This page contains advanced lore about the metaphysics of the Ideation universe. This information is not necessary to develop a fully-fledged character and story, but it is here to enrich your understanding of the world if you wish it. 

Extradimensional individuals have no protection against the full effects of extradimensional magic if it is targeted at them specifically. For magic within the Ideation universe (in a continuity with Firmament present), this list summarizes the conditions in which magic takes full effect or is attenuated (reduced in effect): 

• Idea magic → local entity: attenuated 

• Idea magic → extradimensional entity: attenuated 

• Extradimensional magic → local entity: attenuated

• Extradimensional magic → extradimensional entity: full effect 

"Local entities" include native or naturalized souls and energy/matter originating in Ideation. Whether idea magic can take full effect on others in other universes depends on the laws of that universe. 

The soul is the essence of self, which is tied to some form of "body" by some sort of energy. For mortal beings, life force is what ties their soul to their physical body. For Edeia, their soul is intertwined with their energy - the equivalents of their life force and body are one. Souls are made of a metaphysical form of energy, which Edeia may be able to influence and interact with to some extent.

A soul has little awareness and sense of self without a connection to a "body." A soul can be safely removed from a physical body by an Edeia; in this case, the soul still has a connection to the body and maintains the self-awareness. A mortal body will enter a sort of stasis without a soul: metabolic needs such as eating/drinking/aging/etc. will slow over the course of a few hours before halting entirely. However, being separated too long can cause difficulties, such as taking longer to awaken and lasting lethargy after returning, as well as a sense of dissociation and loss of self-awareness as the soul drifts from the body. So long as the body is intact, however, it is possible to return.

The appearance of a soul can depend on the nature of the soul, the context they are in, the way the soul perceives itself, and the way the one looking at them perceives them. Mundane individuals generally cannot see pure souls clearly, unless there are external influences. Different individuals may see different things when looking at the same soul at the same time. Some may see them as balls of flame with different colors depending on the individual's personality; some may see them as butterflies with different shapes, colors, and behaviors. Sometimes, the context has imposing influence; an Edeia who keeps a collection of souls in their Abstraction may consciously or subconsciously cause them to appear a certain way. For instance, souls in Repose's Abstraction have the appearance of stars in the sky. 

Fusions are metaphysically multiple souls merged into one; for a stable fusion, the fused soul functions as a singular soul. For less stable fusions, the souls have a partially-blended state. Twin Edeia have souls that are one and two at once - a state that should be unstable, but is not. Fissions are fragments of a singular soul. 

Generally speaking, souls naturally gravitate to a state of singularity, especially when under extreme stress. As such, when fusions or fissions are harmed, it is possible for them to return to their singular, individual states by "default." Permafusions have more resistance to separation, and Twin Edeia are unaffected by external forces in regards to their fused or unfused state. 

Extradimensional Souls and Extradimensional Species

Extradimensional souls follow the original metaphysical rules of their dimension unless their souls are naturalized to the world of Ideation. 

There may be species external to the world of Ideation that have made their home there. If they reproduce, the souls generally originate from their original metaphysical source; they are functionally extradimensional individuals at birth. If there is something preventing new souls from being made or finding their way to the newborn individuals, then it is possible that the species is unable to have offspring without external interference; this may manifest as complete infertility or that offspring are stillborn. 

The abilities of certain Edeia such as Life and Death may be able to place a soul in a stillborn body, or a developing body. If the soul is a native Ideation soul, they may not be able to access any magic that is drawn from the original metaphysics of the species, though they can use any abilities that stem from pure biology. Life and Death are also theoretically capable of taking pieces of the souls of others; it would be possible for them to fuse the essence of extradimensional souls with that of a native soul to create a hybrid soul, though it is very unlikely for them to do this. 

It is slightly more likely for them to use a lost soul of the same species/origin if the circumstances align with having the lost soul and an available body present. If the same soul is present in the world of Ideation for a few lifetimes, it is likely for it to naturalize. 

Extradimensional humans and animals, if they are biologically the same as humans and animals from Ideation, can have children with native Ideation souls. If an extradimensional species has a hybrid child with a native entity, then the soul may have hybrid characteristics, be entirely extradimensional, or be a native soul depending on the extradimensional being's metaphysical "rules." 

