Into the Tides Book Bonus: Earth Powers

Today is a little book-bonus! In posts such as these, I'll give you extra information from my novel that you won't find in the book itself.

In Into the Tides, people who have magic are called "Powers." Each type of magic has a different set of capabilities, which is based on genetics. And for each Power type, there are 6 different levels of ability, called classes, with 6th class being the weakest and 1st class having the most magic. How a person's class is determined is based on what they can do.

I've been working on creating descriptions that explain what each Power type can do, by class. If you're reading the book and wondering what the characters are capable of, and what they would be capable of if they were higher in class, you can find out!

Here's more about earth Powers. Owen, one of the characters in the book, is a fifth class earth Power looking for a job after having recently moved to Wisconsin. Only, seems he may not have had the best luck in finding an employer...

A non-exhaustive list of some Magic Types
Power	Class	Capabilities/Limitations
Earth	6-	Passive: Sense presence of metals contained within touched nonliving surface (such as ground, pipes, wooden furniture; cannot identify type of metal; range 2 feet from touch) Active: Sense presence of metals within 10 feet of touch; sense flaws in touched metal object within 2 feet (such as bubbles/internal cracks/etc)
	5	Passive: Sense presence of metals contained within touched solid surface (4 feet from touch) Active: Sense presence of metals within 20 feet of touch; identify metals within 1 foot (with training); sense flaws in touched metal object within 10 feet; sense density of touched object within 3 feet; send minor vibration into touched object to depth of 10 feet Character note: Owen, at fifth class, seeks employment in the construction industry, a common industry for earth Powers.
	4	Passive: Sense presence of metals contained within touched solid surface (10 feet from touch); identify metals within 1 foot Active: Sense presence of metals within 60 feet of touch; identify metals within 5 feet (with training); sense flaws in touched metal object within 60 feet; sense density of touched object within 10 feet; precisely locate flaws in touched metal object within 10 from touch; send minor vibrations into touched surface up to 60 feet deep
	3	Passive: Sense presence of metals contained within touched solid surface (30 feet from touch); identify metals within 4 feet Active: Sense presence of metals within 90 feet of touch; identify metals within 10 feet (with training); sense presence of flaws in contiguous touched metal object within 300 feet; sense density of touched object within 30 feet; precisely locate flaws in touched metal object within 30 from touch; sense presence of metals in surface without touching within 20 feet; send moderate vibrations into touched surface depth of 2 feet and minor depth of 90 feet
	2	Passive: Precisely locate metals contained within touched solid surface (30 feet from touch); identify metals within 10 feet Active: Sense presence of metals within 120 feet of touch; identify metals within 30 feet (with training); sense flaws in contiguous touched metal object within .25 mile; sense density of touched object within 60 feet; precisely locate flaws in touched metal object within 30 from touch; sense presence of metals in surface without touching within 30 feet; send moderate vibrations into touched surface depth of 10 feet and minor depth of 120 feet; cause a minor vibration located within 30 feet from an untouched object/area
	1+	Passive: Precisely locate metals contained within touched solid surface (30 feet from touch); identify metals within 30 feet; sense origins of vibrations in ground within 60 feet Active: Sense presence of metals within 150 feet of touch; identify metals within 60 feet (with training); sense flaws in contiguous touched metal object within 3 miles; sense density of touched object within 90 feet; precisely locate flaws in touched metal object within 60 from touch; sense presence of metals in surface without touching within 60 feet; moderate vibrations into touched surface depth of 30 feet and minor depth of 150 feet; cause a moderate vibration located within 30 feet from an untouched object/area; cause a 9 square foot area centered around self (1 inch x 1 inch point of contact is the center) to vibrate moderately (equivalent of standing in a magnitude 4 earthquake; vibrations travel minor 10 feet past moderate area), cause a 3 square foot area to vibrate strongly (equivalent of a magnitude 6 earthquake; travels 5 feet as moderate and 9 feet as minor)

Earth Powers frequently take jobs involving pipelines or metalwork. While earth Powers have been documented since Minoan Crete, it is believed the first documented cases were actually telekinetic Powers, as the ability to sense flaws in metal was never included in descriptions. By mid-Roman times, however, the link between metalworking and earth Powers was clearly established, and this is considered to signify the birth of the actual earth Power. Until the Industrial Revolution earth Powers had special status as craftsman and weapon makers.

Their ability to sense contiguous metals is also of much use in exploring for valuable resources, as it can aid in establishing the depth of metal deposits. As such, earth Powers were often sent as members of exploration parties, and the gene therefore became particularly widespread. Exactly which nationality originally produced the earth Power gene is unknown, although most theories point towards Egypt. However, a second school of thought has the Egyptian history taking second place to nomadic Sarmatians, later acquired as prisoners of war by Egypt as slaves via the Mongols; genetic tests tracing mitochondrial DNA so far support this theory, but whether the common ancestor of the earth Powers was an earth Power, or simply a telekinetic Power, is unclear.

By the Roman theory, the modern form of earth Power, with the ability to sense surroundings, evolved approximately concurrently with the Roman line of travel Powers. The Native American line of travel Powers is thought to have emerged after contact with the Norse peoples, and the earth power re-emerged within a few generations, where they were revered similar to the (now thought to be extinct) sense Powers.

(Sense Powers could enhance perceptions, such as scent, sight, or taste, for themselves and others. However, as far as the public knows, the last known sense Powers died out after interactions with--and depredations by--colonizing Europeans.)