Angels, Demons, Fallen and Ascended

Most societies in the world have had some kind of stories about angels and demons. About beings that either help, or hinder humankind. Some societies give these stories religious connotations. Like with all things supernatural, some things the stories got right, some things they got wrong.

The truth is that neither Angels nor Demons serve any kind of higher power. They are not connected to a God, Gods, Lucifer, Satan, any of that. They are simply non-human, intelligent beings - they are species. And very much two species who are on different sides.

Concepts of 'good' and 'evil' are purely human concepts, and they're concepts that angels and demons simply do not hold with. That said, of all the beings on this earth, angels and demons are the only ones that have their 'side' chosen for them.

What that side is is, again, seen in reference to humanity and humankind. Simply put - the purpose of each and every angel is, in one way or another, to help and assist humanity. The purpose of each and every demon is to destroy, corrupt or otherwise mess with humanity. Whether that makes angels 'good' and demons 'evil' depends upon your point of view. One thing it does guarantee though is that angels and demons are sworn enemies. They simply do not get along - their world views are too different. They have been at war for as long as anyone can remember, so long that if there was an actual reason for it, it has long since been lost in the mists of time. there is no 'rubbing along' or 'sorting out our differences' - demons and angels simply cannot be near each other without a fight breaking out.

Despite being opposite sides, Angels and Demons really are pretty much the same coin, just the opposing faces of it. They are very similar, both in structure and abilities. They are all born with the ability to bless/curse things, and wings. Angels have feathered wings, Demons have batlike wings, though the colours of an individual's wings varies.

Both angels and demons are more resilient than humans, but not a whole lot. Bullets will still kill them. Bleeding out is still a problem. They can deal with the elements a little better (if you think flying is awesome, wait til you're in the upper atmosphere moving at high speeds and see how well you do with the cold!) Other than that, they're open - for example, they're no stronger than a human would or wouldn't be. It isn't until they get a little older (and all angels and demons are functionally immortal, meaning they aren't going to die of old age, but can be killed) that they start to drift towards specific purposes. Both Demons and Angels also all have a tell. For more information and examples, see: here!

~Abilities~

As mentioned above, both Angels and Demons are theoretically immortal. This means that whilst they don't die of old age, they can be killed. How they appear in terms of age varies a bit. Many angels will functionally 'stop' aging when they hit a mature point. Sometimes this appearance is younger (such as twenties) sometimes a bit older (thirties) and while the aging process doesn't occur like it does in humans, once angels/demons start getting on in years, their appearance slowly starts drifting towards a more elderly one. For example, if you have an angel who's fifty in real time, they aren't going to look fifty. If you have an angel who's four hundred some years, they probably are looking around 50 or possibly older. (Note: we do not accept characters over 500 years old in game)

Both Angels and Demons are more resilient than humans - they withstand extremes of heat and cold better (but, for example, thrusting a hand into a fire would still hurt like a bitch). They aren't any stronger, or faster than humans though.

Angels and Demons can both fly. When 'stored', both angels and demons will have markings that look like tattoos on their backs that represent their wings. Note: the markings do not have to resemble the wings, they just need to be a mirrored pattern that span both shoulderblades.

Angels and Demons have the ability to recognize each other. It's not something they can automatically tell from afar, but eye contact will do it. It'll trigger a knowledge in them, something that just tells them 'angel' or 'demon'. It is not specific enough to tell what houses any are part of, however.

Angels can bless things, Demons can curse things. Blessings/Cursings are poisonous to the opposite race. Being around objects or places like that will make them very ill, and can eventually incapacitate them. So, for example, if an angel gets, say, shot with a bullet that's cursed that, they're in major trouble. Likewise, for example, demons have a really hard time going to church or visiting a graveyard!

~Houses~

Both are Angels and Demons are born without a clear 'path' in life - for example, they are not committed to a certain house (or any house at all) when born, even if both his or her parents were members of that house.

Joining a House is not mandatory - there are both angels and demons in the world that don't specialise and just life their lives without any particular leanings, just generally carrying out their overarching purpose (ie, helping humanity for angels, or hindering it for demons), however some do choose to join a House, and there are certain benefits to doing so, since House members gain extra abilities. Angels and Demons who do not have House affiliation only have the basic abilities of their species.

However, if an angel or a demon does find themself inclined in a certain direction (which generally wouldn't start to happen until they became adults), they would join a House.

Houses cover a few different themes, and whatever the affinity they have, they go there and learn to specialize. Only those with specific Houses gain more abilities, that aid them in their chosen tasks. (Note: Angels and Demons can only ever have one House. If they chose a house it is a lifetime commitment. So, for example, a member of the House of Wrath could not in later life join the House of Grace.)

