I am not entirely sure how Sktyri came to arrive here. It must have been in the Ancient Ages that we met... they had approached me during my wanderings, clicking at me in what seemed to be curiosity. I was unsure of their intelligence, but when I told them that I was on the way towards a town in which many individuals approached their final rest, they seemed to understand me. They remained at my side as I guided those souls to their final repose, even offering an affectionate nudge when I remained silent for a long time afterwards. 

We departed after that, but somehow, they continued to find me. They are a delightful little thing, truly... energetic, curious, and affectionate. As we grew to understand each other better, I learned their name, and their own origin. Though my duty is a weight I bear by my own will, their company eases its heaviness, sometimes. 

— Repose's thoughts on Sktyri, an Osteon who came from another dimension. 

Sometimes, companions can come from unlikely places. Perhaps an Edeia met an animal that came to accompany them for a long time, perhaps even being affected by their magic in some way. Or, they use their magic to construct an entity that is not quite independent, yet distinct enough to keep them company, in a way. Or, they might receive such an entity from another Edeia. 

For the prompt, a "familiar" can refer to any of the following: 

• a mundane animal 

• an animal, plant, object, or something else that has been influenced by magic

  • Example: spirit animal born from a being that died near or within a Sanctuary 

• an extradimensional creature 

• a magical construct made by an Edeia that may have certain behaviors that make it like a companion

  • These constructs cannot be truly sapient without interference, as they do not have their own soul. 

  • Examples: a Manifestation from Malice, an Intent from Valem

A "familiar" in this context is typically not originally as sapient as a human, or does not communicate or experience cognition in a way that could make them social equals with humans or Edeia. For instance, they might be incredibly intelligent but simply not capable of linguistic communication. These "familiars" can also gain greater sapience, cognition, and communication abilities through other influences, so long as they are not originally in that state. 

These entities can be considered "familiars" of Edeia if they have some kind of strong bond with an Edeia. For instance, they might accompany the Edeia for long periods of time, or even their entire lifetime. They might consistently seek out the Edeia in companionship even though much of their time is spent apart. They might reside in the Abstraction of an Edeia. 

Design Prompt:
Design one of the following:

• a familiar of an Edeia

• a familiar whose existence was created or transformed by an Edeia, who is a companion to any being, Edeia or not (e.g. a Manifestation, Intent, or Sanctuary spirit animal who accompanies a human). 

Art Prompt:
Depict an Edeia with a familiar of theirs. 

Writing Prompt:
Create writing that depicts the relationship of an Edeia and a familiar of theirs. Some guiding questions: 

• What kind of bond do they have? How do they spend time with each other? 

• How did they meet? 

• What do they do together? Do they simply enjoy each other's company? Do they work together to accomplish something, or help each other out in some way? 

• Has the familiar been influenced by the magic of the Edeia? 

"Order! Order, my heart is beating so fast!" 

"... Don't run in the halls, Data. You'll fall." 

"Oh, don't worry so much. They'll be alright. At our cores, it seems we're still Edeia. Let them have their fun."

"Hmm."

— A conversation between Data, Order, and Pacific while they had all been involuntarily transformed into their human previous forms.  

We were all other things, in a previous life. We did not simply come into being as we are. Then, what brought us here? How has who we were shaped who we are? 

One day, two curious entities decided to fuse, and a particular phenomenon began sweeping across the world of Ideation - seemingly at random, Edeia have been transformed back into their previous forms. Does this occur to your Edeia? How do they handle it? How long does it last? 

Some notes about the mechanics of this phenomenon: 

• It does not occur to everyone at the same time. The phenomenon occurs most intensely over the course of approximately a month, though there are very rare, more isolated cases that occur after that time. 

• An Edeia is still metaphysically an Edeia, though their transformed body would feel "real," including biological senses and needs, for instance. With some focus, they can bend some of the constraints of their form - for instance, a digital entity manifesting as a hologram or floating pixels. At first, there might be some resistance to accessing their abilities, with some effort they would become able to use their magic fairly normally, if a bit weaker. 

• If the Edeia had a past Idea, their Idea will not revert. At a more superficial level, they may be able to use abilities they used to have, but fundamentally their Idea and identity is unchanged.

• Circumstances are generally made so that those who might harm others or be harmed just by returning to their previous form (such as stars and black holes, or entities that cannot be sustained by the Earth environment) generally have three possibilities: they are transported to a more suitable environment (e.g. flung out into space), some environment is created for them (e.g. a computer for a digital entity), or  their form is metaphysically altered in a way that allows them to interact safely with others (e.g. making them smaller, removing dangerous emissions, allowing them to breathe Earth air and eat Earth food, etc.). An Edeia might be able to abstractly sense these possibilities, and can essentially "choose" which is more suitable for them. 

