This is from the introduction to Chapter One:
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To see him true, even to this day, one must look in darkness. Or close one's eyes to slits in brightest sunlight. Glance askance, or focus on all but the stone itself. Of all the gifts Father Shadow has given his children, this one talent stands tallest. Look away to see. Trust in it, and you will be led into Shadow. Where all truths hide . Look away to see .
Is this entity later explained in the book? Presumably it is connected to the Tiste Edur as it contemplates Father Shadow's gifts.
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Trembling, Trull forced himself to step forward, shifting his spear into a two-handed grip, the iron blade hovering above the corpse. 'He is not for you,' he said, his throat suddenly parched and strangely tight. The eyes glowed brighter for a moment as the white-skinned apparition glanced up at Trull. 'Tiste Edur, do you know me?' Trull nodded. 'The ghost of darkness. The Betrayer.' A yellow and black grin. Trull flinched as it drew a step closer and then settled to a crouch on the other side of the leaves. 'Begone from here, ghost,' the Edur said. 'Or you will do what?' 'Sound the alarm.' 'How? Your voice is but a whisper now. Your throat is clenched. You struggle to breathe. Is it betrayal that strangles you, Edur? Never mind. I have wandered far, and have no desire to wear this man's armour.' It straightened. 'Move back, warrior, if you wish to draw breath.' Trull held himself where he was. The air hissed its way down his constricted throat, and he could feel his limbs weakening. 'Well, cowardice was never a flaw among the Edur. Have it your way, then.' The figure turned and walked towards the forest edge. Blessed lungful of air, then another. Head spinning, Trull planted his spear and leaned on it. 'Wait!' The Betrayer halted, faced him once more. 'This – this has never happened before. The vigil—' 'Contested only by hungry earth spirits.' The Betrayer nodded. 'Or, even more pathetic, by the spirits of uprooted Blackwoods, sinking into the flesh to do … what? Nothing, just as they did in life. There are myriad forces in this world, Tiste Edur, and the majority of them are weak.'
Why is Silchas Ruin inspecting the body of the dead Edur?What does Trull mean by - "this has never happened before" - what has not happened before? Are the Blackwood spirits trying to take control of the Edur's body?
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With this sorcery, they turned Darkness in upon itself with a hunger none who came too close could defy, an all-devouring hunger that fed first and foremost upon itself.' His voice was strangely muted as he spoke. 'Kaschan sorcery was sent into the warren of Mother Dark, like a plague. Thus was sealed the gate from Kurald Galain to every other realm. Thus was Mother Dark driven into the very core of the Abyss, witness to an endless swirl of light surrounding her – all that she would one day devour, until the last speck of matter vanishes into her. Annihilating Mother Dark.
Could anyone explain this in simpler terms? Why has she been driven to the Abyss from her own warren? What is this endless swirl of light that surrounds her and which she feels compelled to ingest like a goldfish?
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Gerun smiled up at him. 'Inform Nifadas and Kuru Qan that I am not unaware of the complexities wrought through the impending Great Meeting. Nor am I blind to the need to usher me out of the city for a time. I have, of course, compensated for my own absence, in anticipation of my triumphant return.'
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'He considers killing Buruk the Pale.' 'I believe so. The First Eunuch has been made aware of that possibility.' 'Now,' Nisall said, beginning to pace in the room, 'should the king be informed of this development, he might be inclined to withdraw Gerun from the delegation. Which will be perceived as a victory by the queen and the Chancellor.' 'Perceptions can be made integral to strategy,' Brys said. 'Spoken as a duellist,' Nisall said. 'But the advantages to the queen granted by Gerun's absence perhaps outweigh any advantage we might fashion.
Why is the King sending Gerun to the impending meeting with the Edur? The man is uncontrollable and unpredictable. Furthermore it is stated that if he were to be brought back to the city it would be seen as a victory by the Queen. I don't understand why this would be an advantage to the Queen? Is she in cahoots with Gerun? Gerun also wants to kill Baruk who is as far as I know being used to encourage war between the Letherii and Edur (Is this not why he suffers from guilt?). If this is the case then why does Gerun want to kill Baruk?
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But he had always believed the world itself was … unquestionable. Not static – never static – but capable of being understood. It was undoubtedly cruel at times, and deadly … but you could almost always see it coming . Creatures frozen in mid-leap. Frozen whilst standing, grasses hanging from their mouths. This was beyond comprehension. Sorcery. It must have been . Even then, the power seemed unimaginable, for it was a tenet that the world and all that lived on it possessed a natural resistance to magic. Self-evident, else mages and gods would have reshaped and probably destroyed the balance of all things long ago. Thus, the land would resist. The beasts that dwelt upon it would resist. The flow of air, the seep of water, the growing plants and the droning insects – all would resist. Yet they failed .
What is Udinaas babbling about? From what I have read magic is pretty effective at killing things outright unless you have otataral.
And most important of all..
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Propitiation was aversion, a prayer to pass unnoticed, to escape untaken. Blood before the bow, dolphins dancing to starboard and a gob of spit to ride blessed winds. The left hand scrubs, the right hand dries. Wind widdershins on the cleats, sun-bleached rags tied to the sea-anchor’s
What the hell are wind widdershins!?
This post has been edited by AbysmalSpreadsheet: 12 March 2016 - 05:36 PM