[Dragaera] Verra's Plans (spoilers) & Vlad the Annoyed

[J C]

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Verra's Plans
 
 
So I was reading, and I was struck by what was said regarding Verra's involvement in the whole Burz thing.
 
Why DID she want to send him out there?  She obviously wanted *some* kind of change to occur.  I think it is relevent, though perhaps not explained, that the only priest we come across is a priest of Verra.
 
In Dragaera, Verra is a Really Powerful Person(tm).  Out East, she's a freaking GODDESS, and who cares about the demon part.  GODDESS.    Verra planted a seed in Vlad's mind impelling him to go out East to undergo some sort of transformation, or to experience some sort of revelation, etc.   I don't know that Vlad's appearance alone provoked the murder of an entire family.  I wouldn't put it past Verra's personality to incite the paranoia that was the motive for the whole clusterfrak that went down there.  But once more we see Vlad's introduction into a stable system resulting in near complete destruction of the status quo.  Vlad is a harbinger of death and destruction.  It is not only Vlad that is changed by his experiences, but also his environment.  Very well done, by the way, given the title of this novel.
 
If Verra incited the paranoia, that gives Vlad a(nother) reason to ultimately end up killing Verra.  Whatever he is, Vlad is NOT the kind of guy to forgive himself or others for the debts that he owes...not until they're paid in full.
 
I think the events in Burz made him particularly sensitive to people paying the price for the consequences of his choices in life.  As a result, upon his return, he is no longer willing to sit idly by while Teldra's soul is consumed by Goddiscombobulator. 
 
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Vlad the Annoyed
 
Take a look for a second at what kind of magick is involved there:  Vlad's proximity to a massive sea of amorphia, I imagine, helps some in what is, essentially, re-writing the workmanship that went into making a Great Weapon in the first place.  The Serioli made them, somehow, and no one has even an idea about hte mechanics of removing a would-be-inhabitant from the Pool of Usable Souls.  We only know that they exist to deprive the Gods of their ability to meddle in Dragaera's affairs.  Since Dragaera is the only known place of naturally occurring amorphia, I would postulate that the raw essence of Chaos had some part to play in the creation of the Serioli weapons.
 
Vlad's old soul is the agent that manipulates the programming of the blade to allow it to create a different program (if I may be so bold as to drastically advance technology levels for the sake of a metaphor).  He utilizes Chaos and probably Other Things to effect this change---but the reason he acts in the first place is, because, like a dragon soldier, he is tired of death.  In his particular case, he's tired of other people dying (sometimes unrevivifiably) for his real and perceived mistakes.  And the reason he's tired is because he's involved, by design or chance in events that make him sensitive to the pain of others, believe it or not, and also equipped with an extremely strong sense of justice.  Which is probably why Iorich is in the works next.  His reactions to things in Jhegaala makes for a nice logical sequence to step into a book concerned about Justice.
 
 
Jon
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