The Darkest Hour – "The Darkest Hour", a name that many use to refer to an event that happened in a very recent history. Actually, this event happened roughly one and a half year after the end of the Night Howler Conspiracy, around one year after Nicholas Wilde became the first fox of Zootopia. This even in itself did not happened in Zootopia, but it happened on another city, one that was nearly as big as Zootopia, and famous on its own right. In that city, happened the disaster that would come to be know by the world as the Darkest Hour.
It started in the middle of the night, roughly at midnight, when people saw a bright light shining in the sky. Some believed it to be some kind of aircraft, but the fact that it shone so brightly was something that deeply worried everyone, and soon, all eyes were on the sky as that light shone. Then, another light appeared, as a bright red comet that rose from the city and hit the first light. Then, all they saw was red, as both lights exploded, generating a burst of light that nothing in the natural world would be able to produce, shocking and baffling everyone who saw it. Soon, the explosion was over, and everyone thought that it was over, however, they were soon proved wrong. Form the place of the explosion, an orb of the purest blackness appeared, and from that orb, disaster rained, or better, it cascaded into the city.
Around seven million mammals lived in there, but after the Darkest Hour, only a couple dozens were find among the debris of the destroyed city. It was a disaster that was without any precedents, and it would be only that, if that disaster had not been captured on tape by a helicopter team that was flying in the very moment, transmitting the disaster in national scale.
The mage community tried on the best of their skills to suppress everything. However, they could not fight the curiosity and the thirsty for answers of the world, neither the way that information moves in the world. The Darkest Hour was the beginning of the Great Revealing…
The Great Revealing – Even the dumbest of the mundanes was able to tell that the Darkest Hour was not a natural event, and it was just what it took for questions to start to be asked, questions that became harder and harder to avoid. During the following weeks, there were all kinds of new events appearing everywhere in social medias and on the news, from mages caught on tape to sightings of unnatural things.
No matter how much the mage community tried, it seemed that there was no turning back, the silence cone had finally fallen, the curtain was finally lift, the world finally knew. It was the revelation of the existence of magic and the supernatural.
Needless to say, this event shook the world to its very core, and that things would never be the same. People now knew that there were mages living out there. It was surely mind-blowing for anyone who had always believed in the supernatural. It was something that shocked the scientific community, who refused to accept the existence of magic, but saw themselves with no choice but to accept this new reality. Of course, many thought it to be frightening, and this, of course, lead to a whole "anti-magic" campaign from the most conservative and ignorant part of the society. Some even feared the return of all the old witch-hunts. The following few months were extremely tense. Until the Interview of the Millennia…
The Interview of the Millennia – The time following the Great Revealing was tense for everyone. The mundanes were afraid that the mages would use their magic against them. The mages were worried on how the mundanes would act, and that this could represent a danger to their whole community, in fact, many of them were ready to use their magic on their defense. They were making preparations to hypnotize and control important leaders and preparing powerful rituals that would shake the world and made sure that the mundanes would leave them alone.
However, the first one to act was a mage who was not powerful, nor was he member of an important family. He was simply someone who was tired of that, and he had his own idea of how to end the madness. He started by contacting a young reporter and promising a story that could possibly put her in history, and she accepted.
Two days later, she was going to the determined place with the few members of her news crew, and in there, they meet the young mage, who said he was ready to let the world know more about who they were.
What resulted from this would come to be know as the "Interview of the Millennia". A six and a half hours interview in which that young mage clarified to the world all that they needed to know about the mage community. Starting with the explanations of how mages had their powers, and explaining about the nature of their magic circuits, and developing through the nature of magical energy, od, mana, passing by the mechanics of the most important schools of magic and to the mechanics of thaumaturgy. He explained how there were things that were impossible even with magic, like time travel and bringing the dead back to life. He explained how there was a time when magic was abundant in the world, but this magi waned and eventually all that was left were small traits of its existence. He explained how the magic community operated (nothing precise, only general notions). The Mage's Association purposes and works. The laws instituted by the New Mage Codex. All of that was explain by that young mage. In the end, he finished with a heartfelt request to the world to allow mages to follow their path, and to at least give them a chance, after all, despite their magical powers, they were still mammals.
This interview generated all kinds of mixed reactions, both form mages and mundanes. There was anger. Outrage. Happiness. Wonder. Disdain. Sympathy. Hate. Dismissal. Acceptance. Pity. Both sides, in relation to what that young mage did, felt all kinds of emotions. Still, somehow it all worked well in the end, for the world seemed to take the words of the mage to their hearts. The mage only said that he "helped them understand better what was going on so they were less scary". Other mages would often say that the young mage managed to "turn the stupidest decision someone could make into the smartest thing that someone could have possible done".
