Dredge

## Beluians

Howl from "Howl's Moving Castle"

> "There's no paradise for you to escape to."
>
> — The Dead King, referencing Guts of Berserk

## Synopsis

Beasts of death, true predators who remained in a primal state of evolution to preserve their strength and glory. Dredges are one of the few Custom Races in the universe of Dragon Ball: Ikigai. Hostile, merciless, & powerful, Dredges are a species of monsters willing to kill anything and anyone in their path to assert their dominance over other beings. They possess a relentless thirst for domination and their only goal is to be feared by the world around them and considered as higher beings. This goal, they plan on reaching by murdering and hunting any unlucky being they find on their way , simply enough. Though not all Beasts think this way, this goal of domination was passed down from their ancestors to their children, and this ideology persists to this day. Death and war has always been a part of the Dredges' history, and so, with thousand of years of war and massacres, this blood lust has become part of their primal instincts.

## History

### +5,000,000 BCE

Eons ago, on a planet named Deepbound, life existed in the type of bacteria. This bacteria arrived from outer space meteors which made their way to this planet. The meteors brought water and rock as well, allowing them to live in water that remained hidden by gigantic caves that the meteoric rocks slowly formed. They evolved into strange omnivorous fishes over time, though most began drifting towards a more carnivorous diet due to the lack of life other than themselves. These antediluvian aquatic squibs were known as "Bermus".

### ~1,000,000 BCE

Millions and millions of years have passed, and at last, after many attempts at evolving into terrestrial beings, the first footed squibs appeared. The terrestrial evolution to the Bermus were enormous with large lungs to compensate for the difficult traversal of air through the caves, leaving gigantic beasts to roam through the caves. The lack of Flora made the only way for the terrestrial Bermus to feed be cannibalism. And so for millions of years, they strived as a carnivorous, cannibalistic species.

### ~500,000 BCE

The Bermus were slow to evolve, and while many of them remained in the waters of the caves, most of them had now become terrestrial, and so, after having adapted to their new environment, - the ancestors of the Beluians were born. Not so long after having grown used to their new shapes, they began creating their own civilizations. These ancestors were smart, and just like that, they created their own language, their own houses, and most importantly their own weapons.

The Beluians' civilization was prehistoric in appearance, with house being high buildings made of rock that barely fit in the caves they were in. But, not just good things came with this newly created civilization. Weapons allowed the Beluian to find new ways of murdering each other, but it also allowed them to learn how to cook the corpses of their own kind, which was seen as a great advancement.

But, the Dredges made a discovery. The more they made children, the more they realized that they were evolving. Evolution was a natural thing, and it was meant to happen, so, naturally, the Dredges shouldn't be shocked about this. However the problem was that their children were weak, pitiful. Through the ages, the Beluians were slowly adapting to their new style of life, and taking on smaller forms that possessed less strength than their parents.

The Dredges were disgusted, and weren't willing to give up such natural strength, thus killing off the offspring that they found weak, making sure only the strong remained. Some Dredges didn't have the mental fortitude needed to be willing to kill their own heirs, but they were killed to avoid the weakness from spreading. It was the Dredges' way of living, killing the weak and each others, throwing their morality aside.

### ~1,000 BCE

From the depths of the space beyond the skies, where the kingdoms ended and the voices died out, the abyss reigned. The vast nothingness of the dark sea hid orbs of life, similar to Deepbound, all different in their own ways. From the abyss birthed, an extraterrestrial being emerged, the Godkin, also known as the Dark Ersatz. A false God, a being with power so great every other being believed it to be a deity. A few days after arriving on Deepbound, the Dark Ersatz shed its skin and took on an appearance that resembled the species of this planet more.

Around this time, the first kingdoms were born, and the first monarchs were reigning tyrannically. The Dead King, - a Vherador who rose to power because of his strength that surpassed all others. He formed his own kingdom, followed by hundreds of thousands of Dredges who admired him for his strength. Even though there was a kingdom and a figure who most Dredges obeyed to - this didn't stop them from killing each other as much as they wanted.

