Streams of Silver - Chapter Six
Mar. 15th, 2020 04:28 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
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i_read_whatSo last time, our heroes stole some horses, fought some orcs, and met a barbarian who promptly kicked Regis in the face and became my new favorite character.
More black-haired barbarians appear. Drizzt realized that he'd glimpsed them before, but hadn't identified them. He's not sure what side they're on. They seem to freak out the orcs something awful though. Drizzt takes advantage of the chaos to slip back up the tree with his bow.
For his part, Wulfgar keeps fighting, he notes that the new group of barbarians are also crying out to Tempus, the god of battle. He kills his orcs and then stands to face the barbarians, who give him space, "respectful of his prowess". Bruenor and Regis are both laying on the ground. The new guys fan out around Wulfgar, who recognizes that he can't win against this many. He's willing to die fighting, but above him, Drizzt urges restraint, as Bruenor and Regis are probably still alive. Wulfgar stands down and greets the other barbarians.
We get a description for one barbarian:
They did not reply, but one of them, nearly as tall and heavily muscled as Wulfgar, broke rank and closed in to stand before him. The stranger wore a single braid in his long hair, running down the side of his face and over his shoulder. His cheeks were painted white in the image of wings. The hardness of his frame and disciplined set of his face reflected a life in the harsh wilderness, and were it not for the raven color of his hair, Wulfgar would have thought him to be of one of the tribes of Icewind Dale.
The dark-haired man similarly recognized Wulfgar, but better versed in the overall structures of the societies in the northland, was not so perplexed by their similarities. "You are of the dale," he said in a broken form of the common tongue. "Beyond the mountains, where the cold wind blows."
...this is the most interesting part of the book so far. I'm fascinated by the idea that the barbarians have a common culture, with variation based on region. The dark haired dude gets Wulfgar to surrender his weapon by reminding him that he's in their land without permission, and that Bruenor and Regis would be first to die. We're told that the younger Wulfgar would have struck then, but he's learned from his "new friends", particularly Drizzt. He knows that Drizzt is in the trees, and he'll get his hammer back.
Wulfgar's character growth is my favorite part of the story so far, but I wish he'd get to claim credit for it rather than constantly attributing it to Drizzt.
Anyway, Wulfgar even lets them bind his hands, which is something that no Warrior of the Elk (his tribe) would ever allow, but he has faith in Drizzt. Aww.
So they get to the camp: Regis and Bruenor are awake now. Bruenor makes a sarcastic comment about what the barbarians eat. The barbarians have a victory dance dedicated to Tempus and Uthgar, their ancestral hero, that goes on for almost an hour.
Wulfgar gets to be the knowledgeable one for once, when a very old man with a very colorful description appears:
The silence held for a long moment before the flap swung open. Out jumped an ancient man, as slender as a tent pole, but showing more energy than his obvious years would indicate. His face painted in the same markings as the warriors, though more elaborately, he wore a patch with a huge green gemstone sewn upon it over one eye. His robe was the purest white, its sleeves showing as feathered wings whenever he flapped his arms out to the side.
He danced and twirled through the ranks of the warriors, and each held his breath, recoiling until he had passed.
Wulfgar identifies him as a shaman, and the tribe fear him even more than a mortal enemy or a Chieftain. The old man identifies himself as Valric High Eye, Priest of the followers of the Sky Ponies.
...Between Shimmergloom and Sky Ponies I really do feel like I'm in the middle of a My Little Pony episode. But then nothing is as bad as Tynstar.
Wulfgar responds with his own name and identification. Bruenor starts to join in, but the barbarians are racist, of course, and don't care. Wulfgar starts up with a decent attempt at diplomacy, telling them they meant no harm or trespass. Valric doesn't care about that, he looks at Wulfgar like a gift from Tempus. It looks like there will be a challenge to judge if Wulfgar is worthy to join the Sky Ponies. Neat.
Meanwhile, Drizzt is following. He doesn't know if Bruenor or Regis are alive, but he finds their weapons and helm. This suspense doesn't last very long, since in the next paragraph, Drizzt finds the camp.
Wulfgar and a dark haired warrior are having a vaguely homoerotic challenge, where they clasp hands to test strength. Wulfgar is initially taken by surprise, but he, of course, starts getting the upper hand. Wulfgar decides that he doesn't want to humiliate his opponent and end the contest too quickly. Instead he decides to drag it out so Drizzt can have time to do...something.
