ataraxion | 011✖; (voice)

"People tend to believe in something, whether it's gods, a god, some sort of afterlife or nothing at all. Nothing can be something, can't it?

"In any case, the belief in the soul and that it goes somewhere after the body dies has surprisingly been a subject of interest these last few years. Is the soul a thing that is natural, and can it be created out of something that is unnatural?

"What happens to the vessel once it's no longer occupied by whatever makes you you?"

['You are a vessel. You are born to die.' Those were among the first words she's ever heard, and yet the connotation behind them are unsettling for her now.]

"Is there any place like a Heaven or a Hell for a thing that's not born but made by a person, or is it more likely that we just disappear entirely once the vessel dies?"

[Death had never been a scary prospect for her before. Not when she had something that she wanted to live and die for. She almost misses being empty, when she didn't have to worry about the things she would leave in the likely events of her eventual demise. Everything has an expiration date, after all.

[DEEP THOUGHTS coming from the lounge with booze.]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

You okay, though? Don't get in too deep, alright?

am fine.

can't help but get stuck in the past sometimes.

I get that. Mind if I ask-- what're other people saying?

well.

was told by a guy who looks like the grim reaper himself a little about souls, so that's one thing. [And cat therapy, but that's probably irrelevant.]

have heard a few things. don't know how much of it really applies to different worlds, though.

You've got me curious. What'd he say? Yeah. I don't know if there'll be one answer. We've seen there's more than one universe. Doesn't make sense there'd just be one afterlife if there is one.

not a whole lot. just that he knows where a soul begins after they die, but not so certain where they end up afterwards.

at this point, wouldn't be surprised if there are multiple more than one. assuming any one such place exists at all.

would like to think there is though. personal preference.

"Begins?" Seems contradictory. Considering it's usually seen as an end. Yeah. Me too. Think most people deserve it. You included.

makes sense by some philosophies. death is only the beginning of something new.
unless you subscribe to death being final.

haven't quite earned the right to agree with that sentiment.
not yet.

Which some do. A lot of people, actually. From what I've seen and heard. Not sure where I stand. No one can tell you what to think. Just hope all this helps you figure it out. Or at least give you some clarity.

wonder if it would ever get tiring.
there's already so much one goes through while living, without having to think about what to do with an eternity.

would like to someday.
it would be nice.

Yeah. Might be nice to get a break. Hard to say when you've never had one. Once had two crew members discussing souls. Whether or not machines and AIs have them. They were pretty passionate about it.

know how that goes.

suppose it's good that there are people who are.
knew someone like that once. she studied the psychology of synthetic subjects, among other things.
was one of them.

Back home or on the ship? Gets pretty heated. I can see why. But the AI and synthetics I know... I don't know. I'd say they have souls.

both.
though spent four years back home being clinically insane before returning here. hard to call that much of a break though.

what are the synthetics you know like?

I'm sorry. I didn't Yeah. Not really. Well, some are friends and some are the shits who wrecked the galaxy, so. It's mixed.

you don't have to apologize. it's not something that comes up a lot. not very "conversation appropriate."

sounds a bit like home as well.

Still. Didn't mean to pry. Sorry, then. No one should have to go through that. Hard to say whether out of control organics or synthetics are worse, sometimes.

to be fair, could've just easily decided not to bring it up.

from personal experience, both are equally bad. suppose that's to be expected when creations have a way of taking on the flaws of their creators.

[That may be personal experience as well.]

Oops. You got me. True. And then the creations decide they're better than the creators. And take it to war.

it was a personal choice, actually.

the ai back home is a little more shrewd than engaging in full out war. rather than showing its face and sacrificing its own kind, it decided to pit humans against other humans for several decades first.
sad thing is that it worked. doesn't take much to start a war. just a nuclear attack here and a convenient political assassination there, maybe some famine and civil unrest.

Well our Reapers do something similar. Maybe not on purpose. It was way too late when our Council decided to believe me and accept them as a threat. By then Never mind. But yeah. Wars happen all the time. They're just not always labeled.

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