Arts

How arts works in most parts of the world is pretty simple. Each person is born with latent potential to harness energy, and that latent potential more often then not has an affinity. This affinity can be tested using multiple different devices. The old way of testing an affinity was with a seer stone, which glows a specific hue depending on your affinity. New technology allows for people to be tested at birth, discerning what affinity their energy has (if one at all).

An art manifests itself via a series of manipulations and techniques. Manipulations relate more to an affinity and is basically the "kind" of art that is controlled (earth, water, metal, sand, etc.) while techniques relate to how each person utilizes their arts.

There are three major groups of that the affinities are typically categorized in, the categories are made on simple relations made with the affinities and the world. The earth and water affinities are known as the life affinities, as they make up the basis of life. The fire, lightning, and light affinities are known as the energy affinities, as they are the different manifestations of energy. The air and darkness affinities are known as the soft affinities, as they tend to be less tangible.

Arts are not common in the world, with only 40% of the population having an affinity and even less being able to channel that affinity into an art. However, arts have become a staple in many cultures and practices around the world.

### Seer Stones

Seer stones are clear, highly crystalline stones that can be used to determine one's affinity. When one's energy is applied, the small stone will slowly begin to float and glow a specific color, and that color determines your affinity. If the stone remains colorless and doesn't float, it means that you do not have any latent affinity, and even though you still have latent potential for arts you'll likely not be able to utilize it without the help of some tool, weapon, or artifact. The seer stone can also break into pieces and display different colors for each piece, which means the person holding the stone has an affinity for more than one element. After breaking a part, the seer stone will stay broken.

* Fire: The stone becomes a fiery red hue.
* Water: The stone becomes a soft blue hue.
* Earth: The stone becomes a strong green hue.
* Air: The stone becomes a smoky grey hue.
* Lightning: The stone becomes an electric yellow hue.
* Light: The stone becomes a brilliant pale-yellow hue.
* Dark: The stone becomes a bold black hue.

## Affinities

There are seven affinities present within the world. Each affinity can develop into a myriad of powers and abilities, and can also be mixed with multiple other affinities for even more types of powers and abilities.

### Fire

The fire affinity is a very common affinity to have. It can manifest in its purest form, or form other elements such as ash and magma. This affinity typically adds some sort of energy aspect when mixed with other affinities. Fire, as well as lightning and light, are called the energy affinities because they all have to deal with energy in some of its purest forms

### Water

The water affinity is typically thought of as the life-giving affinity. The water affinity can mix with other affinities (especially earth) and can make such arts as plant and wood based affinities used to create living things.

### Earth

The earth affinity is said to be the most versatile of the affinities due to its large variety of derivations. The affinity can manifest itself into many derivations of earth, including sand and metal.

### Air

The air affinity is slightly overlooked at times, but is indeed extremely versatile. It can create powerful offensive techniques as well as quiet stealth techniques. Due to its nature and also the reasoning for it being categorized as a soft affinity, it is somewhat difficult to learn to control this affinity. Once trained many leaders have held this affinity and used it to perform powerful techniques.

### Lightning

The lightning affinity is a very powerful affinity. The pure energy that emanates from this affinity lends to powerful offensive techniques for those who harness it. It is also said to be one of the fastest affinities, allowing someone to gain an extreme advantage over the battlefield.

### Light

People who use the light affinity have been taken as gods and holy deities. People have developed this affinity into powerful techniques, including invisibility.

### Dark

The darkness affinity is one of the more esoteric affinities and it is somewhat more rare to find a practitioner. Also called the affinity of insanity, this affinity has been known to wear away the minds of those who wield it, driving them to madness.

### Potential

Potential is a pseudo affinity developed and discovered by Enix Myrtemer. Potential is an amplification of energy, allowing the user to alter aspects of their art and raise it to a level not capable by other means. This has led to the development of new powerful arts. The method for obtaining potential is through constant training and learning, and is so hard on the body that only the most skilled practitioners are able to pull this off successfully. It seems that humans with high levels of B-tetraxilin that experience some unnatural trauma are able to innately develop some form of potential as well, although this doesn't seem to be as strong as a trained version of potential.

## Archaic Arts

Archaic arts are arts that mortals were able to obtain before the advent of arts. These archaic arts are powerful and took a lifelong commitment to studying in order to learn. In the present day, advancements in energy training and information sharing have made these arts somewhat rare but no longer take a lifetime of study to learn. Each category archaic art has its own hand symbol, used to stabilize the art and contain it. Having existed before the advent of arts, archaic arts are not locked to any sort of affinity, but they can have affinities applied to them. Some archaic arts, such as binding and body modification arts, have become much more common in the modern world while other archaic arts, such as teleportation and time arts, are still rarely seen. It should also be pointed out that archaics are not technically arts, as they were not created by the tynar and do not rely on the manipulation of affinities.

## History

### The Advent of Arts

The advent refers to when mortals began to be born with the innate ability to use arts. Before the advent of arts in the world, arts were not able to be used by mortal creatures. Energy manipulations were still very much a part of the world, but it was rare, ancient, and fickle. Mortals were taught how to use arts by mortal sympathizers of the tynar race, a race of superior beings that had conquered all corners of the world. The tynar are a race of intelligent bipedal energy beasts that were the first beings ever to be able to use arts. During the Millennium War, a tynar named Enix Myrtemer created a resistance army and began teaching the mortal races how to use their latent energy to manipulate arts. While weak and physically draining at first, over time people who were able to train their energy to high levels were able to pass those traits on to their children, who could attain even higher levels of energy control, eventually becoming strong enough to manipulate powerful arts.

This advent did not affect the country of Methos Gran because of a large structure known as the Boundary. This structure is said to be created by the first ruler of Methos Gran in an act of declaring isolationism, but was in fact created by the Ivory Chateau originally as a prison for Miros. The boundary is actually an extremely large liminal gate that leads to a planet that mimics the atmosphere of earth.