Arras stood as still as he possibly could, as if he was balancing on the edge of a razor. The massive beasts blue eyes almost seemed to pierce straight through his illusion, though, if it had, it certainly didn't act like it did. The elk slowly prowled the area, sniffing at the air and searching for any possible trace of a creature. Then, it's head seemed to catch on the air.
It whipped around towards Arras's illusion, and his heart skipped a beat. He stared wide eyed at the magically domineering beast. It took another step closer, his breathing stopped entirely. His entire body beginning to freeze up... No, freeze up literally. Magic was actively coming from the elk now, an aura of frost creeping against the forest. Arras felt his heart skip yet again, and he frantically began to correct his spell.
He had to be careful with his edits, but also extremely fast with them. It was an incredibly dangerous balance, because one slip up would likely mean death, and failing to correct the spell fast enough would also mean death. As the frost approached closer and closer, Arras could feel his breathing grow slower, his body began to freeze up as the illusion around him changed to reflect the frosted environment.
It felt as if his body was going numb, the overpowering chill making it difficult to think. But, with one final effort, Arras managed to correct his spell just enough, reflecting the environment around him perfectly, a mirror of frost and ice. Arras almost couldn't believe he'd actually managed to do it. Though, he was still almost frozen to the bone, he could no longer move... It felt difficult to stay awake. Arras stared listlessly through his illusion at the elk.
Ah... I hope at least... Illia will be fine.
The elk stared in Arras's direction for a little while longer before turning around and finally walking away, it would seem the illusion had convinced it. Arras would've been rather upset if it hadn't, it might've been his best illusion so far in his life after all. His now... Probably short life. The chill had worked it's way into his flesh, freezing cold daggers stabbing into his heart.
That of course, was when the ice the elk had created began to fade away, their magic coming undone after they walked away. Arras would however still freeze to death, he was too far gone, and he couldn't bring himself to cast another spell. Let alone continue managing to keep up his illusion. It was a miracle he'd been able to even do that so far. Slowly, the illusion melted away, revealing Arras to the surroundings, shivering on the ground, frozen within an inch of his life.
Every blade of grass in the vicinity was limp, frozen and dead. Arras did his best not to mimic them, but he could feel his mind slipping away from him. Which was when he heard a faint cry. Illia almost crumpled as she hit the ground, barely even braking to slow her descent. Illia flailed her wings as she struggled to fold them back in while hopping towards Arras as fast as she could. She was... Saying something, but Arras couldn't make any of it out. It felt as if his world was going dark.
She seemed to be panicking, half worded thoughts and sounds collided against Arras's mind and ears. But he couldn't much find it in himself to care, it was all numb. Arras's eyes began to close under the weight of the chill. He felt a touch against his side, the offending object recoiled backwards.
His eyes finally closed shut, he began to lose consciousness.
Then, he felt something familiar. A warm sensation pricking at the edges of his awareness slamming against the frozen barrier covering the deep pit he was sinking into. The ice cracked, but individually that was nowhere near enough. He continued to sink, even though the ice had been damaged. Then he felt another surge of heat, then Arras felt his body again. It hurt. It hurt a lot. The ice shattered and melted, a foreign presence dove into the water, gripping Arras tightly and ripping him back out from beneath the waves.
Suddenly, Arras could think once again, and while he recognized that his body hurt a lot a moment ago, he hadn't quite truly understood the depth of the "hurt". No, it felt as if every single part of his body had been snapped off and reattached, which, to be fair, was fairly similar to what had actually happened. He had been frozen solid a moment ago, but now, something was heating him. Illia, once again her wings were wrapped around him. Ah, that was her, wasn't it?
That wasn't just Illia's body temperature, that wouldn't have been nearly enough. She clearly tried it though, given she was shivering just as badly as Arras was. No, this time she was using fire magic, in a similar nature to what Arras had done during the thunderstorm. Heating him with the magic yet not burning him either.