One problem with houses is that in this timeframe, in the here and now, where the world is in a destructive spiral...they can't see past it. They have their specific tasks, and they are going to keep on going about it--even if other courses of action would help stop the descent, they just can't stop doing what they've chosen to do. And what's more is they can't see it to even try and combat this tendency. House Angels and Demons have a tunnel vision about everything. They have their purpose, and they're sticking to it. Unaffiliated angels and demons will have an easier time looking at the world and seeing that it's all going to hell, and they'll be better equipped to do what's necessary, but House angels will have one hell of a time thinking past what they're meant to be doing.

Contrary to popular belief, Demons are not trying to end the world. If they did, the game would be over and what fun is that? They have just as much to lose as everyone else if the world truly does end.

~Angelic Houses~

House of Wrath
Angels within the House of Wrath are angels people are loathe to fuck with. They are the ones responsible for taking out entire populations, to a single person. Or maybe just one type of bastard. It depends on their specific specialty, but either way? Someone's not going to get away with something.

Having joined the House of Wrath, the angel has a choice of two paths:-

Wrathers are considered those who target larger populations. Groups, towns, organizations, etc. Their focus is those group entities which are harming humanity, are making humanity's destiny a darker one. Their work is generally done through triggering natural disasters, or 'accidents' on a large scale. Think hurricanes or Chernobyl. The ability they gain once joining their house is along those lines, knowing where the weak points are and they have the ability to trigger things.

Avengers are the second offshoot of the house, and their jobs are much more specific. They choose a specific group of people as 'theirs' and right wrongs leveled against them. For instance, if their chosen group is abused children, when an Avenger comes across an abused child, they will systematically start removing those abusers from the child's life. How they do it is up to them, whether it's sending them to jail where child molesters are treated exceptionally poorly, or outright killing them, it's all personal to the angel. Whilst Wrathers gain abilities to affect things in the world at large, to help them trigger events, Avengers gain abilities which are much more personal to them and their approach to things. For example, an Avenger who prefers a very direct approach (such as killing the wrongdoers they find) will gain a weapons affinity of their choice, whereas an Avenger who prefers a more subtle approach (such as bringing the wrongdoers to justice within the human legal system and leaving them to whatever fate may befall them there) will gain an affinity which allows them to work within that system successfully, such as increased intelligence, or an innate understanding of and ability to learn the intricacies of law.

House of Virtue
Angels who join the House of Virtue are looking to bring peace and serenity to the world. They do their work mostly through virtues, or try to spread them as much as possible. Most cultures can value their ideals, and these angels do their work for humanity through them. While occasionally it's difficult to get it through in today's world, they try their best. They've had a harder time in the more recent centuries than they did in the past, and their numbers have dwindled more than other Houses, but they're still there, trying! Generally what they can do is have an impact on negative energy.

Chariters really do believe in world peace and harmony, on a very individual level. They like to see the personal results of what they do - chariters are the people on street corners collecting for causes, they're the ones giving up their seats on the bus. Chariters can bless individuals and small items much more strongly than most angels. They can also bless people and small items (for example, an item of jewellery, weaponry etc) permanently. Chariters can also improve the moods of those around them by clearing off the negative energy that clings to those in bad moods.

Renewers are drawn to areas that need to be purified and reborn. Purification generally means clearing out of negative energy or pollution. A great lot of environmental activists are Renewers, though it is an ongoing task - if a Renewer has purified an area, and there's bad stuff going on, it'll start to go again straight away. Renewers can bless large areas, but the blessing isn't permanent. Renewers have the ability to purify land and areas much more easily than other angels. They can, for example, purify cursed areas - though this tires them out, it is something they can do which other angels cannot. Quite a lot of Renewers occupy cities or war zones, trying to offset the negativity that builds up. It's an overwhelming task and ones particularly in war zones have a higher tendency to burn out than others of their kind.

House of Harmony

Angels in the House of Harmony, the Accordant, are angels that work to settle things, to try and bring order to the world around them. They quell uprisings, they find compromises for nations or corporations, they negotiate everything from peaceful protests to hostage situations so everything comes out as best as it can. They're looking to find the most positive outcome, where things can settle again into an even keel. They don't have subsets, and work towards their goals depending on what they see they are in need of doing. If this is larger scale, then they work larger scale. If it's just being a volunteer counselor for victims of violent crimes families, then it's that. They aren't nearly so strictly focused as their brethren, and find it easier to look around and alter their MO to suit what's needed at the time.

Harmony Angels tend to gain skills and abilities that will help them along this path. They are skilled negotiators, they are good at talking and they are very good with people. They are the communicators of the angelic world. Harmony Angels have a mild form of psychic empathic ability. They are very attuned to the emotions of those around them at all times and when they are actively trying to deal with others (for example trying to quell a fight between parties, counsel a victim, or negotiate a settlement), they can use this ability to judge how best to deal with a situation.

