Re: The Unholy Trio: Rephrasing the Question

From: Keith Nellist <keithnellist_at_-wMjtmTEIZYJtez9wppp7J1EpzhW1GRcW-5j1NrhrIi8yKxJnC5kl0k0W9rrgOV>
Date: Mon, 29 Dec 2008 21:51:50 -0000

>
> How did Malia acquire the power of Death? In other words, what's the
> mythical reason for people dying of diseases, instead of having to
> suffer from them for all eternity? I imagine that this could actually
> be a heroquest Malia *lost*: after all, death in such circumstances
> can be a mercy. Did Eurmal trick her into stealing Humakt's sword,
> without her realising what it would do?
>
> Stephen

It is worth thinking that Malia doesn't really want to cause death. She wants to cause suffering - prolonged, slow, agonising, avoidance of death. She usually fails - because most things die. Remember that she gave up on devastating plagues that kiled everything. They're not the way to go for maximum suffering.

Forgetting about chaos for a moment, my feeling is that she is trying to bring the underworld back to the world of the living - to merge the two so that the miseries and fear of darkness afflict the living. This is where Humakt and Daka Fal and all those "seperating life from death" guys get annoyed with her. You've got to be one thing (dead) or another (alive) in their philosophy. Malia is trying to do a half alive half dead thing.

Keith