Arras almost couldn't believe just how MUCH pain he was in, it was wordless agony, crying out didn't feel like it would do him any good either, so all he could do was suffer through it and take solace in not being alone. Heat gradually returned to his body, and with it the freezing biting pain slowly removed itself, until what was left of it was a dull throbbing shell of it's former self.
"Where... Did... It... Go...?"
"Oh my god you're alive!"
She squeezed a little tighter as she continued to use her magic, which Arras now noted was also a bit of healing magic mixed with the heating.
"What even was that thing?!" She asked in confusion, "Something like that doesn't belong here in this part of the forest! I thought you only saw things like that in the inner ring!"
"I... Have no... Idea..."
"I was really scared there, I thought you might have really died for a moment... You were... You were so quiet, you weren't moving, I think your heart even stopped. It was like you were already dead before I even reached you..."
...
Arras didn't say anything, he still didn't have the presence of mind for it. His thoughts were returning to him, but it was difficult to put a sentence together.
There was a chaotic mix of thoughts and feelings, before her hold laxed and she let go. "I just... I can't even be angry at you for almost dying, I'm the one who made you stay put in the open. So I guess this is my fault... Sorry, I'm really sorry."
"It's not... Your fault. I'm alive anyways, I'm fine from what I can tell... It just hurt... A lot... But please, I've suffered enough today. I don't want to see you upset as well."
"I-how can I not be?! I almost got you killed!"
"Please, I'm alright." As if to prove a point, Arras began to stand, or at least, attempted to. His legs were trembling from the effort, but he did manage to get himself up.
"See? I'm alive, nothing else matters."
"...Fine. You're the one that was hurt, if you're telling me to drop it I'll drop it." She huffed a little bit, gradually rising back up to her full height.
"Now, you were looking for something, were you not?" Arras tried to change the topic as he shakily began pacing around, trying to get blood flowing back into his body.
"...Oh, oh! Right! I kind of... Got caught up in, you know... Uh, but anyways! I actually found what I was looking for! I wasn't expecting that, at all."
"..What?"
"Oh, well, I thought you needed something to keep moving, so I thought I'd let you off more easily by trying to do something-actually, you know what? Nevermind!" She said a little bit nervously as she glanced in the other direction. Very suspiciously, there was also a mental block used there. Arras could tell, because it was the same mental spell he'd been using to block out his emotions. He could recognize the disturbance. "Anyways! I found what I was looking for, a good ways off in the distance from here. We could probably make it in about an hour."
"Oh, that's good news then." He chose to drop the line of questioning before even starting on it. Arras really just wanted things to go smoothly right now after the events of the day. Starting an argument about something Illia may or may not have done when she had good intentions just wasn't something he wanted to do. "So, what should we do?"
"I guess... Do what we've been doing? Oh but, Arras, when we get there, please, please, please do not do anything without asking me first. I don't want you to cause any misunderstandings. Don't take this the wrong way, but, you're definitely going to do something to freak people out if you just do whatever you want, even if you don't have any aggressive intentions."
"...? What is that supposed to mean?"
"Look, you weirded me out at first, you'll definitely confuse somebody, and confusion leads to aggression."
"If... If you say so?" Arras tilted his head, mildly confused but once again not willing to push the issue.
...
Illia started off moving slowly, Arras had only just stopped wobbling and she didn't want to put too much on his shoulders. Illia still believed it was her fault that Arras was out in the open, and if somehow they got hurt worse due to a mistake they might make while weakened... She didn't really want to think about it that much. So as noted, Illia was taking it slowly. Letting Arras keep up and staying just within range of mental communication.
She also tried to keep an eye out for any oncoming creatures, but didn't do a very good job of it. Arras however, did quite a good job. So far, he'd avoided two incoming creatures, one being just another Prong Rabbit, the other being a Lassalin. A monstrous creature that Arras was very much happy to have avoided, a death by their venom was one of the worst ways to go, or so his brother Salam had said.
