Jonas Lang was always attracted to power, even though it was denied to him. The fourth son of a wealthy family, he stood to inherit nothing, and at best he could become a steward in his brother’s employ. Though bereft of an inheritance, the Lang name was strong enough to keep him in good standing with his wealthy and powerful peers, and during his childhood he acquired a taste for the decadent. As he grew older, he hoped to secure a place in the Todbringer Court, but his parents had other ideas. Sensing a corrupt bent to his character, they sent him to the temple of Ulric to train as a priest.[1a]
It was clear from the outset that Lang was no man of piety. He lacked commitment and dedication to the central tenets of the faith, but the Lang family demanded the young man remain in training, and to ensure the youth’s success, the cult put the young man under the High Priest Claus Liebnitz’ care. Liebnitz, who had no use for such a worthless apprentice, rarely communicated with Lang, and when he did, it was merely to instruct the initiate to read certain passages in Ulric’s sacred scrolls.[1a]
Liebnitz’ disinterest allowed Lang to pursue his own goals, mainly whetting his appetites for food, drink, and women. And as long as Liebnitz remained as a distant mentor, Lang could do as he liked. But one day word reached him that Liebnitz was dead, revealed to be a traitor to Ulric, the cult, and the Empire. He realized his long vacation was at an end, so he had one final indulgence, sampling countless dishes and drinks, and enjoyed the company of many companions of loose morals.[1a]
Sated, he returned to his apartments to sleep off his excess, but his respite would be brief. Soon after he nodded off, he awoke suddenly, his stomach roiling with pain. Thinking the ailment was caused by his night’s adventures, he emptied his stomach in the chamber pot, but the pain continued. Finally, he lifted his robe to peer at his abdomen, and to his horror he saw his flesh bubbling, forming some awful mutation, which Lang was certain would grant him a place on a witch pyre.[1a]
He fell over in a faint, and suffered strange dreams that featured some creature ranting that it was the soul of his master, Liebnitz, and that something called the Red Flayer had granted him eternal life. Lang awoke screaming, his guts roiling in agony. He pulled up his shirt to see the face of his former master pushing against the skin of his belly. Lang shrieked and shrieked, his mind withering as his skin rebelled against him becoming a tool for the damned. After three days of horrific mutations, the thing inside him was finished growing, attaining a partial arm and a fully formed head.[1a]
When Lang was lucid enough, the creature calmed the young man with soothing words, somehow convincing Lang not to cut out the corruption himself. Liebnitz explained he was promised a new body, not to share one with another. In any event, Liebnitz demanded Lang help him complete his master’s work and perhaps, as a reward, the Red Flayer would separate them once more. Lang, being quite mad by now, nodded enthusiastically. A few days later Lang was lucid enough to move, and concealing the parasite that had taken over his body with loose robes, set out to find the “cure” for his woes.[1a]
Lang is in his early twenties, with long greasy brown hair and a waxy pallor. His recent experiences have left him crazed and his moods swing from gibbering fear and depression to wild enthusiasm. He wears long black robes slit in the front, allowing Liebnitz to see.[1b]
Being nothing more than a contorted bald head and a mostly useless arm, only those who knew Liebnitz in life recognize the mutated growth on Lang’s abdomen. Liebnitz has given up the will to live and simply wants death—a death at the Red Flayer’s claws.[1b]