Quote Originally Posted by Vyrerus View Post
It's literally showcasing that the Ancients could be physically immortal if they wanted or needed to be, but that they still don't consider themselves above what's supposed to be the natural cycle of their planet.
Are the Ancients truly immortal, though?

When you meet Hesperos, he brags that becoming a Hemitheos brought him immortality:
'For once, be grateful to witness a feat beyond your meager abilities. Beyond your shallow reckoning. I have slipped the surly bonds of mortality! I have become one with our mythic creations, and rid myself of imperfections. I stand upon the threshold of godhood! As a hemitheos shall I serve Master Lahabrea, ever faithful, until the end of days...'

Stock villain speech aside, it's a bit of a strange boast to be making in the company of a couple of other supposed 'gods'. If the Ancients are all immortal to begin with, then why is that so special? Why does that quality make him, specifically, a 'demi-god'?

It's also strange to use euphemisms around death in a society that doesn't have to worry about it. Hermes rightfully points out that despite his predecessor's achievements, there's still so much that they could achieve by continuing to live:
'It's just... I cannot fathom why someone so great and wise, who could still do so much good, would want to end it all...'
And he has a good point. You could spend lifetimes upon lifetimes in the single-minded study of one subject, and not run out of things to learn about and discover. It's also not surprising that Venat in particular, even in retiring from her role as Azem, never ran out of things to learn about and be passionate towards; there's always something new and exciting to find over the next horizon. I don't think that you can make a definite call either way without some hard lore-based evidence.