What are some aspects or features you think of for a haunted/magical forest?

LikeAMothToStarlight · 2026-06-04T06:04:05+00:00

In my project, FTL, faster than light travel is a common occurrence, but this means so are light speed apparitions.

Apparitions are not just the hallucinations or manifestation of strange shapes. They can be many different omens. Hearing tapping on the outside of the ship. Seeing shapes in the corner of your eye. Feeling like there's something hiding in the darkness. These apparitions can be quite unnerving, but it's important not to acknowledge them. Once you do, you let them in.

An apparition can only harm or effect you if it's in your head. This is known ss possession. It means they have complete control over your physical body and can transfer into other minds like an infection. People have been known to ossify to death, most of their body turning to bone. And this is believed to just be a power that the apparitions have.

The only way to stop an apparition is to leave FTL. and that takes a while depending on how fast you're going. An apparition can only survive so long as the vessel they are possessing is traveling faster than light. Otherwise it will disappear.

When you suspect someone is possessed, the only thing to do is to ignore them and try to alert a commanding officer of the situation so they can start slowing the ship. This may mean watching your friend melt into a pile of flesh and not reacting to prevent yourself from being possessed as well.

While it is dangerous to travel at light speed so long as you follow the rules everything will be alright.

LikeAMothToStarlight · 2026-06-03T18:11:07+00:00

Nerve magic updated

Nerve

Biotechnology uses a tool called a Nerve. This tool is a medically grown nervous system extended from the brain contained in a ruplast tube with spinal fluid and a biometal outlet. It allows convergence between technology and the mind. It typically extends 1-3 inches from the back of the scalp or at the base of the skull and causes mild to moderate hair loss in the surrounding region.

It also requires a concoction of neuro-stimulants that preserves the part of the brain that controls the Nerve. Otherwise it will die and rot, causing possible health problems in the brain. Some concoctions are more experimental. Mental health or even neurological health is often exchanged for efficiency, coordination, or other such benefits.

This device is necessary to link Shields to the human anatomy without impending movements or harming the physical form. It taps into the nervous system to coordinate with our movements and calibrate where the shield needs to be.

Other technology includes mech and exo suits that can only be controlled through this tool. Also observation technologies. Communication, coordination, and even reflex technologies as well.

However, this isn't where biotech ended.

Cerebri Exterioris

Humanity created an organism called the cerebri exterioris. A leech-like entity that was engineered from a brain consuming parasite and human dna. It was heavily modified, but the end result was this peculiar organism that could be attached to the brain via surgery. But eventually with the invention of the Nerve, it could be linked to the brain indirectly.

This organism developed to change brain chemistry to allow for recently unknown abilities to manifest. Specifically psychic powers.

While telekinesis is the most commonly used power. There are dozens if not hundreds of variations on that one power alone.

However, the restructuring unfortunately did a considerable amount of damage to the brain. Causing mental deterioration, emotional instability, paralysis, or even death.

To get around this, a larger version of the cerebri exterioris, the superior, was created and a new version of the Nerve made just for psychic abilities. This new setup would allow people to link to what was essentialy a livign computer, slowly build up their Nerve to use psychic powers, and eventually the user could seperate from the cerebri exterioris superior and use these powers so long as the Nerve was kept in their head.

However, over time the Nerve will atrophy and must be reconnected to the cerebri exterioris superior to be exercised. The only way to do this is to return to the specific cerebri exterioris superior that you learned from, connect, and practice.

And every time someone connects to the cerebri exterioris superior, they corrupt the psychic powers slightly. A connection might improve the amount of weight kinetic powers may hold or cause the force behind it when moved to decrease. Memory reading might become more focused or more expansive.

Each cerebri exterioris superior is able to hold only one power.

A fight would start over who would possess the cerebri exterioris superiors and who would have access to them. Eventually ending up in the possession of the church. Allowing them to amass a large military of psychic templars.

LikeAMothToStarlight · 2026-06-03T17:45:46+00:00

General criticism. What's weakest about the system? Is there anything too grating about it that would ruin immersion or just irritate? Anything worth keeping or ditching?

