Zephyr

Zephyr is an Arcana as graceful as it is destructive; control of the winds is coveted by both those who seek beauty and those who seek power. Zephyr requires a Minor Merit to pursue.

Zephyr

Galdr, and by extension Zephyr, is one of the most ancient forms of Arcana; it has existed since before even the fae and predates the Metaphor of Aeris over which it holds governance. As such, its true origins have been lost to the winds of time. Like the other elemental Arcana, practitioners of Zephyr can be found within any society that allows or puts value unto the arcane arts and many that don’t. It has proven invaluable to the development of agriculture, the arts and any endeavor where flight or a strong push could be of use.

Acquisition

Mark of Zephyr.

Like all forms of Galdr, Zephyr is spread from one sorcerer unto another. Unfortunately, only about half of initiates survive.

In order to begin, the mark of Zephyr is inscribed into the tissue (be it skin, muscle or bone) using the initiator's aether and then bodily fluids of the donor - most often blood - are offered to the initiate, forcing the student to undergo their spiritual trial forthwith.

What the initiate experiences first depends, as it will be either rapid breathing or a shortness of breath– and they might shift unpleasantly between these two symptoms. Then, it will progress into the initiate gasping for breath at all. The worst of it, however, is likely the fact that while they are struggling for air, their bodies are rapidly weakening. Their tissue and bones will dry out and become brittle, easier to tear, and this is especially a risk if they thrash while trying to breathe. This is, perhaps implicitly, a notably painful experience, but provided nothing too vital is ravaged, the initiate will level out and their symptoms will wane into moderate Mageburn over the course of a few hours. Rarely, the initiation might last up to a day.

Mageburn Symptoms

• Lesser: Tachypnea or Dyspnea, Lightheadedness, Vertigo, Nausea
• Moderate: Painful Breathing, Gasping, Confusion, Pressure in the Skull
• Greater: Blocked Airways (Asphyxiation), Brittle Bones, Risk of Myocardial Infarction
• Galeform: Worst case scenario for a Zephyri if they push themselves too far is spontaneous apparation; losing control of Stormweaver’s Embrace, the Galsterei destabilizes and cannot shift themselves out of a gaseous state, forever damned to be naught more than a whisper in the wind.

Spells

Like all Galdr, Zephyr uses the Metaphor of Aether to cast.

Aeromancy

Likely a Zephyri’s most flexible form of spellcasting, Aeromancy refers to all manner of air manipulation. This includes generating anything from a light breeze to gusts with enough power to fly. Further examples of different applications include: gusts as sharp as blades, walls of wind for defense, the ability to purify toxic air, the isolation and removal of specific chemical compounds, aerosolization, and more.

Aeroresonance

One of the more unique properties of Zephyr is the control it has over soundwaves, provided they are traveling through the air. A potent Zephyri can mute sound or magnify it by taking hold of and altering a sound’s resonance.

Stormcall

Stormcall, or Stormcalling, is the art of invoking concepts such as thunderclaps and bolts of lightning.

When paired with Aqua, Stormcalling can create proper thunderstorms, though the rain and water aspects may not be utilized by Zephyr alone.

Soar

The ability for a Zephyr to fly, Soar allows them to run and jump, carrying their momentum perpetually as if they were carried by wings or a glider. They might even launch themselves with another spell to gain extra speed and travel quicker, adding any extra flight speed if they are a Dragon with Grist or else Dragonbound.

Soar costs no Aether to maintain or activate - it is an ability which allows the mage to hover or carry their momentum whenever they wish.

Stormweaver’s Embrace

Through Stormweaver’s Embrace, a Zephyri may convert their bodies to embody wind, lightning, or even soundwaves traversable through air and back.

Tiers of Mastery

Novice

At the start of their journey, the Zephyri is just starting to learn how to manipulate their newfound spells.

• Aeromancy:
  • A novice may conjure light breezes and lift small, reasonably light objects.
  • They may aerosolize or evaporate liquid, though only in small amounts and inefficiently.
• Aeroresonance:
  • As a novice, this spell is inaccessible.
• Stormcall:
  • As a novice, this spell is inaccessible.
• Soar:
  • As a novice, this spell is inaccessible.
• Stormweaver’s Embrace:
  • A novice may shift a small percentage of their cells to gas, thereby making them notably lighter. This process is slow.

Apprentice

With a firmer grasp on Aeromancy, the apprentice gains both potency and access to Aeroresonance.

• Aeromancy:
  • An apprentice may produce winds strong enough to stagger the average person.
  • They may aerosolize or evaporate small amounts of liquid at standard casting efficiency.
• Aeroresonance:
  • An apprentice may magnify or minimize sound, though not to pitches high enough to cause harm or strong enough to shake the ground.
• Stormcall:
  • As an apprentice, this spell is inaccessible.
• Soar:
  • As an apprentice, this spell is inaccessible.
• Stormweaver’s Embrace:
  • An apprentice may begin to turn more of themselves into a gas, at this point capable of transmuting small chunks of flesh or reducing their overall weight by about a third. To do so is slow.

Journeyman

Now a competent spellcaster, the Zephyri gains access to more potent powers and their winds will finally be strong enough for flight.

