Ascension

Ascension (上昇, Jōshō) is the act of leaving behind one's humanity and ascending to the level of a Demi-God or higher spirit. It is a method of combat employed by the North American Branch.

Overview
There are three ways to ascend for those with common, uncommon or rare Divine spirits. In more recent times, one way is to use a Spectral Tablet. The use of this tablet forces the body and soul into an ascended state. This is a newly, and increasingly much-preferred method that allows the user to expend their spiritual energy for an amount of time. The more energy one has, the longer they are able to maintain this transcended form. The less energy one has, the least amount of time will be alotted in this transcended form.

The use of the tablet is categorized as low-energy-cost, which allows those with a lower amount of spiritual energies to ascend with ease; making it a better option over ascending naturally. Even if a person doesn't have a lot of energy, they are still able to at least ascend for an hour.

The second way, which originally was the only way, is to ascend "naturally" by using spiritual energy and leaving the body. This would be accomplished by having their Divine Spirit inject foreign energy into the body and essentially “tearing” the soul out of the body, some would liken this method to dying for a period of time. This method was considered increasingly dangerous, as the soul may not be able to return to the body if it has been too long.

One way to combat this was to have one's Divine take their place inside the body, keeping it safe from other spirits wanting to enter the body. Another main drawback of this was that it limits the amount of power that the Diviner receives from their Divine spirit, as the spirit must maintain and protect the body.

The third way, which is very rare, is to use the Divine's power to merge the body and spirit into one, essentially allowing the user to become a spirit themselves with no repercussions. This is only visible in the spirit and divine realms. This allows complete usage of the Divine's power that the Diviner has access to. Since most Divine Spirits are not Gods of Old, this way is very rare.

Ascension
Ascension is the first upgraded Forme of receiving a Divine Spirits's power. Other names for it are "The Heightened Enlightenment Forme", "Transcendence" or simply "Ascending". Heightened Enlightenment Forme and Transcendence have fallen out of use with time. Ascending is activated by usually saying an incantation, sometimes accompanied by drawing blood if the bond is weaker, or by using special, practiced movements. Some are able to ascend with very few words, or no words at all. When Ascending, the user must be perfectly in sync with their divine, otherwise, their ascended form will not last long. When in their Ascended form, the user's appearance may change slightly, along with them having more immediate access to their divine's powers, however, they are not able to handle all of their power. Certain abilities are still unavailable to them.

Achievement of Ascension is a mark of control, as well as a sure sign of the bond between the Divine and Diviner pair. It is how many advance through the ranks.

Divine Ascension
Divine Ascension (神の昇天, Kami no Shōten) is the Final Release Forme that a contractor and spirit can achieve. It is the ultimate merge of a Diviner and Divine's spirits and power. It is not rare to see an almost entirely transformed person when they ascend. In essence, many have described the feeling as becoming a "God" themselves. In this state, it is known that the Diviner receives nearly all the power their Divine Spirit has to offer them. The bond between the two must have a near unbreakable to even begin achieving this. Divine Ascension takes years or even decades of a shared bond to accomplish, and even then, it can still be improved.

Trivia

 * The only ones known to be currently capable of Divine Ascension are the current Sector Commanders.