This is the other half of the creativity fueled by spite. I REGRET NOTHING
As the Golden Emperor Lies Dying
A Hastur Mythos Alternate History Campaign
On our world, there was a man whose name was Joshua Norton; and in 1859 he declared to an entertained San Francisco that he was the Emperor of the United States and Protector of Mexico. While the Emperor was never allowed to rule, he was given many small, affectionate courtesies and benefits, and his reign lasted for over twenty years. After he died on January 8, 1880, it is said that ten thousand San Francsicans came to his funeral.
That’s on our world. On another, Emperor Norton did die on January 8, 1880 — only to have his corpse was possessed by that horrific entity known as the King in Yellow. The living god then used Norton’s miraculous ‘recovery’ to insidiously spread the influence of the Golden Emperor throughout California. Hastur has always preferred to corrupt humanity through its artists, and San Francisco in the last half of the Nineteenth Century was fertile ground. Twain, Stevenson, Coolbrith, London: some were there already to be ensnared, and some came after one too many dreams featuring the coat of arms of the Golden Emperor.
The year is 1911. California is still recovering from a horrible statewide earthquake that toppled towns and institutions alike. To this day the yellow dust fogs of San Francisco, the Friscosa, can manifest without warning to half-choke out the life of any poor fool caught in them. There are also many parts of California where prudent men should not go unarmed, and some places where no man should go at all. There are things stirred up by the Great Quake that should have stayed buried.