Maji

While all humans contain Ashe within themselves, only some humans are born with the ability to actually harness and manipulate it - these humans are the ones called Maji. Ashe is the fundamental essence that permeates all living and nonliving things in the universe (including people, animals, trees, air, the planet, stars, etc.).
While Spirits (which are lifeforms made up entirely of Ashe) can utilize Ashe to accomplish fantastic feats that almost resemble magic, human maji can only use Ashe to manipulate the Elemental Forces: Aqua, Sun, Geo, Sky, and Forest.

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Maji Ranks

• Acolyte - The rank that all maji obtain at birth; acolytes are inexperienced novices who have not yet mastered their native affinity (which is the elemental Force they are born with).
• Adept - A maji who has obtained mastery over their affinity and its respective gift; only about a fifth of all adepts manage to awaken a second elemental Force after they achieve this rank. Adepts are the most common maji rank and it is usually the highest rank a maji will achieve in their lifetime.
• Apex - The second-rarest maji rank, an Apex is a master of at least three Forces. Three Forces is typically considered the limit most humans can manage to awaken, study, and master within a single lifetime (hence the name Apex). They typically serve as the headmasters of maji academies and the leaders of maji-led occupations/combat forces, especially in the Realms of Azuros and Vernal.
• Ascendant - The rarest of all maji, an Ascendant is a master of all five Forces and has learned how to best utilize/combine their affinity's gift with the powers of the other four Forces. It is commonly believed that, on average, only one or two maji are born every 100 years with the potential to become Ascendants.

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Every maji is born with a natural connection to one of the Five Forces (commonly called an affinity, native affinity, or force affinity) and can eventually learn to use the secret Gift of their affinity (which differs between all five forces). This affinity is determined randomly at birth but the native Realm of a maji can subtly determine the Force they develop an affinity for.
Maji from Azuros typically display an affinity towards either Aqua and Sky, Vernali maji towards Sun and Geo, and Orian maji lean more towards the Geo, Sky, and Forest Forces. Forest tends to be the rarest of all Forces a maji can naturally be born with, which is actually a good thing since the Forest Force is both unique and dangerous for being able to directly manipulate the Ashe in living beings.
Maji are not limited to the Force they have an affinity for, and it's not uncommon for some maji to learn to use two, three, or even all five forces! As seen above, this is how maji are typically ranked all across the Three Realms; by the number of Forces they have learned and mastered.
However, a maji can only learn to use the hidden gift of the Force that happens to also be their affinity and learning how to awaken and master the other four forces can be extremely difficult. Learning a new force, especially one that is opposite to their affinity or personality, requires a strong resolve, laborious research, and intense training - things that not every maji can dedicate the time or resources for. As stated above in the maji ranks, maji who master one or two forces are the most common while maji who master three, four, or all five forces are extremely rare in the world of Eaora.