The moods calmed (relatively) after this, and the mundanes were more willing to hear the mages and less scared of their skills, even though many still felt surprised for the revelation. The mages were able to relax, even the ones who were preparing to a war, and as it turned out, the revelation of magic perhaps would not be the disaster that they always thought. From that point on, the mages started to have more contact with the world in the form of representatives, this would improve the relations between them and prepare the world for this new reality, and that young mage became an instant celebrity.
From that point on, there was the forthcoming of groups and associations other than the Mage's Association that wanted to make themselves known, not to mention the coming of prominent figures in the whole world who presented themselves as mages, both the ones who actually were and the ones who were frauds. With the stage set for them, they had mixed receptions, and some of them proved to be quite popular, while others became targets,
Of course, there are still secrets that are well keep. For instance, reveal the names of any mages and of the clans can only be done with permission of the same, as a way of protecting the mages from possible persecutions, and for them to have their privacy preserved. As well as the location of the headquarters of the Mage's Association, to preserve it from future attacks from extremist groups. In addition, there are many things about the world of magic that the mundane world is still not fully aware of, for example, the true nature of Animunculi, the whole truth about the Age of Gods, and the great high-thaumaturgy rituals, like the Holy Grail War. The mages want to preserve more sensitive information until the world has grew used to them enough not to be too much of a shock to them…
The Mieczyslaw – This is say to be one of the oldest and most powerful family of mages of the whole world. Better yet, these two families. The Mieczyslaw clan is say to be descendant from the legendary fox Mieczyslaw and from one of the children of Fenrir; as so, the members of the clan have a very special blood running through their veins. Since Mieczyslaw was a fox, and the child of Fenrir was a wolf, the clan itself is divide in two subfamilies: the fox side and the wolf side. Due to the past of the clan, they are specialized in the art of magecraft using runes. Despite the fact that the real runes got lost with the end of the Age of Gods, they still hold a lot of potential into the runes that they use, exceeding into their use, even though most mages consider runes to be a minor part of the modern magecraft. The Mieczyslaw clan is also famous for their collection of artifacts from old ages, many of which are ancient Sacred Relics that were said to be among the collections of Mieczyslaw himself, and they still search for the ones that were lost, aiming to recover them in order to restore the "glory of the clan". The fox portion of the clan is debate to be the actual oldest fox family of the world, even older than the Wildes are, but the Wildes still surpass them in sheer magical power, influence and wealth, making many favor them. The wolf portion of the clan is also famous for working to keep order and to protect others, something that comes from Volga Mieczyslaw, an ancestor of the wolf part of the clan; matter of fact, the New Mage Codex was create by a member of the wolf part of the clan.
The Clawhausers – This is one of the most influent and rich families of the world of mages, a clan of cheetahs. This clan is famous for their many advances in the area of magic of kinetic force and of mental magic. The specialization of the clan is the one of using kinetic force in spells and spells that affect and manipulate the mind, making many define them as "psychics" who have "telekinetic and telepathic capacities". Recently, the clan passed by a certain scandal that affected their reputation, when it was reveal that the oldest child of the clan was abusing and mistreating his younger siblings. Upon the revelation, the heads of the clan were quick and firm, and they cast aside that member in order to protect the siblings. The Clawhauser clan is famous for being "eccentric", being the kind of family that, despite being one of the oldest, they are not in tune with traditions, and they much rather follow their own passions than following traditions, and often putting the wellbeing of their children above the development of the clan, as most mages do. Some even label them as "disgraces" or even as "crazy", still, the Clawhauser clan has enough influence and money to be able to silence most of the ones who oppose him and to make sure that no one will try to oppose them publically, except for the ones who had as much or more influence than they. As it is to be expected, few mage families do fit in this description.
Benjamin Clawhauser is a member of this clan, but he has cut ties with the magical world for his own personal reasons. Still, Ben is still dear and loved by his family, and they are happy to have him whenever he wants to come, and they are often trying to persuade him to come back to the clan.
The Savages – The Savages are a clan that is relatively new when compared to others, however, in the relative little time of their existence they managed to harness a great deal of influence and wealth, enough to be considered one of the most important clans of the modern days. The Savages are famous for their dominion and mastery of the Projection Magic, which allows materializing objects from their thoughts using magic energy. This mastery allows them to materialize all kinds of objects, or even weapons, according to their needs. The Savages are say to be one of the clans of mages who are the most inclined to direct combat, and they are said to be able to swiftly adapt to battle by using Projection to materialize all kinds of weapons that they can use in battle, turning them into amazing and versatile martial combatants. They are consider a very strong clan by the ones who met them, and their influence goes as high as to have some chairs in the Mage's Association.
Recently there was a certain event that affected the balance of the clan. The head of the clan, Archibald Savage, had decided that none of his own sons were worth of inheriting the Magic Crest, and so, he was keeping it to himself, even though his health was waning with time. Some even thought that the Magic Crest was going to die with him, until along came a mysterious bunny who Archibald took into his home and helped through a difficulty. This bunny turned out to be the one to whom he would pass his Magic Crest, right before he died, what was an outrage to his own sons, especially after that bunny decided to take on the clan name for himself.
