Magic of the Crystal Magic Series

By Timotheus Zacharia von Schloss Zwilling

So there you were reading Arrow of Caid and you noticed that there appeared to be magic in use in a few places. But there was no explanation for it. Below is an explanation of Crystal Magic, its history and uses.

Unknown to this society several types of Crystals emit a form of radiation that has been slowly altering the genes of people who spent considerable time near them. Over the centuries this has had a cumulative effect on the population, most noticeably women. It started out by allowing almost all women to create “good luck” when wearing a specific type of white Crystal. And it grew from there!


2000 years before Arrow of Caid

2000 years before the story Arrow of Caid took place, women started discovering that certain white Crystals brought them good fortune in things related to their home and family. These Crystals seemed to perform “household magic”, and indeed many households whose female heads carried these Crystals seemed to have fewer illnesses and injuries, more bountiful harvest and livestock, and better beer. Only women were able to use these powers and since they were very faint and difficult to actually prove society accepted their uses. Women everywhere started searching for and carrying these white “good luck” House Crystals.

The average House Crystal was the size of a little finger nail and was often worn on a necklace. Through trial and error it was determined that the size of the House Crystal did not matter, rather the purity of the Crystal was the important factor. To be successful a Crystal needed less than 6 flaws. Additionally the same Crystal seemed to work better for some women than for others. This aptitude (genetic affinity) to use the Crystal was also an important factor in the Crystal’s power.

As women discovered more about their abilities with the House Crystals, training in their use moved from the hearth to the schoolroom where the female teachers would help their young charges with their House Crystal abilities. Through the centuries this training was refined and codified, with girls starting their training before the age of 12 to help them reach their maximum potential.

Noticeable Powers

   Fertility — The House Garden is always green
   Healing — Family members rarely get sick
   Fire or Heat — UControl the temperature of an object, heat up a cup of tea, or cool down a hot broth
   Seer — Can sense how their house dog or cat are feeling, when the pet is within 150 feet
   Well Being — Those within 5-10 feet of the wearer, experience a feeling of well being



1000 years before Arrow of Caid

1000 years later, it had been discovered that four other Crystals had similar uses: chalcedony (blue), prasiolite (green), amethyst (purple), citrine (yellow). These Crystals needed to be at least the size of a walnut and have less than 4 flaws. While every woman could use a white House Crystal, a much smaller group of women could use these other Crystals.

In fact less than .0003% of women out of a population of 15,000,000 could use the new Crystals, these ladies were known as Crystal Users. The difficulty was finding those approximately 5,000 Crystal Users and matching them with the color Crystal they had an affinity for. After a few generations the Crystal Users noticed that they lived an average of 75 years while their fellow females lived an average of 50 years.

Noticeable Powers of Each Type of Crystal

CrystalColorElementAbilities
CHALCEDONY BLUE WIND (AIR) KNOWLEDGE, ANIMALS
Seers — Can “look” through the eyes of a bird or animal with which they have an affinity
Truth — Can compel a person to answer a question truthfully, while touching the person
Zephyr — Can control the wind to bring about a light breeze
Visions — Can control the wind to bring about a light breeze Visions — Can see glimpses of future events, the trick is to understand what is happening

CrystalColorElementAbilities
PRASIOLITE GREEN WATER INTUITION, WISDOM

Precipitation — Can cause moisture to drop in the area, enough to wet the plants
Cloudburst — Can cause a light drizzle for a brief period
Intuition — Receives a feeling of “Good” or “Bad” - Very erratic

CrystalColorElementAbilities
AMYTHYST PURPLE EARTH NURTURE (HEALING), FERTILITY

Fertility: Plants — Can upgrade the level of production in “blessed” fields
Medical — Can diagnose correctly 50% of the time
Reality — Can create illusions in other’s minds within 5 feet

CrystalColorElementAbilities
CITRINE YELLOW FIRE EMOTIONS, DEFENSE

Detect Magic — Can detect the vibrations that come with the use of a Crystal
Fire or heat — Can be used to heat a cup of water to a boil
Energy drain — Can drain energy in another so that they feel a light fatigue

The small “house magics” that the House Crystal conferred on its users was not a matter of concern, it was almost universal and rather trivial in nature. But the new powers that these Crystal Users had was upsetting.

