[Dragaera] The Desecrator (spoilers)

[Sean Whalen]

(spoilers)


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  I'd presume some of Nightslayer's powers involve fear, killing, and necromancy (and specifically recording the nature of beings whose souls it has examined (in the course of killing or being bonded to) then using these recordings to manipulate or imitate the original).  The illusions would then be beings that previously were alive and examined.  We've heard about animating the dead to serve and fight, so maybe its victims could be so used, also, when their bodies were still around.  If it was previously wielded by the Dragaeran whose image it used in order to fight by itself, then the tactics it used could have come from him (or a combination of those
 of all past wielders; possibly it can help its current wielder by providing him with all these past skills).  Hopefully the illusory creature was something it killed, and even more hopefully they are all extinct now.

  I don't know why the illusory creature was used (possibly in order to scare those who disturbed its sleep or keep them occupied while it came up to the surface) or why Telnan would think it needed a wielder to leave the cave and kill when it moved fine by itself (maybe it takes to much energy for this to be practical for long periods).

  Why would a Serioli create a sword that loves killing, hates the innocent, AND can wield itself?  There's no way that wouldn't come back to haunt him.  Maybe he wasn't brought up on the right kind of stories, but it seems like kneeling down and begging for trouble.  Presumably some of Nightslayer's personality is a result of its specific characteristics
 necessary for whatever it was meant to do, but even so, if you want to kill gods and already have Godslayer, maybe you'd think you could make do with 16 instead of 17 swords.

  Since the site was abandoned, and Nightslayer was asleep and buried after having been wielded by at least one Dragaeran, presumably the chronology went:  Nightslayer  made by some Serioli somewhere, (other events), Dragaeran bonds to Nightslayer, (other events), Dragaeran uses Nightslayer to attack Serioli in Kanefthali Mts., a Serioli with knowledge of Great Weapons uses magic to put Nightslayer to sleep (and kill its wielder?), (other events?), Serioli abandon site, (other events), Telnan finds Nightslayer (again?).

  If Telnan was destined to find Nightslayer again, he wielded it in a previous life, so he might have been the illusory Dragaeran in life.  If so, was this Dragaeran a member of a now-defunct House?  Perhaps Lion (to
 match appearance and be similar to his now-Dzur soul)?  If so, when did they go extinct if the site only goes back to the 2nd Cycle?  Perhaps the Great Weapons greatly extended their wielders lives (in exchange for victims (in some cases?)?) or some now-defunct Tribes (that, for whatever reason, chose not to join Kieron or were always distant geographically) existed beyond the boundaries of the Empire until it extended its boundaries through the Cycles (in that case some may exist in the ancestry of the people of the islands still unconquered by the Empire).

  Who did the Serioli (singular or plural?) intend to wield the Great Weapons?  What went wrong (since they're not being wielded by God-hating (allies of the) Serioli now?  If there were many Serioli champions chosen for being great warriors, I'd say that the Great Weapons seem much too large to be wielded by such small people (though the ability of one to change size
 and shape could imply the ability in the others (if not so greatly or quickly)).  If the Serioli now allied to the Jenoine made them, they could have been made appropriate sizes for the Jenoine all along (w/o the ability to change size and shape), since even the fairly small pre-Godslayer was used by one with no problems.

  Since Telnan said that a Morganti "that powerful" could destroy a soul with a scratch, presumably that means that at least the least powerful ones need a bigger wound (so that answers why both kinds would be useful (due to ease of concealment vs. ease of killing)).  We've also seen that a Morganti will stay "stuck" in a victim while killing or destroying a soul, so using a powerful one should keep any such hindrance very short or non-existent and so keep it from bothering someone who needs to continue fighting and would otherwise need to stop for a while then pull it out .

  When Telnan said the
 rough cave walls were as old as "really old things" I think he was planning to say "as old as (parts of?) Dzur Mountain" but didn't because he remembered Sethra had given instruction (as we do not see but are implied often, especially at the beginning of the story) not to mention things like that.  Specifically, perhaps she doesn't like speculation about the true nature of Dzur Mt., which would make her job more difficult (such as not telling Vlad what the device he noticed was for).  Alternately, Telnan himself might have gotten nervous remembering whatever part of Dzur Mt. it reminded him of, and he didn't want to recall or repeat to Sethra a bad memory.


  How can he pay half an Imperial in base 17?  Is this just a common approximation (usually 8 silver and 9 copper, or something)?


  How many directions involving finding rocks sticking up like teeth have we seen?

  The sword healed his heart but not the scratches from the calia bushes?


  Who do Serioli pray to (with prayer spinners) if they hate the gods?

  Why don't we ever find out the colors of the Hawk in any story?  Maybe black and brown?

  If, as he appears to presume, he was given the name "Telnan" because he became a student of Sethra's, why is it proper for him to identify himself as "Telnan of Ranler", etc?  Is he just following her instructions or has he changed his name to "Telnan"?  Is there anything in normal legal circumstances necessary for a noble to change his name other than actually calling himself by another name?

  When he says he enjoys being scared because it "- well, you know" it might mean Sethra already knows how it feels because she's half-Dzur, but it's not particularly important evidence compared to what we already know.