![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
kalinara posting in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
i_read_whatLast time, we saw a bunch of asshole politicians too caught up in their petty squabbles to deal with a threat that might kill everyone.
It's a little depressing how a silly fantasy book from 1988 can resonate so damn much . But as this is not a political blog, I will stop there. Anyway let's get back to our heroes, who at least have a decent shot of actually fighting the threat that might kill everyone.
So it's the aftermath of that meeting and our characters are talking. Hey, Catti-brie is actually in this scene. Which makes her grand total of scenes in the book to be...two? Maybe three?
Anyway, we're told that the dwarves, understandably, are not going to let themselves get massacred. They're planning to block the mines and wait out the attack. I'm not sure Akar Kessell or the shard would allow them the freedom of will to do that, but it's hard to blame them.
Actually, his plan is a bit more than that. He intends to prepare the mines and let the orcs come "right down [their] throats" and drop the tunnels with the orcs inside. Ouch. But probably effective. He asks if Drizzt will stay with the dwarves, but Drizzt isn't sure. He still feels some loyalty to the Ten Towns. And he's not sure he wants to return to "the lightless underworld", even if we're talking about the dwarf town.
Okay, that does explain why Drizzt isn't already living with the dwarves. I'm still not sure why he didn't just move to Agorwal's town (Termalaine) or Regis's town (Lonelywood) instead of living in a cave. I suppose he just has to be dramatic.
Regis is torn as well. But thanks to the council, everyone in Bryn Shandar is whispering about Regis having some kind of magical influence, and it's likely to spread soon. Regis isn't likely going to be able to continue his comfortable life in Lonelywood now. Aw, but well, he WAS using magical influence so it's hard to feel too bad for him.
Anyway, Regis thanks Bruenor, and says he'll come in before Kessell arrives. Bruenor says he'll room him near "the boy" so no one can hear his bellyachin'. Which prompts Wulfgar to say no. There's a moment of banter where Bruenor pretends to play overprotective dad (since he thinks Wulfgar wants to be near Catti-brie), but Wulfgar is serious. He intends to go back to the plains.
Bruenor yells that Wulfgar's life is still his "for choosin", but we're told that "his yelling was more the short temper of a father than the outrage of a master".
Wulfgar states that while his time of indenture isn't ended, he feels like he's repaid his debt to Bruenor and the dwarves well over, and he considers himself a free man. Drizzt is proud. Bruenor is proud too, and teary eyed, as he asks if Wulfgar will stay and fight beside him.
Wulfgar says no, he has another debt to pay. Catti-brie is the first to understand and she disapproves. I wish the book had done more to earn this dynamic, because the idea that the two might have bonded as fellow humans living among dwarves. It occurs to me that in a lot of ways their situation is similar to Barry Allen and Iris West in the Flash tv show. They both see Bruenor as a father figure, but they don't perceive each other as siblings. Unfortunately, unlike Barry and Iris, we haven't see much to tell us how they DO feel about each other. So this moment of understanding and disapproval feels unearned and lacks the emotional weight it should have.
I like Bruenor's response though: Bruenor nodded, respecting the barbarian's decision. 'Go then, and live well,' he said, straining to hold his breaking voice even as he moved to the rocky trail. He paused for one last moment and looked back at the tall, young barbarian. 'Yer a man, there's none to argue that,' he said over his shoulder. 'But don't ye never forget that ever ye'll be me boy!'"
Aww, I still don't like the indentured servitude concept, or its uneven execution, but this is a good moment.
After Bruenor and Wulfgar both leave, Catti-brie waits with Drizzt. She tells him that she doesn't believe Wulfgar intends to return. Drizzt responds saying that home is something that he chooses (he thinks the news that Heafstaag is serving Kessell is part of what spurred Wulfgar to act now). Catti-brie decides to break her confidence with Wulfgar because Drizzt of all people could find a way to help, and tells him that Wulfgar "has an adventure in mind" that she feels he isn't ready for.
That's what I mean about "unearned". In the whole ONE scene we've seen Wulfgar and Catti-brie interact, there was nothing about trust or confidence. There was some banter, and Wulfgar being a sexist idiot, and Catti-brie realizing he still intended to go back to his people. But Catti-brie figured that out. Wulfgar didn't tell her that. This COULD have been a powerful scene, one where Catti-brie chooses Wulfgar's wellbeing over her honor and his trust. But that wasn't really established.
We've spent far more time with Drizzt and Wulfgar together than Catti-brie and Wulfgar, so it seems weird to suddenly have Catti-brie telling Drizzt how Wulfgar is.