Wulfgar really is the best of these guys, and this little episode is really letting him show his growth. He's swallowed his pride and ego for the sake of diplomacy and his friends. I am proud of my giant barbarian son.
Wulfgar finally catches sight of Drizzt in the trees, and, wary of the shaman declaring a draw, ends the match with a "sudden, ferocious explosion of power" that drives his opponent to his knees. His opponent and the whole tribe is awed and full of admiration, as they're honorable people. Aw.
Is it wrong that I kind of want Wulfgar to stay with these people who clearly respect him?
Valric says that he'd welcome Wulfgar, and identifies his opponent as Torlin, son of the chief of the Sky Ponies, who has never been beaten. Wulfgar asks about his friends, but sadly, we need a reason to dislike these guys: they're going to let Bruenor go, but they want to sacrifice the "weakling" Regis to the winged horse.
Wulfgar realizes that they're testing his loyalty, and notes that there were many Icewind Dale barbarians who would accept these terms. We learn a new facet of Wulfgar here: "This was the disillusionment of Wulfgar's existence with his people, the facet of their moral code that had proved unacceptable to his personal standards."
I feel like this probably should have come up more explicitly before. But I love Wulfgar, so I'll forgive it. Wulfgar refuses the terms, claiming that Regis's fate is not his, or the tribe's to decide. Wulfgar is rebound, and he and Torlin share a Moment:
"A loss for our people," Torlin said to Wulfgar. "You would have received a place of honor among us."
Wulfgar didn't answer, holding Torlin's stare for a long moment, sharing respect and also the mutual understanding that their codes were too different for such a joining. In a shared fantasy that could not be, both imagined fighting beside the other, felling orcs by the score and inspiring the bards to a new legend.
Aw. Drizzt decides to interrupt this homoerotic moment to strike. He's aiming for spectacle instead of effectiveness, since they're outnumbered anyway, and he figures that the barbarians likely would have heard terrifying tales of dark elves. And...okay this is ridiculous>
Silently, Drizzt tied the two ponies behind the horses, then mounted the horses, a foot in one stirrup on each. Rising between them, he stood tall and threw back the cowl of his cloak.
The dangerous glow in his lavender eyes sparkling wildly, he bolted the mounts into the ring, scattering the stunned barbarians closest to him.
Howls of rage rose up from the surprised tribesmen, the tone of the shouts shifting to one of terror when they viewed the black skin. Torlin and Valric turned to face the oncoming menace, though even they did not know how to deal with a legend personified.
And Drizzt had a trick ready for them. With a wave of his black hand, purple flames spouted from Torlin and Valric's skin, not burning, but casting both the superstitious tribesmen into a horrified frenzy. Torlin dropped to his knees, clasping his arms in disbelief, while the highstrung shaman dove to the ground and began rolling in the dirt.
How the fuck does that even work? I bitched about Roberson clearly not having any idea about how horses work, but this is, if possible, even worse. Anyway, Wulfgar breaks his own bonds and basically uppercuts his captors. Bruenor takes the moment to stomp on the foot of the barbarian between him and Regis, and then headbutting him. It works as well even without the helmet. Wulfgar tosses the smaller guys onto their ponies, and gets on his mount and they flee.
Wulfgar is nervous though when they hear a rhythmic singing from the camp: the shaman is doing something. Actually, he is apparently channeling the Pegasus into Torlin, who is now transformed into something not human. He is consumed. Aw. I wanted Wulfgar to have a friend.
Back at the group, we're told that even Wulfgar has started to relax. Only Drizzt is still wary. This of course makes no actual sense, except to emphasize to us how Drizzt is the wise one of the group. The Pegasus attacks. Unfortunately, because it's only partially in the physical plane, Wulfgar can't strike it. Regis is thrown off his horse, and Bruenor is dazed. Drizzt summons Guenhwyvar and has her take him to the Pegasus's own plane. He and Wulfgar attack, each from their own plane, and they take the Pegasus down.
On Drizzt's return, Bruenor has checked on Regis, who is fine, just fainted. Wulfgar is hovered over Torlin's half monster form, angry at what Valric did to him. He insists that as son of the chieftain, Torlin wouldn't have been able to refuse his shaman. Bruenor realizes this means the Sky Ponies will want to settle the score. Wulfgar swears revenge on Valric, himself. And the chapter ends.
