Won't till midnight when we finally spotted 'em. They thought it was safe. I chuckled. "Damn," I said. "You out in the Amazon, ain't shit safe out here!" Well, Charlie, I musta said it out loud, cuz here come them damn Wolves up to try and snuff me. All's I could do was go into my battle shape and slap 'em with my damn wings. Ain't shit a bat can do if it can't fly, 's what I say. But I held him down. Since they made me so I could speak normal, I ain't get that screechin' voice that the rest of 'em have. That'd have been damn keen. But the Father, he got other plans for me, and he saved me that day. That's why, I'm tellin' you, I'm in this chair, waitin' for my promotional injection. I deserve everything I get. See you, you're a fomor, yeah, you're a mean bastard. But me, I'm a Chiropterix. I was made to rule your ass. And the company, she just makin' me better.
The brighter Chiropterix realize that their hope lies with Pentex. The Father's company has the means to give them power. The Banes inside them fester and argue, until the Chiropterix has done enough that the company offers her a "promotional" injection, one that will increase the Chiropterix's power, in effect giving her a new "gift." As their "gifts" stem from the Bane within them, Chiropterix do not necessarily depend on spiritual ties as much as they depend on a harmonious relationship with their symbiote Banes. Fulfilling a Bane's goals brings Promotional injections, which make the Bane happy and in turn gives the Chiropterix more power. And who doesn't want power?
Being Chiropterix is not all swine and roses, as many of those who've become werebats could attest. But to imagine the power it gives, and the prestige over other fomori, will often overcome any fears or doubts a candidate might feel. Finally, after a childhood full of dreams, the Chiropterix can turn into a bat and fly on its own two wings. The sound of their new voices, when pushed, can shatter glass (and people's ears). And they can become beasts, more powerful than the world, and crush and tear and cause havoc, and fly away. Many candidates would gladly give up their true voices, fertility, and nights of sweet dreams for this. And Pentex promises more, in the form of the promotional injections. These beings are well-cared for, and finally, for some, the chance of gaining prestige, even among the deranged ranks of the Fomori, is well worth the sacrifice.
Welcome to what we here at Pentex call our most exciting project ever. By accepting the terms and taken your initial injection, you have taken a step up on the evolutionary scale. You will be pleased to know that you are joining a family that includes some of Pentex's finest employees, as well as Yours Truly. I can understand that you may have questions, for I had questions of my own when the project started. And since I had no one to write a document such as this for me, I thought it would be helpful to those of a newer iteration to answer some questions right off, and help you avoid the pitfalls that I fell into in my first Changing Days. This particular document will deal mostly with the history of our breed. Please, take this data and commit it to memory, as it will surely be of use in the future. And take pride in yourself. You are now a god.
[Ed.-- Dr. Bryant's words will be interrupted by my own, in order to separate propaganda from fact. The notes thusly written do not appear on the actual document that Chiropterix initiates receive.]
The operations of our company in this region [Ed.-- The Amazon] are impeded by subhuman monsters who wish all forward progress to halt, and who wish to replace our progress with a revival of Stone-Age mysticism. It might seem to many that such relics of the past would have little effect on our progress, but, unfortunately, they have truly become a thorn in our company's side. Our forces have begun to shrink, and we have been forced against our will to resort to violence. Our answer to these monsters is to commission a breed of super-soldiers, well-equipped to face this menace. You, my friend, were chosen to become one of this breed.
The Chiropterix project, codenamed Project WAYNE (after Bruce Wayne, the alter ego of Batman), has not always been this successful. The new abilities you find yourself in possession of are the result of much research and labor on the part of Pentex scientists. The project went through a couple of less successful iterations before it reached the perfection that resulted in the power that we both share.
The various versions of Project Wayne are as follows:
[Ed.--Though it is omitted from Dr. Bryant's document, there are plans for a Version 3.2 serum, which should protect the candidate's voice and perhaps fertility, destroy the nightmares and bloodthirst, and perhaps introduce flight in Crinos form to the initial injection. There are supposedly Beta-test versions of this serum out, though no one knows for sure except our scientists.]
