Shadows
Contents |
Overview
Dark things dwell in depths of the collective unconsciousness of humanity. Whether springing forth from an individual level, or the conflicting views of an entire community, or representing the submerged thoughts from humanity as a whole, all the broad types of Shadows have one thing in common: they are dangerous.
The Nature of the Wandering Shadows
Every human being carries a shadow within them. Under certain circumstances, this shadow is released and exists as a kind of independent being. Most commonly found during the Dark Hour and within the Midnight Channel, Shadows of this broad type encompass numerous forms, as strange as they are varied. They are hostile to humans found in their world and attack them, with what happens to their victims ranging from what the world calls the Apathy Syndrome to death. While not truly sentient in a way that humans would find familiar, they still possess a certain intelligence, capable of pack hunting tactics to chase down their prey. For those unfortunate enough to encounter them, prey often means 'humans'. Shadows will also prey upon other (usually weaker) Shadows and can grow larger by engulfing them. All Shadows of this sort bear masks, and can be further subdivided into various subtypes depending on the mask and where they hail from. For example, those in SEES may know that there are twelve types of Shadows seen within the Dark Hour. The same is not the case within the Midnight channel. The form that the Shadows will take are varied ones, perhaps reflecting some of the free-floating concepts and emotions within the collective psyche of humanity.
Shadows possess strange powers of such a nature that they can only be called 'magical'. They possess a wide array of abilities, depending on what sort of Shadow they are. Some might be able to summon fire effortlessly, others display a lethal mastery over ice. Still others might command powers that affect the mind, terrifying or confusing their opponents. It's been rumored by some researchers that particularly powerful Shadows might possess the ability to manipulate time itself.
While most Shadows of this type are dangerous, there exist those among them with greater power still. Those of this type are incredibly rare, with frightful powers far beyond any mundane Shadow. For example, a Shadow of this type might possess the power to take the forms of their targets' greatest and most hidden fears. Port Island in particular has seen many of them recently, dating back to the spring of 2009. What these strong Shadows might foretell is, for now, a mystery.
The Nature of the Shadow Within
Everyone has a part of their personality that is unacceptable to them, whether they've rejected it because they've found it personally repellent, or because of their role in society, or because it's a part of themselves that simply runs counter to what society says is acceptable. Cast aside and buried deep, most people remain unaware of what they've rejected in their daily lives.
Within the world accessible through the television in Inaba, this Shadow within is freed. Appearing as a duplicate of the original self, usually only their abnormal behavior and eerie golden irises give away the fact they are the Shadow. As a manifestation of discarded urges and instincts desiring to be acknowledged, they are often defensive, and become violent they are disagreed with. When drawn to combat, these Shadows shed their human-like appearance and, drawing weaker Shadows to them, take on strange forms reflecting the mind of the person they sprang from.
While it is not considered IC information for the most part, Personas and Shadows are one and the same: a Persona is a controlled Shadow, and a Shadow is an uncontrolled Persona. It's entirely possible for someone to both lose control over their Persona and risk it reverting into a Shadow, as well as for someone to integrate and accept their Shadow as a part of themselves and gain a Persona. It's entirely possible that someone who gains a Persona by facing their Shadow may notice that there are some general visual similarities between the Shadow and the Persona.
Under certain circumstances, this Shadow can come to the fore. Significant stress can result in one's Shadow emerging, and depending on the circumstances of this eruption, may result in one of two things.
Complete possession by one's Shadow is possible, if the stress on the psyche is too great to be overcome easily, or if the Shadow is accepted in such a way that it isn't really controlled at all. For more information on the causes behind and abilities of the Shadow Possessed, please see Shadow Possession.
Confronting one's Shadow is also a route to obtain a Persona, assuming this takes place within the depths of the Midnight Channel. For more information on this route to a Persona, please see this page.
The Nature of Rumor Shadows
Occasionally, two opposing stories about a person spread wildly within Sumaru City. Normally, this would hardly be cause for concern, but through the power of rumors and the nature of that city, both stories becoming true creates a contradiction which in turn produces an actual entity known as a 'Rumor Shadow'. A near-perfect duplicate save for several features which are 'off' in some way, a Rumor Shadow retains all that the original knew, but not their personality. A Rumor Shadow's personality may simply be a reversal of the original, or something else entirely, often relating to the rumors that spawned them. A good example of a contradictory pair of rumors might be one where a person is described as being a hero and a friend to all children in one, while the other rumor insists that they're actually a card-carrying member of some nefarious organization.
As stated earlier, a Rumor Shadow knows what the original knew at the time of their creation. This means that they will know all about the dirty secrets the original might have kept to themselves, and may go so far as to air dirty laundry if it's sufficient to cause the original to suffer. Of course, they're also fully capable of lying if it suits their needs, but usually it's the truth that hurts more.
In some respects, they possess a similarity to the Shadow that dwells within all people. However, while inner Shadows likely consist of negative thoughts and repressed impulses, they are not inherently evil. A Rumor Shadow unambiguously /is/. Wholly malicious and filled with absolute loathing for their original, they seek to do nothing else but to erase them and take over their life. If they should succeed in this goal, the original will obviously cease to exist.
If the original is a Persona-user, the Rumor Shadow will fight similarly to the person they mirror, even going so far as to possess an apparent warped version of their Persona. However, they are unable to change Personas at all or undergo the physical transformation other Shadows might perform. What a Rumor Shadow of someone who was Shadow-Possessed or who didn't possess a Persona in the first place might be capable is, for now, unknown. In all cases, though, it must be noted that it is not possible to reliably tell a Rumor Shadow from the original against the Shadow's will. Even ostensibly obvious physical tells such as the strange eye color can be suppressed or hidden, and resonance marks no change.
