Geist

Geist is a eldritch hive-like mass that feeds on misery and only manifests in the mortal world through possessing vessels, infusing them with parts of it's own essence.

## Information

Abomination, that dwells in the outer voids outside of thought and existence in a "graveside" beyond Time, known only as "Geist". Something whose appearance cannot be adequately described by human words, who transcends all categorization in Its nature and form, existing outside of any frame of reference within the mortal Universe which was created purely as an instrument of pure chaos; Its true nature, even to other higher beings, remains a complete mystery.

Only a small part of the Geist is ever manifested in the mortal plane at a time, as it cannot fully exist on the physical plane, but Its influence spreads throughout reality, seeping out from the cracks between the worlds until They find new hosts to make them their own. Their presence can be felt in the shadows, in the whispers that seem to lurk around every corner, in the dreams and nightmares that haunt the minds of the sleepless, and in the deep, unreachable parts of the mind where memories hide.

## Shard

It starts with a single creature, known simply as "Shard", that breaks out of an egg-like shell, emerging like a newborn from the darkness, yet lacking any of the innocence and wonder such a life should bring. Its skin is slick with the remains of whatever lay within the shell, Its face is covered in a thick mucus and Its limbs are twisted and misshapen. It has no eyes or ears or mouth, but when It moves, It produces a horrible squishing sound.

These are the first signs of the end, the beginning of the destruction of the world.

Shards are not entirely mindless; they retain enough awareness and intelligence to carry out orders and communicate with one another, but they do not possess the same level of consciousness or free will as a normal being. Instead, they act as extensions of the greater hivemind and carry out commands given to them by their leader. The Shards are responsible for infesting and corrupting the bodies of other creatures, converting them into more servants of the Geist.

They move in the dark, hiding behind walls or doors and waiting for an opportunity to strike. They will stalk their prey, stalking them as a pack, creeping closer and closer, ready to lunge at their victims, before they latch on to their prey and begin to slowly feeds upon their misery, growing stronger as they despair, slowly growing a foothold into their mind and eventually consuming them wholly and utterly by the Geist.

However, all that matters is that their prey dies, and that they feed upon the very last bit of hope, life, or will that is left in them. It is then that the shard has truly won and is able to claim the soul. Once It takes hold on a new host, It injects the victim with it's own essence, transforming it into a twisted mockery of Its previous self; with its body mutating, morphing, and becoming something else entirely, no longer a member of the species it once was, but now part of a new collective: Geist

## Motive

The Geist's attention on the mortal plane is soley to bring about the apocalypse so that it may feed upon the raw negative energy released, bringing everything to such a negative state that It can feed on it like a person would feast on food or drink. In order to achieve this, it sends its minions across the worlds, sowing corruption and misery, destroying empires, manipulating events and lifeforms, until the everything has been reduced to a cesspool of misery and negativity for the Geist to feed on.

It seeks out the weak, the broken, and the downtrodden, offering them salvation from their suffering, and lures them in with promises of power or revenge if only they join it, becoming a "Vessel". Geist offers temporary power or vengeance against those who have harmed them in exchange for service, as It works to build an army capable of spreading enough destruction, pain and chaos for Geist to feed upon.

It does not want to destroy the world instantly and consume the maximum amount of energy as soon as possible, but to use the world like a farm, to suffer as much as possible while remaining intact just to prolong its feeding; an apocalypse that happens quickly and easily is less tasty than one that happens slowly, it believes. The more negativity in the world, the longer Geist can feed on it; thus, it is not interested in destroying the world immediately, but rather prolong this state for as long as possible, by both hastening it to create more negativity and delaying it to gain as much energy from it as possible. If the world was destroyed too fast, the amount of negativity in the world would disappear as well, leaving it with nothing left to feed on, and the Geist wants to avoid this outcome at all costs.

To this end It seeks to use mortal's and the supernatural forces that influence their fate, while not even attempting to hide or disguise Its actions from It's targets. Those who fall under the Geist's possession either become part of a collective hive mind, or are driven insane when confronted by the horror of Its true self. To those outside of the collective Geist uses manipulation, using truth mixed with lies to further along its plans.

## **World Plan**

Ultimately, Geist seeks to keep Eternium in a state of perpetual suffering and chaos, without ever actually destroying it completely. This way, it can continue to feed off the world's pain and negativity, growing stronger over time.

So, It's allowing the world to rebuild itself while planning to destroy it at its peak. Venkrol's also looking to expand his influence but doesn't want to risk collapsing society all over again. So, he's taking his time to grow in power while the world recovers from its wounds.

