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i_read_whatSo last time, Niall lost one sibling to the plague and seems about to lose the other. He's got no choice but to continue on his quest alone! If only we could have lost certain OTHER characters instead...
So we rejoin Niall, who seems to be feeling melancholy. He asks Serri if Serri would know if Ian dies. Serri says no, not if IAN dies. But if Ian dies, Tasha will die too. And Serri would know that at once. Niall is horrified by the thought of leaving his brother to die, but he knows he doesn't really have a choice.
They travel onward, as wolves. I like this description:
We climbed. Where men could not go we could, picking our way through narrow traceries cutting through turreted mountains and wind-honed rock. Our coats thickened, our pads toughened, our eyes remained perpetually slitted. But we knew we would not turn back.
They eventually pass through the Wastes of Homana into the canyons of Solinde. Niall asks about his brother, but it's too far for Serri to ask. Tasha is still alive though. It's a little bit of comfort.
The ambiance gets creepier:
The mountains began to shift their shapes. The slate-blue shadows of Homanan rock took on a darker, more menacing aspect. There were trees again, but twisted, deformed by cruel winds. Roots burst free of the soil. Bare, blackened roots, twisting across stone like a tangle of tapestry yarn. And I began to see shapes in the rocks. Avid faces, gaping mouths, the bulging of eyes in terror.
It made the hair on my neck rise. Lir—
Ihlini, Serri said. They mock us with their stone menagerie.
Beasts. Hideous, horrible beasts, all locked in blackened stone. I felt my hackles rise; my lips curled back to bare my teeth in a visceral, wolfish snarl.
Ihlini aren't just Always Chaotic Dramatic, they're also Chaotic Petty. I admit, I kind of dig it.
And the description of Valgaard is pretty good too:
Through a narrow defile into the canyon beyond. And there, abruptly, was Valgaard, thrusting out of the earth in a gout of glass-black stone. Curtain walls, towers, parapets, all forming one wall of the canyon. It put me in mind of a massive bird, wings outspread to enfold the world.
How it broods. How it makes the canyon its mews.
Sheer walls jutted upward over our heads. We were small, so small, so insignificant in the ordering of the world. Valgaard crouched before us, cloaked in rising smoke.
My lips drew back. Gods—how it stinks.
The breath of the god, Serri told me. The stench of Asar-Suti.
Sulfur? Not particularly subtle, if so.
It does make me wonder a bit. The Cheysuli know where Valgaard is. Why have they never attacked en masse? I mean, granted, they keep getting nearly genocided, but honestly, there's no real indication that the Ihlini have great numbers. We generally meet Ihlini as they're acting alone, or with Solindish or Atvian allies/underlings. Tynstar manipulated Bellam's armies, and we know there were a few canon fodder Ihlini here and there, but not that many. Whereas the Cheysuli, even twenty-some odd years into a genocide, could form actual branches of Carillon's army.
Lillith lives with Alaric. Tynstar lived here or in Solinde. Strahan, likewise. The old lady we met, she lived in a cottage alone. There's no mention of keeps or settlements that have Ihlini.
So how many Ihlini ARE there? The dark god gives them long life, so if anything, there should be MORE of them. But maybe that's the trade off. They get more of their powers in a direct confrontation with the Cheysuli, because they Cheysuli have lir and numbers. (Even if they can't talk to the lir, the lir can still attack and bite after all.)
So...why NOT just storm Valgaard? Even granting Strahan or Tynstar's powers. A big enough army should just be able to overrun them. Especially since they don't lose their martial training.
Well, I know why: the series would end much sooner. But I wish the characters would discuss the possibility sometime.
Anyway, eventually, the link between Niall and Serri starts to fade, and with it, the Shapechange power. This could be a problem. And indeed:
Stone bit into my face. I tasted sulfur, salt, iron. I tasted the spittle of the god. It made me spit out my own.
I pressed myself up from the ground. I was a man again, booted, furred, armed with sword and bow and knife. But I knew—gods, how I knew—I needed none of the weapons. This was Strahan’s domain, the Gate of the god himself. Nothing but wits could ward me against their power.
...I mean, if you're going to kill Strahan, you might as well stab him with weapons?
Niall marvels at the "hounds" guarding the lair.
