Coldfire re-read: Crown of Shadows - prologue

[carmentalis.livejournal.com]

We're back! Join us for the ride through the prologue of Crown of Shadows where we get to see the Hunter's idea of time spent with the family, a slightly unlikely hand-picked heir and Calesta's beginnings of plotting revenge for that irritating thwarting of his plans in WTNF.


Plot Summary

Andrys Tarrant, winer, diner and womanizer extraordinaire (though with some recent hang-ups) comes home late at night once again. The reason why no-one is complaining about it to him is that the Tarrant family's personal nemesis has recently slaughtered his entire family and left him as the sole survivor, with the expectation that he'll go on and continue the line, and bloody well remember that no-one is supposed to call themselves Neocount of Merentha, which does seem a little like overkill - it's a good thing that a certain priest hasn't heard yet about this particular hobby of Tarrant's.

In this moment of weakness, Calesta - who may have recently brushed up on Faust pops in and offers Andrys a deal: vengeance in exchange for a bit of cooperation. And for the sake of the plot and possibly because he's not the smartest cookie in the bag, Andrys agrees to it.



Quotes

• While he was in town he could pretend that nothing was wrong - wining and dining and womanizing with a vengeance, forcing his flesh into that accustomed mode as if somehow the spirit could be forced to follow suit - but when he came to the castle gate all his illusions dissolved like smoke, and he was left with nothing. Absolutely nothing. The emptiness inside him was so vast that no woman's caress could begin to fill it, the memories so horrible that no amount of alcohol could ever dull their impact.



• They'd had such strength in them, all of his family ... all except Andrys. The playboy. The gambler. The black sheep of the family. Why had he alone been spared? Why was it that on that terrible night when his family had been slaughtered, he alone had been allowed to survive?



• He looked up at the portraits of the other Survivors - seven of them, whose names and dates he had learned like a catechism in his youth - and shivered. Seven men who had survived the death of their families, and lived to renew the family line.



• Don't kid yourself, he thought bitterly. There's nothing of value in you, and he knows it.



• "I am the first - and only - Neocount of Merentha."



• "The first Neocount is dead," he gasped. "Dead!" Nine hundred years in the grave, he wanted to say. To shout. But the words wouldn't come out.
  "Hardly," the figure responded. "But that was the story your father preferred, and so it passed for truth in your schooling. The illustrious Reginal Tarrant! He thought that if he kept you ignorant he might somehow make you safe." The shadowed head turned to the side briefly as it gazed upon Samiel's ruined head, then back again. "It didn't work, of course. It never does."



• "The firstborn has always known the truth. That was one of the conditions I set for this family, when I first decided to let the line continue. And when he placed the coronet of this county on his head, when he laid claim to the title that wasn't his to take, he knew what the price of that would be."



• "I gave this family life," the figure pronounced acidly. "And I dictated the conditions under which it would be permitted to endure. I spared your ancestor when it would have been just as easy to kill him, not out of human compassion but because I was curious to see what the descendants of my blood might accomplish. And so I left you my lands, my keep, my wealth, my library - whose true value is beyond your imagining - all these things and more, a treasury beyond measurement. Only two things were forbidden to you . .. and one of those you insist on claiming. Eight times now." A sweep of one black-cloaked arm encompassed the carnage. "Consider this a reminder."



• Illuminating a face so like his own that he screamed, he screamed, he started screaming and he couldn't stop, because suddenly he understood - he understood - he knew what kind of dark vanity might drive a man to murder his entire family except the one child who was most like him, knew it without being able to put a name to it, knew it even though his soul burned from the understanding of it.



• And from somewhere he dredged up a prayer of protection, that he muttered under his breath as he retrieved his glass and launched it at the demon thing, as hard as he could. Willing the creature to respond to him, in the way that the faeborn so often responded to members of his family.



• "He'll never kill you. Human life is cheap to him, but killing you would mean destroying his family line – forever - and he would never do that to one of his own creations. No, Andrys Tarrant, you're the one man on this planet that he won't ever kill. That's why I need you."



• And it occurred to him that maybe with demonic help he could get the bastard who'd slaughtered his family, could make him pay ... but not with a quick death, oh no. Nor with simple pain. With something equivalent to what he had done to Andrys - some slow, living death that would rot away his soul until there was nothing left but a core of despair, stripped of all its pride and its vanity and its strength and its power and all its hope. He pictured the proud Neocount of Merentha made helpless by his actions, assigned to a living hell by the force of his hatred, and felt something stir inside him that had been dead for too long. Purpose. Direction. Hope.



• He wanted the feeling of purpose back. He wanted it back so badly he could taste it. He would have traded his soul to have it again... and the demon wasn't asking for that, was he? Only for his assistance in ridding the world of a murderer. In cleansing the Tarrant name once and for all.



