Starlight Institute
The Academy of the Mind
A unique facility for both teaching young mentalists to control their powers and studying the phenomena surrounding psychic powers, the Starlight Institute has a storied history. It has been tied to Chal's development as a nation since its conception, providing much-needed order in a predominantly Human populace.Public Agenda
Research and further the public understanding of psionics, and teach those gifted with psychic powers to control their abilities for the public good.
History
It can be a dangerous thing for a nation to suddenly run out of enemies.As the forty year siege of Castle Kirphace came to an end, Chal emerged strong and with ample infrastructure to support a burst of expansion and population growth. For the Human nation, however, this quickly became something of a mixed blessing. With an increase in population and wealth, a noble class arose, just as psychic powers started to become more common. With laws taking time to catch up, crime and abuse of these abilities became rampant, used by both the poor to get by and the rich by paying those willing to use their powers for their advantage. It seemed that just as the fear of the eastern hordes started to fade, it would be replaced by fear of such powered individuals. That fate for the fledgling kingdom may have come to pass if not for the efforts of a young vigilante by the alias of Jump Starlight. Wielding psychic powers of her own, she was said by her supporters to answer to a justice higher than the corrupt law of the time. Despite her selfless actions and reforming of many criminal mentalists, however, she could not show her face or name. Because of her insistence on targeting even the noble exploitation of psychics in her pursuit of justice, she made many powerful enemies in her life, who desired nothing more than to have her stopped and silenced. It is thought by many historians that some of her greatest accomplishments have been completely lost, but it is known that she was integral to preventing a lasting stigma against psychics in the modern day. It is also known, of course, that her primary legacy is the Starlight Institute, started by the same mentalists she turned away from crime in her name. With it was a promise to guide others in their situation onto the same path, imparting them both control and morals. Not all of its aims are as selfless, of course, as it was also driven by a burning curiosity on how the mysterious powers of the mind operate. Much of its early funding (along with generous donations from admirers of the vigilante heroine) also came from this latter goal, and it continues to be a major contributor. Over the years, the institute has carved out a niche in Kirphace's Academy District, helped shape laws and policy around psionics, and largely met its goals of preventing those who use them from being looked on with fear or derision. It has even acquired a branch in Arrboth, though it tends to keep this information and the exact location private due to the tactical interest in individuals that can teleport or communicate between the two distant locations. Its administration has not been spotless over the years, and whispers abound of less scrupulous professors performing macabre experiments in pursuit of knowledge, though it has also been the model of moral responsibility that it was founded to be during other periods. Even in the best of times, however, it has a tongue in cheek reputation for rambunctious students, property damage (thankfully mostly to the school itself), and a history of delving into knowledge best left untouched, such as that pertaining to psionic Aberrations.
Type
Educational, School/Academy
Parent Organization
Location
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