Hounds? I could not be certain. They were beasts, but none that I could name. Merely shapes. Merely things. Extremities only hinted at; formlessness made whole.
Inert, they waited like black-glass gamepieces upon the dark board of Asar-Suti.
Niall is frightened. Understandably. He asks Serri to stay behind. That seems dumb. Even if they can't converse, Serri can still bite shit. And also...
“I dare not risk us both. This is for me to do.”
He pushed his nose against my neck. Lir—
“Serri, say you will stay. Say you will wait for me,”
But if all goes wrong—
“If all goes wrong, at least you will retain your freedom. You are young yet, even by human standards; you will not be given to death.”
This is not part of your tahlmorra.
Um. Dude. Either you're deluded or Roberson is changing the rules again. If you die, Serri dies. We just heard that about Tasha and Ian. But Niall is ultimately able to convince Serri to stay behind.
And of course, he gets to see his uncle:
Strahan smiled. “Somewhat belatedly, you accept my invitation.”
“I thought never to accept it at all.”
He nodded. “People do change. Even princes.” He sipped wine. “All men eventually grow up.”
“Will you?”
Interesting question. And Strahan's answer has some interesting possibilities:
“Will I?” the Ihlini echoed. “Well, perhaps—it depends on how I feel.” He sipped again at his wine. I had been offered a cup of my own, but had not accepted. “It is not closed to you, Niall: the ability to turn back the years. No more than to anyone else; mind you, I do not make the mistake of inviting you to join me.” He grinned. “I know better. I know you would never do it. But there is an opportunity, for those who desire the power.”
So the lifespan thing doesn't seem to be tied strictly to being Ihlini. Instead, it's a bond with the dark god. The old lady had indicated something similar. Electra's youth then, may have been less a gift from Tynstar and more from her own deal with the god. It's interesting to wonder if she might have remained young if she'd survived his death.
Strahan, by the way, has long black hair, glossy and fine as a woman's. Niall shared it with me, so I'm sharing that with you.
So anyway, Strahan toys with Niall a little. He knows Niall wants to end the plague. He sees Niall being here as Niall offering himself to him. He's unfortunately still suffering villain decay, in my opinion. The Strahan in Legacy of the Sword wouldn't waste time talking like this.
I wet my paper-dry lips. “There was the night you came to Mujhara. For me, you said you came. And it was then you told me not to wed Gisella.”
“Aye.” He shrugged. “I said you should not, but you maintained you would.” He crossed to a heavy book lying open on a stand. “You know, of course, I might have slain you then,” he said casually. “It would have been simple enough. But I knew you would be coming. I prefer to make men do my bidding before I end their lives.”
I still think it sometimes sounds like Niall had a thing for Strahan. But also, Strahan, please don't remind me how you're repeating your father's idiocy. There is a prophecy that you desperately wanted to thwart. You had been face to face with the next link on the chain. You COULD have killed him before he reproduced.
Now it's kind of too late. Niall's done his dynastic duty.
Strahan's book, by the way, has red script and flames that flash as he pages through it. Because Chaotic Dramatic.
So finally Niall gets to the point of making his offer. Himself, of course. But as mentioned, it's a bit late for that.
I give you the prophecy!” I cried. “Its future is in your hands!”
“Well, no—not precisely.” He shrugged a little, brows raised, and shook his head at me. “Indeed, it is some measure of sacrifice to offer yourself to me, but there is little value in it. You have little value; you married Alaric’s daughter. And she has given you sons.”
I opened my mouth. Shut it. And all at once I understood.
Not me. Not me at all. Once, aye, before my sons were born—but now the seed is planted. My link is no longer the last.
There is an interesting element that we saw in Song of Homana, and even Shapechangers: the point where the current protagonist realizes that the story is moving on past them. Even Donal, sort of. Though his realization involved selling his sister into a future of marital rape and spousal murder. Now Niall's realizing it too: his story's almost over.
...and you know what, I really hate that. I hate that these characters' stories basically END when they take the throne. Even Carillon: though he did spend a significant part of his story as a crowned king, the story took place entirely outside of the throne room. We never got to see how he pulled together a war torn kingdom and truly ended the qu-mahlin. We never got to see Donal become the first Cheysuli monarch, in truth. By the time that Niall actually takes his throne, the focus will be on his children.
