Tag Archives: Arin’s Toss

Ghost Ship – Chapter 36

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Emerald Casino
Surebleak Port
Surebleak

In which Theo lifts.

One wonders what the Uncle knows about Clarence O’Berin, and whether his approval is a good or a bad sign.

The Uncle’s appearance has changed a bit since Theo saw him last. One change that’s pointed out is that his beard has grown (when she first met him, he had only “a sketch of a beard”); in addition to that, the earring he’s now wearing is interesting because last time it was mentioned that he didn’t have an earring but had a tendency to fiddle with the side of his head as if he was used to have one and was missing it. Given the rumours about the Uncle, one might wonder if Theo had caught him when he’d recently had to shift to a new body — and if so, what he’d been up to that cost him the old one.

He’s also packing away the wine in a hurry, but who can say if that’s significant?

Ghost Ship – Chapter 35

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Runcible System
Daglyte Seam

In which preparations are made for departure.

This is the first time in a while we’ve had a viewpoint looking at Theo with a fresh eye, and possibly the clearest description we’ve had of the appearance that had people warning her about her “attitude” back at the Academy. It’s interesting how some things are far more apparent to an outside viewpoint than from behind her eyes. (Like when her viewpoint says she “felt a flicker of irritation” and his says she “looked black death”.)

It’s also intriguing to have Clarence imply that her father has a similar attitude, since we’ve pretty much always seen him through his own eyes or the eyes of others who are familiar with him or at least with his family. Now I think of it, though, I can think of a few moments which support the point.

Ghost Ship – Chapter 30

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Boss Vine’s Turf
Surebleak

In which Theo is offered a trade route and a seed pod.

One advantage of re-reading is that when you know where the story’s going, it can be easier to make out what the foreshadowing is trying to tell you. For instance: Here is Clarence, who’s made himself unpopular enough that somebody came to shoot at him, and probably hasn’t helped his case much by being so unobliging as to shoot the person who came to shoot him. Might be he’ll soon be in a situation where a job that takes him offworld for a longish while will be just the thing he needs.

And Clarence’s visitor is interesting: Seems to have known him from when he was working on Liad, and got on the wrong side of him then. An independent operator, not a fellow Juntava, is my impression. It’s not just Korval’s friends who are making the trip to try their luck in the new land of opportunity.

Ghost Ship – Chapter 25

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Surebleak Port
Surebleak

In which Theo has luncheon with the Reform Boss of Surebleak.

Theo makes a good point well when she asks if Bechimo is really a starship. A certain amount of caution is understandable given Bechimo‘s history, but a pilot’s life is never exactly going to be safe. There are always risks, and you need to engage with them sensibly, but above all if you want to get anywhere you need to engage with them. It’s a big part of what pilots are saying when they say “the usual rules apply”. (For all the rules the Builders gave Bechimo, he doesn’t seem to have gotten that one. Maybe that was something he was expected to pick up from his captain and crew.)

Another data point for the question of whether Pat Rin looks like Val Con, supporting the idea that the resemblance is most striking if one is not expecting it.

Ghost Ship – Chapter 24

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Jelaza Kazone
Surebleak

In which Delm Korval receives a letter.

It feels a bit weird, having spent the last while reading short stories, to come back to a chapter that’s only six pages long and doesn’t have a proper beginning or ending. Which is, no doubt, one of the reasons that sensible people don’t take breaks in the middle of novels to read short stories.

I find myself sidetracked by the mention of Kareen moving back into the rooms she once occupied, which apparently haven’t been put to any new purpose since. The same was said about Daav’s rooms a few chapters back, but it’s actually more impressive in Kareen’s case; she left Jelaza Kazone years before Daav did, even if she didn’t go so far as to leave Liad entirely. (Come to think of it, the fact that a yos’Phelium made her home away from Jelaza Kazone says something in itself about Kareen’s relationship with the clan.) I suppose that the house has enough rooms, and few enough occupants, that it’s possible for rooms to be kept as Father’s Room and Great-Aunt’s Room and so on, until every room is occupied by either a warm body or a memory, by which time some of the memories might be faded enough to be displaced by the next warm body to come along.

