Minot Station
Transient Crew Cabins
In which Rig Tranza receives a letter from Theo.
That’s a nicely worded description from Win Ton of how he ended up on the crew. I particularly like “the universe placed me on the deck of the ship she commands now”, which sounds unexceptional if you don’t know the backstory.
Mayko Ikari is one of the highest-ranking members of House Hugglelans, which is reason enough for her to be involved in the present tangle, but her involvement is all the same what you might call a noteworthy coincidence.
In Saltation, Mayko tried to lock Theo into a long-term contract with Hugglelans before she graduated from her apprenticeship with Rig Tranza. Rig insisted on the honourable sequence being graduation first, then contract, with the result that Theo was free to take a job with the Uncle instead and Hugglelans lost a fine pilot whose education they’d invested in. It might have been felt that Balance was required.
If Rig’s services are no longer to be required by Hugglelans, it’s possible he might end up shipping out on Bechimo. Somehow I don’t see him signing on as crew, though; it doesn’t strike me as his kind of scene.
This is one of several times when the authors mention how Win Ton feels about Theo from the very first.
“She is my captain now because when I first met her I was … captivated. … Nor would I have it otherwise.”
The characters and I believe most readers take this to just mean some kind of emotional attraction.
But I can’t help asking myself if there is something more going on. Especially after Seignur Veeoni’s comment on the Luck. I wonder if some of Theo’s luck (either when they first meet or later when Win Ton visited Theo at Anlingdin Piloting Academy) gravitated to Win Ton (and thusly he felt captivated). That Luck could then have slept until he met Bechimo.
Involving the Luck in Win Tons waking of Bechimo isn’t necessary, of course. But I think it would fit nicely in there. And Anthora who has met Theo hasn’t yet met Bechimo or Win Ton and therefor no opportunity to check their Luck status.
Even if Win Ton doesn’t have any of Theo’s luck – he might have some of his own.
And Bechimo surely is infected now that he has bonded with Theo. I don’t think the luck could have stayed away.
PA: It might have been felt that Balance was required.
That would make sense. But for some reason I took Rig’s explanation—“a bit of a tiff with that boss”—as an understatement indicating something more serious. Maybe not though. What is the length of time since Theo declined the Hugglelans contract Mayko offered her?
Ah, Rig isn’t Mayko’s employee, he is her father’s employee. And the contract Mayko offered to him and Theo, while formally needed because of the political changes on Eleyot, also signified a political change within Hugglelans – at least that regional part of Hugglelans that is under Mayko’s control.
I at least wonder if that signifies a general change within Hugglelans originating with Mayko’s father or a part of the younger generation leadership rebelling against the old. And if the head of Hugglelans is informed of everything or kept in the dark.
If Rigs situation is Mayko’s balancing against him than could be summed up with one of Pat Rin’s statements about a balance that might be legitimate but not acceptable. To me it speaks louder of Mayko’s melanti than anyone else’s.