Dottore isn’t fully severed and Wanderer’s core
Wanderer’s core is the final preserved interface to the original Irminsul substrate, that we know of. Because Dottore became entangled with the burning/collapsing Irminsul, the core should now be the last bridge still connecting him to the world.
In 6.3, Wanderer explains that his core was “built using wood from a silver-white tree,” making it “a small part of Irminsul.” He then uses it to plug Sandrone’s formula directly into the Ley Lines, allowing her to calculate the world’s future. This proves the core still functions as an active interface with Irminsul-level processing.
This is fundamentally different from Nahida’s connection. Nahida is Irminsul’s avatar and is existentially synchronized with the system itself. If Irminsul is harmed, she is harmed. That is why Nicole transferred her connection to Aaru after Irminsul went haywire. Wanderer, however, is not dependent on Irminsul’s condition. His core is simply a preserved fragment of it. Even when Irminsul was corrupted in Sumeru, Scaramouche remained unaffected while Nahida became ill. A preserved chunk of a tree can survive even if the rest burns. His core is also something tangible, not like memories and history which were also detailed to have transferred to Aaru.
What makes this important is Dottore’s relationship to Scaramouche and Irminsul. Dottore studied Scara for decades to create the segments, meaning the segment system was built from the same principles as Wanderer’s core. Omega’s Irminsul-like markings mirror the markings and glow produced by the core itself, and both are tied to inserting information into the Ley Lines. Sandrone plugged her formula into the Ley Lines through Wanderer’s core; Pantalone plugged Omega’s second half into the Ley Lines as well.
So even if almost everything from Irminsul was transferred into Aaru, Wanderer still carries a preserved fragment of the original tree inside him. The difference is that Irminsul no longer exists as a functioning world-support system. The core can no longer draw on Irminsul’s full power…. only what remains of it.
And what remains is Dottore and the segments.
Both Scaramouche’s erasure scene and Dottore’s dissolution scene parallel each other heavily: final farewells, disappearance into metaphysical energy, continued speech after bodily vanishing, and both believing this is a certain outcome of demise. Neither scene confirms complete annihilation though. Nahida herself admits fate has become less rigid after Irminsul’s collapse, meaning outcomes are no longer absolute.
This also connects to “Dottore’s remaining honesty” detailed Wanderer’s story. And fits with how 6.6 was detailing Zandik no longer being whole.
Nahida describes the Tatarasuna memory Scara discovers as being hidden within one of Dottore's many hearts as containing "all his remaining honesty." That memory reveals the foundation of Dottore's worldview: humans are merely biological machines. If humanity is only function and mechanism, empathy becomes unnecessary.
Kabukimono's existence threatens this worldview because he is accepted as "human" despite lacking a biological heart.
Tatarasuna functions as Dottore’s remaining honesty, being the blueprint for Dottore’s entire worldview. It is the first fully defined moment where we see both his ideology and its consequences operating at the same time. It shows a “complete” version of him as well. A time before his external fragmentation into the segments, and establishes the foundation of everything he becomes.
This is the only time we see the segments in one body and the only time Dottore is operating whole. This is why the fairytale showed Dottobird with little scribble birds around him, those were the segments. They were already there, it was mental fragmentation first before they were individualized.
At its core, Tatarasuna reveals Dottore’s central belief: humans are fundamentally biological machines. Once you reduce humanity to function and mechanism, empathy is no longer necessary. Emotional response becomes irrelevant, because nothing is being “harmed” in a moral sense, only systems being modified or improved.
This idea also explains the confusing part of him just simply “losing empathy” at 8 years old.
As stated in his Pale Flame lore, "A human is nothing more than a machine of a certain level of complexity."
And so, if humans are machines, then emotional attachment is unnecessary. A car being fixed does not evoke the same empathy as a person undergoing surgery. In Dottore’s perspective, both are simply systems being improved for better performance. It was stated he declared they were akin to machines as a youth, that’s his little segment right there.
