Renascence / Dexterity / CC4

[Vars]

YOU CAN POST HERE IF YOU WANT~


I'm having a little fight with myself on calling this "Dexterity" or "Renascence" so there's going to be a lot of inconsistency in these posts lol. Sorry.

About This Thread About Dexterity / CC4 CC2 Names vs Dexterity Names Resonance Souls

• 
  So I have this thing, called ConstantChaotic. It started out as a Gaia Online thing where I wrote in friends and stuff in a guild back in 2008....ish. Then I rewrote it a couple times as a sort of 'web series'. The last public rendition was named "CC2" (but it was really more like version 3).
  You can read that here: cc.khat.us
  There's also a wiki there and stuff.
  
  Anyway, I put a lot of work into this, but I never finished it. I'm currently not really a fan of the story/genre, but I find it unacceptable that it's been left unfinished. So I'm just going to finish it despite not caring too much for it.
  
  This thread will be my [half assed?] attempt to force progress out of myself.
  Most stuff here isn't proof-read. It's mostly a braindump to make sure I write it.
  Once it's all finally written and there's a beginning and an end, then I might edit it.
  So what I'm saying here is...
  Don't expect good quality reads here lol.
  
• 
  The story was previously titled "ConstantChaotic" but has now been renamed simply "Dexterity" which is also the name of the country the majority of the story takes place in.
  
  You can read the previous rewrite (CC2) and its whole worldbuilding wiki here: cc.khat.us
  
  Premise of CC2
  
  In the world of Gaia, people have Resonance Souls. These souls grant them special powers. But some of these powers are feared. The ones of most relevance are The Prophecies, which consist of The Phoenix and The Soul Stealer.
  These Resonants are so strong that factions exist to try to stop them from destroying the world.
  
  In a world that believes in prophecy, do you think you can change it?
  The League has sent a Monte Criston to destroy The Phoenix, whose current reincarnation is in the country of Dexterity.
  It's a small girl.
  And she's your best friend.
  
  
  Premise of CC4 ("Dexterity")
  Dexterity follows many of the same beats as CC2, but primarily focuses on Edmond and Q rather than Hirun and Fortenra.
  There's also a ton of name changing for CC4, a guide can be found in the next tab.
  
  Additionally, CC2 had an added "ki" factor, where certain people could become "ki masters" and thus essentially could pull some DBZ shit along with their Rez powers. CC4 hopes to completely get rid of that. I'm not sure what I'm going to replace it with, if I do that at all.
  
  I started CC1 in 2008, did CC2 in late 2009, and been working on rewrites off and on (offline) from then until 2013. Then I shoved it off and forgot about it til now, really.
  
• 
  Many things have been renamed. Here's what changed:
  
  CC2 vs. Dexterity
  
  Hirun hikari = Hikari
  fort / fortera = Fell
  monte cristo = DeFrist
  Edmond Dantes = Edmond Cannes
  Shoy / Kingsley = Sean / Kaelin
  Esvera Rose = Evelyn Rose
  Q = Lycurgushi / Ly
  the league = the coalition / the coalition of countries
  Talvia = Nemor
  Talvian = Nemorian
  kickback = obeisance / recoil
  Amigo = Anso
  Mercain = Michael
  
• 
  Resonance Souls, sometimes referred to as Resonant Souls or Rez, are simply souls with an extra "power" attached to them.
  The first Resonant Soul was birthed in Dexterity, though the entire world has Resonance Souls today. Not every soul is a Resonance Soul, and no one knows why the Resonance Souls came into being.
  
  Powers a Resonance Soul can give the host can be as simple and useless as opening doors with the mind, or as complex and powerful as rewriting history. Psychics and people who could utilize telekinesis were considered historically primitive Resonance Souls.
  
  Resonance Souls are scientifically unexplainable and unpredictable. They do not have to make sense, and usually don't. [...] Resonance Souls are not particularly characteristic of a "real" soul, and do not have the personality of the host. Sometimes a Resonance Soul is referred to as something completely separate from a person's real soul. In that case, the word "Resonant" is used. There is a debate if they are truly separate, but no one knows for sure.
  
  Regardless of this, Resonance Souls usually do have patterns in the hosts they reincarnate into, and for this reason Resonants are seen to have some "personality characteristics" they carry along with them through their reincarnations.
  Taken from the encyclopedia entry here.
  
  CC2 vs. CC4 Resonant Philosophy
  In CC2, Resonance was rare, but overly represented in the country of Dexterity. Every single Rez could only be in existence once at a time before reincarnation, resulting in a ton of distinct resonants.
  
  This doesn't make sense with the narrative I wanted to pursue, so in CC4, so Resonance Souls have changed to function more like a zodiac for magic-powered souls. There are different Resonants and that seem to have different limits (say one rez can be in 40 people in the world at one time and some other rez could be in 400).
  People with no rez are extremely rare in CC4's world and Dexterity is over-represented to the rare resonants.
  
  Kickbacks are referred to as obeisance or informally as recoil.
  
  Otherwise, Resonants remain approximately the same, and if you're interested in the overall concept as well as the zodiac profiles of them (termed "resonant philosophy" ) the one on the CC2 site should satiate your curiosity.
  That page for some reason doesn't seem to list them all? They're also at the bottom of this page.
  
  But here's a quick reference:
  
  Atlaos - control of weather
  Decay Arm - make any living thing decay
  Doppelganger - make copies of yourself
  Hypnos Indra - control electricity
  Jade Armor - turn your skin to Jadetite
  Nosferatu Coil - control blood & platelets
  Phoenix Soul - control of fire and rebirth yourself like a phoenix
  Possessor - take control of other people's bodies
  Soma Store - flesh regeneration
  Soul Stealer - manipulate others' souls
  Tortoise Eye - physical manifestation of energy plus some other stuff (will likely have to be redesigned for CC4)
  

 

[Vars]

Brain Dump Key Terms Places Characters

• 
  CC1 & CC2 Archive
  
  This post will be used for random notes, I guess?
  
