Pneuma-less Shell

The compact form of the Pneuma-less Shell

The Pneuma-less Shell (プネウマなき外殻, Puneuma naki Gaikaku^?) is a Rosicrucian spiritual item, which produces random objects with specific symbolism that can be utilized for magic.

Etymology

Pneuma (πνεῦμα) is an ancient Greek word for "breath", which is also used in certain religious and philosophical contexts to refer to the "spirit" or "soul".

Appearance

The Pneuma-less Shell is a two-meter tall metallic sphere, with a wheel at its center. Its compact form is a small round flask, no larger than an eyedrop container, with multiple necks like a bagpipe and lined with thin lead foil.

Principles

The Pneuma-less Shell has its origins in Rosicrucian alchemy, being derived from the Philosopher's Egg (哲学者の卵, Tetsugakusha no Tamago^?), a vessel used in the production of the Philosopher's Stone, clues and signs for which the Rosicrucians have been said to hide in various places, such as in music and paintings. As well as the Philosopher's Egg, it is also related to the Clear Coffin (透明なる棺, Toumei-naru Hitsugi^?).

The Pneuma-less Shell is described as a base metal still made by intentionally distorting the original egg, intended to produce random objects rather than the red Philosopher's Stone. The device's process is described as absorbing mystical power and mechanically decoding it before releasing the result in the world. Its random fluctuations are apparently such that not even those with considerable foresight or capability, such as Anna Sprengel or Johann Valentin Andreae (posing as CRC), can predict or control them.

While Anna uses it to add some randomness and entertainment to her battles, it is also meant to disturb her own rhythm and reduce her status. This is intended to mitigate a risk of careless mistakes resulting from immortality, strength or other means of evading death, as once someone eliminates death they can forget the fear of it, leading to others being able bring about their death without them realizing it (although not a fatal example, this has been compared to the Greek gods making many human mistakes from being unable to control themselves and giving in to pride or jealousy).

Usage

When Anna Sprengel used the Pneuma-less Shell, the sphere manifested with the command Incubate (抱卵, Hōran^?), causing a shockwave which knocked down objects and individuals in its vicinity. The metallic sphere hovered in the air and emitted a dull silver light. When she was done using it, Anna snapped her fingers to have it compress itself into the form of a small round flask with multiple necks and lined with thin lead foil.

When initially using it, Anna spoke the Pneuma-less Shell's name, invoking the Philosopher's Egg, Clear Coffin, and a spell which never strays far, even found hidden in music and paintings. Declaring that she did not seek the red stone, she had it show her a distorted result to entertain her with the unforeseen. Anna used it by spinning the central wheel, with the orb making a grinding noise similar to gears before opening up in a complex manner to dispense an item.

When Johann Valentin Andreae made use of the Pneuma-less Shell while posing as Christian Rosencreutz, it was initially invoked apparently without a verbal command. Later, when cornered by Kamijou Touma, he was able to mass-produce and remotely activate multiple Pneuma-less Shells, using a spell and device based around the symbol of the red rose. Grabbing this mother device, glowing red, out of thin air, Andreae declared that the ruby's shine corresponded to the pure red of the rose, a female symbol paired to the cross that could produce anything, before ordering it to mass-produce monsters of death and destruction, filling the room with Pneuma-less Shells which then opened simultaneously.

Products

Both Anna and Andreae are capable of extracting the 'essence' of the produced items, associated with their history and traditions and applying them to produce potent effects. Anna's usage involved cases of the "world's oldest" and "first"s, with examples given by Anna in her explanation including the first projectiles being stones, the first smokescreens being dried grass, the first biological weapons being corpses, and the first blades likely being stone or bone. Andreae's usage involved the world's oldest tools representing a specific type and cause of death, described by him as producing the greatest attack based on that origin, mentioning plant ropes that would squeeze and strangle, as well as stones and sharp blades that would slash and stab.

Known items with known symbolism/effects produced by the Pneuma-less Shell include:

