“Ahhhh, can you guys, like, hear me?” Sigrun’s voice drifted from her trademark stickers, this time cut into the shapes of Sanrio characters, fine script etched in shimmering ink on each one. “Okay, like, this job’s a little weird compared to normal. Like, the mayor’s lackey said we don’t usually run prevention like this, but Miss Death and like, even her grouchy old buddy said this might turn out pretty bad if we left it alone.”
Clearing her throat, the blonde continued.
“Anyways, like… the show venue is no big deal, but Celeste is a toooootal bad juju magnet. Creepy stuff follows her around like a bad odor. Last show had a few of her fellow models drop dead a few days later, which, like, is definitely a sign that she’s got some wispy fellas following her around.” Sigrun sighed, drumming pale blue, gingham-patterned nails on her desk. "Prevention might not be, like, totally possible, but if something starts to happen, there are way, way too many peeps at the show to sit back and wait. Like, first sign of trouble, definitely step in."
A pause and a chuckle.
"Also, like, enjoy the show? You guys can totally blend in, but I totes think that asking around about the stuff that's happened before can tip you off on stuff that might happen this time."
The venue loomed dozens of meters above the ground, glass windows reflecting a sunset sky streaked with thick painted clouds. It provided a serene image compared, but just behind the proverbial curtain, it was exactly the type of chaos that one expected from a fashion show.
Between frantic fixes and changes, the talk of the entire ordeal revolved around the potential merge between Jeunes Fleures and L'île aux fées following the engagement of their owners. It was, by and far, happy news. They came from money, but both had paved their way with their own styles–if they were to fully merge, it might be a sight to behold.
And yet, those whispers stopped when a particular pink-haired woman stepped in: the woman of the hour, as far as reapers were concerned. Eyes turned to her, a thick tension starting to muddle the air.
Celeste glanced away, brilliant blue eyes cast toward her feet for a moment. She gathered herself quickly enough, turning her head high again and moving through the crowd with deliberate steps to be fitted. It was admirable, if not for the evidently unseen individuals trailing after her. A teenage girl, too skinny and with hair cropped into an asymmetrical bob, a man in a suit following a few steps too close, a young child clutching a flower-shaped bag close to her chest–at least ten. Most didn't look out of place in Paris, but that was easy to say in an ugly city filled with beautiful visions.
A single one seemed to keep the others at bay, but it was far from human. It looked more like a skeletal dragon, approximately the size of a horse. Ghost lights burned in its skull where eyes should have been, lighting translucent bones with a glimmering radiance. When one stepped too close to the model, it moved between ghost and human with a single, fluid motion, ethereal flames brightening for an instant to force a backward step.
But at the very least, it didn't seem dangerous. Not yet, at least.
~???? | DECIBITUS | LUCEMA REGINI
The offices of Reapers R Us were always busy, a general hustle and bustle of movement and paperwork the norm for their duties. With that in mind, some commotions could be ignored.
Mochi sprinting full force through the halls with a few of HR's usual suspects scrambling after the mayor of Decibitus was surprisingly included in that list. Mochi was, after all, a dog that enjoyed his exercise, and the non-reaper workers of Reapers R Us were usually the unfortunate victims that simply couldn’t ignore the presence of a corgi sneaking off with someone’s cookie. It would cause no harm, so Elliot had learned over the years to let it be.
As the corgi sprinted as quickly as his legs could take him, Elliot knocked on the door of Miss Death's office and waited for the usual call to be let in.
Thumpthumptaptaptapthud!
Mochi made another round.
"Hm?"
The mayor’s assistant knocked again, this time with more force in case the woman’s attention was taken too deeply by some new spell. When the response failed to come after Mochi had made another two rounds, Elliot had little choice but to conclude that Miss Death wasn't in her office. A rarity when it came to someone like Miss Death. He had his suspicions on where she’d gone, but after enough meetings with the woman, Elliot was confident he had at least some knowledge of her mindset. Sighing to himself, the mayor’s assistant shook his head and knelt to the ground.
"Mochi." The corgi came bounding into Elliot’s arms, tongue lolling with each excited pant–whatever snack he’d stolen was notably long gone. The dog’s tail wagged excitedly as he tilted his head up at his owner, his snout nudging Elliot’s chin. "Let's go to the lobby and wait for some reapers. I'm sure someone must know where Miss Death is."
Stepping around the now-exhausted members of HR with a small nod of his head, the man went to do exactly what he said–wait.
Please let a GM know whether you want your character on the Paris job or in Decibitus.
Players are free to write/collab things leading up to heading to their destination!
