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4[[quoteright:349:[[WesternAnimation/SouthPark https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/south_park_s14e12c14_turning_dreams_into_nightmares_4x3.png]]]]
5[[caption-width-right:349:You may be evil, but you'll never be ''"[[GoodAngelBadAngel tempting Elder Gods to sin]]"'' evil.]]
6
7So, you have your average {{Body Surf}}er or enslaving EvilSorcerer, or similar BigBad. Eventually, they aim to enslave or [[FusionDance fuse]] with a PhysicalGod or other [[EldritchAbomination powerful being beyond comprehension]], often a SealedEvilInACan. But since EvilIsNotAToy, surely they’ll end up [[YouHaveOutlivedYourUsefulness swept aside]] by the GreaterScopeVillain, right?
8
9Usually yes. But occasionally, they actually manage to pull it off! This is when a character takes forceful control over something vastly more powerful than themselves.
10
11Not to be confused with HijackedByGanon or [[CosmicHorrorReveal Hijacked by Cthulhu]]. Can involve {{Hypno Trinket}}s, {{Soul Jar}}s, [[FreakyFridayFlip body swaps]] or DemonicPossession.
12
13Differs from TheKidWithTheRemoteControl in that this is a direct and hostile takeover of the target. Compare OlympusMons, GrandTheftPrototype, CapturedSuperEntity or SuperWeaponAverageJoe.
14
15----
16!!Examples:
17[[foldercontrol]]
18
19[[folder:Anime & Manga]]
20* In ''Anime/CodeGeass'', [[spoiler:sort of; Lelouch briefly takes control of what is referred to as "GOD" using his [[MagicalEye Geass]]. Given the nature of his powers, he only has control momentarily, but it's enough to stop the [[AssimilationPlot Ragnarok Connection]].]]
21* Near the end of ''Manga/FullmetalAlchemist'', the central villain Father eventually uses a massive-scale alchemy technique to [[spoiler:absorb Truth -- the setting's God -- into his body. Father was never weak to begin with, but Truth is definitely far more powerful. Freeing the souls captured in the ritual's first half, along with [[RasputinianDeath repeatedly physical damage]], causes Father to lose control and get dragged to hell.]]
22* In the [[Anime/GranblueFantasy anime adaptation]] of ''VideoGame/GranblueFantasy'', an ordinary human merged with the [[PhysicalGod primal beast]] [[spoiler: Celeste]], putting its vast powers over [[spoiler: death and immortality]] at his disposal. He used those powers to [[spoiler:[[ZombifyTheLiving zombify everyone]] on the [[WorldInTheSky island]] and sustain himself by eating their souls until he could find and absorb the one person with true immmortality - who had been hidden from sight for a hundred years]].
23* The [[MagicalEyes Mangekyo Sharingan]] in ''Manga/{{Naruto}}'' lets the user do this to the Tailed Beasts. Madara [[spoiler:and Obito]] Uchiha used their Rinnegan eyes to do this the [[spoiler:[[{{God}} Ten Tails]]]]. More conventionally, [[spoiler:after becoming the Ten Tailed Beast's jinchuuriki, Obito is overwhelmed by its power and his psyche is nearly torn to pieces, but he subdues it through sheer force of will coupled with his love for Rin.]] Madara, however, has no such difficulties after [[spoiler: becoming the Ten Tails' jinchuuriki]] because [[EvilIsEasy they both want the same thing]]. [[spoiler:This then backfires on Madara when he's left completely unprepared for the backstab of Black Zetsu, which allows the Ten Tails' true will, Kaguya Ōtsutsuki, to pull a GrandTheftMe on him.]]
24* There was a story arc of ''Literature/HaruhiSuzumiya'' where someone stole Haruhi's powers.
25* ''Manga/DemonLordDante'': The title demon tricks Ryo into freeing it, then rewards the boy by eating him. But somehow, Ryo's personality survives this, taking over Dante's body and displacing its previous human identity [[spoiler:[[Literature/TheBible Judas Iscariot]]]].
26* In ''{{Anime/K}}'', [[spoiler:the Colorless King]] tries to hijack [[spoiler:the Silver King]], who is effectively immortal. It backfires.
27* In ''Manga/{{Koudelka}}'' (from ''VideoGame/ShadowHearts'' franchise), the [[ActionGirl titular character]] manages to control a CosmicHorror by [[MemoryGambit hypnotizing herself before she got possessed by that monster]], so she could awaken her personality while possesed and assert control. It is as awesome as it sounds.
28* The premise of ''Manga/{{Devilman}}'' is that a teenager named Akira hijacks his own DemonicPossession, which gives him full control over the demon Amon's power. His friend Ryu explains that any human can do this if they are able to retain their sense of reason.
29* In ''Manga/SoulEater'', [[MadScientist Medusa]] initially planned to make her own [[MadGod Kishin]], but decided [[ItIsDehumanizing it]] (e.g. [[GuineaPigFamily Crona]]) was a failure, so she instead [[SealedEvilInACan releases]] Asura, the original Kishin. After that, she apparently changed her mind about Crona and decided to try again to make them a Kishin capable of devouring Asura himself, [[spoiler:which she finishes with a ThanatosGambit.]] All of this ForScience, essentially. Ultimately, [[spoiler:Crona is able to eat Asura, but falls victim to AssimilationBackfire soon after.]]
30* In ''Anime/TransformersEnergon'', Rodimus and Alpha Q plan to use Unicron to rebuild their home planet. After Megatron seizes control of the head, resulting in Q's death, Shockblast attempts to hijack Unicron himself, but gets [[GiantFootOfStomping stomped]].
31* ''Franchise/DragonBall''
32** Captain Ginyu manages to steal Goku's body after he proves to be stronger than him. It backfires badly for him since he doesn't know any of Goku's power-up techniques, and his mind and spirit are out-of-sync with Goku's body. He eventually gets stomped by Vegeta and when he tries to steal Vegeta's body, he ends up in the body of a frog.
