Half-breeds

Introduction

Occasionally, a demon or an angel copulates with a human and conceives a half-breed. Half-demons are far more common than half-angels, primarily thanks to Heaven's strict rules regarding angels mingling with mortals. For the most part, half-breeds blend among other mortals, despite occasionally displaying aspects of their divine or unholy heritage. Those who discover their origin accidentally may go through a violent existential crisis, potentially leading to various mental illnesses, self-harm, or even suicide. As a result, nine out of ten half-breeds do not survive into adulthood.

When creating a half-breed, consider:
Their mental wellbeing, age, heritage, and unique powers.

Related

• Nephilim

Birth

Depending on who sired and birthed them, half-breeds can have a relatively normal childhood with their human parent or grow up in a confusing household with not-so-human adults. As they cannot survive in Heaven or Hell, Earth is the only realm where half-breeds can be raised. Most are left orphaned for humans to find and adopt, often resulting in several problems and unanswered questions, from confusing non-human DNA to traumatizing heritage discoveries.

Once a half-breed reaches their teenage years, their origins begin to show. Whatever powers they have inherited can activate in the most unfortunate ways: inadvertently potent influence, harmless suggestions turned into forced action, even spontaneous combustions among close relatives. They would find soot or feathers around them and on their possessions, invisible to all but the half-breed themselves. They could feel extreme comfort or overpowering distress in religious buildings and locations, unable to explain their intuitive reaction with logic or common sense.

In a best-case scenario, half-angels might find positions where they'd be able to provide support and help to those in need, and half-demons could strive to build their own personal empires of adoration and worship. Unfortunately, more often than not, half-breeds find themselves in juvenile prison for murder or other crimes and end up using drugs or hallucinogens to escape their horrific, twisted reality. However, their life has one silver lining: half-breeds are naturally infertile and can't pass their figurative curse forward.

Should a half-breed make it into adulthood, they'd be stuck between two worlds: mortal but not human, powerless yet influential, unwanted and shunned by both. An impossible situation to turn into a win… Or a unique chance to prove everyone around them wrong?

Appearance

When the blood-red rays of twilight or the blue flash of lightning illuminate a mirror, a half-breed may see a glimpse of their true face, revealing their non-human heritage. Those with demonic blood will notice their eyes burning with fire, their insides glowing through their scorched skin, and even wings or horns sprouting from their body. Those blessed with divinity can have their features tinted with blue ice, their veins illuminated with holy light, and a pair of wings sprouting from their back. Half-breeds will also have their pupils reflect light unnaturally with the color depending on their heritage: deep red for half-demons or bright blue for half-angels.

While half-breeds do not technically have a true or half form to reveal at will, they may learn to show off their heritage in other ways. Half-demons can reveal their skin tone, fiery eyes, and other demonic features; half-angels can display their ethereal, pale complexion and a shadow cast by their wings. Should they come in touch with one of their weaknesses, their faces would reflexively show the half-breed's true nature to everyone in their immediate presence: the burnt, scarred skin of half-demons; and the divine, unblemished skin of half-angels.

Variations

Half-angels

Also called anakim (singular "anak"), half-angels can be conceived by a vessel possessed by an angel or a higher-ranking angel's human form, both resulting in a half-breed child. Absent fathers are more common than nurturing mothers, adding to an anak's already notable distaste towards their biological parents. Because of Heaven's strict rules forbidding angels from copulating with humans, the angel parent is always a fallen one, either before or as an immediate aftermath of the half-breed child's conception. If the mother is a human, their death upon childbirth is almost guaranteed.

Half-demons

Also known as cambions, half-demons can only be fathered through a human vessel, as the act of receiving a demon's unfiltered seed would certainly kill a mortal mother. Because the possessing demon won't need to be present at childbirth, mothers have been known to give birth to children they do not remember conceiving, leading to maternal trauma of its own. Like half-angel offspring, half-demons often kill their mother as they are born.

Powers

Depending on the powers of the half-breed's immortal parent, they may inherit up to three supernatural powers through their heritage or, in unfortunate cases, none at all. The potency of these abilities can vary dramatically but never go beyond the capabilities of one's parent, watered down by human DNA. Even so, some consider half-breeds to be a considerable threat to humanity, mostly thanks to a half-breed's ability to blend among mortals and their lack of similar weaknesses than those of their pureblood kin.

Virtuous/sinful influence

Like archangels and Sins, a half-breed may affect those around them by adding to their vices or virtues, although not nearly to the same level. Uncontrolled in most cases, an anak could inspire their immediate vicinity to uphold higher morals, while a cambion's presence could spark a scene of manifesting desires. Because of the power's unconscious nature, a half-breed's influence can lead to newsworthy tragedies, heroic deeds, or absolute chaos.