Nowadays, Jack Savage, the bunny, is the possessor of the Savage Magic Crest, and he is the current head of the Savage clan, according to the traditions of the mages. However, other members of the Savage clan are not very receptive of him, especially the sons of Archibald Savage, who see him as an intruder who took away what was rightfully theirs. They don't like having Jack around, especially since Jack seems to be adding some more "diversity" to the clan with his own peculiar extended family…
The Maskell – This is one clan of great power and influence, all formed by raccoons and other relatives. This clan is famous for their great mastery of the art of Illusionism, and they are say to be able to wield it better than most of other mages of the world. The Maskell clan has their own agendas and their own business, and they are an example of another recent clan of mages who manages to achieve power and influence through their own mastery of their particular branch of magic and from the discipline and talent of their members. The Maskell are considered to be the best Illusionists in the world, and they are said to also be artists, using their illusions not only to fool others, but also to mesmerize the ones who watch it the same way that a singer would enchant others with their voices. It is said that the celebrations held by the Maskell are famous, for it is a chance to see the great illusory art that the clan is so famous for. The Maskell are one clan that imposes respect and also mistrust, not only for their species but also for the mastery of their art of illusions. There are all kinds of rumors that go around the world about how they are able to make themselves completely disappear and to manipulate the perceptions of the ones around them, making them the perfect spies and infiltrators, capable of robbing the secrets of other mages without ever taking the risk of being captured. However, they are still respected due to their great advances in the field of magic and in the field of Illusion, so much that the current head of the clan has a secure and very firm spot as an Archmage among the rankings of the Mage's Association. He is the kind of mammal that others will not mess with, despite the relatively small size that he has, for they know that is not wise to underestimate a master of Illusion.
The Maskell clan is also famous for the "friendly rivalry" that they share with the Wilde clan, besides these two families diverging from each other in all ways possible. Some say that this was born from an encounter of the founder of the clan with a member of the Wilde clan and some heated argument. What is know today is that the Maskell clan seems to hold the Wilde as rivals to be outsmarted, and most of the members of the clan will jump at the chance to try to best the Wildes if the chance presents itself. The Wildes, on their end, seem to see them as "an interesting entertainment" at best, and as "quite a nuisance" at worst, but they seem not to hold true grudges against them, or at least not consider them true threats.
Di Tana – This is one of the oldest, most powerful, and most influent clans of mages in the world, and they are the second most powerful that is a clan of bunnies, right behind the Höleh. The Di Tana are a traditional clan, being very keen on their traditions, and often behaving like gentleman in the modern world, being the kind that accepts the new values that are in the world at the same time that they try to preserve the old values, wanting to form something that holds the best of the two. "Change what needs to be changed, preserve what needs to be preserved", as they say. What makes the Di Tana famous is their mastery in the magecraft that revolves around the manipulation of time. The true manipulation of time is True Magic, something that vanished from the world after the end of the Age of Gods. The type of magecraft that the Di Tana developed is an attempt to imitate that art, and it is the result of centuries of research and dedication of the whole clan into imitating this lost power. They are still far from achieving things like time travel, if that is even possible (the Di Tana themselves claim that it is) but they have achieved significant advances in this, learning to manipulate time in a very limited scale, allowing them to control their own time and the time of their immediate vicinity, allowing them to do amazing things. Due to their advances in time magic, the Di Tana achieved a level of fame and respect in the mage community that very few families can actually rival, being easily placed among the twenty more powerful mage clans of the modern world.
The Di Tana have a rivalry with the Höleh clan, but this is surely no mere rivalry, but downright a revolt. The Di Tana are famous for their connections with the Church, and for being a righteous clan, so much that they consider the actions of necromancers as being revolting for many different reasons. The Di Lana have this enmity with the Höleh, they will try to get on the way of their plots and frustrate them at every chance that they get, and they will oppose them at any moment they met. The Höleh see them as annoying, and sometimes even a true problem, and they will answer accordingly.
The Lupines – This is an old and powerful clan of wolves, famous for their capacity to dominate the lycanthropy. Lycanthropes are not irrational beasts, as most modern legends depict them, but rather an effect of magic that can either be impose or bestow, and the Lupine clan has learned to access this specific form of transformation and explore it to the max. The origins of the Lupine clan can be traced back several centuries, to a period that is very close to the end of the Age of Gods, and some even say that they are direct descendants of Lycaon, the first lycanthrope. Their main form of magecraft revolves around the use of lycanthropy and the manipulation of it. Each member of the clan learns to access a primitive part of their own nature and force their "inner beast" to come out, resulting into a transformation that makes them closer to the beasts and turn them into battle machines that have few matches in direct combat. They focus on lycanthropy, however, that is not their only branch of magic, and it is a common mistake to think that they can only transform themselves into beasts to fight and that they have no other tricks. Some consider them to be stupid and even savages, but the Lupines are far from this, as they have mastered their inner beasts, and now use them according to their needs, and they tend to surprise others with their amazing techniques and with a very clever use of magic. Most of their researches go into improving the use of their lycanthropy and achieving new landmarks in this are. Their old age and their considerable power grants them a position between the most influent and powerful mage clans of the modern times.