However, the newly reborn Dark Ersatz appeared inside of the Dead King's kingdom, rampaging as it killed the Dredges who attacked it, eventually needing the king himself to come and deal with the Godkin. However, seeing the Godkin's magical powers, the Dead King proposed to - instead of killing the Godkin where it was - take him in as a member of his own kingdom. The Ersatz accepted to become one of the monarch's pawns, aiding him in battle and destroying any who opposed the Dead King's kingdom.

Furthermore; one of the Dead King's followers - Cassiopeiae - formed a group, the "Sanctum of Wrath". This sanctum studied the Ersatz's nature, learning magic on their own and teaching it to the Dredges they came across. They were a pacifist group who shared their knowledge with people, which contrasted the nature of their own race. Because of that, the Sanctum was viewed highly negatively and a lot of members were killed by people who refused their teachings.

The opposing kingdoms were furious seeing the Dead King having the advantage of being able to use magic as well as have the Ersatz on his side, and so, they formed an alliance and declared war on him. Thus began a war; the with Dredges battling each other, not for the sake of the war itself - but rather for their own devilish pleasures. Killing each others, the Dredges in the war didn't care about what they were fighting for, just seeing an opportunity to kill people and taking it.

### ~800 BCE

A century after the war has been declared and a billion Dredges were murdered, the magic of scholars from the Sanctum of Wrath started corrupting their soul and the souls of the Dredges they taught as well, turning them into dangerous, mindless monsters. To deal with that, the leader of the Sanctum - who was "uninfected" - murdered all of her students that she could find, efficiently getting rid of the majority of this "magic infection". But, the Dead King considered that all she did to help the Dredges learn magic was only leading to their downfall, and so, he attempted to murder her, but he failed and she ran away.

### ~600 BCE

The war still goes on, but so many have fallen that it's impossible to continue the war. The Dead King's enemies are furious at this, but with the Godkin on his side, they didn't last long now that they had no men. The Dead King now ruled a massive portion of Deepbound, with so many kingdoms under him. But the King didn't want control, he wanted to see them fall. With his pawns, he destroyed all of the kingdoms that once opposed him, making his the only one that remained, along with a few other small ones. But, the Godkin revealed that it wasn't what it wanted. It told the Dead King that it always wanted a paradise to escape to, a haven. The Dead King was just confused, questioning why it'd come to Deepbound out of all places. But the Godkin acknowledged how horrid of a place Deepbound was. It just wanted to change it, but following the Dead King's order was only worsening this planet. The Godkin said it wanted to leave this planet, and find some place better, but the King simply told it that "there was no paradise for it to escape to". The monarch desperately tried to convince the Godkin to stay on his side, so he could use its powers just a little bit longer. But it killed him. And then, it destroyed his kingdom, deeming that if the Dredges were nothing but monsters, it'd be best if civilizations and wars weren't a part of their nature as well - fearing they'd destroy their own planet. The Godkin hated Deepbound, thinking it of a horrible place, but despite everything, the Ersatz still loved the planet it grew up on. The Dark Ersatz soon birthed its own heirs after the murder of the Dead King and the destruction of his kingdom.

Following this, the Ersatz traveled all over Deepbound, exploring its tight caves and strange environments to find any kingdom it could find. And once it did, it destroyed them. It made sure there was nothing but ruins of what it deemed to be a now ancient civilization. The past was best left behind, and using its magic powers; the Ersatz made all of the Dredges forget about what civilizations even were.

### ~700 CE

Ages pass, Dredges have went back to living without any civilizations - or well, developed ones. Though, one day; several foreign spaceships landed on the surface of Deepbound. Members of the Rutaba Militia were notified of a significant amount of rare resources on this planet, and so they were sent to retrieve as much as they could. To their horror, they weren't welcome here. Monstrous beasts were waiting for them, murdering all of them brutally. Several Dredges used these ships to escape from Deepbound, and wander to other planets. But knowing there was a limited amount of ships, Dredges instead sent a distress signal from the ship that were already there to lure in more Rutaba Militia spaceships. That way, they had more foreigners to kill and most importantly - more ships to leave their boring cave-like planet! However, after several of their ships never came back, the Rutaba Militia suspected something. So, they ordered any of the surviving Militia members on Deepbound to send them information about what happened. Then, the Militia learned about the Beluians, and seeing what they had done to their Militia members - they identified this unknown race. They named them the "Dredges", and gave names to all of the different type of Beluians that could be found on the planet - or at least, all that the Militia survivors could find before meeting their end.

