#anders-in-the-fade

[corvisque]

You would think a city full of people who do not stay dead would not need a man like Zevran, and yet somehow he's still managed to carve out a neat little business for himself. It helps that some residents, the normal citizens who do not come and go with the moon, are not the sort to miraculously spring back after an attempt on their life; and forcing the respawn process can be rather irritating, so he's just as easily paid to be a thorn in an enemy's side. Whatever works, so long as he makes a living.

He always does try to be careful about it, but sometimes... Sometimes accidents happen, and sometimes a knife slips. Sometimes it actually ends up slicing into his own arm. To his credit, he does manage to finish the job.

But he flees the scene trailing blood, which is never a good thing.

It is only when he is certain he is out of eyesight that he stops to inspect the wound. It is pretty deep, but not to the bone -- it will probably need stitches, and it's bleeding profusely, but it is not anything he hasn't dealt with before. He sighs.

"Rookie mistake, Zevran." Just when his reputation had managed to repair itself, too. "How far to the nearest clinic from here, I wonder?"

He looks around, just now noticing how close he is to the arrival platform and the giant pit in the middle of the city. Great.

@anders-in-the-fade

[weavehearted]

@anders-in-the-fade

it wasn't all that odd to wake up to one of his companions gone from the apartment, but to have both of them gone at once? call him a worrywart, but in such unfamiliar territory, he like to at least have some idea of where they went. Tara being gone didn't concern him as much as Astarion being gone did; the tressym was very self sufficient and well-mannered. that wasn't to say Astarion was not independent, but the sun was still up.

Gale can picture him now, caught somewhere he shouldn't be after sticking his nose into trouble. and he knew Tara had to have at least left with him because, well, she couldn't open the front door by herself.

with a sigh, Gale is about to head out on a rescue mission when there's a knock at the door.

no sooner did he have the door open did he have to scramble to catch a very familiar tressym leaping from the strangers arms to his.

"Oh, Mr. Dekarios! We really must have words about our Astarion's actions," Tara says, the pointed lack of honorifics towards Astarion speaking volumes. "He's caused this man some grief, I'm afraid."

Gale can only blink, shocked for a moment as he looks from Tara to the man. "Erm...Hello! Thank you for seeing Tara home, but I must admit-- I'm a tad confused here."

[isolaradiale]

Hello again, I updated my application and I'd like to apply as Anders from Dragon Age 2!

Welcome to seasonal Isola Radiale, Anders!

You will be housed in APARTMENT 305.

You will be able to heal minor wounds up to five times a day.

You will also receive a cool stick.

Enjoy your stay!

– andromeda ☆

[magemance]

Reunion.

[purpleenjoyer]

If you saw the previous post no you didn't I had to correct some things

The second part of my previous Inquisition post.

[pinkfadespirit]

i needed a break to draw something sweet

[edenxroseyposey]

All That Remains

[higheverweave]

Just some Veilguard Theories dont mind me

[tianlavellan]

I will find you

Blondie, I thought you should hear this from me before you hear it somewhere else. Something happened at Adamant. The Inquisitor and a group of their people fell through a rift – from what I understand, it took them to the Fade, physically. Shouldn't be possible, should it? Anyway. Doesn't matter. The point is, Hawke was with them. He didn't make it back. The Inquisitor says he stayed behind to buy them the time they needed to make it out. I'm sorry. Varric Don't do anything stupid.

[auphaniim]

😇😈

[zkretchy]

It's 2am and I can't sleep, have this silly doodle

[corvisque]

@anders-in-the-fade cont. from here

Zevran tsks at the reply, but does not launch into any lectures on taking better care of one's self. It would be highly hypocritical of him to do so -- and he would much rather leave all lecturing to his new friend, in any case, since the mage is already so good at it. He just pads his way to the apartment's small kitchen, opening one cupboard after another until he finds the aforementioned mugs.

As he makes his return, he simply shrugs. Sure, he could have been less vague, perhaps, but Anders could have asked better questions, too. Hindsight is twenty-twenty and all.

"I thought it obvious at the time."

At the very least Anders does not seem angry at the little misunderstanding. Looking at him now, as Zevran helps himself to his host's generous hospitality, he realizes that the man looks... awful, actually. It's not just the clear lack of restful sleep, either.

"Your first week in and you have already gone looking for trouble." He does not know what the mage means by fallout, not really, but he can make a few guesses. "If I may speak plainly: you look like shit, my dear."

[thefadecodex]

As discussed in the Theory of Spirit Complexity, spirits can evolve into more complex forms through direct interaction with the physical world or by observing and mirroring these interactions within the Fade. This concept builds upon and expands ideas introduced in the Spiritual Alignment Classification System and When Purpose Falters.

This creator is theorizing based on the lore that there are multiple, flexible pathways to purpose (or corruption) and evolution for spirits. An example of this train of thought is below:

In previous games and established lore, our understanding of spirits' purpose and corruption remains limited, often resulting in rigid assumptions about how corruption manifests. 

For example:

When Justice merged with Anders, he transformed into Vengeance, reinforcing the belief that a Spirit of Justice, when corrupted, must inevitably become a Spirit of Vengeance. (side note from the creator: I suspect this might be linked to the Blight present in Anders, which is discussed further down)

This narrow perspective overlooks the potential nuances and variability in how spirits might experience corruption or transformation. 