• "I can call it off," he said at last. "Whenever I want. When I say it's over, you go and leave me alone. Agreed?"

Thoughts

• I'm so excited that we finally start with CoS - it's my favourite in the trilogy, and I can't wait to get into the discussions.



• Why is Andrys still in the castle? There no longer are any servants, it seems to be in disrepair, and he's clearly not looking forward to spending any time there. He's got the money for his wining, dining and womanizing, so surely he can afford someplace else?



• That the first few Survivors didn't think the warnings and prohibitions still applied is thinkable, but nine centuries and seven family massacres later, you'd think that they'd stop trying to claim what even Andrys thinks of as "just a title." They know the background, so why take that risk? They had all the wealth, land and influence already, and the nobility doesn't seem to play a big role anymore at this point in Ernan history.



• I have to echo Andrys in wondering why he got picked. The looks are one thing, but character is quite another. It's beyond obvious by now that appearance matters a lot to Gerald, but does it really matter enough to give it preference over other talents and traits he prides in himself, like intelligence and ambition?



• For someone who's got backup plans in place wherever possible, pruning the family tree down to a single branch every time they go against his rules seems like a huge gamble. What if Andrys, or any other Survivor, hadn't had children? With that sort of trauma it might easily have happened. I'm inclined to think that Gerald squirrelled away the odd baby every few generations to create an off-site backup, just in case.



• Is it really the title, or the defiance of his rules that drives him to go on a killing spree? And for that matter, what's the second thing that's forbidden to the Tarrants? I don't think it ever gets mentioned (I've looked for it), so do you have any speculations on this?



• So the Tarrants are attractive to demons. I wonder if they hope to strike a similar deal with one of them as Karril did with Gerald.



• Even though Calesta told the Unnamed about Gerald's transgressions in WTNF, he's still finding it necessary to rope Andrys into helping with his plans. At this point, when so many other things haven't happened yet, it's much more an attack on a personal level than really a secondary plot to attack the Hunter. You'd think that someone set to conquer the planet would have other priorities.



• How does Calesta know about the importance of Andrys, anyway, and that Gerald would never harm him? It was a big plot point in WTNF that Gerald kept his plans from Damien because Damien's mind might be read by Calesta while Gerald's thoughts wouldn't be touched. Any ideas?



• This looks out far ahead towards the end of the book, but I find it quite ironic to see that Andrys wishes for the Hunter to experience a living death, without strength, power and all he has now.



On Thursday we continue with chapters 1 and 2, in which Damien writes letters about what he did on his holiday. I hope you'll join us!

Comments

[etrangere.livejournal.com]

And for that matter, what's the second thing that's forbidden to the Tarrants?
Isn't it to stay tied to the Church?

How does Calesta know about the importance of Andrys, anyway, and that Gerald would never harm him? It was a big plot point in WTNF that Gerald kept his plans from Damien because Damien's mind might be read by Calesta while Gerald's thoughts wouldn't be touched. Any ideas?
I think he did some research on Tarrant's background, and made an educated guess.

[trobadora]

Isn't it to stay tied to the Church?

That's how I remember it, too!

[etrangere.livejournal.com]

there seems to be a consensus :)

[carmentalis.livejournal.com]

Isn't it to stay tied to the Church?

Um. That was my interpretation of it for my fic universe, but I never found any real basis for it in the book.

I think he did some research on Tarrant's background, and made an educated guess.

It's just such a convoluted plot he comes up with, with so many wild shots and guesses, that it's always seemed odd to me.

[etrangere.livejournal.com]

His plan is convoluted, but I would think Andry's value for Tarrant is pretty obvious. Take Tarrant's reason for refusing to ally with the Undying Prince in WTNF + the fact his slaughtered what's left of his family several times but always left one guy to continue the lineage, and it becomes obvious Tarrant would probably avoid killing Andrys at all cost.

[carmentalis.livejournal.com]

Andrys has value, but without the entire rest of the plot (which goes from convoluted to million-to-one chance pretty quickly) it's such a petty little thing. Convert Andrys to a demon henchman... it's a way to get to Tarrant, but Calesta must have had better options rather than waste his time on this.

[etrangere.livejournal.com]

I didn't exactly have the impression Calesta wasted a lot of time on him, and he also used him as a source of energy. I think first he grasped Andrys as a possible tool, and after a while, once he could oversee all the tools he had at his disposition against Tarrant, he formulated his convoluted plan. He did have a full year to do so, with the length of the boat trip back home.

[carmentalis.livejournal.com]

Good point, I missed that year. So he'd have had time to invest some hours in Andrys... I just still don't really get the "why". It could have been so much easier, and Andrys is atypical prey compared to the Master of Lema and the Undying Prince. It's a change in Calesta's MO, and with what happened in WTNF, I'd expect him to take more immediate action.

