Verungnr

Verungnr is the Creature of the Abyss, a tentacled monstrosity living in the deepest depths of the ocean who claims the souls of the evil and the damned, dragging them down to the crushings depths to endure eternal torment. Verungnr is sometimes considered a type of patron of justice, administering eternal punishment to the most wicked of souls who deserve endless suffering for their misdeeds. All the same, the Creature of the Abyss is seldom not regarded with horror, even by those who would appreciate its justice dispensed to the wicked.

Because of Verungnr's reputation for seeking the souls of the wicked and its association with the ocean, evildoers are often fearful of travel by sea, afraid that the Abyssal Horror will take the opportunity to snatch them from their ship and drag them down to the Abyss. Fear of Verungnr's wrath has also been the cause of many hastily-accused wrongdoers being thrown overboard during ill-going sea voyages, the crews believing their ship is suffering ill fortune due to Verungnr seeking one of the souls among them. Indeed, the threat of being thrown to Verungnr has prevented many a mutiny aboard seagoing vessels, mutiny often being considered one of the highest acts of evil amongst sailors.

More than a few sorcerers, having been considered evil beyond redemption, have been sentenced to be thrown into the sea to be taken by Verungnr, or in less extreme cases, banished to small islands so as to be constantly surrounded by the threat of the Abyssal Horror and thus unable to escape. There are also some rituals that invoke the protection of Verungnr against evil, such as standing in or surrounding oneself with seawater to prevent evil from approaching - the idea being that if an evil soul dared to step in the seawater, Verungr would have the ability to claim them before they could reach their victim. Jugs of seawater are occasionally seen for sale at inland markets for this purpose.

Verungnr's most well-known characteristic is its tentacles, said to be able to stretch multiple times across the entire world, ever seeking to snatch away the souls of the evil and the damned and drag them down into the Abyss. No other features of Verungnr's are known, as gazing upon the Abyssal Horror's terrible form would strike a mortal mad.