Yaksha are fuelled by what they call the Divine Light, which burns away ignorance. In truth, this is merely lightning. Any yaksha can store lightning within their bodies and use it to fuel certain powers:

A yaksha has many shapechanging abilities: they can take almost any animal form (using up lightning by various degrees, depending ont he animal); they can exchange gender/sex with other beings (using very little lightning); and while on Shem, they can vanish utterly (using a great store of lightning). They can possess others briefly, leaving them bereft of reason temporarily (taking their inner Lightning), and they can teleport anywhere they have been before within the plane they are in (using an amount of lightning dependent upon distance). A yaksha can command animals, usually as steeds (lightning-usage depending upon animal). Yaksha can also restore an extinct species (of anything) by using up their own Inner Lightning (thus eradicating themselves).

Yaksha will be reincarnated after expending themselves as either apsara, gandharva, or gandharvi.

Apsaras are known for their beauty, which rivals that of nymphs. Regardless of their Divine patron, they can command both clouds and water at will. They are all excellent dancers, and they can all shapechange at will. They can influence games of luck and chance, and every apsara will have a 16 or better in at least one performing art other than dancing. They can fly at will (often using their elaborate clothing to imitate wings), are immune to possession, and have been known to cause other beings to physically alter themselves in order to remain in their favor. They can grant fertility to barren women once a year. They also have the ability to turn demons at will once per month.

Gandharvas are skilled singers. Their voices, originally the source of thunder itself, are booming and bold. They are formidable warriors, very fast, skilled charioteers, rangers of the skies, and talented musicians. They can create illusions at will, created lightning around their weapons, fly without aide, control horses, and turn precious metals into electrical energy. They have high scores in reason and wind sciences.

Gandharvis are very rare. They possess half the powers each of apsaras and gandharvas, plus a few of the yakshas, and any their Divine patron wishes to grant them. They are both male and female, and they have bodies that reflect that.

A yaksha is, at its core, a protector of nature. Being the children of Vangarad, the King of the Celestial Pillars, they are often referred to as elemental angels. On Shem, the yakshas dwell in caves, tree roots, or lakes, protecting them. They will guard the innocent, assail those who would hurt the natural domain, and challenge servants of the Pillar Divine in order to teach them and guide them.

Legends tell of yaksha guarding ascetics of the Pillar Religions.

A yaksha will take on the color of their preferred Divine long before they make their choice. The "colors" are Bronze for Vangarad, the most common; Rose (pink) for Felesia; Ochre for Jarikir, the next most common; Aquamarine for Keserel, also very common; Red for Praithur, fairly common; Quartz (clear-greenish brown) for Gaule; Flint (grey) for Baurkhan, one of the more rare; Topaz (clear-yellow) for Yandui, a very common one; Glass (clear) for Radalgo; Uranium (black) for Ur, an increasingly common one; Teal for Mysana; Steel (white gold) for Dallion; and Sepia for Omar-Hurshul. Rare ones also choose Hoary white for Fysala or Gold for Zephidia.

After half an Age of life, generally, a yaksha will have gathered enough lightning to expend themselves in order to restore a species to Shem (usually something sacred to their chosen Divine). At this time, if they have been virtuous in the eyes of their chosen Divine, they will be reincarnated as their choice of apsara, gandharva, or gandharvi.

Apsaras are often employed as entertainers in the Divine courts. They are the natural wives of gandharvas, but they often also pair with fallen heroes, Immortals, and even the Divine. The ten most beautiful each Age are chosen as the handmaidens of Vangarad, as his Lightning Dancers or Daivika, and thirty-four (Laukika) are chosen each Age to dance the skies of Shem, showering it with lightning. The Daivika are often paired with the most faithful to Vangarad as "prizes" if, and only if, the individual apsara agrees to the pairing. They also often tempt ascetics of their chosen Divine in order to test their faith, rewarding them if they resist. It is said that spreading flower petals before them is one of the best ways to show affection.

Being basically objects for the Divine to use has left its mark on the apsaras. Many resent their enforced roles and rebel, creating non-aligned apsaras who have abilities entirely derived from the sphere of Kellari. These apsaras are generally cursed to ugliness until they can find their own "worth" and restore their beauty. Some, however, embrace their "ugly" forms.

Gandharvas are warriors, messengers, and musicians. Their preferred instruments are wooden cymbals and veenas. Their roles are either as entertainers or guards and soldiers. The best of the warriors are either guards of the Soma, the plant-derived drink of all akka, or as charioteers in Vangarad's armies. Gandharvas are the natural husbands to the apsaras, but some choose to marry gandharvis, mortals, Immortals, or even the Divine. A gandharva marriage to anything other than an apsara must be of mutual consent and without formal ritual, or the gandharva will stray from the marriage bed.

Gandharvas on Shem like to dwell in areas where the air is filled with the scent of bark, sap, and blossom. They wander the wilderness and test the faith of ascetics and monks of their chosen Divine. Aquatic flowers delight them.