Instead, let’s look at other forms that a Spirit of Justice could possible become if it is corrupted: 

What determines what a spirit will be corrupted into? The creator of The Fade Codex theorizes that it is based on the situation that put the spirit against it’s original purpose. Going with the example above of Justice being corrupted:

Fear: A Spirit of Justice becomes so afraid of failure or further injustices it can become paralyzed or overly reactive.

Despair: A Spirit of Justice witnessing endless cycles of injustice and failure to make meaningful change.

Vengeance: A Spirit of Justice becomes consumed with frustration and anger leading an overwhelming desire to punish rather than balance.

Tyranny: A Spirit of Justice becomes obsessed with enforcing order and fairness to an extreme that it suppresses freedom and choice.

Passivity: A Spirit of Justice becomes overwhelmed by the scale of injustice or believes that intervention will always lead to unintended harm, leading to inaction.

Case Study: The Blight Within – Justice and Anders

Subject: The Spirit of Justice

Host: Anders, Grey Warden and Apostate Mage

Corrupting Influence: The Blight (disembodied rage of the Titans)

Background: Justice, a Fade spirit inhabiting the corpse of Grey Warden Kristoff, merged with Anders, a Grey Warden mage consumed by anger at the oppression of mages. Anders’ Blight-tainted blood, carrying the Titans' disembodied rage, began corrupting Justice's purpose.

Observation: Initially driven by balance and fairness, Justice was twisted by the Blight's primal fury and Anders’ deeply personal anger regarding the treatment of mages. The Blight amplified Justice’s purpose into something violent and unyielding, warping it into Vengeance—a spirit driven by rage, punishment, and destruction rather than resolution.

Case Study: Manfred

The same line of reasoning can be applied to Manfred, a Spirit of Curiosity inhabiting a skeleton. However, Manfred's case differs significantly from Anders and Justice or Wynne and Faith, as the skeleton he occupies lacks a pre-existing soul.  

Emmrich observes that Manfred is actively learning, with his progress accelerating after leaving the Grand Necropolis, where his growth had been gradual.

Emmrich notes Manfred's increasing engagement in various behaviors and his eventual ability to speak, albeit very rudimentary. Additionally, Winter Wise (@winter-wise) highlights that Manfred seems to be mimicking Emmrich's actions, suggesting that his learning is not purely instinctive but shaped by observation and imitation.

Manfred has a stick he likes to point around - Emmrich uses a staff Manfred walked into a rose bush - Emmrich loves flowers Manfred likes to collect shiny things, including gilded things - Emmrich wears a lot of gold

This suggests that Manfred is actively learning and evolving.  

Several codex entries reflect Emmrich's ongoing contemplation of spirit consciousness. In 'The Dawn of Consciousness,' he questions when wisps begin to change, pondering "which can name its own interests…[and] own self-reflection." 

In another entry, ‘Emmrich: Note to Harding on Souls,’ he defines a soul as "the richly numinous force within every living being… and a spirit as an entity formed entirely in the Fade from raw magic." We receive this codex immediately upon recruiting Emmrich, so it does predates Solas's revelation about his transition from a spirit in the Fade to a physical form

This implies that spirits and souls may not be as fundamentally different as once believed, hinting at a shared essence that bridges the Fade and the physical world.

What, then, is Manfred evolving into? Will he become a “person” as defined by the majority of Thedas? Or is he developing into a more complex spirit, perhaps transitioning from a Spirit of Curiosity into something like a Spirit of Learning? 

The creator of The Fade Codex leans toward Solas's perspective—that spirits can be considered "persons," regardless of whether they possess a physical body or not. However, at this stage, the answer remains uncertain.

[veitchiin]

its not the case in my world state bc i have feelings and thoughts but when hawke doesnt return to anders in inquisition, what would he do? like. would he wait. would he keep waiting wherever they separated? when would he start looking for hawke?? where would he start? how would he make sure hawke could find him too if they missed each other? do you think he'd believe hawke finally abandoned him for good? could he accept that? would he look for hawke at all if it were the case? how would justice react? would it see it as a weight lifted off of anders' shoulders? an ubending distraction finally gone? or after however long spent with hawke would even it have gotten attached to them? would it see their disappearance as yet another unfair wound inflicted upon anders?

how would anders know anyways? varric sends a letter but he has no address and with how varric speaks of anders in inquisition do you think he would even send it to him? i mean who else right besides hawke's surviving sibling IF theyve survived, uncle gamlen? neither of them would be able to tell anders right.

so how long would anders sit in this uncertainty? have they left him? were they tired of running? tired of him? did they start resenting him for all the harm he's brought upon them? are they hurt? have they been restrained, captured? are they looking for him in places he isnt?

how long do you think until he starts believing them to have died?

how long will he grieve?

when will he move on?

would he ever be able to?

does he ever hold Dog (hawke's mabari) to cope with the loss?

what memento does he hold on to, in the deep of night when the cold their body left behind bites the hardest?

[carrinth]

Did you notice how many gifts are *books* in Awakening?? Either our poor Warden-Commander was running out of gift ideas or was passively encouraging the formation of a Grey Warden book club.

Vigil's Keep Book Club! With Nat as honorary member.

Fun fact: Justice was apparently Most Prolific Reader of VKBC with a grand total of 3 books! (Well 2 books and an elvish scroll but it counts!)

[purpleenjoyer]

Inquisition letters pt.2