LIGHT SEARCHER

BEGINNINGS; CREATION

When one leaves the bubble that contains their universe, they will be met with… nothing. An endless void, with its only purpose being to keep countless worlds from colliding with each other.

Nothing is meant to exist within this space—yet something does. A core of energy, about half the size of a universe itself. This Core, with sentience and a mind-numbing curiosity, contains itself within a world of its own creation, with only one goal: to gain knowledge.

To accomplish this, the Core creates universe hoppers, made to infiltrate different worlds as the Core watches from behind their eyes. Some universe hoppers are meant to simply live and grow within their universes; others are meant to change certain events, or to replace specific people.

Many universe hoppers, upon completing their goals, are taken back into the Core’s world and re-purposed for another universe. Others will die in their assigned universe, their artificial souls self-destructing as they perish. Some will discover their origins. The Core may decide to meet them personally, explaining their purpose and allowing them to move forward as they wish.

While Spierce did eventually meet her maker, she spent almost four hundred years with no knowledge of her origins—all because of one little soul.

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At first, Spierce was going along the same path that most other universe hoppers went down: the creation of her artificial soul and the production of a “holographic” body thereof.

However, Deity, a god of certainty whose power had been drained to give to the universe hoppers, fused their soul with Spierce’s as a last ditch effort to escape the Core’s world once and for all. This succeeded, and Spierce was sent to her assigned universe with Deity in tow.

Deity found that they had a good level of control over Spierce’s artificial soul. They could control what she shapeshifted into, what universes she went to… however, they had no control over the body itself. To prevent Spierce from willingly going back to the Core, Deity stole any and all memories she had of it, save for the name she had been given.

Spierce was thus thrown into the Baccano universe with no idea of who she was, where she had come from, or why she was there. She ended up staying in the Baccano universe for 70 years as a member of the Martillo Family, having not physically aged a day the entire time.

It was assumed that she was some sort of immortal homunculus, given that she did not regenerate after being wounded. However, she could not devour, could not be devoured, nor could she be given knowledge. Likewise, none of the main players in the world of immortals—Szilard (through Firo's memories), Huey, Ronny—had any idea who she was. Not even the Daily Days had any answers for her.

After those 70-some years, Nicholas Wayne—the person who had put the most effort into figuring out who Spierce was—died of old age. Spierce, who had spent all her life surrounded by immortals, was wracked with grief over Nicholas’ death, not given the opportunity to properly learn how to process the death of a loved one. She quickly isolated herself, unable to cope with what seemed to be the final sign that she would never know who she was.

Unsure if she’d ever recover, Deity's boredom with the Baccano universe led them to finally step into the fray: they reactivated Spierce’s ability to universe hop, gave her personality a “soft reset”, (making her memories of the last 70 years foggy and distant,) and promptly threw her into a brand new universe.

Thus, the bulk of her story began.

Spierce remained completely unaware of the Core, as well as the origins of her soul, until having traveled for roughly 400 years. During this time, she found and lived in countless universes, learning more both of herself and of her abilities.

To attempt to name every world she traveled to would be foolhardy, but some of the most impactful worlds were that of Baccano (her original target), Rhythmia (where Deity sent her immediately after), Fire Emblem: Three Houses (where she learned to fight again), Ace Attorney (which she calls home), Hatoful Boyfriend (where she realized that kindness couldn't solve every problem), Ghost Trick (where she found a treasured friend), Castlevania (where she slept for 300 years), Carmen Sandiego (where she was fused to the soul of another), Danganronpa V3 (where she participated in a killing game that changed her life forever), Bungou Stray Dogs (where her unending love completely altered the course of the timeline), Ensemble Stars (where her simple passion for music lead her to higher heights than she could have imagined)...

At the beginning of her journey, Spierce was as childish and naive as she let on: filled with a desire to make people smile, to be useful, so that she wouldn't be simply tossed away (or worse), and most of all, willing to put herself in danger to complete these goals... This undoubtedly lead her into magnitudes of danger—yet she continued to move forward, determined and still wanting to show love and devotion.

