Aleph

Aleph is an ancient being, sealed away for eons and finally free to seek his goals in the new world. Obsessed with accelerating the evolution of humanity, he will see the world elevated to greater heights than ever before by any means necessary. 
== Personality ==
Aleph believes it is his personal responsibility to shoulder all of the burdens of humanity, to bear the pain and hardship that is required to see humanity pushed to a higher echelon. Aleph is perfectly aware that many will never truly understand his motivations, and many more will disagree with his methods, but he knows that the future of humanity is not something that can be left to chance. While Aleph will not put any individual or even group of human lives before his goal, he is not without sympathy and gives the greatest of respects to those who fall in opposition to him. Aleph often feels remorse for the actions taken in the name of his goal, but such things do not stop him as he already bears the pain and suffering of thousands.
A notable trait of Aleph is his unchanging eyes. Regardless of his tone of voice, or how any of the rest of his face changes expression, his eyes are always the same. This has earned him the nickname Iron Eyes. 
== Background ==
Aleph was in a born in an ancient era long since forgotten to time. For most of his early life, he was a scientist, dedicated to combining spiritual and natural sources of energy to improve the lives of those in his time. During his studies, he eventually created a Hogyoku, with it his deepest dream was granted, to know his true purpose in life. He was then given a vision, simultaneously vague yet distinct. Billions of silhouettes, each clearly humanoid, stamped out by an overbearing creature of rage and death. But the creature was driven back by a select few, and those view led the world into a golden age of growth and prosperity. But as are all things, such peace was temporary. The Silhouettes, now larger than before, stood opposed to a force of equal size composed of malformed creatures, and they fought in a great battle. Aleph came to understand that the humanoid silhouettes represented humanity, and the monsters they faced were either physical or abstract threats to their future. 
The vision continued, the beast of rage and death returned, now mounted by a being who's radiance seemed fit to outshine all of creation. Against this overwhelming foe, once again a select few rose to stop them. Rather than defeating the beast and it's master, these great heroes died in order to keep their world safe. What could have been centuries or eons passed through Aleph's mind, and he saw the silhouettes walking throughout the world slow grow smaller and disperse. Despite their decreased stature, they lived peacefully for a long time, until darkness came upon them. Whatever the force or threat that befell the world was, it was so vast that Aleph could not even comprehend it's majesty. Could such a being so powerful truly exist? But then he looked around him and saw himself standing shoulder to shoulder amongst the shadows of humanity and he understood. This beast was no greater than those who had come before, perhaps it was lesser. Humanity had grown weak and complacent, without new heroes to rise up and save it, and now they faced certain devastation.
Awakening from the vision left Aleph feeling as though his mind had been expanded, that he understood things no one else could or would know. At the same time he was left with so many questions. Was the current state of the world that which he saw at the end of his vision, or had that time yet to come? It mattered not, for Aleph knew his role. If humanity were to stagnate, or even degrade, it would mean sure extinction. And so Aleph began breaching, and with the power the Hogyoku granted him, he quickly amassed followers. He and those that followed became more than human through it's power, and as word this spread, Aleph attracted followers and enemies in droves. Aleph fought a holy crusade that lasted through several generations, and through his conquests he forged yet more artifacts of great power. A gem forged of the condensed power of thousands of souls, each one willingly self-sacrificed to ensure humanity's future. Aleph had become capable of destroying the barriers that existed between humans and demons, increasing the breadth of his followers even further. As the crusade continued, Aleph forged yet another tool, this one able to bring out exponential growth, but only for a short while. While a useful weapon on a battlefield, there would be much more time before it could be used to achieve his goal.
Eventually, Aleph received word that Heaven itself bore an artifact that could be the final piece of the puzzle Aleph had been looking for. The civilization known as the Goddess Clan possessed what was known as the Simulacrum of Eternity. An object of pure permanence, it could make any change permanent, and in conjunction with Aleph's own creations, could finally have the power for Aleph to bring up all of humanity at once, and end the fighting once and for all. Aleph and his devout followers marched against the divine forces of the Goddess Clan, and victory seemed all but assured until Aleph's own men turned against him. While many had transcended the old humanity through Aleph's power, just as many if not more had died in the process. At first these were written off as mere unfaithfuls, killed for their lack of true devotion to the cause, but the Goddess Clan were nothing if not resourceful. The Compellor reached into the faintest doubts that existed in the hearts of Aleph's followers and magnified it, slowly weakening the will of his men until they turned on one another, and eventually Aleph himself. 