33** Babidi has a powerful spell that allows him to control the hearts of evil people, turning even the strongest of warriors into his loyal slave. Vegeta, however, proves uncontrollable thanks to his pride and his overwhelming desire to fight Goku no matter the cost.
34** Baby from ''GT'' possesses people by laying eggs in their brains after he body surfs. He eventually finds a permanent host in Vegeta and takes over the Earth, leaving only Goku, Pan, Mr. Satan, Uub, and Buu free of Baby's influence.
35** Goku Black [[spoiler: is the direct result of this trope. In another timeline, Zamasu used the Super Dragon Balls to swap bodies with Goku, who had attained divine ki and the ludicrously strong transformations to match.]]
36* Belphemon Rage Mode is one of the [[DemonLordsAndArchdevils Seven Great Demon Lords]] in the ''Digimon'' Franchise. In ''Anime/DigimonDataSquad'' Kurata's plan was [[spoiler: originally just to control Belphemon, but when his control device was destroyed he just went ahead and transformed himself into data and hijacked Belphemon instead. Up until that point Belphemon was in the relatively safe "Sleep Mode". Being hijacked transformed him into his fully powered Rage Mode, and at the climax of the fight Kurata's face emerged from his chest to show off just who was in control.]]
37[[/folder]]
38
39[[folder:Comic Books]]
40* In a [[ComicBook/TheMightyThor Thor]] comic book annual, Demogorge the God-Eater, an ancient deity whose very purpose is to destroy gods, is awakened before its time and opposed by an alliance of heroic gods from [[AllMythsAreTrue Earth's various pantheons]]. He ends up ''eating'' them all, but Thor's will is too strong, and not only takes over its body, he forces it to restore all the deities it had already eaten!
41* At one time, the [[ComicBook/TheIncredibleHulk Hulk]] was hypnotized by the Ringmaster.
42* Mister Sinister took over the body of one of the [[AncientAstronauts Celestial Host]], beings with such unfathomable power that one of them has more power than ComicBook/{{Galactus}}, through [[HandWave genetic usurping]], basically turning him [[GodhoodSeeker into a god]].
43* Two instances of this trope occurs in the ''ComicBook/GreenLantern'' story arc ''ComicBook/WrathOfTheFirstLantern'':
44** To defeat the First Lantern Volthoom, Sinestro has the [[AnthropomorphicPersonification fear entity]] of the Yellow Sinestro Corps Parallax take control of his body, but since Sinestro has already mastered the aspect of fear, the possession is in favor of Sinestro, who's more-or-less siphoning Parallax's power into himself and literally ''tears Volthoom's heart out''.
45** To soften Volthoom for the kill, Hal Jordan commits suicide, is resurrected by a Black Lantern Ring and becoming part of its Corps, then promptly summons the Black Lantern Corps' entity ''[[ComicBook/BlackestNight Nekron]]'', Lord of the Unliving, to destroy Volthoom after ejecting the emotional spectrum from Volthoom.
46* Creator/MarvelComics's ''ComicBook/AnnihilationConquest'' kicks off when the (rather [[Series/StarTrekTheNextGeneration Borg-like]]) alien Phalanx try to assimilate ComicBook/{{Ultron}}. His will is so strong that he ends up mentally dominating their whole collective, making them drastically more dangerous than they were already.
47* In ''ComicBook/FinalCrisis'', a seriously ticked Dr. Thaddeus Sivana, having been forced to see his daughter be stripped of free will via the Anti-Life Equation, [[spoiler:seizes control of the entire Justifier supervillain task force by overriding the command line, allowing Lex Luthor the chance to kill Libra and engage Darkseid.]]
48* Kulan Gath's EvilPlan in the first volume of ''ComicBook/SavageAvengers'' is to employ his ability to parasitize magical power through cannibalism and systematically usurp the power of Shuma-Gorath by having pieces of it possess hapless humans before devouring them. This weakens it so much that Doctor Strange is forced to [[MercyKill euthanize]] it in an attempt limit the amount of power Gath can achieve. Unfortunately, Gath still acquired enough to TakeOverTheWorld and it takes time travel to thwart him.
49* 2017's ''Marvel 2-In-One'' had Ben Grimm and Johnny Storm end up in an alternate universe where Doctor Doom thwarted ''ComicBook/TheComingOfGalactus'' by modifying his brain switching technique to swap bodies with the cosmic being. The now human Galan killed himself out of guilt for his actions while Doom upheld his motive of sparing the Earth, but his avarice for power led to him ''consuming the rest of the universe'' in turn. This included Earth's entire solar system, requiring an empowered Human Torch to substitute its sun.
50* ''Comicbook/DarkCrisis'' sees Pariah, the SupportingProtagonist of ''ComicBook/CrisisOnInfiniteEarths'', bend The Great Darkness, a being [[TheWorfEffect that has]] beaten all of the Angels in heaven(sans Michael and Luficer) while [[EnemyMine bolstered by]] half of the demons in hell and repeatedly {{curbstomp|battle}}ed otherwise dominant DC Comics villains like Darkseid, to his will. Pariah proceeds to use The Great Darkness's might to mind control villains Darkseid, Doomsday, Eclipso, Neron, Nekron, Upside Down Man and, naturally, Empty Hand, [[DemotedToExtra the traditional strongest villain of DC Comics who traditionally precedes The Great Darkness]]. Even the [[HeelFaceTurn Face Turned]] Ares and traditional strongest DC superhero ComicBook/TheSpectre are forced to serve Pariah via The Great Darkness. How does this {{muggle}} dominate what these Earth shattering fighters he now commands couldn't hope to compete with themselves? [[PowerBornOfMadness Sheer insanity]], to the point [[AchievementsInIgnorance Pariah doesn't even realize what he accomplished]] and assumes The Great Darkness is using him as its MouthOfSauron, ignoring that it's "telling" him everything he wants to hear/say.
