The Lusus Naturae SKULK Trail

Prepare yourself, dear reader, for now we enter the realm of the truly bizarre. I fully understand the sheer foolishness of attempting to convey this inexplicable madness, for those who dare to examine these words will surely label me a madman. Yet, I have delved too deep to turn back, trapped within the clutches of this unfathomable enigma.

What I have learned is a fragmented tale, passed down as whispers and shadows, pieced together through numerous documents, and translated through three languages. Yet, I have witnessed, I have experienced the horrors firsthand.

KOWIKASHA

A name whispered with a shudder in the depths of Choctaw legend, a name that sends chills down the spines of those who dare utter it. But she, my friends, was no Choctaw. No, Kowikasha belonged to the Muskogee tribe, also known as the Creek Indians, a lineage intertwined with mystery and power. From the moment she came into this world, it was clear that she possessed a talent beyond mortal understanding, a gift that demanded cultivation. And so, from an early age, she was initiated into a world of ancient wisdom and shadowy secrets. Her maternal grandmother, a keeper of arcane knowledge, imparted upon her the secrets of herbal magic and the art of healing hands. Her paternal grandfather, a conduit between the realms, taught her to commune with the spirits that dwelled on the other side. And under the guidance of her tribe’s spiritual leader, she delved into the depths of mysticism, unlocking the enigmatic forces that pulsated through the earth and the ethereal planes beyond. Nurtured by the love of her tribe, she thrived, blossoming into a formidable force, her spirit alight with untamed potential. Her childhood, a fleeting moment of innocence, led her to the arms of her childhood sweetheart, and together they lived a full life, raising three precious children.

But life, my friends, is a twisted path, and destiny has a way of wrenching us from our idyllic dreams. The Tennessee state militias arrived, heralding a storm that would forever alter Kowikasha’s world. Their guns and greed forced her tribe to abandon their ancestral lands, setting forth a treacherous odyssey that promised only despair and suffering. Each step southward took them closer to the edge of oblivion, as the white man’s relentless expansion crushed all in its path. And as if fate itself reveled in cruelty, other tribes, seeking their own salvation, turned their backs on those who sought refuge. This Creek tribe, displaced and desperate, were cast aside, left to wander in the wilderness of rejection and isolation. They became shadows, their lives a constant battle against the forces of disease, starvation, and violence. Death claimed her family, one by one, until Kowikasha stood alone, a survivor haunted by the echoes of loss. The world turned its back on her, even those few surviving Choctaw who had known the bitter taste of similar suffering.

Abandoned and scorned, pushed ever southward, she became a mirror of the darkness that consumed her, her spirit twisted by the weight of betrayal and sorrow. In her despair, she sought solace in forbidden lands, where the boundaries between worlds grew thin, where the forgotten and the forsaken found their refuge. It was there, in the depths of the wilderness, that she honed her talents to a razor’s edge, delving into powers that defied comprehension. She embraced the darkness, harnessing it as a weapon of vengeance against all who dared to cross her path. The Choctaw, once brothers and sisters, felt the wrath of her fury, and in their tongues, the name Kowikasha became a curse, a chilling reminder of the horrors she unleashed.

THE FORBIDDEN OTHERS

In the heart of that forbidden wilderness, where her powers festered and decayed into something unspeakable, she came upon others. These were beings of grotesque visages and haunting peculiarities, avoided by all who possessed a shred of sanity. And yet, fate, that merciless puppeteer, wove their paths together. The Choctaw, in whispered hushed tones, dubbed them The Forbidden Others, a name that carries the weight of a curse.

Alongside Kowikasha, there emerged Mutgadeska, a being birthed from the deepest recesses of nightmares. What they called it can be interpreted as Shadow Wraith, for its form was that of black nothingness, and it feasted upon the essence of life, draining the vitality from its victims to fuel its own cursed existence. Its strikes were sudden, teasingly relentless, and deadly. Its attacks, if survived, left nothing but desolation and lethargy. Through its mastery of spacetime manipulation, Mutgadeska could tear the fabric of reality asunder, traversing realms at will. Vanishing from sight only to materialize in distant, unsuspecting locales, it toyed with its prey this way, savoring their fear before delivering the final, fatal blow. Kowikasha knew all too well the value of such a power, and the alliance that formed hinged upon the malevolent spacetime manipulation of this spectral enigmatic void.

The third of the Forbidden Others was the Atahsaia Demon, a creature of ancient origins, which lurked in the primordial depths of dread. A grotesque figure, greenish and towering, its reptilian heart pumped with an abominable malevolence. Its approach heralded by a noxious stench that lingered in the air, it possessed supernatural powers beyond mortal comprehension. When threatened, it birthed spawn, manifestations of its wicked desires, equal in size and strength. Yet, these spawns were destined to serve only a fleeting purpose, their existence measured in months, their final fate a cannibalistic feast at the hands of their progenitor. The insatiable hunger of the Atahsaia Demon knew no bounds, devouring anything that dared to cross its path. Within the alliance, its resistance to the corrosive touch of time became a vital element, fortifying their ranks with an immortal presence.

