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teresChapter Thirty (Part I) | Table of Contents | Chapter Thirty-One
SCSF: A good day, everyone, and welcome back to BattleAxe! Last time, Faraday was pledged to the service of the Mother.
There is no reader post this time, because I cheated and am doing this out of schedule. The book will pick up quite a bit next time, so I would rather not delay that moment if I can help it.
For now, let me resume. I left off with Raum, Shra and Faraday reaching a forest near the Sacred Grove. Faraday feels “very happy, very contented”. She takes a “breath of complete exultation”. After all, she has seen the Star Gate, and now she has not only seen Fernbrake Lake, but “this time” she has been permitted to go through. She thinks she has been blessed. Um, you have only seen Fernbrake Lake once, so I do not quite know what you are talking about.
PPP: 235
Also… having considered this, I think this might be deeper than Douglass meant. This is naturally the fulfilment of Faraday’s dream with the Renkins, where she was very happy and content and she was promised she could return, so of course Faraday would consider herself blessed, even if she cannot remember the dream.
Outside of that, I note that Faraday was in a quite bad condition at that point: she had had the vision at the Silent Woman Woods, the Sentinels had pressured her into agreeing to marry Borneheld, Merlion had died, and she had been abducted by the Sentinels and had a difficult escape from the Star Gate. I can easily see why she would latch onto the promise of return.
Further, she still has those experiences and troubles hanging over her now, and Yr said that being Tree Friend will “contain only joy” for Faraday. Given that, I can see why she pledges her service so readily: it promises her joy, which she desperately wants more of, and it gives her a purpose which she can cling to.
The trouble is that she has no idea what she swears to do! Jack and Yr naturally do not say anything that might make her less willing, and I guess they told Raum to do the same. So…
Morals for Thee But Not for Me: 93
I am almost inclined to be more forgiving toward Raum, as he wants Faraday bound to the Mother for the sake of his own people, instead of for the sake of “the Prophecy”, as the Sentinels do… but there is still no good reason for him not to tell her. In fact, Faraday would have been more willing if she had been told that she would go to the Sacred Grove, so the Sentinels are hindering themselves by withholding information!
Going back to what we see here, I certainly think Faraday would consider herself blessed, now that she has found out that this service includes going to the Sacred Grove! (And I would also like to see where Faraday’s service will eventually bring her.)
Ah, I see that Chessy rightly points out that the Sentinels are again pressing Faraday into something she might not want per se. Thank you for picking that up!
Oh, and when Faraday was bound to the Mother, she was “enriched with strength and courage and understanding”, so that would probably confirm to Faraday that she had made the right choice.
Back to the present, Raum feels Faraday’s “rapture”, and he lifts their hands and “presse[s] the back of her hand against his chest” for a moment. Shra grasps their hands and then they all “laugh[] together for sheer joy”. Well, that is nice for them, though I do not exactly understand why they are joining hands like this. As Faraday “somehow suspect[s] it might”, the path leads them to the grove from her dream, but now it is no dream.
Raum has them halt at the edge of the grove and walks into the centre of it himself, raising his arms above his shoulders, and extending his “hands [] palm-up to the night sky”. In a “strong, clear voice”, he addresses the “Sacred Horned Ones”. He gives them greetings from Avarinheim (yes, it is indeed not “the Avarinheim” here) and says he presents Shra and Faraday, who have “passed through the terror of the forest” and been “cleansed and blessed by the Light of the Mother”.
I note that he explicitly refers to the test here, so it is clearly a wider thing. Given that I know these Sacred Horned Ones were Banes themselves at one point, I do still think this testing is a matter of tradition. He now motions for Shra and Faraday to join him (so… did he give Shra to Faraday to carry? Or is she walking on herself now?). He says that Shra will grow “tall and strong” and will walk the paths of Avarinheim, serving the Mother and the Horned Ones. Faraday will “walk in the shadow of the Prophecy of the Destroyer” and will, “if her strength prevails”, bring the Avar out “on the other side”. He asks the Horned Ones to step out and grant Shra and Faraday “the courage of [their] strength and [their] blessing”. Ooh, I am interested!
Faraday now trembles because of the sheer amount of “power” in the Grove. She can see shapes moving behind the trees and feel eyes on her. Douglass then says this: “It was strange that no fear, only exhilaration, filled her.” …I do not think that is strange at all; she has been here before, after all, and she can deduce that the Horned Ones are most probably like the being she saw in her dream (who was very nice to her). Further, this is simply a fulfilment for her, and I would expect her to be exhilarated about it! I might think she would be nervous about all of this, but it simply is not that strange that she is not afraid.
