Starsearing
In the northern region of Reylah lies many different Lua, or powerful spirits that claim dominion over vast amounts of territory. Tengaraj, Lua of Truth, Ice, Reflection, and Change, is one such spirit. For many, Tengaraj is difficult to deal with due to his calculated yet frivolous nature. Those wishing to bargain with the Lua may fall victim to his cold judgement if their intentions are not clearly stated without any falsifications. Naturally, either in fear of the Lua or uncertainty in why they bargain, many people are turned away as Tengaraj makes his frustration known. While this should be a clear indication to stay away from the Lua, stories told by the people of Reylah describe the gifts he is able to bestow upon those who bargain as great and something of pure beauty, this continuing mortal pursuits to garner power. However, his frustration has manifested in a punishment that occurs every few decades should mortality irritate him, causing a phenomenon known as Starsearing.
A Brief On Tengaraj
Briefly, Tengaraj claims dominion over truth, ice, reflection, and change in Reylah in a time before mortals settled across Kerine. His depiction varies on his mood, month, time of day, and just about anything else he might think of. This has resulted in a unique appearance in each account pertaining to him, appearing as a human one time and a complex series of crystalline shapes another.
The truth he strives for is objective truth free of subjectivity. However, over time as he has interacted with other Lua, he does not expect mortals to be able to display such an understanding. Unfortunately, that is the only benefit he permits to mortals he bargains with. Firsthand accounts of dealings with Tengaraj explain that he is highly critical of mortal intentions, critiquing their desires and what the reason truly for requesting his gift. A minor detail fibbed and a fabricated story hold the same weight in his eyes. As mortals often mince their words and hide their true intentions out of shame, fear, or judgement, Tengaraj often refuses them, growing tired and irritated.
Tengaraj's anger in having his time wasted by mortals who cannot be true to themselves and their intentions drive him to punish those who would try to take power from him. Some say he takes the physical manifestation of all the lies hes been told and sends it into the sky, while others believe he freezes a star and causes it to crash into Kerine. Regardless of the method, every couple decades as mortality irritates him, Tengaraj calls down a pale blue comet to cross the sky above a seemingly random location in Reylah, causing a change in the populace there caught outside during its path. The people of the region have called it the Star of Hate, and as the comet flies, the Lua will finally be given mortal truth.
Manifestation
The comets light manifests itself as a pale blue spotlight over a vast area that affect nothing but mortal humanoids that reside there. As the comet crosses the sky above Reylah, those who are caught outside under its light during its journey are said to feel an icy burning across their body and a numbness in their tongue. Any amount of light from the comet seems to cause this sensation, from a small beam from a crack to full exposure, generally affecting more people despite them avoiding the light. Minor exposure manifests itself as temporarily frostbitten fingers and tongue, preventing speech for a week. Those caught in the comets full radiance, however, are horribly changed. Flesh shifts and warps as the body morphs into a new shape and, like the Lua himself, doesn't seem to follow a visually distinct pattern. One individual transformation will always look completely different from another. From here, the Starseared tend to take on a new personality or persona in addition to acting aggressive towards those around them. Horrible events of Starsearing have occurred where those afflicted turned on their neighbors, slaying them in acts of anger and frustration. This transformation tends to only last one night, while only a few accounts recounting it lasted one single day longer. As the sun rises on the next day, the horrible transformation will reverse, leaving the mortal to agonize over what they might have done during their Starseared state the day prior. By this act, Tengaraj claims he shows the truth of mortals against their will.
Localization
This phenomenon is limited to Reylah, where most of the Lua's power is drawn from. As Tengaraj is one of the more powerful Lua of the region, other Lua allow him to do as he pleases regardless of their approval or disapproval. However, the comet seems to fly over a random area of Reylah, only affecting those within a couple hundred mile radius in an area after it crosses the sky. People believe Tengaraj has the ability to Starsear the entirety of Relyah, but chooses not to either hoping that mortality might change or just to prove a point.
Crude depictions of humanoids afflicted with Starsearing from reports.
Source
The imagery of the starseared is really powerful.