For more information regarding the physics behind the pseudofundamental force called qama by scientists, "magycka"/"magick"/other varients by the lay person, I highly suggest the following links!

1. Origins of the Karyic Universe
2. The Anomalous Periodic Elements of the Karyic Universe

However, a TL;DR would be as follows:

• Karya's universe has the same elementary particles that our own has, as well as seven additional particles that don't follow the normal laws of physics that we know, and are deemed "anomalous": the inertial and delta quarks; the inertial and delta bosons; the qamon; and the almegon and almegon neutrino.
• The inertial and delta quarks can form menons and metabons, respectively, when individually paired with one up and two down quarks. These menons and metabons, in turn, can form atomic nuclei in addition to neutrons and protons, orbited by an "almegon shell" akin to an electron shell, to create the various "anomalous periodic elements" that are unique to the Karyic universe.
• These anomalous elements will passively generate small amounts of qamons from their nuclei, and will actively generate more when subjected to various physical and chemical stimuli, including coming into close proximity or direct contact with other anomalous elements.
• The qamons will then be released outwards and interact with the local environment, producing a wide variety of affects and effects depending on the anomalous element(s) involved.

Now after all that, you might be asking: "That's all well and good, Gobbi, but how do these elements and particles relate to how qama/magick is employed by people?"

The answer? Biochemistry!

As you can see in the third and fourth images, the various organisms on Karya have the same twenty protein-forming amino acids that those on Earth have; they also have almost the exact same codon codes as each other. However, on Karya there exists twelve additional amino acids, in sets of two, with each set having different bonded anomalous elements of opposite anomalous values (i.e. Change or Permanence). These amino acids are employed in the creation of proteins that are meant to either generate, alter, or shield against/contain qama. Despite only 3% of Karyic species being known to have varying degrees of qama manipulation, many of these species are rather common across the planet, with some holding significant value to Karya's peoples.

Probably the most familiar instance of qama manipulation, though, is that found within every person on Karya: the qamagenous system. All known sophont, "humanoid" animals possess this organ system, although not every individual may be capable of innately manipulating qama, or have a limited affinity towards it there entire lifetime. The major features of the qamagenous system are the...:

...Qamaneural Communicator (A/B)

A "second brain" of sorts, often referred to as one's "inner mind" in various Karyic cultures, the qamaneural communicator (A) is an organ comprised of the same cells present in the central nervous system that surrounds it. Much like the brain, this organ is divided into several lobes, dubbed...:

• ...the endofrontal lobe (Ai)
• ...the endoparietal lobes (Aii)
• ...the endoccipitemporal lobes (Aiii)
• ...and the processing lobe (Aiv)

The endolobes of the communicator receive information from the neurons of the associated lobes of the brain, and communicate back and forth with the processing lobe to determine the person's intent, among other factors, when it comes to producing the desired affects and effects.

As a general rule of thumb, this requires a degree of focus and knowledge/experience on the world around the qamamancer (one who is capable of generating qama; in other words, a "spellcaster"). However, since the practice of qamamancy has arose and become standardized among a variety of cultures on Katya independently of each other, there's always more than one way to accomplish the same task depending on how an individual has learned to interpret how qamamancy works.

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After the qamaneural communicator has finished processing, it sends signals down the qamal nerve (B), which joins with rest of the central nervous system at the base of the spinal cord. The nerve then branches out at multiple locations of the body, controlling various portions of the qamagenous system.

...Minor Qamagenerator (C)

Approximately a third of the axons present in the qamal nerve are used to enervate the minor qamagenerator (C). Located within the upper abdominal cavity, below the diaphragm, this small organ is responsible for producing minute amounts of qamons simply from the close interactions of anomalous proteins. The reticulated walls of the minor qamagenerator's outer lobes (Ci) contract, bringing these proteins closer and generating qamons in proportion to how close they come together. Other proteins help to redirect the qamons to the organ's inner lobes (Cii), which, depending on signals from the qamal nerve, will send them through either the inferior (Ei) and/or superior (Eii) major qamal vessels, respectively.

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...Major Qamagenerators (D)

If the qamamancer desires to produce an affect/effect that the minor qamagenerator isn't capable of doing on its own, then the qamaneural communicator sends signals to the major qamagenerators (D). These organs are capable of taking matter directly from the surrounding body, via microscopic tubes, qamal siphons (Div), capable of anomalously and rapidly taking up several cells at a time and quickly sending them down the Ducts of Silona (Diii) to the qamal sacs (Dii). The matter from these cells and other tissue components are then, via means currently not understood fully, annihilated and converted to qamons, before being sent down the Ducts of Ÿmora (Di) into the minor qamagenerator's outer lobes. Each outer lobe is connected to exactly one major qamagenerator.

