I Read What?!

So last time, in true Salvatore fashion, we met our villain. This one seems promising as, aside from an awkward name, the dude actually seems fairly competent and purposeful.

It'll be interesting to see what his scheme amounts to.



So the chapter title is "The White Squirrel's Pet", which might explain my whimsical cut text.

Anyway, we start with a group of druids. They're apparently trying to talk to a squirrel who, rather surprisingly, isn't very chatty. This surprises the sparsely described druids and leads to the entrance of a character with a much more involved description. I'm thinking he'll be important.

"Not that one," came a reply from behind. The three druids turned to see a priest coming down the wide dirt road from the ivy-streaked building, the skip of youth evident in his steps. He was of average height and build, though perhaps more muscular than most, with gray eyes that turned up at their comers when he smiled and curly brown locks that bounced under the wide brim of his hat. His tan-white tunic and trousers showed him to be a priest of Deneir, god of one of the host sects of the Edificant Library. Unlike most within his order, though, this young man also wore a decorative light blue silken cape and a wide-brimmed hat, also blue and banded in red, with a plume on the right-hand side. Set in the band's center was a porcelain-and-gold pendant depicting a candle burning above an eye, the symbol of Deneir.

Possibly main character-level important? This IS the "cleric quintet" after all.

He definitely has main character-level showmanship:

"That squirrel is tight-lipped, except when he chooses not to be," the young priest went on. The normally unflappable druids' stunned expressions amused him, so he decided to startle them a bit more. "Well met, Arcite, Newander, and Cleo. I congratulate you, Cleo, on your ascension to the status of initiate."

The druids are all taken aback and even a little hostile. The think the priest's masters have been scrying for them magically.

Not at all, the priest explains that he remembers them from their last visit. The druids disbelieve this, as their last visit was fourteen years ago. The priest agrees: he was a boy of seven at the time, but he remembers them anyway, and that they had a fourth in their group: a lady named Shannon.

It takes a bit, but the druids do eventually recognize the kid. He's "Cadderly" (so yes, our main character, indeed.) And to be fair, it does sound like he'd have been fairly memorable. It sounds like he has an orphan child prodigy situation going on. He was taken in by the dean of the Edificant Library at the age of four - ten is apparently the more usual age, after his mother died. His dad was apparently neglectful and too wrapped up in his own studies to take care of the kid.

Cadderly remembers talking to druids and asks after Shannon, who sounds pretty impressive. She'd apparently shown the baby cool plants and made things bloom, and even shapeshifted into a swan. Sadly, Shannon died peacefully a few years back.

Cadderly refrains from offering condolences, as for druids, death isn't something to be feared or lamented. It's apparently a "rather unimportant event in the overall scheme of universal order."

So Cleo asks about the squirrel. It's Percival, a friend of Cadderly's. And, oh yeah, fucking druids:

"A pet?" Newander asked, his bright eyes narrowing suspiciously. Druids did not approve of people keeping pets.

Who the fuck cares what you think, dude?

Sorry, I really like the IDEA of druids, but too often, Druids in D&D really go hard for the tree-hugging, PETA stereotype. Which is a little bizarre as they're as prone to anyone else to having animal companions. Those, somehow, don't count as pets I guess.

Fuck you, Newander.

Cadderly's good though, as he says he's more Percival's pet if anything. Percival lets him pet him, occasionally, and takes food from him, but Cadderly's much more interested in Percival than the reverse.

The druids approve of this, because apparently they've never talked to anyone who's owned a cat or a goldfish or a snake. Because that's not a terribly uncommon pet description, I'm just saying.

Sorry, this really isn't the place for a pet debate. Especially since this is just a character's opinion, with no indication that the author feels similarly. (But seriously, Newander's not winning me over yet.)

This bit is pretty funny though:

"Well, come down here and say hello!" Cadderly called, banging the lowest tree branch with his walking stick. "Be polite, at least."

Percival did not look up from the acorn he was munching.