Soul Naturalization

Extradimensional souls follow the original metaphysical rules of their dimension unless their souls are naturalized to the world of Ideation. This could potentially take multiple lifetimes. A naturalized soul functions as a native Ideation soul, and can develop an Idea on their own. Note that Actualization usually but does not necessarily fully naturalize a soul; if the individual retains a strong sense of connection to their origin in some way, they may retain elements of that in their soul. 

Depending on their original dimension and/or species, it may be impossible for them to naturalize in a single lifetime or even multiple. It can be accelerated by forming strong soulbonds with those that have native Ideation souls; a native Ideation soul leaves some of their essence with the other soul when forming soulbonds, and takes some of the essence of the other soul into themself. 

Generally, a single-lifetime soul naturalization will only occur with the extremely powerful soulbonds that often, but not necessarily, lead to Tuplet and Soultwined Edeia. Entities that have exceptionally long lifespans who also form fairly strong soulbonds may be able to naturalize in one lifetime, but this can take centuries or even millennia, depending on factors such as how strong their soulbonds are and how strong their connection is to their original world. 

In most other cases, the naturalization is only complete when the extradimensional individual perishes; the soul becomes very vulnerable and malleable at this time. If their soul has taken in enough of the essence of the world of Ideation, Life and Death may be able to take them into the ethereal plane, where the soul will completely naturalize and either dissolve into essence or be reincarnated as a human or animal in the world of Ideation. The soul will be freed from any metaphysical "rules" of their dimension or species of origin as well. 

If the soul has not taken in enough essence of the world of Ideation, then it remains beholden to the metaphysics of their original species and/or dimension. Depending on the circumstances, they may reincarnate in their original dimension or as a member of their original species, or they may be stuck as a lost soul—which Death will usually pick up and redirect to a suitable place. Life and Death may choose to return these souls to their original dimension or, not often, guide them to a new body; generally, they only guide extradimensional souls to a body that is or would have been stillborn, and are much more willing to do it if the body is the same species or otherwise from the same dimension as they were originally.  

Soulbonds

This can be written as one word (soulbonds) or two words (soul bonds). 

There are different ways for souls to be bonded. 

• Split-soul tuplet: the soul equivalent of identical twins, triplets, etc., where one soul becomes multiple in development. The degree of separation may vary, and the resulting tuplets can essentially share a soul that is one and two at the same time. This can lead to Tuplet and Soultwined Edeia, though the individuals may develop into different, if strongly soul-linked, Edeia as well. Ki and Ro are an example of split-soul twins. 

• Spontaneously occurring soulbonds (fairly uncommon, and often undetected): This is much like the concept of "soulmates"—it occurs between those who have not met and often early in life. If they do not meet or do not choose to develop it further, it will remain rather dormant. If the two meet, they can develop some kind of relationship, and then the strength of the soulbond depends on them. It can just be a connection, a significant relationship in someone's life (of any kind), or it can be a deep binding that blends the two's souls into something like one. Some of these occur randomly, and some are retained from past lives.

• Natural development of soulbonds: when one truly makes a connection with another, there is always a metaphysical connection built in the soul. These vary in intensity and nature from person to person, but most can be considered connections of family and friendships. Siblings may develop strong soulbonds, given that they are raised together and get along. These can fade over time, but often there is a thread that remains.

• Deliberate soulbinding: through magic, rituals, etc. individuals' souls are woven into one continuous weave. This will generally not work if there is not already a fairly strong connection, but this basically skips all the slow build to get to the soul-sharing part. Rial and Tial are an example of this, though their soulbond was strongly developed already.

The effects of soulbonds can vary, as each is as unique as every relationship. Common effects include being able to sense the other's emotions and thoughts, whether instinctively/subconsciously, a vague sense, or as a clear and/or external thing. A very common effect of strong soulbonds is having an  instinctive sense of the other's emotions, comfort, and needs. Many feel an unexplainable sense of comfort in each other's presence. 

Some individuals may not ever know they have a soulbond, even if it is an exceptionally strong one - especially before the Age of Reunion, when metaphysical studies became a public endeavor. 

Individuals who are aware of their soulbond can specifically "train" the bond to develop various rarer manifestations, such as rangeless (same regardless of distance) telepathy and empathy, sensation sharing (any or all of five senses, easier when in contact but doing it when apart is possible as well), melding thoughts together (typically only when in physical contact), switching bodies, etc. They do not need to know the exact nature of it, but they must be conscious of some metaphysical bond with another individual. 

