Lantern Man

Lantern Man is an important entity in Al'Tifali folklore. It is also referred to as "Soul Eater" or "Night Shepherd" by the Waerd. The Lantern Man is the main antagonist in the tale of "Ilnajeren and The Lantern Man". In this tale a Dras doctor named Ilnajeren and a Waerd named Jaleh are both involved in mysterious deaths occurring in and near a Neran village called Derriben. The story unfolds as The Eye enters the sky signifying the Queen's Gaze to come upon Elyria. The tale is provided in its entirety on the page about The Queen's Carnival.

When the Waerd tells Ilnajeren of the names of the creature, Ilnajeren's horrified reaction is "I thought Lantern Men were a myth!" Here, it is implied that Lantern Man is a name for a species of monstrous shape-shifters, rather than the name of a specific being.

Description
In the tale of "Ilnajeren and The Lantern Man", a Lantern Man is described as being "A vast and looming darkness, a shape like bubbling tar extruding dripping tentacles" and "each bubble of tar burst to reveal an eye or a gaping, razor-toothed maw".

The Lantern Man oozes its thick black sludge into the ears, nose, and mouth of its victim, somehow using the sludge to form feelers that grab and pull the soul from its victim's body. It consumes the soul through one of its ever-forming mouths.

Abilities

 * Consumption of it's victim's soul
 * Can pilot the body of it's victims.
 * Can shape-shift into anyone whose soul it has consumed