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Description
Maw of Despair, Keeper of the Mournful River, Cocytus is one of the five aquatic beasts that dwell within the rivers of the Underworld. She lurks in the freezing waters that share her name, living in the heart of misery. She crawls along the bottom, marching along on some mournful pilgrimage. It appears she crawls up and down her river endlessly, wallowing in her own sadness and wailing the song of despair. What this achieves is not known, but all who dwell in the underworld knows what will happen if they disturb her journey. If one is to approach this miserable river, keep your ears open to the haunting melody of her cries. Even when she is submerged deep in this icy river, her song of sorrow can easily reach the surface for all to hear. If one can hear this tune, then leave quickly and quietly. Disturbing the river or causing any sort of commotion upon its shores may catch her attention and break her from her singing. With her song cut short, she will grow even more miserable and bitter, causing her to rise to the surface. Emerging onto the frigid shores, she will bring her sorrow to those who disturbed her, as well as to any poor soul still in the area.

The River of Lamentation is where she lives, and she embodies every aspect of it. Once free of its waters, everyone will see that the miserable river was actually dampening her powers. With no fluid to hold her song, the droning despair of her melody is greatly increased and becomes dangerous to those exposed to it. When she sings, the air and music that flows from her mouth is ice cold, able to slice through the thickest of coats and chill right down to the bone. The temperature of the area around her will begin to drop drastically, turning sweltering summer days into a frigid winter night within minutes. Those caught in this place without proper protection can suffer from hypothermia quite easily, but that is not the worst thing to deal with. As she sings, her insidious voice and song will creep into the minds of those who listen. As they absorb her tune, they shall gain the sorrow she wails about and begin a slow descent into misery. Depressing thoughts and lifelong regrets will begin to grow in the minds of her audience, and they will have a hard time thinking straight as they sink into despair. It is important that one fights against these thoughts and focus on either leaving the area or dampening her song. Those who fail to fight it will not be able to escape her effects, as they will be too busy being miserable than to realize they are freezing to death. Those who fully give in will be frozen solid, transformed into icy weeping statues. When she wanders into the mortal realm, her path will be cold and dead, leaving an icy picture of a land's final moments.

Though Cocytus dwells in misery, she is not blind to the world around her. It appears that she can see the sorrows of others, and that is how her songs cut so deep. It also seems that she can see the hearts of those who create such misery, as she grows angry in the presence of such wicked souls. When she senses one who has lived a life of cruelty, she will burst forth from her river and give chase. Though she is not the fastest, she can vomit forth her wailing tendrils and use them as grabbers. Seizing the offender, she will drag them into her maw and swallow them whole. Once ingested, the condemned will be trapped within her gut and be forced to soak in her despair. As they melt away, they will be exposed to every ounce of misery and sorrow they caused others in their life. They will feel every bit of this agony, and they will break. It won't be long before they are transformed into one of her weeping tendrils, forced to live with this sadness for the rest of time.

As one can expect, Cocytus is a rather sad individual. Her tragic singing is a constant, and her few moments of silence are just mournful meditation or guilt-ridden sleep. Talking or interacting with her is almost a fruitless endeavor, as she cannot find a moment of joy or interest. As the living embodiment of woe, she brings every conversation and chat to a miserable level, always finding the rotten core of every topic. It is said that even the most tortured souls of the realm are cheerier than her. Due to her powers and general attitude, she is often avoided by many who dwell in the underworld. There is, however, one individual who can change her disposition. One of the other keepers of the rivers, Lethe, is able to snap her out of this depressing state. Since Lethe emanates forgetfulness and is able to infect the water around her with memory loss, her presence around Cocytus can relieve her of some of this misery. When exposed to this water, Cocytus seems to forget these troubles and lose a part of this great burden. While she doesn't instantly become smiles and sunshine, this bit of upbeat and actual pleasant conversation is a huge improvement. In these precious moments, Cocytus can relax and enjoy a sliver of life, but this won't last forever. Eventually, the two must part and return to their respective waters, and all the haunting thoughts will come flooding back. It seems this misery will hit even harder than before, as Cocytus admonishes herself for ignoring these troubles and tragic realities.

On a lighter note, those in the underworld have running debate about Cocytus. The burning question is: which way is up for her? Due to her boneless anatomy and adjustable limbs, no one is really sure of which side of her is the up and which is the down. Her body plan is mirrored and seemingly identical, but folks believe there has to be a definite answer. The problem is, she doesn't seem to mind being right side up or upside down. If she is flipped over onto her "back," her legs just flip down and she carries on just like normal. So which is it? It isn't the most serious of debates, but most people talk about it because it gives them something more fun to think about rather than focus on the living pile of depression that haunts this realm.

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Here is another Beast of the Infernal Rivers! No matter what, I am pretty sure I will always find a way to put in a sea cucumber creature.