Soulbonds grow on mutual trust, empathy, and comfort with each other. They can fade, be damaged, and even be severed by animosity, distrust, betrayal, violation of comfort/trust, and so on. That said, if an individual causes any kind of harm to their soulbonded, they may feel an echo of that harm on themself until the bond fades away.

Soulbonds are always equal on both sides. One side cannot have a stronger connection than the other, but they may manifest different soulbond effects and they may become aware of the bond or "something supernatural" at different times, as that is more of a mind thing than a soul thing. 

Depending on the strength of the soulbond, if one of the pair dies, then it is possible for the other to continue living afterwards, but for strong bonds it is typical that the other will lose the will to live. Those who had bonds that blended their sense of identity into one and two at once often die not too long after. 

The metaphysical processes of life and death involve the process of souls forming, entering the physical plane through the start of their lives, departing at the end of their lives, reincarnating, and scattering. These processes are overseen by Life and Death, with egregious deviations often involving their interference. 

Souls form through the aggregation of ethereal essence. 

• This typically occurs in the ethereal plane.

• Wills that lack a soul, such as magical constructs, can accumulate ethereal essence and form a new soul. Certain Edeia, such as Life, can manipulate this process to quicken the process of soul formation. 

Upon death of a mortal being, dissociation of an Edeia, or any other form of "death," a soul becomes released from the "body." 

• If the death was a natural one, the soul is usually safely released to what is referred to as the ethereal plane. 

  • • Some souls may have lingering wills, which manifest in a pull to reincarnate or a return to the physical plane as a specter.

• If the death was unnatural, such as from an accident or murder, the soul is likely become a lost soul. This can be due to the soul being caught in the lingering life force of the body. 

• The soul can be magically bound to an object or location, becoming a bound soul. 

• If the soul was destroyed, consumed, or dissipated but the individual had very strong lingering regrets and desires, magic such as ritual magic can lead to the formation of remnants. 

The Ethereal Plane

The ethereal plane is a metaphysical plane of the Ideation universe, best described as an ocean of souls and ethereal essence (the essence of souls) that expands infinitely. It is disconnected from the physical plane but in many ways parallel to it. It has adjacencies to an interdimensional void, and souls may traverse into other dimensions from the ethereal plane or enter the ethereal plane from other dimensions. Some beings have the ability to interact with these souls, and sometimes there are places or times where the boundary between the physical plane and this ethereal plane where the souls can have influence on reality.

Note: The term "ethereal plane" comes more into use by the 2090s, when the nature of souls, soulbonds, and the ethereal plane became fairly well-understood—though there are a few throughout the ages that may have been able to divine a significant amount of understanding, if perhaps not shared. Note that the "physical plane" or "mundane plane" refers to the physical world of Ideation. 

Souls in the ethereal plane lack individuality and conscious thought. They can experience a variety of outcomes: 

• Souls can scatter into nothingness, becoming a sort of dust dispersed across the infinity of existence. 

• Souls can reincarnate into another being, most likely in the Ideation dimension.

• Souls can fragment into multiple souls (split-souls) or merge with other souls or soul fragments. 

Rarely, souls may have lingering wills, which manifest in a pull to reincarnate or a return to the physical plane as a specter. Specters have limited cognition and often are not entirely visible to mundane individuals; if they are seen, they may have a misty, unclear, ghostly appearance. 

New souls are typically made spontaneously in the ethereal plane through natural aggregation of ambient ethereal essence and soul fragments. Wills that lack a soul, such as magical constructs, can accumulate ethereal essence and form a new soul; a strong "ego" draws in more ethereal essence. Certain Edeia, such as Life, can manipulate this process to quicken the process of soul formation. 

Contact with the Ethereal Plane

There are certain magics that can make contact with the ethereal plane of souls, including some forms of Idea magic, extradimensional magic, and ritual magic. However, whether anything responds can depend on any number of factors—whether the one trying to make contact is trying to reach out to a particular soul, what sort of connection they and that soul have, whether that soul's sense of self can be retrieved, etc. If it goes well, it is possible to make communicate with a soul or summon it to the physical plane. 