He specifically blocked out any mention of the two monsters from conversation with Illia, because Arras could tell she felt bad about not noticing the elk... Even though she couldn't have possibly seen it from above the tree line. So he tried to take her mind off of it.
"So... You've told me not to do anything without asking you about it first, but I guess I should ask, what exactly should I even be expecting?" Arras questioned as he clambered over a particularly large root. By now, they'd returned to their original pace, from before Arras got frozen and what not.
"Well it's a little difficult to explain but... I guess I should probably at least try to tell you. As a general rule of thumb, try to stay within eyesight of the people where we're going to. They... Probably won't like it much if you're hiding. Stay near me as often as possible, don't use any magic and... Try to keep a healthy distance from anybody that isn't me?"
"That's..."
"You won't be in any danger, don't worry about it." She already knew what his main concern would be, and Illia was at least ninety percent certain it wouldn't be an issue. She was even more certain that they'd be able to come to an agreement, unless the village she had found consisted of a bunch of savages.
Arras at this point just decided to roll with the punches. According to Illia, it should only be another thirty minutes to reach wherever she was leading him. So he yanked down any wayward feelings and simply kept walking. There would be time to unpack anything and ask questions after they were in a safe space.
...
There was a change in the air, Arras could feel it as they got closer to their destination. Less like his home, the air felt clearer, yet dirtier at the same time. It was a strange feeling all things considered. Definitely a bit off putting as well. Arras felt very out of his element as the trees thinned up even more. In the distance, strange structures began to rise, similar to trees, even made of what looked to be the same materials, yet very different at the same time.
They got closer and closer, Arras began to make out some new shapes in the distance. They were vaguely similar to a bad memory of his, but he couldn't quite immediately pinpoint it. Eventually, the two were a mere few paces away from one of the structures, which Arras believed to be homes of some kind now that he had a closer look.
"We're here." Illia landed slowly on the ground in front of Arras, gently folding her wings in. "Somebody should've seen us by now, if we want to get our best intentions across we should just wait here for now."
So, Arras nodded and sat down. He was... Rather uncomfortable with that, just sitting out in the open, especially what not with what had happened not even an hour ago, but he did trust Illia. Instead of putting his effort into casting a spell to hide himself, Arras began to scope out the area in order to formulate a plan if shit hit the fan.
The terrain was wildly different from what Arras was used to. All his life he'd been surrounded by forests and rough terrain... Technically, that hadn't changed, but the area he was in was far clearer in comparison to any other land nearby. Those odd structures that were now to Arras, DECIDEDLY shelters of some kind, as he'd seen some of the creatures here walk in and out of them, were extremely large. Though sneaking around them should be a simple matter if he had to hide or run for some reason.
Arras figured that as long as they didn't go much further into the village, dodging and weaving for a moment to lose any would be pursuers would be simple, then he could run back into the forest with minimal issue. He didn't account for Illia, but figured that she'd be perfectly fine with the ability to fly away. With a back up plan settled, Arras began to comb back through his memories in search of what these people reminded him of.
Starting with his most recent memories, The days he'd so far spent with Illia. They were the easiest... In general... Memories to recall, given how recent they were. Though, Arras's life wasn't a particularly long one so far, so that wasn't saying much. He thought back, pined through their conversations, reminisced on some interesting sights they'd seen, cringed a bit at how mean he'd been during the first few days they'd spent together, but other then that didn't find anything relevant to that gnawing sense of dread he was getting from the people here.
So, he moved to more bittersweet memories. Those of his family and the time he'd spent with them. A time he wouldn't get back, at least, not any time in the near future. So, painstakingly, he began to sort through them as well. Embarrassing conversations, moments of humor, pain, love for his family, creatures his family had taught him about. Blank, blank, blank. Not a single thing to jog his memory. He began to genuinely doubt his own gut instinct for the first time in his life.
Why am I so... Uneasy right now?
