When are we supposed to stop fighting?

[Lyth]

There's more to spirituality than religion. There are many ways to come to terms with questions surrounding why we exist, or how to cope with suffering. In Thavnair, the common folk understand this through the sermons of their old gods, which is why Matsya starts the recitation. Has some Amaurotian scholar abstractly contemplated the philosophy around pain and loss? Possibly, but it seems less likely in a society that refuses to openly acknowledge their existence. Unfortunately, it seems like Amaurot was ultimately forced to confront the issue all at once.

I don't think that there's any shame in relying on each other for help. That's part of being human. Sometimes, part of being a hero is simply standing your ground and holding out until reinforcements arrive. We've been there before, many a time. Matsuya is neither a warrior nor a mage. The point of his journey is to show that even the humblest among us can show great courage in the face of adversity and impossible odds. And that's why the scene resonated with so many people.

Just as a side reference, it's worth noting that in various Vedic traditions, Matsya is a fish avatar that saves humanity from the flood. Yet more interplay of Greco-Roman and Vedic philosophy, much like Aether and Akasha.

...

'I mentioned before that there was a member of the Convocation who opposed Zodiark's summoning and defected. One whose office was left vacant. Defectors having been deemed unworthy of commemoration, no crystal exists for the individual in question. Or shouldn't exist, at any rate - and wouldn't, had a friend not created one in secret.'

So here's the thing. Azem was branded as a traitor. We did not part on good terms. Not only did they remove the seat from existence, they refused to record it in their memories. And when you consider how much stock the Amaurotians placed on their stored memories ('Remember us... Remember that we once lived.') it's easy to see that purging someone from their history was a truly damning thing indeed. How ironic it is, then, that Azem is the one now tasked to remember them.

'As you say, the phenomena observed in the two calamities may both be attributed to dynamis. Of note is the difference in its effect. In the first Final Days, it warped creation magicks. In the second, it warped the people themselves. The key variable, I suspect, is the aetheric density of the men in each age. As you know, aether, in essence, negates dynamis. Harboring high concentrations of aether, we ancients cannot readily manipulate dynamis - nor be manipulated by it. Therefore, rather than ourselves, the calamity affected our magicks.'

And there you have it. Meteion cannot mind-control the Amaurotians into using creation magic against their will using dynamis. She actually can't do anything against them directly. Her ability to affect the Amaurotians is entirely dependent on warping the creations that they've created into blasphemies. In the absence of creation magic, she's powerless to affect them. It was ultimately their dependence on creation magic that unfortunately lead to their downfall.