I'm not a fan of inherited monarchies as a concept. But I do like stories where people have to learn to use power, and use it responsibly. I resent that we don't really get to see that.
So anyway, Niall's narrative significance is almost done. Strahan says, however, if he wants to offer the children to him...
Obviously, not being a monster, Niall says no.
“But then the bargain would be worth the making.” He shrugged. “You may give them, or I may take them. The choice is up to you.”
So—this is what he has wanted all along; why he did not slay me once he determined my eventual worth—as a sire, if nothing else—like a horse valued for his bloodlines. He wanted the sons I would get on Gisella.
I mean, as motivations for sparing Niall go, that makes as much sense as anything. But it does get into how fucking stupid the Ihlini are.
There's a prophecy meant to bring back the Firstborn. The Firstborn are the forerunners of the Cheysuli, and if we believe them, the Ihlini as well. The prophecy states that a man "of all blood" must unite four warring kingdoms and two magical races.
And that's where the Ihlini get fucking stupid. The Cheysuli are royal now, which means royal marriages are pretty fucking easy to arrange. Hell, there's no real reason that the foreign blood needs to be royal, except for the innate elitism in the premise. Carillon could have married any Solindish woman in Electra's place. Niall, any Atvian woman, and so on.
Tynstar and Strahan have the chance to stop this by killing Alix, Carillon or Niall before they breed. Yet do they? NOPE.
Hell, worse than that. The kingdom thing might be up for interpretation. Do they mean Erinn and Atvia? Or maybe the Steppes and Caledon/Ellas? But the two magical races part is really fucking clear. At some point, they're going to need to fuck.
So what does Lillith do? What does Tynstar TRY to do? What will others do in the future?
Fucking morons. They can't resist the thought of controlling super babies in their own right, so they let this bullshit happen.
Anyway, Niall says no. Which is when Strahan pulls the rug out, figuratively speaking:
“All right,” he said calmly, “all right. Then I shall simply take them…when Gisella brings them to me.”
“Gisella!” I stared. “Gisella would never bring them!”
“But she will,” he said gently, “when Varien tells her to.”
Slowly I shook my head. “You are mad.”
“No,” he said, “Gisella is mad….” He paused deliberately, smiling. “Unless, of course, she is not—and does this for other reasons.”
He had silenced me at last. In the face of Gisella’s treachery and deceit I could do nothing but stare at the Ihlini. Not mad? All of it contrived—an act?
That could be a problem.
Strahan gloats: Lillith is a dutiful sister who serves him well, and had the idea, when Alaric wed a Cheysuli woman, that the child could be made to serve as well.
So, really, yet again, this is all fucking Donal's fault. And if he'd bothered to send some servants or warriors WITH his sister, MAYBE some of this could have been avoided. Fuck Donal.
Niall shouts that Gisella is Cheysuli.
He made a dismissive gesture. “Cheysuli, Ihlini—do you think it really matters? We were born of identical parents, the gods who made Homana.” He lifted a silencing hand. “Cheysuli, aye, she is, and therefore immune to much of our power, but there are tricks that can be taught. Beliefs that can be instilled. Loyalties that are secured. I warned you, Niall. That night in Mujhara when your horse had gone lame… I warned you not to wed her.” How he watched me, gloating silently. “But you did—and so I devised another plan.”
“You will not harm my sons!”
“No, Niall. Of course not—I have no wish to harm them; I only wish to use them.” He smiled. “And I shall. One son upon the Lion, one son on the throne of Solinde. And answerable to me.”
...or you could just kill them?
I mean, I like a villain monologue as much as anyone, but AGAIN. If you KILL the children, then they're DEAD. And they can't breed up the next link in the goddamn chain. And believe me, we're all going to get fucking sick of that chain metaphor now that it's popped up in this dialogue.
Niall doesn't believe it. These are Gisella's SONS. But, Strahan says, Gisella has been Strahan's since birth. Thanks to Lillith.
Strahan continues to gloat, while Niall is in despair that this may have all been for nothing. He brings Niall outside to show him something fun:
“Then believe this.” He held out something that dangled on a chain. A tooth, capped with gold, and hanging from a thin golden chain. I had had one of my own, before I threw it away at Serri’s behest.
