Hey, guys. I’ve done my best to uncover all the entries, but there’re still two parts that I wasn’t able to get. So sorry! Hopefully this guide is still useful.
Table of Contents
William Guide
William
William Lee is a boy I go to school with, who is apparently some kind of Esper – that is, he is a psychic. Most Espers can see the paranormal, but some have abilities that go way beyond that. He has things that follow him around, which is common with stronger Espers. Those who are low level or only have weak abilities don’t typically stand out enough to attract any sort of following. But those who are stronger definitely do.
There are a lot of rumors that go around about William. Which is a little unusual because as much as some club members are labeled as ‘weird,’ there really aren’t specific rumors about any of them. Except William. I guess everyone else is able to be careful about their abilities but for William…well, part of his ability causes him to attract outside attention. And I guess he can’t stop his ghosts from hanging out at school with him and being mean to people there.
William, being a strong Esper, attracts a lot of spirits to him. They follow him, whisper to him constantly, and…actually…protect him. It’s hard to know who and what these entities are, but it seems like they care about him at least a little bit. I originally thought they stuck close to him, but it seems like they’re protective enough to even leave his side and stalk people they don’t want near him.
William is one of the strongest Espers in the world. It’s a pretty big title, and one that’s a little terrifying to be honest. His telekinesis is apparently so completely terrifying that he has to keep it carefully in check. I’m not exactly sure what he could do if he really let go – but apparently there are a lot of shady creatures out there that would love to get control of him so they could find out.
Faeries
Faeries are a wildly diverse group of Cryptics. Where they live, what they look like, their abilities, motives and powers all vary massively. Some Faeries prefer to live on their own, while others group together in ‘courts.’ Some live among humans, others avoid them. Some are huge, some are tiny. Some are powerful enough to wither crops and change the weather, and some are barely able to find food for themselves. The one thing all Faeries have in common is that, in the right circumstances, interacting with them can be deadly.
Changelings are a type of Faerie left in the care of humans at a young age – after a human baby was stolen, though. There are many variations of the legend ranging from a Faerie baby left in place of a human baby, to an older sick Faerie being left behind. Regardless, the Changeling imposter is disguised by glamour to hide their true nature. Unfortunately, they’re sometimes outed by their own strange behaviors, leaving the family to try to find some means of getting their real child back.
Crimbils are left behind when a Bendith y Mamau steals a human baby and leaves one of its own instead. They’re ugly or misshapen but have a calm temperament. They’re born with a natural gift for music and song, which they use to gain attention and praise. Usually, parents had to hire a Witch to rescue their child. When returned, the child would have no memories from its time with the Fae, except the vague memory of beautiful and sweet music. Sometimes the child would be returned with a gift for music as well.
Faeries, for all that they can be terrifying, can be pretty easily thwarted by the simplest of things somethings. They have such a powerful aversion to some plants and objects – Faerie banes – that these things can be used as effective protections and even barriers to keep Faeries out. A Faerie bane can be as complicated as magic circles formed of salt and as innocuous as keeping a crust of dry bread in your pocket.
Just as some plants can be considered harmful to Faeries, others are considered sacred to them: primroses, foxgloves, ragwort, wild thyme, bluebells, cowslips, pansies, toadstools. There are tons of flowers, trees and plants associated with Faeries. Ironically, some – like rowan – can ward them off or invite them in, depending on how they’re used.
Because many Faeries are thought to live underground, they have a strong association with the dead and the underworld. There are actually a lot of similarities such as some stories that say if you wat the food of Faerie, you’re doomed to stay there, just as if you eat the food of the underworld you meet the same fate. Some people think even all ghosts and spirits are Faeries,, or the other way around.
Kelpies are a type of water Faeries that disguise themselves as beautiful horses to entice people to ride them. Of course, if anyone is dumb enough to try, the horse rushes into a nearby body of water and rips them apart, drowns them, or devours them. Of all of the above. As a rule of thumb, never try to ride a weird horse, I guess. No matter how pretty.
Brownies are a form of guardian spirit from the tutelary spirit category. They share this category with a variety of Fae and hobgoblins who tend to guard specific locations or households. How friendly these guys are kind of varies by type, but Brownies are usually considered benevolent spirits. Some lore states than an angered Brown becomes a Boggart – but other stories treat Brownies and Boggarts as entirely different species.
