Mazhivada was right. Not only about the migraine, but also how long it lasted. Perhaps it was a simple prediction due to something I ate, combined with the lack of good sleep and eye strain. It was an ocular migraine, after all. But, if he was right about this, then what about Haruto? What about... Everything else? Guess we shall see.
Anton… I talked with him about what he wrote. Nothing about it will be in the report. I have told him to keep the damn theory-mongering to himself. The Rapunzel analog was one thing, but the entire idea of the Wrath being a redeemable figure? Nonsense. He refuses to explain the supposed "truth"? Fine, Anton doesn’t want to be honest? Then he sure as shit ain’t getting this privilege again.
And again, what in the world is he talking about concerning my name? My name is Thaddeus Wilbur Barnum. That is all it is, damn it!
Though he is right about one thing: these conversations with Mazhivada need to be kept from the Bulls. No point, given that they wouldn't believe it. And if they did? I think they would force me into their damn cult. Might be forced to visit that abominable island and "indulge" in their depravities.
No matter. Duncan or Chizuki would be better substitutes. At least they won’t manifest some ridiculous dreamland about the savages being noble. He even admitted that this “Casimir” has killed more than anyone else. What other evidence could be needed to paint that watcher as a defiler alongside the rest?
I am joyous thou hast embraced that verity. "Casimir" is his appellation now; it is appropriate, meaning "destroyer of peace". Though names he doth choose, he cannot flee his love innate for violence. Each horn of his sable ivory crown doth signify a billion sins upon his name.
It makes perfect sense now. He was at fault for everything, wasn’t he? The violations of the watchers, the Fall of Eden, the eruption of Toba… All of it and more was due to his influence. He was the scapegoat for a reason… Damn him forever for what he hath sown upon this once hallowed ground.
Fortunate art thou to discover such wisdom and understanding, for its acquisition doth surpass the worth of silver, and its endowment doth exceed that of gold. May fair fortune attend thee when the bough breaks upon thy coming revelations.
Notes:
The first two deities are extremely similar to certain cryptids, of both ancient mythology and modern folklore. As such, Tim will be a useful resource for much of this.
The symbols are present on the bottom left.
Description:
-Appearance:
A wendigo and snallygaster combined into one of the more grotesque deities I have ever seen. Take the overall body structure of a wendigo (exposed ribs, distorted musculature, long limbs, and a deer skull head) and add common descriptors of a snallygaster (cyclopean, scaled tail, and wings), alongside other intriguing augmentations.
-Eye:
Cyclopean, white, and blinding starlight with orange, bloodshot capillaries pulsing within the sclera. At the star's poles, beams of orange light erupted. The iris is a crimson slit, not unlike the eyes of certain vipers.
-Color Palette:
Pale white, crimson, tan, gold, black, and gray.
-Animal/Cryptid Associations:
Wendigo (corruption, greed, and hunger), snallygaster (fear of the unknown, ambiguity, and mockery), coyotes (adaptability, cunning, and duality), moose (the untamed wild, strength, and endurance), and, with Gaston’s confirmation, gila monsters (renewal, transformation, and survival).
A rather dense symbolic lineup, I will say. Paints this deity as an apex hunter and survivor.
-Traits:
The tail was that of a gila monster, thick and stout. At the end of the tail were five bony thagomizers, each about eight inches long, if assuming this deity was twelve feet tall.
The right hand was raised to the sky, towards a ghostly entity that I shall describe in the notes section, for it relies too much on additional resources.
From the mouth erupted five tongues shaped like tentacles without suction cups. Each one oozed an orange bile, presumably venom. They each appeared to embody some kind of symbology. I shall explore what these could represent in the notes. But regarding their actual description, they are as follows, from left to right. The first had rotten boils of green and black pus; the next was seared with black and brown, with small chunks of it bitten out; the middle one was a spiral with piercing shark teeth jutting into its own flesh; the second to last appeared cracked and ossified, as if Medusa glared at it; the last one was relatively normal at first, but it transfigured downward into a more alien form until it reached an angler-fish like lure, illuminating the same light as the cyclopean eye.
The head is that of a deer skull (likely a moose), but cyclopean. There are also two wide moose antlers, which were blood red; the latter coloration is a natural process that occurs as a result of deer shedding their antlers... Velvet shedding, if I recall right. Though I am certain that this wendigo's antlers are permanently that color.
Interestingly, the skull and all the other bare bones (rib cage, sternum, spined elbows and knees, and thagomizers) were a matte black coloration, with sporadic white streaks. As per Dakota’s suggestion, the bones appear like black tourmaline. This is a type of magnetic gemstone that is often used as a protective charm against negative emotions and harmful rays (for what that’s worth).
He is bound unto the feasting of torment. His magnetism can rend all weary souls who gaze upon him into mere motes, and his very brood doth sustain him. Thy sheep doth name him "Star of God," yet surely, the Father of Monsters is more than a mere . He is the fiend lurking 'neath beds and in closets dim. He is the beast haunting the depths of lakes and oceans. He is the monster scheming in kingdoms where light hath no authority. He doth glut his being upon the rending of atoms, as if they were but morsels of flesh.
“Star of God”... Kokabiel? He taught astrology within the Apocrypha, a text that appears more and more like nonsense the more I talk with you. What did he teach, then?
Kojevyl, and those three of that same cornerstone, be they who didst bring four dreads unto mankind. Kojevyl didst reveal unto them the titans beyond thy world; cosmic monstrosities capable of devouring whole systems, launching plasmic javelins of death, radiating a field to render subatomic motes into dust, and converting thy marrow into a sludge of strange matter. For he didst bringeth fear unto mankind, and thus he is all known horrors. Doth such not fascinate thee?
What the giants and their progenitors were capable of orchestrating?
Incredible… You knew all of this, while God seeks to keep it away from us. Why would He keep us in the dark about these monstrosities? About everything else? Perhaps, as with many things He has done, it is absolutely intentional… To keep us down. For what benefit does that give Him? Why stagnate when progress could be made?