Please ping either @ERode or @PapiTan if you decide to try and engage the skeleton ghosty or otherwise try to engage with Celeste!
Sigrun’s communication spell will work between all characters that possess one of her stickers.
❖❜ JOB TYPE » WISP/SEARCH [???] ❖❜ LOCATION » PARIS, FRANCE ❖❜ DANGER » ✦✦✧✧✧ ❖❜ BRIEF »
Wow, I'm so jealous. Looks like you guys are headed to Paris, France for a little runway show 'cause we got a--oh. Yeah, Celeste Arnaux is, like, totally bad juju. Miss Death said there'll probably be some folks following the lady around that're on the verge of going all wisp-y, so be prepared for that. Huh... actually, doesn't she like, totally look like Miss Death?
I'VE NO COLOR SO THE LEAST I CAN DO FOR YOU IS ENDURE ▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔ papi"Even someone with no past can wish for a future." oi26 FEMALE 157CM 61.2KG PINK BLUE ▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔
The head honcho of Lucema Regini by necessity. Miss Death, as she's known to the populace of Decibitus, may be the oldest existence in the city and is the reason why reapers exist. Miss Death is an anomaly unto herself between being the source of the weapon cores used to unmake souls and her complete inability to remember her life on Earth. Despite all this, Miss Death is well known through the city as a woman who is much kinder than her distant and aloof demeanor suggests. However, she's equally well known as someone it would likely be dangerous to cross, given that much of her free time is spent studying magic or combat in depth. She seems to understand that the average citizen is at least mildly afraid of her, so she largely keeps to herself. Unfortunately, that means her ability to express herself naturally is crippled, at best.
I'M AN ANGEL WITH A SHOTGUN FIGHTING TIL THE WAR'S DONE ▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔ papi"Leave your specifications on the desk and I'll get to it later." oi29 MALE 178CM 76.2KG PINK/BLACK GREEN ▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔
Miss Death's associate and the one who forges all reaper weapons, though he could stand to be a bit friendlier. He set up his workshop in Mulch one day and has since refused to leave it despite plenty of better places in the city. Unlike Miss Death, Uchi isn't very well known by the general population, and he doesn't seem to want to change that. Despite all that, he's actually very good at his job, and his weapons rarely ever disappoint. He claims to be an old friend of Miss Death's from when she was alive, but with her memory completely gone, there's nobody that can confirm or deny that statement. Still, he does seem to genuinely care about Miss Death and her well-being, which vaguely extends to her reapers. Just barely.
~♫ ~♫! ▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔ papi"Woof!" oi6 MALE 27CM 13KG TAN/WHITE BROWN ▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔
Mochi became the mayor of Decibitus through a write-in vote. It started as a joke, but four years later, and Mochi has not yet left office. His owner Elliot acts as his assistant (read: does the actual mayoral work).
I CAN MAKE SOMETHING GOOD OH SOMETHING GOOD. ▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔ papi"Just one thing left... what? I said that last week too?" oi31 MALE 176CM 72.6KG BLACK BROWN ▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔
Mochi's owner and who most consider to be the "real" mayor of Decibitus. Despite a fancy sounding official position, being the mayor's assistant doesn't actually grant Elliot any significant power. Instead, it just means that he gets saddled with looking over administrative work, which is mostly stacks of paperwork that have to be double-checked. He doesn't complain about it though, even after four years of Mochi being in office. All in all, Elliot is a pretty competent person who just does what he can to help out. It seems that he's getting ready to move on to the After with Mochi, but he keeps finding reasons to stick around. Does he really love his job that much or is it something else keeping him in Decibitus?
YOU ARE TOO MEDIOCRE TO UNDERSTAND ME, PERHAPS ▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔ papi"You seem to believe that I should be punished for my ambition." oi28 MALE 182CM 80.3KG RED GOLD ▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔
He's more of a boogeyman than he is an actual person at this point. Imprisoned deep within the Ligena Fati, the Necromancer has been the source of horror stories both on Earth and in Decibitus for ages. It's well known that back when he was alive on Earth, the Necromancer was known as the single most powerful user of his magic. He was nothing short of a genius, but his work and ethics weren't exactly on the morally upright side of necromancy. In the modern day, specific details about the Necromancer as a person aren't very well known. Most are only aware of his face and achievements because of history books on Earth. Everyone knows where he is though, especially given that reapers haven't succeeded in finding a way to unmake him yet--it's starting to look like an impossibility too.