An angered Brownie usually makes its displeasure known by endless pranks around the house. From just making noise to stealing objects and generally being a nuisance, these pranks don’t subside unless you can find a way to appease the Brownie.
Selkies are a type of Scottish water Faerie. They are shapeshifters, like many Fae, and when in the sea they appear as seals. But on land, they shed their seal skin and take on human form. It’s said that Selkie women are beautiful beyond compare, and that a human man can force a Selkie to become his wife – effectively taming her – by hiding her seal skin. Of course, if she ever finds it, she’ll put it on and flee back into the sea to be with her people.
Glamour is Faerie illusion. It’s a type of magic only practiced by Faeries – though other types of illusion magic exist. Glamour is unique because it involves tricking all five senses. Wizards apparently have tried to replicate glamour because it’s such a useful magic, but to Faeries the ability to hid, trick, and create false appearances comes naturally. It probably says a lot about the nature of who and what they are. With Fae, you just never know what’s real and what’s a trick to keep you from seeing the truth.
Espers
Espers are ranked on a scale that measures their psychic potential. The higher the number, the more power they have. Apparently, top ranked Espers – those twelve and above on the scale – can actually manipulate matter on an atomic level or even manipulate and control other people. Pretty scary stuff. I mean, if that kind of thing were in the hands of the wrong person, I guess.
Fifteen is the highest number on the Esper scale. There are only a few dozen people in the world who are above level twelve. And of those, less than ten are ranked fifteen. William is one of those.
Psychometry is a type of psychic ability that allows a person to glean relevant information just by touching an object. The theory is that the information is transferred via psychic energy or psychic echo left behind by previous owners or events. How detailed the information gleaned depends a lot on the skill of the Esper doing the psychometry.
Liminal Spaces
A liminal space is an empty place that doesn’t exist for its own sake. It’s just a place where other things pass through, but nothing stops for long – in other words, places of transition or those that are just a temporary resting spot where things stop, then move on. In the paranormal sense, a liminal space is somewhere the barrier between reality and the paranormal is thinner, which makes them prone to paranormal activity. It’s easier for things to cross into our reality there – or even for humans to cross over into other realms.
The Divide is a metaphysical barrier that separates the human realm or ‘reality’ from other realms. The Divide isn’t just a barrier though, it’s a place – an ‘unplace’ of its own. You can enter it, and some creatures even live there. Some ‘unplaces’ and pocket universes are apparently just enclosed areas of The Divide. For the most part, The Divide is formless, dark and freezing cold. Generally, not a fun place to be.
Other realms are any realm other than reality. Faerie and the astral plan are both ‘other realms,’ but there are many others besides these two. In fact, no one is really sure how many ‘other realms’ there are. Some of them overlap onto reality so it’s not that difficult to pass from one to the other. Others are quite removed and very difficult to get to.
Sentinels are Cryptics that work with the agency – typically doing things like guarding areas that are problematic. Or guarding…things…that are problematic. Sentinels are often non-corporeal or don’t look remotely human enough to blend into society. If they’re lurking about an area anyway, the agency works to get on good enough terms with them that they’ll keep an eye on things the agency needs to keep an eye on.
Cryptics
Cryptics are classified on the basis of how well they fit into human society. Because there’s such a huge spectrum of Cryptics, expectations and rules differ based on classification. If a Cryptic has such an alien, inhuman way of thinking, then there’s no point to even try to hold them to any sort of rules. And, of course, some Cryptics aren’t even sentient. Classifying them lets the agency manage them more effectively, I guess.
Ghosts are more than just spirits of dead people that lurk around after the whole dying bit. There are a lot of spirits that fall into, or slightly overlap, the ghost category but were never human to begin with. Ghosts can’t really see the real world very well. But they can see spirit and psychic energy, which is why those with strong ESP stand out so clearly to them. The stronger your ability, the more you appear to them light a light. Which is why strong Espers gather them – it’s like moths seeking a light for warmth and comfort.
Non-corporeal Cryptics have a ‘core’ – it’s basically like their heart. It’s the center of all their thoughts and feelings. It’s the thing that holds them together. A spirit with a weak core usually can’t manifest well because its thoughts aren’t strong enough to materialize into a more visible form. Spirits with stronger cores are the ones that can manifest as some sort of apparition or affect the real world by moving objects and the like. For all ghosts, the core is a weak spot. Destroy that and the ghost loses cohesion and ceases to exist.
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