Now, while she still appears to be...most of these things, her kindness and willingness to face danger are coupled with the strength and skill to back them up. All of the worlds she's visited served to help her grow, allowing her to become someone her loved ones could depend on.

Now, having learned of her origins and made peace with them, she continues to travel to new worlds, most recently assisting a certain Archivist in his work.

PERSONALITY; WHO ARE YOU?

From a stranger's perspective, Spierce is a kind and energetic person. She has a nigh-endless curiosity and desire for adventure, to the point of accidentally throwing herself into harm's way. Those who've only just met her often wonder how she's still alive. Strong-willed and competitive, she's determined to prove herself to those who look down on her, while also being a good role model to those who look up to her.

Her exceptional strength and resilience often lead her to disregard her own health, both in protecting others and in simple casual sparring. Likewise, she takes pride in the scars she's gained over the years, even encouraging those close to her to leave their own marks on her body. She has a flower carved on her hip, scarring from her left arm being ripped off, and a gigantic scar down the middle of her chest and back from being impaled by a sword and Rashomon.

Beyond her exciteable (and sometimes childish) demeanor lies a critical eye and a logical mindset. When she really gets down to business, she's a competent detective with a relentless zeal for finding the truth, often working on more counterintuitive strategies. Her history as both a lawyer in the Ace Attorney universe and a member of the Task Force in Death Note especially educate her particular deductive methods.

Below even these halves lie parts of Spierce that she often jokes about without actually addressing. Violence, a stifled desire for power—things that live within her, and are shoved down into the deepest depths of her soul as a result. While she has been working to better address and accept them, largely through her romantic and sexual relationships, the idea that she would profit from the suffering of others still terrifies her.

When she's pushed to her absolute limit, her mind blanks out, and those around her are instead met with a cold, shaking fear; a silent lashing out, as she sees nothing but red in her panic.

ABNORMALITIES; TO TRAVEL BEYOND.

Although she’s typically unassuming, having an artificial soul affects Spierce in multiple ways:

• She is partially immortal, meaning that she will not die of old age, nor will she physically age (unless she perceives herself as older). However, she can still die from bloodloss, disease, etc.
• She can move between universes, though not entirely at will. She must have memories of the place she wants to go, or else where she ends up will be almost entirely random. (Deity will also choose the universes she goes to when they get bored.)
• She has a consistent urge to defy fate, including that of the universes she enters and of the people she meets, and thus meddle in affairs she probably shouldn’t.
• She can change the shape of her soul to better match that of the universe she's going to, also not entirely at will. (For the most part, Deity controls this ability.)
• She is immune to mental manipulation, such as mind control, brainwashing, hypnosis, etc. (This is mainly due to the fact that brainwashing/hypnosis/etc is my biggest trigger. Canonically, this is a trait given to all universe hoppers. Deity can also turn this on and off at will.)

Originally, universe hopping took roughly 15 minutes to fully occur, requiring Spierce to completely forget where she was. However, given her current status as a First Guardian, the process has been reduced to a few seconds.

She does not have complete control over where she goes. Her current thoughts determine where she ends up. To go to a specific universe, she has to think of the person/people she wants to see, or the location she wants to appear in.

If she’s disturbed while traveling between universes, she could end up stuck in the space between universes. However, since she takes meticulous care to prevent it, this has only happened once. Likewise, the chances have been dramatically reduced by her becoming a First Guardian.

THE SOUL; WHAT IS YOUR TRUE FORM?

Spierce’s artificial soul works in such a way that it projects a living “hologram,” modifying it based on what is needed to fit in or survive in a particular universe. In this sense, her body and soul are not separate things—meaning that if she dies, her soul will also be destroyed. The destruction is not immediate, however; her soul will remain intact for 8 hours after her death, inert, retained within her corpse.