SHINE A LIGHT IN THE DARK, LET ME SEE WHERE YOU ARE ▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔ papi"Don't forget to tell your boss 'hello' for me!" oi25 FEMALE 170CM 55.3KG BROWN BROWN ▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔
A denizen of the After currently in charge of overseeing the hand-offs of unmade remains from Decibitus's reapers to the After's processing center. She's only recently taken over the role, but she seems familiar with the duty. Kaihime seems to have a keen interest in the reapers and the happenings of Decibitus, but maybe that's a breath of fresh air from the usual no-fun-allowed types that work the Kiln.
You are free to format your character sheets and add additional information as you wish, so long as it includes the following at a minimum. Please feel free to run spells or bio things by me to know if they'd be okay.
✦ Name ✦ Age (appearance), actual age optional ✦ Gender, bio sex optional ✦ Faceclaim and/or physical description ✦ Weapon
✦ As opposed to a personality or bio section, I’m going to request that you do an in-character response to one of the following prompts:
✧ The way your character died (and thus entered Decibitus). Please be aware that all souls that enter Decibitus have significant personal reason(s) to not simply move through to the After. ✧ A brief excerpt of your character’s first job as a reaper or a job that impacted them significantly ✧ Your character has just been given the offer to become a reaper, what brought them to say “yes”?
✦ Magic Branch ✦ Magic
For the sake of balance, I’m going to give everyone Pokemon syndrome and limiting initial spells to 4 per character to start with. Please note that these are specifically significant spells that can be used for combat or have a massive effect in setting. Spells for day-to-day living do not have this cap. Spells in this list should be within the same branch of magic–if you tell me your magic is elemental, I want your spells to be elemental.
Obligatory post in case my ass forgot something important, which it probably did. Link to new thread will be shared on Discord since that's a bit easier.
The world that most people are familiar with--Earth is best described as the realm of the living. Despite the presence of magic, it has progressed almost identically to our own Earth.
As the realm of the living, the environment of Earth can be rather hostile to departed souls. Those that linger on Earth for too long begin to suffer ego decay, which slowly robs the departed of their sense of self. Eventually, this ego decay becomes serious enough that the departed loses all concept of their identity and becomes a wisp. Though they don't necessarily start as dangerous, wisps are highly sensitive to emotional stimuli and can become a threat to departed souls as well as living ones.
For a city found between death and life after death, Decibitus is surprisingly normal. If not for the fact that the boundaries of the city seem to suddenly cut into a world of white sand, one might not even suspect that they weren’t on Earth.
At about 90 square miles, Decibitus isn’t as large as a metropolis, but when a place doesn’t expect to see permanent residents, it doesn’t need as much space as one might expect. With apartments scattered in bunches throughout the city and ever-changing stores and restaurants lining the streets, one could call staying in the city peaceful, if sometimes a little dull. The architecture could use a little more uniformity, but the mishmash of buildings and styles is bound to happen when decisions change hands frequently due to the nature of Decibitus as a whole.
Still, it’s hard to say anyone is really unhappy. Departed souls that have found themselves in Decibitus are provided for, even if it’s only a superficial comfort for souls that no longer need to follow basic living sense. On arrival, apartments are provided to departed souls that go through the correct channels, complete with furnishing and plenty of necessities provided to get them situated. Combining that with the fact that departed souls effectively cease aging--in many cases, departed souls even take younger forms than the age they were at death--and won’t necessarily perish without basics like food and water can make one’s stay in the city much easier than expected.
𝙴𝙲𝙾𝙽𝙾𝙼𝚈
"Well, you can't take it with you."
Those are words that most people don't take to heart until they wake up in Decibitus with no money in their pockets and too much of a melting pot for it to have mattered to begin with. In order to best emulate a living city, Decibitus has an economy using currency known as Solbits. Though many shops not officially run by the city might make use of a bartering system, Solbits are effectively universally accepted through the city as an exchange system due to their use in official channels.
Solbits are pearlescent coins approximately the size of an American half dollar engraved with an ornate halo on both sides. Each coin is worth a single unit with an average, complete meal from an eatery costing approximately 8-12 in the modern day. The secret to how they're made and what they're made of appears to be closely guarded.
Most departed souls don't make it a point to carry an enormous amount of coins on person, with the equivalent of debit cards being the preferred method of payment for many.
Of course, one would be remiss to talk about Decibitus without making note of its most intriguing locations.
𝚃𝙷𝙴 𝙳𝙴𝙿𝙰𝚁𝚃𝚄𝚁𝙴 𝚁𝙰𝙸𝙻
If one were to ask what the most important location in Decibitus was, the general answer would be the Departure Rail. Located in the center of the city, the Departure Rail is a train with only a single destination: the After. Every day, three times a day at midnight, 8AM, and 4PM, the Departure Rail makes a trip to the After, bringing with it departed souls that have taken care of whatever it was they left behind in death to their afterlife. The station is large and modernized, leaving plenty of space for people to have a meal, wait, or kill some time before the train is prepared to make its next departure. The train itself, however, still has the appearance of a steam locomotive.
