Bestiary

They walk in the shadows of tall hills at sunset. They shuffle through underbrush when the day is bright. They saunter without fear when the light of the sun is clouded out. They are the Anuk Ite: those whom some people call a race of merciless cannibals, whom others whisper are bearers of an ancient curse. But every story about them is true.

In the time before time, when many peoples were scattered across the land, one people settled into the crevices and cracks between high hills, relishing the shade and turning away from the light of the sun. Their first-name is lost, because their stories are no longer told, and names live on in stories. It is said that a leader of these people chose a husband from another people, but her husband did not want her. To take revenge for the unwanted marriage, the husband murdered the children of the leader, and then cooked them and fed them to his wife. Although the leader was ignorant of her husband’s betrayal, she was cursed for eating her own children, and the face of her evil and greed was cast forever on the back of her head. She birthed more offspring with her husband, and although these children were also born with two faces, her husband did not kill them. Generations after the leader passed on, her lineage dominated the people, and those descendants gained the name they carry to this day: the Anuk Ite.

Anuk Ite have voracious appetites, and are frequently encountered seeking their next meal. They prefer to keep to the darkness of their homes otherwise. Eventually, even those who choose to show their human faces can no longer control their desires and seek out the only nourishment that satisfies them: human flesh. When the Anuk Ite hunt for human food, they show their cursed, monstrous faces. These faces are twisted and cruel, with many sharp teeth and eyes that glow like the moon

through the clouds. The Anuk Ite wear this face while they hunt and only after their hunger has been (temporarily) satisfied do they show their human face again.

Rarely, some Anuk Ite eschew their human face and only live to feed. Dining on human flesh is their greatest, basest desire, and some of them choose a life of pursuing it rather than holding it at bay. These monsters hunt aggressively and tactically. They have more strength and speed than normal humans, and they’re always the most fit and agile of their people. If they could not hunt with such efficiency, they would not survive their lifestyle. None of them are fools. Worse, when Anuk Ite wear their monster faces, they are naturally resistant to the forces of the supernatural. Their curse weighs heavier than any curse an angry Verbena or a revenge-driven Euthanatos could lay upon them. They are not immune to the effects of belief and magick, but as long as they walk as monsters, they are abnormally resistant to it.

Most Anuk Ite no longer know their stories or where they came from. They are lost people without the guidance of ancestors and the teachings of their original language. Without a connection to the past, they have nothing and no one to guide them to their future. There’s little hope left for these people, and even though they strike fear into the hearts of those who still know their stories and warn of their terrors, the greatest thing these stories teach is the danger of losing one’s first name.

Attributes: Strength 4, Dexterity 4, Stamina 3, Charisma 3, Manipulation 2, Appearance 1, Perception 2, Intelligence 3, Wits 3

Abilities: Alertness 2, Athletics 3, Awareness 1, Brawl 3, Enigmas 2, Intimidation 2, Melee 3, Stealth 4

Willpower: 4

Health Levels: OK, ‒1, ‒1, ‒2, ‒2, ‒5, Incapacitated

Armor Rating: 1 (four soak dice, total)

Powers/Advantages: Anuk Ite attack with knives or clubs (as per weapon type) before biting and clawing (Strength + 1 / + 2) at close range / Armor (1 pt.); Fangs and Claws; Mystic Shield (four dice, 8 pts.).

Image: The Anuk Ite still prefer to avoid the sun, living in craggy hills or forests, or in the back alleys and abandoned buildings of the city. They often wear hooded garments, sometimes as simple as a trash bag wrapped around their heads, or large, bulky hoodies. Sometimes even an oversized hat or wig will do. They are always hiding one face, so as to appear as any other human. Most Anuk Ite choose to show their human face. There is nothing at all to suggest a difference between this face and an average human being.

Roleplaying Notes: Whoever you once were is gone. Perhaps some memories linger from the existence you once knew. The core of you these days, however, is endless, grinding hunger.