The humans call is magic. But it's not magic. There are energies and forces in the universe that simply can't be explained.

But the Drath  know it. They have lived it.  On the planet Altaria they have seen it.  Long ago, the Drath were the supreme sentient species on the planet Altaria. They were self-aware on a world with no rivals.  Then, the skies became lit with a fire that lasted for years. It was just light but they knew it foretold of a doom. 

The world shook when the dark Mithrilar, one of the guardians of the universe, collided with the world and slept for long eons.  It was during this time that a new creature seemed to have evolved out of nowhere. An alien species evolved alongside the Drath. At first, the Drath paid little attention. These newcomers were tiny (an adult Drath stands 20 feet tall and can weigh nearly a ton) and they were weak.  But in time, the newcomers, who we now know as the Altarians, became numerous and seemed to be able to inherently manipulate invisible energies. 

Some Altarians could move objects, others could actually cast destructive energies. In time, the Drath themselves came to be able to manipulate this invisible energy but only at a much lesser level. The main capability they gained was to morph, over a period of many hours, into other forms (a non trivial effort for a being that is so massive).  This power inevitably attracted the attention of the Precursors who were already at war with one another. The Altarians chose sides and the world was laid waste.  The Drath never forgave the Altarians for the cataclysm. The Drath stayed largely out of the Precursor wars. But at the end, with their world ruined, most took the Arnorian (the victorious faction of the Precursors) to relocate to another world. A few stayed and became the subject of myth until at last, the few Drath that remain on Altaria remain safely disguised.

Even on their new world, the Drath remain interested in the ways of the ancient past. Unlike the humans and other races that consider these energies as being magic and superstition, the Drath recognize it as simply another form of energy and that all energy and matter is ultimately the result of sub-atomic vibrations, not all of which can be measured and not all of which are naturally present. The unknown quantity on the planet Altaria was the long presence of the Mithrilar whose being was fused with this powerful energy that eventually permeated the world of Altaria and forever changed it and those that lived on it. The Drath also recognize that the two Precursor factions -- the Dread Lords and the Arnor are powerful only because they are able to directly manipulate this energy. Their ability to do so is apparently inherent in their existence. If the Drath can learn to master this energy as well, they will never again be at the mercy of others and their relatively low population will not be such a hindrance.