2011. Photographer: Christopher Morrison.
The Beguiler is a legendary figure known to frequent heavily wooded areas during the night and irrevocably damage the people she comes across. She is rarely seen without a small ensemble of so-called shadow men, who aid her in her attacks.
Appearance[]
The Beguiler resembles a human woman and is described as extremely tall and pale, as well as very beautiful. She has long, slim arms and legs and a notably jutting ribcage. She often wears a translucent white slip, and sometimes wears nothing at all.
Few witnesses have been able to comment on the appearance of her face as direct eye contact can cause soul damage to the victim. However, it is reported that she has delicate, classically beautiful facial features with large, deep blue or iridescent eyes.
The Beguiler's face can be safely viewed through glass, e.g. a pair of spectacles or a camera lens. However, doing this can cause the glass to cloud over or break within a few moments.
The shadow men who attend her have black skin which has a felt-like texture, and blank, featureless faces. Their fingers are tipped with claws. It is not known how many of these creatures exist.
Behaviour[]
The Beguiler has thus far been seen only in wooded areas, especially those that contain at least one clearing in the trees. This is where she appears to her victims. Eyewitnesses describe a sensation of time slowing down when the Beguiler is near. When a person gazes directly into her eyes, they are overcome by her beauty and become immobilised. They continue to stare at her while their soul is degraded. Prolonged staring will demolish the soul entirely and victims will have a sense of 'not caring'. In most cases, they will be catatonic.
It is usual at this point for the Beguiler's shadow men to appear from the trees, touch the victim on the shoulder and turn them into another shadow man. However, victims that escape with only partial soul damage can still be claimed by the shadow men within a few days. It is highly probable that every shadow man that attends the Beguiler is a former victim.
Most of the Beguiler's prey has been young men, particularly adolescents.
Sightings[]
The origin of the figure is not known, and sightings do not appear to date back further than 2010. The Beguiler was allegedly first sighted and reported by Simon Heller and Paul Wilkes on June 7th 2010 in Phalscam, England. She made at least three further appearances in the same spot later that year. The disappearances of Paul Wilkes, Callum Draper, Chris Morrison and Sa'id Ahktar have all been attributed to their encounters with the Beguiler.
She has also been seen in various other woodland and forest clearings in the United Kingdom. Reports of shadow men lurking in the gardens of a psychiatric hospital in London were later confirmed to be false.