  
  
  No flashbacks. Use cc1 Q. More detail into Dexterity's looks.
  "Devaiz" as a name for something
  
  
• 
  CC2's encyclopedia is mostly on point but here's some changed stuff or stuff I'll be using frequently and just want here for some reason.
  
  
  Changes / notes
  
  - Ki Masters don't exist, anything that says "ki" will be changed to "energy," be explained through the resonance power, or simply deleted.
  - Kickback is now obesiance or recoil.
  - In addition to this breakdown of resonance souls / rez, "resonance" can be substituted for "magical power," "ki," or "energy".
  - Limiters and Negators are still differentiated, but now negators make it as if the rez doesn't exist (thus replacing "rez suspender"s), and a limiter simply limits the use of the resonance to varying degrees.
  
  
  Awakening
  
  Awakening is the term used to refer to the time when a Resonance Soul makes itself known to the host. People who have Resonance Souls do not always have them since birth. In fact, most do not know of their existence this early.
  
  In most cases, a Resonance Soul appears to "awaken" during puberty, although developing one earlier or later is not too uncommon. The latest awakening recorded happened to a 28 year old, although there is no proof a Resonant cannot appear later.
  
  The term "awakening" was coined by the fact that the host usually stumbles over this power accidentally, and is surprised by its use and/or their ability to control it. While using the Resonance Soul the first time it often feels like a weight has been lifted and there is a sense of freedom. However, once the recoil hits, the host is "awakened" by the responsibility of having and/or utilizing this power. Obesiance are typically the strongest after the very first Resonance use, resulting in many people being afraid of their power at first.
  
  
  Seekers
  
  Seekers are people who have been trained to identify the specific energy signatures of certain Resonance Souls.
  If a target of the Seekers, such as the Soul Stealer, uses their Resonance, a Seeker can recognize where they are from miles away. Particularly skilled Seekers can pinpoint the location of their targets from several hundred miles away.
  
  Seekers spend most of their lives traveling the world looking for their target(s). They hardly ever settle down or have a family of their own.
  Most Seekers are only contacted to locate their targets and inform their contractors of where they are located. However, some Seekers can and do kill their targets.
  
  It is not uncommon for Seekers to also double as mercenaries as they travel, fulfilling a main contract (Such as looking for the Phoenix Soul) as well as many smaller ones from independent bodies.
  
  While there are many people who unofficially call themselves Seekers, true Seekers are trained and officiated by The Coalition in DeFrist.
  
  
  Soul
  
  The Soul is the essence of a person. It contains, or is theorized to contain, a person's personality, emotions, lifeforce, spirituality, morals, and/or very being.
  The soul is something that everyone knows exists, but no one knows for sure what it is for. It is argued that a Resonance Soul is simply a normal soul with an added bonus. Others argue that a normal soul and a Resonance Soul are separate things, housed in the same body.
  Even with the research surrounding the Soul Stealer, neither argument has been confirmed, and many are still unsure on the subject.
  
  
  Obesiance / Recoil
  
  Recoil is a penalty for using a Resonance.
  In rare cases, a Rez may have a recoil that is unknown, or theorized to be absent.
  
  Some recoils are physical, others are mental or occur within the personality. An example of a physical obesiance is a headache resulting from turning a piece of the body to stone while a mental one may be the loss of memories from regenerating flesh, or the increase in paranoia from the manipulation of soundwaves.
  
• 
  
  Dexterity
  
  Small island nation known for crime and rare resonants. Wartorn and technologically primitive in comparison to other countries.
  Most of the story takes place here.
  CC2 description is mostly on point: [spoili]
  A Faraway island, this small country was where all the worst criminals were dumped. Rather than spend money on maintaining a maximum security prison, the scourge of Gaia were placed here to live as they would, survive as they might.
  
  This place has very vague laws, and has progressed into somewhat of a civilized nation, though nowhere near as advanced as most other countries in Gaia. Any technological advances that were not used before the birth of Resonance Souls are unknown to Dexterity.
  
  Many things in Dexterity are in a state of ruin. Although this country housed the very first Resonance Soul, it is still a place that is considered dangerous to attend, as murders happen daily with little or no punishment.
  Most of Gaia considers Dexterity a hellmouth, full of bandits and not worth saving or helping.
  
  But considering how Dexterity started, it has come a long way, with some bustling cities and even some public schools.[/spoili]
  
  
  Sinico
  
  Mercenary corporation in Dexterity. Anso (Amigo), Kaelin (kingsley), and Michael (mercain) work here.
  
  
  Dexterity School
  
  Need a better name for the local school lol. Kaelin is an English teacher here. Tali and Sim attend it.
  
  
  Cybil
  
  The technological capitol of Gaia, Cybil is home to many inventors and scientists.
  It also has a unique spirituality to it, many citizens believing in a Greater Presence, or the existence of Fate and/or Destiny.
  
  Researchers are prevalent in Cybil. Many of the unique questions about Resonance Souls and Life in general are answered here. This is where Resonants and how they affect people are studied. Philosophy and Psychology come together to try and solve the many mysteries that Resonance Souls have given Gaia.
  
  Cybil is also home to the world's best hospitals. If someone has a unique ailment, they come to Cybil to get treated by the world's leading healers and technological variants.
  
  It is also home to many Institutions. If someone cannot control their Resonance Soul or Ki, they will often come to Cybil to live in peace with a state of the art limiter, or come to Cybil to get treated and learn how to control their unique abilities.
  
  Cybil is very free-thinking and accepting. All sorts of species live in peace here- it is considered a neutral country.
  
  
  DeFrist
  
  A meritocratic military nation with obvious castes. DeFrist is home to the Coalition of Countries, a diplomatic group that also owns the factions of soldiers dedicated to killing the Phoenix at every reincarnation. A newly formed sub-faction plans to kill the Soul Stealer. DeFrist also trains the Seekers.
  
  
  Nemor
  
  A very small country within the borders of Cybil.
  It is a forestland where humans are banned. Here, Nemorians are the only inhabitants. A unique breed of human-animals, they take many forms, but are usually reclusive and do not leave their tribal homes.
  
