【𝕯𝖊𝖘𝖈𝖗𝖎𝖕𝖙𝖎𝖔𝖓】
qədxw, pronounced koudooch is a malevolent spirit that has haunted Montana's forests for centuries. It is referred to as the "spirit of the lonely places" or the "spirit of ungodly greed".
It's a currently bipedal creature, that can get to seven foot five when standing on it's hind legs. It's body is thin, it's skin tightly stretched over fragile bones. It's hind legs are that of a deers, hooved and thin. It's front legs have long paws. It has claws that stretch out of it's paws. It's head is a deer skull, with milky white eyes. It's other facial features are hard to distinguish. It has antlers, that are attached to it's skull.
The Koudooch can run up to 50 miles p/h. It walks mostly on it's back legs, but when in a sprint it runs on all four. It does not usually reach this speed, and prefers to stalk it's prey.
It's strength and speed continue to be true, even as it takes different parts of bodies. [see supernatural properties]
【𝕾𝖚𝖕𝖊𝖗𝖓𝖆𝖙𝖚𝖗𝖆𝖑 𝖕𝖗𝖔𝖕𝖊𝖗𝖙𝖎𝖊𝖘】
The Koudooch is malevolent, and desires to consume every being around it. It targets humans, who have isolated themselves. Being alone in the forest can induce a craving to eat, and consume. This is the first tactic of it. You feel the intense need to eat, and it makes you feel like you'd do anything just to eat something. It can induce a fugue state as it induces the cravings.
This effect increases the longer The Koudooch is on earth. The desire to consume effects the town that it now resides by. [see history]
The Koudooch has the ability to possess bodies, and gets stronger the longer it is on earth. The Koudooch needs strong, adult body that can retain the soul. It has the ability to possess the living and the dead. However, as the soul never decays, the body it holds does. It now needs a fresh body every season it awakes, as the body usually decays completely during its hibernation. The beast can possess parts of bodies that it needs. It prefers deer, elk and other mammals.
In it's more recent hunting times, the Koudooch has learnt to push it's manipulation of the thoughts of an isolated man in his presence. If a soul is isolated outside of the forest, the Koudooch can manipulate their thoughts. It can push ideas, images and feelings into a persons dreams. Whilst it can't control a person completely, it can plant a seed of emotional manipulation in them that it can toy with.
【𝕳𝖎𝖘𝖙𝖔𝖗𝖞】
❄ Origins
It's origins are unknown, but it's first appearance was in the early 1800s. The town of Tenpine Peaks had just been founded. The town was a small community of mostly farmers. They lived well and expanded until a hot summer came. The heat was so bad it killed all of the crops and most of the livestock.
This famine attracted the Koudooch. The Koudooch spirit couldn't exist outside of desperate times, and was the strongest hidden away in the woods. It prayed on a desperate man, who was compelled into the forest.
The town recognized that their pets were going missing at an alarming rate. It wasn't until the weather improved that the town could thrive again. But now the children were going missing.
Native American individuals recognized that this might be an evil spirit, and identified it as the spirit of lonely places. They suggested a sacrifice to please the beast.
❄ the cult beginnings
This is how the Koudooch connected with Tenpine Peaks forever. It got sent the loneliest people - the poor and the elderly and devoured them before going into a hibernation period. If it was satisfied, it could rest and leave the town alone.
The following become a cult, with the leader choosing a sacrifice every harvest season. The beast was getting stronger, and was unsatisfied with the small offerings. Now this following was worshiping the creature, people were taken over by the feeling of hunger and would want to sacrifice themselves. The cult would offer up these sacrifices, which would temporarily please the beast.
❄ The revolt
The beast's body sacrifices had been the same family for two generations - The Fitzpatrick men. Their bloodline was unique, and made the Koudooch strong. He requested their bodies. This was appeased on two occasions, until 1925, when Mary Fitzpatrick refused to give up her son, Kenneth.
She conspired with other fed up townspeople. there was a split between the cult members and non cult members. They were sick of their peaceful town getting run by this cult, and the monster. So they ambushed the creature.
Entering the forest together, with their pitchforks and torches, they found the creature as a grotesque amalgamation of the Fitzpatrick men. They set it ablaze and watched how the thing riled and screamed, changing form into barely a skeleton. They waited until it was gone, then they buried the remains deep into the forest grounds.
The priest said his prayers, and they left. Those who could afford it, left the town. Including Mary.
❄ mid 1900s
The Koudooch was dormant for years. What was remaining of the cult had slowly simmered away. Many believing that it was truly dead, and the town went back to the normality it originally had.
It went unnoticed, but as the town expanded into neighbourhoods, the spirit of the Koudooch plagued the town. It wasn't strong enough to escape it's grave yet, but managed to influence the town. [see habitat]
The beast lived on as an urban legend, many people forgetting that it had even happened, letting it become lost in all the other stories around town. It managed to scrape its way from a rabbit, to a fox, then to a deer. It lived as a now frail bundle of bones, feasting on animals. Unknowingly, the town had been keeping the spirit alive.
【𝖍𝖆𝖇𝖎𝖙𝖆𝖙】
Tenpine Peaks, is the town nearest to the forest that the Koudooch resides in. The town itself has seven hundred to one thousand inhabitants. It has a library, a doctors office, a town hall, two convenience stores, a fire and police department, a bank, a day care, four butchers, five restaurants and a playground. The schools are out of town, and there is a school bus that drives to each neighbourhood. The nearest gas station is on the main road, about half an hours drive away.
The main street has most of the retail and food stops, and is simply called mainstreet. The two biggest neighborhoods are Clover street and Prairies Edge. Outpost is the neighborhood closest to the forest and North Street is nearest the river.
The town hosts two festivals - The harvest festival in mid November and the winter festival in late December.
The Koudooch lives in the woods, and does not venture out. It does not need water or regular sleep to survive. It goes dormant in the body it inhabits until the body has decayed into the ground.
Most of the town is now unaware of the spirit, and only has heard of it through ghost stories.