More black-haired barbarians appear. Drizzt realized that he'd glimpsed them before, but hadn't identified them. He's not sure what side they're on. They seem to freak out the orcs something awful though. Drizzt takes advantage of the chaos to slip back up the tree with his bow.
For his part, Wulfgar keeps fighting, he notes that the new group of barbarians are also crying out to Tempus, the god of battle. He kills his orcs and then stands to face the barbarians, who give him space, "respectful of his prowess". Bruenor and Regis are both laying on the ground. The new guys fan out around Wulfgar, who recognizes that he can't win against this many. He's willing to die fighting, but above him, Drizzt urges restraint, as Bruenor and Regis are probably still alive. Wulfgar stands down and greets the other barbarians.
We get a description for one barbarian:
They did not reply, but one of them, nearly as tall and heavily muscled as Wulfgar, broke rank and closed in to stand before him. The stranger wore a single braid in his long hair, running down the side of his face and over his shoulder. His cheeks were painted white in the image of wings. The hardness of his frame and disciplined set of his face reflected a life in the harsh wilderness, and were it not for the raven color of his hair, Wulfgar would have thought him to be of one of the tribes of Icewind Dale.
The dark-haired man similarly recognized Wulfgar, but better versed in the overall structures of the societies in the northland, was not so perplexed by their similarities. "You are of the dale," he said in a broken form of the common tongue. "Beyond the mountains, where the cold wind blows."
...this is the most interesting part of the book so far. I'm fascinated by the idea that the barbarians have a common culture, with variation based on region. The dark haired dude gets Wulfgar to surrender his weapon by reminding him that he's in their land without permission, and that Bruenor and Regis would be first to die. We're told that the younger Wulfgar would have struck then, but he's learned from his "new friends", particularly Drizzt. He knows that Drizzt is in the trees, and he'll get his hammer back.
Wulfgar's character growth is my favorite part of the story so far, but I wish he'd get to claim credit for it rather than constantly attributing it to Drizzt.
Anyway, Wulfgar even lets them bind his hands, which is something that no Warrior of the Elk (his tribe) would ever allow, but he has faith in Drizzt. Aww.
So they get to the camp: Regis and Bruenor are awake now. Bruenor makes a sarcastic comment about what the barbarians eat. The barbarians have a victory dance dedicated to Tempus and Uthgar, their ancestral hero, that goes on for almost an hour.
Wulfgar gets to be the knowledgeable one for once, when a very old man with a very colorful description appears:
The silence held for a long moment before the flap swung open. Out jumped an ancient man, as slender as a tent pole, but showing more energy than his obvious years would indicate. His face painted in the same markings as the warriors, though more elaborately, he wore a patch with a huge green gemstone sewn upon it over one eye. His robe was the purest white, its sleeves showing as feathered wings whenever he flapped his arms out to the side.
He danced and twirled through the ranks of the warriors, and each held his breath, recoiling until he had passed.
Wulfgar identifies him as a shaman, and the tribe fear him even more than a mortal enemy or a Chieftain. The old man identifies himself as Valric High Eye, Priest of the followers of the Sky Ponies.
...Between Shimmergloom and Sky Ponies I really do feel like I'm in the middle of a My Little Pony episode. But then nothing is as bad as Tynstar.
Wulfgar responds with his own name and identification. Bruenor starts to join in, but the barbarians are racist, of course, and don't care. Wulfgar starts up with a decent attempt at diplomacy, telling them they meant no harm or trespass. Valric doesn't care about that, he looks at Wulfgar like a gift from Tempus. It looks like there will be a challenge to judge if Wulfgar is worthy to join the Sky Ponies. Neat.
Meanwhile, Drizzt is following. He doesn't know if Bruenor or Regis are alive, but he finds their weapons and helm. This suspense doesn't last very long, since in the next paragraph, Drizzt finds the camp.
Wulfgar and a dark haired warrior are having a vaguely homoerotic challenge, where they clasp hands to test strength. Wulfgar is initially taken by surprise, but he, of course, starts getting the upper hand. Wulfgar decides that he doesn't want to humiliate his opponent and end the contest too quickly. Instead he decides to drag it out so Drizzt can have time to do...something.
Wulfgar really is the best of these guys, and this little episode is really letting him show his growth. He's swallowed his pride and ego for the sake of diplomacy and his friends. I am proud of my giant barbarian son.
