What is Soito?

The answer to that varies from “not existent” to “the all-important power that controls this world”, depending on whom you ask. Both extremes are probably far off the truth, though. It seems that some beings have the ability to change their surrounding and sometimes themselves by will, using a power only they possess and that cannot be achieved. Since the end of the Mage Wars however most knowledge about Soito has disappeared into the darkness of history, and the only ones who still know about it hold their knowledge secret. The name is of Budmen origin, the best known alternatives are Magic, resulting from the Regos Magi who are themselves named after Mar Aga, the “First Magi”, being acclaimed Soito-Users, and Draiocht, the Semier word for the power that they claim the Ansu and some of their own kind possess.

Disclaimer: The words and especially names are freely invented by me out of various reasons. I have written several words in bold font to distinguish them from the „normal“ world. Those bold font words descripe something inside the world I am creating here and have thus no direct connection to reality. I hope this clears any misunderstanding up front. Best example would be the word manic, which originates from the term Mane or Manes, describing a human in my world, not a real life term about a mental condition.

What does Soito do?

Everything. In most common legends Soito is the ultimate way to explain what cannot be explained. Be it giants, sudden storms, extraordinary achievements and resistance, flight or immortality, when in doubt, it was Soito. This of course has little to nothing to do with the reality. One of the most commonly assumed abilities of a Soito-User is causing fires and making the surrounding hotter or cooler. The quick movements of Semier are often connected with the use of Soito, as are their sometimes exceptional skills of hiding, archery and survival in general. Of course there are reports of giant floods, summoned beasts from the depths of the world and whole armies defeated by a single Soito-User, but most are sending these stories into the realms of fantasy. Something that continuously appears is the claim that Soito-Users do not age or at least age far slower than others. If not killed, they are rumoured to become hundreds, of not thousands of years old. This is also often used to explain the reason of the long life of the Old Dragons who all possessed this mystical power. And thus we are back at the beginning, the inexplicable explained with the use of Soito. Sometimes it is mentioned that nobody is more endangered by the ability than the user itself. A single spell or ritual can render an unskilled user helpless, demented or even kill him on the spot. The use of a final act of Soito for ultimate revenge is a popular theme in mythical storytelling. Another continuity in myths: You cannot heal with Soito, especially not others, since the ability is a representation of Chaos and Destruction. However most Soito-Users never get hurt in stories, being protected by invisible armour, barriers of fire and whatever else the storyteller imagines.

Where does Soito come from?

Soito is a remnant of the Old Era, at this point most are in agreement. The longer the world exists, the more will the ability disappear. Many see this as a good thing, showing the improvement of the surroundings and societies. Others claim it to be a countdown to the end. When the last Soito-User dies, the Urdragon will return and destroy the world – a common belief among followers of the many dragon cults. They say Soito is originated from the said Urdragon who now resides in the red sun of Skaisul and given to the favoured in his eyes. If all users are dead, he will take his revenge on the ignorant world. This strangely connects with the definition of the Semier who call Skaisul “Bun Draiochta”, the Origin of Soito. The idea of Soito being a gift of the dragons to their favourites, the Ansu, is one of the main reason those are despised by the Budmen who have long fought to claim the land from the giant lizards. Others say that from the Ansu origin of the Semier and the meddling with the Lendmanes, Soito was inherited. This however clashes with the Budmen claim that the Ansu not only were here before the Semier arrived but that the latter came over the Osian Sea and were just pushed further east in the time of their existence, then allying with the Ansu. A relatively new claim is for Soito to be a disease that can even be contagious, an argumentation causing heavy disagreement from all sides.

Who uses Soito?

Being the leaders of those who possess knowledge of Soito, the Regos Magi are the only confirmed Manes enabled to use it. While trading and selling information is a common practice in Regos, to pass along any knowledge of Magic or other Soito use is the worst crime there is, probably equal to murdering the Primus Maga, the ruler of Regos. The Magi Academy of Regos probably possesses the greatest amounts of tomes about this mystical ability, and even asking for them can make you disappear. While most self-acclaimed Magi are actually tricksters, there are a couple of real ones, however those mostly reside within the walls of the Academy, are in leading positions of the Regos rule or serve in the Regos army. Since using a Magi is the last option for any tactician, nobody really knows what they're really capable off, and their sheer presence is enough to end most fights. It is said some Magi are sent abroad in hiding, which is the main reason why nobody trusts a Regent of any kind. According to the Magi, Soito does not favour any gender and can appear already in childhood. Since they claim that there is no Soito-User outside of the ruling families, the maximum amount of trained Regos Magi must be less than three dozen.