  They could be considered the Native Gaians, and often have unique Resonance Souls and energy signatures, as they consider themselves one with both humanity and nature.
  However, they believe that humanity is wandering in the wrong direction with technology, and prefer to stick to their more natural roots.
  
  They are a very spiritual race, and are known for banishing others who they do not deem to be "worthy" of citizenship.
  Nemorians keep to themselves, and while their country is not actually recognized as a Nation, it remains unbothered, as it presents no risk to the other countries. Special permits are required before entry to Nemor is permitted.
  
  
  
  
  
• 
  
  
  

  
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  Anso (CC2: Amigo)
  The surrogate father to Sim and best friend to Kaelin(Kingsley), his Resonance Soul is Atlaos, the ability to control the weather.
  He has silver hair and tends to wear relaxed clothes- vacation shirts and khakis, usually.
  
  He is an assassin working at Sinico. However, he does not wish that type of life for his son.
  
  
  
  

  
  Edmond Cannes (Edmond Dantes)
  
  Previously an instructor for the soldier groups trained to go after the Phoenix Soul, his way of life died due to technological advances. A Nemor boy begged for an apprenticeship, resulting with Lycurgushi (Q) becoming a surrogate son. When the Phoenix was discovered in Dexterity, he received the rank of Count for volunteering to accept the mission.
  As the younger brother to Sean (Shoy), Edmond secretly longs to prove himself to his country and to prove to the Coalition that he will not be held back by his elder's failures.
  
  
  
  

  
  Evelyn Rose (Esvera Rose)
  Sean's ex-wife, she takes Ly in for a few years as a favor to Edmond to teach him the basics of guns. Evelyn lives in Cybil, which borders DeFrist. In many ways she feels Ly is her adopted son, and they hold conversations about many sensitive subjects since Ly trusts her as well. Evelyn believes that Resonance Souls hold a higher meaning, and places a great deal of faith in prophecy and fate.
  
  She is a Tortoise Eye, which gives her the ability to heal others, construct protective shields and barriers, and identify Resonants with a sort of sixth sense at the expense of forgetting previous memories.
  
  In chapter seven of CC2, Evelyn gives Ly a book entitled "Resonant Philosophy," which is the main source of information about Resonance Souls across the world. The book is actually part of a series that is updated every five years.
  
  
  
  
  

  
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  Fell (Fortenra Askasa)
  
  Fell is the eighteen year old boyfriend of Tali Heartlie. He frequently wears suits, as that is the required dress for the restaurant he works at, which is also owned by the Heartlies. He lives with Tali in an apartment he provides.
  
  Fell was an abandoned child and thus grew up homeless in the slums of Dexterity with his best friend and "brother" Hikari. Together, they formed a gang with a few others and owned the land before Tali "claimed" him as her boyfriend. Growing tired of Tali's foolishness, Fell begins to rethink his reasons for staying with the girl, and attempts to go back to his childhood roots. His Resonant is the Decay Arm.
  
  
  
  
  

  
  

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  Hikari (Hirun Hikari)
  
  A seventeen year old with no resonance, he lived in the slums of Dexterity. He grew up with Fell, having both been abandoned by their parents. Managing to take control of the slums as a sort of impromptu gang leader, Hikari is a symbol of hope for orphans and the powerless.
  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  Kaelin / Sean Cannes (Kingsley / Shoy Dantes)
  
  Sean Cannes, the elder brother of Edmond, was stripped of his rank, abandoned by his wife, and permanently seperated from his five year old son after a mission to destroy The Phoenix Soul resulted in the attempted genocide of the Nemorians. Unable to stand the torment in his home country of DeFrist for the mistake, he instead became a vagrant in an attempt to find his son, locate the Soul Stealer, or aquire redemption. Eventually he wound up in Dexterity, assuming the identity of Kaelin, an English teacher at one of the public schools.
  He lives with Anso (Amigo) and works with Michael (Mercain) ocassionally in Sinico, organizing black market trades specializing in foreign technologies. Kaelin helped Anso adopt Sim, and helps raise the boy at times.
  Kaelin's Resonant is the Possessor.
  
  
  
  
  

  
  Lycurgushi / Ly (Q)
  
  Approximately ten years ago, Ly came to Edmond, begging to join his faction to destroy the Phoenix as retribution for a former reincarnation's destruction of a town in his homeland of Nemor. As only a quarter Nemor-blood, he was outcast from the nation without the protection of his parents. Edmond agrees to train him only after he spent some years in a lower caste. Ly acts as Edmond's personal servant for those years, and has been close beside him ever since.
  
  Lycurgushi makes use of a Negator, which bars the use of his Resonance. He is afraid of his Resonant, and comes to realize the reason for this is because he is the fabled Soul Stealer. In Ch. 35 of CC2, his negator breaks and he accidentally kills Evelyn in a training session, revealing his Resonant to Edmond for the first time.
  
  
  
  
  

  
  

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  Sim / Simion
  
  Simion, or Sim for short, is the eighteen year old foster son of Anso. As a Doppelganger Resonance Soul, he can make unlimited copies of himself, and does so easily in efforts to annoy, argue, and/or fight. His number one rival is Tali, who always gets on his nerves.
  
  
  
  
  

  
  Tali Heartlie
  
  The Heartlies are a long line of leaders and mafia lords, and Tali is no exception. She is crude, says whatever is on her mind, and always gets what she wants, no matter what it is: boyfriend included. Beginning as a self-absorbed fifteen year old with the resonance to control fire, she later dies for the first time and discovers she is The Phoenix Soul.
  After her rebirth, Tali wishes to make her life "worth something" and carries this out by stealing everything she feels she needs to make a happy home with Fell. Once Fell leaves her, she becomes dangerously obsessed with getting him back, even if that means killing others. The more Tali dies however, the more detached from reality she becomes.
  
  
  
  
  Opal
  A very sickly girl with the Resonance Soul of the Nosferatu Coil, she lives in a broken down house in the slums and is taken care of by Hikari, for which she has become a useful tool.
  (might not end up using her in CC4)
  
  
  
  Michael (Mercain)
  For some reason I don't have a CC2 profile of him but he's kind of a main character so this is a reminder to put something here for CC4 eventually.
  He's one of the leaders at Sinico, and is Kaelin and Anso's boss.
  
