“I think their predominant color was a grayish-green, though they had white bellies. They were mostly shiny and slippery, but the ridges of their backs were scaly. Their forms vaguely suggested the anthropoid, while their heads were the heads of fish, with prodigious bulging eyes that never closed. At the sides of their necks were palpitating gills, and their long paws were webbed. They hopped irregularly, sometimes on two legs and sometimes on four. I was somehow glad that they had no more than four limbs. Their croaking, baying voices, clearly used for articulate speech, held all the dark shades of expression which their staring faces lacked … They were the blasphemous fish-frogs of the nameless design – living and horrible.” – The Shadow Over Innsmouth
With this chilling passage, H.P. Lovecraft drew attention to the Deep Ones, horrific creatures spawned from the depths of the ocean. Prone to a desire to mate with humans, these sea-dwelling humanoids are said to be immortal, none dying by natural causes. They exist in servitude to Father Dagon and Mother Hydra, and the malevolent entity known as Cthulhu. Primarily living a marine life, Deep Ones are able to survive on land for periods of time.
Long ago, a bargain of sorts was made between the Deep Ones and humankind. The Deep Ones would provide abundant fishing and lavish riches in the form of gold jewelry in exchange for human sacrifices and a vow of mating between the Deep Ones and mortal beings. These hybrid offspring would begin life in human form, transforming later in life and attaining immortality.
This bargain was a dark secret of the seaside town of Innsmouth, where citizens undergoing the transformation were hidden away from the public until the physical changes were finished. Much of the town’s population exhibited what became known as the “Innsmouth look” – fish-like qualities such as bulbous eyes, scaly skin and the development of gills on the sides of the neck. Eventually, the transformation complete, these children of an unholy union would retire to the sea and live the remainder of their lives in underwater cities, far removed from the world of man – awaiting the calling of their powerful gods.
For centuries man has reported sightings of humanoid sea creatures, with witnesses describing a myriad of lifeforms. Aside from the beautiful, fantastic mermaids sailors would spot, other amphibious beings have been noted in various parts of the world. Countless tales tell of marine-based entities with human characteristics, walking upright and wandering into human villages seeking mates among the unsuspecting population.
In 1840, on the heels of a loss in profitable trade due to shipwreck and war, Captain Obed Marsh is said to have initiated a cult known as The Esoteric Order of Dagon. He had heard of such a practice among islanders he encountered in his many travels, and soon the fishing industry of Innsmouth, Massachusetts felt a tremendous increase in profit. However, Marsh and his followers were incarcerated, and the human sacrifices they had promised the Deep Ones ceased. In 1846 a mysterious “sickness” overcame the citizens of Innsmouth, and a large majority of the population was lost. In truth, this unknown plague was actually the results of the Deep One’s vengeance, and once the cult began anew the fishing increased. As did the inbreeding of Innsmouth’s residents with the Deep Ones.
Soon, as dark rumors circulated about Innsmouth and its curious populace, the town became shunned and people avoided it for many years. It fell into a state of decay, worsening closer to the shoreline. In 1927, amid speculation of bootlegging, Federal authorities sent investigators to the crumbling burg. What was found has never been officially disclosed, but the following year officials detonated explosives in nearby Devil’s Reef and the townspeople were arrested – although no record has ever been discovered in any jail of the surrounding areas. For all intents and purposes, the residents of Innsmouth, Massachusetts simply…disappeared. Sightings of the Deep Ones, however, did not.
Stalking the moody corridors of NETHERWORLD Haunted House, these diabolical Cthulhu worshippers have been spotted darting in and out of the light, constantly seeking mates to continue and expand their bloodline. Awaiting the return of their dreaded master, human-fish hybrids lie in wait as the very battle for control of the mortal Earthly realm wages around them. Knowing all too well that they will live eternally, they simply bide their time as events unfold that will determine their place in the future of this planet…
