The magic of Maroon comes to humans in many ways.
The Cincture, an agreement first forged in the early days after the rebellion against the First Folk, regulates the overt expression of a mage's power within the Old City and later, the provinces. Any mage who has undergone mandatory training at the Academ receives the plain hempen belt of the Cincture, signifying her agreement to be bound by its authority and laws. Unbelted mages are forbidden from using their craft in any public capacity in Vindulan.
Arcane
What is it like to be a Belted mage? The answer lies in the Academ, where men and women who can sense the wind are trained. Trained is a misnomer, though. There are no classes, as such, for each person studying at the Academ must come to their understanding in their own way and time. The works of past Consiliars, High Deacons, and other women and men of talent are gathered in the library there, available for transcription and study, but they are merely guides. Officials in the service of the Academ visit on a volunteer, rotating basis to give lectures and demonstrations. The only class as such is the basic safety course that all Belted mages must undergo; until a mage is cleared of this primary requirement and takes the hempen belt of the novice, no further access is granted to the resources within.
Divine
The Church of the Three adheres to the tenets of the Cincture, and as part of ordination, a clerk of the Aspects must earn the plain hempen belt of the novice. Several Aspects of the Arcane have taken the White in furtherance of their journeys, and Boddigan, the first Aspect of War, famously took the Red after the Beacon had lost Hilgarden, taking command of the Beacon under order of the Council.