Despite the fluctuating number of people per trip to the After, the train never seems to be short on space, with the common belief being that whatever it is that allows the Departure Rail to enter and exit the After always ensures that there are enough carts for those making their final trip.
𝙻𝙸𝙶𝙴𝙽𝙰 𝙵𝙰𝚃𝙸, 𝙰𝙺𝙰 "𝚃𝙷𝙴 𝙳𝙴𝙿𝚃𝙷𝚂"
The Ligena Fati, otherwise known as the Depths, is effectively an underground prison. On occasion, there are individuals that are deemed irredeemably dangerous unable to enter the After. These are primarily people who have violated the natural cycle of life and death in extremely egregious ways, though it’s anyone’s guess as to who makes the call in the end. In the modern day, the Ligena Fati is sparsely populated thanks to the presence of reapers that are able to unmake souls rather than keeping them trapped for eternity in a cell. As one might expect of a semi-abandoned prison, the Ligena Fati isn’t exactly hospitable, especially in comparison to the rest of the city.
It is known that there is a maximum security cell located deep within the prison housing the Necromancer. However, security for this cell is extremely tight with only a select few having permission to visit it and fewer still with any desire to do so.
𝙻𝚄𝙲𝙴𝙼𝙰 𝚁𝙴𝙶𝙸𝙽𝙸, 𝙰𝙺𝙰 "𝚁𝙴𝙰𝙿𝙴𝚁𝚂 𝚁 𝚄𝚂"
The headquarters for all things related to reapers. Lucema Regini is a small office building with four floors. For all intents and purposes, floors two through four are typical office spaces where paperwork is processed. Thanks to the efforts of a number of people over the years, the building is actually pretty comfortable as a whole.
The first floor lacks office spaces, but has training rooms for reapers to get exercise or weapon practice in–notably, Miss Death strictly forbids activating one’s weapon core in the building outside of the training rooms. A full cafeteria is also located on the first floor, though most workers could tell you that the only thing worth getting from it are the sweets.
Miss Death’s personal office is located on the fourth floor of the building. It’s an open secret that a small door behind her desk leads into a small living space and that the woman lives in the building as opposed to an actual apartment.
Notably, Miss Death applies an incredibly complex spell she refers to as "Speaker's Babel" to the building and rewrites it every week. The spell in question allows for a sort of universal translation--so long as the caster can understand the language, the words will be parsed into one that a listener can comprehend.
𝙼𝙰𝙻𝚄𝙲𝙷 𝙿𝚁𝙰𝙴𝚃𝙸, 𝙰𝙺𝙰 "𝙼𝚄𝙻𝙲𝙷"
Once, Decibitus earmarked a section of undeveloped land to create more permanent residences than the standard apartments. This endeavor ultimately ended up as an abandoned project in the middle of construction due to constantly changing leadership and a general lack of necessity. As a result, Maluch Praeti wound up being the place to go in order to find things that might not be so kindly looked upon by the public.
This is where Uchi’s workshop is set up, and it appears his presence does keep a lid on any unsavory activity in the area. Due to the recent and sudden failure of the Departure Line, talks have started about trying to restart the project in the event of a worst-case scenario.
𝙳𝙴𝙲𝙸𝙱𝙸𝚃𝚄𝚂 𝙷𝙰𝙻𝙻
Effectively the equivalent of city hall in Decibitus. The general populace primarily comes here to get clearance for a return trip to Earth or to let someone know that they intend to take the Departure Rail to the After. Decibitus Hall also works closely with Lucema Regini for job types involving the return of departed souls to Decibitus from Earth. This is also where departed souls are first directed so they can be given an apartment and set up for their time within Decibitus.
𝙼𝙴𝙼𝙾𝚁𝙸𝙰𝙻 𝙿𝙰𝚁𝙺
A large park about three blocks from Decibitus Hall. It’s a popular place for gatherings due to the ambience and general upkeep, but the reason many people remember it is because of Silver Waters.
Silver Waters is a small pond in Memorial Park with, as the name suggests, ethereal, silver-like water. The pond is currently closed off to the public and has a fence set up around its perimeter because people kept taking a dip in the lake or sipping the waters. The acts were less of the issue so much as the fact that incidents kept occurring to those that did so. Painful ones that left people wanting to be unmade.
