The Celestial Tapestry

The Essence of Aspectral Power

Introduction

The Celestial Tapestry is the singular most essential element related to powers in the Celestient Universe. No use of power, no denotation of race, no use of elemental materials, can be explained or understood without this central, fundament concept being understood. This article is an overview of the Celestial Tapestry, its rules, limitations, uses, and fundamental framework.

Origin

The origins of the Celestial Tapestry is shrouded in mystery. It is said that in the most ancient of times, before the divisions of the nations and races, mankind was the only empowered being not to possess such a framework, but whose power was diffused through their entire being. Others say that the framework was there, but not fully understood. Whatever the case may be, it has always been associated with power, race, and mastery over the elements, since the Age of Kingdoms was established, but only in the most modern of times was this source of power more thoroughly understood.

Framework

The Celestial Tapestry consists of an arrangement of subatomic 'filaments' of primordial energies arranged and dispersed in between the innermost electron orbit and the nucleus of the atom, hitherto known as a 'Filamentry Atom'. Its development time is unknown, but each of these atoms is part of a network that extends throughout the body of the organic or inorganic being. These 'filaments' loosely connect to form 'strings' and networks of 'strings' into 'patterns' of these arrangements of primordial forces.

General Function

The Celestial Tapestry's general function is to store and release energy. It is theorized that the energy stored is converted into "Primordia" , the purest form of energy, and converted upon release, but results of tests are inconclusive. What is known is that the entire network functions as a massive rechargeable battery, constantly absorbing ambient energy to refill itself, and exuding some of the excess when it reaches capacity. The energy released and exuded by the Celestial Tapestry is affected by their essential "Celestial Imprint" , the arrangement of subatomic filaments surrounding the Filamentary Atoms, which gives them their various properties and is the central focus behind all Aspectral Power, and which generates the Celestial Cores of their Celestial Aspect. The Celestial Imprint also gives them unique, passive abilities based on the nature of their manifestation which is what is colloquially termed as one's Imprint Ability.

Granted Properties

Celestial Tapestries give their wielders increased resilience, agility, and strength, especially compared to a regular human of our universe. These properties can be further heightened through the energy passively released throughout the body through power activation, and magnified by training body, mind, and power to form a cohesive whole, resulting in the path leading to mastery of power known as Sagehood. Further properties are granted based on the nature and distinction of their power.

Psi-Bound Tapestries and Nodes

When a Celestial Tapestry is connected to a living mind or brain , it creates what are known as 'Nodes', high concentrations of Filamentry Atoms generally located in or very close to prominent areas of the nervous system or its equivalent. These Nodes, being triggered by signals from the nervous system, exude a sub-atomic resonance that signals and helps modulate the release of energy and power. This phenomenon is known as Intonation or Inner Song colloquially. Aside from the main node, some people may have additional main nodes (with a different Intonations and Cores) or additional sub-nodes (which provide the same intonation/core from a different location in the body).

Psionic Feedback

The result of the connections between the Filamentry Atoms and the nervous system is a sort of Psionic feedback between both the Celestial Tapestry and the wielder's mind, allowing for a number of phenomenon including:

• Enhanced energy sensing, which can be heightened further through both training and particular sensitivity due to elemental alignment.
• An awareness of one's own Celestial Imprint
• The ability to tap into the Celestial Tapestry's energy to enhance one's senses further (resulting in Glimpsing and SageSight )
• The ability to connect to and control Intonation through accessing "Celestial Cores" or Psionic representations of one's own power generated by the Celestial Imprint as well as one's own talents, skills and training.

Celestial Cores are divided by the source. Those Cores which are integral in the control of Aspectral Powers are called Aspectral or Aspect Cores, and those which are otherwise derived from talent or training are called Spectrum Cores.

Racial Distinctions

While at the fundamental level, all of mankind are essentially the same in their most elementary makeup (DNA, Atoms, Essential Structure), the excess energies exuded from the Celestial Tapestry combined with their Celestial Imprint not only forms the bases for Aspectral Powers in the Celestial Universe, but also causes the physical distinctions that mankind has used to separate people by the distinct concept of "Race". Below is a summary of these racial categories and their Celestial Tapestry Distinctions:

• Purest Maphra, Pure-Man(Ancients) - It is thought that instead of having a tapestry, their power was diffused within their body. Unfortunately, nearly all remnants of them have crumbled long ago.
• Hyumaphra, Hyu-man (True Men) - Those who generally retained the overall appearance of mankind before the division of races, they nonetheless have a Celestial Tapestry with a Node along the length of their spine.
• Animaphra, Ani-man (Beast Men) - Those who take on features of animals, such as tails, wings and claws. They usually have a node at the base of the spine, where their tail generally sprouts from, or between their wings if they have any.
• Ao'Maphra, Aoh-man(Eldin) - Those who have unusual, normally elemental based features that are remote but connected to themselves. They usually have a node within the brain itself.
• Multi-Nodal - These Races, due to a mixture or confluence of elements, have more than one node, requiring Harmony (See Synchronicity and Harmony) in order to fully utilize their powers, as different Cores can be governed by different Nodes in the body for them.
• Enigmaphra, Enig-man(Fae) - Those who have a part of their body with a patch of elemental material in the color of flux. Known as a moon-patch, it is the distinctive indicator of this race. The secondary indicator is the location of their Nodes: One in the front of the brain, one at the back of the neck where it meets the shoulders, and one at the base of the tail.
• Lacrimaphra, Kri-man (Lacri, Lackey) - Those who have a mixture of any of the above features. Lacrians may not even know that they are in this category until one of their later abilities manifest. They also can have Nodes in unusual places, like within their wrists or their heart.

Posterity of Powers

Celestial Aspects sometimes imprint themselves so strongly that they are passed down through several generations before variations occur. This can occur due to three prominent factors: Paragons, Paragonic Catastrophes, and Celestent Favor.

• Paragons - Throughout the history of the world, various individuals had powers that, for unknown reasons, had prominent Celestial Imprints that they passed down to their children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren (etc) regardless of the various racial, ethnic, and power variations of the marriages that existed in those generations, thereby giving all those individuals the same established powers. These individuals, the clan, tribe, and nation-builders known as Paragons, have appeared as prominent explorers throughout history, and are the people who generally established the many different peoples, Aspectral powers and ethnic groups that exist in the Celestient Universe. When both parents in a paring are Paragons (Extremely rare occurrence) this can result in several generations of splintered Paragons descended from a single Paragon, who is known as a Primordial Paragon.
• Paragonic Catastrophe - On very rare occasions, a major catastrophe occurs that results from a massive energy imbalance in the world. As a result, those who manage to survive such a catastrophe unconsciously absorb some of that massive energy into themselves as part of their method of survival, which can itself permanently change the Celestial Imprint of the survivors. Sometimes this "Catastrophe" is the result of a slow-spreading effect like a plague that effects powers directly, where the only ones affected are those who succumbed to the plague and survived.
• Celestient Favor - Sometimes, when a person travels through the Celestient Branches through a Flowering Passage or otherwise, exposure to the maelstrom of primordial forces that make them has the potential to change or enhance ones Celestial Aspect to a different (but generally similar) form. Sometimes this phenomenon is strong enough to result in a person becoming a Paragon in and of themselves.

Primordial Forms:

Aspectral power, as established, is derived primarily from the Celestial Tapestry that indwells all living creatures and some non-living creatures besides. This framework consists of the filaments and filamentry atoms, Celestial Aspects, and Nodes that overall determine the Aspectral power an individual has. Yet the makeup of the Celestial Framework is not usually even, and the mesh of primordial energies which makes up the Tapestry usually has one alignment or another. So it is that even among specific Aspectral powers, there are sub-categories which allow for distinct sub-classes among larger people groups with the same power. These sub-categories, or Primordial Forms, are as follows:

• Elent Form - Derived from Elmentai Primordial Energy, those with this form generally Shape their powers in a highly structured and sometimes rigid way. This makes it easy to teach other Elent users, but also leads to rigidity and stagnation of their methods of shaping, which can be exploited. This also makes their use of their powers more heavily dependent on their martial arts style.
• Myst Form - Derived from Mysterai Primordial Energy, those with this form usually use their power in methods that deal with rapid change and adjustment. This generally sacrifices fine-tuned control for extremely powerful effects, and great flexibility of power.
• Flou Form - Derived from Fluva Primordial Energy, those with this form use their power in a fluid manner, leading to the most fine-tuned control but are generally slow in terms of the implementation of said power.
• Fatu Form - Derived from Fatua Primordial Energy, those with this form have swift, flexible, and powerful methods of using their abilities, but usually have an additional condition they need to undergo to use their powers effectively.
• Primor Form - A rare form that occurs when all Primordial energies are equally balanced. Grants access to all sub-types of abilities and Shaping methods provided by each of the other forms.