Illia glanced curiously at Arras as that thought slipped through, she knew he'd been doing some "soul searching", the nature of their spells link always gave the pair some awareness on what the other was thinking, but now she was a little worried. Not that Illia had much time to press the issue, because as she predicted, one of the creatures here had walked over. Wearing some strange form of extra skin over it's body. It towered over the two of them. Illia breathed in and out, then turned her focus away from Arras.
Vaguely, Arras recognized Illia casting another spell, somewhat similar to the mental blocks they'd both made use of, but paid no heed to it. He was deep in his own mind, digging around searching for any inkling of an idea on why these clearly not aggressive creatures made him so... Uncomfortable! There must be something, why am I shaking like this...?
So, finally, Arras relented, and turned to one other memory. Subconsciously, he realized where he had to look almost immediately, he just... Really didn't want to. So soon after having already faced that whirlwind, he had no desire to brave it again. Yet it was the only thing that would provide him with an answer. It was easier to compose himself than it had been the last time he'd looked into this cornerstone of his mind, yet turbulent emotions still threatened to lapse over the dam.
Arras looked at when he and his family had been separated, more specifically, the creature that had done the deed. The creature in front of him and the creature from back then both looked different, the flesh over their flesh significantly different in comparison to the other, their size, their notable features, all different. Yet... The one thing that Arras needed to link them together was there. Underneath all the superficial details and differences, fundamentally the creature from his memories and the creature in front of him were similar. His hackles began to rise. Arras didn't even notice.
He tried his best to remain calm, to listen to what Illia had told him on the way here. But with the sudden realization that he was faced with a group of the creatures that had torn him away from his family... His breathing became erratic. Illia noticed that something was wrong, but couldn't do much to help. She seemed to be speaking with the two legged creature towering above the two of them. Who also seemed to be growing somewhat uncomfortable looking at Arras.
Instead of the collapse of his magic, Arras began to feel a new sensation. His fur stood on end as roiling energies threatened to break through to the surface. Every fiber in his body felt as if they were about to burst, a flood of magical energy attempting to escape from the confines of the foxes being. Once again, he did his best to stop the flow of energy, yet the white hot fury he felt looking at this creature did no favors in patching the emotional dam which was beginning to burst.
Finally, it started to leak out. What came with that was a mixed bag for Arras, on the one hand, now that he was experiencing it he had a distinctive understanding of how to do what he was doing right now. Subconsciously, his magic was leaking out of him, creating an aura of power around him. Albeit, a very weak one. Incomparable to what he had felt an hour or so earlier. And now that he felt it, he felt he would be able to reproduce it in the future. However, that was the less prominent topic on his mind. The other was the overpowering anger he had begun feeling.
If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.
The logical side of his brain was well aware that the creature that had attacked Darai and the creature in front of him were in fact two different beings, but the emotional side of his brain could not differentiate. It left him in a state of technical non aggression, but he was also displaying all the signs of something right about to attack. Which, Illia and the creature she was speaking with could ignore no longer.
"Uh, hey Arras, didn't know you could use Aura, and that's cool! But-could you stop? Please? You're kind of freaking out the human here."
"I can't..."
"Wh-what do you mean you can't?"
"I'm trying, but I can't stop myself. They... They look just like the creature that attacked my brother and I."
"Oh... Oh damnit! I'm so sorry, I should've realized earlier-urgh! Arras, I'm so sorry. We can leave right now if you're uncomfortable with staying here. I should've figured, but it was a human that attacked your family wasn't it? Or at least something similar..."
"I... No, we're already here, it would be a waste to come all this way for nothing. But, would you mind helping me for a moment?"
"Of course! If it makes you feel any better, do what you must."
Arras nodded, slowly rose to his feet and began to inch closer to Illia. "Uh... Arras? What're you doing?"
He didn't deign for a response, instead still trying to reign in the out of control magic, as well as his breathing. He took another large lumbering step, before pushing his head into Illia's side. Arras thought it was rather odd, but physical contact did seem to help him when he lost control of his emotions... Which was happening an alarming amount of times in the past few days. Though, to his... Somewhat lacking surprise, the contact did help to sooth some of his worries.
