Aurora

The Aurora is the field of ELAN Energy that pervades much of the Sol System, and allows for the Bright to focus energies from it and channel abilities depending on their chosen Resonance. What a Bright can do with the Aurora is determined by a mixture of their personal skill, experience, and strength of connection with the Aurora - known as their Glow - and the strength of the Aurora as it exists where they are. Most of the explored and settled worlds of the Sol System have a presence of the Aurora of varying strength; generally, the Core Worlds have substantial Auroras present, whereas it is far thinner in the Mighty Worlds; dropping to nearly zero in the Worlds Afar, with only a minimal presence on Poseidon and its moons. This in particular means that traversing the Sednan Domain is particularly dangerous for the Bright, as they are barely more powerful than a baseline human without the powers that they often take for granted.

In reality, the Aurora is the collective remaining "soulstuff" of humanity that had existed throughout the Sol System before the Shattering; although the Bright have no stronger souls individually than any others, the pooled energies of the billions killed in the Midnight Protocol are what makes up the Aurora that they draw from. Similarly, it is also why the Aurora seems to only pervade some of the worlds of the Sol System, and why it peters out to zero towards the edge of explored space.

Those who use the Aurora will channel it in different ways, dependent on the personality or spirit of the Bright. Four of these Resonances in particular are near-ubiquitous, although the exact manner in which the Aurora is utilised varies all the way down to individuals, with each Bright having a fingerprint to their Glow.

Breath
The Resonance of Breath represents motion and its manipulation.

Breath is often sought by - or perhaps it seeks - Bright who find no better home than one with the winds at their backs, whether it be in the cloudy skies of Earth, the mighty storms of the gas giants, or the flares of Sol herself. Those attuned to Breath can simply let the world around carry them, or sail in search of anything that can keep their wheels turning, their minds and bodies in motion. Sometimes this shows itself as impulsiveness, as recklessness, as riding carelessly into the jaws of danger; and no Breather would deny the certain thrill that goes with riding the fading edge of the Aurora at the cusp of the Worlds Afar. But, drifters that they are, Bright of Breath are often the first to find new opponents, new discoveries, and perhaps even to toy with new ways of channelling the Aurora beyond those already known.

Archetypes
Individually, those infused with Breath are frequently skilled beyond words in movement. This could be anything from graceful free-running to ponderous orbital mechanics; either way, it is common to see Breathers understand aspects of motion instinctively, basking in the freedom afforded to them in movement they feel to their bones.

The schools of Measured Breath are home to Bright who focus on grace, moving with definition and weight. Every motion is intended, every gesture building force to build a wall of wind, one that can guard oneself or throw others back with tremendous force. On the other hand, some choose to hone their edge, and the schools of Windswept Breath see Bright that are fast and relentless, capable of shifting through space faster than most can see. Some do this merely by their own flow of movement brought up to impossible speeds, but others can dip in and out of realspace to bypass solid barriers; others leave a turbulent null-space wake behind them to cut their foes to ribbons. And others still can reach into null-space with their Breath held tight, inverting it and clenching reality itself against their enemies, seizing opponents to ensure their blows strike true.

Heart
The Resonance of Heart represents bonds and their vitality.

The Resonance of Heart is what binds the Bright together, what allows them to stand tall as such a formidable phalanx against what horrors the vastness of space may bring. Bright of Heart can be strong of conviction, their resolve unshakable - whether to defeat their foes, defend their allies, or aid the innocent. Yet Heart also is what draws Bright away from the frontlines, from the constant heat of battle and back to their homes, to those they care about, to those who need them. Not all are invulnerable bastions, but all are there for others, with open arms and stout hearts - in one way or another.

Archetypes
While the bonds of Heart strengthen one to foes without, their individual Bright are the most open within. They heal wounds, they amplify Glow - but those of Heart are often the kindest, the most open, the most sympathetic of the Bright.

Those of the school of Honoured Heart are every bit the titans that the stories of legend make them out to be; the keystones aligning teams together, rallying and marshalling the great forces they wield to strike blows far greater than the sum of their parts. But while it may seem antithetical to the concept of alliance and bonds, those of Venturing Heart are just as supportive as their more steadfast counterparts, staying close to those who need them and assisting their teammates one-on-one. These Bright are often seen darting back and forth across a battlefield with perfect flow, healing wounds one ally receives before empowering another's thundering blow, weaving them together in a perfect cadence of Aurora.

Inverted Heart Resonance, however, is arguably the highest risk school for any practitioner. One must not only know their own allies' weaknesses but reach out to sense those of their foes, and becoming a conduit for vital energies to be drawn from one to the other puts one in a uniquely vulnerable position. But the utility, the raw power of such a synergy - of draining foe to aid friend - cannot be denied.

Lens
The Resonance of Lens represents vision and its clarity.

Pulse
The Resonance of Pulse represents energy and its flow.