Magical Awakenings

Soul Dreams:

As was described before in the general section about soulcery, there are two major types of awakenings. Deliberate or necessary. Both of these cause a newly awakened being to enter a unique dream state the next time they enter deep sleep. This particular dream is a lucid dreamscape made by the soul. In this soul-dream, the soul communicates with their host and lets them perceive their arcanums. For more information on arcanums, consult the Arcanums of the Soul section on page [redacted].

Arcanums are developed even before a being becomes a mage. These are called affinity arcanums. They are formed by what said mage had been exposed to all their life. One's psychology and sociology also play a role in what said experience condenses into. For example, a human that has lived in nature all their lives will have developed an affinity arcanum based upon nature, whereas a blacksmith may develop a fire or earth elementalism-based arcanum. Language may also play an important role in arcanum development. Soulcerers that know only one language that doesn't certain concepts have a more challenging time developing arcanums with such concepts - that is, deliberately. Necessary awakenings develop arcanums that belong to a concept that may not even exist in a soulcerer's language or languages. Essentially, affinity arcanums have better chances of being unique than arcanums developed through deliberate divination.

The method in which the soul communicates with their host is unique to almost all mages. It may be an ominous written note found inside a childhood home. A loved one. Sensory experiences, etc. It can most accurately be described as doing ayahuasca. It could be scary, depending on one's psychology, or can be comforting. It plunges one into the very depths of their soul, whether they find themselves in the darkness or light, is dependent upon themselves, and their previous iterations through the eons.

Soul Marks:

Some soul-dreams leave behind evidence for their presence: soul-marks; magical tattoos made directly from the soul onto the spirit. They communicate the soul's arcanum to the user in a way memorable only to them. A soul-mark can be used to authenticate one's identity better than an aura signature, but can also be forged. To fake one's soul-mark is quite hard to do since one must also fake the empathic connection it exudes. Mages can connect through a soul-mark by touching them together. The soul-marks forge a connection between the two and form a Crossing;l A merging of two soul-palaces that allows for communication safe from prying eyes.

The user can hide their soul-marks. They are considered pseudo ethereal organs since they are simply a real-time assessment of the soul. Their complexity and size (though not necessarily) tell one the advancement of an arcanum. Having multiple arcanums usually makes soul-marks smaller so that may fit onto one's skin. A soul-mark can be slightly manipulated though not enough to truly lie about its properties. It can be expanded to scare one's enemies, but cannot be changed to entirely reflect something else. One can graft more mana onto it to change its visual appearance, but the empathic connection between two mages allows the other to fully "feel" the other's soul-mark. It works similar to proprioception. Though more akin to an aura sense like the Sight, another mage can inherently know the real image of a soul-mark.

Since awakenings can be either abrupt or gradual, soul-dreams can happen at a variety of stages. An awakening of necessity usually gives raw power in advance with less control, and a more challenging overall ability to gain more power; therefore, a soul-dream happens the next time a mage goes to sleep after beginning an awakening of the soul. An awakening of deliberation has less raw power but more control and a more effortless ability to advance; therefore, a soul Dream happens when the soul has been entirely disturbed from its thousandth-thousand-year slumber.

Soul-marks are much more esoteric as for developing. A mage may easily awaken them or may have to try to achieve one deliberately. To their dismay, some never awaken soul-marks at all. Certain conditions have sway over if a mage awakens a soul-mark, but they are not inexpungable. Empathic based aura senses increase the likely hood of awakening a soul-mark. Culture and personal beliefs may help or hinder. Spiritual make-up also holds sway. A culture that values honesty may help or hinder the Awakening of a soul Mark. One that is forced to tell the "truth" is but a liar. A life of political intrigue and half-truths may provide impetus or trip progress. Those that lie know the best of lies come soaked in truth. Spiritual make-up like particular ethereal organs also holds sway on the development of a soul-mark.

Sorcerous Awakenings

Awakenings first awaken the soul from its slumber. It develops a minor ability to control aurai (grey mana found in the Aura). Aurai manipulation is more reflexive than conscious, though. Like the shielding of one's eyes when intense sunlight is present.