  
  

 

[Vars]

Prologue Novel Skeleton Fell

• 
  This was originally going to be the beginning of the CC4 Rewrite. I'm going to start over again as I don't like it. But it's a good "introduction to the world that was built" if you want to know about that stuff.
  I also don't like "Gaia" as the name for the whole world. I'll probably rename that later.
  
  Everything here (including the stuff in the other tabs on this post) was written in 2013.
  
  
  Edmond's Journal

  In Gaia, resonance souls are a human soul with an added, magical component granting the host soul a special power. When the power is referred to as separate from a host, it is a resonant. When it is referred to in conjunction with a host or soul, it is a resonance soul.
  The first resonance soul appeared in Dexterity, a country full of misfits and criminals. Many years ago, the other countries decided to use the island as a dumping ground for the most violent convicts. Unfortunately, no one ever predicted they would create their own community, and finally country. In a place where killing was common, it was unsurprising that any evolutionary edge would appear there first.
  Despite this, it wasn't long before the resonance souls spread to the rest of the population. While resonants seemed to be common in Dexterity, they were relatively uncommon everywhere else. Through study, it was learned that all resonants had particular patterns, common personality traits, and finite numbers. Some resonants could only be hosted in thirty bodies at one time, others fifty or more, even more were rarer. When one host died, another resonance soul of the same type was born. This was called the reincarnation cycle.
  Each resonant has a different power. Some are small, such as the abilities to read thoughts, discern emotions, or even limited telekinesis. Others are more powerful, as with controlling the weather, possessing others, and the ability to heal any injury in oneself or others.
  But with every gift comes a price. The price paid for using a resonant's power is known as the kickback. It can range from feeling tired to death. The kickbacks vary as widely as the resonants themselves.
  Two particular resonants, however, have been named the prophecies. These resonants have their own personalities, wants, and needs, separate to their host. The powers are extraordinary and they are only able to exist in one host at a time. These two resonants are the Phoenix Soul and the Soul Stealer.
  The Phoenix is thought to be the first resonant. It gives its host the unmetered control of fire, and the ability to revive itself through flames. Each time it rebirths itself, the encircling flames grow wider. Once the resonance soul actually dies, the perimeter of the flames causes an explosion that can – and has - decimated entire cities.
  The Phoenix Soul's goal is to destroy mankind. Seeing itself as a martyr for the resonants, it wishes for all resonants to be free to roam without host bodies. As such, the Phoenix sees its host as a cage it must escape from. This inner turmoil created within a host generally ends with the host dying before they've reached even thirty years of age—essentially blowing themselves up as the Phoenix attempts to overtake them.
  It was because of the Phoenix Soul that the Coalition of Countries was formed. It was deemed that this resonance soul must be killed, and removed from the reincarnation cycle by whatever means necessary. DeFrist, a country with many nobles and a militaristic history, was put in charge of the mission.
  Many soldiers and warriors of good came from DeFrist, and while the Phoenix has not yet been removed from the reincarnation cycle, many unnecessary deaths have been prevented by the way they have dealt with the resonant.
  In contrast, the Soul Stealer is an extremely young resonant. Considered to be the best companion for the Phoenix Soul, the Soul Stealer refers both to the resonant that is able to steal other resonance souls and combine with them, producing more powers for the host, as well as the host of the soul stealing resonant. There are many prophecies and stories regarding the Soul Stealer, but the most common one is that it will become irrevocably drawn toward the Phoenix Soul, and attempt to absorb it. There have only been four known Soul Stealers so far. All have been male, and none have lived past the age of sixteen.
  The first Soul Stealer went mad with power, absorbing all souls it could. It managed to accumulate about thirty resonance souls before the host went insane and killed himself.
  The second Soul Stealer, having learned from the first, was modest in its resonant's use and became good friends with the Phoenix. This Soul Stealer was able to partially absorb the Phoenix, resulting in two hosts with the ability to use fire. It had no ability to regenerate however, and was murdered before it was fully able to absorb the Phoenix. This particular case was why the Coalition dedicated a group of seekers to find and kill all Soul Stealers.
  The third Soul Stealer, instead of absorbing souls into himself, chose to switch souls and hosts. This evoked mass confusion. The Soul Stealer lost his mind and was murdered shortly after.
  When the Soul Stealer steals a soul and places it into his own body, the souls merge together. The host of the Soul Stealer takes on a few personality traits of the host of the soul it has just stolen, as well as the ability to use the previous host's resonant.
  It has been revealed that any resonance soul absorbed by the Soul Stealer has not reincarnated. It is unknown whether the resonants have been destroyed forever or have simply gone dormant, but none of the resonants that have been absorbed by the Soul Stealer have been seen since. When the Soul Stealer itself reincarnates, it comes back with a blank slate, ready to absorb more souls.
  Not much is known about the Soul Stealer as it is such a new resonant, but many varying theories exist. Some believe the Soul Stealer was meant to kill the Phoenix Soul. Others say it was brought forth to help free it from its confines and destroy Gaia.
  DeFrist's official stance is that the Soul Stealer will attempt to absorb the Phoenix, but the Phoenix Soul's personality will overcome the Soul Stealers, creating an essentially unstoppable enemy. It is the Coalition's duty to make sure this doesn't happen.
  
  
  
  
  
  My name is Edmond Cannes. I don't know what I believe. But I do know that fifteen years ago, my older brother was sent on the first one-man mission to kill the Phoenix. He failed horribly. Charged with attempted genocide against the Nemorians, his determined suitable punishment was the banishment of his son from DeFrist and the stripping of his rank . He left the country, broken and dishonored. His responsibility fell onto me.
  
