Arcadian Banshee

"Dear Students. Today we will cover a pretty unique Arcadian species.
What do you know of the Banshees?
...
Yeah, principal Vi is a Banshee, but she wasn't always one.
The co-author of the book, the 'Arcade Arcanum', and principal Vi share the very same DNS.
You see Sir Vister was ill in his last years, completely unable to finish his research to finish the Arcanum, but one day he suddenly regained his Vigor.
Turned out he made a contract with a Banshee to re-enable his life once more until his research concluded.
...
No, Sir Vister and Vi are not the same person; they only share the same blueprint. Let me explain (...)"

Mauze Tung

A species feared by many in their first form, as even grasping a single look at the floating fog of metal splinters is said to be a bad omen for one's life.
Banshees are feared by those hanging at their life. Those who neglect living dangerously hope to never even see one of these. A banshee is a messenger, a negotiator of demise. They know when you will die, long before you even have an idea of the grasping corruption sickening your body unseen. Many illnesses on Prius are inert and dormant until it is far too late to save the patient. And these gassy beings know about these before they activate. Malicious gossip has said, that Banshees purposely with evil intent seek out only those, who can't be saved anymore. They think they could use their knowledge to prevent deaths.
But a Mistform Banshee has no personality yet. They are parasites seeking out those, who can serve as a fitting host. Claiming their body after granting them a second chance to finish what got started. There is no malice in those Arcadians present, only instinct.

Basic Information

Anatomy

Mistform:

Arcadian Banshees have no solid body when they get secreted by the Veil.
They appear as a thick sapient fog of finest metallic splinters only able to speak to others via manipulating the dust to create letters in the air.

In that first section of their metamorphosis, they monitor the mortals seeking out those with visions but without time.
Able to see the time people have left before their death they approach those individuals with untreatable illnesses to propose to them the deal of a lifetime.
Offering themselves as a future body for the Banshee in exchange for more time.
The Banshee will nest inside the bloodstreams of their host, fighting the deadly illness until their host's life work got fulfilled.

"You are saying I have only mere days until I bite the dust?
Too far progressed to treat the illness?
But I need more time to lead the revolution or all our work will be for nothing.
I heard of you, oh envoy of the end.
And I accept the conditions if you stay with me until the revolution can't be stopped anymore.
After that my body is yours!
Please help me until my dream will become reality, I beg you!"

The deal is sealed, access is granted

Converted:

"We have done it!
They will not be able to avert anymore what we have started.
Thank you, you generous Banshee from the bottom of my failing heart.
I felt every day your struggle in keeping me alive and couldn't be more thankful.
You truly earned your place amongst us.
So...a deal is a deal and I decided to provide you a generous starter package with my last will.
Live your life...friend.
I am hap-"

The deal is fulfilled, life support stopped

If the contract is fulfilled and the soul of the host is finally at ease, the Banshee will be unable anymore to continue providing life support. Pushing the host far beyond their lifespan, that results in imminent and painless death. At that moment the parasite state of the Banshee is over, they absorbed enough knowledge and wisdom to mature and are ready to engage the final step.
The metal mist withdraws through the pores of the fresh corpse creating a solid cocoon around the body.
After the complete body got covered with metal the puppet begins the conversion progress. The old body gets dissolved into a primaeval broth containing all the necessary information for the restructuration process. Over the course of ten days, a young split image of the host get created inwoven with the metal fog, that was the Arcadian's former body.
As all Banshees appear to be female the conversion progress creates a female body.
If the host was of the male gender it is possible that the resulting Banshee may appear as a young hybrid image of the host.

A converted Banshee is either pretty difficult or very easy to make out within society appearing as silvery variants of their former host's species.
Besides that subtle change, they can be identified through their dark grey eyeballs.

Origin/Ancestry

Manifestation of wild arcane metal magic.

Lifespan

40 - 90 years

Average Height

Dependant of the host

Average Weight

Dependant of the host

Body Tint, Colouring and Marking

The body tint of a Banshee resembles completely that of their former host, but mixed with the colours silver and a blue shine.

Parasite
The Banshee can support any non-Arcadian sapient species.

Converted Banshees

After their metamorphosis Banshees possess all those abilities the species of their former host had. Besides noticeably enhanced endurance everything remains the same.
Be it speed, perception, the sharpness of their senses, their diet or else.

A Caracal Banshee for example will possess night vision, enhanced senses and acrobatic abilities. Same deal for all other possible hosts.

Language

Being a representation of the metal arcana, Banshees have access to the schools of Sound and Omnilingualism.
That base allows them to quickly learn any given language, be it a sapient, sentient or even primal language.
Those who care can even talk to plants.

Special Abilities

After finally gaining full control over the body of their host, Banshees can develop their connection to the veil further, mainly enhancing their way with their gained voice. Banshees are able to manipulate their screams with useful abilities. Be it elemental wailing, ultrasonic screams or mental influencing undertones. In their life as Converted, they develop an unparallel skillset utilizing their vocal cords.

Additionally, they are able to briefly expel the metal in their body to gain control over a gassy representation of themselves. This form is much weaker than their Mistform but allows the user to surveil out of the shadows.
It is however timed, as their consciousness can only exist either in the cloud or their body; the body is defenceless.

Interspecies Relation

"B-but they killed an innocent human with their foul pestillence magic.
I will not work with this...living corpse!"

Banshees suffer from a woven veil of misinterpretations and horror stories tainting their origins. Many see them as murderers or are not even acknowledging them being living beings. Outside of continents, where their history is known, they prefer living as emerites to not risk shortening their life through vile actions of fanatics.

They are however valuable allies if you gain their trust, unwavering in their remorce eager to live up to the trust put into them.

Reproduction

Unlike other Arcadian species, a Banshee is virtually unable to start a family.
Not even the twisted Veil of the Squa'osa Archipelago can change anything regarding that fact.

They appear sterile.