51* ''ComicBook/XMen'': Orbis Stellaris, a villain introduced during the Krakoan Age, seeks to become a Dominion (basically a godlike being outside time and space) via utilizing the cosmic powers. So far, he's managed to override or clone the Progenitors, beings who farm worlds. [[spoiler:The last issue of ''Immortal X-Men'' reveals he actually nearly did accomplish his goal one time... only to be counter-hijacked by Enigma.]]
52** ''ComicBook/RiseOfThePowersOfX'': The first issue has Doctor Stasis brain-fry a Dominion and use its power to try and ascend. [[spoiler:At the last second it turns out he himself has been counter-hijacked by Enigma, who possesses the Dominion's corpse and kills Stasis.]]
53[[/folder]]
54
55[[folder:Fan Works]]
56* In the ''Franchise/TheLegendOfZelda'' fic ''[[FanFic/BoundDestiniesTrilogy Wisdom and Courage]]'', Veran manages to seize control of Majora's Mask, though mostly because Majora willingly let her do so because [[VillainTeamUp they both want Link dead]].
57* In ''Fanfic/ChildOfTheStorm'', Strange masterminds an unusual version of this, when Chthon possesses Harry, since neither Chthon nor Harry immediately realises that since Chthon is acting through a mere fragment of his power (albeit one that's still hideously powerful), and Harry's protection came from [[spoiler: the Phoenix which his mother bargained with, becoming the White Phoenix of the Crown]], Chthon's biting off a lot more than he can chew.
58* In ''Fanfic/DragonsOfIceAndFire'', Euron Greyjoy successfully executes this, playing almost exactly straight to the trope when [[spoiler: he summons (via enormous blood-ritual-disguised-as-a-battle) and possesses a kraken over half a mile long.]].
59* In ''[[Fanfic/DisneysWarACrossoverStory Disney's War — A Crossover Story]]'', the Horned King plays this trope straight in the climax: he gets control of Chernabog's body and powers (becoming the "Horned God"). When he is defeated with a magic sword, Chernabog is restored to his usual self.
60* ''Fanfic/QueenOfBloodSirWill'', a ''Literature/{{Worm}}[=/=]VideoGame/{{Castlevania}}'' crossover, has several moments:
61** The first lines of the story are Dracul's divine mantle of darkness hijacking Taylor's Trigger event, granting her his power instead.
62** It took a long time, but when [[spoiler: Dracul, searching through Abbadon's shards, found his Sting shard, he triggered it and caused Abbadon to destroy himself. He did a lesser version of this with Eden, nudging her Queen Administrator shard to screw with Path to Victory just enough to distract her and cause her to crash.]]
63** During the [[spoiler: final battle with Zion]], with her blood possession power, Taylor commandeers [[spoiler: Eden's brain-dead body]] and uses it to get close to [[spoiler: Zion]] and stab him while his guard is down. Yes, you read that right: [[spoiler: '''she hijacked an Entity''']].
64* In ''[[Fanfic/WithThisRing With this Ring]]'', John Constantine hijacks Klarion's connection to Chaos and becomes a [[PhysicalGod Lord of Chaos]].
65* In ''Fanfic/PokemonMysteryDungeonLostTracksOfTime'', the BigBad successfully uses the Red Chain on [[spoiler: Giratina with the intent to make it absorb enough power to overthrow Arceus]].
66[[/folder]]
67
68[[folder:Films -- Animated]]
69* [[spoiler:Jafar]] does this to [[spoiler:the Genie]] in ''WesternAnimation/{{Aladdin}}''.
70* In ''WesternAnimation/HowToTrainYourDragon2'', the BigBad Drago Bludvist hijacks a monstrous [[https://www.howtotrainyourdragon.com/images/uploads/dragons/bewilderbeast_black_gallery_03.jpg Bewilderbeast]] to use its force against the protagonists.
71* At the climax of ''WesternAnimation/TheSpongebobSquarepantsMovie'', Plankton [[spoiler:mind-controls King Neptune.]]
72[[/folder]]
73
74[[folder:Films -- Live-Action]]
75* ''Film/RaidersOfTheLostArk'' mixes this with {{Ghostapo}}, as ThoseWackyNazis' main goal is to find [[PublicDomainArtifact the Ark of the Covenant]] and control its divine power. [[spoiler:This backfires hard after they get their hands on the Ark, as God isn't amused when they finally try to use it.]]
76* ''Film/GodzillaVsKong'' [[spoiler: has Apex Cybernetics and its CorruptCorporateExecutive Walter Simmons attempt this as part of his masterplan to dethrone the Titans as the dominant species on Earth. Using the remains of King Ghidorah's brain, a pilot telepathically controls [[EvilKnockoff a giant robot modeled on Godzilla dubbed "[=MechaGodzilla=]"]]. Then Simmons gets and uses the same energy the King of Monsters himself uses for nourishment, [[AIIsACrapshot causing it to go haywire]] and [[BackFromTheDead it's implied to have uploaded some of Ghidorah's mind and personality into the machine itself]]. The machine's first act after being fully powered up is to kill the idiot in the middle of a villainous monologue before going on to level most of Hong Kong, becoming the true BigBad of the film.]]
77[[/folder]]
78
79[[folder:Literature]]
80* In ''Literature/TheDresdenFiles'':
81** ''Literature/DeadBeat'', Harry successfully summons the Erlking, a king of TheFairFolk and one of the most powerful beings in the series, and traps it in the summoning circle. Although he by no means has control of it, he is able to keep it from attacking him or leaving.
82** Harry tops that in ''Literature/ColdDays'' when he [[spoiler:wrests control of TheWildHunt from the Erlking and [[BadassSanta Kringle]]. Although he later realizes that [[ILetYouWin they let him win]].]]
83** Harry goes even further in ''Literature/{{Battle Ground|2020}}'', where he [[spoiler: defeats Ethniu -- a Titan more powerful than [[PhysicalGod Mab]] -- in a battle of wills and [[SealedEvilInACan seals her on Demonreach]]]]. This technically puts her under Harry's control, but he admits that it would be a ''very'' bad idea to test that.
