Corruption
In the world of Castrella exists a gigantic, spreading threat of corruption in the form of two infectious aether known as Whimsy and Law.
Corruption Process
Corruption begins when an individual is exposed to Law aether via radiation, or Whimsy aether via spore contact. While the two methods of exposure vary greatly, the process of corruption on either side acts the same. Chaotic aether is almost parasitic in nature, as it starts its process by slowly consuming your outer "layer" of aspect first. For individuals with two aspects—one birth and one learned—the corruption will start whittling away at your learned aspect first. This may take months, years, or even decades, but eventually, the ability to use magic of that element will vanish. After the outer "layer" is consumed, the corruption eats away at the inner "layer," which is the birth aspect.
In the physical sense, corruption is a crystallization process. All sentient organisms are born with an aether gland adjacent to their brain. When Law radiation or Whimsy spores hit the body and are not medically treated right away, the aether will begin to search for the aether gland and surround it. Once secured, the aether forms crystals and attaches onto the gland, forcing the organ to "learn" to produce that aether instead of the other elements already naturally in the gland. There are multiple ways to combat this, or at least extend the duration the chaotic aether requires to fully consume natural aether. These methods are highly accessible as long as the Adventurers' Guild is aware of said individual's condition.
There are a multitude of factors that impact the time it takes an individual to become fully consumed by chaotic aether. This includes, but are not limited to:
- Utilizing spells of the chaotic aspect.
- Overall preexisting condition of the individual.
- Mentality of the individual towards the corruption (positive, negative, etc.)
- Type of medication prescribed.
- Average lifespan of the individual's race.
- Whether the individual has learned a second aspect.
This is not a complete list and may be updated in the future.
Symptoms
Symptoms vary between individuals. There may be two people who have the same exact symptoms, but it is quite rare. Depending on which chaotic aether one is corrupted with, some symptoms are more common than others. They also vary widely, depending on the factors listed above regarding the time it takes for an individual to be fully corrupted. You are required to report every odd feeling you may encounter since your corruption diagnosis that way your assigned Contingency Division expert may better help manage your condition and prescribe you the proper medication required. Do not be alarm if you are ingesting different medicines every single visit—this is completely normal, and as just as the name states, chaotic aether is unpredictable.
Pure Aether Beings
Races that are labeled as pure aether beings on the Races page cannot be corrupted. This is due to their origin countries being sealed off so tightly with highly compact aether. Their aether glands and bodies are unique in a way that their aether is so incredibly dense, it has been tempered enough over the years against unnatural aether and cannot be corrupted. These races include Dragons, Aetherians, Cambions, Fae, and Cupids. Hybrids of these races also cannot be fully corrupted, but still feel symptoms of corruption when exposed to corrupted zones.
Endings
As of right now, the Guild has documented three different "endings" for a corrupted individual. If one's corruption has hit a particular threshold, their Contingency Division expert may have graced them with an estimated adjusted lifespan. Some may want to know, others may not. Your assigned physician will always give you the option to accept this knowledge. Please be aware that once past death, the body becomes a biohazard and must be properly taken care of as quickly as possible.
Unique Death
The most common route that occurs to 90% of the individuals under the Guild's care. For Law corrupted individuals, the body becomes highly dense with law aether. The aether is highly organized and packed away tightly, and your body begins to crystallize entirely. In the end, your body will become a statue, a monument of a memorial, yet still highly dangerous as you will still leak radiation. For Whimsy corrupted individuals, the body's aether becomes sporadic and loose. It becomes a host for whimsical flora-like or fungal growths to sprout from the body, almost becoming a terrarium of sorts. Just like law, the body is still incredibly dangerous and will release spores at irregular intervals around its vicinity.
Do not approach a post-mortem corrupted body. Report it to the Guild immediately.
The Beckoned
An alternative to unique death, albeit rare. If your aether gland is a fighter and the stars align, you may be able to push back on corruption and stall your death. However, the minute your will falters, you may hear a faint voice asking you to give up. To give it all away and accept your fate. You may feel a compulsion to return to a corrupted area, and if you do... you have been beckoned to become a chaotic aether-touched monster. Again, this is rare, and as long as you do not heed its call, you will be more than fine.
Monarchy or Sovereignty
In the rarest occasion, following the call of the Beckoned may lead to transforming into a Monarch or Sovereign. These apex predators typically come from individuals who have high strength and resilience. Please read their respective linked pages for more information on the two.
Whimsy
Whimsy Corruption, like Law, is an infectious aether that spans the length of the Forgotten Isle. Once inhabited by an active civilization, the only signs left from where they lived are the decaying, warped ruins of their city. While we can decipher some of what is left, most of the books, architecture, and written language have been distorted beyond comprehension. Bubbles of Whimsy, when entered, feel light as a feather near the borders but as you walk further into the chaotic nature of the corrupted area, the heavier the air becomes to breath.
Background
This section is a little out of date. Please do not take what is beneath this heading as absolute. The Archivist Division is in the process of publishing new information.