“Take it,” he said, and put it into my hand.
I did not want it. I wanted nothing to do with it. And as he took his hand away, I threw it into the smoke.
Strahan laughed. “I thought so. And now the beast is free.”
Out of the smoke and stench was born an Ihlini wolf. His pelt was white, his eyes were blue; he looked a lot like me.
The tooth came from Storr, apparently. There were four teeth left in the pile of ash. For some idiot contrived reason. And when Donal and Evan left, Strahan went back and got them. So we can blame Donal for not cleaning up after himself too. Fuck Donal.
I'm not being fair, but I hate that dude.
Anyway, Strahan, with Asar-Suti's help, used the teeth to hide Varien's identity. And create the plague. This wolf is the last of the plague bringers. Strahan offers Niall the chance to kill it.
“Why?” I asked. “Why do you give me the answer? Why do you give me the chance?”
He shrugged. “Enough have died already. I prefer to rule living subjects, when I have made Homana mine.”
“I do not believe you,” I said.
Strahan looked at the wolf. “Go,” he said. “Your task is incomplete. There are Cheysuli in the world—rid Homana of them.”
The wolf turned, ran, disappeared, even as I cried out. “Go,” Strahan told me. “You have knife, bow, sword. It is up to you to stop him.”
You know, Roberson, plot holes don't resolve themselves just because you have a character point them out. Strahan literally has no reason to do this except for the lulz.
Strahan’s smile was one of subtle triumph, but I saw speculation in his eyes. “Your choice, Niall. Save your sons—or save the Cheysuli.” The smile grew. “But which will you choose, I wonder? Gisella…or the wolf?”
The chasm opened beneath my feet.
“Your sons…or your race?”
I made my voice as steady and cold as I could. “I can make other sons.”
Strahan laughed. “But how many on Gisella? How many who will claim the proper blood—the blood the prophecy requires?”
...I mean, Niall and Gisella are first cousins. The ONLY blood Gisella has that Niall doesn't is Atvian. Niall could probably find another Atvian girl. But these characters are fucking morons, so there you go.
Anyway, Niall makes the hard decision: deal with the magic wolf and save his race, THEN stop Gisella and save his children. And complaints aside, I do respect that this is a painful choice. But Niall is a good dude.
He chases the wolf, there's mention of the stench of sulfur and bile, which seems to confirm my assumption. There's some good evocative description of this awful place all around actually. He calls for Serri, who does appear. And they have a chance.
Well...maybe:
Serri saw it first. Lir—beware the hawk—
Like a fool, I looked at the sky. And the hawk descended upon me.
Descended—
—and took an eye.
The chapter, of course, ends here.
Hah, I do remember this part. You may recall me muttering something about foreshadowing a few places earlier in the book. And I remember SOMEONE having a pretty decent guess about Donal losing an eye.
One generation off.
Strahan's still a fucking moron though, because of COURSE Niall's going to save his race. And then he'll either save his kids or breed new kids. Either fucking way, the prophecy is going to continue. Because none of these villains will fucking KILL their adversaries.
Bleh. It's a decent story, but incompetence in villains annoys me.
So we rejoin Niall, who seems to be feeling melancholy. He asks Serri if Serri would know if Ian dies. Serri says no, not if IAN dies. But if Ian dies, Tasha will die too. And Serri would know that at once. Niall is horrified by the thought of leaving his brother to die, but he knows he doesn't really have a choice.
They travel onward, as wolves. I like this description:
We climbed. Where men could not go we could, picking our way through narrow traceries cutting through turreted mountains and wind-honed rock. Our coats thickened, our pads toughened, our eyes remained perpetually slitted. But we knew we would not turn back.
They eventually pass through the Wastes of Homana into the canyons of Solinde. Niall asks about his brother, but it's too far for Serri to ask. Tasha is still alive though. It's a little bit of comfort.
The ambiance gets creepier:
The mountains began to shift their shapes. The slate-blue shadows of Homanan rock took on a darker, more menacing aspect. There were trees again, but twisted, deformed by cruel winds. Roots burst free of the soil. Bare, blackened roots, twisting across stone like a tangle of tapestry yarn. And I began to see shapes in the rocks. Avid faces, gaping mouths, the bulging of eyes in terror.
