DOLLCORE

When her recently deceased brother returns as an undead monster, a young girl sets out to find a remedy for him at any cost… even if it means becoming entangled with unknown entities beyond a normal human’s comprehension.

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Orphans Andrew and Canarie Graves struggle to cope with the grief of their parents’ passing while aiding everyone in their town simultaneously. One unfortunate day, Andrew is mysteriously killed in a mining incident. However, as soon as he’s about to be laid to rest, he rises from the grave as an soulless being called a Doll. Just as Canarie can put down a berserk Andrew down into his coffin again, they are approached by a mysterious figure who calls herself an “Curator”.

Upon being told of the disease that causes people to to turn into hollow shells- “Nothing”-, Canarie and Andrew are then put under a contract with the Lady in the Hat. With this contract, they are to find a method of banishing the entity; which would mean finding a possible remedy for Andrew- if he manages to put back together the pieces of his memories and hang on to his remaining humanity.

Supernatural, Action, Horror, Comedy, Psychological

The Dollmaker, the Curator of Creation, was the one responsible for creating multiple worlds. The world that DOLLCORE is set in was originally created as a home for the Dollmaker’s personal creations that were rejected by the other Curators, as they deemed them too dangerous to be put in other universes. In this world, humans had the capability of harnessing Soul Art, which was a gift given by the Dollmaker himself. One day, the Dollmaker accidentally created a malicious entity known as the “Nothing”, a sentient being that sought to destroy and consume all life in every world. The Nothing was so strong that it consumed hundreds of millions of world rather quickly, causing the other Curators to go into a panic. They traveled to other worlds and tried to ensure that the Nothing would not be able to enter it, but each of their attempts were made futile. Despite having witnessed the destruction with no way to stop it, the Curators carried on trying to save what was left, for a hundred aeons. The last world still standing was the one where the Dollmaker put his creations in.

Meanwhile, the Dollmaker managed to to save a barely alive human girl from the first universe that was devoured by the Nothing.. Seeing that her soul was already gone, he split himself in half, transformed one half into a human soul and put it in her. However, this caused him losing most of his creation powers, meaning he could never be able to create another world again. Since the Curators had a rule to never interact with human beings directly, he kept her hidden in his personal domain. He used what was left of his power to create a machine that would effectively seal away the Nothing permanently. As the Machine was too dangerous to use in his personal domain, he put it deep within the earth and set a condition: if any human that comes in close contact with it will be turned to stone. This condition was set as a warning for humans who were to discover the machine.

He planned to use all his power as the final cog in the machine to keep it working, however, something went wrong, and he was absorbed by the machine. His body was mutated, rendering him immobile and in a constant state of pain and suffering. Because the Machine was dangerous to anyone including the Curators, there was no one who could end his pain, except his human counterpart, the girl whom he bestowed his power. Despite his tragic fate, the machine worked and sealed away the Nothing- temporarily.

The Dollmaker’s “death” came as a shock to the other Curators, but unbeknownst to them, his human counterpart was still alive. It is unknown what happened to the girl after the Dollmaker’s disappearance. The Curators soon realizes that the Nothing was incapable of entering the world and guessed that the Dollmaker most likely had something to do with it. They decided to uphold his sacrifice but ensuring that his world would be taken care of with the same love and care he put in creating it.

Soul Art is the primary source of power in DOLLCORE. The physical representation of a person’s soul, it is used by both Soul Art users and Enforcers alike. Usually, a person gains a Soul Art once they reach peak human condition and merging their 'heart' and 'soul' together. They can also use Soul Art on any tool or object they're close to, subsequently transforming them in a weapon of sorts. It is also the only known form of power that can destroy the cores of Dolls, effectively killing them afterwards.

DOLLCORE is set in around the 1900s, with some bits of futuristic aspects. Humanity was forced to evolve faster after the events of the Great Calamity, and so their knowledge on technology advanced further.

Methods of transportation are trains, horse-drawn carriages, and 1900-50s style cars. People communicate through letters and, more recently, telephones.

Creator's Notes
- I wanted to make DOLLCORE start out relatively light-hearted as if it was a typical battle series and then delve into the characters' traumas as it progressed. For example, Andrew and Canarie's backstories. I kept it as vague as possible while describing the outline of what happened while giving subtle hints of something darker underneath the surface. For example, Andrew and Canarie. In the beginning of the story, their past is simply described as a tragic event that changed them irreparably and got them under a contract with Lady Death, and that's that.
- As the story progresses, small glimpses of the past reveals their inner "forgotten" trauma, like Canarie's sleepwalking and Andrew's encounters with the Enforcers makes them acknowledge their psychological issues directly.
- Basically DOLLCORE is a story about two siblings in a cycle of forgotten trauma. And basically what happens when you don't grieve properly.
- Furthermore, the series' central themes are about the "core" of a person and how absolute perfection leads to dull soullessness.
- The Nothing as an antagonist is the embodiment of the phrase "Everything comes from nothingness and goes back to nothingness. Nothingness is the basis of existence."
- The three main protagonists have three respective roles: to erase (Canarie), destroy (Andrew), and create (Rin).