[hider=Bludgeons of the Cancer]
[center][colour=9e0b0f][h3]Ophanim[/h3][/colour]
[b]Species - Symbiote - War Construct - the Other[/b][/center]

[b]Appearance:[/b] Ophanim are complex aerial bioweapons composed of three component species- Spheres, Cords and Plumes. Each ophan is a union of a single Sphere and over a hundred Plumes, and each ophan is always attached to at least one other ophan by a Cord.

A Sphere is the most notable component species of an ophanim colony. Each Sphere is an organism made predominantly from metals of various kinds, with organic and exotic matter included in the alloys of some tissue. They are colossal, averaging over seven metres in radius, and consequently weigh easily over ten thousand metric tonnes. The interior structure of a Sphere is, despite its unusual constitution and unnatural metabolism, living tissue, complete with sensory organs, vascular structures, and a complex nervous system. Much of this internal physiology is fluid, but the arrangement of solid and fluid compartments is designed to minimise disruption from rapid aerial movement.

The exterior of each Sphere is not perfectly even. It is marked as if moulded into shape by a sculptor's hands, divided into sections by asymmetrical flowing patterns of smooth furrows and glyphs, sometimes in subtly different metallic shades. These patterns are unique to each Sphere and hide surface-level sensory and magic-channelling organs. Barring some fluid-filled veins, this exterior layer is solid metal, and over a metre thick.

Plumes are another component species of ophanim. Ghostly, fluid creatures, Plumes are composed of powerful holy magic and blood cultured from Other samples. They glow brightly in white, sometimes tinted with other [url=http://orig02.deviantart.net/3b03/f/2008/317/e/2/fractal_flame_three_by_bmjewell.png]shades[/url]. Simple and amorphous in form, Plumes have an indistinct, vaguely pointed 'head', behind which the rest of the body mass flows, forming their characteristic 'feathery' shape. Over a hundred Plumes fly freely just above the surface of a Sphere, chasing and twirling around each other in a cloud-like coating over the metal below. During rapid flight, Plumes tend to conjoin into a single mass and billow behind the Sphere leading them in a larger plume shape. Plumes are linked with the surface of a Sphere and never abandon it while it is alive.

Cords are the final component species of ophanim. Less than a millimetre thick, tautly linear, translucent, and sometimes over eighty metres long, they are invisible to the naked eye. Magical or radiometric senses may see coiled lines and streams of esoteric hybrid energy flowing between Spheres connected by a Cord. An ophan cannot live without a Cord connecting it to another, so there are always at least two Spheres in a Bludgeon system. In Bludgeons with more than two ophanim, Cords come and go as aerial movements require them, blinking in and out of existence in an instant.

[b]Life Cycle:[/b] The ophanim have more in common with divine weapons than they do with other living creatures, though they undoubtedly belong in both categories. Tremendous energy and skill was required to craft them, and they are incapable of breeding. It seems likely that, as living creatures with souls, they do have a maximum lifespan. Whatever this is, it is almost certainly so expansive that galaxies will have collided by the time an ophan shows signs of aging.

Incapable of growth, having been produced at their full size, ophanim can nonetheless heal after injury, and at a surprisingly brisk pace. Spheres being the most corporeal of the components, they repair themselves in orthodox ways, by adding to their body mass with raw materials from the environment and reconstituting them into new tissue. Usually the ophan will put itself into contact with available metal for this to occur, be it by burying itself in the earth, crashing into shallow ore veins, bathing in mineral-rich waters, or simply attracting metal objects magnetically.

Plumes, when damaged, rapidly regenerate, their shapeless nature proving very useful in this situation. If destroyed, they can replicate within seconds by binary fission, so long as the rest of the ophan remains alive. They tend to expire naturally after a few years, and are regularly replacing themselves.

Cords, as they were intended to be, are virtually indestructible. While they may only exist for a second or two in a rapidly-moving arrangement of ophanim, their disappearance and reappearance is a natural process of ophanim, and in any system there is always at least one Cord per Sphere. If divine power is applied sufficient to shatter a Cord, and no backup connection is available, the ophan it was attached to dies instantly.

