Dominion of Death

The Divine Dominion of Death allows those who wield it command over the dead. The Dominion enables death to be induced and shaped, and for the souls of mortals, who are unaccustomed to immaterial existence, to be manipulated and bound.

## Disciplines

### Soulsense

The Soulsense is a Death wielders ability to sense the souls of other beings, as well as to detect the strength of the Veil, and if there happen to be any tears or weak points in it (though actually peering through the Veil requires more . The Soulsense enables a Death wielder to detect if a soul is in the process of undergoing Severance, where its tether to a dying body weakens and eventually breaks when death occurs. The deaths of potent beings (such as a god) or a massive amount of deaths occurring at once can usually be detected over greater distances.

#### Twilight Sight

A subability of the Soulsense is the ability to perceive the Twilight, a layer of reality that exists between the Terrene Realms and the Netherworlds, the place where ghosts can reside. The Twilight Sight enables the Death user to see past the Veil that separates the Twilight and the living realm, and perceive any being who has moved there. This is necessary power for any who wish to directly influence events in the Twilight.

#### Oblivion Sight

Even more advanced than the ability to peer into the Twilight is the power to look into the Oblivion Spheres, the tiny pocket realms separate from the general flow of time that recently deceased spirits exist in after death, and collapse as soon as they are removed from them.

### Soulguard

A Soulguard is a Death wielder's personal barrier around their soul, which makes it more difficult to be manipulated by other beings who utilize the Dominion of Death. It is perhaps the most sought after ability of Death, as few beings are overly fond of having their souls tampered with.

### Veil Shaping

Veil Shaping allows a Death wielder to manipulate the Veil, the barrier that keeps the Twilight and the living world separate. This can allow them to reach past the Veil in order to interact with otherwise intangible spirits physically at basic levels. More advanced applications of the power let a Death wielder tear larger holes in the Veil, enabling a ghost to step through into the physical world and gain corporeality. The more skilled a Death wielder is in shaping the Veil, the more lasting the tear is, with more magical power being required to rend the Veil over a larger area.

If an individual can see into Oblivion Spheres, a possible use for this power might allow the spirit trapped within the Sphere to enter the Twilight.

The opposite can also be accomplished with this ability, allowing rends in the Veil to be sealed.

##### Veilshroud

An advanced technique of Veil Shaping, employing the Veilshroud entails a distortion of the Veil's normal functions, wherein one creates a special bubble of Veil around oneself or their companions. This keeps them separate from the Twilight, yet also intangible and invisible to those in the physical world, unless they have the capacity to peer into the Twilight.

### Soul Manipulation

Soul Manipulation refers to powers which directly target the souls of other beings. Novices to this power typically require close range or even direct physical contact (at least as physical as one can be with ephemeral matter) in order to manipulate souls, while more advanced practitioners can do so from a distance. Generally speaking, the souls of more powerful beings require greater raw magical energy to influence, and even more if they are protected by a Soulguard.

#### Soul Severance

The act of Soul Severance involves removing a soul from a body and cutting all bonds between the two. When a soul is successfully severed, death takes place instantaneously. Severing a soul is easiest when an individual is already on death's door, but it can be forced on a healthy victim with a greater effort.

Less skilled practitioners of the power of Soul Severance usually require direct physical contact with the person they intend to kill, though those more practiced can usually do so at a distance.

Severing the souls of more powerful beings typically requires larger amounts of magical energy to be expended.

#### Soul Binding

Soul Binding is the opposite of Soul Severance, involving the strengthening of ties between a soul and a body, or creating one where none existed before. Soul Binding is more advanced than its counterpart, requiring a greater amount of skill with Death to use.

Soul Binding can be used to forcibly hold a dying individual's soul to their body, prolonging their death until they can either receive assistance, or as a method of torture. If a soul is permanently bound to a body that is fully deceased, it will transform that individual into an undead, with the type of undead created depending on how much of the soul has been bound to the body.

Soul Binding can not only bind a Soul to a living body, but can also force a soul into an object, with many a Netherworld forgemaster having crafted souls into weapons, armor, or buildings.

Those highly adept at Soul Binding can also trap a spirit within a certain location, making it impossible for them to leave.

#### Spirit Absorption

A dreaded power in most circles, Soul Absorption involves a Death wielder forcibly drawing a foreign soul into their own, where it remains until expelled or set free by an outside source. By absorbing a soul, the absorber gains all their victim's skills, knowledges, and memories, and becomes able to replicate their Aura perfectly. It should be noted that while within the shelter of a body, a soul cannot normally be absorbed.

Fortunately, Soul Absorption is an extremely advanced and potent ability, and even a being bereft of a Soulshield is able to resist the effect through an effort of will.

#### Soul Tearing

Souls are quite difficult to harm, but it can be done. The act of Soul Tearing involves ripping apart pieces of a soul, separating one or more of its components from the whole. These components themselves cannot be broken down further, but the act of them being torn apart is one that is extremely difficult for even a god's soul to recover from, and impossible for most mortals. As one might expect, the act of having a piece of one's soul torn off is completely agonizing.

#### Soul Healing

A reversal of Soul Tearing is Soul Healing, which involves the reparation of a damaged soul.

### The Withering

The Withering is the most well known offensive use of the Dominion of Death. Using this power, a Death wielder can cause living tissues to age, then die and decompose, either with a touch for beginners of the ability, or with a mere exertion of will and relative proximity for the more advanced. Withering larger amounts of tissue, or tissue that is less magically potent requires less power to be expended, as one might expect.

An individual skilled in employing the Withering can better control the rate at which it occurs, allowing the Withering to be used as an extremely viable torture method. Some individuals have employed the power to age youthful mortals into an enfeebled state, yet stop short of killing them as punishment.

### Wraithwalk

The ability to Wraithwalk entails a Death wielder detaching their soul from their body, and venturing into the Twilight. There, they may move unseen by most of the living, and interact with the ghosts there. Living beings who are Wraithwalking are immune to being targeted by Veil shaping abilities, but should they try to pass through a rend in the Veil, they will be returned to their physical body immediately. This keeps them safe from any being in the physical world, unless they are capable of Wraithwalking themselves. However, Wraithwalkers can still be perceived by those capable of peering into the Twilight.

While Wraithwalking, the Walker's body remains alive, but completely inert back in the physical world.

#### Oblivionwalk

Entering an Oblivion Sphere requires more skill than merely entering the Twilight. When doing so, a Wraithwalker steps into a pocket realm outside the normal flow of time, a tiny world where a soul waits, either for escape or removal. Novice Oblivionwalkers need to be directly present at the death site of a spirit. Those more skilled in the ability, however, are able to instantly hone in on and enter an Oblivion Sphere from the physical world, so long as it is in their Soulsense range. If they are already in an Oblivion Sphere, a skilled Oblivion Walker may leapfrog from Sphere to Sphere with little regard for distance.

Upon exiting an Oblivion Sphere, the Oblivionwalker will be returned to the exact point in time that they entered, regardless of how long they spent within the Spheres they travelled to.