If an individual is trying to reach the ethereal plane without any sort of direction or purpose, depending on the level of preparation they might:

• get pulled into it temporarily or permanently, partially or fully. It is possible that your soul leaves your body entirely and enters the ethereal plane. 

• tap into the potential energy of souls. This can cause a feeling like an instant burst of energy, or it is possible to use the energy to supplement powerful magic. 

• get flashes of experiences from a countless, timeless mass of indistinct will. This may be overwhelming. 

Generally, Edeia in would likely be able to access the ethereal plane some extent, with varying levels of difficulty. Some might be able to travel to and from the plane freely, while some might find the experience too profound or overwhelming - enough to feel like if they stayed too long, they would dissociate and join that infinite sea. 

However, Life and Death guard the souls of the ethereal plane. Any destruction or poaching of souls, or any other malicious acts are often met with severe consequence. 

Lingering Souls

Under certain circumstances, a soul may become unbound after death but still exist outside the ethereal plane. This includes lost souls, which are unable to move to the ethereal plane on their own, and bound souls (which can also be called trapped souls, enchained souls, etc.), which may be bound to the mundane plane, an Edeia's Abstraction, or some other place outside the ethereal plane. 

These souls are generally at the periphery of perception; mundane individuals generally cannot perceive them, and even Edeia may not notice them unless they are looking for them or paying particular attention to the presence of souls. However, they may cause trouble by increasing the incidence of soul pathologies, such as two souls in one body or incomplete soul formation. These pathologies can occur when lost souls interfere in soul formation processes or try to take over a body, for instance, whether on purpose or on accident. Life and Death manage the flow of souls to reduce soul pathologies.

Lost souls include the souls of extradimensional individuals who have not fully naturalized to the world of Ideation but are unable to access their original metaphysical system for souls for destruction or reincarnation. Other lost souls may be bound to the mundane plane by regrets and unfinished business. They are generally not aware and lack a sense of self, but Edeia may be able to get impressions from them or, as in Life and Death's case, "read" the soul more clearly. If the business is resolved, the soul will return to the ethereal plane on their own. Life and Death may also sometimes choose to sever the soul's connection to the mundane plane and bring them to the ethereal plane to be reincarnated, though this process may just cause the soul to dissolve; what they may do instead is "force" a reincarnation. They will not remember their past, but will be drawn to their unfinished business and instinctively understand what remains and what they need to do to resolve it. 

Most lost souls have reduced cognition and metaphysical presence, but through some means they might be able to regain some focus and cohesive intent. The energy of certain rituals, like those that honor the dead, can help them recover some cognition, which could allow them to more easily figure out and resolve their regrets. In general, unbound souls tend to be too weak to express idea magic on their own, even if they had an Idea when they died; only through external influences such as those from Edeia might they be able to express weak magic and, though rarely, Actualize. 

Generally, an avatar of Death, which looks like a cluster of black feathered wings, will appear shortly after an individual's death if they sense that the soul has not passed over into the ethereal plane. The avatar will bring the soul to Life and Death's Abstraction, where they will be sent to the ethereal plane. 

Reincarnation

Reincarnation is the process by which a soul that has already lived a life experiences rebirth as a new life. For the most part, the soul does not retain any memories of its past life, though the abilities of certain Edeia like Life and Death can allow an individual to remember part or all of a past life or multiple. Without any magical influence or interference in the process of reincarnation, it is impossible for the individual to remember anything from a past life. 

There are, however, certain things that may be retained across lifetimes without any interference. 

• Ideas are retained. An individual who had an Idea but never Actualized will retain the Idea in their next life, though it may change. 

• Soulbonds can be retained, though in the average case are weakened to a state of a spontaneous soulbond - something may come of it if all parties wish to pursue it further, and all the same, nothing may come of it. Stronger soulbonds may manifest stronger characteristics, such as a pull to meet and a greater likelihood of being born at the same time. 

• Naturalization process for extradimensional souls is retained. Upon release from a body, the naturalization process can be accelerated immensely if it is already close to completion due to the vulnerability and malleability of a pure soul. 

