Fractures
From Summoner
Contents |
The Places Between
The world is not always rough and rigid, set in stone and certain in proportion. Everyone has experienced a feeling that a road is longer than it should be, that a door should not be crossed. They felt a presence or a vastness, or perhaps a void where they knew there was only a broom closet or a garage. In most cases, this feeling is a mere trick of perceptions, the mind realizing that it's working on assumptions, and that anything could be just out of sight.
Sometimes, however, the World breaks down. Rooms become larger than the space can contain. Music begins to play, soothing but grating at the edges of the mind. This music, of course, has no source. The shadows move and watch, stalking freely outside of the light. In short, the uncertainties of the mind decide to make their own rules, and a Fracture comes into shape.
Why They Appear
A Fracture is a breakdown in the standard perception of reality. For some reason, the distortion of belief is so strong, reality must bend to those distortions. The stronger the distortion, the more pronounced the changes become, and the more extreme the experience, the more jarring the distortions. It is rare, however, for a positive experience to deeply shake someone's conception of reality. For this reason, most Fractures are dangerous and disjointed things, threatening or fearful to those who seek safe ground.
Common sites for a Fracture are places that are either locations where a traumatic event occurred, a place that is naturally distorting, or a place where a Summoner has Drawn the Fool. Sites of brutal murders are less common than one would think, but still take a prominent role: Murder in itself is almost old hat, but the sheer vindictive inventiveness of human beings should never be discounted. As far as natural distortions go, anything from places with occult significance to sites of miracles may draw certain demons and warped realities into play. The fact that the site where a Summoner Draws the Fool can often create a Fracture lends credence to theories that the Alter Self is actually called from across the Mirror, and not a self-creation. Of course, this begs the question - why do they come when called, and who tailor-made them so?
Sharp Edges and Distorted Lenses
A Fracture is exactly what it sounds like - a warping and breaking of the natural order. That said, Fractures are not chaotic by any means. They are shaped by the events that caused them, or by the presence of perceptions that react strongly to their unnatural air. Light is often more noticeable within the reach of a Fracture, either in its presence, absense, or strangeness. Lights flicker and gutter, or perhaps bend at right angles to illuminate important parts. Flashlights may even bend away from something eyes are not meant to see. In other places, sounds dance and rebound as something wholly different. Echoes may resound in reverse, or come back in sing-song tones. Perhaps the whispers of demons will reach the ear, but always just too muffled or too soft to be understood. Walls may feel wet to the touch, despite a lack of moisture. The scent of roses and antiseptics may intermingle without an apparent source. The possibilities are as endless as the senses that experience them.
Size is also an abstraction within a Fracture. It is often just the right size for the appropriate mood. The cramped aisles between lockers may go on, seemingly for miles, until one finds himself barely a dozen yards away. A vast mansion may have more rooms than it has any right having, and each door could lead to another version of the grand ballroom, each one more horrifying or inspiring than the last. Take little for granted in a Fracture, except that for all of its strangeness, there is usually nothing entirely unnatural, just an alteration of what already is, was, or could be.
Usually, that is.
Those Who Wander
Many of the demons who wander the places between are just as disjointed and confused as their haunts. Demons, while capable of conversation, rarely have the same mindset or motivations as a human, and can fixate on things that resound with their natures with a focus beyond that of mortal madness. More than that, many of them are lost, cut off from their native Mirror home. Most importantly, those without the means to return are often hungry, and that is frequently the guiding fact between the relations between human and demon.
The site of a ritualistic rape may be watched over by bloody-winged Erinyes, seeking promise-breakers to satisfy their bitter lusts, a lust in every sense of the world, from the sensual to the sadistic. A 'haunted forest' may draw the baying of the hounds of the Wild Hunt, seeking the most dangerous game. Possessed keris knives may float or hang from doorways, seeking to 'protect' the hearth of non-existant families, or to drink the hearts of unworthy wielders. The demons called to Fractures often are drawn by interest, and then trapped. This should be taken into account both for their nature and their consequent reaction to their new environment.
The Nature of Fractures
Following are some useful traits for establishing a Fracture for characters to wander or explore. These traits represent guidelines, and some fractures defy even these rules. The largest recorded Fracture took up an entire city, casting exactly 11 minutes a night into a timeless horror that only those with an awakened Ego could sense. The rest were either entirely ignorant within 'real time' and trapped in place, or a rare few were left to observe in terror as only their eyes could function...and demons prowled as gods upon the town.
A Fracture exists as long as it is perceived. When rumors of the place die, so does it die. Raw skepticism pointed directly at these places can also unravel them rather quickly, if, say, a formal investigation seeks to classify the oddities. The exception to this rule is if beings of Ego reside within it for several hours within any given week. These special observers give the place a degree of steely resilience, lasting as long as the Fracture remains unresolved in the minds of those who care for it or hate it.
Optional Merit: Fracture (O to OOOOO; Special)
Some Summoners are able to locate stable, (mostly) harmless places of strange perception to call their own, sometimes even homes well-suited to their Ego. It is rumored that certain Definitions may be able to shape Fractures, but if so, those secrets are well-guarded. The rest must be found, tamed, and changed through the experiences that occur within.
