#what I'm saying is. let predamogen eat a betrayer or two

[nellasbookplanet]

Having mentioned Octavia Butler and cr3 in the same breath, I'm now pondering Bloodchild and its theme of trying to make an inherently unequal power dynamic more equal. In Butler's story, a human living under alien rule negotiates the right to keep a gun, arguing that the alien must 'accept the risk' by letting the weaker human (for whom she cares deeply) keep a weapon that could kill either of them. Whether he is mistreated or not, the human is still less powerful, but the potential of retaliation puts them at more equal ground as they are now both willing to take risks in the relationship.

If Imogen actually manages to control Predathos (not a given), I think a similar re-balancing could be an interesting route to take. Not killing the gods, forcing them away (which would effectively kill the wildmother at the very least), or demanding they 'step down' (lmao what would that even mean, they aren't rulers on thrones who can take off their crowns and redistribute their power, try to think practically here), but giving mortals a place at the table, so to speak. Would the Betrayers be as willing to manipulate their followers and using them to hurt other mortals if Predamogen could pop in and deliver retaliation? Would Vasselheim be as ready to take over communities like Hearthdell if said community could call up the God Eater to effectively make demands in their place? Would the Betrayers consider having another go at wiping out all mortals if the mortals could defend themselves?

In this scenario, the gods could still choose to fight (but seeing as they’ve lost against predathos before, it'd likely be a poor decision) or leave (which, again, isn't an option for all of them). Or they could accept the risk. The primes would have to accept what they couldn’t during the calamity: that their evil siblings genuinely could get wiped off the map if they don’t shape up. In that, they would also genuinely have to choose between what’s best for mortals/exandria or their family (which wasn't an option during the calamity; siding with aeor to kill the betrayers would just have gotten all of them killed).

Of course, this all assumes Imogen can actually control predathos (if she can't, 'the immortal beast can only be killed while in a mortal vessel' would also be a fitting ending, though a lot more tragic). It also assumes the gods (betrayers especially) don't call her bluff and try to fight anyway, causing great losses for both sides. This would only work if they choose negotiation and trust, which I believe the primes would, but the Betrayers? Hoo boy.