Beyonder

Biodata

Power Progression

Lord follows Master in the conventional hierarchy; projecting a fused Characteristic outward can create a domain. Higher One is identified as a fifth stage, reached by Evan’s ancestor Kaisha Mason 86 306.

Origins and Characteristics

Humans possess Spirituality but no Beyonder Characteristics by nature. The Characteristics they absorb originate in Monsters, and can be obtained by hunting Beyonder creatures or incorporated into Magic Potions. Taking them in also introduces Bestiality: a Beyonder who loses their sense of self risks losing control and becoming beast-like 33.

• Assimilation: Characteristics can be developed gradually. Allowing years for the body to adapt can keep weaknesses less severe than rapidly activating the same powers 161 162.
• Potions: Temporary potions offer short-lived flexibility; permanent ones can establish lasting power. Potion poisoning and the cost of ingredients are major constraints, particularly for Demon Hunters 22.
• Inheritance: Beyonder knowledge is passed through inherited Characteristics and spoken tradition. Evan receives memories and instruction from earlier Demon Hunters while digesting his lineage’s Characteristic 33.

Paths and Professions

Five established Beyonder Signifiers organize the mainstream paths: Sun, Moon, Tree of Life, Holy Grail, and Gold 33.

Demon Hunters, Witches, and Mages are called the three disreputable Professions. They lack established Signifiers and must find their own routes forward. That freedom leaves them less bound to a prescribed path, but brings a high death rate, a low advancement ceiling, and uncertainty beyond Master 34. Because Demon Hunters may take whichever Characteristics they can obtain, finding three that will fuse can be especially difficult 177.

Risks and Limits

• Losing control: Bestiality can erode a Beyonder’s humanity; physical Beastification may leave permanent deformities and loss of Spirituality 33 260.
• Incompatible powers: Characteristics can clash during fusion. Byron gives Bloodthirsty Species self-healing and a Demon’s flame as an example of a combination he considers impossible to fuse 177.
• Weaknesses: Powers can carry specific counters. Bloodthirsty Species can recover from severe physical damage, but solar holy water destroys Sanguine-tainted remains; silver also provokes a severe reaction in Evan after he gains a Bloodthirsty Species Characteristic 48 108.
• Status suppression: A Beyonder can envelop and suppress a lower-Status Characteristic with their own, though direct contests of Spirituality differ from physical combat 186.
• Advancement: Evan’s promotion to Expert provokes resistance from his Characteristics and leaves him with Spiritual Shock, sharply reducing his maximum Spirituality until he recovers 179 180.

Society

Beyonder society is kept secret and tightly controlled, though ordinary people drawn into its affairs may become Beyonders 86. Power is also tied to institutions, wealth, and population: Hill describes the Gold path’s Capitalists as particularly influential in an industrializing world 22. Beyonders still need money and knowledge to obtain Characteristics, brew potions, and function within ordinary society 22 35.