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Spoiler warning! This article contains major spoilers for Marielda 09: The Valentine Affair Pt. 4 onwards. Tread carefully! |
“
Well, the thing is, Gods come from a sorta divine impulse. You see, when someone like me veers just so from their, uh, intended character, somethin’ new springs into being.”
The divine impulse is a phenomenon in Hieron where a powerful god either experience strong emotions and spontaneously brings into being other entities (often but not necessarily other gods), or some other entity experiences strong emotion and brings into being a god. It is not formally named in the show, but the phrase "divine impulse" is frequently used to refer to such events.
In Samol's explanation, the emotion which causes a divine impulse should be one that is contrary to the god's character. If it is a negative emotion around something they lack, the god born of that impulse will be someone whose power is meant to fill that lack. For example, Maelgwyn was born to be Confidence Alive, and was born of the doubt experienced by his parents Samot and Samothes.[1] However, several of the known examples of divine impulses are not so clear-cut.
Examples
Samol and Tristero
“
Y’see, I know what you’re thinkin’, Sige. If every god sprang from somethin’ else, where did I come from? Well, one day, Nothing flinched. And there I was. And instantly, it regretted me. And so my good friend, Tristero, was born.”
Samol was the first being, born spontaneously from Nothing. Death, in the form of Tristero, was born from Nothing immediately afterwards, meant to kill Samol, but they instead became friends.
It is unclear if Samol's birth was truly the divine impulse, as Nothing cannot have thoughts or emotions, but Samol compares it directly to other instances of gods being born.[2]
Severea and Samothes
Samol explains Severea was born "when I saw the world that I'd made, and I saw it lonely. Well, things sprung into being, and my sister Severea filled the world with creatures".
Samothes followed when Samol saw those creatures "dumb and unable to care for themselves", so that he could "build them bridges and homes".[2]
Maelgwyn
Maelgwyn was born of the divine impulse from both Samot and Samothes. During Marielda 14: The Killing of the King-God Samothes By The Traitor Prince Maelgwyn Pt. 4, Hitchcock enters a room filled with Samothes' memories, and watches a scene where Samol breaks the news of his illness to Samot and Samothes, and tells them to "just have a little confidence in yourselves". Hitchcock then sees a memory of Samothes teaching a very young Maelgwyn how to use a sword.
Austin explains: "I think Hitchcock probably gets it too, right? That like, if what gods are, are the impulses of other things, greater things. ... Hitchcock puts it together that Maelgwyn is the confidence that Samot and Samothes couldn't have."
Galenica
Galenica, notably, was born from a divine impulse caused by the collective emotions of a large group of mortals, rather than from the emotions of another god.
The east of Hieron was hit especially hard during the Erasure, greatly threatening the lives of the people who lived on the eastern shore. Their struggles caused the birth of Galenica: "The will of the people, their fear and their need swelled up and took shape. The ground itself came alive and the figure had these beautiful, like sunset opal eyes, and they became a shield for the people, so that they could do their work safely." Because of this, Galenica is also known as "The Shield of Our Will".[3] Austin describes this as "the divine impulse of people" during the Winter in Hieron & Marielda Post Mortem.
Samothes
In Marielda, Maelgwyn plans to kill his father, Samothes, in order to cause in himself a powerful enough emotion that it would trigger a divine impulse. As Samothes describes it: "Samot and Maelgwyn are convinced that if they can get into my mausoleum, if the divine blood in Maelgwyn can feel something new, seeing me there resting, something might spring into being. Something powerful enough to hold back the Heat and the Dark."[2]
At the end of Marielda 14: The Killing of the King-God Samothes By The Traitor Prince Maelgwyn Pt. 4, Maelgwyn kills Samothes and does experience a powerful emotion, described by Samol: "When Maelgwyn saw his error, he did have a holy desire, the sort of thing that results in the creation of a new divine power. Except, seeing his father there, bleeding, dyin' slow, well. With his confidence shattered, the only thing Maelgwyn wanted was his daddy back."
Following this strong emotion of wanting to see Samothes returned to life, the divine impulse transforms Maelgwyn himself into a copy of Samothes.
Severea's creatures
After being killed and allowed to return to life by Samot, Severea reunited with her brother and the great joy that both of them felt caused her to "[fill] Hieron with new, imaginary creatures, with impossible horns and unlikely wings, steel backs and strange glows".[1]
It's unclear whether or not Severea did this on purpose or if this was indeed an instance of the divine impulse. Red Jack is confirmed to be one of the creatures born from this event.[4]
Cobbins
Samol lists cobbins as an example of the divine impulse when he speaks to Sige, telling him: "Still, the point is that in moments like these, gods don’t design what their offspring looks like. I mean, hell, just look at the cobbins. You think Samothes set out to make little lizard men? Please. But, it’s the emotion that becomes alive. It was the intuition and the perseverance of Samothes that made the cobbins."[2]
It's unclear what emotions Samothes was experiencing when cobbins sprang into being.