𝙰𝚁𝙲𝙷 𝙾𝙵 𝚆𝙰𝙽𝙳𝙴𝚁𝙴𝚁𝚂
The Arch of Wanderers is located at the southern end of Decibitus and acts as the point of entry and exit for departed souls making trips to Earth. Recantia, a spring filled with iridescent smoke, is also located on the grounds of the Arch of Wanderers and is the location where departed souls from Decibitus return if they happen to be killed while on Earth.
Not much is known about the After, even by those in Decibitus. What is known, however, is that the After, unlike Decibitus and Earth, has a sort of one-way boundary. Under typical circumstances, a departed soul can enter the After, but it cannot leave after crossing the barrier between it and the other realms. However, it appears that reapers, at least, are able to breach the barrier where it is weakest–at a place on the outskirts known only as the Kiln. Even here, reapers aren’t able to stay put for long, lest they be trapped in the After before they are ready to move on.
𝚃𝙷𝙴 𝙺𝙸𝙻𝙽
A sort of processing center located in the After for the remains of unmade souls. According to information gathered by prior reapers, the Kiln is the start and end point in the cycle of one’s life and death. Unmade remains that are brought here can be effectively reconstructed into a new existence, allowing the soul to return to Earth as a new life. Unlike the modern appeal of Decibitus, the Kiln appears to have a more archaic type of architecture, looking more like an old cathedral than any sort of processing center.
In the present day, magic is common knowledge and widely practiced through Earth, which means it is equally practiced in the realms following Earth. Most countries on Earth will include magic within the general curriculum of their education to teach the foundations of the craft, at the least. However, despite magic thriving now, it was only within the last 400 years that the public really started to incorporate it into everyday life despite records of magic's existence dating back to the ninth century. In the past few centuries, it has become more formulaic across users, but has also been understood to a more significant degree. Most mages that undergo formal training are of a more academic type in the modern day due to the amount of effort and study required to truly practice magic.
All magic in the world has its basis in Vertan, a language otherwise known as the world script. By imbuing spoken or written words and phrases of Vertan with magic, spells can be crafted and cast. Though Vertan provides the vessel for the magic spell, it’s important to note that an individual’s own pool of magic ties into their ability as a mage. Much like athletes can increase their strength and stamina through training, mages can increase the amount of magic available to them through training as well.
There are two systems of magic known to exist: spoken magic and written magic. Most casual use of magic is performed through speaking, but formally trained mages have experience in both.
The first type of magic that an individual will typically learn is spoken magic. As the name suggests, spells of this system are cast by incanting Vertan words and phrases out loud. Of the two systems, spoken magic is considered to be easier to grasp and understand, particularly because requirements appear to be far less stringent in creating a desired effect. Most magic used by the average person is spoken because of its speed and convenience.
However, in formal practice, spoken magic is often set aside in favor of written magic. This is because while spoken magic is easier to cast, it is exponentially less precise and acts as a poor vehicle for complex spells or anything persistent. Furthermore, spoken magic tends to be less predictable and consistent than its written counterpart, and the same spell one has cast dozens of times might sometimes have an unexpected effect due to the instability.
In most settings where magic is formally practiced, one will find that written magic reigns supreme. Where spoken magic is faster and more convenient, written magic is valued for precision and complexity. As one should expect, written magic is cast by inscribing Vertan words and infusing them with magic. Compared to spoken magic, written magic is much stricter in terms of formulation of a spell. However, that comes with substantial payoffs in precision, consistency, and the potential for complex or persistent magic. With enough foresight, one can even prepare spells ahead of time to circumvent the time required for a spell.
Time and knowledge, however, are still often the great limiter when written magic comes into play. Even setting aside the amount of time put into learning the precise construction of a spell, each word has to be inscribed and imbued with magic–a process that takes more energy and time than one should expect from spoken magic.
Regardless of the type of magic, only the individual who creates a spell is able to cast it. This means that if a spell is inscribed or spoken by one caster, another magic user would not be able to hijack the spell. In a similar vein, if a spell is written or has multiple users involved in its incantation, all involved parties would have to be present and participating in its activation for it to take effect. All magic can also only work once before having to be rewritten or incanted again.
The colloquial name given to Miss Death’s field agents, though even Miss Death has taken to referring to them by the grim title. All reapers are under the employ of MIss Death at Lucema Regini and, according to the woman herself, all possess a certain shared quality that makes them eligible to be reapers. What exactly that quality is, she’s never articulated, but that certainly hasn’t stopped rumors from flying.
While much of how a reaper functions is a mystery to the greater public, a reaper’s common abilities are well known through Decibitus.
