I Read What?!

So last time, Carillon woke up, discovered himself cursed, and sent his wife into exile. Not of course, before deciding to betroth his daughter to Alix and Duncan's son. You'd think he'd have learned something about forcing people into marriage. But Carillon's not that bright.



We rejoin Carillon at arms practice. He's trying to regain his skill, but between the two month coma, the aging and the arthritis, it's not going very well. The arms-master tries to convince him to stop, but Carillon is adamant.

Carillon hasn't lost his strength. Stamina is a problem, but it may return in time. The stiff joints and pain though, that's an issue.

By the way, Carillon still uses the Cheysuli curse "Ku'reshtin." Some things are never forgotten.

The practice session ends with more frustration, as Carillon loses his grip on his sword. But Rowan is there, with some words of praise. Carillon IS improving, and Rowan would rather not go against him even now. But these things take time.

Carillon might LOOK like a man in his forties, but he's still a melodramatic twenty-five year old at heart. He intones that he has no time. Tynstar has stolen it. Dude. You're forty-something. Not dead.

Anyway, Rowan's there for a reason. There's a visitor: Alaric, the crown prince of Atvia. Carillon realizes that this must be Thorne's son, and wonders why the boy is humbling himself rather than declare himself lord. Rowan clarifies, Alaric is the YOUNGER son. Osric, the older brother, is still in Atvia.

Alaric isn't terribly significant in this book, but he'll have a substantial role in the next one as I recall. So let's have a look at him:

The boy, I discovered, was utterly dwarfed by his surroundings. The Great Hall would have overtaken him completely, and I was in no mood for such ploys. Alaric looked no older than six or seven and would hardly comprehend the politics of the situation.

He rose stiffly as I came into the chamber, having dressed in fresh clothing. He bowed in a brief, exceedingly slight gesture of homage that just missed condescension. The expression in his brown eyes was one of sullen hostility, and his face was coldly set.

I walked to a cushioned mahogany chair and sat down, allowing no hint of the pain to show in my face. I was stiffening after the sparring. “So…Atvia comes to Homana.”

“No, my lord.” Alaric spoke quietly. “My brother, Lord Osric of Atvia, sends me to say Atvia does not come to Homana. Nor ever will, except to conquer this land.”

I kind of like this kid. Carillon takes a second look and realizes that the kid's a little older than he thought. Maybe a year older than Donal. (So nine or ten, rather than six or seven.) Carillon thinks that the knowledge in the kid's eyes surpasses an old man's.

Carillon notes that he's slain Alaric's father. He could kill Osric and Alaric. He asks if Osric has a response. Alaric looks visibly scared, but just says that they do not acknowledge Carillon's sovereignty. Carillon asks what Alaric would say about remaining here as a hostage. Alaric is visibly angry, but admits that his brother has said he must prepare himself for that.

Osric himself is sixteen, by the way.

Honestly, I think the hostage plan isn't a bad idea. As long he doesn't give Alaric the same free rein he gave Electra. It's not unheard of historically, and Carillon could make sure the kid is treated well. He's precocious, but he's nine. He can probably be reached. But this is a generational saga, and we can't very well cut off our plotlines by acting like rational people. Ugh.

Carillon gets tired of trying to intimidate a child and tells him that he'll send him back to Atvia. This surprises Alaric. Carillon also adds a demand:

I studied the boy again. “Tell him also that twice a year Homanan ships shall call at Rondule. Upon those ships Osric shall place tribute to Homana. If you wish continued freedom from Homana, my young lordling, you will pay the tribute.” I paused. “You may tell him also that should he ever come against me in the field, I will slay him.”

Rowan has the same thought that I do: wouldn't it be better to keep Alaric as a hostage? Carillon agrees, but Alaric is just a boy. Rowan says that he thought this kind of thing was pretty common. But Carillon is principled:

“I will not take his childhood from him.” I shivered in the cold dampness of the chamber. “Osric is already wed. He will get himself sons soon enough; Alaric will lose his value. Since I doubt Osric has any intention of coming so soon against Homana, I lose nothing by letting Alaric go.”

I mean, Carillon's probably not wrong about Osric getting sons. (Though Carillon himself doesn't have any sons.) But still, it's not like he HAS to mistreat the kid. And it's not like Alaric will have much of a childhood with an older brother who's already willing to sacrifice him to the lion's den. (pun intended). So why not keep the kid, give him an actual childhood, maybe get him to be friends with your own heir, and then when you (or Donal) inevitably have to face Osric on the battlefield, you can replace him with someone much more friendly.

Rowan asks, what if Alaric comes to fight when he reaches manhood. Carillon will deal with that in the future. Rowan also asks, what of Osric himself? Sixteen is neither child nor man.

