Dero

The detrimental robots are a race of diminutive sadists described by Richard Sharpe Shaver to exist underneath the Earth's surface, where they secretely torture the entire Human race with stolen technology of the ancients (mech in Mantong).

Deros reside in the abandoned caverns that Earth's God-races once inhabited, where they've become mutated by both the natural radiation of this planet and the unnatural radiation of neglected ancient technology. The deros use this technology to inflict suffering on all the inhabitants of Earth's surface. Nightmares, common accidents, reports of alien abduction, and insanity are all blamed on the acts of the Deros. Their worst depredations befall any who directly enter their subterranean caves, whether from wandering or abduction, where Humans are ceaselessly killed in the most horrible ways they can conceive and then healed so that the torture may continue. Visions of the Deros' habitat has inspired the Human concept of Hell.

Biology
"This x-ray caused mutation had gone on for endless centuries among these certain peoples, for they were ignorant of the cause, and never ceased to use the defective apparatus. The end result was a deformed race beggaring description. They had long legs and short bodies, or very short heads on very long bodies, bodies with arms at the hips and the trunk sticking up above the spider-like limb grouping. Some had hides mottled in black and white, some were covered with ﬁne fur, and, surprisingly, some were normal and even beautiful individuals, but the eﬀect of their entrance was that of the hordes of Hell loosed upon us. In truth, they were evil in a way I had not seen in action before."

- Jim Steele, Cult of The Witch-Queen

Shaver believed that life survived off of the cycles of creation and decay inside the universe, and natural as it may be, there were definite forms of good and evil inside this cycle. Matter decays into ex-disintegrance, an energy that causes gravity in its attempts to return to material form. Living beings develop by absorbing ex-disintegrance into their bodies, leading to indefinite growth of the body and mind, inspiring the stories of "angels", "gods" and "giants".

However, elements that were still distintegrating are disintegrant, a poison that inhibits collection of exd in living beings. Shaver cited the accelerated aging of radium girls to make the point that all aging comes from radiation poisoning. When disintegrant particles affect the mind, it becomes a mental infection called der. Der inhibits and disorganizes thought, causing senility or brain fog if it affects the memory, but it has a more sinister result when it alters the victim's decision making. They become irrationally murderous, repressive, and cruel. This is the state of mind that makes someone into a Dero, for they are robotically controlled by the der. This seemed to be treatable by God-race technology, except that many Deros were guilty of unforgiveable acts and destined for worse punishments than execution.

The appearances of Deros are diverse since they come from any race. A short and aged appearance is the most common, though many inhibit the aging problem through life sustaining stim rays. However, uneven exposure and normal mutations cause them to take diverse, horrifying appearances in modern times.

History
The elder races believed that free will was an acquired quality, and most people were ro until they had developed to the level of godhood. There were three categories of ro based on someone's mental purity:


 * The natural state of humanity was to be Tero, a force for the positive development of one's species, civilization, and self. Earth's remaining tribes of Tero survive through the same technologies as the Dero, although their own mech was given proper maintenance and kept away from such depraved actions.
 * Zero, the useless robots, were partially hindered by contamination with the der into the self-destructive behavior which humanity knows as selfishness, lacking inherent recognition that true self interest requires the edification of others with them. Any society consisting of Zeros was on its way to subjugation under the Deros.
 * Dero, detrimental robots, those whose minds have been totally upended by der. Having no capacity for sensical behavior, they operate through blind malice towards all unfamiliar peoples.

As a star ages, it procedes to scatter a greater quantity of disintegrant particles onto the neighboring planets. A young star system is full of titanic flora and fauna, and is a desirable candidate for colonization by the elder races. However, the fertility of a planet wanes with the life of its sun, requiring greater measures in protecting its residence from disintegrance. An elderly star system is known as a der star. The elder races moved from bubble cities to subterranean environments as the poison built up, and it was only twelve thousand years ago that Earth was evacuated.

In every passing millenia, the ones left behind would continue to shrink in size, lifespan, and knowledge. Some were able to hold on to greater proportions of all three, becoming superstitiously regarded as deities and mystics for their powers. At the same time, an improperly maintained device could infest the user with those toxins that the gods retreated from. Some groups were simply mutated or stunted and remained like Tero; others became the murderous freaks that inspired the fearful side of Human mythology with its demons, witches, and Human sacrifices.

Popular Culture

 * In Dungeons & Dragons, the Derros are a Dwarvish race who've developed racial madness from a prior calamity, and have permanently adapted to a subterranean environment.
 * The entry for dErO (sic) in Veins of The Earth is presented as an incompetent attempt at interrogating the reader, interspersed with boasts, lies, and other nonsensical behaviors. It hints at being a race or organization of mad scientists who specialize in psychic-like technologies, that are modelled after schizophrenic delusions.