The Wyrm

At the far end of creation, in the darkest pit of the Deep Universe (see The Umbra) lies the place known as Malfeas, the Doorstep of Hell.

Malfeas is a place of endless night and untold agonies, where the spirits of the damned suffer an eternity of torment.  Those unfortunate enough to be lost here are trapped in an infinitely vast pit of liquid darkness, their spirits corrupted into the very stuff of nightmares while inhuman entities drain their life energies for their own foul purposes.  But more even than this, Malfeas is also the domain of the Wyrm.

God, demon, spawner of monsters, personification of decay, the true nature of the Wyrm is incomprehensible to any who have not seen it in its full and awful glory.  And those who do see it are forever lost in an eternity of madness.  Legend calls it the primal force of entropy and corruption that has existed since the dawn of time, but to those who know of its existence it is, put simply, pure evil incarnate.

The Wyrm's spawn are the monstrous spirits and demons that infest the Umbra and once infested the Earth.  The Black Taminou (see The Seven) is a creature of the Wyrm, as are The Kraken and Azazel of The Ravening Ones.  There are even ancient legends that say the serpent that tempted Eve was an avatar of the Wyrm.

According to legend, Malfeas is called the Doorstep of Hell with good reason.  It is said that at the very bottom of the pit of darkness lies the Black Spiral, a staircase of such impossible angles and bizarre construction that to tread its steps is to lose oneself to insanity.  It descends endlessly through keening cries and sulphurous stenches until, at last, it ends at a humble-looking doorway.

That portal is called the Black Gate, and it is said that on the other side lies Hell itself.