Xel

**Xel** is a canine-esque creature resembling a typical pet canine, but in all other respects is very, *very* different from a normal dog.

## "Man's Best Fiend"

During the late 70's, the U.S. government decided to engage in several paranormal experiments involving voluntary test subjects and canines of different breeds, in order to establish if mind control could be asserted over an animal by a human mind.

The experiment, (dubbed "Man's Best Fiend" due to it's potential applications in war-fare if successful), ran as follows:

First, introduce a test subject and an animal into the room. The test subject is told to visualize the room from the animals perspective, and to will themselves to raise their left paw.

This is often unsuccessful, with the few times that it does work being chalked up to a coincidence. Regardless, this process is repeated until it is successful, with additional cross-species entrancement exercises including inserting wires into the cerebrum of the animal that are fed real-time data from the brain of the human participant; and positive reinforcement, where the animal is given an electric shock when they participate in an action contrary to the intent thought of the test subject. For increased effectiveness, participants are to spend two hours a day studying canine behavior and psychology, even acting out canine behavior and pretending to be the animal for a short time of about 20 minutes with other participants.

After about six months of intensive training, the test subject will develop a "psychic bond" with the animal, which is manifest by experiencing phantom sensations that aren't there from the standpoint of the subject, but are present to the animal. Even at this point however, control over the animal's nervous system through psychic means is nonexistent, bringing us to the final phase of the experiment.

The final phase is meant to force such desperation and adrenaline into the mind of the test subject that they will assume control of the animal so as to save it from it's imminent demise, and therefore establish mind control over the animal. Various methods were tried, three of which are described below:

The animal and test subject are to be placed in different rooms, with the animal being submerged in a tank over which there is a lid, and in which there are two buttons, blue and red, which must be hit in the order blue-red-red-blue-red. If the test subject fails to assume control of the animal and make them strike the proper buttons in the right order the animal will drown. Success rate is 30%.
The animal and test subject are to be placed in different rooms, with the animal fully bound and brought near a gas flame, which will burn brighter and hotter until the canine is fried at around ten minutes in. During the time that the human must assume control they are in great agony as a result of the afore-stated entrancement, and may even begin sweating blood as a result of the excruciating pain. Release is granted the animal if the human can make it bark out "SOS" in morse code. Success rate is 60%.
The animal and test subject are to be placed in different rooms, with the animal being slowly picked and sliced with knives while under restraints. Again, it must bark out "SOS" before dying of blood loss. Success rate is 70%.
What should happen if the animal dies while under entrancement with a human subject, I hear you ask? No permanent damage except maybe PTSD in the weaker ones and an awful headache like a hang-over for the next few days. Other than the case below however, there is no known lasting damage.

## Xel

Alexander Lukyanov, (Александр Лукьянов), was a test subject in the "Man's Best Fiend" project. He was not very well known however, and was described by the other test subjects, (all of whom were soldiers by the way), as being "gentle and shy, yet oddly sage-like in appearance". Having established entrancement with the animal's mind at only four months rather than the usual six months, he was one of the first to engage in the final part of the mind-control process.

He was put into the knifing group of participants, where the dog would be picked with knives until death unless it barked out "SOS" under the control of Alexander. For five minutes it appeared as if Alexander was oblivious to the rippling pain that must be going through the dog's body, until he twitched ever so slightly and said in a clear voice: "Stop it." The people in the other room did not stop.

With swiftness Alexander struck the soldier nearest him and succeeded in getting his pistol, which he used to shoot up the faculty members around him, who were rushing in on him so as to immobilize him. He shot 12 people before a guard cornered with a gun. Alexander only smiled knowingly before being shot and falling to the floor.

Incidentally,the dog in the aforementioned experiment died purportedly at the exact minute Alexander was shot, and in accordance to standard procedure was laid to rest upon a pile of other deceased dogs, who would shortly be burned in a giant furnace.

As they were being turned into ashes however, nearby soldiers reported they heard barking from within the furnace, and whimpering which only grew louder. The guards were taken aback, not for the fact that one of the dogs might be alive, but because the doors to the furnace were made of thick steel, six inches thick. - How could any sound escape from within?

When the doors to the furnace were opened most of the animals were turned to ashes as expected, except for a bloody white heap in the corner. It had charred white flesh and most of it's skin was burned off. It appeared to be dead however, so it was paid little attention. The soldiers carting away the ashes heard a deep, raspy, inhuman voice say "I...am...XEL...", and at once found the bloody heap in the corner lifting it's bony head and staring at them.

The guards felt themselves pulled towards it's blackened eyes, and at that moment felt an overwhelming urge to pet it and to comfort it. As they came closer the tortured being opened it's jaws and quickly leaped up to grab hold of the jugular vein of the guard, taking even the second guard by surprise, though he reached for his gun a split second later. He was too late however, as a lean white mass crossed his field of view and he found himself on the floor, paralyzed as blood filled his vision and the grotesque face of Xel stared at him coldly.

Xel soon escaped, and wanders the country in search of fresh victims.

## Traits and Attacks

Xel appears as a skinless-bony creature with charred eyes and a bloody mouth, from the blood of it's many victims. Xel masquerades as a poor defenseless dog, and despite his hideous appearance, he is able to mesmerize people passing by into coming closer, which will result in their death - usually by internal trauma or blood loss from exterior wounds. Xel is able to run at a maximum of about thirty miles per hour for extremely brief periods of time, and can comfortably run long distance at 10 to 12 miles per hour.

Xel has the spirit of Alexander still trapped within it's body, and therefore is on-par with humans intellectually. All attempts to capture Xel have been ultimately unsuccessful, as the creature is always resurrected from the depths of death. It it speculated Alexander may have been a necromancer, explaining this paranormal phenomena.

Of the things Xel has been heard saying, they are: "I am XEL", "Free me", and "Stop it.", the latter one most often heard before a kill. Xel has also demonstrated telepathic abilities, and can make it's barking heard to one person in a group without the other's hearing, leading to acute paranoia. Xel will take advantage of this by waking up the victim in the middle of the night with barking only they can hear, until the victim is committed to a mental institution or seeks other help, at which point Xel will go in for the kill.

This story was inspired by MemoryAngel's Silencer creature.