Homunculus
That person you know is not the person you know anymore.
Maybe it was a subtle change. Maybe it was immediately noticeable. But whether over a period of days or months, you realize: the person you knew has been replaced.
It's not your imagination. You aren't going mad. Across Sumaru, Tokyo, Tatsumi and beyond Rumormongers have reported strange incidents of people being replaced by sinister beings that wear their face like their own personal mask to fool the world.
People call these monsters Homunculus.
What is a Homunculus?
A Homunculus is a Shadow. It is not a human Shadow. It is not a Mindless Shadow either, or even one of the countless Shadows native to the Metaverse. The Homunculus is a Shadow entirely unique to itself -- an anomaly, a wrinkle in the metaphysical fabric that manifests inside a human's psyche in a special cognitive space known as an Atelier.
And it is from there they take over.
Essentially, Homunculi are a form of cognitive parasite. They are a seed of Something Else that wraps itself in the idea of Another, Potential You (like a version of you that did not pan out because of the trajectory of your life) and builds off it, like how a grain of sand in an oyster eventually becomes a pearl. People have lots of different masks and different ways their pasts could have turned out and personalities have formed, but generally a solid sense of self lets them stay internally coherent. People who have a very scattered, disturbed, or torn sense of self due to things like trauma or cognitive dissonance may end up attracting the seed of a Homunculus that uses the layers of someone’s alternate masks and other potential selves to make a new "them."
The life cycle of a Homunculus is insidious and subtle. A Homunculus will take root unobtrusively in a person's Atelier; once they have infiltrated, the Homunculus requires a period of gestation in something called a Cocoon before it is truly 'born' (visually, the Cocoon looks more or less like a Schiffli cocoon bobbin, with threads spooling out of the Cocoon and lacing into the structure of the Atelier, indicating how the gestating Homunculus is gradually usurping the Atelier from within). However, once a Homunculus is formed, they will always and immediately attempt to subsume and replace their host, seizing the host Shadow and sealing it into the Cocoon, essentially replacing - and usurping - the Shadow's place within the Atelier and, subsequently, assuming control over the person's body in the real world. (For more on the Life Cycle of a Homunculus and their effect on an Atelier, see: Instar Stages)
There are a variety of circumstances that can give birth to a Homunculus, but for the most part it is fundamentally about a cognitive dissonance between what a person is, was, or wants to be. If a person has a weak or disturbed sense of self-identity, a Homunculus is very likely to take root to assert an aggressively "idealized" version of its host (it's important to note 'idealized' doesn't necessarily mean 'better' and most Homunculi are dangerous and aggressive; most people divorced of self-restraint tend not to be healthy). Discrepancies between a person in this timeline and their selves from the Other Side can also cause a Homunculus to form; individuals that did not exist in the Other Side can also be at risk.
There is one last situation where a Homunculus can form: in people who have been inflicted with Mental Shutdowns or Apathy Syndrome. Provided the victim of a Mental Shutdown didn't simply die, both of these circumstances lead to an Atelier devoid of a Shadow, letting a Homunculus essentially slip into the husk of the person unopposed. A person "miraculously" recovering from Apathy Syndrome may well not be someone saved by the destruction of a Major Arcana Shadow, but a Homunculus who has essentially claimed squatters' rights on their body.
What Happens When a Homunculus Takes Over?
Once the switch has completed itself, the Homunculus effectively rules the roost. Due to their abnormal nature and ability to simply 'form' within the core of an Atelier without notice, Homunculi do not immediately register as a threat to the lesser Shadows (known as Humors). By the time a Homunculus might be perceived as a threat, it is far too late: the Homunculus becomes the undisputed ruler of the Atelier after it is born and the switch is complete, and the entire rules and structures of the cognitive space bend to its will. Homunculus-warped Ateliers are - of course - very dangerous to traverse, being particularly responsive to its master's aggressive, distorted will, and the Humors within will typically warp to suit its new vision.
In the real world? The Homunculus has essentially taken over the life of the host.
A Homunculus seizing control of an Atelier after being born is unavoidable outside of extreme, extenuating circumstances, but does not result in the immediate death of the host; instead the Shadow is sealed away and gradually discorporated within the Atelier as the Homunculus asserts further and further control. After a period of time, the Shadow of the host will be fully absorbed back into the Collective Unconscious and the Homunculus will have completely replaced the host, resulting in what is, effectively, the host's death... unless they are saved from that grisly fate, that is.