Effect: Each aspect of Fracture cannot be raised above 5 points, but a character may have more than 5 total dots in Fracture, and may pool them with other characters to develop a shared home or base of operations. The individual effects of different aspects will be discussed below.
Vector
Each Fracture has its own rules on when it exists. A small few are always in place - these are often the shortest-lasting. Fractures that intend to remain, remain shrouded in mystery, all the better for stories to go on unconfirmed. Many Fractures have 'triggers' that bring the place's nature to the fore. For some, it is dependent on situations ranging from the emotional state of those within range to the presence of artificial light. For others, the factors can be rigidly tied to the time of day, the midnight hour being almost painfully cliche. Generally, if one stays within a Fracture, the Fracture will continue to go on actively until someone leaves. The character will simply find themselves deposited somewhere nearby, sometimes only minutes later, sometimes with as much as a day or two passing without their notice.
Effect: Treat dots in Fracture Vector as a form of security - knowing exactly how to get in makes it easier to conceal the place's presence or prepare for threats. Treat each dot as a +1 bonus to Initiative and also as penalties to rolls for an intruder to find or gain entry to the Fracture. Some legendary vectors may prevent interruptions altogether.
Threshold
Fractures vary in the reach of their influence, and can take up no more 'real' space than the extent of the stories or events surrounding them. As such, the nature of Fractures tend to improvise for dramatic effect. Within a Fracture's Threshold, it can bend, stretch, twist, or alter spatial perceptions and may slow perceptions of the passage of time through blackouts and memory holes. Those who possess Eidetic Memories may find themselves recalling long moments with closed eyes, or remembering hours of Mirror wandering where others simply remember walking through a door a day later. As a rough rule of thumb, a Fracture cannot expand in size within sight of the character. This effectively limits a Fracture to expanding along corners, doorways, and other sensory obstructions, commonly no more than doubling in size.
Effect: Each dot in Fracture Threshold serves to represent the 'actual' space contained within that perceived area.
| O | An abandoned storage closet or a small apartment; 1-2 'rooms' |
| OO | A poor, small home or a secluded sculpture garden; 3-4 rooms |
| OOO | A large house, office building, or gallery; 5-8 rooms or a large open area |
| OOOO | An eccentric paedophile's mansion or a series of tornado shelters that once sealed everyone inside; roughly 9-15 rooms or chambers |
| OOOOO | Vast grounds, several floors of an office building, an isolated private beach; potentially countless rooms and chambers |
Kingdom
Each Fracture may find itself colored by the unique natures of the Mirror's realms, taking on aspects of those places. Many things are edible in Muladhara that are not considered real food anywhere else. The waters of Svadhistana have their own special powers. A place where these bounties can be harvested in (relative) safety is a boon in and of itself, either to a character or to the local demon population.
Effect: The particular gifts of the Kingdoms should be evaluated on an individual basis for the benefits they apply. Waters from Svadhistana that incite passion may qualify as a 2-dot benefit, while a Fracture being as malleable as Ajna may warrant a 5-dot benefit, allowing for the creation of many mundane or unusual items as well as a potent 'home defense'.
Network
Any reflective surface or doorway may serve as a pathway to the vast Network of the Mirror. This Network allows beings to travel freely along it, though normally only creatures with the appropriate Arts or the ability to enter Twilight may do so safely. Many Fractures have the unusual benefit or bane to lead to other places. This place cannot be farther away than the farthest person who has heard the rumors involving the particular locale. Since fame leads to investigation, which tends to dissipate Fractures, this is often not much farther than the closest city. The other end of the Network path must also somehow thematically resound with the Fracture itself. Going from a confessional booth to the late priest's grave is a reasonable (if one-way) trip. Those who are aware of the Network path may take it back to the Fracture, but only if they've traveled from the Fracture before.
Effect: Each dot represents a 'stop' along the Network pathway. These may have different doors, or going through the same pathway may lead the character along a sequence, from one place to the other, as long as the last stop leads back to the Fracture.
Landmarks
Perhaps the strangest aspect of Fractures, it is possible for central items within a Fracture to behave in strange ways. A lamp may shed light on any blood a subject has ever shed. The water from an eerily-whining fountain may taste a bit like old cabbage, but heals wounds. The important thing to note is that there's always a catch. The more potent the benefit, usually the more vindictive the payback. How else is the Fracture going to extract the substance that it uses up for the power?
Effect: Treat each dot of Landmark as a localized Symbol. The benefits granted are often ones that last outside of the Fracture or serve as additional means of defense or utility within it. As a secondary benefit, the Price is generally somewhat mitigated by the Symbol's inability to be moved. Gestes often involve actions that maintain the Fracture's survival, and can range from the unusual to the depraved, depending on the power of the Landmark. Some examples include:
Font: For each dot in Landmark, this water receptacle can heal a single level of lethal or bashing damage through a refreshing drink. This can range from elaborate fountains, elementary school-height water fountains, or even vending machines. It takes two 'doses' to heal an aggravated wound. No single Fracture can have more than 5 dots of Font.
Velvet Rope (OOO): The Fracture has an entryway directly into a Velvet Room. The Room changes based on whoever opens the doorway, and until the door is again closed, anyone can go to that Velvet Room and meet the Facilitators within. By necessity, the Velvet Rope has to have the ability to be closed or sealed. For more information on Facilitators, refer to the Storytelling section (to be developed).
