The Art (short for the "Art of Lying to the Face of God")[1] is a general term for what can essentially be called ‘Magic’ in the multiverse of Kill Six Billion Demons.
It is often explained as the practice of lying to the universe convincingly enough that it becomes true; as such, it's heavily reliant on the practitioner’s will and desire to make something true.
It is generally split into sub Arts: Red, White, and Black, with each possessing their own distinct applications and intricacies.
Overview[]
There is some confusion as to what is and isn't part of the Art in action as some abilities are not clearly defined as either Atum Manipulation (i.e. "Soul-Empowered Martial Arts"), the power of a Key of Kings, or the aforementioned Art.
This is implied to be a result of the webcomic's nature and themes which are often purposefully abstract and self-contradictory.[2] However, there IS evidence that abilities granted by a Key of Kings are simply extensions of The Art achieved more easily through pure will, and with more power.[3] As the staple ability granted by a Key of Kings that is cutting space-time was achieved by the demiurges before they received Keys, such as Zoss arriving in Throne.
"Art" Types[]
- Red Art: Warps existing inanimate matter through speech, often transmuting, animating, transfiguring, bending or manipulating it; it is often signified by the red hue induced by applying it (lines or words of red) and the red-colored effects (red petals, red globs, etc.).
- White Art: Warps the self, allowing for abilities like teleportation, shapeshifting, cloning, projecting from your Atum weaponry, growing additional limbs and enhancing physical capabilities; it is often signified by white-colored effects such as lightning.
- Red-White Art: warps another living being, applying the capabilities of the White Art on another entity, warping the target, often maliciously by changing their physical form or mental state, allowing cursed red words that instantly subdue, confuse, silence, or kill, transfiguration into trees or structures, or benevolently granting an allied warrior iron like skin.
- Black Art: creates something from nothing, allowing the direct ex nihilo creation of matter, energy, and life, possibly including entities, souls, and as the Multiplicity did when they formed the universe, worlds.
Using the Art[]
The Art is described by many sorcerers as making their own small alterations to a story as it's being told. Another description some use for the Art is that using The Art is the ‘art’ of realizing that the entire universe is an illusion cast by the Flame Immortal, which permeates all things. In theory it is very simple, but learning the ways to force your will on the universe and the right way to speak (when speaking is neccesary) could take anywhere from a single month to a thousand years. The universe is sustained by the pure flame of the Gods themselves, the Flame Immortal, which permeates all things: naturally, it takes a powerful and confident will to change that. This is evidenced by the fact that there are hundreds of schools of sorcery, but very few real sorcerers.
Most external uses of the Art can be contested by an equally powerful will. For example, one sorcerer’s will to turn bolts of air into fire can be equally contested by another’s will to turn them into beautiful flowers. If a practitioner was to will another person to die, they would not only have to contest with lying to the universe, but also the other person’s will not to die, which can (predictably) become immensely difficult in short order. An example of how the art shapes combat is that bullets or projectiles of all kinds are less useful than a sword against an accomplished sorcerer. Since a sword is a physically held object being used as a tool (and thereby partially imbued with the wielder’s will) it is much harder to affect. It would be easier for a sorcerer to turn bullets into butterflies than it would be for them to turn a gun someone is holding into sand, for example. An example of this is when Jagganoth used his own mastery of the White Art, and the white lightning that signifies it, to cancel the attempted teleportation of Allison and her allies away for Rayuba.
Since wielding the Art is difficult, most sorcerers find it easier to focus their will through a physical object instead of purely from their mind. This implement often takes the form of a bell, charm, mirror, sword, or something similar. Casting without implements is extremely rare.
It is said someone that masters all three arts can spin the wheel and laugh at god (negate recent actions, mentally or physically travel backwards in time). But such a man or woman would be true royalty, and beyond the petty applications of the art in the first place.