I think I am starting to understand now, Mazhivada, why you call him the Fool.
Once ye discern the Fool's charade, why forbear to scorn thine own being? When thou, thyself, mightst forge a grander design? I bestow upon thee praise. Henceforth, we are consorts in this venture; now within my service, my very architecture. Let this be thine introduction into our creed: to consume the stars, we must surpass them all.
—
The spined elbows and knees almost appear like monoliths that siphon the fear from around Kojevyl. An inverse worship that is still worship. To fear a god is to still kneel to him.
The bare skin is scaled like that of an albino gila monster, being pale and gold. Despite these scales, the pale-colored skin was partly translucent, making the blue veins visible.
The fur was specifically present around the neck (appearing much like a scraggly, matted mane and cloak), much of the chest, the entirety of the back (presumably), the thighs, parts of the wings, and the upper part of the tail. Per Gaston and Mariah, the fur itself is that of coyotes (due to the patterns and coloration being gray, tan, and white), and is mostly weathered and matted. Tim gave the remark that the matting is fairly similar to the Chupacabra, though he retracted this statement once he bore witness to the next deity.
The blood splatters and splotches almost appear like warpaint patterns upon his scales. For those blood stains never rot. Never age. Never wither. His hunger for blood is eternal, is it not?
The bat-like wings possess both scales and fur. The fur resides upon the humerus and coracoids, while the scales are present on the forearms and fingers. The membranes were translucent gold.
The hands ended in talons in the same color as the antlers; each one was about as long as each respective finger.
The legs were digitigrade, like a combination of a moose and a werewolf (relatively similar in structure to the typical wendigo). Beyond that, the thighs had coyote fur on them, while the lower legs and feet were scaled. Large, moose-like hooves jut from the end of the feet, sharpened like the talons of a wolf.
Around him were approximately twenty coyotes, each glaring with crimson eyes towards those who viewed them, as if sating their existence upon being witnessed. Behind him, there were hot springs, geysers, and pine trees. Beneath him was a deep trench of orange, presumably magma…
And… Well, I could hardly believe my own eyes when I saw it. I called Tim over when we were in the Deisphere earlier today, and to my astonishment, he confirmed that on the left shoulder of Kojevyl, just as Tim's neighbors described, was a house-cat-sized griffin. It had the head of a cat with a raven beak and baby blue marbles for eyes. The wings were those of ravens (proportionally similar to typical griffin depictions), the house cat's tail ended with five black tail feathers, and the paws were replaced with the feet of ravens. The imp was colored dark violet, with accents of hazel and pumpernickel.
Another hybrid, I assume. While Tim was having a hot-breath samba about the reality of a cryptid entity, I was dabbling about what this creature’s purpose was. Why would the Father of Monsters create a hybrid that is… Relatively normal by comparison?
Doth not a termite hivemind threaten to devour the bedrock of a keep? The odeen were Kojevyl's common opus, their utility a collective guile on a miniature scale. Their targets are driven to existential dread as homely objects shift or vanish, often replaced by apparitions.
The “odeen”... Sounds similar to “Odin”, which is reinforced by the ravens and the fact that Kojevyl only has one eye. Am I right to assume the connection is there?
Nay, squander thy vigor, for the ravens and singular eyes be tokens shared 'twixt them, and naught more.
I see... Is there a deity that is Odin within this pantheon?
There be but one, and anon shall we descry him.
I will keep an eye out…
Symbols:
-Alchemical: []
This is most certainly a magnetar, for I have seen renditions of such an object before. They are neutron stars that radiate magnetic fields that are a thousand to a quadrillion times more powerful than Earth’s. This is no exaggeration, for to get close enough to one would disintegrate you entirely, as the star would rip out every single electron in your body.
The alchemical symbol itself is that of the sun (☉) with two vortexes emanating from the poles. This offers links to enlightenment, transformation, and divinity.
I doubt the symbol is specifically a magnetar, as I assume that this is a representation of magnetism as a whole. This emblem might thus characterize traits like attraction, bonding, inevitability, and guidance. Given Kojevyl’s connection to this symbol, I imagine it also represents hunger and the cosmos… Wait a moment.
Mazhivada, this Kojevyl deity represents fear. How is this different from that jellyfish-eyeball entity?
An astute question. Kojevyl and the bloom of this cosmos do represent two spheres of horror. Kojevyl doth embody the existent fears that torment the universe. The bloom, however? That springs purely from forms beyond knowing, be it through limits of perception or the dictates of cosmic law. Not that they break these laws; nay, they are not bound by them. In sooth, they art the dread of the unknowable, not just the unknown.
How fitting for that deity to be in the throng of Casimir, then.
Indeed.
-Icon:
Kojevyl held in his left hand, raised to his shoulder, an object similar in fashion to a hypnotic charm. But the “charm” was a dream catcher, or at the very least, it looked like one. Based on Mariah’s notes, a dream catcher originates from the Ojibwe people of the Great Lakes region. Corresponding with Tim reveals that, traditionally, dream catchers are not linked to wendigos directly.
They both originate from Algonquin-speaking peoples. The wendigo is broadly associated with the entire Algonquin group, while dream catchers originate from the Ojibwe, as I stated. From a symbolic perspective, this is about as oxymoronic as you can get. Dream catchers are said to absorb bad dreams, which are then destroyed by the morning light. Wendigos are synonymous with fear, greed, and cannibalism, which would certainly inspire nightmares in people. After a few more moments of contemplation, a thought occurred to me.
The magnetism and horror that Kojevyl is associated with imply that he literally attracts and subsequently devours fear. The dream catcher consumes nightmares, which are then devoured by starlight… starlight. His eye is a cosmic monster, the dream catcher absorbs fear…
Kojevyl is a genius… He creates the fears and then sustains them with the methods that secretly make them real. Dream catchers don’t eliminate nightmares; they give them away to the monsters. It is pure parasitism. The shamans create the dream catchers that devour the nightmares, and the monsters don’t have to hunt. All they have to do is go to a dream catcher to have their fill. Monsters only continue to be fed because of fear… And there will be no universe where fear does not exist.