• Aeromancy:
  • They may manipulate winds strong enough to lift and propel their own body weight.
  • They may aerosolize or evaporate about a bath’s worth of water per cast.
• Aeroresonance:
  • The journeyman may mute sound entirely in an area local to them.
  • They may now alter pitch enough to harm; both high enough to cause pain and powerful enough to briefly shake the earth.
• Stormcall:
  • As a journeyman, this spell is inaccessible.
• Soar:
  • As a Journeyman, Soar is fully available.
• Stormweaver’s Embrace:
  • A journeyman can transmute up to entire limbs into a gas, though this process is slow.

Expert

Truly coming into their own, the expert Zephyri weaves wind with exceptional grace and potency. They may now call upon the power of storms.

Starting at expert, Zephyri may infuse aspects of their other personal magics into their Aeromancy, Aeroresonance and Stormcalling, provided said magics are equal or greater than expert, too.

• Aeromancy:
  • The expert may now manipulate gusts of wind strong enough to lift and propel heavy objects such as boulders or bears.
  • They may aerosolize or evaporate about two bathtubs worth of water per cast.
• Aeroresonance:
  • The expert may mute sound entirely in an area local to them, about the size of an entire room.
  • They may alter pitch enough to harm; high enough to cause extreme pain and burst blood vessels as well as powerful enough to briefly cause small-scale tremors.
• Stormcall:
  • Stormcall is aether-inefficient to cast.
  • The expert may call upon an individual lightning strike per cast.
  • They may call upon an individual thunderclap per cast.
• Soar:
  • As an expert, Soar is fully available.
• Stormweaver’s Embrace:
  • An Expert may transmute up to half of their entire body into a gas at once.

Master

Masterful spellcasters, the Zephyri has finally become a force of nature not to be trifled with.

At master, Zephyri may infuse aspects of their other personal magics into their Aeromancy, Aeroresonance and Stormcalling, provided said magics are equal or greater than expert, too.

• Aeromancy:
  • The master may now manipulate gusts of wind similar in strength to that which form tornadoes.
  • They may aerosolize or evaporate about a small swimming pool of liquid.
• Aeroresonance:
  • The master may mute sound entirely in an area local to them, about the size of an entire room.
  • They may alter pitch enough to harm; high enough to kill in small, localized areas if exposed for up to a minute as well as powerful enough to break the earth.
• Stormcall:
  • The master may call upon a couple lightning strike per cast.
  • They may call upon a few individual thunderclap per cast.
• Soar:
  • As a master, Soar is fully available.
• Stormweaver’s Embrace:
  • The master may now shift their entire body to gas and back in the span of a few seconds.

Apotheosi

Devastating in their power, the Aeritheos, especially when paired with other forms of Galdr, can easily alter entire ecosystems with their ability to manipulate the weather around them.

An Aritheos may infuse aspects of their other personal magics into their Aeromancy, Aeroresonance and Stormcalling.

• Aeromancy:
  • The Aeritheos may now manipulate gusts of wind similar in strength to those found in hurricanes.
  • They may aerosolize or evaporate about a small lake’s worth of liquid.
• Aeroresonance:
  • The Aeritheos may mute sound entirely in an area local to them, about the size of an entire room.
  • They may alter pitch enough to harm; high enough to kill in areas the size of a lecture hall if exposed for up to a minute as well as powerful enough to break the earth in the same larger radius.
• Stormcall:
  • The Aeritheos may conjure localized lightning or thunder storms, though without rain unless they also possess Aqua at journeyman or higher.
• Soar:
  • The Aeritheos may Soar up to a speed which breaks the sound barrier, with no need to add any other momentum. This only guarantees their safety if they are roughly the size of a man, with added mass warming up the body until it begins to melt. They must also activate their Stormweaver's Embrace or some other manner of power to slow down to a safe speed or risk being vaporized as it ends.
• Stormweaver’s Embrace:
  • Not only may they shift into a gas at the blink of an eye, the Aeritheos may also expand their overall volume to 3x that of their bodies in gas.

Contrivances

To craft with Zephyr, one must find and work alongside a Zephyri or acquire the Arcana themselves. Galdr, having stemmed from Aether itself, does not provide materials from the Galsterei, but rather, the Galsterei infuses the crafts with their Aether and thus their intent. Otherwise, Contrivances may be crafted from the Galsterei's Sundered Alkahest directly.

Some examples of crafts a Zephyri might assist with include:

• Air purification devices
• Humidifiers and dehumidifiers
• Fans and diffusers
• Constructs similar to lightning rods that may dampen a Zephyri’s ability to manipulate the air in an area. May also be made smaller, though less potent, into wearable charms.
• Constructs which directly oppose the above, capable of maintaining constant winds, scaled to the tier of a Zephyri’s mastery and fueled by Alkahest. Useful for powering wind-propelled machinery.

”I once saw a group of Zephyri dancers perform; the control they had over both the wind and their bodies as they glided through the air was impeccable. I cannot imagine trying to move like that and concentrate on spellwork at the same time!” - A Terrari Sculptor 

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