Detecting a Homunculus
Homunculi have the knowledge and memories of its host, but are aware of their nature and origins. It makes them sometimes uncannily good at avoiding detection until it's too late. All that matters to a Homunculus is existing; a Homunculus is almost entirely focused on itself and its own survival. Outside of that, an individual Homunculus behaves like a version of its host unmoored by self-restraint or societal mores. How this expresses can vary wildly, and some might even seem like better, more positive people than the individuals they're replacing...
... But there is always something about a Homunculus that is - fundamentally - off. And this is the key to finding one that has become active.
No matter how alike to their host a Homunuclus might seem, they are not: and a person with a genuine Shadow who is close to the person can usually subconsciously sense something is amiss even if the Homunculus is not acting outrageously disruptive. They are - oftentimes - just dismissed by others, but that feeling is unmistakable, like a shiver of the senses -- a feeling like someone is wearing the other person's skin.
This is especially true of Persona Users thanks to how naturally attuned they are to the supernatural, to the point that a Persona-User can sense a Homunculus regardless of how close or not they are to the person being parasitized. A Homunculus does not just feel wrong – it gives off a simple, visceral feeling that this person standing across from you is not a real human.
It is deeply unsettling, like a predator-prey response. Among Persona-Users it is by far most pronounced with Navigators, who are naturally inclined towards sensing these things. A Navigator aware that Homunculi exist could, theoretically, try to focus and purposefully search for them within a limited radius -- but if they are even reasonably near one, the Navigator will know instantly.
Dealing With a Homunculus
The first and most essential step to saving a person from a Homunculus is finding a route to their Atelier. (See Accessing Ateliers for more!). Once a way in has been established, there are two major parts to handling a Homunculus:
1. Subduing the Ateliers' Melanc Humors 2. Freeing the Host Shadow from the Cocoon
The Homunculus is the absolute (hijacked) ruler of its respective Atelier; confronting it directly in the seat of its cognitive power, directly empowered by the strength of the host, would almost certainly be a doomed enterprise -- and even if it was possible, would put the host Shadow at extreme risk in the process for as long as it is bound within the Cocoon. Thus, freeing the host and destroying the Cocoon are essential to eliminating the Homunculus.
An integral part of this process is confronting and resolving a special sort of Shadow within the Atelier called Melanc Humors. Natural parts of the Atelier's self-defense systems, the Melanc represent the parts of the host that they most dislike. By utilizing and amplifying these Humors, the Homunculus both creates a cadre of guardians for its own use, and further subordinates the will of the Atelier's owner, weaponizing their own self-critique to further weaken their will within the Cocoon. By confronting and defeating these Humors, a person can help weaken the Homunculus' hold on the Atelier, and in turn weaken the Cocoon, making it much more possible to free the person within.
Once the Melanc Humors have been dealt with and the Cocoon is found within the Atelier, the next step before confronting the Homunculus is to destroy the Cocoon, and free the Shadow within. Note that this process is different and has different results depending on if a person has the potential to awaken or not (see the next segment for more information!), but the broad strokes remain fundamentally the same: when the Cocoon is destroyed, the true Atelier owner is freed, and the Homunculus' grip on the Atelier weakens to a point that it becomes vulnerable to attack. When a Homunculus' has lost its grip on the Atelier, its eyes change from the typical Shadow yellow to a bright ruby red, a visual indicator that it is no longer the master of this cognitive space.
Even without its hold over an Atelier, a Homunculus is still a dangerous and powerful Shadow, and destroying one is still a fundamentally risky action. Once destroyed, though, the host is truly free and safe; when the Homunculus is eliminated, the entire Shadow parasite will discorporate save for its eyes, which tend to transform into an abstract form symbolic of both the Homunculus and the Atelier it had possessed.
NOTE: in the case of Homunculus possessing victims of Mental Shutdowns and Apathy Syndrome, the process is different in some key ways, but fundamentally the same. Since there is no host Shadow in these situations, the Homunculus is the undisputed ruler of the Atelier; the Humor Shadows within are even more directly lashed to its will, and dealing with Melanc Humors is less a matter of helping the Shadow, and more a matter of simple survival for the infiltrators. While it's ultimately simpler to 'free' an Atelier from a Homunculus in these situations - one only needs to destroy the Cocoon to relinquish the Homunculus' hold - it is in many ways significantly more dangerous, as the Atelier is wholly perverted to the Homunculus' will.