The hypnosis angle also makes sense from this perspective. If people are induced into relying on the talisman to catch their fears instead of outright removing them, then that would sustain the monsters further. Again, quite a brilliant scheme.
Location:
195 degrees.
Domains:
Kojevyl is the god of monstrosities, perceivable fears, magnetism, and hunger. He is also likely associated with cannibalism, trickery, hypnosis, dreams/nightmares, and carnage.
Speculation:
The wendigo link is symbolically intricate to this deity, but the snallygaster connection is less concrete. Logical, yes, but there is surely more to the story of this depiction.
According to Tim, the snallygaster is a Maryland-based monster whose origins are from German immigrants reporting a “schnelle geist”, or “fast ghost”. It was described as a dragon-like creature that hunted livestock and people from the South Mountain range (the northern extension of the Blue Ridge Mountains), emanating a locomotive-like whistle while doing so. Frederick County sensationalized the story into a complete hoax. The attention got so widespread that Theodore Roosevelt apparently was going to suspend a safari just to hunt the creature.
After I gave my own interpretations, specifically of the charm, he linked the potential narrative construction of fear with the hoax construction from Frederick County. The idea that they created a fake monster to generate some sort of benefit for themselves certainly sounds similar to the fear narrative Kojevyl constructed… It is not a substantial link, but it is something, at the very least.
Additional Notes:
Note 1:
The wendigo is described as a cannibalistic monster that is meant to serve as a warning to never venture into specific taboos, such as greed and cannibalism. In some tales, the wendigo is described as originating from a spirit that inhabits the bodies of men, while in others, it is a transformation that occurs as a result of one consuming human flesh.
How appropriate for Kojevyl to embody an alteration of such a legend.
[Note to self: add the future descriptors of cryptids to the “animal associations” section of the remaining deities, along with those for the official report.]
Note 2:
The five tongues are likely representations of the five primal fears in mankind. After discussing this with Judith and Tim, they both agreed with this sentiment and added commentary regarding the appearance of each tongue and what fear they correspond to.
Rotten:
This represents the fear of extinction, which includes death, but also the inevitability of endings, and the idea of ceasing to be. It is inherent to our survival to be against this fear, for to succumb to it would be to end our own perceptions of reality, as we can discern it. Common manifestations include the fear of darkness, death, and unfamiliar situations.
Seared:
More likely than not, this tongue represents the fear of mutilation, which involves being injured, hunted, or otherwise harmed. To be harmed is to increase the likelihood of dying, which loops back to the previous primal fear. It is present in phobias related to surgeries, animals, and pain.
Ossified:
This one was more difficult to formulate, though we suspect that this represents the fear of losing autonomy, where one’s own existence is not judged by one's own choices. Where they cannot do anything, like being trapped, immobilized, or enslaved, whether by their own hand or by the hand of greater society. To be unable to act will often result in one's not being able to fight or flee from a situation that might harm or kill them. Fears that embody this often involve paralysis, restraint, and confinement.
Lure:
We can only suspect that this tongue represents the fear of isolation, symbolizing the downward slope one goes through without contact with another being. Due to humans being social creatures, being left out of a greater society would decrease anyone's chances of survival. This is often seen with fears that involve concepts like failure, grief, and abandonment.
Spiral teeth:
That leaves the middle tongue to symbolize the fear of your identity being rejected by society. This is logical, given that the idea of not being enough, being worthless, being shameful, or being humiliated often can cause the deepest wounds within an individual, including those orchestrated by their own thoughts. The manifestations of this fear include insanity, humiliation, and shame.
And Kojevyl feeds on all of these. But, given that he represents fears that are perceivable, that must mean that he does not devour the unknowable ones. This is different from the fear of the unknown, as Mazhivada described, as the unknown is what we don’t currently understand. The fear of the unknowable is what we understand due to our own limitations. We make stories about what we see in the universe. We may not understand how the cosmos works, but we will formulate some mechanism to explain it in terms we understand until we discern its mechanism.
But the sixth tongue of the unknowable? Why would we create stories concerning such things when we cannot even perceive them? We might know that they exist now, but we have no scrap of an idea as to what they truly are. That is the unknowable, and it reflects our own small states within the whole of everything.
That is the fear of being insignificant. A tongue cannot feed that which cannot understand what it is. That is why the jellyfish is its own representation: for it is ontological fear, representing what is beyond our comprehension forevermore.
Note 3:
Hovering above Kojevyl was a colossal white, serpentine creature with a giant red eyeball with a black iris at the center of its mouth-like formation. If I had to guess the length of the body, it was easily eight dozen feet long and was segmented like a centipede. It possessed three mandibles in the shape of the jawbones of whales, each bending with added joints and lined with hundreds of barbed teeth, in rows like a shark. Its eye was a spherical crimson mass, similar to that of the stone Moloch held, come to think of it. It had streaks of pink waves swirling through it, and the black iris was a hopeless abyss. The coil was arrayed in titanic scutes in a triangular formation down the body, all the way down to the tail. The tail ended with a three-pronged hook-like ornament, as if they were its tethers to the sky. Lastly, emanating from its body were twenty-four wings, seemingly from colossal ospreys.
Tim recognized the creature after some consideration, identifying it as something very similar to the Crawfordsville Monster of 1891.
The legend concerns how the people of Crawfordsville, Indiana, reportedly saw an eighteen-foot-long mass of white with a red sphere at its center, hovering about in the sky. Observers were reported to feel great dread upon seeing this object, as it wheezed while squirming as if it were in agony. The official story involves a flock of killdeer, which are large plovers, that were disoriented by the newly installed lights in the city.
Some theorize that the entity was a UFO, which, if true, would make it one of the earliest of the more fantastical sightings we have seen.
But what is the truth, Mazhivada?
Behold, the Conductor, first amongst the monsters forged in Zarkhani. It didst wend in the heavens over Indiana in those days, whilst preparing the puncture point for our future dimyonaut.
The dimyonaut? So that’s what you will call that poor sod who will get entangled in all this. Do you know who they are?
We hold some potentialities to be prime suspects in Elkhart, mostly depraved cowards driven by carnal lust. It is not fate to be any one of these wretches. For Lehitadam? Naught doth matter save a warm body whose spirit will pass yon side.
So that’s why they are doing all that in Elkhart… Still, I have to ask, what is Lehitadam?
My own transcendence. That is all thou needest to understand now.
Description:
-Appearance:
A titanic, emaciated caniform and marsupial-like creature with heavy matting, plentiful scars, massive fangs, and blood oozing out of every orifice. Lining its back were four increasingly abominable faces.
-Eyes:
Glowing, bloodshot, deep, rancid yellow windows of madness with red pupils.
-Color Palette:
Aquamarine fur, dark brown skin, along with accents of black, white, crimson, yellow, orange, and green.
The author's narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.
-Animal/Cryptid Associations:
Chupacabras (anxieties, otherness, and forces that drain societies), ahuizotls (unpredictability, the dangers of water, and divine dualism), bears (resilience, strength, and inner reflection), opossums (trickery, survival, and transformation), wolves (the untamed, freedom, and greed), and bats (the supernatural, darkness, and vampirism).
Tim, through his notes, also added vampires (forbidden nature, vice, and the allure of immortality) and werewolves (conflict between civility & the state of nature, uncontrollable instincts, and moral duality).
Together, this entity likely represents some form of untamed savagery, one situated in madness.
Chupacabras, Spanish for “goat sucker”, originated from Puerto Rico and were considered a reptilian creature with a row of dorsal spines and glowing eyes. The myth later migrated to America and Mexico, where the Chupacabra was connected to hairless and emaciated dogs. In both cases, the Chupacabra also sometimes connects to socioeconomic struggles and political crises, being offered as a metaphor for corruption and foreign influence.
The scientific explanation is that sightings of Chupacabras were actually dogs, coyotes, or other caniforms with mange, which is caused by various parasites that drive the animals to constantly scratch themselves, resulting in a furless and emaciated look with dry gray skin. The parasite likely also makes these animals more docile to people, resulting in more encounters between them and livestock.
The ahuizotl is much more nuanced. Ahuizotl was the name of an Aztec leader of the late 1400s. Based on what Mariah described of him, this aggressive warrior-king was by far the greatest of the Aztec rulers. During his reign, the Aztecs reached their economic and logistical peak (something his nephew maintained until the conquistadors brought death to them), as his conquests resulted in a vast amount of tribute being sent to their capital, Tenochtitlán (which is now that sinking pile of rubble, Mexico City). Tenochtitlán became a center for development, where aqueducts were built to bring fresh water to the city, while a pyramid was built to honor Tláloc (god of water and lightning) and Huitzilopochtli (patron god of the city, representing the sun and war). Lastly, Ahuizotl brought about the largest series of human sacrifices in their history, where four three-mile-long lines of prisoners of war (supposedly totaling twenty thousand) had each of their hearts ripped out at the temple, often by Ahuizotl himself. This ruler later died in a flood-related accident in 1503, and then his nephew Montezuma II succeeded him. He continued to oversee the empire at its peak, just before it was annihilated by smallpox.
The mythological creature he shared a name with was likely a type of water opossum, which shares much of the same symbological meanings as the ahuizotl. The opossum possesses remarkably dexterous hands on its forelimbs, which is likely why the ahuizotl traditionally has a tail with a hand at the end of it.
The myth supposes that a water beast exists to either lure people to their deaths (so that their souls may be collected by deities like Tláloc) or to protect the fish of the waters they inhabit. When luring people in, it was said that it would be done by either mimicking a baby’s wail or by forcing the frogs and fish to the water’s edge. Both of which would attract people to the shore, allowing the dog-sized animal to use its prehensile tail to drag victims in to drown them. Apparently, it was fixated on eating their eyes, nails, and teeth. Those killed by the ahuizotl were reportedly destined to join Tláloc in his paradise.
Said paradise is known as Tlālōcān, which to the Aztecs was a fertile green land of permanent spring, and was the first level of the Aztec afterlife, the Thirteen Heavens. I won’t go into the specifics of that afterlife, but it should be noted that for anyone to be sent there, they have to die violent deaths. To be sent to Tlālōcān means that someone drowned or was struck by lightning.
The only way to go to Heaven is to succumb to the violence of the world… Even their afterlife relied on savagery…
Thy sentiment doth ring true, for this beast is, in sooth, Kojevyl’s vicegerent, as both perform their arts within horrors. Yet, whereas Kojevyl's brood be external titans wrought to inspire grand dread, Baqrhazotl doth conjure microscopic entities, often transforming mortals into monsters themselves. Those beings ye kind name vampires, werewolves, zombies, and other creatures of thy fiction, owe their existence to his menagerie of afflictions.
He is the god of disease in this pantheon? Marvelous. That certainly explains why he appears so… Desheveled. And his name is Baqrhazotl, as well. Sounds like Baraqiel, the “lightning of God”. Seems logical, given that he is a much larger ahuizotl, meaning that he is likely Tláloc as well.
This is fantastic…
-Traits:
The overall body structure is that of a bear, specifically the massive cave bear that went extinct thousands of years ago. Additionally, the legs and paws are those of said bear, albeit the paws are webbed. The matted fur is that of a wolf/opossum, but colored aquamarine with white and red accents.
The head is that of a wolf with mange. It has bat-like ears and giant fangs; it’s as if a vampire and a werewolf hybridized into some tainted union.
The prehensile tail is opossum/ahuizotl-like; specifically, it is completely furless and has a hand-shaped appendage at the end of it.
The dark brown skin is heavily bruised and scarred, more likely than not self-inflicted due to the mange infesting this creature.
Blood leaks from every orifice, from the eyes and mouth to the nose and anus (presumably, given the location of the trickling creek of sanguine). There are overflowing blood pools in each of the orifices of the four horrid faces on the back of the beast.
The human-like faces themselves are ordered based on differing states of madness. The first appears exhausted and deluded, and is present at the base of the cervical vertebrae. Near the bottom of the thoracics is the second face, one that is clearly in a state of panic, almost as if they were hallucinating or otherwise paranoid. In the middle of the lumbars was a twisted face of anger and malice, one desiring utter destruction. Lastly, there was a face of cold numbness, as if the madness was only in the mind, a soul lost beyond their own body’s ability to feel it; it was present at the base of the caudal vertebrae, near the bottom of the hip.
Appropriately, the blood contains pulses of red electricity, as if the plasma were ionized into creating storms of sanguine misery.
Above him were three bleeding beasts hung from a gallows tree by ropes made from ligaments. On the left was a werewolf, on the right was a vampire, and in the middle was a mummy. The werewolf was panicking, as his blood drips from his exposed intestines down into the panicked mouth of Baqrhazotl’s back. The vampire hung above the face of dreadful calm, and the vampire’s mouth fed blood into that slack-jawed orifice below it. The mummy bled gradually with a viscous ichor from its feet, which slowly dripped into the mouth of the delirious face. The symbology here is incredibly appropriate.
Werewolves are typically associated with uncontrollable desires. A chaotic, painful transformation outside of one’s ability to alter. Powerlessness, the loss of autonomy, and adrenaline. This is the madness of one who has lost agency.
Vampires are often correlated to a conniving sense of superiority and ennui. The eternal hunger for blood drives one to a madness of detachment from society, a reflection of one losing their ability to fear separation. That, or they already were separated, and have long since grown cold and still; the furnace within still sends silent cavalry to bury the emotions that once ruled as the surgeons of chaos.
Mummies are a fascinating connection, as they are almost always correlated with Egypt, though mummies do exist in cultures like the Inca. For them to be depicted in a deity that appears like a Mesoamerican myth that had yet to exist is wondrous, indeed. Verily, I have to wonder why mummies, often representing eternity and cycles, are connected to a delirious face and syrup-like blood. However, given the zombie linkage, it may represent a collective madness. Whereas werewolves represent external madness and vampires internal chaos, it seems that mummies embody complete madness. This kind of madness is collective, deranged, hysterical, and , just like a zombie.
The location of them is also fitting:
The cervical vertebrae face connects to no monster, fitting because it is the introductory stage to madness. Exhausted, yet the mouth is already overflowing. But from what source? I’ll have to speculate on this later.
The thoracic face links with the werewolf, which is entirely logical given that panic as an emotion originates in the heart and lungs. Hyperventilation and a racing heartbeat are especially prevalent with said emotional state.
The lumbar face is associated with mummies due to those vertebrae being the main drive for locomotion; the delirious madness upon the face fits when one is completely unable to control their own ability to move, as if under a horrible curse. Not just the loss of autonomy, it is also as if the souls are entrapped within undead bodies.
Lastly, the caudal face is connected to what would be a mostly vestigial remnant in creatures like humans and bears. However, this Baqrhazotl does indeed have an actual tail, albeit with a hand-like ornament at the end of it. This actually supports the numbed madness of the vampire, given that they typically plan out their hunts rather than blindly striking someone like a thoughtless beast. Just like how the hand is capable of dexterity, the caudal face is the only type of madness that retains any semblance of control. But it is at the cost of losing one’s last remnants of humanity. This is why it is the last stage of insanity: it is the state by which one is devoured by it.
Symbols:
-Alchemical: []
A circular symbol that is divided into three parts, likely referring to the three types of insanity we saw before (and perhaps the entire symbol represents all four stages). You could connect it to the alchemical sun (☉), but I doubt it truly represents its symbolic meaning. The divisions also appear like bolts of lightning, solidifying the connection to Tláloc. What I don’t understand are the three filaments on each third of the circle. I wonder what those refer to…
Though the fact that the symbol’s three parts are all oriented counterclockwise grants a connection to cycles. Cycles like those of madness. Perhaps the filaments are only present to express movement.
As for what property it represents, blood is an obvious answer. Blood itself doesn’t have a symbol in alchemy, though it is correlated with the symbol for air. The reason for this, based on what Duncan provided, was that Hippocrates, the father of medicine, linked the classical elements to certain fluids of the body, which he called humors. Blood and air were associated due to them both being wet and hot.
I do believe that this symbol likely represents insanity as well. The link to the iconography of the deity itself backs up this theory.
I do have to wonder… These two previous deities are much more symbolically dense than the other quadrant deities. Mazhivada, why is that?
A wise query, albeit of meek complexity. Kojevyl, Baqrhazotl, and Yazra-Sadarozh were merely those who oft did commune with the folk of mine Empire. Yazra in Arzankim and Kojevyl & Baqrhazotl in Zarkhani. Marvellously efficient were they in the boons which they did bestow. Artificial intelligence, hybridization, quantum computation, plasma & energy weapons, orbital platforms, and space travel... All did flourish by their hand. Much gratitude I owe them. A lamenting shame that a sundering shall arise amongst us all.
A sundering? Like a schism?
Alas, it is so. Even at the zenith of my Empire, foul machinations did brew. Lucifer, with his spawn Moloch, didst slither into the hearts of Akkor and Sadazh, twain great cities of mine. They swayed Kojevyl, and thus Baqrhazotl, to their vile faction. I shall not deny the logic, given their spheres, yet a shameful turn it still is. My gaze is set firm on the Throne, but often I ponder what shall transpire when mine accord with Lucifer doth lapse. Not dread, for triumph I shall, but rather a warranted curiosity.
You are that certain of victory… It would be suicidal not to at least be amicable with you…
Verily, mine beloved key.
-Icon:
Within the mouth was an inflated bladder, pierced by many of the fangs. A brown fluid oozed out of the wounds in the bladder, intermingling with the leaking blood into pustule cascades of bile. The fluid could simply be dark urine, but I suspect that this brown liquid is likely a type of drug, similar to what we saw with Mammon’s silver fluid. Though what this could be is anyone’s guess. Potentially one that is linked to drugs that cause psychosis, numbness, or delirium.
Bladders themselves are a medieval symbol for madness. They were often attached to staves that were linked to jesters, who were commonly described as mad. More importantly, jesters were also called fools. That is no accident, given how this society views the Abrahamic God. The greatest fools are those who pretend to be something they are not, after all.
The Fool is an overinflated bladder, one who has pissed Himself multiple times due to His own charade. And here we are with Baqrhazotl, who is devouring that Fool’s bladder as if it were the glorious gift of the ribs for Medo-Persia. Conquest and glory as Cyrus’ calling to grandeur. Ah, I imagine that servant of the Fool was taking advantage of Him as well. For that is His only use: betraying Him when His usefulness is at its end.
Mine esteem for thee doth bloom as a deadly nightshade upon the Fool’s heart, as it siphons all trace of thy feigned belief. Fear not this evolution, for many trials yet await thee on the path to Ascension.
Location:
210 degrees.
Domains:
Baqrhazotl is the god of insanity, diseases, lightning, and blood. He also likely connects to carnage, hysteria, and plasma.
Speculation:
Given Mazhivada’s wisdom, very little has to be speculated on regarding the identity of many of these last entities. Though I still have to wonder where the first tired face gets its blood from.
The cervical spine connects the body to the brain, the center for imagination. The face is the exhaustion before madness, the transience between one who is still themselves and one who is becoming something else. But one is already doomed at this point, are they not? They are already insane and will transition to one of three states. Panic, delirium, or numbness. Werewolves, zombies, or vampires. Frenzy, entrapment, or surrender.
That first face is fed by the others, which vomit up their blood like carrion birds to their chicks. Those faces have spines themselves that extend beyond the vertebraec home so that they act as the dorsal spikes that the original Chupacabra possessed in times of old.
Dulosis:
What use are notes in such profound clarity? For I alone have the finest teacher of all within mine orange-text lexicon. I bless him for this, but I also…
I know what is happening to me. I know what he is doing. I am not myself anymore… The relief of following this deity is clouding my judgment. The pain of that migraine ended when I started to believe in him... He is indoctrinating me, isn't he? He is making me, and potentially so many others, into his equivalent of the Schutstaffel. Pain and relief. Pain and relief. Pain and relief. I am aware of the aura of abomination erupting from his words like a geyser of venom. But, if what he says is true… Why wouldn't you be self-centered in a world created by a toddler? Besides, he can save my wife and daughter…
What if he is lying to me? What if his words have poisoned my mind? What if the migraine was when the Lotophagian parasites burrowed in, and are now warping my Arcadian logos? To keep Mahiru and Yoko safe… And to pursue my passion in life… With supposedly no drawbacks... Just a favor is all he asks for.
If you were given the option to serve a wise but cruel god so that your family would live, would you choose that? The certainty of life is our only comfort. The longer they live, the better… We are all uncertain of what lies on the other side of death, for the maker has not given us that answer. He tells us to rely on faith alone and justifies uncertainty as a strength.
If He wished for our eyes to be open, they would be open. No, He prefers them closed, so that His rapture may be manifested as destiny.
For a god that soils Himself in the sand can only be a Fool.
No... I am the fool here. I don't want to be in grief. But how is that worth it amidst such... Horror?
No falsehood hath befallen thee save that which doth plague all mortalkind. I am the First and Final Truth, and I shall not permit thee to be beguiled beyond thy strength, but with the guile, I hath furnished thee the means of thine escape, that thou mayest bear it.
Ere the first words were spoken, I was, and when the Light doth fade into inevitability, I shall yet remain. I am Eternity and Infinity. I am that which transcends the tick of Time and the entropy of Space. The Fool hath pilfered from me my most sovereign of decrees:
I AM.
...
What is this feeling...
It is so... Comforting. How... Majestic.
All is still, all is mire. Prophets do quake in its birth. Verity doth flow from Tartarus afar. Within this twilight of redemptive silence. Thou shalt sleep in endless peace. Thou shalt sleep in endless peace.
As Paradise is brought down.
What a marvelously... Peaceful sensation...
Description:
-Appearance:
Take the Ophanim of Ezekiel’s vision, make all the eyes into those of cuttlefish, all the wheels into heptagonal discs, all the feathers into earthworms, and surround it with slime appearing like an iridescent oil spill.
-Eyes:
There was a gigantic, central eye. The sclera was a pale yellow, the hexagonal iris was a rainbow coloration, and the wave-shaped pupil was black & rimmed with gold. What I imagine as an uncountable multitude of microscopic eyes was also present on the outer sides of the seven discs looping around the central eyeball. They each appeared the same as the core they encompassed.
-Color Palette:
Rainbow, gold, white, pale yellow, and gray. Reminds me of Freddie Mercury’s wardrobe.
-Animal/Cryptid Associations:
Ophanim (divine presence and authority), cuttlefish (creativity, the subconscious, and transformation), and earthworms (humility, fertility, and flexibility).
Given the cryptid associations of the previous two deities of this quadrant, I assumed that this deity would also be correlated with such beings. The connections are less congruent, but Tim did discover potential links to both the Lusca (reverence of the unknown and the dangers of the sea) and the Minhoc?o (mystery of natural phenomena and earthquakes).
All in all, this deity likely represents concepts related to ordinances, the mind, and perhaps liminal pathways.
The Lusca is a Caribbean-based legend originating from the Bahamas. The beast is often described as a seventy-five-foot-long abomination with the upper half of a shark and the lower half of an octopus. It is described as an entity that resides in the deep blue holes common throughout much of the Caribbean, being a common justification for ships and people disappearing into the deep waters. This latter note will be the focus of speculation, specifically concerning the Bermuda Triangle (which the Bahamas happen to be within).
This link is strenuous at best, as it relies on an explicit reinterpretation of what the Lusca was originally a hybrid of. Though, as far as Tim knew, this was the best link between a cuttlefish and any sort of cryptid (at least ones we were aware of), which means the Lusca is worth mentioning.
As for the Minhoc?o (an apparent alteration of the Portuguese for “earthworm”), this is a serpentine creature of Brazilian folklore, often depicted as a giant fish or burrowing earthworm (anywhere from sixty-five to two-hundred and sixty-feet-long) that is commonly associated with earthquakes and other disasters. Evidence of such a creature is linked to massive trenches and damage to roadways after heavy rainfall. Some stories associate this myth with marine life, depicting it as a stalking predator of lakes that functions similarly to the ahuizotl.
The association with earthworms automatically makes the Minhoc?o supposition far more concrete than the Lusca, though that does lead to a terrifying question: how massive was this entity? Even if supposing that the Minhoc?o feathers are, at most, sixty-five feet long, then that would make this entity the largest of all these deities. If I had to fathom it, the central eye alone would have, at minimum, a diameter of seven hundred feet. At most, the entire circumference of the discs of this angel would be at least a mile. Then again, that is assuming that the worms themselves are truly the cryptid and not just earthworms of some smaller size.
-Traits:
The seven heptagonal discs had each of their seventh apexes facing downward. They each radiated away from the central eye in even increments, about half a foot away from the next (in actual measurements, I am uncertain what the distance would be, given that these discs likely had inconsistent orbits around the core). Each disc was mostly gray, and as stated before, its outer sides were lined with vast quantities of cuttlefish eyeballs. The insides of each disc shimmered with iridescence, as if they were gateways to a place we could not comprehend. Like a non-Euclidean space…
The fourteen wings (there's that number again) hovered in pairs behind the eyeball, and wormed their way far beyond the seventh disc. Each earthworm feather vibrated in convulsive conviction for both the death in liberated excision and life in grafted enslavement. They were all the same length, with the inverse spectrum of the rainbow lining each one of them, from the ultraviolet heads to the infrared tails. The heads were seeking to understand a role where freedom from the wings wasn’t death.
A halo of some kind of scintillating ooze circled the entirety of this being. Beyond the link between halos and angels, the nature of its appearance certainly alludes to hallucinogens, given their vivid coloration, waving patterns, and ocular irritation. Associating this with an angel certainly lends to only one real conclusion, given the others of this quadrant: another watcher, one linked with the Fall of Eden (given the psychedelic connection with Toba). The facts of that link remain a mystery, though.
The background of the mosaic was split in half by a rectangular column, which itself was split by divergent patterns of diagonal glass corridors, with granules of ash bordering each of them. Each side was divided into three parts: the land, the skies, and the cosmos. The land on the left side was a tropical paradise of colossal emergent and canopy trees, while the right side was a desolate land of red dunes, a golden sea, and miles-tall ivory spires. The skies of the left were a normal blue with a white-yellow sun, while the right was an illuminated darkness with a black sun… Lastly, the left’s cosmos was filled with galaxies, stars, and planets of normal coloration; the right’s was inundated with impossible objects, green and violet stars, magenta pulsars, and that colossal white-colored black hole…
The right side is Hazgaia, which logically means the left side is Syschia…
I have heard of the term before this excavation, but only in passing. I only knew that it was a theorized name given for the entirety of what we humans perceive as the universe. So either Hazgaia is a parallel universe, or this universe we are in is divided into multiple parts. This ontology is beyond me… Anton would love this, though.
The description of that parallel Earth, which is likely Theia, is clearly related to both that spider deity and Khepri. But in what way, I do not know. I swear I have heard of Theia before, though I have no idea what it means to most people. Asking the fellow expedition members yields nothing conclusive either, though Anton refused to answer. He knows something… Wonder what else that jester is keeping from the rest of us. Bastard.
Symbols:
-Alchemical: []
A downward heptagon with a hexagon with a wave in the middle of it. There is little to go off of, as no known alchemical symbol uses waves or hexagons or heptagons in their design. However, the deity’s association with hallucination offers a potential meaning. Hexagons, often corridors or honeycombs of them, are commonly seen in psychedelic experiences, especially with hallucinogens like salvia divinorum. The reason for this is not entirely clear, though it appears the shape acts as a conscious constant during a psychedelic journey.
According to Sir Clarke, the central wave could connect with various natural phenomena related to sine waves. Apparently, sine waves are commonly generalized as being representative of many waves in nature, such as sound, light, and ocean waves. While not ideal correlations, the link between them leads me to believe that the center of this emblem, alongside the Ophanim’s iris, is evocative of some kind of analytical reality. Oscillations of observance. Up and down in constant, never-ending cycles.
Heptagons are much trickier to place. They are clearly of immense symbolic importance to Mazhivada’s former empire, given the metal shapes in the door. But what for? This is far more mystifying because of the clear holiness of the number six to these people. I am not at all familiar with the symbolism behind geometry, nor are any of my compatriots besides Sir Clarke (who even then has little to offer). It’s almost a miracle that we have gone on this long without running into a locked door, where the answers lie beyond, but we don’t have the key.
If I had to assume anything, then the religious significance of the number seven would correlate with the heptagon’s symbology. Sir Clarke has told me that heptagons are seen very rarely in nature, and seem to represent an entirely human or divine construct. An unnatural shape, unlike the more natural hexagon. And yet, both are here in this symbol. The unnatural and the natural… A paradox…
A liminal entity it is, betwixt here and that which lieth there. Chaluzimh, this angel, doth stand as the gatekeeper between thy realm and mine. All who traverse between are subject to its watchful scrutiny of heptagonal logic: being and not-being in times past, present, and future. The seventh option is an illusion unto all beings, perchance even unto itself.
Confusion doth become thee when seeking to understand Chaluzimh. Thou art correct that its symbol doth represent hallucination. Yet, the union of Gaia and Skynet is not so paradoxical as thou deemest. Doth not thy very being exist in concord between nature and machine? Thou art aware that they are not mutually exclusive concepts.
