The Atomic Theory of Magic

 Magic and nature. Somebody tell me the first thing that comes to mind when I say those two words. For me, it’s a druid, a mage who slings spells in the name of the natural world. Their magic greatly consists of effects that alter plants or animals, or creates and destroys such things. That, however, is merely a cantrip in the connection or simulation of magic and nature.

 Some graybeards study a thing called Atomic Theory. It is the proposal that you, I, and everything else in the planes is made of particles so small a fleck of dust houses a trillion of them. Some theories go on to say that there are elemental properties attuned to each particle, and they group together to form everything. Got that? Good. It gets more complicated. Less common essays, such as one I once wrote, go on to detail colloraries of this theory, saying that when positive or negative spin is applied to one of these particles, they become quasi-elemental, forming such parts of the Inner Planes like Ash, Smoke, or Ice. As I once wrote, ‘If spin makes quasi-elemental particles, then what is positive or negative energy?’

 Further research detailed that positive and negative spin comes from waves of energy. Those waves are made of void particles. That is to say, stuff that exists but isn’t there. These particle’s-well-mere presence shifts the particles out of balance, and depending on the spin they’re given, they begin to become lighter and lighter, thinning out matter nearby, while negative spun-particles gain mass to the point that even energy is drawn to it. However, I’ve gotten off-topic. What I want to focus on is the energy before it gives matter its spin.

 These ‘void particles’ are composed of energy that is not elemental or spun at all. Theoretically, Boccob’s Disk of Concordant Opposition is made up of this stuff. When it interacts with matter, it can, as I’ve said, give it a positive or negative spin. But in theory, the void particles could become any kind of particle or energy. It can be influenced by other sources of power, whether it is aided by other beings, or altered by alternative sources of power (Using the Word, for instance). So wizards seek to master one of these alternative energy sources, so they can manipulate the void particles. The Word, a primordial language created by ancient beings, is the most common used source, practically the default method. It is my theory that all mages gain a minor influence over it. Divine magic users, like the clerics of the powers or other forces, use the droplets of divine energy provided by their source of power. Sorcerers have an inborn knowledge of the Word, passed on by a great ancestor.

Where do these void particles come from? The Source, I think. They are part of the natural world. Actually, they are the natural world.

 Metamagic, or the alteration of spells, is the concentration of void particles. Certain configurations of these particles provide components to how a magical effect acts out, much like the numbers in a mathematical equation. When these clusters are given the magical kick-start, they’ll act up, and the ‘equation’ is fulfilled. However, this ends up utilizing more energy than the spell would normally use. I’ll get into this now.

 Why can’t a mage do this all day, you ask? Because the action is incredibly draining upon the caster, for wizards at least. The Word can have a nasty backlash effect on the soul, although that’s just a wild guess of mine. Other sources of magic, like a cleric’s divine energy, are simply used up like fuel, or otherwise simply given a limit by that which provides the magic.