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(no subject)

Who: Cole to everyone
Broadcast: Fleetwide
Action: Pathstone
When: Now

[Cole is actually looking at the camera, which is a minor miracle for those familiar with his habit of leaving his communicator next to him and pointing at the ceiling.]

How do mortals know what you're feeling? Varric used to tell me what it was, or Jove, or Solas, but they're gone and now I don't know what these feelings are. I can tell how to help other people and how to navigate their hurts but I can't do it with my own.

[He gives a small sigh and looks off somewhere. A fluff slug climbs over the communicator screen.]

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It's something very like that, yes, except that my soul is my own.

[Oh, interesting. He hasn't yet met someone who gets the "magic" explanation of his origin rather than the scientific one that doesn't know what a god is.]

A long-lived person wielding great magical power who is worshipped by humans.

So was Shale's. She just had a new body. A... 'not squishy' one.

[Welcome to Thedas, where magic is far more common than religion. Despite the prevalent religions.]

Like the Maker. Some mortals think the Maker is very powerful and they worship him to make him happy so he'll stop sending the Blight to destroy the world.

Some people worship spirits, but we don't understand why.

[He bites back a smile, because "not squishy" is an excellent way to put it, even if he's sort of semi-squishy. One of his creators had...issues.]

It's something along those lines, yes, although in this case he's most definitely an individual who was trying to help our world.

Perhaps they believe worship will sway the spirits to help them or keep from harming them?

Spirits... are. Rage rages. Despair Despairs.

Worship is strange.

And yet it's something mortals from most worlds engage in. For some, it helps them to believe they have a measure of control in a chaotic world; for others it provides them a comfort to know that a more powerful being is watching out for them.

And for others, they believe appealing to a negative aspect will help them in their own revenge or rise to power.

[Vision, you have no idea what you've done.

You've explained things in a way that makes sense. You'll never get rid of Cole now.]

Oh... it's about trying to feel better. I understand that!

[He has been living with Ordis the insane AI stuck in a human body for a while. It helps with these things.]

Precisely. Whether it's directly responded to by the powers in question or not, the mere process makes people feel better about the situation.

...

what's your name?

[He inclines his head.]

I am the Vision.

Hello, The Vision.

I'm Cole.

I'm glad to meet you, Cole. [And he's even sincere about it.]

[Cole smiles a little. His face doesn't seem to smile easily.]

What sort of Vision are you?

[He taps the yellow stone set in his forehead, which glows briefly.]

This is an artifact called the Mind Stone. It was known to my creators as a source of power and control, but also of causing great chaos. Thor--the god who awakened me--sought guidance. He had a vision of our world falling into destruction and the loss of everything there he held dear, all centered around this stone, except in a single possibility. In that one calm point, he saw me.

I am the vision of that hope.

The Vision of Hope.

[Cole is quiet for a while, thinking about this.]

That's lovely. I like that. It must be nice, to be Hope.

[And sometimes it's good to remind himself of that - something the counselors on Lavendula have been helping with. So he smiles.]

It's easier some times than others, but I strive to help in what ways I can.

Do you have a particular aspect with which you are associated?

... Compassion.

Before I was Cole, I was Compassion. A spirit of Compassion.

Then I'm unsurprised you seek understanding from others.

Have you considered speaking with the professional counselors on the moon Lavendula? They make their living based on helping people understand themselves.

The only councillors I know runs councils of things and argue a lot.

[He really doesn't understand what they do.]

I don't understand. Are they like... Compassion?

[He tilts his head to one side.]

They offer counsel to those who desire it. For some it's out of a sense of compassion, yes. For others, it's--more of a desire to see people making educated choices about their lives, for increasing their self-knowledge. Does that make sense?

Sort of.

... not really.

The primary reason is compassion for others, in any case. They want to see people improve their quality of life through understanding.

That.

That I don't understand. Improve the quality of their life through understanding.

Understanding... what? How does it improve their lives?

By understanding themselves and their own feelings, and what makes them feel that way to begin with. If we understand why we become sad, we can plan steps to recover from that sadness. If we understand why we feel lonely even when in a crowd of others, we can take steps to alleviate it.

... oh!

[That makes sense.

That sounds pretty good.]

And they could help me know what I feel?

I think there's a very good chance they could, yes. I can give you a recommendation for a specific group of counselors, if you'd like to try?