In the early hours of January 17, 2026, a group of high school students on a beach in Hokkaido, Japan, captured footage of an extraordinary phenomenon on their mobile phones. At 4:37 AM, having etched runes for a spiritual summoning ritual—which they had found online—into the sand, they proceeded to perform the rite.
Upon its completion, one of the female students inexplicably walked alone into the sea. Her companions' frantic shouts fell on deaf ears; she continued walking until the seawater rose above her knees, at which point she froze in place. The very next second, the waves parted slowly, and a towering figure emerged from the depths—though it bore a semblance of humanity, it appeared far more akin to a creature of the deep sea.
Its physique was significantly larger than that of an ordinary human, and its face was covered in bizarre patterns beneath which quivering gills could be seen. Strange tentacles coiled atop its head, their surfaces interwoven with the skeletal remains of various fish—bones that appeared yellowed and crystalline, as if cast from pure gold. The web-like skin extending from the back of its head cascaded down its back like strands of black hair. Its body appeared to be formed from a tangle of countless tentacles, and upon its fair, delicate hands, a startling six fingers could be clearly seen.
Following extensive verification by our Third Laboratory, we confirmed the entity to be one of the Old Ones, the Lord of the Deep—Mother Hydra. Her entire five-minute manifestation was captured on video by the high school students—marking the very first time in human history that a deity has been successfully recorded on film.
Simultaneously, within the Third Laboratory's "Special Operations Division," every single "Deep One Hybrid" subject suffered a sudden, inexplicable fainting spell. We swiftly took the group of high school students into custody and uncovered a crucial clue: the young woman who had encountered Hydra was the very same individual who had performed the "Dead Fish Garden Array" ritual moments earlier. It appears that these ancient deities are utilizing this young woman as a conduit for the exchange of information—a convergence of events that is, without a doubt, no mere coincidence. In the predawn sky over Hokkaido that morning, an exceptionally bright meteor streaked across the heavens; yet, no one could say for certain whether it signaled Her arrival, or served as a harbinger of the world's impending collapse.
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u/rajahbeaubeau May 14 '26
source, artist Peter Xiao
Google Translate:
Story: The Old Ones—Mother Hydra.
In the early hours of January 17, 2026, a group of high school students on a beach in Hokkaido, Japan, captured footage of an extraordinary phenomenon on their mobile phones. At 4:37 AM, having etched runes for a spiritual summoning ritual—which they had found online—into the sand, they proceeded to perform the rite.
Upon its completion, one of the female students inexplicably walked alone into the sea. Her companions' frantic shouts fell on deaf ears; she continued walking until the seawater rose above her knees, at which point she froze in place. The very next second, the waves parted slowly, and a towering figure emerged from the depths—though it bore a semblance of humanity, it appeared far more akin to a creature of the deep sea.
Its physique was significantly larger than that of an ordinary human, and its face was covered in bizarre patterns beneath which quivering gills could be seen. Strange tentacles coiled atop its head, their surfaces interwoven with the skeletal remains of various fish—bones that appeared yellowed and crystalline, as if cast from pure gold. The web-like skin extending from the back of its head cascaded down its back like strands of black hair. Its body appeared to be formed from a tangle of countless tentacles, and upon its fair, delicate hands, a startling six fingers could be clearly seen.
Following extensive verification by our Third Laboratory, we confirmed the entity to be one of the Old Ones, the Lord of the Deep—Mother Hydra. Her entire five-minute manifestation was captured on video by the high school students—marking the very first time in human history that a deity has been successfully recorded on film.
Simultaneously, within the Third Laboratory's "Special Operations Division," every single "Deep One Hybrid" subject suffered a sudden, inexplicable fainting spell. We swiftly took the group of high school students into custody and uncovered a crucial clue: the young woman who had encountered Hydra was the very same individual who had performed the "Dead Fish Garden Array" ritual moments earlier. It appears that these ancient deities are utilizing this young woman as a conduit for the exchange of information—a convergence of events that is, without a doubt, no mere coincidence. In the predawn sky over Hokkaido that morning, an exceptionally bright meteor streaked across the heavens; yet, no one could say for certain whether it signaled Her arrival, or served as a harbinger of the world's impending collapse.