Pride of Princes - Part Four, Chapter Two
Aug. 29th, 2023 07:54 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
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i_read_whatSo last time, we started Corin's section. He probably made a better first impression than Hart did, seeing as how he didn't kill his horse trying to chase down an unwilling woman. That said, laughing at the prospect of marital rape wasn't particularly great.
So apparently Boyne wasn't just heading back to Erinn, he's also the captain of Corin's ship! And so when we rejoin our hero, Boyne is busy pointing out the "Dragon's Tail" which separates Erinn from Atvia.
Conn clutched the rail. The Dragon's Tail was a narrow channel winding its way between two islands. Winds lashed the water into heavy chop, turning much of the shoreline of both islands into jagged teeth instead of smooth beaches. But lest the fisherfolk lament such harsh-ness, there were also two natural harbors, sheltered and less treacherous.
Corin hadn't realized the two capitol cities (Kilore of Erinn and Rondule of Atvia) were so close. Boyne agrees and gives the backstory according to legend: at one time, the islands had been one kingdom ruled by a "fair man". However the younger brother apparently wanted a kingdom of his own, so they fought. Eventually they realized that if they kept fighting, they'd lose all their men, so they formed a truce.
It was the younger brother who split the islands. The truce didn't actually give him anything he didn't have already: so he made a deal with a powerful sorcerer, who helped him kill his brother. The sorcerer wanted his soul in return, and in the process of taking it, the sorcerer split the island in two. The brothers had sons, and thus each branch's descendants have been fighting ever since. "The Lord of the Idrian Isles" is the title they both covet.
Boyne doesn't explicitly state which ruler was which, but it doesn't take much to guess that the fair King was the Erinnish side, while the brother was Atvian. The Sorcerer is an interesting component. Depending on how long ago this took place, the sorcerer could well have been Tynstar himself. (Admittedly, Tynstar would only be about five hundred years old. But given that the entire Homanan dynasty had only taken over from the Cheysuli about five hundred years ago, and that's treated as ancient history, it could be the case.)
At any rate, it implies that the relationship between Atvia and the Ihlini predates Alaric and Lillith.
It would have been more interesting if Erinn, the allied country, had been the evil brother's kingdom. Subvert expectations a little, but I don't really think Roberson tends to swing that way, story-wise.
Oh, actually this bit's interesting. Corin asks what happened to the sorcerer.
Boyne frowned dramatically, black brows knitted. "Well, 'tis said he got the soul he was promised. But 'tis also said he soon grew tired of such pettiness and turned his back on it all. Some say he died; others are saying he went belowdecks and became king of the world down there." An eloquent gesture accompanied the final sentence.
Corin wonders if he means Asar-Suti, the Seker of the Ihlini. Boyne doesn't know the name. But it gets Corin wondering, if Asar-Suti is a sorcerer who became a god, can other sorcerers do the same? Can Strahan?
I've always gotten the impression that the Seker is a member of the Cheysuli pantheon, or at least an enemy of it. But it's an interesting thought. But to be honest, I don't remember anything coming of it. As far as I recall, the series is far more focused on bringing back the Firstborn than it is on elevating any of the other races.
All Kiri says is that she can't answer the question.
He looked at her more sharply. Cannot, or will not?
Bright eyes glinted as she turned away. One and the same, lir. I have no answer for you.
I have to admit, while I'm not sure I like Corin himself, I can appreciate that this already feels more relevant to the overall plot than Hart's misadventures.
Corin thinks about Strahan, and how he was raised on stories of the Seker-worshipping sorcerers. Niall had told the kids that not all Ihlini serve Asar-Suti, but they need to be wary of the ones who do.
Niall's crush may be intact: But Strahan was different. Strahan was more than merely sorcerer, being blessed with an uncanny charm that beguiled good and bad alike. He was already extremely powerful because of his dedication to the Seker. If his reward for such service and dedication was godhood, then he offered more than idle threat to the Cheysuli and the prophecy.
The ship reaches Kilore and Boyne goes off to do sailor-y things. Corin is musing about the prophecy:
That he was a link in it was old news. Except for Maeve, all of Niall’s children were; it was why Strahan had tried to kidnap them as infants with Gisella's participation.
