Talk:Knight Artorias/@comment-90.217.99.192-20140804210041/@comment-24912592-20140807051101

I think the Abyss is the real Puppet Master here.

Note how Artorias isn't corrupted by Manus, but the Abyss. Note how the Abyss in Oolacile is in a cave behind a wall of Manus' prison. Note how the Abyss in New Londo ceases hostility after defeating the Four Queens. And note how the Covenant of Artorias pretty much says that the Abyss is an own entity, even betraying its servants.

This all leads me to believe that the Abyss is much like the Flame of Chaos, only more ancient. It seems to have been there before (Oolacile searched for it and THEREFORE awakened Manus) and it seems to stay where it has appeared, only passive. I think, just as the Flame of Chaos used the Witch of Izalith's remains and those of her two daughters, the Abyss needs mediums to SPREAD - Manus, the Four Queens. Oolacile is lost after Manus' defeat. If Manus was the nucleus of the Abyss, Oolacile could have been cleansed. But it only halted its spread. The New Londo Abyss doesn't go bright and shiny - it remains, inactive, waiting.

Perhaps not Oolacile, but the Abyss itself is what the Age of Darkness would look like.