[ OPEN ] Let No Soul Hunger For Justice: An Inquiry.

[fleurdesel]

FORM: Sending Crystals
SENDER: Adelaide LeBlanc
RECIPIENT: Everyone
WHAT: Vaguely philosophical question time
WHEN: Current
WHERE: Skyhold
NOTES: Part of Let No Soul Hunger For Justice.

[ Adelaide’s voice is even, if tired- but what else is new? Still this is a requirement for the next ritual and to that end, she must find some sort of acceptable truth from a variety of opinions. Sequestered in ‘her’ desk in the Library, full pot of coffee warmed to one side, sheaves of blank paper and bottles of fresh ink before her. To her right? Anders with a similar set up, papers, quills, ink- a kitten. To her left, Roul to take just as many notes. Prepared as they are ever going to be- she asks. ]

A few questions for the Inquisition:

What is a soul, truly? What fundamental differences are there between a mortal’s soul and the embodiment of a spirit? Is it the culmination of our thoughts and experiences, our emotions? Is it a combination of our self given purpose and our ambition?

A mortal might change their purpose, might grow and become more due to our experiences- most spirits do not. But what more than that? What sets one soul apart and makes it distinct from another? Can the same be said of similar spirits?

Answers need not be religious or academic- merely true. What do you believe to be the difference, what do you believe to be a soul?

[ ooc: threadjacking is welcome and encouraged ]

Comments

[justice_is_blond]

When the path of a spirit is altered, however, 'hypothetically speaking,' [said in a tone that makes that a clear joke; there are no hypotheticals here,] where is the difference?

[failedfirst]

The spirit's path was not altered by its' will. I think its essence is largely unchanged, it has just been woven like thread into the aspect that altered it.

[There's a long pause here.]

Hypothetically.

[see she can be funny too]

[justice_is_blond]

The difficulty then becomes finding that hypothetical thread in the whole of the cloth and pulling it out without damaging thread or cloth. Differences become all the more crucial, then.

[failedfirst]

It must be possible. The distinctions in the Fade are glaring. You can always tell a spirit from a lost soul. You remember the Blackmarsh, how different Justice was from all those souls that had been trapped.

[justice_is_blond]

I do. He had a purpose, whereas they were like... sheep. Milling about, confused, lost. So you've the souls she had there to feed off of, the spirits, and then us. There were differences.

[He's quiet for a few moments, mulling it over.]

I don't know what the key differentiation is. If we can track that down, the feel of it, that could be exceedingly useful.

[failedfirst]

He glowed.

[She knows that doesn't help. Again, trying to be funny. She's not great at it.]

There is a feeling, too. Spirits have that... energy. It's different from the kind of energy a living person gives off. If there were a way to take hold of that...

[justice_is_blond]

[He chuckles quietly. The joke is weak, but he knows that for her it's actually something impressive.]

So focusing on the energy of him... That could be something we could actually follow up on.

[There's been so much theory, but this? Now they might be getting somewhere.]

If our energy isn't too blended, if there's still a distinct feel to him and to myself, we could find the borderline. Work with it.

[failedfirst]

You do feel different. I've noticed but I never said anything because... [Well.] I assumed you knew.

I don't know how one would sort that out, I've learned to sense these things but to take hold of them?

[justice_is_blond]

I'd no idea, though I suppose perhaps I should have guessed at the possibility. I wonder if there's...

[He trails off.]

I've no idea of any way to practice that doesn't go against what I hold as important.

[failedfirst]

We shouldn't have to resort to blood magic.

I'm sure there are others who are more sensitive to spirits than I am, who may be able to feel that difference even more clearly.