Aleph fought and killed. Hundreds died, then thousands, then more. He fought knowing that if he fell, humanity itself would one day cease. Feeling the pain and sorrow of each of his former followers as they fell by his own hand, he kept fighting, pushing through his former allies and the divine armies alone. It was after what felt like weeks of constant battle, that Aleph came face to face with The Warrior, famed as the mightiest of Heaven's generals. They fought long, but in the end it was just another obstacle in the way of Aleph's victory. Or so he would think, until the dying soul of The Warrior formed into chains of burning light, and 3 more of Heaven's Generals surrounded him. They spoke in a language he did not know, and before he knew it, there was nothing but he, the 3, and the chains. He struggled and writhed for what felt like eternity, but the chains did not budge, and were held taut by his captors. Aleph knew what he would do to escape, however long it took.
Aleph had been able to amass his mighty armies for many reasons, one of which was his ability to transfer the pain that one's memories or emotions cause them into himself, where they would always remain. Even while simultaneously assaulted by hundreds of thousands of these feelings, Aleph's motivation outweighed them all, and such pain had become almost natural to him. His captors could not say the same. Aleph hated what he did, but it had to be done. The 3 Angels were inflicted with thousands of lives worth of grief and suffering, from the lowliest of peasants, to the mightiest of the Goddesses themselves, slain by Aleph's own hand. they felt it all, unceasingly. The Lover broke first. One so accustomed to compassion was utterly destroyed by such concentrated sorrow, and Aleph felt the chains of his prison slacken. Soon after, The Executioner broke as well, whittled down by millennia worth of suffering in mere moments. Aleph rejoiced, preparing to break free of his bonds when they snapped back into immobility. 
The Guardian stood alone, keeping Aleph prisoner. Aleph assailed him with all the pain and misery he could muster, yet The Guardian stood steadfast. Aleph and The Guardian were locked into this struggle for what felt like Eons, but ever so occasionally, Aleph would see the smallest of cracks in The Guardian's form, and knew his escape was inevitable. Time had long since become impossible to gauge, but Aleph felt that The Guardian had stood watch of him alone longer than he had with his comrades, but he was starting to falter. Eventually, after untold eons of pain and misery, The Guardian finally fell. Aleph broke free of his chains, and returned to the world, but he did not find the Goddess Clan and their armies to meet him. He found only dirt, with primitive buildings surrounding him. He could feel that the time in isolation had drained most of his power, but more than that, he felt that The Guardian was the only of his brethren still alive in whatever era he had ended up in.
Aleph wandered for months, ignoring all questions of his identity. He felt a constant feeling of restraint, like his clothes were always too tight. The feeling was just enough to slow his movements, but he could tell the real detriment had been to his power. Aleph felt his creations within himself, but The Guardian's existence seemed to be slowing even his ability to recover his strength. Aleph walked the world and saw that mankind had grown so weak while he was gone. He knew he was in the final stage of his vision, and that he did not have much time. Eventually the abnormalities surrounding him drew attention when he turned his power against a mugger in self defense. Later, while resting, he was assaulted by unknown combatants and subdued, and he awoke, he was looking at a stone wall through iron bars.
== Powers and Abilities ==
=== Evolved Physiology ===
As a result of countless experiments on himself, Aleph has considerably altered his own body, including traits of many species. While he himself is not quite to the level he wishes to bring the rest of humanity to, he has made great strides. Changes to almost every part of his body have been made in his quest to discover to the perfect form for humanity to one day assume. Though he is unable to access many of their abilities in his current state, Aleph once possessed the best of attributes from every known species, though the variety he can actually utilize is greatly diminished in the modern era. 
