Shadow Q&A

Questions and Answers with Everyone's Favorite Grim Guardian, Shadow!

Q: How did the previous bearers grow stronger with their Runes?

A: To know this, one must first know their own views on the concepts of their Runes.

Mikaela answered, "Purity is a perfect balance of clarity and morality, unmuddied by the thoughts of others. An ideal to be strived for, and hardly ever reached." The clarity she spoke of was one of duty, or purpose, essentially an existence without room for doubt. She chose to share Shaymin's burden, though she hid it well, taking as much of the tortured creature's wounds into herself as she could. She thought through self sacrifice, she could redeem the actions of her predecessors and put the Rune of Purity on the path of healing. As a result, Shaymin's body bore no marking, but its spirit was slow to heal.

Robin answered, "Ideals are the foundation of the heart, and Truth the material you must use to build upon it. Balance is a healthy state of mind achieved by neither letting go of your dreams, nor letting them blind you to reality." Her answer was solid, but it is questionable how much she truly learned about herself. Her Kyurem was large and powerful, but something was missing.

Elyn answered, "Death is an illusion. A cessation meant to scare the fearful. There is no death when a life has been well lived, for your heart will be at ease and your works remembered for all time. In order to truly die, you must have never lived." Rejecting the notion of death in favor of life, her Yveltal took on a shimmering white form.

And finally, Rajjaka answered, "My passions are colors yet unseen, people I have never met, foods whose taste defies imagination, the world beyond my understanding. It is my desire to learn and grow from new experiences. An enthusiasm for life." A nonviolent man, his heart tempered even the naturally fierce Rune of Passion, though its form became noncombative as well.

Their hearts shaped the Runes' avatars thus, manifesting as what you saw not long before their assault on Halla'na. They too looked inward to the realms of the gods to put their beliefs to the test, just as I have recommended to you. And the guardians of the runes will not be far from this trial, be assured.

Q: Is it possible to copy a person with magic?

A: It should be possible to create a duplicate body with magic, yes, but the soul is a different beast. There are two different aspects to a soul, the anima, and the animus. The animus is... to explain it simply, you can think of it as the part of the soul that is connected to the physical being. In conjunction with the body, it holds memories, personality, and such, which can be altered with damage to the physical shell. Just as a dam will prevent water from flowing down a river without changing the nature of the water, damage to the body can disrupt the connection to the animus and alter a person's behavior. The anima is the more... essence-like half of the soul. The stuff of spiritflesh and deeper self. It may be possible to imitate animus with spellcraft, but it is impossible to create or duplicate anima with such power.

Q: Is it possible to permanently protect a place from scrying?

A: Permanently? One would need a spell the strength of the Rune of Truth's Great Lie. Halla'na, this Little Haven, should be safe for now, but should you feel the need in the future... It is difficult. The art of dream-seeing at the very least needs to draw upon images pulled from the Aether. You could try deliberately flooding the offending oracle with -too much- information, though I don't have a good idea of how mortals might achieve that. Alternately... you have curious little wards in your rooms, don't you? I can feel them from here, preventing you from being forcefully dragged into the world of dreams. Mayhap those could be altered in a similar way, that your past, present and future might be prevented from being known to the Aether.

Q: Can we move a lot of people or a building to the Dream World at once?

A: Yes, though it'd take a lengthy ritual preparation. I could teach you the particulars, since you are gifted in ways other humans are not, but I would advise against trying it as an offensive maneuver, it's likely to take too long to be useful.