Additionally, certain circumstances can allow for a soul to be "reincarnated" while retaining some or all of their memories, or have a strong lingering influence from their past life: 

• Life and Death force the reincarnation of a lost or trapped soul without taking them through the ethereal plane. They may do this if the soul has lingered for a long time and is causing disturbances to the natural flow of ethereal essence. The reincarnation will have a pull to resolve their unfinished business, and instinctively have some sense of how they would be able to resolve it. 

• A being with strong power over souls (or even just that particular soul, via a ritual, contract, etc.), which can be an Edeia or a being with other magic, forces a transfer of an old soul into a new body. This can even be done to one's own self. 

  • If the body is natural but empty (such as a stillborn body), then it is fairly easy, and the process can occur fairly smoothly. Memories may be retained fully or be fuzzy at first and gain clarity as the body's brain (or similar) becomes better able to retain that information. The longer the soul is without a body, the more memories are lost or become fragmented. 

  • If the body is an object or artificial, such a machine, clay/stone/etc. construct, sword, etc., then the process may be difficult. There may be elements of incompatibility, such as losing memories, changes in personality, bouts of unawareness, etc., unless there is magic actively binding the soul to the object. 

This is not exhaustive; other circumstances may be possible. In general, if the soul does not pass through the ethereal plane, then more remnants of their past life may cling to them. 

Reincarnation of the Soulbound

While deeply soulbound Edeia (Soultwined and Tuplet Edeia) cannot separately dissociate, other soulbound individuals can die separately. The stronger the soulbond, the more closely in time they reincarnate. 

Split-soul tuplets were at some point a single soul, whether in past lives or just for its initial formation. If split-soul tuplets die and the souls reincarnate, they will reincarnate at almost exactly the same time; this often involves biological twins but does not need to be the case, such as if their soulbond is not familial. Split-souls were once a single soul and could potentially merge in the ethereal plane and reincarnate as one being; they may alternate between singular and multiple across different lives, though it is more likely for them to remain split. 

Those with other kinds of soulbonds have some likelihood of reincarnating around the same time, and have a slightly higher than average chance to merge in the ethereal plane, though it is still profoundly less likely to merge than it is to reincarnate singularly or dissolve into ethereal essence. 

It is also possible for soulbonds to dissolve into the essence of the ethereal plane; this usually occurs for any that were not exceptionally powerful. The passage from life to death and back takes much of the entelechy of a lived life from a soul, and returns to the soul infinite potential. 

Remnants

Remnants refer to aggregations of powerful lingering emotions and desires given form by magic. They cannot form on their own, but many forms of magic can create them incidentally or purposefully. Depending on the kind of magic, they can have different forms and abilities, but in all cases they do not have a true "will;" they simply experience a compulsion to fulfill the soul's final desires and wishes, often lacking skills of adaptability. However, if they are sustained by the magic long enough, they can develop their own will and aggregate enough ethereal essence to form a new soul, allowing them to have their own will and evolve over time. 

As an example, souls sacrificed for ritual magic in the Ancient Ages were often resentful enough, and the overflow of magic was powerful enough, to create remnants that appeared as wispy shadows. Ritual would often invite these remnants to join them and walk the world on the night of the Hallowed Procession. 

Resurrection

Resurrection refers to the revival of an individual's body, soul, and/or cognition after their death. These acts require the use of magic, generally idea magic; however, there are some considerations due to the nature of souls in the Ideation universe: 

• if death is recent and the soul has not left the vicinity, full resurrection tends to be straightforward. 

• if the soul has become a lost soul, full resurrection is possible but the soul needs to be summoned back.

• if the soul is in the ethereal plane or taken by Death, they will guard against other influences. The soul will only return if Life and Death allow it.

• if the soul has scattered, summoning the soul is impossible.

• if the soul has reincarnated, depending on the magic, it could fail or summon the soul from the new incarnation, putting the current body into a state of suspended animation.

"Full resurrection" refers to the full restoration of an individual to a living state. "Reanimation" refers to the restoration or animation of a body without a soul or the original cognition, such as if a body is simply used as a vessel for the magic animating it. The body can be reanimated with the body's memories at least partially intact, though this being does not have their own will or soul unless they develop it later. Life and Death tend not to interfere with reanimation.

Metadimensional theory is a term coined by Auspice around 2032 to refer to the conceptualization of metaphysical variations as orthogonal "metadimensional" constructs. 

