Psychopomp

The great and mysterious "Ancestros..."

One of the most potent and difficult to synthesize drugs in the known world goes by many names, with the most common being "psychopomp." The drug is derived from the pituitary glands of an adult Vess'ka, and its extraction is quite harmful (and sometimes fatal) to the subject. It is not a narcotic, or any form of "feel good" drug, but it is one of the most mythic and highly sought after drugs on the black markets of the west.
PROPERTIES
Psychopomp may be ingested in several ways, however the most potent is intravenously. Once taken, the user soon begins to feel "disconnected" to their own place and time. Many have described the effect as being pulled down the time stream, passing every previous branch of their family trees along the way, until they eventually settle into a "communion" with the incorporeal spirit of one of their (typically long dead) ancestors.
There are as many reasons that people use psychopomp as there are users, however it's not a drug that is taken often or recreationally. Communion is not always a pleasant experience, but many find its benefits beyond compare. Being granted the nearly divine ability to learn from your familial ancestors is a gift that offsets even most heinous potential side effects. Though they'd never admit it, it is suspected that many kings and world leaders have used psychopomp to access the vast knowledge and powers of their dynastic forefathers, for when the living communes with the dead in this manner, they gain more than just knowledge. Those under the sway of psychopomp gain power from beyond the grave... beyond the veil of darkness.
The limits of this knowledge and power is largely a mystery, as there seems to be some sort of unspoken covenant between those who have communed to protect the secrets of the veil. Beyond this, there is a stigma heaped upon those who've used psychopomp, even though most only use it but once.
People have been known to fall in love with their ancestral predecessors along their family trees. Sometimes the drug even connects you with lineages that you didn’t even presume (or dare dream) to be associated with.
The primary side effect of the drug is a strong desire to live in the past, coupled by a deep disconnection to the present. This has the chance of occurring after even one "trip," and is almost guaranteed to happen if multiple uses are incurred. Beyond this, other side effects include a form of "temporal schizophrenia" where the user seems to have "traded places" with the psyche of their communal ancestor. Finally, each time beyond the first that a user takes psychopomp, they risk becoming lost along the time stream of their own genealogy, effectively putting them in a coma state from which they can never recover.
So why risk it? Why imperil oneself for much of the same benefits that can be easily derived from history books? It has something to do with the depth of the connection and the transference of power between the host and their deceased family member. Many suspected of having used psychopomp seem to have suddenly, as if overnight, grown in intellect and even physical prowess, to a degree comparable to how distant they now seem to their friends and loved ones back in the "present." Who knows the power of the bond. Kingdoms and civilizations may have risen and/or fallen under the powerful sway of leaders who've dared to take the "grave trip" into the past.
The collective unconscious that comprises the full genealogy of one's family is a great and terrible thing. Those who've dipped their toe into its waters come back changed. Both for better and for worse, but always with a dark gift... one not accessible to the living under any other circumstances.

Utility

Psychopomp provides a form of biological "time travel" in the sense that its users travel down their genetic timelines in order to meld minds with the spirits of their hereditary dead. Psychopomp is sometimes called the "history drug" or even "Ancestra" (a term used often in Varuum). When ingested in its synthesized form, users say they experience the sensation of being dragged down their family trees, guided by the pull of the most powerful members of their ancestry. Eventually the user settles into a meld with a soul or consciousness long dead, but always genetically tied to them. Most often this will be an obvious predecessor, but sometimes psychopomp reveals an ancestor either unknown to the user, or one possibly never presumed to have any connection to them or their family.
Once in communion, the user has access to all the knowledge and wisdom of their spiritual ancestor. Many amongst the rich utilize the drug in order to help settle earthly affairs left incomplete upon the death of a family scion. This may take multiple attempts, as it is extremely difficult to control whom you gain access to along your drug facilitated "trip." Once in contact, some users have described inheriting the abilities of their predecessors, while others claim that even after the drug wore off, they remained "haunted" by the spirits of the past.

Manufacturing

Once harvested from the pituitary gland of an adult vess'ka (a painful and dangerous process that involves the usage of a long, mithril syringe), a specially skilled alchemist must synthesize the extracted liquid (a viscous, cloudy white substance) using means known only to a select few. The process is magical in nature, and results in a thinner fluid that glows either bright blue or an angry red, depending upon factors allegedly connected to the age of the "donor" vess'ka. The secret of this synthesis is closely guarded, primarily by The Club Masters, who are fully prepared to kill in order to protect it. Though not exclusive to this criminal organization, the Club Masters are the most prominent purveyors of the drug.
It is suspected by those who do not possess the secret of its formation, that psychopomp somehow utilizes the telepathic abilities inherent to the vess'ka in order to facilitate its psychically communal properties.

Inventor(s)

Whoever invented or perhaps merely brought psychopomp to those beyond the vess'ka took this honor to their grave. It is known, however, that the Club Masters have been hard at work, making "improvement" to the synthesized version of the drug.

Access & Availability

Only the very rich or very dedicated manage to get their hands on even a small amount of psychopomp. It is outlawed by those who do not even partially understand its properties, ostensibly because of the inhumane manner in which it is harvested. In reality, those in power who do not condone its usage instead greatly fear it. The thought of communion with the ancients is both exhilarating and terrifying in equal measure.

Discovery

It is unknown exactly when and how psychopomp was discovered, but its properties may have something to do with the secrecy upheld by the vess'ka pertaining to their history and culture. As far as its synthesis and usage by human and demi-humans, the drug has been available in severely limited quantities for at least half a millennium.