It made the hair on my neck rise. Lir—
Ihlini, Serri said. They mock us with their stone menagerie.
Beasts. Hideous, horrible beasts, all locked in blackened stone. I felt my hackles rise; my lips curled back to bare my teeth in a visceral, wolfish snarl.
Ihlini aren't just Always Chaotic Dramatic, they're also Chaotic Petty. I admit, I kind of dig it.
And the description of Valgaard is pretty good too:
Through a narrow defile into the canyon beyond. And there, abruptly, was Valgaard, thrusting out of the earth in a gout of glass-black stone. Curtain walls, towers, parapets, all forming one wall of the canyon. It put me in mind of a massive bird, wings outspread to enfold the world.
How it broods. How it makes the canyon its mews.
Sheer walls jutted upward over our heads. We were small, so small, so insignificant in the ordering of the world. Valgaard crouched before us, cloaked in rising smoke.
My lips drew back. Gods—how it stinks.
The breath of the god, Serri told me. The stench of Asar-Suti.
Sulfur? Not particularly subtle, if so.
It does make me wonder a bit. The Cheysuli know where Valgaard is. Why have they never attacked en masse? I mean, granted, they keep getting nearly genocided, but honestly, there's no real indication that the Ihlini have great numbers. We generally meet Ihlini as they're acting alone, or with Solindish or Atvian allies/underlings. Tynstar manipulated Bellam's armies, and we know there were a few canon fodder Ihlini here and there, but not that many. Whereas the Cheysuli, even twenty-some odd years into a genocide, could form actual branches of Carillon's army.
Lillith lives with Alaric. Tynstar lived here or in Solinde. Strahan, likewise. The old lady we met, she lived in a cottage alone. There's no mention of keeps or settlements that have Ihlini.
So how many Ihlini ARE there? The dark god gives them long life, so if anything, there should be MORE of them. But maybe that's the trade off. They get more of their powers in a direct confrontation with the Cheysuli, because they Cheysuli have lir and numbers. (Even if they can't talk to the lir, the lir can still attack and bite after all.)
So...why NOT just storm Valgaard? Even granting Strahan or Tynstar's powers. A big enough army should just be able to overrun them. Especially since they don't lose their martial training.
Well, I know why: the series would end much sooner. But I wish the characters would discuss the possibility sometime.
Anyway, eventually, the link between Niall and Serri starts to fade, and with it, the Shapechange power. This could be a problem. And indeed:
Stone bit into my face. I tasted sulfur, salt, iron. I tasted the spittle of the god. It made me spit out my own.
I pressed myself up from the ground. I was a man again, booted, furred, armed with sword and bow and knife. But I knew—gods, how I knew—I needed none of the weapons. This was Strahan’s domain, the Gate of the god himself. Nothing but wits could ward me against their power.
...I mean, if you're going to kill Strahan, you might as well stab him with weapons?
Niall marvels at the "hounds" guarding the lair.
Hounds? I could not be certain. They were beasts, but none that I could name. Merely shapes. Merely things. Extremities only hinted at; formlessness made whole.
Inert, they waited like black-glass gamepieces upon the dark board of Asar-Suti.
Niall is frightened. Understandably. He asks Serri to stay behind. That seems dumb. Even if they can't converse, Serri can still bite shit. And also...
“I dare not risk us both. This is for me to do.”
He pushed his nose against my neck. Lir—
“Serri, say you will stay. Say you will wait for me,”
But if all goes wrong—
“If all goes wrong, at least you will retain your freedom. You are young yet, even by human standards; you will not be given to death.”
This is not part of your tahlmorra.
Um. Dude. Either you're deluded or Roberson is changing the rules again. If you die, Serri dies. We just heard that about Tasha and Ian. But Niall is ultimately able to convince Serri to stay behind.
And of course, he gets to see his uncle:
Strahan smiled. “Somewhat belatedly, you accept my invitation.”
“I thought never to accept it at all.”
He nodded. “People do change. Even princes.” He sipped wine. “All men eventually grow up.”
“Will you?”
