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In Marrishland, magic is the source of all power, so it isn't surprising that it plays such an important role in its history and culture. It also lies at the heart of the conflict in the book. To find out how, read the book.

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Tor

The tor is the magic contained in all living things. Its source and purpose are widely debated by scholars throughout the world, especially since its exact properties and capabilities are not consistent between species or even between races within the same species.

A few attributes are universal to all tors. First, all living things possess a tor, and at the moment of death, the tor ceases to exist, at least in any identifiable way. Second, the tor generates a tor buffer that repels myst, such that the motes of myst flow around living things, never actually touching living flesh. This tor buffer ranges in thickness from a few hairs' width to several inches, depending on the kingdom, species, and race of the living thing. In general, plants have the smallest tor buffer, while sentient beings have a wide enough buffer so as to be clearly visible to anyone under the influence of torutsen. In the case of the damnens, the tor buffer extends out a foot or more away from their bodies. Finally, most magic-wielding races employ their tors to use magic. All other theories about the tor are pure speculation.

Though not believed by most Mar, the mystics and priests of some races believe the tor is the soul, which goes elsewhere at the moment of death. In some mythologies, this is some kind of afterlife. For some, this is a place of reward or punishment. For others, it is a rebirth as another living thing. For still others, it is simply the reunification of the mortal soul with the divine being who created it. There is, of course, no way to prove or disprove this, since mortals clearly cannot observe this postulated afterlife.

No small number of Mar believe the tors of the dead become a part of the myst. This is not supported by empirical evidence. After all, the tors of the dead simply cease to impede the natural flow of the myst. The number of motes in the vicinity is not increased by a living thing's death. This is not common knowledge among the mundane Mar, however, so many magocrats have encouraged this belief, holding it up as further evidence that wizards have a divine right to rule Marrishland. By this mythology, even the souls of the dead obey the magocrats.

Others postulate that only the tor buffer ceases to exist at the moment of death, pointing at the voracious appetites of races whose magic stems entirely from the use of their tor. By this model, the creature dies, but the tor remains a part of its flesh. Then, when this flesh is eaten, this residual tor passes into the new body. This is even used to explain why those who eat much grow in girth, while those who eat little gradually waste away. The most obvious objection to this theory is that many magic wielders, including Mar wizards, release the potential energy of the myst by placing the tor in direct contact with the myst, setting off a chain reaction. If the tor remained in the corpse after death — unless the Mar possess some other quality that allows them to set off such chain reactions — the death of any living thing would be accompanied by a magical display, and this clearly is not the case.

While numerous other theories exist, none explains the mysteries of the tor any more convincingly, and most pose even more problems than the more common ones.

(Contributed by Weard Oda Kalidus)