Saiachus

A Primer on the Saiachus: The Powers of the Mind

"A sorcerer learns the words to a song that already exists. A Saiarch is the song itself. Do not mistake the two. One is a craftsman. The other is a god, or a monster, waiting to be born."

—From the private logs of a Veritor of the Holy Aurus Spectra

The abilities known colloquially as "mind-magic" are a rare, potent, and often terrifying phenomenon. While the common folk might use a dozen different names—shadowmind, soul-stealer, sleeptalker—scholars of the Lexicanum and the Eldar refer to these individuals by a single, formal designation: the Saiachus (from the Valhir Saia, "mind," and Achus, a collective term for a people or order).

A Saiarch is a being whose mind is not a closed system. It is an open conduit to the Unseen World, the Perspicharix, allowing them to impose their will directly onto the fabric of reality. Unlike a sorcerer who must learn to manipulate an external Sussuric element, a Saiarch's power is an extension of their own being. Their abilities are generally classified into three great disciplines, corresponding to the three states of matter they are most attuned to manipulating.

The Gateway to Power: The Perspicharix

The defining trait of all Saiachus is their innate ability to perceive and, for the most powerful among them, to metaphysically enter the Perspicharix. This "Unseen World" is not a separate dimension, but a perfect, incorporeal mirror of the physical realm, existing within and around all things. It is within this "wraithworld" that a Saiarch can perform their greatest feats, manipulating the Aetheric blueprint of reality before it becomes manifest. This constant, dual perception is the source of their power and, for many, the root of their notorious instability.

The Three Great Disciplines

I. The Tellurwright (The Flesh-Shaper)

This is the discipline of Biomancy, the mastery of the Tellur, the stable matter of the living body. A Tellurwright is a craftsman of flesh and bone.

  • Abilities: At their most basic, they are peerless healers, able to knit flesh, mend bone, and purge disease with a touch. At their most advanced, they can augment their own bodies, hardening their skin to the consistency of stone, quickening their reflexes to a blur, or even shaping their own form.

  • The Peril: A corrupted or malicious Tellurwright is a thing of nightmares, able to turn an enemy's own body against them, boiling their blood, turning their bones to jelly, or twisting their form into a grotesque parody of life.

  • In-World Terminology:

    • Formal: Tellurwright

    • Colloquial: Flesh-Shaper, Bone-Mender, Blood-Witch

II. The Susserwright (The Element-Weaver)

This is the discipline of Aethermancy, the mastery of the Sussur, the ephemeral, energetic state of matter. A Susserwright is a living conduit for the raw, chaotic power of the elements.

  • Abilities: This is the discipline that most closely resembles traditional "wizardry." They can summon gouts of flame, spears of ice, or bolts of raw, kinetic force. They are masters of the external, the environmental, able to bend the weather or the very air to their will.

  • The Peril: Their power is spectacular and destructive. An uncontrolled Susserwright can become a living natural disaster, a storm of fire and lightning that consumes everything around them.

  • In-World Terminology:

    • Formal: Susserwright

    • Colloquial: Elementalist, Storm-Caller, Fire-Witch

III. The Saian (The Mind-Seer)

This is the rarest, most revered, and most feared of the three disciplines, named for the Valhir Sai ("thought"). It is the pure, unfiltered mastery of the Aethyr, the incorporeal state of thought, emotion, and soul. A true Saian is a master of the mind.

  • Abilities: At its most basic, this is the discipline of Telepathons and Empathions—the ability to read thoughts, sense emotions, and communicate without words. A true Saian, however, can go far deeper. They can enter the dreams of others, implant suggestions, create flawless illusions, or even sever a person's soul from their body.

  • The Peril: A malicious Saian is the ultimate spy and interrogator. They can steal a secret from a mind without leaving a trace, or they can shatter a psyche into a million pieces, leaving a drooling, mindless wreck. They are the reason the Holy Aurus Spectra is so terrified of, and so obsessed with, controlling their kind.

  • In-World Terminology:

    • Formal: Saian

    • Colloquial: Mind-Seer, Whisperer, Ghost-Walker

The Price of Mastery

The immense power of the Saiachus comes at a terrible cost. The constant sensitivity to the Perspicharix leaves many notoriously disturbed, their minds a battlefield of echoes and unseen truths. Furthermore, the act of channeling raw Aethyr through a Telluric form is inherently dangerous. A Saiarch who over-exerts their will risks a catastrophic failure, their body literally burning itself up from the inside out, leaving behind nothing but a fine, grey ash and a surrounding rime of frost—a grim testament to a mind that flew too close to the heart of creation.