Manna is the source of magic in the world, and therefore is dependent on the strength and health of Implanta. Any person who can harnass the power of manna can as a result use magic to some degree. The maya, as the ones who planted the Tree in the ground, are the race most sensitive to manna and have full command over its ebb and flow. They are also the most susceptible to changes in manna. Denera experience varying sensitivity depending on how much maya blood flows through their veins. The lequera, however, are entirely unable to sense manna and are unaffected by its presence or absence, knowing about its existence only in the abstract sense that it is the building block of life and the world can't survive without it.
Most magic is conjured via channeling, a state in which the magic user enters a deep concentration in order to control the manna inside their body and project it outward. Many mages use objects to assist in this channeling process; these objects can be anything they wish, from actual weaponry to a toy to a small stone.
Every living creature has a unique manna signature, similar to a string of DNA. While it is extremely uncommon, it is not impossible for two individuals to share the same manna signature, and people with similar manna signatures can share unique benefits, such as blood transfusions or organ donations. Manna signatures are intrinsically tied to the body of the person, rather than their soul.
Manna signatures are also the foundation upon which maya, denera, and spirits can determine what race another person is. Such an ability requires close proximity, though that proximity is again dependent on how sensitive they are to manna.
Though most forms of magic are elemental in nature, elemental magic involves the manifestation of one of the eight elements in a typically offensive way, though these manifestations can be used for more mundane purposes outside of combat.
Each element is directly opposed by another element, and coming into contact with an opposing element can either negate the impact of the original element or severely overtake its power depending on the user's strength—For example, using ice magic can halt the effects of fire magic in most cases, or it can overtake the fire and encase it entirely in ice, if the wielder is strong enough.
Those who can wield elemental magic can almost always utilize at least six of the eight elements (water, lightning, earth, wind, fire, and ice), but many magic users opt to specialize in one specific element of their choosing. This is not always the case, however, and some may choose to become jacks of all trades or strengthen their powers in a handful of elements. Weaker magic users, such as denera with very weak maya blood, may be born with the ability to call upon only one or two elements. Stronger elemental magic users may even have the innate ability to use light and dark magic, though this full spread of elements is quite rare in denera. The maya, on the other hand, can utilize all eight elements freely.
A magic user must be trained in some way in order to harnass their abilities effectively. Without that training, they are unable to call upon the elements at will and are liable to accidents because they don't know how to control their own power. Higher-level elemental magic requires a summoning spell to be chanted in order to channel the manna properly, but low level magic requires very little preparatory work.
The manifestation of these elements takes the form and quality of the elements they're likened to. They all have equal potential for destruction, and as a result the maya who live among lequera society are highly sought after in the military. The denera, on the other hand, are relegated to low-status and dangerous positions that treat them more as expendable cannons than valuable assets, especially as magitechnology has advanced and become capable of replacing magic users in battle.
Light magic is the easiest and most accessible form of magic that can be used, and even full lequera can wield light magic in very limited capacities by undergoing rigorous training of their bodies. However, if a person is not born with a natural inclination to use light magic, the product will be considerably weak compared to their innate abilities. On the other end of the spectrum, darkness is the hardest element to wield, and even maya often struggle to maintain control over the power, despite being innately born with it. Very, very few denera can wield dark magic, and it requires intense training to gain a command of it.
Healing magic is a very particular manifestation of light magic. While many stronger elemental magic users can utilize healing magic to some degree through training, some users are born with the innate ability to heal. Healers have an incredibly strong command over more offensive light magic due to the intrinsic nature of the two manifestations of light magic.
Just like with elemental magic, there are stronger and weaker forms of healing. Only the strongest healers can do incredible feats of magic, such as bringing someone back from the brink of death. The average healer is able to close open wounds, but many can't permanently erase a scar. Strong healers are rare even among those who can wield healing magic, but weak healers are a dime a dozen.
After a decade of research, an especially strong mage known as Boltzman developed a special healing technique which can heal afflictions caused by exspheres, particularly the exbeluification of the body upon the removal of an unprotected exsphere. This has been highly sought-after research due to the surge of exsphere technology in the last twenty years, but seldom few have been able to master the technique, and even maya find the technique difficult.
Summoning requires the active participation of the summon spirits, and as such few effective summoners exist at once due to the tiny limit of spirits who can make pacts with the mages. Oftentimes, summoners don't have access to elemental or healing magic innately; rather, their bodies act as envoys for the spirits to channel their own manna through. While some can learn how to utilize their own body's manna to cast spells, it does not come naturally do them, and the resulting product is often weak and ineffective—especially compared to the immense power the summon spirits allow them to wield.
The maya are not necessarily an exception to this rule, but those who are more naturally gifted in summoning magic are usually weaker in both elemental and healing magic.
In order to make a pact with a summon spirit, a vow and a test of worth are both required. The summoner must approach a spirit and make a promise that they intend to fulfill in exchange for the spirit's power, and if the spirit agrees to the terms, they will challenge the summoner in combat. If the summoner can overcome the trial, the spirit will become tied to the summoner, and the summoner's body will thereon act as a vessel for the spirit. A summoner can forge pacts with multiple spirits, but the limit is dependent on the strain the body can take on; more spirits will create a greater burden for the summoner, and complications may arise as a result.
There are spirits less powerful than the summon spirits which rule over the world and its elements. These lesser spirits can accept pacts just like the greater spirits, though their power is much more limited, and therefore the summoner's power is weaker.
If the summoner's pact is ever broken for any reason, the pact will become void, and the spirit can therefore forge new pacts with any subsequent summoner who seeks them out. However, so long as a new summoner has not yet overwritten the pact, the previous summoner can still utilize the spirit's power.