Post by mintymintyminty on Apr 27, 2015 9:15:23 GMT -8
This group takes place in modern time. The living world is as you know it today but with some exceptions:
About Threads:
Life is fragile. The soul is bound to the body by a single thread. A glowing, tightly wound, white thread is normal. When one is about to die, the thread unravels and turns red before the moment of death.
These threads are semi-visible to apprentices when they come down to the living world. In crowded places, threads tend to mix. Like most things, the thread's clarity depends on the apprentice’s skill, talent and experience.
A good apprentice (assuming you are one) will cut the thread that attaches the soul and body right BEFORE the moment of death happens. If the death is a fatal injury, the living will feel that horrible pain until its soul is released. So any moment of hesitation will mean more suffering for the human.
When the soul is disconnected, the living will be able to see the apprentice fully and interact with him or her. This means it is also crucial to not cut too far in advance.
The call of the Higher Plane to cut souls is strong (it will show them an image of their deepest desire) but there are still some rare, very strong-willed people who do not want to go...people who have unfinished business in the living world. It's the apprentice's job to convince them to leave.
About Visibility:
Apprentices do have a physical presence in the living world but the living have a hard time seeing them. Apprentices can walk down crowded subways with a 7 ft scythe and you will be able to SEE that. But it won't alarm you or alert you in any way because an apprentice has no soul, not anymore anyways. Unconsciously, you will register this strange sight in your mind in the same place you will register a building support beam or a telephone pole and then, dismiss it just as easily. People will find they will also have a hard time remembering apprentices. Unless an apprentice starts screaming or purposefully knocking over people or someone calls them out, most of them get by unnoticed.
There are some people of the living who are the exceptions to this rule. See spiritually-aware humans under ++CHARACTER CREATION++
About Injuries and Death:
An apprentice is more resilient than normal humans. This does not mean he/she can’t DIE in the living world but he/she are harder to kill and can heal himself/herself much faster than normal.
Being killed as an apprentice is a different beast than normal death. An apprentice is caught between the world of the living and the dead, in-between the cracks as you will, stuck there like an awkward pebble. If you die as an apprentice, instead of ascending to a higher plane, you fall between the cracks into nothingness and void. Your body will dissipate, your severed soul burns into nonexistence. You will never see your family and friends again. You will never see anything again.
About Desertion:
If an apprentice 'falls' or goes AWOL, they are to be caught and then taken back to the HQ for juridical punishment, the judge being Death herself. If one resists, they will be killed on the spot.
About Birds:
Birds were the original helpers of Death. They were perfect really: their ability to fly, thrive in all climates, innate internal compass, sharp beaks for cutting the life thread of the living. And they would obey Death unconditionally.
The birds are now replaced by once-living human apprentices. However, all birds know their way back to Death's plane regardless of their lost status.
If an apprentice ever loses their chrysanthemum or somehow end up trapped in the world of the living, they can ask a bird to lead them back home. All birds can see apprentices clear as day. However the apprentice's path back home is much more dangerous than normal and the birds are not kind hosts. It seems that most birds only help apprentices as a favor for Death, not because they actually like them.
In addition, if an apprentice is REALLY in deep shit (being attacked, hunted down, etc), he/she can ask a bird to help you out. But note, most of them are bastards and will just ignore them. But hey, it's worth a try.
About the Fateless:
Fateless are those whom fate has been SEVERALLY disrupted by an external source (most of the time it’s because of apprentices.) Most frequently, it is because an apprentice failed to complete the reap order for a human. However it can also happen by disturbances from SA humans. Their thread, until fixed, is a constant shade of red. Please see FAQ for example.
A Fateless can cause very unexpected consequence such as disrupting other people's fate, causing more people to die sooner or later than scheduled. He/she will find that sometimes people cannot see him/her, much like how an apprentice is not seen. Fateless may also find themselves more prone to bad luck and animals might act differently around them (wild and crazy or just ignore completely). The balance is ruined and MUST be corrected, either by an apprentice or Fate himself.
Fate can attempt to reattach the thread if possible but if not (or if the disturbance of other humans becomes too great) another reap order will be issued.
A Fateless can assume a spirit lvl of 1, meaning they can barely see apprentices. They can get better the more they interact with apprentices or SA humans, their upper limit depends on genetics.
Because of the dangerous nature of the Fateless, Fateless characters NEED to be approved by mods before acceptance. The creation of a Fateless will be strictly regulated.
About Fate:
Fate is the person that initially plants the thread that connects the soul to the body in a person and gives them their initial spark of life (and a vision of their full potential). He can also reconnect threads, turn threads from white to read and vice-versa and influence fates by suggesting seeds of thought into humans in order to push them to their fullest. Like seeds, however, they will not grow if they are neglected by the owner. He has no power to cut thread once planted, that is Death’s job. Fate is also the person who relay reap orders to Death once a human is near the end.
Fate’s job is to keep the balance of fate of humans. He has no rank over Death’s apprentices. However, he will step in if he sees or feels an apprentice disturbing the fate of a living human or disturbing him or her own fate. Even simple things can start a ripple effect; One cannot see what can stem from it.
Fate does not have apprentice or his own plane. He lives in the living world, much like a normal human. He has a single book in which he keeps the record of the fate of humanity.
About Ghosts:
Sometimes, rare times, the soul does not want to leave the living world. In cases like this, apprentices do see a physical representation of them, a ghost as you will. And the human can see their version of the Higher Plane (their deepest desire) and if the apprentice is in close proximity, he/she can see it too. For this to happen...for them to refuse the call, there really must be something VERY IMPORTANT in the living world that keeps them there. The apprentice may need to barter with the soul or else wise try to talk them into leaving. If the apprentice fails, the soul stays in the living world and become what humans call 'ghosts' and are bound to a single place.
Souls without bodies would slowly start to degrade after time though and lose their humanity. Imagine you are a soul in a house and the only reason you are staying is because you want revenge. Every second of your ghosty life, the higher plane calls at you, showing you what you always wanted, your friends, family, all waiting for you.... and every time you refuse/try to ignore it. It would tear away at you until the only thing that is left is your need for revenge.
This is rare and most apprentices can convince a soul to leave before that point.
About Threadcutters:
Threadcutters is a networking/news/gossip forum mainly for spiritually-aware humans. However, due to the anonymity of the internet, apprentices, fallens and even hunters frequently have accounts. The forum is disguised as a crafting/DIY forum.
As an inside joke, members (who want to be known) tie a red and white thread around their neck. The owner of the forum is unknown.