Material Tapestries and Foci

When a Celestial Tapestry is imbued within a material unconnected to a living mind, brain, or nervous system, that material is designated as a Foci. Foci materials naturally store and absorb energies, converting them to a specific type of energy based on the arrangement of their base filaments. The "Free Filaments" contained within such structures can respond to the Intonation sent by living beings, and can respond by releasing their energy as dictated by the intonation. This phenomenon is known as Synergy. Additionally, major disruptions to the structural integrity of a Foci can result in a rapid release of the stored energy, which can be dangerous. Foci Materials are therefore handled in an extremely specialized way, and are generally crafted into objects of everyday use by specialists.

The Process of Shaping

The term Shaping is used to describe the process by which powered entities manipulate the elements of the world. From creating flows of water to generating bolts of lighting or beams of light, all of these abilities are considered Shaping the elements. In order to Shape the elements, the user of Aspectral Power accesses the Intonation of their chosen Aspectral Core to release the primordial energy, converting it into the necessary forms of energy or material, or infusing said energy or material as needed. Additionally, as part of the process, they generate a "Shaping Array" (arrangement of primordial energies) , usually in a subconscious manner, to control the flow of power as it is being used. The power is then released in the way they desire it. This happens with such rapidity that the lines of creating and using the Array can become blurred. However, any use of power without such a hidden framework renders the use of power unstable, or requiring a large amount of mental focus and strain.

Elemental Affinity

In the use of one's power, especially if one has the ability to control multiple elements, many people have found themselves having a greater ease of control over one particular element over all others. While it is theorized that this is due to the elemental alignment of the Aspectral Cores themselves, this has not been confirmed. Nevertheless, having an affinity reduces the energy expended in controlling one's powers, allowing more fine-tuned control. It is usually through this affinity that one is able to understand and expand one's own control over other elements as well.

The Principle Forms of Control

All Aspectral Powers have a control method through which they are able to harness the elements and Shape them according to their wills. These forms of elemental control, known as Schemas, form the basis by which people have discovered more and more how to use their powers effectively. The various Control Schemas for Aspectral Powers are as follows:

• Proximus - This occurs when the Aspect allows the person to wield multiple or all other elements through the use of a single force. This is usually done by using multiple Aspect Cores at once to gather and manipulate the energy in such a way as to control specific other energies. Example: The people of the Arauk Kingdom can gather the energy of a single moment in a timestream and convert it into another element under their control.
• Unilis - This occurs when the Aspect allows the person to wield a single force for the use of their power. Those with this form of control have one or multiple Cores dedicated to controlling this element. Example: The people of Ocenilis have power over water, and can manipulate it and it alone through direct use of their own power (in this case the raw primordial energy that binds them to it, Fatua)
• Flexilis - This occurs when the Aspect allows or forces the person to choose the force with which to align, aligning them with their choice so they are unable to wield any other forces. Those with this form of control have what is known as an 'empty' core that needs to be filled, and once filled, it becomes permanently aligned to that element.
• Multiplex En Tandem - This occurs when the Aspect only allows the person to wield multiple forces one at a time in sequence. This generally involves a sequential activation and manipulation of multiple Aspect Cores at once. Example: The Mystyk Alchemists of Azherina can have power over up to 5 elements, but can only release the energies one at a time.
• Multiplex En Parallel - This occurs when the Aspect only allows the person to wield multiple forces but only one or another. This happens when the wielder has a single core that is aligned to 2 different elements, or a Duality Aspect Core. As such, they need to choose between one or another element to control. Example: The native Wadassi people generate coldstones as part of their power. However, they can only control the energy or the material generated by their coldstones at one time.
• Multiplex En Simult - This occurs when the Aspect only allows the person to wield multiple elements simultaneously. This occurs when the method of elemental control is linked to multiple other cores, meaning that all the elements come under their control once that Aspect Core is resonating. Example: The Hudnossans from the Obsidian City all control their afterimages as shadow-selves, but they can only wield secondary elements along with their shadow-self, and not through their main body.
• Derivatis/Stricturis - This occurs when the Aspect only allows for the person to wield power derived or related to a specific phenomenon associated with their power. While this may allow them to wield multiple elements simultaneously, it limits the usage of those abilities. This generally is the result of a phenomenon based core, which replicates some sort of existing or absorbed information as part of the core itself. Example: Hyu-man T'tavrians are aligned with the properties of what they were using when awakened. A swordsman, therefore, no matter the element, can only cut with their power, regardless of whether it is a fine tuned surgery or in the heat of battle.

