K'n-yanian

The People of K'n-yan, or K'n-yanians, are a sapient, telepathic species of extraterrestrial humanoids which originated on an Earth-like planet. At some point in their history, they were brought to prehistoric Earth by Cthulhu and colonized the surface of the planet, but later migrated to an underground realm called K'n-yan, underneath the continent of North America. Specifically, they came to dwell in the K'n-yanian region of Tsath, lit by a ghostly blue light of unspecified origin, where they remain as immortals.

In the past, the K'n-yanians have fought and subjugated other species native to that underground world. They have domesticated the non-sapient descendants of an older race of quadrupedal reptiles from the red-litten inner region of Yoth, and bred them with other species to produce the Gyaa-Yothn, which the K'n-yanians employ as beasts of burden.

The K'n-yanians are perhaps most well-known for their ability to become fully or partially invisible and intangible at will, and to preserve the dead bodies of their slaves and criminals as animated mindless automata called y'm-bhi, which have no will of their own.

Biology
The people of K'n-yan are humanoids who have advanced their biological sciences to the point of achieving immortality. As such they can live indefinitely and never grow old, although most still choose to terminate their lives at some point before they meet death in the form of accidents or violence. They can make their bodies age if they wish, and most seem to enjoy the sensation of growing old, as it alleviates the stagnation of their isolated society. The process of growing is also fully reversible for them, which allows them to become younger again whenever they wish.

They're still capable of reproducing, although they hardly ever do so, as they have no need to increase their numbers. They also require food and air; the latter which constitutes the reason why a few openings still exist linking the underground world to the surface. Although capable of speech, modern K'n-yanians communicate almost solely by telepathy.

The most notable trait of this species manifests in their extraordinary ability to "dematerialize" themselves at will. With additional effort, they may also "dematerialize" and "re-materialize" other objects and beings. This is actually achieved by rendering themselves and other objects both invisible and intangible for as long as they can maintain it, allowing them to pass through solid matter and to move around completely undetected, even by fellow K'n-yanians. The technique, which demands considerable mental effort, can even be learned by Humans, albeit with great difficulty. Experienced K'n-yanians can use it even while asleep to leave their underground realm in a ghostly semi-material state and explore the surface world while dreaming. Those who have been observed in this state by Humans are typically mistaken for ghosts.

Culture and society
The K'n-yanians were brought from the stars by Cthulhu and still worship the octopoid deity as one of the two central figures of their religion. Their other god is Yig, the father of serpents. The K'n-yanians are known to appease both of these gods by offering sacrificial victims.

In the past, they have built great cities on the Earth's surface, including a mighty civilization at the South Pole, close to the mythical mountain of Kadath. They believe themselves to have been the original progenitors of the Human species.

At some point in history, some K'n-yanians who explored the inner regions of their underground country have also discovered and partaken in the cult of Tsathoggua, and they even named the Tsath region after him. This cult was eventually abolished after they came in contact with the hideous Tsathoggua-worshipers known as the Formless Spawn.

Over the course of their history, the K'n-yanians have used selective breeding to create new species from the local fauna of the underground world, giving rise to the Gyaa-Yothn by combining the degenerate reptilian quadrupeds who descended from the original sapient inhabitants of Yoth with other, more mammalian species. They also created a class of inhuman slaves to be bred as food for both themselves and the Gyaa-Yothn.

Since these slaves are still mortal, the bodies of dead slaves as well as K'n-yanian criminals are preserved and kept as living but mindless creatures known as y'm-bhi. These are often cruelly grafted together with severed body parts or otherwise mutilated. Those who have died by decapitation remain headless. Completely mindless, the y'm-bhi are employed as labourers, guards and gladiators by their masters.

Following their underground retreat and isolation, the people of K'n-yan became increasingly ignorant of the surface world, save for a few educated members of the elite; and their culture has experienced a permanent shift towards increasingly violent activities with an emphasis on gladiatorial games and depravity; far removed from the scholarly and philosophical ventures of their distant forebears.

Appearances

 * "The Mound", by (1940)