Elemental: Water

Summary

One of the classical elements, water embodies tranquil potential. It is said to be the origin of all living things, and the greatness by which chaos is tempered by. Ever seeking a natural equilibrium, it mollifies differences and annuls struggle in its fathomless depths. Those without the strength to endure its gentleness will be swept away, not even a trace left behind.   Where there is water there is water mana, a force of gentleness that stands implacable against the universe. It is naturally serene, so much so the liveliness of something like fire cannot stir it at all. Yet water, too, holds its own sensibilities, and its rage is legendary when provoked. Water endures much, but when moved to action it can be outrageously explosive.   So it is across Veltrona water sits in vast oceans, content with its serenity. Not even mighty tempests that throw it across the world can stir its anger.   Water's domain encompasses being 'liquid', a state of ambivalence. Through its shared medium do many things find safety, comfort, and the potential of change. It can be both hot or cold, but not too much of either or it loses composure. In many ways, it is a springboard upon which others use, but also return to. Divine waters encroach upon clarity itself, transcendent in their tranquility.   The potential of water yawns vast, flexible, and inscrutable in its promised potential. Transformative, perhaps, in a way that does not take in order for transformation to happen. However, others must learn to utilize it fully, to give what water needs, and to have the skill to sculpt with it. So it remains tranquil, undisturbed until acted upon.    

Magical Arts

Water mages, cultivators, and others who use it for magic are among the most prized peoples. Their ability to create, collect, and/or purify existing water sources for clean, drinkable water has saved countless lives throughout history. Even as technology improved and more common ways of filtering water came about, many continue on this humbly ignoble tradition.   With so many seeking it out, water magic developed quite well across Veltrona. Most of it boiled down into every day things, but from those sprung myriad schools. The principle issue with water magic is it consumes a lot of mana in order to function. For one, water itself is required to work, so it must be available or created on the spot. Two, when using water magic, it must be constantly fed mana so as to remain as a magic. If one 'eases up' after a certain threshold, the water simply splashes out into a perfectly mundane mess.   Water's nature is ambivalence, hence to do anything with it requires constant attention, force, and pressure. It is a punishing type of magic to use because of this; there's no 'cheating' ways to make it work compared to others. As it demands such strong fundamentals, those who are accomplished in it are often the benchmark to which others are measured by.   Aside from purifying, water magic's myriad uses concern the various ways to manipulate water. Similar to veltron magic, raw kinetic force is the principle way water magic influences the world. A jet of water can push, knockdown, bludgeon, or even cut through with enough kinetic force applied. The more concentrated it becomes, the greater the 'piercing', 'bludgeoning', and 'slashing' potential it has. Some liken water toward the elements of blades and hammers, for it embodies these natures perfectly.   In healing arts and other practices, its ambivalence is useful as a great mediator. A body's mana raging out of control can be calmed, for water absorbs the anger without fuss. Sickly poisons can be mollified and diluted, eventually fading away as water disperses them. Alchemical reagents can meet together, finding a common ground that creates useful potions instead of toxins, etc. Having a myriad number of applications, water magic may seem less 'fantastical'. Yet, its contributions to the world at large are both vast and vital in ways no one could've lived without.   Notably, water created through water magic 'remains'. It leaves tangible, permanent existence behind. Technically speaking most magics do, but some disperse so quickly (like wind) it's not appreciably observable.    

Infinite Drinkable Water?

One of the very first questions ever raised by magical arts around water was: Is it drinkable?   The answer to which is, yes, because created water is water; albeit elementally pure water, devoid of containmants and minerals alike. This led to the unfortunate effect of such pure water depleting the body's mineral count and incurring its own kind of toxicity. However, if combined with minerals or other material–such as a hearty soup–it would be rendered into a safer form for consumption.   There is another question that often follows: Can a mage drink their own water forever?   The question aggravated even dragonkind for many millennia. While the first question was answered quickly, the second remains a puzzling mystery. There were some who were able to create, drink, and survive off their own water for decades, if not centuries. Yet, in the cases where it failed, other concerns were usually the culprit; typically, that of starvation.   Ironically, it would be those familiar with the ways of fire who proposed a theory that has since become the standard reasoning. Simple fire, as they atest, requires fuel with great potential energy within it to begin ignition. A spent fuel source cannot ignite fuel, for there is nothing to offer. Similarly, self-created water may eventually spend some sort of 'fuel' and eventually cause the mage to run out. Mana depletion is what many equate this state to.   The only reason it doesn't occur is because fuel, such as food, is acquired and that provides the mana needed for the creation of water. In order to truly answer this question, a mage must become completely divorced of all other energy sources and subsist entirely off their own water creation. As this is impossible to achieve without dying from other causes, the solution to this question ultimately remains an academic one. It is theorized that a being capable of subsisting entirely off their own water creation could survive in such a manner indefinitely.    

Appearance

In a jar, water mana is blue, while divine waters err toward luminous and crystal-like. Blue liquid is water mana's 'traditional' appearance, with its edges and interior colored by nearby elements. It can comfortably fit in with a lot of mana types, and separates without a fuss back into what it used to be. It can sometimes shift toward other colors, like green, red, and orange. However, it seems to be incidental than an indication of quality or purity.   'Pure' water mana appears without colors at all, making it nearly invisible. Some might even call it 'liquid crysium' after a fashion. There is some debate if it is more divine in nature than the messy waters found on Veltrona.