Before there was the Cult of Culhun, deep within Oceanyka's mountainous forests, there was the Court of the Flesh King, another name for this deity. It is said that those who tap into His knowledge will receive great gifts and power, but at the cost of ever-increasing hunger. So do the Flesh King's followers, who are under no circumstances allowed to communicate with each other but with notes, signs and letters, dive into their deity's greatest secrets through esoteric tomes and rituals.
The first step is usually an old book called "The King in Yellow". It appears on bookshelves, libraries and drawers every so often, perhaps placed there by chance, or by a devious initiate seeking to recruit more into their ranks. Its numerous simple stories, rituals and poems are the first layer of a dark abyss.
Initiates are members of the Court of the Flesh King who have only begun their transformation. Below their ceremonial suits of brambles, skulls and rotten flesh, lies what was once a man. Even if they had been born as regular people, initiates are capable psychics on their own, drawing their power from an unknown source.