There are two critical factors in achieving competent soulcery. Attunement to one's soul, and the soul's ability to influence mana as a magical medium. The soul's competency as a magical medium is achieved by developing one's arcanums and is done more so by extroverted mediation (divination and meditation of the outside). Attunement of the soul to the biological and corporeal mind is done by developing the soul-magi connection and introverted meditation (meditation of one's soul to perceive it better and understand it).

A mage that has awakened deliberately and one that awakened necessarily have the same power ceiling, both possessing the ability to manifest a power that is beyond them that incurs backlash. The difference lies in that necessary Awakenings allow the baseline power of a mage relatively stronger—the limits placed on them to prevent harm to the spirit and body are less stringent. They can more readily access their potential, incurring the due backlash even when not in distress. Sorcerers awakened deliberately can still access their potential, but generally do so only when in distress.

There are four major stages of a sorcerous awakening. Each one starts with the outside world and then moves inward.

Stage 1: Aura Senses (Outward - Magical Exteroception)

The first stage is the integration of aura senses. The ability to sense the fluctuations of environmental mana (the Aether) through the Aura, the most superficial part of the spiritual body. External or exo-mana is mana that is outside concerning a body. Endo-mana or Internal mana is mana that is present inside a body. This can refer to the spiritual body. In this scenario, the aura is considered endo-mana. Or can refer to the corporeal body. In the Corporeal body's case, the aura is considered exo-mana as it isn't inside the body itself. For simplification, the corporeal body concept will be used. As such, the Aura will be regarded as exo-mana.

Auric senses are convoluted. The way a soulcerer's brain will interpret them is different to every soulcerer, but there is an overlap in which aura senses can be categorized. The Sight, the Flux, the Trace, and the Empathy.

The Auric Sight:

The Sight. The mind creates an overlapping filter over regular sight to represent spiritual energy. Colors vary for every soulcerer but can be influenced by biology and psychology. If one metaphorically sees magic as the manipulation of one's life-force, they'll see mana as red. If one is primed for experiencing mana as a specific color, such as blue, they'll see it as such.

The Order of Mages has gone to great lengths to categorize and even tame magic. For one's writing and literature about magical and sorcerous theory to be accepted into their archives, mana must be illustrated as blue. All non-mages will see large concentrations of grey mana as a white mist, but most mages that have studied at the Order will see it as blue (when the Sight is active). The reason for the use of the color blue for mana in the Order is two-fold. The first facet is filtering those with the means to purchase bluish ink than those that use charcoal or black ink (an artifact by sorcerers and nobility that have lived long enough for their morals to be outdated). The second reason is conformity since the Order desires to tame magic.

The Sight is the most common presentation of aura senses. It usually doesn't present with other forms of aura sense other than the Flux. Aura-sight makes even environmental mana perceivable when in low concentrations. It can be fine-tuned to adjust the sensitivity of the psychological light. When one "sees" mana through aura-light, they don't perceive actual light. Their soul is perceiving mana and then sending signals to the sensory parts of the brain. As such, perceiving too much mana with an auric sight doesn't physically harm the eyes, but still activates the physical response of closing one's eyes and a bloody terrible migraine.

The Sight is not limited to only what one can see in front of them. If a soulcerer closes their eyes, they can "see" mana in a full circle around themselves. The Sight, while the easiest to understand and use, is very limited in range. The aura must be extended to interact with a mana source to fully "visualize" them. As such, the identification of certain magical items or spirits is limited by having to touch them and close one's eyes. The Sight can distinguish concentrations of mana, some appearing denser. It may even differentiate between certain mana types and aspects by color.

The Fluxen Touch:

The touch and sound are intertwined concerning aura senses, forming the Flux. The aura can feel physical vibrations and foreign mana when in contact with said foreign bodies. This type of aura sense is great for the passive perception of one's environment. Avoiding ambushes and preventing assassination attempts are the strengths of touch and sound-based aura senses. Touch and sound-based aura senses allow for both the perception of mana and physical vibrations in the air. It will enable one to hear things that wouldn't usually be possible - such as the beating of a heart or the flutter of a butterfly's wings.

