Theory on Hydaelyn and Zodiark’s nature

[shinkin]

The Hydaelyn faction, meanwhile, objected to the forced sacrifice of life to Zodiark. They believed the future belonged to those who lived, and that it was wrong to take that future from them against their will.

It is likely that Hydaelyn was summoned with the express purpose of defending against the dominating will of Zodiark - hence her ability to protect us from tempering, aka the Blessing of Light. But in doing this, the system by which Zodiark restored order was threatened: his dominating will was the mechanism by which the volatility of Creation magic was kept in check. This made their coexistence untenable, and so they were destined to conflict. From there, it’s easy to see how we arrived at the Sundering.

again, where does it ever imply they were forced to do anything, let alone Zodiark's "dominating will"? Genuinely asking because I don't remember any of this being said. Emet tells us what Zodiark needed to do X and Y but that's it, and when Hydaelyn's creation is brought about they just say that the dissenting group that summoned her didn't think there should be any more sacrifices. Not that anyone was being forced into sacrifice. The notion they were being forced into doing so, IMO, goes completely against Emet's arguments when he says that the lesser races would never be able to do the same thing or act so selflessly. Now granted, he is tempered, but I don't recall any explicit mention on what type of diety Zodiark was.

[Trunks]

again, where does it ever imply they were forced to do anything, let alone Zodiark's "dominating will"?

Zodiark was the "will of the star made manifest". Emet-Selch describes his tempering thus (emphasis mine):

We summoned Him, as your kind might summon a primal--albeit an infinitely more powerful one. And like one of your primals, He tempered us. It was only natural. There is no resisting such power. And so we Ascians came to exist solely to bring about the rule of darkness. His darkness.

Not sure what to call that if not "domination". It's vague as to who was tempered, but the way he phrases it makes it sound like a widespread thing. I doubt "we Ascians" refers to just the Convocation.

Anyway, as to the forced sacrifice, this story is told to us by Hythlodaeus. This is the chronology of events he describes:

1. Doom befalls the Ascian civilization.

2. Half of the Ascians voluntarily sacrifice themselves to summon Zodiark, who halts the calamity. [It's stated that Creation magic going out of control is fueling the destruction. It's still speculative, but it stands to reason that Zodiark's tempering may have been the means by which order was restored, as Zodiark exerted his will over those practitioners of Creation magic.]

3. The world remains devastated, the lands blighted, the waters poisoned. To restore the world, another half of the Ascians voluntarily sacrifice themselves. The cycle of life begins anew. (Something gave me the impression that the "new" life was not the same as the "old" life, but I can't remember where that came from.)

4. The Convocation decides that they will nurture the new life on the planet. Then, at the right time, they would sacrifice some of its life to Zodiark to restore those who had been lost in the preceding sacrifices to carry on as stewards of their world. This precipitates open conflict among the Ascians. Some object that the "new world" belongs to "those newly born" - and they sacrifice themselves to summon Hydaelyn.

Indeed, this last part remains the Ascians' intention. After the Rejoining, they will forcibly sacrifice the survivors on the Source to restore their people to life. This was a major plot point at the end of the story.

What I'm really curious about is what Emet-Selch's interest in us was all about. He mentions seeking someone "able to endure the necessary pain" to "brave the path of lesser tragedy", provided that we're able to contain the Light of the Lightwardens. From the things that he says, I think he does regret the slaughter and devastation, but believes it's his duty to see things through at any cost. I wonder if he's implying there's another way to go about Rejoinings, or if it's something else.

All that said, the Echo is one of the most mysterious things in the game right now and we have very, very little information about where it comes from.

Not only that, but there's also conflicting information about it. There's that conversation in Matoya's cave which pretty much says that the Echo and Blessing of Light are the same thing - which makes no sense, especially given what's happened with Zenos and the fact that Hydaelyn is herself a primal. Worse is that Krile, who does not contradict this claim, was of the Students of Baldesion, which existed to study the Echo.

Lahabrea describes it as the "power to break down the barriers of existence". That could very well be a consequence of the Sundering. I still think the most plausible explanation is that it is an Ascian power and that Hydaelyn reincarnates shards of the souls who summoned her to forestall calamities, which is why we possess it.