Abahl

In the vast sprawl of Dsa Domu, there was a sound that filled even the most stout hearted with dread. In the deep canyons between towering edifices of stone and ironwood, where shadows dominated the twin sun’s light, the people hurried about their business for fear of the soft repetitive click clack noise. This innocent sound forebode a seemingly innocuous meeting with a bent elderly man. His skin was parchment thin and folded with innumerable wrinkles. His hair wispy and white, almost fragile in the soft breeze. The close he wore was always a generation out of fashion, clean but worn, dusty smelling with a hint of lilac. Inevitably when he spoke, his voice would be like metal scrapped across toast, asking you for new of his wife. His kind eyes would draw you in, and you couldn’t help but want to help him, for he was clearly lost and confused. You would take him, searching street and alley, the soft click clack of his cane accompanying you as you forget your fear. Your errand. Your very life.

And then you were gone, another lost soul, consumed by Abahl. Some thought him the soul of the city. Others thought him simply a lost soul who has forgotten the path to the Ghost Gate. I know what he was. A Horror who consumed the souls of his prey to grow his own power. It took me years to find him and shackle him to my soul, ending his reign of terror. I only prey that when I die, he is dragged with me to the womb, where our souls entwine can strengthen the chains that hold Goliat at bay.

~ From Taubha’s Lesser Book of Names

When the Madness came, it is said that Abahl welcomed it as one welcomes a lover whom you haven’t seen in decades. In the Madness, he likely saw a chance at eternal life and power, both enticing to an elderly man facing the last moments of his life. It is for this reason that he naturally joined the House of Gwhenegh, where he excelled at his pursuit of power at the expense the lives of mortals.

When Abahl appears, he always takes the form of a very elderly mortal, bent over and shuffling along the road within a dense city. In his right hand he always holds a simply, but high quality cane. The wary may notice that his eyes will glow with an inhuman green light as he grows excited before the kill.

When using them in play they function best as the cause of mysterious disappearances. He will use his unassuming form to ambush his prey, cage their soul, and disappear into the shadows. They are greedy, so discovery of their predations will not deter them and they will hunt a town until they are forced out, or everyone is taken. Empty towns can be an interesting way to foreshadow an encounter with this power hungry Horror.