[b]Description:[/b] Every component of an ophan is sentient, and limited. Together they are single entity, their strengths overlapping to form an intelligent weapon that requires only the guidance of a single external individual to execute extremely potent combat strategies.

Plumes generate large amounts of raw energy, of the Holy, Elemental and Other kinds, for the ophan. This is harvested and metabolised by the Sphere, via the Cord's energy flows. Much of it refined and cycled back into the Plumes, which then provide the ophan with thrust. They are also the ophan's primary sensory organs, their bodies keenly sensitive to visual, auditory and magical stimuli.

The 'vicious spirit' is the angelic soul within a Plume. Their thoughts move quickly and often incoherently, their attention sharply focused and soon shifting to another narrow scope. Constantly communicating among themselves telepathically in modified Angelic, their rapid-fire chatter quickly shares information with the whole system and makes loose connections without thoroughly processing the data.

Spheres are the core component of an ophan. A Sphere facilitates the growth of Plumes and uses their holy magic to nullify local gravity, much like angels do. Spheres are crucial to the existence Cords, which, as dynamic flows of energy, need a 'start' and 'end' point. Spheres can exert a powerful magnetic field at will. Beyond detecting electrical currents, however, they have no senses not dedicated to interacting with Plumes.

The 'guardian spirit' is the once-Urtelem soul contained within a Sphere. Guardian spirits are 'blind', and process sensory data from Plumes in order to 'see' the outside world. Conflicting observations are integrated by the guardian spirit, as are thoughts- The 'sleepy' spirit relies on organising the muddled ideas of Plumes to make decisions. However, it plays the greatest role in controlling the ophan.

Cords are energy relays. They allow supernatural power of all kinds to flow between ophan and optimise the efficiency of such a decentralised system. The sprawling fields of unseen energy flows they generate between Spheres are also crucial to connecting Plumes and Spheres.

The 'indomitable spirit' is a modified Flicker within a Cord. Cords being short-lived, they do not contribute significantly to the telepathic community of the colony. Indomitable spirits have even weaker senses than guardian spirits, their role instead being constant regulation of the dynamic and sometimes unstable energy systems of ophanim. The energy flows they create are invisible works of art, constantly changing and yet always perfectly balanced. 

However, indomitable spirits are not separate from the soul community. While voiceless, their integrated knowledge of data from Spheres and Plumes is without flaw, and among multiple connected ophanim, their minds are the unified authority that guides the entire colony. Their momentary flashes of passionate intuition give rise to the ophanim's fluidly connected grace and responsiveness in battle.

[b]Interactions:[/b] Weapons being what they are, ophanim are designed to be wielded. The rogue avatar of Jvan, Heartworm, simultaneously created a system for controlling entire colonies of ophanim while constructing the composite species. A mass of ethereal tentacles, only extending from it and those it has implanted with them, are capable of entangling Cords and delicately directing the ophanim through them, supplemented by the intelligence of the colony- Much like the relationship between reins and a well-trained horse. These tentacles can also be used to exploit the fast aerial movement of the ophanim to move the wielding 'rider'.

Additionally, certain traits from the entities harvested to create the ophanim still survive.

The guardian spirit exercises the greatest influence on the demeanor of the colony. Ophanim are eternally patient, protective entities. They wait on the will of their rider, if any, or else live peacefully, content with their own company and that of other ophanim. Even when not controlled, an ophan will move to protect an individual it considers a master, and indeed others that it considers innocent. Ophanim sometimes land briefly near clans of Urtelem, as if in greeting, before going on their way.

When in the presence of Djinni, the indomitable spirit comes to the fore. Ophanim treat elementals much like they treat other spirits of similar strength- With pride and begrudging respect. In flight they tend to respect the borders of known elemental lords. In combat, if provoked, they battle long and in earnest, employing manoeuvres beyond their instructions. It is one of the few times when an ophan might openly display independence.

The vicious spirits, while numerous, tend to affect the decisions of the ophan only in specific circumstances. Vestecian chaos stimulates an unusual excitement in ophanim, who may move a little erratically, and fight more destructively, in the presence of a horde. Additionally, there is a certain mutant fiberling, Violet by name, to whom ophanim show a bizarrely affectionate deference.[/hider]