84* In ''Literature/TheWheelOfTime'', the whole story began with an accidental attempt at this, when researchers in the Age of Legends tried to tap into a massive power source that turned out to be {{Satan}}. Whoops. The entire civilization was eventually destroyed.
85* ''Literature/{{Discworld}}''
86** Granny Weatherwax has the ability to "borrow" the minds of living things. Among other more normal targets, she has used this ability on an entire swarm of bees, and a ''building'' (Unseen University, to be precise, which is a GeniusLoci due to all the magic). Her pupil Eskarina Smith considered trying it on Great A'Tuin, ''the turtle that carries the world on its back'', but decided against it at the last moment because she didn't think she'd be able to get back.
87*** Granny Weatherwax also once found a way (through trickery) to partially mind-control a whole legion of vampires, ''after'' their leader had seemingly proven himself immune to her powers.
88** ''Literature/GuardsGuards'' has [[spoiler:Lupine Wonse]] use a book called ''The Summoning of Dragons'' to [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin summon a dragon]] and control it... but [[TheDogBitesBack the dragon doesn't stay under his control for long.]]
89** In ''Literature/WitchesAbroad'', Mrs Gogol's voodoo works like this: tempt a small god with the promise of believers, let it build its power, bring it to the point where it manifests, and then have a human take control.
90* In ''VideoGame/GuildWars2: Edge of Destiny'', the Golemancer [[InsufferableGenius Snaff]] enters [[spoiler:[[EldritchAbomination Kralkatorrik's]]]] mind. It's described as [[spoiler:a raging storm, but he manages to tame it, leaving Kralkatorrik catatonic. The operation itself [[DoomedByCanon fails]],]] but the BattleInTheCenterOfTheMind is won by Snaff.
91* In the fourth book of ''Literature/TheStormlightArchive'', [[spoiler:Taravangian manages to lure out [[GodOfEvil Odium]]'s host, Rayse, and kill him with [[SoulCuttingBlade Nightblood]]. He then takes over the power left behind, becoming the new Odium.]]
92** [[spoiler: Although Taravangian seems to have control over Odium for now, the immortality granted by godhood means that the Shard has eternity to break his mind. So it's more than possible that he'll eventually realize that EvilIsNotAToy.]]
93[[/folder]]
94
95[[folder:Live-Action TV]]
96* The ''Series/{{Angel}}'' episode "[[Recap/AngelS03E04CarpeNoctem Carpe Noctem]]" had an aged sorcerer who could BodySurf, and would take over younger bodies that would eventually burn out. He hijacks Angel's body who, as an immortal vampire, will never burn out. He then tries to do everything in his power to keep this new body.
97* ''Series/KamenRiderExAid'' has BigBad Masamune do a FusionDance with intended FinalBoss Gamedeus.
98* ''Series/StrangerThings'' has [[spoiler: [[Main/BigBad Vecna]] take control of a black cloud while banished in the [[Main/AlternateUniverse Upside-Down]], which gives him the ability to control the entire dimension.]]
99* ''Series/UltramanGinga S'' has PredecessorVillain Dark Lugiel revived as an unstoppable mindless beast under the control of [[BigBad Excelier]]. [[spoiler:It doesn’t last long, as Lugiel regains his mind and does away with Excelier.]]
100[[/folder]]
101
102[[folder:Radio]]
103* ''Radio/OldHarrysGame'': Edith is quite possibly the only human who is clever enough to manipulate {{Satan}} into doing her bidding.
104[[/folder]]
105
106[[folder:Tabletop Games]]
107* In ''TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons'', a character may attempt to control a [[SphereOfDestruction Sphere of Annihilation]] with her will (Willpower check). Doing so successfully results in her temporarily controlling a tear in the reality that is capable of destroying pretty much anything in the universe on touch, NoSavingThrow allowed.
108** From the same (and its derivative ''TableTopGame/{{Pathfinder}}''), Dominate Monster. Provided you succeed, you now have complete control over whatever's in front of you, which can be anything from a [[OurDragonsAreDifferent true dragon]] to a Hekatonkheires.
109** Also, both systems have the [[BodySurf Magic Jar]] spell.
110** It is also said that every Telepath Psion's goal in life is to true mind switch with a Tarrasque.
111** The ancient arcanist Karsus created the spell Karsus' Avatar specifically for this purpose. Don't look for it in your player's handbook, it was Level 12, and Karsus' attempt to hijack goddess of magic Mystra's power went so poorly that Karsus' Folly (as it became known) caused the fall of the immensely powerful Netherese Empire, and caused Mystra to rework the rules of magic so no one could do it again.
112** The 5th Edition Necromancer eventually gains a power called Command Undead, which lets them control a single undead creature. One of the best targets for this ability is the [[WalkingWasteland Nightwalker]], a giant undead monstrosity of immense power that's got a low charisma score and thus is unlikely to actually resist the effect and also a low intelligence score which makes the effect permanent until the necromancer uses the ability again.
113* ''TabletopGame/Warhammer40000'':
114** Lore describes how a Khornate Berserker named Akraghar once jumped onto a Defiler (a giant daemon tank), broke it to his will, and rode it into battle as a steed. The resulting unit is called a Slaughterfiend, and other Khornate Berserkers love to attempt the same thing.
115** Ax'Senaea the Thrice-Possessed is a Daemon Princess whose ego, self-absorption and willpower were such that she managed to summon a daemon (bad idea), bind it inside herself (even worse idea), and do it not just with any daemon but a Keeper of Secrets, among the most powerful entities in warpspace, specializing in seduction and manipulation (equivalent to swallowing kerosene and a lit match)... and succeeded (wait, what?), siphoning away its power to keep herself young. And do so again, twice. The fourth time, Slaanesh hirself elevated her to daemonhood, both out of genuine admiration of her insane devotion to excess and to punish the three Keepers for being defeated by a mere human.
116** This is the concept behind piloting a Titan as well. The pilot, called a Princeps, must link with the Titan and bend its Machine Spirit to their will. This gives them the impression of actually being the Titan, an addictive feeling of power and strength. The trope is also inverted here as any Princeps who stays in command long enough is eventually dominated by the Titan's overpowering spirit. (In this case, [[RussianReversal Cthulhu hijacks you]].)
