Tapping the Dark Crystal: Would Skeksis Essence Grant Immortality to Humans?

That's an intriguing thought experiment! The world of The Dark Crystal is rich with lore, and imagining such a scenario can be quite fascinating. Let's break it down a bit. 1. **Essence and Its Properties:** - In The Dark Crystal, essence is portrayed as a life force that can be drained and consumed for rejuvenation and longevity. - When the Skeksis drain essence from Gelflings, it grants them youth and vitality. 2. **Taste of Skeksis Essence:** - The taste of Skeksis essence is purely speculative since it's fictional. However, given the character and nature of the Skeksis, one might imagine their essence to be tainted or corrupted compared to the pure essence of Gelflings. It might have a bitter or acrid taste rather than something pleasant or rejuvenating. 3. **Effects on Humans:** - If humans were to use the essence-draining technology on the Skeksis and consume their essence, the effects would depend on various hypothetical factors. - The Skeksis are already dark and corrupt beings, and their essence might carry those same traits. - Given the nature of essence in the lore, it's possible that consuming Skeksis essence might have negative or even harmful effects on humans rather than granting immortality. - There's also the consideration that the method and compatibility of essence could vary between species. Gelfling essence works on Skeksis, but Skeksis essence might not work the same way on humans. 4. **Immortality:** - In the lore, drinking essence grants the Skeksis temporary rejuvenation rather than true immortality. Regular consumption is necessary. - If humans were to consume Skeksis essence, it might not grant immortality or even affect longevity as positively as Gelfling essence does for Skeksis. - There might be unforeseen side effects due to the corrupt nature of the Skeksis. Ultimately, while it's fun to imagine, without concrete lore directly addressing this scenario, the safest bet would be to assume that consuming Skeksis essence likely wouldn't have the desired effect for humans and might even be detrimental. The Skeksis are portrayed as dark, corrupt beings, so their essence might carry those same dark and corrupt characteristics.