Sleepwalker (MTAw)

Sleepwalkers, termed Ember-bearers in ancient times, are mortals who are above the Quiescence but not quite capable of Awakening.^[1][2]

Mages have been known to keep Sleepwalkers as retainers, as they can view vulgar magic with no ill effects.^[3] Certain Sleepwalkers, known as Proximi, can trace their ancestry to an individual associated with or affected by magic in some way, granting them the ability to detect magic and a tendency to stumble into the supernatural.^[4]

Sleepwalkers are created when a potential mage begins to Awaken, but fails to sign their name on one of the Watchtowers^[5]. The majority of people who begin to awaken end up like this. Memories of what happened during the Awakening rapidly fade, as though waking from a dream, though no one who undergoes an Awakening, even a failed one, suffers from Quiescence any longer. Failing an Awakening is traumatic; on a deep, metaphysical level the ex-Sleepwalker had a chance to see Truth and failed to grasp it. She might feel like the chance of a lifetime has passed her by without being able to articulate how, or that her choices and obsessions leading up to the Awakening were worthless.

In Mage society, Sleepwalkers serve an important function: they can carry spells for mages, enabling them to exceed their gnosis limit of spells without invoking Paradox^[6]. The truth is, technically, anyone with a sympathetic tie to a mage can carry spells for her. The Diamond believe that in the Time Before, this was often an agreement between the Wise and their companions. Dissonance means that attempting this sort of thing only works with Sleepwalkers, and even attempting it with a Sleeper is considered a crime by most Awakened jurisdictions. A Sleepwalker must always willingly carry a spell, and must be given some understanding of what it does, otherwise the spell fails. In addition, the Mage must be familiar with the Sleepwalker - a Medium or Strong Sympathetic Connection is required.

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