First, reapers are all abnormally strong while they are on Earth. Their physical parameters all seem to be enhanced beyond what they would normally be capable of, meaning they are stronger, faster, and more durable so long as they are in the realm of the living. Moreover, reapers are uniquely resistant to the ego decay that would spell certain doom to other departed souls, making them the best fit for many of their jobs.
Interestingly enough, it appears that unlike a typical departed soul, reapers are able to make themselves visible to living humans and can, within a small radius of themselves, temporarily make other departed souls visible as well.
Finally, all reapers are allegedly capable of floating or limited flight. While they aren’t able to take to the skies as freely or quickly as a bird, clearing buildings a few stories high at speeds faster than they might be able to walk is entirely possible. Miss Death has asserted that all reapers should be able to perform the feat in theory, but in practice, many reapers struggle tremendously with the concept and have difficulty performing the task (assuming they are able to at all).
Upon completion of training, all reapers are given a weapon core from Miss Death. They take the form of small, gem-like structures filled with a black, smoky substance. Under most cases, MIss Death will offer to have them inlaid into accessories to make keeping them on-hand easier. Evidently, she seems to be capable of creating them in simple shapes as well.
Once obtained, a core can be taken to Uchi, who will forge it into a reaper’s personal weapon–one might consider it their “scythe” of sorts. When inactive, the cores remain in their gem-like form, but when activated, the black substance escapes its container to take the form of the reaper’s weapon. Uchi is able to forge these weapons according to specifications, including granting them specific functions that a normal weapon would be incapable of reproducing. For example, a sword that can illuminate itself or a wand that can create short-lived flowers for use. However, these effects aren’t at the level of magic, meaning a feat such as controlling the weather or manipulating the earth itself would be far beyond Uchi’s ability.
Notably, though Uchi is able to make ranged weaponry, ammunition created from the weapon itself will vanish if it is taken too far from the core, as it is a part of the weapon itself.
The reason why these weapons are so important, of course, are because they have the power to unmake virtually any soul. Though this is typically reserved for wisps and criminals imprisoned in Ligena Fati, a reaper would be able to unmake souls attached to a still-living person or a soul in the After with the weapon. Oddly enough, it appears that the weapons are incapable of unmaking Miss Death herself–likely because she is their source.
𝙳𝙴𝙿𝙰𝚁𝚃𝙴𝙳 𝚂𝙾𝚄𝙻 The general term used for those that have passed on and are no longer part of the living realm.
𝚆𝙸𝚂𝙿 When a soul remains on Earth after passing, whether of their own volition or through force, they begin to undergo ego decay. Eventually, this causes a soul to forget their identity and they become a wisp. Unlike typical departed souls, a wisp is able to harm (or even kill) living people on Earth directly by grievously harming or unmaking souls. They are even able to unmake the souls of reapers if they succeed in leaving severe enough injuries.
Due to their sensitivity to external stinumli, wisps can often take forms that are no longer human in shape. Often, these forms are influenced by the stimuli or by vestiges of the wisps’s former identity.
When a living being’s soul is damaged or unmade by a wisp, the individual falls unconscious and inevitably dies three days later.
𝚄𝙽𝙼𝙰𝙺𝙸𝙽𝙶 In its most basic sense, the unmaking of a soul is the destruction of an existence. Under most conditions, departed souls that perish from one method or another aren’t truly “dead” in the sense that they can recover from mortal injuries simply by returning to Decibitus. Being unmade, however, strips the soul of whatever identity it had before, thus preventing it from reforming to its prior state. To that end, one can consider the unmaking of a soul to be the removal of an existence from that point forward in time.
There are only two known ways to unmake a soul. The first is through a reaper’s weapon. Nobody has really made an effort to dissect the reason why this seems to be the case, but the method is both stable and complete. The second method is through severe damage to one’s soul through a wisp.Though there’s been no testing of this method (for obvious reasons), it’s believed that wisps may be able to inflict and amplify ego decay when they damage a soul. In severe cases, this can cause a soul to be unmade in an incomplete manner.
When a wisp successfully unmakes a soul, the damage caused to the soul makes it incompatible for a proper reconstruction, even when processed at the Kiln. As opposed to fully stripping the soul of its identity, it’s more accurate to say that the identity is eroded beyond the point of recognition. When reconstruction is attempted on souls unmade in this fashion, it results in a Hollow LIfe.
𝚁𝙴𝚂𝙸𝙳𝚄𝙴 When a soul is unmade, it leaves behind a shimmering residue that can be gathered up and brought to the Kiln for processing. Residue is naturally drawn to itself, allowing it to be gathered and contained easily enough. In most cases, there’s no issue if residue is mixed from multiple souls, as an unmade soul should have no identity. Residue left behind by souls unmade by wisps, however, will contaminate other residue if contact is made.
