The Gift of Swaying

The Gift of Swaying, also known as A Way With Words, is a Terabian gift that is very rare. Using a partial ability to sense the auras of others combined with a very specific aura of their own, people with this gift have the ability to say the right thing, at the right time, in the right context, with the right voice inflection and body language to turn the hearts of everyone they encounter.

While it is supposed to only be used for good, mostly to turn rebels back to the right path, those with this gift are not bound to Terabi and can become corrupt, using their gift to manipulate others to do their bidding. If this is not corrected, Terabi will know about it and will take it away and destroy the offender.

The most famous example of someone with this gift yielding to temptation and becoming corrupt was Terabi's War, in which three men with A Way With Words banded together and nearly drove Kiillaana into the ground in their lust for power. All three fell by Terabi's wrath and good was ultimately restored, but not until after a lengthy battle with much death, bloodshed, and the destroying of hundreds of cities. Though dark in nature, this battle gave rise to the Kiillaanian hero, Slade Burke.

On the other side of the coin, there is one gal, Rosemary Larkin Summers, who has this gift and though she is quite blunt and not always very nice she is fiercely loyal to Terabi and uses her gift as it's intended. Her angry lectures make her audience feel sick with shame and the sharp words aimed at those who make fun of people like her husband deal a quick but piercing blow to the soul. Every slap to the face of a rude boy from her hometown and every biting word to a friend or enemy doing the wrong thing is done out of love and with the intention of changing bad ways into good.

Not everyone with this gift is violent in its usage. Every Terabikai has this gift automatically, since they can feel the exact emotion of the person they're with, and it extends past words to action when words are unnecessary. The Gift of Swaying is a lesser form of Perfect Empathy. For Terabikai like Nathan Surcaston and Dr. Sorela, most of their Gift of Swaying is in their actions and much less in their words. Nathan is well-known for his ability to do the right thing to cheer anybody up and rarely has to use words when doing so.

There are many people who are able to charm their way out of situations because of who they are. Most do not have A Way With Words but instead have the gift of boldness and are able to do things in a way different enough from the norm that a different reaction is produced. Others are good with words and are confident in their dealings but do not have this gift as they don't have the power to speak to the souls of their recipients.

This gift can be confirmed by an Aikada (a person imbued with the permanent ability to call the mark of Terabi and Osai in order to confirm those with the Great Catin Gifts) because A Way With Words comes from Terabi.