A chthonian. (Art by BorjaPindado)
Chthonians, also known as Sandworms, are massive burrowing worm-like creatures that are the offspring of Shudde M'ell, one of the Ogdru Hem. They are ancient creatures believed to have existed before the time of man.
Description[]
Chthonians are described as immense squids, with elongated worm-like bodies coated with slime. Despite their squid-like appearance, chthonians are land-dwellers and are even harmed by water. Chthonians are powerful burrowers, live for more than a thousand years, and are protective of their young. It is said that a chanting sound accompanies every chthonian, and that by such they can be detected while underground and unseen.
History[]
Origins[]
The most important individual chthonian is the gigantic Shudde M'ell, which is worshipped by the rest and is one of the Ogdru Hem, a race of extraterrestrial eldritch deities that made their way to Earth in an attempt to hide from the forces of light. From Shudde M'ell, the chthonian race was born and flourished underground, however, when the polytheistic deities were given the Earth, they began an extermination of any Old One they came across. The chthonians were nearly destroyed when they aided Cthulhu and the second hose of Old Ones against the gods in a bid to claim the Earth.
Destruction[]
Millions of years later, the chthonians resurfaced during the time of Noah, much of their activities were unknown though it is likely that they terrorized the humans that were foolish enough to trespass onto their territory. Much like the rest of the monsters and corrupt humans, they too were not spared from the Deluge, with the powerful flood ensuring all but their total destruction since the chthonians are vulnerable to water.
Some Chthonians managed to escape the violent waters by burrowing deep within the Hollow Earth. The burrows carved out by these eldritch beasts have come to be known as the Caves of Chthonia and extend all the way into the Agarthan lands, where their expansion is challenged by the Agarthans. In some legends, Agarthans were able to tame the surviving Chthonians by using them as transport. Agarthans poised to "ride" the beast as it rolled its open scale towards its highest point could literally mount the worm. As long as the scales remained open, the Chthonian would not submerge. Hooks were then placed towards the front of the beast to control lateral movement.
Capture[]
One other Chthonian survived the Great Flood, separated from its kind that made their way to the Hollow Earth, and made its residence within the Gobi Desert; records of its movement indicated that it once dwelled in Turkey only to migrate to Mongolia. The Chthonian's activities brought forth the legend of the Mongolian Death Worm there have been tales and later classified documents describing it attacking camel riders and military Humvees.
The Federal Bureau of Control were alerted to its location and managed to apprehend the beast but due to the threat it poses the Bureau opted to destroy it by submerging it in water. Moreover, it is speculated by archivists at Miskatonic University that the Chthonian would reside in one location only to defend a nest, meaning that somewhere in the Gobi Desert lies a batch of Chthonian eggs.
The FBC were called in once more and seeing the massive scale of the Gobi desert opted to use more elaborate means of locating the eggs. The FBC had several anthropologists to locate Alukahs, vampiric leech-like creatures also dubbed as Mongolian Deathworms, who until recently were discovered to feed on Chthonian eggs. With the aid of the anthropologists, the FBC sought to use the Alukahs to sense and destroy the eggs.