Akaki

A bogeyman figure that wanders the wilds seeking out the weak and the lost, Akaki is the fear of the wild, the revulsion felt when you smell rotting carrion, the terror of the dark and every quiet creak of an hold house settling. Their appearance is horrific to look upon, gliding inches above the ground with the grace of an ice dancer on bloody stumps where feet should be, antlers like a great buck but white as bone and stained red at the tips with pieces of festering flesh decorating each finely pointed tip. Their face is a mask of pure white porcelain, unmoving and cracked that splits to reveal a maw filled with innumerable teeth, their hands are jagged black claws like burnt and thorny wood. They speak with a chorus of sweet whispers in the voices of the loved and lost. Hearing or seeing them coming is unlikely, but wherever they go the sickening and oddly sweet scents of cloves, rotting carrion, burning wood, and the acrid air of old vinegar follow.

All of this is of course in their darker form.

When not hunting, Akaki appears as a young red stag demi of indeterminate gender, smelling of spices and sweet fruit. They have a tanned face with light freckling and bright green eyes. Usually found living in an old wreck of a mansion in the misty woods, a space that connects the lost and winding paths in any wooded area more than a mile in diameter. In this form they are welcoming and kind, often offering a warm meal and a bed to travelers though warning them not to stray into the basement or stay for more than a single night in the woods.

This duality makes them a difficult being to pin down in many ways. Their warnings are best heeded and asking for meat during a meal is not recommended, this aside they will aid travelers freely if not in their bestial shape.

Text colours define their state.

Brown - Make conversation and be generally cheerful, if you have any fresh wounds, keep them covered. Sleep lightly and keep a candle lit.

Grey - Don't make sudden moves, don't stay the night, don't ask questions.

Blood Red - Run, run for your life and pray to any gods you think can hear you.