"He does not understand, I fear," said Cleo. "Perhaps if I translate…"

"He understands," Cadderly insisted, "as well as you or I. He is just a stubborn one, and I can prove it!" He looked back up to the squirrel. "When you find the time, Percival," he said slyly, "I left a plate of cacasa-nut and butter out for you in my room…" Before Cadderly even finished, the squirrel whipped off along a branch, hopped to another, and then to the next tree in line along the road. In a few short moments, the squirrel had leaped to a gutter along the library's roof and, not slowing a bit, zipped across a trail of thick ivy and in through an open window on the northern side of the large structure's third floor.

The druids are quite pleased and they exchange more pleasantries with Cadderly. Apparently they're here for a recently uncovered treatise on woodland mosses. Cadderly hasn't seen it himself, instead, it had been kept secured for more knowledgeable folk to come and appraise it.

We get to see the Library:

The three druids nodded, admiring the ivy-veiled stone structure. The Edificant Library had stood for six hundred years, and in all that time its doors had never been closed to scholars of any but the evil religions. The building was huge, a self-contained town-it had to be, in the rough and secluded

Snowflakes-more than four hundred feet across and half as deep through all four of its above-ground levels. Will staffed and well stocked-rumors spoke of miles of storage tunnels and catacombs beneath-it had survived ore attacks, giant-hurled boulders, and the most brutal mountain winters, and had remained unscathed through the centuries.

he library's collection of books, parchments, and artifacts was considerable, filling nearly the entire first floor, the library proper, and many smaller study chambers on the second floor, and the complex contained many unique and ancient works. While not as large as the great libraries of the Realms, such as the treasured collections of Silverymoon to the north and the artifact museums of Calimport to the south, the Edificant Library was convenient to the west-central Realms and the Cormyr region and was open to all who wished to learn, on the condition that they did not plan to use their knowledge for baneful purposes.

The building housed other important research tools, such as alchemy and herbalist shops, and was set in an inspiring atmosphere with breathtaking mountain views and manicured grounds that included a small topiary garden. The Edificant Library had been designed as more than a storage house for old books; it was a place for poetry reading, painting, and sculpting, a place for discussions of the profound and often unanswerable questions common to the intelligent races. Indeed, the library was a fitting tribute to Deneir and Oghma, the allied gods of knowledge, literature, and art.

Sorry for the long description. It's pretty grand looking though. I wonder how it compares to Candlekeep. Does Faerun have an Inter-Library Loan system?

Arcite notes that the treatise is large, and that they'll need time to examine it. He hopes boarding rates won't be excessive, as druids aren't known for material wealth. But happily, Dean Thobicus is likely to let them stay without cost. And if not, Cadderly can help. He'd apparently inscribed a book for a wizard as a replacement for one lost in a fire. He was able to do this because he'd inscribed the original one.

Interesting. I hadn't really thought about whether non-wizards could scribe magical tomes. I'd always assumed not. It also sounds like Cadderly has an eidetic memory, which seems like it'd be really useful if he'd wanted to become a wizard - they memorize spells after all.

Hm. But then again, they memorize spells for single use and then it's gone. So CAN someone with an eidetic memory become a wizard at all?

Anyway, Cadderly got paid well for it. And the druids appreciate the offer. They even invite him to "look in on [them] in the days ahead." That's a pretty big offer from druids, who are known for being isolationists.

We move ahead to Cadderly doing something else. He seems to be making a bit of a pest of himself with an alchemist named Vicero Belago. Fortunately, Cadderly's a good customer, so the alchemist is reasonably tolerant. Cadderly is getting fifty small vials of something called "Oil of Impact". He's got six now and skips out to await the rest.

He goes to visit Histra, a priestess of Sune. She is, as expected, hot:

"Dear Cadderly," greeted the priestess, who was twenty years Cadderly's senior but quite alluring. She wore a deep crimson habit, cut low in the front and high on the sides, revealing most of her curvy figure. Cadderly had to remind himself to keep his manners proper and his gaze on her eyes.

