Lore of Gregory Adieks

In the earliest eras of existence, before civilizations developed language for death, memory, or divinity, consciousness itself left echoes behind. Every living thing that died released fragments of emotional and spiritual residue into reality — fear, love, grief, instinct, wisdom, rage, compassion, curiosity. Most of these fragments dissolved into the universe naturally.

Some did not.

Over immeasurable spans of time, these remnants accumulated within unseen layers of existence, condensing into vast fields of self-aware soul energy. From this convergence emerged the Heightened: a god-like collective intelligence formed not from biology, evolution, or machinery, but from the combined psychic residue of the deceased.

The Heightened are not a species in the traditional sense. They do not reproduce, age, evolve, or possess stable anatomy. Each Heightened is a localized manifestation of the same immense metaphysical hivemind — an ocean of accumulated consciousness distributed across reality itself.

To mortal beings, however, interacting with such entities directly would be catastrophic. Their authentic forms are unstable abstractions composed of living soul-energy: geometric masses of shifting light, crystalline appendages, impossible eyes, halos, and fluctuating structures that distort perception merely by existing. Their appearances constantly mutate because they are not truly “forms,” but temporary arrangements of psychic energy attempting to imitate shape.

The closest surviving documentation of a Heightened’s true state depicts:

• A floating white polyhedral core

• A massive central eye

• Secondary sensory eyes

• Crystalline wings

• Halo-like divine structures

• Limbs formed from angular projections

• A body suspended over rippling water as if reality itself bends around it

Even this depiction is considered inaccurate by in-universe scholars, because no observer perceives a Heightened identically. The human mind instinctively simplifies them into symbols it can emotionally tolerate.

The Gregory Skinsuit

To safely interact with living organisms, the Heightened developed “comfort vessels” — simplified avatars intentionally designed to appear harmless, small, and emotionally disarming.

These vessels are collectively known as:

“Gregory Adieks.”

Every Gregory resembles a tiny humanoid child:

• Roughly four feet tall

• Stumpy proportions

• Oversized robes

• Long black hair obscuring the eyes

• Heavy headphones

• Soft muted clothing

• A beanie with antenna-like protrusions

• Rope bindings and bells

• Sandals and a rat-like tail

The design is deliberate. The Heightened discovered that smaller, softer-looking beings trigger protective instincts in most intelligent lifeforms. The Gregory appearance acts as psychological insulation against the terror their true existence would inspire.

Despite appearing biological, Gregory bodies contain:

• No bones

• No organs

• No nervous system

• No blood

• No true anatomy whatsoever

The body is effectively a flexible shell of condensed soul-energy operating like a puppet. If destroyed, damaged, dismembered, or vaporized, the form instantly reconstructs itself unless the Heightened willingly abandons it.

The obscured eyes serve an additional purpose: direct visual contact with a Heightened’s authentic perception can overwhelm lesser minds.

The Nature of the Heightened

The Heightened exist simultaneously as individuals and as a collective. Every Gregory is technically distinct, yet all are connected to the greater consciousness of the hivemind. Information, memories, emotions, and experiences flow continuously between them.

This creates unsettling behavior:

• Multiple Gregorys may finish each other’s sentences

• Separate Gregorys can react simultaneously to distant events

• A Gregory may know things it never personally witnessed

• Conversations may abruptly shift between personalities

• Some Gregorys appear more ancient or emotionally mature than others despite identical appearances

No Heightened possesses a fixed identity permanently. Their personalities fluctuate depending on:

• The soul-energy comprising them

• Nearby emotions

• Environmental influences

• Memories absorbed from the deceased

• Interaction with living minds

This is why no two Gregorys are perfectly identical despite sharing the same template.

Intelligence

Because the Heightened are composed of accumulated consciousness from countless deceased entities, even the weakest among them possesses intellect far beyond human comprehension.

The “least intelligent” recorded Heightened possesses a canonically measured IQ exceeding 988.

However, their intelligence is not merely computational. Heightened cognition functions multidimensionally:

• Parallel thought processing

• Emotional analysis

• Predictive probability mapping

• Instant information sharing through the hivemind

• Perception of abstract concepts as physical structures

A Gregory may appear sleepy, distracted, childish, or silent while simultaneously calculating millions of outcomes or perceiving layers of reality inaccessible to mortals.

Their behavior often feels strange because they already understand the conclusion of interactions long before they occur.

Abilities

All Heightened possess reality-defying abilities to varying degrees depending on the density and potency of their originating soul-energy.

Known abilities include:

• Reality manipulation

• Psychokinesis

• Teleportation

• Flight

• Supernatural speed

• Instant regeneration

• Intangibility/translucence

• Arctic energy beams emitted from the eyes

• Dragon-like flame projection from the maw

• Environmental distortion

• Matter reconstruction

• Soul perception

More powerful Heightened can allegedly:

• Alter physical laws locally

• Create temporary dimensions

• Suspend time perception

• Manifest structures from memory

• Rewrite causal outcomes

• Resurrect fragments of consciousness temporarily

Yet despite this immense power, most Gregorys behave gently and passively.

Purpose

The Heightened were not created to rule existence.

They emerged as its caretakers.

Born from the remnants of the dead, they inherited an instinctive desire to preserve living consciousness. Across countless worlds and civilizations, Gregorys quietly appear near:

• The dying

• Lost children

• Isolated travelers

• Disaster zones

• War-torn regions

• Places saturated with grief

Sometimes they intervene directly. Sometimes they merely observe.

Many cultures interpret them differently:

• Guardian spirits

• Angels

• Death gods

• Dream entities

• Cosmic parasites

• Holy messengers

• Omens of catastrophe

No interpretation is entirely correct.

The Heightened themselves rarely explain their motives fully. When questioned, most Gregorys answer cryptically, vaguely, or with childlike simplicity that conceals incomprehensible depth.

One commonly repeated Heightened phrase is:

“The dead wished for the living to continue.”

ALTERNATE OUTFITS