Josef Severn

Josef Severn, also known as the "builder," is an engineer who built the consciousness collector used by the Singularity Church of the MachineGod for its "Ascension" ritual but was excommunicated from the Church. He is one of Adam Jensen's neighbors at the Zeleň Apartments, where he resides in unit #41.
==Biography==
Severn became a follower of Allison Stanek, also known as the "Mother," when she told him that she needed him to build something the consciousness collector. While Severn was not already augmented, he cut off his arms for the Church, amputating himself from the "flesh-flawed" so that he could build for Allison.Emails on Josef Severn's computer 
After building the consciousness collector, Severn had doubts about the functionality of the device. While still committed to Allison and the Ascension, Severn felt that something didn't add up when he reviewed his latest calculations, and wanted additional time to test the device. Allison denied his request and accused Severn of kowtowing to the "doubts of the flesh-flawed." Thus, Allison excommunicated Severn from the church for having a "crisis of faith." Severn considered his treatment to be unfair and that he was only having a crisis of science, rather than a crisis of faith. Severn wrote to senior church member Erik Simmons to raise his objection, but found that he has already been blocked with communicating with the church by email.
Later, on the day of the Ascension ritual, Severn can be seen in his apartment unconscious in the morning and deceased in the evening just before the ritual, seemingly having committed suicide. 
==Notes==
*Severn can be found in his apartment unit, but has no dialogue lines and no special interactions. In the morning, he is unconscious on his bed and cannot be woken up. Later, in the evening, he is found dead before a design on his wall that reads "the void which binds." The phrase "thevoidwhichbinds" is the password to Severn's computer.
*Severn's computer shows an email that he wrote to Erik Simmons that only appears only after Adam Jensen returns from Golem City, suggesting that Severn did wake up at some point and then decided to commit suicide.
*If Adam Jensen visited Severn's apartment, he can point out to the cultist in the courtyard that he doesn't seem to be in good condition.
==Trivia==
*"Joseph Severn" is the name of a character in Dan Simmons' science fiction novel series "Hyperion." The phrase "The Void which Binds" is a term for the quantum level of spacetime in these novels. This phrase is prominent on the wall which Josef Severn's corpse is kneeling in front of (#41). The novels contain many themes related to man-machine links and their philosophical implications.
==Gallery==
Josef Severn apartment 1.jpg|Severn unconscious on his bed
Josef Severn apartment 2.jpg|Wall with the design "the void which binds"
Josef Severn apartment 3.jpg|Severn deceased in front of the "void which binds"
== See also ==
* Josef Severn's computer in the Zeleň Apartments
==References==
Category:Deus Ex: Mankind Divided characters
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