The full knowledge of these control schemas is helpful in understanding the full capabilities of one's Aspects

Aspectral Capacity and Training

The Celestial Tapestry, as mentioned, functions as a battery. Its arrangement and density, however, can determine the capabilities of the wielder in a great number of ways. These are generally described as having Breadth and Depth of power, where Breadth demonstrates how easily the person can perform the wide array of powers that their Aspect makes them capable of, and Depth determines how much energy they can store in their bodies, making them capable of great feats. However, the relationship between Breadth and Depth are oppositional; the greater the Depth, the narrower the Breadth, and vice versa. This balance is demonstrated in the various categories of persons by these two traits:

• Average - Those who fall within the average threshold of breadth and depth.
  
• Talented - Those who are above average in Breadth of power, but below average in Depth.
  
• Potent - Those who are above average in Depth of power, but below average in Breadth.
  
• Adept - Those who are seen as geniuses due to their enormous Breadth of power. Their shallow Depth makes them reliant on additional sources of energy (like Foci) in order to achieve greater than average feats of power. They also can more easily access advanced techniques, and usually are the progenitors of new ways of thinking about various Aspectral abilities. For them, the barriers that exist to accessing all their Celestial Cores, and the rapidity in developing new ones, are very easy to overcome.
  
• Great One - Those who have enormous Depth of power. They are required to have extensive training in order to harness their abilities well, and are able to use their more limited techniques to great advantage thanks to their vast amount of energy. This makes the barriers to accessing all their cores very difficult to overcome, and requiring greater effort.
  
• Savant - Those who have an enormous amount of breadth and depth, but have a severe limitation in the manifestation of their abilities. This can range from only being able to create small but detailed and powerful constructs, to having power over all the elements but limited to creating orbs out of them. These individuals are rare, but generally very powerful. They tend to have an additional Core that is linked to all others making it necessary to focus on the development of that skill or understanding in order to fully control their power.
  
• Fated Ones - These are those from the above category who, through a twist of fate, have been granted greater power than their bodies otherwise have.
• Astral Touched - Those Fated Ones who have been fortunate enough to have absorbed the full energies of an Astral. This energy needs an outlet, as the person's body, regardless of what level of breadth and depth they have achieved, cannot hope to contain that much energy. Thus, they need to create a catalyst to hold that excess power.
  
• Ent-Born - Those Fated Ones who have formed a bond through various circumstances with an Entuorbis , a powerful energy being. The are generally average in power, but working alongside such a being they are able to perform great feats of power rivaling and sometimes even surpassing that of a Great One.
  

Additionally there are distinct terms for the levels of training that people have achieved.

• Raw - Completely Untrained
• Novice – Trained
• Average - Trained to the average level of most people
• Skilled - Trained at an above average level
• Novice Sage - Has achieved at least the baseline abilities of a Sage
• Sage - Has trained in the advanced techniques of a Sage
• Arc-Sage - Has mastered their Aspect and all the advanced techniques of a Sage

Laws of Natural Power

There are Natural and Unnatural Powers in the Celestient Universe. One of the great distinctions between them are the limitations of Natural Power. These great laws are as follows:

• No Aspectral Power borne out of oneself can directly affect the body of another.
• No Aspectral Power can directly alter ones integral nature of being.
• No Aspectral Power can create life.
• No Aspectral Power can revive the dead.
• No Aspectral Power requires for its execution the vitality, life, or Tapestry of another living being
• The Paths of Sagehood and Magehood are opposed. To take one is to reject the other.
• A void within does not in itself destroy one's Tapestry. Magic does.

All of the above are signs of the unnatural. This is due to the fundamental principle of the Celestial Tapestries never opposing each other directly. It therefore takes another force outside of the system to cause the disruption implied by this.

Sagecraft and Advanced Techniques

Those who have reached the upper echelon of skill in mastery over their powers are known as Sages. These prominent individuals impart their wisdom to the populace, helping solve issues related to mastery over their powers and training of others. The sure signs of sagehood are mastery over some of the following abilities

Sagesight and Glimpsing

By using their nodes to access the energy of their Celestial Tapestry, people can energize their nervous system through the aforementioned Psionic feadback, accelerating their thoughts and slowing down their perception of time. Having this occur for a brief moment is know as a Glimpse, and prolonging the effect is known as Sagesight. The latter is key to Aspectral Mastery. However, of all the Advanced abilities attained commonly by the sages, Sagesight is the least notable. Simply having a node located in the brain makes Glimpsing and Sagesight a more easily achievable feat, and in most cases those with their Celestial Tapestries structured that way require Sagesight to unlock the full extent of their abilities anyway. Thus, while the first step to Sagehood is Sagesight, it is the easiest step to achieve.