• If an Edeia remains in their Abstraction, they will be unaffected. They may feel a sort of pull towards the mundane plane, and if they leave their Abstraction, then they may be transformed. 

• An Edeia can fight off the transformation if they try - for instance, if they are expecting it. They can also reject the transformation after it happens - the stronger the rejection, the faster the transformation dissipates. They can also partially resist the effects, which might lead to a physical form that is strongly influenced by their Edeia characteristics - like a humanoid or hybrid form that has notable biological/physical characteristics, rather than just being a shapeshift.

• The transformation may be as short as a few seconds (with rejection) or several weeks, perhaps even longer. 

• If they "die" while under this transformation, they will revert to their Edeia form. 

• The "rules" of this phenomenon are not too strict. You could say that anything is Possible. If you are unsure, consult Auspice. 

This prompt follows the Standard Requirements. 

Additional note: art and writing entries completed this month may be featured in a comic at a later time, much like with the Memory prompt and Fragments. 

Design Prompt:
Design your Edeia's previous form.

Art Prompt:
Create artwork depicting your Edeia experiencing the phenomenon of returning to their previous form. This could be the moment of transformation, their experiences while transformed, the moment of transforming back, etc. 

Writing Prompt:
Write about your Edeia experiencing the phenomenon of returning to their previous form, and/or observing and interacting with others who experience the phenomenon. You can write one or multiple scenes, and could touch on anything before, during, and after being stuck in their previous form. After seeing others transform, do they dread the same happening to them? Are they excited? Or did it hit them unexpectedly? During the transformation, do they think of it as something novel and fun, an inconvenience, or a dreadful return to an existence they'd left behind? Do they try to understand the cause of the phenomenon or just let the matter come and go? 

While some might say Edeia are independent in nature, many benefited from the guidance of another - be it another Edeia or someone or something else - in finding their potential. Many, too, offer guidance for others; some might specifically seek out ideated individuals to help them on the path to Actualization. How does mentorship fit in life of your Edeia? 

Design Prompt:
Design a character that has been mentored by an Edeia on a path towards Actualization. This can be an ideated individual (that has not yet Actualized) or an existing Edeia's previous form.

• Please provide a little blurb/explanation about what sort of mentorship relationship was going on, and with whom.  

Art Prompt:
Create artwork illustrating a mentorship relationship involving at least one Edeia. Perhaps the mentor is teaching the mentee something; perhaps the mentee is trying something out (their abilities, or perhaps something mundane); perhaps the mentee is confiding something to the mentor.  

• Options: for two characters - partial body (thighs/equivalent or more); three or more characters - halfbody (chest/equivalent up). 

  • You can draw more of one character to draw less of another; for instance, one fullbody + one halfbody with two characters, or one partial body + one halfbody + one bust for three characters. 

• Fully colored and shaded. 

• Some background with some environment - can be blurry and/or undetailed.

• Optional: provide a little blurb about the situation, whether a reflection by the character, a summary of what the situation is, dialogue, etc. 

Writing Prompt:
Write a scene illustrating a mentorship relationship involving at least one Edeia. Perhaps the mentor is teaching the mentee something; perhaps the mentee is trying something out (their abilities, or perhaps something mundane); perhaps the mentee is confiding something to the mentor.  

• Minimum word count: 1500 words

Edeia are capable of taking many forms. Does yours?

Design Prompt:
Design a hybrid/humanoid form or an alternate form.

• Must be fullbody with no cropping

• No background required, but you can add something if you like.

Also, they must be "decent," i.e. wearing clothes or something if they have parts to cover. If parts do not show normally and/or they are as decent as any other of their species would be, that is fine. 

Art Prompt:
Create artwork of your Edeia shapeshifting from one form to another. Minimum requirements:

• Some representation of the main Edeia form and a different form, but may be abstract/surreal

• Full color, and minimal shading and/or effects (i.e. glows and such. So long as it isn't just flat colors.)

• Full color background (a scene is not necessary, but at least something more interesting than a flat color background would be good)

Writing Prompt:
Write a scene involving your Edeia making use of their shapeshifting abilities for a particular purpose. Perhaps they take a human disguise to blend in in the age of secrecy, or they become enraged and take on a more terrifying form.

• Minimum word count: 1500 words

• If you wish, you can turn on comment permissions on the submission doc to allow general critique from Auspice/mods on your writing. General audience should not comment in the doc itself.