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loredrinker · 8 days ago

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Tearing Down the Veil - Solas, Immortality, and the Chaos of Mortals

In further exploring Solas coming into form through lyrium before the Veil existed, something occurred to me that got me thinking about immortal time vs mortal time. (My Solas thoughts are always shifting.)

Solas's mission to tear down the Veil didn’t actually exist until we’re introduced to him in Inquisition. We are led to believe that while Solas purposefully created the Veil to banish the Evanuris and the Blight, he did not foresee the devastation it would create ("...a wound inflicted upon this world. It must be healed").

So, in reality, from Inquisition to Veilguard, Solas has only held this mission for a total of about 12–14 years - which, in comparison to his previous life of up to 8000 years and then thousands of years in deep sleep, is hardly any time at all (I am not ignoring how his previous regrets would affect him, just keeping this as simple as possible for this post). Also thank you to @abelas-inan for clarifying that Solas was in slumber for thousands of years "he slept ~3750 years".

In this previous post, I explored what his time in Uthenera may have been like. I thought he might have been active in the Fade, but after just finishing Trespasser (again), thoughts have changed.

Solas tells the Inquisitor in Trespasser, “The orb had built up magical energy while I lay unconscious for millennia.”

So, questions/thoughts:

"Unconscious" refers to a state in which a person is not awake and not aware of their surroundings or themselves. In Solas’s context, he says he was "unconscious for millennia," suggesting he spent thousands of years unaware of everything happening in the world.

What was Solas’s unconscious state like? Was he completely unaware, or could he reflect within the Fade? His description of “dark and dreaming sleep” suggests he may have perceived slight ripples in the Fade, reflecting the chaos of the world. Perhaps he became gradually more aware as his awakening approached.

I initially wondered if the killing of Felassan occurred while Solas was in Uthenera, but the timelines don’t align. The Masked Empire ends just before Inquisition, making it likely that Solas killed Felassan in the year before the Temple of Ashes explosion. This would have been a highly emotional moment, marking his first year in this new world.

No shit his awakening in modern Thedas is an intense shock.

Which aligns with his description of waking in a world that felt “tranquil”. It also explains his decision to approach a Dalish clan to reveal himself - only to be met with threats of violence and rejection. It suggests that Solas wasn’t fully caught up on Thedas’s history or the Dalish’s disconnection from their roots and how history had reshaped them. These were supposed to be his people. Small wonder he carries bitterness toward them throughout Inquisition.

Now, Solas is faced with the horrifying consequences of the Veil, burdened by a new and excruciating regret. If he was unconscious for millennia, he likely jumped back into the Fade upon awakening to uncover everything he’d missed. When he tells the Inquisitor about the battles of Ostagar, he’s recounting what he learned from the Fade, piecing together history during his first year awake.

It’s speculative, but plausible, that he studied the world’s changes extensively through the Fade - gathering insights on different factions, cultural shifts, and political landscapes. He may have also consulted spirits, seeking to understand how the Veil had twisted them over time.

So, the world he once knew is gone, and the consequences of his actions are catastrophic.

Tearing down the Veil becomes his new mission - not a goal forged over centuries, but one born of immediate and overwhelming regret. How could it not? Because of him, the elves and spirits lost everything.

Add the fact that he is living in modern Thedas, navigating a timeline vastly different from his timeless, immortal existence. Naturally, it begs exploration.

Immortal Time vs Mortal Time

Solas now lives in a world of mortals - a world where time is compressed and perceived differently through a mortal lens.

For a mortal:

Ten years is a significant portion of life. For a 30-year-old, it represents one-third of their existence.

The briefness of mortal life lends a constant urgency to decisions; ten years is a narrow window, carrying immense pressure to achieve goals, foster relationships, or experience growth.

Memories are shaped by a finite brain, which can create the sensation of time passing faster as life progresses.

For an immortal:

Ten years might feel like a brief moment in the vast expanse of their existence. To someone who has lived for millennia, a decade to an immortal could feel as a single season does to a mortal.

Time for immortals would be more likely measured in milestones, not years and there would be an absence of a fixed endpoint. Without the pressure of a ticking clock, serious actions could be delayed for careful years of planning, viewing a decade as barely a delay at all.

Immortals, with an infinite capacity for memory, might not experience the passage of time as mortals do. Memories unmarked by significant emotions (intense regret or joy) could fade away becoming indistinguishable from a vast expanse of their existence.

Through fiction and media, we are told how immortals perceive time differently. Without the looming pressure of mortality, immortals can take the time to plan, reflect, and deliberate - luxuries that mortals can't afford.

Solas – Forced into Compressed Timelines

Solas previously lived in a world of endlessness. Even massive, horrible events, like the war against the Titans, the rebellion against the Evanuris, unfolded over long arcs of time. He could carefully plan rebellions, build alliances, and execute long-term strategies without concern for immediate deadlines. If a decision led to disaster, he could step back, reevaluate, and take a century to rebuild if necessary. Imagine how long it would have taken him to plan the ritual to banish the Evanuris – and then execute it?

Solas had centuries to adapt to change, to plan.

But mortal time? Solas is thrust into a world where time moves quickly. The lifespan of these mortals means alliances and relationships are fast and fleeting, and any delay risks losing key opportunities or allies - as well as risks of unforeseen curveballs.

