Caladrius

### Summary

Sacred white birds who can absord all curses and diseases to cure someone back to perfect health.

**Caladrius** (pl. **Caladrii**) is a bird monster from Roman mythology that is trained by the Catholic Church to act as healer for exorcists who require immediate treatment.

## Overview

The **Caladrius** is a Roman mythological bird that lives in a king's house and cleanses people of diseases. If it looks into the face of an ill person, it means that they will live. However, if it looks away, the sickly person's illness has progressed too far, and it thus marks their certain death.

To cure the person, the Caladrius looks at them, and drawing the sickness into itself, the bird flies up toward the sun, where the disease is burned up and destroyed. The Caladrius happens to be unclean and is not to be eaten.

A Christian metaphor for the Caladrius is that it symbolizes Jesus, with being pure (all white) and takes away men's sins, mirroring the way the Caladrius draws the sickness into itself and ascends upwards into the sun to destroy the disease(s).

## Summary

Caladrii is a type of white bird-like monsters that have been created, bred, and trained since they were created in the time of Ancient Rome. No one truly knows where they came from or who created them, though some associated it with the phoenixes of Greco-Egyptian myths or with the medicine god Vejovis, the Roman form of the Greek Asclepius.

After the Roman Empire fell and Christianity began to gain more and more power, both in the Mundane world and in the supernatural world, one of the earliest popes decided to employ the caladrii into their services, using their powers as an instantaneous healing method for critically injured top-ranked Exorcists.

By the 14th-century, any great religious institute associated with the Christian Faction had their own caladrius within their keep. And as monarchy began to weaken in the mundane world, caladrii began to lose their natural habitat, the castles and palaces where royalty live, they began to take home in hallowed grounds, especially in churches.

## Appearance

Caladrii appear as a small white bird that is only slightly larger than the average dove. It is described as looking like a hawk with elongated tail feathers which swipe the floor wherever it walks. The sounds a caladrius makes is stated to be like a scratched blackboard.

## Characteristics

Caladrii are a type of a snow-white bird monster from Roman mythology known for inhabiting the houses and palaces of royalty such as the king's, though many also choose to inhabit hallowed grounds such as temples and shrines, with Catholic churches being the most prominent one. They often travel from one place to another, exchanging nests and eggs and mates with other caladrii, though when it dies, it will use all of its remaining magical power to teleport itself back into its original nest to die, before its body slowly disintegrates into fine chalk-like powder.

They are known for their powerful healing powers, which allow them to absorb all the diseases, injuries, and even curses of others into themselves before flying off into the sun, where all the absorbed curses and diseases are destroyed and itself is healed into its optimal health. However, if the patient's time is over, the caladrius will refuse to look into their eyes, as it knows there is nothing it can do to save them. Because of its healing powers, caladrii are considered by many to be similar to the Greco-Egyptian phoenixes.

Unlike the phoenixes, however, they aren't prideful creatures who pride themselves above gods and men. And because of that, many healers and medicinal gods from across the supernatural world prefer them much more, as they aren't "arrogant pricks". The largest nest of caladrii outside of the Vatican is on Mount Olympus, in the courtyard of the royal infirmary where they are treated by Asclepius' two daughters, Aceso (goddess of the healing process) and Aegle (goddess of good health).

The average lifespan of a caladrius vary from 350 to 500 years, and as time goes on, its body becomes more fragile and their healing powers weaken to the point where at the end of its days, They also mate for life and only go into heat once every decade and stop entirely when they are above 200 years old, which in addition to their naturally low birth-rate, make them a rare species even among the supernaturals.

## Weaknesses

* **Physical Damage**: Like the majority of supernatural species, caladrii can still be killed through normal means if they receive a large amount of physical damage or fatal injuries that their regenerative power cannot heal them in time.
	+ **Mortality**: Despite popular belief, unlike the phoenixes, the caladrii aren't immortal and can still die due to old age and other natural causes. The older a caladrius becomes, the more its healing powers weaken, to the point that by the end of its life, it isn't much different from mundane birds and can be easily killed with mundane methods.
* **Celestial Metals**: Weapons made out of sacred metals can be used against the majority of supernatural beings, caladrii included.

## Population

Caladrii are extremely rare monsters and have been considered an endangered species since the late 14th-century. Because of this, there have been many legislations created in order to protect it from extinction, mostly by the Vatican, who employ its service to heal their exorcists, and by the Twelve Olympians, who lead the Greco-Roman Mythology that they originated from. According to Xenovia, only large and influential churches within the Catholic Church have caladrii of their own, as well as the needed equipment to take care of them.

## Trivia

* For unknown reasons, they extremely hate ducks.
* Its meat is extremely poisonous and tastes like rotten human flesh.
* While they are herbivores, the liver of those diagnosed with jaundice is the caladrii's favorite.
* Caladrius' egg shells are powerful ingredients used in Healing Magic.
* No one knows who created the first caladrius, with theories ranging from the Moirai to Zeus to Apollon and/or Asclepius.
* It has been depicted in art as many different birds, such as swans, doves, herons, plovers, seagulls...
* Due to its association with Jesus Christ in the medieval period, it has been used as an anti-semitic symbol by describing how, because the jews didn't believe, the Caladrius (Jesus) turned its face from them and toward the gentiles instead, taking away and carrying their sins.