On today’s episode of Bronze thinks far too in depth on the way that the AU’s magic works:
Curses! more specifically their terrifying implications when physics are applied. Note, all mentions of Cursebearers should come with the understanding that I am specifically talking about Matter Cursebearers such as Wotan or any other Curse that creates physical objects like crystal, metal, ect.
So it’s been stated (I’m pretty sure by Vetex, but I don’t know how to fact check this, if someone can find the quote I will be very grateful.) in the past that while normal magic, what mages use is just magic energy (mana or ME) imitating the element it’s assigned. IE water magic is not real water, and thus can’t be used for watering crops. However, Curses through some method are creating the real version of the element they are associated with. This is how Wotan for example is able to create entire fleets with his Wood Curse. This of course leads to those terrifying implications I was referring to earlier.
The way I see it, there are three ways that Curses are able to “create” the real version of their element.
- ME is a matter and energy equivalent able to be transferred between the two, similar to Investiture in the Cosmere by Brandon Sanderson (What this is a Bronze topic, you thought I wouldn’t bring up Sanderson?) This explains how, given how much more ME Curses hold, they are able to create real objects whereas mages can only create imitations.
- It’s just converting surrounding molecules, this is the least likely of option, as it just doesn’t really make sense given what we know about ME, however, given how little we know about ME as well, it could be possible.
- Finally, the most terrifying option, they are just creating matter or energy, thus violating the Law of Conservation of Mass. This would make Cursebearers straight up reality benders.
However, despite at least two of these being interesting to consider, all three of them have the same result. That being that Cursebearers almost certainly have some sort of what Sanderson in his novels refers to as Microkinesis. Microkinesis can be simplified as control over the individual atoms and particles that make up reality. For example,(Spoilers for Dragonsteel Prime by Brandon Sanderson ahead) though now decanonized, in Dragonsteel Prime the characters Jerick and Ryalla express two forms of Microkinetic control. Jerick is able to shape individual atoms, or axi as they’re called in the Cosmere, dividing groups of them at a time to do things such as split arrows flying at him or in one extreme case he created a charge differential and summoned a lightning bolt on a clear day. Ryalla for her part was able to control photons to bend light around her, or again in one extreme case created a beam of concentrated electromagnetic radiation and burned a hole through the heart of an enemy.
This is essentially what Cursebearers are doing whenever they use their powers, except that they seem to only do it on a macroscale, controlling groups of atoms as they’re being formed. However, the fact that they are able to manipulate atoms at all, gives the implication that this manipulation could be honed to the point that they could control individual atoms, and eventually the different things that make up that atom. That’s right, Cursebearers, based on what Vetex has said and how physics work could almost certainly create fission reactions. Now I’ve been somewhat critical of Electron Magic in the past for not making sense naming wise, however, given the fact that Cursebearers have been around with their powers for more than a thousand years they may have named the parts of the atoms which Cursebearers are able to see/manipulate. So I guess it could make some sense, though they still should have developed different names for them.
Regardless understand that each Cursebearer is potentially a walking nuclear bomb, and also since the energy created would be physical (since it’s the material atom becoming energy) the Cursebearer would be unaffected by the blast. So while not necessarily the best in Curse on Curse combat, for razing an enemy city (which all Cursebearers seem wont to do, despite the utter waste of potential resources it may be) it’s second to none.
Continuing, the most terrifying thing, oh yeah there’s something worse than fission, is that there doesn’t seem to be a limit on how much material can be created. I mean, Cursebearers have built islands, ships, dark towers to study “dark” magic, and libraries. So if there isn’t an upwards limit on the size of the construct whose to say there’s a downward. Could a Cursebearer potentially create a singularity? The logic says yes, they could. Since they are able to form their element into any configuration that means they could create an object of such intense mass that it would collapse into a singularity. Granted the first time this happens, it would probably just result in the release of a very small amount of Hawking Radiation, given time to study this a single Cursebearer could probably destroy the planet.
So yeah, Cursebearers, terrifying it’s honestly probably a good thing that all of them seem incredibly incompetent and complacent in their power. But who knows, maybe the true end of the AU will be caused by some moron Cursebearer accidentally doing fission and causing the planet’s atmosphere to ignite. So what do you guys think? Did it make sense, or did I get everything about Curses wrong? I’d like to hear your thoughts about what Cursebearers may be able to do with their completely unchecked power.