Users of the Art and Learning the Art[]
The Art is highly coveted, and its users, while not unseen, are rare and powerful individuals. Many people make use of the art at a rudimentary level, or interact with its constructs without having much skill in it. For example, a person may learn a certain word to turn a wall into a door, or use a paper messenger, without any knowledge of how these things came to be. It’s also common for people to make use of tools with magical properties (such as devil flesh or blood).
To use the Red Art one must speak clearly and coherently. For that reason, sorcerers can be disabled or restrained by being gagged or held mute. They are often punished or crippled by having their tongues or other speaking organs ripped out.
Users of the Art are referred to commonly as sorcerers. The most common (and poorly regarded) types are Vattra (Marked), who gain their power most often through devil power (often through devils themselves, who are more than willing to feed people the Black Flame in exchange for contracts or debts and the repair of their masks). The three other kinds of sorcerers are Tellans, Tongues, and Teeth. Tellans gain their power from folk legend, storytelling hedge magic, and hearsay. Tongues engage in esoteric and solitary study and are usually ascetics. Teeth are rigorously trained to gain their ability, often for war or administration. All three tend to look down on the Marked as weak and impulsive.
Most deities seem to be knowledgeable about the Art, though some are arguably more proficient than others. In contrast, far fewer inheritors possess the ability to use the Art and those who can vary wildly in terms of relative power.
Thorn Knights, for example, demonstrate the ability to travel through space-time,[4] but their mastery over this system pales in comparison to Jagganoth, a member of the Seven.[5] Furthermore, use of the Art does not appear to be limited to the person who casted the magic, as Zoss has been shown transporting Allison to and from Throne, both directly and indirectly.[6][7]
Illustration: King of Swords 4-37
Acquiring Ability in the Art[]
An easy way to acquire ability in the art is through devils (by being given the Black Flame directly through a contract or through consumption of devil flesh), since they are natural liars and have a less tenuous hold on reality due to their chaotic nature. Doing so caused a small mark or deformity, known as a Devil’s Kiss, to appear on the body, a small tumor or part of the body which has been turned Devil, and can grow to consume the user.
The Red Art
The Red Art involves changing the existing physical universe or non-animate matter. It is explicitly vocal in nature. Someone could use the Red Art to transfigure bare stone into gold, to warp a wall into a door, or to bend the illusion of life into inanimate objects. Equally, a practitioner could use the same principles to harm by igniting the air into bolts of fire or animating swords to fight on their own (collectively called "Pyromancy").
Predictably, it is the most common and versatile art by far. One important aspect of the Red Art is it needs materials - it must transfigure, bend, or warp something that is already there (for example, bending the dust in the air into an illusion of life). The closer the base material is to that of the desired result, the easier a Red Art user can do it, for example: Turning iron into gold is far easier than water into gold because the former is a transitional metal on the periodic table (the same as gold) whereas the latter is a liquid formed out of two types of nonmetals (hydrogen and oxygen).
To use the Art, more specifically the Red Art which is most common, the practitioner simply refines their will into a cutting edge and speaks aloud (sometimes not speaking at all), lying about the nature of the universe. “This is not an apple,” they might say, “but a plum”. Then said apple will become a plum, if that’s what they prefer. The nature and limitation of the Red Art is that it changes that which already exists into something else. For example, under Cio's guidance, Allison transfigures the very air into a plum. The Red Art of Dominion has yet to be explained in detail, but Vatra also use this system according to 82.[8] It has been used by Cio on multiple occasions to manipulate paper.
