Tedcomms Posted August 3, 2015 Report Share Posted August 3, 2015 hello, first post. Just finished firefight, and doing the usual googling to find theory on what to expect for the next book. One thing I am noticing are people talking about David's fear of water. He faced his fear and then it's possibly changed whether or not he's become an epic. I don't know why people feel so strongly that david has a true fear of water. Sure it might scare him, but I feel it scares him like bungee jumping would scare a normal person. This doesn't make it a deep seeded issue. What I feel he truly fears is loosing Megan. Both times when she's dies it overwhelms him and he breaks down. If it is in fact his weakness, then when prof gifted him his powers he would have been in a totally weakened state, allowing him to accept his powers even though he might have been made an epic from calamity. He lost his dad once. Since then he had never had anyone else but Megan. I believe if he is an epic, his weakness with be loosing her. To kill him, you have to kill her. Also I think the first time we saw an epic overcome the corruption was when sourcefield was trapped covered in cool aid. She realised then it's not cool aid she should fear, it's the people who want to kill her. she overcomes her fear of cool aid, becoming lucid and good. She's realises what's happened, and gives david that look right before he kills her. She wasn't corrupt when David killed her, and David saw this in her. David can always tell when someone's corrupt or not... 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Edgedancer Posted August 3, 2015 Report Share Posted August 3, 2015 (edited) Welcome to the forum then. Sorry that this will be a somewhat rough greeting. As for David's fear of water, Obliteration did almost drown him, so that's plenty traumatic and he did panic a couple of times. It could be a distraction but it's a pretty good bet. If loosing Megan was his fear than the fact he was just attempting to save her from being burned to death by Prof would have given Calamity plenty to work with his David's Epicfication, which in turn would have meant a Rending, which clearly didn't happen. While loosing Megan (or people in general) could make for a root fear, from what we have seen, I don't think triggers would be as specific or binary as "is Megan alive" (doubly complicated because of her reincarnation). You'd probably do best and not equate the triggers and actual root fears, for example Steelheart was never afraid of himself, yet he could trigger his own weakness. Looking at Mitosis it seems more like being faced with their weakness can cause some emotional instability with the Epic in question. As for David and telling if someone is corrupt, might I remind you of how David's missjudgement of Prof effectively drove the latter insane? Edited August 3, 2015 by Edgedancer Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blackhoof Posted August 6, 2015 Report Share Posted August 6, 2015 Also I think the first time we saw an epic overcome the corruption was when sourcefield was trapped covered in cool aid. She realised then it's not cool aid she should fear, it's the people who want to kill her. she overcomes her fear of cool aid, becoming lucid and good. She's realises what's happened, and gives david that look right before he kills her. She wasn't corrupt when David killed her, and David saw this in her. David can always tell when someone's corrupt or not... I don't think simply having your weakness triggered counts as "facing" it. Otherwise any Epic whose weakness had been fully triggered would have turned good, and that clearly hasn't happened. Since most epics know their weakness, it must have been triggered for them at one stage. I think facing your fear means intentionally and willfully exposing yourself to your fear/weakness, willingly. A strong element if choice exists I think. If sourcefield had of removed her mask and willingly drank some, that would have counted I think. The issue is, what could drive a selfish sociopath to do something like that? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
natc Posted August 6, 2015 Report Share Posted August 6, 2015 The power of love. Apparently. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
poisonedbite Posted August 16, 2015 Report Share Posted August 16, 2015 (edited) I don't think simply having your weakness triggered counts as "facing" it. Otherwise any Epic whose weakness had been fully triggered would have turned good, and that clearly hasn't happened. Since most epics know their weakness, it must have been triggered for them at one stage. I think facing your fear means intentionally and willfully exposing yourself to your fear/weakness, willingly. A strong element if choice exists I think. If sourcefield had of removed her mask and willingly drank some, that would have counted I think. The issue is, what could drive a selfish sociopath to do something like that? at its basest, to get what they want. be it a lie believed, or the one they love safe. Edited August 16, 2015 by poisonedbite Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lumen Posted September 1, 2015 Report Share Posted September 1, 2015 Did David refuse a power from Calamity (no fear, so it couldn't take hold), or did he get a power he doesn't know about, and simply did not go crazy because he already faced his fear? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TwiLyghtSansSparkles Posted September 1, 2015 Report Share Posted September 1, 2015 Did David refuse a power from Calamity (no fear, so it couldn't take hold), or did he get a power he doesn't know about, and simply did not go crazy because he already faced his fear? I think Brandon wanted that question to be in the readers' heads before reading the next book. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oudeis Posted September 26, 2015 Report Share Posted September 26, 2015 Sourcefield: The weakness made her not-an-Epic. She was sane and lucid because she was without her power, and therefore without her madness. She hadn't faced it and become good, she was simply temporarily protected from being evil. Once her weakness was gone, she'd've gone back to being the same Sourcefield as ever. There's no reason to think, in that moment, she suddenly had a bizarre moment of realization. Meghan faced her fear when she realized she was entering a room full of her weakness, to save David, because there was something she cared about more. Sourcefield did not have that. She never made a choice to overcome her fear, to realize there was something she cared about even more. The kool-aid simply made her human for a moment; nothing more. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Edgedancer Posted September 26, 2015 Report Share Posted September 26, 2015 Sourcefield: The weakness made her not-an-Epic. She was sane and lucid because she was without her power, and therefore without her madness. She hadn't faced it and become good, she was simply temporarily protected from being evil. Once her weakness was gone, she'd've gone back to being the same Sourcefield as ever. There's no reason to think, in that moment, she suddenly had a bizarre moment of realization. Meghan faced her fear when she realized she was entering a room full of her weakness, to save David, because there was something she cared about more. Sourcefield did not have that. She never made a choice to overcome her fear, to realize there was something she cared about even more. The kool-aid simply made her human for a moment; nothing more. I eouldn't even say that she was temporarily protected from being evil or anything like that, after all Mitosis went straight up after David, while he was singing, and also gave us a bit of a "lucid" moment. He was still absolutely trying to murder David, though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blackhoof Posted September 27, 2015 Report Share Posted September 27, 2015 I think Sourcefield just got scared. She revealed the terrified creature that is at the core of every Epic. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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