117** The Radical faction of the Inquisition is characterized by its willingness to use daemonic magics, artifacts and weapons against Chaos itself. While they do get results in the short run, they also commonly get corrupted by Chaos, yet another heretic band to be pursued by their former colleagues (the Puritan faction, which opposes the use of anything Warp-related, tries to solve the problem by working against Radical inquisitors, even if they haven't actually gone rogue yet).
118** Millions of years ago, the Necrons were enslaved as MechaMooks by a group of star-devouring {{eldritch abomination}}s called the C’tan. They eventually got their revenge by blowing the C’tan to still-sentient pieces and then locking each piece in a separate dimensional prison. In the current era, the Necrons are known to unleash these C’tan shards, technologically shackled to obey their commands, as living weapons of mass destruction. The nominal ruler of the Necron empire, the Silent King, has notably reduced one such shard to a mere power source for his CoolChair (along with wearing its flayed skin as a cape).
119* ''TabletopGame/MageTheAwakening'' features this as the modus operandi of the Fangs of Mara, a [[TheDarkSide Left-Handed]] [[PrestigeClass Legacy]]. Sworn to fighting the denizens of the Abyss when they plop into reality, the Fangs try to gain the upper hand by traveling into the nightmares of Abyssal entities, in order to find out just what demons fear. Unfortunately, this means casting yourself into the mindscape of something that is anathema to reality on a fundamental level, which can end really badly and is why few people trust them.
120* ''TabletopGame/DemonTheDescent'' paints this as a somewhat noble, if foolhardy, goal of many demons of the Integrator Agenda. They want to return to [[DeusEstMachina the God-Machine]] whose favor they fell from and which is likely hunting them down, which automatically makes most other demons distrust them. However, many of them realize that the God-Machine is probably broken, given its long history of contradictory orders that lead to angels Falling and becoming demons, or the sheer body count of some of its plans. As such, they plan to return to the God-Machine once they've figured out a way to ''fix'' it.
121[[/folder]]
122
123[[folder:Toys]]
124* ''Toys/{{Bionicle}}'': [[BigBad Makuta Teridax]] is the premier example (and [[TropeCodifier inspiration]]) of this trope. The end goal of his millennia-long plan is to take over the body of [[PhysicalGod Mata]] [[BigGood Nui]]. And despite setbacks from damn near every possible adversary, [[TheBadGuyWins he succeeds]], and banishes the mind of Mata Nui to another world while holding the Matoran Universe prisoner within his new body.
125[[/folder]]
126
127[[folder:Video Games]]
128* ''Franchise/FinalFantasy''
129** ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyVII'''s BigBad Sephiroth starts out as an ArtificialHuman infused with the cells of [[EldritchAbomination Jenova]] as a fetus. After his first "death", he [[GrandTheftMe assimilates Jenova]] in an attempt to become her successor. By the time of ''[[Anime/FinalFantasyVIIAdventChildren Advent Children]]'', he is essentially a mass of Jenova cells in the shape of his old body.
130** In ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyX'', this is effectively how the [[spoiler:Final Summon works after "destroying" Sin. It takes the body, not the soul of Sin, meaning the one who kills Sin ''[[YouKillItYouBoughtIt becomes the next Sin]].'']]
131** In the ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXIV'' expansion ''Stormblood'', the final boss is [[spoiler:Shinryu, an incredibly destructive Primal that BigBad Zenos yae Galvus has merged with and taken over using his Resonant powers]].
132* In the ''VideoGame/{{Scribblenauts}}'' series, the Mind-Control Ray can be used to control powerful beings like Vampires, Cthulhu, Dragons, and the like. Instantly adds the "loyal" adjective to the target. Hypnotic items are even better, since they affect inanimate objects as well. So, you can hijack Cthulhu, a volcano, and basically anything else you please.
133* This is a recurring point of contention in ''VideoGame/MassEffect3'':
134** [[KnightTemplar The Illusive Man]] believes he can do this to [[EldritchAbomination The Reapers]], and use them to bring about humanity's dominance over the galaxy. [[spoiler:Despite all his efforts, he ends up indoctrinated by the end of the game]].
135** It turns out that [[spoiler:this contention is an inevitable part of the EternalRecurrence of the Cycle of Reaping, as is the faction believing in this possibility falling to Reaper Indoctrination.]]
136** [[spoiler:[[PlayerCharacter Commander Shepard]] can do this in the Control ending, showing that Illusive Man's goal is possible (just not by an Indoctrinee like him). The Extended Cut demonstrates the ramifications of doing this]].
137* ''Franchise/SonicTheHedgehog'': This has been a running theme with Dr. Eggman since ''VideoGame/SonicAdventure''. It wasn't until [[spoiler:''VideoGame/SonicGenerations'']] that he actually succeeded without it [[EvilIsNotAToy backfiring]]. He managed to do it again in [[spoiler:''VideoGame/SonicForces'']].
138* In ''Videogame/TheLegendOfZeldaALinkBetweenWorlds'', [[spoiler:Yuga [[FusionDance merges with]] Ganon and manages to remain in control. This may only be because Ganon would have done what Yuga does with his body, anyway, or maybe because Yuga is his Lorulean counterpart, but the fact that a wizard from a world without a Triforce is capable of controlling the possessor of Hyrule's Triforce of Power is impressive regardless.]]
139* By the end of ''{{VideoGame/Outlast}}'' (and its sequel-in-a-prequel Whistleblower), [[spoiler:Miles Upshur has been possessed by [[EldritchAbomination the Walrider.]] At first it seems relatively... ominous, seeing as Miles dies almost immediately after, seemingly letting the Walrider free to start [[TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt the end of the world.]] Then Whistleblower comes and ''shows'' us that Miles is alive... and has taken control of the Walrider.]]
