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“It was a big blob with a small round head with no neck, looking like a roly-poly. Around its big eyes were wrinkles that glowed…I knew it wanted me to go somewhere. I found myself slipping off the bed. Suddenly, the thing released its strange force and it was gone.” – From the Files of National Investigations Committee On Aerial Phenomena.
UFO researchers consider the Quinn family’s terrifying 1961 encounter in rural to be an early example of an alien abduction, predating the Betty and Barney Hill case by at least a month. Investigator Leo Stringfield was convinced the bloated, insect-like being was a screen-memory, covering-up the truth of what happened to the Quinns. With Dr. Benjamin Simon’s successful use of hypnosis to recover the memories of the Hills, Stringfield attempted the same with the Quinns.
Hypnosis sessions revealed what the Quinns saw was not the result of a screen-memory, but a real, living being. And while the family believed themselves to have two children, they had in fact three. One had been snatched away that night, along with any memory of him. It was as if he had been erased from existence. Stringfield was so terrified by what he discovered that he implanted post-hypnotic suggests in the Quinns, in order to make them completely forget the encounter. Stringfield then destroyed the recordings of the hypnosis sessions, and burned most of his notes about the incident. What few notes remain in the NICAP archives reveal only scant details of the truth.
What the Quinns encountered was a parasite from outside of our dimension. Living in nearby pocket realms, each created by an individual parasite, the creatures cross to our realm in order to breed, completely dependent on humans to do so. How the creatures select a victim is unknown; it may be complete happenstance. The only thing for certain is that the parasites prey only on the sleeping.
The parasite lures the potential host from their bed, and draws them across to its home dimension. There, it implants horrific nightmares in the victim, paralyzing them with fear and beginning the gestation process. In a matter of days, a new parasite emerges, consuming the host.
Upon crossing into the pocket dimension, the memory of the victim is wiped from his immediate friends and family. Over the course of the next few days, physical proof of his existence will gradually fade away.
Special Abilities
The Lure: On a successful POW x 5 roll, the parasite may lure a sleeping victim out of bed (or wherever they may be sleeping). On a successful Luck roll the victim wakes, and may resist the Lure on another successful POW x 5 roll. If the victim does not wake, or is unable to otherwise resist, he will be drawn into the parasite’s realm in 1d6 rounds.
Dimensional Slipping: At will, the parasite can slip between our realm and its home realm.
Gestation: Once in its home realm, the parasite will implant nightmares in its victim. Paralysis is automatic. This will drain 1d4 HP per day from the victim. Upon reaching 0 HP, a new parasite will emerge from the victim, leaving behind nothing but a desiccated husk.
Nightmare Blast: Parasites may produce a psychic blast of nightmares if threatened. On a successful POW x 5 roll, a victim is wracked by horrific images, becoming paralyzed and losing 1d6 sanity unless they can make a successful Sanity roll.
Amnesia: Immediately, the victim’s immediate friends and family will forget the victim ever existed. Over the course of the next 1d10 days, all physical evidence will begin to disappear as well. Memories can be recovered through hypnosis and spells. Once per day, on a successful Luck roll, someone close to the victim may experience a fleeting memory of them, akin to deja vu.
Nightmare Parasites, Interdimensional Abductors
char – rolls – avg
STR 2d6 7
CON 3d6 10-11
SIZ 2d6 7
INT 4d6 14
POW 5d6 17-18
DEX 2d6 7
Mov 6 – HP 8
Av. Damage Bonus: None
Weapons: Nightmare Blast, see above
Armor: 5 points of gelatinous extraterrestrial material.
Spells: None
Sanity Loss: 1d6/2d10 to see a Nightmare Parasite.
Bruce is a sociology student and co-host of The Crypt Keepers podcast
