Sad Men journal

Being the Journal of the Sad Men

Part the First: We Want Your Soul

Acting on Information Received from the usual Unimpeachable Source, Mr.Brummel proceeded to the address which was Vouchsafed to him by the Aforementioned Source;finding this to be an House of Ill Repute, he therewith mingled with the clientele and staff of this Establishment. At a certain hour, it was discovered that the girl known as Polly was dead, her Head removed most savagely from her shoulders by an Unknown Force, this being verified by a man of Medicine most conveniently on the premises. Mr. Brummel determined to use one of his totems in order to seal the building from the Outside World and thus prevent the egress of the monster contained within its walls whilst he hunted it down; finding his efforts severly hampered by the panic Engendered by these events, he disclosed some of his purpose to the Madame of the establishment and those amongst her customers who seemed the most capable of helping him. With these Reinforcments to his cause, Mr.Brummel was able to overcome the Beast (a common sathrolith) but, alas, not before it Completed a Summoning, causing five of its Superior Brethren to Manifest within the sealed edifice. Seeing no other option, Mr. Brummel reluctantly determined to use the people there present to Contain these Loathsome Presences lest they wreak havoc upon the Whole KIngdom; it is Most Fervently hoped that thie decision will prove to be the correct one, but only time will tell.

Part the Second: Yesterday, When I Was Mad

After removing any Evidence of a Disturbing Nature, Mr. Brummel took it upon himself to Forcibly Recruit those souls whose assistance had been Instrumental in overcoming the Beast which had Precipitated events in the Brothel; whereupon all returned to Mr. Brummel's quarters near the palace where an Explanation was offered. After some time adjusting to their new state of Existence, including the Purchasing of a new Wardrobe quite Hurriedly by Mr. Forrest (or whatever identity he has currently Assumed)who was in Dire Need of more Suitable attire, three of these souls were taken by Mr.Brummel to the Bethlehem Hospital, there to interview Mr.Billings about matters of which it was Presumed he may have an Inside Knowledge. Sadly, this interview was cut short by the arrival of 4 more Beasts within the Coridors of the Asylum, but working in Concert, Mr. Brummel's force was able to overcome them and,indeed, glean some Valuable intelligence from a conversation with one of them!

Part the Third: Devil's Haircut

Having succesfully dispatched 4 more of the Beasts, and therefore Prompting Mr. Brummel to pay out his promised Bounty of 10 Guineas for each one so executed, his Recruits to the Cause set about cleaning up the debris of their Encounter and removing any Disturbing Evidence lest it lead to further Questions of an Inconvenient Nature. In the process of this, the Fate of Mr. Billings was brought into question, but Mr. Brummel successfully argued for keeping him alive, on the grounds that, Firstly, the Beast within him known as 'Cleaver' might be persuaded to share its Knowledge with them and, Secondly, Mr. Billings seemed much Recovered from his experience and might be of use in himself in Fighting the machinations of the Beasts; the Inquiry has noted that, at this Juncture in time, Mr. Brummel still chose to keep Mr. Billings' true value to him a Secret from those he had Recruited. Returning to the residence, they therupon set about their own examination of the Remains they had Acquired and also looking for any News of an Unusual Nature which might further indicate the Presence of a Preternatural Influence; after some short time (the records of these Endeavours are somewhat Vague at this point, though it appears a handful of them may have left the Residence to attend to Matters at their own homes)a lead in the form of a Corpse was reported to them through Mr. Brummel's Source. Moving to investigate this, they Discovered a Mr. Greenleys, a senior clerk at the Davies Cloth weaving factory, whose upper & lower body were found separated from each other on opposite sides of a warehouse wall that very morning.

