Vampires are humanoid beings that posses distinct features such as sharp incisors and a particular taste for blood, there is no doubt in anyone's mind that most humans know just what Vampires are, though the distinction between fantasy and actual lore is distorted. Full bloodied Vampires are for the most part; extinct, they were monstrous beings, with pale skin, grotesque features, and mangled teeth. A more comparable example for us humans, would be that of the fictional monster Nosferatu, but far more feral and dastardly. The Vampires that exist now have had the mutation of human genes within their ancestry, and therefore do not resemble their ancestors, though it is said that a demonic or more beastly appearance when using their abilities may denote a closer tie to the Originals. Modern Vampires can feed on any type of blood given to them, though human blood is considered a rare delicacy, as a Vampire who resits temptation and drinks from a human without due consent is considered no honorable Vampire at all.
Human blood also grants boosts in strength if drunk directly from a body, but not if removed. The power human blood grants lies in the battle against wills when a Vampire forcibly takes blood and murders. Regardless, if a Vampire is around a random splatter of blood the temptation is often too much to resist. Vampires are gifted with the powers of Strength, Agility, High Pheromones, and Immortality (which largely depends on power/age), although the race suffers from a hibernation period, once they reach within 50 to 100 years of age they risk falling into what is called The Eternal Slumber, a phenomenon that causes them to go into a long period of rest, which can range wildly, it can even sometimes be prematurely triggered, and is mostly caused by an excess of power, and the mortal body needing to recuperate from it, normally they end up being stuck in time, and can only be killed by the traditional method of stakes and whatnot, although of course, most Vampires don't tend to worry about silly human machinations.
As the moon wades and wanes, the Lycans continue to chance with turning. Lycans have the ability to turn into canine like monstrosities, though this ability is not granted outright, and is actually quite difficult to obtain. During puberty, some Lycans go through a painful, week long transformation that leaves them teetering on the edge of death, many die during the procedure, as there is little their guardians can do as they slowly revert into their natural form, they are also confined within a protected space, as the first turning may make them lose their civility and turn feral, scratching, biting, and the degenerate behavior of a beast may occur, and within the morning they revert back as a human, now with the ability to turn at the temptation of the moon. This ritual can only be undertaken as an blood oath of sorts, so it doesn't always have to occur at the onset of puberty and can be halted, those who do not take the oath instead can turn into wolves that are about the size of Lions.
The moon plays a major part in their strength and healing capabilities, the fuller the moon the stronger the urge to turn at night and the stronger their powers, as the moon wades and wanes their power levels vary, at a slim crescent there is honestly little that a Lycan can do, and one could consider them human in a sense at that point. Lycans imprint on others, although the first person they imprint with will be bonded to them forever, and their life is tethered to their bond-mate, if one dies the other will too most likely, so Imprinting and bonds are indeed a tricky matter and may only be used sparingly. Much like Vampires, Lycans in their natural form have super strength, agility, and heightened senses that it can also share in it's human form.
Espers are humans who contain the powers of psychics, they deal in the art of Extra Sensory Perception or ESP for short. They can communicate with spirits, affect fate, use telekinesis, communicate telepathically, use psychometry, astral projection, and psionic blasts to disable others around them. Some Espers are only majorly skilled in one area of their ESP abilities, and among the Occult their powers are usually the easiest to hide. They also deal in unique abilities such as Memory Manipulation, Possession of another body, The ability to speak multiple languages, and the ability to control electrical currents and technology, though it seems that the most popular skill to specialize in is Telekinesis.
Considering its applications, a major problem with TK is that it can be a major strain on an untrained Esper, and has been known to kill users based simply on the stress it causes to the brain, usually resulting in fatal aneurysms or massive strokes that can severely debilitate an Esper. As such most Espers stick to the basics, as many telekinetics have become entrapped in immense pain and mental degradation due to their powers, though there have been some to overcome this problem, usually the power was too much for their own physical body to handle. Even then, Espers still can suffer from pain when using their powers for too long, or using it in large quantities, as such it is safer for them to keep their powers contained.
Alphas are humans who have the power to not only sense the Occult, but to use a large spectrum of abilities, along with having magical aptitude. The abilities that Alphas are able to access are immense, though Alphas are only allowed to have one. They can range from Fire Manipulation, to Super-Strength, these powers can actually rival that of the abilities contained by other Occult. Throughout the ages Alphas were referred to by many different names, Witches, Sorcerers, Heathens even, though some Alphas intentions with their powers have been more or less questionable over the years, especially with the intervention of magic. The clear difference between Espers and Alphas is not only their abilities, but the fact that Alphas seem to be the only ones capable of casting magic.
Magic is usually contained within tomes or cast by relics passed down in family lines or randomly found, usually the incantations with magic are spoken in Latin, and involve expending energy from the user. Although, magic is rarely used, especially when coming from an unknown source, as no one is truly sure how to gauge the powers of the incantations they speak.
Luckily, instruments like wands exist to bring forth these energies, but even then, one would have to remember a mouthful of incantations to make use of them. Some Alphas have ancestors that were trained to hunt the Occult, and exorcise them, during this time Magic went under a great Renaissance, which ended some decades ago, as such they can also use variants of holy incantations to banish occult species to a place known as the Underworld, unfortunately not much knowledge exists at the time about such a place or the magic that was once used.