Anyway, she believes Wulfgar has something else he wants to do before going back to the Tribes, something very dangerous. Drizzt wonders if he has time to do something.
Back in Bryn Shander, we're told that very few refugees decided to accept Bryn Shander's offer for shelter. Cassius had expected this, which is why he made the offer. We're told that Bryn Shander is a fair sized city, with a smaller population than it had been once, so there are quite a few vacant buildings and an entire empty section of the city usually reserved for merchants. But that if even half of the people in the other communities sought refuge, they'd have some trouble managing it.
Cassius isn't worried though. He knows the Ten Towns folk are sturdy, and very few leaders will be urging their people to flee. As it turns out, only Glensather and Agorwal come to the gates. Glensather has brought almost all of Easthaven, but Agorwal has less than half of the people of Termalaine. (This apparently is because their fishermen don't want to leave the lakes for the fishermen of Targos).
Other rivals like Caer-Konig and Caer-Dineval are the same. The orcs are a distant threat, but the fighting with their neighbors is real. Other communities refuse to trust Bryn Shander, while Lonelywood, sadly, has decided that with Regis's loss of faith, they no longer believe in the threat of invasion, passing it off as misunderstanding or hoax.
This section is pretty good at building an atmosphere of quiet dread, but I think it'd work better if maybe we hadn't seen so much of Akar Kessell. We know he's dangerous, because we know Creshinibon is powerful. But we also know he's a fucking idiot. I feel like if we'd cut most of his scenes we could have still gotten the impression of Creshinibon's power without undercutting it with Kessell's own ineptitude.
Regis also returns to Bryn Shander to make arrangements. He's dismayed at the lack of preparations. He'd hoped that the people would realize there is a threat, but they've ignored him. He's realizing that the dwarves's decision is probably the only option.
Regis partially blames himself, fearing he'd gotten careless. He'd placed more trust in the people of Ten Towns than in the stone, so he hadn't used it as strategically as he had in the past. But he also resents the situation. Why should he have to TRICK the people into defending themselves? That's actually a fair point.
I mean, Regis brought his fate on himself by relying on mind control devices, which are ethically questionable at the best of times. And he certainly didn't hesitate to use it to help ensure his own comfort. But that said, there's no real indication that he ever used it to hurt anyone else. (Even if he convinced a merchant that his scrimshaw should be worth more than it is, that control doesn't extend down south, so presumably the merchant still found buyers that agreed with the worth.) And it is very annoying that the Towns are too self-centered and petty to actually willingly do anything to ensure its own survival.
Then we join Kessell. Ugh. But to be fair, it's far better to see him in a short section than in an entire chapter. He's nervous because Biggrin is long overdue and he hasn't been able to scry him in the mirror.
Errtu urges Kessell to make a decision, but Kessell hesitates: they haven't reached full strength. Not all of the goblin tribes or giants have come, and the Barbarians aren't ready. Errtu points out that army is starting to fight with each other. Kessell's anxiety over Biggrin and weather or not the humans have figured out what's happening spills over, and he agrees to the march.
(Meanwhile, we're told what happened to the mirror and why Kessell can't use it: Drizzt had thrown a blanket over it.)
The next part, weirdly enough, is an Epilogue. Even though we're in the middle of book three. Which will continue with Chapter Twenty One afterward. I don't understand this either. Perhaps they mean "Interlude"?
Anyway, the Epilogue shows us Wulfgar running east, pushing himself to the limits of endurance: hunting and eating on the run and stopping only when "exhaustion felled him in his tracks". There's a weird tangent about the goblins and giants rolling out under Kessell's command, which seems pointless given the end of Chapter Twenty, but okay.
Anyway, we learn more about what Wulfgar wants to do: basically, he wants to challenge Heafstaag for leadership of the clans. Unfortunately, he's not of noble blood and does not have Rights of Challenge. So even if he wins, they're not likely to follow him. He has to legitimize his claim through a heroic deed.
He's going to fight a white dragon named Ingeloakastimizillian. Or "Icingdeath."
Nice.
But this does reinforce my complaint about Wulfgar and Catti-brie's non-existent bond. Of course, she's right. He's plotting this grand adventure. But they had their conversation long before Wulfgar discovered the barbarians were serving Akar Kessell. So either Catti-brie is psychic, or Wulfgar had been planning this a very long time. Which, granted, is a really intriguing thought. HAD he been planning this for so long? When did he start? Was it at twelve, or later? WHY does he want to rule the barbarians? What does he intend to do?