140* In ''VideoGame/EarthBound1994'', Pokey Minch ultimately usurps Giygas, who's reduced to a mindless "{{almighty idiot}}" and living weapon by the time the heroes arrive to stop him. Even when Giygas is defeated, Pokey escapes through time with all of Giygas's technology and weapons, vowing to return.
141* Done to Cthulhu himself in ''VisualNovel/{{Demonbane}}'', by the organization of evil sorcerors, Black Lodge. The lieutenants fall apart from infighting because, now that they ''have'' Cthulhu's power, what do they want to ''do'' with it? Rule the world? Become Great Old Ones themselves? Destroy everything? [[spoiler:The leader uses Cthulhu as a sacrifice to summon Yog-Sothoth, which was secretly his original goal all along.]]
142* In ''VideoGame/ShadowHearts1'' Yuri manages to fuse with [[spoiler:Seraphic Radiance, a god incarnated from the soul of the planet]]. While the entity does manage to partly possess him, he maintains enough control to stop its rampage, and eventually fully reigns it in, rendering it a normal, if powerful, [[HenshinHero Fusion form]]. To a lesser extent, he does the same with [[spoiler:Amon, one of three gods of destruction]], and a number of lesser demons, all of which serve as Fusions for him.
143* In ''VideoGame/Sly3HonorAmongThieves'', [[spoiler: Murray's master, the Guru, takes control of [[KrakenAndLeviathan the Kraken]] and uses his tentacles to help [[HandicappedBadass Bentley]] free Penelope from the prison of a pirate ship.]]
144** In [[VideoGame/Sly2BandOfThieves the previous game]], [[spoiler: Constable Neyla bonds with the reassembled body of Clockwerk, becoming… Clock-La!]]
145* In ''VideoGame/CastlevaniaAriaOfSorrow'', you play as Soma Cruz, a seemingly-average teenager who mysteriously develops the ability to [[YourSoulIsMine assimilate the souls of monsters he slays]] and use their powers, up to and including ''Death''. [[spoiler:It's because he's the reincarnation of [[BigBad Dracula]].]]
146** In the Iga-approved follow-up novel, "Akumajō Dracula: Kabuchi no Tsuisoukyoku"; Count Orlox controls [[TheDarkSide Chaos itself]] via a complicated scheme. This offends [[TheGrimReaper Death]] so much it is willing to save the good guys in order to stop him.
147* In ''Franchise/TheElderScrolls'', this has happened to some of the series' [[OurGodsAreDifferent divine beings]], the Aedra and the Daedra, at different times in history. To note:
148** The Aedra ("our ancestors" in [[ClassicalTongue Old Aldmeris]]) were the et'Ada ("original spirits") who sacrificed a significant portion of their divine power during the [[CreationMyth creation of Mundus]], the mortal plane. Worshiped throughout much of Tamriel as the [[SaintlyChurch Eight (later Nine) Divines]], they have been "tampered with", so to speak, by mortals. The most significant of these events are known as "Dragon Breaks", where something (usually mortals using some sort of divine implements) tampers with Akatosh, the [[DragonsAreDivine draconic]] God of Time, leading to a TimeCrash with a dose of RealityBreakingParadox. The most significant Dragon Break is known as the "Middle Dawn", during which, for a period of 1008 years[[note]]measured using the phases of Nirn's [[WeirdMoon two moons]], which are said to be the decaying "flesh divinity" of the [[GodIsDead "dead" creator god]] and were thus unaffacted[[/note]] in the 1st Era, [[RealityIsOutToLunch Reality Was Out To Lunch]]. Bizarre and impossible events occurred during this time; people gave birth to their own parents, some sources mention wars and major events which never happened according to other sources, the sun changed color depending on the witness, and the gods either walked among the mortals or they didn't. Another occurred at the conclusion of the events of ''[[VideoGame/TheElderScrollsIIDaggerfall Daggerfall]]'' following the activation of the [[RealityWarper Reality Warping]] HumongousMecha LostSuperweapon known as the Numidium. Akatosh fixed this one by having the timelines (and thus, ''Daggerfall'''s [[MergingTheBranches mutually exclusive]] MultipleEndings) recombine violently, with all of the events having occurred at once, but [[BroadStrokes none to the same extent they would have individually]].
149** This can also occur to the Daedric ("not our ancestors") Princes, who are the et'Ada who did not make any sacrifices during the creation of Mundus and thus, maintain their full divine power. However, due to their greater power, it usually takes another divine entity (like another Daedric Prince) to cause this. To note:
150*** The Daedric Prince Malacath came into being when the Daedric Prince Boethiah "ate" the Aedric spirit Trinimac, twisted Trinimac in his belly, and then "excreted" him as Malacath. (Malacath himself somewhat confirms this, but also complains that the story is far too "literal minded".)
151*** The Daedric Prince Jyggalag was feared by the other Princes for his growing power, so they came together and trapped him in the form of Sheogorath, the Daedric Prince of [[MadGod Madness]]. Sheogorath would later devise a means to pass the mantle of Sheogorath onto the mortal [[VideoGame/TheElderScrollsIVOblivion Champion Of Cyrodiil]], freeing Jyggalag once again.
152*** Alduin the World Eater, the draconic BeastOfTheApocalypse and "first born" of Akatosh, is tasked with "eating" the world at the end of every kalpa, or cycle of time, so that it can be remade. When he discovered that a lowly and friendly "demon" was saving pieces of the old worlds, he cursed that demon to become an OmnicidalManiac hell bent on destroying all that he had saved from the old worlds (which, Alduin presumes, [[ImpossibleTask he will never be able to actually accomplish]], adding to his fury). That demon's name? Mehrunes Dagon, now the Daedric Prince of Destruction.
153* Several individuals and factions within ''VideoGame/TheSecretWorld'' want to seize control of [[EldritchAbomination the Dreamers]]; of course, given that the consequences of just '''one''' of the Sleeping Ones awakening are truly apocalyptic in proportion, [[EvilIsNotAToy this almost never works]].
154** The [[MegaCorp Orochi Group]] has its Prometheus Initiative set up for this very reason: [[spoiler: technically, they only want to control the Gaia Engines that keep the Dreamers imprisoned, believing that they can use them as a source of limitless energy]].
