realizes that the amulet the vampire is wearing contains a highly coveted black sapphire, and jumps down as well to recover it. Upon opening the chest, Nora sees that it contains three gold bars, a stack of cash, and a strange dagger. Roso pockets the dagger and black sapphire, and takes the chest up to the first floor.

### Gwen and Dorian

Gwen and Dorian venture through the Right Hall, ensuring that everything has been thoroughly explored. After looking through the kitchen, they find themselves at a locked pair of doors. Lockpicking them open, Gwen reveals the entry way into the wine cellar. The two descend while conversing and begin to slowly explore the labyrinthine rows of wine racks, barrels, and other clutter. Coming to a large pile of stacked wine barrels, Gwen dislodges them, and they immediately roll out of the way, revealing a door to the south. Upon entering through, Gwen and Dorian find the area where wine is made. More importantly, a large cave opens up on the other side of the room. Nearby debris implies the cave was not originally there. As the two walk past the pigeage vat, they both see the tall slender, shadowy creature that Gwen has seen in reflections previously. Dorian slowly looks up to where the creature would be standing according to the reflection, and sees nothing. The glowing eyes of the entity somehow stares into both of their souls, despite simply looking directly into the reflection. Suddenly, the vat is torn to shreds as the creature apparently begins its attack. Gwen flees forward into the cave, seeing the creature in the reflections in the flood of wine. Dorian pulls out his machete and hops backwards. The two then quickly run down into the dark cave, not knowing where they will end up.

Eventually, the cave opens up into a stone room, and the two run up stairs to a stone door. Gwen pushes on it with all her strength, causing it to swing open and both falling into the mud outside. They realize they are in a family graveyard just outside of the manor, and that they exited through the mausoleum. They scramble up and force the stone door open, not knowing if the creature is still pursuing them. After several moments of nothing, the two then slowly start looking at the graves. They discover a variety of names, including Elijah Hyde I and Cordelia Hyde. They also find a grave between them with a teddy bear labeled as Edgar Hyde. Shortly thereafter, the stone door to the mausoleum flies off of its hinges and lands over ten feet away. Both Gwen and Dorian instinctively hide behind the tombs, and watch as footprints in the mud wander out of the mausoleum. The opaque reflection in the mud and the shape of the rain hitting the unseen creature reveal it is indeed the Jackal that is still chasing them.

After several moments of aimlessly wandering forward, the Jackal turns toward Dorian's position and begins to run directly at him. Realizing their cover has been blown, the two scramble out of the graveyard and towards the manor's backside. Seeing the porch, they run up the stairs and enter the dining room, slamming the doors behind them. They then run as fast as possible down the Right Hall and find that the group is gathered around an empty coffin.

### Beginning of the End

Both groups swap their experiences, and now the group is aware that the Jackal is real and that it has been stalking the manor the entire time. Unsure of what to do next, Dorian attempts to call out to the Ghost again. However, he takes notice to Koda's unusual demeanor, and realizes that the Ghost of Hyde Manor has possessed him. Koda then directs the group to the spiral staircase on the second floor, and promptly falls unconscious. The Ghost then appears in front of Koda's body, and stands still, pointing up to the spiral staircase, before finally disappearing from view. Dorian reluctantly then leads the group upstairs, and Dorian takes the first steps up the spiral staircase, not knowing what waits for them on the third floor.

## Characters

### Protagonists

* **Adam Andrews**
* **Roso Blackhide**
* **Gwendolyn S. Blackwood**
* **Amaru Dorian**
* **Kinta Gardner**
* **Frankie Mitchels**
* **Leonora Ryder**

### Antagonists

* **The Jackal**
* **Elijah Hyde I** (First and only appearance)

### Major Characters

* **Clementine**
* **Koda**

### Minor Characters

* **Elijah Hyde III** as **The Ghost of Hyde Manor**

## Trivia

* This is the second part of the Violent Hearts 2019 Halloween Special.
* The subtitle of the episode, "Jackal and Hyde" is a direct reference to the novel *The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde*.
* This episode notably lacks the opening credits, which are instead replaced with the ominous sound of a grandfather clock.
* One of the books that Gwen finds is named *We Who Endeavor*, which is in reference to the D&D Homebrew that Amadeus created several years prior to *Violent Hearts*.