Deepbound was eventually denied exploration from inexperienced members of the Rutaba Militia, leaving only skilled soldiers to come and save any survivors. Dredges have been found by the greatest Militia in the universe, and knowing that they had managed to escape their hellhole and find new preys to hunt was quite the scary thought. But, unbeknownst to the Dredges, there weren't just preys waiting for them beyond the stars.

## Types

Dredges aren't just one of many species on a singular planet, but rather the only species to populate it. During the course of their reign, Dredges have gone through mutations which changed the way they hunted and fought, which led them to where they are now. To keep it fair, most of these variations are only accessible through the 'Odd Physiology' trait.

### Vheradors

Vheradors, also known as the "Vigors" - are what's usually considered to be the "normal" kind of Dredges. Gigantic anthropomorphic creatures with several eyes and large horns, Vheradors have fur covering most of their body and a gaping hole on their chest. Most of the time, the hole leaves sight to one or more eyes, but can in some rare scenarios have nothing in it or, sometimes - something else inside. But, this hole in their chest isn't the weak spot it pretends to be, — it's a trap. With extremely sharp teeth just out of sight, anything that dares wander inside of the Vheradors' chest shall be mangled immediately. Not only that, but they have tentacles with sharp claw inside of their belly, allowing to pull people into their second mouth if needed. It's common for the Vheradors can have additional sets of appendages, and rarely, the Vheradors can have up to eight arms or/*and* legs in total.

### Xenadors

Called "Monomorphs" by the Militia, Xenadors are the odd ones of the bunch. They are Dredges who have suffered strange mutations which allows them to do certain things the other type of Dredges would normally be unable to do. They are considered as a different type of Dredges on their own due to how common they are. The easiest way to differenciate them from a Vherador or any other type of Dredge is by simply looking at their chest. If they don't have a hole on it and have a more obvious lack of fur, then they're most likely a Xenador. Though do note that not all Xenadors lack the hole in their chest. Most of those mutations are due to how certain environments forced these Dredges' ancestors to adapt over time, causing their general anatomy to suffer considerable changes. Some Xenadors have wings to fly in the air, some have fins and gills to live underwater, - these mutations are always things that are useful depending on the environment they grew up in. Xenadors have always been treated as lesser than any other type of Dredge due to how weird most of them are when it comes to fighting and hunting, and so they are considered as hunters first and living beings second .

### Menadors

Also known as "Skinlesses," Menadors are possibly the most special type of Dredges there is. They resemble either arachnid creatures or insects that fit in the Lepidoptera order. But they do possess several features that differentiate them from the aforementioned insects, being that they are enormous and have their limbs placed and shaped in a way that makes them facultative bipeds. Menadors lack the hole on their chest, but are differentiable from Xenadors thanks to their enormous tongue. Menadors have a tongue that can reach up to at least a dozen meter. This tongue can serve as an appendage, and furthermore, it possesses a fake face at the end, which can be used to trick enemies into believing the tongue is the *actual* body. But the most interesting part about the Menadors' tongue is that it has parasitic properties. When burrowing itself into a corpse, the Menador can control it as if it was their own, allowing them to lure their preys by pretending to be either weak creatures or allies to potentially lure them in an isolated place to murder and devour them. Menadors possess feathers all along their body which are connected to nerves inside their skin. These feathers have a very special material on them, one that can quickly adapt to its environment to change its color. Through the nerves, Menadors can use their feathers as a way to camouflage themselves in the environment, allowing to make their tongue-disguise thing more convincing. Furthermore, Menadors also possess this hole on their chest that Vheradors have.