155** [[spoiler: Lilith]] wants the Dreamers enslaved to her will in order to create a new and better world. Every single one of her attempts has ended in dismal failure, either due to someone stepping in at the last minute - or the whole mess blowing up in her face. [[spoiler: In one case, it ended so badly that one of the Dreamers waking up just long enough to '''end the world.''']]
156** The Nephilim want to harness the Dreamers as well, though they at least have the advantage of having apparently [[spoiler: created the Gaia Engines in the first place.]]
157** [[spoiler: [[FallenAngel Samael]]]] wanted to do this, but he lost his nerve after seeing [[spoiler: Lilith]] screw the pooch.
158** Later on, it's revealed that a successful variation of this has occurred: [[spoiler: the Gaia Engines not only keep the Dreamers imprisoned, but they are also capable of harnessing their powers for short periods of time - just long enough to save the world from apocalyptic disasters. Unfortunately, that particular function's beginning to break down after four consecutive resets, [[OutOfContinues and it might not work anymore]].]]
159* In ''VideoGame/DragonballXenoverse2'' Extra Story mode, if your instructor is Captain Ginyu during the Future Trunks arc of the DLC, he pulls off his body-swap technique on ''[[spoiler: Goku Black]]'', thoroughly derailing the villains' plan in a move that is both awesome and funny.
160* In ''Videogame/Borderlands2'', Handsome Jack's ultimate plan is to break into a [[SealedEvilInACan Vault]] on [[DeathWorld Pandora]] to hijack an immensely powerful [[{{Precursors}} Eridian]] war beast known as the Warrior and use it to wipe out all hostile life on Pandora.
161** In ''Videogame/Borderlands3'', Tyreen Calypso's goal is to open up the Vaults and slay the monsters protecting them to hijack their powers using her ability to leech energy from living things. This is to help her in her final goal, which is [[spoiler: to open up the Great Vault on Pandora so that Tyreen can consume [[EldritchAbomination the Destroyer]] and become a god.]]
162* This is par for the course for the villains in the ''Franchise/{{Pokemon}}'' games. The majority of the time, the villain's plans involve enslaving that game's Legendary Pokémon for some nefarious purpose.
163* At the end of the fifth Lostbelt in ''VideoGame/FateGrandOrder'', the Foreign God tasks one of her disciples to find her a new body: ORT, the Ultimate One of the Oort Cloud and one of the strongest beings in the solar system. Her appearance in the seventh Lostbelt is with the intention of carrying this out. [[spoiler:Ultimately, her plans are sabotaged thanks to Daybit Sem Void, the local Crypter, having his Servant tear out the Foreign God's heart after she's knocked unconscious and implant it into his own body, before sacrificing himself to awaken ORT. Thanks to ORT's CannibalismSuperpower, its absorption of the Foreign God's heart allows it to adapt to her, meaning that had she tried to hijack ORT ''she'd'' be the one assimilated by ''it'' instead.]]
164* ''VideoGame/MortalKombat1'': After the main story is over, [[spoiler: Reiko's Arcade ending has General Shao crossing the GodzillaThreshold after defeats by Kitana's army, and he reluctantly sends Reiko on the impossible mission of taming Onaga. While Reiko is almost certain he will die in the attempt, and [[UncertainDoom there's no word from him about the outcome]], General Shao has pre-battle dialogue that suggests the Dragon King was successfully brought to heel.]]
165[[/folder]]
166
167[[folder:Webcomics]]
168* ''Webcomic/{{Homestuck}}'':
169** [[GodSaveUsFromTheQueen The Condesce]] has, among other powers, the ability to control animals. She uses this ability to [[spoiler:mind-control [=GCat=], a powerful RealityWarper PhysicalGod in the form of a cat, and Jade, who had gained the canine traits and reality-warping powers of her dog Becquerel]]. Things go pear-shaped for the heroes very soon after that.
170** Far earlier, Tavros mind-controlled Becquerel and made him teleport a speeding bullet from "towards Jade" to "towards the adult intruder on her lawn". Unfortunately, troll culture is unfamiliar with the concept of children being raised by their parents, and the "intruder" was actually her Grandpa.
171** To a lesser [[MindScrew and/or]] greater degree, Aranea can control [[spoiler:the clock(s) in charge of choosing whether God Tiers will [[ResurrectiveImmortality revive or not]].]] From a different universe. Which, again, means Her Imperious Condescension can probably do the same (and Vriska, though hers seems to be weaker).
172* Black Mage from ''WebComic/EightBitTheater'' absorbs FIVE Cthulhus. [[ItMakesSenseInContext One of whom was himself.]]
173[[/folder]]
174
175[[folder:Web Original]]
176* During the final arc of ''WebVideo/CriticalRole'''s second campaign, the Mighty Nein believe that [[spoiler:Lucien]]'s plan is to [[spoiler:[[MindHive join the Somnovem]] and become a part of [[EldritchAbomination the city of Cognouza]], ruling together. However, when the time finally comes, Lucien pulls out a FantasticNuke, explains that the Somnovem are too childish and bat-shit insane to be allowed to rule, and blows them up, [[TheStarscream taking the reigns of Cognouza himself]].]]
177* ''WebAnimation/FallenKingdom'':
178** In "Dragonhearted", the King is able to turn the tides of battle by doing the impossible and taming [[spoiler:the Ender Dragon]].
179** In the prequel, "Rising Kingdom", the King similarly saves his own life by taming [[spoiler:a Warden]] to fight against [[spoiler:the other Warden]] pursuing him.
180* In the ''WebVideo/HitlerRants'' parody ''Hitler becomes a Wizard'', the titular character acquires a powerful magic wand. To prove to his generals that magic exists, Hitler even goes as far as to summon Cthulhu, commanding him to lay waste to Berlin.