  To be honest with you, I have no idea what I am doing.
  But I would never tell anyone that.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  In the past, we would train soldiers to take down the Phoenix. My brother, Sean, had contracted some of the technicians in Cybil to create a new weapon. Deemed the Incinerator, it was a gun that would blast the Phoenix Soul with a negator beam, making the resonant unusable while essentially burning the host alive. After he pitched the idea of using this weapon instead of an army, he was allowed to hunt for the Phoenix himself. This was the first time something like this had ever happened. Sean was seen as a heroic innovator. Everyone was looking forward to how the Incinerator would pave the way to easier dealings with the Phoenix resulting in less casualties of our people.
  When Sean went on his journey, we halted the soldier training program, insisting everyone take up new professions in preparation for the shift. The recruits disbanded, and myself, having been an instructor, was also left with the task of trying to find a new trade.
  Sean took a few years to find the Phoenix, and when he did, trouble seemed to follow him. The Phoenix had taken respite in Nemor, a small, land-locked country full of the original Gaian Natives. They were a race of anthropomorphic beasts, and banned all non-Nemor from their land. It took an extremely long time to convince the Nemorians to allow Sean into their country, and even with the permit, he wasn't welcome. The Nemorians' suspicions were realized when something went wrong with the Incinerator weapon, the Phoenix exploded, and nearly the entire country was wiped out. Sean managed to get away, but the political turmoil he had caused would likely never disappear. Needless to say, the DeFristons are no longer depending on the Incinerator. But the Coalition doesn't want to send in an army, either. This is where I stepped in. Technically, I volunteered. But it was my duty to do this. To reclaim the family name. I won't pretend to know what went through Sean's head that fateful day, and to be frank, I don't want to know.
  But it is because of him that I wound up in Dexterity. This place is a pit of despair. I don't know why they sent me. A part of me wishes we could just leave the new Phoenix reincarnation here and let it blow the place up so the Coalition wouldn't have to deal with all the trouble this country has caused us. But the much better part of me believes we must stay true to our duty as DeFristons, and protect everyone from the wrath of the Phoenix, not just the citizens we happen to like.
  "Edmond?"
  The man looked up, closing the journal with a small clap of paper.
  "What is it, Ly?" Edmond answered.
  
  A twenty year old stood before the Count in a black suit vest and pants. Ly was servant… Partner. Edmond had taken him in about ten years ago. He'd begged the Count to teach him how to kill the Phoenix, and Edmond had told him that in order to work up to that level, he must work in a lower caste, first. Despite having done that, he still frequently liked to wear the servant clothes and perform most of the duties. Edmond never complained.
  
  "It's… Been a few hours," Ly stated quietly, his yellow eyes soft as his long black tail swayed idly. Ly was part Nemor. His parents had been killed by the Phoenix.
  Edmond's eyes darted about the manor, spotting a clock. It was well past the time he normally went to bed. His hand went back to the book he'd been writing in.
  "Well," he chuckled. "I guess time really does fly when you write."
  Standing, he took the book in hand and began the ascent up the stairs. "I'll go to bed, then. Will you be all right?"
  
  Ly looked up with his faintly glowing orbs, the sight a bit unsettling to witness. He just watched.
  "Ly?"
  
  "I'm going out for a while," the Nemorian finally stated.
  
  Edmond's hand gripped the railing tighter, and he stopped on the stairs. "Why?"
  
  "To find her."
  
  "I'll come with you tomorrow morning, like usual," Edmond offered.
  
  "Alone," Ly ordered.
  
  "But we—"
  
  Ly shook his head. "Trust me," he said, turning away.
  
  Edmond sighed, uneasy, but unwilling to fight over the decision. Ly was an adult. He should be able to make his own decisions. He finally shook his head and went to bed. A blue eye looked to the leather journal he'd been writing in at his nightstand once he'd finally laid down. He felt like he'd forgotten to write something important. But not important enough to delay sleep any longer. With another sigh, he rolled over and closed his eyes, beckoning sleep.
  
  Lycurgushi, or Ly for short, was a surprisingly humanoid Nemorian. He was part of the Saluki clan, a clan known for breeding between themselves and humans. Ly himself was only one fourth Nemor, the lowest percentage one can be before no longer accepted in the country. Because of this and his human features, he was ostracized from others of his kind. Once his parents had been killed by the Phoenix, he had nowhere to go. But he'd heard of the Cannes and their army trained to kill the Phoenix Soul. He wanted to be a part of that. When he'd reached the Cannes Castle in Defrist, Edmond told him that the army had been disbanded, that Ly had to go elsewhere. But the Nemorian begged and begged, and finally, Edmond relented and took him in.
  Ly had been living with Edmond for ten years. Six years as a servant and four as an apprentice. Unlike Edmond, Ly was nocturnal. Unlike Edmond, Ly didn't like to search Dexterity in a team. Edmond was a nobleman. He dressed too fanciful, and stood out too much among the Dexterians. They had been in the country for a week, and had no leads. Ly was confident that without Edmond in the way, he would finally be able to find the Phoenix, and kill her himself.
• 
  I put a ton of work into this world/story, so I have a couple timelines fleshed out.
  THIS IS THE SKELETON OF THE ENTIRE STORY, SO IF YOU CARE ABOUT SPOILERS DON'T READ IT.
  
  I don't know if I will follow this exactly (definitely won't be doing the POV book thing) but it's going to be what I'll be building from.
  
  
  Spoiler

  CC3 SUMMARY OLD
  Tali and Sim get in fight at school and tali burns it down.
  Sim kills Tali because he wanted to learn (possible throwback to Sim being in gang and missing out on education). Tali lives with Fort and dies in his arms, burning them.
  Cut to Edmond & Q. Introduce prophecy of phoenix and soul stealer(SS). They arrive in Dexterity. Q goes to burned school for phoenix clues and meets Kingsley, who brings Q to Sinico and Mercain.
  Possession and such goes down. Cut to Q/SS Talvia flashbacks.
  Change scene, Fort goes to Hirun to get healed. En route, meet Tali having killed healer, stole house, all for Fort.
  Fort breaks up with Tali. Hirun goes to seduce Tali. Doesn't work, Tali leaves. Nearby, Andrew(Amigo) and Sim get into a fight (CC2 ch27). Q puts Andrew's soul in Sim's clone (Ch. 28), killing Andrew.
  
