Solcintra
In which Cantra receives a message from Jela.
I’d wondered how much vel’Anbrek had figured out of what was going on, so it’s good to have that established.
Cantra hadn’t grasped how much Jela regarded her, and perhaps had been resisting letting it count for anything; there’s a bit in one of the earlier chapters where she reflects that he doesn’t really know her, only her Rimmer pilot facade. In that I think she underestimated him: we know he’d seen through the grumpy part of the facade to the motivation underneath; what else might he have seen?
vel’Anbrek? Yes, good point. I had wondered, too.
In this chapter, Cantra inherits several things from Jela: a huge ship, money (how much?), a personal letter written in secret code, and a gene map.
Focusing on Jela’s M-Strain gene map, Cantra thinks:
Well, the html code didn’t take. This code is not what I am familiar with using on Good Reads or Blogger.
Anyway: so it lost my quote, for prior comment. Here is what Cantra was thinking:
“Jela’s gene map. Deeps! A military secret, it had to be. Here she had the formula for producing her very own army of M-series soldiers, which Jela had wanted her to have. That bore thinking in, since Jela had reasons for what he did.”
If that’s not foreshadowing, I’ll eat my hat.
Ps. I loved his letter to her. 🙂
The gene map’s going to be useful much sooner than that; if Cantra’s going to have Jela’s son, having access to his father’s gene map will help avoid or mitigate any unpleasant surprises. (Though I don’t know if that’s why Jela did it, since he didn’t seem to believe Rool Tiazan or the tree any of the times they told him about that development.)
(What the tag list under the comment box is assuming you know already is that HTML tags come in pairs, and the affected text goes between the paired tags instead of inside a tag. If you want to quote something, the markup is:
<blockquote cite="source of quote">Actual text of quote.</blockquote>)Thanks for the HTML lesson.
So, do you think the gene map will play any role in the upcoming books?
Maybe? I don’t really have an opinion. Except that I’m pretty sure it won’t be used to bring Jela back; the gene map could in principle be used to produce a Series soldier genetically identical to Jela, but he wouldn’t be the same person Jela was.
No, of course not the same person as Jela. Unless Tree gets involved. Then, all bets are off (but I do not really expect that to happen).
Either way, a troop of soldiers or an incarnation of Jela, it would be an interesting plot twist, and a nice way to link the opening migration duology to the final books.
Cantra is busy trying to ensure that nobody falls under her spell (of pheromones) that she can’t consider being highly regarded. That’s how I read it.
Late addition: The other thing that’s done by this explanation of what vel’Anbrek knew is to further reduce my confidence that Prime tay’Palin would have been of help if he’d lived. After the first time I read this book, I thought of him as “the one who recognised Jela as a Series M soldier”, but on this re-read it’s become apparent that he’s more accurately “the one who recognised Jela as a Series M soldier and didn’t have the sense to not immediately say so out loud“.
Cantra has worked so hard, for so long, to avoid human entanglements and emotions. How difficult it is for her to acknowledge, even to herself, how important Jela was to her; how much she is grieving. Despite all her care and stand-offish manners, she continues to be pulled in by others – by Dulsey, who understands and grieves with her, by Tor An, who, despite being young, is perspicacious indeed, and by Liad dea’Syl, who places the burden of saving the universe squarely upon her shoulders in such a respectful and complimentary way. That and Wellik stlil isn’t letting her leave.
And then there’s Jela, who apologizes for altering the course of her life without giving her a choice in the matter and then goes on to alter it yet more by telling her she’s carrying the war on from here. Poor Cantra!
Late to the party: Dulsey, who understands and grieves with her
Dulsey, and all of Uncle’s “children” (all clones of him perhaps?) ought to be carrying a staggering load of guilt for their part in calling the sheriekas to Vanehald…as they themselves know very well. The Enemy was coming anyway, but it was Dulsey and the others who “woke up” the Old War tech in the mines, allowing it to network and create a “transpatial gate” to get troops there immediately.
I was amused to observe that Scholar dea’Syl was conscious of Cantra’s use of her pheromones: did her best to radiate patient, weary politeness…”You must tell me someday why your line was edited, Pilot.”
I think Jela’s gene map may now be a moot point, since the Pathfinders brought actual DNA samples with them from the Old Universe.
@ Gene map
not necessarily. We don’t know if the map has been used in all that time or not. Personally I think Korval did use it to control its own genes. That is making sure that certain of those M-genes stayed in Korvals makeup. Obviously enough of those M-Soldier trades have survived in Daav that Hevelin still pics out the resemblance.
And just look how many houses were obsessed with gene-maps. Reading those was a skill most clan members had some skill in. So Jelas map gives an explanation about how this cultural trend became part of Liaden culture.
Othin: That is making sure that certain of those M-genes stayed in Korval’s makeup. Obviously enough of those M-Soldier traits have survived in Daav that Hevelin still picks out the resemblance.
Hadn’t thought of that . . . good point!