Psynchronicity and Harmony:

In the same way that living empowered beings can activate Foci through Intonation, so too can they share power through the same process. This is known as Harmony, and it is a very difficult feat to achieve. It requires not only a willing partner, but also the ability for both in tandem to manage the Intonation of their Celestial Cores in order to achieve the desired feats, especially if their individual Aspectral Powers are different. When the two or more individuals Harmonize fully, however, the feats that can be achieved can change the battlefield in remarkable and startling ways. Psynchronicity, on the other hand, is an internal form of this same phenomenon, a requirement for those with multiple Nodes (Lakri and Fae) to master their power. Each node is thought to house a different Celestial Core and the full Psynchronization of the Intonations of all nodes is key to achieving the greatest effectiveness in both Shaping and Sagecraft. As they advance to sagehood, they can even choose to isolate some of their individual powers and focus their energy on those abilities to various effects

Sagecraft and Aspectral Mastery

Sagecraft is, for many, the penultimate step to achieving full mastery over their abilities. It is, in essence, ascribing the actions involved in Shaping (Shaping Array, required energies, Core Intonations, etc) into the Celestial Tapestry itself, storing it for quick and almost automatic use in the midst of battle. As Sages master this ability, they are able to switch techniques on the fly, discover newer and greater feats of power that require this skill to be effective, and then lastly are able to make the usage of power, both in Shaping and in Sagecraft, an almost entirely mental exercise, thereby saving up more energy to achieve greater feats of power than lesser trained individuals/sages. Despite this fact, some peoples require the basics of Sagecraft to be taught (along with Sagesight) in order to fully control certain Aspectral Cores. For them, the road to full mastery is longer and more difficult, as more elements of Shaping (and Sagecraft itself) needs to become an automatic process in order to achieve full Aspectral Mastery.

Spectrum of Sagecraft Necessity

Overall, the requirements for full control over powers varies among various Aspects, resulting in a spectrum based on how much the Aspectral Power requires Sagecraft as opposed to shaping to fully control it’s abilities. The spectrum ranges as follows:

• Shaping Focused - This Aspect requires a strong mastery over direct usage of Aspect Core Intonation before they can even begin focusing on Sagesight and Sagecraft
• Shaping Leaning - This Aspect requires substantial training in Aspect Core Intonation before focusing on Sagecraft and Sagesight.
• Balanced - This Aspect requires a balanced training between basic Shaping and Sagecraft elements.
• Sagecraft Leaning - This Aspect requires Psionic focus techniques, such as the use of Glimpse and a basic understanding of Sagecraft, to more fully control their powers. Once learned, more focused usage of Aspect Core Intonation is necessary for mastery over their abilities.
• Sagecraft Focused - This Aspect requires knowledge and use of Glimpse, Sagecraft and Sagesight to gain basic control over their Aspect Cores before they can begin to control the nuanced elements of power through Shaping through direct Intonation.

Void-Touched

Throughout the Celestient universe, there are those who have been considered "Void Touched". who through unfortunate circumstances, have a small internal void in one of their Nodes, constantly sapping away at their Celestial Tapestry's energy. This often leads to what is know as Void Hunger, a hunger for energy that can overwhelm the body and eventually destroy the mind, turning them into the equivalent of energy zombies. As a result, for much of the history of the universe, such individuals were shunned, deemed "Forsaken" and cast out or regular society. It was only through a discovery by one of these "Forsaken" people that they were slowly able to be reincorporated into society. Their ability to absorb energy also allowed them to transmute inorganic materials into said energy, allowing them to satiate their Void Hunger with things as simple as rocks and soil. With the overabundance, their bodies could naturally heal the void wound until it drained them at a minute rate, allowing them to return to society without fear. However, they had long been associated with magic and mages at this point, making the stereotype hard to break, it is for this reason that the final law of Natural Power was written. Though they may have been affected by unnatural powers, that didn't mean they had become unnatural themselves.

Type

Metaphysical, Elemental