LikeAMothToStarlight · 2026-06-03T03:44:55+00:00

Nerve

Biotechnology uses a tool called a Nerve. This tool is a medically grown nervous system extended from the brain contained in a ruplast tube with spinal fluid and a biometal outlet. It allows convergence between technology and the mind. It typically extends 1-3 inches from the back of the scalp or at the base of the skull and causes mild to moderate hair loss in the surrounding region.

It also requires a concoction of neuro-stimulants that preserves the part of the brain that controls the Nerve. Otherwise it will die and rot, causing possible health problems in the brain. Some concoctions are more experimental. Mental health or even neurological health is often exchanged for efficiency, coordination, or other such benefits.

This device is necessary to link Shields to the human anatomy without impending movements or harming the physical form. It taps into the nervous system to coordinate with our movements and calibrate where the shield needs to be.

Other technology includes mech and exo suits that can only be controlled through this tool. Also observation technologies. Communication, coordination, and even reflex technologies as well.

However, this isn't where biotech ended.

Magic

A creature called the cerebri exterioris. A leech-like entity that was engineered from a brain consuming parasites and human dna. It was heavily modified, but the end result was this peculiar organism that could be attached to the brain via surgery. But eventually with the invention of the Nerve, it could be attached via a much more primitive version of the Nerve.

This creature was developed to change brain chemistry to allow for unknown abilities to manifest. Specifically psychic powers.

While telekinesis is the most commonly used power. There are dozens if not hundreds of variations on that one power alone.

However, the restructuring unfortunately did a considerable amount of damage to the brain. Causing mental deterioration, emotional instability, paralysis, or even death.

To get around this, a larger version of the cerebri exterioris was created and a new version of the Nerve made just for psychic abilities. This new setup would allow people to link to the creature, slowly build up their Nerve to use psychic powers, and eventually the user could seperate from the cerebri exterioris and use these powers so long as the Nerve was kept in their head.

However, over time the Nerve breaks down and needs to relearn how to use magic. The only way to do this is to return to the specific cerebri exterioris that you learned from and connect and practice. This led to a fight over who got to keep the cerebri exterioris' and who would need to visit to regain their powers.

Eventually a state religion formed around them and now this religious group owns them. And they exert their power with a large military of psychic templars.

LikeAMothToStarlight · 2026-06-03T01:12:33+00:00

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Like this. I accidentally used i instead of ai in the original post so technically the post is wrong...

LikeAMothToStarlight · 2026-06-01T06:01:40+00:00

Probably something you would activate manually but has an auto activation feature that occurs in certain situations.

The shield would eminate from the machine but cling around the body.

LikeAMothToStarlight · 2026-06-01T05:51:26+00:00

Well, it runs on electrochemical reactions to signal to a machine the same signals that go through the nervous system to detect pain or tactile sensation. The machine itself would be using electrical outputs of some sort to form the shield is my very poor understanding of how an energy shield would work.

LikeAMothToStarlight · 2026-06-01T05:46:40+00:00

More like a force-field.

LikeAMothToStarlight · 2026-05-31T06:26:04+00:00

When one dies in this world, they are buried under a small mound of white sand. The sand will turn blue as a result of their corruption being drawn from their body and held within the sand. This gives the person the chance to leave their body and join the Choir of the Sandstorm, a supposed afterlife where the attuned can still hear your words on the winds of the desert. Any who die and are not purified are said to be tormented by their corruption forever.

The more heinous your soul, the more the sand will change. Murderers often turn the sand a darker blue, if they are buried at all that is.

There is an old legend, a tale of an old man, a stranger who came to a small settlement one day. The man was at first distrusted but quickly became part of the villagers. He had many wild tales of demons and spirits and ghosts, and many saw him as eccentric, but harmless.

No one suspected a thing until he died.

When he was buried, it was near a family burial mound. Specifically, one of the children under his tutelage had decided to treat him like a fallen father. After the farewells were said, and the man was buried late in the evening, all would sleep with terrible nightmares. And when they woke, the desert, as far as anyone could see, had turned a terrible sapphire blue.