The Lupine clan has a great grudge against the Bellwether clan. This is the result of the Bellwethers having, in the past, kidnap and tortured members of the clan in order to try to understand the nature of their magecraft. This nearly started a war between these two clans, up until today, the subject itself is still very sensitive to the Lupines, and they truly, truly dislike the Bellwethers.
Divine Spirits – On the old times, there were the Gods. These entities were born from the purest True Ether, manifesting as clusters of magic energy that took form and will of their own based on aspects of the world and of everything that existed in it. After the appearing of mammals, their aspects started to be worship by these beings, the mortals who paid their respect and their tributes to these almighty forces of the world. The worship and adoration of the mortals increased the powers of the Gods, granting them to grow and to change, becoming entities of great power, capable of affecting the world in ways that mortals themselves could barely comprehend, all because of the adoration of the mammals. Gods were beings of almighty powers, which were able to control the world and to change it according to their needs, and they could even mate with mortals to create the beings called "demi-gods". However, even gods have their limitations, for while mortals had the natural instinct to adapt to their environment, the gods themselves merely existed, and were unable to adapt to things, and this was what lead them to be somewhat impotent to the deterioration of the Age of Gods. The process was slow, but it was effective, as the waning of magic made the gods start to lose their ability to influence the world, and as a result, the faith that the mammals had on them also started to wane. Of course, there are some divergences, once some say that it was actually the fact that the mammals were worshipping them less that led to the waning of their power and of their magic. Anyway, the fact was that, with time, the gods were worshipped less and less, and as a result, the magic that they once held started to decrease, as it was the adoration of mammals that granted them their power. As a result, with the end of the Age of Gods, the gods lost their almighty status. They continued to exist as manifestations of nature and of old aspects of the world, and as a result, they would continue to exist. However, they are no longer gods, but instead, they are Divine Spirits, the highest of all classes of spirits of nature. Not as powerful as they used to be in the distant past, but still powerful on their own right.
There are two classes of gods: the ones that were born as gods, manifestations of nature; and the ones who were born as mortals and who ascended after their deaths due to the adoration of people.
Familiars – Familiars are the kind of thing that mages will often use. They are special assistants created and employed by mages. Since many mages tend to live apart from society as they focus more on their research and on other personal matters, it is consider orthodox for mages to create and use familiars to run simple errands, like cleaning a place or bringing things to the mage. Familiars are different from the summoned creatures used by mages, like spirits, daemons or even elementals (in the case of the Wilde clan), for they are far more manageable, and they are often physical beings that are a symbol of the mage. There are many ways to create familiars, with the most traditional is the mage using some of his own thoughts and life force into the body of a dead animal, along with something of his own body that contains magic circuits (an eye, fur, blood, etc.) to imbue the body with life to make it move again. The result is a creature that has its own mind and soul and is able to perform a certain limited magecraft. Beings created this way might eventually develop their own mind, and they might even defy the mage (to a certain point), but they are manageable in the sense that they need constant influx of magical energy to stay alive, and this is made by a physical and spiritual connection that they share with the creator. There are reported cases in which the created familiars develop a mind that is somewhat the same as the mage, only staying behind in the field of magefcraft, due to the connection that they have with the mage at a mental level. There are other ways to create familiars, which includes infusing one's own magic circuits into a still living animal, and some favor this one for it creates familiars that are easier to control, once they already have a mind of their own and will follow it as they still have a connection with the mind of the mage. When we say "animals" we refer to lizards, birds, fishes, maybe even insects, once creating familiars from mammals is considered abhorrent, impractical, and a violation of the laws of the New Mage Codex, still some might actually do that for a reason or another…
It is also possible to use soulless beings as familiars, like golems.
Golems – Golems are artificial beings created through a variety of techniques. The golems differ from animunculi as these are created using alchemy to generate organic creatures, while golems are created through other methods. The very basis of the golem could be trace on the holy books through the creation of the first mammal from the soil of the earth. This is the basis of many magi to try to imitate the miracle of creation of mammals through material of the earth. The first manufacturers of golems can be trace back to the first centuries of the new Holy Era, and it is the base for all modern golems. Since the base was the recreation of the miracle of creation of mammals, it was traditional for most golems to match mammal form, trying to imitate the principle of that miracle. Each golem is treated as a fetus, "that which has no shape", while the goleomancy is treated as "the arcane craft of the Lord breathing life over the first mammal". Golems are something that is under the tradition of the Kabbalah, and the ones who create them usually seek for the art of creating golems to fulfill their needs, but they rarely go further than that, seeking to fulfill their own goals rather than replicating the miracle of the creation of Adam. However, the greatest and most orthodox of the Kabbalah arts consider the replication of that miracle as the ultimate art of the Kabbalah, and some even have it as their dearest wish, something that they do not take lightly. The more perfect is a golem under that specific ideal, the more it will become an independent existence, separated from its original design.
