Spiritual Entities

Corporeal spirits are entities that have or had physical forms. These include incarnated spirits, ghosts, and bound spirits. Unbound spirits include corporeal and incorporeal entities such as demons.

Incarnated Spirits

Incarnated spirits are bound to the physical realm by a physical body. Most incarnated spirits aren't consciously aware of other spiritual entities, but most also have some level of sensitivity to spiritual entities and psychic ability. Upon death of the physical body, incarnated spirits may become ghosts, bound spirits, or unbound spirits. Having direct access to the physical realm and thus greater ability to collect and exert energy, an incarnated spirit's commands and will have power over the spiritual realm and all other spiritual beings. How much power depends on the incarnated spirit's sensitivity, actions, beliefs, and relationships to the spirits under their command.

Because water itself is a manifestation of the water gods, all water based lifeforms are considered incarnated spirits. Some categorize incarnated spirits based on their capacity for intelligence and communication, particularly with other species. These categories are

1. baltariks and humans
2. water and water gods
3. ramda
4. animals
5. plants

Others argue that all incarnated spirits are equal. Baltariks and humans with certain categories of psychic abilities, for example, argue that they can understand animals and plants as well as any other species capable of more traditional language. Categorizing them as if some species are "special" in comparison to others in this regard is inaccurate and offensive.

Poltergeists

Poltergeists, or noisy ghosts, are created by troubled adolescents or youths to vent unexpressed, negative emotions as kinetic energy. Using their hosts' energy, poltergeists perform telekinetic feats, causing objects to move and often break seemingly on their own. The poltergeist is not a separate entity from its host incarnated spirit but rather a rejected part. Poltergeists act independently and outside the host's conscious control. They have emotions, mostly those the incarnated spirit doesn't want to acknowledge, and exist to express them in the physical realm through energy. When the inner conflict within the host has resolved, poltergeists are reabsorbed into their host.

Poltergeists are attached to their hosts. Moving outside their host's energy field results in the poltergeist returning to their host's side. Hosts also can't sever this attachment, but their access to the physical realm gives them some influence over the poltergeist's actions.

Ghosts

A rare type of spirit, ghosts are disembodied spirits bound to the physical realm by unfinished business. Specifically, ghosts are bound to locations with significance to them. They may only leave these locations by attaching themselves to incarnated spirits. Ghosts have emotions and may express them or otherwise manipulate the physical realm if they have sufficient energy. They are perceived by psychics in the physical form they took in life. Once they have resolved their unfinished business, they may become a bound or unbound spirit.

Bound Spirits

Bound spirits are spirits free to travel only between their home world(s) and the afterlife. They are bound by their desire to oversee loved ones. Bound spirits have emotions but can't manipulate the physical realm. Once their attachments to loved ones have faded or they otherwise choose, these spirits are unbound. They may also be tempted to rebind themselves to the physical realm as ghosts.

Unbound Spirits

Unbound spirits are free to travel between worlds. They have access to all the knowledge of The Net and may choose to be reincarnated.

Demons

Demons are incorporeal spirits capable of converting negative emotions to energy. Not having a physical form, demons portray themselves in whatever form advances their plans for generating energy. They may take a monstrous form designed to prey on the fears of the spirits in their presence, or they may mimic human forms or voices, children most often, to trick incarnated spirits into believing their innocence or normalcy. Demons exude a constant, unpleasant aura, however, which they can't mask from those sensitive to it. Demons have emotions and may express them or otherwise manipulate the physical realm if they have sufficient energy.

They have access to all the knowledge of The Net, but as their goal is often to keep spirits bound and susceptible to their influence, they rarely share their knowledge. Demons may tempt bound spirits to retie themselves to the physical realm as ghosts (for example, by threatening their living or ghostly loved ones). Demons with sufficient energy may imprison ghosts to psychologically torture them for the purpose of stoking negative emotions and generating energy for themselves. Demons may even capture poltergeists for this purpose. In addition to the energy required to restrain a ghost, demons must exert additional energy to separate a ghost from its place of significance if such a place is not a sufficient prison. Even more energy is required to separate a poltergeist from its host. For high value ghosts and poltergeists, however, demons may judge the net benefit worth the cost. Protected by the physical realm, incarnated spirits must invite a demon to similarly influence them. This invitation, however, need not be explicit.