Tag Archives: Gilmour Agency

The Gate That Locks the Tree – Act 3, Scene 1

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In the Hall of the Mountain King
Enter Talizea, Miri, Jeeves, Val Con, the Tree, clowders of cats and kindles of kittens

In which the house is unsettled.

“In the Hall of the Mountain King” is the title of a famous piece of music by Edvard Grieg, originally written as incidental music for Henrik Ibsen’s play Peer Gynt. The relevant bit of the play tells how Peer Gynt visited the court of the Mountain King and formed a connection with one of the King’s daughters, not entirely to the satisfaction of anybody involved. The supernatural and inhuman Mountain King’s most famous moment has him proclaiming a philosophy of supreme selfishness that regards everyone and everything else as inconsequential.

…and I’ve said all this before on the blog, because Crystal Dragon used “In the Hall of the Mountain Kings” as a chapter title when it had a sequence set in the domain of the Great Enemy. To have the same metaphor now applied to Jelaza Kazone is, to say the least, disconcerting.
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Accepting the Lance – Chapter 88

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On the Road

In which Emissary Twelve appreciates flowers.

Even while Boss Surebleak stirs up trouble, life goes on. Somebody said, earlier in the book: that’s the only way to do it. You have to keeping planning for life After.
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Accepting the Lance – Chapter 56

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Jelaza Kazone
The Tree Court

In which Emissary Twelve is making rapid progress.

The authors are playing with the timeline a bit in order to spread characters’ scenes out, I think. It’s unlikely that Miri’s last scene (showing the beginning of a long afternoon at the office) took place after Val Con’s last scene, which ended with him getting the message to come to the Tree Court — unless he took a very relaxed stroll from the outer garden to the Tree. Or perhaps I’m underestimating how long the conversation at the Tree takes; after all, a Turtle is capable of some impressive pauses for thought.

Accepting the Lance – Chapter 55

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Surebleak Port
Office of the Road Boss

In which people want to talk about voting.

I wonder if the editor of the newspaper is the same printer on Conrad’s turf who started up the first newssheet after his arrival. If so, she seems to have taken to it pretty well.
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Accepting the Lance – Chapter 44

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Port Road
Surebleak

In which Val Con and Miri go house-hunting.

So, Val Con went to tell Pat Rin what was up while Miri Robertson went to tell the portmaster. Makes sense.
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Accepting the Lance – Chapter 37

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Bechimo

In which it’s time to call in the professionals.

I’m amused by the bit where Theo compares the current gathering to a faculty meeting.

If Bechimo does decide to pursue, as a long-term project, the question of how many devices from the old universe are still wandering around in the new, that might provide a reason beyond personal preference for the two Pathfinders to rejoin the crew.

Accepting the Lance – Chapter 35

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Blair Road
Boss Conrad’s House

In which Mrs kaz’Ineo has an idea.

The mention of the Gilmour Agency’s human resources manual as a recent acquisition places this chapter not long after the opening scene of “Block Party”, in which Luzeal had just made the discovery, although perhaps not after the entire story, which covers a period of several weeks.
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Accepting the Lance – Chapter 34

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Blair Road
Boss Conrad’s House

In which Boss Conrad has breakfast.

Pat Rin’s conversation with Cheever reminds me of the old days when they were still getting used to each other. Apparently Pat Rin is still capable of surprising him.
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Accepting the Lance – Chapter 32

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Surebleak Port
Portmaster’s Office

In which Team Leader Kasveini has her limits.

The idea that social change on Surebleak works from the bottom up, by improving the lives of the people at the bottom of the heap, was a major theme of Dragon in Exile. Part of it was that, as seen again in the Road Boss’s meeting here, it’s harder for the Old Ways to come back if everyone knows they’re better off under the new ways.

Dragon in Exile also saw the origin of Kareen and Kamele’s project collating the historical documents of Surebleak.

Accepting the Lance – Chapter 31

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Blair Road

In which the entire Council of Bosses meets to discuss the situation.

Most of the bosses we’ve already met get at least a word in at this meeting. Bosses Marriott, Engles and Torin make their first appearances here, though all have been mentioned before.
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