I'm genuinely curious about this!
It's a little depressing how a silly fantasy book from 1988 can resonate so damn much . But as this is not a political blog, I will stop there. Anyway let's get back to our heroes, who at least have a decent shot of actually fighting the threat that might kill everyone.
So it's the aftermath of that meeting and our characters are talking. Hey, Catti-brie is actually in this scene. Which makes her grand total of scenes in the book to be...two? Maybe three?
Anyway, we're told that the dwarves, understandably, are not going to let themselves get massacred. They're planning to block the mines and wait out the attack. I'm not sure Akar Kessell or the shard would allow them the freedom of will to do that, but it's hard to blame them.
Actually, his plan is a bit more than that. He intends to prepare the mines and let the orcs come "right down [their] throats" and drop the tunnels with the orcs inside. Ouch. But probably effective. He asks if Drizzt will stay with the dwarves, but Drizzt isn't sure. He still feels some loyalty to the Ten Towns. And he's not sure he wants to return to "the lightless underworld", even if we're talking about the dwarf town.
Okay, that does explain why Drizzt isn't already living with the dwarves. I'm still not sure why he didn't just move to Agorwal's town (Termalaine) or Regis's town (Lonelywood) instead of living in a cave. I suppose he just has to be dramatic.
Regis is torn as well. But thanks to the council, everyone in Bryn Shandar is whispering about Regis having some kind of magical influence, and it's likely to spread soon. Regis isn't likely going to be able to continue his comfortable life in Lonelywood now. Aw, but well, he WAS using magical influence so it's hard to feel too bad for him.
Anyway, Regis thanks Bruenor, and says he'll come in before Kessell arrives. Bruenor says he'll room him near "the boy" so no one can hear his bellyachin'. Which prompts Wulfgar to say no. There's a moment of banter where Bruenor pretends to play overprotective dad (since he thinks Wulfgar wants to be near Catti-brie), but Wulfgar is serious. He intends to go back to the plains.
Bruenor yells that Wulfgar's life is still his "for choosin", but we're told that "his yelling was more the short temper of a father than the outrage of a master".
Wulfgar states that while his time of indenture isn't ended, he feels like he's repaid his debt to Bruenor and the dwarves well over, and he considers himself a free man. Drizzt is proud. Bruenor is proud too, and teary eyed, as he asks if Wulfgar will stay and fight beside him.
Wulfgar says no, he has another debt to pay. Catti-brie is the first to understand and she disapproves. I wish the book had done more to earn this dynamic, because the idea that the two might have bonded as fellow humans living among dwarves. It occurs to me that in a lot of ways their situation is similar to Barry Allen and Iris West in the Flash tv show. They both see Bruenor as a father figure, but they don't perceive each other as siblings. Unfortunately, unlike Barry and Iris, we haven't see much to tell us how they DO feel about each other. So this moment of understanding and disapproval feels unearned and lacks the emotional weight it should have.
I like Bruenor's response though: Bruenor nodded, respecting the barbarian's decision. 'Go then, and live well,' he said, straining to hold his breaking voice even as he moved to the rocky trail. He paused for one last moment and looked back at the tall, young barbarian. 'Yer a man, there's none to argue that,' he said over his shoulder. 'But don't ye never forget that ever ye'll be me boy!'"
Aww, I still don't like the indentured servitude concept, or its uneven execution, but this is a good moment.
After Bruenor and Wulfgar both leave, Catti-brie waits with Drizzt. She tells him that she doesn't believe Wulfgar intends to return. Drizzt responds saying that home is something that he chooses (he thinks the news that Heafstaag is serving Kessell is part of what spurred Wulfgar to act now). Catti-brie decides to break her confidence with Wulfgar because Drizzt of all people could find a way to help, and tells him that Wulfgar "has an adventure in mind" that she feels he isn't ready for.
That's what I mean about "unearned". In the whole ONE scene we've seen Wulfgar and Catti-brie interact, there was nothing about trust or confidence. There was some banter, and Wulfgar being a sexist idiot, and Catti-brie realizing he still intended to go back to his people. But Catti-brie figured that out. Wulfgar didn't tell her that. This COULD have been a powerful scene, one where Catti-brie chooses Wulfgar's wellbeing over her honor and his trust. But that wasn't really established.
We've spent far more time with Drizzt and Wulfgar together than Catti-brie and Wulfgar, so it seems weird to suddenly have Catti-brie telling Drizzt how Wulfgar is.