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...and the Qamal Vessels (E/F)

Once the inner lobes have provided the direction for the qamons to , they will rapidly travel either down and/or up the inferior (Ei) and/or superior (Eii) major qamal vessels, respectively. All qamal vessels are lined with a small layering of cells called the endoqamothelium (Fii) rich in anomalous proteins that act in a similar way to lightning rods to offer a path of least resistance to the final destination for the particles. Superficial to this is a basement membrane (Fiii) that helps shield against qamon leaks that could potentially damage the surrounding body; the outermost external membrane (Fiv) then provides stability and strength to the overall structure while keeping it flexible.

The qamaneural communicator will send signals at various junctions along these vessels to further determine the path the qamons will take; this can either prevent or allow the qamons to go down a number of smaller minor qamal vessels (F). These vessels continue to branch into the smallest qamal capillaries (not pictured for simplicity), and terminate either internally or externally. A qamal capillary then ends with a terminal funnel (Fi) that is capped with what's referred to as the transmutation membrane (Fv). This membrane, comprised of three layers of cuboidal cells, is dotted with small, fluid-filled chambers (Fvi) that the qamons will preferentially pass through; as they do, surrounding cells produce a variety of anomalous chemicals that enter these chambers, altering the properties of the qamons to produce the desired affect/effect of qama.

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Now, it's probably safe to assume that that's all that there needs to be known about qama/magick?

WRONG!

Excluding the exceptionally few, all people on Karya are born with a completely formed qamagenous system. However, along with needing the practice to properly master the manipulation of qama, and adequate nutrition to help develop the organs further, certain genetic factors can change the ease of strength at which one may manipulate qama.

Two genes in particular seem to affect...:

• ...the concentration of anomalous proteins produced by the cells lining the inside of the qamagenous system (represented by the alleles C, for low concentration, and c, for high concentration); and
• ...the initial amount of neural connections between the central nervous system and the qamaneural communicator (represented by the alleles N, for no natal connection between the two, and n, for a present connection between the two at birth)

The Punnett square (6th image) can help determine the initial potential of an individual when it comes to manipulating qama.

1. CCNN (1/16 chance, or 6.25% of people) = extremely low concentration of anomalous proteins and no natal connection between the central nervous system and the qamaneural communicator. Such people have extreme difficulty being able to "get in touch" with the ability to manipulate qama, and often take decades to have any notable qamamancy abilities.
2. CCNn (1/8 chance, or 12.5% of people) = extremely low concentration of anomalous proteins and a simple natal connection between the central nervous system and the qamaneural communicator. Such people are able to learn how to manipulate qama at a "normal" pace, although it may take a while for the strength of their abilities to shine through.
3. CCnn (1/16 chance) = extremely low concentration of anomalous proteins and a complex natal connection between the central nervous system and the qamaneural communicator. The qamamancer has an innate affinity to wielding qama, although only starting out small prior to any meaningful training.
4. CcNN (1/8 chance) = low concentration of anomalous proteins and no natal connection between the central nervous system and the qamaneural communicator. Such people have extreme difficulty being able to "get in touch" with the ability to manipulate qama, although they often are able to immediately pull off minor feats once they do so.
5. CcNn (1/4 chance, or 25% of people) = low concentration of anomalous proteins and a mild natal connection between the central nervous system and the qamaneural communicator. Such people are able to learn how to manipulate qama at a "normal" pace, and they often are able to immediately pull off minor feats once they do so.
6. Ccnn (1/8 chance) = low concentration of anomalous proteins and a complex natal connection between the central nervous system and the qamaneural communicator. The qamamancer has an innate affinity to wielding qama, and they often are able to pull off minor feats with only moderate effort.
7. ccNN (1/16 chance) = moderate concentration of anomalous proteins and no natal connection between the central nervous system and the qamaneural communicator. Such people have extreme difficulty being able to "get in touch" with the ability to manipulate qama; however, once they do they find they are capable of a rather impressive array of qama affects and effects.
8. ccNn (1/8 chance) = moderate concentration of anomalous proteins and a mild natal connection between the central nervous system and the qamaneural communicator. Such people are able to learn to manipulate qama at a "normal" pace, and are able to pull off rather strong affects and effects with their manipulated qama.
9. ccnn (1/16 chance) = moderate concentration of anomalous proteins and a complex natal connection between the central nervous system and the qamaneural communicator. Such individuals usually require very little training to manipulate qama, and are often treated with awe, respect, and fear by their peers due to how easily and powerfully they can do so.

It should be noted that not all are roses, though. The recessive genes related to qamamancy often coincide with more than one birth defect/disorder/etc., raising infant and early childhood mortality by a significant amount. What's more, being able to manipulate qama does not necessarily equate to having good control over such abilities, leading to a higher risk of injury or death to self or others due to carelessness/inexperience.

One also doesn't necessarily need to be able to generate qama themselves. Many individuals have managed to use materials rich in anomalous elements to create a multitude of topical or ingestible concoctions to impart temporary affects and effects ("qamal chemists", otherwise called "alchemists"), or creating impressive tools, weapons, and other inventive objects that are capable of generating qama due to their anomalous compounds ("qamal engineers", otherwise called "artificers").

In general, less than a tenth of all people on Kayra will experience qama directly, and even less will go on to become qamamancers.