While these kabbalists seek to create golems of more quality as they come closer and closer to mammal form, most mages worry more into making stronger and more useful golems to fulfill their needs.
Sealing Designation – A sealing designation is consider something very serious among mages, both on its original purpose and for the meaning that they carry originally.
Originally, the sealing designations were emitted to mages who had skills that were deemed "unique" and not possessed by other mages, or that could not be passed down by teachings or even by bloodline, and so, they were subjects of the greatest interest to the rest of the mage community. The ones who received these designations were put on a state of mental and physical stasis, being in a kind of hibernation in which they would not age or die, and in which their flesh and blood would be preserved, and they would be studied by other mages in order to understand their special qualities. It was said to be a "greatest honor" among mages, for the mage was deemed "precious" enough to be preserved and protected forever, even though many who received it thought it to be outrageous, for it was basically going to lock them away forever, and it was almost akin to a death sentence.
Recently, with the advent of the New Mage Codex, the laws and traditions of mages started to change, as morality was ingrain in their behavior. One of the most shocking and polemic developments of this was that almost all of the previous sealing designations were annul, and the imprisoned mages freed. The responsible for this was the main mage behind the New Mage Codex, a wolf of the Mieczyslaw clan, and he didn't hesitates in justifying his reasons for this. He made it clear to everyone that it was not correct to strip mammals of their rights and to turn them into mere samples for studies, for by doing that, they stripped each other and themselves of their very nature as mammals, and became only monsters. Surprisingly, nearly all mage families agreed with them and from that point on, the sealing designations had a new sense. Today, the sealing designations are emitted only as a form of punishment, as arrest warrants for the most dangerous and wicked mages of the world. Since it is akin to a death sentence, only the mages who had done the worst things deserve to receive one. However, the world of mages is full of political plots, there are many stories and rumors about mages who arranged sealing designations for their rivals and enemies, in order to get them out of their way.
Hermit – This is a specific designation of the Mage's Association given to the ones who are deem as "subjects of interest". Hermits are individuals who have decided not to share their discovery with the Mage's Association, despite all the advantages that would come from this, and they prefer to keep their own discoveries and their advances to themselves, passing them only to the ones who they choose as their successors. Hermits often go far in order to be left alone, and their reasons for that, as well as for keeping their own advances to themselves, might vary greatly from one mage to another. The Mage's Association has interest in them due to their advances, however, they chose to leave them alone, for their actions do not represent danger. However, there are cases in which members of the Association can agree to send someone to apprehend Hermits if their discoveries are deemed to be truly extraordinary, enough for the mages to want it to be shared with the rest of the community in despite of the Hermit's wishes.
Philosopher – This is a designation that the Mage's Association gives to individuals who are deem "dangerous". Hermits tend to keep for themselves and not share their discoveries, but they are mostly harmless. Philosophers, however, are individuals who strive to make advancements, but they have long abandoned all codes of conduct and now act in continuation to their purposes and don't want to be bothered. Philosophers downright ignore most laws of the New Mage Codex, as they don't hesitate to attack, kill, kidnap, sacrifice and experiment on innocent civilians in order to make sure that they research will move forward. They have let go of all morals and ethics and now only care about achieving new developments in magic, no matter what cost may come. They may victimize a great number of innocents and, before the events of the Great Revealing, their actions could attract unwanted attention and even reveal the existence of magic to the world if they were not careful enough, not to mention that they don't hesitate to kill other mages if they deem them obstacles.
Enforcers – Enforcer is a title that is bestow to mages who were specially train to hunt down heretics that betrayed the ways of the Association and who do things that the other mages condemn. On old times, the duty of the Enforcers was chase and capture the ones who had sealing designations on their heads. Of course, since they rarely had these duties due to the rarity of appearing someone that was worth of these designations, they often spent their time hunting the heretics as a way of keeping themselves busy and sustaining themselves until the moment came. After the New Mage Codex, the Enforcers had a very slightly change in their behavior and in their duties. They are still warriors that are specialized in hunting and capturing other mages, however, now that the traditions have been changed, the enforcers now have a duty that is very akin to policies force, which includes hunting, capturing and even disciplining the mages who have broken the rules and became criminals. Their main work is still to hunt mages who received sealing designations, which now are mammals who have committed the worst crimes in the mage community; this makes them the official cops of the mage world and people who are both respected and feared.