Ghost Ship – Chapter 23

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Bechimo

In which Theo and Bechimo come to an agreement.

It’s a good thing for Theo (and, as she reminds us, Win Ton) that Bechimo agreed with her reasons for venturing out into the dangerous universe again. There doesn’t seem like there’s much she could have done if he hadn’t.

One hundred twenty-six years is a long time to be waiting in an empty patch of space with nobody to keep one company. Though perhaps, when it comes down to it, not that much worse than the other three hundred plus years spent waiting in more occupied patches of space with nobody to keep one company. When we get reminded how long Bechimo‘s been waiting for Captain and crew, the wonder is maybe that he’s not even less well-adjusted than he is. It’s probably a testament to how much care the Builders put into adjusting him in the first place.

Tomorrow: “Hidden Resources”, then “Kin Ties”, “Code of Honor”, then back to chapter 24.

Ghost Ship – Chapter 22

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Bechimo

In which Bechimo has doubts.

There are some interesting details about Bechimo‘s background in this chapter. The Builders clearly gave some thought to the question of what might happen if the AI running their more-or-less autonomous ship, with full control over the airlocks and life support systems and all, turned out to be the kind of AI that sci-fi horror movies have warned us about.

Also, we get what I think is the first mention of Bechimo‘s preferred gender.

Ghost Ship – Chapter 21

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Bechimo

In which Theo has a few things to say about Bechimo‘s priorities.

Interesting that Uncle is on Bechimo‘s Disallowed List, when he told Theo he saw the ship when it was under construction. Did he start out working with the Builders, and do something that caused a falling-out? Or maybe the Builders already didn’t like him, and he only got to see the under-construction Bechimo briefly and had to sneak in to do it. (Either way, it might be support for the idea that Uncle’s shipyard in Trade Secret isn’t the yard that produced Bechimo, but a later attempt by Uncle to replicate the achievement.)

Because I need to imagine it looking like something, and because it seems appropriately science-fictional, I always picture Bechimo‘s discovery looking like the Utah teapot.

Ghost Ship – Chapter 20

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Bechimo

In which Theo has questions for Bechimo.

Yes, Theo, all of the above. Good luck with that.

Theo’s dubious, but we know from the prequels that it is possible in this setting for ships to travel from another universe into this – though not easy, which may explain why Bechimo‘s discoveries are always in pieces. Or, since Bechimo‘s also correct about the catastrophic event, it could be that they were in pieces already when they left their original universe.

Ghost Ship – Chapter 18

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Blair Road
Surebleak

In which Theo and Bechimo start getting to know one another.

Theo’s question to herself – “Who would have given you aid just now?” – isn’t exactly a strong counterargument to the idea that Win Ton would have done better to let sleeping Bechimos lie. If Win Ton hadn’t gotten himself and her tangled up with Bechimo and thus with the Uncle, Theo wouldn’t have been on Tokeo being shot at in the first place.

The Department’s analysts once again misjudge Korval by assuming it has similar motivations to the Department, and underestimating the degree to which Val Con has been making it up as he goes along. I also think she’s overestimating the importance of Natesa’s marriage in the Juntavas’ motivation; it was a personal decision, not a formal alliance, Terrans don’t necessarily put as much weight on marriage ties as Liadens do, and frankly the Juntavas have perfectly good reasons for considering the Department a threat entirely on their own account.

I don’t know if it means anything except that the authors want to keep the text flowing, but I’m pretty sure this is the first time anyone in the Department has accorded Vandar’s population the dignity of referring to their world by its local name instead of by its catalogue number.

Moonstruck was reported in Plan B as the location of Tactical Defense Pod 78. We haven’t yet been told anything else about it.