Lifestones are what separate Somatei from other living beings. They are central to somatei life and yet, their true nature and origin remain a mystery.
A lifestone, or socsai, is the round, eye-sized gemstone or similar material that is embedded in somatei skulls. According to general belief, a Somatei’s soul is contained in their lifestone.
Lifestones are often called a Somatei’s third eye, as it sits above and between both eyes and has (vertical) eyelids. The stone is always smooth and is naturally kept wet and shiny by lacrimal glands. While all lifestones are roughly the same shape and size, the stone lids shape can create a different shaped “hole”. For example, a lifestone can appear diamond or moon shaped thanks to eyelid mutations.
A Somatei cannot survive without a lifestone; its removal will immediately render its owner limp and unconscious, following with their death a few hours later. In dire circumstances, it is considered the most humane way to stop someone’s suffering. Removing a lifestone can be done quickly but is still painful as it is linked to the skull by tendons. A strained or partially pulled lifestone can be healed with sufficient rest and adequate care.
Lifestones can also be cracked; a lot of old stones have tiny cracks that are considered non dangerous, but if a stone becomes too damaged, soma beds will become unable to form a viable, nervermind healthy tei around it.
The lifestone is what’s there before life and what remains afterwards. It contains a Somatei’s soul and can only be cleansed by resting in a soma chamber.
When a lifestone is placed in a soma bed, preferably at a distance from any other lifestone, a new somatei body will slowly form around it. After 13 months, the new Somatei wakes up, ready to begin a new life and make new memories, as all their previous life is forgotten, though their general character and interests usually persist.
The lifestone will remain affixed to its owner’s skull throughout their life, protected by a pair of lids. When the Somatei passes away, no matter the circumstances, the stone will detach after a few minutes. It can then be picked up and put back into a soma bed for a new life to begin.
At least that’s how it used to be, as nowadays soma chambers surrounding big cities often operate at maximum capacity. In the meantime, dormant lifestones are kept away safely as valuables or can entrusted to a tzautan.
The secret of lifestone fabrication has only been discovered in the last 100 years. Before that, the set of existing lifestones could not be changed and very slowly decreasing due to the occasional loss.
Thus, nowadays there exists two sets of lifestones: Ancient Stones, whose creators are unknown, have existed for many hundreds, potentially thousands of years. Some are now too damaged to produce viable Somatei if put in a moss bed and are typically kept in museums. Somatei with such Ancient Stones are usually considered wiser than their younger counterparts, though that might just be a stereotype.
Artificial Stones are the new set that began production a hundred years ago, when engineers, jewellers and doctors finally cracked the code of their creation. Their name is misleading though, as Ancient Stones were most probably fabricated as well and did not occur naturally.
The best way to estimate a lifestone’s generation is looking at its usure, as new stones are created using the same materials and shapes as ancient ones.