The Bound are a multitude of strange creatures that were sealed away by Atlantean mages, as they were unable to permanently slay them.
Overview[]
Modern mages believe that the monsters of myths are reflections of the Bound filtered through the lenses of the Quiescence. The Bound are not just magical; they must devour magic to survive. They can sense whenever Mana is near, driven by urges to destroy and consume. The Bound can detect the strength of a mage's soul instinctively, pausing only briefly to notice the magical energy flowing through the veins of other impossible creatures nearby. If one of the Bound can destroy a source of magic, it can then consume the Mana within. This is simply a matter of survival. Each dawn, one of the Bound weakens (losing one point of Mana). The beings are driven to hunt down magic and consume it. If they do not, they slowly fade away until their power (and their Mana) is gone, forcing them back into slumber.
The Exarchs have a particular interest in keeping the Bound dormant, as some of them are former Old Ones that the Exarchs banished from the Supernal Realms after their usurpation. Pylons of Seers guard the sites where these beings are chained and hinder them from awakening. Other Bound, according to legends, predate Atlantis itself and are rumored to have been sealed by the dragons.
References[]
- MTAw: Mage: The Awakening Second Edition, p. 54, 244