You know, there's no reason Maeve ISN'T a link in the prophecy. She's got the same bloodlines as her siblings. I pointed out before that, through Alix's grandmother, Brennan, Hart, Corin and Keely actually have all the bloodlines. Maeve does too! Homanan and Solindish through Niall and Aislinn, and Erinnish and Atvian through Deirdre, whose mother was Alaric's sister! If Strahan knocked her up, he'd get a firstborn just as much as he would with Keely!
Corin forgets about his speculation as they dock. We get some description:
Corin clutched the rail and stared. Kilore the city spilled along the waterfront like a tangle of seaweed, streets and wynds interlocking to form a webwork he did not think he could ever decipher. And above the city, thrusting up in a jagged line of palisades, were the white chalk cliffs his father had mentioned so often.
Kilore was a place of mist and magic, Niall had said, and Corin saw at least half of it was true. Shrouded in dampness, the cliffs formed a bright white curtain wall against the darker world.
And atop it, almost ominous in its bulk, stood the fortress from which the city took its name: Kilore itself, Aerie of the Eagles.
It occurs to me, given how long ship travel took in Track of the White Wolf, Brennan and Hart have probably already been kidnapped by now.
Anyway, Corin's decided to sulk a little bit:
I wish I were arriving home, like Boyne, instead of here. Corin looked up at the castle and tried to suppress his nerves. I wish I were doing anything but playing messenger for my jehan, and proxy suitor for my rujholli.
Dude, you're going to be treated like the royalty you are. Relax.
Miscellaneous note: Corin understands Boyne's Erinnish words, due to Deirdre's parentage. I wonder if he's learned Atvian too?
Corin and Kiri smell fish, which is unsurprising as Erinn's economy depends on it. Boyne offers to buy him a drink before he leaves, but Corin says he'll buy instead.
So when Boyne is telling one of his long tales at the tavern, they hear an angry woman's voice, which ends up abruptly silenced. They go investigate:
Three men, Corin saw as he turned a corner—and a woman bundled in blankets. Near the end of the wynd, close to the quay. One of the men turned to face Boyne; the other two lifted the women off her feet and effectively controlled her struggles.
After a brief exchange between Boyne and the spokesman for the others, Corin realized civilities had been abandoned.
Boyne shouted with mocking laughter. "Oh, aye, and my mother was a queen!" He turned to Corin. "Yon man is saying the woman is drunk, and they're taking her home to her husband. But I know better than that—she shouted for help, and there was no drunkenness about it. And if these men are Erinnish, I'll be giving them my ship! Atvian, more like, trying to spirit away an Erinnish lass for evil purposes." He advanced a step. "Come, lad, 'tis a lass in need of us.”
Corin really can't avoid bar fights, can he? That said, I appreciate that it's for a legitimate purpose.
They fight. Boyne wins his match quickly, Corin's a bit slower, since he's smaller. But he does prevail. They rescue the lady, who gets a pretty detailed description:
She eyed him closely a moment with incredibly bright green eyes, shrewdly assessing intentions, then pushed tangled hair—very red hair—away from an oval face. She blew out an explosive sigh of relief that also melted the tension out of face and limbs.
Guardedly, she smiled; the mouth was eloquent in its mobility, wide and willful beneath a straight, bold nose.
She was not a beauty, not as Corin reckoned women—her coloring was far too flamboyant—but she was a striking girl, the kind of girl whose vibrant liveliness of spirit made beauty unimportant. Almost without thinking, he found himself responding.
The girl recognizes Boyne as Erinnish, but Colin is not. She's dressed like a fisher woman but has very soft hands. Corin also thinks that her carriage and manner don't fit. She reminds him of Keely, and he immediately clocks her as highborn. Possibly the highest.
And to think, he doesn't even need to gamble to read people. Sorry, I should stop picking on poor Hart. He's getting punished enough.
The girl says that the men meant her no harm, but intended to take her to Alaric. Her parents and brother are not in Kilore at the moment, which made it convenient. The girl seems to have a pretty good head on her shoulders though, and recognizes where she went wrong:
She cast a scowl at the unconscious men. "But 'tis my fault as much as anything else; I should not have come down alone. I know better, as my father is one for telling me. And now he can tell me again." She shrugged and smiled a rueful smile. "For all I hate to say it, he may have the right of it. All Alaric needs is leverage, and I nearly gave it to him." And then she stopped short, as if she had said too much to men who could not understand, and cast a bright glance at Corin. "Why does a Cheysuli come to Erinn?"