In the macabre assembly of their triumvirate, Kowikasha was most often identified as the deer lady or as an antlered temptress, possessing a multitude of chilling powers, each more disquieting than the last. But among her twisted arsenal, the one that delighted her the most was that of skincrawler, the ability to slither beneath the skin, to shed her own form and assume the form of another creature. Victims unfortunate enough to cross her path become ensnared in her wicked games of deception and torment. Yet, it is not only her shape-shifting abilities that make Kowikasha a creature of utmost dread. She possessed a connection to the ethereal plane, a sinister communion with the spirits of the departed and those trapped in the space between realms. Her proficiency in tapping into the pulsating forces that course through the earth and the otherworldly realms were recognized by her wicked brethren. In the dark recesses of their unholy alliance, the Others found Kowikasha’s powers a source of fascination and potential. They were drawn to the twisted symphony of her abilities, craving the thrill of unlocking the secrets that lay beyond the veil of a fragile reality.

Ignited by their united strength, The Forbidden Others sought sanctuary in desolate lands, where the white man’s greed found no desire. In isolation and with time as their ally, they honed their combined powers. Discovering a coastal haven where infertile sands meet the briny air, land that grew no crops, but would grow into their domain. There they formed their unholy alliance, a convergence of forces capable of repelling or ensnaring those reckless enough to trespass their realm.

Time passed and those who once whispered those names in dread were marched to lands across the Great River. As years slipped by, the whispers of terrors turned to mere echoes. And the once-dreaded entities lurking in the shadows faded into oblivion, relinquished to the realm of forgotten nightmares.

THE REALM

But amidst this coastal sanctuary, The Forbidden Others persisted, their powers reaching unparalleled heights. Though forsaken and forgotten, their unholy alliance thrived. For the documents reveal more than just a past, they reveal a very active present.

The full scope of the Realm, a sinister dominion, existed and continues to exist, stretching its malevolent influence over a vast expanse of the coastal region and deep into the heartland. Its borders are perpetual—unforgiving and unyielding, like an unbreakable curse. The perception of this dread Realm within our spacetime is mostly restricted to the lands that remain untouched, where nature retains its primal strength. On lands that have been violated, where the hand of man has tampered and distorted, the Realm persists, lurking in the shadows, yet hidden from our fragile perception. For it is only through the unadulterated presence of nature that the In-Between will fully manifest within our spacetime.

With their intertwined powers, they have etched out a mostly hidden plane of Existence—a grotesque amalgamation of the present and the past. A sinister concoction of the here and now entwined with the there and then. It’s as if Kowikasha aligned their combined powers and ripped open the fabric of our reality, thrusting us into the twisted embrace of quantum dimensions. The rules that govern our mundane existence crumble, and we find ourselves teetering on the precipice of an abyss where uncertainty reigns supreme. In this wake, a maddening dance unfolds. Time bends and warps, folding upon itself, as if taunting our feeble attempts to comprehend its elusive nature. The boundaries of space blur, merging with distant times and distant dimensions, until we are left disoriented and lost in a kaleidoscope of distorted truths. Her twisted Existence lingers here, yet not fully here. It exists in the now, yet not quite the now. Her Realm is the In-Between.

This, my dear reader, is a mere glimpse of the terrifying truths revealed within those damnable documents.

However unbelievable those documents may be, I have seen, I have experienced this merging of there with now, of here with then. In my own harrowing personal encounters, I am walking down the trail, but in a flash its as if I am, not somewhere else, but everything is just really different. And I can feel the presence of more and different creatures around. Then just as suddenly I am grounded again on my own property. And then back again to the different, and I am in a maddening dance, pulsing back and forth between these dimensions, spiraling between worlds with unnerving rapidity, until it all stops and I am in the In-Between of that forbidden Realm.

Lately, the dizzying dance between realms has given way to an immediate shift. In the blink of an eye, I find myself thrust into the eerie existence of that accursed Realm, ensnared within Kowikasha’s time warp. Remarkably, I’ve encountered the forbidden others countless times, yet I remain unharmed, shielded from their wicked intentions. It’s as if Kowikasha herself acts as my guardian, protecting me from the Others’ wrath, despite my frequent forays into the treacherous realm.

Don’t misunderstand me—It’s far from safe in there. People suffer, get hurt, or worse. As far as I can tell, every soul dragged into the realm faces peril and torment. Kowikasha, wicked as she is, takes perverse delight in mentally torturing victims through her shape-shifting prowess. The wraith, always lurking, extracts the essence of its unfortunate prey, leaving them scarred in both body and soul. And that demon Atahsaia, well, it’s nothing short of malevolence personified.

Strangely enough, though, the relentless brutality and fatal attacks don’t occur on my property, unlike other parts within the Realm. It’s a mystery I must investigate further. There’s something lurking beneath the surface, something that sets my property apart from the rest. But delving into this darkness might unleash horrors better left alone. My land is stranded within her Realm, my property an extension of her malignant domain. And so, I cannot resist the pull of curiosity—it’s a force as powerful as Kowikasha’s wicked enchantments, urging me to unearth the secrets hidden within this malevolent Realm.