Mist

Distinct from the phenomena of condensing water vapors also known as mist, the Mist is the common name for what among scholars is known as thaumousia. It is a primordial substance that takes up the space between spheres. The exact age of the Mist is unknown, being already there with the birth of the first deities. Different scholars subscribe to competing ideas of whether the Mist predates the gods or if it sprang into being from the same even that gave rise to them.
Mist is charged with a potent energy called mana, which living beings with the correct talent and training can call upon to work what has been termed arcane magic. Through the mana provided by the Mist, wizards can shape, alter or even create whatever they focus their will on. This mutable nature of Mist is also one of its greatest danger. Exposure to raw Mist can cause organisms to become altered, ranging from gaining new powers to collapsing into protoplasmic sludge.
While Mist is the most common name, sections of the Mist is referred to by different names depending on its exact location. Along the ground it is just called Mist, but the part that stretch across the sky is called the Cloud. Underwater is known as Silt and underground as Shadow. Other local names also arise depending on various factors. In all instances, the Mist functions the same.
Mist functions as a barrier around spheres. Anyone who enters the Mist without a navigator will most likely find themselves exiting alongside another point of the sphere's circumference, though there are rare stories of people falling through to other spheres or vanishing entirely from known existence.
Some creatures call the Mist their home and are naturally capable of living there. Most famous of these are the bird-like phoenix, who are born from the Mist itself.

Manifestation

Mist, as the name implies, looks like a hazy, white-grey expanse of fog, though local conditions can cause it to take on slightly different forms, which often have specific names. The Cloud looks even more hazy, Silt often has a murky-brown tint and the Shadow is a deep, lightless black. Other, even more local variants have been known

Type

Metaphysical, Arcane