Wulfgar finally catches sight of Drizzt in the trees, and, wary of the shaman declaring a draw, ends the match with a "sudden, ferocious explosion of power" that drives his opponent to his knees. His opponent and the whole tribe is awed and full of admiration, as they're honorable people. Aw.
Is it wrong that I kind of want Wulfgar to stay with these people who clearly respect him?
Valric says that he'd welcome Wulfgar, and identifies his opponent as Torlin, son of the chief of the Sky Ponies, who has never been beaten. Wulfgar asks about his friends, but sadly, we need a reason to dislike these guys: they're going to let Bruenor go, but they want to sacrifice the "weakling" Regis to the winged horse.
Wulfgar realizes that they're testing his loyalty, and notes that there were many Icewind Dale barbarians who would accept these terms. We learn a new facet of Wulfgar here: "This was the disillusionment of Wulfgar's existence with his people, the facet of their moral code that had proved unacceptable to his personal standards."
I feel like this probably should have come up more explicitly before. But I love Wulfgar, so I'll forgive it. Wulfgar refuses the terms, claiming that Regis's fate is not his, or the tribe's to decide. Wulfgar is rebound, and he and Torlin share a Moment:
"A loss for our people," Torlin said to Wulfgar. "You would have received a place of honor among us."
Wulfgar didn't answer, holding Torlin's stare for a long moment, sharing respect and also the mutual understanding that their codes were too different for such a joining. In a shared fantasy that could not be, both imagined fighting beside the other, felling orcs by the score and inspiring the bards to a new legend.
Aw. Drizzt decides to interrupt this homoerotic moment to strike. He's aiming for spectacle instead of effectiveness, since they're outnumbered anyway, and he figures that the barbarians likely would have heard terrifying tales of dark elves. And...okay this is ridiculous>
Silently, Drizzt tied the two ponies behind the horses, then mounted the horses, a foot in one stirrup on each. Rising between them, he stood tall and threw back the cowl of his cloak.
The dangerous glow in his lavender eyes sparkling wildly, he bolted the mounts into the ring, scattering the stunned barbarians closest to him.
Howls of rage rose up from the surprised tribesmen, the tone of the shouts shifting to one of terror when they viewed the black skin. Torlin and Valric turned to face the oncoming menace, though even they did not know how to deal with a legend personified.
And Drizzt had a trick ready for them. With a wave of his black hand, purple flames spouted from Torlin and Valric's skin, not burning, but casting both the superstitious tribesmen into a horrified frenzy. Torlin dropped to his knees, clasping his arms in disbelief, while the highstrung shaman dove to the ground and began rolling in the dirt.
How the fuck does that even work? I bitched about Roberson clearly not having any idea about how horses work, but this is, if possible, even worse. Anyway, Wulfgar breaks his own bonds and basically uppercuts his captors. Bruenor takes the moment to stomp on the foot of the barbarian between him and Regis, and then headbutting him. It works as well even without the helmet. Wulfgar tosses the smaller guys onto their ponies, and gets on his mount and they flee.
Wulfgar is nervous though when they hear a rhythmic singing from the camp: the shaman is doing something. Actually, he is apparently channeling the Pegasus into Torlin, who is now transformed into something not human. He is consumed. Aw. I wanted Wulfgar to have a friend.
Back at the group, we're told that even Wulfgar has started to relax. Only Drizzt is still wary. This of course makes no actual sense, except to emphasize to us how Drizzt is the wise one of the group. The Pegasus attacks. Unfortunately, because it's only partially in the physical plane, Wulfgar can't strike it. Regis is thrown off his horse, and Bruenor is dazed. Drizzt summons Guenhwyvar and has her take him to the Pegasus's own plane. He and Wulfgar attack, each from their own plane, and they take the Pegasus down.
On Drizzt's return, Bruenor has checked on Regis, who is fine, just fainted. Wulfgar is hovered over Torlin's half monster form, angry at what Valric did to him. He insists that as son of the chieftain, Torlin wouldn't have been able to refuse his shaman. Bruenor realizes this means the Sky Ponies will want to settle the score. Wulfgar swears revenge on Valric, himself. And the chapter ends.
no subject
Date: 2020-03-28 01:57 pm (UTC)This book needs more Wulfgar focus and less of everyone else, he's the best.
no subject
Date: 2020-03-30 04:10 am (UTC)