The Prophecy of Assignment (Full Collection)

Traits were not born with their hosts, instead they were assigned. When a child was brought into the world, a unique combination of four main aspects was appointed to them for the entirety of their lives, creating each individual's personality. When the host passed away, depending on how fulfilling their life had been and the impacts they had had on those around them, their soul would be sent to The Fields of Asphodel, or worse Tartarus. If a person was particularly selfless, contributing much to society, they along with their traits would be granted the gift of eternal paradise that was Elysium. That was the highest honor that any facets could achieve, which meant the number sent there was extremely low. Most aspects would return to their life in the Astral Plane with only one way to remember the host they had lost; a symbolic mark. This mark would be comprised of what had been most important to the one they had lost, and the more sentiment the facets felt, the closer the mark would be to the heart.

"You either die a hero or live long enough to watch yourself become the villain." This was a quote that all traits knew, as it represented their lives well. The longer they lived, the darker they would become. Over the years of having host after host, their outlook on life would become cynical and harsh as they became disgusted with the pains of assignment. Unfortunately, the aspects themselves were immortal, so unless they achieved Elysium, they would all become 'the villain' eventually.

Due to the facets' immortality, they didn't really use years to measure their age, and instead used the phase of life they were in to define them. At the age of twenty-one, a trait was old enough to be assigned, so that marked the beginning of their moral phase. After a few hosts, they would lose some of their childhood innocence and they would change into the creative phase of their lives. It would take almost twice as long for them to switch phases again, but when they did the change was much more dramatic. They were no longer bubbly and hyper, but cold and analytical as they entered their logical phase. That was where they would remain for another thousand years at least until finally they would enter the longest and darkest phase of their life as a fight-or-flight reflex.

There was another way to break this cycle, but it was one that most tried to avoid, because once the change was made, there was no going back. If a facet experienced a prolonged period of a negative emotion such as anger, grief, or fear, they could be overtaken by said emotions and become a corrupted trait. If this were to happen, they could still be assigned, but never again would they take the place of one of the four main aspects. Since this change made these facets volatile and sometimes violent, for the safety of those in the Astral Plane, the corrupted traits were forced to live in The Fields of Asphodel between assignments.

No matter which aspects were assigned to them, there were people born and passing away every day, which meant there were facets constantly entering and leaving the Astral Plane, Asphodel, and Elysium. That was not to mention the human souls who were also being sent to Elysium, Asphodel, and Tartarus to live their eternal lives or damnation. Having so much traffic between the four planes and the world of the living, a proper government was imperative to ensure that everything ran in an orderly fashion; this is where the story of the Princes began.

There were four brothers who ruled over the four lands, and each was in a different phase of a trait's life. Once they reached the chapter of their existence in which they were fated to live forever, they stopped aging. This was only one of two ways that they differed from their subjects, the other came after they had finished their royal training and entered the eternal part of their life. They were granted a pair of brilliant wings, given to them upon the day of their coronation, which reflected the royals' personalities. This made it impossible for anyone else to impersonate the leaders of the four lands.

The Eldest Prince ruled over the night when stars filled the darkened skies, and the moon cast its silvery light upon the world below. He would remain a fight-or-flight reflex for all time, and was the only monarch who had gone through all four phases of a trait's life. His responsibilities differed greatly from that of his brothers, as he commanded the Astral Plane's militaristic forces. His troops also included the wardens sent to escort human souls to their final place of rest or torment, and those who brought aspects back to their homes. Even the guards tasked with protecting the palace were under the command of the Prince of the Night, who's attentive and observant nature made him the perfect candidate to protect their kingdom and all who lived within it.