Sanctification/defilement

Related directly to the previous power, a half-breed may either sanctify or defile items and small, enclosed spaces. Coming into contact with a sanctified or defiled object or area would inflict the half-breed's influence upon the unlucky individual, or even a group of mortals over a period of time. Unlike their less controlled influential aura, sanctifying and defiling requires intent behind it to work.

Bio-/telekinesis

While half-demons simply inherit their immortal parent's telekinesis, the offspring of fallen angels can inherit a more sinister skill called "biokinesis;" an ability that lets them manipulate biological matter. Anakim can set their opponent's skin on fire, make their blood boil, or simply decide they have no further need for lungs. A truly perverted power from their divine side, biokinesis is one of the reasons half-breeds spark so much fear.

Holy fire/hellfire manipulation

Some half-breeds can manipulate fire related to their immortal parent's home realm, creating a spark from nothing and feeding the fire with nothing but their will. Because of its supernatural properties, neither type can be contained with normal means but instead the half-breed controlling the fire has to be subdued. Blue (holy) or purple (hellfire) in color, this type of fire burns hotter than regular flames and can turn burnt material straight into ash.

Clairvoyance

A handful of half-breeds possess a unique gift of sensing supernaturals around them—even invisible angels—and see into the recent past, usually through objects. These visions are related to the touched item and the world around it, sometimes to the last person holding it. This power can be honed to allow targeting of specific timelines or an increased radius, but never both.

Voice mimicry

While more common among cambions, any half-breed can inherit a power that allows them to mimic the sounds of both animals and humans. The ability is usually utilized through the half-breed's vocal cords, although some have learned to project the sound outside of their bodies, allowing them to distract and lure out targets further away.

Innate abilities

Innate abilities are enhancements all half-breeds have regardless of their heritage or luck in inheriting their parents' powers. While not particularly notable compared to their pureblooded kin, half-breeds are still a far cry from regular humans.

Longevity

If a half-breed survives their tumultuous youth, their expected lifespan is above average, well beyond a single century. The effect gradually slows down their aging, allowing half-breeds to look youthful for longer and worry about grey hairs much later. Living in a mortal world may require them to look for unofficial IDs to hide their real age and birthday—or figure out a way to explain why a 70-year-old looks like they haven't even turned 40.

Heightened senses

Half-breeds have more sensitive hearing than humans, almost comparable to dogs. Most can see additional colors or in increased detail, smell more scents and differentiate smaller nuances than the average mortal, even taste with a more refined palette than the best chefs. These heightened senses usually come with drawbacks, are linked to sensory hypersensitivity, and may have a negative effect on life quality depending on the half-breed's life and personality.

Enhanced physiology

Harder, better, faster, stronger—well, at least the latter two apply to half-breeds. Anakim are often gifted with additional running speed, while cambions do better in sports and situations that require strength. Just like senses, enhanced physical traits are not split evenly and have their own negative effects, from causing accidental injuries to underestimating a leap's landing. Fortunately, enhanced physiology comes with thicker skin, providing additional protection against bruises and small cuts.

Enhanced recovery

If a half-breed ends up cutting or bruising themselves, their enhanced recovery kicks in, healing any injury in double speed and with minimal scarring. This makes getting tattoos a hassle but ensures at least some half-breeds make it well into their adulthood. It also provides additional resistance towards mild diseases, like colds and flus, falling short as antibiotics are required to step in.

Metamorphing

As a half-breed ages, they may learn to master and control their appearance to more or less human-like. They can display their angelic and demonic features at will, intimidating or enticing those in their company. They may even choose to keep their unnatural eye color at all times, or control which parts of their body change appearance, making for some cool cosplay or a neat party trick.

Weaknesses

Mortality

Despite their enhanced condition, half-breeds are still mortal and thus not immune to sickness and old age. They will be slowed down by fatigue, need nourishment and water to live, and can't survive in conditions a regular human couldn't. They need regular sleep to function, social ties to stay sane, and the occasional dopamine to enjoy life—just like any mortal.

Other supernaturals

Half-breeds are underdogs when compared against most immortals, leaving only the weakest ranks able to be defeated by their half-human kin. With their mixed attitudes regarding half-breeds, angels are known for actively hunting down anakim, while demons enjoy inflicting suffering on anything and anyone they come across. Only the direct offspring of deadly sins or other powerful individuals can feel safe in their daily life, and even then a single bad encounter may lead to a swift end.

Mental health

Often traumatized by their surprising supernatural heritage, half-breeds have a tendency for various mental challenges throughout their life. Some end up spending time in jail for accidental murders or being locked in an institute after discussing their non-human experiences, adding to the distress of an already troubled youngster. Substance abuse is common, as is a collection of unhelpful diagnoses that result in harmful and unhelpful drug use.