  Introduce Seekers. Edmond meets with Kingsley somehow. Family drama. Tortoise eye. Edmond and Kingsley run to where Q is. Q Leaves Sim to cry; meets Hirun. Hirun takes Q to slums, they meet Tali and Fort fighting. Tali burns everything, including herself(she can't live without fort) and disappears. Q feels remorse and heals everyone then passes out.
  Edmond and Shoy find Q, take him to castle. Cue Esvera getting killed by Q and Edmond covering it up flashback. Edmond and Shoy argue over killing Q or not. Q awakes, overhears, panics. Edmond's left looking for a negator. Seekers meet self-destructive Tali.
  She can't figure out why she won't die. It's not fair. Sim finds them. Sekkers explain Prophecy.
  Sim joins seekers to kill Q/SS. Tali wanders aimlessly for a few days.
  Fort goes to castle to thank Q for saving him earlier. Shoy answers the door, stares, stalls. Finally possesses Fort and realizes it's his son. Cue Fort's backstory with Hirun, the No Rez. Shoy gets idea, asks to meet Hirun. Shoy & Fort bring Hirun to castle. Show possesses Q, puts tortoise eye/esvera into Hirun. Fort disowns Shoy. Edmond comes back with Negator, throws Shoy out. Negator goes on Q after fight with Q/SS. Right after, seekers show up. Political shit.
  When seekers are about to find Q, Fort kills them. Sim and fort fight. Sim gets away.
  Sim and Shoy meet up just as Tali destroys entire city, killing everyone but Sim, Shoy, Edmond, Q, and Fort.
  Q's negator's lost somehow. Immediately Q/SS kills Fort. Edmond tries to kill Q/SS, but can't. Q/SS walks out to ruined city to find Phoenix. Finds Sim and kills him. Ignores Shoy.
  Q makes copy of self, puts Atlaos(Andrew) in it. Clone can hardly function; dies soonafter. Q/SS wishes Hirun were still alive. Shoy watches in horror.
  Q/SS eventually finds phoenix. Steals her soul. Trying to prevent this, Shoy possesses Q/SS/Phoenix. Manages to make 3 copies of Q, one with each rez inside. Amind mental chaos, shoy gets trapped in clone and dies. So does Phoenix. All that's left is Q/SS.
  Edmond shows up. Commands SS to let Q go. SS is lost, Q comes back just as Edmond dies (heartattack kickback to his rez). Q is left alone, no rez at all. OR NOT?! He has Fort's decay arm. But to use it, he would end up dying, himself.
  
  
  NEW CC3 IDEAS (CC4)
  Aim for 200 pages per book
  *BOOK 1*
  Book starts in Fort's POV. Fort works in restaurant owned by Heartlies. It's explained Heartlies own everything. There is some altercation with customers/staff that makes it known that all Heartlies hate him and only deal with him because he's Tali's bf. He comes home. Tali is unappreciative watching TV. Sim comes busting in while Fort takes a shower. Sim says Andrew(amigo ) got a hit out on a No rez, and that Red(tali's dead brother) was brought up. Sim wants to know what really happened that night during Red's death. Sim ends up killing Tali somehow.
  Fort comes out to find Tali dead. Fort tries to kill Sim, but Sim runs off. Tali explodes and it burns half of Fort's body. He wakes up in a hospital, some Heartlies arguing about how Fort killed Tali and they shouldn't be saving Fort. When they leave, Fort runs to the slums to hide out with Hirun, the no rez. Hirun is suspicious, wondering why Fort disappeared in the first place. He recounts Red's death. Fort doesn't remember any of that. They decide Fort's memory has been messed with via some sort of brainwashing rez. Sim overhears somehow.
  Flash forward. Sim in house with Andrew and Shoy. Sim tells Andrew about Hirun dealing with Fort and one of them probably not having a rez. He wants to go with Andrew on the mission, because he's eager to get in the family business of killing, but Andrew refuses.
  They are en route to the slums, and that is when the soul stealer strikes them, killing andrew.
  Since Shoy can feel tortoise eye, he goes to find his ex-wife. Running there, he finds Q, who at this point is all of or mostly the soul stealer and not Q.
  
  Shoy possesses Q. The story starts over again, from Q's POV.
  
  
  
  
  
  *BOOK 2*
  Now, we begin with Q's Talvia flashback of when he awoke and switched bodies. Then he goes to Edmond and trains with Esvera, goes on about how he's scared of his rez, etc., etc.
  At some point, a reference to Shoy's fuck up in Talvia should be made.
  Edmond volunteers to go to Dexterity, they leave, set up shop in the castle, Q goes on reconnasiance mostly unnoticed.
  One day, Q finds Tali. She's obsessing over Fort to herself. He goes, as a stranger, to console her, feeling a strange calling to her (similar to cc1). She pours everything to Q. He tries to kill her, but can't. She ends up burning him and running off. Rather than following her, Q reports to Edmond, who asks about the burn. Q suddenly finds himself lying, and Edmond grows extremely suspicious about Q and the phoenix. He takes hold of the collar/negator and uses his rez to get the truth out of Q. After Q tells the truth to Edmond, Q shoves edmond away and runs off, breaking the negator in the process. Q searches again for the phoenix. On the way, he overhears Sim and Andrew arguing about killing things. He realizes what their rezzes are, and decides to attempt his experiment.
  Kills Andrew in the process of the whole Sim clone deal. He later takes Sim's soul as well. As Q begins to walk off, Shoy encounters him, and possesses him.
  
  *BOOK 3*
  
  Now, we're back to present time (Shoy possessing Q).
  Q/Shoy picks up Shoy's body and begins to walk back to the castle, but before he can get anywhere, he gets ejected from Q's body and back into his own. In fear of Q's kickback, he runs away as soon as possible.
  Q/SS lets Shoy go, and instead goes after the phoenix again. He meets her arguing with Fort. Hirun is also there. Tali burns everyone and kills herself ('she can't live without Fort). Q/SS feels remorse due to Tortoise Eye's kickback, and heals all of them.
  
  Out of nowhere, an airship docks nearby and the seekers come up. They spot Q and immediately begin to detain him. Edmond, having felt all of this go down and made his way there, appears on scene and fights against the seekers, telling them that all he needs is a negator. A negator had been part of the process of killing Q, so they slap it on him and Q spaces out a bit.
  
