#Mercymorn is an anatomist but the Eight House seem to be primarily soul magicians

[adolin]

Thinking about soul permeability in regards to Cristabel and Mercymorn. Mainly the quasi religious reverence Mercy holds for John, despite everything, after ten thousand years of bitterness and regrets and sex parties. Mercy in Act 4 isn't just a woman who feels betrayed; she's a faithful who's lost her religion.

I've always been fascinated by the way Mercy acts around John; he's both her Emperor and sort of friends and her God, in a way that I don't think any of the other Lyctors ever come close to. They have personal loyalties to John, except when they don't, and a lovehate thing going on, but I don't think they truly worship him the way Mercy does, even when she's scolding him.

Pre TUG, I always thought that this was something Mercy did to honour Cristabel’s memory. Cristabel killed herself out of devotion and Mercy dedicated her whole existence to her remembrance; of course she needed to believe in John's divinity, to keep Cristabel’s faith alive. I thought it was a role Mercy performed, that of the fanatic, because turning her back on that side of Cristabel meant agreeing with Augustine that Cristabel hurt her by taking away her choice.

But what if it's not a mannerism Mercy developed? What if it's Cristabel’s soul peeking through?