Concerning Familiars

Most animals who choose to work with practitioners consider the name 'familiar' a bit derogatory due to the servant or domesticated connotations of the word. They would prefer, in general, to be considered merely friends of their respective magic user. The realtionship is, however, a bit more complicated than a mere friendship.

A certain sort of bond exists between a practitioner and animal. There is no formal ceremony or such that creates this relationship; only a mutual acceptance on the part of both parties is necessary. This does not, however, mean that the bond is easily dissolvable; regardless of any falling out the animal and practitioner might have, it is usually active until either of the two dies. (In the case of cats, who, as was earlier explained, have an availible nine incarnations, this usually refers to their final death. Cats, however, seem to have more control over the status of their bond: for more information, see "Concerning Cats".) As a practitioner can only bond with one animal at a time, it is very much desirable to maintain a feeling of mutual affection between user and animal. This is, however, rarely a problem.

The extent and specifics of the bond varies from species to species. In general, however, such a relationship usually benefits the animal in question in two ways: first, the animal receives a significant boost in sentience. The animal's memory is improved, oftentimes beyond that of its partner, and its cognative abilities usually rise to rival that of a human's. Some have linked this increase of intelligence to the added ability of 'speaking' to the bonded practitioner, but this is likely more a matter of the mental relationship rather than any previous inability to reason. Animals are almost always unable to communicate 'verbally' with anyone other than their bonded magic user.

Second, in nearly all cases save for that of cats, the animal's lifespan generally doubles. (Cats, due to their already unusual lifespan tendencies, are unaffected in this matter.) Though it is currently uncertain what causes this, it is suspected that these animals are able to absorb residual magical energies and apply them to their own wellbeing. This has no effect on the magical stores of a practitioner.

Another more debated side-effect is that of animal magic. Although all animals have their own brand of magic, there are few in this age who instinctively remember it. While bonded to a practitioner, however, these abilities quickly return and can be invaluble tools. Generally, these abilities have to do with magically enhancing the dominant senses of the creature. An almost universal ability, however, is 'sliding' (also sometimes called 'phasing' or 'going between'). This refers to the odd ability of animals, particularily felines and rodents, to get into and out of places the should not be able to.

Though much research has been done into this ability, few concrete facts have been discovered; it is suspected that it may involve dimensional manipulation. This ability allows creatures to travel through locked doors and windows, closed wards, walls, etc, without disturbing the state of these barriers. The action leaves almost no reside, making the creature seem to have suddenly appeared where it should not. There are limits to this, of course; a wall is much more difficult to get through than a door, and a locked door moreso than merely a shut door. Mesh barriers are easier to travel through than solid ones. Inexperienced animals should not be expected to move through locked objects until both the animal and the practitioner feels confident with the animal's abilities.

Through different spells, a practitioner can link into the senses of their bonded animal. This, combined with sliding, allows a bonded creature to be a particularily effective spy. Be warned, however, that many serious practitioners may be able to key wards to disallow sliding into an area, and the experience of a rejected sliding can be very unpleasant to both animal and magic user.

Concerning Wartime Magic

Unfortunately, even were all the agents of E.I.D.O.L.O.N. to focus their efforts on a single country, it is unlikely that they would be able to, even through force, bring about peace. Although there are a significant number of practitioners who have joined relief efforts, E.I.D.O.L.O.N. in general warns the magical community away from such areas without special training.

This is for a variety of reasons. Certainly, it is unsafe for anyone to be in a war-torn area. For practitioners, however, the burn-out rate is especially high. Due to the 'belief' aspect of magic, as practitioners realize how little impact their efforts are making, they begin to lose faith in their abilities and finally in magic altogether, which results in the gradual decline and often abrupt cut-off of their magical abilities.

The general atmosphere of the land and people also affects the usability of magic in such areas. As most practitioners are more empathically sensitive than the average human, the strive focused in the country causes intense emotional fatigue. The atmosphere also tends to disrupt magical workings in general, sometimes causing failure in the even most basic of spells. This phenomenon is most noticeable in places where wars have occurred consistently over a great many years. The only magic not hampered, and often, unfortunately, aided, by this is black/dark magic. The best E.I.D.O.L.O.N. has been able to do for these locations is to dampen the usability of black/dark magic.

The final issue in these situations is that, for most wartime purposes, technology has most certainly outstripped magic. When humans still fought their wars with staffs and swords, having a mage on your side was a distinct advantage. Against the weapons of today, however, a practitioner can be very easily defeated if he/she is not constantly vigilant. A shielding spell can only cover so much area for so long, depending on the practitioner's limits. Because of these factors, the lifespan of magic users in warring areas tends to be significantly short, and magical efforts have had little impact on war outcomes.