"Business with her lord."
Straight red brows jerked upward. She was not subtle in her thoughts, but he found it rather engaging. "With Liam, then? Well, 'twill have to wait. He's on the other side of the island tending to disputes." She jerked her head upward to indicate the fortress. "Will you come up, then? Tis where I'm bound." She looked at Boyne and grinned. "You as well, captain. 'Tis grateful I am for your service, and you're both due reward. What would you say to a meal in the Aerie, and a purse of gold apiece?"
It takes a bit for Boyne to figure out what Corin has already guessed. Aileen, because of course this is Aileen, can tell that Corin's guessed.
This is pretty cute:
"Boyne." Corin fell into step as Kiri trotted beside him. "Have you not told me what the Princess Aileen looks like?"
The captain grinned as he slackened his pace to the girl's. "Aye, lad, many times. 'Tis only from a distance I've seen her, mind you, but 'twas enough." He grinned and tucked her slender arm into his elbow. "Red-haired she is, like this lass here, and I've heard her eyes are green as Erinn's turf."
"Turf," the girl echoed morosely, twisting her mobile mouth into something akin to an offended wince, although the laughter in her eyes belied the truth of it. "Ye might at least compare them to emeralds, man, not turf."
"Your eyes are the emeralds, lass," Boyne said gallantly.
Aw. She laughs and clarifies that yes, indeed, she's Aileen. And she'ss inviting both men up to the castle.
We end with Corin wondering what his brother will say when he meets his Erinnish bride.
I mean, it's not like Brennan can be too judgmental given what he's been up to lately! But it might be an interesting meeting at that.
So apparently Boyne wasn't just heading back to Erinn, he's also the captain of Corin's ship! And so when we rejoin our hero, Boyne is busy pointing out the "Dragon's Tail" which separates Erinn from Atvia.
Conn clutched the rail. The Dragon's Tail was a narrow channel winding its way between two islands. Winds lashed the water into heavy chop, turning much of the shoreline of both islands into jagged teeth instead of smooth beaches. But lest the fisherfolk lament such harsh-ness, there were also two natural harbors, sheltered and less treacherous.
Corin hadn't realized the two capitol cities (Kilore of Erinn and Rondule of Atvia) were so close. Boyne agrees and gives the backstory according to legend: at one time, the islands had been one kingdom ruled by a "fair man". However the younger brother apparently wanted a kingdom of his own, so they fought. Eventually they realized that if they kept fighting, they'd lose all their men, so they formed a truce.
It was the younger brother who split the islands. The truce didn't actually give him anything he didn't have already: so he made a deal with a powerful sorcerer, who helped him kill his brother. The sorcerer wanted his soul in return, and in the process of taking it, the sorcerer split the island in two. The brothers had sons, and thus each branch's descendants have been fighting ever since. "The Lord of the Idrian Isles" is the title they both covet.
Boyne doesn't explicitly state which ruler was which, but it doesn't take much to guess that the fair King was the Erinnish side, while the brother was Atvian. The Sorcerer is an interesting component. Depending on how long ago this took place, the sorcerer could well have been Tynstar himself. (Admittedly, Tynstar would only be about five hundred years old. But given that the entire Homanan dynasty had only taken over from the Cheysuli about five hundred years ago, and that's treated as ancient history, it could be the case.)
At any rate, it implies that the relationship between Atvia and the Ihlini predates Alaric and Lillith.
It would have been more interesting if Erinn, the allied country, had been the evil brother's kingdom. Subvert expectations a little, but I don't really think Roberson tends to swing that way, story-wise.
Oh, actually this bit's interesting. Corin asks what happened to the sorcerer.
Boyne frowned dramatically, black brows knitted. "Well, 'tis said he got the soul he was promised. But 'tis also said he soon grew tired of such pettiness and turned his back on it all. Some say he died; others are saying he went belowdecks and became king of the world down there." An eloquent gesture accompanied the final sentence.