Spierce’s physiology changes aren’t usually drastic; they tend to be just enough to prevent immediate death. Examples include:

• Becoming a bird/human hybrid in the Hatoful Boyfriend universe, to prevent her from dying to any bird viruses.
• Becoming a weapon in the Soul Eater universe, to give her better chances of surviving on her own.
• Becoming half demon in the Devil May Cry universe, to allow her to fight demons without being accidentally stabbed again and dying. (Happened due to Deity’s influence)
• Becoming a gem in the Houseki no Kuni universe, to better blend in due to the extinction of humanity.
• Taking on a contract with Dante in the Limbus Company universe, in order for them to revive her after she was killed by Binah. (Ironically, this was to test if she had already somehow formed a contract with them already.)

These changes happen when her artificial soul seeks out souls similar to her own and copies pieces of them, changing how her body works to an extent. This typically happens upon her entering a certain universe.

Depending on what form is considered her “default,” Spierce will switch to that form when entering a universe that requires no major changes to her physiology. Currently, her default is her half demon form, giving her access to her Devil Trigger.

Spierce’s shapeshifting is limited to humanoid forms; if she enters any universe dominated by non-humanoid creatures, she will either not shapeshift at all, or she will take a form as close to the universe’s “norm” as she can without losing her humanoid shape.

ABILITIES; DOES POWER DEFINE ONE’S WORTH?

Clairaudience: Spierce, after dying and being brought back by Sissel, gained the ability to hear spirits. This ability was transformed into clairaudience upon her entrance into the Psychonauts universe, though it doesn’t stay with her consistently—only in universes where similar abilities are common does it reappear.

In the Psychonauts universe, her clairaudience allows her to hear what is happening around a particular person if she touches and focuses on an item important to them. She can also hear events that have happened around a particular object that she touches, as well as being able to hear the memories of people she does the same to.

Devil Trigger: After being accidentally stabbed in the chest by Dante Sparda, Spierce’s soul changed shape to match that of his, turning her into a half demon. Her Devil Trigger at the time was heavily influenced by the Devil Arm she was using, but as time went on, her Devil Trigger gained its own defined form. This form was manipulated, however, when she fused with Sparda to defeat Mundus.

From that point on, her Devil Trigger looked much like Sparda’s, save for a few distinct differences. As Spierce gets more upset or excited, its power increases.

Realized EGO: Spierce has fully realized her own EGO and occasionally uses it in battle. It manifests as The Story that Refused to End, a humanoid shadow with a bright sun behind her head. Tugging the eye-rose chain allows her to switch the EGO's state to only partially activated. Her red cloak bears elements of her sinner jacket, while also functioning as wings that allow her to fly. The beaded bracelet she wears can, when a singular bead is pulled, generate more bracelets that allow her to communicate with the wearer from any distance.

Also, she can shoot lasers.

DEITY; IS ANYTHING TRULY SET IN STONE?

Deity (who goes by Dahlia in mortal company) was previously a god of probability. Their power lies over the 100% and the 0%– things that are guaranteed to either happen or not happen. This power allowed them to manipulate events and either assure or prevent their coming.

However, their power has been largely drained, meaning they can only do this every once in a while. Depending on the extent to which they change fate, the cooldown can be anywhere from a week to several months.

The Core captured Deity and began using their power over probability to allow the universe hoppers to move between universes and change the fates thereof. Once their power began to run too low, they forcefully separated their soul from their body, escaping their battery prison.

However, this left them without a body. In search of a vessel, Deity ended up choosing Spierce. They now control certain parts of her artificial soul, turning her abilities on and off at will. They were the one who turned off her universe hopping upon her entering her first universe, as well as the one to turn it back on.

While Deity seems to do things for practical reasons, they also tend to mess with Spierce’s abilities for their own amusement. They’ll cause her universe hopping to malfunction, having her appear right below a ceiling and fall to the ground, or turn off her immunity against mental manipulation.

However, they will also do things to keep Spierce alive, such as forcing her soul to change shape in especially dangerous situations. As Spierce cannot communicate with them, it’s assumed that they do most things entirely on a whim.