When the world has finally reached the cusp of truly being rebuilt, It'll start to tear down the pillars keeping Eternium stable once more, causing the world to plunge back into a state of utter chaos and suffering. The cycle will repeat, and Eternium will fall, only to be rebuilt and then fall again, over and over again. The world will be left to wallow in its agony, stuck in an endless loop of misery and suffering, with no end in sight...

The best part is that Geist can repeat the process over and over again, and Eternium will have no choice but to hope. Geist will always win and have complete control. The entity can also feign a defeat to manipulate the people. After all, even those who oppose Geist will still play right into Its hands. Geist can keep going on an endless cycle, and Eternium can never escape.

Additionally, this method allows Geist to toy with Its victims, drawing out their suffering for as long as possible, and preventing them from ever achieving true happiness or peace of mind. This is a constant cycle of pain, misery, and destruction, with no end in sight. It is a truly cruel and sadistic form of torment, designed to inflict as much suffering as possible for all eternity.

The Chaos Emeralds, however, have the power to break this cycle, as they hold the power to negate Geist's influence. Their energy can be used to counteract the negativity that fuels Geist, weakening Its hold on the world and eventually eradicating it completely. However, it's worth noting that using the Chaos Emeralds in this way comes with its own risks. If they are not used carefully, they could potentially cause just as much damage as Geist, creating a whole new set of problems for Eternium.

Here's how It plans to benefit from and enact such:

* Through It's political connections, Geist will spur on the various governments to start more urgently look into retrieving the Chaos Emeralds from their current holders, "for the good of the people". Through it's vessels and manipulations, It will claim that the Emeralds are too powerful and dangerous to be left in the hands of "private citizens", and that they need to be placed under government supervision for the safety of everyone. Geist will try to speed up this process by using It's plants, bringing tensions between the various factions to a boil, even causing internal strife or power struggles if necessary. This will eventually lead to conflict between the various factions as they all attempt to get their hands on the Chaos Emeralds first.
* While the governments are busy fighting each other, Geist's own forces will remain in the background, biding their time and waiting for opportunities to strike and further weaken the infrastructure of Eternium. The chaos will provide a perfect opportunity for It to insert agents into key positions, or take out certain players from the game entirely. If all goes well, the conflict will reach a boiling point, and the resulting conflict will result in the destruction of the major players in this struggle for dominance, and leave the world ripe for It’s plans.
* Venkrol, with his immense funds and resources gathered will begin funding terrorists, coups, rebellions and uprisings around the world, acting as a benefactor for various militias and insurgencies, and using them as pawns for his own schemes and plans, all in the name of spreading misery and chaos around the world and making sure it is kept at the lowest. He will try and fund groups and organizations that are opposed to the existing authorities or governments, and would benefit from a breakdown or change in the current status quo, including but not limited to religious fanatics, radicals, extremists, rebels and revolutionaries, separatists, anarchists, syndicates, mafia, cartels, etc. In return, Venkrol will use these groups to destabilize the world, and weaken the position of the existing authorities, while also profiting from the ensuing anarchy and chaos, as crime and corruption will surely rise exponentially.
* For the citizens of Eternium, the world is spiraling out of control. Between the sudden emergence of the Chaos Emeralds, the growing chaos and unrest caused by the lack of political stability, and the fear and uncertainty surrounding the rising conflict, many are beginning to feel desperate, and seek some sort of stability and reassurance in their lives. And when you can no longer rely on your governments or their representatives to provide that comfort, who else can you turn to?
* As Eternium spirals towards a cataclysmic crisis, "The Harbinger" will step in to offer a solution. It will declare that the chaos and strife are the result of the growing conflict between the governments, and that the only way to solve the issue is by removing the source of the conflict: the Chaos Emeralds. Furthermore, it will declare that only It, and It alone, can be trusted to safeguard these ancient artifacts, for the sake of the world and its people. Many will be receptive to this message, for It will speak to the deepest fears and desires of the people: a desire for security, safety, and stability in a time of turmoil and uncertainty.
* Those who hold the Chaos Emeralds, in turn, are faced with a difficult choice. They can either try to keep the Emeralds hidden and safe, but risk losing them due to the mounting pressure, or they can come forward and stand up to those seeking to take the Emeralds, but risk exposing the Emeralds to the forces seeking their power. And in the midst of this chaotic conflict, with no clear victor on the horizon, the odds of winning become stacked against those who wish to protect the Emeralds.