Corin wonders if he means Asar-Suti, the Seker of the Ihlini. Boyne doesn't know the name. But it gets Corin wondering, if Asar-Suti is a sorcerer who became a god, can other sorcerers do the same? Can Strahan?
I've always gotten the impression that the Seker is a member of the Cheysuli pantheon, or at least an enemy of it. But it's an interesting thought. But to be honest, I don't remember anything coming of it. As far as I recall, the series is far more focused on bringing back the Firstborn than it is on elevating any of the other races.
All Kiri says is that she can't answer the question.
He looked at her more sharply. Cannot, or will not?
Bright eyes glinted as she turned away. One and the same, lir. I have no answer for you.
I have to admit, while I'm not sure I like Corin himself, I can appreciate that this already feels more relevant to the overall plot than Hart's misadventures.
Corin thinks about Strahan, and how he was raised on stories of the Seker-worshipping sorcerers. Niall had told the kids that not all Ihlini serve Asar-Suti, but they need to be wary of the ones who do.
Niall's crush may be intact: But Strahan was different. Strahan was more than merely sorcerer, being blessed with an uncanny charm that beguiled good and bad alike. He was already extremely powerful because of his dedication to the Seker. If his reward for such service and dedication was godhood, then he offered more than idle threat to the Cheysuli and the prophecy.
The ship reaches Kilore and Boyne goes off to do sailor-y things. Corin is musing about the prophecy:
That he was a link in it was old news. Except for Maeve, all of Niall’s children were; it was why Strahan had tried to kidnap them as infants with Gisella's participation.
You know, there's no reason Maeve ISN'T a link in the prophecy. She's got the same bloodlines as her siblings. I pointed out before that, through Alix's grandmother, Brennan, Hart, Corin and Keely actually have all the bloodlines. Maeve does too! Homanan and Solindish through Niall and Aislinn, and Erinnish and Atvian through Deirdre, whose mother was Alaric's sister! If Strahan knocked her up, he'd get a firstborn just as much as he would with Keely!
Corin forgets about his speculation as they dock. We get some description:
Corin clutched the rail and stared. Kilore the city spilled along the waterfront like a tangle of seaweed, streets and wynds interlocking to form a webwork he did not think he could ever decipher. And above the city, thrusting up in a jagged line of palisades, were the white chalk cliffs his father had mentioned so often.
Kilore was a place of mist and magic, Niall had said, and Corin saw at least half of it was true. Shrouded in dampness, the cliffs formed a bright white curtain wall against the darker world.
And atop it, almost ominous in its bulk, stood the fortress from which the city took its name: Kilore itself, Aerie of the Eagles.
It occurs to me, given how long ship travel took in Track of the White Wolf, Brennan and Hart have probably already been kidnapped by now.
Anyway, Corin's decided to sulk a little bit:
I wish I were arriving home, like Boyne, instead of here. Corin looked up at the castle and tried to suppress his nerves. I wish I were doing anything but playing messenger for my jehan, and proxy suitor for my rujholli.
Dude, you're going to be treated like the royalty you are. Relax.
Miscellaneous note: Corin understands Boyne's Erinnish words, due to Deirdre's parentage. I wonder if he's learned Atvian too?
Corin and Kiri smell fish, which is unsurprising as Erinn's economy depends on it. Boyne offers to buy him a drink before he leaves, but Corin says he'll buy instead.
So when Boyne is telling one of his long tales at the tavern, they hear an angry woman's voice, which ends up abruptly silenced. They go investigate:
Three men, Corin saw as he turned a corner—and a woman bundled in blankets. Near the end of the wynd, close to the quay. One of the men turned to face Boyne; the other two lifted the women off her feet and effectively controlled her struggles.
After a brief exchange between Boyne and the spokesman for the others, Corin realized civilities had been abandoned.
Boyne shouted with mocking laughter. "Oh, aye, and my mother was a queen!" He turned to Corin. "Yon man is saying the woman is drunk, and they're taking her home to her husband. But I know better than that—she shouted for help, and there was no drunkenness about it. And if these men are Erinnish, I'll be giving them my ship! Atvian, more like, trying to spirit away an Erinnish lass for evil purposes." He advanced a step. "Come, lad, 'tis a lass in need of us.”