Turning away from that source of rage felt easier with another source of emotion for him so close by, so turn away he did. Arras held his head there a moment longer, letting his breathing calm, before lying down next to Illia's talons. The aforementioned bird standing there in stunned silence for the next few moments.
"I... Okay..." Her thoughts managed to grind out, before she once again turned her attention to the "human" she was speaking with. All Arras did was breathe in, breathe out, slow and steady. He'd do his best to keep himself composed.
...
After that rocky patch at the beginning, Illia seemed to have everything in check. Arras wasn't exactly sure what she was talking about with the human, but given he wasn't getting any feelings of discomfort from the link that was still somewhat present between the two, he didn't feel the need to worry about that. Right now, he was much more focused on sorting through a whole lot of troublesome feelings.
Arras knew that he had to come to terms with everything that had happened, such a critical lack of control over his own sense of self would lead to major problems in the future. So, for the first time in awhile, instead of evading a conflict with his inner self, he dove in head first. It was a turbulent pit of negativity doubt and anger, overpowering sadness and rage. Yet it was also one that he could brave.
So he started with the first of those concerns, fear, the desire to lie down and stop trying. Likely the easiest of the three for him to deal with.
"You already failed to find your family, nothing's gone well for you, why even keep trying?"
Arras thought it over for a moment, before simply denying the validity of such fear. "Even if what I've done so far has failed, there is still a path to move forward. I cannot simply stop, life will not allow it, neither will I."
"What if all of this is for nothing? What if what you have now is fake? Illia could just be lying to you to get something."
Arras almost audibly scoffed when that thought surfaced. "What an absurd reason to lose control. Even if it was all for nothing, moving forward is better than the alternative. Illia has nothing to gain from me, if she truly wished to get something from me she would've been better off trying on her own."
Arras knew what came next may be a little more difficult then the previous two. They were superficial fears, simple build ups from stress left unaddressed. That was, admittedly, entirely his fault. They were trivial to deal with, but he'd allowed them to fester. But... This anger that he felt... It had been building for weeks, it was only now leaking through into his demeanor.
"These creatures ruined your life, tore you away from your family and got you almost killed multiple times. Tear them to shreds in retribution, burn them, crush them, sm-" Arras flexed his paws and leaned against Illia's leg. "You're never going to see your family again."
That one hit a little closer to home. But... After having already made his choice to face these problems, he couldn't stop now.
"You're right. I might never see them again, but that's no excuse to let this rule me. My family is not dead, they are still out there. If I ever want to see them again, I need to grow stronger. I can't do that if I'm stuck in the past, sobbing over what could've been. I may grieve, cry over their departure from my life, but in the end I cannot let it rule me."
And just like that, Arras felt his surging magic calm, at least slightly, to a far more manageable degree. Was everything suddenly fine again because he listened to what his subconscious had to say about all of this? No, of course not. Just like Arras thought, he would still be saddened by what had happened, it wasn't as if addressing the issues would make them go away, but it did make them easier to manage. And with that, Arras found it much easier to think, to breathe. After an entire day of stress and anxiety, hell even a thunderstorm tacked on there, Arras finally felt his inner rhythm returning to a comfortable level.
...
"Hey, Arras?"
"Yes?"
"You're... You're okay, right?"
"Yeah, of course."
Illia had told Arras what she and the human had talked about, who's name was apparently Marus. She'd asked about staying in their village for the time being, and Marus had agreed as long as she and Arras helped with certain tasks when asked. She noted that they didn't really... Specify what kind of tasks, but that could come afterwards. For now, they were to make camp on the edge of the settlement.
Once again, Arras was rather uncomfortable with the prospect of staying out in the open, but Illia assured him that it would be safe there. So, after having already trusted her so many times before, what was one more? So, he did as apparently asked. Scratched and dug at the ground for a bit, before lying down next to Illia, waiting.
