Stan worked in many different systems, maybe you are confusing a bit...
The energy come from the space time anyway according to our theory, in electromagnetic field form. As voltage potential is not "consumed" in an electronic circuit, while still realize work in terms of force. This work derives from the same energy source that accelerates a gauss gun for example.
To know what you can do with the space-time you need to learn its rules... faraday and tesla left one of the greatest indications of its nature on their experiments with induction...
A permanent magnet is not magnetic it self, IT INTERACTS with space and it lets the magnetic proprieties of space time to become evident and take place at that specific space... But is understood that this magnetism is not free to move anyway it is permanently bound to the fabric or structure of the space time. If you change the permanent magnet position than you are showing the magnetism of another portion of space-time...
In the gauss gun example, if you take the analogy to gravity force, you get energy in joules= mass * Gravity * Height than its clear that as the height changes energy is coming from somewhere to accelerate the mass, we call it gravity... but the energy is coming from where? I mean the force field is there but when it acts energy is coming to sustain the condition that it still attracting...
In the electromagnetic case the force increase squarely as the distance decrease linearly...
"Our" current systems, are limited to thermodynamics laws because they use movement as the only existent source of the energy and uses this electromagnetic proprieties only to mechanically move electrons in a wire... Thereto is clear that classical mechanics will explain your decrease in energy because of conservation of momentum and so on... but is not valid for all kind of machines that we are able to create if we mind the space time proprieties.
food for though
