A little bit about mystics …

After the Day of Discord, many people, for the first time, began to ‘see what otherwise could not be seen’. Supernatural sightings were far more common, and people who could manipulate energies gravitated to each other, forming groups and, eventually, schools.

Rarity: At the time of the book’s beginning, roughly 1 in 100 people can become a mystic and tap into the energies of the Five Rings. Well, anyone can, somewhat, but mystics excel at it far greater than a typical person. But far less than 1% of the population use magicks. This is because many people are skeptic of what is possible with the energies: There are many false mystics in the world, and most that can use the energies can only do subtle tricks.
Fire mystics, for instance, can only make something warm or hot with their touch. It would take a lot of energy and an unusual amount of patience to actually set something on fire.

How they identify each other: When a mystic is in the vicinity of another potential user, they often make eye contact, or otherwise take notice of each other and feel an odd kinship and familiarity that complete strangers should never feel. This is because the elements and rings themselves are co-dependant, and so the energies that pass between users are very comforting.

The cost of being a mystic: When a potential user progresses past ‘Neophyte’ and begins learning, they are considered ‘awakened’. But before that can happen, they must be warned that being awakened is a double-edged sword. While using energies is empowering, once awakened, the user will never be the same, and opens themselves to the potential of being attacked by demons and evil spirits. Being awakened draws much interest from the spirit world, and the user must immediately learn how to protect themselves from such attacks. Read the rest of this entry »