These powers were not evenly distributed and were very much not trivial! In reaction to this, all Crystal Users were excluded from roles in government over worries that their abilities could be used against the greater good.

Yet, some of the very powers that took them out of government also involved them in other aspects of running society. As doctors they were able to diagnose better and bring about faster healing. They were able to help farmers achieve better crops, through “blessing” their fields, and providing beneficial weather modifications. Due to an ability to spot liars they were even used by the courts in difficult cases.

Several classes in Crystal use have developed over the years. There were, of course, the beginning classes to get a girl started in the use of any Crystal, but now there were also two more classes. One was taught about the time a girl reached 11 – 12 years old to determine if they had the potential to use other Crystals. And if they did, when they reached 13 - 15 years old the next class taught them how to use the new Crystals.



500 years before Arrow of Caid

Several Crystal Users came together to form a community dedicated to Crystal education and research. They built classrooms and libraries, started recording what they know about Crystal usage, and started experimenting with the Crystals and with their abilities.

They started using the term “Crystal Ladies” to refer to those women who were able to use the major Crystals. And opened their community to all Crystal Ladies. The community grew over the centuries and became a thriving center of learning and self-reliance. Their simple layout had grown into a large city which they named Chalice.

Chalice included farms, shops, schools, as well as a large university of Crystal learning and research.

While most people have heard of Chalice they don’t really know where it is, what exactly it does, or even it actually exists … and the Crystal Ladies like it that way.



300 years before Arrow of Caid

The Crystal Lady’s experimentation and research have added much to the knowledge of what can be done with the major Crystals. But over the last 50 or so years the uses of the four major Crystals underwent a sudden change: the powers that could be achieved had gone up beyond what could be accounted for by their works. Additionally they observed that only about half of the Crystal Users were capable of the new levels of power. This was the start of research into how genetics relates to Crystal User’s abilities.

With the growth of Chalice classes for Crystal Users started moving away from the local schools and into the Crystal University. When the girls with affinity to the major Crystals were 14-15 they were invited to come to Chalice to continue their education.

It also started to become apparent that men could also have an affinity for Crystals. A pure white baseball size, or larger, Crystal with less than 2 flaws would glow in their presence. They couldn’t use the Crystals the way the women could, but with training they could relay a Crystal User’s magic from one place to another, combine two or more Crystal Users’ magic into one stream, and amplify that combined stream. These men became known as Focusers.

Current Noticeable Powers of Crystal Userss

CrystalColorElementAbilities
CHALCEDONY BLUE WIND (AIR) KNOWLEDGE, ANIMALS
Seers — Can “look” through the eyes of a bird or animal with which they have an affinity. They have affinity with more birds and animals than before, have a greater range, and can direct the birds and animals to perform simple tasks
Truth — Can compel truth for up to 3 minutes while touching a person
Zephyr — Can control the wind to bring about a light breeze
Visions — Can see glimpses of future events. The trick is to understand what is happening. The events can take place minutes and sometimes even months in the future

CrystalColorElementAbilities
PRASIOLITE GREEN WATER INTUITION, WISDOM

Precipitation — Can cause moisture to drop in the area, enough to wet the plants
Cloudburst — Can cause a light to medium drizzle for about 30 minutes
Intuition — Receives a feeling of “Good” or “Bad”
Wisdom — 1 in 5 accurate advice and clear thinking for 10 minutes

CrystalColorElementAbilities
AMYTHYST PURPLE EARTH NURTURE (HEALING), FERTILITY

Fertility: Plants — Can upgrade the level of production in “blessed” fields, can bless larger fields
Medical — Can diagnose correctly 75% of the time. Noticeable better health for those tended by one a Purple Crystal User
Reality — Can create illusions in the minds of anyone within 10 feet

CrystalColorElementAbilities
CITRINE YELLOW FIRE EMOTIONS, DEFENSE

Detect Magic — Can detect the vibrations that come with the use of a Crystal.
Fire or heat — Can cause fire under the correct circumstances
Energy drain — Can drain energy in another so that they feel a medium fatigue.

CrystalColorElementAbilities
QUARTZ WHITE SPIRIT FOCUS, RELY, AMPLIFICATION