Tiffa/AlternateAlchemicals
Alchies have one big issue, a problem that makes them stand apart from other Exalts... they are not human. While robots are awesome, are Alchies as they are have a certain degree of coolness to them, they lack the feeling a true Exalt has. They are not people who earned their Exaltation, they were made as such.
And so... I present a short write-up of an alternate idea for Alchies. If you want to know what the general feel to this is, you might want to think of Kamen Rider.
Autochthon is a weak and dying primordial, and in his pitiful state, the creatures that dwell on his body suffer. There is no day and night, only constant work in an attempt to keep up with the increasing demands their world needs. Their societies are totalitarian regimes with no room for questioning... questions are a delay that the people feel they simply cannot take. Mechanical monstrosities, born of the primordial's nightmares, accost their cities. Compared to the fringes of Creation, the realm of the great maker seems even a more hopeless place.
And yet, they have heroes.
Mortals still thrive in this world, and many rise above the standards of the common people. These are people who strive to change their world for the better... and a few of them willingly do so for the worse. And above all of them are the champions of Autochthon, his hidden warriors, and his first and last line of defense... the Alchemicals.
These exalts cannot be told apart from normal humans at first sight, although they have certain features that mark them as different. Marks not unlike the lunar tattoos in their faces, hands, or bodies... and yet, these are things that may be concealed. Their bodies are warm, their feelings real, and their souls are true. They were once humans who became much more.
However, all Alchemicals may also transform. A sharp cry and a flare of essence, and the Alchemical's armor reveals itself. These armors are as varied as the people themselves, and it’s rare to find two Alchemicals that are similar in any way. Their armor makes them tougher, stronger, faster, and much more. Many of the abilities denied to them in their human form are now accessible. Then they become a force to be truly reckoned with.
An Alchemical is formed when a worthy human comes in contact with Autochthon’s core, willingly or unwillingly. There are many who have tried to get their power, only to be found unworthy and destroyed in the process. The guardians of the core care not for intruders either, and getting past them is another matter entirely.
Still, this does mean that the governments try to cultivate loyal subjects so that they may be worthy of the alchemical exaltation... and they have had a considerable amount of success. These are the heroes of the people. What the common people don't know is the great amount of those that are not found worthy enough.
But they do not have control over who may or who may not Exalt. Sometimes, Autochthon himself chooses a mortal that has proven himself worthy, and the mortal finds himself getting swallowed by the land beneath his feet and taken directly to the core. All mortals chosen this way are found worthy.
Because of the ways their society is structured, many of these Alchemicals end up working directly for the governments, knowing that they may be able to do the most good there. Not all of them do so, however, instead choosing to defend their people by themselves as best as they can. Either of them, rogue or soldier, are seen as heroes by their people, and so the governments can do little about the rogues but try to actively recruit them and hope they don't mess up too badly.
Autochthon chooses less and less as his dreams turn into nightmares and he slowly dies some more. And yet, he never chooses those that would do him harm instead. However, some of those may find their own way to the core, and may even be found worthy enough to bear an Exaltation... despite the wishes of the Great Maker himself. These are the worst monsters that anybody in this world can think about.
The Creation Project
Upon arriving to creation, in an attempt to find more resources that the great maker sorely needs, Alchemicals found themselves with a peculiar problem... for the first time, they found that they had difficulty regaining Essence. Tied to Autochthon as they are, Alchemicals only regain half as much Essence in creation than in their world, and those unlucky enough to find themselves in the Wyld or the Underworld could not regain any at all. Without their greatest champions, the Autochthonians could do little but get a small foothold on creation, on the gate that connects the two worlds.
And so, a project began.
The greatest spies were sent around the world, both to observe the cultures around them and to find mortals that they could consider worthy. In secret, many mortals were kidnapped and brought to Autochthon, and to the core. In theory, said mortals, if worthy, would be able to regain Essence normally in their world, finally allowing them to enter Creation fully.
And it worked. Some of those mortals were found worthy enough to receive the spark of Exaltation. However... said new Alchemicals could not be controlled and many fled into Creation once more, most fearing what they had become, and many of them using their newfound abilities to combat these invaders.