𝙷𝙾𝙻𝙻𝙾𝚆 𝙻𝙸𝙵𝙴 The result when the residue left behind by a soul unmade through a wisps’s work is reconstructed at the Kiln. Though it appears normal and can be sent to Earth, the damage caused by the wisp isn’t repaired. The existence that comes from the reconstruction is a tragic occurrence; an individual with no emotion, no ambition, and no true sense of identity. People born in this state typically live extremely short lives. Because of this, when a Hollow Life is found or when a Hollow Life will occur, reapers are typically called to unmake the soul properly immediately after its reconstruction to repair the damage.
𝚁𝙴𝙲𝙾𝙽𝚂𝚃𝚁𝚄𝙲𝚃𝙸𝙾𝙽 The start and end point for a soul in the cycle, according to those that work the Kiln. When a soul is unmade, the residue can (and should) be brought to the Kiln, where it can then be processed and reconstructed into an entirely new soul and existence. Beyond placing residue into the Kiln, it appears that the process takes place without human interference. On the one hand, this prevents external errors, but on the other hand, it leaves the entire process as an unsolved mystery.
“The Departure Rail hasn’t made a trip in three weeks.”
Elliot ran his fingers through his hair, looking frazzled despite his usual competence. Miss Death couldn't help but feel a sense of pity for the man, though her expression showed little change even as she gently stroked Mochi's silken coat. Eyes of pale ice gazed out to the station in the center of Decibitus, aware of how dire the situation could go. The Departure Rail normally ran three times a day. It had been doing that even before her own arrival in the city, and it had done so without fail with only a few key exceptions to the woman's memory. That it remained locked in place for three weeks was alarming--a risk, she might even say. Her fingers continues to rub at Mochi's ear, her next words carefully chosen.
“I can ask some of my field agents to look into things in the After,” she started, her voice as calm as ever. “Though even they won't be able to travel far.”
“I–no, I didn’t mean to ask for your reapers to–” Elliot stammered for a moment before releasing a heavy sigh, a motion to pinch the bridge of his nose pushing thin-framed spectacles up to his forehead for a moment. “That would be helpful. Thank you.”
But his acquiescence was hesitant, so Miss Death waited. Silent anticipation pressed heavy over both parties, each expecting the other to speak. As always, Elliot broke first.
“Aren’t you worried?”
Miss Death was more than aware that she should have been, but such distant emotions never quite felt real. She shook her head despite the vague pangs of unease settling in her stomach.
“I think my field agents can handle it.” Miss Death was confident of that. They were the only ones that really could. At best, she might only be able to press for an answer from someone that knew better. “But I also need to ask a favor first.”
“Anything you need, Miss Death.”
✦ 𝙱𝙴 𝚁𝙴𝚂𝙿𝙴𝙲𝚃𝙵𝚄𝙻 This is a big umbrella rule that basically boils down to "don't be a dick". Be respectful to your fellow players, be respectful to the co-GMs or mods, be respectful to me. If you find you have a problem with another player, please take it to DMs. If you find that you still cannot come to an agreement, that would be the time to find a GM in case there does need to be a removal from the roleplay.
Please also respect that I may need to add, remove, or alter rules and reserve my right to do so as necessary.
✦ 𝙰𝙱𝙾𝚄𝚃 𝙼𝙾𝙳 𝙿𝚁𝙾𝙳𝚂 Hi, this is a roleplay and that requires posts. To facilitate that, approximately every seven days, A GM will be posting a mod prod, which is basically just an activity check. To not get caught in a mod prod, all you have to do is to either have posted or contributed a meaningful amount to a collab. If you miss a bunch of these in a row without giving any mods a heads up, I reserve the right to move your character as needed and/or remove your character from the roleplay if the issue can't be resolved.
✦ 𝙰𝙱𝙾𝚄𝚃 𝙲𝙾𝙼𝙱𝙰𝚃 To make my life easier, most significant combat will be handled with a simple dice roll system. Please read the pinned post in the dice roll channel or the appropriate hider for additional details on the system. While much of combat will be players doing as they please, GMs may ask for players to tone down in combat if they feel that such a need arises.
✦ 𝙰𝙱𝙾𝚄𝚃 𝚂𝙾𝙻𝙱𝙸𝚃𝚂 These are basically "Decibibucks" that are distributed for posts. You gain them for use at the end of an arc/encounter/mission and can use them to purchase perks and bonuses for use in a future encounter. Solbits will be tallied at every mod prod.
