Zykais

Somewhere in the darkness, almost beyond perception, was a faint green glow. He was not sure where it hovered exactly, but was acutely aware of the feeling that something was watching him. The green shape became clearer, multiplying before his horrified gaze. The shadows had come to swallow him whole.

Zykais is the Deep deity of darkness. It plays a key role in much of the mythos of the Deep religion, particularly regarding the tense balance it strikes with its twin and counterpart Tykais, deity of light and pathfinding.

A Terrifying Visage

Like Tykais, Zykais does not possess what most folk would consider a typical humanoid shape. In fact, it seems to have no body altogether. Instead, a majority of its form is comprised of an oily, purple-black cloud of what seems to be pure magic. This cloud is in constant motion, writhing and churning within itself like a storm. Some of this magic condenses near the bottom of the cloud, and drips onto the ground in slick, oily puddles. These puddles are pitch-black, even seeming to absorb any light directed at them. this gives each drop the appearance of having opened some manner of portal into the Void itself. Some say that to defeat Zykais, one simply has to draw away the cloud of magic, and the rest of the pieces will lose their power and simply fall to the ground, devoid of life.
The most telling, and perhaps most frightening, feature of Zykais is its mask, upon which is painted the deity's face. This face contains five eyes - two pairs of smaller eyes and one larger, more central one - with a teardrop-shaped decal below each pair of smaller eyes. The mask also has a line which seems to indicate the ridge of a nose, and a strangely shaped red mouth. This mouth has vertical lines running perpendicular to the mouth-line itself, giving it the appearance of dripping blood or long, thin fangs. It is said that Zykais's mouth, when opened, seems to be filled with dozens of needle-sharp, silver-black fangs. Many believe that Zykais can swallow light itself, drawing it into the blackness of its gaping jaws. The eyes move independently of one another, and in the darkness their irises glow a faint, eerie green, like that of a luminescent mushrooom.
Zykais, like its twin Tykais, also possesses two pairs of floating, ethereal hands, which are held in most depictions with palms open and facing forward. These hands are the same eerie green color as the irises of its eyes, but these hands do not glow. They are used instead to clash with Tykais when the two deities meet, as well as snuff out any flames or magic that the deity encounters.

Zykais in Deep Lore

Zykais, along with Tykais, represents one of the most fundamental concepts in the Deep: the constant battle between light and darkness. There is no sun in the Deep, so what little light that can be produced is held almost sacred. Some Deepfolk such as the Talpidae, mole people who dwell in Upper Deep, hold darkness above light because they feel exposed in the brightness. These Deepfolk hold Zykais in particular reverence, because they do not need nor want the harsh realities of light and can survive and thrive in the darkness. Such Deepfolk will often have a small altar to Zykais in their homes or settlements, and will occasionally offer thanks or prayers for giving them the comfort of darkness. The Deepfolk who rely on light, however, hold a deep-seated fear of Zykais, more so than the normal fear held for all Deep deities. They believe that Zykais is a particularly wrathful deity and that it will actively seek out settlements and sources of light to put them out. When Deepfolk encounter the dark pools of oily magic said to be left by Zykais, they turn in fear and retreat back the way they came, praying desperately to avoid an encounter with the bringer of such darkness. Some Deepfolk tell stories of adventurers, miners, or other folk who have been caught by Zykais. Such unfortunate folk have the light sucked out of them by the fearsomely sharp teeth of Zykais, and are said to wander aimlessly through the Deep in a zombie-like state, reduced to husks of their former selves. Such victims no longer need the sustenance brought by food or drink, and instead seek to find and swallow any light they can, starved of warmth and life. Many parents use such stories to frighten their young into obedience, whispering of how such husks will snatch up disobedient children and suck the light out of them, leaving them to the same horrid fate.
It is said that Zykais was fashioned by Khelmeeshe, the Mother of the Deepfolk, along with its twin and counterpart, Tykais. Khelmeeshe had recognized the need to find a balance in a world so dependent on light and dark, and determined that creating twin deities could help find such a balance, suitable for all the Deepfolk. However, Khelmeeshe failed to outline how the deities should regard one another, and when the two came to life, they immediately began to fight. They fought for a very long time, launching beams of darkness and light at one another. The two deities swept through passage after passage, leaving long scorch marks and clinging, oily pools of shadow. Any living things which had once been in the tunnels had been either obliterated or had simply run away, seeking shelter from the terrible duel in deeper caverns. Eventually, Khelmeeshe tracked the two deities down and forced them apart, sending Tykais far above to Upper Deep, and Zykais far below to Lower Deep. To this day, the two deities roam the passages of the Deep, seeking one another but never quite finding their way back. Each deity left its mark wherever it roamed, whether a trail of glowing rocks or a tunnel completely submerged in darkness, and sought to eliminate the other's touch from the stony world. Zykais spends much of its time in areas of the Deep where the light-shunning folk have settled. It leaves its oily trails of clinging darkness behind wherever it goes, and strikes fear into those who are dependent on light.

Zykais in Surface Lore

With the introduction of the Deepfolk to the surface folk, the tales and legends of the two groups of deities were shared and spread. Many surface folk, having lived under the warm supervision of deities such as Althea, Vitalis, and Vytos, were shocked to hear of such wrathful deities. Because of the surface folk's reliance on sunlight and warmth, they have a great fear of Zykais. They hold it in the same regard as the Dark deities of the surface world such as Brantis, Tixan, and Iartus. Some surface folk give offerings of food, incense, and coin to Zykais, hoping that they might please the deity enough to keep it away from their torches, candles, and other light sources. Zykais is seen as a direct counterpart to Iartus, the surface deity of shadows, and many believe they are very closely entwined. The surface folk who believe in the Swallowing also believe that Zykais might emerge from its Deep domain and rise to the surface, helping the Dark deities to swallow all the light of the world.
Some less-than-savory Deepfolk have taken advantage of the superstitions and fears of the surface folk, and prey on their inexperience with the customs of the Deep. Since the introduction of the surface folk to the Deep, a quasi-religious order has sprung up. Known as the Speakers of Zykais, they claim to have a direct line of communication with the deity. Many such Speakers wait at exits from the Threshold, and greet surface travelers as they emerge for the first time in the world of the Deep. Here, the Speakers offer to sent prayers and pleas directly to Zykais, in exchange for goods or coins, often at exorbitant prices. Although some of these Speakers do pass these offerings on to the various altars of Zykais found throughout the Deep, many others simply keep the gifts for themselves. Any experienced travelers to the Deep know to avoid these petitioners in favor of making their own prayers and offerings to Zykais.