Kius Mental Abilities

     
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Telepathy

Telepathy is the ability to send and receive thoughts from other people.
All Kiuses develop telepathy while in the womb - though "mental deafness" (those lacking telepathy) does happen on occasion. For all races, telepathy is enhanced through touch.
This skill is usually range-based and is similar to a walkie-talkie. Except for very rare instances, Kiuses don't hear the mental voices of all those around them, they have to "tune in" to one person, or a small group and send their message.
There is also wide-range broadcasting - often used when one approaches a village - that all people in the general vicinity can hear.

The telepathic range of the different races varies but all races share a subconscious telepathic bond with each other that keeps their language and culture somewhat uniform.

Telekinesis

Telekinesis is the ability to move objects with one's mind.
This is a skill that Kius children learn alongside manual dexterity. As they learn to grasp and lift a pebble with their hands, they'll also be taught how to grasp and lift that same object with their minds. Some races have better telekinetic skills than others; for instance Deer Kiuses are only capable of moving light objects (like leaves or a bundle of sticks) from about ten feet away. Mountain Kiuses - on the other hand - can fling a boulder five times heavier than themselves from anywhere within their field of view.

These skills are considered "macro-kinesis"; there's also "micro-kinesis" - telekinetic manipulation on a small to microscopic scale. Winged and Snake Kiuses excel at this. Winged Kiuses us micro-kinesis to shut down the flow of sap to knots in the trees they make their homes in. Without nourishment, the wood inside the bark of the knot shrinks and dies. A hole is cut in the top of the knot and the inside is lifted out, leaving behind a cavity large enough to dwell in. The top hole is covered in wicker and leaves and other holes are cut in the bark as access points and windows for the new home.
Snake Kiuses use micro-kinesis to change their physical forms to anything they wish.
There are also healers of the "Older Races" (which includes the Cave, Spider, Mountain, Winged and - by default, the Kakiu) who can telekinetically mend broken bones and zap infections with a thought. This, however takes a fair amount of practice and training to perfect and few possess such delicate skills.

Pyrokinesis

This is the ability to generate fire with one's mind.
Among the different race this is the most varied skill.
Kiuses are not the only ones to possess pyrokinesis - most small mammals of their world will produce a burst of pyrokinetic fire around their entire bodies to ward off attacking predictors. This is similar to the jump reflex in Earth mammals. The fiery burst is so quick that it won't ignite the creature's surrounding, but it will most certainly surprise the attacker!
Through evolution, Kiuses have lost the burst reflex; fire is produced at will, usually focused in or around the hand. Most all races can generate a fireball strong enough to light a cooking fire. Pyrokinesis is a learned skill and it's rare for a child to "stumble" across the talent accidentally. Children are taught simple pyrokinetic skills when they're deemed old enough to understand and handle the responsibility. They are taught more advanced skills as they grow older.

Pyrokinetic fire produces no heat and - if well controlled mentally - will not ignite surrounding objects. Once released from one's control however, it will light tinder or anything combustible. A thrown fireball will sustain itself for several seconds on air alone and will burn its target. The potency and longevity of a fireball is based solely on a person's ability to imbibe the fire with enough energy to sustain itself before it runs out of fuel. Some Kiuses will hold a piece of combustible material in their hand - say a bit of wood or a wad of bracken - and allow the fire to ignite it just as they're throwing it to allow the fire to last longer.

The Older Races possess the strongest pyrokinetic skills. A person with strong innate talent and through practice can produce and control fire so minutely that they can create forms of specific objects and animals that can move in life-like ways. These are often on a small scale and must remain fairly close to the person to maintain control (usually levitated over their hands), but the effect is stunning none-the-less. Most people of the Older Races are capable of producing a ball of fire that can hover over their head and produce light when needed. Of the Older Races, the Winged use fire the least. They live in lush, dense rain forests and using fire is impractical and often dangerous - they tend to use it only for light, cooking and self defense.
The Younger Races can only produce enough flame to light dry tinder. The Deer hardly use pyrokinesis at all; some don't even possess the talent. The Snake and Crystal use it in about the same capacity as the Winged.

Teleportation

Kiuses are able to project their minds into a lower astral realm they call the "Stop Place". In the Stop Place one can still see the physical realm but it can't be interacted with. The physical world appears dark and misty and distances are obscured. Movement in this plane is achieved by thought alone, so those who stumble into it accidentally often panic from lack of physical control of their bodies. Also the fact that they can typically see their physical body near them in what-ever position it was in when they left the physical plane (or the "Heavy Place") can be unsettling.

Those who are comfortable in the Stop Place - or are mentally prepared for it - however can utilize one of its great potentials: moving their physical body from one place to another in the blink of an eye. By thinking of a location one wishes to be, their astral form instantly shifts to that locale. This is not enough however because it then takes a fair amount of concentration to "pull" their physical body to the place where their astral body is. This process may take a fair amount of time from the perspective of the person whose teleporting, but is instantaneous to those in the Heavy Place.

It takes a great deal of energy to pull off, especially if one is trying to cover long distances, and the person is often incredibly drained both physically and mentally after the maneuver. The physical body serves as an anchor and the farther the astral form wanders from their physical body's location, the more concentration must be used to maintain the person's present position; if their concentration is broken the person will simply "snap back" to where their body was to begin with and the backlash can be more traumatic than actual success.

Needless to say, few individuals try this feat. Though most all races know the theory behind teleportation and acknowledge it's possible, few have any desire to do it. The notable exception is the Kakiu - who readily use teleportation when they raid villages. Their enhanced mental abilities allow them to move more easily through the stop place but it still requires a far amount of training and effort to do it efficiently and they're still limited by how far they can move their bodies at any one time.

In response to the Kakiu, the Cave Kiuses - who lack the protection of a Grand Chief and have always been at odds with the People of the Whole - have developed an "order" - if you will - of people specifically trained from youth to spend large quantities of time in the Stop Place and to patrol villages in the astral realm.

The Spider Kius Grand Chief has always been able to move easily through the Stop Place, though they rarely use this talent for several reasons - a main one being they can not use their power to kill any Kakiu they mentally come in contact with while in the Stop Place.

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