PPP: 236
She senses that Raum feels the same way as she, and she reaches a “trembling hand” and touches his hairline where she thought she saw bone earlier, and feels… “the infant nubs of antlers”! Raum looks at Faraday and whispers that he “hope[s] and pray[s]” to eventually take his place with the Horned Ones. Well, however much I dislike Raum, I would not mind if that happened to him. Faraday smiles at him and says he will, in the same paragraph as him speaking.
PPP: 237
When she looks back, she sees that nine of the Horned Ones have joined them, standing in “a rough semi-circle”. Ooh, nine of them! We get a description of them: they all have “muscular bodies”, are nearly naked outside of their loincloths, and they have “magnificent stag heads and antlers”. Most of them have “thick brown or black pelts” that grow over their shoulders and “midway down their backs” (so not on the rest of their bodies? How strange), though one of them has a “striking silver” pelt. They all have “[l]iquid-black eyes” and exude “tremendous power”.
PPP: 240 (+3) (for two occurrences of “Avarinheim” without article, and the Horned Ones being described with “the”, without reference to the one that Faraday saw in her dream)
The silver-pelted Horned One comes forward, “holding out his hands in greeting”. He welcomes Shra and Faraday, and then Raum, who he says serves them “so well in the Avarinheim and with the Mother”. If you say so. He then rubs cheeks with Raum, picks up Shra so he can do the same with her, and goes over to Faraday. He greets her as Tree Friend, and says they are “pleased beyond telling” that she is finally here. He then grasps her hands and brushes cheeks with her. Faraday’s skin “thrill[s] at the touch”.
Hmm, I think he is being quite forward, but I can understand it given how enthusiastic he undoubtedly is. Further, Faraday quite likes it, so… Well, she asks if she can stay, “a little afraid at asking so much”, and knowing what he will answer. He says that she will come back one day, when “[her] work and life [are] done”, and then she can stay if she wishes. We are told his voice and words “hold the certainty of a benediction”. Faraday nearly cries tears of joy, as she knows he will not lie to her.
I note that this seems like a good way to ensure Faraday’s devotion, though the Horned One ought to make good on his promise, then. He says that, before that day comes, she “may visit whenever [she] wish[es]”. Oh, that is very good of him! She thanks him, and he lets go of her hands. He takes something from one of his “younger companions”.
He says that they would like to give her “a talisman” that will help her “grow into the person [she] need[s] to become”, and will help her to find the Sacred Groves when she is away from the Mother. He tells her to “[g]row in strength and understanding”, and never to forget her service. I quite like how comparatively straightforward he is with her (despite being somewhat mysterious) and how he explicitly tells her to “grow in understanding”. He gives Faraday a “wide shallow bowl”, which she thinks looks like it has been grown rather than carved into its shape. The wood has a “deep reddish colour”, which almost seems to glow and feels warm to her touch.
Faraday thanks him again, “awed by the honour of the gift”, and just then a meteor blazes across the sky. So… is this on another planet, then? It is clearly not on Stellaris, so what is going on here? Is this meteor real, or what??
Cardboard Worldbuilding: 61
The Horned One looks at Raum. He calls him “young brother” and says that time grows short. He tells him to go in peace and take care of himself and Shra, as there are “too few of [them]” in these difficult times. He bends to Shra and tells her to serve the Mother well, and learn “how to sing to the seasons and the land”. If she learns well, it might just be her voice that makes the difference. I would hope it does not have to…
Shra nods seriously and whispers “Will”, at which Raum and the Horned One “smile[] affectionately”. The Horned One says she will do well and turns back to Faraday. He tells her to be true, because she will have to be, as he touches her forehead, which “send[s] a jolt of power through her”. I guess he just gave her some power of the Mother, then? With that, he turns and all the Horned Ones leave. Raum says that it is time to go.
---
We cut back to Timozel, in yet another long italicised block with lots of dialogue.
PPP: 241
This time, Timozel cannot escape in the blackness. He feels the “mad hatred” of Gorgrael reaching for him just before he grabs Timozel by the throat and pulls him back into the icy room. He whispers that there is “no escape” for Timozel, and if Timozel will not be his friend, he will have to serve him “as others do”. Well, at least we have moved from “menace” to “threat”… Gorgrael’s “power” forces him to his knees and he cowers there for a minute. Then Gorgrael grabs his head and makes him look upward. Gorgrael bends over him, “yellow gobs of phlegm” oozing down his tongue and falling to the floor. Why is that the case, Douglass? I need an answer other than “because it would be gross”.
He gloats over Timozel, and what a “pretty boy” he is, and how he will serve him well. Timozel then feels “a force unlike anything he [has] ever experienced before” that compels him to pledge service to Gorgrael. He cannot resist at all, except… that he cannot. Gorgrael wants to know what he means, and his eyes “glow[] red” for a moment. Because he is eeeeevil, naturally!
