Hello everyone. Evo here and I wanted to go over the Five Realms that circle around the Shimmerverse. I know I should have done this sooner, since this is an integral part of the universe, but eh. Things came up.
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Realm of Magic

The Realm of Magic is the most common and quoted of the Realms. It is the most prevalent source of energy of Equis, beating out even the forces of Life in how the world needs this continuous supply of Magic to survive. Scientists and mages alike can attest that during the 'The Great Unification' the Realm of Magic was the most influential of the realms thereafter on the plane of True Existence, our realm. It seems to have molded itself into every fiber of our beings.

It is the easiest to access, with unlimited reserves. However, the rate that can be transferred from the realm to TE {True Existence} is limited to the living being's magical capacity. Magic's natural ability to pervade and stretch reality is what makes it so potent. Users can create and manipulate the world around them by simply reorganizing reality itself into a new shape, texture, or whatever the wielder wants. Within their capacity, of course.

Magic relies on order. One must be clear and concise with it, or it won't work as intended. It is a literal usage, so it can have it's dangers if not properly coordinated. As well, while the world is incredibly saturated, magic isn't entirely compatible with Life. If one draws in too much magic, more so then a body can naturally manage, they risk 'drowning' in it. The magic will start to break them apart from the molecular level, dispersing it. It is an incredibly torturous experience and one that unicorns face if ever their horns are broken. The same risk applies to many other more magically oriented species.

Realm of Life

The realm of Life is the second most prominent Realm to interact with ours. It is the definite source of all living energy and scientists and mages have postulated that it was open to our world long before 'The Great Unification', however in much lower doses. The Realm of Life is the basic life energy that all living creatures naturally exude. It is the life force that pumps through a creature and allows life to exist.

While creatures can naturally tap into it, only some of them can bend it to their whim. It's much firmer then Magic, so it takes much more skill and concentration. Not every race can achieve this as the more 'unnatural' Realms can interfere with Life casting. Druids are the most famous examples of Life casters. To work with Life energy, you need to work with the existing laws that govern the world. While you can manipulate creatures, their energy remains constant. So Druids have to use their own energy and that of the surrounding area to use their abilities. It is a give and take system, that can lead to many great rewards and losses if one is not careful. Life casters have to work with the natural world and honor the Life spirits if they are to get anywhere with this field.

As well, it gives wielders a mastery of animals and plantlife. The ability to create new creatures or command entire packs of living tree like creatures, Timerwolves and ents, have made this a staple in most armies and civilizations. Many natural buildings have been constructed with the aid of skilled Druids.

Realm of Light

The Realm of Light is the most purest of realms. Defining good will and light itself, this is the realm that defines sun gods and the like. They draw their power here. Creatures that can manage to draw power from this realm, however unlikely, can boost their own strength up to even demi-god levels. It gives an immense relief to its wielder and holds the strongest of healing spells. There is of course certain circumstances a creature must have in order to use power from this particular realm of existence.

Only the purest of heart can hold power from here as only they can hope to withstand this realm's burning gaze. Most ponies or other species that attempt to draw power from this realm will only incur a burning and agonizing death. This is why it's sometimes nicknamed the realm of fire. With strong healing abilities and fire and light based attacks, these units are skilled in quick time battles and medical aid where nurses and doctors fail or can't perform as effectively.

Realm of Darkness

The Realm of Darkness is the Light's counterpart and it's antithesis. It has the least influence on the physical world and the hardest to get a hold of. Many would say that is for the best. The Realm of Darkness is a realm where only the harshest and cruel of creatures arise. Vile energy pollutes everything that dwells or touches it with such hatred and fear that most are driven to nothing more then slobbering hateful beasts.

Very few can access this realm as it requires the caster to have shrouds of darkness over their hearts. Overtime, with successful uses, the realm will corrupt the wielder. It will drown the soul with shadow, each pump of their heart spreading loathing and disgust for every living thing around them. The pay off is spells and techniques unlike any other realm, allowing the wielders to achieve heights they couldn't dream of before.

To properly use the realm of Darkness, one must also be adept at using souls in their spells. This realm requires a constant source of soul energy. Most spells don't require much else then the caster's own life force, but many of the more competitive spells and monster summons require soul sacrifices. This is why most races deem Dark sorcerers as evil and do their best to limit or outlaw the practice of using this realm's energy.

Realm of Chaos

The strangest of all realms, The Realm of Chaos defies every logical rule of the world simultaneously. Every aspect of this realm makes no sense that a proper mind can't grasp it. It twists reality and plays with the conscious. At heart, the realm isn't maliciously doing this. It's only acting as itself. The world needs chaos in order to balance harmony as it would just stagnate otherwise. However, there are certain aspects of it that must require caution.

Chaos bleeding into the world has cause the rise of many new and dangerous creatures. Chaos warps standard DNA patterns and can create unstable creatures. This will also effect corpses, which is why chaos mages are adept at zombie unit making or why rogue 'chaos hot spots' will be full of decaying beasts and sapients. Life is made a mockery in the face of chaos. As well, one has to be wary when using chaos energies. They can easily destroy the mind and put even the sanest of individuals in an insane-asylum.

To use chaos spells, one has to think without literal meaning. You have to break rules and common certainties and give suggestions for new ones. Aside from insanity, there are the dangers of chaos daemons themselves possessing mortals. While deadly, they are less concerned with killing with purpose like those of the realm of darkness, and more for fun. Whether by parties or killing. This is why chaos mages are branded by the sigil of gods. In the case of Equestria, that sigil is that of Celestia herself. This keeps wielders, somewhat, staple and daemon incursion unlikely.

Question, when a Shimmerverse inhabitant travels to another universe, one far removed from theirs do they lose their connection to the Magic realm and by extension lose their magic powers?
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5724449 To answer simply, yes. They have to have a connection to the realm. However, if there is a steady connection between the Shimmerverse and whatever universe they are in, even if it is minute, they still keep their magic.

5724449 I almost forgot to mention, while they lose the connection, they can still use magic if they have magical artifacts or gems that have magic already stored within them. Magically enhanced objects still work as long as they don't need to be charged, so most armor and weapons can still work in environments cut off from the realms. As well as abilities a user has innately that don't require contact with the realms

Yeesh, it seems easier to use chaos magic for good than darkness magic. Can it be used for good, or is it just pure evil? Have there been any exceptions?