Cthulhu, Spawn of

A land race of beings shaped like octopi, who filtered down to earth from remote gulfs of interstellar space. They were composed of matter widely different from what we know, and were able to undergo transformations and reintegrations. They fought a monstrous war against the crinoid Old Ones (1) who were already present on earth. Eventually peace was made; the Cthulhu spawn retained the lands recently risen from the South Pacific, while the remains of their Antarctic cities were obliterated by the Old Ones. This Pacific landmass included the city of R'lyeh. Later, the lands of the Pacific suddenly sank, and obliterated all the Cthulhu spawn. Note that all of this information is somewhat doubtful, having been inferred by William Dyer from historical bas-reliefs found in the lost city of the Old Ones in Antarctica. [HPL Mountains (online text)].

It was the Cthulhu spawn who brought the R'lyehian language to earth [HPL Gates (online text)].

The Cthulhu spawn should not be confused with the Deep Ones, another race with links to Cthulhu; for the Deep Ones have fishlike and froglike attributes rather than being octopoid, and live underwater, unlike the Cthulhu spawn who were land dwellers.

On the other hand, the Cthulhu spawn might be the same as the Great Old Ones (1), whose appearance is not known, and who lie in R'lyeh, protected and yet also trapped by Cthulhu's protective spells.

The Cthulhu Spawn in Derleth Stories

The primal spawn of the amphibious Cthulhu are included in the group of evil beings called the Great Old Ones (3) [AWD Dweller]. Water smells are the sign of the spawn of Cthulhu [AWD Beyond2].

Description

[AWD Depths (online text)]: The Cthulhu spawn structurally resemble an amoeba and are able to expand from within. They do not have limbs by nature, but can put forth feelerlike appendages at will to move on land. The body tissue is spongy and boneless; the veins carry a dark green fluid with a malodorous stench. The outer skin is a green, glistening coat with horny ridges and bumps. One of the creatures had something resembling a head.

The creatures can regrow from severed fragments, with no other stimulation than light and heat. Their growth halts when they are being observed, but resumes when they are not being watched.

When full grown, they are very large. When moving on land, they apparently walk on two limbs. They have tremendous weight and leave tracks like those of round posts. They lumber clumsily but swiftly.

They emit shrill whistling and sucking noises. The sucking noises might result from their feeding process, or might be the sound of their footsteps.

These Cthulhu spawn move freely between land and water, voluntarily returning to the water and then coming back to land later on. (By comparison, William Dyer believed the Cthulhu spawn to be a land-dwelling race who were obliterated when their continent sank [HPL Mountains]).

Victims

Their human victims were found crushed and horribly mangled. Since the victims were apparently not eaten, it is possible that the Cthulhu spawn only drink the blood or absorb life force from the victims.

One of the victims was extraordinarily cold and rigid, but none of the other victims were described as being cold.

People who come near the Cthulhu spawn become strangely mad and bestial, devoid of intelligence and interested only in killing. The creatures can telepathically implant desires that lead to widespread crimes and orgies. Even people who are miles away can be infected by the madness.

Weapons Against Them

The creatures are not deterred by gunfire, even from multiple machine guns. The star-stones are the only weapon that can be used to fight them. Those carrying star-stones are protected from the Cthulhu spawn. The stones can also be used to keep the spawn imprisoned.

Written Mentions and History

According to the Necronomicon, the Elder Gods (1) sent the accursed spawn of Cthulhu into the sea, deep into the caverns of the sunken land of R'lyeh. The Elder Gods imprisoned the spawn by the power of the star-stones.

The Confessions of Clithanus tells that the spawn of mad Cthulhu escaped their prison in ancient times, having been called by black souls who still worshiped them. The frightful spawn roamed the earth, infecting the minds of men with violence and lust. Eventually, however, holy men from the interior of Europe managed to drive these evil genii into the waters of the earth. The holy men used secret words, translated from the ancient gibberings in which they had been given by the Elder Gods. The holy men also used an arrangement of star-stones laid out over the waters in the form of a great star. The spawn were imprisoned underwater in various places around the earth. Some of them were imprisoned beneath what is now Lake Michigan.

Modern Outbreak

In 1931, a land reclamation project disturbed the star-stones beneath Lake Michigan. The Cthulhu spawn escaped, killing many people in Chicago and driving most of the city to madness. Jordan Holmes and Sharp replaced the star-stones, and Holmes recited a prayer to the Elder Gods from the Confessions of Clithanus. The Elder Gods came in the form of gigantic pillars of fire and banished the Cthulhu spawn to their prison again.

The Spawn Summoned by Clithanus

[AWD Passing]: In Confessions of Clithanus, the author claimed to have called up a spawn of Cthulhu from R'lyeh. The creature was banished back to the sea by St. Augustine. The creature leaves irregular footprints like those of a giant frog, deeply indented as if from great weight, and the smell of the sea. The book includes formulas for (1) summoning the creature and sending it against someone, (2) sending it back to the place it came from, and (3) sending it back against the person who summoned it. In modern times, Eric Holm called up the creature as an experiment, only to be killed by it when his friend Jeremy Lansing accidentally recited the third formula rather than the second one.

This particular spawn might be the same as the "follower of Mad Cthulhu" called Something from Out There, which was also summoned by Clithanus and banished by St. Augustine. [AWD OutThere]

Other References

After invoking the Warder of Knowledge, Gordon Whitney saw the spawn of Cthulhu fly to earth from other worlds, build the city of R'lyeh, and wage war against the Old Ones until a compromise was effected. [RFS Warder]

Aka: Horror from the Depths.

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