The touch aspect of the Flux is quite bland in range compared to the sound aspect, but they complement each other when paired together (as they usually are in the Flux). Sound for the long-range perception of the environment, and touch for short-range identification of aura states and spiritual energy. Soulcerers awakened with the Flux can distinguish between aura signatures. They "hear" mana's innate frequencies, allowing them to differentiate between them. Mana doesn't truly have a "frequency" as in a wave - instead, it has a marker inlaid in its arcana (meta-knowledge). This demonstrates that aura senses are all one and the same. The aura senses limit a lot of stimuli that the brain would crumble upon if exposed to. The soul leaks through information in a way the host would best understand and not be overwhelmed.

The Tracing Sense:

The smell and taste go hand in hand with aura senses, producing the Trace. These are interpretations the soul gives to certain mana types and spirit-constructs. These can vary from the smell of sulfur or smoke when sensing fire mana. The taste and smell sensorial perceptions are peculiar. One may feel a bitter feeling at the back of their throats that'll feel like bile when near a dangerous spirit. These are usually very minor and are rarely the major ways of aura senses presenting themselves (in modern, deliberately awakened sorcerers). Smell and taste-based aura senses are reserved for traumatic awakenings in which the primal parts of one's psyche is brought upon for survival. This type of aura sense is usually the best at perceiving subtle information - tracking mages with the Trace can trace a person through the continent with ease.

The Trace allows for precise identification of mana types and spirits but do not generally allow for identifying when the aura is in distress. The aura reacts to a person's emotions, flaring in preparation for a fight. Smell and taste can't distinguish between aura states unless paired with the Flux - the most common development for a soulcerer awakened with this particular set of aura senses.

It should be noted that some individuals with the Trace can still identify and "smell" aura states. Anger usually produces and floods the aura with more fire-aspected mana to prepare for a fight or confrontation. The identification of aura states by using the Trace is a skill that can be developed deliberately, though it is quite hard.

The Mindsight:

The most common aura sense is based on sight. Touch and sound-based aura senses are generally uncommon. Taste and smell-based aura senses are the rarest. All aura senses can be deliberately developed, but it's more challenging with taste and smell without an awakening of necessity. It should be noted that these statistics are for sorcerers and mages registered in the Arcaneum Gildam Registry. Naturally occurring mages are the opposite - their most common aura senses are the Flux and Trace, with the Sight being the rarest. Diviner's sage is used to awaken the Sight in modern Order-affiliated academies of sorcery. It produces visual hallucinations that when paired with the beginning stages of an awakening cause a sorcerer to become more disposed to unlocking the Sight.

There are two rare forms of aura senses that cannot be categorized into the typical three types of the Sight, Flux, and Trace. These rare aura senses are the empathic hindsight, or simply mindsight, and the sixth sense, or the frightened-sight.

The empathic mindsight interprets raw feelings from an aura. It can be deliberately developed, but like the Flux or Trace, is harder to achieve without an awakening wrought from necessity. There are multiple ways of divining one's mental state through aura Senses. Most are about the "body language" of the spirit. A turbulent aura shows one's anxiety, but through discipline, one can train the aura to behave and not cower. The mindsight can still divine one's mental state even with a disciplined aura. It makes it harder, but it is still possible.

The empathic mindsight presents as if the world is a blanket of pressure. Minds create more pressure and weight upon this blanket plane. Emotions are felt like vibrations similar to the Flux, and a mind's signature is presented like an auric signature from the Trace.

Empathic aura sense gives the soulcerer "feelings" and emotions from different mana types and auras. It is the most likely to develop into the sixth sense, although it's not a guarantee. It's simply easier to open up other more tangible aura senses than develop one harder to grasp. And thus, since the hurdle of acquiring a less tangible aura sense has already been dealt with, it's easier to develop others.

