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Entity Number: χ

Habitat(s): Majority

Description

Entity- χ, Also known as “The Keymaster” and “The Gatekeeper” by wanderers, is a mysterious and powerful entity, capable of accessing the entirety of The Backrooms at his own whims. Due to his abilities, he is a target of special interest to many groups

Superficially, The Keymaster appears like a normal human, and from a distance may even be mistaken for a wanderer at first. He wears an aged Victorian-era black leather trench coat with tattered edges that obscures everything up to his neck. The collar is raised and buttoned together, concealing the bottom half of his face. What little of his skin that is visible is pale, and his eye color is seafoam-green. He has long, unkempt dirty-blonde hair with a wiry composition. The most prominent trademark of his appearance is a large ring of traditional metal keys not unlike those found in The Frontrooms, attached to his right hip. The keys on the ring are not known to serve a practical purpose.

Behaviors

The Keymaster is a quiet individual, generally in a mode of "all business". Towards wanderers, his demeanor is neutral. If a wanderer is navigating a level he happens to be frequenting, he will not display any hostility and will even leave wanderers alone if not approached. If a wanderer enlists his help and requests him to generate a key, he will be willing to do so. If a wanderer displays hostility towards him and attempts to engage in combat, he will defend himself without holding back. Learning anything definitive about The Keymaster by directly asking him has proven difficult, as he is uncomfortable with answering personal questions.

Towards other entities, The Keymaster's demeanor is again neutral. The Keymaster knows how to navigate possible interactions with them without provoking aggression. Certain entities have even displayed a level of fear and intimidation towards him, despite him not possessing any mal-intent. Likely, it is not fear of The Keymaster himself, but rather the possible events his presence is capable of heralding.

Biology

Despite his humanoid appearance, The Keymaster is likely anything but. He cannot be destroyed by any conventional means, of any magnitude, that would kill a mortal human. He has a complete mastery over no-clipping. The Keymaster has "died" in front of wanderers many times, only to re-emerge later in another level.

The Keymaster's most notable ability is in his namesake. He has access to every Level Key in The Backrooms. The Keymaster obtains a given key by "generating" it, either by creating them or summoning them from a location. The Keymaster may in fact be the inventor of Level Keys, given the extent of his accessibility to them. The keys themselves may sometimes take the form of a conventional frontroom key - an object with incisions cut to fit the wards of a particular lock. However, more often than not, the keys are abstract conceptual notions or even sentient lifeforms, unpredictable in function. It could even be a bottle of hot sauce. Sometimes, The Keymaster has generated other, more malicious entities as keys. In one instance, he had summoned a highly destructive eldritch nightmare as a key, which left no trace of the wanderers that were unlucky enough to be present when it happened.

The Keymaster's ability to unlock things may even extend beyond just levels. It is sad that he is also capable of unlocking deeper things, such as one's true power and potential.

Discovery

The Keymaster was not discovered, so much as he has always been known to the wanderers of The Backrooms. He is widely known, and has existed for as long as any inhabitant of The Backrooms can remember. The oldest recorded sighting of The Keymaster took place in The Hub. As entities cannot typically access The Hub from outside, it is likely that his existence began here.

Theories

There are several theories in regards to The Keymaster's true nature and origins. Below are the most prominent ones:

The Wanderer Theory

It is popularly speculated that The Keymaster was once a wanderer himself, before experiencing some vague fate that made him what he now is. This makes sense, considering numerous other cases of human wanderers becoming entities after being transformed by other entities, if not the level itself. This explanation would lend to his more humanoid nature and appearance, which is absent from most other entities. It may also explain the keyring on his hip. Perhaps in his human life, he may have been a custodian, and that influenced what he would become in the next life? It's interesting to think about.

The Experiment Theory

Another theory is that The Keymaster was merely created as part of a test/experiment being performed by a greater, more mysterious entity. This is supported by the fact that his powers do not function properly. If he were experimental, then there could be room for error and failure, just as with all experiments.

The Deity Theory

Still others posit that The Keymaster is simply a deific being, a force of nature. he always have, are, and will be. his spirit may be tied to the very nature of the Backrooms themselves. This could account for his phantomic mannerisms, which may be a representation of them simultaneously interacting with multiple planes of existence. This degree of omnipresence would also account for the simultaneous sightings, and supposed immortality.

Do's and Don'ts

Do

  • Exhibit neutral or positive attitude toward him. He will not be malicious if others aren't to him.
  • Try to keep your distance if you are inexperienced with navigating The Backrooms or interacting with its entities. One wrong move could cost you your life.

Don't

  • Display aggressive or hostile behavior. Chances are that the average casual wanderer isn't going to come out a winner.
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