Antari

***Antari*** (*an-TAr-ee* or *An-tar-E*) are the strongest and rarest kind of magicians. They are the only ones able to use blood magic and travel across the four Londons: Red, White, Grey, and Black.

*Antari* is also the name Kell Maresh gave to the language of magic.

## Overview

It is unknown how *Antari* come to be. Over the centuries, many theories have been postulated: Some hypothesize that it is random, others that *Antari* are chosen and meant for greatness. Yet another theory says that *Antari* resulted from interdimensional magic transference—that magic from different worlds intertwined. This theory would explain why *Antari* became rarer after the doors between the worlds were sealed.

All *Antari* are made of balance and chaos. Their rich red blood stands for balance, as red is the color of magic in harmony between humanity and power, whereas their black eye—the *Antari* mark—stands for chaos. The eye is a "signature of dark magic," and black is the color of magic without restraint and order. *Antari* are either born with the mark or develop it in their early childhood.

The abundance of magic in their veins allows *Antari* to wield all elements, manipulate bone, and use blood commands. Blood commands are not instantaneous and need time to work, like any other kind of magic. They also need to be voiced out loud, and cannot be constantly used as they drain energy quickly. However, unlike priests, *Antari* cannot balance magic because "they are a flood where nature requires a steady rain to flourish" and "life was fragile at the start, and required a gentle touch." *Antari* can only "impact things already grown."

Furthermore, *Antari* heal quickly because of the high concentration of magic in their blood. This makes it is very difficult to kill *Antari*. For example, when Holland Vosijk is pierced close to the heart with a metal rod, he is still alive a significant amount of time later.

## History

A long time ago, *Antari* magicians opened the doors between the four Londons—Red, White, Grey, and Black. This arrangement held well until Black London was corrupted by magic over three hundred years ago. To protect itself, Red London sought out the help of *Antari* to close the doors they had opened all those years ago. Since then, only *Antari* can travel between the different worlds.

After Black London's fall, all items originating from there were destroyed—and *Antari* hunted down and killed, as it was believed that their black eye-mark was a sign of the same corruption that had befallen Black London. This severely decimated the already low number of *Antari*, and after the doors were sealed, they became even rarer.

In the process, all books written in *Antari* were destroyed. The original, runic language of magic got lost, though it was preserved and passed down as best as possible as phonetic transcriptions and reproductions. Kell Maresh possesses one of the few books in phonetic *Antari*.

## Known *Antari*

* Helina from Red London
* Rowan from Red London
* Holland Vosijk from White London
* Kell Maresh from Red London
* Lila Bard from Grey London
* Kosika from White London

## Trivia

* The blood commands for travelling, *As Travars* and *As Tascen*, do not function when the caster is on a moving craft.

## References

1. ↑ "An-tar-ee, with emphasis on tar :)"
(V. E. Schwab on Tumblr)
2. ↑ "Antari = an-TAr-ee"
(V. E. Schwab on Tumblr)
3. ↑ "An-tar-E."
(V. E. Schwab on Twitter)
4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 *A Darker Shade of Magic*, V: Black Stone, IV
5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 *A Darker Shade of Magic*, II: Red Royal, III
6. ↑ *A Darker Shade of Magic*, II: Red Royal, II
7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 *A Darker Shade of Magic*, X: One White Rook, II
8. ↑ *A Darker Shade of Magic*, XIII: The Waiting King, V
9. ↑ "In this system, there are priests–those who possess the ability to balance the elements and enhance nature [...].
Interestingly, Antari magicians and priests both possess the ability to speak to all elements, but Antari cannot balance them–they are a flood where nature requires a steady rain to flourish."
(V. E. Schwab on Tumblr)
10. ↑ *A Gathering of Shadows*, VI: Impostors, III
11. ↑ *A Darker Shade of Magic*, VII: The Follower, II
12. ↑ *A Darker Shade of Magic*, XII: Sanctuary & Sacrifice, V
13. ↑ *A Darker Shade of Magic*, XIV: The Final Door, I
14. ↑ 14.0 14.1 14.2 *A Darker Shade of Magic*, VIII: An Arrangement, I
15. ↑ *A Darker Shade of Magic*, IV: White Throne, I
16. ↑ *A Gathering of Shadows*, II: Prince at Large, I
17. ↑ *A Gathering of Shadows*, VII: Intersections, II
18. ↑ *A Darker Shade of Magic*, I: The Traveler, I
19. ↑ *A Darker Shade of Magic*, VI: Thieves Meet, III
20. ↑ *A Conjuring of Light*, XII: Betrayal, IV