Dice rolls will be used for instances of combat where your characters may not be expected to steamroll the opposition. You may opt into dice combat for any encounter as well. The system itself is (hopefully!) not terribly difficult at its base. Please be aware that this system may change as we figure out what's smoother for everyone.
✦ 𝙲𝙾𝙼𝙼𝙰𝙽𝙳 𝚃𝙾 𝚁𝙾𝙻𝙻 .roll 1d20
✦ 𝙰𝙲𝙲𝚄𝚁𝙰𝙲𝚈 𝚁𝙾𝙻𝙻 (𝙰𝙲𝙲) Your first roll is the accuracy roll. This is whether your attack actually lands. All enemies will be given an EVA value that will be featured in its posts. All you need to do is roll a 1d20 and hope your number is higher than the enemy's EVA value.
If you land the exact EVA value, your attack is considered a critical hit.
If you have 2 or more characters working together to attack the same enemy simultaneously, everyone involved in the maneuver gains a +1 for each person involved to the accuracy roll (up to a maximum of +3).
A GM may choose to override a miss if combat gets stuck for too long.
✦ 𝙳𝙰𝙼𝙰𝙶𝙴 𝚁𝙾𝙻𝙻 If your first roll is successful, roll a 1d20 again to see how much damage you deal! This is just taking the number straight from the 1d20.
If you landed a critical hit, multiply the number by 1.3 to get the final damage.
✦ 𝙰𝙳𝙳𝙸𝚃𝙸𝙾𝙽𝙰𝙻 𝙴𝙵𝙵𝙴𝙲𝚃𝚂 Things like bonus damage from poison or damage reductions/buffs from character skills will be handled on a case by case basis at the discretion of whoever is running the combat situation or, if necessary, by the GM.
The corner of Kazuto’s lip twitched up into an impulsive, nervous smile that drew a half-choked breath as his eyes darted from a smiling face to the enormous mallet held in the owner of said face’s arms.
“Um, excuse me?” Well, he always figured that if he died, it’d be from overwork–wait, but his coworkers were still seeing him just fine. That was worse, wasn’t it? Worse. That was probably worse.
Thankfully, before things could get worse, the dark-haired girl put a stop to the misunderstanding…
…is what Kazuto would have liked to say, before her hand was suddenly in his chest. The chill was a psychological byproduct of the situation, the brunette knew, but that didn’t stop it from sending a shudder creeping up his spine. The man flinched back with a grimace, and he felt a surge of something between frustration and self-loathing rise like bile in his throat. Ah, damn it, he was a grown ass man–this shit shouldn’t still be bothering him, and it certainly shouldn’t have been scaring him anymore.
But still, Kazuto took a moment to gather his thoughts back into order and calm his thundering heartbeat before trusting himself to even try a response to any of the strangers’ questions. They were looking for a dead guy, and they were dead too, so maybe it had been a group ordeal? That was something that Kazuto definitely, abso-fucking-lutely didn’t want to know about. In fact, the less he knew, the better!
…
’Damn it. Damnitdamnitdamnitdamnit, goddamn it!’ He just couldn’t leave it alone, could he? At the least, he could stay at arm’s length from them for the moment. No need for a repeat of having someone phase halfway into him. Again. Or, god forbid, worse.
”Uh, Hayashi’s… fine,” Kazuto started with a small nod of acknowledgement to the least-threatening looking of the lot. ”And there’s always confused dead guys around the shrines, but I think a lot of them are supposed to be there. You know, called back for a ceremony or a seance or whatever, not the usual weird aura from confused dead folks. I–er…” The brunette rubbed his arm uncomfortably. ”Well, there are also a few at the hotel I’m staying at too. I, uh, tried to follow them a little before we started shooting last night, but I lost track of one of them around Kamakuragu and the other one ran into Raikoji. No way I could follow the guy there.”
Which… left that last uncomfortable question. With a grimace that spoke more than any words could, Kazuto instinctively moved to pinch the form of his earring for a moment. The emotional response was equal parts comforting and uneasy.
”And the earring was my old man’s. He gave it to me ‘cause of this situation.” He made a motion pointing to his own eyes before directing the two fingers toward the group, indicating his clear ability to see them. “The old fogeys back home always tell us only real specific people in the family know how to get them, but…”
The man’s eyes lingered, briefly, on the eerily similar gem that the red-haired stranger had adorning his own earring.
“Guess it’s too late for me to tell you that these freaky dark lookin’ ones don’t really work, huh? Least, never did its job a day in my life.”@dragonmancer@OwO@Obscene Symphony@Hero
Abstract Proxy
Obscene Symphony