Interesting question. And Strahan's answer has some interesting possibilities:
“Will I?” the Ihlini echoed. “Well, perhaps—it depends on how I feel.” He sipped again at his wine. I had been offered a cup of my own, but had not accepted. “It is not closed to you, Niall: the ability to turn back the years. No more than to anyone else; mind you, I do not make the mistake of inviting you to join me.” He grinned. “I know better. I know you would never do it. But there is an opportunity, for those who desire the power.”
So the lifespan thing doesn't seem to be tied strictly to being Ihlini. Instead, it's a bond with the dark god. The old lady had indicated something similar. Electra's youth then, may have been less a gift from Tynstar and more from her own deal with the god. It's interesting to wonder if she might have remained young if she'd survived his death.
Strahan, by the way, has long black hair, glossy and fine as a woman's. Niall shared it with me, so I'm sharing that with you.
So anyway, Strahan toys with Niall a little. He knows Niall wants to end the plague. He sees Niall being here as Niall offering himself to him. He's unfortunately still suffering villain decay, in my opinion. The Strahan in Legacy of the Sword wouldn't waste time talking like this.
I wet my paper-dry lips. “There was the night you came to Mujhara. For me, you said you came. And it was then you told me not to wed Gisella.”
“Aye.” He shrugged. “I said you should not, but you maintained you would.” He crossed to a heavy book lying open on a stand. “You know, of course, I might have slain you then,” he said casually. “It would have been simple enough. But I knew you would be coming. I prefer to make men do my bidding before I end their lives.”
I still think it sometimes sounds like Niall had a thing for Strahan. But also, Strahan, please don't remind me how you're repeating your father's idiocy. There is a prophecy that you desperately wanted to thwart. You had been face to face with the next link on the chain. You COULD have killed him before he reproduced.
Now it's kind of too late. Niall's done his dynastic duty.
Strahan's book, by the way, has red script and flames that flash as he pages through it. Because Chaotic Dramatic.
So finally Niall gets to the point of making his offer. Himself, of course. But as mentioned, it's a bit late for that.
I give you the prophecy!” I cried. “Its future is in your hands!”
“Well, no—not precisely.” He shrugged a little, brows raised, and shook his head at me. “Indeed, it is some measure of sacrifice to offer yourself to me, but there is little value in it. You have little value; you married Alaric’s daughter. And she has given you sons.”
I opened my mouth. Shut it. And all at once I understood.
Not me. Not me at all. Once, aye, before my sons were born—but now the seed is planted. My link is no longer the last.
There is an interesting element that we saw in Song of Homana, and even Shapechangers: the point where the current protagonist realizes that the story is moving on past them. Even Donal, sort of. Though his realization involved selling his sister into a future of marital rape and spousal murder. Now Niall's realizing it too: his story's almost over.
...and you know what, I really hate that. I hate that these characters' stories basically END when they take the throne. Even Carillon: though he did spend a significant part of his story as a crowned king, the story took place entirely outside of the throne room. We never got to see how he pulled together a war torn kingdom and truly ended the qu-mahlin. We never got to see Donal become the first Cheysuli monarch, in truth. By the time that Niall actually takes his throne, the focus will be on his children.
I'm not a fan of inherited monarchies as a concept. But I do like stories where people have to learn to use power, and use it responsibly. I resent that we don't really get to see that.
So anyway, Niall's narrative significance is almost done. Strahan says, however, if he wants to offer the children to him...
Obviously, not being a monster, Niall says no.
“But then the bargain would be worth the making.” He shrugged. “You may give them, or I may take them. The choice is up to you.”
So—this is what he has wanted all along; why he did not slay me once he determined my eventual worth—as a sire, if nothing else—like a horse valued for his bloodlines. He wanted the sons I would get on Gisella.
I mean, as motivations for sparing Niall go, that makes as much sense as anything. But it does get into how fucking stupid the Ihlini are.
There's a prophecy meant to bring back the Firstborn. The Firstborn are the forerunners of the Cheysuli, and if we believe them, the Ihlini as well. The prophecy states that a man "of all blood" must unite four warring kingdoms and two magical races.
And that's where the Ihlini get fucking stupid. The Cheysuli are royal now, which means royal marriages are pretty fucking easy to arrange. Hell, there's no real reason that the foreign blood needs to be royal, except for the innate elitism in the premise. Carillon could have married any Solindish woman in Electra's place. Niall, any Atvian woman, and so on.
