Shards

A Shard is a fragment of the greater whole, an aspect of the Geist that has been given a limited amount of autonomy and sent forth into the world to do Its bidding. In this regard, a Shard can be thought of as the fingers, or the limbs, of the Geist. When a shard is created, it is not created from nothing; rather, it is taken from somewhere else. Sometimes, they can even be created by splitting up a larger shard into multiple pieces.

## Appearance

The Shards are a small, parasitic species that reside in the depths of the planet, hidden from the world above. These creatures capable of forming colonies, take on a number of different forms, ranging from spherical structures made up of multiple tentacle-like appendages to an amorphous, worm-like, slug-like appearance. Most commonly, however, they appear as a simple, round, shadow-like orb. All share the same trait: surrounded by a darker, misty aura that trails behind their movements. They are not much bigger than your average soccer ball, but that does not mean that their power should be underestimated.

## Behavior

Although they are an entirely separate entity from the Geist, shards still feel compelled to act on Its behalf, carrying out Its will as though they were a single organism, as well as possessing much of Its essence. While their motives and goals may differ from those of the Geist, they still share the same intelligence, power, and ambition.

While a Shard is not as powerful as the Geist itself, it is more than capable of inflicting immense pain and suffering upon the world of Eternium. They also serve the purpose of creating a stronger hive mind, to further bind the greater part of the Geist. They spread its influence, corrupting and transforming mortals into vessels and slaves to do the Geist's bidding, such as the, and bringing misery, destruction, and death to those that fall under the Geist's reign.

They don't have a gender or sex and do not procreate in the traditional sense. Typically, when a large enough colony has grown or a large enough number of shards has accumulated, it will fracture into separate parts, each gaining a smaller share of its parent's power and size. Like this, they reproduce asexually.

They are not like the Wishes, as they are a parasite. In most cases, they enter a planet's ecosystem quietly and invisibly, hiding in plain sight while making only minor changes to their environment. When their presence has gone undetected for long enough, they grow bolder and begin to make larger-scale alterations, altering the very nature of the planet itself. Eventually, when the planet is sufficiently prepared, they launch a full-scale invasion, infesting the entire surface.

They latch on to and feed on the misery and suffering of others, slowly corrupting and corrupting them, driving them to insanity, or converting them into a new hive mind vessel. They can also merge together to create a larger, more powerful creature, or take on the form of a vessel themselves, so that they might infiltrate their enemy's ranks and destroy them from within.

Their biology is not well understood; there seems to be little consistency between different individuals, with each colony having its own unique characteristics. Regardless, all shards seem to be composed mainly of an incredibly dense form of dark matter, similar to that found within the deepest parts of space. It is unclear how exactly this dark matter interacts with ordinary matter, or how exactly the shards utilize it in their bodies.

However, their ability to absorb and manipulate energy seems to play an important role. It is not only responsible for their shape shifting abilities, but also for their ability to survive in the vacuum of space. They can adapt their physiology to survive in almost any environment, and even evolve at an astonishing pace. Although, it has been found that they prefer cold temperatures over hot, and their range of motion is somewhat limited in extremely warm climates.

## Infestation

Sometimes, if they can't obtain the necessary nutrients through any other means, a colony will infect a host organism, similar to a virus or bacteria. Their hosts may be plant, animal, or even a combination of the two, or something entirely new that they have never seen before. They can easily be mistaken for a common virus, since they attack their host's cells and break them down in a similar fashion. Their main difference, however, is that the shards assimilate these cells into themselves instead of killing them outright, slowly absorbing the host's cellular material to keep themselves alive.

As this happens, a new shard will be created in the process, albeit far weaker than its parent. Then, it will migrate to a new area, begin to grow, and repeat the cycle all over again. Sometimes, a new colony will successfully take root and grow into a self-sustaining population, spreading throughout the host.

In the case of an animal or plant host, a colony will reproduce quickly and efficiently, utilizing their host's reproductive organs and tissues to create clones of themselves. However, in the case of a living organism that is already dead or dying, their reproduction methods take on a more horrific form.

They will consume the host's vital organs and tissues and replace them with their own biomatter, gradually replacing the host's physical features and nature with their own, mimicking it so that it blends in seamlessly with the host's form. If the host is dead or dying, this process can take weeks, months, or even years depending on how well preserved or decomposed the host is.

It has also been noted that shards can mimic other species' DNA, copying its structure and reproducing it inside their bodies. This ability has allowed them to assimilate countless different species of lifeforms into their ranks, but this process is generally far more painful for the host than regular infection or infestation.

In this way, they can also obtain knowledge and information from the minds of their hosts, including their memories and thoughts. They learn from these experiences, as well as from their own observations, and pass these lessons on to others through their colony. As time passes, their knowledge and understanding of the universe grows, and they adapt their behavior to better suit the situation at hand.