Freelancers – Everywhere in the world that are people who sell their talents and their skills to who pays them, the famous mercenaries, and in the world of mages there is no exception to this rule. The mages who use their magic abilities to earn money by using it in service of others are often called "Freelancers", and they are often looked down upon by most traditional mages, for these think that the magecraft is a noble field of research instead of a mere tool for profit. The ones who are freelancers use their skills to earn a living, and unlike most mages, who earn money from their patents sold to the Clock Tower, freelancers freely use their skills in order to work for others and gain their own "sweaty money" from the works that they do. Among the freelancers that are several sub classifications, with some being "legal" while others are downright criminal. Among the kinds of freelancers that exist, there are the bounty hunters, who go after any mage who has a bounty over their heads because of any crimes they committed. There are the "magus killers" who are killers for rent that get jobs by killing other mages under the command of the ones who hired them. There are the bodyguards, who use their magical skill and combat proficiency to defend their contractors from threats that might come their way. These among many other of the mages who bear the title of freelancers.
Psychic – Among the mundanes, the word "psychic" immediately drives them to think of individuals who can read minds and see the past from the objects. However, in the magic world, this term is used to someone who was born with a mutation that allows the brain to comprehend a "channel" (common sense, or perception of reality) not common to mammals. It is consider a different type of Mystery from magecraft, although similar in nature.
The terms psychic power, or extrasensory perception (ESP), are a wide term to encompass circuits that cause supernatural phenomena to occur, an interference with nature that comes as naturally as breathing. Unlike magecraft, which can be taught and practiced, psychic powers require inherent ability, they come from "mutations", and they are often limited to a single generation, being the kind of skill that cannot be taught, although some families found ways of ensuring that these qualities can be continued inside their own bloodlines. Generally, a psychic is born both with a normal perception of the world (the same that most mammals share) and with a psychic perception, which allows seeing and perceiving things that most other mammals can't.
However, there are cases in which the psychic is born only with the supernatural perception, or in which the natural perception degrades, to the point where they become less and less "mammals", and soon became unfit to live in society, some even going as far as becoming cold and heartless murderers. These individuals cannot live in society without the removal of their ESP, however, with the current knowledge and technology, doing that permanently is impossible without causing irreparable damage to the rest of the brain, instead, this kind of thing can only be "controlled", or "temporarily suppressed". Because of this, most of the mages have a strong mistrust towards those who are psychics.
There are all kinds of psychic powers. Clairvoyance and precognition are among them. However, the most known example are the Mystic Eyes…
Conceptual Weapons – Conceptual Weapons are objects that, due to the past and their story, have accumulated spiritual weight upon themselves, to the point where they became something that surpass the limits of mere physical objects, and became something that now holds weight of a concept. They have become much more than more objects, as they are able to execute some "build-in concept", a predetermined phenomenon. These objects are in a scale superior to any Mystic Code, which are objects that were give power through magecraft, as the Conceptual Weapons are objects that gained certain concepts as part of their very nature, and so, they are considerably most powerful, many Noble Phantasms are Conceptual Weapons on their nature. There is a wide variety of concepts that can be possessed by these objects, which can include "the negation of immortality within the conception of natural life", "severing and binding", and "absolute defense against thrown weapons". Some of them have the power to force a concept into a target so much that it can completely crush a soul with the very concept itself. Formless creatures, such as spirits, and entities born from laws of the world or from delusions, like elementals and daemons, are impervious to physical interference, but they are susceptible to Conceptual Weapons, once they are concepts, and as so, they can only be kill by concepts.
Despite their name, the Conceptual Weapons can hold all kinds of forms. It is not uncommon for legendary objects and weapons to have turned into Conceptual Weapons as a result of their legends. The scabbard "Avalon", possessed originally by Leonidas Pendragon, falls into this.
Conceptual Weapons, when they are ancient and stuff of legends, are often described as "artifacts", "ancient relics", and "sacred relics". They are consider reminiscences of the Age of Gods, as they hold a power that very few aspects of modern thaumaturgy could hope to imitate.
Mystic Eyes – Mystic Eyes are a form of interfering with the world, resulting of a mutation of the magical circuits around one's eyes, resulting into a specific form of Mystery that manifests within one's gaze and that activated through activating the magic circuits of the area. This kind of mutation can be induce artificially by manipulating the magic circuits of that area, in a way that is similar to forging a Magic Crest. It is also possible for Mystic Eyes to appear naturally as a congenital mutation, being the kind of special ability that might place the possessor into a very special place of interest, these kinds of inborn Mystic Eyes are rare, but there are known cases in which these eyes are powerful enough to be able to interfere with fate itself. Mystic eyes are often the proof of a first-class mage, once they grant great power and are easy to conceal.
It is possible to suppress Mystic Eyes with the use of a special magical construct called "mystic eyes killer", which usually have the form of a blindfold or of a pair of glasses. These serve to block specific kinds of Mystic Eyes that cannot be turn off, allowing the user to be able to live a rather normal life.
