Roving Gambler

In which Quin yos’Phelium finds occupation.

Oh, so that’s what a nerligig does.

It strikes me that “Roving Gambler” is very much about what the Code calls “proper conduct”. It’s full of people facing the question of what would be the correct thing to do in the circumstance, and as like as not finding that it’s not an easy question on a world like Surebleak, which is continually being challenged on what answers it did have. The kinds range from small domestic questions involving a father and his son to big policy issues involving the Boss of Bosses (and in classic melant’i fashion, the extreme ends of the spectrum involve the same people wearing different hats).

Korval has it particularly bad, as Pat Rin points out at the end, because they’re used to living on Liad and having the Code to consult on questions like this, but now they’re on Surebleak and the answers are different. (Something that’s foreshadowed all the way through the story, as Quin keeps finding moments where proper Liaden behaviour doesn’t quite fit the circumstance.) I’m not surprised that it was Kareen who’s been given the job of figuring out their situation; if anybody knows about proper conduct, it’s her. It’s interesting, though, that she’s specifically stated to have been ordered by the Delms to study the question: Is that just them putting an official stamp on the enterprise, or did they find that she was unwilling to get started?

I suppose if there’s any course of study that might help prepare one for running a planet, Generalist might be it. It’s been a while since we’ve encountered a professional Generalist; I’m pretty sure the last one was Quin’s many-times-grandfather Jela.

On the question of Surebleak’s seasons, I find this story inconclusive; all we hear about the weather is that it’s recently turned good after a long bad stretch, which doesn’t say much on a planet with weather like Surebleak’s, and anyway it’s not clear precisely how long after Ghost Ship it takes place, so there’d be no way of comparing.


Tomorrow: “The Rifle’s First Wife”

17 thoughts on “Roving Gambler

  1. Paul A. Post author

    I didn’t mention taxis, because the only one mentioned is the one that takes Quin to the Emerald, and I figured that didn’t tell us anything about how many there were total, but on reflection I think the fact that Luken refers to “Jemie’s Cab Service” instead of “Jemie’s Taxi” might suggest that this is after Jemie’s cab service expanded beyond a single taxi and driver.

  2. Othin

    @Kareen new duty
    The way Pat Rin explains it Kareen has not only been tasked with study but also the authority to advocate if necessary.

    To me that gives Kareen as a specialist a melanti that might trump the Delms melanti. So of course the Delm has to give an official order.

  3. Ed8r

    Agreed with Othin. I don’t see Kareen as being unwilling, in fact I wouldn’t be surprised if she’d already begun such a work just by being who she is, but also being who she is, she would recognize how extremely presumptuous it would have been if she’d made it a “project” without having been appointed and given the authority by the Delm.

  4. Skip

    Yes, agreed. And I think Kareen might even be feeling truly useful to her clan for the first time ever. Recall she was a failure as a pilot. A failure as a mother —her small son removed from her care. A failure as a sister to Daav — nothing but antagonism there. A failure in choosing a best friend and lover — he tried to subvert her to the Department. Her judgment in choosing to honor the Council over her own clan didn’t pan out, either, since the council chose to banish her…So now, finally, she gets to shine in her own right as the very best person for this weighty task. Very good for her!

    I liked this story for some of the small insights we get…like shooting under Tree with Nelirikk and Cheaver, or Luken spending time with Audrey…or Cheaver finally getting his ship back, LucyBug.

    I thought the game of piket against the Scout was overdone — describing every play — it just went on too long and was quite boring. To me. But a full house having a Delm and a qe’andra was clever.??️?

    Some things have me puzzled. In Neogenesis, we are trying to get the survey team to upgrade the port. Yes?? So how does this excerpt fit in???

    Pat Rin, to Quin: In addition to having the Port recertified and also — by the way, upgraded three levels — today we had arrivals. New in orbit today, brought by Surebleak’s fleet from deep storage, were three ships. One, named LucyBug, belongs to Cheever McFarland…”

    Also, I am puzzled that Quin is going to inherit the BIG BOSS position. Is that how it’s done on Surebleak, with the bosses in the other territories? I thought it was a meritocracy, where there’s merit in a fast draw?

  5. Othin

    @ Port upgrade
    I took the upgrade port quote as meaning they did the upgrade work that should yield the official recognition the of FCT. Like you do your company all ready for Din 9001 and still need it being certified.

