Furskin

I sought out knowledge and to disprove the supernatural only to end up intertwined in its sadistic grip.

Furskin Origins

Furskins are never born but always created, often by people that don't understand the ramifications of what they are doing. Some original furskins did it as a form of revenge against an extremely strong enemy or protection from a potential enemy. Rarely, furskins are created as a means to gain power but not unheard of.

The need for this sort of creature has subsided but they still exist. Modern furskins primarily come in two varieties: Those that are seeking power and those that do not understand what they are doing when seeking knowledge (aka trying to disprove a supernatural myth).

What is a furskin?

A furskin is a human that has absorbed the power of a creature they killed in order to enhance themselves. Once they have killed the creature they take a part of the pelt and attach it to their skin with the intent to absorb the power with a chant. The pelt then absorbs into their skin and the power of the creature as well.

At this point they are similar to a werecreature as they are able to utilize the strengths of the animal they have absorbed and able to shift into the form of the creature they have absorbed.

The intent of a furskin depends on the person that is trying to absorb the power of the creature. The most common sort of Furskin is a supernatural enthusiast that doesn't understand the powers that they are invoking when messing around with the ritual and finding themselves bound to a creature.

Some furskins will choose to absorb more than one animal in which those animals, when shifted, are merged together. This also can cause odd sense combinations and doesn't have the effect of being more powerful.

How to become a furskin

Becoming a furskin is a ritual of killing an animal, removing part of its pelt, placing the pelt on ones skin while chanting, with the intent to absorb the power of the creature that was killed.

The pelt must stay on the skin for a few hours so it can absorb into the skin. Once absorbed the creature is now a part of the person that absorbed it. The pelt will be visible in its place and look almost like a patch that is on the person's skin.

Effects of being a furskin

Unlike being a werecreature, where the creature and the person are one entity, a furskin is absorbing the creature and so it is still its own entity with its own needs and wants. That means that the creature tugs at the psyche of the person that they are within.

Each Furskin describes the experience differently. Some say its like the thing speaks or whispers to them. Others say that it personifies in cravings, mood swings, or anxiety. The furskin's influence will also cause them to shift. This can happen in times of fear, anger or anxiety but the person can also, sometimes, do it at will.

Overall, it wears down the Furskin and they start to lose themselves. It is worse for those that seek power and merge themselves with more than one creature. Furskins that have melded with 2 or more creatures become more feral and tend to seek out merging with more creatures to increase their power.

How to reverse being a Furskin

Furskins have absorbed a creature and must lay it to rest in order to get rid of it. To do this, they must cut the pelt from their body and burn it while chanting a specific send off phrase. If not done correctly the first time they must seek out the help of a death mage.

Death mages can help communicate and put the creature to rest in order to complete the ritual. It is also possible that they can do this without the removal of the pelt but it is significantly more difficult as the creature is attached to it.