The Chiropterix as a group are not so much cohesive as they are civil. Those you meet may or may not have adjusted to their new lives as members of the new evolution. Please, take the opportunity, when allowed, to take time and speak with our colleagues. Learn what it is to be Chiropterix, and find out how the others feel. Once you have undergone training, you may find yourself ready to face the monstrous beasts who threaten our goals. At that time, you may seek a promotional injection and a meeting with myself and a few board members, and we will discuss your readiness. Until then, have some fun, enjoy your new self. Welcome to the next step on the evolutionary ladder.
Ed.-- That ends Dr. Bryant's document of welcome to new initiates of the Chiropterix. He left out a few things that would not have helped his position but are somewhat important to my report. The most important of these omissions is the fate of the Chiropterix of Version 1. It has come to my attention that the beasts of this category have not all been extinguished as planned. It appears that perhaps one or two, maybe more, have escaped into the Amazon rain forest and now live there. They can be seen as an extensive threat to our progress, as they are of perhaps (at most) animal intelligence, and yet they are extremely powerful. These creatures have five forms as the Black Spiral Dancers do, however they are all gnarled and horrid except their human forms. They have a human form, a gnarled Near-man form, a horrific Half-man form (that is capable of flight), a nightmare near-bat form, that appears as a wolf with gnarled and useless bat wings; and a repulsive Chiropterix form, which is dragonlike and has a wingspan of perhaps seven feet. It would be to our advantage to destroy these creatures before they are noticed. The consensus is that we should test the Chiropterix in battle against their older cousins. The merit of this has yet to be seen.
The above powers are free of charge to a beginning Chiropterix, and require no Willpower expenditure.
Serum Version: Beginning Chiropterix can choose to be either version 3.0 or version 3.1. Beta Version Merit allows a Chiropterix to be a test version of the version 3.2 serum. The Chiropterix's serum version basically determines her social standing and the set of Taints the werebat has.
Attributes: 6/4/3. Chiropterix tend to have Physical as their Primary, Mental as their Secondary, and Social as their Tertiary.
Abilities: 11/7/4. The type of abilities a Chiropterix possesses depends on why that particular candidate was chosen. Some are chosen for brute strength, while others are chosen for their silence or their knowledges. Talents are usually Primary, Skills Secondary, and Knowledges Tertiary, but there is a wide variance within the breed.
Backgrounds: 5 points, they may buy any backgrounds that fomori are allowed, and are assumed to have at least Rank 1 within Pentex and Resources 1 (as Pentex employees). Chiropterix with the Spirit Ties power may take Bat as a Totem.
Willpower: Starts at 3.
Powers: Beginning Chiropterix are given 9 points with which to buy fomori Powers from the list below, choosing from the powers that cost 3 points or less. These are in addition to the powers granted simply because the fomor is a Chiropterix. The powers that Chiropterix can take as "Gifts" are as follows (costs in parentheses):
Cause Insanity (2/die) | Hell's Hide (2/die) | Animal Control (2) |
Darksight-Sonar (2) | Nimbleness (2) | Sense Gaia (2) |
Berserker (3) | Eyes of the Wyrm (3) | Nightmare Command (3) |
Spirit Ties (3) | Corrupted Visions (4) | Shadowplay (4) |
Invisibility (5) | Phoenix Fire (5) | Umbral Passage (5) |
Wings (3/5) | Extra Speed (3/6) | Deception (7) |
Taints: Chiropterix take different sets of Taints depending on the version of the Chiropterix serum they were given in their initial injection.
Freebie Points: Chiropterix receive 21 Freebie Points to spend however they wish. The Freebies are to be spent according to the table on p. 20 of the Freak Legion sourcebook. The only difference is that the Chiropterix may purchase additional "gifts" at 7 points/two dots in the power. For example, Sense Gaia would cost 7 Freebie Points. Beginning Chiropterix may buy powers that cost more than three points with their Freebie Pool.
The Crinos form is an odd amalgamation of bat and man. The Chiropterix's arms become wings, and the average wingspan of this form is around 12 feet. If the Chiropterix has the Power: Wings, the wingspan increases to about 18 feet and the Crinos form gains an extra point of Strength. A Chiropterix in Crinos form may not hold objects in its hands. The feet of the Crinos form are capable of grasping, and can carry anything the character can lift. The toes are tipped with large grasping claws, and thus do Str+2 damage. The Crinos' body is that of a wiry, athletic human, more powerful and athletic than a mortal could ever be, and the head is that of a large bat. The extremely developed sense of hearing in the Crinos gives the werebat an extra die to his Perception pools when dealing with location and hearing. Version 3.1 Chiropterix are slightly smaller in Crinos form than the earlier Version 3s.
