Lyr(?) - Sona First Draft

I'm giving a try to making a sona. This is my best shot at it right now, but this design is subject to so much change - the name Lyr is also subject to change, but I chose it because it's very musical, very similar to names I've gone by in the past, and also very gender-neutral. Which is important! I don't think I want to have a particular identity attached to someone I assert my own persona on, y'know? Just think of it as a pangender situation right now.

Appearance! What isn't particularly touched-on in this reference is that those tail designs glow. (Even the bulb.) The flesh there is not covered by fur, but rather just by amphibian-like skin which becomes more and more translucent as the tailtip is approached, and the bulb there is actually in the center of the flesh. The cord coming out of it reaches out to the edge of the skin, where the golden designs let off a consistent glow from just underneath the skin. The other markings do not glow, but if the yet-undecided power that is held presumably in the tail bulb is overused, the teal color will spread to all of the markings and glow furiously. Like a cartoon bomb about to explode, beams of light going in every direction. Generally, when the power is used, the tail markings are all that change, in ways detailed below.

Powers! I have some thoughts, but they're all up in the air right now. If anyone has thoughts, they'd be very welcome!

Modification: The ability to change temporarily one basic property of something (material, size, or strength). Largely without limit, but the farther the change strays from the original, the more power is used up. When material is changed, there are flecks of teal that flow through the gold like it were a fluid. The density of these flecks indicates the volume of power which has been used, and if overused, the freckles are first to go teal and shining. When size is changed, the teal spreads from the bulb out to the edges of the gold, and the farther it has spread, the more power has been used. The feet, in this case, are first to go, the natural teal spreading out to the edges of the inky blue. When strength is changed, a steady beam of teal is shot through the gold, and the thicker this beam, the more power has been used. In this case, the eyes are first to go, losing their whites and the natural glow overtaking any shine. After the power has been overused, the color of the markings dim and will continue to grow darker until the user can either regain raw magical energy or get enough restful sleep for it to regenerate on its own.

Light Sensitivity: Simply the ability to make any markings glow. The tail always glows, but the freckles can act as concentrated beams, the feet can highlight things the tail cannot reach, and the ears are an indicator of mood. The sensitivity comes in when this power acts as a magical dowsing rod of sorts. The tail can be instructed to point toward the strongest magical 'signal' it receives. The markings will glow more strongly the closer they are to this magical signal. The ability is incredibly precise, but strong magic that is being used with malicious intent saps the light from the markings and causes everything except the tail markings to go black. Even the eyes will go pitch dark, but if the bulb goes out, all is lost. On the contrary, strong magic used with good intentions can short out the system and cause all light to go out. The markings will return to just that, markings, and the tail markings (including the bulb) will retain their color but lose their glow. The bulb retains a faint sheen, but if this flickers out, this power could be entirely lost. Strong magic with objective use, like wards of some kind, can trigger an overload and cause magical damage / radiation to those nearby, as well as the loss of consciousness.

Lightning: Using the magic stored in the tail, anyone touched by the bulb can be delivered a shock. The strength is able to be controlled if the ability is trained, but using too much will harm the user. If the ability is left untrained, accidental shocks are easy to deliver. Electricity can be discharged without contact as well, but it takes much more strength to do so and often the caster will not be able to produce any shocks for some time afterwards.

Runic: The ability to comprehend information at a startling rate. This information is converted into something almost physical and stored inside the bulb after a complex filtering process through the gold veins. This information can be transferred to others (but lost by the user) by extracting a drop of the bulb's liquid and having the other person consume it. If someone consumes this liquid without the user intending to transfer information, information relating to what they were currently thinking about will be transferred instead. Feeding the user too many falsehoods, however, can lead to devastating consequences, clogging up the filters when they learn contradictory information and eventually leading them to not be able to process even simple object permanence. The falsehoods must be extracted and transferred in order to reinstate mental function.

Reservoir: Metaphysical things can be given to the user (and taken from the giver), to be stored physically inside the bulb. For example, memories, feelings, and magical abilities (more specifically, the complete presence of a magical ability, spells, facets of a magical ability, and raw magical power. Drawbacks of a magical ability cannot be given without their accompanying powers.) The user can touch the bulb to another person or the original giver in order to transfer one of the stored things to them. If something is stored for more than a week (collectively, not just in one session), that thing will integrate itself with the user and no longer be able to be transferred. If too many things are being stored at once, the aspects cause mental strain on the user, leading them to lose some language comprehension, hallucinate, and dissociate.