Magic: General Info

Fairy Magic
Fairies have a very limited list of alignment options that give them very directed abilities, but enjoy an easy, unending life otherwise. The magic they have is self sustaining, that is, it generates itself as they live, allowing them to indulge in whatever magical fancy they like, so long as they don’t overuse their store, which would kill them. No fairy has ever done this. Most fairies were made directly by Nova, but a few were born to linked pairs. In all, there are around 200 fairies, only a handful of each type, and they have little to no interest in increasing their population.

Fairy alignments:

Arcane (Only Dusk and Cosmos are arcane)

Light

Water

Air

Terra

Flora

Fauna

Thermal

These 7 alignments (arcane is only manageable by Nova, and is simply all 7 put together) are the only options available to fairies, but are also exclusively theirs. That is, humans are not innately able to have any of these as their alignment.

Linking:

Linking is a special thing fairies are able to do with each other to increase their abilities. Essentially, it allows two fairies to combine their skills together, thus tripling what each can do individually. Links are permanent, and each fairy may only have one link, or partner, thus much time and thought goes into each. Linking also allows the fairies to reproduce, as magic from two parents would be required. However, linked pairs can be (and in a few cases, are) same sex.

Passive vs. Active:

Fairies categorize their abilities by what happens on it’s own, passively, and what they have to consciously make happen, actively. Some passive things include, but aren’t limited to: time telling (light), temperature control of self in all weather (thermal), a certain sense of other nearby lifeforms (fauna), and plenty of others I haven’t realized yet. Active is limited only by the fairies’ alignment and imagination.

Human Magic
Human alignment is vast and varied, and required for all humans to exist. Many humans have an alignment unique to them, and they primarily serve to enhance a certain aspect of the human’s life. Humans are born with a set amount of magic that slowly uses itself up as the human ages, and when the magic is gone the human has reached the end of their life.

Efficiency is used to greatly improve a human’s ability to perform magic. If the magic being done relates to the alignment, it uses little to no magic, as it is within the human’s capabilities. If there is no relation, the magic is used at a higher rate, which leads to the human aging beyond their years and ultimately dying before their time. While efficiency is present for all magical creatures, only humans are truly limited by it, and must take special care to ensure they are abiding by it.

Many alignments work passively, using no magic, to support the human in a way that correlates with the alignment. Most humans, with practice, can perform simple spells, regardless of alignment. Mages tend to be fairly limited in what they can do, as bards can only perform magic through music, wizards must have a library of spells to work with, and alchemists are based on crafting. Sorcerers are unique among human mages and require no catalyst, or medium for their magic, only a strong enough desire for something that relates to the alignment.

Reading alignments:

Cosmos discovered a method of reading human alignments by taking a drop of magic and running it through himself to test it for efficiency. While he keeps this method a secret, it could be done by Dusk, or a group of fairies working together. But with the fall of his academy and his presumed death the ability to read human alignments was lost. Alternatively, humans can, and do, make their best guesses as to their own alignments, and those of friends and loved ones, often getting a close enough idea that efficiency is a much less threatening issue.

Magic Collecting:

If a human passes before their magic runs out, it is possible to collect the magic before it’s lost. Doing so gives the collector whatever they see fit to use the magic for, including, but not limited to, increasing your own lifespan, necromancy, or simply using it in any mage work to avoid self harm due to lack of efficiency.

Physical Upkeep:

Humans, unlike fairies, require food and sleep to function. Essentially, eating and sleeping help maintain the human’s magic store and enable them to live fully. All food contains a small amount of magic, as magic goes into all living things, even the non-magical kinds that humans eat, and this tiny amount replenishes the human’s basic living requirements. In theory, humans could eat foods high in magical value to extend their lifespan, but even higher value foods are arbitrarily close to nothing. Basic living takes a very small amount, but the amount of food that would be needed to extend life would mean the human in question would need to eat constantly, which the body is not capable of doing. And so while eating is important for all humans, and sleeping for similar magical recharging needs, it is only theoretical to gain anything beyond not starving to death by eating more.

Tainting and Cursing:

Humans can enchant themselves, or parts of themselves, and others for a variety of purposes. Notably Berniece enchants her blood, thus tainting herself, to have a specific effect on werewolf cursed humans. Werewolf curse might also be considered tainting, the main distinction being that tainting is intentionally done to yourself, while cursing is done by someone else to you, generally against your will. Tainting tends to be a permanent effect, while curses can often be removed, unless protected as Geoff’s is.