Rego Animus is an illness that affects the way a person thinks, acts, expresses emotions, perceives reality, and relates to others. Though most cases of Rego Animus go unreported, fading into the ether, the most severe cases can and do result in a lifelong attatchment to the host body that follows them even into the grave.
Hosts with Rego Animus often have problems doing well in society, at work, at school, and in relationships. They might feel frightened and withdrawn, could "appear" to have lost touch with reality. The truth is they have been innoculated into seeing a separate shape of reality, much older and more foreign than what most human researchers have come to accept.
Rego Animus is a form of divine intervention. It can be initated by the Gods of the Lesser Pantheon or The Eldest Order. The integration of the alien prescense with the tender human flesh can cause a variety of complications to the host body and psyche. In spite of this, nearly half of all recorded Rego Animus cases report positive feelings towards their possession. Feelings of gratitude towards their newfound abilities are not uncommon. This does not detract from the overall destabilizing and disorienting experience Rego Animus offers. The vastness of their perception may cause them to act in an unpredictable and often unexplainable manner. Hosts may experience sudden changes in affect, personality, and moral character.
Rego Animus can occur briefly over a certain interval and never recur. It can also occur in waves or all at once, never relenting. There is no known cure for Rego Animus, nor is there any way to speed up the process. The mechanics of possession remain largely unknown. Rego Animus symptoms seem to worsen and improve in cycles known as relapses and remissions.
What Are the Early Symptoms of Rego Animus?
Rego Animus typically begins in late adolescence or the early teens. It is more common in girls and women. The period when symptoms first start and before full possession is called the prodromal period. It can last days, weeks, or even years. It can be hard to spot because of the prescense of comorbidity within hosts. Over 75% of hosts diagnosed with Rego Animus have a history of mental health problems beginning in early childhood. For this reason, experts tend to focus on the physical symptoms of Rego Animus as well as the psychological. This includes:
- Migraines - Often hosts will report a sensitivity to the dark as well as the light.
- Cold sweat and clamminess in The Body.
- Erratic behavior - Most patients have a long history of mental illness and have developed baseline reactions to their extent illness. Erratic behavior as used here is a departure from baseline, not a departure from a "healthy" reference point.
- Nightmares - typically involving visions of the divine.
- Fevers - When they do occur, fevers that last for weeks on end without killing the host are one of the best identifiers of Rego Animus, but these are not common.
- Paralysis - Hosts may freeze up for several hours or report an inability to move their limbs in a ways they want to. Unintentional muslce spasms may also occur.
- Inexplicable changes in Appearance - Host may suddenly appear less attractive to observers for no particular reason. An increase in attractiveness is also common, though observers often report a sense of uncanniness regardless.
- Vomitting - common shades include maroon, purple, and licorice.
- Loss/Gain of body parts - Body parts such as nails, teeth, and hair may frequenly depart the body or multiply in unconventional positions throughout. Body parts not common on humans, such as wings, scales, and horns may also appear.
Positive Symptoms of Rego Animus
In this case, the word positive doesn’t mean good. It refers to added thoughts or attributes that have been put there by the gods - or which have been made intelligible by the intrustion. These can include:
- The Call: The voice of god as it speaks to them. Different gods are said to have different voices. They may speak in yells, whispers, or even soft singing. Certain equipment allows researchers to hear these voices for themselves, though it is highly inadvisble. The voice is known to be virulent to the uninitiated.
- Augmentation: These are the physical changes to the host body. It includes the removal and/or addition of body parts to and from the host. The particulars of augmentation may indicate the identity of the god who possesses them. Hosts may have a variety of reactions to their augmentation. While it usually does not endanger or disable them in the way an ordinary illness would, some have severely adverse psychological reactions to their body changing.
- Aura: This can only be measured externally, as the way the host makes the people in their prescense feel. Auras influence the people exposed to them, inducing a wide range of emotions with no apparent cause. They can be soporific, manic, disorienting, or fearsome.
Disorganized Symptoms of Rego Animus
These are positive symptoms that show that the person can’t think clearly or respond as expected. Examples include:
- Talking in sentences that don’t make sense or using nonsense words, making it difficult for the person to communicate or hold a conversation
- Shifting quickly from one thought to the next without obvious or logical connections between them
- Moving slowly (or very, very quickly)
- Being unable to make decisions
- Writing excessively but without meaning
- Forgetting or losing things
- Repeating movements or gestures, like pacing or walking in circles
- Having problems making sense of everyday sights, sounds, and feelings
Cognitive Symptoms of Rego Animus
The person will have trouble:
- Understanding information and using it to make decisions (a doctor might call this poor executive functioning)
- Focusing or paying attention
- Using their information immediately after learning it (this is called working memory)
- Appropriate application of knowledge (hosts often seem to have a "one-track mind")
- Recognizing that they have any of these problems
Negative Symptoms of Rego Animus
The word "negative" here doesn’t mean "bad." It notes the absence of normal behaviors in people with Rego Animus. Negative symptoms of Rego Animus include:
- Lack of emotion or a limited range of emotions
- Withdrawal from family, friends, and social activities
- Less energy
- Speaking less
- Lack of motivation
- Loss of pleasure or interest in life
- Poor hygiene and grooming habits
What Causes Rego Animus?
Nobody knows what causes rego animus. However, researchers have uncovered some key factors that tend to make people more viable hosts, including:
- Being a young woman
- A predisposition to or history of mental illness
- Early exposure to symbology associated with their respective god
- Intentional induction by devotees of their respective god by ritual means
Who Gets Rego Animus?
Anyone can get Rego Animus. It affects people all over the world, from all races and cultures. While it can happen at any age, Rego Animus typically first appears in late childhood and the early teens. The disorder affects both men and women, but tends to be more common and chronic in women. The earlier the symptoms start, the more severe the illness tends to be. Rego Animus rarely comes as a surprise to those affected. Hosts will commonly report early knowledge or premonitions of their own possession. For this reason, the diagnositic tools are primarily for the benefit of researchers.
How Is Rego Animus Diagnosed?
If symptoms of Rego Animus are present, the researcher will gather a complete medical history and conduct a physical exam. While there are no laboratory tests to specifically diagnose Rego Animus, the doctor may use various tests, and possibly blood tests or brain imaging studies, to rule out another physical illness or intoxication (substance-induced psychosis) as the cause of the symptoms.
If the researcher finds no other physical reason for the Rego Animus symptoms and are able to confirm the prescense of the divine, they may wish to call in reinforcements. Organizations such as Menagerie and Cobra often have specialists onboard for divine manifestations. The host will typically remain under surveillance by the specialist and await further instruction depending on how the condition develops.
How Is Rego Animus Treated?
The goal of Rego Animus treatment is to minimize the risk of harm to the host and to others Treatment for Rego Animus may include:
- Sedatives, such as benzodiazepines and barbiturates
- Isolation from stressful environments that may induce relapse
- Sensory deprivation
- Hair of the Dog - Hosts may report knowledge of how to achieve the end state of their own possession. Following the steps they outline can lead to the hastening of extraction. (This method is very experimental and varies greatly depending on the demands the god lays out. In most cases, the demands are impossible.)
- Resection
- Hypnotherapy
In advanced cases, where the host has proven to be a danger to themselves or to others, indefinite confirment to a facility may be the only recourse. Menagerie is the typical contact for these situations.
Can Rego Animus Be Prevented?
There’s no known way to prevent Rego Animus. But early diagnosis and treatment can help avoid or ease frequent relapses and hospitalizations, and help cut the disruption to the person's life, family, and relationships.