----------------------------------------
Bestiary
Arrasima
An extremely rare omnivore found within the inner and middle regions of The Grand Forest. They are entirely sentient, though distinctly adverse to travelling and or staying in groups. It is largely unknown how their infant stages in life proceed, as sightings of these creatures are already rare as is.
They are large and powerful elk like beasts which hold an impressive mastery over magic. Often utilizing earth and water based magic in combat. Granted, not many who fight these beasts live to tell the tale, so they may hold extensive prowess over various other magics.
Arrasima's also go by one other name, Guardians of the Forest. It is uncertain why exactly it is that they act how they do, but the most frequent sightings of Arrasima's stem from large disturbances in The Grand Forest. Folktale began to propagate about how they are peacekeepers and caretakers of the forest due to their presence, even though their behavior would seem to suggest the opposite.
Arrasima's are marginally more hostile than other creatures of the forest. Attacking just about anything on sight. Their attacks are entirely indiscriminate, most of the time they don't even seem to eat what they kill, instead leaving it to die.
There seems to be no tell for an Arrasima's age or power, as the markings across their body and the color of their horns always remain a pure white. Scholars have theorized that perhaps Arrasima's are not naturally born creatures of the forest, or perhaps they are a metamrphized stage of a different creature, regardless, nobody knows for certain.
Few Arrasima have been slain throughout the years, perhaps two or three of the mighty beasts falling a decade. Their antlers have been identified as some of the most magically powerful objects in the entirety of Araia, rivaling the very best materials and man made items. Perhaps twenty or so staffs made of these materials exist around the entirety of the world.
It is unknown how long or short an Arrasima's life may be, all that is known is that they are exceedingly rare and even more exceedingly powerful.
----------------------------------------
Lassalin
A relatively uncommon carnivore found in plains and forests. They are sentient creatures, but they distinctively lack in any form of empathy. They operate entirely off of logic, and while not necessarily aggressive, they are more interested in having their next meal rather then a conversation or ties with other creatures.
They are small serpentine creatures with an incredibly deadly venomous bite. However, their small stature is of no issue. For their most prolific use of magic is that of transformation. These creatures are, by witness account, horrifying. Lassalins are rather generous in their use of transformation magic. Where other individuals would falter, Lassalins care not for the form they take, only for the results.
As a result, they often end up looking much more monstrous then their true form. A writhing mass of flesh, an amorphous creature which attacks and defends from any angle. This is made all the more intimidating by their proficiency with most forms of physical strengthening, as well as a single bite from them usually spelling out certain doom. First paralyzing the victim, and stopping their heart within the next minute.
All in all, Lassalins are terrifying combatants that are better off being avoided rather then fought. They are mentally distressing opponents and their offensive capabilities are staggering. However, they are limited by a few key factors. Lassalins have incredibly poor proficiency with all forms of elemental magic, as well as being small and weak in their unedited forms. One good off guard hit can usually put them down, and they lack versatility. However, in a straight fight they are terrifying, leagues above any of their peers.
Aditionally, Lassalin venom has been known to be used in various forms ot torture. While getting your hands on this as a normal civilian would generally be highly illegal, it finds frequent use in the proper environments. This is due to the venom's unique nature. While a victim is under the effects of a Lassalins venom, they are still entirely mentally aware of what is happening to their body. their sense of pain is not dulled in the slightest despite being paralyzed. As such, being poisoned by a Lassalins venom in non lethal quantities is excruciating, without the hope of a release of death.
A newborn Lassalins scales are yellowish in their coloration, and they stay that way throughout the rest of their life. While this would normally be a bad thing, the bright yellow serves to ward off would be attackers and can easily be changed due to a Lassalins skill with transformation magic. Albeit, not for extended periods of time.
Lassalins are not social animals, they only stay with their mates for a short period of time. The children are then left to fend for themselves by the mother. Generally only five to six Lassalins are born in a single batch of eggs, and it is not uncommon for none of them to survive to adulthood.
