The Doctrine of Consumption (The Lantern Priests)

“Light must be burned to shine.”

The Lantern Priests claim that the quieting is not peace, but obliteration.

When mirrorstone is mined, the spirit within is ground into dust — its energy bled into whatever machine or spell uses it.

The Priests justify this as divine exchange: souls fuel civilization, as coal fuels flame.

They teach that those consumed by mirrorstone combustion are “Reflected Saints” — martyrs whose essence keeps Canava’s lights burning.

Critics call it heresy and slavery of the dead.

Still, the Priests’ hymns are sung in the refineries, where the air hums with trapped voices.

The Lantern Priests are right:

souls are fuel. Each cannon, each lamp, burns a consciousness. The whole continent’s prosperity is literal necromancy. Every light in Canava is a dying whisper.

If souls are consumed:

The truth would be hidden; the Painted Forge would suppress witnesses, fearing revolt.