Uruvel – The Current of Becoming
Origin:
Said to flow from a wound in the world, where nightmare bled into reality. Found in the blood of eldritch beasts, harvested and consumed by mortals.
Philosophy:
"To wield power is to surrender self." Strength comes from what you give up, not what you gain.
Mechanics:
Blood grafts or ingestion awaken monstrous traits. Each beast's blood carries its own instinct → powers vary. The wielder's greatest personal loss defines their ultimate expression.
Cost:
Identity erosion — memories, selfhood, humanity consumed. Final stage: becoming a true monster, irretrievable.
Progression:
Initiation — small enhancements (claws, speed, senses). Symbiosis — abilities stabilize, but whispers intrude. Corruption — flesh warps, abilities surge, self erodes. Becoming — ultimate crystallizes around wielder's deepest loss.
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Ixchelil – The Binding of TrutH
Origin:
Linked to the goddess Ixchel, patron of moon, weaving, and law. Found in temples, inscriptions, and the Library's woven sigils.
Philosophy:
"To name is to make real. To define is to bind." Reality bends to certainty, not doubt.
Mechanics:
Declarations, symbols, or threads enforce truth. Conviction = strength. The more absolute the truth, the harder it binds. Each wielder's core certainty defines their power's edge.
Cost:
Rigidity — absolutes calcify. To over-define is to shatter the subject, or oneself.
Progression:
Naming — impose small truths (e.g. "the flame does not burn"). Binding — fix truths in symbols or threads. Assertion — enforce wide laws ("lies cannot pass here"). Verdict — ultimate emerges, reflecting wielder's deepest certainty.
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Kucholel – The Loom of Possibility
Origin:
Said to emerge where Uruvel and Ixchelil brushed but did not merge. Harnessed by the Empire in the Eastern Library.
Philosophy:
"The present is infinite. Weave what could be into what is." Power is not law or loss, but possibility.
Mechanics:
Users glimpse threads of outcomes → weave chosen futures into being. Power reflects the wielder's yearning for unrealized futures. Flexible but fleeting — threads dissolve quickly.
Cost:
Diffusion of self. Each use spreads awareness across many futures. Overuse leaves wielder detached, ghostlike, unable to return to the present.
Progression:
Thread-Touching — glimpses of possibilities (prediction, illusions). Weaving — manifest temporary threads into reality. Branching — manage multiple outcomes at once. Tapestry — ultimate crystallizes, shaping the future they long for.
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Though grouped as three Currents, no two wielders' powers are alike.
Uruvel reflects loss. Ixchelil reflects truth. Kucholel reflects possibility.
In every case, the ultimate form is a mirror of the wielder's soul.