On the Nature of Soulless
#4 of Rusted Promises Universe
Continued information on a new setting I am brainstorming about. Your input is very much desired, post below!
It is a commonly held, but false, belief by the common being that the soulless are incapable, or at least less capable, of feeling emotion and are less capable than their fellows. I write this paper to educate just how wrong this notion is. It is my hope that, through enlightened study, we can grow as a people and embrace our children, even if they are different. All expecting parents, in these times, are given a pendant to wear for the duration of the mother's pregnancy. Set in the center of this brooch is half of a stone, designed to fit snugly with the other half that the partner wears. If the father should perish or be lost, the mother can wear both halves without complication. This stone is very sensitive to spiritual emanations, and will absorb the feelings and imprint the soul of the one wearing it. If the child is born soulless, the stones are combined and hung around the child's neck with a special necklace called the 'Pendant of Souls'. An infant can be identified as soulless easily. They do not cry and are born with closed eyes. Gently open their eyes. If they are completely black, give them the necklace. Once properly adorned, a soulless child will open its eyes and typically gain a color similar to one of its parents. The child, besides its jewel, will laugh, cry, and react as any other. Though its soul has been borrowed, its mind and body will develop. An adult soulless who's pendant is removed will not suddenly stop functioning. It is reportedly uncomfortable for a soulless to be without a soul gem. Most will not willingly separate from their soul pendant, and who would blame them? However, the soul gem is exchangeable. The Free Swords guild specializes in the unearthing, fabrication, and repair of soul gems. A soulless with a new soul gem may behave slightly differently, but remains, by and large, the same individual. Should a soulless be without soul gem, they will be bereft of much of their hard earned skill. More importantly, they are susceptible to the influence of the shadow. Our enemies are quite eager to claim the body of a soulless, and will do so readily if there is not a soul in place. This does not happen immediately. Typically, a soulless remains proof against shadow for a full day from the last time a soul gem was worn. After that, they run the risk of possession. If you, or someone you know, has lost their soul gem, send them to the Free Swords or the Creators' Church. Neither will deny a being a soul gem to prevent such a terrible fate. The key advantage, and this is a powerful one indeed, to having a soul gem is access to the knowledge within. A soul gem imprinted by a master of a profession will allow a soulless to eventually become master of that profession as well, so long as it is worn. The knowledge comes swiftly and easily, allowing mastery in weeks what might have taken its original owner a lifetime to complete. This mastery is as quickly removed as it is given. Should the soul gem be taken, or swapped for another, the soulless will lose access to their abilities. Notably, if a soulless has skill with a particular profession and removes that soul gem and later picks it up again, their skill will return rapidly, leaving them where they left off. Soulless are, as a result, very versatile. A single soulless could be a source of uncountable professional skills, provided with sufficient soul gems and motivation. Allow me to give some information about the soul gem. Soul gems are fairly resilient. I have personally witnessed a Heavy Folk strike one with a smithing hammer and leave barely a scratch. Reportedly, they are destructible with continued effort, but it is very difficult to accidentally bring one to harm. Soul gems cannot be worn in combination. The body and mind can only handle one soul at a time. Some have fashioned soul pendants with space for two, but this invariably leads to madness. It is thought that this is the reason that souled people cannot take advantage of soul gems. They already have a soul, and it is not so easily removed to experience another. It is strongly advised that souled folk do not wear soul pendants, though casual handling has shown to have no ill effect. In the event that a person should come into more souls than they should, a headache is often the first symptom. Removal of the excess spiritual load will cure this, which is to say, take off the soul pendant.
If, for reasons this writer could not fathom, a being insisted on wearing it regardless of the danger and discomfort, a slow descent to madness should be expected over the next month. It is worth noting that soulless with two soul gems only gain benefit of one of the gems. I cannot emphasize enough how poor an idea this is.
Soulless can, and do, lead full and happy lives. They will know joy, pain, love and triumph. They serve in our army, they cook our food, work our land, teach our children, and live alongside of us. Soulless can have souled children. The number to study is yet small, but they suggest the chances are same, or near same.
Soulless can come from any clan. I have witnessed them in all sizes. Those whose ancestors included mice, bears, seals, flowers, and otters. Reportedly, they are wide spread, with one child in six being born with this condition. Of interest, twins and triplets are always souled or soulless together.
It is a disservice to our creators to treat them any less than any other being you can encounter. Let us judge them on merit of their action, and hold them responsible for their character and achievement, not on the basis of a chance of birth.