Part the Fourth: The Drugs Don't Work

The investigation into the mysterious death of Mr. Greenleys led Mr. Brummel's sad men to the home of his Widowed mother, who, after some Distress, was able to positively identify the body of her son; Mr. Forrest (or whomever this Individual may be) then conducted his own examination of the Corpse on Mr. Brummel's kitchen table and discovered a strange chemical present in his lungs. Upon asking for the aid of the Physician Royal, Mr. Brummel promised to obtain the services of a good doctor instead, thus averting the possibility of that Esteemed Individual from deducing that the sad men were in any way connected to the King. Even this expert was no further help in identifying the substance, but suggested a Mr. Burton, a barber-surgeon enjoying some success in the area of unorthodox illnesses and their treatment. It also transpired, from a chance remark from Mrs. Greenleys, that her son had been sufferring from a Condition that Sounded very much like the dreaded Consumption! His lungs, according to Mr. Forrester, however, bore no trace of the disease and even his mother stated that he seemed to be getting better; after a couple of visits to Mr. Burton and the Application of some incisive questioning, it was Ascertained that Mr. Burton had treated Mr. Greenleys, using some new Developments of his own, and had restored him to peak health. Silmultaneously, Mr. Thatcher attempted to study Mr. Burton's operating room whilst Mr. Forrest held his attention, but this was to no avail, as he woke up in an alley some 100 yards away 4 hours later, with no Memory of intervening Events, but Stinking of the still-unidentified Chemical. An experiment conducted at Mr. Forrest's home, with a tiny sample of the chemical and a rat, showed that it caused instant, deep sleep in whomsoever it was Administered to, during which, all gross physical ailments were wholly repaired! It may not be wise to make this substance more generally available, however, as that very night, the laboratory rat walked through the walls of Mr. Forrester's bedroom... followed by 4 strange men and Mr. Thatcher, all apparently Sonambulating and intent on murder!

Part the Fifth: Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap

Acting most swiftly, Mr. Forrest leapt from the window of his bed chamber in order to Elude his Persecutors, the Noise of his not inconsiderable Impact with the ground being sufficient to wake both Mr. Thatcher and Madame de Winter, the latter having remained in these more Salubrious surroundings, as opposed to the almost abbatoir-like conditions currently prevailing at Mr. Brummel's residence. Swiftly, with much shrewd determination and fisticuffs, 3 of the other intruders were dispatched and the final Awoken by the application of a loud noise; once roused, though confused, he was able to identify himself as a patient of Mr. Burton and provide them with the address of that gentleman's Domicile. A merry chase ensued, since it became readily apparent that Mr. Burton had Taken Leave of his home & offices in a hurry, but Mr. Thatcher's contacts in the London docks ascertained from whom Mr. Burton had purchased the neccessary vehicle to make good his escape and the direction in which he had fled. Apprehending the Miscreant near to a country smallholding, the sad men Questioned him, with Madame de Winter causing Mr. Burton to reveal his occult practices which led to his partnership with The Phantom, a Beast of some type who was responsible for the Mysterious Chemical and all its effects; at this point, The Phantom fled from its hiding place and flew to the farmstead. Dilligently, this Beast was followed there and the 3 inhabitants of the cottage were questioned and examined to determine which of them, if any, were now host to The Phantom!

Part the Sixth: Black Hole Sun

It appears that the sad men may have been Over-zealous in their Interrogation of their Subjeccts, since the Phantom readily identified itself by animating and Assaulting all those present with a Scarecrow! Fortunately, this lesser manifestation was quicly Dispatched and all returned to London with the pumpkinhead of the scarecrow as their Trophy; Mr. Brummel was able to use this item to Verify for the Inquiry the Truth of what had passed. At this point the Inquiry was dealing with Internal Matters, since despite the efforts of all involved, the Physicain Royal has somehow divined the King's true condition and demanded to be informed of what is happening; we have therefore Inducted him into the Committee and Trust that his Wisdom & Discretion will serve us well. We must also consider how trustworthhy Mr. Brummel and his sad men are, either separately or collectively; despite almost one full Year of Endeavour, Mr. Brummel has Failed to recruit more than 5 Effective Agents to assist him, despite many attempts to do so, and the agents he has Acquired are scarcely more than Vagabonds, Malcontents and Scoundrels! We suspect that they have taken Advantage of our Occupation with internal, administrative matters to seek out Answers to those Subjects which we have Veiled with misdirection and untruths; it appears that a gentleman known as Mr. Ophidian, a successful businessman, albeit one without Limbs, has employed them in a Disagreement with one of his rivals, promising them answers to their questions in return for this Service. The foe, a Beast called Moloch, is unlikely to be easily defeated, but Our greater concern is the open Display of metaphysical powers on the streets of London; if Mr. Brummel is to be believed (and he claims it is the King himself who tells him these things) this is the worst possible thing that could happen, far worse than Beasts consuming the flesh or our Fellow Men. We must now face the question of the King's health and, indeed, his sanity; can the Creature that dwells within him ever be truly contained or is there some way to eliminate it for good?

