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Phoenix
A Phoenix is an immortal, shape shifting bird with red and gold plumage who follows a cycle of death and rebirth. They are a fire elemental species and utilize ash magic. A Phoenix can be born from other Phoenixes or turned from a Human.
Phoenix
A Phoenix is an immortal, shape shifting bird with red and gold plumage who follows a cycle of death and rebirth. They are a fire elemental species and utilize ash magic. A Phoenix can be born from other Phoenixes or turned from a Human.
Phoenixes appear to be normal Humans when in their human form, and can run the gamut of normal Human appearances in all but one way. A Phoenix carries a mark on their body called a Brand that only appears while they are in Human form.
The Brand can be anywhere on the body, but can't be moved or removed from that spot. It is slightly darker than the color of the person's skin by default, though it can appear lighter or darker depending on the Phoenix. The brand can appear to be any design, and can sometimes change appearance over the course of a Phoenix' life, even if the brand has been tattooed over or otherwise covered up.
A Phoenix has two forms they can take: their human form, to walk among humankind, and their phoenix form, which takes the appearance of a bird. These forms are permanent and the ones the Phoenix will have all their lives in that body.
A Phoenix in their phoenix bird form can be of any bird that currently exists in the world at the time of their birth, as long as it is a species that can fly. The bird can't be from an extinct species at the time of their birth, and the bird can't be flightless.
Phoenixes appear to be normal birds when in their phoenix form as well, save for one difference. No matter what the coloring of the original bird is, a Phoenix will have plumage of red and gold.
It can be as little as a single red and gold banded feather, or the entire body being red and gold even when the bird does not normally come in that color. But all Phoenixes have red and gold plumage in their bird form to some degree.
Phoenix are hardy and healthy creatures thanks to their natural magic. While they can still be hurt or fall ill, their recovery time is often much faster than normal and can even be seen as miraculous compared to Humans. They do not have rapid healing abilities, but their natural inner strength and magic can almost make it seem as if they do.
A Phoenix can communicate with others while in their phoenix form. To other Phoenixes, Dragons, Shifters, Selkies, and Unicorns, they can speak and be understood as normal.
For everyone else, Phoenixes can communicate via a one-way telepathy while in their phoenix form. They can only project their thoughts out, they can't take thoughts in or read minds. They do not have access to this while in their Human form.
Phoenix tears and Phoenix feathers are both potent magic artifacts on their own. A Phoenix's tears can heal grievous injuries, as long as it comes straight from the source - the tears lose strength as soon as it leaves the Phoenix's body. Tears can be bottled and used for potions and spells, though it has a short shelf life.
Phoenix feathers turn bright red and gold the moment they are removed from the body, no matter what color they were while attached. They are full of remnants of the Phoenix's magic, and can be used in all kinds of spells, potions, and rituals.
The Phoenixes have a branch of magic only they have access to: ash magic. It is an ancient and wild form of magic unique to their species. The skill and power level of this magic depends on the Phoenix.
Ash magic is primarily fire based; as a result, all Phoenixes are considered fire elementals. All Phoenixes can create, control, manipulate, and destroy fire. They can also control and manipulate heat itself. A Phoenix can't be burned or affected by heat.
Ash magic is more than just fire and heat manipulation, however. Ash magic can also be used for healing and light manipulation, which means they can create, shape, and manipulate visible light.
The healing magic and the light manipulation are weak and mild compared to their innate fire manipulation. A Phoenix will never be as powerful in those fields as someone else who does the same thing. But they are abilities Phoenixes can also use thanks to their magic.
The Shift is the term used to describe both the act and the process from going between the Human form and the Phoenix form.
Phoenixes can transform at will. They do not need the use of an object as ash magic grants them the ability to shapeshift whenever and wherever they want.
Death & Rebirth
A Phoenix is a functionally immortal species. Once they are born or turned for the first time, they can technically live on forever. However, there is a catch: Phoenixes continue to age. To combat this, a Phoenix goes through a process called a rebirth cycle throughout their immortal life.
For a typical life cycle, a Phoenix can live between 100 to 500 years old at maximum. The Phoenix has a small measure of control over their rebirth cycle and can choose to let nature run its course or 'reset' to begin the rebirth cycle before its time.
When a Phoenix dies, whether through natural causes, by being killed, or by reset, at the moment of death the Phoenix' body bursts into flames and turns to ash within minutes. There is no way to stop the process or to put out the flames.
Their body is dead, but the Phoenix still lives, to be reborn into a new body in a process similar to reincarnation. The length of time this takes - instantly, within minutes, hours, days, weeks, month, years - is completely dependent on the Phoenix in question. The Phoenix then starts their life over in a new body and their previous body - and their previous life - becomes a past life.