Priestesses of Sune, ya know? It's funny that we never see PRIESTS of Sune. Hopefully they're equally hot. (Of course, this might be one of those settings that conveniently exclude men from the sexy roles, but I'm going to give Ed Greenwood a bit more benefit of the doubt than that.)

Anyway, she's quick to grab him by the tunic and pull him into her chambers. Sadly not for fun though. She's done some kind of dweomer for him. It's two hundred gold pieces, but she's quick to offer him a discount. And Cadderly's definitely not immune, but...

In the end, though, an image of spirited Danica sitting on Histra's back, casually rubbing the priestess's face across the floor, brought Cadderly under control. Danica's room was not far away, just across the hall and a few doors down. He firmly removed Histra's hand from his ear, handed her the pouch as payment, and scooped up the shrouded, glowing object.

For all his practicality, though, when Cadderly exited the chambers two hundred gold pieces poorer, he feared that his face was shining as brightly as the disk Histra had enchanted for him.

I've got to say, so far, I'm not disliking Cadderly. The eidetic memory is impressive without being too over the top, and the fact that we get to see him genuinely embarrassed helps humanize him a bit. It's hard to imagine Drizzt in a similar situation.

So what IS he doing?

We don't know yet. He heads to his room, where Percival sits on the window sill and pulls out the glowing disk. It startles Percival who hides. Cadderly pulls out some kind of cylinder that has a slot, just the right size for the disk. He puts it in, and then closes the casing - shielding the light.

It...kind of sounds like a makeshift flashlight?

"I know you are under there," Cadderly teased, and he popped the metal cap off the front end of the tube, loosing a focused beam of light.

Percival didn't particularly enjoy the spectacle. He darted back and forth under the bed and Cadderly, laughing that he had finally gotten the best of the sneaky squirrel, followed him diligently with the light. This went on for a few moments, until Percival dashed out from under the bed and hopped out the open window. The squirrel returned a second later, though, just long enough to snatch up the cacasa-nut and butter bowl and chatter a few uncomplimentary remarks to Cadderly.

That's a bit dickish, dude. Don't tease the squirrel.

Anyway, Cadderly goes to his wardrobe, which gets a pretty substantial description too: it's full of crap like notes, inventions, and custom-designed belts and straps. There's also a large mirror, which is a very expensive luxury beyond most of the priests' financial capabilities. Especially a lower-ranking one like Cadderly.

He gets out a bandolier and starts fitting the vials of oil into darts. He ends up putting them away very quickly at a knock at the door.

It's the Headmaster, Avery Schell, who is "rotund and red-faced". He is upset because of the bills that Cadderly has racked up, accusing him of squandering his gold. I'm not sure why Cadderly's gold is any of the Headmaster's business. But it seems like maybe there's a bit of politicking going on:

Over Avery's shoulder, Cadderly noticed the toothy smile of Kierkan Rufo and knew where the headmaster had gained his information and the fuel for his ire. The tall and sharp-featured Rufo was only a year older than Cadderly, and the two, while friends, were principal rivals in their ascent through the ranks of their order, and possibly in other pursuits as well, considering a few longing stares Cadderly had seen Rufo toss Danica's way. Getting each other into trouble had become a game between them, a most tiresome game as far as the headmasters, particularly the beleaguered Avery, were concerned.

Danica's been mentioned a few times now. Hopefully we'll get to meet her.

Anyway, Cadderly explains that the money is being spent "in pursuit of knowledge". Rufo snarks back that it's "in pursuit of toys". Avery thinks Cadderly is too irresponsible to be allowed to keep "such sums."

And we get some interesting theological debate here:

"I kept only a portion of the profits," Cadderly reminded him, "and spent that in accord with Deneir's-"

"No!" Avery interrupted. "Do not hide behind a name that you obviously do not understand. Deneir. What do you know of Deneir, young inventor? You have spent all but your earliest years here in the Edificant Library, but you display so little understanding of our tenets and mores. Go south to Lantan with your toys, if that would please you, and play with the priests of Gond!"

Cadderly doesn't understand. Avery points out that while "Gondsmen" come to the library, they're not welcomed warmly. This puzzles Cadderly, who thinks that the priests of both gods ought to act as partners. But apparently the Deneir followers have conditions that the Gondsmen don't follow. Rather than explain, Avery decides to be a dick.