One more key factor in the balancing of this creatures power is their rather long youth, as well as their fairly short lives. It takes about a year and a half for a Lassalin to fully grow from infant to adult, and from there on they usually only have another year to live. Their lives can be extended through the gaining of power, but to a lesser degree when compared to other races.
----------------------------------------
Human
A very common omnivore found all throughout the world. They are Colonial creatures, though their drive to congregate is more so driven by opportunity rather then a desire to socialize.
humans are about as close to "true neutral" as you can get in terms of magic. Their proficiency in magic is average across the board save for two minor differences. Humans are slightly better with healing magic, and slightly worse with force magic. It's an odd distinction, yet still one that exists.
Humans will often pursue any profession available to them. the species has no inherent advantage or disadvantages, in a way, one could say they are the most free of any species on Araia. They aren't restricted in the abilities they use, they can choose to live together or alone, what to do in life, to explore or to settle, really the world is their oyster.
Humans have been the effective pioneers of the world for a long time, their nature drives them to seek out new things and this leads them to making many a new discovery. Various names have been etched out into the history books, and a fair majority of them end up being human.
While it is not unheard of for a human to be a master of their profession on par with longer lived races, it isn't exactly common either. Due to simply not having as much time to live as other races, most Humans take up easier to learn professions, or exploration, warfare, mercenary work, adventuring, any work really.
Human life spans are fairly long, generally lasting about sixty to seventy years without any intervention. Though, they gain much less time through growing stronger, similarly to many other colonial races.
Humans have established three major predominately human kingdoms in the present day. Arvalia, a mercenary kingdom formed through the combined efforts of thousands of mercenaries. Obviously, most of these mercenaries were human. It's technically only a kingdom in name, as it has a king, but does not wage war or create it's own produce. This is the newest of the three human kingdoms, and widely considered as a neutral party, willing to act under any nations influence provided the correct pay is present.
The second human kingdom, the aptly named, Tolliama, is a prosperous kingdom for two reasons, firstly, they have access to a rare mineral known as vericite, an incredibly resistant material with inbuilt insulation from magic. Secondly, Tolliama has managed to lay claim to one of the three prominent magic rich locations, Tolliama Falls. Access to the falls is exclusively managed by the ruler and their vassals.
Lastly, a relatively new kingdom that has laid claim to a portion of the outer region of The Grand Forest, Arbre. In a somewhat new strategy, the people of Arbre have taken to making deals with various sentient creatures of the forest. While not every beast is a force to be reckoned with, these animals that live in The Grand Forest do tend to be a fair amount stronger then the common man. Arbre puts them to work in various fields after they agree to a contract, and this has gained them power astonishingly fast.
----------------------------------------
Dictionary
Aura
Any race regardless of their specialties can produce a magic Aura, it is not specifically attuned to any type of spell or element. Aura is purely a display of the users level of magical power. Though, in order to create an Aura, one does need a rather large amount of magic available to them. Without enough power at the wielders disposal, any attempt at an Aura would be mostly undetectable.
While an Aura is effectively the discharge of magical power, it does not actually cost the user anything to maintain the ability. All an Aura does is bring the wielders magical power into a noticeable state of being. It is not shaping the magic into any spells or enhancements. As a result, during battle most high level magic users will always maintain their aura to disable any weaker enemies.
While this ability can serve various purposes, such as drip feeding other creatures magic, or nurturing an environment, it often finds the most use in forms of intimidation. Most forms of life on Araia can instinctively tell when an Aura contains more magical power then their own, and depending on the difference between the abilities user and the recipient it can even be enough to force them into submission.
Aura is extremely simple to use, as it is the most simple form of an attunementless spell. It requires no forms of constructs or any extra effort to make it work properly, all one needs to do to use Aura is to discharge their own magic. It is effectively casting a spell, without using any specific attunement. Use magic power, and the effect will ensue.