“Men’s hearts hold shadows darker than any tainted creature” – Flemeth, Dragon Age Origins.

Dragon Age Origins is a fantasy adventure role playing game set in Thedas (literally the Dragon Age setting). The game series is full of interesting bits of dialogue (eg Sten’s words) and this one is particularly relevant at the moment.

The game is full of monstrous, orc-like creatures called Darkspawn which are literally tainted creatures. With the coronavirus around these days we can see it as a taint or tainted creature, it spreads quickly and with it death sometimes follows. We live in frightening times. Recently there was rioting in America because of issues with government. Riots and violence of any kind is the rise of the shadows inside the hearts of men (or people if we’re being PC).

The violence shows things darker than the taint of disease as it’s too easy for violence to turn into killing. The darkness inside of people could kill thousands within an hour which would take even a deadly disease at least a day to match, mankind has so much darkness that we can produce nuclear or biological weaponry purely for causing pain. Nature and the taint of disease can never be as cruel as man.

In the game the quote is said after a betrayal, it always takes something big to awaken the darkness but once it’s out and the damage is done, there’s no going back, not completely.