Daemon

Daemon (pronounced day-mon) is the catch-all term for the various mythical creatures and non-human beings that appear in Twelve Thousand.

The name daemon comes from the term daimonic, referring to lesser gods and guiding spirits that help a person's strive towards individuation, and for the term in computing; a daemon is responsible for background processes and usually runs without user input.

Overview

Daemons live in the far-future world of The Tower, after humans have long gone extinct. Humans in the present day can however access these other selves through the mysterious Daemon App, transforming into them.

Daemons are born fully grown from the earth of The Tower, complete with an existing set of knowledge. This knowledge varies, but is generally instinct and social etiquette, enabling a "newborn" to mingle into a society without too much trouble. This birth is known by The Tower residents as an "awakening".

Daemons do not age or die, but there are situations where they go through a "re-awakening", transforming into a new form. Such re-awakenings usually result in changes in personality, and they can even lose memories of their old self. Additionally, instead of death, heavy wounds result in a daemon effectively respawning.

While technically immortal because of these facts, re-awakened daemons are often considered "different people".

Magic

Daemon powers are broadly classified as "magic". Magic is divided into three Orders, where what Order you can use powers from is defined on your awakening or re-awakening. A daemon can't decide for themselves what their Order is or what kind of powers they have, rather such powers more often end up matching one's inclinations instead.

• Real magic deals in the alteration of physical matter, namely altering the physical world around a daemon. Real magic cannot create that which isn't there without a source — so one dealing in Real Fire magic can cause a flame to grow, but not create fire without a spark.
• Imaginary magic involves expectation of the daemon's own self. This can allow flight that would otherwise not be physically possible, or the manifestation of elemental breath attacks. One can theoretically control multiple elements this way, but will not have the same level of power as someone with a specific focus.
• Symbolic magic deals in the perception of ideas and the world. This involves psychological influence of those around them, and the manipulation of cultural imagery. Charismatic leaders often are such because of their symbolic magic, and can be unaware they have such ability.

A going theory amongst research into daemon powers was that since they are all born from the ground — their awakening — they were drawing on geothermal energy just like their civilisation's amenities. Such research however halted after the Red Oni/Blue Oni War with the dissolving of the Four Family structure of leadership.