Part the Seventh: God Save the King, Pt.1 - Anarchy in the UK

I, Doctor Ernest Cole, Royal Physician, do Hereby record these words for Posterity in the hope that, as the last Surviving member of the Royal Inquiry panel, my record may Shed some Light for future Generations, if there be such, and aid them in Understanding the great changes which have come upon the world. My record begins from my Investiture into the Royal Inquiry, at which time, those termed 'Mr. Brummel's Sad Men', were in the process of discovering the Deceit they had been victim to, to whit, their Belief that they carried a Demonic Influence within their Breasts. Knowing now that the Voices they heard within their minds were naught but their own darker desires made Manifest, they pressed Mr. Brummel to reveal his other deceits to them, but I believe he would have continued to Lead them Astray, were it not for the lunatic Mr. Billings' returning clarity of mind: it was he who explained his own involvement in the ritual that opened the Door for these Beasts to pass through, and of the King's presence and subsequent possession by the foul entity which now Slumbers within him and gives him the Appearance of one in the grip of Madness. It also appears that another source, one which I am fearful to name, informed this group that Judgement Day was approaching! Caught between the extreme possibilities of an Earth-Made-Hell if the Beast within the King remains here and the sounding of Gabriel's Horn if it should awake, Mr. Billings determined on one last Effort to banish the King's Beast, though it would require the aid of all to overcome it in a battle of Wills. Sadly, at this point, those whom we had thought dead, Mr. Brummel's original assistants in this matter, Abruptly returned to our world, but now on the side of the Demons and confronted the Sad Men with an ulitmatum; join them in freeing the King's Beast or die...

Part the Eighth: God Save the King, Pt.2 - Its the End of the World as we Know it

I am grateful to Mr. Devereaux (or is it Forrest? The man seems strangely familiar...), Madame de Winter, Mr. Thatcher. Mr. Billings and the Reverend Rose for their own Recollections of the Events which passed on that last fateful day of the Old World; having confronted and Vaniqushed their corrupted Predecessors, though unfortunately not before the 7 other members of the Royal Inquiry panel had been executed in an act or revenge, the Sad Men thereupon went to the King's Residence, where Mr. Brummel had finally made it into the King's presence. Unknown to all at this time, however, the forces of Evil had played upon his loyalty and patriotism, leading him to resolve himself to an act of Regicide in order to save the Empire! This act was the fianl straw, causing as it did the King to ascend to a much higher Plane of Existence and Destroying the tattered remains of the Barrier which kept the Beast known as Legion in check! As promised, a phalanx of Angels arrived to proclaim Judgement Day, but even they too turned out to be on Legion's side, since they had Engineered his release so that he might break the Covenant and re-start the War between Heaven and Hell! With all seeming lost, it was the combined efforts of Mr. Billings and Madame de Winter in creating a powerful magical circle that allowed the Ascended King George III to return to our plane and fight Legion! Truly this was a sight to stir the hearts of Men all over the Capital, as the mighty figure of the King strode like a Behemoth towards Central London, there to engage in a battle of Metaphysical powers with the Accursed Beast! Bravely, Mr. Devereaux and Mr. Thatcher fought the Heavenly Host, causing them to take actions which were not wise; the shadowy figures which guard Hell's Gaol (I believe they are called 'Wardens') stepped out of the darkness and informed the Angels that were now subject to Infernal Law and all of them were quickly Dispatched to exile! In a last, desperate struggle, the sad men stood their ground against those Beasts which had thrown in their lot with Legion whilst the King created a new trap for that Foul Excrescence to moulder in, tearing up a part on London and wrapping around him; by their own admission, the Sad Men only just managed to escape this trap and allow the King the Grace to leave, by distracting Legion with an Assault on it's being at the precise moment in which it might otherwise have esacped or ensnared the King. After this, I was able to contact these Heroes, who now held a Royal Charter granting them Discretionary funds with which they were to fight whatever Metaphysical menaces the Empire may face in the future; the King, it appears, is not to return to us, he has chosen to sacrifice his happiness for the Good of his Kingdom and remains outside our world to Defend it against the greater forces which we now know to exist. The fate of Mr. Brummel remains a Mystery; it is supposed that Legion slew him after manifesting in the King's sick room, but what beacme of his body? Did Legion destroy him utterly? Or did he too ascend to a higher plane? In either case, his Fate is not one that Sane men would wish to contemplate...