Petrification

The authorities are baffled, the press speculating and people are frightened by people, from all walks of life, turning to stone both in their homes and in public.

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Until now, no witness exist. And no explanation...

Possibilities

1 The petrifications are occurring worldwide. All the victims were found in front of their computers or with a cell phone crushed in one hand or lying nearby. All had an expression of horror on their face and seem to be trying to cover their eyes...

In a small town exists a small and declining cult worshipping Ghatanothoa - not for their own benefit, but to keep humanity safe from his menace. They have, for generations, sacrificed to him so he shall remain under the ocean floor and not seep up to crawl around in the world of men to satisfy his need for nourishment.

But in modern times the cult has had difficulty getting new members, continuing the sacrifices, and making anyone believe in Ghathanothoa.

The leader is old and worried since his cult will most likely die with him. But he knows that Ghatanothoa is not only satisfied by sacrifices, but from the tormented minds of his petrified victims. The leader just needed to find a way to create more and more victims for Ghathanothoa to petrify.

The leader invented a modern solution to hold humanity safe even after his and the cult’s death. One night he summoned Ghatanothoa to a deserted beach (he was protected by “T-yogs formula” to avoid petrification) and photograped the Great Old One. The photo of Ghatanothoa he put into a computer-virus which he released onto the Internet.

The virus is not very active or aggressive. Mostly it only hides inside computers, slowly spreading itself via email and like. But on very rare occasions it flashes the Ghatanothoa-photo on the computer screen for a few seconds -which causes petrification for all who see it...

2 The petrifications are occurring only in a certain city, where there also exists a witch-cult worshipping Yig. The serpent-god visits the cult from time to time to claim sacrifices and have sex with the witches. This has resulted in a two immortal snake-human hybrids that are kept in the basement under the cult’s temple.

The latest offspring, however, was extra-ordinary: A Medusa, a snake-women hybrid. The Medusa is just like the Greek legends - except that it’s not Medusa’s gaze that turns victims to stone, but her poison.

The young Medusa escaped and now hides in the sewers. She hunts for food by night and is highly aggresive-which has resulted in a couple of petrified humans and animals so far.

The cult is furious over losing their “holy child” and is searching for her. They are mortally afraid that the petrifications will draw Yig’s wrath and that he will make them pay for their negligence.

3. The petrifications are limited to a single city and aren’t confined to people. Other creatures have been found petrified too.

The city’s sewer-system was recently expanded. The work has run into difficulties (the first petrifications), and has been temporarily aborted. Something that has never been made public is that the tunnel-diggers hit a natural but apparently bottomless shaft. Soon after the workers became the first petrification victims.

The shaft leads down to red-lit Yoth and from there a vapour of Yoth has emerged. The vapour is a huge gas cloud, which smells strongly and unpleasantly.

The cloud is highly flammable and posses a rudimentary conciousness. It needs to regularly replenish itself with certain chemicals found in living organisms - but this feeding also reults in petrification of the organism.

© Stefan Jonsson