An Introduction to Spectral Response Teams!
As we all know, the Hadesian Institute is mostly about dealing with ghosts. Management, retrieval, removal, etc.. Obviously, in order to deal with ghosts, you need people.This is where reapers and psychics come in.
To manage ghosts out in the field, reapers and psychics generally stick to teams, which can consist of anywhere between four and eight people, though many teams remain fluid; not everyone will join in every response to every mission. Reapers and psychics often have secondary jobs that may require them to opt out of a mission.
What remains true for many reapers is their team often becomes like a secondary family (or even primary family), providing support both on and off the field.
Teams are not all the same! While teams are generally made up or one or two very experienced reapers, one or two median-level reapers, and one or two newbies, not every team fulfills the same functions in cases.
Investigations are generally the first response to a suspected paranormal event. Every official team must be certified in investigations before they may conduct one, which includes training in electromagnetic field detection, hazardous material identification, equipment certification, and much more.
Sounds like a lot to go through just to investigate ghosts, huh? Well, not every case actually involves ghosts! A number of physical phenomena can cause what would seem like paranormal events, and searching high and low for a ghost that isn't there would be a tremendous waste of time, both for clients and employees.
Management, Retrieval, Removal
While every team is certified in investigations, not every team is certified in the post-investigation response. Some teams are ONLY certified in investigation. As a team accumulates experience and coherence together, they will move up the ladder of certification, eventually gaining certification in spectral management, spectral retrievals, and spectral removals, in said order. The more certifications a team has, the more versatile they will be, and the more cases they may attend.
Spectral management typically involves helping the corporeal and non-corporeal live together in harmony. At this level, reapers could technically be more considered social workers, checking in the parties involved, resolving disputes, etc. These cases are most common, and what reapers attempt first before any other kind of response.
In these cases, a non-corporeal entity has been deemed either too intrusive or in danger to itself to remain on the property, and must be escorted out--much like a squatter being escorted from private property. These are gentler removals, and often involve coaxing and talking. These are often also the most complex, as with each ghost, the response may have to waver between spectral retrieval and spectral management, as per the entity involved.
Any team certified in retrieval may also respond to spectral management cases.
For the adventurous reapers, this is the certification most sought-after. Spectral Removals involve the forceful removal of poltergeists deemed dangerous to other people, corporeal or not. This is often the utmost last resort, as it is not only expensive, but substantially dangerous, to multiple parties. This is the type of response most likely to kill a reaper.
Any team certified in removal may also respond to spectral retrieval, and spectral removal cases.
While officially no ranks are given on teams, teams will often create ranks themselves, with different styles of leadership. Some teams opt for pure democracy; others will opt for a central leader, often the most experienced reaper. Still others may opt for a diarchy or even triarchy, with leadership resting on two or three individuals, respectively. Only one or two teams have thus far chosen these more obtuse styles of leading: most opt for a single leader, with a second-in-command, third-in-command, so on and so forth.
In general, most teams follow a "template" of sorts, with different people occupying various positions, such as:
-a tertiary reaper who likely has more advanced medical knowledge (or at least is in control of the med kit, which can include inhalers and EpiPens); sometimes called "the medic."
-sometimes a telekinetic psychic of some kind
-a new reaper, learning the ropes
Team positions may be fluid, as the number of people on the team may vary, depending on the case involved, and how many are actually needed. From information given beforehand, another party (usually as Professor Gabel) will make a guess at how many may actually be needed (based on property size, possible poltergeists involved, environmental hazards), and only send out that many, sending in the reserve members if needed. The Institute prefers not to send out full teams, as it is not only physically cumbersome at times, getting up to eight people to a locale halfway around the world, but can also be very expensive, having not only to pay the employees' salaries, but also pay for airfare, travel expenses, and usually lodging.
[Part 2 to be posted tomorrow!]