Bounded Field – A bounded field is a type of topographic magecraft, a spell that deals with space and serves to create a delimited space through magic energy, spreading it through an area to create a mystic boundary that separates the outside and the inside. Once constructed, the line of the boundary delimits the range of the powers of the field, however, it is possible to increase this boundary by adding sigils to the field, to expand and strengthen it. It is possible to destroy these sigils in order to hinder or weaken to bounded field, but the creator can easily fix it by adding more mana to it. In addition, new sigils are construct by the actions of old ones, in a way that the bounded field can repair itself overtime. The original purpose of bounded fields is to create safe havens, as they serve to keep invaders outside and even to warn the caster from invasions, in which case, they serve to the protection of the mage and of the area that belongs to him. Offensive versions also exist, and they often work by messing with magical energy to cause interference with the magic of the attackers. The more advanced of bounded fields work in on a subconscious level to prevent the onlookers form even noticing that it is there, but the chances of being noticed by trained mages increases if the field is used upon a large area. An ideal bounded field is one that cannot be detect by anyone, being considered the best kind, for they protect without raising any suspicious of their existence. On the other end of the spectrum, a bounded field that can be detect easily is consider a sloppy, third-grade work.
Reality Marble – A reality marble of something that is akin to a bounded field, but on a level that it borders on the realm of True Magic. A reality marble is the ability that allows one to materialize their own inner world into the outside by suppressing the World and replacing it by their own inner reality. This allows exchange the sizes of oneself and of the World, making them World be reduced and sealed away in that specific location while the inner world of the user is enlarged to encompass the whole area. This way, the user is able to project their own internal landscapes. Each one of these worlds has its own sets of rules and patterns, which reflect the mind and soul of the one who created them, in a way that it allows the user to achieve things that would otherwise be impossible, like creating a world where they can control everything around them. Normally this ability is possess by beings like elementals, spirits of nature, and other entities of awesome power, who are born from the world and therefore are able to affect it. However, this can also be achieved by entities not properly born form the World, like Dead Apostles and, sometimes, the most powerful of mages, but in these cases, the World constantly tries to crush the Reality Marbles created by them, so maintaining them costs an absurd amount of mana, and cannot be made indefinitely. Among mages, the ability to generate a Reality Marble is something truly exceptional, and is consider a forbidden type of magecraft that will surely attract a lot of attention, once everyone considers this as the closest thing that one could possibly achieve of True Magic, and is not something that every mage can do through research. Practitioners of the art might also be able to summon only partial aspects of their Reality Marbles, what is practical and does not activates the corrective impulses of the World. These things can involve someone inside the range, removing them from the world and into the inner world that is create, and the Marble itself cannot be notice from the outside. People who are near it can sense the presence similar to a bounded field, but are unable to determine its precise location, once the space itself changes to demark the limits of the Marble. Still, the boundaries of the field can be damage by extreme pressure of magical energy, both from the inside and the outside, but only a great amount of magical energy, akin to the deployment of a Noble Phantasm, can actually do something of the like, causing the Reality Marble to start collapsing faster.
Chants/Incantations – Chants and incantations, also referred to as Aria, are a part of the thaumaturgycal process, an important part of the use of magecraft that mages of the modern day use. They are part of a procedure that allows the activation of magecraft, applied by many types of spellcasters. When you use thaumaturgy of high-scale, it is necessary to go through a process, and the chants are part of this process. However, in the case of more personal magecraft, the chants are more of a self-hypnosis, a way to access and activate the Magic Circuits.
Spells have abilities that are predetermined, so no matter who uses them, they will have the same effect; however, the chants used in a spell can vary from one person to another. That is because those incantations are not something that is use towards the outside world, but for the mage's own inner world, a way of activating one's magic circuits by words. An action that activates the process on one's own body and, many times, reflects one's own nature. As long as the incantations has a specific meaning and a set of keywords are set, the particulars of the incantation can be adapted to the mage's tastes. The greater the meanings of an incantation for the caster, the better the final effect will be, for the better the self-hypnosis will be for the mage to achieve the desired effect. In the end, even the words of the incantation do not mean much, the meaning behind them is the most important.
Of course, there are the incantations that are chant towards the outer world. These are call Grand Incantations, and they are relate to Greater Rituals. These incantations are so complex and powerful that is impossible to chant them alone, a group being necessary to do so, with certain notable exceptions, like Reality Marbles.
Spells are classified according to the length of their incantations:
· Single-Action: Instantaneous spells. Can be activate only through passing magic energy through the magic circuits.
· One-Line: Spells that are activate through one single phrase with one word at the very least. A system very well stablished and easy to use.
· Five-Lines: Spells with incantations made up of five lines.
· Ten-Lines: Instantaneous contract. Already considered a simple ritual. The minimum step necessary to activate High-Thaumaturgy (spells of power ranked A or above). Consists of ten phrases or more. A fully trained mage can perform them in about one minute, but of course, very skilled mages might be able to chant these incantations in half of the time.
