Bestiary

Pele was born in fire, and (if she has her way) she’ll go out in fire, too, taking everyone else with her. A goddess of volcanoes and destruction, Pele does nothing by half measures. Which is a damn good thing, really, because if she ever took up doing things only halfway, there’d be a shit-ton of lava everywhere. Only the influence of her sister Namaka keeps her from going nuclear, and even that goddess’ legendary patience is starting to fray.

What makes her so pissed? It was Pele herself who creat­ ed the islands of Hawai’i — lands sacred to her, forged from her body and blood, and then cooled by her sister’s touch.

To Pele, traditions like the hula are sacred, and cruise ships disgorging millions of tourists who muddle their way through holy ceremonies represent perversion. Not only does she hold the tourists to blame, she wants to eradicate the islanders she sees as complicit in the downfall of the islands. Think of her like your angry, racist aunt, only holding the trigger to thousands of volcanos in her hands.

Pele looks young despite her primordial age. She’s pas­ sionate in all the best and worst ways, with glowing reddish hair and a look on her face that promises annihilation for the slightest misstep. Pele is, of course, beautiful in the way the most dangerous things are beautiful, and actually does have a generous side. It’s her fire, after all, that lights the night, cooks the food, and provided the catalyst for the islands of Hawai‘i. She joined her uncles Kanaloa and Ku centuries ago

in open warfare against the Technocracy and their spawn… and so, theoretically, she’ll accept help in the battles, but that would mean first finding her in someplace other than an active volcano’s heart, and then getting her to trust you enough to fight by her side. The former requires connections, persistence, and a potent resistance to fire and heat; she counts the Kopa Loei among the few organizations that she trusts, but the goddess of destruction does not check in with her foot soldiers. Leave a message and maybe she’ll get back to you. The latter? Well, remember the “racist aunt” part? If you want her trust, don’t be white. Pele’s got sort of a thing about that subject. Hawai‘i is hers, and this goddess loathes seeing the islands despoiled by white magic and nuclear fire. To destroy them, though, would be to destroy a part of her­ self. She still might do that someday, but for now she holds something resembling her peace.

Kami occupy an unusual place in the world. For the most part, they’re big-name heavy hitters. Not necessarily violent — just very capable. Over the past 1,000 years or so, several groups of kami have arrived in the material world, made their mark, and left. This section focuses on several of the ones who are still around — greater kami who are, for all intents and purposes, gods. Each of them maintains a royal court in the Otherworlds, where they deal with guests. For the most part, these resemble the courts of feudal Japan, with lavish dress, ceremonies, and lackeys.

While this section addresses kami from a Japanese view­ point, most are known in other lands and revered as gods. Each of the great kami maintains their own Otherworldly court, a place of power for them. These courts directly reflect the personalities and attitudes of their owners: The regal Amaterasu has a palace, Tsukuyomi has a moon base, and the sea dragon Ryujin has an underwater city.