* Superhuman Physical Capabilities
* Superhuman Senses
* Regeneration
* Rapid Adaptation
* Shape-shifting
=== Weight of the World ===
Weight of the World is an ability that Aleph has possessed since birth. It grants him the power to shoulder burdens that are not his own. Any negative emotion that one effected by this power would normally feel is instead felt by Aleph as though it were his own. The use of this ability requires Aleph to have some level of familiarity with the target. While useless in many circumstances, this power is crucial to Aleph's ability to gain devoutly loyal followers. Should one unwittingly forge some kind of direct link between their own metaphysical being and that of Aleph's, he is capable of forcing these feelings onto those linked to him in such a way. 
=== Arrancar ===
Once a Shinigami, Aleph is now an Arrancar, having used a Hogyoku of his own creation to destroy the boundaries between himself and his inner Hollow. Doing so grants him abilities far beyond what he could as a mere Shinigami.
* Hierro
* Sonido
* Weapon
* Resurrección
* Gran Rey Cero
=== Alchemy ===
* Seen the Truth
* Chimera Creation
* Homunculus Creation
=== The Cycle ===
The Cycle is Aleph's magic power, and functions as 3 separate abilities that must be used in order. Only one of the powers of The Cycle can be used at once, and no matter which is used first, the next will always need to follow the order. The Cycle can be applied to many circumstances, but Aleph mostly associates it's aspects with the constant rise and fall of societies. The effects of the Cycle function in an area of effect of Aleph's discretion, up to 100 meters from himself. Aleph is not capable of excluding anyone, including himself from the effects of the Cycle. 
Progression: Progression always follows Degradation. The first part of the Cycle, Progression causes constant improvement to whatever is within the area of effect. Should one be injured, sick, or otherwise diminished, they will be restored to their best shape over time. Should one already be in ideal condition while under the effects of Progression, their ideal condition will improve. The changes are small but add up considerably over time. One of the most significant effects of Progression is that any supernatural abilities with negative effects on either the user or a target will fail to have any effect.
Stagnation: Stagnation always follows Progression. Stagnation is as simple as it sounds. While within the are of effect of Stagnation, any supernatural abilities that produce positive or negative changes will fail. While those effected by Stagnation lose effectiveness of most abilities, they can still deal damage traditionally, and any abilities activated before Stagnation will remain so, unable to be deactivated. 
Degradation: Degradation always follows Stagnation. Degradation worsens any existing negative effects on those effected. Pain of wounds will be worse, and wounds not already treated will worsen and bleed more freely. As the opposite of Progression, Degradation prevents any positive supernatural abilities activated after Degradation will have no effect. Degradation is the most dangerous of ability in the Cycle to use long term, is usually used to finish a fight once Aleph is already in an advantageous situation. 
== Equipment ==
Hogyoku: The first of Aleph's creations, and his most prized. It is this that allowed for all of Aleph's later experimentation, and it's implementation into his own body not only greatly increased his power, but gave him the resilience needed to survive the later mutations he would inflict upon himself. As the Hogyoku's true power lies in granting the desire of it's bearer, it triggered the vision that gave Aleph his purpose. It also expanded his mind and hardened his heart to make him more suited to the task. While the Hogyoku formally granted Aleph access to a transformation that unified the power of the many races he fused himself with and magnified them all greatly, the seals placed on his power prevent him from activating such a state regularly. 
Philosopher's Stone: During the height of his empire, Aleph created a Philosopher's Stone out of thousands of his willing subjects. This stone enhances Aleph's alchemical prowess as much as anything could, allowing him to bypass the traditional laws of equivalent exchange by using the souls within the stone as a power source. 
Mega Stone: While traditionally meant for use on Pokemon, Aleph has managed to modify mega stones to function on humans. In his prime, the use of a Mega Stone pushed Aleph and any of his forces who used them as close to his ideal vision of humanity as he could have ever reached. In the modern era, the power of a Mega Stone grants Aleph a hint of the true power he had in his prime. While far from it's previously glory, Aleph's Mega Evolution is a monumental power up that puts his normal state to shame, greatly increasing his capabilities in all aspects. These modified Mega Stones are particularly useful in that when used during a battle, they can trigger adaptations in the users to make their bodies as compatible with their opponent as possible. The biggest weakness of the Mega Stone that has always existed is that it's effects are very temporary, only lasting for short periods of time, usually being used to turn the tides of a battle.