### Erthadors

Possibly the weirdest of the bunch, Erthadors, - or "Crawlers" - are a mass of flesh and bones which have no joints, meaning they can manipulate the shape of their body at will - though with a bit of strain. The only limitations to how much Erthadors can manipulate the shape of their body are their internal organs. They cannot significantly change the shape of their body, as their organs risk to be moved in the process and therefore, suffer a bit of damage. The Erthadors mostly live in tight caverns, where it is important to be as small as possible in order to navigate safely. Thus, Erthadors are Dredges who have evolved beyond the need for bones, instead possessing a cartilaginous skeleton which they can mold the shape of at will. Unlike their cousins the Vheradors, the Erthadors possess only one mouth, it being the large hole with tendrils and sharp teeth inside of it. Though, for Erthadors, it is on their face and neck, - unlike Vheradors who have this hole on the middle of their chest. This means they do have eyes, but they are hidden inside their mouth. Same as for Vheradors, there can be one or more eyes inside of this mouth, but unless the Erthador is blind, there is never a lack of eyes inside of this mouth hole.

### Godkins

Proclaimed divine creatures, worshiped as Gods and seen as nigh-immortal. Godkins (also known as "Darkfleshes" to the Rutaba Militia) are snake-like creatures who measure up to several hundred meters, but enters metamorphosis after a few weeks and sheds its skin, coming out anew as a humanoid and much smaller being. Godkins are born with the innate ability to manipulate magic, allowing them to do feats other Dredges needed years of training to replicate. Their manipulation of Mana is so advanced that the Godkins were said to be untouchable because of it, thus why they were believed to be almost completely immortal. The first Godkin used their overwhelming power to manipulate the Beluians into praising and worshiping them. Godkins aren't truly Dredges, but they're considered as ones for simplicity's sake. Godkins can manipulate the basics of most kind of magic, whether it'd be fire magic, lightning magic, or even something much more complicated. Godkins have the ability to adapt to the vacuum of space as well as survive in areas deprived of air to survive. Therefore, this is how the Dark Ersatz — the first Godkin — managed to arrive to Deepbound from a foreign planet, the one where it originated from. Godkins lose this ability upon shedding their skin, as they only need it to migrate from planet to planet after they are born.

## Affiliations

### Sanctum of Wrath

The Sanctum of Wrath was a group of Dredges who have put their passion for killing and hunting aside to collectively learn magic to teach it to their kin. This group birthed shortly after the arrival of the Dark Ersatz and its "alliance" with the Dead King. This (mostly) pacifist group wandered the caves of Deepbound and shared their magic knowledge with the Beluians they came across. Sometimes, when the Sanctum of Wrath scholars were a bit too hungry, they ended up murdering the Dredges they were supposed to be teaching. But it was just a part of their nature, so of course they couldn't keep up the act of being goody two-shoes forever, they know they'd succumb to their nature at one point. Eventually, the magic power the scholars of the sanctum learned got to their head. The magic corrupted their soul, turning them into mindless beasts and forcing the leader of the sanctum to disband the group.

## Abilities

**Mana Manipulation**: Dredges who have went through the teachings of the Sanctum of Wrath have had excessive magic training, and such hold control over Magic and some of the more complex sides of it. This includes but is not limited to: manipulation and generation of electricity, fire, and air as well as many other elements or concepts.

**Extreme Longevity**: Dredges are very special beings. The way they are made makes it so it's very unlikely for them to develop cancer and keeps their cell living for extremely long, however it also means they are slower to recover from wounds, and therefore bleed for much longer than a human would, in comparison. They can still use one of their abilities to manipulate this aspect of themselves. This nigh perfect immunity to cancer allows them to keep their body alive for several millenniums, which is greatly impressive compared to most other species in the cosmos.

**High Pain Tolerance**: All Dredges are naturally extremely tolerant to pain. Compared to your average human being, Dredges can withstand the mutilation of their limbs with only light reactions.

**Minuscule Reaction Time**: The brains of a Dredge is very developed, their reaction time seems nigh infinitesimal. This allows them to react to situations in less than a few milliseconds. Their body is quite large & heavy, though, meaning that while the Dredge will certainly be able to react to a certain situation within an extremely short amount of time, whether they would have the time to do anything or not about this situation is another question.