This is why his experiments are framed internally as enhancement rather than cruelty. He does not perceive himself as harming others; he perceives himself as refining function. This removes ethical concerns and all that entirely and allows his actions to escalate without any emotional restraint.
Tatarasuna also becomes the blueprint for his relationships. His interactions consistently begin from utility or alignment of purpose. With Scaramouche, Pantalone, Columbina, and even the Traveler, ALL of their initial connections are framed first through usefulness, compatibility, or shared potential. Normally a “business deal”.
His warmth is real, but conditional on fit within his worldview. He can be welcoming, even “kind,” because in his logic, forming a productive connection is itself a rational outcome, similar to valuing a tool that functions well. Like your phone.
This is why his relationships appear transactional rather than emotional in a traditional sense. It is not that he feels nothing; it is that his version of “care” is filtered through function. He engages with others based on what they are capable of becoming within his system, not what they are in a true emotional sense.
Tatarasuna is therefore the blueprint because it contains:
-his complete ideology (humans as machines),
-his justification for experimentation (enhancement over harm),
-his rejection of empathy as unnecessary,
-his relational framework (utility-based connection),
-and the origin point of the worldview that eventually fractures into the segments.
And also his full self. Now that all Dottore’s are inside the burning cut off irminsul, this is also the only time Dottore is “whole“ once more.
Since Irminsul collapsed with him entangled in it, then whatever remained of that system is no longer history or memory (mainly all transferred), but a fractured endpoint of that “whole” existence. Wanderer’s core, as the only preserved fragment capable of interfacing with the original Irminsul substrate (that we know of), therefore becomes the remaining structural link to that collapsed system.
Dottore is still likely conceptually connected, and if he were ever to return, it would likely be via the core, and as a reconstructed “whole” version of himself, with the segmented selves reintegrated internally rather than existing separately.
But as for playability and a path afterwords………… no exact details, but there’s an interesting symbolic reading you can recognize with weapons.
Its an interesting parallel with Scaramouche. Scaramouche’s arc aligns with the concept of the ghanta (also known as the bell, aka his weapon name), which in Buddhist symbolism is associated with wisdom and the nature of reality.
Emptiness: Its hollow body teaches sunyata, meaning all things lack independent existence.
Impermanence: The fading sound teaches that everything arises, changes, and passes away.
Wisdom: It represents prajna, teaching the clear, passive insight needed for liberation.
Feminine Principle: It teaches the nurturing, receptive side of the spiritual path.
This framing makes sense for Scaramouche’s transformation, as his arc centers on loss of identity, detachment from fixed selfhood, and ultimately accepting impermanence rather than resisting it.
In contrast, the moon Dottore pocket domain features ’concept segments‘ that appear to wield a incomplete weapon resembling a vajra, also known as the “thunderbolt,” which fits the electro things present in the domain. The design appears unfinished, as seen in its scale and structure.. unlike fully realized weapons. Like Tartaglia’s dual blades combining into a spear. When mentally completed (the same way you would put Tatraglia’s dual weapons together), the shape resembles a stylized vajra.
The vajra teaches indestructibility and compassionate action.
Unshakability: The diamond nature teaches that ultimate truth cannot be destroyed by ignorance.
Skillful Means: It represents upaya, teaching you to act with active compassion.
Power: The thunderbolt aspect teaches the power to shatter illusion instantly.
Unity: The central hub teaches that all dualities originate from one source.
You know, things Dottore would have to learn in order to be even close to being playable.
In Buddhist (also in Hinduism and similar religions) practice, the ghanta and vajra are ALWAYS a paired set. The bell represents wisdom and emptiness, while the vajra represents method and compassionate action. They form a complete system. When they are separated or simply alone they represent incomplete enlightenment.
From this perspective, Wanderer embodies only one half of the system (wisdom/emptiness), while Dottore likely represents the other half (method/power/unity).
So if Dottore were ever reconstructed into a “whole” form, it would follow the teachings of the Vajra most likely.
Otherwise, idk, we have a bell and no thunderbolt