Absence

Absence occurs when magic is stolen from a sentient being. The longer that one has had magic, the harder this condition can hit. Those with Natural Magic are hit the hardest.   Minor Absence occur when one drains all of their personal energy. Those who have weaker magic or those who have not had their magic for long are effected by this for a longer amount of time and tend to have worse symptoms. This usually includes users of Mage Magic and Grown Magic.

Minor Absence symptoms include overall soreness, exhaustion, fever, a numb buzzing sensation in the chest and fingers.   Absence itself has different levels of severity. Mild Absence occurs in those that have not had their magic for long, or had very weak magic that they were not dependent on. Symptoms are similar to Minor Absence, along with headaches, loss of appetite, and anxiety.   Moderate Absence occurs in those who have had their magic for quite a while or have powerful magic that they were mostly dependent on. Mild Absence symptoms are present with the addition of tremors, hallucinations, blacking out, severe weakness, difficulty breathing, and vomiting.   Extreme Absence occurs in those who had very powerful Natural Magic, and were almost entirely dependent on it. Symptoms advance into catastrophic fever, seizures, organ failure, and eventually death. In very rare occasions someone can survive this, but they are often very distant and mostly unresponsive to the things in front of them, responding to supposed hallucinations instead.   Symptoms of chronic Absence, after the initial illness, are more mild. It includes some soreness in the chest and arms, chronic fatigue, often depression and/or anxiety, and night terrors.

The only treatment for Absence is to return the user's Magic to them before any permanent damage is done. Otherwise, there is nothing that can be done.

During the stealing of magic, the victim will feel an intense burning pain throughout their body, usually culminating at their chest region. Once all magic has exited their body, the victim will usually go into shock and faint. Once they awaken, the beginning stages of Absence begin, building up over the course of a few hours to its worst depending on what kind of magic the victim had. At this point, mild Absence can last for a month before settling into chronic Absence, moderate Absence lasts about a week, and extreme Absence usually only lasts several hours at most. Chronic Absence will remain for life until the user's magic is returned to them.   Minor Absence will last up to a few days at most, and often fade soon after. When one is afflicted with minor Absence, their magic is unavailable to use, as it's recharging.

Protection against minor Absence is as simple as not pushing oneself too hard when using magic. Protecting one's magic from being stolen can be as simple as a protection spell. Most magical creatures have some sort of protection on them at all times, and Mages are fiercely protective of their magic.

Those with chronic Absence are often pitied and seen as weak. Some often believe that the victim would have been better off dying than to live without their magic. Magic is incredibly important to everything in the Wildes, so being without it is considered odd and pitiable.