~Demonic Houses~

House of Ravage
Demons who join the House of Ravage do so to wreak destruction, pure and simple. Upon joining the House, they make a choice about what type of destruction they want to cause.

Ravagers seek to create destruction on a wide scale, either personally, or by providing ways for others to do so, and by helping and assisting those who seek to harm humanity at large. They may be arsonists, bomb makers, the masterminds behind holocausts - whatever the methods, ravagers are out to cause maximum damage. And Ravagers have the ability to find those spots of maximum damage, they know this without really having to think about it. A Ravager will just know where the best spot in a building is to start that fire so the whole place goes up like a candle; a Ravager will know how best to wire up a bomb, or the right spot to place it, or the right time of day to set it for to cause maximum damage. A Ravager would not be able to explain why they knew what to do, but they would never think to question their ability there either.

Despoilers work on a much more personal level. They are demons who choose a single target at a time, and then systematically destroy their entire life. Their aims are for this destruction to be on a mental, physical and emotional level, taking the subject's life apart piece by piece. Despoilers have an eye for detail and a limitless amount of patience when it comes to their work. It may take years for them to meet their goals on a target but they can deal with this. When a Despoiler picks a victim, that choice creates a one-way empathic bond with the victim. This allows the Despoiler to track how successful or otherwise their impact upon the victims life is and manipulate events with more ease. This bond also means that Despoilers have a very hard time moving onto another victim before they have finished with the current one – because once made, that bond is permanent until the victim's death (which is always the final step in the destruction of the life). This bond does not allow the victim to know anything about the mood of the Despoiler, and a Despoiler has no empathic ability for any other being than the victim.

House of Sin

There's a reason the seven deadly sins are called what they are. There's a reason they're so heavily involved in humanity's evolution as a species. Even if people aren't adhering to religions that specifically site them as such, most religions and moral people can get behind the idea, anyhow. Demons in the House of Sin work to break down the morality of humanity, to make it 'okay' for people to indulge. They work on different scales, depending on their tastes.

Evangelists, their name possibly derived from it's ironic tones, are demons who put sin out there on a massive scale. They're the ones who push the envelope of what's acceptable in society. They're the ones who want to legalize things, they thrive in places like Vegas, and are passionate about following causes that contribute to moral decay. They're the people on the internet who make websites so like, if sick-minded, individuals can gather, and reinforce moral, intellectual and emotional damaging ideas. From there, after all, those youngsters reaching out for places to belong, they're so much easier to suck in if they're fed enough praise and are made to feel wanted--even if the places they're getting the attention from is questionable at best. Evangelists generally are corporate bigwigs, government officials, or leaders of causes and protests, whatever works best for what they want to achieve.

Evangelists have the ability to sway popular opinion their way. They're the guys who make things okay for people, after all, they can be as reasonable as people need them to be, or as pushy, but either way, they're good at getting people to see things their way. Evangelists have a form of psychic empathy which allows them to gauge the collective mood of a group of people. They are not able to tell how any specific individual is feeling, but they can judge the mood of a crowd with amazing precision. This ability also works online – for example, an Evangelist who runs a forum can judge the mood of the forum members on any particular topic (though only in relation to that topic, not, for example, the mood of the people who commented on that topic six months ago and who are now off doing something else!). In essence, Evangelists have the ability to sense the mood of a group in order to be able to lead and sway them more effectively.

Whisperers are the ones who do things on a much smaller scale. Taking time to set specific people on paths that will lead to eventual devastation and destruction. They're the equivalent of the devil on people's shoulders, whispering 'it's okay. it can't hurt just this once.' They can target either individuals that strike their fancy, or they can specialize in specific types of people. Outcast youth, for instance is a popular one. They're quite hands on, and usually use the guise of a confidant of some description to get themselves embedded in people's lives.

Continuing on the communication theme of the house, Whisperers are good at rationalizing things to their targets, being that confidant that people need, giving just the wrong advice that sounds so good at the time. When dealing with people face to face, Whisperers have a mild form of telepathy which works in very specific ways. Though they can never hear the direct thoughts of others, they have the ability to transmit suggestions to their victim. These can never be specific, and can only build on something which is already there (i.e. a Whisperer would not be able to get their victim to think 'hey, it's me, the demon beside you – and I'm telling you to leave your husband and children and have a series of very public affairs', but if they're talking to someone who is in an unhappy marriage already they would be able to have the victim think 'I'm not happy, I deserve to be happy, I should do something about that – and that guy over there is really cute and I should go talk to him').

House of Chaos
Chaos demons (who are simply known as that) are those who seek to throw a wrench into the works. They're there to interrupt harmony, to cause discord and strife, to take a situation and give it a sharp shove in another direction. Being chaotic by nature, these demons don't have subsets, they are just as likely to take the time to cause widespread havoc on a large scale as they are to truly mess up someone's perfect little world. They cause breakdowns of both societies as well as people's psyches. Their methods are truly their own, all falling down to the individual. They are the most unpredictable of all demons. Not even other demons are quite sure where things might fall with them. They are notoriously untrustworthy, fickle creatures, and subject to go with their own whims, whatever those might be.

