Fikrul's powers are a very interesting enigma in the Destiny universe. A repeal of death, not unlike that of the Lightbearers, and a reshaping of form, not unlike that of the Darkbound. A force embodying the fine line between the Deep and the Sky, coursing in the veins of a Fanatic. But where did he gain such a power? And why does it act the way it does against the Eliksni palate? All questions I hope to answer. The first thing that should be addressed about the source of this power is that Fikrul wasn’t mistaken in thinking that Uldren gave it to him, but I doubt Uldren knew what he did could have such consequences. In the lore entry Fanatic Part II, Uldren follows a trail of Ether and comes across Fikrul after Cayde has already shot him through the chest with his Golden Gun. Uldren is overcome by a great sorrow for the dying Archon, and wishes he had the powers some believed his sister possessed, to save just by proximity. Uldren begins to weep as he tries to treat Archon’s wounds, and as he does, his tears fall upon the injuries, causing Fikrul’s Ether to grow heavy and dark. This is the source of the Fanatic’s unholy power, tears of a desperate man who just wanted to be like his sister. Somewhat Disney-esk, no? For those who’ve finished the campaign, you might’ve noticed that the darkness required to open the Dreaming City’s seal was pulled from Uldren’s eyes, and all throughout The Forsaken Prince Book, the agitation in Uldren’s eyes is brought up several times. Its not too big of a leap in logic to assume that this dark presence came from Riven, a seed planted in the eyes of the Awoken Prince that was cultivated by his rage and madness as he grew more and more desperate without his Queen. Referencing back to the Fanatic Part II entry, the quiet voice in Uldren’s head, that had slowly grown louder, asked him “Does he wish it? Does he wish to save this poor thing?” to which the answer was given as “He does! He does!”. At this point, Uldren’s tears begin to flow, providing the Scorn with a great power, and Uldren with a son of undying devotion to him, all enabling him to open the City Gates and free those trapped within. The motivation for giving such a gift isn’t hard to see. But the question still remains, why does it act in such a way? In the image of both Light and Dark, yet an abomination in both their eyes. Why? I think this is the result of the paracausal-yet-causal nature of the Ahamkara. According to some newly datamined information, the Ahamkara’s “O __ Mine” statement is what causes ontomorphology in the universe, but they themselves are not ontological, which is why they could still be taken. If you have a hard time comprehending this, think of it as a verbal spell cast by a warlock (in the archaic sense) muggle. The muggle isn’t inherently magical, yet they can still wield magic separate to themselves. So a Taken Ahamkara’s Wish would act with a sort of Paracausal^2, meshing the darkness of the taken corruption with the inherently Sky-oriented nature of Uldren’s with to save Fikrul from death. The exact details of Uldren’s Taken Wish also factors into why it behaves the way it does. Uldren wished he would save an Eliksni (who’s lifeblood is ether), which is why Fikrul wouldn’t be able to resurrect Uldren if he died (said in the cutscene before the Fanatic Fight). His power is specifically oriented to react to Ether, which doesn’t engage with Awoken physiology. Uldren also only wished to save Fikrul, which is why his blood (the best work I could think of for that which moves through his veins) couldn’t be transferred or ingested by other Eliksni directly(said in the Chain of Souls lore entry). It had to be exposed to Ether so Fikrul could use his power to gift it to others (which is also why it naturally seeks out the Eliksni form, because Fikrul controlled, or at least oriented his power to do so). The idea of an Ahamkara wish interacting with the Taken corruption is fascinating, especially how two paracausal powers, located at opposite ends of the spectrum, interact so harmoniously. This gives me high hopes for future endeavors on the subject, and I hope even more is revealed with Riven’s presence in the City.