Power of Flux

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properly reflect discoveries that have been made during worldbuilding.

Power of Flux is the ability to manipulate energies in different mediums by creating pathways for energy flow. The most common mediums are pigmented liquids such as ink or paint or other writing materials such as charcoal or lead.

Flux Terminology

Term	Meaning
efflucist	n. a person who possesses Power of Flux He watched the effluicst draw an energy channel across the paper.
scribifist	n. an efflucist who practices calligraphic Flux The scribifist was responsible for writing up the contract.
imagofist	n. an efflucist who practices artistic Flux The imagofist created a drawing that brought everyone to tears instantly.
acufist	n. an efflucist who practices bodily Flux The acufist created a tattoo that changed color depending on the person's mood.
enflux	adj. used to describe a work of art or body of text created using Power of Flux The enflux painting was known to trigger feelings of unease in its viewers.
spell script	n. words written using Power of Flux Reading the page triggered the spell script to turn red.
red quill	n. slang term for a scribifist who works for the court system The summons was written by a red quill.

Disciplines of Flux

Calligraphic Flux

Calligraphic Flux involves creating energy flows in the shape of words, called spell script, which can trigger effects when read. This is most often done using ink pens. Scribifists are often responsible for physically writing up contracts and other legally binding documents.

Artistic Flux

Artistic Flux involves creating energy flows within artistic works such as paintings and drawings. The goal of artistic Flux is usually to evoke a feeling or thought in the viewer rather than cause some kind of effect within the work of art itself. The most rudimentary evidence of artistic Flux can be found in ancient cave paintings.

Bodily Flux

Bodily Flux is a specialized form of artistic Flux, marked by the use of flesh as the canvas, in essence tattooing. What makes bodily Flux unique is that it requires taking into account the active energy of the person being tattooed in addition to the artistry required for the effect. Acufists may utilize spell script in addition to artistic Flux.

Flux in Practice

Types of Media

While the most commonly used media are things like ink or paint, efflucists can use just about anything that leaves a residue on a surface. The smoother it flows, the easier it is to work with. This could be something as simple as plain water (though this is a very weak and temporary medium) but could also be things like mud, sauces, or even blood. There is an old superstition that says you shouldn't let a scribifist use your blood because they could write the end of your life and it would come true.

Cementing the Pathway

While it is incredibly difficult as well as messy to modify an energy pathway once created, it is possible so long as the medium had not dried. Once dried, the pathway cannot be modified, only destroyed by outside forces or go through natural deterioration. Certain media, such as lead or charcoal, is dry upon application to a surface and the channels created from them cannot be modified.

Pathway Deterioration

As the physical aspects of the energy channel deteriorate, so, too, does the energy channel itself. As this deterioration occurs, any effects will gradually disappear. The rate of this deterioration is determined by the physical characteristics of the medium and the surface it is applied to and can be delayed by using special sealants. Pathways cannot be restored, as introducing new media to the pathway will disrupt the original. Deteriorated pathways will often leave the viewer with a hollow feeling, as if they are missing something.

Flux in Society

Flux in a Legal Setting

All disciplines of Flux are often utilized in legal settings all over Leland. Scribifists are able to write up binding contracts as well as legal summons that recognize when they are read so as to schedule hearings with enough time for the defendant to prepare. Imagofists are often responsible for the artwork that adorns courthouses and other legal buildings for their ability to create calmness and other pacifying feelings. Acufists are employed in marking defendants or convicts in ways as directed by the court. This can include tattoos that change when leaving a certain area for those under movement restrictions and tattoos that are designed to disappear within a certain amount of time to to signal the end of a sentence.

Literature and Publishing

While there is technology for mass-producing books, this technology is not able to replicate the effects of Flux. Any body of text expected to create an effect has to be written by a scribifist. The same is true for visual content such as picture books and comics with imagofists. For this reason, enflux copies of works are more expensive than normal copis and are usually well taken care of because of the inevitability of deterioration. Effluists may have created the work themselves or merely be recreating the works of others. Enflux works are very popular in the genre of erotica.