Sensory deprivation

"Alec cuts off all physical senses - sight, touch, hearing, etc. - from anyone, human or vampire. He is also able to extend his power over a large group of humans or vampires at the same time. His gift manifests as a mist, nearly invisible, that moves slowly away from himself toward his object, blanketing all the space in between. He is able to project this mist several hundred meters. He can also control who his mist affects, allowing the other Volturi soldiers to kill his senseless victims easily."

- Entry on Alec's gift

Sense deprivation is Alec's power to cut off people's senses: sight, taste, smell, touch, and hearing. It is known as one of the most powerful gifts in vampire history.

Description
Alec can use this power more than one person at the same time, and it takes the form of a slow white mist — like fog — that gradually moves toward the victim. It is the opposite power of Jane's gift but is equally powerful and much more effective in battle. The Volturi would use it to paralyze their victims' sense of feel if they felt kind towards them, so that they wouldn't feel the pain of being killed. It can be used like an anesthetic, but this doesn't happen often. The only example given is: If there are witnesses to a unforgivable crime, Aro may feel kind to them, as they have done no wrong; they have only witnessed and not committed a crime but they still need to be destroyed nonetheless. Furthermore, he can manipulate his mist, and willingly make it repel from those he does not target.

When his power touches Bella's shield, she says that she can "taste" the power and that it has a dense, sweet, cloying flavor that dimly reminds her of the numbness of Novocain on the tongue.

The mist he creates can move accordingly to his will, allowing him to select individuals he wishes to target while leaving others alone; this allows his fellow guard members to easily execute their enemies. He can also manipulate the effects into merely incapacitating few senses, or incapacitate them all at once.

In the movie, he channels the power through his hands; it takes the form of a visible black smoke that slowly moves toward his target, though he can retract it with his mind.

Limitations
Although this gift is powerful and affects several targets at once, it takes a few seconds to take effect on the victim as the mist flows toward him. During this time, the enemy can either attempt to escape or attack the user before his power takes effect. It also only lasts for as long as he is able to focus, and on whoever is in his sight. For this reason, Alec is often protected by the Volturi guard, allowing him to use his power without interruption.

In Breaking Dawn, Alec attempts to cut off the Cullens' senses and those of their allies while they talk about the punishment to be given, but thanks to Bella's shield, his ability is deemed useless.

Origins
Alec's power manifested already in human form, though it was much weaker and unstable. Whenever someone treated him and his sister with kindness, they were always rewarded with fortune, and those who did the opposite always met misfortune. Eventually, the villagers became too frightened with him and his sister that they decided to burn them at the stake. While being burned alive, Alec focused all of his power into escaping the pain that was tearing him apart, which sharpened his power into a specific form right before Aro saved them.

Similar abilities

 * 1_Jane.jpg[[Jane]] - Alec's twin sister - has the exact opposite of his gift. She can make any one person she focuses on experience excrutiating illusory pain of fire, which is comparable to the pain of being burned alive. Like Alec, her power is merely a powerful illusion.


 * Zafrina-306726_429622447080987_2050679132_n.jpg[[Zafrina]]'s ability to create illusions is strong enough to block the sense of sight. Her power is also long ranged.