I imagine the pace of change in a mortal-dominated world compared to the cadence of an immortal existence would feel relentless. For someone accustomed to thinking in terms of centuries rather than a year or two, this rapid tempo could be dizzying, even destabilizing. It sheds light on some of his mistakes and misjudgments - he wouldn't have the centuries he’s used to for recalibration. The constant need to react and adapt could prevent him from fully processing his doubts or mistakes, like seeing potential future consequences or that there might be another way forward.

Since tearing down the Veil isn’t a millennia-long goal but a relatively recent mission, and because he is now operating within a faster-paced, mortal timeframe, it becomes entirely plausible for Solas to be thrown off course - and for his mind to shift. And we see him being thrown off course repeatedly. He is forced to recalibrate and remain fluid in the face of unpredictability:

"It wasn't supposed to happen this way" "I could not foresee..." "I had plans..." "When he survived, my plans were thrown into chaos."

The immediacy of interactions and the pace of this time force Solas into a reactive state, disrupting his certainty and positioning him to being open to changing it.

Other factors at play?

He is physically vulnerable, weakened and far from his full power. This vulnerability forces him to rely more heavily on strategy, manipulation, and alliances - skills he mastered but now must deploy with urgency and limited resources.

For the first time in his existence, Solas must also conceal his identity. In the ancient world, he had no reason to hide who he was. In modern Thedas, however, his initial attempt to reveal himself to a Dalish clan ended badly. What would this have felt like for him? To see the stories about him so twisted, his people fragmented and hostile, and to realize that he must now hide who he is?

Solas has to now operate from the shadows, finding agents and using the Fade to manipulate minds and make connections. He orchestrates getting the orb into Corypheus’s hands to unlock it. Corypheus’s survival and the Inquisitor gaining the Anchor throw everything into chaos - again.

He recalibrates, pivots. He investigates the explosion, offering his services, but now, after the Dalish incident, he knows he can’t reveal his true identity. Solas must understand the situation, study the Inquisitor who holds the Mark, and observe the world he now inhabits. This leads him to join the Inquisition.

Life for this immortal continues to move at a fast speed. The chaos and unpredictability of modern Thedas - and the mortals who inhabit it – seem to continuously throw him off balance. It’s no wonder we meet a Solas who is guarded, observant, thoughtful, and careful. He even admits to the Inquisitor, “You throw me so easily,” - an acknowledgment of how unsettled he is.

Solas in a Constant State of Flux

From Inquisition to Veilguard, Solas seems to be in a constant state of flux, and this ongoing reaction and disruption can become fertile ground for change. It forces adaptability, disrupts entrenched beliefs, and opens pathways to new perspectives. Constant flux pushes someone to operate outside their habitual framework - else they succumb to despair. But Solas never crumbles. He is nothing if not resilient and persistent in his goal (pride is stubborn).

A reactive state is also usually emotionally charged. Being reactive demands constant observation and quick decision-making, while a state of flux necessitates collaboration and communication with others. For Solas, this means engaging and working with mortals in crisis - and crisis forges bonds.

You know what I find hilarious? Solas telling Rook it took him centuries to build bonds during his rebellion, but when Rook asks about the Inquisition, Solas is like, “Yeah, I made friends, created bonds and grew fond of a bunch of them despite myself (maybe even fell in love) - IN A GODDAMNED YEAR". Don’t tell me this constant flux didn’t affect him.

Perhaps this is why he goes into isolation after Trespasser (addressing the shift from agents flocking to his cause to him suddenly being alone). He knows he can’t have anyone around who might create further disruptions or entanglements - because those connections threaten to throw him off course yet again.

And this whole time in the 10 years after Trespasser, he knows he's being hunted – so he needs to stay one step ahead to get to his ritual. But then Varric and Rook show up, bringing more disruptions and forcing Solas to react once again. Killing Varric, Rook throwing his plans into chaos - forced into a literal prison where he can't do anything (where all he can do is think and reflect). Rook's appearance pushes Solas further off balance. The improvisation of Rook is great because it continually derails Solas’s efforts to dig in, as external forces keep dragging him out of the certainty he’s trying to cling to.

And then, at the very end, Rook delivers the final blows: reminding Solas that he doesn’t get to choose for the entire world, throwing the Inquisitor at him - a respected friend or love from his recent past (and to an immortal, 10 years might as well be a year) - and then Mythal (and we all know his reaction there – UGH). He’s thrown again, raw and exposed.

His 12–14 years of certainty that the Veil must come down, lived amidst the constant flux and disruption of mortal lives, filled with heightened emotions and entangled relationships, gradually wore away at that conviction. We see this unravel throughout the games - his evolving thoughts and shifting perspectives.

And maybe those sobs at the end aren’t just about the culmination of everything or the release of being free. Maybe they’re also because he finally sees it - the truth he’s been blind to. A truth revealed through one chaotic moment and mortal relationship at a time. Blind, because the compressed timeline of mortals forced him to act so quickly, leaving little room for the reflection he once had in abundance: that another path could exist.

Always open to other thoughts and perspectives - my ideas are constantly evolving. I’m also not suggesting Solas isn’t deeply reflective; his immortality has honed that skill over millennia. I’m simply speculating that, compared to the endless time he once had, the modern world would give him less room to reflect.

#chaotic mortals and their infinitesimal existence #solas #dragon age inquisition #dragon age veilguard #datv #solas analysis #dragon age #da:i #Rook #obsessed with elves and immortality since first reading Tolkien #immortality #mortality

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