Bount

**Bounts** (無心 (バウント), *Baunto*; lit. "The Heartless") are a race of humanoids that possess spiritual powers. The unique circumstances of their existence lead them to be dubbed as **"Human-Spirit Hybrids"** (人霊雑種, *Jinrei Zasshu*). Due to their characteristics and the legends surrounding them in the human world, they are also known colloquially as **Vampires** (吸血牙魔 (ヴァンパイア), *Banpaia*; lit. "Bloodsucking Fanged Demons").

## Overview

The formation of a Bount differs from most races in that they are not a *natural* race that are born across an ordinary soul cycle. The existence of Bounts are as fleeting as the legends that surround them, and this is for a particular reason. Bounts can only be born when there is a significant excess of spiritual energy in the soul cycle. Whether that be due to the death of a vast amount of souls at once, or the end-result of a cataclysmic battle. This excess spiritual power mixes with the cycle of souls from the Soul Society to the Human World and, upon conversion of the souls into bodies of *kishi*, this spiritual power boxes itself into the center of a few beings within the cycle. This creates an abnormality, where a being of *kishi* possesses an organ of *reishi*. This large quantity of spiritual power grants even infant Bounts with accelerated knowledge and heightened awareness of the thing that is necessary for their survival, and thus, they are often abandoned at a young age for their almost carnivorous and primal instincts.

Bounts are a very unique existence among spiritual beings and even humans with spiritual abilities. They do not fit with either category neatly and are often considered an enemy of all races simply due to their standing. The main characteristic that sets Bounts apart from other races is the **Viran Inimǎ** (無音心拍 (ビラン　イニマー), *Biran Inimā*; Romanian for "Empty Heart", Japanese for "Soundless Heartbeat"). While entities like Quincy possess physical bodies that have spiritual power flowing *throughout*, a Bount's physical heart is entirely replaced with a spiritual organ that both acts as the source of their spiritual powers and the core of their spiritual circulation. All spiritual energy that flows through the body of a Bount ends up back in the Viran Inimǎ.

Unlike most beings, part of a Bount's body is spiritual, and the other part is physical. This causes most Bounts to face an extreme survival issue. A body of *kishi* cannot survive on *reishi*, so to maintain their human form without dying, they must consume blood from other mammalian species. Those who cannot sustain their hunger for blood go into a frenzy and even pursue humans, absorbing both their blood and spiritual essence simultaneously, leading to the colloquial representation of vampires in folklore across the world. Most Bount societies attempt to steer away from consuming human blood if possible, but rogue Bounts do not make a differentiation.

## Abilities

**Vitality Absorption**:

* **Immortality**:
* **Empowerment**:

**Cablu** (合い脈 (カブル), *Kaburu*; Romanian for "Wire", Japanese for "Joint Pulse"): A Bount's heartbeat is unique in that, with every pulse, it briefly floods the body with spiritual energy, before that spiritual energy retreats back to the heart. When a physical body is flooded with spiritual energy, in that brief moment of time, they are able to surpass all physical limits and become comparable to a spiritual being without having to enter their Mannikin forms. Cablu is the weaponization of this fact over several centuries of Bounts attempting to strengthen their martial power. Its primary purpose is high-speed movement. By synchronizing their movements with their heartbeats, a Bount is capable of highly consistent accelerated combat. Although their overall speed is lower than a Shinigami or Arrancar's, they are able to move with much less strain for longer periods of time. Because the spiritual energy flooding their body also covers their skeletal structures, they are able to use this technique to also withstand the impacts of high-speed movement on their body. Of course, over time, their physical body does get worn down by strain and the technique cannot be used until the Bount's body recovers.

Bounts who have significant training and experience can use Cablu in more specialized methods. Ultimately, Cablu is a technique that enables a Bount to surpass the human physical condition by synchronizing with their heartbeat. This may be used to also increase one's sensory functions, physical strength, or a wide variety of other applications that a human body would not be able to do ordinarily. Although these practices are more specialized and harder to perform as consistently as high-speed movement, the verity of applications of Cablu make it among the most important elements of a Bount's strength.

### Doll

A **Doll** (無血霊武装 (ドール), *Dōru*; lit. "Bloodless Spirit Armament") is the materialized form of a Bount's powers, sharing commonalities with a Quincy's Stanzen or a Shinigami's Zanpakutō. Dolls differ from Stanzen or Zanpakutō in that they are wholly distinct entities from their Bounts. While the *source* of their being comes from the Bount existing, the *Doll* is the source of a Bount's powers. A Doll is formed from the spiritual core of the Bount's being, and is born of the reiatsu that comprised the Viran Inimǎ in the first place. However, their existence is intrinsically tied to their wielder. Unlike Zanpakutō that can hold their own existence for brief periods after their owner dies, a Doll dies along with its Bount, simply because it is the Bount's heart.

Dolls can have a wide variety of abilities, but compared to other inherent powers of other races, a Doll's abilities do not breach into conceptual grounds. Because the source of a Doll's power is reiatsu that was released into the world itself, they often manifest as physical elements or other powers that infringe on reality, such as weapon production or growth acceleration. Because Doll are living beings and possess spiritual cores, their strength can be improved over time as the Bount grows stronger. However, because Bounts have physical bodies, a Bount will often not be able to fight to the same degree their Doll can, causing the Doll to engage in a majority of combat. Because a Doll's power often infringes on the natural world, and they are living beings, they may come into conflict with their Bount and cause harm to the Bount. However, because their existences are intrinsically tied to one another, a Doll will prioritize self-preservation and keep the Bount alive irrespective of their differences.

Although a Doll's strength can be enhanced over time, the true power of a Doll is released when it is combined with the Bount. When a Doll and Bount combine their powers, their spiritual core briefly overtakes their entire body, converting them into a spiritual being and releasing all of the Bount's limits. This fusion is also known as **Mannikin** (霊体太極心拍 (マニキン), *Manikin*; lit. "Soul-Body Ultimate Heartbeat"). When a Doll and Bount's powers are combined, their personalities also combine. Generally, the dominant personality leads in battle, but certain Bount and Doll pairs have learned to alternate and enhance their strengths by working together. A Mannikin cannot be sustained for extended periods of time because the human's body eventually catches up with the strain and breaks down if the pseudo-spiritual form is maintained for too long. A Bount can seek to extend the period of time their Mannikin form by training their physical body. Bounts who have lived longer lives also tend to experience the pinnacle of human physical conditioning simply in the attempt of strengthening their body. A Mannikin form can access all powers of the Doll, but they are adjusted for a human body. In other words, they are optimized for single combat, narrowing down the scope of the abilities and, in some cases, making them far more potent. In the modern era, they are compared to a Clad-Type Fullbring, or a compressed Bankai, in terms of overall function and scope.

A Doll can be hidden from plain sight through a method known as the **Bount Crest** (バウントの紋章, *Baunto no Monshō*). These emblems are forged with the combined reiatsu of the Bount and Doll, and can only be imprinted on a medium that is physically compatible with the composition of the Doll in question. The Crest enables a Doll to maintain their spiritual integrity even when in a sealed form by converting the physical medium into a spiritual one. In turn, the Doll still retains its consciousness and can choose to summon itself or be summoned whenever its Master wishes to summon it. While within its sealed state, a Doll can partially release itself or enact its powers through the medium, enabling their Master to wield them as a conventional weapon as opposed to an entire entity.

## Trivia

* Contrary to the Filler species, Bounts in the BRP universe use a Romanian motif due to their connection to Vampires.