The term sixth sense can be attributed to any aura sense since it's a magical sensory phenomenon, but the true sixth sense is much more powerful. It's the combination of all aura senses, be it the Flux, Trace, Sight, and the empathic mindsight. It's usually caused by awakening early during one's childhood by being hunted over and over again. It's also known as the frightened sight since it's developed through constant or acute fear. The sixth sense is reserved for those that avoid all and find solace in the quiet. It cannot be turned off without special training and is quite debilitating in certain circumstances. A sixth sense bearer can suffer seizures, aneurysms, and strokes if overloaded. The soul inputs raw signals from the environment, and since it mirrors its host's frightened psyche, it's extremely sensitive. Most sixth sense bearers can interpret their aura sense well after a period of acclimation but usually cannot turn them off without proper training and meditation.

Stage 2: Spirit & Soul Sense (Inward - Magical Interoception)

The second stage is the integration of the soul or spirit sense. Soul sense is the ability to feel the inner spirit and the soul, perceiving the inside of one's etheric self.

This stage happens right after the first stage. It may even occur alongside the first stage or before, but it mostly develops after stage one.

The newly awakened soulcerer can feel the flow of mana through their body. This spiritual sense is used to detect internal damage to the spirit, interoception of ethereal organs, and feeling the flow of mana inside one's channels. Mana flows outward from the inner gate located near the brain. It then flows down the spine, pooling into minor concentrations of mana called mana ponds. These act as junctions for the flow of mana inwards into the body to support internal organs and muscles. Minor mana pools (mana ponds) are referred to as chakras in the Qyrazael.

These junctions direct mana to the aura and into the body. Mana, which flows outward from the minor mana pools, concentrates in a shroud-like ethereal organ called the Aura. Mana that flows inward from the minor mana pools concentrates in three major mana pools inside the body.

There are three major mana pools. They are called mana reservoirs, or the three reservoirs. Spiritualists call them the basins.

The lower mana reservoir is responsible for the absorption and integration of foreign mana. It's located at the navel. Mana is found in all living things; therefore, food has traces of mana. The lower mana reservoir is responsible for the assimilation of mana found in food. This mana pool is half responsible for assimilating mana and storing it temporarily.

In certain techniques, the lower mana reservoir can be extended outwards into the aura to better assimilate foreign mana. After enough training and divination, a soulcerer can even use just their aura to incorporate foreign mana. Though, one must be cautious. Foreign mana is poisonous in its unprocessed state. The Lower mana reservoir is also known as the ethereal stomach. When a ghost emerges after death, it may be a devouring wraith; a spirit with an almost fully intact ethereal stomach in place of its aura. This type of untethered spirit is dangerous as it never stops unless put to rest. Exorcisms are usually less effective since there is no oath they'd agree to without the promise of vital essence. They are only known to work if offered ample amounts of endo grey mana (life-force). If said wraith inhabits a body, they become a lesser remnant vampire. They usually have some amount of void mana, but not enough to truly be considered a revenant, as such they are considered a remnant since they have not returned from the veil between realities.

The ethereal stomach creates proto-endo grey mana (the precursor for vitality. Proto life-force is simply known as life mana, whereas life-force or vitality is known as blood mana). Life mana is picked up by the body's mana channels and sent to the ethereal heart (middle mana reservoir) for further processing and storage into blood mana. The ethereal stomach is also known as the center of the spirit, or simply, the Center.

The middle mana reservoir is responsible for circulating mana between the three reservoirs and is the major ethereal organ responsible for storing endo-grey mana, or life-force. Endo-grey mana and exo-grey mana differ concerning their locations. Endo-grey mana, life-force, is found inside the body and is used to sustain one's muscles and other functions. Exo-grey mana, aurai, is located outside the body and makes up the aura. The middle mana reservoir is both a container and a circulatory organ for the spirit.

The ethereal heart or middle mana reservoir beats in conjunction with the normal, biological heart. Major mana channels share space with the circulatory system. They transport life type mana (life-force) throughout the body. Blood mana circulates through the body, binding the high spirit (the intangible and etheric parts to the spirit) to the body.