Description
Maw of Despair, Keeper of the Mournful River, Cocytus is one of the five aquatic beasts that dwell within the rivers of the Underworld. She lurks in the freezing waters that share her name, living in the heart of misery. She crawls along the bottom, marching along on some mournful pilgrimage. It appears she crawls up and down her river endlessly, wallowing in her own sadness and wailing the song of despair. What this achieves is not known, but all who dwell in the underworld knows what will happen if they disturb her journey. If one is to approach this miserable river, keep your ears open to the haunting melody of her cries. Even when she is submerged deep in this icy river, her song of sorrow can easily reach the surface for all to hear. If one can hear this tune, then leave quickly and quietly. Disturbing the river or causing any sort of commotion upon its shores may catch her attention and break her from her singing. With her song cut short, she will grow even more miserable and bitter, causing her to rise to the surface. Emerging onto the frigid shores, she will bring her sorrow to those who disturbed her, as well as to any poor soul still in the area.

The River of Lamentation is where she lives, and she embodies every aspect of it. Once free of its waters, everyone will see that the miserable river was actually dampening her powers. With no fluid to hold her song, the droning despair of her melody is greatly increased and becomes dangerous to those exposed to it. When she sings, the air and music that flows from her mouth is ice cold, able to slice through the thickest of coats and chill right down to the bone. The temperature of the area around her will begin to drop drastically, turning sweltering summer days into a frigid winter night within minutes. Those caught in this place without proper protection can suffer from hypothermia quite easily, but that is not the worst thing to deal with. As she sings, her insidious voice and song will creep into the minds of those who listen. As they absorb her tune, they shall gain the sorrow she wails about and begin a slow descent into misery. Depressing thoughts and lifelong regrets will begin to grow in the minds of her audience, and they will have a hard time thinking straight as they sink into despair. It is important that one fights against these thoughts and focus on either leaving the area or dampening her song. Those who fail to fight it will not be able to escape her effects, as they will be too busy being miserable than to realize they are freezing to death. Those who fully give in will be frozen solid, transformed into icy weeping statues. When she wanders into the mortal realm, her path will be cold and dead, leaving an icy picture of a land's final moments.

Though Cocytus dwells in misery, she is not blind to the world around her. It appears that she can see the sorrows of others, and that is how her songs cut so deep. It also seems that she can see the hearts of those who create such misery, as she grows angry in the presence of such wicked souls. When she senses one who has lived a life of cruelty, she will burst forth from her river and give chase. Though she is not the fastest, she can vomit forth her wailing tendrils and use them as grabbers. Seizing the offender, she will drag them into her maw and swallow them whole. Once ingested, the condemned will be trapped within her gut and be forced to soak in her despair. As they melt away, they will be exposed to every ounce of misery and sorrow they caused others in their life. They will feel every bit of this agony, and they will break. It won't be long before they are transformed into one of her weeping tendrils, forced to live with this sadness for the rest of time.

As one can expect, Cocytus is a rather sad individual. Her tragic singing is a constant, and her few moments of silence are just mournful meditation or guilt-ridden sleep. Talking or interacting with her is almost a fruitless endeavor, as she cannot find a moment of joy or interest. As the living embodiment of woe, she brings every conversation and chat to a miserable level, always finding the rotten core of every topic. It is said that even the most tortured souls of the realm are cheerier than her. Due to her powers and general attitude, she is often avoided by many who dwell in the underworld. There is, however, one individual who can change her disposition. One of the other keepers of the rivers, Lethe, is able to snap her out of this depressing state. Since Lethe emanates forgetfulness and is able to infect the water around her with memory loss, her presence around Cocytus can relieve her of some of this misery. When exposed to this water, Cocytus seems to forget these troubles and lose a part of this great burden. While she doesn't instantly become smiles and sunshine, this bit of upbeat and actual pleasant conversation is a huge improvement. In these precious moments, Cocytus can relax and enjoy a sliver of life, but this won't last forever. Eventually, the two must part and return to their respective waters, and all the haunting thoughts will come flooding back. It seems this misery will hit even harder than before, as Cocytus admonishes herself for ignoring these troubles and tragic realities.

On a lighter note, those in the underworld have running debate about Cocytus. The burning question is: which way is up for her? Due to her boneless anatomy and adjustable limbs, no one is really sure of which side of her is the up and which is the down. Her body plan is mirrored and seemingly identical, but folks believe there has to be a definite answer. The problem is, she doesn't seem to mind being right side up or upside down. If she is flipped over onto her "back," her legs just flip down and she carries on just like normal. So which is it? It isn't the most serious of debates, but most people talk about it because it gives them something more fun to think about rather than focus on the living pile of depression that haunts this realm.

-----------------------------------------------------------

Here is another Beast of the Infernal Rivers! No matter what, I am pretty sure I will always find a way to put in a sea cucumber creature.