Tynstar and Strahan have the chance to stop this by killing Alix, Carillon or Niall before they breed. Yet do they? NOPE.
Hell, worse than that. The kingdom thing might be up for interpretation. Do they mean Erinn and Atvia? Or maybe the Steppes and Caledon/Ellas? But the two magical races part is really fucking clear. At some point, they're going to need to fuck.
So what does Lillith do? What does Tynstar TRY to do? What will others do in the future?
Fucking morons. They can't resist the thought of controlling super babies in their own right, so they let this bullshit happen.
Anyway, Niall says no. Which is when Strahan pulls the rug out, figuratively speaking:
“All right,” he said calmly, “all right. Then I shall simply take them…when Gisella brings them to me.”
“Gisella!” I stared. “Gisella would never bring them!”
“But she will,” he said gently, “when Varien tells her to.”
Slowly I shook my head. “You are mad.”
“No,” he said, “Gisella is mad….” He paused deliberately, smiling. “Unless, of course, she is not—and does this for other reasons.”
He had silenced me at last. In the face of Gisella’s treachery and deceit I could do nothing but stare at the Ihlini. Not mad? All of it contrived—an act?
That could be a problem.
Strahan gloats: Lillith is a dutiful sister who serves him well, and had the idea, when Alaric wed a Cheysuli woman, that the child could be made to serve as well.
So, really, yet again, this is all fucking Donal's fault. And if he'd bothered to send some servants or warriors WITH his sister, MAYBE some of this could have been avoided. Fuck Donal.
Niall shouts that Gisella is Cheysuli.
He made a dismissive gesture. “Cheysuli, Ihlini—do you think it really matters? We were born of identical parents, the gods who made Homana.” He lifted a silencing hand. “Cheysuli, aye, she is, and therefore immune to much of our power, but there are tricks that can be taught. Beliefs that can be instilled. Loyalties that are secured. I warned you, Niall. That night in Mujhara when your horse had gone lame… I warned you not to wed her.” How he watched me, gloating silently. “But you did—and so I devised another plan.”
“You will not harm my sons!”
“No, Niall. Of course not—I have no wish to harm them; I only wish to use them.” He smiled. “And I shall. One son upon the Lion, one son on the throne of Solinde. And answerable to me.”
...or you could just kill them?
I mean, I like a villain monologue as much as anyone, but AGAIN. If you KILL the children, then they're DEAD. And they can't breed up the next link in the goddamn chain. And believe me, we're all going to get fucking sick of that chain metaphor now that it's popped up in this dialogue.
Niall doesn't believe it. These are Gisella's SONS. But, Strahan says, Gisella has been Strahan's since birth. Thanks to Lillith.
Strahan continues to gloat, while Niall is in despair that this may have all been for nothing. He brings Niall outside to show him something fun:
“Then believe this.” He held out something that dangled on a chain. A tooth, capped with gold, and hanging from a thin golden chain. I had had one of my own, before I threw it away at Serri’s behest.
“Take it,” he said, and put it into my hand.
I did not want it. I wanted nothing to do with it. And as he took his hand away, I threw it into the smoke.
Strahan laughed. “I thought so. And now the beast is free.”
Out of the smoke and stench was born an Ihlini wolf. His pelt was white, his eyes were blue; he looked a lot like me.
The tooth came from Storr, apparently. There were four teeth left in the pile of ash. For some idiot contrived reason. And when Donal and Evan left, Strahan went back and got them. So we can blame Donal for not cleaning up after himself too. Fuck Donal.
I'm not being fair, but I hate that dude.
Anyway, Strahan, with Asar-Suti's help, used the teeth to hide Varien's identity. And create the plague. This wolf is the last of the plague bringers. Strahan offers Niall the chance to kill it.
“Why?” I asked. “Why do you give me the answer? Why do you give me the chance?”
He shrugged. “Enough have died already. I prefer to rule living subjects, when I have made Homana mine.”
“I do not believe you,” I said.
Strahan looked at the wolf. “Go,” he said. “Your task is incomplete. There are Cheysuli in the world—rid Homana of them.”