That's kind of rich when Alix was SEVENTEEN during Shapechangers. And Rowan himself was eighteen or nineteen at the start of this book. But double standards are double standards.

Anyway, if it were Osric, Carillon would have put him in chains to humble him. But Carillon is a realist. If Osric is anything like his father, he won't be coming to surrender. They'll be meeting on the battlefield.

Soon they're interrupted by a guard, who says that a Cheysuli boy who claims himself kin to Carillon is here. He has a wolf and a falcon. Carillon is delighted, but notes that Donal should have his mother here too. The guard says that there isn't one. The kid is alone, and appears to have been treated harshly.

Oh no. I remember this plot development. And honestly, it seems unnecessarily tacked on. I feel like the real story ended when Carillon sent Electra away. But we need to force a final confrontation with Tynstar, which means putting a character at stake who's barely even been in this book.

I went past him at once and to the entry chamber. There I saw a falcon perched upon a candlerack with all the wicks unlighted. The wolf stood close to Donal, shoring up one leg. Donal’s black hair was disheveled and his face was pinched with deprivation. Bruises ringed his throat.

He saw me and stared, his eyes going wide, and I realized what he saw. Not the man he had known. “Donal,” I said, and then he knew me, and came running across the floor.

“They have taken my jehana—” His voice shook badly. He shut his eyes a moment, blocking out the tears, and tried to speak again. “They have taken her…and slain Torrin in the croft!”

Oh no. Torrin! I didn't remember this! You deserved better!

This is maybe the one part of the book where I'm glad I read Shapechangers, because I DO care about Alix. When I read this book first, I wasn't nearly as invested in Alix's fate. She's had all but two scenes.

I swore, though I kept it to myself. Donal pressed himself against me, hanging onto my doublet, and I wanted nothing more than to lift him into my arms. But I did not. I know something of Cheysuli pride, even in the young.

I set one hand to the back of his head as he tucked it under my chin. I thought, suddenly, of Aislinn, wondering what she would think of him when she was old enough to know. This boy would be my heir.

a) Aw. I like paternal Carillon.

b) While I understand the necessity of betrothing your daughter, I still feel like you could be less...you about it.

He brings Donal to a warmer chamber and sits the poor kid on his lap. He has Rowan pour the boy a swallow or two of wine. Donal tells the story: basically he and Alix were coming here, but since there was no rush, they stopped at the croft first. Men came, and they were initially respectful and shared their wine. It was drugged from the sound of it, and when both Torrin and Alix were unconscious, they slit Torrin's throat.

Damn. The one decent adult man in Shapechangers.

So anyway, they took Alix away and tried to take Donal too. And of course, they're taking them to Tynstar.

His face screwed up with concentration and confusion. “I did not understand. They spoke among themselves and I could make no sense of it. They said Tynstar wanted the seed of the prophecy—me!—and my jehana for a woman. A woman to use in place of the one he lost to you.” Donal stared up at me. “But why does he want my jehana?”

“Gods—” I shut my eyes, seeing Alix in Tynstar’s hands. No doubt he would repay me for sending Electra to the Crystal Isle. No doubt he would use Alix badly. They had opposed each other before.

...I think what happened here is that Ms. Roberson realized that, given Duncan and Finn's behavior in Shapechangers, and Carillon's here, Tynstar was actually looking like the better romantic option. I mean, Electra seems to be his willing companion. She gets youth and powers out of the deal. (It's possible that what Electra told Carillon was true, but it's just as possible that he was only telling him what he wanted to hear. She's clearly his willing partner NOW.)

So we're going to enter into the Ihlini are pretty much just depraved rapists narrative thread. To distinguish him from our heroic rapists, I guess.

Donal explains how he won free. The soldiers had assumed he was a helpless child and figured the lir were just pets. Taj and Lorn stayed in the shadows and followed. They taught him how to take lir shape. It's too early, but he had to.

This alarms Carillon, who has seen both Alix and Finn after having shapechanged too often. It messes with people. Donal seems to have weathered through it. Unfortunately, Carillon has to tell him that Duncan isn't back yet. But Carillon will help rescue Alix.

Later, he and Donal are looking at maps of Caledon and the Steppes. Carillon is telling the boy about a battle that he and Finn had been in.

“How long did the battle take?”

“A day and a night. But it was only one of many battles. The plainsmen fight differently than the Homanans—Finn and I had to learn new methods.” Well, I had; Finn’s methods were highly adaptable and required no reorganization.

I excerpted this just for the Finn mention. Ahem.

There's a nice exchange where Donal asks if he'll be fighting alongside Carillon like his uncle and father when he's made prince. Carillon says he's hoping to make peace, but if it comes to war, then yes. Likely with Osric. Maybe even Solinde, if the regency falls. We're told they're upset about Carillon's treatment of Electra.

