The Shroud of Lost Souls is a defining feature of Nobis. It blankets over 90% of Makai’s landmass, it prevent invasion from other-makaily forces and it limits infighting between factions as powerful demons are able to rule only as much territory as they are able to displace the Shroud. But what is it, really?

Scientifically, the Shroud is made of the collective soul stuff of countless lost souls. Souls of all kinds, from many worlds, are trapped within the shroud. The most evil of the souls are expelled from the collective, to be imprisoned and punished by the Demon Lords. The strongest souls will bubble forth and become Demons. As for the rest, little is known for sure. All souls are destined to eventually reincarnate, so we know that the souls within the shroud will inevitably do so. In this regard, it is safe to conclude that a cycle of souls exists, with new souls entering the shroud as they become lost and old souls leaving either from Demonization or reincarnation.

Theoretically, the Shroud is purgatory. As Demons can’t enter the Shroud, we can’t know for sure what the souls within it experience. However, we do know what purgatory looks like in other Makais and can draw likely conclusions from them. We know from those other Makais that souls relive their memories within purgatory, gradually losing details and forgetting their lives as they do so. We know that they have little ability to interact with each other except in the most brief and accidental of capacities. Finally, we know from the accounts of Nobis Guides that souls experience brief periods of lucidity within the shroud.

On these lucid periods, the souls form bodies within the shroud. They are not unlike ghosts in this state, but hopelessly lost in the fog. Their bodies are quick to dissipate and for most it will be little more than a brief nightmare within the endless dream of memories. As for the few, it is theorized that these lucid moments are what allow strong souls to Demonize. A strong soul will last longer than a weak one before dissipating back into fog. Such a soul will be drawn towards like-feeling souls and especially powerful like-feeling souls, such as that of a Demon Lord.

The secrets of the Shroud remain mysterious, as Demons who emerge from it rarely carry even the most basic of memories from their time as Lost Souls within it. Those few who do have hints about these secrets, whether out of greed or despair, guard them jealously.

Written By: Raven

Edited By: Excellen Goku

Kaosubaloo

And with this, we've reached the end of The Land of Change. Mostly. I'm still going to do 1 more post where I talk about the things I learned from this work, what led to its end and some could have beens. Still, I hope you enjoyed reading it. Especially if you made it this far in =)