Chosen One Lore
Chosen Ones are mortal creatures empowered by an immortal, given power and a form of immortality within their patron.
Society: The social role of Chosen Ones varies by region and patron, but they are almost always seen as respected figures among the followers of their patron.
Ecology: Whether to serve a higher power, gain otherwise unattainable power or escape the void beyond death, all Chosen Ones come to be from a pact between them and their patron. How this pact comes about is often dependent on what variety of patron is bargained with, each having different methods and needs.
The most commonly bargained with, the Gods are a source of patronage that infers a degree of status among even secular Denizens, and a position of leadership within the faithful. Such Chosen Ones are commonly known as Cleansers for their ability to combat the predations of essence.
Many Cleansers are priests raised from childhood in the service of their God, being blessed with patronage for showing greater devotion than their peers. While this is how most Cleansers are chosen, it is not impossible for a God to approach a creature outside of their faithful.
Whether a devout worshipper or not, a God’s Chosen One always gains the Cleanser Feature, Gods not being able to customize their Chosen Ones. This compels them to obey the command of their patron, acting as a voice for their God in the Mortal Realm.
While it is seldom discovered, due to the rarity of a Cleanser becoming an essence creature, God’s chosen will loose their patron if they are corrupted by essence. If a Cleanser becomes an essence creature, such as by gaining the Essence Mutant or Servitor clan, they will loose the Cleanser Feature and gain the Will Of The Unborn God Feature.
If the Cleanser strikes a new deal with the Unborn God, they may retain the benefits provided by the Cleanser Feature or gain new Features based on the new bargain. If they refuse to make a deal with the Unborn God, they are subsumed and become an avatar of the Unborn God.
While Cleansers serve the Gods directly, Fey Sycophants serve the lesser powers of the Dreamwilds. Archfey are the immortal powers of Elfkind, second only to the Gods themselves. An Archfey most often empower subordinate Elves as Chosen Ones, giving them a fraction of their dominance over the boarder between realms.
However, creatures of the Mortal Realm who have become lost or stranded in the Dreamwilds may find themselves within the court of an Archfey. Be it through a developed devotion to the master of the domain that shelters them or a deal struck out of necessity, such creatures often become Fey Sycophants.
Fey Sycophants serve a similar role to a Cleanser, enforcing the will of their Elven masters. This may take them to other realms in the service of their patron, even returning them to the Mortal Realm.
While Cleansers are seen as spiritual leaders and Fey Sycophants as agents of alien and erratic powers, Penumbra Warlocks are truly feared and despised by mortal society. Those who have pledged their services to the rulers of the Bleak, the Chosen Ones who serve Shade lords are seen as a threat to all life.
The role of a Penumbra Warlock is far more transactional than that of other Chosen Ones. They serve as a link to other realms, giving the Shade that empowered them free access to the warlocks location upon demand.
This makes Penumbra Warlocks hated by mortal life, but gives them greater freedom to pursue their own goals. Since they only have to aid the Shades access outside of the Bleak, they can spend the rest of their time acting freely. This makes bargaining with a Shade a tempting prospect for the more pragmatic Chosen One.
The least understood and most unpredictable form of Chosen One are those who are empowered by a entity of the Beyond. It is not known how many such entities exist, or even if exist is a wholly accurate way of describing them. The uncertainty is born from the ability of such entities to shape their offered Features and restrictions to each individual bargain.
Since the same entity may empower different Chosen Ones with different Features, it is hard to tell if a unusual Chosen One has an unknown patron or is an unusual creation of a well known patron. Despite this, there are a number of well known entities of the Beyond, although well known may be a stretch with such beings. These patrons have the largest and most consistent population of Chosen Ones.
First and foremost in mortal minds, the Chosen of the Unborn God are believed to be the most numerous. Their numbers may be influenced by the Unborn God’s status as the most well known entity of the Beyond. However, their longevity may play an even bigger role.
Chosen of the Unborn God do not age, and are often provided protection from death. As a result, their numbers greatly exceed those of similar entities’ chosen, even if they do not create them at s significantly faster rate.
The Unborn God is also distinguished from any other known patron by their seeming ability to recruit Chosen Ones from the deceased. They possess the ability to bargain with dead souls in the window between death and returning as a Shade, offering to return them to their mortal life in exchange for service.
If a departed creature accepts, they return to life as a Chosen Of The Unborn God, rather than being cast into the Beyond and returning as a Shade in the Bleak. It is thought that the Unborn God and their agents help to perpetuate the idea of Shades being monstrous and damned, to encourage the dead to accept any alternative to becoming one.
Despite not being as prevalent as the Chosen Of The Unborn God, the Chosen Of The Black Goat are as widely spread and far closer to universally excepted. While the Unborn God is considered an ultimate evil outside of essence dominate societies, the Black Goat is often seen a neutral party.
While seen with suspicion by the followers of the Gods, most Denizens think of the Black Goat as simply a strange God. Only those familiar with the faith fully understand that the Black Goat is not a God and has no formal alliance for or against the Gods. This confusion and prevalence makes the Chosen Of The Black Goat something more like strange Cleansers with variant powers in the eyes of Denizens.
The Unknown Enigma and That Which Watches both possess far viewer Chosen Ones, with little observable organized presence. In the case of the Unknown Enigma, this is born from a combination of erratic recruitment and disorganized Chosen Ones. They will typically appear to potentially Chosen Ones for no apparent reason, choosing people without regard for any productive qualities.
The Chosen Of That Which Watches may be far more numerous than estimated, since few formal worshippers of That Which Watches exist. They appear to empower those in search of knowledge, encouraging both their Chosen Ones and worshippers to remain hidden.
The Blade Of Minds and Low King must both be considered when discussing the Chosen Ones of major Invaders. However, the Blade Of Minds seems to negotiate all off their Chosen Ones individually, with no apparent commonalities. Similarly, the Low King will provide almost any power a Chosen One wishes. However, they do not imply restrictions, only helping to share their Chosen Ones’ growth.
Appearance: Most Chosen Ones have no physical traits that distinguish them as Chosen Ones, appearing as they otherwise would. It is possible for a patron to change the appearance of a Chosen One as a part of their pact or as a calling card. For example, most Chosen Of The Black Goat have curling horns reminiscent of a goats.