The Soul

Each person's existence and unique signature are contained in their soul. The soul is what makes and defines the person, and without it there would be no consciousness. The body is the medium through which the soul interacts with the physical world, and the mind the metaphysical. The metaphysical world is known to the people of Bwrdd Llosgydd as the Willforge. They call it such because it functions as a receiver for mind-originating input, which then outputs certain results.

The metaphysical directly affects the physical, but in order to impose one's will on it a person must learn to know the Willforge and understand the way it processes information. Language isn't necessary for this to happen, though it can be helpful in some cases to remember certain concepts. In the same way that a person controls a limb by imposing their will upon it—and the body automatically translates that impulse to the subsequent effect—a person communicates to the Willforge with their mind that which they desire, and provided the input is correct the Willforge will respond. It could be said that to control one's own body is to perform Volition upon it. In the same way that a person must learn to control their body, they must also learn to control their mind. Most Volition is performed unknowingly, especially early on in a person's life.

When a baby is conceived a soul is granted to the body. On rare occasion some part of this process goes awry, and the baby is conceived with no soul. In these cases where the baby's soul is missing at birth, the body dies upon separation from the mother. Without a soul to compel the body to function it lies dormant. As such, even with seemingly perfect conditions—i.e. a fresh, healthy body—life will not come if the soul does not come; a body alone is not enough. The cause of this phenomenon is yet uncertain, though theories among the people abound. One being that the body in lack failed to communicate its need to wherever souls come from. Another that the soul being summoned did not wish to enter the world.

The soul, like the body, is a temporary thing. It degrades and decays over time—though generally more slowly than the body. While in most cases the soul outlives the body and only ceases existence after the death of the body, there have been outliers whose souls have perished before their bodies. This can be caused by the soul itself being frail, or even by the soul's own lack of desire to live. This condition is referred to as Calonsalwch, or Heartsickness. In other cases the connection between one of the three parts and the other two will be interfered with, or severed completely. When this happens the only thing to do is try to preserve what's left in hopes that the missing piece will find its way back. The body cannot live without the soul, and will begin to decay immediately if the connection is severed.

Unlike with the soul the body can live without the mind; such a person will lack both a will and the characteristics that previously made them who they were. This happens when the connection between the mind and the other is disrupted—usually by a mistake in Volition such as a failed attempt to "export" one's consciousness to another metaphysical location. The person will now be unable to affect the metaphysical, as they have no medium with which to interact with it, but can still be effected. They can still move and act, though without any particular purpose, and will be unable to speak with any meaning.