A Treatise on Beings

Below is a transcript of A Treatise on Beings by Yusik.



Content
Written by Yusik whilst in the prisons on Hornud.

The complete existence of any living thing is made up in part by the heart, soul and body. If a being were a puppet, the heart would be the puppeteer, the soul would be the strings and the body would be the actual puppet.

Of the Heart
The heart is one of the three essential parts to a being and gives the being emotions, feelings and desires. It has many properties yet to be fully understood and is filled with darkness and light. A heart full of only light or darkness is very powerful.

Loss of the heart can lead to death, but beings that have strong willed souls can live on without them. These heartless beings may enter catatonic states until their hearts are restored or they may also lead to shell-like beings, driven on by memories of emotions. Such a being has no real emotions and by the proper definition of a being, shouldn't exist.

Hearts without a protective body or vessel are vulnerable to influences around them. In the presence of powerful darkness or light, they absorb it.

Some beings find it beneficial to lock and/or hide their heart but this often leads the heart to be open to receive more darkness and corrupt the being. Hearts are also able to merge with others or be split. Conjoined twins with separate hearts should be considered two beings in one body, but coinjoined twins are rare, survival is rarer and separate hearts only occur in some cases.

Artificial hearts are possible but they are not as reliable as natural hearts. Constructed beings such as golems can have either artificial hearts or natural hearts taken from the recently deceased. Some sources say the ingredients for a heart are: pulse, emotion, terror, fear, hope, despair, surprise, and memory.

If left alone after the death of a being, the heart is pulled away to the Etherworld where it is possible but very difficult to find before it is consumed by the fae. To fully reconstruct a being to its original state, the heart must be hunted down from the Etherworld and returned.

Of the Blood
Blood is pumped by the heart in most beings and carries important particles.

Of the Soul
The soul is one of the three essential parts to a being and gives the body life. It is the difference between being alive or dead. It is the force that wills the body to live, and drives it to survive. Death occurs when the soul can no longer connect to the body, either from physical or mental trauma or other means.

If left alone after the death of a being, the soul tends to be pulled away to the Netherworld where it is possible but very difficult to find before it is consumed by the yugoluthi. To fully reconstruct a being to its original state, the soul must be hunted down from the Netherworld and returned.

Artificial souls are thought to be impossible but natural souls can be harvested from the recently deceased. Death often finds a way to kill mortals who harvest souls either by sending minions directly or causing increasingly dangerous accidents. Because so many of those who harvest souls die soon after, the process is considered dark majick and is taboo.

What makes the soul grow stronger? Many theories persist: Work, ignorance, discord, biological perturbation, love, freedom, knowledge. Not all are false. Maybe all are a little bit true.

Of the Body
The body is one of the three essential parts to a being and gives the heart and soul a vessel, granting a being a physical appearance and a form. The body is a medium for a being's heart and feelings to be expressed in the physical world. The body must exist on one of the three Planes or be travelling between them.

Loss of the body leads to a shapeless flowing matter, that looks like a smoky mixture between gas and liquid. This cloudy spirit will flicker between the Netherworld and Etherworld until the soul and heart are torn apart. Such a being cannot interact with any physical objects and by the proper definition of a being, shouldn't exist.

Artificial bodies are possible and are often constructed to be stronger than natural bodies. Fully constructed beings such as golems often have clay, stone or metal bodies.

Of Extensive Existence
Long, full existence is known to be difficult. To expand upon A Treatise on the Nature of the World: The Netherworld tears the soul from the being, the Hitherworld tears the body from the being and the Etherworld tears the heart from the being. It is theorized therefore that equal time spent on all planes of existence would lead to longer existence. It should be noted that if equal time is spent on all planes, actual time passed is 7/6 times the length of apparent time spent on the Hitherworld.