The Five Afflictions are strange, amoral beings which cause destruction on Palisade. Each has pawns (minions) of its own, and has a unique negative effect.
Their current auto-antonym names appear to come from the Afflictions themselves. Austin stated that Cleave, for example, "has called itself, or people have dreamt the name" Cleave.[1]
History
The Afflictions are known to have resided on the planet for thousands of years, long enough to have interacted with the New Earth Hegemony, and later the Divine Free States and Principality of Kesh.
This section contains spoilers for PALISADE 13: Worth the Trouble Pt. 2.
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The Afflictions were once the Divine Palisade's "greatest collaborators", who left the Fleet alongside him with their Excerpts: the Divines Reflection, Antiquity, Logic, Decisiveness, and Affection. Antiquity became Refrain and Logic became Ravel, but it is currently unknown which Afflictions Reflection, Decisiveness, and Affection correspond to. It is also unknown how they came to be considered Afflictions by the planet's residents.
Afflictions
Dust
Also known as Pride's Mirror (by the NEH) or the Looking Glass (by the ancestors of the Divine Principality). "What if a mummy could be a mech, shawled and wrapped and deteriorating."[1]
Refrain
Also known as Yesterday's Reprise (by the NEH) or the Ghastly Chorus (by the ancestors of the Divine Principality). "An abandoned theater which appears as if from nowhere. Upon the stage, a spectral projection of a person that no one knows."[2]
This section contains spoilers for PALISADE 13: Worth the Trouble Pt. 2.
Click here to reveal.
Refrain was once the Divine Antiquity, who allowed people to leave parts of themselves, or their memory, with it. They left the Twilight Mirage with Palisade thousands of years ago.
Refrain is an undead archive of snapshots of the consciousnesses of members of the Divine Fleet from thousands of years ago, prior to its collapse. Inside the theater, electronic ghosts wearing garments from the Divine Fleet mill about. Its effect causes electronics to break and rust over, although Refrain seems to have some control over whether this happens. The spokesperson changes each time, but is never someone that the viewer could have known. In "The Canvas of Dreams Pt. 2", the speaker was Lattice.
Refrain opposes the Principality and the other forces that have tried to conquer Palisade over the millennia, but has not been convinced to support the Cause, as they don't think it will succeed.[3]
Ravel
Also known as Labyrinth's Thread (by the NEH) or the Hedge Maze (by the ancestors of the Divine Principality). "Looks like a massive, loose brain neuron prowling the hills and valleys".[1] Ravel can reroute roads and pathways or build walls to disorient and defamiliarize. Its minions are 12-foot-tall but invisible three horned minotaur-like beings, or 'tricerataurs'.[4]
This section contains spoilers for PALISADE 27: Resentment and Frustration Pt. 2.
Click here to reveal.
Ravel was once the Divine Logic. The logic that this Divine embodied was many-valued, not based on a true/false binary. The three horns of Ravel's minions reflect this non-binary form of logic.[5]
Cleave
Also known as Whetstone's Opposite (by the NEH) or the Sanguine Hatchet (by the ancestors of the Divine Principality). One of Cleave's pawns is seen in "Into the World", and is basically "what if a dragon was made of knives".[6] It and its minions impede communication using voiced, signed or written language.
Cleave will strike at anyone, regardless of their factional allegiance, and doesn't care much about collateral damage. It is a kaiju, not a savior or heroic figure, though it sometimes interferes with the Principality's aims.
Oversight
Also known as Hell's Facade (by the NEH) or the Empty Garden (by the ancestors of the Divine Principality). "A slowly moving statue whose features are always fluctuating under a stone shroud."[1]