Upon Magic and Its Origins and Applications – A Treatise
By Mary Elizabeth Browning
Translated by Lyriel Elhana
With the new century upon us in a few scant years I and my sisters in the Order have undertaken a task to research the origins and application of that which has been dubbed, “magic” so as to set the Order records straight and provide a roadmap for future generations’ study.
While what we deem magic is not, technically, that which the fey races such as Elves and Fairies and Dryads and their ilk have long possessed, it is not science, either. If not magic, and not science, what is it? What word is appropriate?
While the Fey have innate and immediate access to true magic as it is defined, humans have never possessed the connection to Kolara’s “lines of power” necessary to call upon true magic. With our limited lifespan, even were we to foster a connection to the planet upon which we reside, the training and skills necessary would take far longer than our meager sparks of life would afford us.
To understand what we humans call magic we must first define what magic is so we may better grasp that which has granted us power beyond mere bone and blood and steel and set humans atop the myriad races. Thus the question remains, what is true magic?
For our purposes the magic of the Fey must be held up as an example of true magic. Being a reclusive and decidedly unfriendly set of races, our knowledge of the Fey and their magic has evolved slowly over the course of time. Even with their presence inside the Sufworth Timberland in central Brieland proper they are a skittish and reclusive people, and our understanding of their magic has only expanded within the past century or so following the Tammer Falls Concord.
From our research we have managed to define magic, true magic, as an affinity to the currents of power flowing beneath the surface of the planet and ability to channel said power through their physical body to perform feats of power. The creation of the elements of fire and water and stone and wind and, in rare cases manipulation of other living things themselves, into a physical and demonstrative force which impacts the world around them directly.
For an Elf or Dryad or Pixie it is second nature to call upon the forces of water to form a solid, supporting mass beneath their feet to cross a stream, or draw fire from the air to cook their meat or manipulate boulders the size of their own bodies to hurl at enemies. This is the true, unblemished definition of magic: A power flowing from through the veins of Kolara herself which the user can channel to affect the world around them. Without that connection to the lifeblood flowing through the planet there can, technically, be no magic.
So what, if not magic, do we lesser-lived humans possess?
The argument has been put forth that we are able to alchemically create one substance from a different substance and, thus, we have access to magic. Alchemy, however, is simply a variation on chemistry inasmuch as we cannot create something from nothing. We require imbued tools and specialized ingredients. An alchemist cannot simply create fire from the wind or freeze a fish during the middle of the Time of the Sun where no ice existed before.
However, the key to what we refer to as magic where it pertains to humans lies within the alchemical analogy. The metal used to imbue alchemical implements is that which we know well: Allicereum.
The silvery metal which, when superheated, can flow like water or, when used as a construction or manufacturing material can be stronger than steel, is the key to humanity’s use of magic. For as long as mankind has been a reasoning creature on the face of Kolara we have lived side by side with Allicereum. It is precious, yet abundant. It permeates the rocks and hills and mountains all around us. It is present in many of our walls and streets and implements we use each day.
In the early days of humanity we fashioned it into crude weapons and eating implements. We have mined it, mixed it, studied it, created art with it, shaped and molded it and changed it to our will. This entire time, however, it has been changing us as well. Through the course of countless millennia the power radiating from Allicereum has changed our bodies. Warping our very cells and the building blocks of our bodies such that each generation is more mutated than the previous.
Only since the Despair Wars concluded have we delved deep into the human body. What was originally only conjecture and application of deductive reasoning has been taken to the point where we can say with some authority where human “magic” comes from.
Affixing itself to the X chromosome, Allicereum mutation has been passed down from generation to generation through our very cells itself! Yet, not everyone can use magic as we all know. Why is this? The answer lies within our genotype, of course! (translator’s note: Her enthusiasm is cringey but undeniable)
A brief explanation may be required on this point. During conception of a fetus the mother of the human provides only an X chromosome. In humans, unlike that of the single sex Nereids, Dryads, Nymphs, Fairy and Sylphs, the male of the species passes along either an X or Y chromosome to the fetus.
Since the Allicereum-induced mutation only attaches to the X chromosome, two X chromosomes are needed to trigger the mutation. Thus, only a fetus of the XX genotype can have the mutation. The presence of the Y chromosome negates the mutation.
So what does the mutation actually do?
In effect, it allows for the connection to the lifeblood of the planet. It creates, in short, a technically artificial form of the more advanced Fey magics.
As with many mutations, however, the effect is widely varied. Some never exhibit an ability to perform magic, while others can exhibit a powerful affinity to magic up to and including those especially rare few, such as Soul Renders, whose affinity is so powerful as to be beyond measure.
Most of us, however, fall somewhere in the middle. We have an affinity to magic, a connection to the lifeblood of the planet flowing through each stone but little to no actual control over this connection. We are, in effect, a one-way conduit with abilities we can never actually realize or utilize in any meaningful way.
With training, study, discipline, and hard work we can muster small abilities such as lighting a candle with no need for a fire source, but we will never be “gifted” enough to tap into the potential within our bodies. The discrepancy between strength of magical ability in individuals has most probably less to do with a person’s willpower or breeding as many have suggested and more to do with being simply a quirk of mutational providence. The correlation between descendants of those who used to mine Allicereum, and magical ability is, also, unproven, and largely speculative.
The percentage of the XX genotype humans with magical ability has been determined to be 94% +/- 2%. Of that 94% of the XX genotype population 79% have minimal “gifts”. Even amongst the 15% of the population with extraordinary gifts less than 5% are skilled or powerful enough to attain the rank of Inquisitor in the Order Seeker Corp. Thus, as compared with the nearly 100% of Fay with magical abilities, many of them far greater than Inquisitors, human “magic” is by and large not to be considered an equalizer level event in any potential conflict between the races should such erupt.
Up until the Archon developed the technology necessary for batteries the 79% of the XX population with middling magic were largely irrelevant, lacking both the skill and discipline necessary to differentiate themselves societally. The Rapture Batteries (translator’s note: up until recently the Order of the Magi insisted on the Despair Batteries being called Rapture Batteries. As one can imagine, volunteering for a “Despair Battery” was far less likely than lining up for a “Rapture Battery." Same horror, different name. The term “Rapture Battery” has been largely discarded except within the most ardent of the Order’s apologists. Ms. Browning is not wrong in this regard, just an Order twit.) changed that in a fundamental and irreversible way.
The percentage of XX genotype humans which exhibit magical abilities prior to puberty is less than .01%. The overwhelming majority of magical abilities develop around the onset of puberty. For many years we were unsure as to why puberty was a defining point for abilities but, as our knowledge of the growth and maturing of the human body has increased, we believe it to be related to the release of hormones and its subsequent effect on the human mind and body which causes the mutation to activate.
While it has become in vogue recently to have “awakening days” among some of the population, the Order cautions against such celebration. Powers can and do manifest in different ways. Some even spectacularly and dangerously. We strongly encourage bringing any XX chromosome genotype to the local Order outpost for observation, not only for the family’s safety but also for the safety of the subject herself. (Translator’s Note: “Bring us your children so we don’t have to come take them from you!" Pathetic.)
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