When a Homunculus is removed in these situations, the body will typically resume its catatonic state, being once more deprived of a Shadow to move it.
What Happens to the Possessed?
Upon seizing the Shadow, a Homunculus effectively replaces the person they are parasitizing. This process, called Pupation, sees the host essentially imprisoned within their own Atelier with their Shadow, their self-doubts exacerbated and weaponized to keep them from trying to resist as the Homunculus slowly absorbs them and their life from within.
The possessed are, on some level, aware of what the Homunculus is doing in the real world. How much they remember when or if they are freed depends greatly on the person in question, but even in those who can't remember at all, some subconscious impression of the incident still lingers.
While within the Cocoon, a person is made a prisoner of their own negativity, bombarded with their doubts and the reality that they have been replaced by the "better" version of themselves - a version they perhaps on some level always wished they could be. To free them is a process of confronting and resolving those self-doubts and weakening the fetters binding them down until it is weak enough they can be freed from the Cocoon.
The last step of the process is as much up to the person as it is to those freeing them; the destruction of the Cocoon is a symbolic action that requires a resolve from the person within to liberate themselves from their regrets and doubts and seek freedom. Only by doing so, can they truly become free from the Homunculus' sway, and can the Homunculus itself be made vulnerable, making the host's personal liberation a crucial cornerstone.
This can play out one of two ways: in most cases, when the person is freed from the Homunculus thanks to their perspective shift, those who helped liberate them will protect them and destroy the Homunculus, returning the Atelier to their (subconscious) control.
However, things are different if someone parasitized by a Homunculus has undergone - or harbors a strong desire for - personal change within them -- in other words, if someone has the Potential to undergo Transmutation. Upon being freed from the Cocoon, a person has the capacity to undergo Awakening. Many do not. But for those that do, the process of destroying the Cocoon becomes much more active: as the person within unites in common purpose with their Shadow in realizing and embraces their desire for change, they undergo their own personal metamorphosis within the Cocoon, breaking its hold on them and achieving their first Transmutation.
Upon gaining their Persona, the Homunculus completely loses any hold it held over the Atelier, and the confrontation with the parasite can truly begin.
What Happens After?
Those who have achieved Transmutation during their possession by a Homunculus will remember everything that took place -- both the actions of the Homunculus while controlling them, and the events within the Atelier itself. They, like all Persona Users, have awakened to the hidden realms of the human condition, and no longer have the luxury of looking away.
What they do after this, of course, is entirely up to them. After all -- they're free now.
Those who do not awaken will have no real memories of how they were freed or what even occurred, but that doesn't mean they are unaffected. Events in the cognitive world echo into the real world: there's no escaping that, even if you are unaware of what has transpired. Someone freed from a Homunculus' grip may only have vague impressions of what happened while they were imprisoned, but being confronted by a (warped) possibility of what they could have been, and finding the strength within them to reject that so-called better them and overcome their regrets, influence them on a profound and subconscious level.
Whether they awaken to a Persona or not, a person freed from a Homunculus will experience a positive perspective shift in their lives, and usually attempt to change the circumstances of their life for the better afterward.
An Atelier freed from a Homunculus typically has nothing to fear from a repeat possession; the process, after all, goes a long way in resolving the very issues that made them vulnerable to begin with.
OOC Notes
- The conditions in which a Homunculus spawns covers a very wide gamut mostly to accommodate player creativity and provide a lot of potential avenues for someone to explore this concept if they want to. The emphasis is on if they want to however: all of these conditions just increase the likelihood of a Homunculus forming and no one should feel obligated to have to deal with a Homunculus just because they meet the criteria. But if you want to -- awesome!
- Outside extreme extenuating circumstances, Persona Users are immune to Homunculus possession, as they have an extremely developed sense of self by dint of their nature.
- Being able to access and explore Ateliers is a relatively recent and unexpected occurrence and Rumormongers and various other, seedier individuals would be very happy to have information on them. Look at that -- it's hooks for you to snag on!
- The material of a Homunculus' Cocoon - known as filum regium - is a potent meta material that can be harvested after its destruction; filum regium can be used to greatly enhance or even forge new gear and weapons at your various friendly meta purveyors such as Peacock Silk or Mayoido Antiques.
- The Eyes don't seem to have the same potential as filum regium but Peacock Silk is still extremely interested in them anyway. What a bunch of weirdos.