Bechimo
In which the Captain speaks to her guests.
I like how the Pathfinders remain cautious of Theo and the crew; it makes sense for their position, but an author might have fallen into the trap of forgetting that and letting them trust easily just because we know the crew to be trustworthy.
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Erob’s Hold
Practice Grounds
In which Nelirikk is introduced to his new compatriots.
It occurs to me I’d never given much thought to how old Nelirikk is. If he’s been shaving for 25 years, that would put him… about 40 years old? A few years older than Val Con and Miri, anyway. (Miri’s just turned 28 Standards, and Val Con’s in his early thirties. Nelirikk’s precise age remains uncertain, given lack of information regarding Yxtrang physical development and the exchange rate between Standards and Cycles.)
I don’t think I’d noticed quite so clearly in earlier readings how much leeway Nelirikk’s given in this chapter, what with being unlocked, unguarded, unescorted, and entrusted with weapons he could do a lot of damage with if he chose to. It makes sense, though; if Val Con’s right about him, he can be trusted to behave, and the only way to make progress with him is to show him that he is trusted. And if Val Con’s wrong, I suppose, better to find out as soon as possible.
The business with jin’Bardi is one of my favourite scenes in the novel.
Erob’s Hold
Freeze-Dry Prison
In which the Lytaxin Combined Forces gain a new recruit.
Val Con reporting Nelirikk as an example of a “potentially sapient race” is one of my favourite moments in a chapter with many excellent moments.
Incidentally, Val Con’s account of their first meeting confirms that he held the rank of captain before being promoted to commander, though that still seems to me backward from the way I’m used to seeing ranks work. Come to think of it, the same thing is visible this chapter with the mercs — Commander Carmody outranks Captain Robertson — but I don’t think I ever paid that much attention before because I figured a merc unit might use whatever ranks it likes, and it makes sense for Suzuki and Jase to be the Commanders when they’re the ones in command of the unit. For that matter, it’s been mentioned in the past that the individual in command of the Scouts is the Scout Commander, which is presumably different from being a scout with the rank of Commander. At this point, I’m about ready to just throw up my hands and go on to a less confusing subject.
The name of Nelirikk’s “toy”, the Shibjela, calls back (or forward, if one is reading in publication order) to a weapon called a “shib” that Jela carries in Crystal Soldier. The two weapons don’t actually seem very similar beyond being worn, contrary to their names, concealed in the belt; Jela’s shib is described as more like a whip, with a flexible ceramic cutting edge that can slice through bone. Perhaps it was the product of old technology since lost, or perhaps what was lost was a detailed description of what it actually was, and either way the Shibjela is somebody’s best attempt to recontruct it with the knowledge and technology available.
I did wonder briefly if the medic named Chen, who comes to attend to Nelirikk at the end of this chapter, was the same person as “Doc Tien”, who saw to him when he was first brought in, give or take someone’s attempt to pronounce a name from an unfamiliar culture. But Chen is male and Tien was female, so that’s unlikely.
I wonder what it says about the Yxtrang worldview that they have one God of Quartermasters but multiple Gods of Irony.