Amongst other Manes, Soito is even rarer. However all stories about secret practitioners cannot be false. Woodmanes or other secluded living persons are occasionally acclaimed to be Soito-Users, especially when they're able to sell useful herbs or some catastrophe hit the land and somebody needs to be blamed. Especially in Korio the claim of the “knowing”, called Wita (female) or Witan (male), just won't disappear. There is however no proof of any of these claims and anybody with his right wits will not believe in such superstition and see Manes living secluded in the woods as uncommon, but surely not as Witan. The claim of being a Soito-User actually can be very dangerous. The more rural the area, the greater is the danger of being victim of a mob or a local lord willing to demonstrate his hard rule to keep his servants content. Since a wave of mob killings swept through Koromor twenty years ago, the Praetor himself has ruled that all acclaimed Witan are to be brought in front of his justice only or alternatively left alone, an option most lords prefer to the humiliating experience of being laughed out of the court.

The much more sophisticated societies of Egrodia and Zamin see Soito as a dying, but existing ability, that, if discovered, should be dealt with extreme caution. However there hasn't been an alleged claim in the past fifty years at least. The common opinion is that except the artificially supported Magi in Regos, who are thought to be far away from the talents of old, all Soito-Users on the manic side have found their end in the Mage Wars. That Semier are acclaimed Soito-Users is common knowledge, however having vast experience with the ones in Kaliland and in general, the Egrodians are sure these claims are heavily overrated, which of course doesn't stop rural curiosity and mistrust. In Zamin any Semier is asked, not only by authority, but also by people of all ages, especially little children, which can be very annoying. The fascination of some for Soito, the “forbidden power”, has led to widespread shunning of Semier on the one side and certain admiration especially by high class men and women on the other in both countries.

Are there other species able to use Soito?

The Budmen don't practice Soito and they probably are unable to do so in the first place. Any kind of Soito is met with mistrust, since they claim it to be of Ansu and originally draconic origin. Especially the Gomen are very sure that no Soito-User ever set foot into their homeland. While the Carta Eternia forbids the death penalty, a Budmen dealing with a Soito-User might lead to “accidental” deaths. Despite all rumours, there is no known resistance of Budmen against the effects of Soito.

The Semier don't talk much about Soito. Their word Draiocht might indicate that the ability really is originating from dragons. All the Semier know is that by far not all of them are able to use Soito, in fact it is probably a small minority. There are no known Soito-Users in Kaitland nor in Kaschant, the main city of Tirsor. The further east and north, the closer to Tirudar, however, the more likely it should be to meet one. The Semier use the myth of their Soito ability to keep the Uorg off their backs, lands, trade routes and especially from besieging Kaschant, their main refuge. However the Semier are the only ones absolutely convinced of the existence of Ansu. They claim old cultures of them live deeply in Tirudar. According to the Semier, every Ansu has the ability of Soito, getting stronger the longer they live. Born with it, they learn to deal with it through family or groups, thus being the most able to control it. Soito is also the reason that Ansu don't die, since the ability is combined with a natural ability regeneration. All wounds heal faster, and the Ansu always seem youthful no matter how old they are. However Ansu, as the Semier claim all Soito-Users, have to occasionally use Soito to keep the balance. If they're stopped, it might break out uncontrolled, destroying the caster and anything around him. Although some Semier can use a weak form of Soito, only the Ansu are accomplished enough to create extreme results in a very short amount of time.

There aren't many dragons left in the world, but it is said that the greater dragons could or, if still alive, can use it quite potently. It is likely that several Dragoni are able to use Soito, however there have been no sources in the New Era ever claiming an incident, not even during the Korosi attacks on Zamin. In Moridem there's the story of a former Sulkel inhabitant who was able to use Soito. If this is true, he is the only one ever to be reported of the southern kind. If the Morimanes, better known as Skures, know Soito-Users, is unknown. The fact that their early warships had dragon heads on the bow and were so much better than the northern equivalents has lead to the opinion that they could've been. Since the last attacks are quite a while ago and many Skures are now known as traders, this rumour is more superstition than anything else. An active Soito-User has not been reported.

The story world of the Daomin and Xiaomin is rich and filled to the top with dragons and Soito. However, for them they seem to be stories only, since nobody is able to use this power. There are some tales that indicate otherwise, but the time always is “long, long ago”, and it is possible that the last Soito-Users of their kind has died far before the Mage Wars, falling to one of the countless main characters in the legends of Godo. If somebody from the strange lands in the East is a Soito-User and can prove it, they might become local legends as well – if he or she does good for the people and not act as an antagonist.