Papier-Mâché Villains: 22
With “the last strength in his body”, Timozel says that he already pledged his life and his service. Ah, that is his vow of Championship, then! Gorgrael howls in fury, stands to his full height and “shak[es] his entire body in a frenzy of rage”. Timozel, still held by Gorgrael, gets “flung about like a wet rag”, and his muscles and tendons “scream[] with the abuse they [are] receiving”. How lovely.
Gorgrael shrieks again and asks who he has pledged his life and service to. Timozel shakes his head; Gorgrael cannot make him answer, because that would break his vow to Faraday. (Interesting!) Gorgrael “hisse[s] in maddened frustration” and tells him to listen, while calling him a “crawling piece of excrement”, because that fits the tone well.
Tone Soap: 38
He says that Timozel will “promise to serve [him] if [he is] releases from [his] other vow”. He then twists Timozel’s head at “an unnatural angle”, so that he can feel his spine crack with the strain and red spots float before his eyes. He can feel the compulsion building in him, and his resistance fades. He then swears that he will “serve [Gorgrael] before any other” when he is released from his oath, “hating himself more foully than he hate[s] this creature before him”. Oh, poor Timozel. I can see why he feels so, but he can hardly be blamed for any of this, of course. I do think it remains to be seen if Gorgrael can get his loyalty with this alone; Timozel did not swear of his own free will, after all.
Gorgrael smiles and thinks he knew that he would have Timozel eventually. He indicates “a shadow behind him”, and says the “Dark Man bears witness”. He repeats that Timozel’s vow binds him to Gorgrael (why use you name?) and on the day that he is freed from his current vows Timozel will come to him (good luck with that when he does not know where you are!). He keeps Timozel for a moment longer and then lets him go.
So, that was Timozel’s dream sequence. I think I would have liked it quite a bit better if it had been shorter and had not included constant cliffhangers. As for the vow Gorgrael has got out of Timozel, I quite doubt that it will work that way… but I think Timozel might not think of that, given how much Gorgrael showed off his power. It is a decently clever tactic, really.
Also, given how long this took to accomplish, and the violence to which Timozel was subjected, I will give this:
Petty Ain’t the Word for You: 43
---
We now find ourselves with Gorgrael, for the first time since the prologue! And there actually is a “cloaked figure” behind him! (How spooky.) He asks if the man “set [Timozel’s] feet on the dream paths to find him”. So did he also make Axis’s dreams? …No, I think Gorgrael would have made those personally, given that they were much more personal.
Well, the man smiles, and Gorgrael “almost grovel[s]” to thank him. The “Dark Man” (really now) inclines his head, and says it is going “[v]ery well”. Gorgrael asks if he will stay for a while, and the Dark Man says that Gorgrael knows he has “duties elsewhere”, and all will be well. Then he vanishes. That was mysterious.
---
Back with Faraday, Raum and Shra, they go back up through the light, and it “be[gins] to thicken about them”, until in “the last few paces”, when they can just see the stars, it “thicken[s] into water”. They burst through the surface “about fifteen paces from the shore”. So… I suppose the magic of Fernbrake faded just before they got out? Raum and Faraday can just “reach the bottom with their toes” here, and they carry Shra above them as they go to shore. There, Jack and Yr are waiting with blankets and wrap them all up as tight as they can “against the predawn ice”. My, they have foresight! Faraday hugs her blanket to her, feeling the bowl press against her stomach.
---
They all sleep through the rest of the morning, exhausted as they are by “the events of the predawn hours”. This would be the 18th of October, then. When they get up, Raum and Shra set about preparing to go to the Avarinheim. Faraday hugs them and tells them to take care and not to let the “Plains Dwellers snatch [them]”. Interesting that Faraday uses that name for the Acharites here… Raum laughs that they only travel at night, and few people can see them then. Yes, that is why we heard reports of Avar from Smyrton in the very first chapter.
Yr tells him to listen to Faraday. After all, the Axe-Wielders will be in Smyrton “sometime within the next few weeks” on their way to Gorkenfort. They should take care when they pass by to the Avarinheim. Hmm, is that the next plot point I spy?
---
In the afternoon, Jack, Yr and Faraday leave for their camp, arriving “some time during the night”. Yes, because descending in the darkness is just such a safe thing to do!
Ill Logic: 161
Their camp looks just like they left it: the mule and pigs are nearby and safe, and Timozel still lies sleeping. Yr gets out of her clothes, goes to “snuggle down beside him”, and removes the enchantment, saying that he will “wake as normal” in the morning. Jack and Faraday nod and go to sleep themselves. “Their sleep was sound that night. All seemed well.” And there the chapter ends. Yes, thank you for the dramatic irony, Douglass.
Either way, that was it for Faraday and Timozel for quite a bit, as we will only see them again in chapter 37. I am glad things have begun to pick up somewhat, too. Until next time, when we will resume with Axis’s plot!