| Wars ヴァルス Varusu | |
 An example of a Wars, as seen in the anime. | |
| General information | |
|---|---|
| Appearance | Shapeless black mass |
| Habitat | Universal |
| Status | Common |
| Uses | Spreading Verloren's ill-will |
| Appearances | |
| Anime | Episode 3 |
| Manga | Kapitel 3 |
See also the relevant page Category:Wars
A Wars is a Kor that has obtained a human soul "with proof of existence in this world" and evolved after the three wishes have been granted.[1] It is what Mana (the life energy that souls are believed to be made of) becomes when it has been completely tainted by one of Verloren's messengers, the Kor, or a Warsfeil. Wars are the seeds that are planted by the Kor in anticipation of Verloren's return.
They eat souls, and cause feelings of despair in anyone near them. Unlike Kor, which cannot physically harm humans, the Wars occupy vessels and materialise in the medium which all living things exist in, (meaning it becomes tangible) and can now physically injure living things.[2] A Wars becomes stronger every time it takes a human soul.
A person who has the ability to create a Wars without their victim bargaining with a Kor is known as a Warsfeil.
An episode in the anime shows that the Seven Ghosts cannot be harmed by Wars (Frau was not harmed by Bastien's Wars). Presumably, all holy beings in the series are immune to Wars.
Etymology
The word "Wars" possibly derives from the word "war", which is itself derived from the Germanic "werra" meaning "fight".
Anatomy
A Wars is corrupted life energy, and appears as a moving, black mass of pure darkness. A newly transformed Wars still resembles the human the host used to be, with only parts of the host becoming a black mass. A fully-fledged Wars, one that has devoured many souls, loses most of its resemblance to a human being.
Temperament
Wars are extremely vicious and aggressive. They hold no loyalty, and indiscriminately devour anything within reach. Domestication is impossible and extremely dangerous as they will easily turn on their masters.[3] However, they do show some degree of loyalty to and respect for Verloren, and are easily controlled by Warsfeil. Mikhail has shown that archangels also have little difficulty in fending off Wars.
Creation
A person becomes a Wars after they have had all three wishes granted by the Kor, and the person's soul becomes corrupted and turns into a Wars, where the host becomes what essentially is, a moving corpse. Once possessed by a Wars, the person is dead, and their body is only used as a vessel for the Wars inside. The soul of the possessed person is then tied to the physical world (a state of purgatory), until the Wars is destroyed.
It takes at least a day for a Wars to gain complete control over its vessel's corpse.[4]
Persons who have become a Wars
- Wars Man
- Aldo
- Several criminals in the Church.
- District 6 Wars Woman
- Lady Hausen
- Velne
- Lem
- Marie's Lover
Attacking and destroying a Wars
As a person is already dead at the point of becoming a Wars, it is impossible to save them. The only way to destroy the Wars is to purify their soul, something only a trained Bishop is able to do. Holy water has been known to do some damage to them, and as this was demonstrated on Kuroyuri's Wars (which is very powerful), it is very likely that holy water will destroy a weaker Wars.
Since tainted Mana is 'bad', the soul of the possessed person cannot enter Heaven in this lifetime, and they are forced to reincarnate and start their life again.
Abilities of a Wars
A Wars is able to manipulate all forms of life energy and can hijack the vessel's body to force them to attack other people and objects. Its power is intensified by negative thoughts,[5] making someone full of rage, guilt or sadness and thus much more susceptible to being taken over, something reflected on by their choice of victims. A Wars can manifest itself in numerous forms, appearing as ghostly faces (as seen above), or large, monstrous creatures (as seen with the stronger Wars). A Wars is able to move through solid objects no matter what form, and are able to sprout tendrils to whip or grab opponents. When a Baculus has been touched by a Wars, it turns black.
When a human touches a Wars, or something tainted by a Wars, they are instantly consumed by darkness,[6] except if they have been baptised, which allows Warsfeil to use a Wars to guard inanimate objects.
A Wars was used to remove the Eye of Mikhail from its bearer by entering the Eye and preventing it from working.[7]
Forbidden arts
The Baculus was originally designed to be an instrument that could manipulate light and dark alike. There is a forbidden form of art that has been passed down through the generations from ancient times of the Church, and at some point this was forbidden and made punishable by death. When the scriptures used for incantation are uttered backwards, the Baculus is able to evoke a Wars using the souls of others.
References
- ↑ Said by Bastien in Kapitel 13 page 6.
- ↑ Said by Bastien in Kapitel 13 page 6.
- ↑ During the Hausen House Arc: Kapitel 29 to Kapitel 33, the residents of the House had been keeping a Wars trapped in the basement and were feeding it. In Kapitel 32, the Wars got out of the room and immediately tried to eat one of the servants, despite already having a meal in the room with it.
- ↑ Said by Castor in Kapitel 11.
- ↑ Kapitel 19 page 6, Kuroyuri says Teito's negative feelings strengthened the Wars within him.
- ↑ Kapitel 15 page 8, said by Bastien.
- ↑ Kapitel 20.