Familiars consider themselves to be human, but can transform into any animal they can visualize, and in their human form they can emulate the ability of the animals they are able to transform into. For example, the speed of a cheetah, the camouflaging ability of a chameleon, or the strength of a bear. Familiars have a tendency to be playful with their abilities, as most people are not able to tell the difference between them and the real thing, they are also able to communicate with other animal species regardless of their current form.
In folklore, the relations between Familiars, Espers, and Alphas are usually closely connected considering that they all inhabit primarily humanoid forms. As such it should come as no surprise that these particular Occult have intermingled with one another and are closely connected, or even possibly related. Familiars are the only Occult unable to use magic in a traditional sense like the others, but they make up for it with the ability to posses others given the right opportunity. They are also able to form close, and ever lasting bonds with animals, that can surpass that of say a human/pet relationship, in a way other animals can consider them like family.
Famous familiars have reportedly been able to change into much more fantastical forms, some speculate that the obsession with creatures such as Dragons in the Middle Ages was due to the meddling of Familiars who mastered some kind of alternate form beyond that of the animal kingdom, some evidence implies that most myths and legends of history that involve mythical creatures was the result of familiars, although such efforts has not stretched into modern times, and for the most part, Familiars stick with common animals, as going out of those bounds is reportedly quite a painful ordeal and requires a large amount of trial and error.
Known in lore as the masters of fornication, and for their dominion over dreams and illusions. Incubi and Succubi are male and female Occult who are able to attract human victims, and sap energy from them as a way of feeding, much like a Vampire would with blood. These beings are also gifted with the ability of empathy, they can change the emotions of humans around them, and influence others to do things for them, though one wouldn't necessarily call this control as a human with a strong enough will could very well evade this. Incubi and Succubi have the unique ability to change their appearances to attract prey, they can even change their genders, although this does not apply once the deed needs to be done, they are capable of casting strong illusions in others minds, as well as manipulating the unconscious mind. They can also feed off of emotions, though the high from this is not nearly as high as that provided by coitus.
Rarely do Incubi or Succubi outright kill, they usually only feed to the point of making their human weak or perhaps even sick, though when prepared to kill their eyes turn a dense black, and the body of the victim has the appearance of black liquid running through their veins, clearly visible from the outside. In their true form these beings have blacks horns, a wiry tail, and large wings that allow them to depart quickly, some can even teleport with the use of their illusions. On the positive side, Incubi and Succbi have major healing capabilities and can heal nearly any type of wound given the time, this of course is not done the in the same way they feed. Their Pheromones seem to be the selling point when attracting prey, and even the most hardy and withstanding of individuals may find it hard to resist the allure of their overwhelming, natural scents.
Nixies are naturally aquatic beings, usually referred to as Mermaids or Mermen in lore, Nixies have human top halves, but their bottom halves compose of a variety of different features seen in aquatic species, some may look exactly how you would think a Merperson would look, while others may have their bottoms halves as Shark fins, or Octipi tentacles. They are able to communicate with aquatic based organisms as well as control them. They have a mastery over water, and control any form of liquids, to the point of turning it hot or cold, or causing tsunamis and other weather related occurrences. Outside of water, they share one singular ability with Espers, and that is to communicate telepathically with others, they are also capable of mimicking others voices to astounding likeness, though there is a deadly side to this ability, as their screams can kill, and they can indeed feed on human blood and flesh if needed.
These beings once inhabited the lost city known as Atlantis, after it was destroyed by human malice towards their kind, an event that happened thousands of years ago, and yet it effects are still felts today, as Nixies are a rarity, and perhaps even an endangered species if there was ever an official count of their numbers. They tend to have empathetic tendencies towards nature, and can control vegetation to some degree, granted that the environment consents to the call of their will. Nixies have a deep relationship with the Earth, and can in some form communicate or 'feel' it's call, as such many of them tend to be staunch environmentalists of a sort, vegetarians, or just plain lovers of nature in general. These beings hope to one day rebuild an Atlantis of their own, and hopefully recoup a lost civilization out of the fragments that exist today.
Venatores, latin for Hunters. These are humans trained in the art of tracking down, and hunting dangerous supernatural anomalies, they are trained from birth to be fearsome warriors of a thousand year old order that dedicates it's members lives to the protection of the human race, although nowadays, one could say that membership has dwindled due to the obscurity of most supernaturals, and how easily they have melded into the background of normal, everyday human society. As such, Venatores tend to be much more malicious towards Occults that show their monstorous side, and some reportedly hunt after those who have done nothing to deserve the harassment, threats, and (sometimes) murder these Hunters commit. Venatores have a long history with humanity, especially during the Middle Ages, when Occult became far more prevalent and threatening to humankind's development. Their rise to power came during the Crusades, while technically a holy war of sorts, they used this time to battle with Occults, forever earning their distrust and general animosity
Some Venatores are not completely human, in fact one would say that being anything other than human would make the job exponentially easier, and as so, typically the most skilled of them are Espers or Alphas. Some Occults dissuade their off spring from using their powers naturally, and instead devote their livelihoods to the Order. As such, there tends to be some overlapping between the two groups, even if purists seem to pervade the order, they know that having these Occults around is a valuable trump card of sorts. These Occults often mix their powers with useful weaponry, and investigative skills to track down offending Occults, but who's to say that the methods they use are fair for either parties? It seems as both Occults and Venatores fade deeper and deeper into obscurity the more malicious they become towards one another, tearing each other down until there's nothing left. Of course, not all Venatores are like this, rather that is how they are stereotyped.
