The Call of Cthulhu
A Bas-Relief of a scaly creature of simultaneously draconic, human, and octopus-like caricature, delirious dreams of cyclopean cities and monoliths, mass hysteria, and a cult worshipping the "Great Old Ones" and awaiting the return of the monstrous being "Cthulhu" set the stage for Lovecraft's most widely-known tale of terror; The Call of Cthulhu
Death in the Family
The Protagonist, Francis Wayland Thurston, begins his tale with the unfortunate news of his grand-uncle's passing, and the many things he left behind. One possession of note is was a small clay bas-relief of a scaly creature possessing the features of a dragon, an octopus, and a man. Francis does some digging and discovers that the sculptor is a Rhode Island art student b the name of Henry Anthony Wilcox, and that he drew inspiration from dreams of an alien city, where he heard the words "Cthulhu" and "R'Lyeh" spoken to him. While researching the alien phrases, Francis also discovers numerous cases of Mass Hysteria around the world that are tied to the two phrases, and many describe dreams shockingly similar to those of Wilcox.
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Cultists and The Emma
In his Grand-Uncle's documents, Francis discovers notes from a 1908 archaeological society meeting in which his his uncle met with a New Orleans police official named John Raymond Legrasse to identify a green soapstone statuette of a creature like the one on the bas-relief, that had been retrieved from a ritual by an all-male cult that worshipped the "Great Old Ones" and awaited the return of "Cthulhu" which they identified as the subject of both the bas-relief and the statuette. Francis also discovers papers detailing the discovery of the wreckage of the Emma, a derelict ship of which only the 2nd mate survived. The 2nd mate reports an attack by a heavily armed yacht called the Alert, and that they killed those aboard the Alert but at the cost of their own ship. The 2nd mate and his crew then discovered an uncharted island nearby, and he reveals that, other than himself and one other, the rest of the crew perished on the island, though he does not share how.
Revelations and R'Lyeh
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Francis travels to Australia to meet with the 2nd mate, but discovers from his widowed wife that he died suddenly after an encounter with two sailors. She gives Francis her husband's manuscript about the island, and it is described therein as a "Nightmare corpse-city" called R'Lyeh. The 2nd mate describes his crew's struggle with the non-euclidian geometry of the city, and their accidental releasing of Cthulhu, resulting in their demise. The 2nd mate and the only other remaining crew member flee, injuring Cthulhu with their boat in the process. Cthulhu's injury immediately regenerates, the crew member is killed, and Francis finishes reading the manuscript only to realize that, by possessing it, he is now a target of the Cthulhu Cult.
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