Skiakinesis is a human-exclusive form of sorcery.
.source
Skiakinesis uses light as its power source, without which it cannot be cast. While the potential exists in every human, it needs special training to actually achieve anything meaningful, and it can only be taught by other sorcerers, with no way to properly transcribe it.
.characteristic
Skiakinesis involves the projection of shadows to affect the world around you.
The way it functions is that the sorcerer will send specific signals along their nerves, strong enough to subtly interact with photons entering into direct contact, which will then trigger the effect in the target, which the sorcerer has direct visual contact of. These signals are interpreted and channelled with the sorcerer’s hands, and using them requires the formation of shadow puppets.
Skiakinesis techniques fall into three categories: Receive You, YOUSEE, and Pierce Her. Most techniques require the use of both hands, although some only require one. Their effects are not purely external, as some directly affect the sorcerer’s own body. The effects are also not magic, as they rely on certain physical and chemical traits of the target, which the sorcerer is interacting with directly. The intensity of the light determining the range.
.limitations
Skiakinesis has the hard requirement of an active, powerful enough light source in the caster’s vicinity, strong enough to cast a fully formed shadow. The efficiency of Skiakinesis is inversely proportional to local Anima density, suffering from a massive dip in strength within the FLIPSIDE.
Due to relying on the sorcerer’s nervous structure, only regular humans with a healthy nervous system are capable of using Skiakinesis, excluding hybrids, Fae half-breeds, and people with neurodegenerative diseases. Each technique has a cooldown caused by the refractory period of the nervous system, and using the same technique without waiting that refraction period will apply the effect to both the target and the sorcerer.