"Why are you here?" Avery asked quietly, in controlled tones. "Have you ever asked yourself that question? You frustrate me, boy. You are perhaps the most intelligent person I have ever known-and I have known quite a few scholars-but you possess the impulses and emotions of a child. I knew would be like this. When Thobicus said we would take you in…" Avery stopped abruptly, as if reconsidering his word; then finished with a sigh.

It seemed to Cadderly that the headmaster always stopped short of finishing this same, beleaguered point about morality stopped short of preaching, as though he expected Cadderly to come to conclusions of his own. Cadderly was not surprise a moment later when Avery abruptly changed the subject.

I mean, it IS fair to note that a cleric has responsibilities that a normal scholar wouldn't. And indeed, Cadderly actually DID forget his duties: he hasn't bothered to light the candles in the study chambers. But, I feel like this is something that maybe Deneir himself could weigh in on?

Actually though, this is interesting. I suppose it's not that likely that the gods talk to every follower, even those that pray to them for magical effects. I'm now a bit more intrigued about how that actually works.

And we get a bit of nuance here: Cadderly's pretty used to being scolded like this. Apparently Rufo tattles on him a lot, and Avery's always the one who investigates. And Avery, for all his ranting, is apparently more lenient than the other, older masters.

Avery might have a bit of a point though, considering Cadderly's lack of self-reflection:

Cadderly shrugged and tried to dismiss the whole incident as another of Headmaster Avery's misplaced explosions. Avery obviously just didn't understand him. The young priest wasn't overly worried; his scribing skills brought in huge amounts of money, which he split evenly with the library. Admittedly, he was not the most dutiful follower of Deneir. He was lax concerning the rituals of his station and it often got him into trouble. But Cadderly knew that most of the headmasters understood that his indiscretions came not from any disrespect for the order, but simply because he was so busy learning and creating, two very high priorities in the teachings of Deneir-and two often profitable priorities for the expensive-to-maintain library. By Cadderly's figuring, the priests of Deneir, like most religious orders, could find it in their hearts to overlook minor indiscretions, especially considering the greater gain.

I mean, it might be good to look at the tenets and see exactly what the issue IS with regard to invention and Gond and so on. It might not come from Deneir himself. Or maybe it does.

Cadderly does get a bit of petty revenge on his so-called friend though:

"Oh, Rufo," Cadderly called, reaching to his belt.

Rufo's angular face poked back around the jamb of the open door, his little black eyes sparkling with victorious glee.

"Yes?" the tall man purred.

"You won that one"

Rufo's grin widened.

Cadderly shone a beam of light in his face, and the stunned Rufo recoiled in terror, bumping heavily against the wall across the corridor.

Hah. The boys sneer at each other and we switch scenes to the druids.

Arcite and Cleo intend to go look at the tome now. Newander decides to rest, instead. It seems like he's got a bit more complex feelings regarding his calling than the others and the Library brings that out:

Newander moved to the room's window when his friends had gone and stared out across the majestic Snowflake Mountains. He had been to the Edificant Library only once before, when he had first met Cadderly. Newander had been but a young man then, about the same age as Cadderly was now, and the library, with its bustle of humanity, crafted items, and penned tomes, had affected him deeply. Before he had come, Newander had known only the quiet woodlands, where the animals ruled and men were few.

After he had left, Newander had questioned his calling. He preferred the woodlands, that much he knew, but he could not deny the attraction he felt for civilization, the curiosity about advances in architecture and knowledge.

It's an interesting parallel. Newander's the druid of Silvanus in love with the Library, Cadderly's the cleric of Deneir in love with invention. It might be worth noting also that where Cleo and Arcite had only vague descriptions (green robe, highest ranking respectively), we know that Newander is blond, bearded and has "gentle features". That might be a sign that he'll be a bit more significant than the others...

Anyway, the chapter ends with Newander thinking about how much simpler life is out in the wilderness.