Chaos demons have the ability to see which pins to pull, so to speak. They can look at a situation and see where they need to tip things, what needs to be done to create the most impact upon a situation. They can't necessarily see where it'll lead, just how to start it rolling - they can see opportunities.

~The Fallen and Ascended~

Of all the type of beings found on earth, none have such harsh alignment constraints as angels and demons. To an extent, angels and demons have less ability to exercise free will than anyone else. Angels fall and demons rise - it had always been that way. If an angels strayed from the path of helping humanity, or if a demon strayed from the path of generally doing their best to make life difficult for humanity, then they lost their abilities - they became either a fallen angel, or an ascended demon. Either they didn't do their job, or they were a demon who fell in love, whatever it was, it meant they either weren't fit to continue being what they were, or they screwed up in an epic manner.

Fallen Angels and Ascended Demons have always been hunted. Generally speaking, when it happened, they would do their level best to disappear. Their old kind hated them, the opposition hated them, no one was on their side. They hid, if they wanted to stay alive. That was, until recently. When the entity that had originally made the decision about whether they fell (or ascended as the case may be) came to them with a knowledge. Knowledge that the world was changing, and not for the better - that this really did look like the end. This entity - known as The Mourning Star - put it to each of them that for years now, they had been the outcasts, the hated, the hunted. But now, in these times, maybe they could be more than that. And the suggestion was made by the Mourning Star that maybe they should do something about that. Okay, possibly in some cases it was more than a suggestion - but Star has a way about her. And she considered what she had to say was important - that the balance is crumbling. The world is rapidly changing, day by day. Everything is slipping into a downward spiral. What are they now charged with? Trying to dial it back, to hold it off. They're charged with maintaining the balance.

Whether they take up that challenge is up to them. What is for sure is that this isn't going to be easy. For one thing, angels and demons still hate the hell out of all of them, and wouldn't hesitate to go after them.

Some of the Ascended and Fallen have ignored the call entirely, some work to Star's ends on their own. Others still have started trying to seek out their own kind, to band together to help with their task (and survivability). Does it mean they're all getting along now and singing Kumbaya around the campfire and snuggling? Absolutely not. Ascended Demons were still demons at one point, and the same on the other end for Fallen Angels. Are they trying to work together anyhow? Yep. That just doesn't mean they're going to be some well oiled machine.

Abilities: While they never had abilities before, they now have some. They've just recently popped up. One is--they can recognize each other. Whether fallen or ascended, they've all been marked by The Mourning Star, and that's something that shows up now. To others, the mark just appears to be a strange marking - a star, to be exact. The exact design of the star may change, but it's always a star. To other Ascended and fallen, though, the mark itself glows and they also have a bit of a brighter aura around them.

Ascended and Fallen also have an awareness of karma. After all, if they're going to be balancing scales, they need to know where it's out of whack.

Drawbacks:
- Loss of extended lifespan. That nifty longevity you had? Is now totally gone. You have the lifespan of a normal human and are 100% mortal and are affected by the same things - so if your angel has smoked 40 a day for the last 100 years before falling? Expect them to have massive breathing problems)
- You are a target. Both angels and demons hate you - the opposing side because you are one of Them, your previous side because you are tainted, an abomination. Any angel or demon who comes across you? Will go out of their way to take you out.
- If you had any increased strength, any speedy healing ability or other physical perk? This no longer applies. Any physical edges, abilities, etc, it's all gone.
- Wings are permanently retracted, but tells remain the same.
- Although fallen angels and ascended demons both keep their 'drive' they will not retain any of their powers to do so. This drive will also be easier to ignore if they so wished.
-Even if they can't perform curses or blessings anymore, they're still just as allergic to them as they used to be. Fallen Angels aren't going to want to go walking around on unholy ground, and Ascended Demons aren't going to be spending a lot of time at church.

What makes an angel fall, or a demon rise?

Generally, the punishment (for it has always been viewed as a punishment by both angels and demons) has been meted out to those angels and demons who stray off their given path. To angels who have ceased to work for the good of humanity, and for demons who have ceased to work to make life more difficult for them. However, there are some things that are complete no-nos. There are some activities which are automatic fails. These are:-

• Any angel who commits an act of personal vengeance will immediately fall. If any angels uses their status and abilities to do something against another being which isn't required and within their remit, they will rise (so, for example, avengers and wrathers are protected from this is kicking ass on behalf of something else, but doing it for their own sake? They fall.
• Any demon who falls in love with anything other than another demon will automatically ascend.