Mathematical vs. Metaphysical Dimensions

There are two different conceptualizations of higher dimensions:

Mathematical/spatial higher dimensions: Conceptualizations of standard spatial dimensions (x, y, z) and beyond in a theoretical, mathematical space. A higher-dimensional being can appear to violate conservation of mass and appear and disappear from a lower-dimensional being's perspective. For instance, if you were a 2D person, a 3D sphere would appear as a circle in your world, but if the sphere could phase through your dimension, then the circle could become bigger or smaller or disappear entirely.

Metaphysical dimensions: These correspond to different aspects of reality and existence.

In Ideation, mathematical and metaphysical dimensions are connected. However, since all of the higher dimensions are "orthogonal", it is not the case that one needs to be able to traverse all the "lower dimensions" in order to traverse higher dimensions. 

Dimensional Framework

The dimensional framework is structured as follows:

• 1D-3D: Standard spatial dimensions (x, y, z)

• tD: Time dimension. A "point" in time is a single present, and a "line" in this dimension is the past, present, and future. 

• cD: Timeline/continuity dimension. These are variations of possibilities diverging from an earlier shared point in time; e.g. a timeline where you turned left and a timeline where you turned right. A "point" is a single timeline, and a "line" could be all the timelines of a particular universe. 

• uD: Universe dimension. Universes are metaphysical spaces that exist according to a particular set of physical and metaphysical laws. A "point" is a single universe, and "line" could be all parallel universes. A "plane" could be all universes at the same ontological dimension. 

• oD: Ontological dimension, also called the narrative dimension, involving the relationships of stories and creation. Created "stories" are at a lower ontological level than the universes they are considered stories in. However, the exact relationship between different ontological levels can vary. For example, a universe at a higher oD could actively define a lower one; or, a universe at a lower oD might transfer their reality as ideas to a universe in a higher oD, compelling an individual to write the story of their world. 

• Other dimensions: No longer relevant to Ideation

When referring to an entity with higher metaphysical dimensions, the letters are used in combination with numbers. For instance, a 3tD entity occupies the dimensions of space and time; a 2uD entity occupies two spatial dimensions along with the "space" of multiple universes; a 3tcuoD entity, sometimes abbreviated as mn-D (meta-n-D), occupies all relevant metaphysical dimensions. 

Note: In some circles, numerical designations are still used for metaphysical dimensions (4D for time, 5D for timelines, 6D for universes, etc.).

The Ideation universe occupies one point in the uD dimension. Think of it like this: if the Ideation universe were a 2D sheet of paper, there's a limited "area" where a 3D being is still in the universe. If they move away from the paper in 3D space and go to another paper, then that other paper would be a different universe.

Dimensional Abilities vs. Dimensional Existence

Dimensional abilities and dimensional existences are not the same. 

N-dimensional abilities involve the capability to move oneself or manipulate something about that dimension. This does not require being an N-dimensional being.

N-dimensional existence involves actually occupying "space" in that dimension and being able to traverse that dimension freely while having a cohesive self. Lower dimensions cannot fully capture the form and existence of such a being—a lower plane can only view one point or slice of the higher-dimensional entity. An object affected at one point in a certain dimension experiences that affect as a whole; e.g. a piece of 3tD paper that is ripped at one time is ripped at all points of time it "occupies;" an object that experiences a linear progression of time and can only interact with one point of time at once is thus not an object occupying the t dimension. 

All Edeia have uD abilities by being able to cross dimensions. tD abilities (time travel) and cD (timeline travel) are rarer. oD traversal abilities, especially those that can bring entities from lower dimensions to higher dimensions, are extremely rare, with Syr and Passage being such cases. Edeia are generally 3D beings and not generally 3uD beings since they do not occupy "space" in the u dimension—only one point. 

The Edeia NPC Possibility is a 3tcD existence since they occupy "space" in 3D space, time, and timelines of Ideation simultaneously. They experience all possibilities across time and timelines, making their existence fundamentally 3tc-dimensional rather than merely having c-dimensional abilities.

Edeia Metadimensionality

Most Edeia are 3D existences since their previous forms were 3D existences. The few exceptions are generally related to their Idea, since it is very difficult for a lower-dimensional being to conceptualize higher dimensions and identify with it in such a way that the very nature of their existence changes unless it is related to their Idea. Edeia exist as "what they conceptualize themselves to be," after all.