The upper mana reservoir is responsible for consolidating arcana (meta-knowledge) and information from the spirit and brain. It's called the Third-Eye in Qyrazael. It creates mental and perception mana. Mind mana works similar to neurons as a spirit-construct but takes a lot of mana. The construction of artificial spirit-constructs usually uses pre-existing mind mana to create the spark of intelligence that would be laid inside them. Perception mana is flooded into the aura and mixed with proto-endo grey mana to become exo-grey mana or aurai. Aurai feels the environment around it. The aura observes both mundane and magical aspects of the environment. Aurai is different from simple perception mana as it both perceives and protects the ethereal and corporeal bodies. It forms a membrane that covers the ethereal body, protecting it from invading spirits. Excess mana pools into the auric membrane, being processed into a special type of aurai that repels invading spirits.

Most mana types cannot enter through the inner gate. Mind mana, being one of the exceptions, is used to send information between the spirit and soul. Mind mana is not the direct copy of a neuron. Instead, it stores information as meta-knowledge, taking no space at all and insignificant mass. As such, it can survive the travel between the defined and undefined planes. The defined plane is known as the prime-material or mundane plane, and the undefined plane is known as the soul or magical plane.

The upper mana reservoir is said to produce "Wu Wei" or "emptiness" in the East. This is due to the amount of mana it uses as fuel for mind mana. Some eastern mentalists have been reported to use mental, sympathetic, and sorcerous techniques to bring this paradoxical "void" mental energy into being. This negative energy is used to confuse and produce torpor in enemies, slowing their mental faculties.

Damage to the spirit and soul is also perceived through soul or spirit sense. Mana drain comes in various types, tastes, flavors, and levels. All of them are bloody terrible.

Life mana drain causes feelings of weakness due to an evolutionary response to rest or else risk damaging both ethereal and corporeal bodies. The ethereal muscles receive less energy and thus cannot operate at their optimal state. Life mana is diverted to the ethereal heart to protect the biological one (gravity can tear the muscle in the heart that does not regenerate).

Mind mana drain causes psychological disturbances that vary from short bursts to long term ailments. Mental mana is an umbrella term for mana that sends and receives information, and that is found in the brain or nervous system as a whole. Perception mana is a subtype of mind mana that encodes information as arcana, or meta-knowledge. Mind mana also protects the brain from the effects of gravity. The loss of mind mana can cause concussions if it's sudden enough. It can also cause seizures, drowsiness, loss of biological memory, etc.

Aurai drain causes a multitude of different effects based on where the mana that is supplying it comes from. It generally presents itself as life mana drain (remember that aurai and life-force are both subtypes of bodily mana).

All unawakened beings have rudimentary aura and soul senses. These are activated when in certain situations, such as being inflicted with a debilitating magical disease, an overbearing force of nature (which is usually magical), and a hostile spirit beast or a similar kind of magical predator. These rudimentary magical senses are stepping stones into awakening deliberately - although at a languid pace. Unawakened beings also feel mana drain, although at a lower level than even partially attuned soulcerers.

Soul senses don't have categories like aura senses because it's highly introspective and idiosyncratic to each user. Most commonly, the flow of mana is felt like a river that drains into pools. But other than that, it varies a lot between soulcerers and mages in general.

Stage 3: Aura Manipulation (External Magic - Exo Mana Manipulation)

Generally, Awakenings of necessity are known for reflexive magic; magic which is not consciously controlled by a soulcerer but instead by the soul itself. Wild magic. This is what breaks the expected timeline of magical development during an awakening. In deliberate awakenings, magic is less powerful but more controllable and generally follows the four stages unless the host is in flight or fight.

The ability to control mana is somewhat instinctual - focusing on one's aura and willing it to become hotter is an example. The increase in temperature is dependent on the type and advancement of one's arcanums. The more specific an arcanum, the more powerful it is, but there is less overall versatility. Aura manipulation is usually done gradually at the beginning. The condensing of aurai into a specific location, making shapes out of aurai, and minor changes in its properties are the most common types of auric manipulation that happens at the third stage of an awakening. The drawing of more mana into the aura is not directly controlled at this stage but is instead automatic. Simply needing or feeling like one needs more mana causes it to pool into the aura.