The Clock Tower – The Clock Tower is a very special location, which is currently the headquarters of the Mage's Association. Its precise location is in the city of Liondon, more precisely, in the great British Museum. Officially, the place is just an old place that is open for the mundane population, however, somewhere in the very bottom of it, there is a place known as "the bridge", and which allows the ones who cross it to be able to access a place that is there and not there at the same time. This kind of thing is possible because the building stands over a very special place, the corpse of a mountain-sized dragon that failed to depart to the Reverse Side of the World. That dragon dug a lot by trying to find the path to the Reverse Side before dying, and in this digging, the dragon ended up creating a series of tunnels. These do not properly lead to the Reverse Side, which led to other places, which are not present either in the normal world or in the Reverse Side, but actually exist "in the space between both sides".
These tunnels lead to an overlapping world with our own, and in this world the true Clock Tower rests, a place where the association forms their headquarters and where they meet for the most important decisions. This is a place filled with buildings that contain several things, of the size of a small town, this place serves as house and a study place for many mages of the Association where they can work without fearing being bothered by intruders and where they can teach in peace.
Normally the teaching of magic is done inside the very clan, from mentor to student, as so the secrets are preserved. However, it is not uncommon for mage families to want to widen the horizons of their young, so the Clock Tower also works as a "school" where the young mages are sent, or com on their own, to have the chance to learn with the members of the Association who double as teachers in there. This is done mostly so to open space for future members of the Association and to widen the views of the mages who come in there, so they can "become all that they can be". Since the Clock Tower is mostly elitist, ii sot uncommon for one to see prejudice and favoritism in there, with the ones who are from great lineages or extremely gifted to receive special treatment in there. Also, since most of the students come from noble mage families, it is not uncommon for them to start their political dances yet in there, as they forge alliances and make enemies according to their own ideas and machinations, or the ones of their families. However, the Clock Tower is also fill with individuals who strive to make it different, as they often invite young talented mages from non-noble origins to come and study in there, and some of the teachers often encourage students to not get too caught up in their families' schemes…
The Technocracy – The Technocracy is a group that is divide from the Mages' Association and from the Clock Tower, and that have their own approach on the Thaumaturgy Theory and its applications. While the regular users of thaumaturgy claim without any hesitation to be mages, the members of the Technocracy see themselves as scientists, so much that they refer to their thaumaturgy mostly as "enlightened science", and will never refer to it as "sorcery" or "magic". They believe these terms to be born from misunderstanding of the people and not to rightly refer to all that these fields of study do. They see thaumaturgy as a form of science in its purest form, and they work in developing it not only for their personal purposes or for personal growing, as do most mages, but also for this science will grow and eventually lead to great advancements for the whole world. Another thing they are famous for is for being "defenders of mammals" using their enlightened science to fend off any supernatural evils that threaten mammals, in particular other mages. They are quite unpopular among many mages, mainly because they are a group that defends that the existence of the "magical science" should be revealed to the world and shared with everyone in order to improve the world, for that so is the purpose of science.
They have always had their own spheres of influence, having started as an order of illuminated beings who wanted to "spread reason among ignorance", and use their art to "bring the world to a new age". They often are competing with the Mage's Association for power and influence, and they often have similar practices, like the one of recruiting young mages to their ranks in order to teach them.
After the time of the Great Revealing, and the Interview of the Millennia, the Technocracy was the first one to step up and present itself, before even the Mage's Association, and they exposed themselves as researchers of the "enlightened science", and they offered their discoveries and advances in order to improve life and help the public. This put them in a very good life with the public, and the Mage's Association still considers that they made a very good move. They openly present themselves to the world, they act through the industries and enterprises that are relate to them, like Pearl Paragons, and Prime Industries.
The Orphans – The Orphans are an unofficial association that is separate from both the Mages' Association and from the Technocracy, and they are called this way because that's what they are: orphans. This group is entirely composed of mages that lack a true place to belong or clan, either because they rejected them or were rejected. Either for their own option, or for the decision of the clan, these mages were cast out, and now they don't belong anywhere, and so, these "outcasts" started to come together, in order to grow and to support each other on the best of their abilities. The Orphans have a clearly rebellious way of acting, and this makes many of the mage community to see them as nothing but troublemakers. They are considered "lost and sad children" at best and as "delinquents" at worst, and may dismiss them as simply an urban group that lacks organization or even purpose. However, few realize just how strong the Orphans truly are, having been fund on the 1800's, and being the kind of organization that has been growing in numbers and in resources. Their main goal is to prove their worth to the world, so to prove that mages don't have to follow the paradigms of the mage society, and that only because they lack a clan doesn't means that they are lost and useless. Their main goal is to create a new reality where the old values of conservative mage families are finally abandon and the society offers more freedom and more rights to the mages who want to follow their own path.
After the events of the Great Revealing and the Interview of the Millennia, they have been greatly active in several aspects, including searching and recruiting new members for their ranks. Some think this behavior is suspicious…