What would it mean, if ever we were to bear witness to the coming of the Darkness?

To answer this, consider the meaning of the Light. The Light is the fire of the stars, the warmth and chill of worlds, the meaning of hope and faith. To live in the light is to see how all things connect with each other as parts of a whole entity. A universal organism, that indeed sings to other universes as they in turn sing to ours. Death comes but always brings renewal.

Then, consider the meaning of the Dark.

One cannot see in the Dark. One can only trust in what others tell you is there. One fears. One cries out in terror and despair -- the music does not come from the heart, it comes from a battered, deranged mind.

For those lost within the bounds of the Dark, there is only the solace of the machine that absorbs the promise of the thoughts of the living -- and uses this to create a universe where the future belongs only to those who have control of it all.

To bear witness to the Darkness is to still see the stars, but they would become unreachable, even in dreams. It is to still see the sunset's glory, but with knowing that the fear-filled night is to come. It is to see the face of your fellow, but never be able to see the heart. It is to walk the long, straight path across the bleak hills towards your destiny from which you may never deviate, alter or discard. It is to know that all that awaits you when death comes after an empty life -- is the Darkness.

Preserve the Light.

from Philosophia, Vekanna 12 (attributed to a Zerakaarn source, either Kyr or the nephew Quist).