  The seekers argue with Edmond over the whole point of keeping him alive. Edmond argued that the soul stealer can kill the phoenix once and for all. The seekers say that's what Shoy believes, and it's a bunch of bull. Edmond states that he is not his brother and he won't make the same mistakes.
  Shoy flashback of Talvia fuck-up is inserted here.
  
  *BOOK 4*
  
  Suddenly, Q glares at Hirun, the No rez. His eyes glow a bright green. He gets an intense desire to kidnap him. Without explanation, he grabs Hirun, steals the seekers' airship, and runs off. Once in the air and away from the seekers, Q, now mostly the SS, takes off the negator and decides he's going to experiment on the no rez.
  
  He takes Esvera/Tortoise Eye and places it inside Hirun. Hirun then 'becomes' Esvera, Q's replacement mother. Esvera and Q have a very intimate conversation, about how Q can overcome this, what he's doing is evil, etc., etc. Q is internally fighting the SS and says he's very scared.
  Esvera says that if he really wants to end it, he should convince Fortenra to use his resonance soul (Decay Arm). If possible, somehow work in that Fort is Shoy's/her son.
  
  Q says she's right, but instead of turning around to get either of them, he goes down to see the phoenix again. He lands the airship, and with esvera/hirun tagging along, finds the new phoenix who's been trapped/imprisoned/contained by Shoy. Shoy says he's going to kill her before it's too late. Q jumps in and tries to kill Shoy first. Shoy possesses Q one more time, and then steals tali's soul while inside Q. He makes 2 clones, one with the phoenix soul, one with the SS- or so he thought. Turns out he was ejected again, and Shoy ends up in a Q clone, unable to use his rez. Shoy dies.
  
  Right as Tali is about to die inside a clone, Q/SS steals the soul back and puts it inside Esvera/Hirun.
  
  The phoenix soul overtakes Hirun/Esvera, and thanks the soul stealer for freeing her. She had been trapped in human bodies, and as it turns out, her true goal is to free all resonance souls from being continually trapped in human bodies. That was why she created the soul stealer.
  She asks SS to join her in the rez rebellion, trying to find ways to seperate rezzes from normal souls and bring it to the way it was before, when the rezzes were gods, etheral, and unconstricted by physical bodies of flesh. She explains that now once she dies (inside the no rez's body), she will stay dead.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  *BOOK 5*
  Q wakes up, he's surrounded by bars, blindfolded (he can possess people through eye contact thanks to Shoy) and large, numerous negators. They're no longer in dexterity. They've transported him to a maximum security prison within DeFrist(monte cristo). Edmond is there (outside the bars). As it turns out, Q had been unconcious for a few days.
  
  Edmond explains the situation: he's convinced the DeFristons to not kill him, to sympathize with Q's trying to be normal and restricting his ki/rez. The Trisks will be coming soon to determine a suitable punishment for what happened. Q asks if Edmond knows what happened to the Phoenix. Edmond says no. Q tells Edmond what went down, that he put the phoenix inside the no rez, and the phoenix said that freed her. When she died, she'd be gone forever from human bodies. Edmond asks what about Esvera and Hirun. Q says he doesn't know, but they probably died with the physical body of the phoenix. He asks if anything happened to Dexterity. Edmond says no, just that he got with the seekers and transported Q asap to a better location to keep Q detained.
  
  Q says he can't feel the SS, and that he feels safe now, but he thinks if he transfers all his rezzes to a no rez, it may die. But he doesn't want to harm another innocent person. Edmond tells him to not worry; he'll handle it, and leaves (he's very depressed about this though; he knows he's going to die).
  
  Several days later, the trisks come. But due to the SS's reputation, they keep him in the cell for the verdict. The trisks say there is only one cure to kill the SS but not Q. They look to edmond, who's present.
  
  'Bring the prisoner to the bars. Turn the negators off. Restrain the prisoner. Remove the blindfold.
  Edmond Cannes, order the soul stealer to die.'
  
  Edmond begins to cry. He orders it, and Q is cured. But Edmond dies of heart attack; the kickback from his rez.
• 
  So back before I abandoned the whole POV Book idea, I had started the first book from Fell's point of view. I won't be doing that anymore, but here's what I had written if anyone felt like reading it regardless.
  Believe it or not, he's my favorite character and I'm kinda upset I've never been able to write him how I thought he should be written lol.
  
  Note that The League = The Coalition of Countries here.
  
  Spoiler

  In Gaia, nearly everyone has them. A resonance soul is a soul with a special power. Some people think souls and resonants are separate. Others believe they are connected. The real answer is probably very complicated.
  
  Here in Dexterity, we just call a resonance soul "Rez." Around here, if your rez isn't a good power, you're dead. Around here, only the strongest survive. Hundreds of years ago, before rezzes existed, Dexterity was an uninhabited island. An old country of some ancient civilization no one remembered. The League decided it would be a good idea to dump all the criminals they didn't want to deal with here.
  I guess they thought the criminals would die. But no, they bred, and built, and created. And now Dexterity is a country full of bitter, violent citizens who demand rights just like any of the other countries. That doesn't mean we get it. The other countries leave us alone. It's too dangerous in Dexterity. Murder is common. Our bill of rights should have a disclaimer. The very first resonance soul was born here. I don't wonder why. It seems obvious to me.
  
  
  
  My name is Fell. I grew up in the slums of Dexterity. Unlike everyone else, it seems, I worked hard to get where I am today. I wanted to do things the right way. I wanted to be proud of what I do.
  
  "Watch it, Boy!" An angry man I accidentally bumped into while clearing his table of dishes.
  
  "I apologize. It won't happen again," I say softly, continuing to load the dishes. I work on a strict time table. This restaurant is busy, and there are never enough employees.
  
  The man grabbed my left hand. "You dare dismiss me?!" He said, pulling me up. I could see it. He was going to punch me. I dropped my plastic bin of dishes, grabbed the closest plate with my free hand, and smashed the porcelain into his face. He yelled, trying to get shards out of his eyes. In the process, he let go of me. I picked up my bin and left quickly to the kitchen.
  