    @ Heir
    As to Quin learning to be Boss – that’s the Clans way to teach your heir your trade. And if he is going to get really good as Boos aid he will get into or create a position to have Blair territory and Council of Bosses agree to him succeeding Pat Rin eventually. There is nothing in Surebleak customs to preventing someone to teach his/her heir to become one’s successor when the time is right.

    Also Surebleak is in urgent need to establish a system of succession that doesn’t hinge on some gun to shoot the current Boss.

  6. Othin

    @Quin and Luck
    I liked the description of how the Luck acted on Quin – especially when he got challenged to the dare. I’m not sure if that is the first time that we see how the Luck and Korval’s motto interact – aside from Jela.

    I liked Pat Rin’s comment of not wishing to play against Quin that day – while he is the Luck’s darling.

    Also noteworthy: Being bored or upset seems to allow Pat Rin and Quin to draw the Luck’s attention. But Quin still needed all his skill and had to be at his best.

  7. Skip

    Or it could be that the port authority and the FTC are different entities, each with their own certification demands. Or the authors forgot they wrote that…it is the only sentence in the entire story that mentions port certification. There’s also a very brief mention of Korval bringing a ship-station, but that wasn’t explained either.

    I know it’s good for the continued peace and prosperity of Surebleak, to ensure that some hard-ash tough doesn’t take over when Conrad dies, but…Is that what Korval wants? To create what amounts to a monarchy and a House of Lords — or Commons?

  8. Othin

    That would depend in no small part on what Lady Kareen finds out – wouldn’t it?
    For the Boss of Bosses to have some offworld experience too can only be counted as an advantage.

    As for a House of Lords? That’ll take it a bit too far – Bleakers love flat hierarchies. They also have a concept of responsibility for ones neighborhood as well as that someone who does a job well will keep it till someone who wants it more and/or does it better comes along. Bleakers might just bogart their Family Under Tree for Boss of Bosses – and thus claim them as their own. Bleakers certainly will not allow Korval to remain apart from them in the same way the Liaden High Houses insisted that Korval was among them but separate.

  9. Skip

    Far be it from me to say what ‘Bleakers want. My question remains…is that really what Korval wants? Quin certainly doesn’t aspire to be Boss.

    Val Con is a generalist, like Jela.

  10. Paul A. Post author

    I agree with Othin: Korval doesn’t know what it wants, and won’t until Kareen finishes her study, and in the mean time Pat Rin is defaulting to doing what Korval did on Liad, which was to prepare the son and heir to inherit his parent’s job. Maybe it won’t come to that, but if it does Quin will be ready.

  11. Ed8r

    I think Paul has put his finger on it. Korval is not insisting on trying to apply The Code to Surebleak or to its ‘Bleakers but rather has the wisdom to see that an entirely new system of interactions must be derived from both cultures. Meanwhile, even Tree seems to have some new ideas about adding to the clan…or will it now be a “family” now instead of strictly a clan?

    Was anyone else disappointed with the resolution of Quin’s dissatisfaction about not being included in the roster of pilots called to assist in the port upgrade? I found it very annoying that a little attention from his father and being handed a ship of his own was all it took for him to dismiss all of his anger. In fact, it was a little too much like a parent distracting a child from a tantrum by providing a shiny new toy. True that this particular new toy also represented a recognition of his skills, a trust in his judgment, and a release to pursue his own choice regarding his position in line to become Big Boss. Nevertheless, I found myself still wanting an explanation for why he was not included in the call for pilots to handle the port upgrade prep.

  12. Skip

    I noticed that, too, Ed8r. It was odd. Too much screen time on the game of piket and other games, and a hasty resolution between father and son. It made Quinseem desperate for his father’s attention and approval. I don’t see why Quin couldn’t help move ships, or at least be told about it. Why the secret?

    I have no prob with the socialization work that Kareen is doing. It’s a good thing on every level. It makes sense to let future changes to code or government rest until that’s resolved. It may take decades. Till then, they have Pat Rin and the council of bosses, which is fine.

    Korval wasn’t the king of Liad. They only had a seat on the council.

    I do — personally — have a problem with Quin automatically being dubbed the next Big Boss. Automatically…where was any discussion? Discussion with Bleakers and Korval, Scouts, Liaden emigrees? None. Not in any novel. It just popped into this story, done deal.

    I see that I’m alone in this perspective. It’s a personal gut feeling from this reader.

  13. Ed8r

    I’ve noticed that even the stories that are not rejected as anon, continuity can suffer. Maybe that’s what is actually happening here.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *