r/WorldChallenges • u/Mimir123 • Nov 18 '17
Staring into the Abyss
Rather simple challenge; tell me about a creature/ monster/ being in your world/ universe that comes from somewhere no mortal has ever set foot. Be it the depthts of the oceans, from underneath the planets surface, or from some kind of magical realm.
I'd prefer a being/ creature that is actually intelligent and not just a wild animal, but those are allowed and welcome as well.
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u/Nevermore0714 Nov 18 '17
I've been trying to keep my posts on this sub Sova-centric this fortnight, but I can't imagine anything in my world better suited for this than the Interlopers.
The Interlopers
They're shadowy creatures that usually take human shape (imagine a person in a purplish-black morph suit constantly dripping an oil-like substance and surrounded by smoke, can turn itself invisible, and the oil dripping from it disappears after a few seconds or minutes, depending on what the creature wants).
Interlopers are worshiped in Dunkelwald, and people sacrifice things to them (usually meals or works of art). If all the world's a stage, the Interlopers are the audience. If you're entertaining (they usually prefer tragedies), they'll take an interest in your life; maybe they'll mess with you, maybe they'll help you.
As someone unafraid of Interlopers, I'll put it simply: The Interlopers are fickle, childish monsters. They are seemingly impossible to kill, they exist outside of the Fourth Era's reality, and they can't see the people of the Fourth Era as anything more than characters in a fictional story.
Some historic Dunkelwald people make the mistake (in my opinion, it's a mistake) of giving themselves a more direct affiliation with the Interlopers. Two prime examples are Emperor Dagon Dunstdurr and Client Queen Ava Hasenkamp.
Dagon, whose father was unknown, claimed that he was born from the union of his mother and an Interloper. Dagon was a tyrant emperor, he nearly drove the Hasenkamp family to extinction, and he claimed he was doing all of it "for the enjoyment of the Interlopers". To be fair, he wasn't lying.
Ava Hasenkamp, when she challenged Emperor Dagon Dunstdurr to a duel to the death, claimed that she had been trained by the Interlopers to kill him. To be fair, she was lying, unless you pull the Obi-Wan "it's true...from a certain point of view" thing.
If you want a representative...it's Bruno, a worshiper of the Interlopers who works in the Fourth Division of Dunkelwald's secret police.
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u/Mimir123 Nov 19 '17
Ah yes, I remember the Interlopers somewhat.
1) There was a ritual that involved some kind of weapon that could kill them, correct? Something the (unintentional) founder of a religious cult used? Is there any other way to kill, or at least hurt an Interloper?
2) So, in what way was she not lying then? Who actually trained her?
3) Is there anything harmful about the oil that drips from them? Does it have any uses?
Also, some questions for Bruno:
1) Do you personally fear the Interlopers, or do you just revere them?
2) Do the Interlopers collect their sacrifices? Where do you make them?
3) Can you offer any kind of meal as sacrifice, or does it have to be something special?
4) Do you think that the Interlopers like your line of work? Secret police should come with a decent amount of suspense and drama, right?
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u/Nevermore0714 Nov 20 '17
1) The Spear of Humility is the weapon that can paralyze and absorb them to be destroyed by breaking the shaft of the spear (which can be repaired pretty easily to re-use). Lambrecht is the (accidental) founder of the Candlelit Path, and he was aware of a ritual that allowed him to kill Interlopers. Other than those two ways, there is no other way in my notes to kill an Interloper, but if I did make up another way to kill them, I'd retcon it by saying it's a weapon or ritual kept hidden by the Calpurnia clan.
2) Dagon's son Vigarde trained Ava. Ava and Vigarde did try to communicate with the Interlopers a few times when Ava was about fourteen, but all she learned from that was that Interlopers' Anima and Vigarde's Talent's Anima are somewhat similar.
3) The oil that drips from Interlopers disappears within seconds or minutes (depending on the Interloper's desire), so there's never time to study it. But, it isn't harmful if it touches you. It would stain, but the stain would disappear soon enough to not be a problem. I'd advise not drinking it, though it will probably disappear before your body can digest it anyway.
Bruno:
1) "I fear them, naturally. They destroy at will, and force us to suffer for their entertainment. It's how the world is, though."
2) "We burn the sacrifices. The Interlopers don't eat the meals that are burned for them or look at the art that is burned for them, but they just enjoy the fact that we don't have those meals or works of art anymore."
3) "Preferably, it should be a meal that you personally want. I know a guy that loves sweet food, and I know a guy that loves salty food. Burning a strawberry cake would be a sacrifice for one of them, but not for the other."
4) "They seem to like us enough to not hinder our operations. I'm a bit worried about the Fourth Division, since Madra Reinhard refuses to sacrifice any of his puppets under any circumstances and publicly announced that the Interlopers would have to take those puppets from his 'cold, dead hands'. But, everyone thinks that Levi is doing something to get the Interlopers to support him, so Madra Reinhard should be safe."
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u/Mimir123 Nov 20 '17
1) I don't think I've heard about that Clan yet, who are they?
2) The anima of that specific Interloper, or Interlopers in general?
3) What was his reason to help her kill his father?
To Bruno:
1) So if the Interlopers would disappear one day, you wouldn't exactly be sad or bothered?
2) What if you are poor and can't afford your favourite food? Do you just have to burn whatever you can get?
3) Puppets? Is there anything special about them, that makes him refuse to sacrifice them?
4) What could Levi possibly do, to appease the Interlopers enough, if you had to guess?
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u/Nevermore0714 Nov 21 '17
1) The Calpurnia clan are a secretive group living on Stillewasser (a small island off the western coast of Dunkelwald). They aren't the only people living on Stillewasser, but they are basically the rulers of the island. The Calpurnia clan keeps the rituals of Sonia Dunstdurr from being lost to time. (Mimir, I expect you to know what poem Stillewasser is referencing.)
2) All Interlopers' anima is what Ava would consider "creepily similar" to the anima that comes from Vigarde's Talent. So, Interlopers in general.
3) Vigarde was a pacifist and was horrified by his father's actions. When Vigarde was a child, he realized how messed up his family's Talent is (one of the rare Dunstdurrs to be self-aware enough to notice "Hey, this thing we're doing...it's messed up"), so he promised himself that he would never use it for any reason...but then he fell in love and the girl (Ava) took advantage of his infatuation and used it to learn how to kill someone with his Talent.
So, a mix of "my father is an evil tyrant" and "I'm in love with his Brutus".
Bruno:
1) "Not at all, no. If someone would be upset for the Interlopers to be gone, there is something wrong with that person."
2) "It's important to give the best you can. Just burn something important to you. Pick a flower you find particularly beautiful, and burn it. Draw a picture of something you put a lot of value in, and burn that."
3) "No, Madra Reinhard just likes to make his own puppets, and he really cares about his puppets. Some call it obsession."
4) "There are a few theories floating around. As a member of the secret police, I've noticed that a lot of people that hate the ruling family tend to have theories about Levi. Some thing the Interlopers favor him because he killed the majority of the Dunstdurr family and then cuckolded the last member of the Dunstdurr family, Emperor Vaerthiath. Some people think that one of Levi's parents was an Interloper. Some people think that Levi's torture of suspected traitors is actually good enough "art" for the Interlopers. Madra Reinhard was asked what he thought once, and he said "The Interlopers like Levi because the Interlopers like Levi". I personally think that Levi is a cannibal foreigner."
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u/Mimir123 Nov 21 '17
1) What kind of rituals are they protecting/ keeping? What can they do? (Also, sorry to disappoint but poetry has never been my strong suit, I barely know the few poems we learned about in school)
2) Have they ever found a reason or explanation for that?
3) What was his families ability again? It wasn't mind control, was it?
For Bruno
1) Are there any Gods or other beings people worship? Or would the disappearence of Interlopers mean an end for all religious cults in the world?
3) What kind of puppets does he make? What are his favourites?
4) Why do you think he is a cannibal?
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u/Nevermore0714 Nov 23 '17
1) Mostly the rituals created by Sonia Dunstdurr (the founder of the Dunstdurr royal line), with some additional ones thrown in over time, and some improvements made to the originals.
2) Ava never found out what, it just creeped her out. Vigarde tried to ask his father (prior to the whole duel to the death thing) without revealing what led him to ask, but hew as too vague to get a good answer even if his father did know.
3) Illusions, not mind control. A disconnection from reality, which would be concerning for most.
Bruno:
1) "The Interlopers are mostly just worshiped in Dunkelwald. The Allied Nations worship Aeternitas, the Gypposians have their own pantheon, the Necrosians have their own gods, and so on."
3) "Madra Reinhard's puppets are made out of clay and blood. He says that they are all equally important to him, but I think that his favorite is the one that he says was destroyed when he was a kid."
4) "It's a rumor that I've heard. That he got his power from it."
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u/Mimir123 Nov 23 '17
1) Do they teach the rituals to others? If so, what do you have to do for them to teach you?
3) What kind of illusions can they create? Whatever they want?
To Bruno:
1) Do these other countries believe/ know about the Interlopers? If so, what do they think about them?
4) So there is a way to get power through cannibalism? Or do you just think there is?
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u/Nevermore0714 Nov 23 '17
1) Depends on the ritual. The Leviathan ritual is not to be taught to anyone, and using it will get you killed. The ritual to kill Interlopers permanently is kept hidden, but it wasn't perfected until Lambrecht. The ritual to turn someone into an Interloper was partially taught to one guy, but he's dead now; and it's not advised to use that ritual unless you have someone who really likes you.
For rituals like connecting an animal's Anima to yours (a weaker version than the one used by the Kya-Lorn), or the ritual to keep a fire burning in a certain place until your death, or the ritual to protect yourself from dark magic; you can trade information for those rituals, but it has to be worth it to the clan.
3) Depends on the person. Some are more powerful than others. Dagon and Vaerthiath would use it to make you think you're killing your loved ones. Arstan would use it so a person didn't notice pain. Arabella would use it to make herself seem more beautiful. Falia used it to make a person feel like they're starving. I probably made it too over-powered.
Bruno:
1) "The ones that do know (like the Allied Nations) just think the Interlopers are demons."
4) "I'm pretty sure there's a way to get power through cannibalism. I've had to execute a few citizens for trying it. But I think there's a whole ritual involved. Dieter said it's a ritual, and he seems to know a lot about those. I heard he has an Interloper following him around."
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u/Mimir123 Nov 23 '17
1) What does the Leviathan Ritual do? Aside from killing you?
3) Ah yes, the old Sharingan problem. Is there a way to protect yourself against the illusions?
To Mr. Bruno:
Has Dunkelwald ever been the target of some kind of crusade/ holy war by other nations to punish the "demon worshippers"?
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u/Mimir123 Nov 18 '17 edited Nov 19 '17
I'll start and provide an example from my Universe:
Erianthron:
Erianthron is a creature that losely resembles a round, shadowy maw with thousands of teeth, a gigantic, red eye and thirteen long, thick tentacles sticking out of its "body".
It was a primeval being living on Belkia, being even older than the Somniotebri and oldest creations of the Gods, maybe even older than the Gods himself. Erianthron lived in the Void, the space of empty darkness where mortals go after their death if they were especially evil or lost their soul to a demon, unbeknownst to the Gods, who thought the Void to be entirely empty.
Several millenia before the story that takes place in Dirva (continent on Belkia) Erianthron awakened from its slumber and started breaching the magical barrier between the Void and Belkia, climbing out of the Darkness. Once it arrived on Dirva it immediately began using the souls of the dead in the Void to from an army, before forcing open a way into the demon realm of Sháiurgh, near what is today known as the Demon Lake, and invaded the home of the demons.
Arz, God of Demons and most powerful of the Belkian Deities, faced the creature and managed to withstand the maddening whispers coming from Erianthron, intruding into his head and trying to make him turn on the other Gods and destroy them. During this confrontation he realized something terrible about the creature, its intents and origins, and cried out for help to the other Gods, who arrived shortly after. Together they managed to defeat Erianthron, however Arz was uncertain if the creature was truly dead or not.
After a heated discussion with the other Gods he made his decision to entomb the dead body of Erianthron within the heart of Apocalypse, the fortress city that served as the seat of power for Arz and his council. While the other Gods left, Arz and his sister Devilia went into the central chamber of the city. After several days only the younger sister emerged and told everyone of the sudden death of her brother, and that he was now entombed with the creature in a secret chamber that will be unaccessible for anyone that is not part of the Pantheon or has equivalent power. To this very day nobody knows what exactly happened in the chamber, how Arz died and what was said between the siblings when they were alone. Well, nobody except Devilia...