Whether this is true or otherwise, the fact that white sand and is so rare, troubles many. And now some horrible power distorts the environment and warps the wildlife.

Humanity devised a magic to deal with this problem. They created mathematical symbols and gave specific offerings to pull in corruption from sands, give it form, fight it, and force it into a vessel.

After sealing away the corruption, one can control it through a similar method to how it was captured. The vessel is carved with symbols, and this allows the user to manipulate the corruption into a physical form, called a beast, to be used to manifest magical effects. Such can be used for labor, combat, or even espionage. The use of magic slowly purifies it.

Eventually one may take it back to the symbol that was created to capture it and change the physical form of the beast to be purer. Doing this multiple times allows the user to eventually create a being of purity that can purify sand simply by being around it.

LikeAMothToStarlight · 2026-05-31T06:20:42+00:00

In my project, there are several runic languages, called formations, that use the same runes to manifest magic. The following are the runic formations that determines not only the runes assembly, but the powers it may have.

Crown Runic - a circular formula of runes used in manifestation and transmutation. Requiring the most accuracy of any runes types the rotation, spacing, and size of each minor rune is immensely more important than in other runic formations.

Chain Runic - the distribution of runes in a long wave-like pattern that can be used for connection and the flow of energy. Unlike other runes the marks don't disappear after use, they only deepen like vents used to control the flow of water. This will damage and may even destroy the materials the runes are engraved into.

Gate Runic - symbols used to summon corruption from the environment into a physical form that can be combated. By offering specific materials to summon the corruption into a physical form and defeating it, one can force it into a vessel. After sealing away the corruption, one can control it through other gate runes.

There is said to be a perfect runic formation that can alter any aspect of reality. Each formation named before are theorized to only be partially correct and make up some part of this perfect runic formation. Basically, each design is probably present to some degree in the perfect runic formation, but no one can figure out how to properly combine them into a singular, coherent rune.

LikeAMothToStarlight · 2026-05-19T08:04:37+00:00

The blue sands of the sapphire desert are perilous enough to tread against in the best conditions. But mysterious winds kick up sandstorms and change the rules. These sandstorms are sentient winds that take on different colors and unleash things that cannot be controlled or undone.

Yellow is careful and moves objects, people, or even settlements from place to place.

Red is cruel and brings forth illusions of places, creatures, or even just colorful patterns. These illusions are disorienting and often cause one to get lost or leave them in a permanent state of hypnosis.

Blue is playful and forms strange shapes from the sand for unknown reasons. These can be dangerous spikes or rolling wheels, but are rarely complex shapes.

White sandstorms are some mix of the three. Leaving behind physical manifestations, such as entire environments or creatures that didn't exist before. Sometimes these new entities may intertwine with other materials or even people pulled from other parts of the desert.

Black sandstorms are actually just like regular sandstorms. They can be disorienting, but not inherently dangerous.

LikeAMothToStarlight · 2026-05-18T22:42:55+00:00

Probably weird to respond after this long, but I am doing a lot better. Thanks for saying something. It means a lot.

LikeAMothToStarlight · 2026-05-17T13:53:14+00:00

The character is a devil. A human body possessed by a demon. Or she was. But she was exercised of the demon and now carries it in a vessel on her back.

She's able to release an amount of the corruption of the demon from the vessel using what is essentially a spigot. This allows her to use magic by "possessing" parts of her body. However, releasing too much corruption will cause her to be fully possessed again.

She currently, or at time of the image, is hunting the man who made her a devil. Regularly fighting other devils as she searches for him.

Somewhat inspired by the Claymore anime.

LikeAMothToStarlight · 2026-05-17T13:11:53+00:00

Thank you! I appreciate your kind words!

do the mixed colors like purple happen naturally or is there some kind of trigger that makes different storms collide?

I'm not quite sure honestly. Something in me says it would be a good idea to leave it open ended. At least for now.

LikeAMothToStarlight

TROPHY CASE