Yeah, I'm still skeptical about that. If they were an actual threat, we'd have seen it by now. Besides, even the most die hard fanatic can't really judge a man for imprisoning a would be assassin.

Suddenly they're interrupted by Duncan's arrival. And seriously dude?? How long have you been waiting in the palace telling stories about your gay romance with Finn? Alix is kidnapped! It's not like you don't have a fucking army! You could have left a note so Duncan could have flown to catch up!

And of course, Carillon doesn't just jump up and say Alix has been kidnapped. He lets Donal do it:

“Jehan—oh jehan…why did you not come sooner? I was so afraid—”

“What have you to be afraid of?” Duncan was grinning. “Unless you fear for me, which is unnecessary. You see I am well enough.” He glanced at me across the top of his son’s dark head. “Carillon, there is—”

“Jehan—” Donal would not let him speak. “Jehan—will you go now? Will you go up across the river? Will you fetch her back?”

“Go where? Why? Fetch who back?” Duncan grinned and moved across the room to the nearest bench. He sat down with Donal in his lap, though the boy was too big to be held. It seemed odd to see Duncan so tolerant of such things; I knew the Cheysuli did not profess to love, and therefore the words were lacking in their language. And yet it was manifest in Duncan’s movements and voice as he sat down upon the bench. “Have you lost someone, small one?”

“Jehana,” Donal whispered, and I saw Duncan’s face go still.

Okay, this is mostly Carillon's fault for not immediately saying "Alix's been kidnapped, let's go." But I kind of love that Duncan just smiles and nods at his frantic, desperate, traumatized son. You are so fucking useless, Duncan.

So Carillon and Donal fill Duncan in, and Duncan asks Donal to wait at the palace. Good. I mean, I wouldn't put it past these idiots to bring an eight year old on a rescue mission. Honestly, right now, Donal's the most competent person in the room.

Okay, apparently Carillon wasn't COMPLETELY useless.

“Duncan.” I waited until he looked at me, coming out of his haze of shock. “I have spoken to your second-leader at the Keep…and the Homanans as well. We are prepared to go with you.”

“Go where?” he asked. “Do you know? Do you even know where she is?”

“I assumed the lir could find her.”

“The lir do not need to find her…I know where Alix is. I know what he means to do.” Duncan set Donal down and told him to take his lir and go. The boy protested, clearly frightened as well as offended, but Duncan made him go.

...okay? Good? What's with the drama here?

Essentially, Tynstar's taken her to Valgaard. His lair, which is high in the canyons of Solinde. It's actually pretty easy to find.

How do you KNOW this?!

Carillon says they need to go there, but Duncan is being all melodramatic still:

He swung around. One hand was on the hilt of his longknife; I saw how he wanted to shout, to bring down the walls, and yet he kept himself very quiet. It was eerie. It was the intensity I had seen so often in Finn, knowing to keep my distance. But this time, I could not.

“Valgaard houses the Gate,” he said in a clipped, hissing tone. “Do you know what you say you will do?” He shook his head. “No, you do not. You do not know the Gate.”

“I admit it. There are many things I do not know.”

...I like that line, I have to admit.

So anyway. The Gate is "Asar-Suti's Gate" and it's a Gate to "the Seker's world." I feel like these concepts maybe could have been introduced earlier than the last three or so chapters of this book. But anyway, we get an explanation.

Asar-Suti, or the Seker, is the god of the netherworld. He's the source of Ihlini power. Okay! This is actually interesting. And now we see the interrelation between Cheysuli and Ihlini a bit better. The Cheysuli have the gifts of the gods, and the Ihlini get power from their Satan figure.

Anyway, this is important because in Valgaard, Tynstar will share the god's power. Carillon thinks back to what Tynstar had done so far: corrupting the sword and turning the ruby black, stealing Homana from Shaine, murdering Bellam, aging Carillon, and wisely thinks that if he can do all that WITHOUT a god's power, what can he do now.

Anyway, Duncan can't ask Carillon to risk himself. But Carillon's going to:

“Alix risked herself for me when I lay shackled in Atvian iron.”

“Alix was not the Mujhar of Homana.”

“No.” I did not smile. “She carried the seed of the prophecy in her belly, and events can change events.”

I saw the shock of realization in his face. The risk he spoke of was real, but no greater than what Alix had faced. Had she died in my rescue, or somehow lost the child, the prophecy might have ended before it was begun.

...did you seriously never realize this, Duncan? And I love how the risk to Alix herself is completely secondary to the risk to her fetus. Gah.

Duncan accepts Carillon's help, and can offer him one thing: a powerful weapon: Electra miscarried her child.

Poor Electra. And with this note, the chapter ends.