The Chiropterix form depends on the version of the serum that the Chiropterix was injected with. Those of Version 3 become large "flying-fox" fruit bats with wingspans of perhaps 4 feet and small foxlike heads. Those of version 3.1 become much smaller vampire bats, with wingspans of perhaps a foot.
The modifiers for each form are as follows:
NOTE: The Crinos form of both versions gain a point of strength (on top of the modifier listed) if the Chiropterix gains the power: Wings.
Chiropterix cannot fly in Crinos form unless they have the Power: Wings. A Chiropterix may not use echolocation in Homid or Crinos form unless she possesses the Power: Darksight-Sonar.
The voice of a werebat becomes such a high frequency that even in Homid form, no one who is not a Chiropterix or a natural bat can hear it. The only way a Chiropterix may be audible to human ears is if the Chiropterix spends a Willpower point and screams at the top of his lungs. Some werebats have harnessed this into a Power; others see it as a Taint. See Screeching Voice below.
Those Chiropterix with the Merit: Beta Version may be able to reproduce. There is a 1-in-20 chance that a fertile werebat will produce a werebat offspring with either a bat or a human, and a 1-in-5 chance of that child being born healthy. Most children would be stillborn, born in a dead Crinos form, or simply born as a blob of gelatinous goo. The child, if born healthy, is treated more or less as a Ferectoi, as far as knowing instinctively things that most fomori take years to learn, and so on. The child knows what it is instinctively, and thus her First Change would be no surprise to her. The child may or may not be able to speak, or she may or may not be sterile, etc.; however, the child will not be affected by the Taints: Brainwashed or Walking Bomb. Thus, a natural-born Chiropterix child may be seen as a security risk by Pentex.
Screeching Voice: This can be both a Power and a Taint, depending on the user. This Taint removes the true voice of the Chiropterix and replaces it with a high-frequency voice that only other Chiropterix may hear. This effectively mutes the character in dealings with non-Chiropterix. If the werebat spends a point of Willpower (or Rage, if applicable), however, his voice can become a weapon. All werebats can shatter glass by concentrating and screeching at the top of their lungs. The werebat must spend a point of Willpower or Rage and scream. Most glass within a 20-foot radius will shatter, and non-Chiropterix who hear the sound must make a Willpower roll (difficulty 8) or be disabled by the noise. Sensitive animals such as dogs, as well as characters using Heightened Senses or any such power, are put into serious pain. This power does no damage to living beings unless the Chiropterix spends points on it; for two points, the Screech will do one health level of damage to witnesses, and every point spent after the first two adds an additional health level to the damage. The damage manifests as ear damage, and at high levels can cause bleeding ears, torn eardrums, etc., leading to disrupted balance and deafness.
Beta Version (4 pt. Merit): The character is a beta-test version of the next generation of the Chiropterix serum. As such, he or she may have some properties of that generation, such as the Normal Voice Merit, lack of a blood addiction, and a lack of nightmares. For an extra 2 points, the character may also have a slim chance of being able to reproduce, with a 1-in-20 chance of producing a werebat. Being a Beta Version is not without its problems, however. The new serum may have a few bugs to work out. The Beta must take either of the following Taints: Mental De-evolution or Physical Wasting, assigning the points as desired. The resulting Taint points may be used to purchase Powers as normal. Other fomori Powers than than those listed above may be taken at character generation, to reflect the experiments of the Pentex scientists. It is important to remember that while the Beta may have the attention of Pentex, he may also carry the animosity of the earlier Chiropterix. Betas often must tread carefully around the earlier revisions.
Painful Transformation (3 pt. Flaw): The Power that allows the werebat to shapechange is poorly developed; therefore, the character is not always able to shift as desired. Chiropterix with this Flaw find it difficult and painful to change their shapes, and must spend a Willpower point to do so, as if they were trying to talk themselves into it. Under situations of duress, those werebats with Rage pools may spend a point of Rage to instantly and painlessly shift into the desired form.