Dutiful Passage
In which Padi makes connections and Shan receives news from home.
The looper families Shan mentions are among those who have appeared or been mentioned in the Jethri-era stories: the Smiths were the first family to have norbears travelling with them, the Tragers were friendly with Jethri’s family, and the Wildes did that ill-fated bit of experimenting with Old Tech.
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In which Rys awakens.
It seems that Silain’s guest is Rys Lin pen’Chala, agent of the Department of the Interior last seen heading for the warehouse district, where he apparently found something other than the safe hidey-hole he was looking for. He’s lost enough of his memory to be unsure where he is or how he got here, enough apparently to have lost the memory of working for the Department, but doesn’t seem to have lost all of his Department indoctrination with it – at least, assuming that his terror of Korval is an artifact of the Department and not part of either of the more peaceful-seeming life times he remembered as he woke. (And the irony is, it wasn’t Korval who left him broken-bodied on the doorstep of the Bedel; Korval would have tried to prevent it.)
Miri does Delm Korval really well for someone who’s come to it so recently and had little chance to practice. (Or is that true? It’s been nearly a year now since she and Val Con became delm, and they probably had to work it quite a bit during the Korval’s last few months on Liad.) In any case, we’ve seen people who’ve been delm longer than she’s been alive who don’t do it nearly so well.
I wonder what it says about me that I listen the story of Riva and what I think is: Okay, so horse twelve lost very thoroughly – but, just out of interest, how did horse seven do?
In which Syl Vor has been reviewing the forms.
Of course the corollary of asking Syl Vor to make sure someone knows where he’s going is that it allows for judgement as to whether someone ought to go with him. Wandering around the grounds is one thing, but a boy his age really shouldn’t go into a place like Surebleak city on his own, even if he does have a knife and a gun with him and some idea how to use them.
It occurs to me to wonder whether Syl Vor was deliberately trying to avoid adult oversight for his trip. I don’t think so, since he’s making an obvious effort to do the thing right, so I think it’s just what he says, that he didn’t want to be a nuisance by interrupting anyone, and hasn’t entirely grasped the idea that it wouldn’t be such a nuisance alongside the possibility of him getting in serious trouble on his own. (At least, I don’t think he’s consciously avoiding people – but on the other hand, he does show some uncertainty that he’s doing the right thing, and there’s a thing people sometimes do where if they suspect they’re going about something wrong they unconsciously steer clear of anyone who might tell them so.)
In which the pattern of the future becomes clear.
It is sometimes easy to forget just how rich and influential Clan Korval is. The authors generally do a good job of putting them up against problems that can’t be solved by throwing money and influence at them. And then there are moments like this, when Daav casually prevents a cruise liner from leaving port without fear of the consequences. (Though I’m not entirely sure I admire the way he shrugs off the problems he’s creating for the port master.)
Master Healer Kestra is an interesting viewpoint character, able to see under the surface of things and report details that might not have been visible from any other view.
I love each and every one of Shan’s interjections in this chapter.
Day 139
Standard Year 1118
Irikwae
In which Jethri is here to learn trade and mountains.
It’s interesting that Norn ven’Deelin speaks of this as “coming home”, and makes one wonder how she would characterize returning to the house of her own clan on Liad.
Meicha and Miandra have something going on: they’re able to pick Jethri’s emotions out of his head – but perhaps not yet able to not do it, given their reactions when Jethri starts panicking (and I wonder if Ren Lar was picking up on that when he suggested it was time to end the meal). “Healer Hall has taken an interest in them”. The Delm is firm that they are not, however, dramliz – but something about the way it’s said makes me wonder if that’s an objective judgement or if there’s a stigma being carefully avoided. (Also, I wonder what it is that tips Norn ven’Deelin off about them.)
The subject of Liadens considering it impolite to mop one’s face in public is one that we will return to in more detail at a later date.
I wonder if Flinx is named (not by the characters, obviously, but perhaps by the authors) after the protagonist of Alan Dean Foster’s series of young adult novels; I can see some similarities between that Flinx and our Jethri.
Master ven’Deelin’s mention of Korval in the parlor is the first time they’ve been mentioned since Crystal Dragon (and if memory serves it will be some time again before they’re next mentioned).
Jethri’s assessment of the parlor as “smallish – maybe the size of Master ven’Deelin’s office on Elthoria” shows that he’s made some adjustments in the time since he first saw that office: back then, he was struck by how large it was.
Incidentally, it’s been nearly exactly a relumma since then, which means that in depositing Jethri on Irikwae for two relumma, Master ven’Deelin is proposing that they will be apart for almost twice as long as the entire time they’ve known each other. I can see that being worrying even without the addition of a Spacer’s horror of being left stranded.
I have a feeling that when Master ven’Deelin remarks on how careful Jethri is of her honor, she’s very gently pulling his leg. He does genuinely want to avoid doing her disservice, and I’m sure she genuinely appreciates it, but she only really makes a point of it when he’s trying to invoke a desire to avoid shaming her to get out of doing something without straight out saying he doesn’t want to do it.
Which, as I said, doesn’t mean that they don’t genuinely care about each other, and I love the scenes in this chapter which show that care.