#dreadgod

Most things involving Hunger and the Labyrinth have a strange twisted relationship with cause and effect and the concept of a concrete chain of occurances. To the point that it feels intentional on Will's part given how records are described in universe as incomplete and contradictory.

Part of this problem is that few sources of information can be confirmed as 100% factual and pretty much everyone could be wrong or lying. So here's a breakdown of the contradictions.

Dreadbeasts

In Soulsmith we get our first introduction to Dreadbeasts, corrupted Sacred Beasts with a hunger binding, that get twisted by taking in conflicting types of madra as they eat both living things and remnants.

In the Transcendent Ruins we find the notes that reference 14 generations of failed specimens with hunger bindings. In Skysworn, Gesha says that the notes say the researchers were trying to create sacred beasts that would leave remnants with hunger bindings. In Reaper, Dross says that records seem to agree the Labyrinth is the birthplace of the Dreadbeasts.

But, in the memories of Ozmanthus we find that Dreadbeasts are a natural occurrence and consequence of hunger aura that existed long before the hunger research. We also see Dreadbeasts pop into existence in the wake of the Dreadgods, suggesting that they can be any sacred beast corrupted by hunger.

Subject One

Subject One is called such, because he is the first test subject, the one from which all the other research was done. The research notes in the Transcendent Ruins claim that they had a single source of Hunger from which they drew from while running through generations of failed experiments.

And yet, somehow, Subject One is a success, and is also a Dreadgod. The iterative failures before the success of the Four Beasts implies a degree of refinement of the process, iterative attempts leading towards success. A logical culmination of such experimentation would be the first human test, leading to the question, if Subject One was the first, how did they get things right the first time, but not for 14 generations afterwards?

The Cores and Field of the Labyrinth

The Boundary Field of Sacred Valley is powered by four cores, positioned under each peak, and their timeline is in shambles. Subject One says that the Hunger Researchers came to Sacred Valley and used ancient seals, and the great formation to trap hunger aura and suppress the power of beasts infused with it, suggesting the prior existence of the field.

Similarly, we find out that the Fields original purpose was enhancement, not suppression, and was flipped at some point, presumably specifically to restrain the Dreadgods.

The contradiction is from Shen's pov, where we learn that the cores were created from the Dreadgod's powers. The direct match of madra types between each core and each Dreadgod gives credence to this statement, but does not suggest how the field was powered prior to their creation.

Headcanon Timeline

So, here is my personal headcanon on the true timeline of everything, with explanations on which facts, I disregard as false and why.

The Creation of the Boundary Field. Most evidence seems to suggest that the boundary field is an original aspect of the Labyrinth and that Shen has faulty information about the relationship of the Cores and Dreadgods.

The arrival of the Hunger Researchers and the harnessing of Hunger Aura. I believe that trapping the Hunger Aura was the first step of the process.

The Duality of Hunger. I think that there are two motivations repeatedly described regarding the Hunger Researchers. A desire for stability and isolation of Hunger Aura, and a desire for power.

The Beginning of Research. I'm not sure which motivation I think won out, or if they were both involved, but something initiated further experimentation. Potentially, something indicated that trapping the Hunger Aura in the Labyrinth was insufficient, and suggested the creation of Hunger Beasts that could be suppressed. Possibly there were merely excuses to try to take more power.

The Creation of Subject One. Now, here's where I deviate from fully established timeline. I think there was an Original Subject One that was a failure. The massive blobs of white flesh were the result of a mutating and failed combination of Hunger and Human. The mindless and overgrown Subject was harvested for raw materials and bindings to further experimentation.

The Dreadbeast Experimentation. I think that this was potentially done to fulfill both Motives. The ideal of suppressing hunger via infused beasts, and the farming and creation of Hunger Bindings for Soulsmithing and the creation of weapons like the Archstone and Ancestors Spear. I imagine there was also an intention to understand the natural process by which previous Dreadbeasts were formed and a way to perfect that.

Significance and Success. I think the successful creation of the Dreadgods was accomplished through the use of Significant objects to empower them, which we see in their creation chambers in the form of bones, inset with gemstones. I think these gemstones were taken from the Core Chambers of the Labyrinth, tapping into the Significance and specific power of the Cores, and I also think the bones were special.

Hunger Bones. Another big jump, and one that only occurred to me on my last reread. When Lindon finds the chambers of the Dreadgods, he mentions that the bones "radiated and ancient authority that he recognized" and a Significance that felt like it could "warp the world." Earlier in the story, Lindon examined a dream tablet of Ozriel's and saw a box made of bone carrying hunger aspects and a will to bind, whose significance surpassed his ability to perceive. I think it tracks that the successful experiments with the Dreadgods involved the use of bones of such significance, possibly from a Monarch that had been corrupted by Hunger during Ozriel's time or before.

The Taking of Subject One. Now, multiple times within the context of Subject One, we see the concept of taking and succumbing to his power. This was the original plan of Shen, to become the new Subject One. This was the risk Lindon faced if he fell to his own Hunger. I think that, having seen the success of the Dreadgods, one of the researchers took Subject One's binding, and a piece of hunger bone and subjected themselves to the chamber process to become a Dreadgod.

The Spiral. Now, I've got a number of theories about what initiated the Spiral out of control, but the essential aspect of this step is that Subject One and the Dreadgods carried only a portion of worlds Hunger at the start, and by the end carried it all in the even split we see in Reaper and Dreadgod. It could be that their ability to hold Hunger was proportional to their strength, and as the grew, so did their Hunger. It could be that with the Hunger problem "solved," more Monarchs advanced, increasing the burden. My favorite theory is that Subject One claimed ownership of the Labyrinth. We know that the Researchers/Soulsmiths and Subject One are considered distinct owners of the Labyrinth, and I think that by claiming ownership, Subject One opened himself to all of the Hunger Aura that had been trapped in the Labyrinth in a power cascade.

The Breakdown. Here, I think that Subject One's narrative might be flawed. I don't think that the Boundary Field had been switched to Suppression already in order to limit the Dreadgods. I think it was done in response to their, and Subject One's, rapid growth during their spiral out of control, but was too little, too late.

The Escape, Rampage, and Revision. As the Dreadgods grew strong enough to escape, they went on a rampage across Cradle. In the aftermath, the Monarchs would rewrite history, suppressing any knowledge of how Hunger had acted before and of Hunger entirely where possible.

The Cycle. The Dreadgods that escaped Sacred Valley were likely significantly weaker than we see in Lindon's time, because only a portion of their strength comes from Hunger, the rest comes from everything that they consumed. In a weaker state, it would be easier for the Monarchs to justify their continued existence. Minor Disasters that could be redirected or avoided, and in return they got increased stability from the absence of Hunger Storms and corruption. This would go doubly so once the Dreadgods began to sleep between rampages to process the power they had stolen. Each time they would awaken though, they would be stronger.

The Dreadwar. It's possible that the first Dreadwar was caused by the Monarchs recognizing that the problem they'd been avoiding, since it only effected the little people, was rapidly growing to be a threat that could touch even themselves. They made an effort to solve the problem for good and were caught out by their own lack of understanding of Hunger and by how strong the Dreadgods had grown.

Post Dreadwar. The Dreadgods became a looming, growing, problem the Monarchs could kick down the road towards the future and ignore rather than risking their own lives for limited return. The Status Quo still served them despite the millions of deaths from each Awakening, and they only acted when the Dreadgod movements impacted their own power plays with each other. No matter the death count or possible future, knowing they could always just leave if things got too hot.

Lindon doing it anyway:

As always, Spoilers under the cut.