Known techniques
Paper Soldiers: The user speaks a short chant which transforms into a red strand. The strand is then threaded through a stack of paper men which suddenly increase in size, sending enemies flying outward. The user can freely manipulate the movement of the paper, either to cleave a target to to form a defensive wall.[9][10][11]
- SILENCE: The user issues the command / compulsion, forcing the receiver to bring their hands up to cover their mouth. The flesh of the hands then bind around the mouth - effectively preventing speech. Loabarrisleb used this upon Allison when she and Cio visited the Heretics Court. Seeker of Thrones 5-48
The White Art[]
The White Art is the ability to change the self and one’s own perceptions. It is a very rare, powerful, and prodigious ability. Common uses include dividing the universe to teleport short or long distances(even across dimensions), divining hidden knowledge or casting your perception across dimensions, and aligning your soul flame (or atum) to physically transform your own body. Practitioners can shrug off bullets and blades like water, leap incredible distances, or see through twenty-foot thick walls. The White Art is extremely hard to master and rarely sees use except by grand masters and very powerful or prodigious sorcerers.
Usage of this system dates back thousands of years, as the gods are said to have used Division to transcend creation.[12] According to 82, Vatra also study Division, so it is implied knowledge of this art has been passed down or rediscovered over the ages.[8]
This system has varying uses, mostly based around the manipulation or perception of space-time. Some known uses are the ability to literally cut things, divine hidden knowledge, move at imperceptible speeds, and to track beings moving through dimensions. When the White Art is used it typically manifests in a display of white lightning or streaks similar to the glint of a blade.
The White Art can also be used to warp space in order to teleport vast distances. The Magus Gates are especially potent in this regard, as they grant one the power to move instantly through various states of reality.[13]
Despite it being most famously used by the demiurges, wielders of the Keys, the white art does not require a key to use. It is possible the various applications of a key of king's powers are but assisted manifestations of the White Art.
It is rumored that the ultimate use of the White Art is to turn back time, but this has never been observed.
Known techniques
Annihilation: The user destroys a target by force of will. By using this power, the gods are said to have transcended reality.[14]
Teleportation:[15] The user divides reality and space. Their essence becomes separated from their body, revealing a naked, jet-black form of the person.[16] This is known as casting a shade.[13] If the destination is in the physical world, the user's body will reassemble in a new location.[17] If the user attempts to enter the void, the user will instead assume control of their shade.[18]
The Red-White Art
The Red-White Art is a mixed art, more common in many uses than the pure White, but extremely rare and difficult in its most powerful uses. It is utilized to use the Red Art to affect others (since their perception of self must also be altered), by changing their physical form or mental state. Common uses are in baleful transfiguration, or baleful warping (also known as cursing or red words). During the great war between demiurges it was used to turn men’s skin to iron, reduce great kings to babbling idiots, or warp a warrior into a story-high monstrosity. At its peak practice, it can be used to kill with a single word. For this reason, its practice is taboo: restricted and even forbidden in many sorcerous circles and even many worlds.
It has been used by the demiurge Mottom to turn a man into a tree and to destroy Gog-Agog’s head.
It's possible that Incubus' abilities to affect other people is also a form of Red-White magic... his pinkish aura suggests this, too.[19]
Known techniques
Perish: The user says the word perish aloud and points at their target. The area they pointed to is hit with incredible force and explodes backwards, as if the gesture held tremendous kinetic force.
The Black Art
The Black Art is the rarest, simplest and most awe inspiring Art. It isn’t known if any practitioners still live. The Black Art has only one fundamental use, and that is to create something from nothing. It is written in the few texts that speak of its study that this ability can be used to further kindle the Flame Immortal and create life and souls.[20]
Black is extremely rare, has very few practitioners (none of the demiurges can perform it) and it is only used for one purpose, which is pure creation (something from nothing). The red art requires existing material to warp, white warps the self, black requires none. It isn’t known if any practitioners still live.
Techniques of Unknown Origin
Shapeshifting: The user transforms their body, clothing, or both.[21][5]
Floating Boats: Changed through the Art to ignore natural laws, carved stone or wood boxes at the middle of a ship allow it to float. Their manufacture is extremely difficult and guild-dominated.[22]
Notable Users
- All known deities
- All known demiurges
- Cio
- Eris-Lo Kai