The Whimsy has been slowly spreading over centuries, only held back by the efforts of the Guild. Within are many monsters, including being intelligent enough to speak the common language known as Monarchs. These Monarchs are Apex Predators, capable of hunting down anything within the Whimsy Plane. They are composed entirely of Whimsy Aether, and often rely on creating pacts with other intelligent beings to achieve a currently confusing goal. Please read about Pacts to further understand that subject.
Whimsy Corruption manifests itself in unstable swirling patterns. Anything within the area will become malformed into swirling shaped, slowly bending itself into impossible forms. Due to this, it is highly recommended that when entering a Whimsy Bubble, you must wear proper PPE. Not doing so can likely cause Whimsy Corruption of your Aether, which is permanent if not immediately treated. Clear early physical signs of Whimsy Corruption towards your Aether are, Shifting Coloration in Irises and Sclera, Circular Marking or Shifted Coloration of Skin, Horns or Nails becoming strange shapes, Teeth Sharpening to a Point, and senses being heightened. Along with that, many have reported strange psychological aspects like, Hearing a Perpetual Whistle or Humming of a Familiar Song, losing the ability to perceive the faces of loved ones and allies, and traumatic memories becoming twisted to a more positive spin that is sickening to the mind. Please refer to a professional if you even have a slight feeling that you might be affected by Whimsy Aether Corruption.
Containing Whimsy
The current best solution to halting the spread of Whimsy comes from the isle known as Null. A smaller island composed of Anti-Magic Material. By creating a compound of the Dirt, our scientists have been able to make a Paste that can be spread around the Corruption and create a Bubble of Sorts. Issue is, it needs to be constantly maintained, as it slowly loses its effectiveness over time. Even the Entropy of Whimsy and Law seem to overcome this Anti-Magic.
Addendum: We’ve recently taken the time to remove a Monarch from their habitat. It seems stable, and we’ve taken the effort to create a pact with it. From this, we have discovered it has the ability to translate the text of the Forgotten Isles, though not without some compensation for its efforts. Despite them having a shared goal, they don’t seem to be a Hivemind. Rather, they seem quite individual to one another and can even clash in ideals and goals. We will update as we discover more.
Law
Law Corruption, like Whimsy, is an Infectious aether that spans the length of the Forgotten Isle. Once inhabited by an active civilization, the only signs left from where they lived are the decaying, warped ruins of their city. While we can decipher some of what is left, most of the books, architecture, and written language have been distorted beyond comprehension. The bubbles themselves, once entered, feel like the weight of the world is thrust onto your shoulders near its borders. The further in you go, the less this feeling is on your body and the more uniform you see your surroundings.
The landscape is no better than a fever dream devoid of your proper senses. Where there is the natural chaos of nature, there is instead uniformity. Blocks of perfect shapes of risen rock, trees with no bends and leaves being simple shapes. The sun casts its glow down above but the warmth it gives doesn’t reflect to the eyes. Shadows are in perfect dark greys and the sky isn’t blue. Where there is anything, there is just uniform grey, and it reflects kind of nature across everything within the Law bubbles of this world. Corrupted. Perfected. Uniform, forever more. The further in one goes, the more it becomes a wasteland of perfect shapes. The beginning is always the worst, the air is heaviest on your body and your senses take some time getting adjusted, but it does get easier to breathe the more sandy and desert like it gets, as if true uniform perfection is just a collection of dust as an amalgamation of everything all at once.
Background
This section is a little out of date. Please do not take what is beneath this heading as absolute. The Archivist Division is in the process of publishing new information.
The Law has been slowly spreading over centuries, only held back by the efforts of the Guild. Within are many monsters, including being intelligent enough to speak the common language known as Sovereign. These Sovereign are Apex Predators, capable of hunting down anything within the Law Plane. They are composed entirely of Law Aether, and often rely on creating pacts with other intelligent beings to achieve a currently confusing goal. Please read about Pacts to further understand that subject.
Laws corruption manifests itself in orderly perfectionism, where uniform shapes itself to be straight edged and somber. The area within remains monochrome and desert-barren, where the further you head in the more devoid of life it becomes. Dusty, dry, a landscape of sand as the ultimate form of unity within it. Due to this, it is highly recommended that when entering a Law Bubble, you must wear proper PPE. Clear early signs of Law Corruption include de-coloring of hair/eyes, but the symptoms that happen to your body change on a per person basis. Law corrupted individuals tend to slowly lose the ability to remember things, forgetting time and events in similar ways to dementia. They start to lose their emotions and senses, color first, until eventually they become like an empty shell of who they were. Eventually, over time, the perfection of uniformity takes them as they become dust.
Sovereigns
- Like Monarchs is a species of monster that can be located within law corrupted areas.
Containing Law
The current best solution to halting the spread of Law comes from the isle known as Null. A smaller island composed of Anti-Magic Material. By creating a compound of the Dirt, our scientists have been able to make a Paste that can be spread around the Corruption and create a Bubble of Sorts. Issue is, it needs to be constantly maintained, as it slowly loses its effectiveness over time. Even the Entropy of Whimsy and Law seem to overcome this Anti-Magic.