From out of the shadows, it shambles towards you: a bloody, twisted parody of a man. Its right arm flails madly about, bent at impossible angles and sporting extra joints where none should exist. In place of a proper head, an elongated muscular neck, terminating in a gore-splattered, guillotine-shaped blade, swings blindly back-and-forth like a pendulum. As the creature's convulsive steps bring it ever closer, you can only goggle in paralyzed horror as said neck slowly begins to split apart along a vertical seam, revealing a three-foot-long, tooth-lined maw. Just before those terrible, gaping jaws close around your flesh and cease your thoughts forever, you silently wish that you had never returned to this accursed town . . .
Schisms, with their mismatched arms and bisecting heads, may be thought to represent duality (in fact, a "Split Personality" achievement is awarded, in-game, the first time you defeat one). In the twisted 'Otherworld' incarnation of the Shepherd home, three Schisms are used as monstrous proxies of Alex's father (an aggressive specimen that immediately attacks), mother (a lethargic/despondent creature that lies unresponsive on the floor), and younger brother (a pathetic thing that cowers/hides in a corner, whimpering). Further, a fourth, decapitated Schism, found in the Shepherd patriarch's hunting room in the basement, is believed by some to be an avatar of Alex himself (either as foreshadowing of his cult sacrifice or possibly as a reference to the lobotomy he receives in the 'Hospital' ending). Materials:
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For comparison/informational purposes, below are some relevant images:
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