The wolf turned, ran, disappeared, even as I cried out. “Go,” Strahan told me. “You have knife, bow, sword. It is up to you to stop him.”
You know, Roberson, plot holes don't resolve themselves just because you have a character point them out. Strahan literally has no reason to do this except for the lulz.
Strahan’s smile was one of subtle triumph, but I saw speculation in his eyes. “Your choice, Niall. Save your sons—or save the Cheysuli.” The smile grew. “But which will you choose, I wonder? Gisella…or the wolf?”
The chasm opened beneath my feet.
“Your sons…or your race?”
I made my voice as steady and cold as I could. “I can make other sons.”
Strahan laughed. “But how many on Gisella? How many who will claim the proper blood—the blood the prophecy requires?”
...I mean, Niall and Gisella are first cousins. The ONLY blood Gisella has that Niall doesn't is Atvian. Niall could probably find another Atvian girl. But these characters are fucking morons, so there you go.
Anyway, Niall makes the hard decision: deal with the magic wolf and save his race, THEN stop Gisella and save his children. And complaints aside, I do respect that this is a painful choice. But Niall is a good dude.
He chases the wolf, there's mention of the stench of sulfur and bile, which seems to confirm my assumption. There's some good evocative description of this awful place all around actually. He calls for Serri, who does appear. And they have a chance.
Well...maybe:
Serri saw it first. Lir—beware the hawk—
Like a fool, I looked at the sky. And the hawk descended upon me.
Descended—
—and took an eye.
The chapter, of course, ends here.
Hah, I do remember this part. You may recall me muttering something about foreshadowing a few places earlier in the book. And I remember SOMEONE having a pretty decent guess about Donal losing an eye.
One generation off.
Strahan's still a fucking moron though, because of COURSE Niall's going to save his race. And then he'll either save his kids or breed new kids. Either fucking way, the prophecy is going to continue. Because none of these villains will fucking KILL their adversaries.
Bleh. It's a decent story, but incompetence in villains annoys me.
Well this is weird.
Date: 2022-10-07 02:24 am (UTC)I wish it had been Donal, really. Niall's at least attempting to be smart and decent in the faces of such a family history, dubious consent, and dumb villains, so it sucks this happened when he was on his way to do the right thing. (Whether or not he's successful in being better is up to interpretation, I think.)
As for Giselle, I think Niall may have inadvertently fed into what Strahn said she'll do, about bringing the kids to him: She did beg Niall not to go because she probably felt vulnerable, and she doesn't understand that being royalty means having to leave and get shit done sometimes. So now it becomes "The children and I aren't loved, so we'll leave," which is a scary thought. I hope I'm wrong.
= Multi-Facets.
Re: Well this is weird.
Date: 2022-10-07 04:30 am (UTC)It is annoying that Donal's kids seem to suffer fates that I'd rather direct at him. :-(
Re: Well this is weird.
Date: 2022-10-08 02:00 am (UTC)= Multi-Facets.
no subject
Date: 2023-04-17 02:41 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2023-04-17 06:49 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2024-09-12 04:33 am (UTC)I mean, I like a villain monologue as much as anyone, but AGAIN. If you KILL the children, then they're DEAD. And they can't breed up the next link in the goddamn chain. And believe me, we're all going to get fucking sick of that chain metaphor now that it's popped up in this dialogue.
This would make more sense if there was a counter-prophecy, or clause in the prophecy, that said that if the Ihlini control the Chosen One, they get ultimate power. Like maybe they become Firstborn, or the new Firstborn are under their control. Make it so they don't just want to kill everyone in the right bloodline, they want to have their own branch of it and extinguish every other.
That would also make Strahan's "don't wed Gisella" warning at the beginning make more sense as a Xanatos Gambit. He knows Niall will just be more determined to marry her, to thwart whatever his plans are, but doing so actually helps Strahan because it hijacks the Homanan rival line. Meanwhile if Niall did listen and break the engagement, Strahan still hasn't lost anything; Gisella has the most necessary bloodlines, and he can have her wed to someone of his choosing, probably Erinnish or Ihlini to get those added to the bloodline, while Niall's is lacking Gisella's Atvian contribution. He's one step further along, while the Homanans/Cheysuli have been set back.
no subject
Date: 2024-09-12 05:21 am (UTC)