Phanes

The creation of artificial life is a fickle thing. Most turn to reanimation of dead tissues with their own will instilled over whatever it is they're reanimating, but a very select few turn to golemancy.

Golemancy is an even more fickle thing. To create life, true life, by combining materials and imbuing it with the natural lifeforce in the world, it's extremely difficult. Some say impossible.

Those people stick to reanimation.

But two brave souls -- or possibly just extremely stubborn souls -- decided they'd give it a shot.

Golemancy is a very fickle thing. One can create the body, mixing clay with grass seeds or metal wire or ground up crystals, and imbue it with life. But getting an actual living, thinking thing, and not just a golem with no mind of its own, it's a crapshoot. You see, you can't just shove lifeforce into a body and call it alive. You can't shove lifeforce anywhere, for that matter. But you can guide it, shepherd it, help it flow willingly into a vessel; but what comes out will still be random.

These two people decided they'd do their best though, and began sending the "failed" attempts at creating life out into the world, to gather data; to figure out what materials best suit their needs. Each attempt might not lead them closer, but it gives them valuable insight. And some attempts are closer than others, capable of thinking for themselves on at least a marginal level. These especially are valued successes, and are kept safe in the manor these two people conduct their research from.

And maybe one day, when they have a success, a true success, they'll be able to further the minds of these almost-successes, and give them a true life.