Corin really can't avoid bar fights, can he? That said, I appreciate that it's for a legitimate purpose.
They fight. Boyne wins his match quickly, Corin's a bit slower, since he's smaller. But he does prevail. They rescue the lady, who gets a pretty detailed description:
She eyed him closely a moment with incredibly bright green eyes, shrewdly assessing intentions, then pushed tangled hair—very red hair—away from an oval face. She blew out an explosive sigh of relief that also melted the tension out of face and limbs.
Guardedly, she smiled; the mouth was eloquent in its mobility, wide and willful beneath a straight, bold nose.
She was not a beauty, not as Corin reckoned women—her coloring was far too flamboyant—but she was a striking girl, the kind of girl whose vibrant liveliness of spirit made beauty unimportant. Almost without thinking, he found himself responding.
The girl recognizes Boyne as Erinnish, but Colin is not. She's dressed like a fisher woman but has very soft hands. Corin also thinks that her carriage and manner don't fit. She reminds him of Keely, and he immediately clocks her as highborn. Possibly the highest.
And to think, he doesn't even need to gamble to read people. Sorry, I should stop picking on poor Hart. He's getting punished enough.
The girl says that the men meant her no harm, but intended to take her to Alaric. Her parents and brother are not in Kilore at the moment, which made it convenient. The girl seems to have a pretty good head on her shoulders though, and recognizes where she went wrong:
She cast a scowl at the unconscious men. "But 'tis my fault as much as anything else; I should not have come down alone. I know better, as my father is one for telling me. And now he can tell me again." She shrugged and smiled a rueful smile. "For all I hate to say it, he may have the right of it. All Alaric needs is leverage, and I nearly gave it to him." And then she stopped short, as if she had said too much to men who could not understand, and cast a bright glance at Corin. "Why does a Cheysuli come to Erinn?"
"Business with her lord."
Straight red brows jerked upward. She was not subtle in her thoughts, but he found it rather engaging. "With Liam, then? Well, 'twill have to wait. He's on the other side of the island tending to disputes." She jerked her head upward to indicate the fortress. "Will you come up, then? Tis where I'm bound." She looked at Boyne and grinned. "You as well, captain. 'Tis grateful I am for your service, and you're both due reward. What would you say to a meal in the Aerie, and a purse of gold apiece?"
It takes a bit for Boyne to figure out what Corin has already guessed. Aileen, because of course this is Aileen, can tell that Corin's guessed.
This is pretty cute:
"Boyne." Corin fell into step as Kiri trotted beside him. "Have you not told me what the Princess Aileen looks like?"
The captain grinned as he slackened his pace to the girl's. "Aye, lad, many times. 'Tis only from a distance I've seen her, mind you, but 'twas enough." He grinned and tucked her slender arm into his elbow. "Red-haired she is, like this lass here, and I've heard her eyes are green as Erinn's turf."
"Turf," the girl echoed morosely, twisting her mobile mouth into something akin to an offended wince, although the laughter in her eyes belied the truth of it. "Ye might at least compare them to emeralds, man, not turf."
"Your eyes are the emeralds, lass," Boyne said gallantly.
Aw. She laughs and clarifies that yes, indeed, she's Aileen. And she'ss inviting both men up to the castle.
We end with Corin wondering what his brother will say when he meets his Erinnish bride.
I mean, it's not like Brennan can be too judgmental given what he's been up to lately! But it might be an interesting meeting at that.
no subject
Date: 2023-08-30 10:59 pm (UTC)When I hear of Atvia, my mind goes to Forspoken.
He looked at her more sharply. Cannot, or will not?
Bright eyes glinted as she turned away. One and the same, lir. I have no answer for you
That's a good answer.
"Turf," the girl echoed morosely, twisting her mobile mouth into something akin to an offended wince, although the laughter in her eyes belied the truth of it. "Ye might at least compare them to emeralds, man, not turf."
At least here the characters request this comparison. But usually, when I hear of "crystals" to describe eyes, I cringe because of My Inner Life and the Eye of Argon.
no subject
Date: 2023-08-30 11:24 pm (UTC)