Insomniacs

By Smiling Jack (kitab@hotmail.com)

Introduction

"Creaky noises make my skin creep,
I need to get some sleep...
I can't get no sleep."
-- Faithless, "Insomnia"

Some people just can't sleep. They try and they try, but they can't. Then the visions start. They start to see strange colours -- auras -- around people and objects. They start to gain other strange abilities.

But they still can't sleep. There is an imbalance in them; their psyche is trying to escape into dreams, but can't. They can't sleep.

They can rest, but they can't sleep.

Many go mad and die. Some regain sleep and lose their powers. Others remain just about stable, but their sanity is on a knife edge.

And they still can't sleep.

The Start

(This supplement is based on Stephen King's novel, Insomnia. No copyright infringements intended blah blah blah etc) Most start out as ordinary people. One night, they wake up earlier than normal. This continues. After a while, they wake up even earlier than before. And then earlier still. They continue until they do not sleep at all.

There are some benefits, but these are hugely outweighed by the fact that you can go mad and die from lack of sleep.

What You Gain

The power gains from Insomnia are manifold. Insomniacs can automatically see auras and aural energy all of the time. With a little practice, they can tell roughly what people are thinking from the colours and shapes. They can also steal aural energy from people to replenish their own which has been depleted by their powers and activities, and are able to transfer some to others, either to replenish theirs, or to gain mental control over them. It can even be used it to shoot them (causes immediate shock, resulting in a faint). Insomniacs can telepathically communicate with other Insomniacs, and with Long Timers and other creatures of the Tower. They may become intangible and invisible. They can see whether someone will live or die.

What You Lose

Your sanity, most frequently.

The Random And The Purpose

All things in the Universe happen according to the designs of higher entities. These are the Random and the Purpose. Every person in the Universe is assigned a place in fate. They belong to the Random or the Purpose. Those claimed by the Purpose have a destiny, a fixed place, whether it is a significant one or not. Those owned by the Random have no such place, and are buffeted and swirled by fate every day, their lives hinging on chance and uncertainty. The numbers of both seem to even out, just.

There are, however, some people who do not fit. They are Jokers in the pack; they do not belong to anyone. They can have a destiny, or can have an entirely randomised life. Most frequently, people are made Insomniacs to help either the Random or the Purpose win one of these. They are altered by the Long Timers; creatures in between the humans and the next stage up from them. They live a long time, but not forever; they can die, and are subject to many of the same psychological weaknesses as we are. They have auras, and many of the powers associated with Insomniacs. They refer to humans as Short Timers. Well-known Long Timer figures are Clotho, Lachesis and Atropos. Clotho and Lachesis are the servants of the Purpose, and are frequently described as 'good', although this is a purely subjective term. Atropos is the servant of the Random, and wholly evil, although this is not a feature of the entire Random; it is worth remembering that Hitler and Stalin were claimed by the Purpose.

The next stage up from the Long Timers are the Centurions; powerful servants of the Random or Purpose, who are almost demi-gods. They do not come to Earth very frequently, preferring to watch their plans take shape from afar.

And then, there are the ----------. There is simply no word which can adequately describe them in the human language. They live so long that it might as well be eternity. There are only two well known figures among the ----------; they are the Crimson King, and the Green Man. They are of the Random and Purpose respectively.

It must be remembered throughout, that the use of such terms as 'good' and 'evil' to describe these creatures is absolutely foolish. They are so far above humans and their moral systems that these words cannot have any bearing on them whatsoever.

Often, the Centurions and up remain in The Tower, a place which is not a place, which is outside of normal space and time. From outside, it resembles a tall tower made of black granite, in a field of roses which stretches on forever. To illustrate the relative importance of the Long Timers, they are on the ground floor of The Tower. The ---------- are somewhere near the top, if not at the top. Humans don't even get a look in.

Character Generation

Attributes:	7/5/3
Abilities:	16/12/8
Background:	8
Willpower:	+1
Virtues:	7
Freebie points:	15