The Reasoning behind The Sundering? (*6.0 Endwalker Spoilers*)

[Vyrerus]

Bacon and Neckties

An interesting set of thoughts, and I had to stop myself from meandering down and muckin' about on TV Tropes, because the way that site is written is just too damn engaging lmao. I had many laughs, thank you.

But I disagree for a few reasons. I'll start with the idea that the Ancients failed Hermes's test.

The Ancients weren't actually presented with Hermes's test. Not by Hermes and not by Venat. The Meteion Hivemind, and its will to end all life is the actual test. But due to not having any information about her due to the amnesia machine and Venat being unwilling to share her memories via Echo, they were essentially asked to solve an equation for an absolute numerical value when only presented with variables. Basically, solve for X in A + BX = Y.

They came up with X = (Y-A)/B, but Venat wanted the actual numerical values, without actually handing them any numerals to work with. Put another way, it's like being given an incomplete word problem, and then being punished for not finding a solution. Not enough information was provided to them to ever get the right solution. That is the real reason why Zodiark could never work.

Wasn't designed with the real solution as the goal, and more importantly, its designers weren't designing it for that in anyway shape or form.

As far as the alien morality aspect goes... Mmmm... The writers have actually handed us a very alien race of beings, but their desire with their tale is to make them as human as possible to give us an uplifting story to relate too, so they're never going to fully engage with that aspect of it. Most people won't either. It's also true that in the setting itself, these human-like aliens condemn Venat's actions as very bad, and Venat's own faction /self says they're going to be hated, reviled, by their kin for the rest of time.

With that in mind though, I've thought an awful lot about Etheirys and its beings. They are essentially beings of pure energy that inhabit flesh. There's a lot about their existence that is not explained in this regard, but it is true that they are tangible souls made of aether which choose to inhabit flesh in order to form lives. It's implied that they didn't always understand this, but in the times of the Ascians' civilization, they had progressed to a point where they did. By this point they'd found a way for their, "adamant souls" to cause their flesh to live for as long as they willed it. Further understanding that when the flesh perishes, the soul returns to the planet, and will eventually come back onto the physical plane in a new body. In this regard, nothing on Etheirys dies unless the aether of its soul is somehow destroyed.

This means that neither the Sundering nor the Rejoinings actually killed any souls of Etheirys, and actually killed no one. Unless we want to go into the philosophy on identity, which both eliminated(or at least damaged) on large scales.

Endwalker does present the possibility that not all souls stay whole in the Aetherial Realm, and that they disintegrate eventually to become raw aether to fuel the creation by the planet of new souls, which will go on to engender flesh someday. We're not shown any examples, but perhaps it was just illustrating that the modern era scholars aren't in the know, and that this half of the hypothesis is wrong.

Anyway though, in regards to the loss of identity as being a moral dilemma, I'd say this is what Hermes's character revolves around. His big beef with the Ancients not valuing all life stems from the ancients dispelling their creations due to the things intrinsic to the creation's identity. Super violent mega predator that's, "Too Violent?" Eliminate it. Recreate it to be less violent. Well, then is it even the same creation anymore? No. Hence why he sought to at least preserve the conception of that "life."

The closest, "real" story that I can think of that plays in a similar vein to this is the movie Gattaca (1997). In that movie, our real world future is portrayed at being at a point where genetics has advanced to a point where pre-natal development can be controlled to remove all susceptibility to hereditary disease, immunodeficiency, addictive susceptibility, eye color, hair color, skin complexion, baldness, myopia etc. Everything that could define a person can be controlled.

We have no examples of Ancients doing that with their magicks, only with their laissez-faire societal customs. No one's personal limitations were ever corrected for. No one was enforced to die(return), though all were enforced outside of private or select locations to robe up, cowl up, and mask on. Even that had exceptions though, such as those marked by white robes or red masks.

This strange, alien society is said to have world peace, solved world hunger, no disease. Bereavement only possible through violence.

So perhaps Venat's real crime is affecting control over life via violent magic. Asserting the will of one over the will of the collective as well as the will of every individual. While simultaneously failing to discard that society's methods.

Because it's not mankind nor the concept of man that accepts, and is given the actual test; then passes it. It is one, idealized and idolized individual. An anointed chosen one birthed by the murder of original man. Prepared and groomed for the role, and given every tool past, present, and future to ensure success. If all of that is what's required to be worthy of life, then no basic concept for the worthiness of life exists.

Brings a whole new meaning to, "Prove your worth."

[RoroCookies]

Because it's not mankind nor the concept of man that accepts, and is given the actual test; then passes it. It is one, idealized and idolized individual. An anointed chosen one birthed by the murder of original man. Prepared and groomed for the role, and given every tool past, present, and future to ensure success. If all of that is what's required to be worthy of life, then no basic concept for the worthiness of life exists.

Brings a whole new meaning to, "Prove your worth."

Honestly when you put it that way. This test of mankind ending up a test more for our Azem. Our character is guided and 'chosen' to carry the entire weight of the world. If it wasn't for us, mankind would've just failed the test anyway because no one else has personal ties to the ancients like our Azem did. This really has me thinking and I am now bothered by it ahaha.