**Immense Body Control**: Self-explanatory. Dredges can control every aspect of their body extremely precisely, allowing them to do such things as manipulating their own blood flow, changing and manipulating the ways their brain functions, and even "deactivating" the nerves in some parts of their body to completely disable said part. If they aren't careful, Dredges can kill themselves extremely easily.

## Transformations

### Strength

A form all Dredge who consider themselves "hunters" have access to. By accelerating the flow of blood of their body, Dredges will just heighten their senses and their strength, allowing them to move much faster as well as be generally stronger overall.

* **Requirements**: Be a Dredge of Power Level 600,000.
* **Multiplier**: 50x

### Force

A form subsequent to the aforementioned "Strength" transformation. Consists of doing exactly the same as before but also manipulating their brain to accelerate their thought process to push their body to its limit.

* **Requirements**: Be a Dredge of Power Level 12,000,000. Train with Strength active for 15 posts.
* **Drawbacks**: The form can be kept active for 8 posts before the user suffers from brain damage and dies if unlucky.
* **Multiplier**: 100x

### Power

A form which is yet again subsequent to the aforementioned transformation. Power is an upgrade to Force, obtained once mastering it's aspect to negate the downsides. Once obtained, Power will permanently replaced Force.

* **Requirements**: Be a Beluian of Power Level 60,000,000. Train with Force active for 30 posts.
* **Multiplier**: 300x

### Rejection: Attaining Godhood

*Reject your roots, ascend beyond your tainted mortality.*

#### Tainted Mortality

If a Dredge rejects the path of primal strength and power, then they can train under a God to obtain a transformation that rivals its non-godly counterpart. This form is very simple, being just a combination of the Power form and godly ki to double its effectiveness.

* **Requirements**: Be a Beluian with a Power Level of 150,000,000,000. Train under a deity for 40 posts. Have Power unlocked.
* **Multiplier**: 600x

#### Divine Light

By having found the divine beings, Beluians can train their previous form to truly achieve divinity. This form is very gimmicky, allowing the Dredge to make their own body temporarily intangible to avoid attacks from their enemy. In this form; the Beluian is able to withstand attacks they would normally never recover from, even with such power. Divine Light gives Beluians the powerful ability to ignore their pain, though this can make them oblivious to the state of their body and could lead to their death if they are not careful.

* **Requirements**: Be a Dredge of Power Level 500,000,000,000. Train under a deity with Tainted Mortality active for 50 posts.
* **Multiplier**: 800x

### Retribution: Primaeval Power

Find strength in your roots, recall the times when strength was taken for granted.

#### Power In Misery

No matter how much efforts the Dredges put into forcing their children into staying strong and denying their own natural evolution in the past, it was inevitable. However, the Dredges managed to preserve their strength; not physically, but mentally. Dredges can harness this mental strength into power like never before seen, the requirement being that they are pushed to their weakest. Metaphorically enough, the only way for a Dredge to access their strongest non-godly form is to know what weakness feels like. And then, they'll be able to truly understand the concept of "*strength*".

* **Requirements**: Undergo an event that pushes you to your limits and forces you to harness strength from deep inside your soul.
* **Multiplier**: 700x

### Rebirth Forms

#### Nemesis

The more a Dredge's body grows accustomed to Godly Ki, the more it becomes a core part of them. Eventually, Dredges will reach a state where they have perfected the essence of their Godly forms and nothing will be able to oppose them. Well, mostly nothing.

* **Requirements**: Be a Dredge at the Hard Cap. Undergo two rebirths, and have all forms of the "Rejection" path unlocked.
* **Multiplier**: 1000x

#### Redeemer

After attaining a power that rivals Godly beings, it'd be natural for Dredges to stop there. However, the path still goes on ahead, and Power In Misery can be strengthened even further to achieve a power unheard of before.

* **Requirements**: Be a Dredge at the Hard Cap. Undergo two rebirths, and have Power In Misery unlocked.
* **Multiplier**: 1000x

## Trivia

* Deepbound is inspired from the Deepnest area of Hollow Knight.

* All Dredges - male, female & agender - possess masculine bodies. There has never been a single Dredge with a feminine body.

* As aforementioned, it is possible for Dredges to be born agender. This does mean they cannot reproduce, though.