Meyda-work is a surprisingly broad term on Attovia encompassing any practice that informs Meyda for the production of an otherwise impossible effect. This comes about through three named methods, the first two of which are common and well known to most of the continent. The methods are delineated almost exclusively by the way in which the Meyda-work receives the Meyda necessary to function. The way of instruction varies and even overlaps between methods of powering Meyda-work and will be discussed as they become pertinent.
Transfusion
While not the most common, Transfusion is the first thought of by most when Meyda-work is brought up. This requires a Soul Bearing entity to have a Tether to a Meyda-well, a source of Meyda most often another, much more powerful Soul such as an Olam Beyn or Blood Dragon. This source can come in the form of a God Stone as well but usually means no Meyda Intercession is to be had. Transfusion effectively means that your Soul is the responsible party for pulling and processing the Meyda from its source. This taxes the Soul and leads to the symptoms underlined beneath the Transfusion section of Meyda.
This manifests in two ways: First the powering of a Meyda-circle via its Meyda-well. This usually is as simple as placing one or both hands in the proper circle where the Meyda Form has been drawn and opening their Meyda Gate. The second requires Meyda Intercession and involves informing not the Meyda but the Tether from which it pulls what your intentions are. This is most commonly done by drawing simplified Meyda-circles in the air and speaking the Workings common name or function in Abbaki.
Training the Soul
By default very few sapient peoples of Attovia are born with very potent Souls. Those who wish to walk one of the many paths of Meyda-work must first set about training and strengthening the Soul. Without doing so, anything at or above Tiron Complexity risks deconstructing the transfusing Soul entirely leaving the would be Worker a lifeless husk known as a Tzedef. Training is not difficult but often arduous, it is coupled with the tedium of learning Workings from The Crystal Tomes involving memorization first, then careful, regimented Working after. Pushing the Soul to grow without damaging it is delicate work that should be done under the instruction of a wise or well learned master. Each Soul is different and must be treated in kind.
Transactional
Transactional Working is much simpler and cannot benefit from Meyda Intercession. It is the powering of a Meyda-well using another Soulless source such as a God Stone, Minor Stone or any number/denomination of Clips. If the Circle is drawn properly the moment enough Meyda is placed within its Meyda-well the necessary amount in solid form is demanifested and consumed, resulting in the desired effect. Transactional and Transfusion sources of Meyda are not “combinable” unfortunately, the lacking in potency cannot be bolstered by sufficient funds, a common sorrow discovered regularly by the wealthy and powerful.
Old Workings
These are the most esoteric and strange, fitting into no proper taxonomy attempted by Wizards and researchers. These happen without direct influence from a single Soul Bearer, instead appearing to flow and occur based upon the thoughts of many. These have fallen away over the recent centuries as academia appears to destroy whatever functioning fabric of the world required for the Old Workings. The last two places where these are known to flow through the land are the Western Wastes and The Logalands. Known simply as the Old Workings largely thanks to how little they are understood. Attovian’s of an academic mind have all but attempted to forget that they exist thanks to their research being seen by most as naught but folly.
Other Strange Permutations
There is very little if anything that falls outside of these categories, embedded Workings such as used by the Swapping Sock or Flame Printer are just complex use cases of Transactional Working. The first drawing all it needs from ambient surroundings, the second powered usually by a Minor Stone or some other long standing source of Meyda not easily demanifested. Plenty of embedded Workings function only in the case of Transfusion as well. Most extraordinary weaponry or equipment falls into this vein, requiring its user to hold some kind of Meyda-well it can draw from.
The Language of Meyda-work
When informing Meyda much of the symbolism used was discovered largely through trial and error, as well as inspired by some ancient religious practices of the Church of Hormus. Below are some of the basics.
Concentric Circles
Concentric circles represent different objects of effect. One circle means nothing until you place it in or out of another. From their, the origin point of the circles, and their relative diameters heavily determine the following effect.
- World Stone: Concentric circles whose origins are identical with diameters in a ratio of 1:3 with a degree of error no greater than 5%.
- Atmosphere: Concentric circles who’s origins are identical with diameters in a ration of 23:24 with a degree of error no greater than 5%
Straight Lines
Straight lines with a degree of error no greater than 2% are used for two primary purposes.
- Connection: drawing a line between two entities that connects them within a magic circle implies the joining or connection of those two things. This could form a Tether if the two entities in question both have at least a False Soul. Or instead an alchemical result.
- Separation: Drawing a line between two entities that divides them implies the separation, often forced, of the entities involved. This can be used to sever a Tether between two “souls” or simply to purify water. Separating the h2o from everything else.