Cjopaze

CJOPAZE (pronounced Syo-pah-zay) is the presumed name of the entity responsible for the events of the Ruby Quest adventure by "The Weaver". It never appears, nor does it interact directly with either Tom or Ruby; the protagonists. It is not even explicitly named during the story, or referenced in the original poem the story was based on. The little that is known is as follows:

Discovery
"I knew they would find something down there. In my dreams, I heard them calling me to that place. The strange red growths covering the walls of the forgotten room are like some kind of bizarre [bit missing] clearly organic, and the fact it's survived this long is evidence enough of some powerful. I will have to look into possible medical uses for th--"

- One of Red's notes

"--buried room was underneath all along... and we never would have found it were it not for Red's insistence on the need for emergency holding cell. The things they're pulling up are simply astounding. That statue, the carved disc, they bear signs unlike anything I've ever seen. And that bizarre dummy, its eyes are--"

- A note of an unknown author

The entity had first surfaced as the bottom level of the facility--known as "The Brig room"-- was excavated while the facility was expanded under the direction of the head researcher/cheif diagnostics technician, Red. He later reported that this decision was influenced by dreams he experienced and also voices he, and others, had been hearing; but apparently the only one to hear them distinctly enough or the only one to take it seriously, was himself.

Recovered Artifacts
All malevolent activity at the Metal Glen medical research facility can be connected to several objects retrieved from the "The Brig room". These objects include:


 * An odd disc with an eye imprinted on it


 * A tightly wrapped, leather-bound dummy (see below)


 * A small, fetus-esque statuette


 * A strange, fleshy, red growth shown to have extraordinary medicinal properties


 * And a set of viridian staves

The Dummy
"Don't SLEEP they are WATCHING"

- Red

During the game itself, the mannequin was discovered near the brig, bolted to the floor on a rotating pivot. Regardless of Ruby or Tom's location, whenever it is visible, it stares out of the screen in the general direction of the player. It has been noted by the staff that the mannequin's eyes had strange properties; such as w hen Tom pokes the it's eyes with his crowbar, he remarks that they feel squishy; also that they also glow in the darkness. Strangly and surprisingly, this was not met by the staff with fear nor concern, but rather facination.

The "Cure"
"You already HAVE the cure: So does everyone in this facility! It has brought you SIGHT! It has made you WELL! You didn't even need to EAT or DRINK! But when you died, you fucked it up! The cure was strong: It brought you BACK! And when you came back you brought something with you..."

- Filbert

Experimentation with the fleshy growth produced a treatment that was able to heal otherwise incurable or lethal injuries, especially blindness, if the subject was confined to a limited area during the healing process. Later, they discovered it could even end the recipient's need to eat or drink and miraculously reverse death under the right circumstances. Facility researchers began to cultivate it for this purpose not only for the patients, but also for the staff themselves. It was later discovered, however, that patients would often develop psychopathic tendencies under the treatment. Also, once the subject was resurrected, they would harbor ghastly mutations --especially in the regions which had previously been injured --met with loss of prior memory and soon to come: intelligence and self-control. Long exposure to the "cure" while still in a confined space would often cause the mutations to become much worse than if left to roam freely. Those removed from the treatment were subject to the same irreversible death as before, plus the scars left from their mutations--if any.

Violent Outbreak and Subsequent Lockdown
After a period of chaos from both the patients and the staff, the highest members of the staff had retreated from the Metal Glen and left it in a perma-lockdown, maintained by Bella.

The Brig
 Over the course of the game, the brig becomes divided in half by a black chasm. One half, as well as its associated gravity, later inverts. Both events apparently happen of their own accord.

Ace
(see main article)

Bella
"I am kept on life support. Those things don't attack me. My mind must be intact for me to continue operating. I suspect they don't want to taint it with me running the facility's systems."

- Bella

The only one that Cjopaze has not intentionally spread its curse upon is Bella, head systems manager and main support for the facility. When Ruby and Tom submit to her commands of a mercy kill, Ace is then seen going into a blind fury.

The "Barbed Wheel"
The frequent appearance of a so-called "barbed wheel" symbol (a few examples seen here) is thought to be a direct influence by the Cjopaze, namely at the times reality is most distorted.

Naming Convention
The words "CJOPAZE FHTAGN" were found written on an eye chart; a clear reference (to the readers) to the phrase Cthulhu fhtagn of the Cthulhu Mythos. Cjopaze therefore became the semi-official/ fan accepted name of the entity by default.