Anyway, she believes Wulfgar has something else he wants to do before going back to the Tribes, something very dangerous. Drizzt wonders if he has time to do something.
Back in Bryn Shander, we're told that very few refugees decided to accept Bryn Shander's offer for shelter. Cassius had expected this, which is why he made the offer. We're told that Bryn Shander is a fair sized city, with a smaller population than it had been once, so there are quite a few vacant buildings and an entire empty section of the city usually reserved for merchants. But that if even half of the people in the other communities sought refuge, they'd have some trouble managing it.
Cassius isn't worried though. He knows the Ten Towns folk are sturdy, and very few leaders will be urging their people to flee. As it turns out, only Glensather and Agorwal come to the gates. Glensather has brought almost all of Easthaven, but Agorwal has less than half of the people of Termalaine. (This apparently is because their fishermen don't want to leave the lakes for the fishermen of Targos).
Other rivals like Caer-Konig and Caer-Dineval are the same. The orcs are a distant threat, but the fighting with their neighbors is real. Other communities refuse to trust Bryn Shander, while Lonelywood, sadly, has decided that with Regis's loss of faith, they no longer believe in the threat of invasion, passing it off as misunderstanding or hoax.
This section is pretty good at building an atmosphere of quiet dread, but I think it'd work better if maybe we hadn't seen so much of Akar Kessell. We know he's dangerous, because we know Creshinibon is powerful. But we also know he's a fucking idiot. I feel like if we'd cut most of his scenes we could have still gotten the impression of Creshinibon's power without undercutting it with Kessell's own ineptitude.
Regis also returns to Bryn Shander to make arrangements. He's dismayed at the lack of preparations. He'd hoped that the people would realize there is a threat, but they've ignored him. He's realizing that the dwarves's decision is probably the only option.
Regis partially blames himself, fearing he'd gotten careless. He'd placed more trust in the people of Ten Towns than in the stone, so he hadn't used it as strategically as he had in the past. But he also resents the situation. Why should he have to TRICK the people into defending themselves? That's actually a fair point.
I mean, Regis brought his fate on himself by relying on mind control devices, which are ethically questionable at the best of times. And he certainly didn't hesitate to use it to help ensure his own comfort. But that said, there's no real indication that he ever used it to hurt anyone else. (Even if he convinced a merchant that his scrimshaw should be worth more than it is, that control doesn't extend down south, so presumably the merchant still found buyers that agreed with the worth.) And it is very annoying that the Towns are too self-centered and petty to actually willingly do anything to ensure its own survival.
Then we join Kessell. Ugh. But to be fair, it's far better to see him in a short section than in an entire chapter. He's nervous because Biggrin is long overdue and he hasn't been able to scry him in the mirror.
Errtu urges Kessell to make a decision, but Kessell hesitates: they haven't reached full strength. Not all of the goblin tribes or giants have come, and the Barbarians aren't ready. Errtu points out that army is starting to fight with each other. Kessell's anxiety over Biggrin and weather or not the humans have figured out what's happening spills over, and he agrees to the march.
(Meanwhile, we're told what happened to the mirror and why Kessell can't use it: Drizzt had thrown a blanket over it.)
The next part, weirdly enough, is an Epilogue. Even though we're in the middle of book three. Which will continue with Chapter Twenty One afterward. I don't understand this either. Perhaps they mean "Interlude"?
Anyway, the Epilogue shows us Wulfgar running east, pushing himself to the limits of endurance: hunting and eating on the run and stopping only when "exhaustion felled him in his tracks". There's a weird tangent about the goblins and giants rolling out under Kessell's command, which seems pointless given the end of Chapter Twenty, but okay.
Anyway, we learn more about what Wulfgar wants to do: basically, he wants to challenge Heafstaag for leadership of the clans. Unfortunately, he's not of noble blood and does not have Rights of Challenge. So even if he wins, they're not likely to follow him. He has to legitimize his claim through a heroic deed.
He's going to fight a white dragon named Ingeloakastimizillian. Or "Icingdeath."
Nice.
But this does reinforce my complaint about Wulfgar and Catti-brie's non-existent bond. Of course, she's right. He's plotting this grand adventure. But they had their conversation long before Wulfgar discovered the barbarians were serving Akar Kessell. So either Catti-brie is psychic, or Wulfgar had been planning this a very long time. Which, granted, is a really intriguing thought. HAD he been planning this for so long? When did he start? Was it at twelve, or later? WHY does he want to rule the barbarians? What does he intend to do?
I'm genuinely curious about this!