Longlived

People who when they reach adulthood suddenly start aging very slowly, usually reaching a lifespan about ten times as long as that of a regular human. The oldest among them still remember the Fire that almost destroyed the world eight centuries ago. The condition does not seem to be hereditary and is so rare that most regular folks will only meet one or two of them in their lifetime - as far as they know, since many Longlived choose to keep their gift a secret, living secluded or changing their residence frequently. The older they get, the more they tend to become detached from the lives and concerns of regular humans, often only being able to connect with other Longlived. Because of this, meeting an old Longlived is said to be a deeply unsettling experience.

Causes

The source of this condition remains a mystery. It can't be inherited, there is no geographical region that produces more or less Longlived children and the persons themselves don't seem to have any other remarkable characteristics, apart from an uncanny ability to avoid illnesses.

Symptoms

Apart from the slow aging, the symptoms of a Longlived person are mostly psychological. Their early life almost always proceeds the same way: Towards their late teens or early twenties their aging process will slow down dramatically, an unusualness most of them only start picking up on in their thirties. When they reach what a regular person would consider middle age, there is no doubt left about their condition, leading many to slow down their pace of life and start to plan out their future. But as they start reaching the ages of 60 and upwards, more and more of their family and friends begin to die of old age. This usually leaves them in a life crisis that often spirals into a depression, as they for the first time truly realize what it means to live for ten human lifetimes.
Here is where the lifes of the Longlived wildly diverge, as every one of them deals with that crisis in their own way, many of them experiencing a stark and sudden shift in their personalities and priorities. Their lifes only start to get similar again as they approach ages of 600 to 700 years. As with everything else, their physical decline happens slowly and over the course of centuries. Those who have survived until then have to face their own mortality for the first time, a concept that occasionally drives them mad with fear. Although some of them fruitlessly try to further extend their lifetime through alchemical or magical means, eventually all of them perish, usually around the age of 800.

Type

Supernatural

Rarity

Extremely Rare