Is it, though? How long can rival factions want goals in opposition to one another and keep claiming we're all fine keeping the peace? When things get serious, you protect your own, which is why they took Alenroux in the first place. I thought it was smart.

[ john understands why everyone would want to maintain peace as long as possible, but it made him impatient anyway. that was why he'd spent so much time in alenroux; he was sure he'd have to help win this war before he'd be able to get back to his own.

interesting how things change.

he keeps the full weight of his eerie gaze fixed on liem even when he looks away, relentless. he's sure if he keeps at it, liem will see the truth. he's helping, surely; he's pulling people back from the ledge before they can make the same mistakes. ]

It's probably well within the power of the Oracles to do that without having to sacrifice anything to make it happen. The difference is in wanting to reclaim what was lost exactly as it was when you lost it. You're right; plenty of things are probably possible because you can do just about anything with enough energy, and incidentally, souls are incredibly powerful.