SporeWiki:Fantasy Universe/Old/The Source/Aetheromancy

"Remember this, young one. revolves around its sun, and from the sun, are we given warmth, light and life. The night takes it all away. As we turn to the skies to the night, we realise the darkness of the night is the Aethereal Firmament's natural state of being. It is dark. It is cold. But we turn to the eternal gaze of the Night Father to be our eyes in the dark, so that we may be safe."

- i Magus Nicastu Tahavasca

Aetheromancy, known commonly as Storm Magic and in ancient times as Celestial Magic is a lunar magic derived from The Source. Most commonly associated with the Simulacrum known as, Storm Magic is one of the three Celestial magics of the Aethereal Firmament, alongside Heliomancy and Umbramancy according to the civilisation. Aetheromancy, alongside Heliomancy and Chronomancy is one of the three lost schools of magic of Koldenwelt, and in the context of Aetheromancy, was never taught in wider civilisation.

History
Historically, Aetheromancy, alongside Chronomancy is one the least historically accounted for magics of Koldenwelt, although it is known that the first Chronomancers were likely the, having been introduced to the magic by the. The Moon Phoenixes, the highest order of the Arcadian culture of the realm of Midnight possessed divine capabilities over aetheromancy as a power, and thus introduced it to Koldenweltian cultures to govern future civilisations. It is deemed a probability that the Echdrarothrayu had introduced the same power or had unlocked the potential of the power within the Storm Drakes.

The magical power of Aetheromancy waned severely following the destruction of the Phoenixes and the disappearance of Aethereus, however in place of Aethereus, Nalashtannylor had become the Simulacrum of Midnight and therefore the patron deity of storm magic, indicating that the practice was not lost. The waning presence of Aetheromancy on Koldenwelt was also said to have resulted in the shorter stature and finite lifespans of the Néva, however the practice of the magic continued nonetheless. It was not known at what stage in history the power was introduced to the Orayu, as a number of individuals in history, as one of them possessed innate knowledge of the magic and were masters of the art. It appeared that following the defeat of at the turn of the fifth millennium BNA and the death of Maras, individuals born with the power of Aetheromancy died out completely. There has been no instance of Orayu possessing Aetheromancy since Maras' death, nor has the practice of Aetheromancy in the Néva culture rebounded into a larger following, but has instead reduced over the number of millennia.

The revival of, the Storm Colossus and the full resurrection of Nalashtannylor during the saw a resurgence in Aetheromancy across Koldenwelt, and in future generations, some Orayu predict that those born with aetheromantic power will return.

Source
Aetheromancy is one of the two heavenly magics of The Source (the other being Heliomancy), and thus draws its power from the heavens rather than from its surroundings. As it is indicated as a lunar magic, Aetheromancy's power is in fact influenced the moons and the magical aura of an aetheromancer is stronger at night. As a heavenly magic, Aetheromancy is also an ancient and primordial permutation of the Source, and it is said that Hydromancy, Electromancy, Cryomancy and Aeromancy, other lunar magics, are what stem from Aetheromancy. Due to the lack of in-depth knowledge of Aetheromancy, it is sometimes argued that the magic also overlaps Umbramancy and Heilomancy, due to the historically ambiguous nature of the magic. It coincides with the Orichalcum Elf theories of Aetheromancy, that it possessed both benevolent and malevolent capabilities and was among the purest manifestations of magic that could be used.

Even during the era in which it was used, Aetheromancy was extremely rare, and it seemed that only a handful of individuals within a thousand years of each other were born with the ability to use the magic. Some believe that Aetheromancy could not be taught, and it was only by birth that some were 'chosen' to be able to conjure aetheromantic power.

Abilities


The claim that all lunar magics derive from Aetheromancy is based upon Aetheromancy's own power overall - the very nature of the magic influences the weather, as of which can vary between clear sunlight to a torrential and disastrous storm. It was not particularly explored however, that Aetheromancy's magical nature allowed it to manifest in many more ways than torrential weather - given any particular environment, Aetheromancy may have manifested as a tornado in the Everwinter Highlands, a blizzard in the Polar Lands and a sandstorm in the Sea of Sand. A skilled aetheromancer would be able to bend environmental laws beyond the natural, and under the power of an aetheromancer, it is possible to submerge the entire Sea of Sand in a thick sheet of snow.

As the power of Aetheromancy was drawn from heavenly sources, mastery of Aetheromancy was virtually impossible. One of the most skilled aetheromancers in history, Maras the Destroyer, was noted to have sunken an entire city underwater using aetheromancy to tear the earth asunder, although it was known that an aetheromancer had no true physical or magical limit to their power. Because of this, deities of the Chaosphere reviled the magic, and was one of the causes of the Phoenixes' extinction.