Nyarlathotep

"'I had never heard the name NYARLATHOTEP before, but seemed to understand the allusion. Nyarlathotep was a kind of itinerant showman or lecturer who held forth in public halls and aroused widespread fear and discussion with his exhibitions. These exhibitions consisted of two parts – first, a horrible – possibly prophetic – cinema reel; and later some extraordinary experiments with scientific and electrical apparatus. As I received the letter, I seemed to recall that Nyarlathotep was already in Providence.... I seemed to remember that persons had whispered to me in awe of his horrors, and warned me not to go near him. But Loveman's dream letter decided me.... As I left the house I saw throngs of men plodding through the night, all whispering affrightedly and bound in one direction. I fell in with them, afraid yet eager to see and hear the great, the obscure, the unutterable Nyarlathotep.' -H.P Lovecraft, in a letter to Reinhardt Kleiner"Nyarlathotep differs from the other deities in a number of ways. Most of the Outer Gods are exiled to the stars, like Yog-Sothoth and Azathoth, and most of the Great Old Ones are sleeping and dreaming like Cthulhu; Nyarlathotep, however, is active and frequently walks the Earth in the guise of a human being, usually a tall, slim, joyous man. He has "a thousand" other forms and manifestations, most reputed to be quite horrific and sanity-blasting.

Most of the Outer Gods have their own cults serving them; Nyarlathotep seems to serve these cults and take care of their affairs in the other Outer Gods' absence. Most Outer Gods use strange alien languages, while Nyarlathotep uses human languages and can easily pass for a human being if he chooses to do so. Finally, most of them are all-powerful yet evidently without clear purpose or agenda, yet Nyarlathotep seems to be deliberately deceptive and manipulative, and even uses propaganda to achieve his goals. In this regard, he is probably the most human-like among the Outer Gods.

Nyarlathotep enacts the will of the Outer Gods, and is their "messenger, heart and soul"; he is also the servant of Azathoth, whose fitful, spastic wishes he immediately fulfills. Unlike the other Outer Gods, spreading madness is more important and enjoyable than death and destruction to Nyarlathotep. It is suggested by some that he will destroy the human race and possibly the earth as well.

Timeline
Nyarlathotep's first appearance is in old Egyptian times, in which he is described as a "tall, swarthy man" who resembles an Egyptian Pharaoh. He wanders the earth, gathering legions of followers through his demonstrations of strange and seemingly magical instruments, recruiting followers. These followers lose awareness of the world around them, and become a drone army for Nyarlahotep. They were never seen again.

Nyarlathotep would be reborn again, as an avatar of the Outer Gods, killing a man by the name of Randolph Carter, who trespassed in the Godly city of Kadath, in Earth's Dreamlands.

He would then go on to appear in many Earth religions, mostly naming him along the lines of the Devil. A notable occurrence of this would be in Christianity, where he is named Satan, and in Norse mythology, which named him Loki.

Disregarding Earth, other civilizations have encountered Nyarlathotep, and revered him in various different ways. His name is spoken frequently by the fungi from Yuggoth in a reverential or ritual sense, indicating that they worship or honor the entity. The deep ones sometimes invoke the name of Nyarlathotep, followed shortly after by Cthulhu. Nyarlathotep has also been known to appear as a floating slug-like entity, in a green sack.

On Earth, Nyarlathotep would appear again in history. It is said that he carries many masks, but usually appears as a tall human with handsome features, and hair styled like a pair of lightning bolts. Some time before, he and the other Outer Gods were trapped on earth in the forms of mortals. While Yog-Sothoth and Shub-Niggurath are content to wait for the stars to align, Nyarlathotep is more impatient, and tortures Albert Wilmarth for information on the Miscatonic University's copy of the Necronomicon. He makes a reference to having made a deal with the Mi-Go at one point, possibly for information on Prof. Wilmarth.

The only recorded instance of Nyarlathotep appearing after this was in 1920, to H.P Lovecraft. He wrote a letter to Reinhardt Kleiner detailing his experience.