Item	Essence	Effects
Tree branch	"The world's oldest whip"	By extracting and applying the branch's essence, Anna was able to blow away the nearby snow and tear off the right half of the Anti-Art Attachment's wings, rupturing its twin rocket engines in the process, with a casual swing of the branch. Andreae discarded the branch when he received it, so his exact usage of this item is currently unknown.
Rope	"The world's oldest form of bondage"	Drawing out the essence of the old worn rope, Anna was able to apply tremendous pressure and break away a pillar with a light tug after throwing the rope, missing her target and wrapping it around the pillar. It has been said that she could bind a falling asteroid and hold it in place in mid-air.
Sputnik	"The world's oldest orbital launch"	Using the satellite's essence in an attack, Anna raises her hand, causing loose objects in the target area to rise up before tearing the target from the ground and launching it into the sky. Anna attempted to use this against Shokuhou Misaki, but her target unexpectedly falling while attempting to run led to a nearby bus stop sign being launched instead.
Charcoal	"The world's oldest writing tool"	Charcoal was used before papyrus and parchment, being mixed with blood and used to write on cave walls. As the oldest writing tool, it is also where grimoires start from. Anna can make use of this to turn objects into original grimoires by writing text on them. Animated for autonomous defence by drawing power from the ley lines, they follow her commands. Although impromptu ones, they are still true grimoires and reading their text with have the same harmful effect. Anna can also dispose of her creations by erasing the text, causing the grimoires to fail to establish proper circulation of power absorbed from the ley lines and rupture from within. The dispensed charcoal on Christmas Day was the size of a fist and had a small indentation which a finger could be stuck into. By doing so, toying with the thick reddish-black substance on her fingertips and moving her hand as if carving something into the world, Anna wrote text on a nearby table, pillar and snowman decoration, animating them as grimoires. By wiping the paint from her fingertips, Anna caused the text to melt away and the makeshift grimoires to collapse.
Stone tools	"Oldest form of deadly bludgeoning"	Andreae made use of this item among many others in a bulk attack against Touma and the dragon, but the exact effects are unknown.
Wooden sticks	"Oldest form of deadly whipping"	Andreae made use of this item among many others in a bulk attack against Touma and the dragon, but the exact effects are unknown.
Uranium	"Oldest form of radiation poisoning"	Andreae made use of this item among many others in a bulk attack against Touma and the dragon, but the exact effects are unknown.
Rose cross staff	"World's oldest 'human-made' miracle of the rose"	A staff resembling a giant gold cross decorated with a red ruby rose, obtained and by Anna Sprengel during the battle with Alice Anotherbible. Considering it excellent luck to acquire, Anna described the gold cross and ruby rose, the Rose Cross, as the world's oldest 'human-made' miracle of the rose, supposedly originating in ancient times but first depicted in the middle ages and rediscovered in more recent times. She claimed it symbolized the destruction of the origin, bringing death through disillusionment, and containing the violence found in the magic of extreme growth and maturity. By merely raising the staff, without incantation or magic circle, flames appeared and were released from the staff towards Anna's opponent. These magical flames were described as shooting forward with a liquid motion and scorching space itself regardless of physical material, though Alice was easily able to bind them. It was also able to produce a powerful burst of wind at will, that split the Executioner in half.

Aside from these known items, Andreae also produced unknown items for the oldest forms of drowning, poisoning, electrocution, hanging, decapitation, skewering and crushing, of explosive and mincemeat deaths, death from being buried alive, of deadly burning, gunshots and vibrations, as well as vigilante killings, vehicular homicide and karoshi.

Chronology

Souyaku Toaru Majutsu no Index

Christmas Day Arc

Main article: Christmas Day Arc

In the initial part of her battle with Misaka Mikoto and Shokuhou Misaki on Christmas Day, Anna Sprengel made use of the Pneuma-less Shell to provide herself with some entertainment as she fought, extracting symbolism from various "world's oldest"s for attacks.

New Year's Arc

Main article: New Year's Arc

During the events of January 5th, Johann Valentin Andreae made use of the Pneuma-less Shell while posing as Christian Rosencreutz, drawing out the symbolism from items representing the oldest forms of types of death. In his initial use of it against Kamijou Touma, rather than exploiting its products, he exploited Touma's familiarity and knowledge of Anna's use of the item to misdirect him into an assumption about his next attack. In his final battle with Touma, he utilized a rose symbol to mass-produce and remotely activate Pneuma-less Shells, bombarding Touma with numerous attacks in response to an incoming attack from the unleashed dragon.

Late on January 6th, Anna Sprengel brought out her Pneuma-less Shell during the battle with Alice Anotherbible, describing Alice's own method of drawing out the meanings of her actions and converting them into attacks as a variation of the principles that the tool used, and subsequently acquired a rose cross staff from it, though it was the only item she acquired from it before being defeated.

Hell Tour Arc

Main article: Hell Tour Arc

Johann Valentin Andreae brought out the Pneuma-less Shell again during his battle with Touma in 'hell' on January 7th, but his move was predicted and he had bad luck with the drawn item (a tree branch that then he tossed aside), to his frustration.

Gallery

The Pneuma-less Shell's design for Souyaku Toaru Majutsu no Index Light Novel Volume 02

Trivia

• The Philosopher's Egg is one name associated with an aludel, an earthen subliming pot used in alchemy, also called the "Hermetic Vase". Some alchemical texts refer to the Philosopher's Egg as an egg-shaped glass crucible used in the creation of the philosopher's stone.
• The Glass Coffin that is referred to with the Pneuma-less Shell might be related to a story about the Fraternity of the Rosie Cross (and explanation thereof) told in The Secret Teaching of All Ages, under a section describing the Rosicrucian goal of discovering a universal panacea for all forms of disease (including ignorance), a medicine for healing individuals, races and nations. It describes a hint or claim that the Fraternity possessed the secret to indefinitely prolonging human existence (though not beyond the time appointed by God), relating that certain Brothers were buried in a glass casket or container, also referred to as a womb or the philosophical egg. After a certain period of time, the philosopher would break the shell of this egg and emerge, functioning for a prescribed period before retiring back into the glass shell.
• Notes in Haimura Kiyotaka's design for the Pneuma-less Shell give it the nickname Pneuma Gacha (プネウマガチャ, Puneumagacha^?). He also notes that it was given a steering wheel as a handle for the gacha form because it needed to be able to be turned even by the small Anna.