this group of twisted individuals live in the foggy, dangerous, and abandoned town of centralia. plagued by abominations and mutants, the town is a very dangerous place, where only the strongest survive. deep within centralia, bartholomew created a cult to worship the deity known as mabuka. while the cult was originally a front to allow him to have the power over others that he craved, after he was turned into a demon, he began running the cult as if it were legitimate. the cult frequently sacrifices victims and carries out 'missions' to appease mabuka. his cult members know him as simply "the visionist", and have never seen his face.
this ancient set of caves is hidden away underneath the cliffside, with only one small opening to the outside world. deep within the cave system lay the remains of an ancient civilization of seafarers that once worshipped the god sirena in great numbers. only a few members of this group remain now, and they still pray to sirena to this day. the caverns they live in are illuminated by naturally occurring cyan crystals that glow in the otherwise solid darkness.
devil's bin academy is a boarding school for undeads and mutant species. the school teaches forbidden subjects such as black magic, potion making, and general witchcraft. the school is a large, old castle located deep within the dark forest of grendelwood. the school is difficult to find, as it's enchanted with illusion spells that make it appear as though the castle is merely derelict ruins. classes are held at night, as the majority of the students that go there belong to species that are nocturnal.
general's rebellion was founded by several individuals looking to change the corrupt militant government of maris, before rucles gained control over the planet. general, major, kuneth, ragnarok, franziska and aximillion were the original founders, though the true, current leader is kuneth. general works as the fake leader in order to prevent kuneth from being targeted; in case general dies, kuneth can continue the operation unimpeded. the organization combats the remaining corrupt aspects of the marisian military and the oppression of other species such as fae, electrokinetic skywalkers, polymorphs, and more. they are very strict on who they allow in the rebellion, and members who try to leave are killed or have their memories wiped.
judecca refers to a particular region of grendelwood, which upon entering becomes an endless, inescapable forest. things change without reason, and satanic sacrifices are hung everywhere. blood is smeared upon trees as a warning to those who set foot in judecca, and the heads of goats and lambs are displayed upon stakes to mark locations. viscera and animal corpses are commonly strewn about. this part of the woods, unlike the rest of grendelwood, has a blood red sky no matter the time of day. demons are drawn here naturally, as they often use judecca to manifest from hell. from an aerial view, a carved out passage through the trees shows a demonic summoning circle, which marks the inside of judecca. a cult run by a powerful demon named belphegor resides here.
nexus inc. is a biochemical testing site that was built on an abandoned island; the location is undocumented and therefore doesn't appear on any contemporary maps. knowledge of the company's location is reserved for employees and an elite selection of clientele. nexus inc. develops deadly viruses, particularly those that lead to zombification; they are personally responsible for the humanoid-infecting cordyceps fungi. their first plant was located in the desert, which lead to the now infamous cordyceps outbreak that resulted in most of the desert becoming a strict quarantine zone. at their new location, they've begun experimenting with bacteria, and have managed to create a variant of specially infected undead that have unique abilities and enough sentience to function as soldiers. they often collaborate with the testing bureau for the advancement of facilitated evolution (TBAFE), another illegal laboratory that puts on a front as a pharmaceutical company called medica labs.
an apartment complex located in the outskirts of bismarck. the building is composed of brick, and has become derelict over the years, but otherwise it remains unassuming from the outside. the apartments are home to a wide variety of reclusive tenants. rumors have spread about the apartment complex due to the strange events that surround it, including: strange sounds, flashing lights, chanting, etc. the perdita apartments also have a bloody history, with many previous tenants either being murdered or disappearing abruptly. unbeknownst to most of the tenants, the apartment complex lies above a hidden underground temple that hosts a powerful cult. tenants often see ghosts of the victims of the cult, which is lead by the "high priest", connor addison.
TBAFE, or the testing bureau for the advancement of facilitated evolution, is an illegal organization that has a public front as "medica labs", a simple pharmaceutical company. however, TBAFE in reality operates as a laboratory that performs genetic splicing on unwilling people, steals creatures from other dimensions to experiment on, and brainwashes individuals to be used as super soldiers for corrupt marisian military officers. TBAFE employs people mainly through blackmail and threats, but there are also immoral scientists who have flocked to the facility to carry out their own personal fantasies.
the diver is the name of a vast exploratory spacecraft that has been mapping and obtaining extraterrestrial data for over 300 years. once manned by thousands of scientists, engineers, astronauts, and more, the population has since decreased dramatically after an incident occurring roughly 150 years ago. the ship was intentionally stocked with dangerous creatures from the dimension of tartarus by those who commissioned the ship's mission; unbeknownst to the crew, many were quickly overrun and slaughtered after the tartaran specimens were released. for over a century now, the ship has served as an ecological experiment, with the remaining survivors attempting to live in the now desolate, monster-ridden craft.
"the few" is a group of the thirteen most powerful, dangerous people in the solar system. compiled by the ruler of maris, rucles, they work as a covert task force for him alone, and undertake missions acting as assassins, sleeper agents, body guards and more. the number assigned to each of them indicates both their deadliness and their level of authority within the group, with 13 being the weakest, and 1 being the strongest. they work in complete secrecy and have sworn loyalty to rucles above all else.
the church of the old one is a cult that worships an eldritch god of abyssal seas and toxins named leviathan. luther is the priest and founder of the church alongside leviathan. the cult takes advantage of weak minded people in order to manipulate them into becoming members. the cult is violent, often offering sacrifices to leviathan and performing abhorrent rituals in his name. the church itself is located in an underwater palace, but it's been pressurized so it's filled with air. it's accessible via land and water through secret tunnels.
a constantly moving crew of galactic travelers who all live on a ship known as 'the supernova'. this spaceship is capable of high speed space travel and hopping between dimensions. the captains are shooting star and zed, and they are accompanied by an odd, colorful crew. they are an optimistic lot for the most part, and they don't like staying in one dimension or on one planet for too long as they explore the cosmos. sometimes they pick up new members and save people in need as they traverse the galaxy.
thresh's organization is dedicated to combatting just about anything supernatural in nature, from evil demons to cryptid monsters to malevolent aliens. the individuals that work there are well versed in both combat and paranormal history. thresh, the founder and current leader of the organization, is a mortal-turned-god who runs the organization strictly. the organization is secretive and difficult to find, and operates without any public front. thresh's organization also works to protect fae, polymorphs, and other endangered populations on the planet lazura. the organization is divided into two sections: combatants, who fight threats, and researchers, who study captured specimens and record their findings.
travelers are simply people who have no one set location. whether they're sightseeing, exploring, adventuring, or pirates sailing the seas, they're never seen in one spot for too long.