#I accidentally talked to Tiso in Dirtmouth | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

ganondorf--apologist · 7 months ago

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So this actually gets pretty interesting. Already in the game you have characters like Tiso and Cloth who are from elsewhere, but you also have commentary about some of them from Elderbug, who appears to be from Hallownest, and who seems to regard travelers from elsewhere as sort of a normal thing that occurred:

"Ho there, traveller. I'm afraid there's only me left to offer welcome."

"Many used to come, hoping the kingdom would fulfill their desires. Hallownest, it was once called. Supposedly the greatest kingdom there ever was, full of treasures and secrets. Hm. Now it's nothing more than a poisonous tomb full of monsters and madness."

"A young couple's just recently taken up residence in the house beside the station. Seems they're running a map shop, which may excite adventurous types like yourself."

"To reach Dirtmouth, most travellers take circuitous routes around the cliffs beside us. It's a hard trek now but in the kingdom's prime things were far simpler. There's an old pass in the cliffs that once allowed easy access. The bridge up to it has long since crumbled away, and even without it, a huge door bars entry."

As well as that, you have the existence of Ze'mer, who is also confirmed to be from outside of Hallownest, who brought flowers from her homeland, and who was one of The Five Great Knights, and who was known recently enough in history for her name and image to be known to both Sheo and the Nailsmith when they were making and painting minis.

So what gives?

Honestly, idk, but we might be able to pull some speculation by revisiting the full quote.

"Higher beings, these words are for you alone. These blasted plains stretch never-ending. There is no world beyond. Those foolish enough to traverse this void must pay the toll and relinquish the precious mind this kingdom grants."

So, to start off the tablet is addressed to "higher beings", whoever those are supposed to be. There are a lot of theories floating around about whoever PK's talking about, I'm not going to get into my thoughts on it here, but given that Ellina the Chronicler can't seem to decipher these tablets and that higher beings are an actual type of creature in the game world, I think it would be safe to infer that this might not be directed towards regular everyday bugs.

Now then, something I find particularly interesting is the way that PK seems to describe the wastes, "these blasted plains stretch never-ending." Now PK is a liar, we know in game he is a liar, he has lied about many things, yet there's an almost hilarious level of earnest frustration that the phrase "these blasted plains" seems to evoke that I'm left kinda thinking that the wastes were something that existed beyond even PK's comprehension, because something definitely seems to be up with the wastes given that both Ghost and Quirrel appear to have lost some of their memories, but we don't know what and it's quite possible that PK, in his usual roundabout near-cryptic way of communicating, might accidentally be admitting that he has no idea what's going on either beyond "I've never found an end and this place screws with your mind".

Eh, but I could always be wrong lol.

Look I don't claim to be a genius or an expert in Hollow Knight Lore. But I never quite understood the wastes and how they like, wipe your mind. To quote the Lore Tablet: "Those foolish enough to traverse this void must pay the toll and relinquish the precious mind this kingdom grants." and Hornet confirms this by saying Ghost is of two voids: The actual Void, and the 'void' of the wastelands.

BUT ALSO??

HOWD THEY GET HERE

#these are just my thoughts on the matter lol there could be things I missed #hollow knight

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