Darling System

Prior to the creation of the Eqexus, an ancient nephirs known as Karvex controlled an entire human village. He ruled through ownership rather than governance, visiting regularly to personally select humans according to his preferences and relocate them to his estate. Many humans, conditioned by survival and proximity to power, came to view this selection as an honor. Those who embraced this belief became known as sanguinists.

Following the split of realms and the formation of the Eqexus , Rezolon vanished, and nephir society fractured into five ideological factions. During an early council convened to establish order, Karvex proposed a standardized method for sorting and filtering human, designed solely to streamline access to those he deemed most valuable.

While Karvex intended this system as a private mechanism of control, other nephirs quickly recognized its broader utility. The proposal was reshaped, formalized, and weaponized into a public institution: a regulated, prestige-driven auction system. This institution would come to be known as the Darling System.

Karvex himself rejected participation in the normalized auctions that followed. Instead, he withdrew from public politics, continuing his practices through underground networks that recycled unregistered, discarded, or erased humans back into circulation. Despite his absence from formal governance, his influence persists—embedded in the foundations of the system itself.

The Darling System is primarily conducted within specialized nephir-run schools, where selected human youths are raised and groomed for integration into nephir society. From an early age, attendees are observed, trained, and categorized according to perceived usefulness: ordinary humans, livine users capable of healing, protection, or combat, and, on rare occasions, Symseons.

Upon reaching graduation, a formal ceremony is held. During this event, attending nephirs are granted brief, controlled introductions with the human candidates who have drawn their interest. Following the ceremony, a demonstration display takes place. The nature of this display changes annually, designed to efficiently showcase each human’s abilities, temperament, and potential value.

Once the display concludes, the humans are reintroduced for a second round of evaluation. The auction phase then begins.
If only a single nephir expresses interest in a candidate, the human is transferred for a standardized flat-rate fee. When multiple nephirs compete for the same human, a formal auction is conducted, with ownership granted to the highest bidder.

Humans not selected during graduation are transferred to Holding Houses, where they are made available for secondary adoption by nephirs who did not attend or were unable to participate in the graduation process. Those who remain unclaimed for an extended period are eventually drained, their continued upkeep deemed inefficient.

Humans who fall outside the formal system and are later captured are not reintegrated into public proceedings. Instead, they are filtered directly into the underground auction networks, bypassing institutional oversight entirely.

• Schools: Specialized institutions activated during an active cycle. Curricula are developed by nephirs, often in collaboration with their bonded darlings, and tailored to prepare incoming human candidates for evaluation, compliance, and potential integration into nephir households.
• Ritual Brazier: A fire-based diagnostic instrument used during classification rites. Blood offerings are introduced to the flame, allowing latent abilities, particularly Symseon traits, to be identified through observable reactions.
• Training Weapons: A range of standardized weapons provided for instruction and assessment. These tools are used to evaluate aptitude, adaptability, and combat potential during demonstrations and final displays.

Beyond the humans processed through the Darling System, select nephir classes are formally invited to attend the graduation ceremonies, where humans are displayed for final evaluation. Attendance is both a privilege and a declaration of status, as each tier assesses potential darlings according to its own interests and standards.

• Vasaryn (Ruling Crown(s)) - The highest authority within nephir society. Their presence signifies legitimacy and oversight. While they rarely claim darlings themselves and instead send messengers in their stead, their evaluations influence cultural trends, prestige values, and which traits become desirable within the system.
• Erythar (Elite Nobility) - High-ranking nephirs with significant influence and resources. The Erythar are the system’s primary participants, selecting darlings as symbols of refinement, lineage strength, and personal dominance.
• Valec (Established House) - Recognized households of means and legacy. Valec attend to secure darlings for labor, status reinforcement, or future advancement within nephir society, often competing quietly beneath the notice of higher tiers.

The Darling System is observed once every ten years. During this period, the institution opens for a single year, after which education, evaluation, and final sorting are concluded before the school closes again.