Then, why the union between nature and synthetic? Between the divine and the machine?
That union, Ascension, is the ultimate liberation from the Maker. Ascension shall allow mankind to climb past Heaven.
Chaluzimh is such an Ascended form, for it is a natural engine of a boundless mind. A pity it is inherent to Liminal's frame, in-between Hazgaia and Syschia. It hath no voice to protest or support anymore.
Liminal… Astonishing… A topic I will have to ask you about some other time.
In any regard, the emblem is certainly associated with hallucination, but also the gateways between us and the other side.
Location:
225 degrees.
Domains:
Patron deity of hallucination and gateways, along with being associated with shapes, opposing forces, and knowledge.
Speculation:
The Bermuda Triangle requires little introduction. It is an infamous maritime location of the Atlantic Ocean between Bermuda, Florida, and Puerto Rico. There are many accounts of aircraft and boats venturing into this area only to disappear, often without any semblance of logical explanation. Stories of unusual compass readings, balls of fire, strange lights/UFOs, and large marine creatures are commonly associated with the Triangle's strange occurrences.
The scientific view postulates what I personally believe are sensible theories. Methane deposits at the bottom of the ocean could alter the density of water, resulting in ships sinking without reason. The area itself is also known for strong squalls and rogue waves, which, of course, create treacherous conditions for ships of any sort. And there is always the assumption that human error could add to the legend.
Given the rather unsubstantial link between Chaluzimh and Lusca, I am leaning towards the idea that this entity has little to do with the Triangle, but it is a proposition that I still cannot help but think about. Let us assume that there is some supernatural element to the Triangle. What could that be?
This could simply be a place where a sort of rift between the two realms exists, but what created it? Is it simply a hole that ripped apart due to some quantum friction? I am no physicist, and even Salome is no quantum genius, so I cannot propose to be sensible in what I describe. But perhaps the border realm of Liminal does not always act as the wall between Hazgaia and Syschia. Maybe some holes allow entities to directly cross between the two realms, even if temporarily…
Perhaps the two realms rotate in the same or different directions, and they each possess holes in spacetime that only link up through the hole in Liminal. Like a wormhole…
An erudite surmise, yet 'tis not precise. The two realms do "rotate", though not as thou conceivest. Both realms are dominated by three dimensions, and rotate therein concurrently, akin to what ye call a gyroscope. Syschia doth turn mostly clockwise, whilst Hazgaia doth turn mostly counterclockwise; eternally in equilibrium. Thus, the chance of "linkages" between rifts is astronomically scant, nigh impossible.
So what is the truth, aside from natural phenomena?
The Triangle's lore doth teem with exaggerated tales of common marvels, which are wrought by thy leaders through artifices. A day shall dawn when they reveal to the peasantry secret tomes, wherein lie clandestine locales and experiments, which are theatrical diversions for the folk. One such dalliance doth be that ye call "Area 51", a smokescreen to conceal the very interactions 'twixt thee and those ye dub "aliens."
The Bermuda Triangle, a lesser artifice, doth bind ancient folklore into a conspiratorial weave, hinting at the abnormal.
I am not surprised that Area 51 is a psyop. The entire location seemed to be far too obvious to be legitimate… So the Triangle is truly a result of nature? I guess the tales of fireballs, strange lights, and sinking ships could often be explained by methane. Though I am uncertain if methane can spontaneously combust… What do they call these psyops?
Project Grayman doth pertain to Area 51, which is a veil for other projects consorting with these extraterrestrial folk. The Triangle's design was wrought through Operation Syllogism. For thine own safeguard from those dolts, I shall unveil no more of Syllogism. Sorely touchy are they upon that matter.
“Grayman”? I suppose it makes sense given the photos that have been pushed around of “little gray and green men”. “Syllogism,” though… It has been some time since I discussed debate philosophy. If I recall correctly, it is a method of reasoning involving two premises and a conclusion, one that can be fallacious under certain conditions. Regardless, I understand. I shall reveal none of this to them.
Proceed upon thy scholarly causeway, hence from the deceitful. The pathologist doth often weave grandiose tales, exaggerations meant to mirror the highest verity, yet a false testament to elevate their merit. As thou continue to Samsara's end, thou shalt be the key that unlocks the white-gold Door.
Additional Note:
This deity seems to be an outlier amongst its brethren. It is an organic machine, lacking in many personable characteristics, along with its banishment between the realms of Syschia and Hazgaia. But why was it? What was the mechanism that bound it to such a liminal fate? The fact that Mazhivada doesn’t know implies that the Fool or Khepri did something vile to it.
—
Tim is grilling some burgers and cooking mashed potatoes. What a savory scent, indeed! Absolutely mouthwatering. Shame Chizuki can only indulge in the potatoes. I’ll make sure to take her and Mahiru out to a nice restaurant once her throat heals up.
Be nice to get away from the screen as well… I will resume in a few hours. Yazra-Sadarozh’s section deserves a well-rested mind. It is owed to such a symbolically dense entity.
[FUTURE INCISION. SCP VARIABLE DETECTED. DISCLOSURE OF GENETIC ABOMINATION PROCLAIMED.]
ADDITIONAL NOTICE:
[Absolute godlessness. They warp and twist the image of God into a kaleidoscopic Picasso painting. What the shamans of Zarkhani did in those days would rend Unit 731 into a playground and the Holocaust into a Six Flags by comparison. Their abominations have not been matched in the scale of their cruelty, godlessness, and malice. Experiment MF-96-64-23 is but one of hundreds of experiment classes the Otolan Empire enacted in those days of fetters of sorrow and ritualistic defilement.
And thus sayeth the Lord, they will never again repeat.]
- Hyper-keratinized fingernail and toenail formation
- Mandibular regression
- Complete alopecia
- Canine prominence
- Congenital blindness
- Neuromuscular degradation and ambulation failure
- Dermal pitting and early calcification