The one downside to continuing their lives in this way is their memories. Because they are in a new body experiencing a new life, a Phoenix can only remember their past lives to a point. They do not have the ability to retain all their memories between rebirth cycles.
The more recent the past life, the sharper the memories are. However, as they age and grow in their new body, new memories of their current life replace the old memories of their past lives. The memories of their past lives don't typically return in detail until the rebirth cycle is about to begin again.
The amount that a Phoenix remembers between rebirth cycles, and for how long, differs from Phoenix to Phoenix.
The rebirth is a full physical transformation of both human and phoenix form. They might end up looking identical to a past life, or they might end up looking completely different than how they did before. This is fully Player Choice.
Ash Death
Though kept a close and jealously guarded secret, there is a way for a Phoenix to die, or be killed, and sever the rebirth cycle so the Phoenix can never be reborn again. This is the equivalent to permanent death for a Phoenix. This process is called Ash Death.
The spices cinnamon and myrrh, while harmless on their own, become a poison when mixed with the blood of a Phoenix. The mixture is extremely precise to make. Using the wrong doses or using the spices individually only makes the Phoenix violently ill or triggers an early rebirth cycle. It does not permanently kill them unless the mixture is exact.
The most common use of this combination is as a potion also called Ash Death, crafted by those considered ancient and elder among the Phoenixes, to give other elders who have lived all the lives they want eternal rest.
The Phoenix as a species guard this mortal weakness with their very lives, since it is the only permanent way to end a Phoenix's life. Oftentimes the Phoenixes themselves only know that the spices are dangerous and should be avoided. The secret to the correct doses are only given once the Phoenix has lived a certain number of years or lives and on a need-to-know basis.
A Phoenix can live to be a maximum of 500 years per rebirth cycle. And can be reborn indefinitely save for experiencing Ash Death.
Phoenix label their Age differently than all other species. Because they are reborn into a new body every time they die, and they do not always remember their past lives with accuracy, Phoenixes calculate their age as however old they are in their current physical body.
For example: a 2,114 year old Phoenix, who has been in their current body for 114 years, would consider themselves 114 years old. Not 2,114 years old. Please make sure the age is written accordingly!
A Phoenix can only be reborn as a Phoenix. They will never be reborn as another species. If, by some circumstance, they are reborn as another species, their rebirth cycle is severed and they experience Ash Death. Once that life is complete, they are permanently dead the same as any other species.
Phoenixes have the ability to change between their human form and their phoenix form from birth or from the moment of their turning.
They also have full access to their ash magic from their birth or the moment of their turning. Born Phoenix often don't have problems with control and use of their magic, especially if they have been through numerous rebirth cycles. Newly turned Phoenix often have difficulty and struggle with control and use of their magic.
Phoenixes age at a slightly faster than normal human rate as children; not enough to be disturbing if among Humans, but the Phoenix child will be considered the top percentile for nearly everything until they reach adulthood.
They will then age slowly until the end of their rebirth cycle, which can occur anywhere after 100 years old up to a maximum of 500 years old.
Humans can be turned into Phoenix through an ash magic branding. This can be done entirely without the involvement of a Phoenix, or it can be caused by a Phoenix.
The branding is done via contact with fire, of which all ash magic has some influence or connection to. This can be anything as small as a match or as large as a forest fire.
The Human is drawn to the flames. But rather than being burned or consumed by the fire, the ash magic seizes control. The Human is branded with a Phoenix brand, which can appear anywhere and in any shape just like a born Phoenix.
The turning is not always instantaneous. Some newly turned Phoenix come into their magic and their new phoenix form the instant they are turned. Others struggle with the turning, falling ill with sky-high fevers and erratic bursts of magic until the magic settles with them.
Phoenixes can only be created by being born a Phoenix or turned from a Human. Once someone is born or turned a Phoenix, they will always be a Phoenix. There is no way to become a Human or a different Supernatural creature.
Phoenixes can have children with the following species besides themselves:
The child of a Phoenix and another species will always be the species of one of the parents.
Example: The child of a Phoenix and an Esper will either be a Phoenix or an Esper. There is no such thing as a 'hybrid' species.
Phoenixes can't skip generations. Having a Phoenix as an ancestor does not count. One or both parents MUST be a Phoenix in order to be born a Phoenix.
Phoenixes can tell other supernatural species apart through a combination of scent signatures and magic signatures. They can use a combination of both to suss out another supernatural species.
