Summary
Nonexistent Physiology refers to the ability to lack certain aspects of one's existence, to paradoxically 'exist,' yet lack certain identifiable traits of existence or exist outside of a particular scope of 'existence.' While true nonexistence in the philosophical sense is impossible to prove, lesser forms of the idea appear often in fiction.
Characters of this nature often exist as something beyond the normal scope of the physical and metaphysical worlds and instead exist as an idea or other unconventional state. Examples of possible portrayals include, but are not limited to, existing in a state of being prior to being born in any form or as a character who has been a victim of Existence Erasure, yet can still act and think in some way. Some existing beings can return to their state of non-existence as their "true self," although that is frequently more akin to a state of inactivity or death, in which case their existential self is closer to the individual itself than their original form is. Note that characters who meet these examples still need to fulfill the other requirements listed here.
The physical body of every character with this ability has to be nonexistent. That means that users always are Incorporeal, unless maybe they physically qualify for Paradoxical Nonexistence. That means that robots or similar don't qualify for spiritual or mental nonexistence, as they physically exist. Incorporeality alone, however, is not enough. The character has to additionally have at least one combination of the following types:
Types
Nature of Nothingness
In which manner characters are nonexistent in the aspects in which they are:
- Material Nonexistence: The character doesn't exist in a conventional sense. In terms of binary, this would be a 0, where existence is 1 and nonexistence is 0. In simple terms, that means that the characters simply lack the aspect, in the same way that a stone lacks a soul.
- Idealistic Nonexistence: The character doesn't exist in a sense further beyond conventional nonexistence. In terms of binary, this would be something that is neither 1 nor 0, where 1 is existence and 0 is nonexistence. These characters often have some form of Nonduality due to their lack of binary existence. Characters of this type have to behave at least as nonexistent as those with Material Nonexistence, but might display even further showings such as preceding or opposing existence.
- Paradoxical Nonexistence: Characters still exist, but paradoxically behave as if they don't when attacked. Equivalently, characters qualify which don't exist but behave as if they do in some aspect other than their interaction with attacks and abilities. To qualify for this type, a character needs to be stated to be immune to manipulations of the aspects they are nonexistent in due to their nonexistence. An example of that would be a character who is able to think, and hence has a mind, but is stated to be immune to regular mind manipulation as said mind is paradoxically nonexistent in nature. The character doesn't necessarily behave exclusively nonexistent in regard to attacks, but that is the only requirement necessary to gain this type. In terms of binary, where existence is 1 and nonexistence is 0, this would be part 0 and part 1 simultaneously.
Aspect of Nonexistence
Which aspects the characters are nonexistent in:
- Spiritual Nonexistence: These are characters whose soul and/or astral body is nonexistent. They are hence immune to regular Soul Manipulation.
- Conceptual Nonexistence: These are characters for which one or multiple concepts, that are necessary for their own existence, are nonexistent. They are hence immune to regular manipulation of said concept(s). Which type of concept should be mentioned on the profile.
- Mental Nonexistence: These are characters whose mind is nonexistent. Characters with this type are hence immune to regular Mind Manipulation and related abilities.
- Information Nonexistence: These characters whose information is nonexistent. This refers strictly to the type of information that shapes reality (Type 2). They are hence immune to regular Information Manipulation (Type 2).
- Other: These characters lack some other fundamental aspect that would be necessary for a normal being's existence or have a nonexistent one. Examples would include things like lacking a history. They are hence immune to abilities that target that respective aspect. Which aspect should be mentioned on the profile, together with any detail regarding what it makes them immune to.
Note: The aspects in which a character is not nonexistent in the common sense are what makes them into a 'living' character. As such, if a character with this power is reduced to a state in which they can't display any properties of something that exists (e.g. becomes unable to take any actions), they are effectively dead/erased. A consequence of that is that feats or special reasoning are required for a character with this ability to survive the complete erasure of their plane of existence, as one needs to confirm that they are able to still display some existent properties on a different plane of existence.
Limitations
- As the user no longer exists, they may be unable to interact with reality.
- Characters who exist outside of a particular scope of existence might still be affected by beings who share such characteristics.
- The scope of what exists and what does not can vary greatly depending on the fictional continuity.
Formatting
Each character with the ability should be sorted into at least one 'Nature of Nothingness'-Type (Nature Type for short) and at least one 'Aspect of Nonexistence' Type (Aspect Type for short). On the profiles, these types are listed separately in the following format: "Nonexistent Physiology (Nature Type [List of Nature Types the user applies for], Aspect Type [List of Aspect Types the user applies for], [Any further explanations])".
Users
- Ezekiel Rivera (Exodus) (Nature Type 2 and 3; Aspect Types 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5)
- Altaire Rivera (Azure Core) (Nature Type 1; Aspect Types 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5)
- Reincarnate Souls (The Ark Collection) (Nature Type 2; Aspects Types 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5)