Cthugha
Cthugha , also known as Kathigu-Ra, Apollyon, or the Living Flame, is one of the Ogdru Hem and the progenitor of Fthaggua and the Fire Vampires.
Appearance[]
Cthugha resembles a giant ball of flames that is able to assume any form. Each of these forms are, naturally, fiery in appearance to where Cthugha once took the form of an eldritch pharaoh wreathed in flames. Ugly dark blotches mottled its dull orange surface and great columns of spinning flame arced around the rim.
History[]
Background[]
Cthugha is one of the Old Ones, or the Ogdru Hem, who attempted to make its way towards Earth. Before that, however, Cthugha was said to have forced the Great Race of Yith to abandon their home planet as it was feeding on the solar energy of their sun. It was likely preparing itself for the oncoming conflict between it and the gods whom protected the planet from its kin. It was also said to have spawned Fthaggua who in turn created the Fire Vampires.
At an unknown point in time, Cthugha continued to make its way towards Earth, but was intercepted by the Greek sun god Helios and the Norse sun goddess Sól. Together they battled the fiery Old One that was said to have set a star system ablaze; this particular star system is believed to be the Sagittarius constellation which is one of the emptiest places imaginable in space and the emptiness is the result of many stars and space bodies imploding during the battle.
Imprisonment[]
Finally, the two sun deities emerged victorious and dragged the defeated Old One with their chariots, and chained it at the center of the burning cold star Fomalhaut. Despite its imprisonment, its kin remain alive and active, roaming the regions of space and terrorizing extraterrestrial civilizations. Additionally, Cthugha is able to communicate with its progeny as well as its followers on Earth, even at one point being summoned but in the form of an avatar it assumes that its followers have come to worship.
Fast forward to the modern age of humanity, Cthugha's communication with its progeny was discovered at the Yerkes' Observatory in Chicago in 1949, located 77 light-years away from Earth. While at first presumed to be a star, further investigation discovered that it periodic releases bursts of radiation. From these radiation bursts could waves be picked up by radio. The radio waves could be interpreted as Morse code messages. When translated, the 'star' was revealed to be Cthugha, describing sadistic messages involving the death and destruction of the human race.
When Day Breaks[]
Cthugha is prophesied to be released during the End of Days. When it does, it will envelop the Earth's sun and warping its rays to mutate the landscape of Earth into a hellish paradise for its progeny. From the audio logs and documents Jesse Faden discovered when she was sent into the future by one of the Yithians, Cthugha's tampering with the sun resulted in ~6.8 billion casualties within the first twenty-four hours. The effect does not seem to result from exposure to ultraviolet rays, but rather light in the visual spectrum (~390 to 700 nm). The effect is similarly present in moonlight.
Upon contact with visible light produced by Cthugha, living organisms liquefy at the point of contact, with the effect spreading until the entire organism is converted. Visually, this is reminiscent of melting wax. The time this takes is largely dependent on the level of exposure and size of the organism. Despite this restructuring, at no point do living organisms perish. Upon completion these organisms take on a gelatinous consistency. Motile organisms will attempt to orient themselves in a fashion reminiscent of their previous form, to varying degrees of success To prevent this, Jesse must acquire the assistance of Sanna herself who wields more than enough power to extinguish Cthugha.
Trivia[]
- It is believed that Cthugha is the source behind the Wow! signal that was detected in 1977 which came from the constellation of Sagittarius. The same empty region where Cthugha fought Helios and Sól and was supposedly imprisoned afterwards.
- Even if it's prophesied that Cthugha would bring about the end of the world, the Ogdru Hem are known to engage in conflicts with one another in regards to claiming dominance over the Earth. This would mean that the other Old Ones would not allow Cthugha to have total dominion over the Earth.