POV: You, dear reader.
In the world of The Scream of A Thousand Libraries, powers do not originate from birthright, gods, or ancient rituals, they are gifts from something much simpler: books!
Each reading is a living experience, unique and irreplaceable.
When a reader delves deeply enough into a work, that experience manifests as an Enchantment, a form of magic that reflects the essence of what was understood, felt, and absorbed.
Enchantment
An Enchantment is a magic acquired through a moment of deep insight while reading a book. It embodies the learning or emotion of that reading. Its form and functionality are based on two fundamental factors:
Interpretation Aspect – Defines how the enchantment manifests, including its rules and descriptions.
Reading Domain – Defines how strong and essential the reader's bond with the book is.
Note: The number of enchantments does not directly depend on your PQs. A reader may have 200 PQs and only one or two Literary Marks.
Interpretation Aspects
Aspects determine how a power manifests based on the interpretation of the book:
- Literal (Physical): Elements of the book materialize in the user's body.Example: strength, armor, mutations.
- Analogical (Spiritual): Skills or weapons are recreated as magical energy.Example: summoning symbols, symbolic manifestations.
- Connotative (Sentient): The user emulates the sensations evoked by the book like fear, hope, pain, ecstasy, amplifying or softening them in battle.
- Denotative (Absolute): The user becomes the very essence of the text, living it word for word as a literal avatar of the work.
Enchantment Mark (Literary Mark)
- Every dominator carries a special "Bookmark" that records the signatures of their main enchantments.
Each mark has a color that defines its corresponding Reading Domain:
- Blue – Secondary Dominator
- Purple – Primary Dominator
- Red – Authorial Dominator
- Gold – Generational Dominator
Types of Reading Domain
- Secondary Dominator: Common readers who use basic experiences from a book to craft spells.
- Primary Dominator: Those who deeply understood the work, becoming the main magical representatives of its ideas.
- Authorial Dominator: The actual author of the book, the originator of its knowledge. Their enchantment cannot be used against themselves.
- Generational Dominator (Theoretical): An individual who masters an entire literary genre. Extremely rare, nearly mythological.
A widely discussed theoretical concept in enchantment literature concerning the possible existence of individuals who have earned the domain seal of an entire literary genre. These individuals vividly represent enchantments that define that genre as a whole.
It is believed that very few of them have ever existed, such as Pear, The Performer of the Sway. A legendary authorial and possibly generational dominator of the connotative literary aspect, he lived in the Kingdom of the Anglos between the 1st and 2nd centuries A.B. (After The Book).
It is believed that his enchantment was The Swaying of Being, which created a rift in reality by evoking the doubt between being and non-being. He could emulate the core emotion of any scene or situation.
Dominion Time Principle (DTP) or Mastery
- Refers to how long a reader has held a specific Literary Mark, determining their depth of mastery over that enchantment.
Mastery Level -- Time with the Mark.
Supreme -- 30+ years.
Master -- 20-29 years.
Experienced -- 15-19 years.
Proficient -- 10-14 years.
Intermediate -- 5-9 years.
Beginner -- 1-4 years.
Difference between Reading Domain and Mastery (DTP)
A mage may possess multiple enchantments at different levels, but the key factor is the level of Reading Domain and DTP of each enchantment.
A higher DTP in an enchantment doesn't necessarily mean its Reading Domain is also high. The Reading Domain influences the nature and potential of the power, while Mastery (DTP) reflects how proficient the user is at applying it.
In other words, if a mage holds a Secondary Domain enchantment with Supreme Mastery (Example A), they may still defeat a Primary Dominator with only Beginner or Intermediate Mastery (Example B). Although Example B's enchantment is naturally more powerful, the user lacks the practice to wield it effectively.
There is an old metaphor that illustrates this well: The Swordsman Metaphor.
Suppose the Reading Domain is the material and specifications of the mage's sword, its size, shape, and blade details. The DTP or Mastery, then, is the time and training the swordsman has with that sword.
Indeed, some swords are stronger than others due to their material. a damascus steel sword is tougher than a bronze one. However, a master swordsman with a bronze blade is still deadlier than a novice wielding damascus steel.
In the metaphor, the Master Swordsman represents Example A, and the student represents Example B. Although the student's sword is stronger, their inexperience reduces its effectiveness. The master, despite the weaker weapon, uses it with far greater efficiency. This principle governs how enchantments work and the dynamic between Reading Domain and Mastery.
Papyrum Quantity (PQ) – The Mana of Readers (Magical Energy)This measures an individual's magical energy, based on their accumulated lifetime reading.
National PQ Average (ALA – Annual Literacy Measure):The average PQ of a country—known as the Annual Literacy Measure (ALA), is calculated by the average number of books read per year multiplied by 50 years.Examples: Brazil: 100 PQs, Portugal: 200 PQs, and Canada: 600 PQs