## Power & Abilities

* **Physiology** - Geist's true form cannot be properly expressed or comprehended within the mortal realm. Even if one were to see its true form, their mind would not be able to process it properly, and any depiction of it would not look like anything in existence, for Geist exists as an incomprehensible mass composed of darkness and eldritch energy. As such it has no set appearance and its existence is completely beyond understanding.
* **Entropy** - Geist is attracted to and feeds on entropy, that is, any sort of disorder, chaos and disintegration of energy, including, but not limited to: death, destruction, decay, mutation, sickness, pollution, hate, despair, misery, anger, conflict, crime, sin, and all negative emotions, as well as the destruction and decay of energy itself, such as the dissolution of natural or mystical energies, the depletion of resources, and even the mere heat energy emitted by any living or artificial creation.
* **Immortality** - Geist has been described as a creature as old as time itself. Whether It has always existed since the dawn of creation, arose first then creation itself and aged along with reality, came into being after the creation of the Universe, Universe itself or is vastly older than the multiverse is unclear. Regardless Geist's true form has existed for countless eons, likely since the dawn of creation or before.
* **Corruption** - Geist can corrupt those who are exposed to It's true form and energies, twisting and transforming them into new minions for Its collective hive mind. Its energy is extremely toxic to mortals, and prolonged exposure to It's true self causes mortal's to mutate and transform into horrific versions of themselves. This process can take days, months, years, decades, or even centuries, as the transformation depends on the target, but eventually even the strongest mortal will be completely consumed by Geist's energies and be added to Its collective.
	+ **Transformation** - Geist has the ability to mutate and transform those it infects into horrific parodies of themselves, twisting their physical forms to be compatible with its own eldritch energies. It accomplishes this by directly injecting its own energy into the mortal, corrupting their very DNA at a cellular level. The changes to the physical form can vary depending on the individual and their relation to Geist, but tend to follow a theme of darkness. Mortals transformed are a horrifying, bastardized version of their old selves on a deeper level.
	+ **Collective Mind** - All of those transformed by Geist are connected to It by an unknown means, and become part of an enormous collective hive mind, a mental network that allows every member of the collective to communicate telepathically and share memories with one another. They lose their sense of individuality and are unable to escape the collective consciousness of Geist, and become unable to think independently, being constantly influenced by the Geist's will. This makes them extremely dangerous, as their newfound powers combined with this loss of individuality makes them extremely formidable opponents who can think as one with Geist, using its ancient wisdom and knowledge to serve Its every whim. There are rare exceptions to this, however, as some mortals have managed to gain favor with Geist enough to remain somewhat independent and retain their individuality, becoming generals and leaders within Its army.
		- **Alien Mind** - The mind of the collective is a strange unwelcoming place that latches onto foreign entities like a pathogen. When a creature attempt to read It's thoughts, telepathically communicate or form some other mental bond with It, It becomes aware of the attempt, that creatures location and It can read their thoughts or communicate via the same method as if It had telepathy or had used whatever means they had to initiate this contact. This exposes the creature to mental contamination as a result of coming into contact with the Geist in some form of thought or consciousness, with the Geist immediately beginning to attack the mind of the invading creature in question, infecting or devouring it.
	+ **Mutations** - Those transformed by Geist have the potential to gain new abilities based on their new physiology and relation to Geist. These mutations are typically aligned with entropic energies and typically follow a theme of darkness and space, as they are influenced by Geist's own eldritch energies. A victim's mutations may manifest immediately after their transformation, or they may not manifest until later when they are needed. Regardless of when they manifest, these new abilities can provide a significant advantage in a fight and can help a victim adjust to their new form, giving them access to unique and powerful abilities previously unavailable to them. For example one being could have the ability to absorb other creatures to feed on their entropic energy and become stronger, and another could have the ability to transform others into creatures like them.
	+ **Longevity** - The corruption of Geist extends beyond simple mutation of the mortal form, it also slows the aging process and increases the durability of those mutated by Geist. A mortal who has been transformed by Geist ages slower than those who have not, extending their lifespan significantly. While mortal's are still vulnerable to death via conventional means and can die of natural causes, the mutation Geist causes appears to slow down the aging process for all mortal's it has influenced to a certain degree. The extent to which the aging process is slowed for a mortal is unknown, but it is possible that mortal's who have been mutated by Geist may live for thousands of years if they do not suffer a violent death.