The Divine-Eyes Phenomenon

Of all the accolades and status one can accrue in life, be they man, giant or Vull'jorg, none are as revered as achieving the state of Divine-eyed mage. Individuals part of this exclusive group are the most formidable of all magic wielders on Az, owing to their immense pools of soul-force that cause extensive displacement upon the Arcane Current by their mere presence. Such a boundless amount of power is what causes the eyes of these mages to glow with light, for which the condition is named after.  

Physical Characteristics

  A highly mysterious condition, very little is understood of the why such a phenomenon occurs, since no similar physical changes happen in any of the other divisions of mages below the Divine-eyes. A feature of this state that continues to intrigue scholars is the array of appearances the eyes of these mages can take. Divine-eyed mages may have eyes that gleam any number of colours, ranging from pure white, through the rainbow to even pitch black. The factors that affect this light are largely speculative, with the prevailing assumptions being that the mental state, personality and the colour of the magicians soul-force are the primary influences. This is thought to be so, due to several cases of divine-eyed mages changing their ocular glow at certain points in their life, usually after a significant development in their perspective, or trauma of some description.   Beyond the baseline illuminating effect that the Divine-eyes grants, there are several examples of other visual apparitions appearing in individuals. These range from the display of various patterns and textures, such as the eyes of the great mage White Raven gleaming a great variety of purples and blues, creating an image of a spiraling iris in which no pupil was visible, for example. These patterns are wholly unique between individuals, though their may be some similarities, such as the Bejeweled Generation, who were named so due to the emergence of eyes in some members that shone in such a way that they were mistaken for precious gems. In most of these cases, the pupils are rarely ever visible, though they still seem to function perfectly in spite of the great light emanating from them.   Once a Divine-eyed mage perishes, their brilliant light fades, leaving their eyes devoid of any sign of abnormality. This effect can be used at will by one with the Divine-eyes, manually dimming their light so as to pass for a regular person. This is reportedly a difficult technique to master, especially for mages of this class who were born into it, the reasoning being chalked up to having lived their entire life seeing their own eyes in one form.  

Capabilities

  Besides the emitting of a strong ocular light, magicians of the Divine-eyes are benefactors of a potent boon, in that they seem highly attuned to the Arcane Current. Even natural-born Divine-eyes who are not taught about the Arcane Current have a predisposition to perceiving it, able to follow the otherwise invisible flow of ambient magic stemming from sentient life. The advantages to this inherent quality are considerable when performing the act magic in of itself, since knowing how the general flow of a population's perspective interacts with one's own intended vision allows for more efficient casting, on top of being able to anticipate and counteract other types of magic without necessarily understanding their intricacies.   While any mage who reaches the Divine-eyes state is, without a doubt, a force to be reckoned with by their sheer magical might, not all members of this class are made equal. After all, the divide between the Divine-eyes and the mages below them, the Exemplars, is less so a sudden jump than it is a gradual step, as it is between all classes of magician. So it stands that some mages of this highest class go on to eclipse their contemporaries, cultivating a stock of soul-force that far exceeds the capacity of all but those who are either born or have earned their way to a similar state. This is best exemplified by Mado Yua, the great lord of Tolu, who was from the start of his life a true-born Divine-eyed mage, but through the many centuries of training and conquering became akin to a living god, with eyes that blazed so bright it hurt to look upon his face. His power was so great that he performed many feats of magic largely thought impossible, including the raising of six artificial mountains, carving a river channel spanning a small country and, most famed of all, mastering true shapeshifting. It is that dominance of magic that allowed Yua to subjugate an entire continent and overcome all challenges against him, including several other Divine-eyed mages who although themselves mighty could not hope to match the Serpent King.  

Cultural Impact and significance

  Besides the impact that Divine-eyed mages deliberately make upon other people, the mystifying phenomenon inspires various reactions across the many societies on Az. In most cases through the Mythic Era, cultures will venerate and revere such magicians, hailing them as godly figures and follow their every whim, with the few societies that scorn magic seeing the condition as a portent of misfortune. The latter group would follow up on this perceived threat by banishing any Divine-eyes in the vicinity, or killing babies born with the status and those who would resist banishment.   In the Enlightened Era, there are far fewer stigmas directed at these potent magicians. Instead, major and minor powers are more interested in controlling and acquiring such individuals, hoping to fortify their influence and expand their reach to greater distances through the might of magic. This is due to the global renaissance in understanding magic, largely through the exploits and research of the Scion-students order of mages, who have spread their findings far across the globe. The only societies who still hold negative views towards the Divine-eyes condition in the current day are those isolated villages and island populations, who have no contact with the outside world and as such have had no pressure to change their customs.