  I am not helpless. But I have to act humble around these people. Even though I hate this place, it gives me a paycheck and a place to live. Before now, I lived under an overpass with a person named Hikari. We grew up together. On the streets. I did a lot of things I don't want to do anymore to survive. Maybe it's a pipe dream, but I hope I can be... Honorable. You know, someone who doesn't step all over other people to reach the top of the ladder. I might be on the bottom rung right now, but eventually I'll work my way up. Maybe. Hopefully. It's hard to tell. Especially when you don't use violence to climb up.
  
  "Fell! Watch where you're going!"
  As I walked through the kitchen to get to the deep sink, the cook yelled at me. I'm not sure why. But once I got to the sink, I dumped all the dishes in and started washing them. Anything to get my mind off the awful people I interacted with every day.

 

[Vars]

bold is something I need to define later (glossary etc.) Or probably need to change the name to something else.



"I don't think I can do this," said the young teenager on his stomach. A man lay in the dirt beside him, his blue eyes peering through the scope fo a large rifle-like weapon.

"You'll be fine," he coldly returned. "I'm going to shoot the Phoenix, then you're going to trap her with your Resonance."

The teen, Roy, shook his head. "No, I don't think I can control it well enough to contain the explo--"

Sean Cannes, the man behind the weapon, turned to Roy and put a hand on the boy's shoulder. "You'll be fine," he said again, but this time with more care in his voice.
To Sean, this was a mission he couldn't fail. Roy was an Aloevan Azure, a relatively rare Resonance Soul with the ability to create pocket dimensions for a limited time. The success of the mission was entirely dependent on Roy's ability to control his Resonant.

They had been following the Phoenix for quite some time, but she had finally gone into hiding in Nemor's west land. Sean had conquered many hardships to get here. He had to invent his Incinerator weapon, the had to convince the Coalition they didn't need an army anymore to take out this Prophecy. He'd planned to take care of her himself, but ran into Roy by chance along the way, and found he would be the perfect partner. Instead of trying to lure the Phoenix away from people, he could kill her wherever, and use Roy's Resonant to contain the resulting explosion.

After the Prophecy had seemed to set up camp in Nemor, it had taken him weeks to get the right permits to enter. Sean needed everything to be above board. He needed Defrist, and The Coalition, to do right by the people, especially in this matter, and especially with Nemor. Considered to be neutral, the country is notoriously difficult to negotiate with. And, being a DeFriston, Sean had much explaining to do.

Rather than attempting to convert the Nemorians to the Coalition's Prophecy beliefs, he instead focused on the facts: Nemor had a nature-based culture and Phoenixes had a tendency of blowing things up. Sean was there to prevent that from happening. Which was, of course, also the purpose of his rather complicated weapon-- he'd designed it, and thus would lay claim to the title of inventor- but he'd had engineers in Cybil actually build it. The Incinerator, as he called it, was designed to prevent the Phoenix from reincarnating.

"I can't do it," Roy began to shake.

"You. Will. Be. Fine," Sean stressed each word, gritting his teeth. He wasn't going to let this kid ruin his plan now. Not after everything he'd been through to get here. "I am going to count down from three. And when I give the word, you will contain the explosion."

Roy bit his lip, holding back his disagreement while Sean prepared the shot.

They were both atop a hill, overlooking a wooded pond. The Phoenix was alone here, however a Nemor village was only a few yeards away. Should their plan fail, the explosion would stretch far enough to incinerate them all.

As Sean looked through his scope, he lined up the crosshairs over his prize: the woman washing herself in the pond. She ran both her hands playfully thtough her long, blazen red-orange hair that she had draped over the fair skin of her bare shoulders. Around her, the water began to steam.

"Three..." Sean began, his right index finger eager to squeeze the trigger.
"Two..."
The man, too impatient to wait for "one," fired the large weapon, a small missile striking the woman's chest just as she looked up in shock.

"Now, Roy!" Sean shouted, sitting up and looking to his partner. "Roy!!"

The teen lay with eyes open, unable to move.
There was no time to question it. The flames engulfed the woman immediately after she'd been hit. Her body was eviscerated, the water in the pond evaporating within an instant. A fire-filled shockwave expanded in all directions, roaring toward them and the Nemor village. Sean abandoned the weapon, standing quickly and trying to pull Roy away, but the boy was dead weight in his shock and wouldn't budge. Unable to save him, Sean left him in order to save his own life instead.

The resulting damage had killed hundrends of Nemorians. The country accused him of attempted genocide, and political discussions were set back decades. Sean returned to his country of DeFrist, where Nemor demanded some type of retribution and once again closed its borders to all outsiders.

In the Judgement Hall, a gavel came down hard, enchoing throughout the high dome-cielinged chamber and resounding through each member of the Coalition's ears.

"Sean Cannes, the Trisks have determined the punishment which will affect you most." The judge's words were clear and concise, but as he spoke, all eyes were on the Trisks. A triad of back robed people whose faces were cloaked in shadow, they faced eachother in a circle with their claw-like hands sticking out of their robes in front of them while they telepathically communicated with one another and the judge, who relayed the information to the rest of the Hall.

"Your citizenship to DeFrist is forfeit. All your weath will be transferred to your brother."

Sean looked down at the podium he stood behind, his hands curling into fists at the judge's harsh words.

"Furthermore," the judge continued, "Your newborn son shall be banished to a location you nor your wife will be privy."

At this, Sean's head shot up, mouth agape. His hands gripped the edges of the podium while he watched two soldiers approaching his screaming wife to take the now crying baby out of her arms.

The judge banged the gavel a few more times, urging for silence. Once the infant was taken, the woman's red eyes glared at Sean and then to the judge, her tears still fresh and apparent on her face and her mouth scowling openly.

"Lastly," the judge spoke loudly to project his voice over the continuing sobs of Sean's bereaving wife, "Sean is from this moment on, excommunicated from the Coalition and barred from using the name Cannes." The judge leaned forward from behind his own podium, staring down the man he was sentencing. "You are urged to leave, but we are not forcing you to."