The most common aurai manipulation exercises are about molding the aura into a specific shape or form. Aurai shaping feels like trying to move an atrophied muscle when starting. The aura, even if it cannot be seen due to specific aura senses, can still be felt. The spirit has its form of proprioception or kinesthesia. Even though an empathic soulcerer cannot see the aura, they can feel its border and shape as a sort of pressure. Something that puts weight upon the mind like an invisible shape that should be there.

There are two major types of arcanums a soulcerer will start with. Affinity and legacy arcanums. Affinity arcanums are based on a common theme dependent on one's environment and are refined further by an individual's psychology. Their desires, fears, and understanding play a vital role in making their arcanums more personal.

Legacy arcanums are leftover vestiges from the process of soul transmigration. Souls are recycled. Once a soul has no tether to the defined plane, it's sucked into the Maelstrom and stripped clean of memories and arcanums. Sometimes, a soul will not go willingly into the dark night. It'll fight. Fight with everything it has, and lock away part of itself in a shell inside the cradle. The soul will then be recycled into a new living being.

The desires of a reincarnated soul is what determines what stays. The desire for progressing one's magic and power will allow the arcanums to be preserved as its legacy. The desire for survival will enable memories to endure and parts of the psyche to be preserved. Desire is strong enough to preserve aspects of a soul. But, desire is weak. Weak when compared against stubbornness. Some eld souls will preserve themselves entirely—all their memories, psyche, and arcanums. Aspects left behind by an eld soul are called imprints. An eld soul that has been entirely preserved is called an incarnate.

Imprints such as Legacy arcanums are uncommon, usually found in a soulceric or magical bloodline. Legacy arcanums start only slightly more potent than affinity Arcanums, for they deteriorate in the transmigration process. The key difference between a legacy and affinity arcanum is the rarity and specialty of the imprint. Legacy Arcanums have rare magics and domains. Some rare legacy arcanums are developed for millennia, becoming quite powerful as the torch of arcana is passed down from iteration to iteration. Souls are more likely to be reincarnated into hosts of the same bloodline, but there are exceptions.

Legacy arcanums are slowly discovered, similar to how one builds upon an affinity arcanum or an entirely new one. Some legacy arcanums will have vestiges and memories of their past iterations that guide their contemporary hosts. Legacy arcanums are quite common in soulceric bloodlines; bloodlines focused on developing soulceric magic throughout time by ingraining spiritual and sorcerous magicks into their very blood.

Stage 4: Spirit Manipulation (Internal Magic - Endo Mana Manipulation)

The manipulation of the spirit is also dependent on arcanums found in the soul and of the spirit itself. The spirit is inherited through the mother's line. Some spiritual bodies have unique ethereal organs that allow for magic with an unawakened soul. If a female human experiments with their spirit and creates a new ethereal organ, there's a chance it's passed down to her offspring.

Not all mages are sorcerers. Most are, in fact, have slumbering souls. The most common mage throughout all of time and all different branches of life is the spiritualist; a mage that uses their innate spirit as a medium to control mana. Spiritualists augment their spirits, drawing in environmental and aetheric mana to imbue the elements into their etheric beings.

Spiritual manipulation is about controlling the ebb and flow of the shallow ethereal body, drawing in mana from the inner gate and into mana channels. Some soulcerers may even become spiritualists; mages that primarily use the spirit and thus form their own connection to it without necessarily requiring an awakened soul. The spirit has its own rudimentary nervous system with pseudo-arcanums. The problem with spiritualists is that their magic doesn't have as much fine control over transmutation. The spirit can internally transmute certain mana types but is very limited in this respect without the use of specific techniques and knowledge.

Spiritualists still form and develop arcanums. Exposure to any mana type and practice of magic, in general, develops arcanums. Spiritualism is considered a separate Path of magic from soulcery.

Spiritual manipulation includes manipulating ethereal organs such as ethereal muscles, the three reservoirs, and the various mana pools. A spiritualist can better integrate and unlock their latent ethereal muscles. Instead of them passively working to stave off the effects of gravity, they can be actively used for combat. Ethereal muscles can be folded into themselves and made denser. They can be molded to provide short bursts of strength and speed, among other things such as the infusion of elemental energies.

At the fourth stage, a soulcerer is considered fully awakened is on their way to attunement.