181* In the ''Website/SCPFoundation'', this is the ultimate goal of [[http://www.scp-wiki.net/scp-035 SCP-035]]. It's an EvilMask that secretes a highly corrosive liquid that prevents it from keeping a host. It wants to take over [[HealingFactor SCP]]-[[EldritchAbomination 682]]. Obviously, the Foundation doesn't want this, so it's taken to [[MindRape Mind Raping]] the personnel assigned to it.
182** A benevolent example: One of the short fiction pieces has the Foundation attempt to use [[http://www.scp-wiki.net/scp-963 SCP-963]] to overwrite SCP-682's mind with that of Dr. Bright. This fails.
183*** FridgeHorror: considering what [[CloudCuckooLander Dr. Bright]] is, this might be for the best.
184** This is an essential part of Sarkic religious dogma. To oversimplify things, Sarkicists believe in an AlmightyIdiot who destroys life as routine and creates new life as a side-effect. Sarkicism is at its core an attempt to parasitize this deity (which is the source of their fleshcrafting power) in an attempt to weaken and potentially kill it so it can't destroy universes any more.
185[[/folder]]
186
187[[folder:Western Animation]]
188* At one point in ''WesternAnimation/TransformersAnimated'', [[spoiler:[[BigBad Megatron]] and [[TheStarscream Starscream]] take turns at the wheel of [[HumongousMecha Omega Supreme.]]]]
189* In ''WesternAnimation/SouthPark'', Cartman [[DeliberatelyCuteChild acts cute]] to manipulate the actual [[Franchise/CthulhuMythos Cthulhu]] into helping him trample his enemies, namely his former team Coon and Friends, and anything else Cartman hates (like hippies for example).
190-->'''The Coon''': I'm makin' the world a better place!\
191'''Mysterion''': For ''you''! You're making the world a better place ''[[ItsAllAboutMe for you]]''!\
192'''The Coon''': ...riiight, [[ComicallyMissingThePoint that's what superheroes]] ''[[ComicallyMissingThePoint do]]''.
193* In the ''WesternAnimation/TheGrimAdventuresOfBillyAndMandy'' episode "Little Rock of Horrors", a brain-eating [[EldritchAbomination alien monster]] with a [[Music/{{Voltaire}} familiar singing voice]] has been spending the whole episode being fed by Billy. When Mandy confronts it, it sucks out her brain... but it painfully dies off and its aura immediately changes to resemble Mandy. Her only explanation is that her brain was [[TooSpicyForYogSothoth too "spicy" for him.]]
194** Let's not forget the fact that Billy and Mandy control the Grim Reaper himself, and torture him every day with their dominance of him (what with Billy's stupid demands and Mandy's enslavement).
195** Nergal also manages to mind control Grim into being his friend in his second appearance.
196* ''WesternAnimation/Ben10UltimateAlien'':
197** Vilgax ends up as TheDragon to Diagon, a Cthulhu {{expy}}. That lasted as long as it took Vilgax to have ''his'' Dragon drop by with some special equipment, at which point he absorbed Diagon and took his power.
198** In the first season, Aggreggor's master plan is to use his absorption powers on a newborn [[RealityWarper Celestialsapien]], giving him god-like powers without the normal drawback of a Celestialsapien (since its mind hadn't developed yet, he wouldn't be hindered by needing agreement with the [[NotSoOmniscientCouncilOfBickering other personalities]] to actually use the powers).
199* This is the entire point of the [[MacGuffin Kur Stone]] in ''WesternAnimation/TheSecretSaturdays''. Zak has this as a power. [[spoiler:It's not a coincidence.]]
200* In ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic'''s Season 4 finale, [[spoiler:Lord Tirek convinces the more-powerful Discord to invoke VillainTeamUp... at least until Tirek {{Level Grind}}s his ManaDrain ability enough to work on Discord -- after which, it's "YouHaveOutlivedYourUsefulness" time.]]
201* Subverted in the Secret Wars arc of ''WesternAnimation/SpiderManTheAnimatedSeries''. Dr. Doom forcibly fuses himself with the [[PhysicalGod Beyonder]], gaining all of his godlike powers. After the heroes managed to separate the two, the Beyonder revealed he was actually in control of said fusion, but allowed Dr. Doom to use his powers as a way to test Spider-Man.
202* ''WesternAnimation/{{Gargoyles}}'' has a magic ritual that allows a human to become an avatar of a member of the Third Race. This means that they can forcibly merge with an immortal, magically powerful being, including those literally worshipped as gods, to use their abilities to their own ends.
203* In the penultimate and season finale episodes of Season 1 of ''WesternAnimation/WhatIf2021'', in a universe where the rogue A.I. Ultron was able to possess the body that would have become The Vision, and later on acquire the complete set of the Infinity Stones in order to engage in universal genocide, that universe's Black Widow and Hawkeye planned to use a copy of the A.I. consciousness of HYDRA scientist Arnim Zola to invade and destroy Ultron himself from within. Their plan only failed because, by the time they found Zola, [[spoiler:Ultron had already discovered the existence of the Multiverse and was fighting Uatu outside of that universe.]] Luckily, the plan was revived during the battle between Infinity Ultron and the Guardians of the Multiverse [[spoiler:and here, it succeeded. Zola was uploaded to Ultron's synthroid body via a USB arrow to the eye and proceeded to "delete" him entirely, though this opened the way for Zola to possess the vacant body and attempt to take control of the Infinity Stones. Fortunately, a foreseen betrayal by one of the Guardians, a Variant of Erik "Killmonger" Stevens, allowed for Uatu and Strange Supreme to imprison the both of them in a pocket dimension and eliminate the threat entirely.]]
204* In the GrandFinale of ''WesternAnimation/TheOwlHouse'', [[spoiler: [[BigBad Belos]] pulls a DemonicPossession on the Titan's heart, taking all its power for himself. This covers his palace in a decaying filth that takes the form of a twisted version of the Titan, which Belos uses to start destroying the Boiling Isles. Fortunately, the Titan's spirit passes the last of its power onto Luz, [[SuperMode giving her the strength]] to [[DidYouJustPunchOutCthulhu defeat him]].]]
205[[/folder]]

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