Then again, he does thrive on torture and slowly tormenting people, so that might just be a way of whetting his appetite.

[prettyarbitrary.livejournal.com]

It also comes up that Andrys basically gets a free pass through the Forest due to genetics. For somebody/thing good at reading the fae, that might be noticeable, which would make Andrys both entertaining and useful.

[carmentalis.livejournal.com]

I'm sure it's entertaining for Calesta. But there must have been an easier way to get rid of the Hunter. Like having him fail to notice a sunrise. Simple and straightforward, not a plan of Blofeld-ian proportions that's bound to fail.

[prettyarbitrary.livejournal.com]

Well...but does Calesta really care? I mean, from what we see of him, he's so arrogant he doesn't seem to believe Damien and Tarrant really can stop him, so it might be less about dealing with his enemies and more about entertaining himself by tormenting them.

[carmentalis.livejournal.com]

I think it just bugs me to see him not having his priorities straight. First conquer the world, then toy with leftover enemies.

[prettyarbitrary.livejournal.com]

Yes, Calesta is a sloppy bad guy. He's all hyped on the sadism angle, but he's not really thinking things through. You know, I suspect it really was the Prince's plan first, and Calesta decided to just keep going with it for his own sake? Calesta seems like kind of a flake to me, to be honest, the kind of villain who's got a will for power but not the organizational skills.

[alice_montrose]

Ah, and I have just the icon for this occasion! XD

You know, I always did love the way BSR and COS began with an Evil Gerald scene. (Possibly because I love Evil Gerald...) Though Andrys still gets on my nerves. I have always suspected both him and Calesta (and their interaction) to be merely convenient plot devices meant to wrap up the trilogy. Which is why COS is the book with the most plot holes, IMO.

I think Andrys got picked because Gerald cares more about his genetic experiments than we are led to believe. And yes, he is bound to have a backup branch of the family, well away from the main branch and oblivious to their heritage.

The second forbidden thing is probably giving up their religion. It's mentioned further on that the Tarrants have always been faithful supporters of the Church of Unification. I always get the odd plot bunny about some of the massacres being not about claiming the Neocount title, but about beginning to worship another god.

[carmentalis.livejournal.com]

*grin* The icon is perfect for this moment.

Evil Gerald must be appreciated. He's so relaxing to read about especially after boring family occasions.

With the CoS plotholes I always try to ignore them and read it as a Thelma and Louise road movie instead. Who cares about the plot, it's about the individual moments! Although CoS is the one time where we get a second major plotline... only it really couldn't stand well on its own.

Experimenting with genetics, definitely, but I'd have thought he'd look for brains and character rather than mere looks. Cleanliness, perhaps. *g* Andrys is just such an obviously bad choice, and apparently was so even before.

The "keeping the faith" bit is there towards the end when Andrys and Narilka marry, I remember that much, and there are some random mentionings in the Patriarch bits. But it's never named as the second forbidden thing. Who knows, it might just as well be "don't eat spinach on weekends".

(Though I do like your interpretation of Gerald smiting the faithless in righteous indignation. "You will worship my religion, not something else! And pray for the Prophet while you're at it!" Like his personal little prayer wheels.

[alice_montrose]

Evil Gerald must be appreciated. He's so relaxing to read about [...]

Relaxing to write about too, if I remember correctly. *smirks, nudges*

Smiting Gerald is bound to be made of win. Likely he makes his minions convert as well, since they're worshipping the Prophet anyway. Except for Amoril, who has an inferiority complex and an obvious desire to be something well beyond his brain capacity.

[carmentalis.livejournal.com]

Bloodshed is always fun to write. The best way ever to vent without actually going to jail for it. ;-)

The minions are an interesting thought. He's got his chapel in the Keep, so the infrastructure would be there... and you're right, he'd go for the sort of person who's of his religion. He looks down too much on any Iezu worshippers to want to have someone like that around.

Amoril... I'm thinking Gerald was experimenting too much with his beer when that one came along.

[fyrie.livejournal.com]

so why take that risk?

I think I should point out here who it is he's related to ;) You can't say that Tarrant himself doesn't take ridiculous risks, for good and bad, and always teetering on the brink of what could be his damnation :D

[carmentalis.livejournal.com]

Ah, so the recklessness is hereditary. *G* Though Gerald probably would become annoyed by teh continued stupidity of it all - you'd expect lab mice to figure it out after the fourth or fifth attempt!

Though on the other hand, given that he hangs on to that title way past sense or reason, he may even approve the ambition.

[alice_montrose]

Well, Gerald does like to play with coldfire... ^_~

[ladyphoenix9]

I think Calesta might have engineered the Andrys situation mainly as a backup plan in case the Unnamed didn't come through. It ties in well with his plot to undermine the Church on the "home continent" that was mentioned at the end of WTNF, so it isn't a total surprise. And he's probably hoping either one or both of the Tarrants bite the dust from the confrontation, so he really had nothing to lose by goading him down this path. (Plus there's a lot of suffering to be had from Andrys. I'm sure he's tasty. ^_^)

[carmentalis.livejournal.com]

What bugs me about the Andrys situation is how much effort it takes, for a quite uncertain outcome. Killing off the Hunter would have been easy - just make him miss a sunrise, especially while he's unaware that there's someone gunning for him so immediately. And the Church goes on a crusade because of the whole issue, which does a lot to strengthen and reunite them. Maybe if Calesta had succeeded with the Patriarch it would make more sense, but Andrys is such a poor tool for it all.

Andrys, tasty? He's so... bland. ;-)

[ladyphoenix9]

Haha, only tasty in the sense if you poke him you're guaranteed an emotional breakdown and lots of demon food. He's tiring to normal humans. ;)

Maybe Calesta prefers to make deals with the mentally unstable because they're more malleable, like the Master of Lema -- I got the impression Calesta was running that show. Not so much with the Prince. Calesta was still doing his thing behind the scenes, but he had to be a little more circumspect, I suppose.

[fragorl.livejournal.com]

I thought the whole Andrys thing was more Calesta playing mindgames with idiot than actually a serious stab at Gerald - mainly cos the instance of Andrys actually killing him - not likely - at least not unless his already half dead etc... and even then I somehow think Gerald might have invested enough in living that he might break the rules a little bit in most situations...(I mean did he actually give his word NOT to kill a fairly worthless family member) and I guess its all a bit reliant on the rest of the stuff happening as well - although it is interesting that Calesta's really clever plan does seem to hinge around Gerald knowing how to destroy him and getting pretty close to doing it...
I thought he probably didnt keep religious servants just cos of that comment in BSR - its been a long time since I tasted the blood of a priest - for some reason I always equated that with Amoril but could be totally wrong there.... Also I think Damien and the Patriarch pretty much demonstrate how most religious types react to Hunter...

[carmentalis.livejournal.com]

I just can't make sense of what Calesta is doing, or rather, what motivates him. If it's just mindgames to bother either of the Tarrants, it's a huge waste of time when he's out to make the world his playground (or torture dungeon, rather). If it's a plan to get to Gerald and either ruin his power base or outright kill him, then there would be much easier ways for it.

Hm. I doubt he'd go for a priest or anything similar, they'd be too firmly rooted in some of the dogmae and that would just irritate him. But someone with a religious background, who believes in the Church's religion... with some careful re-education, they could be made to believe in Gerald's version. After all, a lot of changes are in the details - it's a bit like Catholics, Protestants and Orthodox.

[fragorl.livejournal.com]

o god I just got this image of Jehova's witness types of Erna visiting the Cathedral to tell the Patriarch about how hunting beautiful young women was actually beneficial to Gods plan... *banishes image*

[silver-ariane.livejournal.com]

I haven't reread this since the first time through the series! So all I remember is evil Gerald, which isn't a bad thing. I'm actually with Calesta here, that Gerald spared Andrys because he wouldn't be a threat later -- he could break him once and he'd stay broken (and that's true, from what we see). Maybe he overshot the mark on the whole breaking bit, but I imagine when Gerald indulges himself in some serious evil he gets on a roll.

As for Andrys... well, my mother taught me if you don't have anything nice to say, don't say anything at all. ;)

[carmentalis.livejournal.com]

What makes me wonder about the wisdom of leaving Andrys as the sole survivor is his lifestyle and his apparent impotence. Not something you'd look for in your sole breeding specimen!

[prettyarbitrary.livejournal.com]

It's probably not so much that Andrys is innately stupid as that he's a drugged-up burnout. Maybe Tarrant figured that when he found the time, he'd come around to implement a forced detox?

[carmentalis.livejournal.com]

Tarrant as a therapist. That's worse on the mental front than getting House as a doctor!

[prettyarbitrary.livejournal.com]

*laugh* But only barely!

I dunno, something tells me that Tarrant's bedside manner is probably better.

[carmentalis.livejournal.com]

I dunno, something tells me that Tarrant's bedside manner is probably better.

I'm not sure - he manages to be quite subtly insulting when he gets the opportunity. And he's only remotely nice whenever Damien is practically unconscious. ;-)

[prettyarbitrary.livejournal.com]

*laugh* But that's still better than House, who's overtly and barbarically insulting at every opportunity and doesn't let unconsciousness, critical illness, or lack of presence stop him.

I don't think Tarrant's a better guy, but I have to say he's a more polite one. XD But just thinking about the comparison is wildly entertaining.

[carmentalis.livejournal.com]

One thing in favour of House is that he picks better minions. ;-)

But really, they'd be amazing partners in crime. Tarrant already enjoys Damien's snark, he'd get ten times as much from House.